episode_0151

The shelter suddenly fell silent.

“Scar…?”

Karin’s bewildered voice was heard.

I ignored it and drew my longsword.

Swish.

The cool blade was released from the scabbard engraved with a blue wolf pattern.

I slung the sword over my shoulder and stood on the side of the shelter entrance.

Kind ones do not come to me, those who come are not kind.

A saying that also applies in this world.

“Why are you spacing out like that? Take your positions.”

Jung Yoosung said to the party members.

The party members, who had been looking dazed, took out their weapons and formed a formation.

Creak.

The wooden door slowly opened, and an uninvited guest appeared.

A human man with a shaggy beard.

Judging by his grimy appearance and matted hair, he was a seeker who had wandered the labyrinth for a long time.

His only weapon was a longsword hanging from his waist.

On the man’s back was a pot like a turtle shell. It looked like something you would use in a Chinese restaurant.

The man entered the shelter and looked around Jung Yoosung’s party.

“You’re here?”

I was momentarily distracted by the man’s gruff tone.

This son of a bitch.

He doesn’t seem to be in his right mind?

Generally, if a party is staying in a shelter, the succeeding party should leave.

If circumstances are difficult, they should ask for permission to share the space.

Seeing the man acting in neither way, I couldn’t help but be wary.

Jung Yoosung moved to stand in front of the party members.

“Who are you?”

“Me?”

The man pointed to himself and asked, then rummaged through his pockets.

“Ah. Just wait a minute. I had it here. Found it.”

After searching for something for a long time, the man took out a gold tag from his pocket and threw it to Jung Yoosung.

Jung Yoosung knocked away the flying gold tag.

Clang!

The man looked bewildered as the gold tag fell to the floor.

“Hey, if you knock that away…”

Jung Yoosung slowly approached and looked down at the gold tag.

Gold tag.

A high-ranking seeker.

The name is.

Finn.

No surname.

Jung Yoosung kicked the gold tag with his foot and pushed it toward the man.

“What’s a high-ranking seeker doing here?”

The man named Finn smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

“Nothing much. I have some magic stones, and I was wondering if I could exchange them for some food. If you don’t have any food, then useful items would be good too.”

Contrary to his grimy appearance, he seemed very relaxed. I felt it from his words and actions.

A seeker who wanders the labyrinth alone without bringing a party.

No matter how I look at it, he’s a suspicious guy.

Just as I was about to open my mouth to refuse.

Karin stepped forward.

“Are you perhaps Finn, the Labyrinth Wanderer?”

Finn scratched his head.

“That’s right. As expected of the Guide Association? You’re quick on the uptake.”

I heard a word for the first time.

Jung Yoosung tilted his head.

Labyrinth Wanderer.

“What’s that?”

At Jung Yoosung’s question, Finn sauntered over. Completely defenseless. The longsword was peacefully asleep in its scabbard.

“They’re people who wander around inside the labyrinth.”

“Aren’t we all like that?”

Jung Yoosung asked back.

Finn looked at Jung Yoosung. It was as if he was observing something.

“They’re people who stay in the labyrinth for a long time without going outside. In other words, you could say they wander the labyrinth.”

“Why?”

Finn scratched his matted hair roughly.

“Well… because it’s a hassle? Going out of the labyrinth, preparing, and then going back in is more difficult than you think.”

‘This bastard.’

He’s really not normal?

Finn released his sword and threw it on the floor.

“Don’t worry. You can even point your sword at my neck if you need to. I’m just here to exchange some goods.”

Finn not only released his sword but also raised his hands high.

Jung Yoosung glanced at the party members.

The party members recognized Jung Yoosung’s gaze and nodded slightly. Barion also sent an OK sign.

Karin stepped forward.

“I heard about you from the Guide Association. A ‘harmless’ Labyrinth Wanderer. Your appearance is exactly as described.”

Finn grinned broadly.

“I’m a bit famous.”

Jung Yoosung nodded and stepped back.

“I see.”

Since the party members with more experience than him agreed, there was nothing else to say. Besides, Karin had confirmed it too.

I relaxed my vigilance a little.

Finn came to the campfire and plopped down.

“Let’s go back to the story we were just talking about. Where people live is all similar. Once you get attached, there’s no place more livable than the labyrinth. That’s another reason why I stay in the labyrinth.”

“…”

Jung Yoosung was at a loss for words.

Is he so relaxed because he’s a high-ranking seeker?

Or is he completely crazy?

It was even more absurd because it didn’t seem like a lie.

Finn took out a pouch from his backpack and spread it open.

Inside the pouch were large and small magic stones.

“Instead of this, why don’t we exchange some magic stones?”

The party members stared into the pouch as if they were possessed.

Seeing him smoothly interject, he was as good as a door-to-door salesman.

Fortunately, I had earned a lot of money and had prepared plenty of supplies. However, I wasn’t planning on selling essential items like potions, bandages, or medicine. Because they are directly connected to life.

Fortunately, Finn didn’t seem interested in such items either.

“Do you have any jerky left? I’d like to exchange it for magic stones.”

“Here it is.”

I took out jerky from my backpack and handed it to him.

Finn smiled happily as he received the jerky.

Before I knew it, the party members had gathered around Finn and started sharing stories.

“Finn, how is the Corridor Area these days? Anything to be careful of?”

Delia cautiously probed Finn.

Finn stretched his legs out leisurely and scratched his chin.

“Hmm… things to be careful of in this Corridor Area…? That would probably include recent events, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Among the new traps, the most fatal one would be the transfer trap. If you fall into a place swarming with monsters, it’s difficult to come back alive. Ah! And there’s also the strange phenomenon where magic power fills the layer, and monsters I’ve never seen before suddenly pop out. I almost died.”

Finn wiped his forehead and joked.

Is it an Eldritch Wave?

“Going back to recent events, there’s the red orb. It’s an unusual object. Although, I don’t know if I should call it an ‘object.’”

Jung Yoosung’s eyebrows twitched.

“Tell me more.”

Finn smiled brightly.

“Barbaroi, have you finally become interested? You’ve been wearing a sullen expression all along, but have you opened your heart?”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

“Do you perhaps have a tsundere engraving?”

“There was such an engraving? I didn’t know.”

“There is such an engraving. No. There was.”

Finn looked up at the ceiling with a wistful look.

“Where were we? Ah! The red orb.”

Finn stroked his chin and opened his mouth again.

“This is just my guess. Take it with a grain of salt. The red orb is a passage to another world.”

“…”

“I’ve seen it a few times from a distance. The red light flashes, and the space is devoured at once. I’ve never seen a seeker survive. It’s like a trap that activates when you bring a torch close to it. There have been times when mystics or those affected by them are captivated.”

Cold sweat ran down my back.

If I had held a torch and gone close to that red orb, I would have been completely finished.

“Tell me in detail. What do you mean by being affected by them?”

“Those who have received the ‘gaze’ of gods existing outside the world. I don’t know the details. The mystics are so secretive that I can’t really pry.”

“…”

Finn looked around at the party members who had fallen silent and smiled slightly.

“Instead of talking about such gloomy things, why don’t we eat? I’m in a good mood because I got something worth eating after a long time, so I’ll show you some cooking.”

Finn took out the pot hanging on his back.

He took out a few more branches, set them up around the campfire, and picked up a few bricks to quickly make a makeshift stove and put the pot on it.

The party members blankly watched the scene.

Then, he took out another pouch from his backpack and spread it open.

Jung Yoosung was shocked by the contents of the pouch.

‘Fish heads?’

Why the hell are fish heads coming out of a pouch?

And the pungent smell stung my nose. It seemed to be on the verge of spoiling.

He put water in the pot, tore off the fish heads and jerky, and then put in herbs that I had never heard of and boiled them thoroughly.

The fishy smell filled the shelter.

Jung Yoosung’s soul left his body as he stared down at the fish heads bubbling in the pot.

‘Fuck.’

He was a natural man from another world.

Finn smiled brightly and took out bowls from his backpack and handed them to Karin and Delia. He hesitated for a moment when he saw Barion and then slyly held out a wooden bowl.

“Can that priest over there eat it?”

Barion shook his head.

“Is that so? You must have a hard time.”

Finn handed the wooden bowl to Jung Yoosung.

“I’m okay. I’m full.”

“Scar, how can you refuse such delicious-looking soup? Are you out of your mind?”

Delia said to Jung Yoosung.

‘Crazy.’

Why are the people of the labyrinth city so crazy about fish?

Fish sandwiches, fish jelly, and now fish head soup have popped out.

“Scar, eating warm food in the labyrinth is a luxury. Accept it as a way to replenish your nutrients.”

Karin advised, swallowing hard.

‘Karin, not you too.’

Is this how Caesar felt when he was stabbed by Brutus’s dagger?

My heart ached.

With trembling hands, I received the wooden bowl.

Plop!

The fish head and the thick soup dripped from the ladle and were placed in the bowl.

The foul smell rose up through my nose.

Jung Yoosung glared at the fish head.

Turning his head, he saw Finn smacking his lips and eating well.

Jung Yoosung stared at Finn’s appearance intently.

“…”

What sin did I commit to fall into another world, roll into the labyrinth, and have to eat fish head soup?

‘Should I quit being a seeker?’

As a deep moment of clarity blew in, the strength drained from my body.

His party members were eating deliciously.

“Scar, this fish soup is really delicious! Eat it quickly.”

Delia urged with shining eyes.

Jung Yoosung reluctantly took a spoonful of soup and put it in his mouth and swallowed.

Slurp.

The salty and fishy soup went down my esophagus.

“Fuck.”

The foul, fishy smell remained thickly in my mouth and would not disappear.

A taste that made swear words come out involuntarily.

Murderous intent surged.

Finn, who was eating, looked at Jung Yoosung with surprised eyes.

“Barbaroi…?”

“Hoo. It’s a subtle taste. Enough to kill three people if two eat it.”

“You’re a friend who knows the taste. Eat more.”

“I don’t want to die. I’ll stop.”

Jung Yoosung shook his head and put down the bowl.

“Is that so? Then I’ll eat your share.”

Delia smiled brightly and took Jung Yoosung’s bowl.

After the arduous meal, I exchanged a few items for magic stones.

I was able to get quite a lot of magic stones.

Karin shook the pouch full of magic stones.

“With this amount, we’ll have more than enough to complete the request?”

Delia nodded.

“Let’s use the small magic stones for completing the request and sell the big ones separately. It’s the same amount of money even if we submit the big magic stones.”

Jung Yoosung scratched his head.

“Where do we sell the magic stones separately? Doesn’t the Seeker Association buy them?”

“The problem is that they don’t give a proper price. If you sell them after doing a little legwork, you can make more profit. For example, if you sell them to a magic tool shop, they’ll give you a better price.”

I see.

When I went to the magic tool shop before, the owner said he would buy magic stones.

Delia was a glutton, but she was also a thrifty colleague.

Finn cleaned up his area and slung the pot on his back.

“I got a few things I needed. I sold the magic stones, so I’m done here. See you later.”

“Wait a minute.”

Jung Yoosung stopped Finn.

Because Ingrid’s request flashed through his mind. There was nothing wrong with asking the labyrinth natural man.

“Is there anything unusual happening in the labyrinth? Even a small incident is fine.”

Finn crossed his arms and pondered.

“No. I don’t think there’s anything in particular? Ah! It seems like some gloomy guys are wandering around. Guys wearing black robes, and there were two priests mixed in with them. One was a short blonde woman, her name was Marie, I think? I don’t know the other person.”

My heart sank.

Marie.

The name of a party member I met in my early days.

She was definitely subjected to terrible things by the hobgoblin guys and her mind was broken. All I heard was that she was gradually getting better.

“Wh…where is she?”

“She’s probably somewhere on the 6th floor? Maybe. That’s all. See you around, Barbaroi.”

Finn shrugged his shoulders and answered before leaving the shelter.

The shelter fell silent.

* * *

Dark corridor hallway.

Finn smiled and walked slowly.

He had followed the madness and the remnants of the other world and found Barbaroi.

He was amazed at how he was suppressing his madness with a few coincidences.

On top of that, he even gave off a faint scent of the other world.

Just by looking at him, I can tell what kind of path he has walked.

It was a precarious path where he could fall into the abyss if he made a mistake.

Should I call him a flame that burns more brightly than anyone else, even though he lives a mortal life?

It was only natural that beings who lived forever were captivated. It was difficult to take your eyes off him even for a moment because he seemed so precarious.

‘He’s an interesting friend.’

Finn touched the jerky in his pouch and smiled. He felt relieved that he could avoid the tedious cannibalism for a while.

He was getting tired of wandering the lower floors of the labyrinth like a good-natured person while being mindful of the Guide Association.

‘Should I go a little deeper?’

The wanderer gradually disappeared into the darkness of the corridor.

* * *

The party sat quietly.

Jung Yoosung stared at the burning campfire with a heavy heart.

Marie.

What in the world did she have to do with the Death Night clan to get involved?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t come up with an answer.

What is certain is that.

You can’t get a good look if you get involved with the labyrinth.

Ann and Tarman flashed through my mind.

‘Shouldn’t I let them go now?’

As I was thinking to myself, Barion gestured.

‘Scar, I shouldn’t say this, but I want to find Marie.’

Barion.

Did he have some kind of connection with Marie?

Does he want to save her because she’s a priest of the same order?

Jung Yoosung raised his head and looked at Barion.

“That’s a difficult task. I can’t put the party in danger.”

‘…’

“Let’s hunt monsters, collect loot, and return. That’s the leader’s request.”

Jung Yoosung finished speaking and leaned against the wall.

He couldn’t fall asleep, but he closed his eyes.

Like all things in the world related to people, it was full of difficult tasks.

After tossing and turning several times, darkness finally came.

Corridor Area Shelter.

Only the campfire was burning quietly.