Genius Engineer in the Labyrinth - Chapter 14



Only Noblemtl

Maze City (1)

Alan woke up in the morning and opened the motel window. A dry, warm breeze and sunlight poured into the room.

The place where Alan is currently is a city near the desert of a country called ‘Vega’.

Having grown up in Lanka, where the weather is cool all year round, I can’t stand the heat, but I was able to adapt to the heat at Aromaa, so it was fine.

Aromaia is located near the equator, so the temperature was similar to here. In fact, the humidity there was higher, so it felt even hotter.

Unlike Aromua, which is closer to the Southern Hemisphere if we strictly follow the equator, Vega is clearly in the Northern Hemisphere.

The Soldos Federation is also located in the Northern Hemisphere, with its southern border bordering Vega.

Alan’s gaze turned north. The border was hidden by the terrain, but his head naturally turned to where he wanted to go.

As I turned my gaze back to the nearby area and observed the people and sounds of the city, there was a knock on the door and Vito came in.

“You were awake, after all.”

“Why do you knock if you’re just going to come in?”

“I was going to wake you up if you were still sleeping. You were supposed to go to the hospital this morning.”

The excuse was good. As Alan was packing his bags, smiling to himself, Vito sidled up to his left.

“The bones have recovered and the muscles in my left arm have returned to their original state.”

“Fortunately, I recovered well.”

“I didn’t know I’d have to have a cast for two months.”

“Because the bone was broken into small pieces. The doctor said it was a comminuted fracture.”

It only took two months because medical magic had developed and Allen had also learned magical training methods, which enhanced his natural healing powers.

Of course, there were ways to treat it faster, but Alan, who was penniless, could not afford to pay the amount the doctor was asking for.

After that, after a month of muscle recovery and a total of three months, Alan had become an adult, 18 years old.

Alan glanced in the direction of Lanka and the Serpent Islands as he left the motel.

The place I reached was not a hospital, but a clean back alley. There was a hospital here too. Although it was run by an unlicensed doctor.

Alan went down to the basement and knocked on the iron door. After waiting for a moment, a brown-skinned orc with white hair opened the door.

“The kids are here. Come in quickly.”

Oak, a doctor and owner of an illegal clinic, was a rare purist these days, which meant he refused to wear magicware and kept his body as it was when he was born.

Oak entered the examination room, put on his glasses, and sat down on the chair. Alan stood and waited for his explanation.

The orc turned on the monitor and pointed to a picture of his brain. It was the product of a mana resonance imaging scanner, commonly known as an MRI.

“These are the results from last time’s test. How do they look?”

“There are tentacle-like things wrapping around the brain. The optic nerve of the artificial eye is very long.”

“Yes. That’s why I stay away from magicware. It’s hard to control my own body, so why would I abandon my perfectly good body and put in a foreign substance?”

The orc, who had been preaching his usual theories, coughed in vain as he realized his shameful behavior. As a doctor, he should not lose his balance in front of a patient.

“Hmm. Let’s keep watching. I reached into every nook and cranny of the brain, as I could see the nerves extending from the artificial eyeball on the left. If you want to remove it, you’ll have to open the skull and operate carefully, but I can’t do it.”

As he spoke, the doctor gulped down the plastic water bottle. Judging from the faint smell of alcohol, the contents were alcohol.

The doctor noticed Alan’s gaze and smiled. He was so confident that he was speechless.

“The driving force of my life. They are taking away my license because I had a few drinks and had surgery. I have never failed.”

“Then where can I do it?”

“What? Oh, you mean surgery? You should go to a hospital in the capital or a large hospital in the Soldos Federation. But the brain is a sensitive area…”

It meant that he was not sure. In fact, it was difficult to remove, but Alan was calm. It was unlikely that Novak would have made something that would harm his body, and above all, his autonomy was guaranteed now, unlike when he was suffering from the bomb necklace.

As Alan stared intently at the brain scan, the doctor drummed his fingers on the desk.

“But can you tell me how this happened? I’ve been wearing a white coat for 30 years, but this is a rare case.”

“I lost my eyesight and used Oparts, and this is what happened.”

Oparts. A word referring to ‘relics that transcend time’ that can be obtained in the labyrinth.

Research into Ooparts, which are armed with incomprehensible abilities similar to magic but different, naturally led to the development of modern civilization.

That’s why Ooparts were the very purpose of those exploring the labyrinth. There were also magic stones, but they were less important compared to Ooparts.

Of course, not all Oparts are necessarily beneficial to people.

The doctor readily agreed after hearing the fake explanation that Alan and Vito had discussed in advance. It wasn’t completely false, as it was actually an item that Novak had modified based on Oparts.

“I didn’t know it was a cursed item. Young people are not so careful. If you want to know the changes, come back next month. I’ll lower the price a bit because I’m curious too.”

“it’s okay.”

“I knew it. As an elder, I have one piece of advice to give you: take care of your body as much as possible when you’re young so you don’t suffer later on.”

“Can’t you just change it to MagicWear these days?”

“That’s the problem. Thinking that there is something extra makes you treat your body carelessly, and ultimately causes moral decay in the dignity of the human body and life. If you look at the news or social statistics these days, the number of deaths and suicides has increased significantly, and it’s all because of Magic Wear, losing self-love and…”

Alan exchanged a glance with Vito and quickly left the clinic. The diagnosis was complete, and there was no need to hear the speech since he had no reason to come back.

As I was leaving for the street where people were walking, Vito spoke to me from the side.

“That doctor. He wouldn’t go around talking nonsense, would he?”

“He may be a drunkard, but his skills and trustworthiness are solid. That’s why he’s been hanging on in the back alleys all this time. He’s checked everything out and chosen him. Anyway, Noh Bak is dead, and there’s no way the cartel will keep its promise.”

“Right. But are your eyes really okay?”

“Yes, no problem.”

Aside from the time he briefly went berserk after killing Nobak, he hasn’t caused any trouble so far. He also saved a small magic stone just in case.

Even though Alan said it was okay, Vito continued to worry beside him.

“You said it was difficult to remove it arbitrarily, so wouldn’t we be able to find the answer in Maze City, where all knowledge is gathered?”

“There may be a way for me to just use it once stabilization is complete.”

“And you also have hyper-magic powers… umm….”

“My life expectancy is shorter than other people’s. I know that very well.”

“If you receive proper treatment, you can live like everyone else. Or you can find a good magic training method. Soldos is a powerful country that cannot be compared to Vega, and Maze City is a large city…”

The words ‘big city’ brought back memories of Alan’s past. He was in a warm embrace in a shack.

‘A person must first go to a big country or a big city to learn. If you have power, others cannot do whatever they want. Look at our Lanka. We are small and powerless, so from time to time, bad guys come and invade us.’

‘You, Alan, are five now. Stop talking nonsense. Since you bought the meat, eat it before it gets cold.’

Like warm memories, people had to have abilities. It could be force, power, or money.

Whichever path you take, you will have far more choices than you have now. Then, the opportunity to heal your body and examine your eyes will naturally follow.

Arriving at the public parking lot, Alan climbed into the passenger seat of the SUV.

Magic Engineers were a profession that was welcomed everywhere, so it wasn’t hard to make a living without an ID. That’s how I got my medical bills and a car.

Vito drove out of the city. He was headed north, towards the Soldos-Vega border, to be exact.

Alan opened the passenger window and put his arm through it. When he found something interesting or a creature, his left eye expanded its field of vision at the user’s will.

The colorful dots, lines, and surfaces that were visible when dealing with the old man were no longer visible.

‘It must have been a runaway phenomenon caused by forcibly wearing an unfinished eye. If something like that happens again, you can stabilize it with a magic stone. Or, the magic stone itself could be the key to completion…’

The eyes had other functions besides expanding the field of vision.

Like the measuring instruments used during my assistant days, I was able to check the flow of horsepower or abnormalities in the circuit. Although it consumed horsepower, I didn’t have to carry around any additional equipment.

It was said that only the highest-end artificial eyes for magic engineers had this function, so it was beneficial in many ways.

Vito, who was unusually quiet, turned the steering wheel in a different direction when he saw the border checkpoint.

Without a passport or ID, Alan obviously couldn’t get through. Even if he could, he would have to go through all sorts of checks, and he didn’t know how long that would take.

For times like this, there was a practice called illegal immigration. After driving for a while, the SUV arrived at a mountainous area just as it was getting dark.

Alan and Vito held each other’s right hands. The warmth was transmitted as it was.

“Thank you for everything.”

“I am more grateful.”

“Since we escaped together, let’s call it a draw.”

“Yeah. That’s just like you. Be careful when you go to Maze City. They say the city is big and ferocious and they eat people. I’m not joking. I’m telling you to stay centered and not waver without a sense of urgency. Of course, you wouldn’t do that, but…”

“Thank you for the advice. Where do you go now?”

“I’m originally from Vega, but I was kidnapped when I was young. I remember the name of the city, so I should go there and look for my family.”

“Then why didn’t you go quickly?”

“I have to see you go. They’re gathering there just like I heard. Go quickly.”

As the smuggling broker explained, people were swarming. The way weak fish survive predators is to stick together, and their strategy was the same.

AKA ‘As long as it’s not me’ operation.

After saying goodbye to Vito, Alan quietly took up residence on their outskirts. Soon after, armed brokers appeared and made a huge hole in the border wall.

Alan looked back before crossing the border. Vito was waving from afar. Alan responded and stepped forward.

Walking along the dark mountain path, Alan quickly understood why they had to stick together.

Step by step!

The sound of horse hooves was incredibly loud, and they were getting closer and closer.

WHEEW! BOOM!

A flare exploded in the sky, and the whole area instantly became like daylight. The flare was also a product of magical engineering, as the light source illuminated the surroundings like the sun.

At the same time, a group of cavalrymen attacked the illegal immigrants. They were the Border Patrol of the Soldos Federation.

The horses they rode were crossbreeds born from mixing the genes of a unicorn or bicorn with a normal horse. They had a strong personality, but were not as difficult as the two original beasts.

They chose horses rather than cars because they had to travel over a variety of terrains, as the route taken by illegal immigrants was as rugged as ever.

The patrolmen twirled their lassos like cowboys and drove away the illegal immigrants.

“Hey, save me!”

The snare caught the goblin. The goblin’s body shot up and into the mouth of a large flying ray.

They didn’t actually catch them, they just collected the illegal immigrants and handed them over to Vega.

Some people were trampled by horses or rolled down hillsides to their deaths, but the patrol paid no attention.

“Come on! Come on! Run!”

“Please let me pass!”

“Shut up! You are all exiled!”

“I want to get a job! If I go back, I’ll starve to death!”

“Do you think we are volunteers? Ask your country for that!”

Alan, who was walking behind, covered himself with a cloth with [Fairy Tale] written on it. Fairy Tales can be used in many ways, but in this case, the ability to blend in with the surrounding scenery was needed.

Runes were mysterious letters whose effects varied depending on who carved them and what intention they had when drawing them, even if they were the same word.

In the muddy waters where patrolmen and illegal immigrants mixed, Alan disappeared like a ghost.

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