4.
The secret passage was dark and gloomy.
"Shine, Shiny. What are you doing not shining quickly?"
[Shiny feels joy at hearing an order after a long time.]
[Shiny feels a severe sense of self-loathing for feeling joy in such a situation…]
Since becoming a complete entity by integrating with all the sister swords, Shiny's emotions had become much richer. Yes, just like a cheese pizza topped with camembert, cheddar, and gouda cheese.
[Shiny points out that you forgot Parmesan cheese!]
Shiny shone intensely as if craving a cheese pizza.
Despite being abandoned for a hundred and fifty years, the passage was fairly intact. There were parts where the rock walls had collapsed, blocking the way, but that was nothing a slash of aura couldn't handle.
-Don't even look to the northeast.
Bae Hu-ryeong occasionally gave advice.
-Even if you do look, make sure to break it off before 23 seconds. Their security system is active even underground. Ah, and don't release the aura gathered in your eyes. See that slightly differently colored stone floor? Never step on it.
"Okay. Should I head this way then?"
Where not to look, where to go, Bae Hu-ryeong knew it all perfectly. I managed to avoid every trap, which was set at an average interval of 12 seconds.
-Turn left at the first fork.
"Hmm. This time, this way… I guess. Just a hunch."
The stronghold of the 50th-floor's strongest power was nothing less than a quattro cheese pizza in front of me.
-Right. There's a monster trap ahead. Just go alongside it and wall run.
"Wow. Right again. Lucky me, really lucky. Somehow, I had a bad feeling about turning right at that fork."
All the while, I kept muttering to myself.
Of course, it wasn't because I was insane.
-Weren't you?
"Hey. What do you take me for?"
-Well, for you.
Contrary to Bae Hu-ryeong's wicked imagination, it was to confuse the watching constellations.
As if I was continuously overcoming obstacles due to sheer luck. As if I had a fortune or exploration skill that made avoiding traps so easy, I didn't stop babbling like that.
['The Lone Seeker of Truth' is at a loss for words at your pace of advancement.]
['The Thirsty Noblewoman' wants to smack you on the back.]
['The Incarnation of Love and Lust' thinks about smacking your butt too!]
['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' is very suspicious of the skills you possess.]
Okay. Even though there are some weird fellows, these constellations sure are taking the bait well.
I swiftly traversed the secret passage. I could feel myself getting closer to the headquarters of the Mage Tower. As I walked, something similar to aura, but much stickier and dense like a toxic fog, became stronger.
-Stop.
Abruptly, I halted at Bae Hu-ryeong's command.
-This part is crucial.
There was nothing visible on the passage floor illuminated by Shiny.
But Bae Hu-ryeong spoke seriously, as if there was a red starting line drawn.
-The mages of the Mage Tower, commonly known as [Spiders], all have biometric engravings on their bodies. These engravings serve as a sort of ID, allowing them to move freely. From this point onward, anyone without the Spider's engraving is recognized as an outsider, and an alarm will be triggered.
"Hmm. Somehow, it feels like recklessly walking from here on would be a big mistake…."
-But that's also a [Detection Magic]. It takes time for the magic to actually activate.
"It seems like it's not an instant-reactive trap, judging from a quick look…"
Bae Hu-ryeong chuckled at my natural acting.
-6 seconds.
Bae Hu-ryeong lifted his left hand and pointed ahead.
-You need to pass through in 6 seconds.
"...."
-In truth, I'm not sure if it's 6 or 7 seconds. Anyway, when I tried it in the past, running through in 6 seconds didn't trigger the alarm.
I turned my head. The passage stretched endlessly. It was a dark abyss, too deep for Shiny's light to fully illuminate.
I casually picked up a stone.
Filled with aura, I threw it with all my might, like a baseball player….
"Hmm."
The stone flew straight ahead. Apart from the sound of the projectile piercing through the air, there was silence. Only after a while did a faint thud! indicate that it had hit something.
Even as an empty statement, the exit of the passage did not seem close.
-It's a bit far, isn't it?
Bae Hu-ryeong chuckled.
-Che. Do you now have a sense of how great I was back in the day? I was like a comet streaking across the sky. And you know, my hair was red too. It fluttered like the tail of a comet.
"...."
While listening to him, I looked around the passage.
'So, you crossed it in 6 seconds, right?'
-Of course.
Bae Hu-ryeong shrugged his shoulders.
-Walking like I was taking a stroll, it took me 6 seconds.
Good.
This should be fun.
"Esteemed constellations, I may not be an expert in magic, but I'm good at sniffing out magic. It seems like the Spiders here have set up some nasty traps."
I sheathed Shiny and then started stretching, focusing on my thighs and calves to loosen up.
"You all showed interest in me just arriving on the 50th floor. So, I want to give you the opportunity to judge what kind of person I am."
['The Lone Seeker of Truth' feels intrigued by your words.]
['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' knows what lies ahead but remains silent.]
As I sheathed Shiny, darkness enveloped everything.
The air was cold, and a strange, ominous magical power lingered like fog. The darkness seemed to wriggle like tangible tentacles.
I finished my warm-up exercises and took a deep breath.
'I'm running.'
Lightfoot.
The Lightfoot technique I learned was a creation of my master, refined and improved from a technique originally passed down from the Kunlun Sect.
'I'm running!'
The secret wasn't just wrapping aura around the legs and feet.
Beneath my feet, I formed aura into [small spheres], or like [sponges].
I don't directly step on the ground. I step on these clumps of aura under my feet, simultaneously applying force through my legs and detonating these tiny aura clumps.
It's a continuous repetition of this process.
Naturally, a slight mistake could cripple my legs. It's difficult enough to manipulate aura around the legs without damaging bones and muscles, let alone using the explosive power of aura as propulsion.
'Did you say 6 seconds?'
Facing Bae Hu-ryeong's jest—I condensed the aura beneath my feet stronger than ever, like a child packing mud into balls. Layer by layer, I wrapped the aura around these small nuggets, creating [springs] ready to explode at any moment.
'I'll show you a 5-second cut.'
And then, I burst forward.
Perhaps, [shot forward] would be more accurate to describe the speed.
-Oh ho.
1 second.
In the midst of the vast darkness, I heard Bae Hu-ryeong's whistle. I grinned and focused solely on creating and stepping on [Aura Springs].
The reactions of others, aside from Bae Hu-ryeong, were more intense.
['The Lone Seeker of Truth' is astonished by your aura manipulation!]
2 seconds.
The wind grazing my cheeks was sharp. I wrapped my entire body in aura. A sticky curtain of magic, like a spider web, tried to block my charge.
Of course, I tore through it as I advanced.
['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' is certain that you're no beginner!]
3 seconds had passed, but the end of the passage was still not in sight. However, the intensity of the web-like magical power grew stronger. My form was clearly getting closer to the Mage Tower, and at a very fast pace.
'4 seconds.'
I ran even faster. I compressed the aura springs under my feet stronger, more fiercely. I began to feel the sensation of [straining my body beyond its limits], but it didn't matter.
'5 seconds!'
Finally, my senses detected a solid rock wall blocking the path. A dead end. The end of the secret passage. The entrance was revealed.
If I slowed down now, I would just barely make the 6-second cut and smoothly stop in front of the entrance.
'Not yet,'
But I just kept running.
'5 seconds!'
At that moment, crash! My body collided with the dark barrier.
It was less a collision and more like I just demolished the wall.
Even though I had covered my entire body with aura, the impact was inevitable, and I rolled on the ground.
"Ow, uh, ouch…"
Rumble.
The barrier I had broken through crumbled, and bricks fell apart. Amidst the rising dust, I slowly got up while massaging my thighs.
There was no alarm signaling an intruder.
"Ugh. Ah, dear constellations. It seems I've successfully passed through the secret passage. My thighs are just… Ah, I pushed myself a bit too hard."
['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' is at a loss for words.]
['The Lone Seeker of Truth' starts to feel sorry for the Mage Tower, which has you as an enemy!]
The constellations' bewilderment was clear in their messages.
['The Incarnation of Love and Lust' realizes you are crazy and is delighted!]
['The Incarnation of Love and Lust' actively recommends not just a short quest but an epic campaign for you!]
['The Incarnation of Love and Lust' is ready to promise you an enormous quest reward!]
Ignoring that guy who's been like that since a while ago.
'So, Sword Emperor~nim. Don't you think there is an insurmountable wall, an absolute barrier that divides the extraordinary and the genius, between 6 seconds and 5 seconds? In a way, I am a meteor surpassing a comet. A comet might seem weaker than a meteor in English, where the comet is 'comet' and the meteor is 'meteor'. And in most RPGs, Meteor is a higher level magic than Comet, so this also reflects the general perception of the world…'
I was just about to tease Bae Hu-ryeong when I turned my head.
Snap.
I accidentally made eye contact with someone whose identity I couldn't discern.
"...."
"...."
Perhaps.
The person in front of me seemed to be cleaning this underground area.
Looking around, I realized that the end of the secret passage was actually a sewer.
The smell of cheese past its prime wafted from various places. It was clear that this place was neglected, and thus, whoever had to clean such a place was definitely not of high rank, nor a child of someone with high rank, nor even a friend of a high-ranked official's child. In short, they were surely at the very bottom of the hierarchy.
"Uhh… uh-uh-uh, uhh…"
The young magician, who looked like a low-ranking one, was holding a broom, his eyes wide with terror.
He wiggled his toes as if to move (he was barefoot) but didn't make a move. Rather, he couldn't. He was completely frozen in fear.
"Intruder… intruder... there's an intruder…!"
"Hello."
I grabbed the boy's shoulder, chin up.
With a gentlemanly, soft smile on my face.
"Nice to meet you."
"Hic!?"
The boy clammed up.
The belated realization was, from the boy's perspective, I was a man who had just broken through a massive wall with his bare body. Moreover, I was completely fine except for feeling a bit stiff.
I might have been covered in dust from head to toe, but a man looking less than human, smiling softly, was probably not very effective in forming a favorable impression.
"Right now, I'm a bit lost."
Still, I always tried to be kind to anyone. With a beaming smile and as gently as I could, I spoke to the boy.
"I'm not quite sure where I am. Could you perhaps guide me?"
"Gu… Guide? This place, it's the Mage Tower…! The second division of the Mage Tower…"
"Surely, this place isn't the Mage Tower, right? Like, even if one simply loses their way and ends up here, they're automatically treated as an intruder, and there's a need to quickly eliminate the intruder, and since the intruder doesn't want to die, they have to secretly kill any witnesses they encounter… It's not that kind of terrifying Mage Tower, is it?"
"Eek…!?"
The boy dropped his broom.
"No, no…! This isn't the Mage Tower! It's not! Mage Tower? I don't know where that is! Please, I didn't see anything… I didn't see anything…!"
"Ah. Good. That's a relief."
I nodded in genuine satisfaction.
I wanted the other person to know I was satisfied, so I gave him another smile. The boy finally seemed relieved, swallowing hard with a "gulp!"
Now he must have realized that I was harmless.
"I'm looking for the followers of Hamustra. I have some business with them… Sorry, but since this place isn't the Mage Tower but just a confusing location, could you guide me?"
"Eh. The, the followers of Hamustra… they are strictly managed. I, I am… I…"
"Ah."
Squeeze.
"People should help each other out, right?"
I patted the boy's shoulder a bit more heartily.
"You can guide me, can't you?"
"…Yes, I…"
The boy trembled.
Tears welled up in his eyes.
Surprisingly, most of the human body is made up of water, which sometimes gets expelled through the eyes.
"...I'll do it… I'll guide you… just please, please spare my life…."
"Ah, see? There's still kindness in the world!"
I patted the boy on the back.
"Thank you. Nameless Spider. I'll surely repay you later. Ah, of course, if I safely escape this place, wherever it is. Let's work together to escape safely!"
"Huh… Yes…."
"I am Kim Gong-ja. And you are, magician? What's your name?"
"Cha, Charumu… is my name… Huaa…."
For some reason, the boy shed even more tears.
I was satisfied that things were going better than expected and belatedly realized I had been in the middle of boasting to Bae Hu-ryeong.
'Ah, right. Anyway, Sword Emperor~nim. I was 1 second faster than you. 1 second accumulates to 10 seconds, 10 seconds to a year, and a year to a hundred years, so it's fair to say I'm a hundred years ahead of you, right? In other words, the Demonic Cult's Lightfoot technique is the best.'
-....
'Do you admit it? Mr. 6-Seconds. Huh? Humbly acknowledge that you're a hundred years behind me, who made a 5-second cut? Mr. 6-Seconds.'
-Uh….
For some reason, Bae Hu-ryeong had a look of utter disdain.
-Yeah… no wonder Venomous Snake is your rival….
'Huh?'
-No, just go ahead and be the best….
Good.
Everything is perfect.
Now, let's go save people in a righteous manner!