Chapter 359
Chapter 359
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 359
>Chapter Title: The 31st Horse Overturns the Game Board
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Kang Seol completed the eyes that pierced through the labyrinth's darkness, and Shin Hyun tossed out a simple "Good work" before leaving the annex.
Kang Seol returned to the annex and stretched out his limbs for the first time in ages as he lay down.
Fatigue crashed over him all at once.
Shwaaaaa…
Soon, rain began to fall.
Opening his eyes in the labyrinth brought more discomfort than surfacing in water.
For example, the pain in his eyeballs that felt like they might pop out, which he was experiencing right now.
'A good sign.'
If it were mere pain, it would have been just another annoyance, but Kang Seol knew it wasn't.
'It means the Foresight Eye's evolution is imminent.'
This growing eye would likely transform into something better on its own once supplied with the necessary nutrients.
It had come at just the right time, right when he'd been frustrated by the Foresight Eye he'd worked so hard to obtain showing signs of uselessness lately.
Kang Seol felt a sense of peace settle over him amid this long-awaited tranquility.
He had trained rigorously every day, yet no crises had come his way. No ferocious lizards chased him, nor were there any tribal battles on which everything hung.
Right now, Kang Seol was just Kang Seol.
He had always thrown himself into pits of despair to grow. It was fast and efficient, but also because he lacked confidence in immersing himself steadily in something.
Yet upon actually trying it, this path wasn't half bad either.
Of course, whether he thought so or not, he still had a long way to go.
'I can only see it now. Still far from done.'
He had come here to train in shadow-related skills.
He couldn't get arrogant just because he could now see through the labyrinth's darkness.
"Hmm…"
He heard a presence outside the door.
Shin Hyun was a man who moved without a sound, so this must have been deliberate.
"Come in."
"Perhaps… no, it would be better if you came out."
Curious about what had brought Shin Hyun here, Kang Seol stepped outside the annex.
"Ugh…"
"Heh heh heh… What's wrong?"
Shin Hyun had piled up night beasts in one corner of the annex courtyard. They were clearly corpses, and there were at least ten of them.
"All of these…"
"Corpses of night beasts hunted nearby. All small fry, and their souls have already dissipated."
In other words, empty shells.
'Then why bring them to me?'
As if reading Kang Seol's question, Shin Hyun got straight to the point.
"From now on, your job is to handle the night beasts' husks. That is, the shadow shells."
"…Pardon?"
"What are you so surprised about? You think it's useless work?"
"No, I'm just curious about the reason."
"Ahem… The wraiths here don't vanish if you cut off their heads or rip out their guts. Both are pointless. Think of them like mushrooms. They're shadows parasitizing souls."
"Hmm…"
"When the soul vanishes, they turn to mush like dung and disappear."
"…They disappear?"
"Yes, reabsorbed into the labyrinth. Then they latch onto another soul. In other words, simply slashing them leads to an eternal war that never ends."
He got the gist.
It seemed Shin Lip and Shin Hyun, having stayed in the labyrinth for so long, had figured out how it built its ecosystem.
"Fortunately, there's a method. Scrape out the soul residue inside and burn it, and most vanish completely. Otherwise, it's always their victory. The darkness returns to the labyrinth eventually. Now, I entrust that glorious task to you. That's the explanation. Any questions?"
Kang Seol gave a rough nod and approached the corpses.
Shin Hyun watched him for a moment before leaving.
This was probably the second ordeal Kang Seol had to face.
Of course, the lesson content wasn't particularly welcome.
'Shin Lip and Shin Hyun are legendary sword prodigies. Learning swordsmanship from them wouldn't be bad.'
If he planned it out, dedicating ten years to swordsmanship might make him better with a blade than even Shin Lip or Shin Hyun.
But if pressed on whether that was appropriate, the answer would be no.
'I came here for shadows.'
He might have ended up with these masters on the ambiguous boundary between shadows and swordsmanship, leading to these pointless worries.
Summoners didn't have penalties against martial skills to begin with.
Well, technically they did.
A summoner wielding a heavy weapon or wearing heavy armor had their overall stats reduced.
This wasn't some wuxia novel's martial world; Pandea wasn't forgiving enough to fight monsters in just rags.
Of course, the clothes Kang Seol wore boasted defenses solid enough to blur those concepts, but generally speaking.
'Swordsmanship is a nice bonus if I get it. First, shake off this damn shadow.'
But even as a way to advance his shadow power, this corpse processing felt a bit unconvincing.
He hadn't expected to be gutting bodies instead of fighting.
'Well, he wouldn't have me do it for nothing…'
A disciple can't see the master's grand design.
For now, he'd follow orders.
Swoosh…
These were the ones hunted today.
Their breaths had stopped, but the shadows hadn't dispersed. No souls were visible either.
'Residue must be left.'
But Shin Hyun hadn't taught how to remove that residue.
'Well… this should do.'
Kang Seol transformed Bitan into a dagger and stabbed it into the night beast's solar plexus.
Crack-!
'Right, this is the shell.'
If the night crow's shadow was like skin, the night beast's was a shell.
Hard chitin.
Kang Seol dragged Bitan from top to bottom.
Tzzzzzzt-!
With a strangely unsettling sound, he gutted it.
Kang Seol pried open the corpse's chest cavity.
Crack…
An empty husk, like a hollow pastry.
'Where's the soul residue?'
As he scanned every inch with his eyes, something caught his attention.
A black thread connected to what looked like flesh, faintly emanating light.
Soul light, without a doubt.
'Found it.'
Kang Seol scraped out the flesh and examined it.
'So this is how they control it.'
The threads burrowed into the flesh.
The flesh had blackened from whatever was injected by the threads.
"Vicious method."
What did soul residue smell like?
What was its texture?
Kang Seol brought it to his nose, then held it right up to his eyes for close inspection.
"This is how they bind souls and exploit them for sustenance."
At any rate, this binding darkness—perhaps the darkness pervading the entire jet-black labyrinth—was the enemy.
'Okay… now…'
With all the residue removed, there shouldn't be any issues. The shadow would collapse soon.
Drip…
The shadow trickled down.
Kang Seol burned it with prepared fire. He'd worried it might not catch, but it burned surprisingly well.
What was curious was that even with fire like this, the labyrinth's jet-black darkness remained helpless against it.
'If I hadn't made these eyes.'
Anyway.
About half a month passed with this routine.
Drip…
As Kang Seol observed and burned them like always, something special happened.
When he brought the torch to the crumbling shadow's form, it wriggled like it had a life of its own and fled toward Kang Seol.
'Huh? This one…'
It even climbed up his opposite arm.
This absurd situation where the shadow, not a soul, clung to Kang Seol.
'Do these things have intelligence? Or is it because they have none at all?'
He'd thought shadows stole souls by someone's will, but it seemed more like water filling the sea.
Simply existing formed the ecosystem.
'No will, then. No purpose. Just… hmm?'
After grasping the shadow's nature a bit, Kang Seol pondered.
'No will… no will… what if I implant one? For example…'
Whoooosh…
Kang Seol tilted his palm, intending to suck in the shadow crawling up his arm.
He even circulated his energy.
Then.
Whirrrrl-!
The shadow was drawn into his palm.
"…Huh?"
Messages appeared, now visible to him.
[Ongoing: The shadow responds to the sticky darkness.]
[Absorbing the shadow.]
[Shadow space permanently increases by 30.]
[The darkness's blessing descends.]
[Shadow-related ability proficiencies rise.]
[Enlightenment! Awakening a new ability.]
[Ongoing: Awakening Shadow Affinity.]
……
【What's wrong?】
Bitan approached and perched on Kang Seol's shoulder, gazing into his eyes.
"Huh?"
Kang Seol's pupils were trembling.
* * *
"Is he doing well without slacking off?"
"He was humming tunes while fully immersed. Seems like he's gotten motivated, unlike at the start."
"Either way, it's good. With tasks divided, the nearby beasts have decreased a lot."
"Heh heh heh… Now I can just slash without worrying."
"Understanding those beasts is important. He's still far from ready to fight them. We need to take it step by step."
"Well, he'll get there eventually."
"Still, he did menial work for a solid two months without complaint. Commendable."
Night beasts were both their enemies and highly similar to Kang Seol's current situation.
So, while processing their corpses, he was given a chance to understand how they moved, why they were strong, and so on.
"Hmm…"
Unlike Shin Lip praising Kang Seol, Shin Hyun fiddled with his chin beard, something bothering him.
"What's wrong?"
"He started asking for bigger ones lately. Wonder if he has some odd temperament."
"Hmm… For his original goal, we should show him how larger ones are corrupted by darkness."
"And… well… this is…"
"Speak your mind."
Shin Hyun scratched his head.
"His energy feels… a bit off."
"Off?"
" heavier, maybe?"
"…Did he train at night or something?"
"I don't go to the annex outside set times, so I'm not sure. But it's definitely weightier."
"Quite peculiar. Maybe I should visit the annex myself…"
It was then.
Someone approached from the annex direction.
Kang Seol, who hadn't left the annex in nearly five months.
For him to leave on his own and come to Shin Lip and Shin Hyun.
Rather than joy, worry took precedence for the brothers. People don't do unusual things without reason. Usually bad ones.
With each step, Kang Seol's energy transmitted.
Shin Lip and Shin Hyun could sense an opponent's energy from their gait.
Shin Lip's eyes narrowed.
"You're right, Hyun."
"Weird, right?"
Kang Seol was soon near the pavilion.
"What is it."
"I have a request."
"Speak."
"I'd like to see live night beasts, not corpses."
"…Hmm?"
Kang Seol politely requested of the brothers.
"Take me on the next hunt."
"You're not ready for hunts yet."
"I won't hunt. I just want to get close to them."
"…Why?"
Shin Lip awaited his answer.
Soon, Kang Seol replied.
"I have something to confirm."