Genius Engineer in the Labyrinth - Chapter 377
Only Noblemtl
Forbidden Zone (6)
Alan placed the stone in the right place. Iris and the Collector had pushed the entire city down, so the locations were actually similar.
The tombstone vibrated slightly and shot upward a mixed light of black and white. The hole made by the fortress closed, and the raging darkness became calm.
Alan lifted the key. Now it was time to keep his promise to the Catan shard.
[···.]
Even though I concentrated, I couldn’t hear the voice of Sonia, the disciple of Katan. I don’t know what the Collector did to me, but I lost my will and only played the role of preserving the mental realm.
The key obeyed obediently. It moved more eagerly than usual and planted its body right in the center of the tombstone.
As Alan twisted his hand, a roughly-formed, clay-like soul flowed out. Losing its original form meant that its ego had dispersed.
Sonia’s soul disappeared like that. Not to the sky, not to the ground, but just right there.
The realm of the mind was quiet, perhaps because the Collector had been causing a commotion and absorbing a lot of darkness. The two bound souls seemed sufficient to serve as pillars.
“Let’s leave it like this.”
“I thought you would just pull it out.”
“Because it would be a problem if something happened in the restricted area.”
“Are you the type who cares about that kind of thing?”
“Because you’re not alone.”
Alan turned his head from looking at Taylor and Shiva, who were covering their mouths with their hands. A being with a powerful presence was approaching them.
The dot floating in the sky strode forward. Iris walked across the sky with her back to her as if taking a walk. With each movement of her legs, tens or hundreds of meters were shortened.
By the time Iris landed, Liberio and the advance party had arrived. Liberio’s huge horns were all broken, and there were traces of blood vomited from the corners of his mouth. The others were also at least seriously injured.
They were all at depth 6, so they didn’t show it on the outside, but they were clearly visible to Alan.
‘The fortress’s defenses were weak.’
The Collector’s main force went out to fend off the advance party. Thanks to this, Alan was able to raid the empty house and obtain loot of enormous value.
Iris, who was only wearing a torn suit, took out a cigarette from her bosom. When she rubbed her fingers, the cigarette burst into flames. She opened her eyes half-heartedly and looked in this direction.
“It’s been a while.”
“Are you treating me like a senior? Thank you very much.”
“I’m doing it because it’s me.”
“Oh, thank you.”
Sophia and Iris talked to each other without formality. Although she looked to be in her late twenties, she was actually in her seventies. However, compared to Sophia, she was more than 30 years older.
“You are going too far.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I worked so hard to catch bugs, but someone else just grabs the nuts and eats them. It’s so sad that I’m about to cry.”
“That’s life.”
“It’s unfair. I know it.”
Seven stars appeared in the sky and covered Iris with their light. Iris boasted and put on the seven colors, then quickly took them off.
Sophia’s expression slightly distorted as she witnessed the proof of depth 7. After exchanging blows, the two finally relaxed their faces and smiled.
“You were able to explore thanks to me, so please let me know. Do you have any good information?”
“that···.”
Sophia looked at Alan. Then Iris’s eyes sparkled.
“Senior, you’re not the type of person to be mindful of others… Time really is scary. What are you? You go around bragging that you have a depth of 6. Who told you how to manage your energy?”
“I’m Alan. I can’t help feeling this way.”
“Where have I heard that name?”
As Iris tilted her head, a man wearing the Chilseong uniform limped toward her.
“Ah, you were the prospect that Jake and Lumiere were watching. It’s a bit much to call someone a prospect with a depth of 6? But considering your age…”
Iris’s eyes became mysterious.
“I have a granddaughter. She looks just like me when I was little. She’s really pretty. If you’d like to introduce her to me, let me know.”
“Who said that? I’ve been cutting people’s necks with a knife.”
Iris chuckled at Sophia’s words.
“Is it just me? Everyone here is probably the same.”
“That’s right.”
No one had clean hands. Even Liberio had human blood on his hands. Magic users were too accustomed to the daily routine of clashing with and defeating someone.
Iris blew smoke towards Alan. The distance was so great that the smoke disappeared into thin air.
“He’s a scary kid who even makes his seniors watch his step. Tell me.”
“The Collector’s Fortress can cultivate a body of depth 7.”
“That’s amazing.”
Iris chewed on the filter with a bland face, and the vanguard opened their ears wide and opened their eyes wide.
“You don’t seem very surprised.”
“It would naturally have the ability to be called a decisive weapon. I just guessed. What else?”
“Security was too tight to explore everything.”
“end?”
“yes.”
The smoke Iris had exhaled changed into the shape of a hand and began to wave. It was a signal that her business was over.
Alan swapped places with Sophia. Taylor asked slyly.
“Are you just telling me? Hmm… That would be good.”
“It’s better to spread it than to keep it a secret and get caught.”
“If possible, try not to go outside Maze City.”
“Because of the collector?”
“Yeah. Aren’t you scared?”
“You seem like a very busy person. I wonder if you have the time to pay attention to us.”
“What does that mean?”
Collectors have a purpose. It is natural for people to pursue a purpose in life, but the process was so horrible that it was criticized.
“What happened when he revealed the Fragment of Wishes?”
“Everyone is heading to the labyrinth. The number of people coming to Maze City has also increased significantly.”
“What about the twilight road?”
“I was caught moving a labyrinth creature that would die if I moved floors to the twilight path.”
“The collector will have something he wants to take out of the labyrinth.”
Of course, there are limitations to the Twilight Path. Since the Twilight Path only connects 10-story units, creatures must pass through the door, and if they do, they die.
“What about exceptions?”
Taylor looked around and wrote ‘Ancient’ on Alan’s palm. An Ancient who went to the cave in the land of dinosaurs and died was certainly unusual.
‘He died in the end. Wait, what if he was a soul?’
Then the story changes a bit. It was a problem worth pondering, but Alan had more important research topics left to do. Sophia also kept giving him hints.
Alan nodded, and Sophia also stood up. She called her disciples.
“You guys have had a hard time too. Take care of yourself.”
“Is there anything else you want me to do? Usually, do this, that…”
“You guys are getting older too, so I can’t keep ordering you around.”
Fyodor and Ivan had an uneasy expression on their faces, but they agreed when the teacher told them to hurry up.
The escape was easy. Iris lit the pile of cigarette butts and grabbed the air, spreading it apart. The space tore open, revealing a colorful outside.
Before disbanding, Iris snapped her fingers. Alan caught the number written on the spinning business card.
“Is this Iris’s contact information?”
“My granddaughter.”
Alan took his business card. He could feel the burning gaze from behind him.
*
Sophia was amazed at Alan’s warehouse-house.
“You remodeled the warehouse.”
“yes.”
“It’s a very scary place.”
The spider automatons attached to the walls were palm-sized and looked like toys, but they were more dangerous than wild beasts. Security automatons were hidden throughout the warehouse, and defensive magic circles were densely engraved on each pillar.
Alan handed his business card to Zion, who kept asking for it, and headed downstairs. When he came back up, he would definitely say he accidentally lost it.
Sophia asked Nicola, who followed her.
“Why are you coming?”
“Why did you come, Sophia?”
Nicolado, being a wizard, became very strong in front of an interesting research topic. He stiffened his neck and answered stiffly.
Sophia looked down into the basement, rather curiously, and then fixed her gaze on a large sphere.
“You expanded the underground space. That thing in the corner is…”
“It’s the soul.”
“Oh, to hell.”
“With the soul···.”
“Only necromancers call themselves that.”
Alan quietly took out the test tube. It contained a decapitated clone of the Collector, bathed in a suspicious liquid.
“Where should I start… Any good ideas?”
“It’s difficult.”
Allen examined the clone with his Ma-an and Yeong-an fully activated, but surprisingly, he found it difficult to understand. He could not see why the magic circuits were splitting in that way, or why the magic power was amplified.
“It was beyond understanding.”
“That’s depth 7. In the Eastern Continent, it’s called Ishin-gyeong (entering the divine realm).”
“Is this the realm of stepping into the divine? It really suits you.”
“How can a mere human analyze God?”
But the wizard never gives up. So did Alan, who prepared all sorts of testing devices while they were talking. When Alan gave a signal, the devices came to him on their own.
“They all have soul stones implanted. Are they artificial spirits?”
“It’s artificial intelligence.”
Artificial spirits and artificial intelligence are slightly different. The former is in the stage of awakening the self, while the latter moves only according to the entered star characters.
Nicola kept an eye on the clone as she set up her equipment around the test tube.
“It won’t move suddenly, right?”
“If you cut off its neck and it moves, it’s not a living thing.”
“It’s depth 7. You must have seen the Master turn into a phoenix.”
“Well, that makes sense.”
Nicola finished setting up, shivering.
A few days passed like that. The three people, who looked disheveled, came to the same conclusion.
“You need software to match your hardware.”
The physical and mental development of a magic user is the same for Alan. Although his body is far behind, his magical capacity is increasing at a frightening rate.
“And this is a collector’s item.”
It was absurd to think that someone else could properly handle the body that was created by the collector’s spirit and imagination.
Alan crossed his arms and looked at the clone.
“You sent Sonia away too quickly.”
“···Wouldn’t you have been more terrified?”
Sophia didn’t know what state Sonia’s soul was in. Alan also changed the subject because he was sorry.
“But you can still downgrade it and use it. Or you can use it as food for the bio-armor or consume it as a material for humanization.”
“It’s a bit weird for the collector’s body to enter the body…”
Nicola made a reluctant expression.
“Well, how about the calculation assistant? I drilled a hole in his brain, but his magic circuits are all intact, so he’ll be fine with just a little bit of work.”
“How about a cane with a collector’s head on it?”
“yes.”
Nicola furrowed his brow, and Sophia looked away for a moment.
“Collectors also compress brains and make them into jewelry. This is similar to that. Think of them as monsters, not people.”
“They make equipment by tearing off bones, skin, and scales.”
“I guarantee the performance. The casting speed will be halved, and the power will at least double.”
“oh···.”
“The magic power consumption will increase, but wizards originally defeat enemies with firepower. If we polish up the appearance a bit, it will be the same as ordinary equipment. Who would know that the staff material is a collector?”
“Devil! You’re tempting me again!”
Nicola shook her head vigorously and ran up to the first floor. Alan turned his head as he heard the door slam shut.
“How about you, Sophia? I pulled out your spine and…”
“That’s a remark worthy of a shaman.”
“You don’t seem to mind much.”
“I have experience too. No, that’s only natural for a wizard. He’s naive.”
“Nicola has that side to her.”
This is an era where the word human rights carries the same weight as a politician’s promise. In a world where the law of the jungle and the winner takes all, power is everything. If we had not escaped the fortress, the situation would have been the opposite.
A few days later, Alan emerged from the basement carrying three pieces of equipment.