Episode 199 Golden Pyramid

The first thing I noticed when I entered the room that had become a MetalOctopus nest was the map of the labyrinth drawn on the wall near the entrance. This map was drawn in a position that could not be seen unless the MetalOctopi in the room were annihilated and you entered.

I took out the camera from the storage armlet and took a picture of the map. This camera was a Polaroid camera. I released the shutter three times, one for myself, one for a backup, and one to be submitted to the Adventurer's Guild.

After putting away my camera and the photos, I took a closer look at the map.

"Did other adventurers see this map?"

[ Grimm-sensei may be the first. There doesn't seem to be a treasure chest in this room, and the benefits of annihilating the MetalOctopi cannot be confirmed from the entrance. ]

Veteran adventurers judged the merits and demerits and acted accordingly. If they looked at a glance if there was anything valuable in the room, they might have passed by.

[ What's that mark in the room in the upper right corner? ]

"This is the first time I've seen the mark."

[ In that case, you can't know unless you go to that room and check it out. ]

I decided to go to the corner room and check. I looked at the map and figured out the shortest route. In a short time I arrived near the corner room.

"Hu~h, there is no entrance."

If I hadn't seen that map, I would have thought it was just a passageway wall. Metis and I began to scrupulously examine the wall. Komugi emerged from my shadow and stood next to Tamegorou.

"Tamegorou, protect Komugi."

Tamegorou nodded after looking at the small Komugi. After confirming this, Komugi jumped onto Tamegorou's back.

"Somehow, it's like the Bremen Town Musicians."

Komugi tilted its head. Even Metis didn't seem to know about fairy tales.

"It's nothing. Let's take a closer look."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

We investigated very carefully. Then, I discovered that there was a seam in a part of the wall of the passage.

"Do you have to do something?"

Komugi controlled by Metis checked around the seams. Then, she noticed that there was a ring that was around the ring on the boundary between the wall and the ceiling of the passageway. It was a transparent thing made of something like glass.

After being told about it by Metis, I noticed the almost transparent ring. Komugi, who was on top of Tamegorou, jumped and grabbed the ring. The string tied to the ring was pulled by the weight of Komugi.

At that moment, part of the wall disappeared along the seams, and an entrance appeared.

"What was this room hidden for?"

[ If you look inside, you might find out. ]

I nodded and went inside, and something caught my eye. A Golden Pyramid. A pyramid with a height of about one meter, if it were made entirely of gold, its value would exceed 10 billion Yen.

When I was about to touch the Golden Pyramid, I noticed that letters were carved into it. It was written in Magic Letters, and I could read about half of it. But, I asked Metis to read it to make sure.

[ Warning, whoever touches this gold will be cursed. Find the true treasure. ]

"Dangerous, was this thing a trap."

[ It seems so. But, what is true treasure? ]

When I looked around the room, there were three things that looked like glass cases besides the Golden Pyramid. Inside the first case was a gun-like weapon. When I checked it with the Appraisal Monocle, it turned out to be a Magic Gun. It seemed to be a weapon that fired the same thing as Magic Bullets.

The contents of the second case was a ring. When I examined this with the Appraisal Monocle, I found that it was a 'Ring of Power'. It seemed to be a ring that tripled your strength.

The last case contained a scroll. The Appraisal Monocle gave the appraisal result as 'Scroll of Knowledge'. It seemed to be a scroll that taught what the user wanted to know as knowledge.

"What do you think?"

I asked Metis.

[ If I had to choose, it would be the Scroll of Knowledge. ]

"I thought you would say that. But, the Magic Gun looks cool. Besides, the 'Ring of Power' seems like it would give us an advantage in battle."

[ The Magic Gun is superior only in its range. I don't think you need a Magic Gun that's less powerful than your magic. ]

'Ring of Power' wasn't needed because I could use 'Power Assist' magic. When I said that the 'Ring of Power' was more effective, it was dismissed as not being much of a difference.

Using the process of elimination, I selected the 'Scroll of Knowledge' and opened the case. Then, the cases with the Magic Gun and the 'Ring of Power' disappeared, as did the Golden Pyramid. It seemed that you could only pick one.

[ We may have failed. ]

Metis suddenly said.

"Why do you say we failed?"

[ The message said to find the true treasure. But, instead of searching, we chose among the three. I think it might have been a mistake. ]

Metis seemed to want to suggest that there might have been a fourth option in this room. Come to think of it, the contents of the cases felt shabby for a treasure. I began to feel that the Golden Pyramid was the only one worthy of the word treasure.

Metis and I searched the room, but we couldn't find anything. Either there was nothing from the beginning, or the moment the Golden Pyramid disappeared, it disappeared with it.

"What is the curse of the Golden Pyramid?"

[ Since it cannot be tested, it may become an eternal mystery. ]

"If it's a curse of death, it will be a fatal mistake."

I put away the 'Scroll of Knowledge' and left the room. As if waiting for that, the entrance was blocked by a wall again. I thought it had returned to its original state, but there was one difference. The transparent ring was gone.

Did that mean you could only try it once? It's unfortunate, but it couldn't be helped. I went back to exploring the labyrinth. However, after just defeating several MetalOctopi, there was no result.

We decided to stop exploring the pyramid and return. Komugi returned to the shadows and I went back through the labyrinth with Tamegorou guarding my back. The problem was that the Wyverns were waiting, but I managed to shake them off and succeeded in escaping.

"Come to think of it, the stairs to the 5th floor weren't inside the pyramid."

[ Isn't it in the back of the desert area. ]

After returning to the surface, I went to the Adventurer's Guild and reported. I also submitted a picture of the map taken in the labyrinth room. Among the adventurers, the Golden Pyramid became a hot topic. However, they made a sour face when they heard that it was cursed.

After hearing this information, Gotou's team discovered a Philosopher's Stone in the Golden Pyramid room. The Philosopher's Stone was said to be a material for making an Elixir.

By the way, there was also an adventurer who messed with the Golden Pyramid. The moment he touched the Golden Pyramid, he seemed to be cursed with petrification. It seemed that this adventurer didn't believe the warning.

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