Genius Engineer in the Labyrinth - Chapter 404



Only Noblemtl

58th floor (4)

[3rd Research Institute]

It was the place that Alan had been searching for so long.

It’s been four years since I first became aware of the existence of a cure when I was 19, when Sophia helped me heal my body.

Judging from the writings on the tablet obtained from the snowfield, the cure for excessive magic was sleeping here. This was also an issue that was further verified through Katan’s powder.

His heart pounded loudly. But it was only for a moment, as Alan’s cold reason urged him to act as usual.

As Alan gave the signal, the spiders spread throughout the lab, waiting at the entrance for a moment until they could bring back their prey of information.

The interior was very dark, without any light. The structure had no windows from the beginning, and the magic lights were all broken or had lost their power supply.

Taylor kicked the wall lightly.

“Why no windows? To cut costs?”

“There are many magic and technologies that can replace windows.”

For example, you could take a picture of the outside scenery with a camera and project it on a wall in real time. The possibilities were endless.

“There is also an assumption that they are designed to withstand extreme conditions. Even with reinforcement, windows are still far less durable than walls.”

“Are you saying that it was built under a lava lake from the beginning?”

“There is space and the deep sea.”

“Even if space is like that, how deep is it? The bottom of the lava lake is said to be about 600m deep.”

“The oceanic crust and the continental crust may have flipped over.”

“I find it hard to imagine.”

How would a living being see such a scene? People fall in an instant, and changes in perception are phenomena that occur over an eternity.

But if they were ancient, who knows? The dragons would have been with them, so it’s quite possible that they literally turned the planet upside down. Looking at the red land, it was obvious what the outcome would have been.

“I wish there was a cure.”

“If you don’t have it, there’s nothing I can do.”

Even if the ending isn’t that great, as long as the process is enjoyable, that’s fine. This time it won’t be that great, but you’ll still get something out of it.

Alan touched the round door that was the only connection between the outside and the inside. All he could feel was the cold feel of the metal. He couldn’t have imagined that there was a lake of lava outside.

Nicola looked up with his eyes wide open.

“The snail covered the lab with its body. Is it angry?”

“Even so, it’s just a snail.”

The ruins are part of the labyrinth, and monsters cannot go against the labyrinth.

Alan turned around again. The information the spiders had captured was arriving one after another. The interior was in the form of a biotechnology laboratory. Given Katan’s special body, it was a very natural result.

“hmm···.”

“Is there a problem?”

“It’s a ruin, just like Chairman Jake said.”

All the tools needed for the experiment, such as test tubes, flasks, microscopes, and power detectors, were broken. The container that contained the samples was broken, and the place where the terminal was supposed to be was empty.

The hallway was the same. There were scratch marks from fingernails and razor blades everywhere, and the ceiling finish was full of holes.

“Who attacked?”

“It must be a symbol of not passing it on to the next person. It was really scraped cleanly.”

“You have another way, right?”

Nicola smiled strangely and flicked his fingers in the air. There was no guarantee that it would work out, and he decided to go around on his own for now, since it would consume a lot of mental and magical power.

There was another motive. The powder I had met above the clouds said there was a powder here too, so I was planning to look for it.

But even after going around the lab, there was no sign of the powder’s whereabouts.

While his colleagues were clearing the entrance and remodeling it into a dormitory, Alan was ready to see the labyrinth’s thread. When Alan tried to move his hand, Zion stopped him.

“Junior, you can’t do that here. Let’s go somewhere else and do it together.”

“I forgot for a moment.”

When Alan touches the thread that is visible only to him, the surroundings change. The ceiling may flip over, or objects that were not there may suddenly appear.

“I almost ruined the camp.”

“Let’s go.”

“Look at that. He just slips away because he doesn’t want to prepare for camping.”

Zion lightly brushed off Taylor’s words and linked arms with Allen. The slender body dragged the power suit forward.

“Come back in an hour to eat.”

“huh.”

“He’s reacting when I tell him to give him food. I can see what he’s thinking!”

Taylor’s voice grew fainter.

Alan and Zion walked through the dark hallway. The spiders left here and there for surveillance and detection detected their master’s presence. The lights flickered on like sensor lights.

“I think a ghost is coming out.”

“Senior, are you afraid of ghosts?”

“no.”

I knew it. Ordinary souls can’t affect reality, and those who can can be cut down with magic power. You can absorb them like lunch with your spiritual eyes.

Alan loved the process of getting to the end, but this time he decided to see the results first. He entered a room that he assumed was the director’s office.

The reason I think so is because only here are traces of wooden furniture left. There is nothing on the ground of the red land. In a ruined world, if you are the only one using wood, you must be a high-ranking person.

“Are you starting?”

“yes.”

Alan was in a state of semi-concentration. Magic and mental power circulated through his brain and into both eyes. The left and right sides glowed blue and green respectively, and the space between his eyebrows became faintly tinted white.

The labyrinth’s thread was visible. Unlike other floors or locations, there were many damaged areas.

‘Could it have something to do with the reason it became a ruin?’

I put aside my curiosity and touched a thread. The sawdust and wood chips scattered on the floor reacted. When I pulled hard, a wooden desk appeared.

“···.”

“I’ll look for it.”

Zion moved quickly without Alan saying anything. He quickly opened drawers and even tore open the desk to see if there were any hidden items.

“It’s empty.”

“after···.”

Alan took a deep breath and let go of the thread. The desk returned to sawdust and wood chips.

[Body temperature rises!]

[Cooling start!]

The power suit radiated cold air. My boiling brain and my heavy eyes felt slightly better. The cold wind also gently rubbed my flushed cheeks.

“are you okay?”

“yes.”

Although the process of manipulating the thread was difficult, it was very minor compared to the pain caused by excessive magic power.

As Alan moved his fingers, other furniture and magical tools regained their original form. Each time, Zion moved as quickly as possible to reduce the burden on Alan.

But the results were poor compared to the effort put in. The income was completely non-existent.

“Let’s move.”

“No. It’s been an hour.”

“···.”

“Now that we’re here, let’s take it slow. My junior said that research would take several years.”

Alan had never expected to hear such words from Zion. The magical training method was definitely changing her.

“My breathing has become ragged.”

As Zion said this, he went behind Alan and grabbed his waist. Then he lifted it up. The power suit weighed hundreds of kilograms, but it was like a feather to Depth 5.

“Let go.”

“I’ll help you.”

“What is the name of your magical training method?”

“···.”

Only then did Zion release the strength in her arms. The power suit, which had landed lightly, walked beside her.

As we returned to the entrance, Taylor waved.

“Did you find anything?”

“no.”

“Take it slow. Even if you stay here for a year, who would complain…? Come to think of it, a year is too long. If it’s about two months, I can do it somehow….”

Alan pondered as he ate the food Taylor prepared for him.

‘Should I look for the Catan particle? Will it appear if I’m alone like last time?’

I looked at the bowl at the sound of the clinking. I had been thinking about something else and didn’t even realize that I had already finished eating. The bowl was empty.

‘Someone might have taken all the records from Lab 3. Catan is not on my side.’

Allan had only encountered one of the fragments that Katan had scattered all over the place. It wouldn’t have been surprising if someone else had obtained similar information.

He stroked the key quietly. It looked like a white cane, but it was actually a spear. The powder said that the spearhead was hidden here.

‘Will it resonate?’

Alan woke up the sleeping Key. The slightly rebellious boy of late was silent.

“ruler.”

Kkk!

The kid is a dragon, and dragons love treasure. When Alan held out the key, which he normally wouldn’t touch, the kid happily licked and chewed it. Like dog gum.

Only then did the key wake up. It trembled as if it was begging to be saved. Alan stared at it for a while, then reached out when the key sagged.

Kyurur···.

The boy made pitiful sounds, but Alan remained calm. He collected the saliva on the spear into a small vial and breathed magic into it.

The key responded quickly. Alan walked down the hallway again, holding the key that was emitting waves.

Zion tried to get up but was caught by Taylor.

“I’ll go.”

“You’re going to rest again without even preparing a meal.”

“Washing dishes is so hard.”

“Stop playing dumb. Should I explain it to you step by step? See that square box over there? It’s a dishwasher. Follow along. Dishwasher. Put your dishes in there, press the button, and you’re done.”

This time, Taylor and Shiva followed quietly behind, while Zion and Nicola took care of cleaning up.

“Sir, he’s definitely being lazy.”

“A great explorer is also good at coordinating opinions. Good luck.”

Nicola, who is very narcissistic, also has a mild obsessive-compulsive disorder. If it were just Zion and her, it would be obvious who would clean up. I sighed and turned around, but guess what? Zion was cleaning up quickly.

“Who are you?”

“I’ll hurry and follow you.”

“Leave me alone?”

“Hey?”

“Don’t you know Jeon Woo-jo?”

When doing something, explorers usually worked in pairs. That way, it was easier to solve problems and deal with them.

“Ah···. I won’t do it.”

Zion sat down with a thud. But after much of the cleaning was done.

Alan walked slowly down the hallway, his senses sharpened by the vibrations the key made. If the blade was hidden in the lab, he would surely answer.

I stopped abruptly near the vertical shaft where the elevator would have entered and exited. The waves emitted by the key were slightly muffled.

Shiva threw a spider down the passage. It fell, emitting light.

“Brother, I saw it before, but it’s a blocked place.”

The passage below was completely clogged with dirt and waste materials. It was so solid that it didn’t even break.

“I will adjust the thread.”

As soon as Alan moved his fingers, Shiva and Taylor clung to his side. It was the safest place to be, even when they didn’t know what was going to happen.

The broken ceiling was restored to its original state. The fallen safety door appeared with a thud. The dirt that filled the passage disappeared, and finally the elevator was restored. All Alan had to do was remove the elevator again.

“Let’s jump.”

“That would be quick.”

The three of them landed on the floor with a thud. Alan slowly unwound the string as he exited the passage. The passage was blocked again.

Meanwhile, Taylor gazed down the dark hallway.

“There was a lower floor.”

“You guessed it.”

“When I first looked back, I didn’t see the power plant.”

Alan continued to follow the distortion of the waves. He reached a large room. Of course, it was a mess too.

A large cylindrical device resembling a telescope lay shattered and lying about. Alan turned his head in the direction of the broken lens. In the center of the room, he saw a single, intact metallic disc.

The distortion of the waves was most severe there.

Alan approached the key slowly, his vision becoming blurry and strangely distorted as he did so.

“Is it just me?”

“I don’t know.”

“It’s the same.”

I left Taylor and Shiva’s negativity behind and reached the original plate. And I poked the key at the point where the scenery was most distorted.

[Is it okay?]

[of course.]

Alan looked around as he heard the suspicious voice. It was the room he had originally been standing in. But it was much more intact. The cylindrical device that resembled a telescope was standing upright, and on the disk was an ice steel tube with an unidentified substance sloshing around.

[really?]

[That’s right.]

Alan looked at the owners of the voices. The one asking the question was a machine with a brain in a vat, and the one answering was a gaunt old man.

‘Catan···.’

Katan held a key with a blade intact. The machine spun its wheels around him.

‘The brain of an ancient man.’

Alan, who had dissected many of the ancient cavemen, knew it at first sight.

[The treatment period is 3 years.]

[Gilgun.]

[You can think of it as taking a breather.]

Alan listened to them and thought.

‘Will it take me 3 years? There must be a lot of newly registered papers. Very good.’

It was beneficial to get better and have more things to read.

The machine spoke as it manipulated a cylinder that resembled a telescope.

[The procedure will be completed properly, but you don’t have a blessed heart. I don’t know if your body will be able to handle it.]

[There is a way. Wait.]

[But why?]

[I want to review the procedure again.]

[Are you doubting me?!]

The brain in the jar was working hard to manipulate the telescope with its mechanical arm when it suddenly lost its temper. But Katan persisted.

Eventually, the brain in the jar gave in. Then, Katan slumped down on the plate and slowly recited the procedure and the necessary materials, as if he were explaining it to someone.