Chapter 176
Chapter 176
It was an ordinary sight in front of the Beginner’s Labyrinth . A group had gathered at the entrance .
Unlike the quiet entrance to the Great Labyrinth, newly awakened Connectors crowded the entrance to the Beginner’s Labyrinth . They gathered for their future prospects . They continued to come here for fame and fortune .
Some would continue to progress in their career . Some would stall . And some would never come back out of this labyrinth again .
However, something was different on this day .
The group at the entrance wasn"t going inside, and were looking toward one direction .
The first thing they noticed was the four Connectors . Then the group saw a lot of Devices and Gems adorned all over these four Connectors, and the group could tell that these four didn’t belong in the Beginner’s Labyrinth .
The four Connector were Sungyoon and his party members .
“Ha-haht! It is the Beginner’s Labyrinth! I missed it!”
“It hasn"t been that long since we cleared it . How can you say you already miss it?”
As always, the Ross siblings bickered with each other .
Unlike their tense expression when they had entered the Great Labyrinth, not even a single ounce of nervousness could be found on their faces now .
Usually, Sungyoon would have given them a word of warning, but he let them be this time . It would be absurd for them to be wary of the Beginner’s Labyrinth . They had become too powerful .
Still, he decided to say something right before they entered the labyrinth . Even if this was a low rank labyrinth, a single mistake could kill them . Moreover, they weren’t the only ones present .
“Well, let’s go in!”
Sungyoon heard a voice full of antic.i.p.ation . He saw McGregor urging him and his party to enter the labyrinth from a few feet away . The excitement in his eyes was visible . Chelsea, who was usually stuck in the research facility, stood next to McGregor . She was raising her hands in excitement . Both of the researchers had worn backpacks .
The Director, Chelsea, and Sungyoon’s party stood in front of the entrance . Sungyoon"s party was there to fulfill McGregor"s request . They had to escort and protect the researchers while they explored the labyrinth .
“Is it just the two of you?”
Sungyoon had thought a large research team would investigate the Beginner’s Labyrinth . But in reality, only McGregor and Chelsea had shown up .
“Are you disappointed? I thought it would be best to keep the number low, so you would have an easier time protecting us . ”
“That"s true . I was just curious because it was different from what I expected . ”
“Honestly, we were only able to make two magical energy controllers . I had a hard time rejecting all the researchers who wanted to come . ”
McGregor let out a hearty laugh . It seemed the magical energy controller was a device created using the Golem’s ore . It protected living beings from the magical energy .
Sungyoon looked at Chelsea . He understood why the Director was here, but Chelsea wasn’t that high up in standing within the research facility .
He wondered why she was able to take hold of one of the two magical energy controllers .
Chelsea understood the meaning behind Sungyoon"s gaze . She put up a peace sign .
“I"ll have to thank Jimin once again for introducing me to you, Mr . Sungyoon . As expected, it"s good to have personal connections . ”
She didn’t have to say anything further . Sungyoon understood what had happened .
“You could"ve asked for more time from us . ”
“You dropped everything for us because we said this was important work . I would feel bad if we delayed this venture . ”
McGregor answered Sungyoon .
McGregor had requested Sungyoon to clear some time for the researchers a week before he headed back down to Earth . But instead of doing that, Sungyoon’s party decided to stop their run in the Great Labyrinth . They gave the researchers their time as soon as possible . The party thought solving the mysteries of the labyrinths took precedent over their own labyrinth run . However, their actions had the effect of putting undue pressure on McGregor .
“On the other hand, I did want to enter as soon as possible . ”
That might be the true reason McGregor hadn’t waited for more magic energy controllers to be made . However, it didn’t matter anymore . Sungyoon"s party had to escort the two researchers into the labyrinth .
“Let’s go . ”
As he spoke those words, Sungyoon activated his Gems .
“Ooh-wah~!”
“Ho-oh~!”
McGregor and Chelsea let out an exclamation . They circled around Sungyoon as they inspected his sword, s.h.i.+eld, armor, and cape .
“What metal is this made out of?”
McGregor knocked on the s.h.i.+eld .
“On the screen, it looked quite tough . Unexpectedly, it feels quite smooth . It feels like silk . ”
Chelsea tugged at Sungyoon’s cape .
Sungyoon had a different thought at that moment . Even if McGregor wasn’t the director, he would have found some way to be here . And even if Chelsea didn’t have any personal connection to Sungyoon, she would have found some way to get one of the magical energy controllers .
“Let’s go . ”
Sungyoon was a bit forceful as he pried the two researchers off of him . He walked toward the labyrinth as if he were running away .
The two researchers looked disappointed, but it only lasted for a moment . McGregor then latched onto Tim, and Chelsea approached Emily and Grace . The two of them had started to hara.s.s the other members of Sungyoon’s party .
In the end, it took a bit of time before all of them entered the labyrinth .
***
It had been a while since Sungyoon had come to the Beginner’s Labyrinth, but nothing had changed . Sungyoon looked at Chelsea and McGregor, who stood next to him .
“Are you two ok?”
“Nothing is out of place . ”
“I’m fine . ”
McGregor and Chelsea patted their body as they spoke .
They didn"t show any signs of being poisoned by the magical energy .
Sungyoon, who had been inwardly nervous, could now relax .
“Oh! This is the labyrinth!”
Sungyoon had to grab the collars of the two researchers, as they were about to rush forward . He realized that he had to be on his toes when it came to these two .
‘It feels like I’m babysitting two kids . ’
No, it might have been better if they were kids .
Thankfully, they became more careful after Sungyoon gave them an earful . They started following Sungyoon’s directions .
“It"s very dark in here . ”
Chelsea moved her flashlight around as she spoke . The labyrinth was merely a s.p.a.ce with no light for regular people . If they didn’t have a flashlight or a lantern, their eyes would be useless .
‘Electronics work in their hands . ’
These flashlights and lanterns used electricity, so they weren’t supposed to work in the labyrinths . It seemed that the magical energy controller protected electronics too along with living beings .
“May you turn off your flashlight and lantern for a moment?”
Sungyoon made the request . The two of them were puzzled by it, but they turned off their lights . Soon, darkness once again descended in the labyrinth .
“… It"s as I expected . I can"t see you guys . ”
“Isn’t that a given since there’s no light?”
From the other side of the darkness, Sungyoon heard Chelsea’s voice . However, McGregor quickly picked up on what Sungyoon meant .
“I see . The magical energy controller is more of a magical energy suppressor . It might actually be a magical energy eliminator . ”
“Ah!”
Finally, Chelsea also understood .
Connectors didn’t see their surroundings through light within the labyrinths . They received information through magical energy .
Since Sungyoon, a Connector, couldn’t see Chelsea and McGregor in the darkness, it meant there was no magical energy around the two of them .
The cause of this phenomenon had to be the magic controller .
“Ha-haht! We got a piece of data real quick!”
McGregor sounded as if he was in a very good mood .
The party moved according to what Chelsea and McGregor wanted to do . These two moved toward the wall of the labyrinth and took out various tools from their backpacks . Then, they started tapping on the wall .
“As I’ve told you before, never damage the wall . ”
Chelsea and McGregor had brought equipment to collect samples, and there was no way they could damage the wall of the labyrinth . Still, Sungyoon gave them a firm warning .
“How about a little bit?”
“No . If the Golem shows up, we won’t be able to protect you . There is a chance that our party might be wiped . ”
Sungyoon ruthlessly turned down Chelsea’s request . Sungyoon’s party had become much stronger from the time when they had last faced the Golem . Despite this fact, Sungyoon had no confidence that they could win against the Golem .
“Mmm . It can’t be helped . ”
McGregor sounded disappointed, but it seemed he had accepted Sungyoon’s advice . The two researchers were much more careful in their actions afterward .
They really had brought all kinds of equipment . Sungyoon had offered to put their equipment in his storage Gem, but the two of them had firmly turned down his offer . Sungyoon realized it would be very annoying for him and the two researchers if he had to continuously bring out the equipment the researchers needed from the storage Gem .
“This is just a regular rock . ”
McGregor sounded a bit disappointed .
“Did you expect to find something amazing this early on?”
Chelsea and McGregor slowly moved alongside the wall . If there was any inconsistency to the wall, they used the lantern and flashlight to meticulously check it .
After this continued for a while . . .
“It"s here . This is what you wanted to see . ”
The two researchers were so close to the wall that they could lick it . Sungyoon tapped them on their shoulder . When they turned to look, the first thing they saw was two red orbs floating in the darkness .
McGregor pointed his flashlight at it .
He saw a monster that looked like a large rat .
“Wait a moment . Is that a Big Rat?”
“Ooh-wahhhhhhh!”
The two of them sounded like they were watching a panda acting cute in a zoo .
However, the Big Rat looked like an enlarged version of a normal rat . It was a disgusting monster with rough and dirty fur, yet the two researchers looked at it as if it were a cute dog .
‘We should kill it first . ’
Sungyoon turned his head . Emily and Grace were calmly watching the Big Rat .
However, Tim kept tapping his finger as if he was a junkie off his drugs .
“Do you mind taking care of it, Mr . Tim?”
“What? Don’t we have to protect the two of them?”
“We"re on the 1st floor of the Beginner’s Labyrinth . Emily can protect the two of them if she wants to . It’s fine . You can go . ”
Tim was usually the reliable wall of their party in fights . However, he really hated doing tedious and boring work .
He knew this about himself, and he tried to fix that aspect . However, it was a hard thing to do .
‘We probably won’t encounter anything too dangerous in the Beginner’s Labyrinth, but we have to be ready for the unexpected . I need to keep Mr . Tim engaged . ’
Sungyoon needed to allow Tim to occasionally fight so that the latter could keep up his concentration .
“I’ll be right back!”
Tim twirled his ax as he charged forward .
Keeeeek!
The Big Rat ran toward Tim . Chelsea and McGregor watched with antic.i.p.ation in their eyes .
It was as if the two were watching a fight where the fate of the world was on the line . They looked like customers watching the climax to a blockbuster movie .
However, this wasn’t an A film that lingered in one"s mind . It wasn’t even some satisfying B film . It was an F film that made one feel regret and anger for watching it .
Kwah-jeek!
He didn’t even need to use his ax . Tim just kicked the Big Rat and stomped on its spine .
Kahhhhhhhhhhhk!
The Big Rat let out a scream of pain before it slumped on the ground .
“… That’s it?”
Chelsea looked very disappointed as she asked . Sungyoon nodded .
“I’m not sure what you expected, but Mr . Tim is the s.h.i.+eld of our party . Of course, he can easily take care of a Big Rat within the Beginner’s Labyrinth . ”
Chelsea understood . Her head accepted it, but her heart was unable to accept it .
However, the two researchers didn’t remain disappointed .
Soon, the Big Rat’s corpse was swept up by a light . The two researchers stared at the marvelous phenomenon occurring in front of their eyes .
When the light covered the entirety of the Big Rat’s body, the corpse disappeared . A small moonstone was left behind .
“… So that"s how the moonstone appears . ”
McGregor and Chelsea immediately moved to the site .
“This really is amazing . What causes this phenomenon? The Behemoth that appeared in England didn’t leave any moonstone behind . Does it happen because of the special environment of the labyrinth? Or was London’s Behemoth different than the type of Behemoth found in the labyrinth?”
McGregor kept asking himself questions . Sungyoon’s party let him be . They really had no desire to approach McGregor and Chelsea at that moment .
***
The party continued to head downward .
However, this didn’t mean they were moving at a rapid pace .
Chelsea and McGregor wanted to investigate every inch of the Beginner’s Labyrinth . So their investigation took a long time . The two looked like students self-learning from textbooks, and the students that studied hard without getting good grades .
Despite this fact, Sungyoon and his party were patient with them .
Something important might come from their slow research .
However, nothing remarkable was found even when they reached the 5th floor .
“We found nothing today . ”
McGregor sighed as he got in his blanket .
The excitement of entering the labyrinth had lasted only a moment . As time pa.s.sed, they found nothing, and McGregor became very disappointed .
It seemed he thought he would be able to find many amazing discoveries just by entering the labyrinth .
“If there was something special here, we would have heard rumors about it . ”
Chelsea grumbled as she admitted that she had greatly underestimated this venture .