Chapter 38

Translator: Pai_

Wave Rider and Mimic.

Hearing these two titles for the first time, Turan tilted his head in confusion.

Could it be that these were the names of bloodlines he had yet to awaken?

But if the two bloodlines were fused, wouldn’t that mean he was from the bloodline of a great house…?

[Do you wish to enter?]

The question was repeated once more.

At that moment, Turan realized that the gaze of the eye embedded in the door was fixed on his chest. He took out the Sacred Relic and shook it to the side.

As expected, the eye on the door moved back and forth, following the motion.

When he set it down, the voice spoke in a monotone manner.

[Error. Wave Rider, Mimic, Lost.]

It seemed that Wave Rider and Mimic were not abilities Turan was born with, but rather powers originally possessed by the owner of the Sacred Relic.

For some reason, the door seemed to have combined those powers with Turan’s bloodline when making its judgment…

“What are Wave Rider and Mimic? And what is this door, anyway?”

Instead of answering, the eye simply stared down at him arrogantly with its marble-like gaze.

Even without eyelids, the sense of disdain was blatantly palpable.

Turan picked up the Sacred Relic again and asked,

“Tell me about Wave Rider and Mimic.”

[Wave Rider, Primary Type: Underwater Breathing, Underwater Physical Enhancement, Fluid Manipulation. Mimic, Primary Type: Flow Detection, Absorption and Imitation.]

As expected, it seemed to signify that the door wouldn’t respond properly to anyone who didn’t possess four bloodlines.

But more than that, Turan had never experienced any abilities like underwater breathing or fluid manipulation, even while holding the Sacred Relic. Did the relic only function as an identification tool and not replicate the abilities themselves?

Still, it seemed the flow detection ability was working, which meant there might be a way to utilize it…

“And what are you?”

[Spirit of the Door.]

As expected, the eye embedded in the door was akin to the librarian in a library.

Though compared to a librarian, its appearance and personality were far more inhuman.

If the librarian was merely a human with slightly different sensibilities, this spirit of the door had a much more rigid and mechanical aura.

It was like it was merely reciting predetermined responses based on the questions asked.

“What is this labyrinth? What was it created for, and how can I escape it?”

[Night Hunter’s Labyrinth. It was created for one with the correct four types to defeat the leader and become the Night Hunter. The escape path opens upon the leader’s defeat.]

Becoming the Night Hunter - could it mean becoming a god?

At the utterly unimaginable notion, Turan’s eyes widened in surprise. At that moment, the eye embedded in the door suddenly began to spin in place.

Its low, deep voice gradually distorted into something grotesque.

[Error.]

[Hunter, Tracker, Wave Rider, Mimic.]

[Two Type Error, Shadow, Alchemist, Absent.]

[Four types satisfied.]

[Error. Does not match the type of Night Hunter.]

[Labyrinth opening error?]

[Error. Unable to close. Remaining personnel detected inside.]

[Unauthorized personnel entry.]

[Contacting creator.]

[Error. Creator unavailable.]

The eye embedded in the door began muttering incomprehensibly to itself.

Sensing the growing danger, Turan took a step back. Suddenly, the eye’s iris split vertically, glaring sharply at him.

[Autonomous judgment. Deploying labyrinth leader. Command: eliminate remaining personnel.]

With those final words, the door opened on its own, and a monster inside fell under the detection of the Sacred Relic.

It felt as if a barrier that had been blocking something had vanished.

‘That’s….’

From the silhouette visible beyond the darkness, Turan could guess that its form was not much different from other monsters, except for the fact that it was about twice their size.

The key difference, however, was the sheer amount of Magic Power flowing from within it.

At a glance, the force of its magic seemed more than ten times that of its own kind.

The gigantic monster, the leader of the labyrinth, staggered to its feet and spoke to Turan.

[You]

[Are Not]

[The Night Hunter]

[The Fake]

[Must Die]

The voice, echoing in a woman's tone, reverberated hauntingly through the air.

It was the same voice he had heard when he first entered this place.

The moment Turan was certain of his opponent's hostility, he immediately shot the stone he had prepared.

A strike infused with a sufficient amount of Magic Power, after a few rotations.

An attack strong enough to pierce through the forehead of an ordinary monster and kill it instantly. However, it was deflected away with a hollow thunk.

'This much?'

He immediately followed up with a fireball and a lightning bolt, but neither managed to inflict significant damage.

Although the monster’s Magic Power appeared to have diminished slightly, it was nowhere near enough to take its life.

The monster cackled as it approached, its massive strides shaking the ground.

[That Tickles]

Just like its comparatively smaller kin, this creature seemed to possess overwhelming physical capabilities far beyond the magic power it wielded.

Realizing he stood no chance in a one-on-one fight, Turan promptly turned and fled.

[Get baaaack heeereee!]

Thud, thud. The heavy sound of footsteps echoed, accompanied by its roars.

Even in his Concealment state, despite the distance he had managed to put between them, the massive monster was chasing after him with its long strides.

This meant it was fully aware of his location.

And not just that-

[□■□■□■□■□■□■□■□■□■-!]

The other monsters, which had previously roamed the labyrinth leisurely except when encountering humans, suddenly began roaring and running wild in every direction.

With the enormous monster, the labyrinth's leader, on his tail, it was impossible to avoid all of these creatures at the same time.

“Ugh!”

One monster leapt out from the front, swinging five hooked claws toward him.

Raising one arm to defend himself, Turan maximized the power of the Guardian Magic Artifact.

Thuck. The hooked claws sank into his forearm but barely managed to penetrate the skin, leaving only shallow scratches instead of a fatal wound.

Blocking the attack with one hand, Turan drew a Dagger with his other hand and slashed at the creature’s neck.

[□□□!]

If it were an ordinary dagger, even with infused Magic Power, it wouldn’t have been able to pierce the creature’s tough body. But Haram’s Dagger, while not particularly powerful, was still a Magic Artifact.

As the monster staggered back, its neck half-severed, Turan resumed his run through the pitch-black labyrinth, lost in thought.

‘The Night Hunter’s Labyrinth…’

A place where one could become a god - who on earth would create such a blasphemous and bizarre place?

The first thought that came to mind was a member of the Preah God Tribe, specifically The Lame Goddess.

But why would gods need something akin to a building that creates more gods?

“Damn.”

Turan had no time to dive deeper into his thoughts, as another monster charged at him. He quickly slid under its legs and used his Magic Power to propel himself upright and keep running.

It wasn’t the right time for deep contemplation.

But running away forever wasn’t an option, either.

‘One thing’s certain, I need to hunt that thing down.’

If the eye embedded in the door was to be believed, that was his objective. Even if it wasn’t, he needed to eliminate the relentless pursuer that wouldn’t let him rest or sleep.

The massive monster wasn’t particularly fast, but as long as it kept chasing him, there was no way he could stop to rest.

However, as he had already learned from their brief encounter, he had no chance of winning against it alone.

The solution that came to mind was the group he had relied on for the past few days: Ferga and his companions.

Of course, if he set that monster against them, there would undoubtedly be casualties on their side as well…

But hadn’t things already reached the point of no return with them?

Having been mistaken for an assassin, Turan couldn’t reveal himself to Ferga’s group to join forces or escape together.

From what he had observed of Ferga’s personality, even if they cooperated temporarily, it wouldn’t be surprising if they betrayed him at any moment.

In that case, it was better to make proper use of them.

‘Let’s see how well we can fight together, cousin.’

*

“Ahhh!”

“Yozniel!”

Ferga shouted the name of the young man who fell with a scream as he threw his chakram.

The upper body of the monster attacking him was cleanly sliced off.

“What’s his condition?”

“He’s injured! Unable to fight!”

“Have Ubo heal him!”

Ubo, a Noble of the Healer Bloodline, approached the wounded man with a weary expression and extended his hand.

As Magic Power flowed into the wound, the gash that had split his shoulder to his chest began to close.

“Is he recovered?”

“For now.”

As Ferga spun his Chakram on his fingers, ready to attack the next enemy, he realized there were no more foes in sight.

A noble of the Berserker Bloodline, wielding a massive axe, muttered under his breath.

“Is it over…?”

“Don’t let your guard down. They could come back at any time.”

The group, led by Ferga, had been ambushed by dozens of monsters while taking a brief rest, as they often did.

While they had grown somewhat used to combat in this labyrinth, dealing with over a hundred monsters attacking simultaneously was too much, even for nobles.

Thanks to Ferga, the strongest among them, fighting desperately, there had been no fatalities, but exhaustion and fatigue were evident on everyone’s faces.

“Wait, I hear something strange.”

“What sound?”

“A thud, thud… like something huge is coming…”

It wasn’t long before everyone began to hear it.

The sensation of something incomprehensibly enormous approaching…

“Should we… should we run?”

“Don’t be stupid. Where do you think we’ll go? Prepare to fight!”

In a situation where they didn’t even know if there was a wall ahead or not, the chances of successfully escaping were slim.

At least if they stood their ground, they could avoid being crushed to death by an overwhelming mass.

As the seven nobles, excluding the injured and those who had exhausted their Magic Power, readied for battle, a colossal figure emerged from the darkness in front of them.

One of the nobles gasped at the sight.

“What… is that…?”

The giant monster looked similar to its smaller kin, but its height was between three and five meters, its head nearly brushing the ceiling.

The amount of slimy liquid oozing from its body was several times greater, leaving behind a sticky trail of goo behind it.

[□■, □■, □■-]

Its voice, similar to the smaller monsters, wasn’t just a mindless scream, it sounded as though it was speaking in an incomprehensible language.

For some reason, Ferga and his group instinctively understood the meaning of its words.

“Night Hunter, Silver Sun, Wrath of Frost, Halves, Enemy of Children… kill them all…?”

“What the hell is it saying?”

What kind of creature could it be to speak the names of the Preah Gods while expressing such hatred?

There was no time to ponder, as the monster immediately stretched out its right arm.

What they hadn’t anticipated was that, being twice as large as normal monsters, its arms and claws were also twice as long.

Its attack range far exceeded their expectations.

“Guh-!”

“Ubo!”

"Lord!"

The Noble of the Healer Bloodline, Ubo, and Galtan Rosmun, the head of Vanipel, were each impaled through the chest and abdomen.

Seeing this, Ferga and his group hastily launched a counterattack.

A Chakram infused with massive Magic Power tore through the flesh of the monster’s right forearm, while a long arrow struck its forehead.

Fire engulfed its chest, and a massive arrow of light pierced its neck.

But the monster ignored all the attacks that damaged its body and brought the two impaled individuals toward its jagged, saw-like teeth. With a crunch, it chewed them up and swallowed.

[■■!]

Delicious!

The meaning of those words sent a wave of fear through Ferga and his companions, making their bodies tremble.

The enemy before them was undoubtedly a being on par with the mythical Magical Beasts they had only heard about in stories.

A creature that might only appear once every few decades, requiring the skills of a House Leader or someone of similar rank to confront…

“W-What do we do, Ferga?”

"I told you we can't run anyway! Attack!"

With a shout, Ferga hurled his Chakram, the metal disc curving as it flew straight into the spot on the giant monster’s arm that had been wounded earlier.

Fueled by the Magic Power infused within, the Chakram burrowed deep into the monster’s flesh, relentlessly spinning and grinding its way through the bone.

A deafening crack resounded, followed by a loud tear as a massive chunk of flesh was severed and fell to the ground.

“It worked!”

“As expected of Lord Ferga!”

The nobles cheered, thrilled by the fact that they had finally managed to land a meaningful blow on the monster. They unleashed a flurry of attacks in succession.

While their attacks weren’t as effective as Ferga’s, they were enough to steadily deplete the Magic Power sustaining the creature’s body.

[□■□!]

That hurts!

The monster let out a piercing scream as it swung its left arm toward them.

Noticing that the monster had targeted him specifically, Ferga quickly leapt diagonally to the side.

Unfortunately, his cousin was directly in the arm’s trajectory.

“Br-brother-”

“Sorry!”

Even as he used his cousin as a human shield, there wasn’t a shred of guilt on Ferga’s face.

He hurled his Chakram again, but this time, the monster raised its left hooked claws in defense, determined not to be hit a second time.

Ferga’s Chakram struck his impaled cousin directly, slicing his body in half.

“Uoooooh!”

At that moment, a Noble of the Berserker Bloodline let out a battle cry and swung his massive axe at the monster’s shin.

The Berserker Bloodline Ability, which traded rationality for immense physical strength, combined with the heavy power of a Magic Artifact, caused the monster’s shin to cave in, forcing one of its knees to buckle.

“We did it!”

“I crushed its knee-”

The celebration was short-lived. With a resounding thud, the berserker noble’s body was sent flying dozens of meters into the darkness, vanishing from sight.

The enraged monster had lifted its other leg and kicked him with staggering force.

The noble’s massive axe was left behind, rolling pitifully across the floor.

[□■■□■!]

The battle that followed was like a grueling tug-of-war.

The colossal monster, its mobility impaired by its injured leg, staggered as it swung its hooked claws, while Ferga’s group dodged and counterattacked, gradually chipping away at its strength.

The frustrating part was that smaller monsters would occasionally join the fray, preventing them from fully focusing on the giant creature.

Some of the smaller monsters, however, suddenly turned their gazes skyward or collapsed lifelessly for no apparent reason.

Though there was clearly an unseen force aiding them, the ferocity of the battle was so overwhelming that no one noticed this strange phenomenon.

“Huff… huff…”

After several minutes, Ferga realized that both his stamina and Magic Power were nearly depleted. He looked around.

He was the only one left alive.

Everyone else had either been skewered by the giant monster’s claws or killed in ambushes by the smaller creatures.

The once-elite nobles, who wouldn’t have been out of place in any grand battlefield, had died like dogs in this strange and unknown place.

‘What the hell is this thing? And how is it connected to becoming a House Leader?’

Ferga’s thoughts drifted to his grandfather, the head of the House Zahar, a figure as immense as the sky itself.

If only he hadn’t listened to his grandfather’s words, he wouldn’t have fallen into this hellish trap, wouldn’t have lost his friends and retainers…

Even if he somehow survived, he was as good as eliminated from the succession race.

The families of those who had died here wouldn’t look kindly on him.

No matter how much he honed his individual skills, how could he survive the political arena without any supporters?

No… none of that mattered anymore.

First, he had to survive this place…

“Ah…”

Perhaps due to the excessive blood loss, Ferga staggered, dizzy, just as a hooked claw pierced through his body.

It seemed his internal organs had been damaged. Blood surged up his throat and spilled from his lips.

In that instant, as he felt death approaching, the monster that had skewered him suddenly turned its eyes as if it had spotted something else.

[□□□!]

‘Fake Night Hunter?’

Why was it looking at the empty air? No… was it looking at someone?

At that moment, as if from nowhere, a figure materialized in the empty space.

It was a young man dressed in a slightly foreign traveler’s outfit.

The weapons in his hands felt strangely familiar to Ferga.

It was the same massive axe that had belonged to the berserker noble who had served Ferga, a weapon so large and heavy that only those with a Bloodline Ability specialized in melee combat could wield it.

With ease, the gray-haired young man swung the enormous weapon and embedded it deep into the neck of the severely battered giant monster.