When we arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild, the lively commotion inside could be heard even from outside.

It had been a few days since Lycia and I last opened the guild doors.

The last time was right before the Hydra subjugation, when I came to research the mission.

Normally, we’d just report the completion of our quest at the reception desk and sell the spoils of our battles.

But what awaited us when we stepped into the guild was entirely different from what I expected.

“Huh? What’s going on?”

The moment we entered, the bustling guild suddenly fell silent.

Every adventurer inside turned their gaze toward us.

Caught off guard, I instinctively stopped in my tracks.

In this inexplicable atmosphere, one adventurer stepped forward—Luan, a C-rank adventurer I’d met during the Lesser Demon hunt.

“Uh, hey, Ike. Got a moment?”

“What’s up?”

“Well, you see... there’s been a rumor going around that you two challenged the sixth floor of the Septem Great Labyrinth.

And since you haven’t been to the guild for a few days, people started speculating that you might have failed. You know, didn’t make it out alive.”

“Oh, so that’s what it’s about.”

After taking on the Hydra mission from Alto, I had been studying the Hydra’s details and preparing meticulously for the Septem Labyrinth.

Since I had already conquered the fifth floor, it wouldn’t have been hard for others to guess that I might be planning to tackle the sixth.

The reason I hadn’t been to the guild for a few days was simply because I was resting my exhausted body.

Given the circumstances, I couldn’t blame anyone for assuming we had failed—or worse, died in the dungeon.

It was only natural for people to be surprised to see me alive and well now.

Luan, who had also been caught off guard, seemed to regain his composure and spoke again.

“Well, then I guess the rumor was wrong.

Even someone like you would have no chance at conquering a floor that hasn’t been cleared in decades.

You probably just went to that new dungeon discovered east of town—”

“No, I actually did clear the sixth floor.”

“...What?”

Luan froze, his expression blank and incredulous.

“Hey, are you listening? I said I cleared the sixth floor.”

“You’re joking, right? Then why haven’t you been to the guild for so long?”

“I was resting. The sixth floor was tough, and I needed to recover.”

“...You’re serious?”

“Dead serious. Here’s the proof: the mana stone of the Hydra, the boss of the sixth floor.”

I reached into my bag of materials and pulled out a black mana stone.

Anyone with a bit of knowledge would instantly recognize its value.

“No way... I’ve never seen a mana stone of this purity before!

It’s far higher quality than the A-rank mana stone I saw once!”

Even Luan, with his fair share of experience as an adventurer, could tell its worth.

His words caught the attention of the other adventurers, who began gathering around us.

“What the hell is this mana stone? I’ve never seen anything like it!”

“Such a smooth, lustrous black... it’s like a piece of the night sky.”

“To clear the sixth floor... that’s insane. I can’t even imagine it—I’ve never gotten past the third floor myself.”

The guild erupted in chatter.

Some of the compliments directed at me were a bit embarrassing, but...

“Hehehe. It seems the greatness of my Master is finally being recognized by the common folk.

Oh, this feels absolutely wonderful!”

“Lycia, whose side are you even on?”

Lycia puffed out her chest proudly, her face beaming with satisfaction.

Well, as long as she’s happy, I can’t complain.

For the next while, I was bombarded with a storm of questions—

Why did I decide to challenge the sixth floor? What enemies did I face? How did I manage to clear it?

Since many of the details were tied to Alto’s request, I dodged most of the questions with vague answers.

After finally escaping the crowd, I went to report the completion of our mission to Ayla at the reception desk.

She gave me a warm smile and congratulated me.

“I’m so glad to see you safe, Ike.

I knew where you were headed, unlike the others who only heard rumors, so I was genuinely worried.

Please try to report back sooner next time, okay?”

“...I’ll do my best.”

“Thank you. Well then, let me say it properly:

Congratulations, Ike, on clearing the sixth floor.”

“Thanks, Ayla.”

After that, we began the process of appraising our loot.

The mana stones of the fourth-floor boss Gargoyle and fifth-floor boss Minotaur fetched two and four gold coins, respectively.

However, the Hydra’s mana stone posed an issue.

According to Ayla:

“The last recorded purchase price for a Hydra mana stone is five gold coins, but... you said this Hydra was a special variant, right?

Its mana stone’s quality is clearly much higher than usual, so we can’t properly appraise it.”

“...I figured as much.”

I had suspected this would happen.

That Hydra’s strength had clearly exceeded normal standards—it was easily at S-rank.

Though it was a bit disappointing not to appraise it, I wasn’t too concerned.

Thanks to Alto’s reward, I wasn’t strapped for money.

Perhaps the mana stone would have another use someday.

With that thought, I sold the other two stones and left the guild with six gold coins in hand.

Suddenly, I felt a gaze on me.

Turning instinctively, I scanned the room, but with so many adventurers around, I couldn’t pinpoint its source.

“Is something wrong, Master?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Deciding it wasn’t worth worrying about, I let the matter drop.