Chapter 46
Chapter 46
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 046
Chapter Title: Where Stories Linger (2)
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A fork in the road with a low probability of appearing. It was one of the most absurd parts when tackling the Rabbit Hole.
‘It wasn’t about meeting specific conditions or anything. It just popped up randomly.’
In other words, it was a pattern that only showed up if you were lucky.
That was probably why it felt a bit disappointing that there were no mana fluctuations here.
If the person who’d found the golden apple in one go brought their luck here, wouldn’t the odds of this fork appearing go up?
‘Anyway, it showed up faster than expected.’
Unlike before, there were now three choices.
Left, middle, right.
“Looks like we should choose carefully. What do you think, Reggin?”
Truth be told, up to this point, it hadn’t mattered which way you picked.
You could call it a simple luck test.
‘So far, whichever of the two paths you chose, mole rats came out. The numbers varied a bit.’
Fight ten, or fight four.
That was basically the level of choice on offer.
But things were different from here on.
“I think we should choose carefully too, sir.”
“Figured as much?”
“Yes.”
He heightened his focus a little, but no mana could be felt from the end of the passages.
It would’ve been nice if he could predict what lay ahead at the far end like this.
“……Looks like we have to leave it entirely to luck.”
Greg clicked his tongue as he stared at the fork.
Something felt off, but he was confused about which path to take.
‘I was cautious too, back in the beginning.’
He recalled the days tackling the Rabbit Hole in DAT.
He remembered his head hurting a lot from this sudden new pattern.
Knowing chances were limited, he’d moved his character around, investigating until he realized it.
‘That there was a way to pick the right answer.’
Whoosh—
“Mind if I ask why you suddenly grabbed a torch?”
“To take a closer look.”
Reggin picked up one of the torches mounted on the passage wall and stood before the fork.
Truth be told, it wasn’t a way to check the passages.
‘Not this one.’
Reggin calmly examined from the left, to the center, then the right.
Each time he stood before a passage, he could feel a slight breeze from inside.
Except for one.
Sss—
“……Reggin.”
“Yes?”
“The torch went out the moment you stood in front of the right passage. Was that you?”
“No.”
The instant he stood before the right passage, the torch in his hand snuffed out with a whoosh.
No mana could be felt, but…
“Seems like magic’s been applied here.”
A place with magic applied, unlike the other passages.
A spot that made torches unusable.
‘A place that can only be lit by magic.’
This location, which seemed to guard against outside intruders, was exactly where Greg and Reggin needed to go.
* * *
Having confirmed it was different from the other passages, the two decided to head right immediately.
“It’s definitely darker in here.”
“I’ll use a scroll.”
There were no torches here, and they couldn’t bring one, so they relied on Reggin’s light scroll as they walked.
Meanwhile, Greg kept his guard up, axe gripped in hand.
You never knew what might jump out from where.
“……This is weird.”
But after walking some distance, Greg quietly spoke up.
“Why can’t I sense anything?”
No sounds came of mole rats charging in the moment they entered the passage.
Only Reggin, who knew the reason, walked on in silence.
‘No mole rats means it’s certain.’
There was no way a fight could happen.
This wasn’t a place for battles like before.
‘It’s a kind of reward room.’
A space packed with rewards for all the battles fought so far.
The moment they entered the plaza, Greg’s eyes went wide.
“……This is.”
Unlike before, the plaza wasn’t empty.
Glowing crystal orbs everywhere, wooden wands and staves used by mages.
And on top of that, weapons like spears and axes.
“……Hah.”
Greg walked in slowly, inspecting the items.
“Feels like I’ve stepped into an antique shop.”
Every one of them carried the weight of long years.
There were gold accessories too, in designs rarely seen these days.
Their uses were visibly different from modern ones.
“……Looks like all those old legends were true.”
“Legends?”
“Yeah. Do you know when these items were made?”
“No. Can you tell right away, Greg?”
“Yeah. I’m from a blacksmith family, you know. These are… at least eighty years old, minimum.”
“……Eighty years.”
“They’re definitely weapons and accessories from the explorers’ era back then.”
“Related to the legend you mentioned earlier?”
He knew this place was tied to the kingdom’s history.
He was aware of most of the story, but since Greg had lived in this world, he asked in case he knew something extra.
“You know there was a time a hundred years ago when the Tower first appeared and explorations just started, right?”
“Yes, I know.”
“Truth is, we can go in and out of the Tower like this today because of their efforts. They had to tackle it floor by floor back then, starting from the first.”
“There must’ve been explorers from previous generations.”
“These days, the fourth floor is one of the low floors we pass quickly, but back then, a lot of blood must’ve been spilled here.”
“Makes sense. Compared to the third floor, it’s darker, and the monsters are stronger.”
“Yeah. And you know what happens when that much blood flows, right?”
“……Lycanthropes show up.”
These days it was less dangerous with攻略 methods, but back then, it was pure wilderness.
An unknown place where anything could leap out and take your life at any moment.
Just like the fifteenth and sixteenth floors were for the western kingdom’s citizens now.
“The surviving explorers had to avoid lycanthropes and desperately find places to hide.”
“…….”
“Then, some ancestors like us found the rabbits. And those ancestors who followed the rabbits…”
“Discovered this burrow.”
“That’s the story. From then on, the Rabbit Hole served as a kind of shelter.”
“The explorers who fled here must’ve held out until the lycanthropes were gone.”
“Yeah. If my guess is right, these items here are probably what those explorers used back then.”
“…….”
“That’s the preamble. There’s this legend about the Tower.”
Greg stroked the items scattered around.
“It says the stories born from explorers’ adventures don’t vanish—they linger somewhere in this Tower.”
It was the same gaze he’d had when they first met.
Eyes lost in thought about why he climbed the Tower, imagining its end.
“I thought it was just a legend. But seeing it myself… I get it. Places like this… The stories we leave in the Tower don’t just fade away.”
It was one of the famous legends among explorers.
Events in the Tower would, over time, remain somewhere in the Tower as dungeon-like formations.
The Rabbit Hole was proof. A case where past explorers’ experiences had turned into a dungeon.
Greg seemed convinced after seeing the Rabbit Hole he’d only heard rumors about.
“Our climbs in the Tower… our fights… they’ll linger somewhere too, won’t they?”
Greg removed his helmet and bowed toward the items.
The wordless gesture conveyed his meaning.
Respect for the paths walked by his ancestors.
And a wish that, as he climbed floor by floor, those paths would mean something to future generations.
‘He’s a proper explorer.’
One who devoted his life to the Tower, hoping his path would hold meaning.
And now, confirming such things passed to posterity, he was moved enough to pay respects.
It was that spirit of exploration that let him conquer up to the fifteenth floor of the once-unknown Tower.
After a moment like that, Reggin looked at Greg and spoke.
“Greg.”
“Yeah?”
A strong explorer’s spirit was great. Building resolve was fine too.
“Let’s start collecting.”
“……What?”
“These items.”
But what needed doing, they’d do.
Reggin calmly assessed the items as he thought.
‘Black market material. These would fetch a high price.’
Next scroll material costs? Already covered.
* * *
“Ahem. R-Right. We should collect the items.”
“Yes. You didn’t plan to find treasures like these and leave them, did you?”
“…….”
Greg thought for a moment, then burst out laughing.
“You’re right. Heh heh. Not the time to pay respects to our ancestors’ gear. Time to think about how to use it.”
“Any usable weapons?”
“Hmm. Gotta check closely, but most weapons are dulled… and compared to modern ones, the balance is a mess.”
“I see.”
“Seems like it was around the time they’d just started developing weapons for monsters. Barely different from ones made for fighting people.”
Unfortunately, most weapons were basically worthless.
Might have archaeological value, but no practical use for exploration.
In simple terms, they wouldn’t sell.
“And hauling weapons out would be a hassle anyway. Factoring that in, nothing seems useful.”
“The crystal orbs too. Hard to put to use.”
“Really? Guess magic development was slow back then too.”
Swoosh—
Greg scanned the area, nodded, and continued.
“The accessories look valuable. Crude, but that means high gem content.”
“Really?”
“See this? Basically pure gold. This one’s solid iron. You don’t see stuff like this anymore.”
Melt ’em down and sell, and you’d at least break even.
Following Greg’s advice, they began packing items into their bags one by one.
“You’re not taking much. Nothing really catch your eye?”
Of course, Reggin was selective.
With his inventory, he wanted to grab everything, but nothing was worth revealing it in front of Greg.
“Actually, I do have something in mind.”
“Oh?”
“Old explorer records mention a glowing rabbit’s foot somewhere in this burrow.”
“A glowing rabbit’s foot?”
“Yeah.”
“Something like that exists?”
“I’m looking diligently.”
That was why he was opening more boxes than Greg.
“A rabbit’s foot, huh? An actual rabbit foot? Wonder what effect it has.”
“Well, superstition says it brings luck.”
He’d heard it back in Korea. In the West, rabbit feet symbolized good fortune.
In the DAT world too, since rabbits had saved explorers, they seemed to hold similar meaning.
‘A luck-boosting material item.’
You might ask what good mere luck did.
But to a gamer, luck was an irreplaceable factor, incomparable to others.
In a game with success/failure forks, something that raised success odds?
‘A cheat item, that’s what.’
The reason he’d switched plans and sought the Rabbit Hole the moment he saw Greg was for that rabbit’s foot.
‘If I get this…’
It could temporarily cover the regeneration scroll’s weaknesses.
“……Reggin.”
“Yeah?”
Creeeak—
Then, from a box Greg opened, a white glow poured out.
“No way, is this it?”
“……Yes.”
“You take it.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. I’ve already grabbed plenty of accessories.”
The rabbit’s front foot, glowing white. Reggin smiled.
A material item to serve as a stopgap before reaching the tenth floor.
‘This is why I came to the Rabbit Hole.’
Reggin smiled in satisfaction as he took the foot and stowed it in his bag.
“But now what? No exit here?”
“Why wouldn’t there be?”
And this was a reward room’s advantage.
Reggin pointed to the magic circle nearby and continued.
“The markings match the escape portal’s. Probably generates a portal back to the fourth floor.”
Let you leave right after claiming rewards.
He could look around more if he wanted, but with his goal achieved, the choice was simple.
“Hmm. Yeah. Caught plenty of mole rats. Confirmed the Rabbit Hole legend too. No regrets here.”
As Reggin reached to activate the magic circle—
—Kieeeek!!
A screech echoed from the passage they’d come through.
At the same time, the ground beneath them shook.
“Reggin, doesn’t this sound like someone fighting?”
“…….”
“Yeah. You said it before.”
Reggin frowned and nodded.
“That others could come in.”