Hounds of the Labyrinth (3)
The axe buried deep into the minotaur's chest.
Kwadeudeuk— The sound of its ribs shattering in a single chunk was almost musical.
"Kkeok…"
The axe head had torn into its lungs, and the minotaur couldn't even manage a proper scream. Air hissed out of its half-caved chest with a ragged wheeze as its breath rattled up through its throat.
I kicked the thing's stomach with my right foot to wrench the axe free and landed back on the floor. The body I'd kicked slowly toppled backward.
Thud— A faint tremor ran through the ground, and fine dust scattered across it.
"Oh my…"
"Whoa…"
When I turned around, every single one of my party members was standing there with wide eyes and mouths hanging half open.
Hm. Was it really that shocking?
'It matched me so well that even I got goosebumps, to be honest.'
Watching my party members unable to tear their eyes away, mouths agape, I honestly didn't know what to say.
Even Ha Heijeong looked completely stunned. If she was reacting like that, what on earth must it have looked like to everyone else?
Standing around felt a little awkward, so I simply walked back over to the group.
"So… what's with all of you?"
"What do you mean, what's with us? Suhyeok, what the hell was that just now?"
"Huh? I just fought like I always do. The axe suits me really well, so…"
"You fought like you always do? No way! Suhyeok, what you just did was on a whole different level from before."
A whole different level? That seemed like quite an overstatement. It hadn't felt like that to me. The weapon felt great, sure, but I'd moved exactly the way I always did.
I'd never trained combat formally, and it was the same when I used the sword or the mace. I moved almost purely on instinct — I'd never once thought, 'this is how I should swing the weapon.'
"Suhyeok-oppa, I don't think you realize it yourself, but it really was that different. Ah, how do I even describe it?"
"Yes — I'd say it felt like there was zero wasted movement. Of course, Suhyeok was always like that, but this was far cleaner and more economical. Ah, optimal movement? That's probably the best way to put it."
"Ohh, yes, yes, that's exactly it. Kol really does have a way with words."
"Oh, thank you."
Harin's father and Seo Harin both nodded as if Kol had hit the nail on the head.
Meanwhile, my face was burning. Optimal movement? Weren't they laying it on a bit thick?
Being praised to my face like that, I was finally starting to understand what "ears burning" actually meant.
'Please, stop.'
I already knew the two-handed axe suited me perfectly, so I wanted them to quit while they were ahead.
I caught Ha Heijeong's eye for help. Time to wrap this up and get moving — change the subject, please.
She clearly understood the message, but the little rascal just flashed me a sly grin instead.
Oh no. That was her troublemaking smile…
"Right? I was shocked too. Harin here couldn't take her eyes off you — your form swinging that axe was just so sexy."
"Unni!? What!?"
About ten minutes had passed since our clash with the minotaur when our party ran into another group of orcs.
Eight orcs. It wasn't a difficult fight.
How should I describe it — did I cleave them? Split them?
"Kkeuk!"
Either way, my axe halved an orc clean through the shoulder.
I kicked its chest away and pulled the axe out of where it had lodged. Two hands versus one — the difference in power when swinging an axe really was something else. It lacked that satisfying punch, though.
"Hmm, definitely not as crisp as before, huh."
"You're right. I guess you really do need to swing an axe with both hands. That feel just isn't there."
"Kch— you looked so damn cool earlier, too. So you're switching to the two-handed axe for good?"
"Yes, that's the plan. The two-handed axe seems to suit me best of all. I'll use it as-is for this floor, at least. It's not like I can just do away with the mace…"
"Fair enough. Can't exactly throw away something that good."
Harin's father nodded with an easygoing smile.
I'd ended up fighting with the mace anyway since I had no idea what else to do with it, and everyone agreed it was a bit of a shame it didn't shine.
But I couldn't just throw away a perfectly good mace either, so we'd decided to make do until the end of this floor. It didn't have that exhilarating bite of the two-handed axe, but it was more than enough to handle the enemies of the 9th floor.
'Hm?'
In the middle of talking with Harin's father, I suddenly felt eyes on my mace.
I turned my head to find Seo Harin's eyes absolutely gleaming.
'Why is she suddenly…?'
What was going on? Was she interested in the mace?
As if reading my question, Ha Heijeong, standing behind Seo Harin, gave a small nod.
Her gaze flicked back and forth between the mace and Harin.
Hm. It seemed like she wanted me to give the mace to Seo Harin…
Give her the mace? Harin's a priest, though?
Ah! Come to think of it, I remembered something Ha Heijeong had told us about the party back on the 6th floor.
'Wasn't she famous for being a hard-carry priest?'
I'd assumed "hard-carry priest" meant healing, but… apparently it meant a priest who fought.
'Honestly, the mace is only something I've been lugging around because it feels wasteful to throw away…'
Even if I brought it back to the Waiting Room, it would probably just get shoved in a corner. The shield and sword I'd gotten in the tutorial were already squatting in a corner there as it was.
Hm, yeah. Rather than letting it rot in the Waiting Room, giving it to Seo Harin seemed like the better call. This was the girl people had called a "hard-carry priest" for her combat, after all.
Protecting the party's rear was genuinely important, too. It was just that Ha Heijeong had been so good at it until now that I'd never felt the need.
Besides, while I carved through the front, Harin's father and Kol had been guarding the rear and fighting alongside the rest.
But who knew what would happen later on? I couldn't guarantee the back line would always be as safe as it was now.
Better to start training her from this floor onward. And honestly, going without the mace would probably make fighting more comfortable for me anyway.
"Harin, want to try using the mace?"
"Excuse me?"
At my casual question, Seo Harin flinched in surprise. Probably embarrassed at being caught staring at the mace.
"You won't need to use it often, but I figure it's good to have a way to protect yourself in case enemies ever target the rear. What do you think?"
"Oh! Of course I'd love to. It's just… Suhyeok-oppa, that mace is no ordinary mace… Ah! I'll give it back to you when we clear the 9th floor, I promise!"
"No, it's fine. I'm more comfortable with the two-handed axe anyway, and it'd just end up stuck in the Waiting Room. If you want it, take it."
"Still…"
"I'm telling you, it's fine. The double-bladed axe is just that good — I won't have any use for the mace now. It's just dead weight."
"Something this precious… Thank you so much, Suhyeok-oppa. Really."
"Don't mention it. Really, it's nothing."
When I handed the mace over, Seo Harin bowed her head again and again, her face full of emotion.
Hm. She thanked me so profusely that I started feeling awkward. I'd only given it away because I genuinely didn't plan on using it anymore…
Still, seeing her so grateful for it wasn't a bad sight. There were plenty of people in the world who couldn't say thank you at all.
"Harin, are you sure about this? Don't go getting yourself hurt over nothing."
"Dad, I'm fine. I think I can do it. No — I will do well! Suhyeok-oppa gave it to me, after all."
Her father had asked with a worried expression, but Seo Harin nodded back with fire in her eyes.
Why had she changed so much, I wondered? The shift had really started after the incident on the 7th floor…
She communicated more actively with the party members, and her conversations with her father grew warmer.
It was probably because her father had nearly died. The party's strength had bottomed out, forcing them to summon the Lord of Prey.
She must have thought that if she'd pushed herself just a little harder, things might have gone differently.
Which was a good thing. For climbers, that drive to improve mattered a great deal.
Anyway — it was time to get moving again.
"Then let's advance."
Escape Kasyatum's Labyrinth within the time limit. Time remaining: 6 hours 47 minutes.
This time it was a pack of goblins that appeared.
Fifteen goblins. No hidden room in sight, just monster after monster — it was starting to get on my nerves.
Goblins, huh… I quickly glanced back at Dobby.
I'd wondered if he'd feel uncomfortable facing others of his kind, but Dobby's expression was perfectly calm.
Then again, he'd had no trouble back on the 1st floor when we killed goblins either.
'Should I just handle them myself? It'd be less hassle.'
Hm, no. Better to put Seo Harin to the test.
It was a snap decision. Not orcs — goblins. Perfect practice targets.
And if Ha Heijeong was right, Seo Harin had a talent for exactly this.
"Harin, I'll bait one of the goblins toward you. Perfect practice opponent. And if it gets dangerous, Heijeong and Kol will handle it, okay?"
"Got it! I'll give it a try!"
"Yes."
Better to start raising her now. Even if Seo Harin made a mistake, Ha Heijeong was there, so nothing could really go wrong.
Harin's father looked a little flustered at first, but he soon seemed to realize there was no better practice dummy than a goblin and nodded. All he did was give his daughter's shoulder a gentle, quiet pat.
"Go get 'em, Harin! And don't push yourself too hard!"
"Mm! You too, Dad!"
"Battle ready! Let's finish this quickly."
"Okay, let's go!"
After that brief exchange, the clash with the goblin pack began.
Well, "clash" might be the wrong word…
It was closer to our party steamrolling them.
Either way, I deliberately lured a goblin back.
Despite knowing it was coming, Harin's father glanced back for a moment as a goblin rushed past him.
He wasn't normally someone whose focus wavered like that…
"Sir! Eyes front! Heijeong's got the back covered."
"Uh, right. Got it."
He turned his head back and threw himself into the fight. I could understand worrying about Seo Harin.
Kol feinted away from the goblin I'd lured, pretending not to see it.
One goblin warrior, worked up with excitement, charged straight for the rear.
"Kkihik! Stupid! Humans!"
"Yap!"
Thud— The lightning mace came hurtling down like a bolt from the blue, right onto the skull of the goblin warrior mid-swing.
The goblin, caved in from the crown of its head, simply crumpled.
"Uh…?"
"Huh?"
Seo Harin stood there in a daze, mace still raised from the strike. Not frightened, not flustered — just a look on her face like, 'Wait. It's really this easy?'
Even Kol, drawing his bowstring at the back, let out a dumbfounded noise.
Harin's father, too, stood gaping in the middle of battle, completely distracted.
I understood how Kol and her father felt. Even I was taken aback. Ha Heijeong had dropped hints, but I hadn't expected her to pull it off this easily, this naturally.
Only Ha Heijeong, at the back, wore a meaningful smile.
'Hm, Seo Harin really did need to choose her weapon like I did…'
That was my honest impression. Sure, I'd only seen it once, but wasn't this enormous talent? The movement was far too clean to write off as beginner's luck or a fluke.
Suddenly, the staff hanging in Seo Harin's left hand looked pitifully inadequate.
Seo Harin beamed and spoke up carefully.
"Um, c-could I try one more?"
"Uh, sure? Go ahead."
In the meantime, we'd slaughtered more than half the goblins, but three or four still remained.
I sent another goblin to the rear. Hm, "lured" might be the wrong word for it now.
The goblins already looked like they'd lost half their will to fight.
Yeah, "shoved toward the back" was probably the more accurate description.
Harin's father and I engaged the goblins just enough, then pushed one of them backward.
"Kkiik! Die!"
Maybe it felt us dismissing it? The goblin I'd shoved back came charging in a fury.
"Yap!"
Crunch— But once again, the goblin's crown caved in.
Lightning crackled faintly along the brain matter of the goblin as it launched into the air.
Hm. Looks like the rear is nothing to worry about from here on out.
Ha Heijeong and Seo Harin. I'd been fighting conservatively all this time, careful never to let too many slip past me — but from now on, maybe I could afford to rampage a little more freely?
'This much testing is enough. We've done plenty.'
Three goblins left.
I charged forward and swung the axe in a wide, brutal horizontal arc.
"Kkik!"
"Kkeok!"
The axe, having half-shredded the first goblin's torso, came down straight into the second one's body. Two goblins slammed into the labyrinth wall along with the axe.
The instant I wrenched it free, I pushed off hard with my left foot and lunged ahead, bringing the axe down over the last goblin's head.
"Kiiik!"
The goblin raised its sword to block the axe. It didn't stand a chance.
Clang— The goblin's sword went flying to the floor.
Crack! The axe, biting into the crown of its head, cleaved cleanly all the way down through its chest.
Blood fountained from the severed stump of its neck.
"Ooh, using two hands really does cut through everything without any resistance. Even I feel invigorated watching it."
"Haha, why don't you try switching weapons too, sir?"
"In life or death, it's the sword for me. Haven't I told you? The sword is king of all weapons. Hehe. Say what you want — nothing beats a sword."
"Ah, I think you mentioned that before. Oh — what's that over there, though?"
I had no memory of him ever saying that, but I vaguely hummed along and changed the subject. Once Harin's father got started on a topic like that, it never ended, and I had no idea what tangent he'd go off on next — it was best to cut him off here.
"Hm? What are you pointing at?"
"There — the spot where the goblin pack was standing at the very start. Don't you see something strange? A box?"
"Ah, ah, over there… Now that you mention it, why is there a lone box sitting there?"
Where the goblins had been waiting, about twenty meters ahead, a single box clung flush against the labyrinth wall.
It certainly looked like a treasure chest…
"Doesn't something about it seem suspicious?"
"Right? One look at it and you can tell something's off."