Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Aranballon Kingdom's National Treasure (1)
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The power of the scrolls was tremendous.
No matter how much we walked, the castle that never seemed to shrink truly became 'gigantic' in the literal sense.
'Impressive.'
It was so vast that the sky was no longer visible.
It felt as if the entire world was shrouded in the shadow of the giant castle.
"King! No, Hoon! How on earth did you do it?"
The guide, Kapu, exclaimed in shock.
"Even with farsight, it's unmistakable! We're down to just about 400 km now!"
"......400 km?"
And that's 'just'?
As far as I knew, a thousand li was about 400 km.
Kapu was blushing bright red, clearly embarrassed about how he'd been gauging distances with farsight all this time.
"Normally, it was just a rough sense, not exact distances. But now, the precise distance to the entrance is visible."
"......"
"How did you do it? What were those papers you tore up earlier?"
Kapu wasn't the only one speaking up.
"Hey, I'm curious too."
The space sorcerer, Vladimir, stepped forward as well.
"For a brief moment, there was an insane compression of space. Even I, with my S-rank space teleportation skill, couldn't fathom jumping that far. How is this possible? It's unbelievable."
"Wait and see."
Olena, James, the referee too.
The middle-aged man, the catgirl as well.
Everyone was looking at me with expressions of intense curiosity.
"Let's talk while we walk first. I'll explain everything one by one."
Of course.
I'd gloss over some details.
Even if teamwork was the theme,
I couldn't reveal everything about myself, right?
* * *
I skipped over everything that happened with Floa in my explanation.
While searching for treasure through my skeletons, scrolls came up.
They were 'distance-shortening' and 'distance-extending.'
Something like that?
"Whew. As expected, finding treasure was the key after all."
Olena let out a faint sigh.
"In a way, it feels similar to Theme 1. Back then, we searched the forest for food or poison, and now it's finding scrolls in the wasteland?"
"Definitely a game that favors necromancers."
"Is there any game in the world that doesn't? With undead handling everything."
"Still, thanks to our team leader, we'll clear it safely. Thanks, team leader. If there's one best thing from this trial, it's meeting you."
"Yeah, at our pace, 400 km is nothing. That Olivia girl or whatever isn't that heavy anyway."
Flinch.
Olivia's man,
Cain shuddered.
On his shoulder, Olivia—still with her face puffy and swollen—hung limp like she was dead.
I nodded.
Yeah, stay like that.
It's much more helpful that way.
If we judged by immediate combat power, she'd be a liability.
But looking at the big picture, this was far better.
'Not much longer now.'
Pressing my chest lightly as the castle drew ever closer, I felt my heart pounding steadily, calming my breath.
'The theme isn't over yet.'
Delaila's trials were infamous for their difficulty.
Even that powerhouse, Seoul's Five Stars, had worn out their mouth talking about it, so it had to be true.
'No, maybe it hasn't even started.'
So far, all we'd done was find treasure while moving.
Yeah.
We might not have even taken the first step yet.
The real first step might only begin once we entered that massive castle.
Tadadak!
Run, walk.
Run again, walk again.
We pushed forward with rapid marches.
With the end so near, we minimized meal and rest times.
How much time passed like that?
"Hoon."
Kapu murmured.
"Look, there's the entrance over there!"
Far in the distance.
The entrance on the wall wasn't a door.
Could something like that even be called a 'door'?
It was a massive hall, like it would suck us straight into an abyss or bottomless pit.
[Team 1 arrives at the 'Giant Castle.']
A message popped up simultaneously.
Tension flickered in the team members' eyes.
"Deep breaths! Everyone, deep breaths! We've got our team leader, right?"
Olena placed a hand on her chest and regulated her breathing.
[Team 1 arrives first.]
[Teams 2 and 3 are automatically eliminated.]
"Eliminated?"
"Ooh, does that mean we succeeded? We're through?"
"Wow, goosebumps. So the other teams get knocked out without even entering the castle? How pitiful."
And just like that.
People dropped out in droves.
Theme 2 hadn't even properly begun yet.
Only 10 left......
Becoming a ranker really wasn't easy.
Gazing at the hall, I spoke up.
"It's too early to celebrate."
The true goal of Theme 2.
Was to find the 'national treasure' inside that castle.
"Everyone, get ready."
"Ready to enter? Done."
The referee replied with a serious expression.
Seeing that serious face made me want to tease him—human nature, right?
"Any last words?"
"Last words?"
"That place looks seriously bad news at first glance."
"Hmm, lame joke. I'll go first."
Snickering despite calling it lame, the referee stepped into the hall.
Swoosh!
His body was pulled in like sinking into water.
"Then we'll follow."
"Aja! Aja! Let's do this!"
"Hoon, I'm heading in. See you soon."
Olena's group followed.
Vladimir, the middle-aged man, and the catgirl entered silently in turn.
They were tense, but no fear.
Well, if they were afraid, they wouldn't have challenged the trial to begin with.
They would've dropped out when examiner Luca warned them.
"Um, excuse me."
Someone poked me from the side.
It was Cain.
Behind his back, Olivia—whether too embarrassed to show her face or ashamed—still hadn't come down even after all this time.
She was pretending to be unconscious the whole while.
Honestly, the whole team knew.
She was awake but refusing to get up.
"Yes, what is it?"
When I asked, Cain cautiously inquired.
"Should I go in too?"
Of course.
He had to enter.
If we weren't letting him in, we would've left him that day after beating him senseless.
"Yes, go ahead. Before you change your mind."
"Ah, got it."
Swoosh!
With Cain and Olivia hastily entering last, the entire team had gone in.
The hall still gaped open, vibrating with a low hum as if awaiting me.
Step, step.
Standing before the pitch-black hall, a thrilling sensation swept over my body.
What awaited inside?
What being would torment me this time?
Entrusting myself to the strange sensation, I slowly closed my eyes.
[The trial of the 'Ancient Aranballon Kingdom' begins.]
Theme 2 truly started.
* * *
Around the time Joo Dong-hoon entered the giant castle.
In a pristine white hall, two men and women watched a hologram.
"Uh......"
Luca twisted his lips.
They say when people see something unbelievable, their facial expressions instinctively change?
His face was contorted in a way that would look utterly ridiculous to onlookers.
Luca glanced to the side.
"Hmm......"
Delaila was letting out a groan of astonishment as well.
"First time?"
"Hm?"
Delaila tilted her head at Luca's sudden question.
Meaning, what do you mean?
"All ten selected team members entering Aranballon—it's a first, isn't it? Back in our day, we were at each other's throats, three died before we even started...... You remember too, right, Delaila?"
"Yes, I remember. But it's not the first time."
Delaila shook her head.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, there have been quite a few cases where all ten entered. Though no team ever passed with everyone alive."
"......"
"Actually, the conflict Team 1 went through this time barely qualifies as conflict."
The so-called conflict was just the clash with Olivia.
That was it, right?
And Joo Dong-hoon resolved it all with overwhelming force.
That much happened in every team.
It hardly counted as conflict.
"Exactly."
Luca nodded.
"Team Joo Dong-hoon arrived at the castle too quickly to have any real conflict. Unlike our time, where it took over two months just to get there."
"Conflicts amplify the longer the discomfort drags on, after all."
Walking an endless road.
It looks easy from afar, but up close, it's no joke.
Competition with other teams.
The impatience of potential elimination at any moment.
No progress.
And so on.
All those factors combine, and eventually, doubts about the team leader arise.
You can endure at first.
But as the situation repeats?
After a week, two weeks, a month?
The team fractures.
Slander begins.
Misunderstandings breed more misunderstandings, turning into grudges.
"I'm sorry."
Suddenly, Luca bowed his head.
"Floa. I warned them to watch out for it, but it caused trouble again."
He thought the imbalance in Joo Dong-hoon's team was all because of Floa.
"No, Luca. That was ultimately a rule I set. No need to blame Floa. Joo Dong-hoon was just an unusually special case. Besides, we all predicted it anyway, didn't we?"
That was the truth.
With such an overwhelming gap between participants.
Every examiner had favored Team 1's victory.
"We're dungeon makers. We just set it up and watch."
Delaila smiled.
"And the real trial starts right now."
* * *
I opened my eyes.
The chaotic mix of light and darkness around me settled back into place.
'This is......'
I looked around.
So vast.
A gigantic hall where ceiling and walls were invisible.
We stood atop it.
How did I know it was a hall?
A massive pattern was engraved on the floor.
Around the pattern, densely packed with what must be script from the Aranballon Kingdom or whatever.
Hieroglyphs filled the space.
[The deepest place of the 'Ancient Aranballon Kingdom.']
[Countless treasures that once commanded the world slumber here.]
At that moment.
Golden gleams sparkled here and there.
From each sparkling spot, extraordinary auras emanated one by one.
[Seek the treasures.]
[Acquire the treasures.]
[Among the countless treasures, find the 'national treasure.']
Sparkle!
Hundreds.
Sparkle! Sparkle!
No, thousands, tens of thousands of treasures stretched out everywhere.
'Not fakes.'
I knew instinctively.
Each one.
Treasures of S-rank or higher value.
'One among them.'
Exactly one was the 'national treasure.'
"Wow, as expected of Dungeon Makers? This is some high class."
Vladimir muttered.
"But."
"......"
"This can't be the end, right? So far, it's boasted insane difficulty. Just laying out all these treasures for a treasure hunt can't be the trial's conclusion, can it?"
"Makes sense. It reeks of traps at first glance."
Everyone.
Wasn't stupid.
I'd worried someone might idiotically rush out for treasure.
Fortunately, even Olivia was holding her breath, watching quietly.
"Then."
I swallowed hard.
"Shall we all assess the surroundings first?"
Slowly, slowly.
The competition was over now.