Chapter 170: Emergency Procedure

Somewhere inside the mercenary guild, one hour earlier

Several people, all important decision-makers in the guild, were sitting around a large table. They had all been summoned in a hurry and were therefore still partially out of breath. Some of them were noticeably indignant and annoyed.

“What's all the stress about? I was still having breakfast.” Woman 1

“You woke me from my beauty sleep. This is going to give me wrinkles.” Woman 2

“My head is throbbing. I still have a hangover from last night.” Man 1

“Be quiet now. There must be a reason why we were called together in such a hurry.” Man 2

Guild servants placed a cup of strong tea in front of each of the assembled. Then the man with the snake tattoo entered the room and everyone fell silent. He had a stack of papers in his hands, which he placed on the table in front of him.

"Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, there is a serious matter I must inform you about. Those of you who came through the main hall will have already heard. There are major problems with the labyrinth. There have been many reports that the monster density has decreased dramatically. This has reached such proportions that there are said to be areas in the labyrinth that are completely monster-free. It is particularly noticeable that the Minotaur is no longer appearing. Does anyone happen to know anything about this?" Guild Master

The unease among those present immediately increased again. Many expressed concerns of various kinds, both financial and reputational. Many were afraid of having to restrict their previously comfortable lives. Some of those present owned at least one business that dealt with the labyrinth in general or monsters in particular. Whether it was butchering corpses to obtain valuable parts or guidebooks containing collected knowledge about monsters. Maps, equipment, potions, and much more could be purchased in their shops. This had brought the owners money and power, and that was now at stake.

“We must investigate what happened immediately. We cannot allow our reputation to suffer.” Man 1

“Exactly. Without monsters, my business would go under.” Woman 1

“Do you have to shout like that? It's giving me a headache.” Man 2

“Be quiet. You're the only one of us who doesn't have his own business. You should be glad you're even allowed to sit at our table.” Woman 2

“Are you trying to start trouble with me again?” Man 2

“Don't bother. We have other problems.” Woman 2

“Are you done?” Guild Master

Slowly, those present calmed down again. But you could tell that most of them were restless. A short time later, there was a knock at the door.

“Come in.” Guild Master

The door opened and a woman in the guild's uniform entered the room. She closed the door behind her and bowed. Then she slowly walked over to the guild master and whispered something in his ear. She also handed him a piece of paper. He grimaced briefly as he scanned the contents. Then she left the room and closed the door.

“Bad news? We can't take any more of that.” Man 1

"I was just reminded that there was an incident in the labyrinth three days ago. According to one group's statement, they were interrupted while fighting the Minotaur and had to retreat. Instead, the second group defeated the Minotaur and claimed victory, including all the rewards. The second group, however, claimed that the first group had already fled and that they had simply seized the opportunity. I issued a warning to the second group because it was impossible to prove which story was true." Guild Master

“And what does that have to do with our problem?” Woman 1

"I'm getting to that. We need to consider two things that could have caused our problem. First, this second group was the group of heroes from the Empire." Guild Master

“The heroes? Are they those clowns who claim they're going to save the world and should be supported for that reason?” Man 2

“I've heard of them. Supposedly, they were sent directly by Lumos, their god. I don't know what to make of that.” Woman 2

“I don't see the big problem for us right now. Okay, this story is unpleasant, but it's nothing more than a minor inconvenience.” Man 1

“Maybe it is. According to my information, this group was never taught the most important basic rules in the labyrinth. They showed little interest in the instruction and pointed out that they had already been in two dungeons and therefore knew how to handle it.” Guild Master

“Does that mean they don't know about the core?” Woman 3

“Even the last one is waking up. But you're right. As far as I know, they were never told never to touch the core under any circumstances.” Guild Master

"That would be extremely unfortunate. Still, I don't understand. How did they manage that? The door to open the room with the core only appears an hour after the Minotaur has been defeated. Provided that no other group has entered the antechamber in the meantime. This information should not be known to anyone who is not in this room. It is extremely unlikely that the room will be found by chance." Woman 3

“I've never been there.” Man 1

“Me neither.” Man 2 and Woman 1

“I've been there. You too, right?” Woman 2

“Yes. It's part of my job.” Woman 3

“Of course I've been there too. We're both registered as administrators.” Guild Master, pointing to Woman 3

“What does that mean? This is the first I've heard of it.” Man 1

“Me too.” Woman 1

“The administrator of a labyrinth has various duties. First of all, a labyrinth must have an administrator in order to reap its benefits.” Guild Master

“What benefits are those?” Man 1

“Have you ever wondered why the Minotaur's revival is tied to specific time periods? Or why most monsters only appear on certain floors and don't move around? The administrator can determine and change that.” Guild Master

“Does that mean you have absolute control over the labyrinth? Does that also give you control over the individual monsters? That sounds terrifying.” Woman 1

"Unfortunately, it's not quite that simple or powerful. We have no control over the individual monsters, nor over their individual combat strength. We can adjust the spawn rate and number to a small extent, as well as the distribution between the individual monster types. We can't influence where exactly on the floors they spawn and how they move. But the latter is also good, as it prevents monsters that are too strong from wandering into the upper floors and endangering newcomers there." Guild Master

“What happens if the labyrinth has no administrator?” Man 2

“I haven't experienced that yet, but we have several records of it. Then the labyrinth becomes unpredictable. You are surely aware that there is a noticeably higher density of magic within the labyrinth than in the city?” Guild Master

Everyone nodded.

"The labyrinth is a magical construct of unknown origin. It absorbs magic from its surroundings and transforms that magic into monsters. At the same time, it absorbs the monster corpses that are not brought to the surface and transforms them back into magic. At least, that is the prevailing theory. All of the adjustments I mentioned earlier serve to keep the amount of magic within the dungeon roughly constant. At the same time, these settings ensure that we have a stable supply of monster parts and thus prosperity. Without administrators, these settings and the balance change." Guild Master

"This can have three main effects. Effect 1 is that not much changes. This is the best situation for us, but we know from the records that it will eventually develop into one of the other two effects.

Effect 2 results in a catastrophe. The density of monsters in the labyrinth increases dramatically and eventually reaches the point where there are too many monsters in the labyrinth. There is a theory that each floor in the labyrinth can only accommodate a certain number of monsters. If the number exceeds this limit, the excess monsters must leave that floor and flood into the higher floors. If the total number exceeds a threshold, a breakthrough occurs and almost all monsters leave the dungeon. They then invade the city and devastate everything in their path. Since they are all magical beasts without exception, they must be defeated, whatever the cost. Woman 3

“Don't tell horror stories. That would be a disaster.” Woman 1

“Why don't we know anything about this?” Man 2

"So far, there have only been two breakthroughs in the history of this city, both of which occurred in the early days of the city. The losses on our side were enormous and the damage within the city was considerable. Since then, meticulous care has been taken to ensure that there is always an administrator. Unfortunately, we can only name two people as administrators. As you all know by now, that's the two of us." Guild Master

“What do you have to do to be appointed administrator of the labyrinth? Are there any requirements?” Man 1

“You have to reach the core of the labyrinth and register there. This shows that you can't be too weak, otherwise you won't make it to the core.” Guild Master

“However, the two administrators do not have equal rights. The second person is only the deputy. Accordingly, they only have decision-making power if the main administrator dies.” Woman 3

“I think we all understand that. We should prevent effect 2 at all costs. That means that as long as there is an administrator, we have advantages and prevent disadvantages. What is the last alternative?” Woman 2

"We don't know. We know from the records that there is another alternative. Unfortunately, we haven't yet found out what effect it is. But it makes sense that it would be a completely different effect compared to the breakthrough. That would fit with our current observations of the labyrinth. But we are both still alive and continue to be administrators." Guild Master

“How do you know that? Couldn't someone have gone to the core unnoticed and forcefully taken over your task?” Man 1

“I've already checked that. As soon as you become an administrator, you receive a special title. Since we both still have this title, the cause must be something else.” Guild Master

"That's why we urgently need to find out what happened and what is likely to happen next. I hereby propose that we form an investigation unit and explore the labyrinth. As part of this, the guild master must advance to the core and conduct further investigations there. Meanwhile, I will go through the documents more closely with the rest of you to see if we can find any further clues from the past. Any objections? None? Good, then let's vote." Woman 3

Everyone present raised their hands, although the second part caused some discontent among some. Thus, a party was to be assembled today so that they could enter the labyrinth first thing tomorrow morning.