Moon’s Labyrinths - Chapter 307

 

Grenoid had made all the Great Labyrinths through artificial means . However, this didn’t mean that the environment within the Great Labyrinths looked artificial . It seemed as though an entirely different world existed within the Great Labyrinths .

 

That was why when Sungyoon’s party arrived in this tunnel, they found it out of the norm .

 

“Doesn’t it look like humans made this?”

 

Tim took a knee as he touched the surface of the floor . Unlike the bumpy and rough floor of a normal labyrinth, the floor here was smooth and made out of square-shaped rocks that perfectly fit .

 

It wasn’t just the floor . The ceiling and the walls were similarly made by stacking the square rocks . The tunnel was rectangular and was around three meters high and about two and a half meters wide .

 

Usually, tunnels in labyrinths varied in shape and size . In extreme cases, they didn’t even have walls and ceilings . Therefore, this tunnel was out of place .

 

“It isn’t a certainty . It could be that Grenoid or its underlings created this place . Or its creators might be living organisms other than humans . In fact, the probability of it being built by some unknown life form seems more likely . After all, even the descendants of Planote were unaware of this place . It also could be an unknown phenomenon caused by magical energy . ”

 

Emily tried to see if there were any gaps between the rocks as she spoke .

 

Sungyoon and Grace also touched the walls and floor and observed their new surroundings .

 

Grace stood next to Sungyoon and spoke .

 

“What do you think, Mr . Sungyoon? Do you feel anything?”

 

“Yes . The feeling is very intense . ”

 

Sungyoon glared toward the other side of the tunnel . Magical energy fed him the visual information, but it seemed the location was too far . It was as if his vision was foggy .

 

Grace waved her hand through the air, then she held a finger up as if she were gauging the speed of the wind .

 

“We’ll have to be careful . Something is wrong with the flow of magical energy . ”

 

Sungyooon also raised his finger in the air .

 

“You’re right . Mana Stream is ever-present in the Great Labyrinth, but the one here is unusually intense . ”

 

The magical energy within a normal labyrinth felt like a breeze; the magical energy within a Great Labyrinth felt like a storm; however, the magical energy that they felt right now was like a typhoon .

 

It felt like a super typhoon .

 

‘At the very least, a Connector has to be able to use a Platinum Gem to survive this . If not, their body would be ripped apart . ’

 

“Since this proves that this place is special, let’s advance slowly . ”

 

When Sungyoon spoke, his comrades gathered around him . They once again got into their formation as they walked ahead .

 

“Thankfully, we aren’t in an open space and the chances of being ambushed is lower . It’s a comforting thought . ”

 

“Don’t let your guard down in a labyrinth, dummy . Who knows if a monster might burst through the wall to attack us . This place is still a mystery . ”

 

Emily berated Tim .

 

Their bickering might attract a monster toward them in this enigmatic location, but the steel boots worn by Tim and Sungyoon were already causing a lot of sounds . Therefore, Sungyoon wasn’t bothered by the two of them bickering with each other .

 

“We have a guest . ”

 

Tim was flustered by Emily’s colorful words of criticism, but his face instantly hardened when he heard the sound . He raised his shield .

 

Clank! Clank!

 

The being didn’t plan on hiding its presence . It boldly let its footsteps ring out as it approached Sungyoon’s party . It was clad in a black helmet and black armor; its sword was black too .

 

The black color all around it gave it an ominous feeling .

 

“Is he a… Connector?”

 

“Idiot . Look at its eyes . ”

 

Emily pointed at the black helmet with her mace, and Tim looked at its eyes .

 

“They are red . It’s a monster . ”

 

“It’s a Living Armor . ”

 

“Is it another high rank monster?”

 

Tim’s face distorted . However, he immediately shook his head from side to side .

 

“It should be on the same level as the Titan . It’ll be tough, but I believe we’ll win . ”

 

“No . This might be more difficult than expected . ”

 

Sungyoon moved up close behind Tim .

 

“The tunnel is small . We are limited on how we can attack it . We can’t use our normal strategy where I attack from the rear while you keep the monster occupied . Even if I try to go around it, there is a high probability that the monster would stop me from doing so . ”

 

“Mmm!”

 

Tim let out a groan .

 

“Also, I’ll be limited in my attacks . I can’t use my flames, lightning, or winds in this small space . If I’m not careful, you might get swept up in the attack, Mr . Tim . ”

 

“Mmmmmmmm!”

 

Tim’s groan became louder when Grace spoke .

 

“Let’s just fight it! We can figure things out as it goes!”

 

Tim was a simple man . It was a plan befitting his personality . He clashed his ax and shield together as if he were trying to hype himself up .

 

“Well, we can’t retreat even before engaging it . ”

 

Sungyoon took out his ax .

 

His hammer created an explosion on impact, so if he used the hammer, it might implicate his party members . The halberd and the sword were too long to effectively swing in this small tunnel .

 

‘If I can just post up behind Mr . Tim, I could use the sword or halberd for stabbing . ’

 

Although he thought this, when it came to attacking strong monsters, Sungyoon preferred to attack from the monster’s rear . Therefore, he needed to use his shortest weapon .

 

“It’s coming!”

 

Tim yelled . The Living Armor held its sword as it charged forward .

 

‘Fast!’

 

At a glance, the armor looked heavy, yet it moved like the wind . It swung its sword in a large arc .

 

Kwahhhhhng!

 

An explosive sound rang out when the sword clashed against Tim’s shield . Since they were in an enclosed space, the sound was very loud . Everyone almost put their hands up to their ears on instinct . The ears of Connectors were much more sensitive than the ears of normal people, so the loud sound bothered them more .

 

Taht!

 

Sungyoon moved . He kept low to the ground as he walked past Tim’s large body .

 

Then, he swung his ax from the side of the Living Armor .

 

Koo-oong!

 

‘Tsk!’

 

Sungyoon clicked his tongue .

 

The Living Armor had been holding its sword in its right hand . Since it was in a contest of strength with Tim’s shield, its right side had been exposed . Sungyoon had used that opportunity to attack from the right, but the Living Armor was exquisite in its use of the sword . It had slightly adjusted its sword to block Sungyoon’s ax .

 

Sungyoon tried to use brute force to push back the Living Armor . He put strength into his legs . His attack had been blocked, but his initial plan was to move past the Living Armor . He wanted to position himself in its rear .

 

Hoo-oong!

 

However, the Living Armor moved its foot .

 

“Koohk!”

 

Sungyoon desperately hit the brakes . He almost rolled on the ground as he moved back behind Tim .

 

Koo-ooh-oong!

 

The Living Armor had brought its foot down on the spot where Sungyoon had been trying to rush past it . A frightening sound rang out within the labyrinth .

 

“As expected, this won’t be easy . ”

 

“Our numerical advantage is nullified in such a small terrain . ”

 

Emily responded to Sungyoon’s lamentation .

 

Sungyoon tried several more times to move to the rear of the Living Armor, but it blocked him each time .

 

“I guess we have no choice but to do this . ”

 

In the end, Sungyoon changed his weapon to the long halberd, and a drawn-out battle took place . The Living Armor’s defense was too high . It blocking the narrow tunnel was akin to a large and sturdy wall blocking their path .

 

The battle continued for a long time .

 

In the end, Sungyoon’s party barely defeated the Living Armor, and the battle exhausted them .

 

“This was tougher than I thought . ”

 

Tim, who had the highest defense here, let out a sigh . He planted his shield on the ground and leaned against it . The others were in a similar state . However, they soon had to wield their weapons once again as their faces crumpled .

 

Another monster was coming toward them in the distance .

 

“… What’s that?”

 

Emily peeked as she hid behind Tim .

 

No one had an answer to her question .

 

“I’ve never seen that monster before . ”

 

Sungyoon had memorized the entire Monster Guide, which contained the information of all the confirmed monsters . Yet, he didn’t recognize this monster .

 

It meant bad news . Fighting an unknown foe was always very dangerous .

 

Tim lifted his shield and spoke .

 

“Shall I test out its strength?”

 

“Wait a moment . It’s an unknown monster of the Great Labyrinth . We can’t recklessly attack—”

 

Sungyoon was trying to discourage Tim from acting when the monster had attacked . Tim saw its actions, so he defended against the attack . No, he tried to defend against it .

 

Kwhahhhhhng!

 

“Koo-ahhhhhhhk!”

 

Tim’s entire body flew into the air . The fierce impact of the attack had sent both him and his shield flying through the air .

 

The surprised Sungyoon caught Tim .

 

“Koo-oooooohk!”

 

The unknown monster didn’t slow down at all . It kept pushing back Tim and Sungyoon . Sungyoon could barely stay on his feet as he tried to slow down the unknown monster .

 

“Ooh-ahhhhhhk!”

 

Tim squeezed all the strength in his body as he lifted his shield . He managed to deflect the monster’s attack at an angle, and the attack hit the tunnel’s ceiling .

 

Kwahhhhng!

 

An explosive sound and a shockwave rang out . Tim and Sungyoon became the leaves swept up in a storm as they had been sent flying .

 

“Mr . Sungyoon! Tim!”

 

“Mr . Sungyoon! Mr . Tim!”

 

Emily and Grace ran toward the two men . Sungyoon and Tim quickly got up . Their bodies ached, but they hadn’t suffered any serious injuries .

 

Everyone’s gaze headed toward Tim’s shield . Numerous cracks had appeared on the sturdy shield .

 

“It did this with just a single blow?”

 

Tim yelled out in dismay . Everyone was shocked as well .

 

Without showing any hesitation, Sungyoon immediately injected his magical energy into the Royal Gem, and a portal appeared behind them .

 

“Run!”

 

They didn’t even have time to respond to his words . The party desperately jumped through the portal, and Sungyoon closed the portal as soon as he passed through it .

 

Hoo-oong!

 

The monster’s attack missed by a whisker, and another explosive sound rang out within the tunnel .

 

***

 

“Huhk! Huhk! Huhk!”

 

After exiting the portal, Sungyoon took deep breaths on the floor . His body didn’t need oxygen, but he injected oxygen into his lungs to calm himself .

 

‘Where are the others?’

 

Sungyoon raised his gaze . Thankfully, all his party members were near him . They were in a state of shock like him, but they looked unharmed .

 

“What the hell! What happened?”

 

Someone approached Sungyoon .

 

Russell’s eyes became wide from surprise as he looked over Sungyoon’s party . He was the first one to arrive, and following his lead, more and more people started gathering around Sungyoon’s party .

 

“Son-in-law Woo!”

 

Plu-El quickly helped Sungyoon stand up and kept him steady . Russell did the same with Grace, and the other Connectors extended helping hands to Tim and Emily . Sungyoon and his party members all let out a sigh of relief .

 

“For now…”

 

Sungyoon sounded strained as he spoke to Plu-El .

 

“Can you give me a cup of water, Mother-in-law?”

 

***

 

The party had returned to the holy city, which they were using as a base . The Mayor had been waiting for the Connectors to bring him the news .

 

After regaining his composure, Sungyoon slowly unpacked his experience in the Great Labyrinth .

 

“You went down to the 30th floor?”

 

Bruce’s voice contained shock .

 

“You went very far . Our party stopped on the 27th floor . That was our limit . ”

 

Sungyoon was surprised .

 

He had the portal in his back pocket, so his party hadn’t paid attention to the pre-decided date of their return . They had just pushed forward in a reckless manner . Unlike them, Bruce’s party moved with their return date in mind .

 

The plan was for everyone to return before thirty days . Therefore, compared to Sungyoon’s party, Bruce’s party was more limited in what they could do . Despite that limitation, they had only fallen short of Sungyoon’s party by three floors .

 

It once again reinforced Bruce’s strength .

 

“Did you find anything?”

 

Russell asked the question . Sungyoon looked at everyone as he spoke .

 

“Yes . I don’t know for sure, but we found a suspicious location . ”

 

Everyone let out a cheer