Synapse, Abyss Headquarters
Miles was quietly sipping tea, his expression calm as he watched through a glass partition. Inside the punishment room, his subordinates were torturing a criminal he had just brought in. However, in the next moment, his face showed a rare hint of tension as his gaze locked onto the sudden display of an image in front of him: a child wielding a short sword, defeating a low-level wraith head-on.
"The Master actually allowed his child to enter the labyrinth so soon, and in such an unprepared state!"
Miles studied the scene intently, quickly piecing together the situation. He knew about Muria's plan to train his offspring in a unique way, and Miles was honored to be a part of this grand scheme. As one of those chosen by Muria, he was granted a special privilege: whenever Aeolos set foot in any labyrinth on the Synapse subcontinent, Miles would receive an alert. What to do with this information, Muria hadn't said, and Miles didn't ask.
"Time to move!"
Without a sound, Miles ripped through space and vanished from his office. At the same time, several other legendary figures at Abyss Headquarters, currently unoccupied, received the same order. They, too, tore through space, leaving Synapse behind...
"This is a labyrinth," Aeolos muttered, having just slain the wraith and after briefly exploring his surroundings. He had reached an unfortunate conclusion—one he was not happy to face.
"So this so-called lighting talisman actually transported me here!" Aeolos looked at the short sword in his hand with a grim expression. If this sword weren't his only usable weapon right now, he would have tossed it away long ago.
Indeed, the half-meter-long short sword was actually the transformed lighting talisman that had brought him here. Without it, blessed with holy light attributes, Aeolos wouldn't have been able to defeat the ghost so easily.
Wraiths were trivial for golden-level or higher powers to exterminate, but for beginners like Aeolos, they were a nightmare, as without special means, such ghosts were practically invincible to them.
"I need to find a way out of here quickly!" Aeolos quickly made up his mind after a brief exploration. He had narrowly avoided two labyrinth monsters. Fortunately, they hadn't noticed him.
"With my current strength, it's impossible to escape alone. I need to find an adventurer group seeking fortune in this labyrinth and have them protect me, help me get out."
Despite the imminent danger, Aeolos showed no signs of panic. It was as if this kind of situation was as routine as eating and drinking to him.
As Aeolos settled on his course of action, he began hearing the sounds of monsters roaring, the shouts of intelligent beings, and the whooshing of sword slashes cutting through the air. His eyes lit up.
…
"Boss, this labyrinth is tough! How long have we been in here? We've already been attacked by three waves of monsters!" A warrior yanked his blade from the neck of a panther-like creature and glanced at his leader.
"Isn't that a good thing? The more monsters there are, the more treasure this labyrinth holds. The greater our risk, the bigger our reward!"
Just as the warrior finished complaining, a girl with a longbow, who was busy gathering materials from the monster, chimed in.
"Yeah, this place is definitely large. It might even be a fourth-tier labyrinth!" A middle-aged man clad in heavy armor with sharp eyes nodded in agreement.
"Fourth-tier? Doesn't that mean there's a soul-intent level lord monster in here?"
"It's possible."
"Whoa, if we could get our hands on the treasure guarded by the lord, we'd strike it rich!"
"Are you crazy? We're not qualified to challenge a soul-intent level monster. It would crush us!"
"Maybe we aren't now, but who knows in the future?"
This adventurer group, made up of thirteen members, bantered with each other as they harvested their spoils, not overly concerned for the moment, assuming the area was temporarily safe.
"Who's there? Show yourself!" Suddenly, a sharp voice rang out. The elven girl, who was in the middle of cutting off an unmentionable part of a creature, quickly stood up, drawing a hand crossbow and aiming it at a shadowy area in a broken building.
"Don't shoot! I'm human, not a monster!" A young, nervous voice echoed from the darkness, and soon, a small figure in pajamas cautiously stepped out.
"A kid? What kind of monster is this, disguising itself as a child to fool us? There's no way a normal human child would be here!"
Upon seeing Aeolos, a mage holding a fireball, ready to cast, shouted angrily, preparing to attack. He thought the creature was mocking their intelligence by taking on the form of a helpless child.
"Wait! Don't attack! He seems to be human, not a labyrinth monster!" The elven archer quickly intervened, sensing a distinct difference between Aeolos' presence and that of the monsters.
"Hold off for now. This kid—I've seen him in Saint Flame City," said the leader of the adventurer group, his expression tinged with surprise as he studied Aeolos.
"But how could a normal kid end up in a labyrinth?"
"I was accidentally transported here!" Aeolos cautiously explained, raising the short sword in his hand. "This is something my father brought back from a labyrinth a few days ago. I snuck it out to play with, and then, suddenly, I was transported here."
"What a load of nonsense!" one of the adventurers grumbled.
"It might not be a lie," the leader said, halting the group's aggressive mage.
"Kid, what's your name?"
"Aeolos."
"And your identity?"
"Top student in all subjects, sixth-grade graduate of Saint Flame Elementary School!" Aeolos proudly declared.
"Ah, it makes sense now," the leader murmured. He turned to his group. "Remember when I pointed him out to you in Saint Flame City? The boy who was parading around with all those pretty girls? Doesn't this kid look familiar?"
"Now that you mention it, yeah! He's that little playboy we saw!"
"Whoa, this kid's a prodigy!" One of the adventurers, a burly man with a rough face, spat on the ground and glanced at Aeolos with a hint of respect.
"Top student in every subject? That's not just any genius! If he keeps this up through high school, he could wipe the floor with our entire group."
"So, boss, what's the plan? Are we taking him along?"
"Uncles and big sis," Aeolos interjected, seizing the moment, "if you can protect me and get me out of the labyrinth, my parents will definitely reward you handsomely!"
"Hey, kid, what could your parents offer us?" one of the adventurers teased.
"Do you think a kid with my grades comes from an ordinary family? If you save me, imagine the kind of reward my parents would give you."
Aeolos adopted the demeanor of a young master, fully aware that adventurers were driven by profit. Based on their group composition and with the right incentive, he believed they would protect him out of the labyrinth.
…
"Quite impressive, little prince," murmured a well-dressed young man lurking in the shadows. He watched as the adventurers gathered around Aeolos protectively, a playful smile spreading across his face. "Even sealed, you still possess such sharp wits—convincing a whole adventurer team to act as your bodyguards with just a few words."
"But if you leave now, it'll waste all the effort the Master put into getting you in here. So, I'm sorry, little prince."
"Prepare to deal with that adventurer team! Remove them from the young prince's side without damaging their souls. Afterward, collect their souls and revive them all. They may have meant well, but they misjudged the situation. Still, their good intentions are worth some reward."
…
"Roar!"
A beast's ferocious roar echoed in Aeolos' ears as he was thrown to the ground by the shockwave of a monster's heavy steps. His head buzzed, vision blurred. When his consciousness cleared, he felt a warm, metallic liquid splattering across his face.
He opened his eyes to see a gruesome sight. The beautiful elven girl who had been helping him was caught in a monster's jaws, struggling in agony, her blood covering his face.
Aeolos looked around and saw the adventurer group—those who had agreed to escort him out—being mercilessly slaughtered by a swarm of unknown creatures.
The scene filled him with rage, but more than that, a deep, overwhelming sense of helplessness.
_________________________
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