Aragon's Labyrinth
After getting off work and returning home, Taejeong soaked in a half-body bath to wash away some of the fatigue accumulated in his mind. He let his stray thoughts fade as he let the hot water scorch his body.
Then, suddenly, an unfamiliar voice rang out.
Path of the Mechanic. 72 hours remaining until quest deadline.
Hurry and begin the quest.
"What the hell is this now?"
Muttering to himself, he stared at the message window floating in the air and opened the quest window.
Path of the Mechanic 1-3
Aragon's Labyrinth
The Black Dragon Aragon, fleeing ancient heavenly warriors, sealed himself in a labyrinth no one could enter.
Find the exit and unseal Aragon.
Objective: Unseal Aragon
Reward:Taeguk 1, R-Type Ray Gun
⚠️ Quest deadline: 72 hours. Failure to clear will prevent further progress in the Path of the Mechanic.
Remaining time: 71:59:02
Something he hadn't seen before—no, something that hadn't existed—was now attached to the bottom of the window.
"72 hours until termination... and no progress if I fail to clear? Gerard."
He straightened up from where he'd been leaning back in the tub and called out. A response came immediately from thin air.
Yes, Master.
"Was this here from the beginning?"
No. It's new data that just appeared.
"So I can just interpret it as is? It says no progress after 72 hours. Does that mean it's completely impossible, or just blocked for a certain period? Which one?"
The former is correct.
"Then... that means I have to finish it in three days?"
Taejeong's face darkened in an instant. Truth be told, he hadn't given much thought to the labyrinth. His "plan," if it could even be called that, was just to grow stronger based on his progress.
But with bad news piling up at the guild one after another, he couldn't bring himself to say he was heading out to hunt. Everyone was on emergency duty, and it felt wrong to leave just to puff himself up.
"Looks like I can't put this off anymore."
The next day, in Yang Taesik's office.
"You need a leave?"
"Yes. I have some business outside."
"Is it about the dispute? If so, you absolutely can't..."
"No. It's personal business."
"Personal? Then you don't need to go through me for that. You're the regional commander and an Exclub-rank hunter. You're free to do as you please, as long as it doesn't endanger you. I should've told you that earlier."
"I know. But with the guild in such a tough spot, I feel bad about stepping away."
"You've got a sense of responsibility to match your abilities. As you know, this issue can't be solved with manpower alone. I heard you've been coming in without even weekends off. You've done more than your share. Don't worry about it—go take care of it. Just make sure nothing happens to you. Don't forget all the people looking up to you."
"Understood."
Having received the guild master's permission, Taejeong stepped out and let out a deep sigh. He'd expected approval, so that wasn't the issue. The real problem started now.
Aragon's Labyrinth—a dungeon cleared by only nine people in the entire country. More precisely, only nine who had returned alive.
If there was even some intel to lean on, that would be one thing, but he'd scoured the guild resources and every external community, and there was zero information on it. A completely unknown dungeon.
"Two and a half days left. Including clear time, I need to enter by tonight at the latest."
Back at the lodging, Taejeong started packing food. He stuffed instant noodles and snacks into his inventory until it was full, then called Park Se-ah at the office.
"Yeah, it's me. I'm heading out for a few days. No way, but if anyone asks, don't mention the labyrinth."
You're going there? Only nine people have...
"I know. But this is really important to me. Don't worry too much—I'll come back for sure. Oh, and... just in case, really just in case."
Yes, go ahead.
"Just in case I... uh, never mind. I'll be back. See you then."
Taejeong had started to leave a contingency message for if things went wrong, but he shook his head and hung up.
Don't jinx it. Clear it no matter what. No matter what.
It was a journey with massive risks, but he had no choice but to go. For Taejeong, the quests were practically half of the Mechanic class—overstating it wouldn't even be an exaggeration. The skills he'd gained from them already made up more than half his arsenal. Giving up now meant forfeiting countless future skills.
So he had to go. To avoid becoming half a class.
With that resolve, Taejeong left the lodging—not heading to the first floor, but to the rooftop. Driving would leave a trail, so he planned to fly.
"You remember the address from back then?"
Oksan-dong 75-1, correct?
"Yeah. Heading there."
Guided by Gerard, Taejeong arrived at old Anseong's Oksan-dong and stared at the portal before him. A rippling blue gate glowing an eerie azure.
It was the only 11th-grade Hole owned by Jenix. Ownership was nominal—no one sought it out, so it didn't even have basic patrols.
"I'm here... but actually stepping in feels kinda weird."
He couldn't even imagine how strong the monsters swarming inside might be. No info at all. Hesitation was inevitable.
But he quickly steeled himself.
I took down that monster on Jeju Island. I can do this.
"Alright! Let's go!"
Shaking off the weakening thoughts with a shout, Taejeong strode confidently into the gate. Light spun around him, and in an instant, an unfamiliar space materialized.
At the same time, a notification chimed in his ear.
You have entered Aragon's Labyrinth.
Quest progress time extended by 999 days.
"Huh? 999 days?"
As he spoke, Taejeong checked the quest window.
[1001 days, 18 hours, 25 minutes]
The time had increased by a whopping 999 days. Combined with the original, it was 1001 days and 18 hours 25 minutes.
"What kind of time is..."
He hadn't anticipated the extension at all, but the sheer absurdity of nearly three years was beyond comprehension. Not days, weeks, or months—almost three years.
It was ridiculous, but one thing was clear now.
"This isn't a quest you clear in a short time."
Closing the window, he scanned his surroundings. Stone walls enclosed a single passageway on all sides. Torches lined both walls, providing excellent visibility.
The entry gate was nowhere in sight.
Nothing special stands out. Let's move forward.
The passage was wide, so he summoned his mech right away. Fully armed, based on the previous quest's difficulty.
He began moving slowly, output at around 10%. A bit faster than a human walk. It felt sluggish for his size, but with unknown monster levels, it was only natural. Rushing blindly could mean death.
But after about an hour, with no radar pings and growing familiarity with the space, he gradually increased speed. 20%, 30%, 40%.
Two more hours passed, and he was at 50% output.
Why's nothing here? Something should've shown up by now.
It felt like circling the same area. The torches lining the walls were starting to make him nauseous.
"Any data incoming?"
No, Master. No separate data exists for this place.
He'd asked just in case, since dungeons sometimes downloaded data on entry. But as expected from a tough one, not even a speck came through.
Another hour of running. Finally, a new space appeared in his view. The background was unchanged—just a larger area with five passages revealed.
"Here we go."
Taejeong eyed the numbers carved into each passage.
[1-5, 2-10, 3-5, 8-9, 9-2]
"Doesn't seem like a puzzle. Probably room numbers. Can you decode anything by plugging these in?"
Nothing to decode.
"No probabilities either, obviously."
If you mean exit probability, yes.
"Alright. 1-5 it is. Speak up if anything pings."
He chose the first one, 1-5. No real reason—just the first. With zero info, odds were 20% anyway. Methodically checking one by one should lead to the exit eventually.
Entering the passage, Taejeong repeated the same monotonous trek. Now at nearly 80% output. Torchlight blurred past, but the path stretched endlessly.
How much time passed? Another expansion, more passages. Four left and right, two ahead, plus the one he'd exited and another parallel—eight total.
"Which way now?"
Ahead were 9s and 7s. His entry, the 1s, was left. But the second number was 4.
"So is 1-1 the exit? Gerard, memorize all these numbers. Just in case."
Understood.
He considered straight-lining but decided to clear the 1s first. Movement resumed. Passing two passages with nothing, he floored it to max output. Transit time plummeted.
Blazing through 1-4 impossibly fast compared to the start, another space appeared. Ten passages this time.
"Keep increasing. Two at a time?"
Muttering at the new ones, he scanned from the left.
"Seven. Eight. Ten. Fiv—wait, what? It's missing?"
Confirming the passage numbers, Taejeong narrowed his eyes and double-checked the last one repeatedly. No 1-series among the ten.
"This is a problem."