CH 174

Chapter 174

#66. The Restarted Cogwheels

[The labyrinth has been upgraded from Level 1 to Level 2. Previously locked facilities have been activated.]

[The labyrinth is now activated. Usually, all nearby beasts and creatures would be attracted to the labyrinth, but this is the surface and not the Underworld. There are no beasts or creatures to recognize the existence of the labyrinth.]

[However, you should not let down your guard. Any living being will be able to feel the energy emanating from the labyrinth.]

[The piled up dirt and sand covering the labyrinth will be unable to hide its existence forever. The extension of its facilities is urgently needed.]

[The locked facilities have been activated. You are now able to call forth the new summons.]

The Labyrinth Core that Kim Jin-Woo had in his possession was from one of the deepest floors in the Underworld, which was why he had decided to plant it on the surface. However, this was the first time he had attempted this, so he had plenty of potential issues to worry about.

But in spite of his concerns, the labyrinth had successfully been upgraded and came to life.

[The Demon Fruits are a race that grows only in the deepest parts of the Underworld. They are evil spirits born out of fear and resentment from creatures dying miserable deaths.]

[These human-like Demon Fruits sometimes scream for incomprehensible reasons. Their screams are like funeral songs that lead the weak to their death.]

[They are also shamans skilled in curses. However, the origins of these demons born out of curses are terrible, as they are known to even curse themselves and at times, even consume their own masters.]

[Their former masters, and their masters before that, have all met horrible deaths.]

Kim Jin-Woo saw the delayed messages and frowned. He belatedly remembered the path he’d had to take to obtain this labyrinth.

A year ago, when the Dawn Rooster crowed, the unstoppable war had begun on the 9th Floor. To overcome the situation, he’d needed to accept the request of the 11th Floor Counts. And in the process, the labyrinth that had been provided to him for use as his base of operations was the Labyrinth of Demon Fruits.

The Labyrinth of Demon Fruits had previously been called the Labyrinth of Mandragoras by its previous labyrinth master, a servant of Parthenon who was eventually sacrificed in an attempt to suppress Anatolius.

The Underworld system’s messages were too modest in their introduction of the labyrinth, compared to what the previous labyrinth master had gone through.

But Kim Jin-Woo’s expression eased and he smiled. So what if there was a curse? So what if the previous master had spoken ill of this labyrinth? This was the surface, beyond the reaches of the Mysteries of the Underworld. Even if the curse were real, there was no way it could reach this far.

No, even if the curse had really fallen on him, Kim Jin-Woo didn’t care, for there was no curse greater than being born in the Underworld. As he thought that way, the uncomfortable feeling he had felt when he first saw the messages disappeared.

Summonable Troops

Demon Fruit Worker (Level 1) (2)

Demon Fruit Workers can extend their roots and branches to gather resources, and are able to carry out tasks in both large and small labyrinths. Their branches and roots are unsuitable for combat, but are tough enough to hold intruders at bay.

Demon Fruit Warden (Level 1) (4)

Unlike Workers, Demon Fruit Keepers cannot move again once they take root. However, their roots and branches are long and strong enough to cover the entire labyrinth. At their moment of death, the Wardens will let out a horrendous scream to distract intruders.

Having checked the list of summons, Kim Jin-Woo threw a single down gem onto the altar. It was converted into dungeon energy, and he immediately summoned a Demon Fruit Worker.

Pff!

In a flash, the bizarre-looking Demon Fruit Workers were summoned. They looked similar to wild ginsengs except for their plump and swollen bodies, but the blood-red leaves that sprouted over what was supposed to be their ‘heads’ looked rather ominous.

“I guess we should narrow the passageway first,” Kim Jin-Woo said. As soon as he finished speaking, the Demon Fruit Workers began to move with a rustle.

“Mm…” Seeing how incredibly slow they were, Kim Jin-Woo forced a smile. They were about the size of small children, and the sight of them walking around was too ridiculous.

However, under Dominique’s skillful command, the Demon Fruit Workers scattered, spreading out their branches and roots before beginning to plow the ground in quick succession.

“Their work efficiency is better than I expected. If they keep this up, they’ll be almost as good as the Naga Workers.” Dominique gave her honest opinion on the matter.

Kim Jin-Woo nodded in agreement as he commanded, “Summon Demon Fruit Wardens.” Knowing the full characteristics and abilities of the summons was urgent; as such, he summoned a single Demon Fruit Warden, despite not needing it at the moment.

“This is crazy.” Kim Jin-Woo clutched his head when he saw the Demon Fruit Warden appear, several lights protruding from its head. It didn’t look too different from the Demon Fruit Worker; it too had a chubby body like a newborn baby, and its treacherous appearance was sinister, but not intimidating. Kim Jin-Woo remarked, “I can see why Parthenon abandoned them.”

Since this was a Labyrinth Core obtained from the deepest parts of the Underworld, Kim Jin-Woo had installed it on the surface with high hopes. But contrary to his expectations, it had become a rather ambiguous labyrinth that left a lot to be desired.

Seeing the Warden move toward the entrance of the labyrinth with a somewhat troubled look on its face, Dominique approached Kim Jin-Woo and said, “I think we should wait and see a little longer. If they were indeed useless, they would have been culled long before Parthenon abandoned them.”

Finding some truth to her words, Kim Jin-Woo threw another down gem onto the altar and proceeded to upgrade the labyrinth.

[The labyrinth’s upgrade has begun.]

***

While the surface labyrinth went into upgrade mode again, Kim Jin-Woo returned to the Underworld after having been away for a long time. Rikshasha had taken over the management of the labyrinth from Dominique and had accumulated a lot of experience since then, but her execution of tasks couldn’t be compared to that of the True King’s representative.

Thus, he decided to risk the labyrinth’s malice invading his consciousness and headed back to the Grand Labyrinth of Greed again.

“My King!” Rikshasha exclaimed.

Kim Jin-Woo was fortunate enough to run into Rikshasha without wandering the wide labyrinth too much, and asked her about the current situation of the Grand Labyrinth.

“There have been many attacks by the Moai, but the labyrinth was able to take care of them all by itself,” Rikshasha reported.

As expected, the Grand Labyrinth had dealt with the Moai and taken care of its own satiety.

[The Grand Labyrinth of Greed (Level 1)]

Satiety: 66%. It is not completely full, but it is moderately satiated.

Fasting: 0%

A hungry Grand Labyrinth is a dangerous entity.

When satiety reaches 0%, hunger starts to rise. Once it rises above a certain level, the Grand Labyrinth will randomly swallow its inhabitants.

Fortunately, the Grand Labyrinth has found another suitable source of prey to fill its stomach instead of its pitiful residents. As long as there are Moai that come to it like moths drawn to a flame, the Grand Labyrinth will remain under control.

The status window of the Grand Labyrinth had become fairly stable.

“It’s great to see that there haven’t been any problems while I was away,” Kim Jin-Woo remarked.

But not everything had gone the way he wanted. As Rikshasha listened quietly, she suddenly hesitated for a moment before saying, “There were none who dared to oppose the King’s authority, but there have been some problems that haven’t been resolved due to this lowly servant being incapable.”

Hearing Rikshasha talk about how incompetent she was and demanding punishment, Kim Jin-Woo was about to reply when he saw Morrigan appear in the distance.

“My King!” Morrigan called out. As it had been a while since she had seen Kim Jin-Woo, she ran up to him in one fell swoop and kneeled in front of him.

“It’s been a while, Morrigan,” Kim Jin-Woo greeted her.

Morrigan's face, reddened with joy at the reunion, resembled a puppy that had met its owner after a long time. It was unlike her usual wild side, which made Kim Jin-Woo smile awkwardly, but Rikshasha looked very uncomfortable off to the side.

Seeing Rikshasha stare at Morrigan with her head bowed and a subtly disapproving gaze, Kim Jin-Woo had a rough idea of what she wanted to say. It was clear that Morrigan, the arrogant and ferocious crow, had done something.

Besides, before his ascension to Highlord, he himself had had a hard time dealing with the violent crow. It must have been impossible for Rikshasha to properly control her.

“You don’t have to tell me what the problem is. Leave us for a moment,” Kim Jin-Woo said. The proud Morrigan wouldn’t stand Rikshasha gossiping about her in her presence. Not wanting any unnecessary conflict, he sent Rikshasha away to talk to Morrigan alone. Afterward, he began, “Morrigan.”

“Yes.” Morrigan looked like a girl in love as she gazed up at him with a bright red blush, which Kim Jin-Woo was fairly unaccustomed to.

But he knew Morrigan too well to be easily deceived by her blind affection. Thus, he rebuked her coldly. “While I’m away, Rikshasha is my representative. I hope you haven’t made things difficult for her.”

As soon as Kim Jin-Woo finished speaking, Morrigan’s excited expression hardened in an instant. Kim Jin-Woo continued, “If you understand what I’m saying, give me an answer.”

It was pretty obvious that Morrigan’s pride had been hurt, based on the look on her face. She hesitated for a long time before replying. And judging from her expression, she certainly wouldn’t be disobeying orders any time soon, but it didn’t mean she would be treating Rikshasha kindly either.

“Urgh.” In the end, Kim Jin-Woo groaned, before deciding to take Morrigan to the surface instead of leaving her like an unattended time bomb in the Grand Labyrinth. But feeling that her already fired-up spirit might get even worse if he told her that now, he decided to order her to stay on guard by his side for the time being instead.

Rikshasha reappeared, watching Morrigan disappear with a defeated look. Kim Jin-Woo told her, “For the time being, Morrigan won’t get in your way.”

“This lowly servant has only added trouble for the King,” Rikshasha replied.

“Nonsense.” Seeing how the Under-Elf had grown from a wandering mercenary into someone so dependable and trustworthy, Kim Jin-Woo congratulated Rikshasha for her hard work.

With those few words of praise, Rikshasha’s sullen expression turned bright as day.

“From now on, I’ll drop by the labyrinth a bit more frequently, so continue to step up your work,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

“I will watch over the labyrinth even in death,” Rikshasha answered gravely.

Kim Jin-Woo dismissed Rikshasha before seeking out Ariane.

Ariane was sitting quietly in her residence, seemingly having not forgotten her place. When she saw Kim Jin-Woo, she quickly got up and paid her respects. “I was just wondering when the King would come.”

Likely convinced that he wasn’t going to do anything to her immediately, Ariane seemed a lot more relaxed, unlike their last encounter where she had feared for her life.

“You’ve been waiting for me?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“I wasn’t waiting for the King, but the Lord of Nightmares was,” Ariane said.

Kim Jin-Woo’s expression turned serious. “Why him?”

“He told me to inform you that the war on the 11th Floor is almost over,” Ariane replied.

Kim Jin-Woo belatedly realized that the one month timeline that the Counts had given him for them to clear the Moai out was over, and frowned heavily at that realization.

He was worried that the Counts would now turn their attention to the 9th Floor, now that the Moai had mostly been slaughtered. Thinking about what would happen in the near future, he sighed as he realized that there were too many things going on, on both the surface and the Underworld.

However, he remarked nonchalantly, “Phew, is that all?”

“Denarion mentioned that he had important things to say and requested a private conversation with the King, but I’m not worthy enough to make such a request, so please let me know if there’s an appropriate time to do so.” Ariane mentioned that she could lead Kim Jin-Woo to Denarion, and requested that he set aside a time for their meeting.

Kim Jin-Woo simply acknowledged her and hastily headed back. He could feel the evil of the Grand Labyrinth slowly invading his consciousness once again, and he knew he had to pick up his pace. He quickly went around the Grand Labyrinth to ensure that there were no problems that Rikshasha might have overlooked.

The Treants were growing under the light of the two Labyrinth Cores, and Malaxus and the rest of the labyrinth masters were busy establishing themselves in their respective assigned dwellings. The Beastfolk seemed to be doing fairly well.

Fortunately, the Grand Labyrinth was peaceful.

The only problem was that the disappeared Nagas hadn’t yet returned, which made the Grand Labyrinth feel rather vulnerable. And when Kim Jin-Woo finally met with Lee Jun-Young, that feeling of vulnerability only grew greater.

In an empty room with a poorly made makeshift bed, Lee Jun-Young was already waiting for him in anticipation, as if she had heard of his arrival already.

“I thought we wouldn’t see each other again, but you’re here sooner than I thought. Or is this later than I thought?” Lee Jun-Young remarked. She seemed to be quite stressed from living in isolation with no friends, but she looked as if she had made a rather strong recovery. However, she spoke nonsense, likely due to having lost any sense of the passage of time.

“I have something to ask you,” Kim Jin-Woo began. Lee Jun-Young looked disappointed, but waited for Kim Jin-Woo to continue speaking. He said, “The Explorers’ Association, and Song Jong-Chul. Why were you so hostile toward them, Jun-Young?”

Come to think of it, it had been Lee Jun-Young and the others who were more wary of Song Jong-Chul and the Explorers’ Association than necessary. Thus, Kim Jin-Woo thought she knew something about them that he didn’t.

But instead of providing an answer, she responded with another question of her own. “I’ll tell you everything, so can you grant me one request?” She paused as she took a deep breath before continuing.

“Please let me out of here.”