Chapter 36
Chapter 36
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: 2nd Floor (4)
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Right after conquering the 2nd floor...
Kim Hyunwoo began receiving Elena's report on the 2nd floor.
As he listened, a satisfied smile spread across his face.
Of course, he'd already gotten a rough idea from the barracks menu—no losses in troop numbers. But hearing it straight from Elena made it feel official, like everything was properly wrapped up.
So, he listened quietly for a while.
"And when we took down the 2nd floor boss this time, this came up too."
Kim Hyunwoo glanced at the blue bone she'd placed on the desk.
"...This?"
"Yes. We weren't in any real danger, but this time it actually helped me take down the boss faster."
It pierced right through the boss's ankle when I circled behind to hit its weak spot, pinning it in place, Elena added. Kim Hyunwoo stared silently at the blue bone.
It was clearly a bit larger than the one Elena had brought back before.
After sending her out, he examined it closely, lost in thought.
'The Blue Forest Necromancer... is she alive?'
Honestly, it was a bit of a stretch.
The Blue Forest Necromancer had died in the labyrinth, and Kim Hyunwoo had quit midway through gathering resurrection materials, so she'd stayed dead.
But he couldn't shake the idea because these blue bones—clearly traces of her skills—had shown up twice in a row.
'What the hell is going on?'
He picked up the bone and turned it over, inspecting every angle for clues.
After a thorough check, he found nothing unusual.
'...Looks like I'll need to delve deeper into the labyrinth for more answers.'
With that conclusion, he set the bone aside in a corner without hesitation.
No point brooding over it alone—it wouldn't solve itself.
The rewards from the 2nd floor were about the same as the 1st: roughly 130 low-grade magic stones and 70 mid-grade ones. No artifacts, unfortunately.
'Kinda disappointing.'
Artifacts usually dropped starting from the 2nd floor, so the lack of even a decent weapon left a weird taste. But Kim Hyunwoo shook it off quickly.
2nd-floor artifacts weren't game-changers anyway. What he really needed right now was magic stones, not gear.
'The processing plants aren't high-level yet, so they don't guzzle stones. This should be plenty.'
The new processing plants he upgraded consumed more magic stones at higher levels for better output efficiency.
But since they'd all just hit level 1, the haul from the 1st floor covered it easily. Satisfied, he left the piled stones and headed upstairs, thinking.
'Just need to develop up to the 3rd floor, and I can unlock the full labyrinth city... Can't it go any faster?'
Things were going smoothly, all things considered. Lartania was growing daily, Elena faster than expected.
With Rani's recent recruitment, labyrinth progress would accelerate even more.
Still, the goal of a labyrinth city made him impatient. Habitually, he pulled up Elena's info window.
Thanks to clearing the 2nd floor successfully, Elena's stats had grown noticeably in just a day—solid enough for a proper 2-star hero.
The barracks wasn't level 3 yet, so no precise proficiency readout, but factoring in her innate hand axe talent, she was worlds stronger than when recruited.
Staring at her window for a while, Kim Hyunwoo thought.
'...Should I just head down myself and push the 3rd floor? If I control it right, it should be doable.'
He pondered seriously, eyes fixed on the screen.
Gula had no clear idea how Elena had grown so strong.
He knew next to nothing about the lord's abilities either.
What he did know: the "flunk-out hero" once called hopelessly weak had powered up overnight, and Lartania's lord was somehow involved.
His guesses were just inferences, but solid ones.
Especially since the rumors had picked up right when she started shining.
So, Gula decided to investigate how the Lartania lord boosted heroes.
'If I dig deeper than the rumors, this intel could fetch a fortune.'
Not just any money—a massive payout.
Right now, it was just mercenary gossip, ignored by most. But proven true? Kingdoms would scrutinize Lartania.
Good or bad, it'd blow up.
'A growing territory might weather the noise, but...'
If he sold verified info to guilds, underdeveloped Lartania would face serious trouble.
'Not my problem.'
Even if it sparked international politics and wrecked the place, Gula didn't care.
His goal: sell info, make bank. That's it.
Despite his reward from Kim Hyunwoo, he'd stuck around Lartania two days, gathering dirt.
"Hey, long time no see, Elena."
"Gula."
Today, he met the rumor mill's star—the former flunk-out.
Luckily, they were on decent terms. Unlike mercenaries who mocked her, he'd never piled on.
"Heard you've gotten crazy strong lately—"
Wearing a friendly grin, he probed.
"I'm not stronger. I've always been this strong."
"...Huh?"
Her response floored him.
"Exactly what I said. My power's always been at this level."
"That doesn't—"
He started to argue.
"Gula, does it make sense for a veteran mercenary to have average skills?"
"..."
He shut up. She had a point.
They'd called her a flunk-out precisely because she was too weak for a hero.
"Then why pretend to be weak all this—"
Something still bugged him.
"No need to tell you that. See ya."
Elena brushed him off like it was nothing and left the tavern.
Gula stared at the door.
'...Her story's more plausible, realistically. But still—'
"...Hoo."
Outside, Elena sighed.
Every word was a lie, of course.
But she knew Gula was a notorious info hunter.
Sensing his angle, she'd fed him bullshit to protect her lord.
If rumors spread that 'Lartania's lord can empower heroes,' even if he denied it, he'd be in deep trouble.
So she'd shut it down.
...On the surface.
'I don't get what you're agonizing over. Helping me is obviously better than that "flunk-out hero," right?'
She clenched her fist, Alta's voice echoing unbidden.
Truth was, there was another reason—more instinct than strategy.
Hearing Gula, she'd imagined her lord in a bind... and recruiting a new hero.
One stronger than her.
Catching his eye.
Demoting her back to irrelevance.
'No...'
That couldn't happen.
She needed her lord.
Absolutely.
He couldn't vanish.
Elena treasured him.
Ridiculously, she'd realized it the instant Gula asked.
So.
'I need to get stronger. So he won't need other heroes—'
'—Even if new ones come, he'll still look at me the same.'
...Her heart was a mess.
"...Huh?"
Kim Hyunwoo, agonizing over the 3rd floor strategy, blurted it out at Elena's absurdly high affection reading.