Chapter 17

After Luna had been out of the living room for a while, several reporters finally arrived at the mansion.

I led them to the living room.

The reporters seemed a bit hesitant, but since there were so many of them, I figured this room would be fine.

"Ah, it's a great honor to have you, Mr. Oliver, personally agree to our interview."

"Well, it's our duty to give interviews. Besides, I had something I wanted to talk about today."

"Something you wanted to talk about? That's very intriguing!"

"Hmm, there's no point in keeping it a secret, so I'll tell you right away. I've decided to replace one member of the party."

Then I told the reporters everything without holding back.

That Orun was an incompetent enchanter.

In his place, I welcomed Phyllis, who had been active in the Western Labyrinth.

We had reached the 94th floor with one member being a burden.

With this party, now free of its weakness, reaching the 95th floor, or even conquering the Southern Labyrinth, was not far off.

I told them everything.

"Ah, to hear such a story, tomorrow's front page is set! It's a done deal!"

"Yeah, report it widely."

The more widely it's reported, the more money we can get from the nobles.

After hearing this story, no noble will refuse to invest in me.

Then, we can buy magical tools that Orun said were a waste of money and didn't buy.

◇

Usually, we all eat dinner separately, but today we decided to have a meal together to welcome Phyllis.

We invited a famous chef from the city to cook for us.

At one point, the chef praised the kitchen, saying, "It's well-maintained despite being used every day!"

No one uses this kitchen, so why did the chef say such a meaningless thing?

Luna, of course, didn't abandon the welcome party.

She still doesn't seem to be in high spirits, but she might recover by tomorrow.

"Alright! Once again! Phyllis, welcome to the Hero Party! Looking forward to working with you! Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

"Thank you. I appreciate the effort to prepare such a fancy meal."

"No problem. The treasurer who was always nagging is gone, after all! Did you know? The ledger he managed? I saw the amount of money written on the paper, and it was so much that my eyes almost popped out!"

"That was surprising! He had so much money, yet he was so stingy! If you have money, you should use it, or it's a waste!"

Huh? The ledger?

I did entrust the management of money to Orun, but did we really have that much money?

Come to think of it, I don't even know how much savings we have.

"No, that was the money he kept for his personal use! It was a mistake to let him manage the money! It was right to kick him out! Our money could have been used without us knowing!"

"Um, isn't that the party's operational funds?"

Phyllis asked in response to Derrick's statement.

"Huh? Operational funds? We pay for what we need ourselves, don't we?"

"No, that's not what I mean. There are other expenses besides exploring the labyrinth, like the rent for this mansion."

"Oh, rent. I see. That does cost money. But if we have that much money, why not just buy this mansion? What do you think, Oliver? Should we buy this mansion? Since we'll be using it as our base for a while, we can always sell it if we need to!"

"Derrick, genius! Let's do it! Then we can use the remaining money as we please!"

"We'll think about that later. For now, let's focus on the immediate plan. Tomorrow is free, and I want to explore the 92nd floor the day after tomorrow."

I wanted to say we'd immediately tackle the 94th floor, but that would be too reckless.

We'll check our coordination on the 92nd floor, and if there are no issues, we'll tackle the 94th floor with full preparation.

"Huh? What are you being so soft for? We should go for the 94th floor!"

"Right! With Phyllis on board, reaching the 95th floor should be easy!"

"I understand your enthusiasm. But this is Phyllis's first time in the Southern Labyrinth. She hasn't explored the deeper levels before. I think we should check our coordination on a level we're familiar with, not a new one."

"True, Phyllis hasn't explored the deeper levels before."

"Right. Then let's follow Oliver's suggestion and explore the 92nd floor first."

"Everyone, I'm sorry for the trouble."

"Don't worry about it. We're a team. We're going to the 92nd floor because we're looking forward to Phyllis's contributions."

"I'm against it."

Just as we were about to reach a consensus, someone objected.

It was Luna, who had been frowning but hadn't spoken until now.

"You again! Don't disrupt the party!"

"Derrick, calm down. Why are you against it, Luna?"

"It's simple. I don't have a death wish."

Death wish?

It sounds like she's saying we'll die if we go to the 92nd floor.

"Luna, we won't die on the 92nd floor."

"…Why are you so sure?"

"We reached the 94th floor with Orun. Now we have Phyllis, who is a much better enchanter than Orun. With this lineup, our level will be much higher."

"I don't know Phyllis's capabilities."

That's right.

I told Luna that Phyllis joined today.

If I tell her about Phyllis's achievements, she might change her mind.

"She's an explorer who was active in the Western Labyrinth and reached the 100th floor."

"The 100th floor of the West… She must be an excellent enchanter. Did she belong to the Hero's party?"

The "Hero" is the nickname for the explorers who conquered the Western Labyrinth.

I don't know why they are called heroes.

"N-no, she was in a different party."

"I see. I understand that she is an excellent enchanter. —But I still oppose going to the 92nd floor."

How long will you cling to Orun's nonexistent fantasy!?

I wish you would face reality.

"Luna, this is a decision. I won't accept any refusal."

"Ah… I understand. …………It seems to be the end."

After Luna agreed, she whispered softly.

Probably only I, who was nearby, could hear it.

Yes, it's the end.

After tomorrow's exploration, she will understand how incompetent Orun was.

Then Luna will wake up.

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