Chapter 162
Chapter 162
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 162
Chapter Title: Godly Thief
Plains-type fields are teeming with monsters.
The defining trait of these wide-open plains fields.
Well, it wasn't all that strange.
Such things had happened on floors before the 9th in Cradle, after all.
But as we pushed on to the 10th floor, then the 11th...
'This is getting tough.'
I caught my breath and scanned our surroundings.
The area was blanketed in corpses.
The rest of the party was utterly spent.
I was prying a mana stone from a minotaur's corpse.
"...This is harder than I expected."
Glasses pushed up his spectacles as he spoke.
"Urgh, that's the terror of the plains field, known as the grave of warriors. Most folks from other labyrinths can't hack it."
Volkan declared it with unmistakable pride.
Why the hell was he bragging about that?
I shot Volkan a look of utter disbelief.
-It's only natural for Master to find this hard.
'Huh?'
-You're dragging around people you don't even need to protect.
The Holy Bow stated it matter-of-factly.
Treating the others like dead weight.
-Not wrong. You could probably manage with just one proper party. If it were me, I'd go with the Sword Hero called Soyeonhwa, Ermé, the one called Cheong Yuraang, and you, Master. Or swap out Ermé or Cheong for the mage and toss in the Saintess—not a bad lineup.
The Holy Bow's voice was ice-cold.
-Of course, that's just my take... but do you really need to haul everyone else along? Solo would be way easier and cleaner.
'...'
To be honest...
Part of me agreed with the Holy Bow.
My personal strength was overwhelming, after all.
'The real threat to me is ambushes.'
Over the past month, I'd been honing the Seven Desires Swordsmanship.
And in sorting through my arsenal...
I'd concluded that the storm summoned by the Heart of the Subtle Storm Wind suited me better than Extreme Thunder God or Black Flame.
Which meant I was growing more suited to solo ops than group tactics.
-Hate to say it, but you're the most talented being I've ever witnessed, Master.
-Tch, spouting nonsense the moment I'm away for a bit.
The Holy Sword cut in.
'What about Yeonhwa?'
-She's solid. Without you around, I might've even acknowledged her as a worthy master.
'Her talent's the real deal.'
She wasn't dubbed the Genius Slayer for nothing.
A slayer of geniuses.
If geniuses are forever beyond the reach of the ordinary...
She's the monster that makes even those geniuses feel like they've hit a wall.
Gulp.
Right before my eyes...
Rozenta was chugging straight from the bottle, blowing raucous bottle farts.
"Hah, not weird even for a warrior. Guzzling like that—pure gusto."
Gotash gazed at Rozenta with eyes full of admiration.
Rozenta caught his stare and made a retching urk noise.
How the hell did he end up so reviled by the womenfolk?
Poor bastard.
It reminded me of that guy from my past life who'd tried dragging me into Arcadia Fantasy.
"Fwaaa... wiped out. Call it here for today?"
"Yeah? No signs of more beasts nearby anyway."
This world hadn't advanced much in cuisine or leisure over a millennium.
But one thing had exploded in development.
Labyrinth gear and spells.
"Don't sweat the sleeping arrangements."
True to Glasses' bold claim, he'd set up a ton of magic.
-The Mage Hero used to handle this stuff best.
'What was the vibe with Mage Heroes?'
-Mostly dragonkin.
'Dragonkin?'
-A forgotten ancient race. They fought the Demon King—most of the elder dragons got sealed. What's left are just remnants.
Remnants?
-The so-called dragonkin you hear about. Unlike the giants, they didn't go fully extinct, so you could call it wise. Or you could say their whole race got demoted down the hierarchy—fallen.
-Point is, dragons vanished, so humans with natural aptitude or high peaks took over.
-Got sidetracked there... but Holy Bow's point is this: grab the four best in their fields across all races. Party of four.
-Frankly, it's about 'potential,' but you've got what it takes, Master.
Potential, huh.
Hell if I knew.
Since getting kidnapped into this world, I'd just been flailing to survive.
'I'll mull it over.'
Nothing to mull.
I'd realized it coming here.
I was on a whole different level from the clanmates.
The gap was huge even at level 5.
Now? A chasm.
'If I could just pick up some other skills...'
-No helping it. Hate going to that guy.
'Who?'
-The previous previous Thief Hero... nothing worth learning as a person, but the pinnacle as a thief.
"Previous previous Thief Hero?"
I uttered the unexpected name.
Gotash, who'd been watching me, scowled fiercely.
"Why bring up that scoundrel?"
"Scoundrel?"
"Ah, my bad. You didn't know? Guess the Holy Bow clued you in."
"The previous previous Thief Hero... that's a hugely infamous name around here."
"Infamous?"
Orcs revere strength.
Gotash himself had lit up at our first meeting, itching for a brawl.
'What a pain in the ass that guy was.'
I never took him head-on—strength mismatch.
Bow handled him easy.
"Infamous. No honor. Tarnished his clan's name."
"..."
No honor. Clan disgrace.
For Gotash to say that...
'Must be one hell of a talent.'
Probably like me—no fair fights, strikes from shadows.
"Can't stand him. Heroes earn awe from others... but that previous previous Thief Hero? His signature sleaze earned him awe of a different flavor from every race."
"..."
"Sleaze so bad even humans clicked their tongues in disgust."
I was stunned inside.
What the hell did he pull to make humans call him sleazy?
'Sleazier than a human.'
Had to see the guy's mug.
"What'd he do to earn that much hate?"
"Stuff no warrior—you or me—could dream up. As vile as skipping the 'lesser' poisons in a rival's pre-duel meal."
"...?"
Wasn't that still vile?
"Poisons? Sand in the eyes?"
"...?"
Gotash cocked his head at my question.
"Sorry, Yuseong, but us warriors don't call that sleazy."
What?
"A duel is wagering everything you've got. Poison, sand toss, spit to the face... humans deem it foul play, sure. But flip it—it's clashing your all against theirs. Can't call that sleazy."
"Then what is sleazy...?"
"Clashing your all. But he dueled like a coward."
How the hell was that cowardly?
I was about to ask...
💥 MASSIVE IMPACT! 💥 BOOM!
Echoes rattling nerves. Overwhelming mana surge.
At the same time...
⚙ ALERT ⚙ Ding-ding-ding! The alert spell blared.
Maybe 'cause the shockwave was so close.
Noise everywhere.
"Talking that sleaze must've summoned another weirdo nearby."
Gotash squinted as he spoke.
Yeah.
Normally, fights don't pop off at this hour unless it's dire.
It's rest time.
The labyrinth squeezes your life every second—sticking to rest breaks is rule one.
But...
'Who's scrapping?'
Or was it a scrap?
Judging by the distant ripples, it looked more like one guy toying around with attacks.
"What now?"
Soyeonhwa asked me flatly.
Everyone's eyes on me.
I peered toward the commotion.
About 2 km off, but Shadow Dance · Phantasm plus Marksman's Eye locked on the target.
Wonder who this nighttime hothead is. Let's see a face.
'...An orc?'
First thing: orc.
But weird build.
Orcs in comics have that gut-busting belly, but this world's are muscle monstrosities.
This one? Bizarre.
Skinny limbs, and that mug...
'...Why so damn rat-faced?'
Long whiskers like a rodent.
Shifty, slitted eyes.
Suddenly...
Staring at the orc, it stared back.
And then...
'Found you?'
That's what it seemed to say.
I described the features to the group.
"Shit, that bastard! How's he pop up right after we name-drop?! No way—retired Godly Thief, why here?!"
Gotash gnashed his teeth.
He turned to me.
"Pull back now. No clue what that sleaze wants, but if he's gunning for us? Trouble."
"What kind of trou—"
Arguing with Gotash...
A chill hit me out of nowhere.
Something...
'Stealing?'
Gut punch of a premonition: it's after my stuff.
Target: over there.
On instinct...
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ [Steal Strike (S)] My hand felt yanked somewhere.
Orc's eyes locked with mine.
Weirder still...
Its hand yanked too—invisible.
'Steal Strike on me?'
At the same instant...
The orc—no, Godly Thief—thrust a hand my way.
Felt something pawing my pocket.
I slapped the branch from my other hand into that phantom grip...
'Steal Strike...!'
Felt fingers clench something.
Checked the haul.
🎁 ITEM ACQUIRED 🎁 [Godly Thief's Mustache]
No... what the hell is this?