Chapter 41 – Hardcore Fans (2)

Ｒｅａｄ​ ​ｏｎ ​ＫａｔＲｅａｄｉｎ​ｇＣａｆｅ

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“As expected, the paths have split. We’ll divide.”

After the battle with the Black Iron Golems, once the raid team had caught their breath, Jung Chan-soo immediately gave instructions for the next phase.

The task was to enter the massive fortress that the Black Iron Golems had emerged from.

However, the moment they crossed the gate, the path diverged—one leading above ground and the other underground.

‘If we go above ground, we’ll face the Defense Captain, Karason. If we go underground, it’s the experimental subject, Daraz.’

Reina’s expression hardened as she looked at the paths.

But the reason she tensed up was different from the others, who were afraid of the unknown ahead.

She already knew what enemies lay ahead.

‘The most important route is definitely Karason’s. But the Daraz route also has a lot to gain.’

She had been assigned the task of leading a group, including Kim Ji-eun, underground, and she accepted Jung Chan-soo’s orders without complaint.

As the Constellation fans had said, depending on her choices, she could reap rewards comparable to the above-ground route.

“You already know this, but among those going underground, you’re the strongest.”

As they were about to split into groups, Jung Chan-soo approached Reina and spoke.

“I trust you’ll make the right choices and bring as many people back alive as possible.”

“…I’m honored.”

Their relationship was undoubtedly awkward.

A regressor leading the way and a possessor chasing behind—only they knew their true identities, and considering the rift between their fanbases, it was even more complicated.

But despite that, the two showed a strong trust in each other.

Perhaps it was something even deeper than the trust Jung Chan-soo had with his heroines or Reina’s with her close aides like Kim Ji-eun.

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ㄴ“Honestly…their relationship is kinda spicy.”
ㄴ“Jung Chan-soo isn’t as disgusting as those fanatics in his fanbase, honestly.”
ㄴ“If those fanatics are going to act like this, they might as well just confess to Reina.”

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The scene of the two passing each other was symbolic enough for even onlookers to acknowledge.

“We’re heading down now. Since the teams have officially split, I’ll be commanding this group from here on out.”

After briefly watching Jung Chan-soo lead nearly half the team, including his faction, straight toward the above-ground path, Reina turned her head.

There, the other raid members were looking at her with tense expressions.

As Jung Chan-soo had said, Reina was the highest-ranked person here. The next strongest was only around the 30th rank, making their overall combat power relatively weak.

“You seem uneasy.”

Reina, the only one who knew why Jung Chan-soo had divided the teams this way, chuckled softly at their nervous expressions.

“You can trust me. We’ll win.”

Having conserved a significant amount of energy during the preliminary battle with the Black Iron Golems, Reina confirmed that things were going according to the fan gallery’s strategy and turned around with ease.

That ease gave the others a sense of strength.

It seemed like she had something to rely on, and even if things went wrong, it felt like the worst-case scenario wouldn’t happen.

‘Moonlight Sword Radiance…you’ve definitely grown. Not long ago, you were struggling under the weight of your burdens.’

Many were impressed by Reina’s demeanor.

Though Reina herself didn’t realize it, there were quite a few who wanted to follow her lead.

“Let’s go. It’s not like anyone here is planning to quit.”

Thanks to her, the rankers regained their confidence one by one and began to file into the underground facility.

The underground facility of the fortress, whose scale was unimaginable, was massive enough for even the bulky Black Iron Golems to move around comfortably.

“Is this a labyrinth? That’d be a pain…”

Kim Ji-eun, who had created a bright light using magic, muttered as she and the others looked around.

The facility was enormous, but the passages were clearly tangled and complex.

It was like a labyrinth where getting lost or isolated was almost inevitable.

‘It is a labyrinth. But there’s only one important route.’

Reina smiled faintly at Kim Ji-eun’s words.

The labyrinth itself, with its complex terrain, was an enemy, and as such, it affected the difficulty and rewards.

In other words, if you knew the correct path, it was possible to clear it relatively easily.

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ㄴ“Please! Let Reina take the middle path!”
ㄴ“Middle path, please! Middle path, please!!”

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And Reina had already memorized all the information about this labyrinth.

Thanks to the fan gallery users who had fiercely debated and shared strategies, she knew exactly what to do.

“There are three branching paths. According to standard labyrinth strategy, we’ll split into three groups.”

Sticking together for safety was highly inefficient and went against the Tower’s intentions.

Even if a path seemed unimportant, there would definitely be a gimmick necessary for the raid at its end.

Reina, who had no intention of going against the Tower’s desire to present challenges and have them overcome, divided the team into three parties.

“Reina-nim, we don’t know which path is the most dangerous. It might be better to balance the teams more.”

As Reina declared she would take the middle path with the smallest force, Karom, a 36th-ranked orc shaman, cautiously spoke up.

“If we consider the stability and combat power of all three parties, one of them will inevitably have to sacrifice.”

Reina firmly shook her head at Karom’s words.

The party compositions she had arranged were perfectly balanced in terms of stability and numbers, except for her own party.

If Reina didn’t take on this role, the stability and combat power of the other two parties would inevitably drop.

“If you insist…then I suppose we have no choice.”

Karom, slightly surprised, paused for a moment before nodding in agreement.

‘Now everything’s ready.’

No one, including Karom, realized that this was a meticulously calculated, highly efficient party composition.

As the raid team split up, Reina, with only a few members including Kim Ji-eun, took the lead down the middle path.

“Maybe there’s nothing much down here?”

Kim Ji-eun, trying to stay hopeful, spoke up as an eerie atmosphere began to seep from the dark corridor ahead.

‘Sorry. That’s not going to happen.’

But Reina could only smile bitterly at her words.

“—-!”

“What’s that sound?”

At the same time, a strange cry echoed from ahead.

It was the roar of Daraz, the experimental subject, the monster waiting at the end of the path they had chosen.

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[The conditions are lining up perfectly. Is it really possible to monopolize the rewards?]
ㄴ“It’s possible. If they can win the fight.”
ㄴ“Only Reina’s current strength can pull this off. This is the 150th floor, after all.”
ㄴ“Are you sure? I’m not so confident.”

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The fan galleries, especially Reina’s, which had been openly challenged by the Sejin Gallery this time, cheered as the situation unfolded according to their strategy.

However, the strategy they had devised was the result of the collective intelligence of Constellations with diverse experiences and abilities, and it aimed for extreme efficiency.

But it had one flaw.

It was weak to variables.

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「Labyrinth Frenzy: Some enemies’ combat power and rewards have increased.」

ㄴ“What the hell is this!”
ㄴ“Who the hell did this?!”

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As Reina and her team were fighting the Black Iron Specters on the path to Daraz, the entire labyrinth shook, and an unexpected notification appeared.

The enemies had entered a frenzy, increasing their strength and rewards.

“Hey! Someone’s pulling some shady tricks here!”

“…I know.”

As Serpina froze at the sight, a frantic message from Perbas arrived.

“The other galleries are watching this too. Everyone’s panicking.”

Perbas, who had acted quickly as soon as things went south, had already checked the major galleries.

The other galleries were also in shock at what was happening on the Daraz route.

“You know that interfering with the Tower system like this requires an enormous amount of points. This isn’t something an individual could do.”

“Is it the Assassination Gallery? Or the gamblers?”

“Ha, would those point-hoarding lunatics do something like this?”

Perbas sneered.

There’s a reason the Assassination Gallery exists openly.

Interfering with challengers through ‘official’ routes like this requires a membership level above Contract Constellation and a massive amount of points.

“But what if it’s those who’ve gone beyond obsession to extremism? Those who would do anything for the challengers they idolize.”

‘The Sejin Gallery?’

At Perbas’s words, Serpina immediately thought of one group.

A gallery notorious for its extreme fans in Tower 3445.

There were plenty of reasons to suspect them.

After all, such acts of extremism were a long-standing tradition in Fate Road.

“Should we start a fundraiser too?”

“To interfere with Sejin? Get a grip, Perbas. The 150th-floor raid is something everyone is working on together. One act of trolling is enough.”

Serpina coldly shook her head at Perbas’s excited suggestion.

“We’re not here to hinder others but to help Reina. How many points do you have right now?”

“I’ve got some saved up, but…you’re being surprisingly calm. I thought you’d be furious.”

Perbas was taken aback by Serpina’s rational and composed demeanor.

Given Serpina’s usual temperament, it was a natural reaction.

“This might actually be an opportunity for Reina.”

Serpina chuckled as if to make him understand.

During the recent assassination incident, Reina had been given a trial after eliminating the assassins.

Serpina had already been thinking about that.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Thank you for reading.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
How awfully kind of them to increase the amount of reward gain, seems like these stans NTRed their idol, smh…