Chapter 89: Player (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 89: Player (1)
"Name, Hansu Lee. Age, twenty-nine. After a month of unexcused absences, his company reported him missing, huh? Tsk, and family?"
"Just his mother. When she heard the news, she said she didn't want to be involved."
The man listening to the report sipped his coffee. This wasn't a particularly unique case. It was not uncommon for people to have complicated family histories. "So, Detective Park. Why has this case been brought to our team?"
"That's because... the CCTV footage shows him entering the house, but there are no signs that he exited it. All of the windows are locked, too."
"That's... definitely fishy."
The man set his coffee down and started reading the report more seriously. He had seen all kinds of cases during his fifteen-year career as a detective, but even he found this one very unusual. No signs of forced entry, and no missing money or valuables. All credit card transactions ended a month ago. Most importantly, the clothes worn by the missing person had been found in the bedroom. The way they were lying there made it seem as if he hadn't taken them off himself, but as if his body had just disappeared.
"I don't know what kind of bastard he is, but he's completely crazy." The detective already had a feeling that this wasn't just a simple disappearance. It may even be a crime violent enough to shake the Republic of Korea. "Did you preserve the crime scene? Put a request into forensics. Let's see what their investigation turns out first."
Detective Park hesitated for a moment at the man's instructions, then opened his mouth carefully. "I, Chief... Before that, I have something I want to show you."
Why not put it in the report? The chief questioned this, but when he nodded, Detective Park returned with a monitor.
"This is the computer monitor found in the missing person's room."
"What? Why do you have that? You didn't take it out of the room, did you?" The chief raised his voice, finding this absurd, but when he noticed something, he was stunned. "Wait, Detective Park, how is the monitor still on?"
"...I have no idea."
Letters were floating on the monitor's black background, even though the cords connecting it to the main console, and even the power line, were not plugged in. It was even being updated with a sound as they spoke.
Beep, beep, beep.
[The coming-of-age ceremony has been successfully completed.]
[New equipment has been equipped.]
[Your General Item Level has increased by +12.]
[Bjorn Yandel]
What were these letters that kept showing up on the screen?
"Chief, I looked into it a bit, and...there have been similar cases abroad."
"Abroad?"
There was still no way for them to know for sure.
***
[The labyrinth is closed. You have been transported to Rafdonia.]
The darkness faded away, and the light got brighter. As I habitually tilted my head upward, I could see the cloudy sky, as usual. I let out a long breath.
...I made it back alive this time too.
Actually, to say I had just made it back alive was not exactly true. I had lived each day in a state of anxiety, thinking something had to happen soon, but as a result, nothing had happened, and twice in a row at that.
Hmm, I really thought something was going to happen this time.
To be honest, I was still stunned. Our previous expedition had gone too smoothly. Thanks to a good starting point, we arrived at the Rock Desert via the second-floor portal connected to the Gnome District in only nine hours. I didn't get any portal achievements because someone had already passed through it. However, there were a variety of rank-nine monsters such as gnome mutants and kobolds in the area, and various rank-eight ones, including stone golems.
[You have defeated a Corrupted Gnome. EXP +1]
[You have defeated a Kobold Shield Soldier. EXP +1]
[You have defeated a Stone Golem. EXP +2]
[You have defeated a Megalith Soldier. EXP +2]
[You have defeated a Sandman...]
Even though we hunted all kinds of monsters at my request, we were able to climb up to the third floor on the fourth day.
It was the same on the way to the Witch's Forest.
On the eighth day, without any problems, we reached the center of the Witch's Forest. The number of plunderers we encountered along the way? Not a single one. After entering the fourth floor, Tower of Heavens, we had no encounters with adventurers at all.
[The ordeal has been completed. You have chosen the Stairs of Courage.]
Time for the official hunt. We continued to climb the stairs and battle monsters. All the creatures that appeared on the third-floor Pilgrim's Path rushed out in random groups up here, and once every three days, we encountered a rank-six monster.
[You have defeated a Vitol. EXP +3]
[You have defeated a Lizardman Scout. EXP +2]
[You have defeated a Dullahan. EXP +3]
[You have defeated the Queen Banshee. EXP +3]
[You have defeated an Ilatrek. EXP +3]
[You have defeated a Dragoon. EXP +4]
[You have defeated a Living Armor...]
We spent twenty-three days in the labyrinth until the fourth floor closed. The rank-six monsters I'd been so worried about? Perhaps because it was my first time battling them, there were times when I made several mistakes, but thanks to my sudden increase in general combat power, I was able to defeat them all without major issues. The experience points began piling up that way.
It's not called the Tower of Training for nothing.
All of the monsters that appeared on the third floor appeared there as well. There were also rank-six monsters, but only the ones that spawned in that area. These battles hadn't been enough for me to reach level four, though. Anyway, as a result of focusing only on hunting...
"Dwalkie?"
"S-So... if we each take a share, that'll be about 720,000 stones."
"It's 780,000 stones."
"Huh? Bjorn, what are you talking about?"
"Uh, uh.... now that I've double-checked my calculations, Bjorn is right."
"What!?"
Each person was allocated 780,000 stones. That was thanks to the Mimic's passive skill, Greed, which increased the drop rate of mana stones by 30 percent. Otherwise, our payout would have been around six hundred thousand stones.
"Um, it's definitely not a small number... but it still feels a little lacking. Is it just me?"
"Somehow... I feel the same."
Hmm, I really thought something was going to happen this time.
To be honest, I was still stunned. Our previous expedition had gone too smoothly. Thanks to a good starting point, we arrived at the Rock Desert via the second-floor portal connected to the Gnome District in only nine hours. I didn't get any portal achievements because someone had already passed through it. However, there were a variety of rank-nine monsters such as gnome mutants and kobolds in the area, and various rank-eight ones, including stone golems.
[You have defeated a Corrupted Gnome. EXP +1]
[You have defeated a Kobold Shield Soldier. EXP +1]
[You have defeated a Stone Golem. EXP +2]
[You have defeated a Megalith Soldier. EXP +2]
[You have defeated a Sandman...]
Even though we hunted all kinds of monsters at my request, we were able to climb up to the third floor on the fourth day.
It was the same on the way to the Witch's Forest.
On the eighth day, without any problems, we reached the center of the Witch's Forest. The number of plunderers we encountered along the way? Not a single one. After entering the fourth floor, Tower of Heavens, we had no encounters with adventurers at all.
[The ordeal has been completed. You have chosen the Stairs of Courage.]
Time for the official hunt. We continued to climb the stairs and battle monsters. All the creatures that appeared on the third-floor Pilgrim's Path rushed out in random groups up here, and once every three days, we encountered a rank-six monster.
[You have defeated a Vitol. EXP +3]
[You have defeated a Lizardman Scout. EXP +2]
[You have defeated a Dullahan. EXP +3]
[You have defeated the Queen Banshee. EXP +3]
[You have defeated an Ilatrek. EXP +3]
[You have defeated a Dragoon. EXP +4]
[You have defeated a Living Armor...]
We spent twenty-three days in the labyrinth until the fourth floor closed. The rank-six monsters I'd been so worried about? Perhaps because it was my first time battling them, there were times when I made several mistakes, but thanks to my sudden increase in general combat power, I was able to defeat them all without major issues. The experience points began piling up that way.
It's not called the Tower of Training for nothing.
All of the monsters that appeared on the third floor appeared there as well. There were also rank-six monsters, but only the ones that spawned in that area. These battles hadn't been enough for me to reach level four, though. Anyway, as a result of focusing only on hunting...
"Dwalkie?"
"S-So... if we each take a share, that'll be about 720,000 stones."
"It's 780,000 stones."
"Huh? Bjorn, what are you talking about?"
"Uh, uh.... now that I've double-checked my calculations, Bjorn is right."
"What!?"
Each person was allocated 780,000 stones. That was thanks to the Mimic's passive skill, Greed, which increased the drop rate of mana stones by 30 percent. Otherwise, our payout would have been around six hundred thousand stones.
"Um, it's definitely not a small number... but it still feels a little lacking. Is it just me?"
"Somehow... I feel the same."
"Hahaha! That's only natural since we've been earning so much more lately! Now that I think about it, Bjorn, it seems that your ridiculous luck has come to an end."
I didn't know about luck, but as we hadn't faced any hardships on this quest, our income was low as well. Even though plunderers were fucking annoying, they each wore gear. In the end, that earned a lot more money than mining mana stones.
...Somehow, I made less money than when I first entered the labyrinth.
I thought I could see why those bastard plunderers didn't die out. It was easier to catch people than rank-six monsters, and they were worth a lot more money, too. So they had no choice but to follow people like moths—even more so if they were efficiency freaks.
Let's not be too disappointed. In fact, everything up until now has just been exceptional circumstances, and this is normal.
As I thought about the game, I barely managed to shake off my disappointment. With the cost of consumables and various other costs of living in the city, it was only natural not to see a sizeable income in the beginning. That was the reason why most newbies didn't even have one million stones and failed to survive past the first or second year, getting executed for not paying taxes.
...Even getting to the fourth floor within a few months is ridiculously fast in the first place.
That was what I told myself as I busied myself back in the city. I met occasionally with my other team members to plan for the next quest and visited the tower every week to fulfill my research agreement with Raven.
This time, she said, "Hmm, there's already only four more left."
"So, when can I meet that senior of yours?"
"Ah, there's been a bit of a problem. If it's okay with you, I want to postpone that until next month..."
"...Sure."
Training, library, socializing, and information gathering. This really was the first time I had ever had such peaceful days. As a result, I was so nervous that my hands and feet were shaking, but until the moment I entered the labyrinth again, no evil spirit hunters, Hanses, or anyone else approached me. So I thought something might happen in the labyrinth this time around.
In the end, though, nothing happened.
Passing through the Goblin Forest on our way up to the third floor, catching some extra monsters that we hadn't been able to before thanks to that, and finally leveling up while spending time on the fourth floor—those were the only differences from our last expedition.
"Bjorn! What are you thinking so harrrd about? Let's go." I was roused from my thoughts by Missha tugging on my waist. "Snap out of it. If we'rrre late, we'll have to wait a long time."
No, we wouldn't. Maybe if we were still rank-nine nobodies, but rank-six adventurers had an entirely different mana stone checkpoint and our wait time was less than half of theirs. The officials there were also much more polite.
"Well then, let's go! Hahaha!"
Soon after, we each went through the checkpoint and gathered in one place. Then we quickly finished distributing the loot.
"Each person should take 790,000 stones."
"Bjorn? Is that right?" At Missha's question, Dwalkie's pupils flickered. What kind of wizard was that weak with numbers?
"I do not know, either. If he says it's right, I'm sure it is," I answered.
This time the calculations were correct, so we proceeded without issue. As a result, 790,000 stones were deposited into my pocket. Was this a dog-eat-dog world after all? As easy as this adventure was, our pay was the same as last time.
"Hahaha! That's only natural since we've been earning so much more lately! Now that I think about it, Bjorn, it seems that your ridiculous luck has come to an end."
I didn't know about luck, but as we hadn't faced any hardships on this quest, our income was low as well. Even though plunderers were fucking annoying, they each wore gear. In the end, that earned a lot more money than mining mana stones.
...Somehow, I made less money than when I first entered the labyrinth.
I thought I could see why those bastard plunderers didn't die out. It was easier to catch people than rank-six monsters, and they were worth a lot more money, too. So they had no choice but to follow people like moths—even more so if they were efficiency freaks.
Let's not be too disappointed. In fact, everything up until now has just been exceptional circumstances, and this is normal.
As I thought about the game, I barely managed to shake off my disappointment. With the cost of consumables and various other costs of living in the city, it was only natural not to see a sizeable income in the beginning. That was the reason why most newbies didn't even have one million stones and failed to survive past the first or second year, getting executed for not paying taxes.
...Even getting to the fourth floor within a few months is ridiculously fast in the first place.
That was what I told myself as I busied myself back in the city. I met occasionally with my other team members to plan for the next quest and visited the tower every week to fulfill my research agreement with Raven.
This time, she said, "Hmm, there's already only four more left."
"So, when can I meet that senior of yours?"
"Ah, there's been a bit of a problem. If it's okay with you, I want to postpone that until next month..."
"...Sure."
Training, library, socializing, and information gathering. This really was the first time I had ever had such peaceful days. As a result, I was so nervous that my hands and feet were shaking, but until the moment I entered the labyrinth again, no evil spirit hunters, Hanses, or anyone else approached me. So I thought something might happen in the labyrinth this time around.
In the end, though, nothing happened.
Passing through the Goblin Forest on our way up to the third floor, catching some extra monsters that we hadn't been able to before thanks to that, and finally leveling up while spending time on the fourth floor—those were the only differences from our last expedition.
"Bjorn! What are you thinking so harrrd about? Let's go." I was roused from my thoughts by Missha tugging on my waist. "Snap out of it. If we'rrre late, we'll have to wait a long time."
No, we wouldn't. Maybe if we were still rank-nine nobodies, but rank-six adventurers had an entirely different mana stone checkpoint and our wait time was less than half of theirs. The officials there were also much more polite.
"Well then, let's go! Hahaha!"
Soon after, we each went through the checkpoint and gathered in one place. Then we quickly finished distributing the loot.
"Each person should take 790,000 stones."
"Bjorn? Is that right?" At Missha's question, Dwalkie's pupils flickered. What kind of wizard was that weak with numbers?
"I do not know, either. If he says it's right, I'm sure it is," I answered.
This time the calculations were correct, so we proceeded without issue. As a result, 790,000 stones were deposited into my pocket. Was this a dog-eat-dog world after all? As easy as this adventure was, our pay was the same as last time.
"Everyone go home and rest today, and we'll have a drink together tomorrow to celebrate our return!" Hikurod suggested.
"Sure."
As soon as we finished distributing the loot, we disbanded and headed home. But what was this? Today, my room felt dirty and cramped. It seemed like just yesterday I had been delighted that my lodgings had gotten bigger and there was a window.
Slump.
Even after washing up and lying in bed, things didn't feel real. Usually, I felt like every part of my body was alive. A sudden thought popped into my head. How long would it take to move to a place like that other inn with earnings like this?
My progress has pretty much stalled recently too.
As this peaceful period continued, the impatience within me increased in size as well. I could only laugh.
...I'm forgetting how lucky I am.
The first day I woke up in this body, I had mapped out a plan for the next few years, maybe even a lifetime. However, thanks to several coincidences, it was now possible for me to move that timeline up by at least two or three years.
Don't get impatient. This is working out well enough... Fuck, what am I thinking right now?
I slapped myself on the cheek, hard.
Slap!
Working out well enough? The truer that was, the more dangerous things got for me. There was no way that things would continue to go well in my life forever.
Don't forget, the shittiest things always come for you when you let your guard down. Evil spirit hunters? The Guild? Mozlan? Nobles? Who is it going to be this time? Or, maybe I'll be fine until I next enter the labyrinth?
I recalled the traumatic experiences etched into my mind and tightened up my loosened screws.
No, no way.
I couldn't stop. I had to get stronger. Only then would I be able to survive. Anyone who saw me might have thought I was being overly paranoid, but in reality, I had been this way since day one.
Always think the worst.
If I had to be a madman anyway, I wanted to be a madman who survived.
***
"Bjorrrn? Did something bad happen?"
"No. Why do you think that?"
"Your eyes look meaner than usual..." That was the first thing Missha said to me the next day.
I decided to loosen the screws just a tiny bit since I'd need at least that much free space in my brain to make rational decisions.
"Want to touch my earrrs?"
"...What?"
For a moment, I thought I might have misheard because I wasn't paying attention, but I hadn't. "Well... my brother once told me that touching my ears put him in a good mood. Even though that was a long time ago..."
What? That twerp said that? No matter how young he was at the time, I couldn't imagine that.
"Ah, by the way, I was talking about my big brotherrr! My eldest brother still takes good care of me."
Good care or not, what kind of pervert was he? This was why your home environment when you were young was so important. Look at her, at her genuinely pure and benevolent eyes. She probably didn't even know what was wrong with what she just said.
"Missha, don't tell anyone that. They may misunderstand your intentions and take advantage of you."
If I didn't already know that Missha's ideal type was a skinny man, I might also have misunderstood and thought something ridiculous, like that she might be flirting with me.
"But you'rrre not just anyone."
Tut, you and your backtalk.
"Just say okay."
"...Okay. Anyway, if you don't want to do that, do you want me to grrrill you some meat?"
"...If you do, I'll eat it with gratitude."
Just like that, breakfast became grilled pork. Even if you cooked it yourself, it was still meat and therefore expensive, but I was logical about it. If I ate this meat and grew even a little taller, that wouldn't be a loss.
"Eat slowly! Let me eat some too!"
"...Didn't you say you don't like meat?"
"You insensitive barrrbarian!"
Despite the small snafu at the breakfast table, I started the day with a full stomach. I was supposed to meet the others in the evening. "I'm going out for a while."
"Oh, then can I take a brrreak today too?"
"If you're bored, go swing your swords. Seeing as you dropped one of them during our last quest, it seems you're still not proficient in them."
"That's—! I just lacked strrrength!"
"Then you should exercise."
"You muscular idiot!" Anyway, I left Missha and headed out. "Bye! Come back as late as possible!"
Well, I didn't think she'd really spend her time practicing like I told her to, but that was her choice.
Step, step.
Walking hard with two powerful legs, I quickly arrived at my destination, the place I always visited when I had free time: the library.
"Looks like nothing happened to you." Now that I knew her name and after everything that had happened, Ragna even spoke to me. Of course, she wasn't that friendly.
"As you can see, nothing did. And you?"
"Of course."
"Then, I'll need your help again today." After exchanging hellos, I was about to receive the Advanced Book Detection spell when, for some reason, Ragna hesitated. She probably didn't know this, but that was a habit of hers whenever she had something on her mind. "If you have something to say, say it."
"...How could you possibly know that?"
"By your eyes."
My candid response appeared to have hurt her pride. Hearing this from a barbarian apparently put her in a bad mood. However, as an intellectual who also valued logic, she skipped the unnecessary chitchat and got to the main point. "I'm telling you in advance, this information is not confirmed. But since you're an adventurer, I thought I should give you a warning."
"A warning?" This was a word I hadn't expected to hear at all and it suddenly woke me up. Even if she had ascertained that this information might not be 100 percent accurate, I was sure that someone with her personality wouldn't be talking nonsense. "What is it? Tell me."
At my prodding, Ragna carefully opened her mouth. "In the near future, there may be a dimensional collapse within the labyrinth."
As soon as I heard that, I understandably had doubts. A dimensional collapse in the labyrinth would be a real disaster that would be extremely out of the ordinary.
No wonder it's been so quiet these days...
Was this the reason why?
"Everyone go home and rest today, and we'll have a drink together tomorrow to celebrate our return!" Hikurod suggested.
"Sure."
As soon as we finished distributing the loot, we disbanded and headed home. But what was this? Today, my room felt dirty and cramped. It seemed like just yesterday I had been delighted that my lodgings had gotten bigger and there was a window.
Slump.
Even after washing up and lying in bed, things didn't feel real. Usually, I felt like every part of my body was alive. A sudden thought popped into my head. How long would it take to move to a place like that other inn with earnings like this?
My progress has pretty much stalled recently too.
As this peaceful period continued, the impatience within me increased in size as well. I could only laugh.
...I'm forgetting how lucky I am.
The first day I woke up in this body, I had mapped out a plan for the next few years, maybe even a lifetime. However, thanks to several coincidences, it was now possible for me to move that timeline up by at least two or three years.
Don't get impatient. This is working out well enough... Fuck, what am I thinking right now?
I slapped myself on the cheek, hard.
Slap!
Working out well enough? The truer that was, the more dangerous things got for me. There was no way that things would continue to go well in my life forever.
Don't forget, the shittiest things always come for you when you let your guard down. Evil spirit hunters? The Guild? Mozlan? Nobles? Who is it going to be this time? Or, maybe I'll be fine until I next enter the labyrinth?
I recalled the traumatic experiences etched into my mind and tightened up my loosened screws.
No, no way.
I couldn't stop. I had to get stronger. Only then would I be able to survive. Anyone who saw me might have thought I was being overly paranoid, but in reality, I had been this way since day one.
Always think the worst.
If I had to be a madman anyway, I wanted to be a madman who survived.
***
"Bjorrrn? Did something bad happen?"
"No. Why do you think that?"
"Your eyes look meaner than usual..." That was the first thing Missha said to me the next day.
I decided to loosen the screws just a tiny bit since I'd need at least that much free space in my brain to make rational decisions.
"Want to touch my earrrs?"
"...What?"
For a moment, I thought I might have misheard because I wasn't paying attention, but I hadn't. "Well... my brother once told me that touching my ears put him in a good mood. Even though that was a long time ago..."
What? That twerp said that? No matter how young he was at the time, I couldn't imagine that.
"Ah, by the way, I was talking about my big brotherrr! My eldest brother still takes good care of me."
Good care or not, what kind of pervert was he? This was why your home environment when you were young was so important. Look at her, at her genuinely pure and benevolent eyes. She probably didn't even know what was wrong with what she just said.
"Missha, don't tell anyone that. They may misunderstand your intentions and take advantage of you."
If I didn't already know that Missha's ideal type was a skinny man, I might also have misunderstood and thought something ridiculous, like that she might be flirting with me.
"But you'rrre not just anyone."
Tut, you and your backtalk.
"Just say okay."
"...Okay. Anyway, if you don't want to do that, do you want me to grrrill you some meat?"
"...If you do, I'll eat it with gratitude."
Just like that, breakfast became grilled pork. Even if you cooked it yourself, it was still meat and therefore expensive, but I was logical about it. If I ate this meat and grew even a little taller, that wouldn't be a loss.
"Eat slowly! Let me eat some too!"
"...Didn't you say you don't like meat?"
"You insensitive barrrbarian!"
Despite the small snafu at the breakfast table, I started the day with a full stomach. I was supposed to meet the others in the evening. "I'm going out for a while."
"Oh, then can I take a brrreak today too?"
"If you're bored, go swing your swords. Seeing as you dropped one of them during our last quest, it seems you're still not proficient in them."
"That's—! I just lacked strrrength!"
"Then you should exercise."
"You muscular idiot!" Anyway, I left Missha and headed out. "Bye! Come back as late as possible!"
Well, I didn't think she'd really spend her time practicing like I told her to, but that was her choice.
Step, step.
Walking hard with two powerful legs, I quickly arrived at my destination, the place I always visited when I had free time: the library.
"Looks like nothing happened to you." Now that I knew her name and after everything that had happened, Ragna even spoke to me. Of course, she wasn't that friendly.
"As you can see, nothing did. And you?"
"Of course."
"Then, I'll need your help again today." After exchanging hellos, I was about to receive the Advanced Book Detection spell when, for some reason, Ragna hesitated. She probably didn't know this, but that was a habit of hers whenever she had something on her mind. "If you have something to say, say it."
"...How could you possibly know that?"
"By your eyes."
My candid response appeared to have hurt her pride. Hearing this from a barbarian apparently put her in a bad mood. However, as an intellectual who also valued logic, she skipped the unnecessary chitchat and got to the main point. "I'm telling you in advance, this information is not confirmed. But since you're an adventurer, I thought I should give you a warning."
"A warning?" This was a word I hadn't expected to hear at all and it suddenly woke me up. Even if she had ascertained that this information might not be 100 percent accurate, I was sure that someone with her personality wouldn't be talking nonsense. "What is it? Tell me."
At my prodding, Ragna carefully opened her mouth. "In the near future, there may be a dimensional collapse within the labyrinth."
As soon as I heard that, I understandably had doubts. A dimensional collapse in the labyrinth would be a real disaster that would be extremely out of the ordinary.
No wonder it's been so quiet these days...
Was this the reason why?