Chapter 656: Continental Spaceship Trans-Cross Ultra Quiz

The Seventh Layer. Content-wise, you could call it a fusion of the Second and Fourth Layers. It's an area resembling a library like the Second Layer... and, just like the Fourth Layer, the objective is to locate specific information. Once you provide the correct answer to the riddle given by "Ivory," you clear the layer. The troublesome part is that, once again, every single person is given a different question.

The question I was given: "What is the name of the Genesis Kin that possesses both abnormal proliferation capabilities and highly advanced mimicry, exhibiting extremely high active hostile behavior not only toward humanity but toward all organic lifeforms?"

Rei-shi's question: "What is the name of the creature that inhabits ultra-high altitudes, possesses a distinctive physical form that makes visual observation difficult, but can be spotted by the naked eye from the ground exclusively during its breeding season?"

Akitsu Akane's question: "What is the name of the creature primarily inhabiting the deep sea, classified under the fish lineage, which uses special pheromones to force other species into dependency and servitude, using them as subordinates to hunt on its behalf?"

And Emul's question: "Name five species of creatures appearing on the New Continent with an average height of one meter or less."

That was the setup. I see, this place is enough of an information treasure trove that The Professor and the others are already muttering, "Ah, is this the route where we permanently settle down here too?" It's practically equivalent to the bestiary section in a normal game. I opened a random folder and found incredibly detailed information about monsters I had never even seen before... and listening to the joyous uproar from the 【Library】 members, it seems there are also detailed documents regarding the monsters generated within the Behemoth. In short, it's a superior version of the Second Layer—a library containing much more advanced information.

But returning to the topic at hand: the questions given to the members of Wolfgang... Whether it was a coincidence, or if the questions were deliberately chosen from information the players already knew, almost all of our questions were things we could answer without needing to dig through the materials.

◆

"The Devouring Great Crimson Clad... No, wait, it said mimicry, right? In that case, it has to be the Crazed Ultramarine?"

『Correct, Sunraku. You have arrived here after experiencing many battles... That way of being is highly favorable.』

"I can't beat that thing, though."

『It is a monster that even the wisdom of the Divine Age failed to find a fundamental solution for. Most likely, even the Genesis Beast Erebos cannot deploy it indiscriminately... But that is merely a deduction. The fact that neither the 'Behemoth' nor humanity was strong enough to verify it is a humiliation that still burns within me like a blazing fire.』

◇

"Umm, if I remember correctly......... Aurora Kamui?"

『Correct. If my observations are accurate, this is a creature that has not been subjugated even once since the birth of the next-generation primitive humanity... yet you knew of it quite well, Psyger-0.』

"W-Well, when my sister was gathering information on Lycaon... I happened to see, um, materials regarding it as an aurora monster, you see."

『In the distant future, when humanity conquers even the skies... no, I firmly believe, and eagerly await, that my children will reach out and grasp it in a future that is not so far away.』

◇◇

"Umm, let's see, umm..."

"Hey 'Ivory', is it against the rules if I just tell her?"

『No, not at all.』

"Akitsu Akane, the answer is the Slavegiven Carrier-Angler."

"You know it!?"

"I fought it back in Ruluiath."

"Is that so! Umm, the answer is the Slavegiven Carrier-Angler!!"

『Correct. It is one of three species contending for the apex of the deep-sea ecosystem, and its genetic information is so exceptionally bizarre for a biological entity that...』

"Ah, save that kind of technical talk for The Professor and his group, they'll happily sit there and listen to you for three hours."

◇◆

"Five species? Five kinds desu wa? Ah, err, umm........."

"Emul, you have ten seconds left."

"Hoaaaah!? Why desu wa!!?!?"

『10, 9, 8...』

"Hoaaaaaah!?! Ah, err, uh, Vorpal Bunny! Goblin! Kobold! Cait Sith! Umm, err, umm.................."

"Saina, lend her some brains."

"Answer: Draculus Dinotriassicus."

"Draculus Dinotriassicus desu waaaaa!!!"

『...Correct. I see. It appears you truly are an intelligent lifeform.』

"So there are... goblins on the New Continent as well, huh."

"They're a bit stupid, but they're doing their best to survive desu wa."

"You're calling them stupid...?"

"Depending on the situation, we can take this outside Sunraku-san desu wa."

◆

Well, what with one thing and another, everyone who had been acting alongside me managed to clear the task. Honestly, compared to the sheer maliciousness of the Leviathan, the trials imposed by the Behemoth are mostly a walk in the park. As for Saina, she wasn't even given a question and was simply waved through, which caused her expression to cloud over even further. Give me a break.

Things like this usually take at least three or four days of grinding affection points, right? We haven't even been here for a full day yet. Well, what to do? Is it really okay to proceed to the Eighth Layer with this kind of mentality lingering? Personally, I belong to the faction that wants to just hurry up and get the event over with because I'm simply curious about what comes next.

But still... hmmm. Can a Conquista Doll be considered a biological organism? No, that's not it. Saina's dilemma isn't about whether she's organic or inorganic. In short, it's about whether she has human rights or not—whether an AI can be treated as an "individual," right?

Honestly, the answer to that has already been established. For example... yeah, if I picked a light fight with Josette, I'd find out immediately, and honestly, if I just asked Akitsu Akane right next to me, I feel like she'd give me the exact answer I need.

"But that's not the point..."

"What isn't?"

"Hmm? How do I put this... adjusting affection points with the heroine."

"Puguru."

"Say what?"

"IT WAS NOTHING, JUST A SNEEZE."

Right... Let's just say Rei-shi is being her usual self.

There's no point in agonizing over it. Let's just head to the Eighth Layer and see what happens. Having cleared the floor without even needing to dig through the materials since we already knew the answers, maybe we should just leave the other players behind and head to the Eighth Layer first... Hang in there, Reiji-shi, we'll be waiting for you at the 'summit'......!!

Wait? Isn't the Eighth Layer further down? So it's the bottom? Actually, given the Behemoth's structure, our actual altitude probably hasn't changed at all...

Let's just not think about it.

---

Author's Afterword

Waiting for you at the summit...! (The altitude hasn't changed at all)