Chapter 122
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 122
Chapter Title: The 31st Piece Overturns the Game Board
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In pitch-black darkness, Kang Seol let out a breath. He clearly exhaled with a huu, but no sound reached him.
‘The Gate of Ignorance.’
Nothing was visible. Nothing audible. Not even a scent.
His foot pressed down on something, but whether it was solid ground or squishy mud, he had no clue.
In that situation, choices appeared.
You are wandering in an unknown place. This is a space containing nothing, where you can know nothing. How will you act?
1. Stay still.
2. [Requires: Radiance of Estia] Dispel the surrounding darkness.
3. [Requires: Bell of Ether] Ring the bell to drive away surrounding evils.
4. [Requires: Sylphie's Feather] Escape this place.
5. [Requires: Wisdom] Ponder to perceive your surroundings.
...
‘Hah... Radiance of Estia? Bell of Ether? Still the same even after all this time.’
The choices had never looked more infuriating.
Radiance of Estia, Bell of Ether, Sylphie's Feather, and so on. Nearly every condition listed was an artifact that was notoriously hard to obtain.
‘To breeze through... guess you need at least a Treasure-grade item.’
Converted to grades, they were all Treasure rank at minimum.
Spending a Treasure just to clear one gate? That was a straight loss.
‘So... gotta push through with grit.’
The Blood Saint had cleared this gate without any artifacts. Pure mental fortitude alone.
‘Man, thinking back, that guy was unreal.’
The Blood Saint was so extraordinary that Kang Seol even felt jealous of the piece he'd raised.
Kang Seol defined him simply.
A kind man, but strong.
By the time he'd entered the Labyrinth of Penance, he'd already built his own solid system of abilities. No mere gate like this could hold him back.
Kang Seol pressed onward, footfalls meeting now-squishy, now-firm ground.
‘Feels like... it's gradually sloping upward.’
His senses were too muffled for precision, but he kept moving. Sitting idle wouldn't solve anything.
‘How long did the Blood Saint take on this one?’
He couldn't recall the exact time, but it had taken days at least.
‘His approach back then...’
The only halfway-decent option had been "ponder while walking," so he'd probably brute-forced it.
‘Huu...’
Of course, the method Kang Seol was about to use was no different.
Anyone watching this scene might say to him:
Nothing's changed.
Still no progress.
‘No, I've changed.’
He'd entered the Labyrinth of Penance far ahead of where the Blood Saint had been.
And there was one more key difference.
Whirrlik!
Shadows wrapped around Kang Seol's body.
Shaman 'Volcanic Jamad' assumes Night Raven form.
Absorbing 'Volcanic Jamad's ability stats.
Job: Brawler status.
Now Kang Seol's stats merged with Jamad's.
‘And that surges my wisdom to...’
You are in a wise state.
‘Perfect. Cleared the minimum bar.’
A choice the Blood Saint couldn't make—Kang Seol could.
Insight activates.
Something feels vaguely familiar.
‘Damn it, guess I gotta keep grinding.’
Walk and think.
No other proven way, so that's what he did.
Walk. Walk more. Never stopping the thoughts.
Squishy floor, sometimes firm. Then, a faint odd smell.
‘Smells are coming back now.’
He focused his senses.
The churning underfoot. The intense stench forcing its way through his clogged nose.
Where was this place?
‘Blood Saint's was... right, there.’
The belly of a colossal whale.
Out of nowhere, the spot the Blood Saint had endlessly wandered in the Gate of Ignorance was a whale's gut.
He remembered other players roaring with laughter when they realized.
Hahaha! That's insane!
Totally caught me off guard!
Kang Seol, who'd already lost a mount once in the Labyrinth of Penance, had focused on the revelation instead of clutching his sides like the others.
‘The Gate of Ignorance hinges on surprise. And mental damage.’
An utterly unforeseen location, hard to conceive—and the process piled on psychological harm.
‘Can't afford heavy losses in this gate.’
They hadn't even begun the true conquest of the labyrinth. Irreparable damage on the first hurdle would spell trouble.
Mental damage especially, since it tied directly to survival.
‘Pungent stench... erratic squishy-firm floor... random slopes...’
Kang Seol's deep contemplation pierced the thick fog.
‘The smell... blood.’
A scent he'd grown familiar with lately, yet it pierced to the bone.
‘Overpowering... a place swimming in blood.’
Various scenes flashed through his mind.
‘Blood everywhere... slaughterhouse? Lab?’
The more he chained his thoughts, the more details emerged.
‘I know what the floor is now.’
Why it shifted moods. Why the undulating inclines.
With crystal clarity of his location, goosebumps erupted across his skin.
Mental shock received.
Mind contaminated.
He fought to steady his heart. And thought.
‘I am in the Labyrinth of Penance.’
Sss...
The black mist receded, revealing his surroundings.
Uweeek;
Crazy;;
Total goosebumps shivering
Fr real dropped my spoon mid-meal
Corpses. Corpses everywhere.
All sprawled with puzzled expressions, the air vibrating with rot. Skeletons mingled with decaying flesh—small wonder the ground was uneven.
Kang Seol impassively scanned the area.
‘A door.’
He tested his voice aloud.
"Aah. Hearing's back."
Then glanced down.
The corpses' eyes stared up at him, as if saying, your fate too.
He realized these were the remains of those who'd perished in the labyrinth.
Pulling his gaze away, he approached the door with a light, relieved smile.
Kkiiik...
"Farewell."
Overcome ignorance.
Ignorance vanishes from the Labyrinth of Penance.
Mental Contamination: 13/100
Overcame ignorance in record time.
Days had passed since overcoming ignorance.
This time, he'd emerged in a parched wasteland.
Ground split like drought-stricken earth, trees dead and rotting to mush. Thick fog blanketing everything, dulling the mind.
Kang Seol walked it once more.
Not alone this time. Karen to his left, Jamad to his right.
Teacher, you into gore usually?
Mental's insane lol
Just rolled out of a corpse heap.
Looks like kids cafe trip?
Mental hit was exactly that level.
Kids cafe might be riskier tbh!
Kang Seol was deeply satisfied with the current setup.
He'd clocked the trial right away.
‘The Ordeal of Doubt.’
The composure born of having weathered every ordeal once—that was his edge.
‘Doubt... right on cue.’
The final penancer's ordeals came in random order.
No telling which first. But knowing each must come once, he'd prepared accordingly.
Karen spoke up.
“Why the grin, master?”
“Hm?”
“You look pleased.”
“Leave it, fairy. Not our first rodeo...”
Jamad and Karen bantered.
Useless back at the Gate of Ignorance, now they flanked him, ready to aid.
‘Contamination at 24... still breathing room, but climbing.’
The Ordeal of Doubt was straightforward: treat it like a dream.
Ever recall how dreams start? Blurry origins, disjointed events.
This ordeal played out the same.
‘The fog's what's messing with my head. Clouding judgment.’
Basic gist, but the fallout was vast—far beyond mere muddled thinking.
Sense of direction, purpose, trust, identity.
The Ordeal of Doubt warped them all, turning the penancer against everything.
Am I on track?
Is this even the Labyrinth?
Abandoned?
I never chose this!
Who... am I?
Ultimately, total doubt. That was the Ordeal of Doubt.
Its nadir? When it struck at trust.
As those thoughts churned, Karen said:
“This place is hellish, huh, Jamad?”
“No kidding. Day three already? Nah, two days straight walking, no real food.”
“Exactly! So frustrating.”
Kang Seol shot Karen a hazy glance.
‘Doubt it all.’
Tedious time dragged on.
Days more of trekking, and finally—a door.
“Door! Door, master!”
“......”
But... plenty.
“Doors... three?”
“Which one?”
Kang Seol tossed it back at Karen.
“Dunno. You pick.”
“Me? You're asking me?”
Karen's eyes went wide.
He nodded calmly, waiting. She pondered, then jabbed the leftmost.
“This one.”
“Sure?”
“Yeah. Feels like energy here's strongest.”
“Jamad?”
Jamad crossed arms, smirking at her.
“Bull. Middle's the real deal.”
“As if...”
As they bickered, choices popped up.
After endless penance, you've reached the end. Three doors stand before you. Which will you enter?
1. Trust Karen and open the left door.
2. Trust Jamad and open the middle door.
3. Ignore them both and take the right door.
4. [Forced: Mental Contamination 100] All doors are fake! No exit exists here!
5. [Requires: Branch of Duran's Truth] Uncover the truth.
...
‘...Can't even trust these choices anymore.’
This window too seemed to strong-arm him into picking one. Like he had to choose from the list.
In his brief distraction, Karen and Jamad's spat heated up. Doubting each other now.
“Jamad! Accusing me of lying?”
“Lying? Hm... yeah. You lied.”
His eyes blazed red.
“The whole damn time!”
Whoooong...
Kwajik!
Jamad thrust out an arm, crushing Karen's frail frame.
“Keheuk...”
“That pest fairy wouldn't call me so sweetly. Right?”
“Kuhuhuk...”
“Daring to lure us into your trap? Ballsy...”
“Kyaaaaaaaak!”
Crack!
Karen's neck snapped.
But Kang Seol didn't intervene.
And in that instant.
Pusss...
Karen dissolved into smoke.
Kang Seol nodded.
‘Labyrinth wraith ploy, as expected.’
Jamad scoffed.
“Hmph. Labyrinth wraiths, confirmed. Feels good now. Let's go—middle's real.”
As expected! Jamad! Knew I could trust ya!
Believed from the jump!
Clutch play!
Viewers hyped, but Kang Seol stayed nonchalant.
“Couldn't read everything, I see.”
Jamad sensed something off, queried him.
“...What gives?”
“Labyrinth wraiths read memories to erode the penancer's mind.”
“What...”
“You lot... couldn't parse all my memories?”
Jamad's face twisted.
“...How'd you know? Not your first labyrinth?”
His form flickered, unveiling the true labyrinth wraith.
Identity twist beyond imagination n(OoO)g
Staged drama... trusted youㅠㅠ
What? All fake?
The wraith chuckled at Kang Seol.
“Heh heh... Your memories are off somehow. Patchy... no solid chunks. Scraped the intact bits, but glitch like this... Where'd I slip? Spill, I'll patch next time.”
“Everywhere.”
“No way. Nailed the mimicry pretty good.”
“That's the issue.”
Before entering the labyrinth, he'd instructed his summons:
- Never jump in first. Even if you think you're helping—it'll backfire.
His summons would trust him even if he claimed red beans made bean paste. If he judged it so, they'd obey.
Result? Spot-on prep.
‘Forgot it at the wasteland drop, though. Good thing it clicked now.’
The Jamad mimic asked:
“...You stalled on purpose, waiting for us to pick a door?”
“Solo hunt? Days more here too—like last time.”
Ignoring the exposed fake, he headed right.
The wraith tried blocking.
“Hold up! How?! My mimic was flawless...”
Kwaaaang!
A massive hole tore through the fake's chest.
“Kuheoeok...”
Kang Seol's body had gone pitch-black. In Night Raven form, he was a battlefield tank incarnate.
Ability to assume Night Raven form proved the real Jamad lingered in his shadow.
No matter how perfect the wraith's act, it couldn't fool him.
“...Contamination's ticking up. Anyway, stay safe.”
As he turned to leave, wraiths surged around.
【You'll fail... The labyrinth will devour you.】
【When you reach the end, despair awaits.】
【Better beg us for death? Heh heh heh...】
They all held back, waiting for his right-door pick.
Truth was, it was his only play left. The moment he neared it.
‘...Hm?’
Zzit.
An unpleasant chill raced up his spine.
Insight activates.
Something tells you not to enter this door.
“...Clever.”
【What?】
“None of the three.”
That instant, the choice window in his vision smoothly faded.
After endless penance, you've reached the end. Three doors stand before you. Which will you enter?
1. Trust Karen and open the left door.
2. Trust Jamad and open the middle door.
【Impossible!】
【How... how'd you know?!】
Kang Seol tapped his gleaming golden eyes.
“Got good eyes.”
He traced the power flows his Insight Vision revealed, taking a few steps.
A door materialized in midair before him.
Insight Vision pierces the truth.
Insight proficiency greatly increases.
Insight Vision grows stronger.
Thus, he'd stormed to the next gate far quicker than the Blood Saint ever had.
Trap card activated!
He baited the trap! Trap card!
Baited the bait! Trap!
Baited the bait on the bait...
Brainmelt: Pls stop you bastards...
Are we brains in a jar...?
One lingering wraith cursed his departure.
【Not yet... Labyrinth hasn't even begun... It's waiting for you...】
These wraiths, now fused with the labyrinth itself.
Kang Seol flung open the door to the next ordeal.
“Same here. Not yet.”
Overcome doubt.
Doubt vanishes from the Labyrinth of Penance.
Mental Contamination: 28/100
Overcame doubt in record time.
And one final message appeared.
Someone's mind has been fully contaminated.