Chapter 71 – The Spiral Labyrinth

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Everyone here must have thought the same thing:

How did the monsters know the players passphrase?

Normally, monsters are stupid. They have no ego.

They just repeat fixed behavior patterns they don’t think or act on their own.

So how could a monster know a passphrase the players set?

That meant the monsters had learned it.

There had been many attempts to “teach” monsters before.

Some players tried taming wolves to ride them, for example.

They all failed.

But now, something had changed.

The monsters had learned. They had developed self-awareness.

This was unprecedented. It made no sense—but there was no other explanation.

“What the hell…”
“Did that monster just… answer the passphrase correctly?”

Gladie, Isolin, Rain none of them could hide their shock.

Rain, who had been the first to strike, stared at the fallen doppelgänger with trembling eyes.

I stepped closer to her.

“Rain… are you sure these doppelgangers are monsters? Could they be NPCs?”

If they weren’t monsters but NPCs—actual inhabitants of this world—then it made sense. They could remember, learn, and think like players.

“No. They’re monsters. Doppelgängers were never different from regular mobs. They wandered randomly, but their behavior was always the same…”

Rain’s voice was firm.

The tiny fairy knight wouldn’t lie.

Especially not to me.

Now, everything around us felt dangerous. The towering trees, the dark thickets, even the small monsters that occasionally appeared.

Come to think of it, we’d encountered an unusual monster before—a Sky Horse on the floating islands.

It hadn’t been hostile, but its behavior had definitely felt… different.

A chill ran down my spine.

If monsters were developing self-awareness and learning to counter players, everything could change.

“S-should we leave?”

Isolin tried to sound casual, but her trembling shoulders betrayed her.

Leaving wasn’t a bad idea. In a situation like this, retreating to gather more intel first would’ve been smart.

But Rain shook her head.

“No. We keep going. Nothing’s changed.”

Isolin blinked.

“B-but what if more doppelgängers show up? They act just like players!”

“I can tell them apart. Better than the passphrase.”

Rain’s confidence made me curious. How had she identified the doppelganger so quickly?

“Rain, how did you know?”

“Instinct.”

“…Instinct?”

Isolin and Gladie looked just as confused as I was.

Rain continued

“It’s a feeling I get when fighting monsters. Like a prickling sensation where they’re about to attack. Hard to describe, but it’s there. I don’t feel it with players—only monsters.”

“And that’s… reliable?”

Isolin frowned

“What if you attack a real player by mistake?”

Rain’s expression darkened.

“You don’t trust me?”

“N-no! It’s just—”

“I’d believe anything you guys said. Even if you killed someone right in front of me and said you didn’t, I’d believe you. I trust you infinitely. But you won’t trust me?”

Isolin floundered, unsure how to respond.

Time for me to step in.

“We trust you. Isolin was just startled. This is an impossible situation—monsters learning passphrases?”

Isolin wasn’t stupid. She caught on quickly and nodded vigorously, her oversized hat bobbing.

Rain’s face brightened.

“Right? Then let’s keep going.”

“But—”

“Trust me, Supreme. I’ll keep everyone safe. I promise.”

Rain’s earnest plea made Gladie and Isolin look to me.

The situation was tricky.

Trusting Rain blindly in this labyrinth was dangerous. But refusing would imply we didn’t trust her.

The weight of Rain’s expectations pressed down on me. Had she always been like this?

The longer we traveled together, the more I noticed—Rain’s mental state was fragile.

“Supreme?”

I’d hesitated too long. I took a deep breath.

“We trust you. All of us—Isolin, Gladie, me. We believe you’ll protect us. So we’ll keep going.”

As guild leader, my decision was final.

Isolin and Gladie nodded.

Rain beamed.

“Good! Let’s move!”

Rain’s “instinct” never failed.

As we advanced toward the boss room, we encountered more players—and each time, Rain flawlessly identified the doppelgängers.

Honestly, even without her sense, we could’ve figured it out.

Real players kept their distance, wary. Doppelgangers?

They always approached, begging for help.

But Rain’s instinct did help.

The closer we got to the boss, the darker the labyrinth became. The moonlight faded until we needed lanterns.

Time blurred—day and night shifted unpredictably. But the system clock confirmed it was night.

To stay in peak condition, we needed rest. So we set up camp.

In a normal field, a night watch wouldn’t be necessary. But here? Essential.

We decided shifts with rock-paper-scissors: Isolin, me, Rain, then Gladie.

Lying on a soft blanket, I stared at the sky. The routine—setting up camp, taking shifts—brought back memories.

“Never thought I’d pull night watch again…”

Isolin perked up. “You’ve done this before?”

I almost answered—then paused.

The way she asked… like she hadn’t.

“You… haven’t?”

“Nope. Why would I?”

She shook her head, genuinely curious. Gladie, too, seemed unfamiliar with the concept.

But Rain?

She frowned, lost in thought

“It’s been a while. First and last shifts were the best… though here, physical fatigue doesn’t matter”

Gladie blinked.

“Oh! You did night watch when you cleared this place before?”

“No. We cleared it in one day—too many people”

“Then where…?”

That confirmed it.

Isolin and Gladie had never stood watch before coming to this world.

Their appearances might’ve changed, but their genders hadn’t.

I swallowed hard. If this kept up, we’d dredge up painful memories from the real world.

 Rain had abandoned her past—no need to force her to relive it.

I coughed loudly, cutting off the conversation.

“Ahem! Everyone, get some rest. We need to be in top condition.”

Isolin had first watch. As we settled into our sleeping bags, she planted her staff on the ground with a thud.

“Leave it to me!”

Frankly, I wasn’t convinced.

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