Chapter 64. The In?inite Lab?rinth (1)
Pitch-black darkness swallowed the entire space.
The impenetrable darkness obscured my vision so completely that I could not see even directly in front of me.
Grotesque, unidentifiable sounds came from every direction.
For some reason, the floor felt soft and squishy, provoking an instinctive sense of revulsion.
Just then—
“Are you all right?”
Kai’s voice came from one side.
However, I could only estimate the direction of his voice.
I could not see Kai at all.
“I’m fine. What about you?”
“I don’t seem to have any serious problems either, but….”
After Kai answered, we fell silent for a while.
We both understood that we needed time for our eyes to adjust to the darkness.
Gurgling noises grew louder in every direction, while the grotesque beating of a heart traveled up through the soles of my feet.
How long did we wait?
No matter how much time passed, there was no indication that our vision would return.
I brought my palm directly in front of my face, but I still could not see it.
I could not even properly distinguish whether my eyes were open or closed.
Only one circumstance could produce darkness this complete.
There was absolutely no light in this space.
Fortunately, I had prepared a Luminous Stone in advance, so I attempted to retrieve it from my Inventory.
◆Error: Inventory is not responding.
For some reason, however, my Inventory did not respond.
At that moment—
Flaaaash—!
Blue light erupted from one side, momentarily illuminating the surroundings.
Blue Aura had gathered around Kai’s sword.
It spread in every direction, gradually driving back the pitch-black darkness.
Only then could we properly examine the space around us.
The floor, walls, and ceiling consisted entirely of revolting masses of flesh.
Every wall and surface was completely blocked by swollen muscles and thick layers of fat.
When Kai brought his sword closer, blood vessels slowly moving within the walls became visible.
Dark-red blood flowed through the grotesquely entangled blood vessels.
Around them, slippery, sticky mucus oozed out like moisture from damp skin.
“What in the world is this...?”
Kai’s face, illuminated by his blue Aura, filled with bewilderment. He could tell at a glance that this was no ordinary space.
‘Could this possibly be...?’
I sharpened Dragon’s Claw [A] and slashed the wall.
Screeeeeech!
A spine-chilling scream erupted from within it.
Inside the opening torn into the wall were incorrectly attached hands and legs intertwined with distorted faces.
Then an insect-like mass shaped like an eyeball squirmed.
Grin.
A lipless mouth silently smiled, revealing its teeth.
The pieces of flesh then slithered back together and closed the opening in the wall.
“What was that?”
“....Who knows?”
It was merely a sight I never wanted to witness again.
As expected of one of the Devotees of the Fallen Souls, his tastes were utterly repulsive.
However, this confirmed that the effects of Dragon’s Claw [A] were functioning properly.
‘The power of Predation also seems to be working properly.’
I additionally summoned my “Player Information”.
== “Player Information” ==
[Name] = Adrian White Wolf
[Title] = Ruler of the North
[Level] = Level 53
[HP] = 2,550
[MP] = 0
[Stats] = Strength: 33, Agility: 60.95 (+7.95), Stamina: 24.15 (+3.15), Mana: 6
[Experience] = 55.8%
This should have been a region where the title <Ruler of the North> applied, but for some reason, its effect was not being activated.
◆Error: Inventory is not responding.
The information appeared before me normally.
In other words, Ian’s abilities, Solo Level Up [EX] and Player’s Will [EX], were also functioning properly.
However, the effect of the title <Ruler of the North> was not being applied.
As a result, the effect that increased [all stats by +15%] had disappeared.
I was receiving only the amplification to Agility and Stamina provided by Promote Metabolism [B+].
That meant this place was not part of the “North”.
However, I had been standing in Venenon Viscounty only moments ago.
Venenon Viscounty was located in the Tundra region of the North.
‘And my Inventory isn’t responding, either.’
I checked again, but the result was the same.
According to the description previously provided by the Inventory—
[The Inventory is a place where items owned by the player are stored and is classified as “Subspace”.]
The Inventory was classified as “Subspace”.
If that subspace was not responding, it meant this was a separate place with different space-time from the plane of reality.
In other words—
“This appears to be a space inside a Barrier.”
“You’re saying this is a Barrier?”
Kai asked again in disbelief.
He apparently could not believe that this mass of flesh was a Barrier.
In truth, neither could I.
‘This is a Barrier?’
Even I had never seen this kind of Barrier before.
A Barrier generally referred to a designated “territory” that imposed restrictions on particular actions.
It was not a separate “dimension” with its own space-time.
More importantly, Avarus had never used such a Barrier.
In my previous life, he had used only Infinity Silence.
During my time with the Special Task Force, we had investigated Avarus thoroughly.
There had been no information suggesting that Avarus could use this kind of Barrier.
In that case—
‘Was this Barrier created by that Elixir?’
There was the unidentified Elixir that Avarus had shattered at the end.
It was the only difference from my previous life and the only thing that could be considered a variable.
Regardless, this was a space within a Barrier created by Avarus.
To break a Barrier, one first had to determine what kind of Barrier it was.
When I activated Predatory Instinct [S], information about the current Barrier appeared.
◆The In?inite Lab?rinth
It i? a countle?s [*■■□□]. (?□? is ho?i[◎b[]’s v◇□ and +m?rU □.O-related a1◇, while D[ω] and □-related conA#. △<A /[e?i?i A, while 1E ◎sō(u than [◇2<)(] is □] +Q?□.
: This
However, perhaps because the Barrier had been created by that unidentified Elixir, Predatory Instinct [S] could not identify any information about it.
It was even worse than the Elixir.
The letters in the information were completely corrupted and could not even be read.
At that moment, my suspicions became certainty.
‘Is this one of the authorities possessed by the Monarch of the Abyss?’
An Unknowable Terror Beyond Explanation—the Monarch of the Abyss.
Just as his name suggested, he was an unknowable terror that could neither be explained nor opposed by anything in this world.
Avarus was one of the Devotees of the Fallen Souls who worshipped the Monarch of the Abyss.
—I offer my soul to the Great One!
The Great One whom Avarus had invoked at the end—it appeared that this Barrier was one of the authorities possessed by the Monarch of the Abyss.
That would explain, to some extent, why Predatory Instinct [S] could not identify any information about it.
An Unknowable Terror Beyond Explanation—the Monarch of the Abyss.
The Monarch of the Abyss was a being that did not belong to this world.
Even so, a Barrier was still a Barrier.
‘There must be a way to break it.’
Moreover, Predatory Instinct [S] was not the only thing I possessed.
I also had memories from my previous life and the knowledge taught to me by the Archmage, one of the Heroes of the Coalition Forces.
—Barriers are categorized according to their intended purpose.
Defensive Barriers, Sealing Barriers, Blocking Barriers, Confinement Barriers, and Control Barriers.
There were also barriers involving curses, rituals, souls, and other such things.
The previous Barrier, Infinity Silence, could be classified as a “Blocking Barrier”.
However, I could use every one of my abilities here, including Predation [S+].
Kai’s Aura was not being restricted, either.
That meant this was not a Blocking Barrier.
Moreover—
‘Activating the Barrier didn’t directly harm us.’
We had not encountered any particular threat or attack so far.
Most importantly, Avarus was nowhere to be seen.
‘Is it intended for sealing or confinement?’
This barrier seemed to have been designed to isolate or imprison Kai and me.
Then there was the barrier’s name, “The In?inite Lab?rinth.”
Although the letters were corrupted, the name made it seem as though anything we did in this space would ultimately be “meaningless”.
◆Activating the Derived Skill, Find Weakness [U]!
When I used Find Weakness—something glowing red appeared in one corner of my vision.
Kai appeared to notice it at the same moment and spoke to me.
“There’s something here.”
Kai pointed his Aura-covered sword toward the floor.
What we saw was a pale, yellowish-brown rectangular object.
It resembled paper, but appeared to have been made from “skin”.
Judging from the traces of tiny veins and pores across its surface—
‘Is that human skin?’
It appeared to be parchment made from “human skin”, peeled whole from a person and dried over an extended period.
It was one of the Dark Merchant Company’s grotesque interests.
When I picked it up—an inexplicably repulsive smell immediately assaulted my nose.
The texture beneath my fingertips was as smooth as silk. However, its tiny wrinkles made it equally revolting.
When Kai shone the blue light of his Aura over the parchment—the tiny veins tangled throughout the human-skin parchment squirmed like insects.
Then several letters appeared on its surface.
[Rulebook]
‘A Rulebook?’
As soon as I questioned it, the human-skin parchment squirmed again and engraved a new passage.
The contents of the parchment slowly changed once more.
Countless blood vessels rose and intertwined, forming a fairly long passage this time.
===
1. Secure a source of light before exploring this place.
: First, you must realize that you are trapped somewhere. This place has neither beginning nor end, and every wall and passage is connected, rendering your sense of direction meaningless.
Leaving markings may be one possible method, but remember : this place can erase or distort the traces you leave behind.
===
====
This [Rulebook] is a guide intended to help you survive here. If you do not follow its rules, all hope will disappear.
“What is this?”
After reading the contents, Kai muttered in confusion.
I did not know what it was, either.
I used Predatory Instinct [S], but the letters in the resulting information were corrupted and distorted.
However, Find Weakness [U] had identified this [Rulebook] as the Barrier’s weakness.
“It appears that we can escape this barrier's space by following the Rulebook’s instructions.”
That seemed to be what it meant.
Just then—
Gurrrrrgle—!
The masses of flesh forming the space suddenly began undulating violently.
Kai hurriedly illuminated the surroundings with his blue Aura.
Faces covered in eyes and mouths protruded from the walls, ceiling, and floor, staring at us.
Grotesque legs and tentacles extended from the walls, gradually swallowing the surrounding space.
Then another rule appeared across the Rulebook.
2. If the structure of this place begins to change, never stop moving.
: At times, the walls and passages will move in an attempt to imprison you. If you stop at that moment, your time will also stop, and you will no longer be able to move. No matter which path you choose, move quickly. The moment you attempt to remain in one place, this place will swallow you.
====
The flesh then split apart above, below, left, and right, creating a new path.
It looked as though it were telling us to proceed in that direction.
“Shall we follow it for now?”
“I’ll take the lead.”
Kai stepped forward confidently, using his blue Aura to illuminate the path.
I followed the path he had lit.
Every time my feet touched the floor—I did my best to ignore the grotesque sound of skin tearing beneath them.
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