episode_0129

The goal of this labyrinth exploration was to become a high-tier explorer.

However, that was not an easy task, as expected.

Ask people.

If you introduce yourself as a low-tier explorer.

‘Hmm, looks like just a kid whose blood hasn’t dried yet.’

That reaction will be the first to come back.

It’s not that I have anything against explorers who operate on floors 1-3.

But learning a skill to earn money would at least make life much more prosperous than risking your life there to some extent.

Of course, a 3rd floor explorer would earn much more than a regular blacksmith.

The difficulty is different. The difficulty.

Generally, it’s common for 3rd floor explorers to just constantly hunt orcs inside for one or two months.

It’s not for nothing that the population distribution of labyrinth explorers shows that the 3rd floor accounts for 50% of explorers.

For reference, floors 1 and 2 combined account for 25%.

With floors 1-3 making up a total of 75%, low-tier explorers are people who ordinary citizens don’t give much thought to.

So what about mid-tier explorers?

Surprisingly, because of the hurdle of the 4th floor. Mid-tier explorers effectively start from the 5th floor.

This hurdle created authority.

Becoming a mid-tier explorer means being considered a somewhat capable explorer, and recognized for having the potential to climb higher.

They receive support from the guild. More and more people start applying to clans. And other minor treatments are incomparable to low-tier explorers.

Anyway, the number of such mid-tier explorers is generally considered to be around 15%.

Floors 5 and 6 feel roughly similar.

In any case, it’s not a small number.

However, if you add up floors 1 through 6, it’s 90%.

Does that mean that floors 7 through 10, and the deep layers combined, only account for 10%?

Yes.

They don’t provide exact statistics from here on out, but.

Well, the percentage will likely decrease the higher up you go.

From high-tier explorers onwards, benefits start flowing in.

Right away, you could probably get tickets to enter the basement of the Black and White Auction House, where we were turned away.

Direct support from the guild will also come in.

Taxes will be cut. Well, anyway, there are so many good points it’s hard to list them all.

That’s why we’re pushing ourselves a bit now to get it as quickly as possible.

However, just as there are immense benefits.

The guild doesn’t promote just anyone to high-tier explorer.

While up to mid-tier could be easily proven by simply catching a specific monster on that floor.

For high-tier, or specifically, to get the Gold Badge promotion, various aspects are examined.

‘…Finding the Gem Zone.’

I run through the labyrinth while looking at the promotion application I received from Rain.

Our goal is, after all, to become high-tier explorers.

We entered inside just as the labyrinth reset occurred, to the greatest extent possible.

As you know, unless something unusual like a mass monster outbreak happens frequently.

Generally, monsters spawn during the labyrinth reset and do not spawn again.

That’s why they say if you go to the sanctuary of the 3rd floor orcs, which is where the most people are in the labyrinth, the day before the reset, you won’t find a single orc.

And more than anything, it’s also the time when you can see the most people.

Explorers who want to go up without encountering monsters + Open-run explorers who want to hunt monsters as soon as the labyrinth resets + People who want to collect items or do research since there are no monsters, etc.

There isn’t a single monster, but it’s also the day you can most easily meet people.

And if they happen to be explorers going to the same floor, they sometimes go together.

We met a familiar face at a lake on the 5th floor.

“…High-tier explorer promotion, huh? It’s not easy.”

The ones going with our party right now are from the Lionheart Clan.

There aren’t many clans with many high-tier explorers in our District 11, and they are one of them.

They were one of the places that helped a lot during the District 11 incident.

However, it was just that much. We weren’t close or had any kind of contact points at all.

I didn’t expect them to suggest going up together like this.

Especially since they are people much higher up than us.

Wouldn’t it be a loss for them to match our speed?

However, contrary to my thoughts, the Lionheart Clan members were just beaming.

All of them had gold explorer badges around their necks, so they were all high-tier explorers, but.

Why are they like that?

Tap, tap-

One explorer, who tapped my shoulder and laughed heartily, said.

“Haha! You might fail this attempt!!”

One explorer, lost in memories.

Looked at me and smiled playfully.

“Looking at the promotion paper, you probably don’t know what’s what, right? It’s always like that at first~”

“Hey, don’t scare him too much!!”

“Haha! Looking at him, he hasn’t even been to the 7th floor a few times.”

“That’s how kids who just stare at the promotion paper are… but.”

If so, why don’t you teach me something?

Since it was a bit awkward to say that. I just stayed silent and listened to the elders talk.

After all, thanks to them, we were easily breaking through the 5th floor.

Whoosh-

A strong wind blows from ahead.

It must be the Lionheart Clan Leader fighting a monster.

Just because the labyrinth reset is imminent doesn’t mean there are absolutely no monsters.

We planned to head to the 7th floor this time while consuming minimal resources. So, this kind of ride isn’t bad either.

More than anything.

“This is amazing.”

“Is this what it takes to become a large clan?”

Kairak and Grace stare blankly at something.

It was none other than a giant mobile brazier.

Its size was as large as Kairak, and it was placed on a cart, emitting such intense heat that it melted all the snow around the cart in real-time. Explorers nearby could take off their thick clothes and walk around the 5th floor comfortably.

That is, of course, a magic tool powered by magic stones.

I knew such things existed, but I had never seen a single explorer use something like that on the 5th floor.

Of course, it takes a lot of magic stones to maintain such a large brazier.

The cost doesn’t make sense.

Moreover, not only that, but the Lionheart Clan’s mages were also using fire magic in real-time to clear paths or block strong blizzards.

I thought it would be really comfortable to climb the labyrinth like this.

Seeing our envious eyes, they shrugged and said.

“It’s all welfare. It means there’s no need to waste the clan’s strength in places like the 5th floor.”

“Plus, the Clan Leader goes ahead and defeats the monsters. Of course, the Clan Leader rarely has to step up on the 9th or 10th floor though.”

Is this the power of a large clan?

I felt that we still had a long way to go.

Let’s just ask once, I thought, showing the promotion paper and saying.

“Could you possibly tell me about the contents of this promotion paper?”

“No, you have to do that yourself.”

“We also got promoted by coming in as parties without receiving help! That’s the principle!”

As expected, they weren’t going to tell me easily.

Is it because they think it’s a virtue for explorers to overcome things themselves?

Still, thanks to them, we were able to break through the 5th floor smoothly.

Next is the 6th floor.

Breaking through the 6th floor also showed the characteristic of a large clan.

“……This is?”

“How is it? Everyone gets surprised when they see this!!”

My jaw truly dropped.

How did we walk around the 6th floor last time?

Didn’t I endure by blocking the sky with a shield all day?

Both Erika’s party and ours even brought special raincoats or clothes to avoid the rain on the 6th floor.

The Lionheart Clan is on a different level.

They were advancing while covering the sky with a giant umbrella.

“Someday, will we also be able to spend money like this?”

“Of course… I guess?”

Many of them are high-tier explorers, but fundamentally, their history is different.

We’ve only been around for a few months, but they’ve been a clan for decades.

While it was comfortable going from the 5th to the 6th floor, seeing the grandeur of the senior explorers running ahead made me feel like we still had a long way to go.

We arrived at the safe zone on the 6th floor.

Immediately, the Lionheart Clan headed for the 7th floor.

However, we stayed in the 6th floor safe zone.

The reason is that the labyrinth will reset in 2 days.

It would be frustrating to be thrown out while exploring the 7th floor.

Since the cost of lodging was also a waste, we set up a temporary shelter in the campsite.

“We arrived earlier than expected, but.”

“Our original goal was to break through the 6th floor after the labyrinth reset on the 5th floor, right?”

“Right. It’s tough to start on the 7th floor from the beginning.”

We had planned a slightly more generous schedule, but.

Thanks to the Lionheart Clan, we had a lot of time left.

Moreover, we didn’t even lose stamina on the way.

Since things turned out this way, we’ll just go all out and tackle the promotion.

However, even though I decided this and looked at the requirements for promotion again.

All I can do is sigh.

[1. Catch the Diamond Gem Knight and bring proof.]

[2. Discover the Gem Zone.]

[3. Collect one Gem Flower.]

[4. Bring 10 pieces of dung from a Gem Frog.]

No, why are so many things needed for a promotion like this?

Furthermore, catching a monster is only one of them.

“Nothing comes out of monsters except magic stones, so what should I bring?”

“Exactly. And the 7th floor gems can’t be mined either. What are we supposed to do by discovering the Gem Zone?”

“…Dung.”

“Gem Zone… Since I didn’t see it when I went to the 7th floor last time. Is it a rare place?”

“The Diamond Gem Knight will be extremely strong. We need to think about how to deal with it.”

Even if the five of us put our heads together and thought, no answer came out.

“No, Noah. Do you really know nothing?”

“Well, if I poked around a bit, I might find out, but… It would be giving that perverted bastard room to intervene.”

Certainly, when we went to the 6th floor last time, a mass outbreak and a volcanic eruption happened simultaneously out of nowhere.

We don’t know what kind of strange mischief he’ll do to hinder us this time either.

“Haa…”

Well, I never thought I could become a high-tier explorer easily from the start.

Since I’ve become reasonably strong, I have to try somehow.

Time passed and the labyrinth reset occurred.

I watched the신기한 sight once again.

Other explorers climbing to the 7th floor.

We follow behind them.

Swishhh-

Entering through the portal.

I feel the scent of the cave, which I haven’t smelled in a long time.

The structure of the Gem Cave is randomly generated with every reset, so we have to proceed relying only on instinct.

“Wow, wasn’t it this much last time?”

“Exactly…”

When we entered the Gem Cave last time. We started in a narrow place.

Following a single path ahead would gradually create multiple paths, leading to a complex route later on.

This time, there was a giant cavern in front of the portal.

And ahead of it, countless cave paths awaited us.

“I had planned to minimize combat by following behind other explorers.”

“Perhaps they prefer labyrinths like this even more?”

After listening to Grace’s words, I looked at the other explorers.

They seemed very excited.

Does having many paths mean the map is wide and there are many monsters?

Well, anyway.

“Let’s go too, for now.”

“Okay!”

We immediately chose one of the countless paths and moved forward.

A cave showing signs of a fight, as if someone had already passed through.

As we kept moving, following the constantly appearing forks in the path.

Before we knew it, a familiar monster was blocking our way.

Blue Gem Soldiers.

“…They’re Gem Soldiers.”

“That color… Aquamarine?”

“I think it’s Sapphire.”

However, there are no Gem Knights, only Gem Soldiers, so they are the optimal opponent for a first encounter.

“It worked out well. Since they haven’t spotted us, let’s preemptively attack.”

Saying that, everyone looked at me.

I set one card from my deck as a Joker Card and drew it immediately.

[Purgatory (5)]

With this, I could gather the mobs, and Kairak could shoot an arrow to land a powerful hit and start, which would deal significant damage.

The moment I placed the card in my hand to use it right away.

Ding!!

A status window suddenly pops up.

『A battle that will decide the explorer’s life begins.』

『Succeed in promotion and prove you have reached the high tiers.』

『Reward – Something very good.』

No, why is this happening all of a sudden? God of Cards.

You’ve been quiet for a while.

If you were going to give a mission like this, you should have given it when I first entered the labyrinth.

Anyway, you just do whatever you want.

Well, there’s no reason not to…

Shuffle shuffle shuffle.

At that moment, the card I had drawn returned to the deck.

『Combat begins. Draw 4 cards.』

『Energy 5/5』

『Joker Card – Draw 1 designated card additionally on the first turn.』

5 new cards were drawn.

Ah, we entered combat judgment.

[Blizzard (8)] [Lightning (3)] [Jackpot (7)] [Transcendence (3)] + [Purgatory (5)]

The hand isn’t bad, but.

‘…If you had told me that the entire floor would enter combat judgment like this, I would have set a different power card as my Joker Card.’

I grumbled inwardly, but.

The status window didn’t react.

Well, let’s be grateful that it allowed the entire floor to enter combat judgment.

“As I said, we’re going right away!!”

I immediately throw the card.

[Purgatory]

A small black point appeared above the Gem Soldiers.

Everything began to be sucked into that spot.

That was no exception for the Gem Soldiers.

They could only endure more compared to low-tier monsters.

Ultimately, they began to be pulled into that point.

“Kairak!!”

“Going!!”

Kairak immediately strung an arrow, the Ogre Slayer.

Normally, that would have been the end of it.

But now, one more layer of power is imbued in that state.

[Charging]

From Kairak’s fingertips holding the arrow, a brilliant purple light emanates.

That light began to cover Kairak and the arrow.

Soon, Kairak’s body began to tremble.

‘As much power as you exert, the power of the arrow increases.’

That was the effect of [Charging] that I had heard.

It was truly an effect perfect for Kairak, the Power Archer.

The Gem Soldiers, who had gathered with Purgatory while Kairak gathered his strength as much as possible, were now assembled.

Kairak released the trigger towards that spot.

Whoosh-

The arrow that flew through the wind lightly pierced and shattered the Gem Soldiers.

The Gem Soldier in the very front was literally shattered into pieces, and as it went further back, the damage decreased, so it couldn’t defeat them all, but.

Most of the Gem Soldiers were damaged and began to crack.

The Gem Soldiers, released from Purgatory, prepared for combat.

And seeing Grace, Luca, and Noah rushing towards that place, I hid myself behind a wall.