Chapter 24: Second Level - Buried One, The Ghost Of The Hero (9)

“Are you noisy and a quest, or just an object?”

[You're treating a person as an object. You have a bad personality.]

“So?”

The ghost groaned with irritation. It soon began to speak as if there was no choice.

[You're right. I'm a deceased existence. I am a human who has been bound here to give you quests.]

The ghost grumbled.

[However, I can't give them to a weak guy.]

“Then why are you here?”

[Isn't it obvious? Ah, this damn labyrinth. If they're going to confine me, why didn't they put me in the deep layers instead of these high ones?]

Taesan quietly watched the ghost as it complained. This was a new type of NPC.

The ghost waved what seemed to be its hand and appeared to be shooing him away.

[Anyway, leave. If you manage to break through the 30th floor, I'll reconsider.]

At this point, Taesan let out a hollow laugh. He didn’t say anything further and tried to leave the room. He had felt that it would be useless no matter how much he tried to persuade him.

[Farewell, adventurer...... huh?]

The cheerful ghost trailed off in the middle of its farewell.

[Wait a minute. You, that weapon.]



The ghost’s gaze was fixed on the Ritual Knife of Lakiratas.

[That's Lakiratas' weapon. Why do you have it?]

“I defeated him, so I have it.”

[... You've overcome the trial?]

Taesan looked at him as if to ask if there was anything else. The ghost shut its mouth. The white cloth, which had been showing signs of thought, then moved wildly.

[Good! I'll give you a quest!]

“Suddenly?”

[If that capricious one recognized you, you are worth it! Come back! I'll explain the quest to you!]

“I don’t want to hear it.”

[You want to receive it, right? Then listen!]

What on earth was this guy doing?

Taesan couldn’t help but think so, given his attitude and posture. Taesan returned with a sullen face as the ghost started explaining.

[I was an excellent and great hero. I reached the deeper floors faster than anyone else. I was even evaluated to conquer the labyrinth soon.]

“But why are you buried here?”

[Some weakling exploited my weakness]

The ghost said in an outraged voice.



[I was resting after meeting a strong enemy while breaking through the deep layers and was lying on the 10th floor. My stamina was in danger, but since the monsters of the lower layers couldn't penetrate my defense, I just slept deeply.]

This was not necessarily a bad decision if the ghost’s words were true.

If one was able to break through the deep layers, their defense would be thousands. Even if all the monsters of the 10th floor attacked him, they could only inflict one point of damage. He could wake up from the impact immediately and react.

However, the fact that the ghost was dead meant that there was something else.

[The boss of the 10th floor. I don't know where he got it from, but he had a weapon with fixed damage. That bastard killed me. He killed me, who was about to conquer the lower floors!]

Whether he couldn’t control his anger or something else, the ghost yelled out its frustration. The once calm ghost spoke with an angry voice.

[The quest I will give you is simple. Kill the boss of the 10th floor! Then I'll give you a reward.] [Sub-quest started.] [The buried hero of the labyrinth wants you to take revenge.] [Condition: Kill the boss on the 10th floor.] [Reward: The hero decides based on his mood.]

“It’s about time.”

[What are you doing?]

“Don’t you know about the Community?”

[What's that?]

“It’s something that exists.”

Taesan responded vaguely to the ghost and continued checking. As he read through the posts, it seemed like there were now a few more who had caught Big Rat. Taesan moved his hand.

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: 1] [Park Chan-woong[Solo]: Huh?] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Oh, it's Taesan.] [Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: Bro, it's been a while.] [Moon Jae-seong[Solo]: Taesan! I have a question for you!]

Posts quickly filled the screen. Taesan casually replied, and soon the flurry quieted down.

[Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: You've left a post on the Community. What's up?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: I thought it was time to explain. How is it going now?] [Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: It's so-so]

Kang Junhyuk started to explain slowly.

[Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: Half of the people who've arrived at the Fountain of Life have caught Big Rat. The rest should catch it soon.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: It seems to work when you keep trying.]

The Big Rat possessed a speed that exceeded human cognitive capabilities, but a pattern became visible as you continued to face it. It required a lot of time, but like Taesan, it could be caught by anticipating its movements in advance.

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: What aboyt you?] [Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: I've seen the boss. My head was spinning after taking a hit.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: I had a similar experience. Did you really defeat it with strength?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: Yes.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: ...How on earth did you do that? I don't think I can, so I'm looking for other ways. It might take a while, but I believe it would be safer.]

Taesan read the posts and confirmed that they had adapted to the labyrinth. There were hardly any posts filled with rage or despair.

Then, it was time to reveal what he had found about what was necessary to break through the labyrinth.

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: The reason I posted today is to inform the Solo Mode players about something.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Something to tell us?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: About how to acquire skills.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: ...Ah. Ahhh.]

Lee Taeyeon must have two skills by now. Kang Junhyuk also seemed to have realized something as he posted a message out of curiosity.

[Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: Uh. We do need that. But why now?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: Now is the best time. If I had told you too early, the means would have become the goal.]

The skill was not the goal but a means.

If they were informed about skills while they were still unfamiliar with the nature of the labyrinth, the skill would become their goal.

They would waste time obsessing over gaining skills without even thinking about entering the labyrinth.

He needed to inform them when they had some understanding of the labyrinth and were willing to venture into it.

The only monster on the first floor was the Big Rat. As long as they were careful, they wouldn’t die. Thanks to the Fountain of Life, unlimited recovery was possible, so informing them after some delay was fine.

Taesan’s words convinced Lee Taeyeon.

[Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: That makes sense. If we were told about skills out of the blue, I would have been confused.] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: I'm going to explain from now on, so listen carefully. And tell those who didn't see the community posts.] [Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: Wow. Really? Isn't that super valuable information?] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Wow... Thank you.] [Moon Jae-seong[Solo]: Taesan...!] [Park Chan-woong[Solo]: Thank you! Thank you!]

Many posts filled with gratitude and excitement were posted. However, Taesan seemed somewhat uneasy.

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: You may want to hold your thanks until after you've heard.]

In his previous world, Taesan had explained about the skills he had acquired. However, it didn’t hold significant meaning for humanity.

After all, they were just ordinary humans who had lived in a gentle world.

Still, given that most of the Solo Mode players had survived, things might be slightly different. With a very faint hope, he posted.

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: How many skills have you all acquired? Excluding the basic ones.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: I have two. Disease Resistance and Line of Death.] [Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: I also have two. Disease Resistance and Sense Enhancement.]

Two. That was a high number for first-floor players. Others began to chime in, but most had one or none at all.

Kang Junhyuk asked, seemingly curious.

[Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: How many do you have, hyung? Five?] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Eh. No way. Could you have that many?]

The general consensus in the Community was that he might have up to five. They had tried various things to obtain skills but had gained nothing, so they assumed Taesan would be similar.

Taesan gave the answer.

[Kang Taesan[Solo]: Nineteen.]

The Community froze for a moment.

[Kang Junhyuk[Solo]: ...Really?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: What would I gain from lying?] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Wow. That's unbelievable. What do you have to do to gain that many?]