Chapter 111: A Room You Can't Leave Without S.M. (3)

Time remaining until I can cast the mini Sanctuary again: 24 hours.

Even if I sleep for 8 hours, there are still a whopping 16 hours left.

If I were outside, I could hang out with Ellie, take a walk around the city, read novels of this world, or continue writing the story I recently started again. There would be plenty to do.

But inside this empty cube, nothing is possible.

At best, I could either zone out or train, but there’s nothing else to do.

For the record, the former is boring, and the latter is not only boring but also exhausting, so they’re out of the question.

After all, didn’t I just risk my life to defeat a formidable enemy? I just want to rest and have fun mindlessly.

And here. Fortunately, I was not the only one trapped inside this cube.

Benny was dumbfounded by the fact that I could use the mini Sanctuary once a day. Smiling brightly at her, I said,

“Benny.”

“Huh? Uh…why?”

“There are no other problems now, right? We just have to wait, right?”

“Y-yes?”

“So, what should we do for fun? What should we do for fun?”

“……”

Benny had a strange look in her eyes, like someone who just learned that platypuses have excellent vision but shut their eyes tightly when diving.

In short, it meant she’s looking at me as if to say, ‘What the heck is this guy talking about?’

“Oh, come on. Don’t be so serious, Benny. We won, and now we’re just temporarily trapped. In a safe space with no one but us.”

“But…this is still a Labyrinth.”

“A Labyrinth without monsters or traps.”

Shrugging it off, Benny, who was about to protest, just mumbled and lowered her head.

Maybe it was because the connection with Shadow had weakened. Benny seemed more downcast than usual.

Or rather, should I say her resolve had weakened?

Freed from the influence of the erosion she had been so wary of, she had instead become weaker.

Benny herself hadn’t known, but the moderate level of madness flowing from Shadow had been supporting Benny’s fragile mind.

Then, what impact would whatever flowed from Benny have on Shadow?

And now. What state is Shadow in, having lost Benny…

It’s true that I’m worried, but there’s also a part of me that feels relieved.

After all, isn’t Shadow an immortal monster, to whom the concept of death doesn’t apply?

I don’t think anything will happen on the second floor, but even if something does, it won’t die.

That’s enough. What’s more concerning is not Shadow, but the other adventurers exploring the second floor.

If they happen to run into the Shadow, it’s obvious they’ll be slaughtered.

I just hope that doesn’t happen…but if it does, we should blame it all on Morgana.

After all, it was because of Morgana that Benny and Shadow got separated.

Of course, I can’t voice this suspicion to Benny. I can’t burden someone who’s already mentally fragile with more worries.

That’s why I suggested we play something. To keep Benny, who’s already weakened, from having negative thoughts.

“What I have in mind is a coin guessing game.”

“Coin guessing? Like putting a coin in a cup, shuffling it around, and guessing which side the coin is on?”

“That’s a con game… It’s all a trick, and you’ll always lose money, so don’t do it.”

“Really?!”

“Really. Want me to show you something similar?”

I pulled out a 1-copper coin from my pocket. It looked like some loose change I had picked up somewhere…

The 1-silver emergency money I used to keep in my shoe sole had been blown on gacha, so this was my entire fortune now.

I placed the 1-copper coin conspicuously on my palm and then clenched my fist around it. Then, I made a show of rubbing my thumb and index finger into my fist.

That’s right. It was just a show. I had secretly extracted the coin and placed it on the back of my hand.

From Benny’s front view, the angle wouldn’t have given her a clear look.

Now, what’s left is to carefully open both hands so the coin doesn’t fall. Then, from Benny’s perspective, it will definitely feel like the coin in my hand suddenly vanished.

“What?! Where did the coin go?! Is it magic? A magical tool? No, I didn’t sense such a presence…”

Benny muttered to herself with a serious look. It was quite fantasy-like to immediately trace the presence of magic… but there’s no way she could catch it.

This is a simple magic trick. It’s purely a sleight of hand and deception, so no matter how much she gropes for traces of magic, nothing will come out.

In my past life, during childhood. There was a time when magic tricks suddenly became popular on TV. It’s a trick I practiced during that trend.

For the record, this is the only trick I can do. I lost interest and didn’t learn any others.

“How was it? Amazing, right?”

“…Yeah. I get that you hid it in a way I couldn’t detect. Probably the same with the shell game. Bad guys. I thought it was just my poor eyesight because there was no trace of magic… I can’t believe I’ve been fooled all this time.”

“Benny, you’re a mage. It’s not strange to have a habit of looking for magic first when something unusual happens. Didn’t you think to use a detection spell?”

“That’s not really my specialty. Even if I knew how, finding it with magic would be cheating.”

“You’re very diligent in strange ways.”

“Ha… Exactly. I didn’t expect there to be a blind spot like this. Anyway, where did the coin go?”

“Who knows. Where could it be…”

With a sly grin, I extended my palm straight towards Benny.

“Huh?”

In a firm tone, I spoke to Benny, who hesitated and tried to step back.

“Please stay still.”

“Oh, okay.”

Benny stiffened. Bringing a hand toward the back of her head, I swiftly retrieved the coin from the back of my hand.

Showing the coin back in my hand, I giggled.

“Oh my! It was on the back of Benny’s head!”

“Why was it there…?!”

Benny jumped in place, startled. Her reactions are always so good, no matter when I see them.

Unlike Lydia, who responds intriguingly only to suggestive topics, Benny’s charm lies in how she bounces around like a child at the smallest things.

Benny grumbled and pondered why it came from there. Clapping lightly in front of her, I drew her attention.

“Alright, alright. Now you know that the coin trick isn’t about guessing the location, right? I can easily manipulate things like that without Benny noticing.”

“Uh-huh. So what are we guessing?”

“It’s simple. Just flick it with your finger, catch it, and guess whether it’s heads or tails.”

“That’s too easy.”

“Sorry?”

“For a high-level adventurer like me, it’s just visible, you know? Mages mostly grow their magic power and concentration every time they enter a Labyrinth. If I focus, I can just see which side it will land on.”

“What the heck….”

Unless it happens completely in a blind spot of your senses, like a moment ago, it’s virtually impossible to deceive me once it’s caught inside.

Well, considering that I’m almost reborn compared to before I entered the Labyrinth, how amazing must a high-level adventurer who has reached the seventh floor be?n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

I sighed inwardly and changed the rules slightly.

“Then let’s decide whether it’s heads or tails first, and then take turns flipping the coin.”

“If it’s that… Yeah, that’s fine.”

Benny nodded. She seemed to believe without a shred of doubt that it would be a fair game of luck.

So naive….

Strangely, coin flipping has an image of fairness, but in reality, it’s not entirely a game of chance.

There are research results indicating that with a bit of practice, you can manipulate the coin to land on a specific side.

Of course, it’s not 100%, at best about 70%, but…since I obtained the Sound-Eating Footsteps, my senses have developed to the point where no one can surpass them.

I can achieve a better success rate than that. And that’s more than enough. Compared to a fifty-fifty chance, it’s a much more favorable condition.

So, I decided to add a few conditions.

“Just to make it interesting, how about the loser takes off one piece of clothing each time?”

“…What?”

Benny flinched for a moment. Her gaze trembled as it instinctively scanned my collarbone and abdomen.

How lecherous. Well, I understand. If I put myself in her shoes, it’s like a pretty girl asking if we should take off one piece of clothing each time we flip a coin. I would probably react the same way Benny did.

“Ah, no… I can’t do that. Besides, you have Ellie, right?”

“She’s not here. It’s fine. Ellie won’t know whatever we do in here. …So, what do you say? Want to give it a try? I’ll let you go first.”

With a subtle smile, I handed the coin to Benny.

Gulp.

After contemplating for a while, Benny took the coin. And then.

“Ah, heads!”

“Ding! It was the back side! Since you lost, take off one more!”

“Ugh… Is this right? Is it really right?!”

I took off both shoes, socks, and my leather armor, leaving me in my inner clothes.

All Benny had left was a tight-fitting dress.

Hat, shoes, socks, various accessories…there were none. She had lost them all earlier!

“Benny! Hurry up! If you want to see my body, you should at least be prepared to show yours!”

“I’ve never heard of such preparation before!”

Benny hesitated for a long time. Finally, as if she had made up her mind, she closed her eyes tightly.

“Here goes!”

Benny quickly shoved her hand inside her dress. After a moment of struggling alone, she pulled out something that looked like a round sticker.

“…Phew. Is this enough?”

“……”

I stared blankly at the coin-sized sticker in Benny’s hand, feeling utterly deflated.

And then, a voice slipped out without me knowing.

“Ho…”

“Ho?”

“How dare you use sorcery! What do you think this sacred undressing gamble is!”

Where do you think you’re pulling out nipple patches from!!