The Legendary Newbie of the Ghost Story Labyrinth - Chapter 63

WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

The Legendary Newbie of the Ghost Story Labyrinth

[Translator – Aren]

Chapter 63 - The Master of Floor 8 (7)

Park Minho established a new set of rules for Floor 8.

[Notice of Strictly Prohibited Activities on Floor 8]

The floor is under the control of the Administrator. The following actions, which disrupt the order of Floor 8, are prohibited.

1. Harmful Acts Against Entities: Attacking Minecart entities or Miner entities without legitimate cause is prohibited.

2. Mineral Theft: Unauthorized possession or removal of mined minerals is prohibited.

[Penalties for Violations]

Those who violate the above regulations may have their assets confiscated and be taken into custody. Furthermore, in cases deemed severe, offenders may be converted into AC points.

-Administrator of Floor 8

He had the notice made into signboards and erected throughout Floor 8. Then he issued a new command to the biological system.

'From now on, whenever rare minerals are mined, transport them using Minecarts. If Minecarts aren’t available, have at least 5 entities move them together.'

He intended to remove any temptation for theft entirely.

[Confirmed. Executing directive.]

'If an attack occurs, nearby entities are to reinforce immediately. Even if it hurts mining efficiency for now, this kind of behavior needs to be eradicated completely.’

[Command units required for more efficient coordination.]

'Hmm......'

Park Minho used “Grant Intelligence” to create 7 entities dedicated to security. They would patrol during normal operations and, if an incident occurred, would have the authority to gather and command nearby entities.

Considering the enormous size of the abandoned mine, 7 was nowhere near enough, but for the moment, it would have to do.

These security entities were easy to identify. Park Minho had armed all of them with firearms. Now that they possessed intelligence, a bit of training was all they needed before they could use guns effectively.

"Yeah, this should do. Nobody’s going to rob us that easily again.”

Park Minho found himself wondering how explorers entering Floor 8 would react when they saw Miner entities walking around carrying rifles.

'I have a feeling they’ll be a lot more polite.’

* * *

Inside a prison built from a converted section of the abandoned mine, pained groans echoed through the darkness.

“Uuugh…Haah, Haagh. Those insane bastards! Sick lunatics!”

The massive Jack leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. A rusted spike-like piece of metal was embedded deep in his chest. Because of the damn thing, he couldn’t use a single one of his mid-rank Awakened abilities. Every time he tried to draw upon anomalous energy, a tearing pain erupted from his chest, scattering the power before it could form.

And trying to remove it was worse. This device had been designed to trigger a cardiac arrest if one recklessly tried to pull it out. The more he thought about it, the more vicious it seemed.

Jack wasn’t the only victim. Every member of Texas Chainsaw had one of the spikes driven into their chests.

"That crazy Asian bastard…How can a human being do something this cruel……?”

Aiden muttered bitterly, tears streaming down his face. Just days ago, they had been a successful mid-rank Awakened party. Now they were prisoners. He couldn’t make sense of it.

"All this because we killed a few entities……? Since when do those monsters matter so much?”

At that moment, their leader, Celine, warned him.

“Quiet. Just endure it a little longer and keep your mouth shut.”

Her face was pale, but despite everything, there wasn’t the slightest sign of surrender in her eyes.

At the moment, 2 Miner entities stood watch beyond the iron bars. Normally, they wouldn’t have been difficult opponents. But with their anomalous abilities sealed, they weren’t enemies the prisoners could dream of challenging.

Still, Celine had one last trump card left. Using subtle hand signals, she indicated that they should wait for the guards’ shift change. She had noticed that the Miner entities rotated every 12 hours.

-Nod.

Jack gave a slight nod and grimaced through the pain. They waited and waited until finally the moment of the shift change arrived.

"Kieek!"

"Kek!"

As the guard entities’ attention briefly shifted away, Celine pulled out what looked like a half of a broken ruby hidden inside the heel of her shoe. Jack immediately retrieved the matching half from inside his own boot and tossed it to her.

Before imprisonment, all their equipment, including their phase-compression backpacks, had been confiscated. But this item had survived the search. Because in its current state, it was nothing more than a worthless stone with no anomalous properties whatsoever.

However, the moment the two halves were reunited, they transformed into a powerful anomalous object. Celine had acquired it on Floor 22. She and Jack had kept it hidden as their ultimate emergency measure. It was the kind of trump card one would expect from mid-rank Awakened.

Celine calmly waited until the shift change was complete, then she joined the two halves together.

-Click!

Like magnets, the fragments snapped together instantly. A moment later, the ruby began glowing and heating up.

-Vrrrrmmmm!

The Miner entities that had just completed the shift reacted immediately.

"!"

"!”

They moved to raise their pickaxes, but Celine was faster.

-Zzzzzt!

A beam of scorching energy erupted from the ruby. The laser-like ray sliced through the necks of both Miner entities.

-Slice!

The iron bars between them were merely collateral damage. Molten metal dripped from the severed sections.

-Zzzzzt!

Celine fired the beam again. The remaining bars collapsed with a loud crash.

"Move! We have to get out of here somehow!”

Celine glanced anxiously at the ruby. There was enough energy left for perhaps 2 more uses. She would have to make those shots count if they wanted to escape this hellhole.

"Goddammit, once I’m out of here, I’m going to make those bastards pay!”

Jack and the others rushed after her. And so Texas Chainsaw sprinted through the tunnels like madmen in search of freedom.

* * *

[Emergency Report. Escape of detained organic entities confirmed.]

The sudden notification caused Park Minho to bolt upright from where he had been resting.

"What?!”

He immediately asked whether it was the Molting Church prisoners or Texas Chainsaw.

[The four individuals most recently detained.]

'Texas Chainsaw, then.'

Nicola, who had been nearby, instantly realized something serious had happened.

"Mister, what’s wrong?”

"Those American bastards escaped.”

"Wait…? How? The spikes should’ve been foolproof.”

Nicola couldn’t believe it. As far as he knew, there had been nothing wrong with the suppression spikes.

Ivan, standing nearby, shook his head.

"Damn…They’re mid-rank Awakened. They must have had some hidden method. I should have restrained them more thoroughly. This is my mistake.”

“No. We couldn’t have predicted this.”

At that moment, the biological system delivered an additional report.

[Two Miner units destroyed during the escape.]

Park Minho’s expression immediately turned cold.

'They killed Miners again?'

He had shown mercy by sentencing them to forced labor and imprisonment instead of executing them, but after this his compassion evaporated like morning dew.

"Minho-nim! I don’t know what trick they used, but their anomalous powers should still be sealed. I’ll go after them immediately and bring them back.”

Park Minho shook his head. He no longer intended to keep them alive. Besides, Ivan was busy enough already.

"It’s fine."

"But…”

“Isn’t this exactly why we created the Sheriff entities? Ivan, continue supervising construction.”

Then he immediately issued an order to the biological system.

'Relay the command to the 7 Sheriff units. Have them lead the Miner entities and hunt down the escapees.'

[Command received. Operation commencing.]

* * *

“How is this even happening?”

“Are these things moving in an organized formation?!”

"Huff, huff, no way, right?! Those idiots have rocks for brains, remember?”

"But we're getting cornered more and more. This is exactly how you drive prey during a hunt! I know because I’ve hunted back home!”

Aiden’s desperate cry vanished into the damp darkness of the tunnels.

The relentless pursuit had already pushed them to the brink mentally.

"Shut your fucking mouth and keep running, you idiot!”

Celine snapped, but her voice was shaking.

Still, she refused to give up hope, so she kept running until she rounded a corner and froze.

Because she saw countless glowing eyes staring at them from the darkness.

"!"

Dozens of hard hats waited ahead. And among them stood one that was different. The rifle it carried was usual enough, but what truly stood out were its eyes. Unlike the vacant, dull gaze of ordinary Miner entities, this one possessed unmistakable intelligence.

"Kikekekekekek!”

It even laughed, somehow appearing as if it were mocking them.

"C-Celine!”

"Fall back! Now!”

But by then it was too late. Behind them another mass of Miner entities had already arrived.

-Ruuumble!

-Thud, thud.

The heavy footsteps of the Miner entities filled the surrounding tunnels. The party members suddenly felt as if all the air had vanished from the world.

"Uuugh……”

"This can’t be happening……!”

Celine had no choice but to admit it. This really was a hunt while they were prey. And the hunt was about over.

* * *

The biological system reported.

[Escaped organic entities eliminated. Absorbed energy 52 AC.]

[Current accumulated energy 115 AC.]

Par Minho couldn’t help being surprised.

'That’s quite a lot, isn’t it…?’

Then again, they had been a party of mid-rank Awakened. As soon as his total exceeded 100 AC, a flood of new information poured into his mind.

New options had been unlocked within the Administrator-only Control Menu.

"Oh......!"

The previously available functions were:

-Wide Area Biological Detection Minimap (Cost 50AC).

-Mine Shaft Surveillance Network (Cost 50AC).

-Resource Scanner (Cost 40AC).

Every single one of them was an incredibly useful ability worth spending AC on immediately. Especially the mini map. He’d already experienced it inside the Entity Rift and knew exactly how valuable it was.

But there had simply been too many things competing for his AC, so he’d postponed the purchase. Now that he had surpassed 100 AC, however, a new option had appeared.

And it completely stunned him.

-Phase Rift. Gateway to the Real World (Cost 100AC).

"No way……”

The details flowed directly into his mind. This ability would allow him to create a doorway connecting Floor 8 directly to the real world. There would be no need to travel all the way to Floor 11.

'A way outside…?’

His interest was instantly piqued. Because once a Phase Rift was established, he could travel freely between Floor 8 and the real world whenever he wanted.

It wasn’t a one-time-use item.

'Thought there’s a clear downside.'

If he failed to manage the Phase Rift properly, it could become a direct invasion route for NCE forces into Floor 8.

'Still, if used correctly, the advantages far outweigh the risks.'

More than anything, it would finally let him breathe. No matter how comfortable he made their settlement, the Backrooms were still the Backrooms.

Floor 8 was one of the better locations, but even setting aside the gradual mental erosion caused by cognitive contamination, the environment itself was miserable. Hot, damp, and endlessly oppressive.

'And this darkness… It wears people down.’

His eyes drifted toward Seol Suyeon. She looked downcast and exhausted.

The clue about her brother had given her hope, but the situation with the Molting Church was clearly weighing on her mind.

'At times like this, getting outside for a while would probably help.'

The food alone would make a difference. Park Minho desperately missed things like soybean paste stew, grilled pork belly, and kimchi. Down here, most meals consisted of processed foods. And they were expensive at that. People without money survived on foul-smelling dark brown compressed blocks made from ground mealworms and crickets.

A trip outside might be able to lift her spirits a bit.

‘Everyone needs a chance to catch their breath.'

Time in the Backrooms felt impossibly heavy and dense.

"Suyeon."

"Yes?”

"Come over here for a second."

Sensing that he had something important to say, Seol Suyeon approached with a curious look.

"What is it?”

"Want to go outside for a bit?”

"Huh...?"

"I mean it. We can really get out.”

Park Minho explained the Phase Rift to her.