Chapter 63 ….
“Everyone there tried desperately to rush in, but in the end, they couldn’t save three of them. Three children, barely six years old.”
“….”
“Those kinds of guys never attack by looking at their target. Every single one of them goes after the weakest, most powerless civilians first.”
After Najin, many terrorists appeared claiming they would take revenge on the world following him, but in reality, their crimes had no grand justification or noble cause.
They hid behind Najin’s name, outwardly claiming the “freedom of the Awakened,” but these guys were just venting their anger cowardly, using the weak as their tools.
“And Najin couldn’t have not known it would turn out like this. After all, we’ve captured countless idiots who blindly followed Banyeorok until now.”
Baekgyeon’s jaw tightened as he spoke matter-of-factly.
Only then did I start to understand why Baekgyeon hated Najin so much.
The head of the destroyed Ban clan, Banyeorok.
After producing countless criminals and then dying, Najin and Baekgyeon had continuously dealt with the terrorists who were incited by Banyeorok to appear. And the behavior patterns of those terrorists were always the same.
“They shouted about worshipping Banyeorok and killed the weakest, most powerless people first.”
So Najin must have known too. He must have known that if he triggered a terror act, a flood of the same kinds of people would appear again.
‘And yet, he carried out the Gangbuk terror.’
In doing so, Najin instantly erased the work that he and his comrades had been pursuing with their beliefs.
“Najin was a model student. He did everything diligently, and he always worked desperately to save people.”
“He was good and righteous. If he had continued as a Hunter, he probably would have saved countless lives. But… perhaps that very personality became his poison.”
‘If he knew it would turn out like this, why on earth…?’
I couldn’t understand why Najin, who was said to be so righteous, had turned in a single day. I frowned in confusion—then it happened.
“So, the Gangbuk Gate terror isn’t over yet.”
“Huh?”
Baekgyeon’s voice broke the silence. I lifted my head and realized he was staring at the empty wall, as if he could see something beyond it.
“It’s been continuing… ever since that day, without a single pause.”
Even though it was just the two of us here, Baekgyeon stood as if he were in the middle of a battlefield, not a maze, his face cold.
It was as if he hadn’t taken a single step out of Gangbuk from that day, even after four years.
After that, a heavy silence settled between Baekgyeon and me, but fortunately, the suffocating atmosphere didn’t last long.
“We’ve arrived!”
“Is this the center?”
We had finally exited the maze and reached a large circular area!
Soon after, the other team members began emerging from the maze one by one, arriving at the center.
“Nun!”
“Seowoo, take it easy… Ah, Asol!”
“Oh, everyone’s already here.”
Looking at the situation, it seemed Yeomyeong and Seowoo were a team, and Piuri had been alone.
It was a record-breaking run, taking less than five hours, not even three days.
‘Good. At least we’ve prevented Baekgyeon from getting frustrated in the maze and smashing the dungeon!’
But…
“I was worried, but everyone found their way here safely. Nobody got hurt, right?”
“Yes! The traps were scary, but fortunately, Yeomyeong grabbed my collar and pulled me to safety, so I didn’t get hurt at all! Uh, by the way, Nun, you fell with Baekgyeon? Were you okay…?”
“Oh, laughing? Feeling good, huh.”
“…I-I’m not laughing, hyung.”
XX. How are we supposed to recover from this.
Baekgyeon’s expression toward Kwon Seowoo darkened, and Seowoo, sensing it, cautiously stepped back.
Just as the tension thickened, Yeomyeong shouted at the perfect timing.
“So this is the center of the maze? But what’s with all this sand?”
“It looks like it’s falling from the ceiling. Maybe there’s a hole up there.”
The maze center was an open circular space, with winding corridors extending in all directions from it.
The sand pile Yeomyeong pointed to was right in the exact center. At that moment, Piuri’s eyes widened as he spotted something in the sand.
“Could it be…”
“Huh?”
“…A Mana Stone?”
“What?!”
A red-and-purple shimmering stone peeked out from the sand. Rough, uncut, about the size of three fingers. Even partially buried, its presence was undeniable.
‘No one else might recognize it, but Piuri would know exactly what it is.’
I glanced at him, and sure enough, Piuri had stopped dead in his tracks.
His usually meticulous face was unusually tense. As he slowly reached toward the Mana Stone…
‘It’s coming.’
Kugugung!
“What… what is this?!”
As he stared nervously at the giant sand mound, the sand started to shift violently with a massive tremor.
A message appeared in front of us:
【Entered the final stage of <Minotaur’s Dungeon>!】
【The dungeon’s master, <Sand Golem>, awakens!】
“That was a Mana Beast?!”
“It’s a Sand Golem. Rank C!”
“No wonder there were no other Mana Beasts! So that’s the actual conquest condition, right?”
The sudden appearance of the Sand Golem startled the party, who quickly tried to create distance.
Piuri drew his gun and fired, but the Sand Golem was pure sand; any bullet holes simply vanished as the sand reformed.
C-rank Mana Beast, “Sand Golem.”
Its honest name matched its honest appearance: it pretended to be ordinary sand until enemies approached, then awakened.
Its fast regeneration was a problem, but an even bigger one was…
“Hey! The Mana Stone disappeared inside it!!”
“What do we do now?! We can’t attack it in this state?!”
It absorbed anything near it into its body. Exactly like that!
The plan became clear. I was ready to execute what I had prepared.
‘First, get the Mana Stone safely, then let Baekgyeon land the finishing blow!’
Seeing Baekgyeon in action might even inspire Kwon Seowoo, who had always wanted to become stronger!
“Senpai! We need the Mana Stone inside there. We’ll extract it first, and then you just need to deal with the Mana Beast…”
“Why me?”
“Huh?”
But unlike the original story, Baekgyeon didn’t seem interested in intervening at all.
“You all are doing fine. Why should I help?”
He gestured behind him, and I turned to follow his gaze, realizing why.
“Can’t be helped. I’ll hold it steady and shake it! Then either the stone will drop or it’ll break!”
“This damn sand bastard….”
“….”
As Baekgyeon said, the Sand Golem floated in midair, violently shaking while Piuri, almost radiating murderous intent, aimed his bazooka-like weapon.
“Doesn’t that look different from a gun?”
“Yes. It’s a bazooka. Nun had us prepare for possible combat, and it really came in handy.”
Chaaark! Chaaark!
Even as we talked, the Sand Golem flailed, scattering sand in all directions.
…It almost felt like abusing a Mana Beast. If this world had a Mana Beast Protection Committee, we’d probably be jailed for 10 years.
“Found it! The Mana Stone’s out!”
Yeomyeong had partially dismantled the Sand Golem and safely retrieved the stone.
Bang!
Bang!
After a few more bazooka blasts, the Sand Golem, having lost most of its body, could no longer regenerate and collapsed.
I paused to reflect at how quickly the fight ended.
Is this really right?
“Check… kyaa!”
“Careful, everyone!”
Just as Yeomyeong was lowering the Mana Stone with telekinesis, the dungeon shook violently, even more than before.
A large hole opened where the Sand Golem had been. The floor tilted, sucking in surrounding sand—but that wasn’t the main threat.
“Kyaaa!!”
“Waaah!!”
“The Mana Stone!! Grab it!!”
“Kyaaa!! Gate! Gate open!!”
In the chaos, Yeomyeong accidentally dropped the Mana Stone she was holding with telekinesis!
“Be careful not to get swept away!”
Sand was quickly being sucked into the hole, turning the floor into a massive trap.
‘A gigantic antlion pit….’
XX, I never thought I’d experience an ant scenario in real life….
Before the Mana Stone disappeared, I urgently summoned the bear dolls.
“Nun, why open the gate now?! The bears will just fall in….”
“Wait!!”
Bears poured out from the gate right above the hole. Kwon Seowoo gasped, but my bears were agility-focused!
They could dodge swirling sand with ease.
“Now! Grab the Mana Stone!!”
The bears reached the Mana Stone, cutting through the sand.
【<Mana Stone (S)>
A condensed crystal of magical power.
Extremely hard, containing power within. Sometimes you can see the magic swirling inside. Just being near it feels overwhelming.】
“…Got it!”
Fortunately, I snatched the Mana Stone before it was too late.
“Got… it!”
“Of course. These guys even stole the Uga family heirlooms!”
“What did you say, Nun?! I can’t hear over the tremors!”
“It’s nothing!”
“Did we really get the Mana Stone?!”
I safely received the stone from the bear doll. Yeomyeong and Piuri hurriedly came over.
“The alert says it’s the Mana Stone!”
“Woaaah!”
Seowoo screamed and covered her mouth. Seeing the team rush over to check the stone, I felt a sense of pride too.
“That was lucky…”
Then I noticed Baekgyeon, standing a few steps behind, expressionless.
“….”
Baekgyeon looked at us as if he had a lot to say, like the top-ranking delinquent about to reveal some huge secret!
But that wasn’t the priority! I shouted frantically.
“Senpai! Behind! Behind!!”
“Huh, ugh!”
Chaaaak!
The last pile of sand swept past where Baekgyeon had been standing, making an eerie sound.
“Gah.”
There was so much sand I couldn’t help but be dumbfounded.
Why isn’t he dodging? Is he… sand bathing? This could have been serious.
“Asol! Are you okay?”
“Nun! Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
I reassured the team and looked back.
Baekgyeon still wore an inscrutable expression. He seemed slightly dazed… but it was none of my concern!
I quickly let go of his arm.
“But this time, I think I helped you.”
“….”
“And the thanks?”
“Ha….”
Even with his usual intimidating Rank 1 expression, Baekgyeon’s mouth twitched. Ah, that face!
‘Looks like he’s irritated but too resigned to complain.’
Luckily, I knew that expression and could read his thoughts. I’ve seen it on him when scolding Seowoo.
‘…But does that mean Baekgyeon is looking at me the way he looks at Seowoo?’
That made me a little annoyed.
“If words are too hard, just consider it a debt.”
“Consider it a debt.”
He refused to say thank you outright.
After the sand debris disappeared into the hole, a familiar message appeared.
【Dungeon <Minotaur’s Labyrinth> successfully cleared for the first time!】
【First conqueror of dungeon <Minotaur’s Labyrinth> recorded!】
【Party Members: <Kwon Asol>, <Shin Yeomyeong>, <Piuri>, <Baekgyeon>, <Kwon Seowoo>】
