The Fat Aristocrat Waltz in the Labyrinth - Chapter 72
Chapter 72: The fat aristocrat consults his friends
Without answering whether he would accept or not, Mitrof went up the labyrinth.
Blanc Manje said, “Please do so as soon as possible,” but the poison needle was just stuck in Mitrof’s arm. The needle of the paraponera is more frightening than the thorns of words.
After returning to the surface, he went straight to the healing institute for treatment. The healing institute is not just staffed with physicians and pharmacists, but also with priests, and the treatment one should receive varies depending on the severity of the injury. It is said that a skilled priest can even reattach severed limbs.
It is not free, of course, and the height of the accumulated gold and silver coins determines the weight of one’s life. If you do not have money, even a minor injury can lead to death. This is a fact that every adventurer faces.
If you asked a priest, Mitrof’s arm would be completely healed without any effort. Of course, he had no money, so he received treatment for the venom and ointment. However, the treatment itself was not cheap. Since the poison stinger had hit the bone, it seemed to take some time to heal completely.
If he asked the doctor, he would be advised not to bathe for a few days. When Mitrof insisted if a half-body bath would be okay, the doctor nodded in agreement.
As a result, he visited the bathhouse as usual, sat on the ledge of the tub while taking a half-body bath, and looked up at the ceiling. Grace called it “washing away the dirt of life with the bath.”
Mitrof thought that was exactly right. By taking off his heavy clothes, scrubbing away the mud and dirt, and soaking his body in hot water, his tiredness and worries seemed to melt away.
Taking a bath had become a habit for Mitrof to think things over. If he thought about it in the dimness full of steam, his troubles would be erased like steam. He couldn’t shake off the worry about money that was stuck in his head.
In Mitrof’s mind, the concern about money remained unresolved.
There had been no significant gains since entering the 11th floor. Even defeating paraponeras did not yield any income. On the contrary, it ended up poisoning him, and his household finances ended up in the red due to the cost of medicine and treatment.
He wanted to hurry up and blaze through, but he couldn’t push himself too hard in a party with only him and Canule. And even Canule would be gone by the end of the month, which was only a few days away.
‘It’s lonely when Canule is gone, but I probably don’t have the right to stop it,’ Mitrof sighed.
After Canule’s departure, the only option was to dive alone. Alternatively, he could join some party somewhere.
Whatever the case, he needed money to survive, and he had to find a way to earn it.
In that case, Blanc Manje’s request might be attractive. The reward was a bag of “amber”. Poisson, a merchant, had wanted it so badly. If he sold it to him, he would get a good price.
Even without Canule, he wouldn’t have trouble paying for living expenses for a while. He could stay in clean, spacious, and quiet inns. He wouldn’t have to suffer from stomach aches caused by unhygienic food from street stalls.
He wouldn’t have to wear rash-inducing worn-out clothes either.
If he had money, everything would come to him. He could solve what he was currently seeking if he had money.
When asked what “amber” was, Blanc Manje said, “It’s like sweet nectar.”
Mitrof thought it was a clever metaphor.
Insects gather around sweet nectar. People gather for “amber.”
“Oh, we finally meet!”
A cheerful voice echoed. Mitrof was looking at the ceiling, and someone splashed next to him.
“Hey, don’t ignore me!”
Then he finally realized that he was being talked to. When he turned his face in surprise, there was Mikel.
It has been since they met in front of the “Guardian’s” room. Mikel seemed to frequent this bathhouse, but it was often difficult to meet each other due to the disrupted lifestyle of adventurers.
“Sorry, I was just thinking.”
“What, do you have any problems?—You want to talk about it?
Mikel laughed lightly. His casual smile seemed to have the effect of making people’s hearts lighter, and Mitrof smiled wryly.
“It’s a problem, to be honest.”
“I don’t understand difficult talks, so don’t expect too much.”
“…No, let’s not. I don’t think I’m going to get any answers from you.”
That was Mitrof’s consideration. However, Mikel protruded his lips and raised his voice, saying, “Huh?!”
“Who said anything about getting an answer?—I said I would listen—just listen, that’s all!”
“…Just listen?”
Mitrof widened his eyes.
“Of course, you’re smarter than me, aren’t you?—Can I solve problems that you can’t figure out?—You can tell me.”
“Am I being praised honestly or insulted…?”
“I don’t know the answer, but I said I would listen to what you are troubled about—maybe it’ll make you feel a little better, right?”
Mitrof found Mikel’s proposal strange.
He had thought that consultations were meant to solve problems. Talk about the problem, listen to the problem, and even if the problem is not solved, you’ll feel better. Are there such things?
However, since Mikel was so confident, Mitrof decided to talk about what he had been thinking while tilting his head in confusion.
“I wanted to earn money.”
“Money, huh? Well, who wouldn’t want to earn some.”
“I received a request for a quest. If it goes well, I should be able to receive a good amount of money.”
“That sounds great—take the job.”
“Oh… yeah, that’s right.”
“What’s wrong? Is the client suspicious or something?—Is it a criminal case?”
“No, it’s not like that.”
“What kind of request is it?—A subjugation?”
“Yeah, it’s subjugation quest.”
“Is it worse than the red-eyed trolls?”
Given a comparison, Mitrof thought for a moment about how tough the dinoponera would be. It was an upper-class species of paraponera, undoubtedly a formidable enemy, but he didn’t think it would be as tough as the time he dealt with that enemy.
“No, not that far.”
“Hmm—then what’s bothering you?”
Asked why, Mitrof stuttered.
“…Why, I wonder?”
“What?—You don’t even know why you’re hesitating?”
Mikel, looking exasperated, scratched his head.
“I’m not sure why you’re hesitating so much, but for what purpose are you even diving into the labyrinth?”
“——For what purpose?”
“If you want to make money, you should take the quest, right?—Because it pays well.”
“I guess that’s true.”
“If you want excitement, you might decline—fighting weaker than a red-eyed troll seems boring.”
“…I see.”
“After all, since you haven’t decided what you want to do, why do you have to worry about every little thing?”
Mitrof felt as though lightning had struck him while he was in the hot spring. It seemed like he had touched the heart of the problem he had been wrestling with for some time.
“Mikel, have you decided what you want to do? Do you have any criteria for making decisions? Tell me.”
“Of course I have—whether it’s interesting or not, that’s it!”
Mikel stood up and declared with his arms crossed. His bare-naked standing posture was comical, yet he looked cool for some reason.
It might be because an unshakable pillar seemed to run through Mikel’s back.
Whether it’s interesting or not… that’s not the point. Mikel acts with conviction and does not let it waver. Mitrof thought that a supportive person like Mikel enabled him to make decisions and move forward without hesitation.
“…I don’t understand.”
Mitrof drooped his head listlessly.
“I don’t have that kind of conviction—I don’t know why I became an adventurer or why I delved into the labyrinth—I don’t have any guiding principles for making decisions.”
“Hey, what the hell… Don’t be so down.”
Mikel rubbed his cheeks in concern.
“You know, don’t you have things you want to do or things you find enjoyable? It’s your own thing, so others won’t understand—It’s that kind of thing.”
Mitrof groaned at the perfectly reasonable words.
“I’ve just been doing what I’ve been told to do all this time, so I don’t really know what I want to do or what I find enjoyable—the only thing I’ve chosen to do is eat.”
As a result, Mitrof’s body became remarkably heavy.
No matter how much he walked, fought, or sweated in the labyrinth, Mitrof ate based solely on his hunger. The act of eating protected his heart, and the time spent consuming food was time spent safeguarding his soul.
“Oh really?—Then why don’t you search for it?”
“Search?”
Mikel’s unimpressed response caused Mitrof to tilt his head.
“Don’t give me that round-eyed look—It’s easy.”
Mikel sat on the edge and sharply pointed at Mitrof’s face.
“You don’t know because you’ve never done it, right?—So just do it.”
“But, what should I do…?”
“Do what you want to do—you know, no one is ordering you to do anything anymore, right? So just decide for yourself.”
“Well, that’s true—but, how do I make that decision…?”
“Why not roll a dice?”
Mikel flippantly suggested while waving his hand.
“If you don’t do anything, you won’t know what you want to do—just decide if you’re going to do it or not, and eventually you’ll figure it out.”
As if it were philosophy, the problem circled around. He didn’t know what he wanted to do, but he knew that he had to do something to figure it out. He didn’t know how to decide what that something was, so he left the first step up to fate.
“Is it okay to be so throwaway…?”
Mikel slapped Mitrof’s shoulder, which still didn’t feel quite right. The sound of the slap was wet and resonant.
“If it doesn’t work out, you can always think about it again.”
Mikel’s upbeat attitude made an impression on Mitrof. His way of thinking about things was never something that Mitrof had considered before, where success and failure were both taken lightly.
“…Yeah, you’re right. Maybe, that’s just the way to do it.”
Mitrof nodded several times and pondered the words in his mind.
What he wanted to do…
He thought deeply about it. He would no longer be commanded by anyone. He no longer had to strive to meet someone’s expectations or disappoint himself for not meeting them. He no longer had to suffer in everyday life from not having anyone’s expectations of him.
He could make his own decisions. About himself.
Until now, Mitrof couldn’t fully understand this feeling. What does it mean?
However, for some reason, his arms and legs feel light. Heat spreads from his feet soaked in the hot water, warming his chest. In the bathhouse, Mitrof felt an indescribable feeling, as if his body would float up and turn into smoke.
He looked up at the ceiling. Yes, there is a ceiling here. Walls and floors surrounded him, but he wasn’t trapped.
He can leave anytime he wants, and entering is also free.
“I see, I have already decided.”
Small hints fell into place in his mind.
He chose to soak in the bathtub because he liked it. He chose to drink milk ale after his bath and to delve into the labyrinth.
Perhaps this was the moment when Mitrof truly felt “liberated.”
The world does not suddenly shine beautifully. He is not filled with omnipotence and overflowing power.
He seemed to have calmed down a bit. He could feel his feet on the ground. So, he thought he could just move his feet forward. It seemed like such a simple thing. He may not know whether it was easy or not, but he had the freedom to choose it.
“Mikel, thank you.”
“Hmm?—Did you figure something out?”
“Yeah. I like you, Mikel.”
“——Did you hit your head in the labyrinth or something?”