Chapter 173

For some reason, Arisa’s demeanor suggested an unusual story, and I felt compelled to listen to her tale more closely.

I initially thought she was simply inviting me to join her and Mari for a request, but…

“Tell me in detail what happened.”

“W-well, actually…”

It was a story related to a personal request Arisa had received the day before.

The personal request she had received the day before.

It was a request to join an exploration of recently discovered ruins.

Just like the many adventurers flocking to those ruins, the employer who had issued the request to Arisa was an alchemist from the Alchemist Guild, eager to explore the ruins.

The request was simple.

While other adventurers provided escort, she was to purely identify hidden spaces or mechanisms within the ruins.

It was a request that highly valued Arisa’s abilities as a scout, excelling in disarming traps and detecting artificial traces left by humans, which she had demonstrated in her usual adventurer life.

Arisa, who usually avoided group activities, had recently gained some courage by taking on requests with Mari and accepted the alchemist’s request. She then set out to explore the ruins with the alchemist and other adventurers hired by them.

At first glance, it seemed like just another popular ruin exploration party in Astram.

After all, the artifacts from the ruins had already been looted, and all that remained were ancient buildings, mere curiosities.

A simple request to tour the ruins and get paid—almost like sightseeing for money.

But then, trouble arose.

Arisa had actually discovered a hidden section of the ancient ruins.

Although Arisa was only at the Bronze rank, this was due to her low individual combat power and her preference for solo actions over party requests, leading to her being undervalued.

Her scouting abilities were unmatched even among Silver Rank Adventurers.

Using her sharp eyes, dexterity comparable to a dwarf’s, and intuition, she uncovered the hidden section of the ruins.

The place she discovered was an expansive underground space, several times larger than the known ruins.

For some reason, buried in the mountains, no one had noticed that the so-called ruins, thought to be the size of a mansion, were only a small part of the entire site.

Excited by this discovery, the alchemist and the adventurers, eager for spoils, rushed in without heeding Arisa’s cautious advice, dragging her into the newly discovered area.

And then, disaster struck.

Perhaps because the previously open areas posed no threat, or perhaps excited by the chance of a fortune and the forgotten history of the Ancient Empire, they forgot that Arisa should lead the way to detect traps and dangers.

Whether they were wary of Arisa taking the spoils first or not, they pushed past her and recklessly roamed the ruins.

In their carelessness, they were ambushed by numerous traps and golems guarding the ancient ruins.

Panicked, they desperately fled, but less than half of the adventurers who entered made it out.

The fate of the adventurers and the alchemist left inside was unknown—whether they were alive or dead.

Arisa and the adventurers reported the incident to the Astram guards at the cave entrance, who sealed the entrance and organized a search party, but…

“It will be too late if the city organizes a search party. We need to rescue them as soon as possible…”

Arisa, despite it not being her fault, was worried about those left behind and wanted to fund a rescue mission herself, even if it meant using her own savings.

It’s concerning. Spending her own money to organize a search party would surely cost a significant amount.

Moreover,

“It’s not your fault. From what you’ve said, it was the adventurers and the alchemist who ignored your warnings and recklessly disturbed the ruins, right?”

“B-but it’s because I discovered the hidden space. People might die because of that… How can I just ignore it…”

Honestly.

Despite her cool exterior, she’s such a softie.

How can she survive as an adventurer being so kind?

“Generally, being kind-hearted is a good thing, but as an adventurer, it’s not particularly an advantage. If you keep meddling like this, you won’t last long as an adventurer.”

In the first place, by explaining the situation to the guards at the cave entrance, Arisa had already fulfilled her duty.

She had no further responsibility to do anything more.

Especially not spending her hard-earned savings to organize a rescue team for people she had just met on a single request.

Hearing my words, Arisa, realizing her actions might have been excessive, looked downcast and didn’t argue back.

“Besides, most adventurers from the Adventurer Guild are already flocking to those ruins. Even if you rescue them now, you won’t gather many.”

“…I see.”

At my words, Arisa bowed her head with a helpless, sad expression.

“…”

“…”

Sigh. Really now.

“Well… Since I have nothing to do at the Adventurer Guild today, why not go check out the ruins?”

“…Huh?”

“From what you’ve said, you’ve been to the ruins before, right? If it’s okay, could you guide me?”

“…You mean.”

“And if we happen to find someone lost in the ruins along the way, we might help them. You’ll come too, right?”

“Yes, yes!”

Who’s the one lecturing about not meddling?

Here I am, doing just that.

And so, I set off with Arisa towards the ruins of the Ancient Empire.

…

…

…

Arriving at the ruins, Arisa and I found the scene completely different from what I had seen from afar the previous day.

The entrance, once bustling with adventurers and merchants like a market, was now guarded by several times more guards, giving off a military encampment vibe.

In fact, from a distance, seeing a few rare individuals capable of using aura, it seemed knights were also stationed there, making it practically a military encampment.

The adventurers gathered at the ruins, dissatisfied with the strict guards, tried but failed to break through and enter.

“…It looks very different from yesterday.”

“Probably because they didn’t control access before, thinking there was no danger inside. But with the news of dangerous traps and golems appearing, they’re now controlling adventurers’ access.”

There might be humanitarian reasons, but that’s not all.

They probably also want to secure any artifacts they can.

In fact, moving this many soldiers would require significant income to balance the books.

Anyway, whether out of greed or humanitarian judgment, getting past the military guarding the cave entrance seemed unlikely.

“A hurdle right at the start. What do you want to do? Turn back now?”

I asked Arisa.

But she, anticipating the soldiers guarding the entrance, shook her head with a determined expression.

“No. I expected the entrance to be blocked after reporting to the soldiers.”

“Then, with the only entrance blocked, do you have a way to persuade the soldiers?”

“There’s no way to persuade them. But… who said that entrance is the only one?”

With that, Arisa, transforming from a timid dark elf to a seasoned, cautious scout, turned to me with sharp eyes.

…

…

…

Arisa led me to a place far from the ruins’ entrance, where a stream flowed.

Specifically, a spot where the stream split, forming a pool of stagnant water nearby.

A place too small to be called a pond but too deep to be called a puddle.

“This is where the hidden entrance to the ruins is.”

“Here…?”

Looking around, nothing particularly stood out…

Except for the puddle…

Ah.

“So this puddle is the passage.”

“Yes. Exactly. As expected of a hunter… You figured it out right away.”

Indeed, this puddle, seemingly formed naturally from the split stream, seemed oddly placed to me, having lived in the jungle as a hunter.

Its position seemed artificially adjusted, slightly off from where a natural puddle would be.

“Yes. This puddle looks natural, but upon closer inspection, you can tell it’s artificially made.”

Unlike me, who noticed the puddle’s unnatural position, Arisa had detected the artificial touch and identified this exit.

Perhaps a difference in perspective between a hunter specialized in natural elements and a scout specialized in artificial ones.

Without hesitation, Arisa dove into the puddle, and I followed her into it.

The puddle was deeper than it appeared.

Probably an optical illusion caused by light distortion in water.

Inside the puddle, a passage wide enough for a person was visible, hidden from the outside.

Following Arisa through the passage, we soon encountered walls not made of natural materials but artificially constructed.

Walls made of an unfamiliar material, different from bricks of past lives or those commonly used in this world.

And not long after, the water surface began to approach.

Splash!

Splash splash!

And so, we entered the ruins of the Ancient Empire.