“Ugh, uaaaaah!”
“Sa-Save me!!!”
The desperate screams of students fleeing from the heart of the labyrinth echoed through the maze.
“Pl-Please, calm down, everyone!”
“In times like this, we must stay composed!”
“A-Adele will find a way to solve this…!”
A few noble students who were Adele’s followers tried to take command of the panicked crowd.
“B-But you saw it too! All of Adele’s magic attacks were deflected!”
“I-It’s impossible. Maybe Cecil could do it, but there’s no way we can defeat something like that at our level…”
“I-I don’t want to die here!”
The overwhelming power displayed by the headless knight had long since thrown the students into a state of panic, making it impossible for them to listen to reason.
“W-What do we do now?”
“Shouldn’t we go back and help Adele…?”
“T-That’s…”
Before they could even finish discussing, the students scattered in all directions. The noble followers, who were left looking flustered, began conversing among themselves.
“Even if we go back to help, would we even be of any use…?”
“But we can’t just leave Adele to fight alone! Unlike Cecil, Adele only specializes in magic!”
“W-Why are you getting mad at me?”
They had no clear solution, and so their conversation led nowhere.
“But at least there aren’t any monsters in the maze. What if we escape quickly and call for help?”
“…It took us about thirty minutes just to get here. Do you think Adele can hold out that long?”
“This won’t work, that won’t work. Then what exactly are we supposed to do?!”
“I-I’m just saying, don’t yell at me!”
Amid the escalating tension, disagreements among Adele’s followers turned into outright internal strife.
“Ugh! I don’t care what happens anymore—I’m going to get help!”
“L-Let go of me!”
“W-Wait!”
“Ah…”
In the end, even Adele’s followers scattered into the smoke, leaving behind only two female students who were particularly close to her.
…
In the depths of the labyrinth, where only the two of them remained, an eerie silence settled.
—Step, step…
Then, breaking that silence, the sound of slow, deliberate footsteps echoed through the mist.
“Hic?”
“Wh-Who’s there!?”
Already on edge, the two female students called out warily toward the smoke-filled intersection.
“C-Could it be another high-rank monster? That would be the end of us…”
“M-Maybe I should’ve just followed the others…”
Despite the approaching footsteps, no response came. As fear overtook them, their faces turned pale.
“Is someone there?”
…
Then, at that very moment, a voice emerged from the smoke.
One of the girls, a petite student, immediately brightened up and raised her voice excitedly.
“I-It’s the supervisor! It’s Sir Whitney!”
“R-Right! He’s the White Mage who defeated the black mages, isn’t he? Then surely, he’ll be able to fix this!”
Tears of relief welled in her eyes as she stepped forward, eager to seek salvation from the approaching figure.
“P-Please help! There’s a high-rank monster in there—!”
“…No!”
“Mm? Mmmph…!”
Suddenly, the elegant-looking student beside her clamped a hand over her mouth and dragged her toward another path in the maze.
“Wh-Why are you doing this…?”
“Shh. You know my specialty is detection magic, right?”
The petite student blinked in confusion as she was being pulled along. Lowering her voice, the elegant girl whispered urgently.
“I’ve been using detection magic ever since we entered this maze, and… Listen carefully, and don’t panic.”
“…?”
“The person in that smoke… is not Sir Whitney.”
The small girl’s face turned deathly pale, and she clasped her hands over her mouth.
“He’s surrounded by monsters… Monsters so powerful that I can’t even properly sense their numbers.”
“…!”
“A White Mage, someone who repels monsters, would never be in that kind of situation.”
The trembling girl opened her mouth, barely managing to whisper.
“Then… the person who responded to our voices is…”
“Shh! Be quiet. Whatever it is, if it hears us, we’re finished.”
A tense silence stretched between them.
—Shshsh…
Then, from beyond that silence, the sound of countless wings flapping and insect-like creatures skittering across the floor filled the air. The girls’ faces contorted with horror.
“D-Dear gods…”
“Aaah…”
Moments later, the creatures began emerging through the smoke—a massive swarm of towering monsters.
Paralyzed with fear, the two girls couldn’t even think about running.
“I-I can’t move…”
“M-Me neither…”
The truth was, they physically couldn’t move. The monsters’ poisonous aura had already paralyzed their muscles.
“W-We have to think of something bright…! Low-rank monsters have poor eyesight, but they can sense human breath and fear…”
“Ugh… Uuuugh…”
Their legs gave out, and they collapsed onto the ground. Holding their breath as much as possible, they prayed that the monsters would pass them by.
—Grkk?
—Krrrk…
But hoping wasn’t enough.
Raised in noble families, they had never experienced such terror before. Controlling their fear in this life-or-death moment was simply beyond them.
“Aaah…”
“Hic…”
The monsters crawling through the maze halted all at once and turned their heads in their direction.
The girls, clutching each other tightly, squeezed their eyes shut, unable to even scream.
“…There you are.”
A chilling voice suddenly rang out through the maze.
“A-Ah!”
The petite student, trembling in despair, tried to rise at the familiar voice but collapsed onto the ground.
“We-We’re saved! We’re saved!”
“S-Sir Whitney! Please, help us! Th-There are too many monsters—”
Relief overcame her pain, and she lifted her head with a tearful smile.
“…Wait? Huh?”
But then, she hesitated, her expression shifting into confusion.
“Why… why are you over there?”
She had finally realized it.
Whitney’s voice wasn’t coming from behind them—but from right in front of them, among the horde of monsters.
“Ahaha… Well…”
Whitney let out a dry chuckle, as if amused by the situation.
At that moment—
—Grrooaaar!
—Grrrrr…
The monsters, which had been watching them in eerie silence, all surged forward at once.
“HIIIIIIIII!!!”
As they shrieked in terror, the petite student flailed her arms, desperately trying to crawl backward.
Then—
“Do not touch the children.”
Whitney’s chilling voice echoed through the labyrinth once more.
—Grkk…
—Screeech…
At those words, the monsters that had been rushing forward froze in place. Then, as if sulking, they turned to look at Whitney before slowly retreating behind him.
“……”
A suffocating silence followed.
“Honestly, why are you still here?”
With a sigh, Whitney pinched the bridge of his nose before stepping toward the two girls. Their faces turned deathly pale.
“This makes things… a little troublesome.”
“P-Please… have mercy…”
“Save us…”
At this point, even the most oblivious person could easily figure out who the mastermind behind this situation was.
“I think you’re misunderstanding something—”
“I-If you spare our lives…”
“We’ll never tell anyone about what we saw…!”
“…You’re not listening to me.”
The girls, who had been frantically begging for their lives, immediately shut their mouths at Whitney’s quiet yet menacing tone.
“You will be safe.”
Stopping just in front of them, Whitney lowered his head slightly, his voice soft and soothing.
“So, just stay still, alright?”
“Ah…”
“It’ll hurt just a little, haha…”
But there was no comfort to be found in his words—not when his hand, brimming with eerie gray mana, reached toward them with a sinister smile on his lips.
“Don’t make such a terrified face.”
As tears streamed down their faces in pure fear, Whitney grinned and whispered gently.
“It’ll all be over in the blink of an eye.”
A flash of gray light filled the corridor, and their consciousness was instantly cut off.
*****
“Well? That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
“Try moving your body. The paralysis should be gone… Hmm?”
I had cast my specialty, healing magic, to cure the girls of the monsters’ venom-induced paralysis. However, as they remained eerily silent, I blinked in confusion and waved my hand in front of their faces.
“Hey, are you okay?”
“Did they… pass out from the venom?”
Their breathing was stable, so it seemed that they had simply fainted under the pressure of the monsters’ aura. This… made things more complicated.
“This is all your fault…”
I had intended to heal them first and then calmly explain the situation, but thinking about it, they probably wouldn’t have been able to focus on my words with all these monsters looming behind me anyway.
—Not… our fault…
—Venom… has long since faded…
Hearing the monsters grumble in protest, I couldn’t help but sigh.
“…Now what?”
There could still be other students left in this area.
The ominous black markings on my map were so thick that I couldn’t pinpoint their exact locations.
If something happened to them, losing my position as an examiner would be the least of my concerns—I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself.
—Grumble!
As I stood there, deep in thought with a grim expression, an unsettling sensation crept up my leg.
—Fear… I sense fear…!
I looked down to find a small spider-like monster perched on my leg, pointing toward the elegant girl who had collapsed earlier.
—From that girl… I can feel such raw, delicious terror…!
I scowled and reached down to flick the creature away, but its words made me pause. I turned my gaze toward the girl with a skeptical expression.
“…Hey.”
“You’re awake, aren’t you?”
I poked her side gently, and sure enough, her body twitched ever so slightly.
“If you keep pretending, you’ll end up as monster food.”
“Hiiiik—!”
The moment I whispered that, confirming my suspicion, the elegant girl let out a deflating sigh and bolted upright in sheer panic.
“We’re short on time, so let me ask you quickly. Are there any other students left in this area?”
“Th-Th-That is… um…”
“I understand that you’re scared, but I need you to answer quickly.”
I spoke firmly, and the girl, still trembling, stammered before finally blurting out,
“I-If you still need my help—”
“I’ll talk! I’ll tell you everything!”
At the sight of white mana flickering in my hand, she immediately screamed out her response.
“A-Adele is still in there! S-So, I…”
“That’s all?”
“T-There’s also a strange monster wearing armor! Please, just let me go!”
Now that I had all the necessary information, I wasted no time standing up and turning toward the deeper parts of the labyrinth.
“I’m heading inside. Support your friend and get to the exit.”
“Ah…”
“Oh, and about what just happened…”
“I-I won’t tell anyone if you just let me leave!”
Judging by her voice, which was still trembling with fear, it seemed like she had completely misunderstood the situation.
“No, you won’t be leaving.”
But there was no time to explain the truth. I simply stated the crucial information and started walking.
“Huh?”
“This labyrinth… no one can leave.”
If the map was right, then despite all the students from Groups C and D gathering at the exit, their numbers weren’t decreasing at all.
“Wait at the exit. I’ll come find you soon.”
“…Ah.”
It seemed like the only way to resolve this was to find and eliminate the source of the problem myself.
—Human…! Did I do well?
…And why was this creepy little thing still clinging to my leg like we were best friends?
*****
Meanwhile, outside the labyrinth, at the examination site…
“Damn it! We can’t break through!”
“The barrier at the entrance is too strong! There’s nothing we can do!”
A few minutes had passed since the students entered the maze, but an unknown barrier had suddenly appeared at the entrance, throwing the outside into just as much chaos as the inside.
“What about the magic-specialized instructors?”
“We contacted them immediately, but there’s no guarantee the students will be safe until they arrive…”
“Damn it! What the hell is going on here?!”
The assistants, who had been maintaining the magic circle, had long since stopped supplying it with mana, yet the labyrinth remained intact as if it were sustaining itself.
To make matters worse, since this was a physical combat-oriented exam, all the present instructors specialized in martial arts, making them ill-equipped to deal with this situation.
“…We have no other choice.”
Just as the instructors’ expressions grew darker, someone finally stepped forward.
“I’ll enter the labyrinth myself.”
“W-What?”
The supervisor who had been overseeing the exam, a teacher who had remained silent until now, spoke up with a resolute expression.
“My field of expertise is barrier and sealing magic. This barrier is too powerful for me to dispel quickly, but I can still force my way in.”
Adjusting her glasses, she calmly explained her plan and walked toward the barrier.
“B-But are you sure?”
“We have no idea what’s happening inside…!”
The instructors voiced their concerns, but she simply smiled.
“I know it’s reckless…”
Then, throwing herself at the barrier, she continued,
“…but the students’ safety is more important.”
“P-Please be careful!”
“Their safety comes first!”
Receiving a mixture of worried and hopeful farewells, the teacher stepped into the labyrinth.
A heavy silence followed.
“P-Professor…!”
“Uuuaaaah…!”
“We missed you so much!”
The students huddled near the entrance immediately broke into relieved sobs.
“Attention. The magic instructors will arrive soon. Stay here and wait for them.”
“Y-Yes, ma’am!”
“I’ll head deeper to rescue the remaining students.”
With that, she turned toward the mist-filled maze.
“…Good.”
Then, her expression shifted.
A chilling smile crept onto her lips as she muttered,
“Time to check my harvest.”
Her eyes gleamed with an eerie black light.
Cliche Novel 