Chapter 37: The Labyrinth of Adanta (1)

Within a week of Jessica joining the guild, two more Elementalists followed in her footsteps. One was a Wind Elementalist from England, and the other was a Water Elementalist from Japan.

"I should have tried this out in previous Attempts."

Kim Ki-Rok had initially allowed the Elemental idol project as a joke. He had thought of releasing an album as some form of employee benefit because it didn't cost that much anyway. However, thanks to the project, there was an increase in the number of guild members.

Name: Jessica Yoo (B-Class)

Contract Elemental: Rose (Intermediate Fire Elemental)

Summary: A pure Elementalist who needs Vitality training.

.

Name: Gavin Rons (D-Class)

Contract Elemental: Silphy (Lesser Wind Elemental)

Summary: An Elemental Swordsman, but severely lacking in Swordsmanship skills.

.

Name: Sumihara Shina (C-Class)

Contract Elemental: Aqua (Intermediate Water Elemental)

Summary: A former soldier who handles firearms at an advanced level, but require guidance on elemental magic.

"Their ranks are pretty balanced... Nicely balanced."

There were already four of them. According to Aeple's explanation, she had already cast all eight Elementals.

"In the end, DG Guild will have nine Elementalists in total."

An idol group, huh...

As he was stifling a hollow laugh, he heard a knock on the Guildmaster's office door.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Guildmaster. It's Kang Woo-Hyuk."

"Yes, come in."

Kang Woo-Hyuk entered, pushing a cart.

"You could have just called me to visit you," Kim Ki-Rok said, greeting him.

"How could I disturb you when I know you're working overtime?"

"Are you finished with everything?"

"Yes. Please check. The upgrade effects are quite high thanks to increased proficiency." Kang Woo-Hyuk confidently picked out a dagger from the cart.

"Appraisal."

[

Viper's Fang (C) +1

]

Description: A dagger infused with serpent venom, enhanced with skill, Reinforcement, increasing its potency

Effect: Poison (D) → Venom (C)

"Appraisal, Viper's Fangs, Venom."

[

Venom (C)

]

Description: Inflicts lethal damage on the target

Duration: 10 seconds

"Woooah!"

The effect applied wasn't just regular Poison but had evolved into the deadlier Venom. The skill duration had also increased from five to ten seconds.

Monsters afflicted with poison typically suffered from dulled senses and a rapid decline in Vitality. While it may not be very effective against mana-manipulating monsters, it was an excellent weapon against monsters below Level 20.

"This is great, but how did you evolve the effect?" Kim Ki-Rok asked.

"Hmm. When I used Reinforcement, I instinctively realized that a certain material was needed for the process. However, after I had used Venom during the upgrade, it caused a significant drop in durability."

"It can't be helped. I understand."

Kang Woo-Hyuk had been tasked with reinforcing five weapons in total. The upgraded weapons gained increased sharpness and has an additional Strength stat, while the spear received bonuses to both Vitality and Strength. The bow had increased mana conductivity that allowed for efficient mana transfer to arrows.

And finally, the ultimate weapon for the upcoming Gate raid had also been successfully reinforced.

[

Flamethrower (C) +1

]

Description: A flamethrower crafted from the Fire Lizard's flame mana stone, enhanced through Reinforcement

Effect 1: Reduces enemy fire resistance by 5%

Effect 2: When using Fire Spirit Magic, reduces enemy fire resistance by an additional 10%

If the weapon was wielded by Aeple, both effects would be activated, totaling 15% in reduction to the monsters' fire resistance.

"I've also upgraded the armor. A damage reduction effect will be granted after you imbue the armor with mana. It also has increased fire resistance when you use it with the Flamethrower. Your flame resistance will increase by at least 3%, and up to 5%. The gloves, top, bottom, and shoes all had fire resistance attached."

"You've worked hard." Kim Ki-Rok complimented.

"No, it wasn't much. Are you leaving right away?" Kang Woo-Hyuk asked.

"Yes. I already said goodbye to Ji-Hee and texted the others last night."

"I see. I don't know what kind of Gate it is, but if you're personally involved, it must be dangerous."

Any Awakened under Level 20 could enter the Gate that Kim Ki-Rok would be visiting. Even if a break were to occur, a C-Class Hunter would be able to handle it alone. However, it was still impossible to clear due to certain traps that lay within.

"Yes. It could be considered dangerous," Kim Ki-Rok replied. "Then... I'll be off."

"Yes. I'll be waiting."

Kim Ki-Rok, escorted by Kang Woo-Hyuk, left the Guildmaster's office and went straight down to the first floor. He went to the parking lot, got into a van, and drove for about ten minutes. He parked in the parking lot of a three-story shopping building and went downstairs. Opening the boiler room and entering, he found a Gate right in the center.

"Appraisal."

[

The Labyrinth of Adanta

]

Difficulty: Levels 1–20

Reward: Unconfirmed

Based on its difficulty, it should be classified as an E-Class Gate.

Loosening his shoulders, Kim Ki-Rok equipped his shield and stepped into the Gate.

As the name suggested, the Labyrinth of Adanta was a Gate that led to an underground labyrinth. Although Earth's system offered high rewards to clear the Gate, it had been so difficult to do so that no one had ever succeeded. Of course, this excluded Kim Ki-Rok and his several lifetimes of experience. Although, this didn't exactly make things easier.

"Damn it, Adanta," he cursed at the air.

Adanta was a wizard and thief who operated in a different dimension. The phantom thief used a maze infested with monsters to hide his stolen treasure.

The existence of this treasure trove was revealed after he had been arrested, and upon learning this, the kingdom had dispatched an expedition team to recover the treasure, but not one had returned. The second expedition team had also perished. The third expedition team, while not completely wiped out, had suffered significant losses. During their expedition, they had managed to destroy over 70% of the traps set in the maze and reduced the number of monsters guarding the maze to a third of what it originally was.

The kingdom had sent a fourth expedition team that didn't even make it to the maze. The sudden appearance of demons caused the monsters to rampage, and all the countries on the continent had to allocate all their resources to prevent the demon invasion.

"But this fact was only came to light ten years later in Atlas Siege..." Kim Ki-Rok mumbled to himself.

The Atlas Siege was an S-Class Gate that would appear a decade from now. He shook his head, recalling the time he fought against the powerful demons and the monsters they led. Right now, he needed to focus on the maze before him.

Although many traps had been destroyed and the monsters were subdued through the kingdom's three expeditions, clearing the labyrinth was still daunting.

The traps set by Adanta, known as the Grand Wizard and Phantom Thief.

The lethality of the traps was proven through the kingdom's failures. However...

The mana stone was destroyed by a massive earthquake, cutting off the supply.

There was a click beneath his foot, after which the ground lightly sank and a sinister sound echoed through the chamber.

Swish!

An arrow flew out from a small hole in the right wall, but Kim Ki-Rok blocked it with the shield he had prepared and took another step forward. This time, an arrow soared at him from his left.

"Right, left."

Ping, ping

.

As if he were playing a rhythm game, he switched the shield between his hands to block the pattern of arrows.

"Right, right, left."

Ping, ping, ping

.

If the mana stone had not been destroyed, solving the traps might not have been so easy.

"Right, right, left, right."

Ping, ping, ping, ping.

"And finally..."

Kim Ki-Rok lightly jumped to dodge the giant swinging blade at the end, retrieved his shield, and drew out his longsword. In front of him stood a gatekeeping golem. However, Kim Ki-Rok walked slowly as if nothing was wrong, casually swung his longsword, and destroyed the golem.

"A golem without its mana supply is no stronger than a slime."

The golem had been barely maintaining its form after the mana stone had been destroyed. Kim Ki-Rok rummaged through the earth golem's body and retrieved a B-Class mana stone.

"It's too easy if you know the strategy, Adan-adantada."

He danced a shoulder dance with a rhythm and pulled out his Flamethrower.

"Summon Aeple."

Flare.

Small flames shot up.

"Here comes! Aeple!"

Kim Ki-Rok smiled at Aeple and made clapping sounds with his mouth. "

Clap, clap, clap, clap

."

"Hmm, CEO Kim?"

"Yes?"

"Where are we?"

"This is the schedule that I mentioned last time."

"But I was in the middle of dance practice," the Elemental protested.

"We need to make an album, right?"

"Huh?"

"We need to first earn money to buy songs and shoot music videos."

"Got it. Okay, CEO Kim! Let's get this over with."

Kim Ki-Rok moved forward while handing out instructions to Aeple.

When three paths appeared in front of them, he took the right one. Reaching a passageway just wide enough for two adults to walk side by side, he immediately called for Aeple.

"Aeple."

"Got it!"

Aeple waved her magic mic-stick to increase her elemental power, which Kim Ki-Rok used to power his Flamethrower before he pulled the trigger.

A huge blaze engulfed the corridor that had been covered in tree roots imbued with holding magic. These roots that were functioning as a mana conduit became engulfed in flames and quickly disintegrated. Traces of magic evaporated where the roots had been, signaling the end of the second trap.

A clearing appeared, but Kim Ki-Rok moved forward with his finger still pulling the trigger. A towering Tree Monster in the center of the clearing was effortlessly incinerated.

After subduing the second monster within the Gate, Kim Ki-Rok stowed away the Flamethrower in his subspace pocket and took out the spirit mana stone.

Shhhk!

Five young spirits emerged from it and began complaining right away.

"What, is it our turn?"

"It's been a while since I slept. I want to keep sleeping."

"I miss Ji-Hee."

"You guys don't think the others would continue watching the drama without us, right? It ended at such a good spot yesterday, when the main character was diagnosed with cancer."

Kim Ki-Rok ignored the chatty spirits and instructed them on their destination and tasks. "Somewhere in here, there should be a bead that we need to break. You all should have no trouble since your spirit energy has been replenished after receiving mana from Ji-Hee."

"You don't know where it is?"

"No. The bead's location changes every time."

"It changes every time? Is this a maze?"

"Yes."

"Made by a monster?"

"No. Made by Adanta."

"Adanta? Adanta the Phantom Thief?"

Both The Fortress of Living Armor and The Labyrinth of Adanta were from the same dimension.

"The Labyrinth of Adanta..."

"Sounds like CEO Kim will be earning a lot of money."

"There is specialized Spiritualism equipment for Ji-Hee to use inside," Kim Ki-Rok clarified.

"Okay!"

"You said a bead, right?"

"Yeah! Let's go!"

Specialized equipment for Kim Ji-Hee? This was a serious matter. The spirits ran straight into the passage without hesitation.