“How fascinating, the Bouqmouse had gathered a lot of rare ingredients. It won’t notice if I take just a little bit of everything… as long as I give something back in return… maybe it won’t mind…”

The Guide muttered to himself as he then proceeded to set up the cooking pots on a far corner, away from the flammable plants.

While the Hero busily and idly wandered about in this wide clearing filled with plants and flowers.

“Woah look at all these plants! But… What exactly is a Bouqmouse… Um guide?”

“Oh, apologies. I was a bit distracted as this is only the third time I have come upon this much rare ingredients in one place… So, what is it Hero?”

“Ehem… Dear guide~ what exactly is a Bouqmouse?”

Still deep in thought, the Guide replied a beat late to the Hero’s question as he then began to finely slice the ingredients on hand.

“...A Bouqmouse is a type of labyrinth dwellers that can freely leave the labyrinth at will. Their characteristics are to go above ground or outside the labyrinth to gather plants and flowers or what not.”

“Go… above ground…? Wait, so they can navigate out of this labyrinth!? Is that what you’re saying?”

After hearing the Hero’s conclusion, the Guide let out a small smile as he nodded his head to the conclusion that the Hero just came up with and thus happily stirred the soup he was preparing.

“Yes, exactly so. I’m glad that you at least still have a bit of IQ left in your head, Hero.”

‘…That guide… actually smiled…?’ Dumbfounded by the Guide’s unexpected reaction the Hero could only stare blankly at the former’s explanations.

“Ehem, were you listening Hero?” The Guide then became fully engaged in the explanation.

So much so that even his hands have stopped stirring the soup he had been preparing and thus began to fully lecture the still dumbfounded Hero.

Finally snapping out of his daze, the Hero replied with a beaming expression. “…Yep~ I’m all ears!”

“As I was saying, a Bouqmouse’s den can also act as a natural safe zone in these kinds of labyrinths.”

Satisfied with the Hero’s answer, the Guide then began to continue blabbering when a noticeable crisp smell wafted towards the former’s nose.

“Ohh~ how intriguing but isn’t the soup smelling a bit burnt?”

“…? Soup…?”

“You were cooking a while ago right?”

“Ah! That’s right!”

After much the trouble, the Guide managed to save the burning soup.

“Alright! Time to dig in~” With a freshly stewed soup in front of a hungry belly, someone like the Hero couldn’t at all resist the delicious and inviting smell.

Peeved by the Hero’s lack of class, the Guide quickly took away the former’s bowl of soup. “Didn’t I say? No dinner for you.”

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Surprised that the soup suddenly disappeared, the Hero then looked forward to see the slightly scowling face of the Guide. “…Hey guide~ cut me some slack here! Also it’s still noon and we haven’t even ate lunch yet… So~ technically this is still lunch!”

Finishing his sentence, the Hero caught the Guide off guard as the former swiftly took the soup from the latter’s hands.

“…” The Guide could only stare blankly at the logic the Hero had placed on the table and also at the fact that the Hero had took the soup right under his nose...

“Are you silent because I’m right? Hmm~ guide? Or is it because I succeeded in taking the soup!”

“…After we’re out of this labyrinth, I’ll be sure to educate you properly.”

Caught off guard by the words ‘educate’ the Hero belatedly recovered and smoothly followed up the earlier confusion with a joking question in a rather irritatingly playful manner. “Eh? Um…What exactly kind of educate~?”

“I don’t know. But, maybe getting hit by a dozen of books to the head would at least give you some bit of IQ.”

“Woah- woah! Let’s not resort to violence~ didn’t I also say that I have a fragile heart? Go easy on me!”

“What I will be hitting isn’t your heart but your nonexistent brain, Hero. But since that organ doesn’t seem to exist inside your head, doesn’t that mean that you won’t feel any pain if I were to hit it really hard?”

“Urk... Um... dear guide… before you even start hitting my ‘nonexistent’ brain, the facts from your tongue had already destroyed what is left off my fragile little heart!”

“Oh so our dear Hero is aware that what I have been saying were all but the truth? How… shocking.”

“Hey now~ don’t add more salt to the wound… you’ll make me cry.”

“Then cry.”

“Our dear guide lacks heart… maybe that’s what happens when you put all your stats into your brain.”

“Haa… please just shut up Hero. If not, then maybe your heart and brain won’t be the only thing that I would be breaking once were out of this labyrinth-”

“Dear guide.” The Hero then went closer to the fuming Guide and then continued to do so until the latter could feel the breath of the former.

“…What?” Surprised by the sudden lack of distance, the Guide could only unconsciously take a small step back.

The Hero then took another step forward, wearing an uncharacteristically serious look on his face.

Pursing his lips slightly, the Guide then glared at the Hero with his narrow eyes.

It was as if to say ‘Personal space please’ as being under the gaze of someone was definitely unpleasant for the said Guide.

But it seems that after seeing the glare on the Guide’s eyes, the serious look on the Hero’s face was then replaced with a gentle smile as he soon placed a finger in between the creases of the former’s eyebrows.

“Don’t knit your eyebrows too much or you’ll ruin your handsome face.”

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“How carefree…”

The Guide could only complain under his breath at the sight of the Hero casually sleeping after just finishing a meal.

It’s not like the Guide had slipped in any sort of sleeping essence in the soup so why is this pig sleeping like a fat cow?

‘Don’t you know that sleeping after just eating will turn you into a cow?’ Peeved by the Hero’s lack of manners, the Guide could only try to reason with the sleeping pig of a Hero.

“Hero, you can rest but sleeping inside a dungeon isn’t really recommended. Also, let go of me.”

It seems that there weren’t any pillows or what not around the area that the Hero could sleep on so the Guide had to take on the role of a pillow.

Or to be exact, the Hero forced the Guide to be a pillow as the former was lazily sleeping on the latter’s lap.

Seeing that the Hero wouldn’t move, the Guide could only relent after remembering the said Hero’s barrage of whining and his incredibly noisy figure.

Wasting such peace and quiet would just be unwise. so the Guide continued to let the Hero use him as a pillow.

The stillness of the situation however, caused the Guide's attention to befall upon the sleeping Hero.

“Seeing this childish Hero sleeping so quietly like this…. Is oddly strange.” Fascinated by the contrast in the Hero’s behavior the Guide couldn’t help but pinch the cheeks that were stuffed full with food earlier.

“….Squishy.” Unbeknownst to himself, the Guide softly smiled as he continued to pinch the Hero’s cheeks.

“…Urk…” The Hero then let out a soft groan as the pinching was getting a bit too excessive.

“Ah- That was rather rude.” Realizing his own lack of restraint, the Guide then quickly retracted his hand from the Hero’s cheeks.

He then sat motionless so as to not be tempted to squeeze the sleeping Hero's cheeks once more.

And with that, a whole day had come to pass inside this labyrinth.