Divine Luck: SSS-Rank Battle Maid Harem

A little guilty about being unable to see Rierdan wake up and leaving Dukiel and Anerias behind, Zach, Nessa, and Violina set off toward the Systine Duchy, where the Labyrinth of Syst was waiting for them and twenty-one other Ticket holders.

Initially, the three of them rode inside the carriage. Nora and an attendant from Violina's household sat up front and steered the horses. Yanael and Alzara rode on Nessa's Millipede as it walked next to the carriage.

The southern coast, where the Labyrinth was located, was a little closer to the central part of the Empire, where the Academy was, so it wouldn't take as long to get there as it does between Zach's home and the Academy. But they were still looking at a week's worth of travel. Someone had made a big Empire after all.

At first, the journey was a little rough due to the monster spilling out of the forests. The first-years had done their best, but they had been outnumbered and spread thin. Then, the incident with the city had stopped merchants from traveling to and from. Without the merchants traveling back and forth, there was no need for mercenaries and bodyguards to go back and forth.

Aside from the bare minimum of supplies and visitors coming and going to and fro the city and the Academy, the roads had seen almost no travelers. The monsters hadn't been culled as much as they usually were.

Fortunately, Zach, Nessa, Violina, Nora, and their familiars didn't mind. Not even Violina's attendant, Max, minded. The summoners were happy to have things to kill to get them to level up. It was a shame all the monsters that came out of the forest were weak, especially compared to what they had started getting used to.

But the quantity of monsters made up for lacking quality, and Zach finally hit level twenty halfway through the week. Nessa and Violina were further behind at level eighteen. They were a little envious but more than that, they were determined to catch up, so they had Zach keep his familiars from slaughtering the monsters before they could get to them.

Yanael, who was doing most of the slaughtering, didn't mind. She wasn't too interested in pointless, non-exciting fights with weaklings. Alzara wasn't much of a fighter, to begin with. She was all too satisfied lying down on the carriage roof and sunbathing.

Nessa's and Violina's familars worked together to slay the monsters that appeared on the path before they could get too close to the carriage so that they didn't have to slow down.

They were making good time, and the Labyrinth was supposed to open a little later, so they should have more than enough time to arrive. But there was no need to waste time just because of monsters.

The group made good progress, and before they knew it, they were inside the vast stretch of the Systine Duchy that stretched and covered the Empire's southern coast. To the east, the coast stretched into barbarian territory, and the border was shared with the Evandiel Duchy.

To the west, the coast extended into a marshy delta that was part of the west's territory.

The southern Systine Duchy monopolized the Empire's access to the ocean. The Empire naturally imposed some restrictions. But since the Systine Duchy was solely in charge of handling pirates, attacks, and monster and monster waves from the ocean, all they had to do was circulate their wealth and the goods into the rest of the Empire.

Since that was all they had to do, the Systines possessed incredible wealth. It was the same with all the duchies and the royal family since all five of them had their own Labyrinths. But the Systines were the only Duchy whose main income came from a source other than the Labyrinth.

After all, the Syst Labyrinth opened once every two years, and it only allowed entry for twenty-four participants. Twenty-four possible sources of treasure and riches every two years was not enough to sustain a Duchy.

That was why the Systines sold or rewarded the biannual tickets they received to highest bidders or vassals and others who deserved them. They gained more from the connections they made and the help they gave to the younger generation than they did from hogging all the tickets to themselves, especially when it was impossible to guarantee rewards from the Labyrinth.

Unlike the Labyrinth of Jira, which would reward people with experience, endless training, and infinite materials at the minimum or items like the Wishing Key on rare occasions, the Labyrinth of Syst was a little less reliable. It was also usually a competition at times.

Twenty-four people returning with anything more than injuries was so rare that it had almost never happened.

The more he heard about it, the more excited Zach got. He already knew the different Labyrinths were different. But he hadn't expected such a difference, even after hearing about the Labyrinth Tickets. At most, he thought the entry and the internal environment, including the monsters they would have to face, would be different.

Instead, by the sound of it from Violina's explanation, the Syst Labyrinth was entirely different from the Jira Labyrinth. The only thing that was the same was the fact that the further one got, the better the rewards.

However, unlike the Jira Labyrinth with its endless underground floors, the Syst Labyrinth had an end.

After twelve rounds of trials, the Labyrinth ended.

"Um, I have to ask while we're on the subject." Nessa gently raised a hand and got the other two's attention. "Why are they called 'Labyrinths' when, from what I've understood, neither of the two is remotely similar to a labyrinth?" She asked. It was a reasonable question.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure there is a floor in Jira that's a labyrinth. Other floors can be maze-lie, too, I'm sure," Zach said.

"And one of the trials in Syst can be to get out of a Labyrinth," Violina helpfully added.

"...Is that the reason?"

"'No.'" Zach and Violina answered at the same time.

"The one in the capital is an actual Labyrinth."

"Yup. An endlessly growing and changing Labyrinth or something. It's filled with monsters, traps, and treasures, unlike anything on the surface. Supposedly, if rumors are to be believed, there also exists something else in the Labyrinth." Zach leaned in like he was sharing a secret or conspiring against the state.

"Like what?" Nessa asked, deadpan.

"An invincible monster!" Violina said, excitedly.

"What, no." Zach refuted Violina's guess with a frown before continuing,

"A strange power. The secret to the royal family's strength."