2nd Floor, The Buried One. The Ghost of a Hero (9) “Cut the noise. Is it a Quest, or are you just an object?”
[Treating a person like an object. This one's a bad apple, I see.]
“So?”
The ghost let out a groan. Soon, as if it couldn't be helped, it began to speak.
[You're right. I am a dead being. A human bound to this place to give you all Quests.]
The ghost grumbled.
[But I can't give it to some weakling.]
“Then why are you here?”
[How should I know? Ah. This damn Labyrinth. If they were going to do this, why didn't they put me in The Depths? What's the reason for sticking me in these lower floors?]
Taesan stared silently at the constantly complaining ghost. This was another new type of NPC. The ghost waved what was presumed to be its hand, a white area.
It seemed to mean 'go away'.
[Anyway, go back. I'll think about it if you come back after clearing the 30th Floor.]
At this point, a dry laugh escaped him. Taesan didn't say anything more and turned to leave the room. He felt that no matter how he tried to persuade it, this was a useless opponent.
[Farewell! Adven... turer?]
The ghost, who had been shouting cheerfully, trailed off.
[Wait a moment. You, that weapon.]
The ghost's gaze was fixed on Rakiratas's Ceremonial Blade.
[That's Rakiratas's weapon. Why do you have that?]
“I have it because I cleared it, what else?”
[... You cleared the Trial?]
Taesan looked at it with an expression that said, "What other reason could there be?" The ghost shut its mouth. The white bundle, which seemed to be pondering for a moment, moved greatly.
[Alright! I'll give you the Quest!]
“Suddenly?”
[If you've been acknowledged by that whimsical fellow, you're worthy of receiving it! Come back! I'll explain the Quest!]
“I don't want to hear it.”
[You want to receive it, don't you? Then listen!]
What is this guy? Its attitude and posture naturally brought such thoughts to mind. Taesan returned with an indifferent face.
The ghost began its explanation.
[I was an outstanding and great hero. I reached The Depths faster than anyone. I was someone who was expected to conquer the Labyrinth before long.]
“But why are you buried here?”
[Because a weakling aimed for my opening.]
The ghost said in a voice full of anger.
[I was breaking through The Depths when I met a strong foe, so I came back for a short rest. I was lying down on the 10th Floor. My Health was low, but since there was no way the Monsters on the lower floors could pierce my defense, I was just sleeping soundly.]
If the ghost's words were true, it wasn't a particularly bad decision. Someone strong enough to break through The Depths would have a Defense Power in the thousands. Even if all the Monsters on the 10th Floor gathered and attacked, they would only deal 1 Damage.
He would have woken up the moment he was hit and been able to respond. But the fact that the ghost died meant there was something else.
[The Boss of the 10th Floor. I don't know where it got it, but it had a weapon with a fixed attack. That bastard killed me. Me, who was going to conquer The Depths!]
Unable to contain its rage, the ghost screamed. After panting for a moment, it spoke in a voice mixed with anger.
[The Quest I'll give you is one thing. Kill the Boss of the 10th Floor! Then I'll give you a Reward.]
[Sub Quest started.]
[The hero buried in the Labyrinth desires revenge from you.]
[Condition: Kill the Boss of the 10th Floor.]
[Reward: To be decided by the hero, depending on his mood.]
A dry laugh escaped him at the last sentence. Decided by his mood. Didn't that mean he might not give anything if he wasn't pleased?
[Will you accept?]
Taesan nodded his head. Still, a Quest was a Quest. The condition was also a Boss he had to kill anyway, so there was no reason to refuse.
'It seems like a linked quest.' A Quest that could only be received after passing the Trial of Rakiratas. Listening to the ghost's words, that was exactly what came to mind.
When Taesan accepted, the ghost exclaimed with satisfaction.
[Good! I'm counting on you!]
And the ghost stuck close to Taesan's side.
[Now. Let's go!]
"... Don't tell me you're coming with me?"
[Then am I supposed to stay cooped up in my grave when I don't even know if you can kill it or not? Honestly, I was sick and tired of that place. It's only up to the 10th Floor, but it'll be fun to get out!]
I have to run all the way to the 10th Floor with this noisy guy? Taesan felt a headache coming on.
[Where could that bastard have gotten a fixed weapon? I was careless, it's true, but fixed weapons only appear much later. There's no way a Monster from the mere 10th Floor could obtain one, you know? Do you think you would know?]
“I don't know, so stop talking.”
Taesan said irritably. The ghost's mouth didn't rest for a single moment. It felt like he would get a neurosis from it chattering like a parrot in his ear.
The ghost said confidently.
[You accepted the Quest. So you have to take responsibility!]
“... Maybe I shouldn't have accepted.”
It felt like the Mental Fatigue would be greater than the Reward. Taesan, letting out a small sigh, asked.
“You said you were a hero, right? What did you do before coming here?”
He had already accepted the Quest. There was no turning back. The ghost would chatter on endlessly, so he figured he might as well get some information by questioning it.
[Hmph. Why should I tell you that?]
“If you don't want to talk, then don't.” Taesan walked through the Labyrinth indifferently.
It wasn't information he desperately needed to know.
[... Alright! If you want to know that badly, I'll make a special exception and tell you!]
“I said if you don't want to talk, then don't?”
[I was a great royal of the Carbert Empire!]
The ghost began to boast by itself.
[As the eldest son, I was in line to inherit the empire. That's not all! I was outstanding! My Swordsmanship, my tactics, my strategy, there was no one in the empire who could compare! Ah! Every noble lady rushed to catch a glimpse of my face whenever I attended a ball! Oh, those glorious days!]
Listening to it speak, it sounded like a street thug, but an imperial prince. He was a human of a higher status than expected.
[But the world was destroyed, and I came here to save everyone.]
“And then you died.”
[... You're a real killjoy. But you're right.]
The ghost muttered in a deflated tone.
[In the end, I failed. I couldn't save my world. If I had just tried a little harder, I could have conquered the Labyrinth, but that one mistake ruined everything. Now that it's come to this, I'll only feel better if I kill the one who killed me.]
Letting the self-pitying rant go in one ear and out the other, Taesan walked through the Labyrinth. Soon, he arrived in front of a room. Looking at the number of rooms he had cleared so far, this was probably the last one.
After this, only the Boss Room and the Secret Rooms remained. Clearing the 2nd Floor was just ahead. And about ten days had passed.
It was around the time when results were starting to show on the First Floor as well. Instead of opening the door, Taesan opened the community forums.
[Park Chan-woong [Alone]: How do you kill this Big Rat?]
[Moon Jae-seong [Alone]: You just have to grind it out. After fighting it hundreds of times, you'll roughly see its movements, right? You have to aim for that moment.]
[Park Chan-woong [Alone]: Ha... How on earth did Tae-yeon or Jun-hyeok kill this thing right away?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Me? I'm nothing compared to the hyung who went before me.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Let's just consider that person an exception.]
“It's about time.”
[What are you doing?]
“You don't know about the community forums?”
[What's that?]
“It's a thing.”
Taesan spoke vaguely to the ghost and continued checking. Reading through the posts, it seemed there were a few more people who had now killed the Big Rat. Taesan moved his hand.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: 1] [Park Chan-woong [Alone]: Huh?]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Oh. It's Taesan.]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Hyung. It's been a while.]
[Moon Jae-seong [Alone]: Taesan! I have something to ask!]
Posts flooded in instantly. Taesan passed the time by giving vague replies, and soon it quieted down.
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: You're posting on the community forums and everything. Is something up??]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: I was thinking it's about time to explain. How are things going now?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: It's manageable, more or less.]
Kang Jun-hyeok slowly began to explain.
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Half of the people who reached the Fountain of Life have killed the Big Rat. It looks like the rest will kill it soon, too.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: It turns out you can do it if you just keep at it.]
The Big Rat possessed a speed beyond human perception, but if you kept fighting it, you could see its patterns. It just required a lot of time, but they could kill it by aiming in advance, just as Taesan had done.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: What about you guys?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: I went to see the Boss. After getting hit once, my mind went blank.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Same for me. Did you really kill it with pure strength?]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: That's right.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: ... How on earth did you do that? I realized I couldn't. So I'm looking for another way. I'll have to Grind a bit, but it seems much safer.]
After reading the posts, Taesan confirmed it. They had now adapted to the Labyrinth. Posts filled with anger and despair were almost nowhere to be seen.
Then it was time to tell them. About what he had found out. About what was absolutely necessary to break through the Labyrinth.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: The reason I'm posting today is because I have something to tell the Alone Mode Players.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Something to tell us?]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: About how to acquire Skills.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: ... Ah. Ahhh.]
Lee Tae-yeon probably had about two Skills by now. Kang Jun-hyeok also seemed to have realized, as he posted a slightly questioning comment.
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Oh. It is necessary. But at this timing?]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: Now is the optimal time. If I had told you too early, you would have put the cart before the horse.]
Skills are a means, not an end. If I told them about Skills when they didn't even properly know what the Labyrinth was, Skills would become the goal. They would obsess over obtaining Skills without thinking of entering the Labyrinth, wasting useless time.
I had to tell them at a point where they had at least some grasp of the Labyrinth and the will to descend. The only Monster on the First Floor was the Big Rat. As long as they were careful, there was no chance of dying.
Thanks to the Fountain of Life, infinite recovery was possible, so it didn't matter if I told them at a leisurely pace. Lee Tae-yeon agreed with Taesan's words.
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: That's true. If I had suddenly heard about Skills, I would have wondered what you were talking about.]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: I'm going to explain from now on, so listen carefully. And explain it to those who couldn't see the community forums.]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Wow. Really? Isn't that incredibly valuable information?]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Wooow... Thank you.]
[Moon Jae-seong [Alone]: Taesan...!]
[Park Chan-woong [Alone]: Thank you! Thank you!]
Numerous posts filled with thanks and emotion came up. But Taesan had a vague expression.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: You should probably save your thanks for after you hear it.]
Taesan had explained the Skills he learned in the previous world as well. But it hadn't meant much to humanity. They were, after all, ordinary humans who had lived in a gentle world.
Still, since most of the Alone Mode Players had survived, perhaps things would be a little different. He posted with a very faint hope.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: How many Skills have you all obtained? Excluding Basic Skills.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: I have two. Disease Resistance. And Line of Death.]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Me too, two. Disease Resistance and Sense Enhancement.]
Two.
For a First Floor Player, that was a lot. Others chimed in one by one, but most had one or none at all. Kang Jun-hyeok asked as if curious.
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: How many do you have, hyung? Five?]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Ayy. No way. Would he have that many?]
The mood on the community forums was that five would be the max. They had tried various things to obtain Skills but got nothing, so they thought Taesan would be similar. Taesan told them the correct answer.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: Nineteen.]
For a moment, the community forums went silent.
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: ... Really?]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: What good would lying do me?]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Wow. That's unbelievable. What on earth do you have to do to get that many?]