Chapter 124
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: The Living Companion
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Kang Seol felt a shock that went beyond mere surprise, bordering on outright astonishment.
'My piece... is alive?'
Every piece he'd encountered so far had been a corpse.
When he'd found them, he'd been emotionally shaken but managed to pull himself together. This time, though, it was different.
"Nothing beats it in a hollow belly. If you're suspicious, no need to eat. But still, is that okay? You look like you're on the verge of death."
"......"
"Tsk tsk... What's with that look? Are you perhaps struggling mentally?"
Toki was talking about the labyrinth's mental corruption. Kang Seol shook his head firmly.
"Thank you for your kindness, Toki. I am... Snowman."
"I see. Nice to meet you anyway."
"How... are you here..."
Toki ignored Kang Seol's words and gazed at the horizon.
"The sun will set soon. This isn't a good place for chatting, so let's go."
"Where to..."
"Where else? My home."
Kang Seol realized Toki had ridden something to get here.
Snort... Snort...
Nearby, a massive desert wild boar stood laden with bulging packs.
'...Tamed?'
The desert wild boar was a monster from the Trial of Endurance. Fierce-tempered and possessed of monstrous strength, it could gore a hole through you if provoked carelessly with those tusks.
"Tubby, we've got two today. You can handle it, right?"
Snort...
"Come on, hop on."
Kang Seol climbed onto the back of the desert wild boar called Tubby with a dumbfounded expression.
'...Comfy?'
Apparently, the ride comfort was surprisingly like a sedan.
His eyes bulging like that is hilarious lol
Who'd ride something like this! (Falls asleep soundly.)
"Depart."
Snort...
Thud thud thud...
The speed wasn't blazing, but for sand that sank underfoot with every step, this was impressively decent.
Whoosh...
The scorching sandstorm grazed past them.
If he'd been walking and faced this wind head-on, it'd have irritated him to no end. But now, riding on the boar's back toward somewhere, the lingering breeze actually felt refreshing.
'Why is Toki here?'
He had more questions than he could count right now.
Why was Toki still alive? How had he survived this long?
'I have to ask...'
But Kang Seol was cornered both mentally and physically at the moment.
Just sitting atop Tubby, traversing the endless desert, his fatigue crashed over him all at once.
Normally, he'd never let this happen, but encountering his piece alive had brought a wave of relief.
'Kinda sleepy...'
Slump...
And with that, he lost consciousness.
* * *
"May the gods look down upon us wanderers all."
A low, murmuring voice.
Crackle... Crackle crackle...
This sound was familiar.
And with the warmth seeping in, Kang Seol realized he was lying by a fire.
"Hm? Awake already?"
"Hah... Hah... My body..."
"I know. Heavy, right?"
Suddenly, a chill ran through him—something was wrong.
Maybe Toki had done something while he slept.
"Relax, it's natural. Anyone coming to this desert goes through it for a while. I did too..."
"My body... won't move..."
Alarms blared in Kang Seol's mind.
'My body... won't move.'
[Abnormal Status: Exposed to Dehydration.]
[Abnormal Status: Exposed to Malnutrition.]
[Mental Corruption Level Reached 50.]
[Abnormal Status: Exposed to Mental Fatigue.]
Who was it that said misfortune comes in waves?
Kang Seol was now stranded in the heart of the Trial of Endurance, utterly helpless.
Clatter...
Looks like Toki was preparing something.
"Alright, this should be edible now."
A good smell.
A nutty, aromatic scent wafted into Kang Seol's nose.
Foo... Fooo...
Toki scooped hot food onto a spoon and blew on it gently, worried it might be too scalding.
"Here, swallow."
Kang Seol never ate food from strangers. He wasn't the trusting type to begin with, pathologically rejecting kindness.
This time was no different; he planned to refuse.
But...
'Haven't eaten in days...'
Fierce hunger and agony swallowed him whole, dulling his wariness more than usual.
Plus, from what he recalled, Toki was a monk devoted to the gods, with an exceptionally noble heart.
If they'd met elsewhere, he'd have accepted the food without hesitation.
'But this place...'
This was the labyrinth.
And Toki had been here for a very long time.
The labyrinth eroded the minds of ascetics.
His heart might have twisted after all this time.
But while Kang Seol pondered this, Toki's spoon slipped into his mouth.
"Mmph..."
"Unfamiliar taste, eh?"
"Hah... Hah... What..."
A pleasant flavor, with just the right warmth.
Seeing Toki smile, teeth bared, Kang Seol realized:
'What have I done...'
He'd thrown Toki into this labyrinth himself, yet he'd doubted him over nothing.
The comfort radiating from Toki became trust.
'He hasn't changed, Toki...'
Toki tended to Kang Seol like this for quite a while.
Kang Seol couldn't comprehend his actions.
Why go this far for a stranger in such barren land?
"Your stomach must be shocked. Sleep more."
"......Why."
"Hm?"
"Why... are you so kind to me?"
"Ah, that's what you wanted to know, young man?"
Toki grinned, showing his gapped teeth.
"I've been... lonely all this time."
Kang Seol drifted back to sleep at that answer.
The next day, his body had somewhat recovered.
But still heavy like a waterlogged sponge, several times worse than normal, he could only lie there.
Toki cared for him diligently.
Another day passed, and another.
Is this a bedridden simulation?
Is the Trial of Endurance actually battling illness?
So Toki is the protagonist, right?
Eventually, Kang Seol fully recovered.
"You're up."
"I feel much better now."
"Haha, good thing. Was thinking of leaving you if you had to stay in bed another day."
"......"
"Just kidding. Don't take it so seriously."
He'd risen, but it wasn't daytime yet. The surroundings were still pitch black, and Kang Seol and Toki stared at something roasting over the campfire.
"Meat?"
First meat in days.
"Yeah, to recover, you need something like this in your belly first."
His mouth watered naturally, but where had the meat come from?
'Eh, probably not a big deal.'
In a very short time, Kang Seol had come to trust Toki.
If Toki harbored ill intent, he'd have struck when Kang Seol was bedridden.
Since Toki had nursed him through that, it made no sense not to trust him now.
"Toki, I have a question."
"Heh heh... Question right after recovering? You live a busy life, young man. Here, eat."
How'd he know?
Fr real busy lol
Kang Seol carefully took the piece of meat Toki had cut and asked.
"How... did you end up here?"
"Oh, that story?"
"I'm curious."
Truth be told, he already knew the backstory.
In the Eternal World, characters came with detailed histories from creation.
How he'd lived, why he did what he did.
"I don't like talking about the past much... but it's been ages since I met a real person. No reason to hide it. Hard to spread rumors from here anyway, right?"
"...Well, it's a labyrinth."
"Haha... Yeah."
Toki popped a piece of meat into his mouth and began recounting his past.
"I was an abandoned orphan in a remote village during a plague. The villagers pitied the infant and took me in, raised me. Back then, kids were eaten regularly—truly a miracle."
Kang Seol nodded.
This backstory matched exactly what he knew of Toki.
"I always tried to give thanks. Even in my lowly state, I owed the people who let me live and the gods. I believed... hope would save me."
But that faith soon shattered.
As Kang Seol expected, sorrow clouded Toki's eyes.
"One day, my wife, daughter, and most of the villagers died."
Hold up, I'm leaving this room.
Can't leave, it's a labyrinth.
Despite the shocking content, he spoke with remarkable calm throughout.
"Happened while I was away briefly. Our village was remote, but bandits raided for food now and then. That year seemed safe, so I let my guard down and went out—that was the mistake."
"Bandits' doing?"
"Yes, them."
"......"
"I've lived my whole life for the god I believe in. Building a happy family was to draw closer to Him. And to protect what I believed in."
There was a reason he spoke so openly.
Kang Seol nodded, gesturing for him to continue.
"I hunted them down."
"And then?"
"Raided their lair. Came to, all other bandits dead, one terrified one clutched in my hands, trembling. Guess what he said?"
"......"
To him, that moment must have felt utterly alien.
"'O God, save me from despair.'"
"...A bandit calling to God."
"That instant, everything inside me twisted. Guts wrung like laundry, bones shattering joint by joint. Everything I'd believed and acted on... denied."
A bandit who'd razed his village, now calling to God.
He must have felt his faith defiled.
"Of course, they were starving too, struggling through winter. Too lazy to farm a year, chose the easy path. Everything has reasons, however small. Like why they targeted my village."
"Toki..."
"With martial arts honed in faith, I smashed their skulls, tore limbs. Sought to approach God, but grew unable to grasp His will... drifting further."
"The last bandit..."
"Let him go. The urge to kill vanished. Did my God save him? If so..."
Toki spoke gravely.
"Why... why leave me in despair? Why not save me?"
"......"
"From that day, I wandered the world. To know why God answered the bandit's call but ignored mine."
He grinned faintly.
"And ended up here."
"...How long have you been here?"
"Who knows... Lost track ages ago. Can't even remember the last time I counted days."
At least ten years, easily.
Or longer, since he'd forgotten dates.
'Impossible... Over ten years in the Trial of Endurance? His mind can't be intact...'
Noticing Kang Seol's gaze, Toki asked.
"What's wrong?"
"...Nothing."
"Ask anything you're curious about. Heh heh... Spent so long alone, realized talk is vital to survival."
Kang Seol posed one more question.
"Do you know anything about the Trial of Pain?"
"Hm... That one tangled with frostbite?"
"Yes. It feels... oddly different from the others."
This was a mystery even the Blood Saint hadn't solved. Maybe Toki knew.
"No need to know now."
"Pardon?"
"You'll learn naturally at the labyrinth's end. Knowing now won't help—in fact, it'd break you."
"Break me..."
"No other questions?"
(Won't answer, just brush it off) No other questions?
(Can answer vaguely and strut) No other questions?
That left just one question.
Kang Seol asked it.
"How have you survived here?"
"Heh heh... You were unlucky, kid. Dropped in a barren spot with nothing around. This desert's full of food if you look. Just your landing zone had zilch edible."
"Full of food? What do you..."
Even the Blood Saint endured hunger with superhuman will, scraping by on rare dragons or small lizards.
The Trial of Endurance was daily survival against endless uncertainty.
"That meat you just ate—where'd you think it came from?"
"Where... Animals from the desert?"
"Those are rare lucky finds. Even if spotted, not enough for us to feast like this. Guess."
Kang Seol's knowledge led him straight to it.
"...No way, Tubby?"
Noooooo!!!!!
Leave Tubby alone!
You demons!
"No way."
"Then... My god, this is... monster meat."
"Yes."
"But monster meat is poisonous..."
Something was off.
'Didn't feel like that when I ate it.'
No poison sensation—only rich flavor.
"Heh heh... My secret technique, awakened to survive the desert."
"Secret technique?"
"Monster Cooking Method. Interested?"
Secret technique cooking? Can't resist lol
Mouth watering already lol
A choice appeared before Kang Seol.
[Toki's Monster Cooking Method, awakened to survive the desert. He asks if you're interested...]
Before the choices fully formed, Kang Seol answered.
"Of course."
"Great, feels like I have a disciple now. It'll be a unique experience learning it."
[Talent 'Cooking': Found Appropriate Master.]
[Talent 'Cooking': Hidden Upgrade Process 'Monster Cooking' Commences.]