Chapter 5: I and Virtue
The Sun God sets.
At night, spirits take over as stars, illuminating the darkness with their faint light.
Their glow is weak, unable to pierce the terrifying night. People light magic stones taken from monsters to dispel the darkness, praying for the Sun God to rest and rise again as they fall asleep.
“Hey! Run faster! Get that magic power settled in your body!”
Even in the night, the training ground echoed with shouts. Ur wondered if the noise disturbed the neighbors.
“Hey! Don’t just lie there, you useless dog! Move it!”
“Yow!”
All of Ur and Shizuku’s peers had already dropped out. The beastman getting kicked by Glen was likely a new recruit. How long they would last was a question. Probably not even until the end of the day. Just as Ur predicted this, Glen noticed them.
“Hey, you’re back. Why did buying weapons take so long? Want to start running now?”
“Give me a break… Seriously.”
“Huh?”
Seeing how exhausted Ur and Shizuku were, Glen frowned.
“What, did you go exploring a labyrinth or something?”
“A special one, yeah… Glen, do you know a mage named Magica?”
At the mention of her name, Glen’s face contorted with annoyance.
“That no-good mage.”
“She’s called that by everyone… and I agree.”
Indeed, she was a troublesome woman. And the information she gave them was equally problematic.
Magica’s Residence
“There are two ways to defeat a strong golem. Oh, and by strong, I mean when you can’t directly target and destroy the Magic Core.”
Thanks to Shizuku’s persistence—or rather, persuasive nagging—Ur and Shizuku managed to get a reward from Magica. They were now confirming information about the Gem golem.
The Magic Core of the Dragon Fang Spear repair would be done after the blade repair by the Golden Hammer was completed. (Apparently, the spear’s “cannon” couldn’t be adjusted without knowing the state of the blade.)
“But how did you know about the Gem golem?”
“Because it became a subjugation event! Money and information are circulating wildly. Plenty of people besides me are investigating.”
“Even though the reward is ten gold coins? Still?”
Ten gold coins were indeed a substantial amount for Ur and Shizuku, but it was doubtful that a woman who owned land in the city would be so obsessed with that sum. Magica shrugged dismissively.
“A lot of merchants and even priests are running around for those ten gold coins. This festival moves more money than you can imagine.”
“I see.”
“However, no one else holds information at my level!”
“You excel not just as a technician, but in information warfare too.”
“Hohoho, praise me more!”
Magica laughed proudly at Shizuku’s compliment. Despite her tendency to exploit Ur and Shizuku’s labor through rather devious means, she was a cheerful woman.
“So, one way to defeat a golem like the Gem golem, which is resistant to physical attacks, is to put it into a berserk state.”
The word “berserk” made Ur recall the rampaging golem in the basement labyrinth, sending a shiver down his spine. Defeating a Gem golem in such a state?
“Wouldn’t that make it even more dangerous?”
“Of course it would.”
“Hey.”
Ur wanted to retort, but Magica silenced him with a wave of her hand.
“Berserk dolls have weakened structures. Their control mechanisms get blown away, so they rampage and eventually break down. You might be able to defeat them in that state.”
“Wait for them to self-destruct, then?”
“Well, labyrinth-born dolls last longer because the labyrinth supplies them with magic power, so self-destruction is rare.”
“After they weaken, we have to finish them off ourselves, right?”
The Magic Core’s position couldn’t be determined from the outside, but the control mechanism was always in the head, making it an easy target. This was true even for labyrinth-born dolls.
“Well, it’s a high-risk method, but it might work.”
If the golem was made of white or bronze, it could be deadly, Magica laughed gleefully.
“And the other way?”
“Make the golem complete its mission or render it impossible.”
“…What?”
It wasn’t an immediately understandable idea, and Ur tilted his head in confusion. Shizuku did the same. Magica laughed, seeing their puzzled expressions.
“It’s about why the Gem golem came to the upper floors.”
“What do you mean?”
Magica picked up a knife from the table and threw it into the corner of the room.
────ｏｏｏｏｏ……
A golem, which had been standing still, moved, picked up the knife, and put it back in its place.
“Dolls and golems act according to command scripts. Like, ‘clean the room’ or ‘repel unauthorized visitors.'”
“I see.”
“Labyrinth-born dolls follow something like a control script too, though it’s a bit different.”
“So, the Gem golem is acting under some command?”
“Exactly.”
While Magica explained, the golem returned to its original position and stood still.
“When they complete their role or it becomes impossible, they stop functioning. It’s like losing their purpose.”
“So, if we can make the Gem golem complete its role, we can create a huge opening?”
“Not just an opening, it might stop entirely. After completing its role, a golem becomes very fragile. Though labyrinth-born dolls often have ‘annihilate humanity’ as their purpose, so that doesn’t usually happen.”
If that was the purpose, it wouldn’t stop until humanity was extinct. But since Magica mentioned it—
“The Gem golem’s purpose isn’t that?”
“And you’ve figured it out?”
Ur and Shizuku’s questions were met with a smug smile from Magica.
“I investigated because its behavior was odd for a ‘humanity annihilation’ mission.”
No one else had dug this deep, she said proudly, placing a large crystal on the table. It was a memory crystal, a magical tool that recorded and displayed scenes.
“Here it is.”
“…What?”
“What is this?”
The image on the crystal was rough, but it showed the Gem golem. The giant, glittering golem was rampaging, trying to crush adventurers. Its terrifying figure was unmistakable.
But Ur couldn’t discern its “purpose” from the image. Puzzled, he looked at Magica, who pointed to the crystal.
“Look here, this─────”
When she clearly stated it, Ur still didn’t understand. But then,
“──No way.”
As the realization hit, Ur was shocked.
“Exactly, no way.”
He wanted to dismiss it as a joke, but Magica didn’t.
“Most of your rivals haven’t noticed this invaluable information yet. Good luck, newbie!”
As Ur struggled with the weight of the information, Magica laughed, thoroughly enjoying his confusion.
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Adventurers’ Guild Training Ground, First Floor, Lecture Room
“Indeed, its behavior was strange…”
Ur, recalling the information given by Magica, spoke with a serious tone. Yes, there had been moments that puzzled him.
During their battle with the Gem golem, it had abruptly stopped pursuing them and left. If its goal was the annihilation of humanity, its actions didn’t make sense. Ur knew this.
But he never imagined the golem’s purpose was what it turned out to be—yet the mystery was solved.
But as a result, a new problem emerged.
“Glenn… I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“If we defeat a ‘deactivated’ Gem golem, will the guild give us a bronze ring?”
“Unlikely.”
Yes, it’s unlikely.
The information about the Gem golem’s weakness that Magica provided was pretty definitive. If we could destroy “that,” the golem would immediately stop functioning and could be easily defeated.
Yes, easily defeated by anyone. And that’s the problem.
“Poking at a deactivated Gem golem isn’t enough for the Adventurers Guild to award us. At best, they might say, ‘You have a good chance of being promoted to bronze.'”
Of course, even that evaluation is significant. With steady activities as adventurers, we could soon reach a level where we’d be promoted to bronze.
But it’s not enough for an “immediate promotion.” Compared to directly confronting the threat of the Gem golem, it’s safer but valued less.
“Isn’t our information-gathering ability worth anything?”
Glenn snorted at Shizuku’s question.
“Sure, it is. The Adventurers Guild doesn’t only value reckless idiots… but in the end, the guild values violence the most.”
“Barbaric.”
“I think so too. Barbaric rookies.”
The guild’s evaluation criteria aren’t skewed. Whether it’s exploring labyrinths, reclaiming land from monsters, or protecting against thieves, adventurers need combat skills. It makes sense that the guild prioritizes it.
“But if that’s the case…”
“Glenn-sama.”
“Hm?”
Shizuku raised her hand and asked Glenn.
“What if we could defeat a rampaging Gem golem head-on? How would that be evaluated?”
“…”
“Shizuku, that’s…”
Ur tried to stop her, but couldn’t continue. Shizuku’s expression was too serious. Glenn, responding to her seriousness, answered with a glare.
“It wouldn’t be smart. But it would certainly demonstrate combat ability.”
“Which has a higher chance of earning a bronze rank?”
“The latter. At least, if I were the judge.”
“Ur-sama.”
Hearing this, Shizuku turned her gaze to Ur. He understood what she was getting at. And because he understood, he grimaced.
“We should choose the higher probability option.”
“Low risk, high return, or high risk, high return.”
Shizuku shook her head at Ur’s words.
“No. The risk is either equal or higher with Magica-sama’s plan.”
“We might die, you know? Isn’t it the opposite?”
“In this case, the risk means whether we can achieve our goal or not. Life or death is irrelevant.”
Shizuku stated firmly. Ur was speechless.
There were countless things he wanted to say. Shizuku’s opinion was too extreme. Life or death isn’t irrelevant. Yet, he couldn’t argue back.
Glenn had said that what Ur was trying to do wasn’t normal.
Ur was beginning to understand that. As Shizuku said, to do what he wanted, he had to face risks that could lead to death. In this situation, Shizuku’s extreme stance was correct, and Ur’s caution was wrong. Knowing this, he couldn’t refute her.
Even so, Ur couldn’t easily nod and say, “Alright, let’s do it.”
Living as a nameless wanderer, Ur had witnessed many deaths. He had even seen his parents die.
Death leaves nothing behind. Death is terrifying.
On his wandering journey, death was always nearby. Therefore, he understood its horror all too well. The natural fear of death made him hesitate, his voice trembled, and he couldn’t agree with Shizuku’s words.
“────”
Shizuku neither scorned nor pitied Ur’s hesitation. She just watched him silently.
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