I’m Not the Mastermind

Meanwhile, inside Reina’s research office at the academy.

“Are you saying they left for the labyrinth exploration and are currently unavailable?”

Reina spoke into the communication crystal, directing her question at someone on the other end. A response quickly followed.

“Yes, that’s correct. Hugo’s party departed for the labyrinth exploration early this morning.”

“……”

“Even if we assume they’ll spend a full week inside the labyrinth, Hugo’s party is only capable of reaching the 20th floor at best. At the very least, it’s estimated they’ll need a day or two before returning.”

Typically, the time required for a labyrinth expedition isn’t particularly long when measured against reality.

Since the labyrinth’s time dilation effect slows time by half for every ten floors downward, even if someone spends an entire week within the uppermost ten floors, only about three and a half days would pass in reality.

Moreover, the deeper one ventures, the shorter the real-time duration of their stay becomes. Naturally, some might wonder:

“If time flows like that, couldn’t someone just stay in the labyrinth indefinitely and train endlessly?”

In truth, the labyrinth, overflowing with the energies of transcendents, is quite a suitable place for training. With time moving slower relative to reality, one might indeed be tempted to stay inside and cultivate their skills for as long as possible.@@novelbin@@

Who knows? Perhaps, by absorbing the Four Great Forces that permeate the labyrinth, one could attain enlightenment, return as an immortal, or even ascend to legendary status.

But such a thing is impossible.

The reason is simple—any mortal who stays in the labyrinth for approximately one month, as perceived within the labyrinth’s own time, will be forcibly ejected by the emergency escape blessing.

In short, the maximum stay inside the labyrinth is roughly one month in labyrinth time.

This is also why those who descend to the lower floors return so quickly. Due to the time dilation, starting from the 70th floor, time flows 128 times slower than in reality. Even if one were to spend the entire maximum stay of one month in the labyrinth, in the real world, only a little over five hours would have passed.

On top of that, the labyrinth is hardly a place suitable for extended stays in the first place. The deeper one goes, the more it teems with monsters born from the power of transcendents.