33 – Three People Are Ducks (7)
—–
— WindowMaster5000: Nonsense, I didn’t see any passage when I passed by the corridor earlier.
ㄴ I thought the same, but after the cleaning, I saw that the floor was clearly split like stairs.
ㄴ It seems like it opens at set times. I plan to go back tomorrow and confirm.
ㄴ You seem to be in charge of maintenance. But why does it seem like I’ve never seen you before? Don’t you usually manage the chat?
ㄴ WindowMaster5000: When the next point shop opens, they’ll give out concert tickets.
ㄴ What is that? I don’t go to concerts.
ㄴ WindowMaster5000: I’ve already decided. Thanks for the good information.
ㄴ ?
—–
After promising to give him a front-row ticket for the “Superconductor Princess Smiling Girl’s Exclusive Concert (No fixed date)” as a reward for providing valuable information, I closed the location note.
Unlike specific factions, Wangseong was open even at night, with minimal security measures like alarm magic.
Arriving at the cold floor where I had been sitting all day, I surveyed the stone chair and its surroundings.
I could clearly feel the airflow through the small gap in the floor.
Although it was just a simple stone, it couldn’t be broken easily.
In times like this, what was needed was the skill of spear techniques utilizing an adventurer’s intuition.
I didn’t know about amazing techniques like Rannachal or Masang Spear Method, but when it came to throwing a spear, I had honed my skills for a lifetime.
Standing on the stone chair, I aimed at the gap in the floor with the tip of the spear.
It was an uncomfortable position, but I wasn’t worried about getting wet.
The first technique, hitting the target(必中).
Once the spear leaves my fingertips, it never misses its target that’s caught in my senses.
Regardless of the stance of the throw, the distance to the target, or whether it’s within my line of sight, I relentlessly pursue it until I finally reach the end.
When Mariel found me in the Labyrinth, I lightly tapped her head to adhere to this small law.
As the dark tip of the spear precisely dug into the gap between the stones, the second technique was demonstrated.
Kagak!
The spear pierced through any defenses or obstacles,(必貫).
The spear, which was stuck in the crevice, sliced through the ground like tofu.
These were the two techniques that broke the gate of the afterlife.
A dull headache, slightly different from the sensation when consuming mana, reverberated in my head.
I stepped down from the chair and leaned the spear against the wall like a crutch, lifting the floor.
If I were to use the remaining two techniques, I wouldn’t even need this effort, but I didn’t have the confidence to use them quietly.
Fortunately, by changing my stance a few times, I was able to discover a hidden passage before the spear broke.
“They won’t come looking for me already, will they?”
I fixed the broken spear and checked my position notes.
I was worried that the user who had swapped the fragment of data they found with the ruins they discovered might come running recklessly.
Fortunately, I was the only one around, but I caught a strange signal from a distance.
From Noble mtl dot com
It was coming from beyond the winding passage that extended underground.
*
“What are you doing here?”
“Oh, what an incredible coincidence to meet you at the first floor of Prina. Did you come to meet someone?”
“Don’t bother asking. This is the platform where the express train arrives. Are you looking for graduate students?”
“That’s right. The Haesoo School needs people who can help with research. They are talented individuals who can work hard even with minimal compensation. We can’t miss this opportunity!”
Rupert, the leader of the Haesoo School, looked at the faces of those who had been blown away from the 44th floor and said.
Most of them had to suffer terrible punishments to climb the tower again, either because they committed crimes or caused scandals in the school as wizards.
They had to work as laborers indefinitely, without pay, and with infinite labor, until they paid off their sins.
If they didn’t like that, they had to be trapped in the underground 1st floor without light or food, until they memorized all the papers in the library.
“Do you see any useful guys? I heard there are some from the Baekga clan this time.”
“Hmph, I can climb up alone without the help of these guys. Besides, there should be more guys who won’t come out of the underground 1st floor than those who enter the Haesoo School, right?”
“That’s why we need to hire those who are in a bad situation enough to be persuaded. What about that kid?”
Rupert pointed to Toby, who got off the train with several times more restraint than others.
Even if they were talented wizards, most schools didn’t accept them as graduate students if they were criminals with bad records.
“He’s from the Franz family. He’s one of the main culprits in the train terror incident that happened on the express train this time.”
“Is there any leftover funding? I, I want to see Clark’s hard-earned money turning into a bounty.”
“He doesn’t seem like such a bad guy to me. I heard he participated in this job to find his missing sister in the public theater.”
“There’s no grave without a story. Tell me why you came to the Magic Tower.”
“Cough, don’t be like that. Try appealing for yourself. Prina standing here is the ace of our Haesoo School.”
Toby remained silent, bowing his head and staying still.
Even if they sympathized with them and allowed them to work in the Haesoo School, nothing would change.
They had no ability to climb up to the 44th floor on their own, and it had been over five years since his sister went missing.
Nevertheless, following the order to attack the Gresia School was simply because they didn’t want to give up hope.
“No need to explain in detail, F-Franz, because I’m not him.”
“Oh, really?”
“You were once ranked third in the Baekga hierarchy, Herhe Sorot. It’s been quite a while since you disappeared, hasn’t it? It’s a pity that both siblings fell victim to the same fate.”
“We…! W-What did you just say?”
Tobi, who had been staring at the ground, raised his head at Frina’s words.
The curse sorcerers of Matap were experts at reading the grudges and vendettas entwined with people.
The woman who held the doll as if it were a precious treasure was no different.
The figure of a scarecrow with black hair and a hairpin in her hand brought to mind someone from a hazy memory.
“This is a famous technique, you know? They lure the children of rival families into collaboration, then deceive them into giving up ownership of the area, making it impossible to find the bodies.”
“B-But the test is conducted by the spirits…!”
“See, it’s already obvious that you haven’t been there. If you’re not a spirit user, you can’t even hear the spirits. And there are countless cases where people are deceived if they can’t control the spirits.”
“…”
“Usually, for climbing, you only go to places with reliable information or places that have been verified by the school. The middle layers are dangerous for this reason. Even if you were a magician who led the family by the neck, if you’re blinded by greed, you’ll just fall victim.”
Then who is the culprit?
Frina shrugged her shoulders at the trembling voice of the questioner.
An unspoken pressure that said, “If you want to know, come to the Haeju School.”
As Tobi slowly nodded his head, she casually voiced her thoughts as if it was nothing special.
“Your ranking is likely lower than theirs, but they were one of the families that played around in the top ten. Herhe Sorot’s alias was ‘Summoner of the Waves,’ so it must be a summon or a water-based element. If their ranking has recently risen rapidly… Is it here?”
*
“What is this?”
Following the signal in the note, I arrived at the end of the passage and discovered a treasure room piled high with a considerable amount of debris.
If I were an ordinary person, I would not hesitate to open the pouch immediately.
However, I had a psychological barrier against the heaps of gold and goods like this.
Whenever I dealt with dragons and plundered their lairs, I always saw the ugly faces of adventurers.
Even if they found valuable items, they would argue and split, oblivious to the lurking dangers within their own nest.
Especially certain types of artifacts could mesmerize the human mind, making it difficult for even high-ranking adventurers to resist temptation.
So, at some point, people began calling me and my comrades “The Great Three Adventurers,” completely ignoring anything shiny.
Their judgment was not wrong this time either, as I soon discovered a corpse… or something similar.
She was frozen, as if time had stopped.
Judging by the thick layer of dust on her sharp nose and graceful eyebrows, it seemed she had been abandoned here for quite some time.
From her embrace, I found ten gold coins from the treasure room, a torn location note, and strangely, a bundle of swords.
As I examined the robe with the familiar number ’38’ written on it, I raised the robe and checked the location note that had picked up the signal.
“I’m trapped on the 44th floor, please help me!”
—–
.
.
.
“What? It’s her?”
It was a familiar voice, known for its expertise in wallpapering and concept design.
It seemed that she had tried to obtain ownership of this treasure room but had failed and turned into a stone.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t figure out the conditions for becoming the owner of this place either.
Using the interference device, a kind of favor from Haye, I checked the status and a chilling number, ’95’, came to mind.
Sorry, but I can’t solve this.
Maybe it would be different if I had the ability to climb up to the 44th floor on my own, but it was impossible for now.
Feeling a sense of helplessness, I wished her peace.
Still, since we were both gallery users, there was an internal sense of intimacy, so I won’t ban her for the time being.
I thought I would just let her talk freely, considering the broken position note as the deceased’s last testament.
Just as I was about to turn around with nothing gained.
Clank!
“Huh?”
The sword that Gonic had been holding in her arms just a moment ago fell to the ground.
And at the same time, noisy messages started flooding into my account.