Chapter 171

When Ahn Jinha said that, Gi Cheongmin gave instructions without resistance.

“Then we should rest nearby. Follow me.”

Not only was he familiar with the route to the exit—he moved through the surroundings as if he’d memorized every bit of terrain. Gi Cheongmin casually turned into a clearing.

“Looks like it’s taking longer than I thought. Were you planning to stop and rest anyway?”

As we entered the clearing and sat down, Ahn Jinha, after glancing at Gi Cheongmin, answered.

“We have to rest somewhere even if it’s not here. We can’t make it in one go.”

“.......”

“Walking all day is impossible anyway.”

For someone who’d barely walked a few hours, he sure talked a lot. But I didn’t feel like arguing. Not because what he said made sense, but because both I and Do Yehyun had been walking nonstop after staying awake the entire previous night.

‘I don’t really feel like my stamina’s low, though.’

My mind felt foggy, but I didn’t feel physically drained or in bad condition. I wasn’t sure about Do Yehyun.

While we sat down, Gi Cheongmin, who had been standing alone the whole time, added briefly to Ahn Jinha’s words.

“Sleeping a bit isn’t bad. You can’t move at all once it’s night anyway.”

“Right. You said it’s dangerous, right?”

“.......”

I stared at Gi Cheongmin for a moment, then ignored him and leaned my head against the wall. A strange dizziness—not painful, just faint—brushed my mind.

‘Going two days straight without sleep is kind of rough.’

Still, sleeping while Gi Cheongmin was awake was honestly insane.

In the meantime, Gi Cheongmin and Ahn Jinha were busy preparing the camp—starting a fire using an item, arranging the sleeping area—moving skillfully as if they’d done this countless times.

“Why are you lighting a fire? Because it’s dark?”

“Well... dark, and cold...”

What bullshit. It ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) wasn’t even that cold.

Besides, if we were going to sleep, darkness would be better. I watched Ahn Jinha throw meaningless pieces of firewood into the fire that was already burning well, and silently cheered him on.

‘Yeah, go ahead, work hard.’

Meanwhile, Gi Cheongmin stood silently, just staring at the flickering fire.

I quickly lost interest in the two of them and gestured for Do Yehyun to sit next to me.

“Sleepy?”

“.......”

Normally, he would’ve immediately said he was fine, so seeing him hesitate meant he was actually very sleepy. He hadn’t shown it while walking, but his stamina had been drained continuously.

“Sleep for a bit.”

“Are you going to sleep?”

“I’ll watch.”

When I answered shortly, Do Yehyun nodded as if he understood.

At that moment, a sharp chime struck violently against my ears.

“Really is a different sound from yesterday.”

“.......”

They said it was an alarm announcing someone entering. And just as those words ended, darkness fell instantly.

***

When thought freezes, your senses naturally sharpen. Even when I tried to think of something, the thoughts evaporated in an instant.

With my mind quiet, my body loosened naturally. Like the day after pushing yourself all day, when you stay home and sleep for hours.

The faint dopamine that had been lingering faded away, returning me to my usual dull, peaceful state. My body felt heavy, my eyelids were weighted, and my heart beat in a steady rhythm.

It was peaceful. Strangely... unnervingly so.

I slowly opened my eyes.

Even after opening them, my vision didn’t brighten. It was still night.

The surroundings remained quiet and dark.

‘Did I fall asleep?’

Even after waking, my mind didn’t return right away. I lowered my gaze and stared blankly at the ground as I recalled my last memory.

I’d watched them meaninglessly toss firewood into the fire. Then I’d let the drowsy Do Yehyun lean on my shoulder to sleep. Then I’d half-listened to Ryu Taejun and Ahn Jinha chatter about something useless...

I thought idly about this and that, then suddenly lifted my head.

“...Ah... those bastards.”

My surroundings were still... quiet and dark.

Even though they’d lit a fire. Even though several people had been here.

Humans really do need sleep. Without it, your intelligence drops naturally, and you end up falling for stupid tricks like this.

I calmly assessed the situation before me.

‘They put out the fire.’

They said it was dangerous to move at night—apparently that rule didn’t apply to them.

They kept throwing wood into the fire earlier, but now there wasn’t even a flicker. There was no wind, so it couldn’t have gone out on its own. They had put it out on purpose.

‘Where are the others?’

The weight that had been on my shoulder before I slept was gone. Unless Do Yehyun had suddenly gone insane, there was no way he would willingly move away from me. Something was wrong.

“Ah, fuck, seriously, this is fucking annoying.”

Even after understanding the situation, my thoughts moved a beat slow. I should’ve felt urgency, but I didn’t feel it.

‘What?’

I stood up and approached the fire pit, sifting through the ashes.

Among the pitch-black ashes, I saw remnants of something faintly shaped. I didn’t know exactly what it was, but it was clear they’d pulled some trick.

‘A fucking trick. Out of all things.’

I expected them to do something stupid, but not like this. My sluggish mind slowly put things together.

‘Did they only take Do Yehyun and Ryu Taejun?’

They wouldn’t have gone willingly, so knocking them out first was likely.

I laughed dryly, brushed my hands off, and stared down the pathway between the walls.

Anything was possible. Leaving this spot empty could be bait to lure me out into the night.

‘But... so what?’

I didn’t know everything, but I did know the route to their hideout. I stepped forward, then paused briefly and pulled out the Teleport Box.

Im Haekyung had vaguely said he’d come at an appropriate time depending on the situation.

And since entering the dungeon, all communication had been one-sidedly cut off.

I stared down at the Teleport Box quietly, then activated it. The odds of Im Haekyung appearing here immediately were low, but if he had a shred of conscience, he’d at least look at the box again.

‘Let’s think.’

Well, looking on the bright side, this was a great opportunity to explore the maze alone without any annoying obstacles.

Of course, a few negative elements were attached—like the warning that night was dangerous, or things like Do Yehyun’s lifespan.

The maze, stripped of light, was so dark that even after my eyes adjusted, I could barely see ahead.

If you don’t know how to move forward, backtracking is the safest bet.

‘Might as well figure out why the maze is dangerous while I’m at it.’

I immediately began walking.

***

A bothersome noise around him woke Do Yehyun. Understanding the situation came a bit later.

“...Hyung.”

The word came out without the “sir” he’d been attaching so diligently before.

But no answer came back. An icy premonition climbed his spine, and he sat up.

“What the hell.”

At the cold voice he spat out, the three people standing before him all turned their gazes toward him.

Three familiar faces. The leader called Gi Cheongmin, the technician who stuck close to him, and... Jin Haedo.

‘Jin Haedo?’

Even though he was clearly seeing it, he couldn’t believe it easily.

Jin Haedo looked down at Do Yehyun and said briefly:

“You’re awake.”

Do Yehyun stopped trying to grasp the situation and asked:

“Where is he?”

“Normally you’d ask where you are first...”

Instead of answering, Jin Haedo made an ambiguous remark and smiled faintly.

Only then did Do Yehyun look around.

‘Inside the maze...’

His last memory had been the clearing. But when he woke, he was lying on the maze’s path.

The sense of foreboding he’d felt even before entering this place lit up like a warning light in his head.

“Where’s the person who came with me? The person who was with me.”

When he repeated the question, Jin Haedo stared at him for a long moment and then stepped toward him.

Standing right in front of him, Jin Haedo tilted his head slightly as if examining him, a strange smile tugging at his lips.

After letting his gaze linger briefly, Jin Haedo’s head turned slowly. The destination of that gaze was Gi Cheongmin.

Gi Cheongmin stared back at him and opened his mouth.

“Aren’t two enough? And he’s young.”

A bizarre question.

But the question itself didn’t reach Do Yehyun’s ears.

The fact that Seo Jehyun wasn’t there filled him with tension from head to toe.

Where had his memory cut off?

How did this happen?

Anxiety ate away at his thoughts.

Meanwhile, Jin Haedo let out a low laugh and answered Gi Cheongmin.

“One is enough.”

“Then...”

“No—enough isn’t the issue. It’s more than enough.”

Jin Haedo then met Do Yehyun’s gaze and smiled, eyes narrowing.

“To use as a sacrifice for desire, this one’s desire is stronger than yours... almost wastefully so.”

At Jin Haedo’s words, Gi Cheongmin’s face instantly went pale. Jin Haedo no longer spared him a glance—his attention was fully fixed on Do Yehyun.

Meeting Jin Haedo’s eyes, buried under anxiety and an inexplicable rising anger, one question surfaced in Do Yehyun’s mind.

Was the person standing in front of him really... Jin Haedo?