novelblue
Chapter 118: Into the Labyrinth
Chapter 118: Into the Labyrinth
Three days later, dawn.
Jung Yu-shin stood alone in the yard and checked his body.
Even after the festival, he had a busy schedule and had difficulty finding time for himself.
He looked down at his palm.
Excluding the small rewards.
‘I gained one thing from this festival.’
Sacred Weapon.
A seal that received the blessing of the Earth Mother during the fight with Lett.
A beginner’s magic of a priest with half physical and half divine power. It is a technique to draw a weapon from the mind into the real world.
It was a magic that could not be used unless you were a priest class. However, through the seal, Jung Yu-shin was able to use it.
When he first received this seal, the time it took to summon the weapon was too long and its power was just so-so.
Not now.
The more he used it, the more his magical power increased through magical adaptation.
The Sacred Weapon became stronger.
And now that I have received the blessing of the Mother Earth.
I can now give characteristics to weapons as well as their forms.
Of course, because of the poor magical power, giving characteristics to Sacred Weapons was limited to 1 time. If you imagine an ability that is too absurd, you will fail in the middle.
For reference, a normal Sacred Weapon can be used about 15 times.
‘Can I say that it has become stronger?’
I don’t know. But I thought I would know right away.
From now on, I will be working at the Explorer Headquarters in the central area.
Explorer Headquarters.
The enormous building I saw when I first came to the Labyrinth City.
The scene of countless Explorers swarming around was still vivid in my memory.
Is this what it feels like to go out into the great ocean?
My heart raced with tension and excitement as I thought about the Explorers I would meet in the future.
As I stood in the yard, quietly lost in thought, Tarman approached me.
“Ska, a guest has arrived.”
“There are a lot of people coming in the early morning these days.”
“I guess it’s because the weather is getting hotter and hotter.”
“That’s right.”
After wiping off the sweat, I went out to the inn hall and saw Ashur sitting at the table.
The leader of the swordsmanship guild.
The elf stalker sword master.
Ashur nodded at Jung Yu-shin.
“Ska, sit down.”
“Yes.”
Jung Yu-shin sat across from Ashur.
“Nothing happened, right?”
“Yes.”
Ashur snickered at Jung Yu-shin’s stiff answer.
“Nothing happened. You said you fought hard to save people on the streets?”
“That’s right.”
“Good job.”
Ashur smiled and patted Jung Yu-shin on the shoulder. Only then did Jung Yu-shin’s body relax.
“I thought you’d be really mad because I swung my sword around again.”
“What are you talking about? I’m not that bad of a person. I can swing that sword around freely to save people. Hehe.”
Jeong Yu-shin laughed brightly.
“Is that so? Hahaha.”
Then Ashur’s expression hardened.
“Don’t laugh. I’m not that broad-minded. Ah, thinking about it again, I’m getting angry.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No. It would have been better if I had survived and won.”
“...”
“Great! I found out the information you asked me for last time.”
“Are you talking about the case where the Revenger and Death-Restoration Seals are combined?”
“That’s right. There’s something I need to mention first. Cases where the Seals are combined to produce abilities. People call this case ‘Seal Linkage.’”
“It’s a pretty straightforward name.”
“That’s right.”
“Do you have any examples?”
Ashur crossed his arms and stared into space for a moment before opening his mouth.
“Once upon a time, there was a wizard. He got a seal that transformed magic power into muscle.”
“Oh?”
Magic power into muscle?
Wasn’t he a power mage?
Was he really a labyrinthian?
There was romance.
“On top of that, he got a seal that infinitely multiplied magic power. It’s a seal that steadily increases magic power just by breathing.”
“Isn’t this a joke?”
Isn’t that a crazy, swindling seal?
“I’m not joking. He was so strong that even the most famous warriors in the city couldn’t match him in strength. Do you get it? This is an example of a synergy of seals.”
Is this a case where seals create a synergy effect?
Let’s take that power mage as an example.
His magic power increases infinitely and at the same time, he becomes a person who can transform that magic power into muscle.
In other words, his muscles increase infinitely just by breathing.
His heart pounded.
“The imprint link is a shortcut to becoming a top explorer. Of course, there are those who reach the ranks of the strong through endless training without anything like that.”
Ashur looked at Jeong Yu-shin quietly.
“I’m saying this out of concern, but don’t rely too much on imprints.”
“Yes. I understand.”
The master was right. It would have been difficult to survive the labyrinth if you only relied on imprints.
The reason he had been able to overcome crises up until now was because of his own constant training and effort.
“Big! I have to finish the example. To cut to the chase, that wizard is dead.”
Jeong Yu-shin’s eyes widened.
“Huh?”
“There was chaos in the city. We were surprised too. There was no one who could touch that guy. We performed an autopsy to see if it was a poisoned assassination.”
“So?”
“His heart muscles were abnormally thick.”
“Huh.”
Jung Yu-shin opened his mouth in amazement.
The strongest magician suddenly died of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
‘Fuck. My romance.’
Was this a labyrinth after all?
“The imprint connection isn’t that good.”
“I understand even if you don’t hammer a nail into it.”
“Big! Let’s get to the point. It’s theoretically possible to escape from a death sentence with Revenger.”
‘Actually, I heard from the Earth Mother.’
He didn’t say it.
Ashur continued.
“You can get to the brink of death and then recover with Revenger. It’s a training method that greatly increases the potential of Revenger imprints. Easy?”
‘Ah.’
Suddenly, a bad feeling began to build up in his stomach. He had to tap dance precariously on the brink of death. Isn’t this crazy difficulty?
Dark clouds spread across his peaceful mind.
“Why are you saying that so easily? Your disciple is dying.”
“Then don’t think about the imprint and just swing your sword diligently. In my opinion, that’s the most likely possibility.”
“Okay, I understand.”
Ashur got up from his seat.
“Give me the money later when you come back from the labyrinth. Let’s practice more seriously next time.”
“Okay, I understand.”
Jung Yu-shin saw Ashur off and returned to the inn table.
“Oh my. My life.”
He sighed involuntarily.
‘If I had just strengthened the virgin female corruption imprint, I could have lived a happy, satisfied, and sweet labyrinth life with a powerful virgin harem party, right? It’s better than karma. Yu-shin.’
Someone whispered in the darkness.
Crack!!!
Jung Yu-shin slapped himself in the face.
“Ah, the darkness of the labyrinth again.”
Another evening, two days later.
The party members gathered in a corner of the inn.
Iron Mask opened his mouth.
“The client is Sarphia, a high-ranking priest who serves the Wind Spirit. The request is to bury a holy relic in a specific location while going around the 7th floor of the forest area.”
“A specific location?”
Jeong Yu-shin asked.
“I heard it’s a place where magic easily accumulates. You know what causes Eldritch Waves, right?”
Isn’t it a phenomenon that occurs when magic accumulates in a layer?
I couldn’t help but know that I suffered so much because of it.
“Does the holy relic serve to suppress the accumulation of magic?”
Iron Mask nodded.
“That’s right.”
“But why are you leaving it to a party like ours?”
“It’s because the route is long and we have to carry the weight of the holy relic. I heard that it was ignored for a long time because the fee wasn’t that high.”
After hearing it, it made sense.
We need to look at the weight of the relic, but if it's heavy and bulky, there will inevitably be restrictions on the items we can explore.
Since the amount of food, water, antidotes, and potions we can take with us is reduced, the time we spend in the labyrinth will naturally be shorter.
Since the route is also long, the exploration time will be even tighter.
In the end.
It was a request that could only be a hindrance to explorers who wanted to go in and make a lot of money.
"What kind of crappy request did you get?"
Mars grumbled.
"But is there a reason we have to do it? No matter how grandly you say it's a designated request, I think it's just a waste of time, Dae.”
“Everyone, come closer.”
The party members looked curious, but immediately brought their heads closer as Iron Mask said.
They looked into each other’s eyes as if they were plotting something.
“···This is a secret. Listen carefully. When you bury a sacred object in a certain place, something happens.”
“...”
The party members forgot what they were going to say and listened quietly.
“When you bury a sacred object in the ground, the accumulated magical power disperses. When the magical power spreads to the surroundings, if you are close, the magical power accumulates in your body and causes a transformation. You become healthier or your magical power increases a little.”
The party members’ eyes widened.
“Is it like leveling up?”
“Similar. It’s not as great a leap as leveling up, but it’s definitely not something to be ignored.”
Health or magic power increases.
In games, it was similar to increasing HP or MP.
It might have been the most necessary benefit for someone struggling with a lack of magic power. It was even more so because they didn’t know when they would level up.
“Why didn’t anyone know about it until now?”
“Maybe it’s because it’s not a dramatic change?”
“I don’t know. It’s even stranger that those gloomy explorers are talking about these benefits so openly.”
“Since so many suspicious things happen in the labyrinth, they might just be letting it slide.”
The party members each shared their opinions.
Jeong Yu-shin looked at Iron Mask silently.
‘Where did you get this information?’
Isn’t it pretty high-level information?
‘Anyway, you’re a strange hyung.’
Still, it wasn’t a completely unpleasant feeling of suspicion.
It was because they believed Iron Mask wouldn’t say such things with bad intentions.
“If that’s true, then this is a good opportunity.”
“That’s right. By the way, this phenomenon only happens once in a lifetime.”
“Is that so?”
Jeong Yu-shin licked his lips in regret.
Is it impossible to copy infinite magic power?
“Okay. I agree.”
“Me too. It would be beneficial if my stamina increased.”
“It’s to protect the safety of the labyrinth, so as a priest, I can’t refuse. It’s right to go.”
Iron Mask nodded while listening to the party members.
“Then let’s part ways here and meet again in three days.”
“Okay.”
After the meeting, the party members got up and left the inn.
Jung Yu-shin watched the party members moving away for a long time before returning to the inn and sitting at the counter.
Suddenly, a question crossed his mind.
‘Why did they specifically name our party?’
Jung Yu-shin shook his head and swallowed the question.
It wasn’t a question that could be answered only by thinking deeply.
‘I guess that means that Iron Mask’s connections are that great.’
It was time to prepare.
Three days later, at dawn.
It was time to enter the labyrinth.
Jung Yu-shin put on the armor he had received from Boron’s forge one by one.
He wore chainmail over his cloth clothes and plate armor that covered his stomach and back.
One shoulder was particularly prominent, and it was called Foldrun. The other flat part was called Spaulder.
It was similar to the shoulder pad armor from Warcraft.
The helmet was an armored helm with a visor. I used it last time. It had better defense than Barbuta.
He tied two daggers and an arming sword to his sword belt in their scabbards and hung the long sword on his back.
He wrapped the ? N?v?Iight ? (Original source) rest of his miscellaneous equipment around his body.
Lastly.
He held the heater shield in his left hand and carried the magic backpack containing his daily necessities on his back.
Karin smiled at Jeong Yu-shin standing at the entrance of the inn.
“Isn’t it cool?”
“Whew. Whow.”
Jeong Yu-shin gasped. The armor wasn’t heavy, but it was completely steaming hot.
‘I feel like I’m going to die.’
It was worse than wearing underwear and heattech in the middle of summer, then putting on a top, a rag, and a raincoat in order, and finally a raincoat.
In short, these weren’t things made for people to wear.
Karin placed her hand on Jeong Yu-shin’s chest.
“Are you okay?”
“Whew. I feel like I’m going to die from the heat. Seriously.”
Even in the middle of summer, the Labyrinth Guards wearing full plate armor were admirable.
“I’ll go and come back. I’ll work hard to save up money.”
“Don’t get hurt. I’ll wait.”
“Okay.”
He wanted to say something cool, but the heat was so crazy that his mind was spinning.
Jung Yu-shin left the inn with his luggage and arrived at the central area.
When he arrived at the temple where the wind spirits that he had heard about at the last party meeting were enshrined, his whole body was soaked.
The party members waiting at the entrance to the temple greeted Jung Yu-shin.
The naked dwarf looked at Jung Yu-shin and chuckled.
“Scar? You’re dressed like a savage.”
Jung Yu-shin tucked his helmet under his arm and brushed his sweaty hair back.
“Don’t tell me to talk. I feel like I’m going to die.”
While waiting at the entrance, several priests came out carrying three boxes.
The party gathered in a circle and observed the boxes the priests had brought.
‘Is this a holy relic?’
A small, square iron box.
There were several characters engraved on the outside. Other than that, it didn’t look that special.
After receiving the box from the priest, I estimated its weight.
‘Hmm.’
It was quite heavy.
A shabby-looking elf priest approached and handed Iron Mask a small piece of paper.
“Explorers, thank you for accepting the request. If you go to the area marked on this map and bury the holy relic, the request will be completed.”
“How do you plan to confirm the completion of the request?”
“Many of the priests belonging to our order are active in the forest area. You don’t have to worry about that. You can report the completion of the request at the currency exchange in front of the labyrinth. Okay.”
The elf priest finished what he had to say and went inside the temple.
The party members divided up the boxes and walked into the labyrinth.
After walking for a long time in the crowded crowd, they arrived at the entrance of the labyrinth.
“Line up!!! Get in line!”
“Don’t push!”
“There are a lot of people today. Should we hurry?”
“Guys, this is your first time, but you don’t need to be nervous. Just look at the people. They’re all crowded because they can do it.”
The people stood in line and each spoke a word.
The heat from the crowd made my head spin.
After waiting while sweating profusely, it was Jung Yu-shin’s party’s turn.
They stood on the magic circle according to the guards’ instructions.
“Scar, do you have anything to say? You know the saying, ‘What’s going to happen?’?”
A smile filled the Iron Mask’s voice.
“Whew. Let’s just go. Hurry up.”
Jung Yu-shin responded panting.
I hadn't even entered the labyrinth yet, but my whole body was already soaked in sweat.
I stood in the magic circle and gripped the flint tightly.
The light flashed and I felt a sense of floating.
Soon darkness came.