#76
76. Labyrinth (1)
The first taming is over.
The purpose is to awaken the importance of cooperation.
I dealt with Belquist and Nerissa without paying attention. It didn’t matter if it was 1v1 or 2v1. He always activated berserk fire, and when he saw a slight gap, he immediately knocked him down. It was not uncommon for one of the two to come to the brink of death.
“Isn’t that a bit harsh?”
“They do what they want.”
I laughed at Iolka’s worried question.
There is still plenty of time left before the official climb. Amkena also did not send the 1st party straight away. It seemed like they were trying to give the new members time to adapt. I also decided to make full use of it.
The collaboration between the two became more sophisticated with each passing day.
Belquist at close range and Nerissa at mid-range. We started learning how to use each other’s strengths and fill in our weaknesses. Of course, in the midst of that, the two did not forget to swear at each other.
‘This is enough.’
I lowered my sword.
The two were lying in the corner of the arena. The two of them lasted 3 minutes in this sparring.
Considering that he couldn’t last even 30 seconds at first, it’s remarkable growth.
“Starting from the next Dalian, Zena will also join.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just as you all form a team, so we form a team.”
The complexion of the two people was visibly hardened.
I opened my mouth.
“Release your facial expression. It’s not that I’m fixating on the members. Me, Jenna, and you two. We fight while mixing with each other. Identify the members’ characteristics and personalities and find a point of cooperation.”
“It’s completely different from what I thought. When I came to the 1st party, I thought I would fight based on my individual abilities.”
Belquist said lowly.
“The 5th, 10th, and 15th floors. All of the seniors’ abilities stood out. To be honest, the others didn’t stand out. What’s the reason for this kind of training?”
“Are your eyes knotholes? I can’t do anything on my own.”
Even if you watched the video at the time of clearing, there is bound to be a difference from experiencing it yourself. Or maybe I just focused on it.
I continued to speak while feeling it.
“Individual ability is important. No matter how well teamwork works, if the individual is weak, it is not enough. But the opposite is true. Without teamwork, even if the individual is strong, the mission will fail.”
“Is that all there is to it?”
“Of course, if you have overwhelming power, you can finish the mission alone. But I don’t think anyone with that ability, including me, is here. Get up when you’re done complaining. We don’t have much time.”
“I’m going as you said.”
Jenna broke into the arena.
Belquist and Nerissa hesitated to their feet.
“Don’t grumble too much. Once you have a certain foundation, you’ll be doing personal training to the point of getting bored.”
“I’ll wait.”
Belquist gripped his sword tightly.
‘Not bad.’
The growth rate of two people.
And the current situation where you can engage in 2-on-2 sparring.
I like it quite a bit. Until then, except for Iolka, he had always been odd, so he hadn’t trained in this way. Even if he put the members of the 2nd party in, it was not efficient to fight as a party unit.
“Goes.”
I aimed my sword and ran.
Zena’s arrow from behind grazed the side.
Training continued through the evening and into the deep night.
Except for basic training in the morning and some weapons training in the afternoon, we spent all of our time in Dalian. The members are changed every time a decision is made. There was a side effect that the side I entered almost won, but the two of them gradually got along in the first party.
A week passed like that.
This time, formation training began with Iolka inserted.
Iolka and Xena’s weakness. how to defend against it. How to use your strengths. At the same time as formation training, I actively instructed Belquist and Nerissa on how to use the two I analyzed.
“The more you know, the more amazing it is. Every single tactic is sophisticated and efficient.”
One evening after training.
Nerissa looked at me and shook her head.
“I can’t even imagine what you’ve been doing.”
“Didn’t you say you were from a farmer?”
“You’d better change that lie.”
“is it.”
I laughed bitterly.
evening the next day.
It was a time when not a little time had passed since the selection contest was over.
[Party 1, gather at the plaza on the 1st floor!]
Isel’s high voice resonated throughout the training center.
After wiping the wood chipped blade with a cloth, I left the personal training ground. The four members of the first party gathered at the entrance of the training center as if they had been waiting.
‘The intention is clear.’
There is no reason to go downstairs now.
Belquist and Nerissa had graduated from the 14th floor before coming to the first party.
He also raised his senses through training similar to actual combat.
All that was left was climbing.
“You waited a long time.”
A smile came to Belquist’s lips.
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I sighed.
“Do you like to go out and fight?”
“I think it’s better than petty grumbling or beating a wooden doll.”
“Anyway, we’re meeting on the 1st floor. Of course you know that we’re not going to play. Get ready.”
Before leaving the training center on the second floor, Aaron approached me.
“Be safe, brother.”
“It will happen even if you don’t say anything.”
I waved my hand and went down to the first floor.
The square was full of people. Most of them were strangers whom I had never seen before.
“What are these?”
“They were summoned after the upper and lower classes were divided.”
Nerissa answered briefly.
‘It’s the 3rd generation.’
The first heroes, me, Jenna, and Edith, are the first generation.
If Belquist and Nerissa, the heroes chosen after handing over the strategy document, were the second generation, then those who were summoned after the upper and lower classes were divided were the third generation. They were looking at us, especially at me, with eyes that were half wary and half afraid.
“You don’t know, but strange rumors are spreading…”
“I know that much.”
After returning from the exploration dungeon, I rarely went down to the first floor.
Because there was nothing to go down. Amkena didn’t send the daily dungeon to the combatants on the second floor after the upper and lower layers were divided. It was a distinction of sorts.
“……bouncer.”
Someone in the crowd murmured.
Malice-filled eyes were directed at Belquist.
Belquist casually looked away and smiled.
“Where is the dog barking? If you’re going to attack, come out.”
“Don’t touch me.”
After biting Belquist trying to pull out the sword, I looked at the gap in time and space.
The door is open, but people are blocking the middle aisle. An old man who appeared out of nowhere stepped in front of me.
“Hey, is that Mr. Han Israt! I’m Melkud, who came here four days ago. It’s nothing else, I have a request for you! I’ve been suffering from a serious chronic illness, and life is very difficult. Please go to the second floor…”
“Move.”
“Oooh goo!”
I pushed the man
The man hit his butt with a loud noise.
A few men dragged the fallen man out.
‘A chronic disease.’
He’s playing a fool that doesn’t work.
The resilience of the waiting room is unimaginable. As long as it doesn’t die, any wound or disease can be cured in seconds. Whether it’s cancer or back pain, it will come back at once.
‘About 10 days.’
I counted the time I didn’t go down to the first floor.
I was busy educating the two of them, so I didn’t have time to look. He didn’t even feel the need.
However, it feels like the atmosphere on the first floor has changed a lot in 10 days. When I went to the exploration dungeon, there were a few similar groups, but they didn’t go out like that.
[What are these things doing together? 1 Don’t stop the party! Master is waiting for you!]
As Isel waved his hand, the men by the fountain retreated.
As they dispersed, they cast curious glances at Belquist and Nerissa.
In any case, there is a long way to go.
I went into the rift of time and space with four people.
The door slammed shut. I said to Nerissa, who was examining the dagger case.
“Since when have you been like that?”
“The exact time is after the upper and lower classes were divided. From then on, little by little signs were seen.”
“Is it an omen?”
Iolka blinked.
I smiled lightly and replied.
“It’s a side effect of dividing the upper and lower classes.”
“They’re strange people,” he said.
“Well, never mind. The mission is more urgent now.”
I can’t say for sure yet.
What they did was just to see me.
It was closer to spying than spectating.
[The main dungeon, the current challenge floor is the 16th floor.]
[The door opens in 10 seconds. Get ready!]
A faint light leaked from the mirror on the left.
I put my right hand on the scabbard.
“Once you enter the field, follow my instructions. Any objections?”
“None.”
“doesn’t exist.”
I nodded.
The light flowing from the mirror covered the entire space-time gap.
When I opened my closed eyes, an unfamiliar space was waiting for me.
At the same time, a message announcing the mission objective surfaced.
[Floor 16.]
[Mission Type – Exploration]
[Goal – Search the designated place!]
All eyes are on one place.
They, like me, are looking at mission objectives.
Belquist frowned.
“Exploration. This is the first mission.”
“I’ve only done it once. On the sixth floor. It wasn’t a very difficult mission. Isn’t it, brother?”
“It’s different from the 6th floor. I’ll have to see it first.”
I looked around.
‘The field is Goseong. No, is it a mansion?’
We stood on a luxuriously patterned carpet.
Behind the back is a gate that looks like an entrance. There were various portraits and decorations on the walls, and a chandelier could be seen on the high ceiling. In front of it, a staircase split to the left and right stood out. The ends of the stairs are connected to the corridors on both sides.
At a cursory glance, it seemed to be the entrance to a huge mansion.
“This place…….”
Nerissa’s eyebrows drew arms.
“Do you know where?”
“I can’t guarantee either. I’ll tell you when I’m sure.”
“Yes.”
Second search mission.
It meant that the linked quest had been activated.
I spoke in a low voice to the party members who were looking around.
“I’ll search this place from now on. There must be an exit to the next floor somewhere. Not that door, of course.”
I reached out my hand to the gate behind my back.
A transparent wall blocked the advance of his fingers.
“Nerissa go first. Stealth scouting. If you find an anomaly, come and report it.”
“yes.”
“The rest advance in formation.”
sereung.
I drew my sword and shield.
The sound of each man drawing his weapon reverberated through the empty halls of the mansion.
‘There is no one.’
It is not an abandoned mansion.
Cleaning was done properly.
“I’ll go.”
Nerissa bowed to me and lowered her stance.
Nerissa’s outline blurred. It was the effect of stealth, a basic stealth skill. Nerissa silently climbed her stairs and disappeared into the hallway to her left.
“We also go left. In search formation.”
When I gestured, the members scattered back and forth.
I’m in the lead, Zena and Iolka are in the middle, and Belquist is in the back. We climbed the stairs in formation and entered the hallway on the left. It was dark outside the window, but there were candles lit here and there, so the view was not dim.
“It’s kind of gloomy. It looks like a haunted mansion. Why is no one there?”
Jenna said anxiously.
“You’ll know when you go.”
As I passed through the hallway, I knocked on the door I could see.
There is always a transparent wall in the way. There was no door to open.
‘It’s the same search mission as the 6th floor, but the circumstances are different.’
First of all, there was a difference from the size of the field.
15 minutes into the hallway. We are still walking down the same hallways.
Iolka stuck out her tongue.
“Isn’t it very wide here? I can’t stop walking.”
“The structure is unique. The scale of the hall and corridor do not match. It must be a strange shape from the outside.”
“Unexpectedly, you are smart.”
Belquist frowned.
“Wizard, what did you say?”
“Oh, nothing!”
“Quiet. Don’t make any noise.”
The three of them shut up.
After another five minutes of walking, the end of the corridor was revealed.
The hallway split into three branches.
There was no way that a normal mansion would have this kind of structure. No one was there, and outside the window, let alone dark, nothing could be seen. This was not a normal space.
‘… … Is it a labyrinth?’
I sighed.
It seems that a troublesome mission has been taken.
