The Fourth Girl Finally Discovers the Truth – Part 02

“Get away from the buildings!” Serika shouted. “They might collapse!”

The stone structures, not built to withstand earthquakes, posed a danger. But her voice was drowned out by the panic around them.

She had to do something. Just as she began to consider using magic, the earthquake abruptly stopped, as if it had never been.

“Huh?”

But that wasn’t just an illusion. Shop signs were swaying, and goods had spilled from carts.

“Wh-What was that?!”

“I don’t know, but I got a bad feeling about it.”

Sara’s intuition in moments like this usually proved right.

“Where’s Selyse right now?”

“I think she’s at some fancy hotel’s tea lounge. I’m going to check!”

“Please do!”

Silently Sara sprinted away, fast as the wind.

They didn’t know what had caused the earthquake, but it was clearly not normal. Rendezvousing was the best course of action.

I should get going too, Serika thought as she started walking. Maybe I can get some information from the Adventurers Guild.

“Hey, look!”

“Ugh.”

“What is that?!”

People around her were staring at the northern sky. Intrigued, Serika looked up herself.

“Huh.”

She froze in place. The mountain was moving. Not just moving, but ascending.

And soon, it lifted its entire mass into the sky.

It was an enormous island. There was no other way to describe it. Serika recognized some of the mountains and the valleys. The soil and bedrock were exposed.

“A floating island?!”

The massive landmass was slowly rising higher into the sky.

If Serika remembered correctly…

“Isn’t that the mountain where the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas was?!”

The very mountain she had explored just days ago was now hovering in the sky. She realized that this was the cause of the earlier earthquake. The dungeon had shaken the earth to fly into the sky.

“This is something straight out of a fairy tale!”

If she were alone, she would not have believed it was real, but everyone around her was witnessing it.

The Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas had taken flight into the sky.

---

The town was engulfed in chaos. Some people tried to flee while others shouted to gather information. Traffic was mayhem, with carriages stuck in the streets.

Knights, soldiers, and guards took to the streets, urging people to stay calm, but no one listened.

“A dungeon floating in the sky is just crazy,” Hikaru muttered.

At the same time, it wasn’t. Lifting such a massive object must have consumed an incredible amount of magical energy, enough that it could upset the balance of the world.

To make matters worse, keeping the dungeon afloat meant continuously consuming mana.

Hikaru was too far away to see anything but the movement of magicules in the atmosphere with his Mana Detection, but he could sense a large stream of energy. It seemed that the island was taking in magicules in the air to power itself both internally and externally.

“L-Lord Hikaru, what should we do?”

“First, let’s go to the Adventurers Guild. We need to learn more about the current situation.”

“Right!”

They removed their masks and moved in their adventurers’ attire. Using Stealth in the chaotic main streets would prevent people from perceiving them, resulting in collisions.

They arrived at the Adventurers Guild. Normally, this place was quiet and empty, but today it was jammed with people.

“Did the Adventurers Guild not know anything about that floating island?! Shit like that falls under the guild’s wheelhouse, not the Church.”

“Adventurers haven’t been taking on jobs at all lately. What’s going on?!”

It was only residents who crowded in; there were no adventurers.

“Um, I’ve been asking for an escort for two months already—ah!”

A timid-looking woman was bumped from behind by a man who just entered.

“This looks like a loaded guild.”

His scratched leather armor, the sword hanging from his waist, and the cloak clearly marked him as an adventurer.

When the six adventurers entered, the residents lit up.

“They might take care of the backlog of commissions.”

“I’ve never seen them before.”

“But they look pretty strong.”

Wearing smug looks, the adventurers casually approached the counter.

“So this is Agiapole’s guild. Oh, and the receptionists here are quite the beauty too.”

“Um, are you all adventurers?”

“Of course. We came all the way from Ponsonia’s capital. Rank D party, Blue Hawk Eyes.”

The murmurs grew louder. Meanwhile, Hikaru helped up the woman who had fallen on her backside.

“Are you all right?”

“Y-Yes. Thank you very much.”

“We’re heading back to Ponsonia soon.” The adventurer’s voice was loud. “Does anyone want to commission us?”

The residents raised their hands, wanting deliveries or letters to be sent. Some even requested escorts for merchant caravans.

“Blue Hawk Eyes! The main road is currently closed, so passing through won’t be easy,” a receptionist hurriedly explained.

Due to the appearance of the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas, demon-type monsters had overrun the area. As a precaution, the roads were temporarily closed, causing distress among the residents.

“Come on now, miss receptionist. We came here on a commission from the guild in the capital. We should be able to leave.”

“Well, yes, but… It’s dangerous.”

“Adventurers are all about eliminating danger. Just leave it to us. We’ll keep you safe.”

The residents erupted in cheers.

Seems like the Adventurers Guild is falling apart, and frustration is building up among the residents, Hikaru thought.

“It still looks impossible,” said the woman whom Hikaru helped up.

“Impossible? Oh, you must be here to offer a commission,” Hikaru said.

“Yes. Actually, my elderly father lives in a border town and seems to be in poor health. He sent me a letter saying he wanted to see me before he dies.”

“So you want a bodyguard.”

The woman nodded. “There are no stagecoaches available right now. But there aren’t many adventurers around, and I don’t have much money either.”

“I see.”

Hikaru momentarily hesitated, when he noticed Paula’s gaze on him. Her eyes seemed to be saying that he would figure something out.

“All right. I’ll escort you.”

“What? Y-You will?” The woman blinked in surprise.

“Yes. The blockade is around the floating island, right? Once we reach the town past it, you should be able to arrange for a stagecoach or an escort.”

“Th-Thank you!”

Hikaru judged that the journey wouldn’t take too much of his time. Needless to say, confirming what was happening with the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas was still a priority. But he couldn’t just ignore a person in trouble. This might be her last chance to see her father.

“Hey, kid. You said you’re an adventurer? And you’re taking on an escort commission?” said one of the members of Blue Hawk Eyes.

“Who’s this brat? Trying to steal our thunder?”

“Clearly not an adventurer. Looks more like some rich merchant’s kid.”

“Is that girl a Healer? Hey, wanna join our party?”

“We’ve got a Healer already. Me!”

“You idiot, having a girl do the healing would be better.”

As the party members bantered loudly, their leader approached Hikaru.

“What’s your adventurer rank?”

“G. Why?”

Clearly not expecting the lowest rank, the man’s face stiffened before breaking into uproarious laughter.

“Hahaha! G?!”

The other members momentarily fell silent, then burst into laughter.

“Do you even know the regulations, kid? Rank G adventurers can’t take escort commissions. You need to be trustworthy to be a bodyguard, which you can’t expect from the lowest rank.”

“I wasn’t really planning on running it by the guild.”

“You were gonna take an unsanctioned commission? Receptionist, did you hear that? This kid’s planning to bypass the guild. He should be penalized!”

“Me? B-But I didn’t even know him.”

“What? An adventurer the guild doesn’t even know about? That’s too risky. Seriously, you’ve gotta choose your contractors more carefully, or you’ll end up dead.”

The woman’s perplexed gaze darted between Hikaru and the adventurer.

Hikaru sighed. “What this guy said isn’t wrong. So, it’s up to you to decide. I believe I can safely escort you, but if you’re unsure, you should decline.”

“I-I…” The woman lowered her gaze.

Hikaru thought she wouldn’t agree to it. His appearance didn’t fit the typical rough-and-tumble adventurer stereotype, and being the lowest rank didn’t help his credibility.

“Shall we go, then?”

Seeing no immediate response from the woman, Hikaru turned to leave the guild with Paula.

“Hold it right here.” An adventurer grabbed Paula’s shoulder, and she yelped. “Where do you think you’re going? The Healer’s staying.”

“…”

“Hah, the kid’s glaring at me. Oooh, so scary.”

Hikaru had no intention of further conversation or wasting any more time. Using his Stealth, he moved swiftly, elbowing the arm holding Paula’s shoulder and delivering a punch to the man’s gut.

“Wha?!”

The man flew backward, colliding with his companions and tumbling over. They likely didn’t even understand what had happened in that split second.

“What was that?! What did he do to the boss?!”

“You wanna go, punk?!”

“N-No fighting in the guild!”

Chaos ensued.

Hikaru, ignoring the astonished client, gently tapped Paula on the back.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, I knew you would help me!”

“Sometimes your unwavering trust scares me. Let’s just get going.”

“Wh-What was that just now? I didn’t catch a thing. You’re faster than Sara and Selyse?!”

Just as they were about to leave, Hikaru heard a voice in Japanese.

“Wait, what are you even doing here, Hikaru?!”

Serika had witnessed it all.