Chapter : 58
The pressure-plate trap at the entrance was already known. Step on it, and a crossbow mounted nearby would shoot a poisoned arrow.
Suhyeon tapped the shaky plate with his foot and said,
“These kinds of traps probably won’t work. The real danger is something else.”
With that, he approached the nearby firing mechanism and expertly disarmed the trap. It was already old and broken, so disarming it posed no problem.
“Can I take a look?”
“This isn’t much different from Earth… Ah, though you might find this interesting. Here you go.”
To humans, such traps were ancient relics, but for the aliens of this planet, they had a different significance. They didn’t combine and share knowledge. They lived separately, preserving only the knowledge they needed.
That made it fascinating to them. And for the Muzak, since their ancestors had built this place, it was even more meaningful.
“Team leader, can we go in too?”
“You can enter, but don’t go any further. You never know what’s in there. Some traps might still work.”
The room’s layout reminded one of a large dome. In the circular space, there was some kind of altar set in the very center.
Unlike the rough, natural exterior, the walls here were smoothly painted. Strange inscriptions covered the surface.
“Don’t forget to film everything.”
Everything the Uncle Joe Company recorded while moving through this valley would be automatically mapped if they returned successfully, becoming valuable intelligence.
“Those walls? They don’t seem important.”
“Maybe not to us, but linguists love this kind of thing. Just do as told. Having clear footage now will help later.”
Showing attention to such details wasn’t bad either. Government researchers favored teams who understood their work.
“Hey, shouldn’t we go up onto that altar?”
“We’re looking for traps.”
“Muzak, the intel didn’t mention any traps there, right?”
“Uh? Yes. At least, that’s what it said…”
“Hmm.”
Suhyeon, tapping the floor, listened to Jennifer and stroked his chin.
“Then go up first.”
“Huh?”
“I said, go up first.”
If the Blue Bear team had successfully arrived here, they would likely have relied on Muzak’s information. To Jennifer, the path to the altar didn’t look like it could hold a trap.
But her instincts were sharp. She hadn’t known Suhyeon long, but his behavior was not a good sign.
“No, I’ll pass! It’s not ours anyway. Better not get into unnecessary trouble.”
“Good instinct.”
Suhyeon raised his gun and shot the floor in front of the altar. The ground began to collapse.
“?!”
The circular floor around the altar vanished. Peering into the darkness below, the mercenaries’ faces turned pale—they had never imagined such a trap.
“Bring the rope. Cross over with it.”
Aside from the entrance’s pressure plate trap, there were plenty of other floor traps, most of which were inactive. This kind of collapsing floor trap was the most dangerous.
Once the rope was set up, Suhyeon easily crossed.
There it was: a hand axe neatly placed on the altar. Not extravagantly decorated, but it had an antique charm.
“Found the artifact?”
“Seems like it.”
“How much is that worth?”
“Hmm…?”
The Uncle Joe Company team members, lacking detailed knowledge about artifacts, shrugged. They knew it was valuable but had no access to current trade data.
“The cheapest artifact sold at the Rounders auction in Little Washington was $820,000.”
“Ah, really? That’s decent.”
Scott had overheard the conversation and clarified.
“What kind of artifact?”
“One with a light function.”
“???”
The team exchanged confused glances. A light function? Did it just mean it emitted light?
“Someone actually paid $820,000 for that?”
“It’s an artifact. Its principle differs from ordinary light sources…”
“Still, that much?”
“Rich people, I tell you…”
Scott felt baffled. They were experts of this planet, yet their conversation suggested they’d never encountered such artifacts before.
“What’s the most expensive one sold?”
“Well… recently, an artifact that created blades using air pressure went for over ten million, but it was a private auction, so I don’t know the details.”
“Ten million?”
“Even a slightly functional artifact can reach that price. And expensive artifacts are never publicly traded—they come with all sorts of conditions instead of cash.”
“Are we on a picnic? Pay attention!”
“Sorry!”
At Suhyeon’s command from the altar, the team fell silent. He carefully reached for the axe, using psychokinesis rather than touching it physically.
For intruders like them, after dodging all the surrounding traps, the final trap around the altar seemed trivial. But the real trap was the artifact itself.
‘No need to trigger it here.’
Grabbing it without thought would activate the trap. Suhyeon paused, contemplating.
‘Hmm… should be fine.’
Reporting this posed a dilemma. If the artifact was touched, it would deliver a strong electric shock and collapse the entire room. But since he had already secured it in a case, the trap wouldn’t activate for anyone else.
Suhyeon landed lightly across the rope and saw Muzak lying prone, something mounted on his eyes.
“What are you doing?”
“Oh, just checking below, just in case.”
“Below?”
“If our ancestors dug this place, there might be something down there.”
Previously, they had no time to investigate further, only grabbing the artifact and confirming traps before leaving. They never considered the possibility of a hidden lower level.
‘There could be something down there?’
It looked like just a dug-out space, but Suhyeon coiled a rope around himself.
“What are you doing?!”
“You need to go down properly to see.”
“I’m only guessing! It’s probably empty…”
“Don’t worry, I’m not blaming you.”
On alien lands, one must follow alien rules. If a dwarf raised by the tribe thought something might be down there, it wasn’t wrong to check.
‘At worst, it’s just rusted or broken machinery…’
After equipping night vision, Suhyeon descended with the rope. He could’ve used psychokinesis without it, but not with eyes watching.
‘Blocked.’
The opposite side of the altar was solid rock. What about under the altar?
‘…?’
Suhyeon pushed off the rock and subtly adjusted direction with psychokinesis. Under the altar, the ground wasn’t solid rock.
‘Ah, the lightning axe triggers the room collapse.’
He could sense some device in the room that caused it to collapse. Suhyeon’s mouth watered—it was valuable but untouchable. Then something caught his eye.
“?”
A transparent, palm-sized orb. It looked ordinary, but there was no reason for it to be here. Suhyeon carefully retrieved it using psychokinesis. No reaction occurred.
“What was there?”
“Nothing. Some structure below, but touching it could’ve triggered something, so I left it.”
“Sorry.”
“No need to apologize. Your guess was correct.”
He hid the orb in his pocket for later investigation. This wasn’t the right place to study it.
“Artifact secured. Nothing else to see. Let’s exit and inform those waiting that the job’s done.”
Of course, they didn’t leave immediately. They moved carefully, maintaining the proper pace and principles. The Blue Bear team didn’t complain.
Once outside, Suhyeon moved in the opposite direction from the entrance. Blue Bear came for the ruins, but the Korean government wanted a path mapped. A complete map in one go was ideal.
“Will these kinds of monsters stop appearing outside?”
“Probably.”
Beyond the valley, the ghost monsters didn’t appear. Suhyeon guessed it was due to the terrain.
Those waiting at the base in front of the valley were shocked when someone emerged.
“Someone’s coming out of there?!”
“What? That’s nonsense!”
They didn’t fully trust the Uncle Joe Company’s success, expecting three to six months even if it worked. But now someone was emerging.
“Another team survived…? No, that can’t be. Did Uncle Joe Company get out?”
Even if they hadn’t fully explored, surviving was a major success. Returning alive was more helpful than teams getting stuck inside. As information accumulated, solutions would emerge.
“Hurry, open the door and prepare to rest. Contact upstairs too. But at least they survived.”
“Was Uncle Joe Company originally this team?”
“Huh?”
“Seems a few more members were added…”
The base officer paused, realizing the team had grown, blinking in surprise.
‘What on earth happened here?’
“Thanks. Outside is great. Inside wasn’t hard, but luxuries like this are rare.”
“What luxury… Anyway, great work.”
The officer rubbed his hands, trying to find the right tone. Speaking to mercenaries who risked their lives required care. Asking bluntly could earn complaints.
Suhyeon stacked sugar cubes in a cup, then poured coffee over them. The officer’s expression shifted strangely.
“So… it must have been tough, right?”
“Eh?”
“The mission—valley exploration and confirmation… Even if it failed, it’s fine! Other teams failed too. Returning alive is already impressive.”
Suhyeon chuckled, chewing the sugar cubes.
“The mission succeeded.”
“What?!?!”
“Solving it so quickly might be confusing. But would I lie? Facts will prove it.”
The officer’s jaw dropped. Suhyeon calmly waited as he recovered from shock.
