Episode 1. Tutorial.
"I didn't even get to touch her tits!!!"
But whether anyone felt sorry for him or not, it was already over.
Jaeseok forced down the Afkill that had sprung up stiff with hopes of having sex, then fastened his underwear.
Like the leather armor from the Middle Ages, his underwear was the sort roughly stitched together from towels.
"Does that mean it's over? I lose like this and get kicked out?"
Of course, that wasn't what he wanted.
Why had he killed himself in the first place? Because of this damn Voice—and his sex drive!!!
Even in a situation he couldn't make sense of, even if he had to risk death, he didn't care about anything as long as he could have sex. But to have it all end with a simple defeat?
"No, give me a chance! I'm nowhere near done yet!!! I jerk off up to twenty times a day! You're telling me it's over after one ejaculation? Are you fucking crazy!?"
That was when he shouted, half-mad with blazing lust.
[Special conditions have been met.]
[Ejaculation Volume: 3.7 / 1.0 shots achieved.]
[Changing the result from defeat -> victory!]
"Huh?"
As Jaeseok voiced his confusion at the incomprehensible text, new text appeared.
[You have defeated the Level 1 Common Monster: Prostitute!]
[First Kill!]
[You have acquired an Exploration Journal!]
[A Rune is guaranteed to drop!]
[You have been awarded 10 experience points!]
[Mission updated!]
[Level 1 Common Monsters (1/30).]
"Defeated? I lost because I came, but then I win based on my Ejaculation Volume? Does that even make sense?"
Whether he found it absurd or not, a gray stone fragment about the size of a fingertip appeared where the prostitute had vanished. It was a stone about the size and texture of a Go stone.
Jaeseok reached out and snatched it, fiddling with it for a moment before new text appeared.
[You have acquired a Characteristic Rune: Tightening (Common)!]
[You can equip Runes through the Exploration Journal!]
[You can call up the Exploration Journal by thinking of its keyword.]
"This really is a game. Uh, Exploration Journal?"
Pararak!
The moment he thought it, a book appeared before him. It had a leather cover, but wasn't very thick, so it looked like a notebook. The book opened on its own, revealing the first page.
[Bae Jaeseok]
Class: None.
Floor reached: 1.
Experience owned: 10 points.
[Runes owned (0/1 slots).]
The Exploration Journal's information was more bare-bones than he'd expected. It didn't even have stats, so it was practically useless for information.
At least, the 0/1 slots under Runes owned told him that he could equip one.
"Tightening? I mean, I haven't even been tightened up before......"
Even without knowing how the Labyrinth's system worked, Jaeseok could easily guess that this loot was a dud.
What was a man supposed to do with something like Tightening?
He could imagine something that defied common sense, sure, but it was only a horrifying thought.
"Still, I should hang on to it for now, right? Inventory."
He muttered the word, but nothing changed. In truth, Jaeseok had expected as much. His leather armor had four pockets on the top and four on the bottom—for a total of eight.
'Well, I guess there wouldn't be this many pockets if I didn't need them.'
Grumbling, he gathered up his armor and put it back on, then slipped the Tightening Rune into one of the pockets. Fortunately, the armor was easy to throw on and fasten, as if it were enchanted.
When he flipped through the Exploration Journal, he saw that the next page had been updated, too.
[Level 1 Monsters.]
???
???
Common Prostitute. 1 unit. (NEW!)
???
???
......
"It's ridiculous that a prostitute shows up on the monster list, but now that I think of it, she didn't even comment on my clothes. I was carrying a sword and shield in what looked like the modern world, and she didn't say a word about that either."
The whole thing was strange. Maybe they were just playing out some kind of role-play.
Thinking about it made him angry.
"This is so damn uncomfortable. If we're going to have sex anyway, we'll have to take our clothes off, so why am I wearing full-body armor? And a sword and shield, on top of that."
He grumbled, but it didn't matter on the Path of Pleasure. If he entered the Path of Barbarism or the Path of Death without proper equipment, most explorers would die.
He'd simply happened to take the Path of Pleasure. It was just one choice among several.
"Oh, and what was this, in the end?"
At last, fully dressed, Jaeseok reached for the trash bag that had been lying abandoned on the bed.
Buseureok!
The bag opened as if it had been waiting for him.
"Now, take your clothes off."
"Don't give me that crap!!!"
Jaeseok saw a man standing in a room identical to the one he'd been in, sword in hand and aimed at the prostitute. He was dressed just like Jaeseok. He didn't have a shield, but his sword was a little longer than Jaeseok's.
Unlike Jaeseok, who looked completely out of place with a sword and shield, the man held his sword in a flawless stance, as if he'd stepped out of a painting.
The way his body and the tip of his sword lined up in a straight line made it perfectly clear that he was a master swordsman.
"Why are you yelling? Aren't we having sex?"
It was the same irritable voice Jaeseok had heard. But unlike Jaeseok, who'd immediately bowed and scraped at the prospect of sex, murderous intent flickered in the man's eyes.
"You filthy succubus bitch! You think this is enough to seduce me? Pathetic!!! Die!!"
Uwoong!
A vibration like something you'd hear at a construction site rang from the man's sword, and a lightning-fast slash smashed into the prostitute's neck. A terrifying blow—powerful enough to cleave even a thick old tree in one stroke!!
But.
Jjak!
The sound of the sword making contact was strange!
"Eek! Didn't anyone tell you SM play is off-limits!?"
"What?!"
Sure enough, the man who'd swung his sword flinched. The prostitute hadn't even tried to defend herself, yet all she had on her neck was a reddish bruise. Nothing more.
And that wasn't all.
[NG detected.]
The text that appeared was visible even to Jaeseok, but the man didn't pay it any attention.
"D-Don't be ridiculous! You're nothing but a low-grade succubus!!"
Sswack!!
Again, the sword flashed like lightning. A fierce downward slash, as if he meant to cut the prostitute in half in one blow!
Ttak!
"Ow! Why are you hitting me!!"
But this time, too, it did no real damage. She just grabbed her forehead and rubbed it, as if she'd been flicked.
"What the hell is this?"
It was in that moment, as the man stood there in confusion.
[NG detected.]
[You have repeatedly committed actions that violate the rules of this world.]
[You are being removed.]
"Don't give me that crap! You evil demons! No matter what you say to try and control me—"
Kwaduk!
"!?"
In an instant, the man's right arm, still holding the sword, was compressed like a snowball being crushed underfoot. And that was only the beginning.
Kwaduk! Kwaduk! Kwaduk! Kwaduk!
His left arm, left leg, and right leg were compressed. The man, now missing all four limbs, rolled across the floor, but the horrifying phenomenon continued unabated. Even his torso began to curl inward, starting at the edges.
"N-No way. This is a dream..... Aaargh!! Aaaaaaagh---!!!"
The man screamed in terror, but soon even his voice was cut off. His torso had continued to compress until his lungs disappeared.
And in the very last moment.
Tuk.
Where he'd been standing, the man and all the equipment he'd been wearing had vanished. Only a single green orb remained.
"Oh my. Where did my customer go~?"
The prostitute, who'd watched the whole thing without moving, approached the orb with an expression that said she had no idea what had happened.
Jaeseok realized something.
'She knows what's going on. She just isn't saying it out loud.'
And that was probably because of this phenomenon called NG.
In any case, the prostitute picked up the orb and crushed it.
Green energy burst out of the orb and enveloped her entire body.
[Promotion in progress!]
[Level 1 -> 4]
[Rarity: Common -> Elite]
'Promotion?'
As Jaeseok wondered what was going on, the prostitute's appearance began to change rapidly.
Her full breasts shrank a little, and her dusky nipples turned pink. Her skin brightened by a shade, and the features on her face shifted into place until her ordinary-looking face became pretty.
And when it was all over.
She was no longer a prostitute.
[Level 4. Elite.]
[Virgin Childhood Friend.]
"Business has been really good today."
The prostitute—or rather, the childhood friend—smiled brightly and turned around. Then her figure vanished.
Jeobeok.
A woman with an appearance generally similar to the prostitute's, but somehow subtly different, appeared in her place.
Buseureok!
The [Trash Bag] Jaeseok had touched closed by itself, then scattered and seeped into his body.
Jaeseok muttered blankly.
".......They just kill you?"
He hadn't thought that this place called the [Labyrinth] was some kind of sweet deal where he could have sex for free. He'd thought there was no way anything that good could exist in the world.
But still, this was terrifyingly violent.
Though, come to think of it, they'd been talking about death from the very start of the tutorial.
[Thirty minutes have passed since the mission began.]
[Hurry! If you fail to complete the mission before the time limit, death will be certain!]
Just like now.