Chapter 174

Chapter 174
Chapter 174
“Are any of you injured?”
Sungyoon asked as he returned to his party members . From what he could see, no one looked injured .
Thankfully, all three of them shook their heads from side to side .
“This is everything I expected the Great Labyrinth to be . This place really is sheer torture . ”
Tim kicked the Moving Tree as he spoke .
As expected of a party that qualified to enter the Great Labyrinth, Sungyoon and the others were skillfully killing the monsters at the early stage of the Great Labyrinth .
The party members' mood elevated at the fact that their powers worked, but the feeling lasted only a moment . The monsters of the Great Labyrinth had special characteristics that couldn’t be seen in any other labyrinths . The party was blown away by it .
The Brutal Worms remained hidden underneath the ground and waited for the right opportunity to strike . The Moving Trees looked like regular trees when they camouflaged themselves . All of this meant the party was always at risk of being ambushed .
Aside from these two types of monsters, other monsters also continued to threaten the party .
These monsters were full of surprises . It almost made Sungyoon’s party miss the monsters from the normal labyrinths, the monsters that charged forward in a mindless manner .
“Still, we're making a good amount of profit . ”
Grace approached the location where a Moving Tree used to be . She squatted down to pick up the moonstone its corpse had left behind .
This moonstone was as big as a volleyball, and multiple colors swirled within it . It was as if a rainbow was trapped within this moonstone .
This moonstone only appeared within the Great Labyrinth . It was an extremely high-quality moonstone with concentrated magical energy, and, of course, it was quite expensive on the market .
London needed a lot of money for its reconstruction . So, Grace was very happy as she handed over the moonstone to Sungyoon .
“We should end the hunt soon . ”
Sungyoon spoke . Normally, he would use his mechanical wristwatch to check the time . However, he didn’t need to do that . He just looked up at the sky .
The sky was clearly turning vivid red as if the sun was setting .
Of course, there was no sun in here . There wasn’t even a clear source of light, so why was the sky turning red? It was one of the countless unsolved mysteries of the Great Labyrinth .
Suddenly, Tim made a suggestion .
“Why don’t we spend the night here? If we plan on going deeper into the labyrinth, we should get used to it . ”
The entrance to the Great Labyrinth was right next to Armstrong, and the party was only clearing the first floor .
Of course, the ease of access to the Great Labyrinth meant they had returned to Armstrong every night to rest . However, that would be impossible if they went deeper into the lower floors of the Great Labyrinth .
“I’m fine with it . What do you think we should do, Mr . Sungyoon?”
Grace agreed with Tim’s suggestion .
Emily looked like she would do whatever the party decided to do .
“Let’s do that . ”
Sungyoon, who was facing the entrance of the Great Labyrinth, turned back toward the labyrinth . He and the others then walked through the grassy plain that had the red sky as the background .
It was such a dreamy view that even an insensitive person would shed a tear in spite of oneself .
However, Sungyoon’s party wasn't interested in the view . They were constantly on guard . In previous runs, they had been ambushed by monsters when they got distracted by the view .
Thankfully, they arrived at their destination without encountering any monsters .
Shallow hills surrounded a deep depression in the ground, and a small stream cut through it . It looked to be a great place to make a camp . The shallow hills would block the winds .
As soon as the party entered this region, their bodies could no longer sense the ambient magical energy . It was a Magical Void .
Hyunwoo had shown Sungyoon this spot last time .
The party used their feet to flatten the ground, and then, put their blankets on the ground . While they were making preparations, the Great Labyrinth became engulfed by pure darkness .
Since there was no magical energy around them, they couldn’t see in the darkness . That was why Sungyoon took out a lantern from his storage Gem . The lantern brightened the surroundings . Sungyoon then took out a portable burner, pot, fry pan, meat, and other packaged foods .
Soon, the nearby region was filled with the smell of meat and soup being cooked . It was a smell that shouldn’t be present within a labyrinth .
Hyunwoo had gifted these items to Sungyoon saying they would be useful . And, indeed, thanks to these items, Sungyoon's party could enjoy a warm meal within the Great Labyrinth .
“I never expected to camp within a labyrinth . Moreover, we're doing this in the infamous Great Labyrinth of all places . ”
Tim chewed on the cooked meat as he spoke .
Despite saying this, Tim looked a bit nervous . Aside from Sungyoon, all his fellow party members also looked a bit nervous .
Hyunwoo had taken Sungyoon around his Personal Labyrinth, and they had even shared alcohol inside . But unlike Sungyoon, it was the first time eating cooked meat within a labyrinth for his party members .
“I was surprised in the beginning too . However, monsters never enter the Magical Void . I even drank alcohol within Sung Hyunwoo’s Personal Labyrinth . ”
“That's one thing I won’t do within a labyrinth . ”
Tim shook his head from side to side .
“In Personal Labyrinths, only the owner and the trusted comrades can enter . But in the Great Labyrinth, it's possible to run into untrustworthy Connectors . So while Mr . Hyunwoo and I only ate food within the Great Labyrinth, we didn’t drink any alcohol . ”
If that hadn’t been the case, Sungyoon might have brought out alcohol too .
After they finished a warm meal, which was out of place within a labyrinth, the party got ready to sleep .
The first one to keep a night watch was Emily .
Sungyoon laid down as he placed a blanket over his body . However, he didn’t forget to do his ritual before he slept . He didn’t forget to look at the picture of Shinhae .
“Did something good happen with Shinhae? You're in a good mood . ”
Emily asked the question . Sungyoon let out a rare smile as he answered her .
“I’m just renewed with joy that Shinhae is my daughter . ”
It was an odd choice of words, and it aroused Emily's curiosity .
However, Sungyoon didn’t speak any further . He once again looked at the picture .
***
Sungyoon’s party traveled around the grassy plain as they killed a lot of monsters .
As expected of monsters of the Great Labyrinth, the monsters came in waves . These monsters couldn’t be compared to the monsters of the normal labyrinths .
Here, each monster had powerful abilities, and they all used the terrain to their advantage . Moreover, some of the monsters attacked in packs . Of course, the reward was big too .
The party was earning money that couldn’t be earned in a Personal Labyrinth .
After a while, Sungyoon’s party went around the entire grassy plain, and they arrived at a hole in the wall . It was an entrance to a cave .
“Shall we head in?”
Sungyoon’s voice was clearly tense . His party members nodded, but they looked tense too .
They were about to leave the 1st floor of the Great Labyrinth . They would leave the grassy plain for the next floor .
Sungyoon had built up a good amount of experience in the grassy plain thanks to Hyunwoo’s help . It was the reason his party had a relatively easy time clearing this floor . However, from now on, it would be a different story . The party had information about the other floors, but none of them had actually experienced anything . So, of course, they were tense .
However, none of them turned back . Sungyoon was doing this for Jimin . The Ross siblings were doing this for their mother . And Grace was doing this for her country and the crown .
The reason differed for each person, but the goal was the same .
Sungyoon took the first step forward . The others followed him and slowly left behind the grassy plain to enter the dark cave .
The cave was long . The light from behind faded away, and the party could only use the information delivered through the magical energy to see in the darkness .
Soon, light appeared . It meant they were close to reaching the next floor .
Everyone was nervous as they gripped their weapons . It was as if they expected something to pop out in front of them .
Hoo-oo-oong!
When they exited the cave, the first thing that greeted them was the wind . Sungyoon’s cape and the robes of Emily and Grace crazily fluttered in the wind . Emily and Grace had to clutch at their robes .
“This place is… . ”
Sungyoon kept his eyes open as he surveyed his surroundings .
Green grass appeared in his sight . The green grass contrasted well with the blue sky, and in some ways, it looked like the grassland on the first floor .
However, that wasn’t the case . Sungyoon looked back at where they had exited . He could see a large hole in a hill . When he took a couple of steps forward, he was greeted by a cliff . He caught sight of white clouds, and he couldn’t see what was below . The other party members followed Sungyoon, and they also expressed their surprise .
“This is amazing . ”
Tim spoke . Emily and Grace stood close to the cliff as they looked down . Sungyoon took out a cup from his storage Gem and tossed it over . The others looked on with interest when Sungyoon conducted the experiment .
The cup pierced through the cloud, and it disappeared . However, the sound of the cup hitting the floor didn't rang out .
The four of them just heard the wailing of the winds .
“… Let’s move . ”
Sungyoon took a step back from the cliff as he spoke . The other party members nodded and stepped away too .
The place they had arrived was a plateau surrounded by cliffs . Countless clouds surrounded the cliffs, and it was unknown as to how far one had to travel to reach the bottom .
Sungyoon started walking as he gave a warning to his party .
“We can't only be worried about the ground monsters here . There are aerial type monsters on this floor, and they might attack from the sky . Please be careful . ”
It was as if he had spoken it into existence .
Ggeeeeeeeek!
A chilling cry rang out from the sky .
The party looked up and saw five dots circling them . These monsters looked like vultures hunting for a corpse .
“They are the Four-Winged Vultures . ”
Sungyoon spoke . It had been a while since he had used his sight-enhancing magic .
“It seems they want to make us their next meal . ”
The five dark dots in the sky started to get larger . The monsters were descending at extremely high speed .
“Mr . Tim! Please stick close to Ms . Emily and Ms . Grace! Don’t worry about attacking the monsters! Just focus on protecting the two of them! Ms . Grace! Please prepare a spell! I would like either a thunder or a wind magic spell! Ms . Emily should place defense magic on all of us just in case!”
This was their first time fighting an aerial type monster .
Sungyoon wanted to ensure safety before attacking with full power .
The party moved according to Sungyoon’s orders like a well-oiled machine .
Sungyoon raised his sword as he looked up . The dots were getting larger, and he could see monstrous birds with four wings flapping toward him .
“I’m ready!”
“Shoot it!”
Grace extended her staff .
A terrifying amount of electricity flowed through the staff . It was Grace's newly acquired Jewel rank magic Gem .
Koo-roo-roo-roong!
Flash!
The light swirled as it shot forward, causing the air to vibrate . The powerful light made Sungyoon’s party close their eyes . Only after the light subsided did they open their eyes .
The number of Four-Winged Vultures had been reduced to three from five as two blackened Four-Winged Vultures fell from the sky .
“I only killed two?”
Grace was very surprised . Sungyoon was also taken aback by it .
They had expected the entire group to be wiped . At the very least, they expected the spell to kill four monsters .
At that moment, the remaining Four-Winged Vultures swung their wings in a powerful manner .
“Mr . Tim! Protect the two of them!”
Before Sungyoon could finish his words, Tim had raised his large shield, and Emily and Grace quickly moved under this shield .
Sungyoon also raised his shield .
Ting! Ting! Ting! Ting!
Numerous plates erupted from the edge of his shield and blocked all the feathers coming at him .
Tim’s shield also blocked all the feathers . No one was hurt .
However, this attack allowed the Four-Winged Vultures to get close to Sungyoon’s party .
Ggeeeeeeeeeek!
The monsters screeched as they dived toward the party with their claws extended .
Two of them attacked Tim, and the other one attacked Sungyoon .
Sungyoon dodged the attack coming at him .
Kwah-jeek!
The sharp claws dug deep into the ground, and Sungyoon quickly swung his sword at it .
Hoo-oong!
‘It dodged?’
The monster flapped its wings to move its body, and Sungyoon’s sword missed everything .
Sungyoon immediately unsummoned his sword and shield . He then summoned his halberd and stabbed the monster .
Sss-kahk!
Ggyahhhhhhhk!
The halberd’s spear blade barely reached the wing of the Four-Winged Vulture . But feathers and blood flew into the air .
‘As expected, its defense is weak!’
These monsters' mobility and attack power were high, but their constitution was weak . The information Sungyoon had about them was correct .
Sungyoon's halberd was a Red rank weapon Gem . It was the highest rank amongst the Rainbow rank Gems, but at the end of the day, it was merely a Rainbow rank Gem .
Despite this fact, the Four-Winged Vulture was heavily damaged by the halberd after being grazed by it .