The Bloodma Tavern

All Korean media outlets were blasting breaking news nonstop.

It was as if they were boys from the newspaper era scattering flyers and shouting "Extra! Extra!"

News anchors kept inviting experts and firing off questions without pause.

"How is this even possible?"

"It's all thanks to the explosive increase in Korea's Majeongseok supply."

"Majeongseok?"

"Yes, and at the center of it all is the current Rank 1, Bangguseok Hyeolma."

A woman stared blankly at the news on her phone.

"Oh my, isn't that Han Seol-a?"

"Yeah, I think so?"

"Wow, first time seeing her in person. She's stunning..."

Only after hearing the murmurs did Han Seol-a quicken her steps.

In just one month—the time she'd spent on the 4th floor—the world had changed again.

The former Rank 1 had emigrated, and the current Rank 1 had reshaped the world in a single month.

She entered the association lobby, but people no longer swarmed her like before.

Everyone was glued to the breaking news. The only ones who recognized and approached her were the security guards on duty.

She smoothly made her way down the inner corridor, took the elevator, and headed for the chairman's office.

"Welcome, Miss Han Seol-a."

"Is the chairman in?"

"Yes, he's inside."

When the door opened, Han Seol-a strode in without hesitation.

Kim Min-woo rose from his seat with a bright smile and welcomed her.

"You've worked hard, Miss Han Seol-a. What brings you here today..."

Chairman Kim Min-woo's face looked unusually smooth and cheerful.

Seeing him in such a good mood—unlike his usual self—Han Seol-a opened her mouth.

Her original purpose had long since flown out of her mind.

"Chairman."

"Yes, please speak."

"Please arrange a meeting with Bangguseok Hyeolma for me."

"...Pardon?"

She looked at the chairman with a seriousness he had never seen before.

"Bangguseok Hyeolma... Please let me meet him."

It was the most resolute request she had made since becoming Rank 2 and starting to visit the association.

Kim Min-woo gave a faint smile at her determination.

In the most decisive tone he had ever used toward her, he replied:

"That won't be possible."

"..."

Even as Rank 2, she lacked the qualifications to meet the protagonist of the electricity bill reduction.

Han Seol-a stood flustered for a moment at the chairman's firm refusal.

Then her face flushed red.

"I'm not going."

"..."

"I'm not entering the labyrinth!!"

"M-Miss Seol-a?"

She plopped down in the chairman's office and began throwing a tantrum.

***

After the labyrinth reset ended, the first thing I checked was how the 2nd floor outpost had changed.

It could withstand the reset, but what if the Black Forest didn't open?

If the three randomly selected fields didn't include it, what would happen to the outpost?

The fields that appeared after this reset were the Four Seasons Plateau, the Abandoned Amusement Park, and the Underground Ruins.

The Black Forest wasn't among them this time.

"What the...?"

I could still enter.

More precisely, my subordinates and I could now freely come and go through the outpost's passage to that field.

"Interesting... So as long as we have the passage, it doesn't matter whether the field is open or not."

"Does that mean we're the only ones in the Black Forest right now?"

"Exactly."

"Gob!"

After returning to the territory, I called for Gob.

"Kerrk? Why are you calling me, boss?!"

I pointed at our private passage leading to the Black Forest.

"Send out the Yellow Goblins and have the kids go smash the boss in the center."

"Understood, kerrk!"

I wasn't sure if another reset would happen, but this way we could clear four fields during this cycle.

"We already profited from Ether, didn't we?"

"Majeongseok too. We can just strip everything bare and convert it all!"

Thanks to that, I quickly replenished the three Ether I had been short on.

"Then I guess it's time to head into the Four Seasons Plateau."

"...M-Master, don't tell me you're going again?"

"Can't be helped. I have to go in person to set up the outpost."

Mongmo let out a growl from my shoulder and leaped forward.

"Bisaaaang!"

...That pattern again?

***

Time flew by after Bangguseok Hyeolma updated the Ether ranking.

Korea was in a festive mood every single day.

Among all the breaking news, what excited people the most was this:

Even after losing a Ranker, Japan had been caught up to right at their doorstep.

And upon receiving that report, Japan's Awakener Management Agency Vice Minister Nakamura could only fume in frustration.

"This... this! How can someone who hasn't even reached the 4th floor be pulling in 40 Ether a month!!"

He could only seethe; there was nothing he could do.

"How much Ether have we poured in? 40 Ether? Secretary!!"

"Y-Yes...!"

"What are Choi Kang-hyeok and those other guys we pulled over doing right now!!"

"...They're probably in the labyrinth?"

It was an obvious answer.

Most Awakeners were in the labyrinth unless they were resting.

Nakamura's face turned red.

"Get out!!! And when those guys come back, tell them to extract as much Ether as they've consumed and raise their ranks!!"

They had already sacrificed Ether and national trust just to preserve their pride.

"Y-Yes sir!"

Even that pride was now being ground into the dirt for Japan.

***

"Master, what are you looking at?"

"Checking the community to gauge public sentiment?"

"All they do is praise Master. Our bro is the best, right?"

"...I only opened them to make money."

Whenever I did something, people kept assigning deeper meaning and praising me. It was starting to weigh on my conscience.

"Well, what does it matter? Enjoy it, Master. A king deserves to be praised..."

I pinched one of Mongmo's cheeks.

"Stop calling me king. It's embarrassing."

"Uuuugh. Aren't you the master of thirty thousand vampires? At this level, in Earth's past you'd be at the level of national power—"

"That was the past. This is the modern era. And thirty thousand is more like a rural lord, not a king."

Three months had passed since we opened the 3rd floor.

During that time, we stabilized our businesses, secured Ether, and steadily expanded our outposts.

We now had three Bloodma Inns in total—at the Black Forest, the Four Seasons Plateau, and the Spirit Lake.

To compensate for the lack of manpower with Ether, we increased our domination count to a total of thirty thousand.

Fifteen thousand goblins and fifteen thousand kobolds each.

With the Bloodma Guards and kobolds, I could now cover all 2nd floor fields by myself.

Thanks to that, the chairman had been sniffling about safety again.

Mongmo rubbed his cheek with his hand and glanced at me.

"Anyway, we need to keep increasing domination. The more hands we have, the better!"

We had once increased domination to thirty thousand, but we were still short on manpower.

With thirty thousand subordinates essentially managing the entire 2nd floor...

"Right. The inns are all open now, so let's focus on steadily increasing domination."

"What about the new monsters on the 3rd floor, Master?"

"Hmm... I wonder if those guys are even useful."

"Still, we don't have many candidates, do we? There's only one type worth considering on the 3rd floor... Or should we just increase the goblins and kobolds further?"

"...Should I accept a new species?"

I needed more workers, but I was also starving for dopamine.

Ten thousand SS-rank rewards—I wanted to see them.

While talking with Mongmo and looking around the territory, a goblin wearing a chef's hat came running toward me.

"Kerrk, B-Boss! Boss!!"

"...Cooking Goblin? Why?"

"K-Krrk! There's something you need to see!"

The cooking goblins, who usually stayed holed up in the restaurant, looked unusually urgent.

I immediately followed the goblin.

The place he led me to was the territory's dining hall.

The cooking goblins were gathered around, staring at something.

"What? Why are you all like this?"

"K-Kerrk! Boss! Look at this!"

What the goblins pointed at was a single earthenware pot on the table.

It was filled to the brim with steaming, appetizing soup.

While wondering why they were making such a fuss over ordinary soup, I suddenly froze.

"...Huh?"

I was startled by the system window that appeared before my eyes.

"What? This is possible?"

"Master, isn't this good? It's a way to use up all that useless meat!"

I nodded at Mongmo's words.

He seemed to be thinking the same thing I was.

"Wait a second..."

Along with the soup in front of me, one of the community posts I had just seen flashed through my mind.

"...Remodeling the restaurant is possible?"

***

Choi Jae-hoon was trudging alone across the Four Seasons Plateau.

His destination was the massive plume of smoke visible straight ahead—the direction of the Bloodma Inn's beacon.

Unlike other fields, the Four Seasons Plateau was wide open in all directions.

It was the easiest field to find the inn in.

And it matched Choi Jae-hoon's combat style perfectly, so whenever this field opened, he always came here.

"Wow, the world really has gotten better."

From a high hill, he could see the lightning goats of the Four Seasons Plateau along with scattered kobolds.

The kobolds wore clothes marked with the Bloodma Rescue symbol.

If you ever felt in danger, you just had to fire a rescue flare and those kobolds would come running to help.

Now, dying in the labyrinth—at least on the 2nd floor—was almost impossible.

After ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠walking for a while, the outline of a building came into view.

Bloodma Inn, Four Seasons Plateau Branch.

Choi Jae-hoon walked forward without thinking, then suddenly frowned.

"...Huh?"

He squinted toward the inn.

"Something's different... Did they change the restaurant?"

He had used this place many times before, so the exterior was familiar.

He had even visited just two weeks ago.

But today, something about the exterior was different.

As he got closer, the change became obvious.

"...Bloodma Tavern?"

The restaurant building that had stood separately next to the Bloodma Inn had transformed, now bearing a sign that read "Bloodma Tavern."

The building itself looked like something from a folk village, and a wide outdoor wooden deck had been set up outside.

It was a spacious yard large enough for over a hundred people to dine outdoors.

"W-What the...?"

While he stood dazed, staring at the tavern in confusion, other Awakeners nearby waved at him with chuckles.

"Hey, buddy!! Finished your exploration for today?!"

"...Huh?"

"I asked if you're done exploring!!"

Choi Jae-hoon found the situation extremely unfamiliar.

Interacting with other Awakeners inside the labyrinth had always felt like a taboo.

Most people preferred traveling alone rather than worrying about getting stabbed in the back.

But this...

"If you're done, come have a drink with us!"

It felt strangely warm and friendly.

Caught off guard, Choi Jae-hoon ended up joining the group.

"What's your name?"

"C-Choi Jae-hoon."

"I'm Kang Chan-woo."

"Park Sang-min."

"Are you two acquainted?"

"Nope? We just met today."

"...What?"

Seeing Choi Jae-hoon's bewildered expression, Kang Chan-woo burst into laughter.

"Makes sense! But look at this atmosphere! You can't not join us! Tavern keeper!!!"

"?"

Kang Chan-woo suddenly calling for a tavern keeper inside the labyrinth.

Was he crazy?

But then—

"Kerrk, why are you calling me!"

"...?"

Maybe he was the crazy one.

A goblin appeared wearing a modified hanbok.

"One bottle of makgeolli and a bowl of soup here!! Hey, I'm paying, so just drink up."

"??"

People said all sorts of things happened in the labyrinth, but ever since Bangguseok Hyeolma appeared, it had truly gone beyond imagination.

He called for a tavern keeper and a goblin tavern keeper popped out.

Then—

"Kerrk! Here it is!! And if you've been drinking..."

"Yeah, yeah. No labyrinth exploration! If you drink and try to leave, the kobolds will just drag you back in anyway."

"Anyway! It's mandatory! Our boss specifically ordered it! Kerrk!"

Now there was even alcohol in the labyrinth. And it was makgeolli.

"Kya, look at this. Mr. Choi Jae-hoon. I don't know if it's kindness or madness, but look. You can't not join us, right?"

"Y-Yeah, seems that way."

"If you're done exploring, you should have a drink too. And check this out."

Kang Chan-woo pointed at the soup.

A steaming bowl of soup.

When he looked at it, thinking it was pork soup—

"H-Huh? What is this?!"

"I don't know either. Bangguseok Hyeolma did it again. Tastes good too."

Kang Chan-woo and Park Sang-min laughed as they slurped the soup.

"We were just throwing away the meat while following kobolds around anyway. Now we have a use for it."

"Don't tell me this..."

"Yeah, the tavern buys it all. New farming outlet unlocked."

Kang Chan-woo made a circle with his fingers like a coin.

"Bangguseok Hyeolma's even looking out for our wallets now, huh?"

Hearing that, Choi Jae-hoon immediately picked up his spoon and took a bite of the soup.

He had wondered if goat meat would taste strange, but the lightning goat meat was surprisingly delicious.

Moreover, his stomach felt warm the moment he ate it—the effects were kicking in.

While Choi Jae-hoon was still in shock, the quiet Park Sang-min poured makgeolli into a glass.

Then he let out a hollow laugh and said:

"Would it be okay if I spoke honestly?"

"What is it?"

"If I had met you guys half a year ago, I would've smashed your heads in and run away immediately."

It was a chilling statement, but both Choi Jae-hoon and Kang Chan-woo just laughed.

"Puhaha! Me too! I would've killed first and thought later! I had to survive, after all!"

"Pfft. You wouldn't have died so easily. You're not that weak."

They raised their glasses while spouting nonsense.

"No need for that anymore. The world's really improved, hasn't it? Cheers!"

The makgeolli glasses clinked with a dull sound.

The three of them drank straight from the glasses.

"Kuh!"

Having soup as a side dish made it feel like heaven.

Even though they were inside the labyrinth.

"What's the point of fighting? Just fire one of those 5 million won flares and money comes rolling in."

"Exactly. No need to worry about getting stabbed in the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠back. Just travel with goblins and kobolds."

"If things get dangerous, there's even a rescue team to protect your life. No reason for humans to fight each other anymore, right?"

When wandering through unknown places while risking your life, people naturally became tense and wary.

But if that place became safe and comfortable, it was no longer an unknown place.

Korea's 2nd floor labyrinth had been conquered.

By a single Ranker.

They continued drinking like that.

The three of them kept pouring makgeolli down their throats while chatting about trivial things.

After drinking for a while and laughing together, the tavern keeper(?) approached and slammed down another bottle.

"What? We didn't order thiiis...!"

A bottle they hadn't ordered. The goblin smiled and replied.

"Kerrk, it's on the house! The boss said to make you drink one more bottle and put all three of you to sleep."

"Who's the boss? Bangguseok Hyeolma?"

"Kerrk! That's right!"

"That bastard, where's he spying from?! Come out and have a drink!"

Kang Chan-woo staggered around as if drunk, looking for him.

Seeing that, Park Sang-min also stood up unsteadily.

"I'm... going! Exploration's done anyway... Gonna go home, shower, and sleep!"

Park Sang-min grabbed his bag, pulled out a flare from his waist, and threw it on the ground.

"Then... bye..."

A kobold came running, tied up Park Sang-min, and dashed toward the nearest escape gate.

"Ugh... I'm gonna go up and sleep too... What about you, buddy?"

"I'll finish this first."

"You've got a strong tolerance... Well, enjoy your drink! I already paid!"

Kang Chan-woo also staggered up to the inn.

Choi Jae-hoon poured makgeolli into his glass and gulped it down.

Just half a year ago, he had been trembling with fear while wandering the labyrinth.

"This really is the sweet life."

Now he was drinking makgeolli inside the labyrinth.

Choi Jae-hoon smiled and logged into the community.

While checking for new posts, one caught his eye.

"The 3rd floor, huh..."

Choi Jae-hoon, who had been a 2nd floor grinder.

He had been too afraid to attempt the 3rd floor before.

"Maybe I should try the 3rd floor now too?"

With Bangguseok Hyeolma, the labyrinth didn't feel scary at all.

— End —