Chapter 198 Friend
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Translator: JayM
Chapter: 198
Chapter Title: Friend
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Jeong Yoo-shin opened his eyes.
An old wooden ceiling.
Moisture clinging to his skin.
An uncomfortable bed.
He realized where he was.
The resting place in the swamp area, the Witch's Hut.
"Skar, are you awake?"
Fin stuck his face out and asked.
"...Yes."
Jeong Yoo-shin barely managed to open his mouth and answer. He had no strength in his body.
"..."
Fin stared at Jeong Yoo-shin's face for a while, then sat back down on the chair next to the bed.
"When I saw you last in the Corridor area, you were with your party members. Why are you alone now?"
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know? Were you betrayed or something, and you can't get a grip?"
At Fin's question, Jeong Yoo-shin frowned. Betrayal. What nonsense.
"It wasn't a betrayal. I took the portal to the 10th floor, and suddenly I was alone."
"Is that so? You're lucky you didn't go mad."
"I don't think I walked for that long."
"You never know. The red fog is everywhere, so your sense of time and direction can disappear in a flash."
Jeong Yoo-shin closed his mouth and thought hard.
He tried to count the time he had wandered in the swamp, but he couldn't get a feel for it.
Had he lost consciousness because of the ghoul's poison?
It was possible. The imprint he had, Venom Protection, wasn’t a constantly active imprint.
It was a chanting-type imprint that consumed a considerable amount of mana.
When the Venom Protection imprint was off, the minute amount of ghoul poison remaining in his body must have taken effect.
Or…
He could have simply been temporarily exhausted from his rapid march.
Whatever the case…
"Thank you for saving me."
At Jeong Yoo-shin's thanks, Fin shook his head.
"Don't thank me. I didn't do anything."
All he had done was lift the fallen barbarian's helmet to check his identity and place him on the bed.
There were only two reasons why he had saved this barbarian.
The food in his backpack.
If it hadn't been for that, this half-breed barbarian would have already been in his stomach.
And curiosity.
'How did he survive?'
He saw the wounds on the half-breed barbarian's armor and helmet.
It seemed like he had fought a Swamp Ghoul alone, but he had somehow not died.
'Wait a minute.'
For the first time in a long time, a chill ran down Fin's spine.
Why?
It was because it hadn't been long since he had met this guy in the Corridor area.
A low-intermediate would usually go around the various areas between the 5th and 10th floors.
The Forest, the Corridor, or the Underground.
It was the standard to first explore the levels, save money, recruit talented people, and then challenge the 11th floor.
But this guy had immediately charged down to the swamp area and was rolling around fine. He didn't know if his party members had died or what had happened.
He didn't know if he had talent or a good imprint, but one thing was for sure.
'A reckless fellow.'
Fin decided to watch a little longer, stood up, and approached the fireplace in the corner of the hut.
On the fireplace was a pot that looked like a large shield, and porridge was bubbling in it.
He took out a wooden bowl, scooped up some porridge, and brought it to the barbarian.
"Eat. I used some of the food from your backpack."
"Thank you."
Jeong Yoo-shin said his thanks, carefully took the bowl, and looked down at it.
Jeong Yoo-shin's eyes widened.
"Wh-What is this?"
"What?"
"Isn't this a Bloodworm?"
"That's right. It's a nutritious ingredient."
"..."
"If you don't want to eat it, then don't."
"No."
Jeong Yoo-shin barely managed to lift the bowl and swallow the porridge.
Had he become an isekai Bear Grylls or a man of nature?
Crunch.
The texture of the Bloodworm was like that of a sea squirt.
When he bit down on the plump Bloodworm, the juices popped out and ravaged his mouth.
Jeong Yoo-shin frowned and chewed it thoroughly. At least the jerky and herbs made it edible.
"...It's delicious."
"Right? It's not bad."
After finishing the porridge, Jeong Yoo-shin’s head began to clear.
"By the way, what floor is this?"
"13th floor."
Fin answered after taking a sip of the porridge.
Jeong Yoo-shin rubbed his forehead.
Crazy.
To suddenly be transferred to the 13th floor.
Did that even make any sense?
Jeong Yoo-shin looked down at his silver bracelet.
Was there a problem with the Bracelet of Unity?
Or was the labyrinth screwing with him?
Fin pointed at Jeong Yoo-shin's bracelet.
"That bracelet must be the problem. Looking at it, it seems like you bought it from the Explorer's Guild. Look. The mana circuit here is broken. It's not working properly."
The haggard-looking receptionist came to Jeong Yoo-shin’s mind.
A vein popped on his forehead.
Was that receptionist bastard crazy?
"Does this even make any sense? To screw someone over like this?!"
"It doesn't matter if it was intentional or a mistake. The guild's response will be the same. They'll either give you a large sum of money to keep you quiet, or they'll fire a specific guild member and pretend not to know."
"If they handle things like that, who would trust the Explorer's Guild? Is that really okay?!"
Fin shrugged.
"No matter how good the system is, what can you do when the people are the problem? And the guild's response will depend on what kind of person you are. Are you a big shot?"
"N-No."
"Still, it's strange. The Explorer's Guild isn't a place that would make such a mistake. Did you buy that bracelet at the headquarters?"
"Yes."
"Tsk. Do you have a lot of enemies?"
"I had some trouble with the guys in the Eastern District."
"They wouldn't be just any old guys. Did you ever mess with their business?"
"Yes. I destroyed a few."
"This is a method the Eastern District guys often use. They're the only ones who mess with the Bracelet of Unity. Who's the council member in charge of the labyrinth entrance right now?"
"It's Astaroth. She's a labyrinth council member’s representative from the Eastern District."
"That's not surprising. When you go back, look for the Explorer's Guild employee who sold you this bracelet. If he's dead, then it's the Eastern District guys' doing."
"You seem to know a lot."
"A gold plaque isn't just for show."
Fin's argument was plausible.
But the premise was that Fin was sane.
Jeong Yoo-shin decided to subtly test Fin.
"I have something I'm curious about."
"What is it?"
"How are you not crazy yet?"
Fin chuckled.
"The swamp area's law? It's not that big of a deal. You just need to have a being with 'thoughts' by your side."
Fin took something out of his pocket and shook it.
He then showed Jeong Yoo-shin a sleeping black rat.
"It's a rat that was wandering around the 10th-floor Ash Village. I think it was in a box that the merchant's guild brought. Well, that's not important."
"It's sleeping quietly."
"I gave it a sleeping pill."
"..."
Jeong Yoo-shin was at a loss for words.
To overcome the labyrinth's law in such a strange way he had never thought of.
'Is this the experience of a high rank?'
After that, Jeong Yoo-shin and Fin talked about various things.
Fin mainly talked about the swamp area, and Jeong Yoo-shin talked about the events happening in the city outside the labyrinth.
Fin smiled slyly.
"Why do you look so tired? Your eyes sparkle when you hear information about the labyrinth, but your expression dies when you talk about the city."
"My head is throbbing because so many things are happening at the same time."
"That's how the world works. The way I see it, you're a labyrinth type of explorer."
"..."
Jeong Yoo-shin didn't have anything to say to that.
Fin continued.
"In the labyrinth, you only have to think about one thing. Survival. You can't get imprints, but you can level up. If you survive, you can become endlessly stronger. You know the thrill of breaking through the levels with your wits, don't you?"
He couldn't deny it.
It was true.
Lately, he had been breaking through the labyrinth with the help of several people, but it wasn't as satisfying as when he had overcome adversity with his own strength and wit.
"From what I see, you were born with the constitution of a labyrinth wanderer."
Fin said once more.
Jeong Yoo-shin turned his head and looked out the window.
The red fog was swirling outside.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
A day passed. Maybe two.
Jeong Yoo-shin’s sense of time was completely messed up, so he had difficulty counting the days.
He recuperated in the resting place.
He ate whatever he could without being picky. Since his constitution was so strong, it didn't take long for him to recover his energy.
Jeong Yoo-shin followed Fin outside.
Fin, as a man of the labyrinth, was knowledgeable.
"This is that Dorongi flower. It's a plant that only grows in the swamp. If you squeeze out the juice and apply it to your legs, the bugs won't dig into your flesh."
"Hoh."
Fin dug up the root of a tree that was sticking out in a corner of the swamp and handed one to him.
"This is a deer tree root. You can chew on the tender ones like this. It's sweet and just right."
Jeong Yoo-shin took the root and chewed on it. A bitter and sweet juice filled his mouth.
'Isn't this just an arrowroot?'
Fin stared blankly at Jeong Yoo-shin.
"You're eating well. Don't people usually avoid tree roots?"
Jeong Yoo-shin shrugged.
"You gave it to me, so why are you saying that? It's edible."
"You really are a labyrinth type."
"No. What's with that…?"
Jeong Yoo-shin didn't know how many days had passed, but he had adapted even more to the swamp.
Fin generously shared his knowledge of the Swamp Area.
It wasn’t the kind of knowledge from books, but knowledge from experience.
The two, who had finished their exploration together and returned to the hut, sat in front of the bonfire with bowls of porridge.
"So what’re you going to do?"
At Fin's question, Jeong Yoo-shin looked up from his porridge.
"I have to go to the center of the 13th floor. I heard that there's a powerful monster there."
"Ah. That monster? It'll be difficult for intermediate-rank explorers to catch it."
What in the world did that mean?
Fin, who was looking at Jeong Yoo-shin's expression, scratched his head.
"Well, I don't like complicated stories, so I'll make it short. A great magic sword appeared on the 13th floor, so explorers flocked there."
"Yes."
He knew that. He had heard the vanguards talking about it on the 10th floor. Had they said it was a magic sword that emitted a chill?
Fin continued.
"That monster bastard took advantage of the time when the riffraff explorers were fighting each other and attacked them, eating them and becoming stronger. I saw that it was moving freely through the swamp. You have to be careful."
"Can a monster become stronger by eating an explorer?"
"No. That seems to be a characteristic of that monster."
Jeong Yoo-shin stroked his chin. He did think that conquering the boss mob wouldn’t be so easy, so he wasn’t too surprised by Fin’s information.
Still, he had no intention of abandoning Mick and the Pete and Meat brothers and returning to the city alone.
"That monster, where is it? Can't you go there with me?"
"Swamp Ghouls tend to gather where there are a lot of corpses. That monster is probably in a place with a lot of ghouls. And I can't accompany you. I've already been delayed here for quite a long time because of you."
Fin shook his head and cut off Jeong Yoo-shin's request sharply.
Jeong Yoo-shin scratched his head.
Tsk.
A shame.
"I want to go alone too, but what can I do? I'll go mad."
"You have to solve that on your own too. You don't have much time, so think carefully."
Jeong Yoo-shin frowned.
Fuck.
Was it impossible to get a free ride after all?
After finishing his meal, Jeong Yoo-shin crossed his arms and fell into deep thought.
Outside the window, the red fog was writhing.
The law of the swamp.
Solitude.
In order to not be consumed by madness, a being with 'thoughts' had to be by his side.
Fin had found his own answer. He had overcome the madness by keeping an animal by his side.
Jeong Yoo-shin wracked his head for ideas.
His brain was so hot it felt like it would melt.
He looked at the red fog for a long time, coming up with and discarding various thoughts.
Fin quietly watched Skar.
'There's no way.'
It was fun to watch the novice go back and forth. But it wasn’t as fun as rolling around in the labyrinth.
Just then…
The barbarian shot up from his seat and rushed outside.
'What?'
Fin was curious, but he stayed put.
A moment later…
"I'm back."
The barbarian, reeking of blood, came into the room.
Fin was so surprised that he shot up. Skar wasn’t alone.
"What?!"
Next to Skar…
Was a Swamp Ghoul.
Its fingernails, toenails, and teeth had all been pulled out, and its mouth and arms were tightly bound several times with a tough vine.
"Kuuup!!! Kup!!!"
The ghoul struggled, but Skar didn't even flinch and placed his hand on the ghoul's shoulder.
"He's my friend. His name is Johnson."
Fin's mouth fell open.
"What?!"
"Come to think of it, it wasn't that big of a deal. Isn't a monster also a being with 'thoughts'? Although I don't think they're good thoughts."
A strong jolt ran down Fin's spine. It was because this wasn’t a method that a mere low-intermediate explorer could come up with.
Fin couldn't say anything.
Jeong Yoo-shin bowed his head.
"Well then… Thank you for everything. I'll be going to the center of the level now."
"Uh... uh. Go on."
Fin waved his hand with a dazed expression.
"Huh. Was he really a madman?"
Fin stood at the hut door and muttered as he watched the barbarian disappear into the fog.
Jeong Yoo-shin chewed on a vine and put his arm around the ghoul's shoulder.
"This is doable, right? Johnson, what do you think?"
"Kip!!! Kiiip!!!"
"Yeah. Let's do our best. If not me, then who can catch the boss mob and normalize the corrupted Labyrinth City? My shoulders are so heavy."
Jeong Yoo-shin tapped the ghoul's shiny head and started walking again.
Into the red fog.
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T/N - So Fin is actually pretty nice as long as he doesn’t intend to put you in a cook pot to be his dinner. How nice of him to teach the MC about the Swamp Area. I have to admit, his solution to the swamp’s rule is pretty clever. Though I do wonder, how does he go back and forth between the floors? From what I remember, the transfer stones only create two portals: the exit portal and the portal to the next floor.
Also, lol at Fin thinking the MC is crazy. How would he react if he knew that the MC actually killed a pack of Swamp Ghouls instead of the one he assumed the MC met?