Chapter 70: The Labyrinth of the Bandit King #1

Chapter 70: The Labyrinth of the Bandit King #1

‘Where am I-‘

Rodrigo, the human swordsman, suddenly regained consciousness.

‘What was I doing here?’

His mind was a mess.

Like waking up the morning after a night of heavy drinking with a blackout, his memory had vanished at some point.

A violent sense of unease washed over him.

The most fundamental fear of a sentient being: the loss of self.

The fear that the existence of the thinking, perceiving ‘me’ would disappear forever.

He was terrified.

Would his memories gradually fade away like rocks eroded by the winds of time, until one day he wouldn’t even know who he was?

Rodrigo shook his head vigorously.

‘No, I don’t know why, but it’s just a temporary phenomenon.’

Rodrigo tried to calm his mind, taking a breath.

Fortunately, his memories slowly returned.

Rodrigo, the human swordsman, an S-rank adventurer.

Yes. S-rank. Rodrigo was a competent veteran who had accumulated numerous achievements in the Adventurer’s Guild.

Once the dam of memory broke, the rest flowed out smoothly.

‘I was exploring an underground labyrinth.’

The Demon Labyrinth, “The Labyrinth of the Bandit King.”

A place notorious for its brutal exploration difficulty.

Suddenly, his vision widened.

Only then did Rodrigo’s eyes take in the surrounding scenery.

The flickering shadows of torches. The maze of dark tunnels filled with floating dust.

He also saw his party members, gathered for this exploration.

Windy, the cleric, like a frightened squirrel.

Dread, the rogue, with sunken cheeks giving him a nervous impression.

Stella, the mysterious mage, wearing a hooded cloak.

And Swordsman Rodrigo.

Except for Windy, the A-rank cleric, they were all S-rank adventurers. This was proof of the high difficulty of this exploration.

‘It’s still manageable. There haven’t been any major crises, nor have we discovered any significant obstacles.’

Rodrigo silently replayed his current situation.

He still didn’t know why his memory had momentarily disappeared. Was it due to fatigue?

Or perhaps…

“It’s written in ancient language,”

Stella said in a clear voice, like falling glass beads.

Her small, delicate frame. Her face, occasionally glimpsed through her hood, was as exquisite as a handcrafted doll.

Although she hid her body with her cloak, it was easy to tell she was a girl.

And, that she was a very cute girl.

Where did that girl come from?

Rodrigo had no memory of her either.

Windy spoke to Stella.

“Can you read it?”

“Yes. It’s about the information regarding the underground labyrinth. The time it was first built, the time it took to construct… I’ll skip the unimportant information.”

Stella deciphered the ancient script engraved on the wall, brushing away the dust with her hand.

Truly vast knowledge.

Are all mages so learned? Rodrigo silently watched Stella’s back.

“Oh dear. It says this place is cursed. It was cast on everyone the moment they first set foot in the labyrinth, and there’s no way to remove it. It says you can only be freed by death.”

“What? Only by death?”

Rodrigo’s voice trembled.

The audience murmured, exchanging anxious glances.

A curse.

Was the haziness of his past memories, the fog in his mind, also due to a curse?

“What’s with the fuss, like amateurs? It’s common for ancient tombs to scare away uninvited guests with curses and such. No need to be scared.”

Rogue Dread cynically blurted out.

“Aren’t you being too optimistic? It’s the curse of the Great Labyrinth-“

“What else can we do? We’ve already been cursed the moment we stepped in. We don’t even know what this curse is. We have no information to deal with it right now.”

Rodrigo fell silent, unable to retort.

Dread was undoubtedly more specialized in exploring ancient tombs than Rodrigo.

Rodrigo was confident he wouldn’t lose to anyone in combat or escort missions, but he had no knowledge of curses or anything like that.

‘There’s no other way.’

Despite their unease, they decided to press on.

‘But I don’t like that Dread guy.’

Rodrigo glared at Dread’s pale, flaky side profile.

Then, his mind became chaotic, like static-filled noise.

His vision darkened, and Rodrigo rapidly sank into his inner world as if he had fainted.

Something could be seen and heard.

Faint shapes flickered and writhed, and they seemed to be conversing.

-Even if we were cursed, the current situation isn’t the worst.

-What do you mean?

-Well, no one has died yet, right? Am I wrong? If anyone has died, raise your hand. Heh heh.

Dread and Windy’s voices echoed from the depths of his memory.

Is this a hallucination?

While Rodrigo was flustered, he found himself back in reality.

None of the surrounding party members noticed his anomaly.

Dread turned to the party members and grinned.

“⋯The current situation isn’t the worst, is it.”

“What do you mean?”

Windy tilted her head.

“⋯Am I wrong? If anyone has died, raise your hand.”

Dread playfully teased them with a mischievous smile and raised his hand.

Rodrigo’s eyes widened.

A strong sense of déjà vu. This conversation was exactly the same as the hallucination he had just recalled.

‘What in the world is this…?’

Was he predicting the future a few seconds ahead?

No.

It didn’t feel like that.

It wasn’t prediction, but rather from the past…

It felt like something dredged up from the bottom of a deep well.

‘This isn’t the future… it’s a past I’ve experienced. I’ve had this same conversation before. Many times, over and over- So… I already knew. That it would repeat again.’

He felt like he was trapped in a dream he couldn’t wake from.

A chill ran down his spine.

‘How many times have I been repeating this situation?’

His legs weakened, and he stumbled. Rodrigo braced himself against the wall to stay upright.

***

The ancient labyrinth repeated similar scenery endlessly as they descended deeper and deeper.

It wasn’t a tourist attraction to begin with, so they wouldn’t have prepared different themes and attractions on each floor.

Rather, it would be the opposite. They had to drive away unwelcome guests.

The repetition of the same interior structure would be highly effective in numbing the intruders’ minds and disrupting their concentration.

Dread, who was an expert in labyrinth exploration, speculated that this labyrinth might be an inverted pyramid, burrowing underground.

As they descended, the width of the floors was subtly but clearly decreasing, and therefore, they would eventually reach the lowest point.

“Let’s take a short break here.”

No one objected, so they decided to take a short break.

As S-rank adventurers, everyone handled their own tasks without being told.

Dread set up warning alarms and traps around the resting area, while Windy healed the party members’ fatigue.

Rodrigo prepared the tools for combat and polished his weapon.

The oiled axe blade glinted, reflecting the torchlight.

As he turned it around to check for any nicks on the blade, he saw Stella’s face reflected, looking at him intently.

“You said you’re a mage of the Frost School? Your specialties are telekinesis and Frost Edge.”

Rodrigo spoke first.

Although she looked young, she was an S-rank adventurer.

She must possess power that cannot be ignored.

Rodrigo always felt a sense of awe when dealing with mages. Perhaps it was because magic was a realm beyond his understanding of muscles and weapons.

During the break, Rodrigo and Stella chatted about various things to pass the time.

‘Stella. I think I’ve heard that name before.’

There were a few adventurers who had recently become famous.

They were new faces who had quickly accumulated achievements despite their short period of activity, and Stella was one of them, as he recalled.

However, it was rare to see a newcomer rise to S-rank.

‘Her name is probably an alias.’

Adventurers don’t easily reveal their true names to others.

It was a world where magic and curses existed. Knowing someone’s real name alone was enough for sorcerers to cast curses, so they could never let their guard down.

Rodrigo was the same. Rodrigo’s real name was Rosen, but only his close acquaintances knew it.

Stella likely had a different real name too. Perhaps he wouldn’t have a chance to find out during this exploration.

“Are you looking for treasure, Stella?”

“Yes.”

“Like me. I came to this labyrinth looking for gold and jewels.”

The owner of “The Labyrinth of the Bandit King” was the famous Bandit King Akasha.

A legendary female thief, one of Michael’s companions.

It was said that rare treasures Akasha had accumulated throughout her life were hidden here.

However, no one had ever come out of the labyrinth with even a single gold coin.

It was understandable.

An excellent thief was not only skilled with their hands but also a master of traps and mechanisms.

This labyrinth, befitting the reputation of its owner Akasha, was riddled with countless traps that prevented external plunder.

“Stella, what are you aiming for?”

Instead of answering, Stella twirled her smooth, silver hair with her fingers.

She probably didn’t fully trust Rodrigo yet, which was natural.

“If you don’t want to reveal it, you don’t have to answer. I have no intention of forcing you.”

“⋯No, it’s fine. I’m looking for the Staff of Guidance.”

“Staff of Guidance?”

Rodrigo had heard of that artifact too.

He wasn’t referring to the Republic of India, famous for its curry and population of 1.4 billion, in the real world outside of “Nine Stars.”

The Staff of Guidance.

A divine artifact that could find anything, whether it be a person or a place, when used.

“Oh. So that artifact is in this labyrinth? I’ve never heard of it before.”

“According to my information.”

“Surely, an artifact of that caliber would be worth risking danger for… But what are you looking for that you need the Staff of Guidance?”

As he spoke, Rodrigo realized his mistake.

He had been too nosy, letting his curiosity get the better of him and acting uncharacteristically for an S-rank adventurer.

Although they were party members, there was no need to share all information.

It was a relationship based on mutual benefit, where they united and parted according to their individual objectives.

Whether Stella sold the Staff of Guidance at an auction or found a person or made soup with it, it was none of Rodrigo’s business.

“I’m trying to find the castle of the Vampire Queen Carmilla.”

However, Stella didn’t seem displeased and answered immediately.

It was unexpected. Despite her intimidating first impression, was she a more straightforward person than she seemed?

Rodrigo naturally felt a liking for Stella.

“Huh, Carmilla’s castle… I see. Indeed, it would be difficult to find without using the Staff of Guidance.”

“Then you’ll probably ask again. What will you do with Carmilla’s castle once you find it? Right?”

Stella smirked faintly, tilting the corners of her mouth.

Rodrigo also smiled.

“Alright, alright. I’ll stop asking questions. I hope you find the Staff of Guidance.”

“Thanks. You make a lot of money too.”

“Hmm. I hope our respective goals are achieved without incident.”

The short break was over.

Rodrigo quickly finished his preparations without complaint and stood up.

Although fatigue had accumulated from days of labyrinth exploration, he could still endure it.

However, something else was bothering Rodrigo.

A grim premonition that all these situations, all these conversations, might be endlessly repeating like a hamster wheel.

Even the conversation he just had with Stella.