The 500 Million Won Safety Net
I observed the entire Black Forest through a third-person perspective, directing my seven thousand kobolds this way and that.
"There really are this many people wandering the Labyrinth so recklessly?"
"Master, are you not being excessively cautious? Though of course that is very, very admirable."
"That may be true, but this is just too much, isn't it?"
The more I watched, the more speechless I became.
Of course, I could understand it was their personal choice, but what kind of confidence made them enter the Labyrinth alone without any familiars like I had?
People getting ambushed by kobolds while snoring in their sleep. People leaping straight into the second floor without even reaching level 20, the limit of the first floor. People charging in without considering their abilities or the field's compatibility at all.
It was truly a circus of disasters.
Thanks to them, our new business, Hyeolma Rescue, was constantly being dispatched.
"Everyone thinks differently, so it can't be helped! Someone like me would be fine, right? But the truth is, even one extra kobold is enough to put your life in danger."
"Aigoo… Now I understand why so many people die every year."
Every year new Awakeners appear, yet the total number of Awakeners in Korea always hovers around 250,000.
That meant as many died as were born.
Of course, things would be different now that I had started my business.
"Still, it's fortunate they all carry signal flares."
"The normal grade ones are free, after all! The government covers the entire cost."
"Mm-hmm. And we still make money."
Normal-grade signal flares were distributed for free.
That didn't mean we were doing charity work, of course.
While they were provided free to Awakeners, manufacturing them still cost money, and we received 500,000 won for every single one produced.
That 500,000 won was essentially an insurance premium paid by the government.
In reality, moving for just 500,000 won was close to a loss, but we could afford to do this much.
Our future customers needed to grow safely and steadily so they would use the inn and join Hyeolma Guard.
"How are the premium services selling?"
"A few have sold, but it seems marketing is still lacking so they are not moving well."
"That will change soon enough."
"Indeed, it will change soon."
Our proud premium rescue service from Hyeolma Rescue, offered at five million won.
Once you tried it, you would never go back to the normal version.
The boss of the 2nd floor Labyrinth has been defeated.
Access to the 3rd floor Labyrinth has been granted!
Association lobby.
"…"
Park Sang-min, who had stopped by the association to sell mana stones, stood in the center of the lobby with a dazed expression, blankly staring at the television.
On the screen, a goblin was tiptoeing out.
—In the dangerous Black Forest, where you cannot see even an inch ahead, are you safe?
"…Is this thing just looping? How many times has it played already?"
No other advertisements appeared. Only this one repeated endlessly.
Kobolds suddenly sprang out while the goblin was walking.
The goblin collapsed weakly onto the floor with a thud.
—Oh no! Are you in danger? If so, try using this!
The goblin pulled a signal flare from its pocket.
It removed the safety pin and slammed it into the floor!
Immediately, a kobold wearing clothes appeared.
Thud thud. It defeated the other kobolds and looked at the screen.
—An emergency rescue team just for you! Our kobold agents will come find you! For your precious life!
"…"
—Save your life! This business is brought to you by Hyeolma Rescue and the Republic of Korea.
The kobold and goblin gave a thumbs-up as the video ended.
Then it began looping from the start again.
"So what the hell is this nonsense…"
The advertisement made no sense even while watching it.
After waiting a moment, Park Sang-min's turn came. He went to the counter and sold his mana stones to the clerk.
Just as he was about to leave—
"Excuse me! You're a second-floor user, correct? Please take these!"
The clerk handed Park Sang-min two yellow signal flares.
"Is this that Hyeolma Rescue thing or whatever it's called?"
"Yes! If you are not a Hyeolma Guard member, we strongly recommend exploring the Black Forest with these! You can use them too!"
"…"
He roughly understood what the signal flares were from the advertisement.
If you set one off, kobolds like those from Hyeolma Guard would appear and rescue you…
He did not believe it, and he did not need it either.
Park Sang-min was already an Awakener who had graduated from the second floor and was eyeing the third floor.
He was still running the second floor because his preparations were incomplete, but once he completed a full rare set and reached his stat limits, he planned to enter the third floor.
Park Sang-min stared at the red signal flare for a moment.
"What's the difference with that one?"
"Ah! You mean this? This is the premium rescue service signal flare that Hyeolma Rescue is proud of!"
"So what exactly is different…?"
"It's premium!"
"…"
What kind of explanation was that?
Normally he would never buy something after hearing such a vague pitch, but right now he was a little tempted.
What on earth was the item the Hyeolma Group was releasing as "premium"?
"…I'll take one."
Out of curiosity, five million won transformed into a single fist-sized red signal flare and returned with him.
Park Sang-min headed straight home.
He had not planned to enter the Labyrinth this week, but his curiosity was too strong.
A five-million-won red signal flare.
What the hell was it?
Even checking the community forums yielded zero information about the premium signal flare.
Park Sang-min could not hold back any longer and posted his own thread.
"Damn it. Did I really waste my money?"
But his curiosity won. Park Sang-min entered the Labyrinth.
For good measure he also slung on a backpack and charged straight toward the center of the first floor.
The moment he spotted a hobgoblin, he activated his ability and turned his hand blade into steel.
Thud!
He pierced straight through the hobgoblin.
"It was the Black Forest, right?"
Park Sang-min threw himself into the green gate that appeared where the hobgoblin turned to dust.
Then, just as he was about to pull out the signal flare tucked at his waist, he hesitated.
"Might as well run into a few kobolds before using it, right?"
To simulate a crisis situation, Park Sang-min sprinted through the Black Forest.
"Come here, you little bastards! I'm right here! Come get me!"
Normally, drawing aggro like this in the Labyrinth was the ultimate taboo.
But me? I'm a premium service owner.
If things looked bad, he could just kill them all himself anyway.
After running around shouting for a while—
"Oh, they're starting to bite?"
He could feel kobolds gathering from all directions.
Park Sang-min stopped and took out the signal flare.
Roughly ten wild kobolds, by his estimate.
He immediately removed the safety pin and threw it to the ground.
Fwoooosh.
Red smoke and an acrid smell spread through the area.
"Grrrrr."
"Grr."
"Wooooof! Woof!"
Kobolds began appearing around him.
"Whoa. Ten of them. Hyeolma Rescue premium, if you don't hurry up your five-million-won customer is gonna die, you know?"
In truth, he would not die. He had fought up to twenty at once before, so ten was nothing.
Just as the kobolds began circling and probing for an opening—
"Kuhhh!"
One kobold charged straight at him.
Park Sang-min raised his guard.
Even if they were supposed to rescue him, he had no intention of just standing there getting hit.
Is five million won from the Hyeolma Group really this mediocre?
Was it because the government was involved?
Just as he threw a punch at the kobold lunging toward his face with its jaws open, something burst out from the darkness.
Crunch! Fwoosh.
"Oh? A save."
At least they were not late.
A kobold wearing clothes emblazoned with the Hyeolma Rescue symbol appeared.
"Kuhhh!"
Just as the Hyeolma Rescue kobold bit one wild kobold, another Hyeolma Rescue kobold appeared.
"Woof woof!"
"Two."
"Kaaang!"
"Three."
"Krrrr."
"…Four?"
The number of Hyeolma Rescue kobolds kept increasing.
Five, six, seven.
"Krrrr!"
"Yip yip."
"Grrrr."
"…"
Hyeolma Rescue kobolds pouring in from every direction began annihilating the surroundings.
In an instant, the wild kobolds were wiped out.
Then they began stripping his backpack at incredible speed.
"Hey! My bag… huh?"
In the blink of an eye, he was tightly bound to a kobold's back and being carried away at a run.
"W-what the hell? Why are these guys so fast? These aren't normal kobolds?!"
The Hyeolma Rescue kobolds' agility and strength were on a completely different level.
Even he could barely react.
Since he felt no hostility, he stayed still. A kobold carrying a goblin approached from the side while running alongside him.
"Kerrk! Customer! Are you injured?! Any scratches?!"
"…No."
"Fractures?!"
"…No."
"Amputations?! Lacerations?! Bruises?! Kerrk!!"
"N-no, I'm not hurt!"
"Then are you thirsty?!"
"??"
The goblin stuck a straw into a water bottle and offered it.
Park Sang-min reflexively took a sip.
"Hey, what the hell is all this? Where's my bag—huh?!"
The kobold suddenly braked hard, making Park Sang-min gasp.
Looking around in surprise, he saw the kobolds untying the cloth binding him and setting him on his feet.
While he stood there bewildered, the goblin handed him his now noticeably heavier backpack and a shopping bag.
"Kerrk! Please proceed inside!"
"…"
His backpack, which had definitely been empty, was now stuffed with unknown items.
And there was an additional shopping bag full of more unknown items.
Behind him stood an escape gate.
"…You want me to take these and leave?"
"Yep! Safe travels, keruk!"
"…"
Park Sang-min alternated his gaze between the backpack and the escape gate.
The true identity of the five-million-won rescue signal flare, the premium service, was—
"…Maybe I'll go to the third floor a little later."
A five-million-won instant clear ticket for the second-floor Labyrinth.
—Kim Min-woo: Hyun-gi-nim, this is huge!!! Huge!!! Both the premium and normal signal flares!!!
—Kim Min-woo: How many can you operate at once?!
—Kim Min-woo: With this we can drastically reduce the number of Awakeners who die…!!
"Whoa, the Association President is really excited."
"Mm. He keeps texting me too."
"Just reply roughly. Tell him it's still early in the service so things might change."
"Understood!!"
After checking the messages, I crossed from the warehouse into the Labyrinth.
The Labyrinth naturally had no signal, so I slipped my phone into my pocket.
"Is everything ready?"
I used my third-person familiar view to check on the kobolds and goblins working in the Black Forest.
With Hyeolma Inn and Hyeolma Rescue successfully launched, the second-floor reset was fast approaching.
While the golden goblin was busy looting the second-floor Labyrinth, there was one thing I needed to do as well.
—Kerrk! Stay still!
—Woof woof!
—Grrrr, if you keep moving I'll cut off a finger, kerrk!
"…They're doing well."
A single wild high kobold lay on the ground, limbs bound as if undergoing a public execution.
Its entire body was already battered; all it could manage was a slight twitch.
The goblins and kobolds had already scoured the Black Forest multiple times and captured high kobolds, yet the authority to enter the third floor had not appeared.
The reason was simple: I had not been inside the second-floor Labyrinth at the time.
It seemed the boss had to be defeated while I was present on the second floor for the third-floor access to be granted.
In that case—
"Kobold, ready?"
—Woof woof!
"Good."
I stood before the passage leading to the outpost base.
I opened the door, took one step forward, and entered the second-floor Labyrinth.
"Bite."
—Crunch!
The kobold sank its teeth into the high kobold's neck.
[The boss of the 2nd floor Labyrinth has been defeated.]
[Access to the 3rd floor Labyrinth has been granted!]
I took one step back and returned to the first-floor territory.
"Master…"
Mongmo looked up at me.
"…What?"
"As expected, Master is the best!"
Mongmo gave a thumbs-up.
"Hmph, of course."
Safety first, after all.
The Labyrinth was far too dangerous.
I would just stay in the first-floor territory.