I’m Here to End This Fight - Chapter 420



Only Noblemtl

Episode 420. Dragon Lair (4)

Even today, the sound of swinging axes echoes lively inside the labyrinth.

Knock knock-!

Yuri looked around the scene with a pleasant smile on her face, as if the loud sound of the extension cord was sweet music.

‘Is this finally the end?’

It’s been about three months since we started exploring Dragon Lair.

Surprisingly, the expedition team soon found themselves in the depths of the labyrinth.

Progress is over 95%.

The astonishing figures left even the masters speechless.

‘What half a year… It’ll end this month!’

‘Huh… This was supposed to be over so quickly, but how come it’s been dragging its feet so long?’

At first, I thought the promised half year would be fast, but in half that time, I reached the depths of the labyrinth.

It was truly an incredible thing.

Of course, they were impressed, but the masters knew it too.

That this wondrous situation didn’t just happen.

‘The atmosphere of kids these days is a bit… … .’

‘Right? I’m not the only one who feels that way, right?’

‘Yeah, honestly, it was a bit… scary.’

‘The kids’ eyes are half-open.’

An exclusive opportunity only available to the top 50.

However, most of the contribution scores announced so far were at similar levels.

If you are not careful, you could end up in a situation where you suffer a lot but gain nothing.

So as time went by, competition among the explorers began to heat up, which soon led to an explosion in the speed of exploration.

The speed was so fast that the Mei and Meisters who were clearing traps and pioneering at the forefront were becoming anxious.

And soon enough, the Meisters and May discovered the cause of the heated competition… no, the culprit.

[Do you know what makes a person a cripple? It’s the glimmer of hope right in front of your eyes.]

I think I can get it if I just do a little more.

A goal that is not easily attainable.

It’s tiring and difficult, but I feel it’s a shame to give up since I’ve come this far.

A faint hope that seems to linger before your eyes, as if you just try a little bit more… a really, really just a little bit more, and it will really work out.

That was the poison that made people crippled.

It was also the poison that Yuri poured on the Goliath expedition team.

[You… manipulated the contribution score?]

[Ahehe, manipulation! The supervisors who do the evaluations are also people, so of course they can have subjective thoughts about the scores!]

Contribution is affected by 50% performance and 50% supervisor’s evaluation score.

Here, Yuri adjusted the scores of the supervisors according to their performance.

No, I was nagging the supervisors to give me those grades.

So that everyone in the expedition gets equal scores.

Because of this, the spark of competition is fueled by hope and burns brightly.

And Yuri’s plan worked out just fine.

As a result, the project achieved a remarkable 95% progress in just three months, but this was also later than Yuri had originally expected.

If this were the case, we should have already reached the depths of the labyrinth two months ago.

The reason why the pace of such exploration was slow was because of Yuri.

‘It’s called Dragon Lair! I can’t go back empty-handed after coming all this way! Oh, of course!’

Wasn’t it a legendary dragon lair?

There was something that always appeared in that legend.

The Dragon’s Treasure House, full of gold!

So Yuri deliberately adjusted the speed of her exploration and slowly searched through the Dragon Lair.

‘The unearned income you get outside of the original commission is the real sweetness.’

Yuri, who started a secret investigation, probably for personal greed.

After searching around here and there, believing that there must be a hidden treasure trove, he did find a few secret spaces.

But what greeted Yuri there were only relics that were on the verge of rotting and crumbling.

‘Tch, that’s dog hair.’

A labyrinth that is large in scale but completely empty.

Yuri’s disappointment was indescribable.

Of course, thanks to that, May and the Meisters were able to discover new relics, and they saw Yuri again, thinking that he was seriously taking the exploration.

Yuri joined us that day after completing her secret personal exploration.

“hmm?”

At the last section of the labyrinth, Yuri’s footsteps suddenly stopped.

He put his hands in his pockets and looked around the broken trap.

“hmm…….”

It must have been only recently that the advance party passed by, as the remains of the ships that May had destroyed were scattered everywhere.

These are the remains that were previously unseen as the advance party and the Gols swept them away.

Yuri stayed there for a while, looking around.

The location and angle at which the projectile debris landed.

The size, distance, etc.

Yuri’s head tilted slightly as she pondered the trap’s principles.

Meanwhile, Teresia came up next to him.

“What are you doing here? Is there a problem?”

“that is…….”

Yuri hesitated and trailed off, then shrugged.

“It’s nothing, I guess it’s just my imagination.”

“… … ?”

“But why are you here? What about the Gol tribe you are in charge of?”

“The leader has reached the entrance to the heart. Everyone is gathering there now.”

“Ah, what the heck! Where did all those damn things go without even properly collecting the remains of the trap!”

Yuri’s face lit up at the news that Theresia had delivered.

If they could open the gates of the depths and remove the traps and obstacles that would hinder the exploration of the Gols, their role would essentially be over.

“And your aunt asked me to bring you.”

“That lady? Where is she?”

“The entrance to the heart.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

Yuri hurried along with Theresia.

How long did it take?

A crowd of people gathered in front of a huge door that looked to be at least ten meters wide came into view.

About 200 Goljok and Sowol mercenaries.

And the May and Meisters closest to the door.

Many people were looking excitedly at the destination of the arduous exploration that had lasted for the past several months.

May greeted him as Yuri dug through the gap and advanced forward.

“Are you here?”

And it wasn’t just May who welcomed Yuri.

“You came!”

“Here we go!”

“Come on, this guy is here too, so hurry… let’s open it up!”

“Quick!”

The four masters were excited by Yuri’s appearance and shouted.

May sighed deeply at this and opened her mouth while looking at Yuri.

“I plan on opening that door from now on. So you… … .”

“I guess you want me to look after the old people and other Goljok here.”

“Okay, that’s the way to do it.”

Finally arrived at the depths of the labyrinth.

There have been many traps and dangers up until now, so it is impossible to predict what will happen here.

No, perhaps because it is deep, there may be even greater danger lurking.

So, May didn’t open the door randomly and was waiting for Yuri on purpose.

‘With this child’s skills… he should be able to handle a crisis situation well.’

In this labyrinth, the next strongest being is Yuri.

So May trusted him and walked towards the door.

Yuri, who saw this, shouted behind her.

“Okay, everyone, step back at least 30 steps!”

Wasn’t the three months of hard work and dedication in vain?

As soon as Yuri’s scream ended, about 200 Gols all started to back away in unison.

Of course, not everyone was like that.

Wherever you go, there are bound to be people who don’t listen.

Yuri approached the masters with an impression.

“Hey, old ladies? If you want to enjoy the rest of your life doing research and die a peaceful death, listen to me.”

“Hey, this little bastard?! You’ve seen everything! How did you get your words torn in half again!”

“You fell down after saying something like ‘half-cut’. Do you really want to be torn in half by a flying bird while you’re hanging around here? If you want to keep your old body intact and put it in a coffin, why don’t you just get behind me?”

“this……!”

“And if you’ve become a master, you should be a role model for others. What are you doing that’s embarrassing the people below you? Isn’t that right?”

As soon as Yuri finished speaking, about 200 pairs of eyes, filled with complaints and reproaches, were fixed on the back of the Meisters’ heads.

The masters awkwardly stepped back as the back of their heads became hot.

“Huh, huh!”

“Oh, we were going to go too!”

“… When you get older, your actions will become slower.”

“Oh, you’re criticizing me for something so trivial. Ahem!”

Only then, when everyone was more than thirty paces away from the stone gate, Yuri stood ten paces ahead of them and shouted.

“We’re ready to go. Let’s begin.”

May chuckled slightly at Yuri’s shout.

But soon, she erased her smile and placed both hands on the stone gate.

“Phew… … .”

May took a deep breath and her eyes widened.

and.

“Ugh!”

Veins appeared on her hands as she gave a short cry.

Ggggggg-!

The giant stone gate began to vibrate.

OMG!

The stone gate began to slowly open and move backwards.

It was truly awe-inspiring to see a woman who was only 160cm tall pushing open a huge door that looked at least ten times her size.

Ggggggggggg-!

“bout!”

Then, finally, with a confident cheer, the stone gate was pushed back as if it was being bounced, opening up a large space.

thud-!

The heavy sound of the stone gate hitting the wall struck the eardrums of the onlookers.

They stared through the open door with tense expressions.

A long hallway visible beyond the wide open door.

At the end of the passage, a huge, light-filled cavity came into view.

But what caught the explorers’ attention more than anything was the red light shining in the center of the cavity.

A red light appears at the end of a dark passage and flashes.

That was a strong temptation for the expedition.

“Mei, mei!”

“Take us there quickly!”

The red light that appeared in the depths of Dragon Lair.

What the hell is that!

Not only the Masters, but also the entire Gol expedition team were half-blinded, entranced by the red light.

And have you heard the wishes of such an expedition?

Jeebuk-.

May walked into the passageway, her window slightly open.

One step, one step.

May walks forward lightly.

The first few steps were just ordinary.

It was a very peaceful atmosphere, as if I had gone out for a walk, but that peace did not last long.

Jeebuk-.

When May took exactly three steps.

Yeah-!

Ss …

The machine started to activate and countless dark energy poured down towards her.

And that was the beginning.

Walls, ceiling, floor.

In any space where a trap could be hidden, an extremely dangerous mechanism would inevitably be activated.

But May had already anticipated this.

None of the traps that poured down like a shower could touch her.

Gunther was astonished at the spectacle.

“… That’s the Shadow Queen.”

Like a shapeless shadow, she moved freely through the treacherous institution.

At the same time, Changyeong, who had extended from May, carefully destroyed the trap.

Quaz- bang bang-!

About 2 minutes passed like that?

May, who had broken all the traps, finally reached the end of the passage.

At that moment, I was about to feel a little relieved.

“… … ?!”

As if anticipating her movements, traps were activated sequentially in all directions, leaving no room for escape.

May was the first to show her bewilderment at the brutal baptism of death.

‘What the heck?!’

How can there be such a vicious organization?!

She swung her spear at a speed close to full power for the first time since entering the labyrinth.

Crunch-.

bang-!

Finally, with a soft sound, the last organ came crashing down.

So May finally passed through the passage and entered the common area.

“Phew… … .”

Is it really over?

A son-in-law who is incredibly quiet.

She looked around tensely, then looked down at her waist.

Then, the long, fluttering hem of the clothes came into view.

Surprisingly, a mere institution tore off the master’s clothes.

At this, May groaned.

“under…….”

What on earth did the ancient dwarves create and install such a vicious machine to stop?

If anyone other than himself had entered here, he would have been torn to pieces.

She was sighing at the eerie sight of the institution when she came to her senses at the sound of a scream coming from behind her.

“Mei, mei! Are you done?!”

“Can we go?!”

A very excited and restless voice.

May came to her senses and looked around.

‘It’s wide.’

The size of the common area was so huge that it could not be contained at a glance.

May looked around the room quickly but carefully.

After confirming that there was no particular danger in the area, we returned to the passageway that was full of traps and continued our inspection.

If an organ that you couldn’t destroy were to be activated, it would be a big problem.

Only after two rounds of tests had been completed and May had confirmed that there was no danger, did she give permission.

“You may come in.”

“Ohhh!”

“Wow!”

As soon as May’s permission was given, the Meister and the other Gols ran towards the heart like children.

The Sowol mercenary group members who would normally have stopped those goblins.

But now they didn’t really try to dissuade the Goljok.

They arrived at the destination and the Master deemed it safe, so they thought their job was done.

Instead, they too followed the Goljok and walked into the depths.

They are curious too.

The heart of Dragon Lair.

What on earth does it look like and what on earth could it possibly be?

Yuri followed the Sowol Mercenaries as they slowly walked into the passage.

When I got about halfway into the passage.

“hmm…….”

Yuri’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as she suddenly stopped walking.

Teresia looked back at Yuri.

“What’s wrong? What’s wrong?”

Yuri tilted her head in response to her question.

“I just found it a bit… interesting.”

“what.”

“This institutional method is so familiar.”

“Are you familiar with the institutional style?”

Yuri nodded.

A faint sense of foreboding felt from the very beginning of the deep thought.

At first, it was just a strange sense of familiarity, which I thought was just something I had felt wrong.

However, seeing May break through the passage and the organs activated in the passage made me realize the true nature of that sense of foreboding.

It wasn’t Yuri’s illusion, nor was it just a simple feeling of discomfort.

“The way the machine works, the principles, and the order in which the traps are placed. It’s all similar to what Se-gyeong and I designed… no, it’s the same.”

The best institution created through repeated research during the cradle days to catch John.

It was as if the very thing that had almost turned John into a scapegoat had been installed in this passageway.

The reason why Yuri simply thought it was strange and just passed it over even though she knew that was simple.

Because he and Se-gyeong were the only two people in the world who knew the principles of this organization.

“Well, there’s no way that old man, who must be spinning around in his cradle right now, would have come all the way here to make something like this.”

As she said that, Yuri snickered.

“It’s funny. The machine that the old man and I put our heads together to create was actually created thousands of years ago by someone else.”

Are people’s thoughts all the same?

Or does it mean that their institutional knowledge has reached the level of the ancient dwarves?

When Yuri lets out a mutter mixed with admiration.

“Huh? Yuri, you didn’t know?”

Julia, who had been eavesdropping on Yuri and Teresia’s conversation, suddenly interrupted.

Yuri’s head turned back.

“what?”

“There was a day you went missing, a day when the labyrinth of sin collapsed.”

“however?”

“That day, the Gol tribe also disappeared.”

“…ok?”

Yuri blinked and asked again.

“Sarah… lost? That Segyeong Walker?”

“As far as we know, one of the beings who cooperated with the Baekgeom Regiment that attacked the cradle at that time was that Segyeong Walker. And when the Baekgeom Regiment fled from the cradle, it was confirmed that the Gol tribe disappeared with them.”

Yuri’s expression hardened at Julia’s story.