Labyrinth Exploration 101 - L.E Chapter 35 (Part 2): Hate You (2)

The chat exploded. Lines flew up like lightning—*bam bam bam!*—too fast to read properly.

My head throbbed.

“Ugh, headache.”

Just then, the screen switched to Lee Jun-ho’s team beginning their labyrinth run.

The cargo site was the Lizard Spawning Pool. Lee Jun-ho, decked out with buffs from the support mage Kim Woo-hyuk, moved almost solo—retrieving the cargo and handling over 70% of the transport himself.

“Not bad.”

Not bad at all.

I clicked my tongue and kept watching. At this point, I needed Tylenol more than popcorn.

* * *

[Labyrinth Exploration] Episode 2 showcased six teams’ attempts before ending. Ours wasn’t one of them. Unsurprisingly, my image was destroyed.

The world was buzzing about ‘Labyrinth Exploration Season 3’—not just online (forums, SNS) but offline too.

[SPOILERS] Today’s Labyrinth Exploration’s Undisputed Villain

I clicked on one of the countless trending forum posts.

It was just a single screenshot:

*Seol Ha-woon saying, “In this mission, my word is absolute.”*

That was it. Yet the post had thousands of upvotes and nearly a thousand comments.

-“MyWordIsAbsolute” LMAOOO
-Yoon Hwa-rim: entered magic school at 16, completed America’s Lemierre Mana Course vs. some ex-soldier bragging about unlocking some circuits in 3 months
└What’s the Lemierre Mana Course?
└A mage training program by Lemierre wizards. Government-funded. Means she’s nationally recognized talent.

“Oh, so Lemierre’s a mage thing?”

I thought it was some kind of mountain vegetable bibimbap.

-Dude was insufferable even while watching
-This guy’s the villain of Episode 2, no contest
-He’s ex-UDT, so I get it—he’s got more combat experience. But labyrinths ≠ the military. Yoon Hwa-rim’s way more elite… Disappointing.
└People think UDT’s so great, but honestly, they’re worse than 707 in every way LOL. Unless it’s UDT Black Team, they’re nothing special.

“I am that Black Team, you little piece sh*t.”

UDT BLACK. Officially, *Battle Line Assault and Covert Kill-team*—or so they say. I don’t know the details. Might just be a chewing gum flavor.

I clicked another post.

[SPOILERS] Today’s Labyrinth Exploration in Three Lines

-“Martial God Lee Jun-ho”
-“96th Place MyWordIsAbsolute”
-“Yoon Hwa-rim Suffering in Silent Despair”

Lee Jun-ho had nearly solo-cleared the labyrinth, becoming a hot topic himself. “96th Place MyWordIsAbsolute” was me—Seol Ha-woon.

Yoon Hwa-rim was leaning against a wall, pounding her chest like a mother-in-law with a grudge.

-“MyWordIsAbsolute” types are the worst…
-Anyone who’s dealt with an arrogant boss knows—if things go well, it’s their credit; if they fail, it’s your fault. Annoying enough normally, but this guy’s not even their superior LOL
-Poor Yoon Hwa-rim… Is Kang Hyun brain-dead? Why’s he listening to this psycho?
└He didn’t “listen”—it’s a joint team. The escorts had the right to decide. They needed their own moment too. Just a flaw in the rules.

A thought suddenly hit me.

*Why am I torturing myself like this?*

Yet I clicked another post.

[SPOILERS] This Episode’s Cargo Labyrinth Analysis

Labyrinths vary wildly in structure, size, and purpose.

Cargo-escort labyrinths are classified by the Association as ‘top priority for clearing’—if left unchecked, the monsters inside can spill into the streets and harm civilians.

Plus, cargo labyrinths heavily rely on scouts.

You know how scout freelancers are a thing now? Top-tier scouts earn billions—not hundreds of millions—and corporate scout guilds rake in tens of billions.

But Kang Hyun’s team only had a C-rank scout. Sketchy. 70% accuracy, 30% margin of error.

Yoon Hwa-rim likely picked the open field knowing the scout was C-rank. Forests have too many variables, but open ground lets you lean on Kang Hyun’s raw strength.

Seol Ha-woon didn’t know that.

Though, to be fair, Seol Ha-woon’s point isn’t wrong either. Leading the cargo through the forest means the orcs can’t surround you easily because of the trees…

*Three-line summary*: MyWordIsAbsolute = military logic. Yoon Hwa-rim = explorer logic.

-This was so fcking frustrating LOL reminded me of my boss
-Bet he’ll blame others when things go wrong
-Going into the woods is a trash-tier plan anyway. Do they not know orcs climb trees like monkeys? Dumbass.

Seol Ha-woon was getting flamed, but *I* didn’t feel too bad. This is what happens when you succeed in objectifying yourself.

Plus, my recognition was skyrocketing.

Not as fast as I’d hoped, though.

“…Negative publicity, huh?”

[MoMo]’s recognition system was deeper than I thought.

First level: simply being known. Second level: how much impact or inspiration you have on specific people. Third level: achieving something especially remarkable. That kind of progression.

Pretty detailed for a mobile game.

Anyway, at this rate, Recognition Level 8 wasn’t far off.

*Knock knock.*

“?”

A staff member?

I opened the door.

“Hi~?”

It was Seo Ji-woo, raising her hand in a dramatic wave.

I shut the door immediately.

*Bang bang!*

─‘Hey, why’d you close it! Open up!’

I opened it again. Seo Ji-woo, frowning, shoved her foot in the gap.

“Ten minutes from now, come out. They need you for an interview.”

“Interview?”

“Yeah. And…”

Seo Ji-woo held something out to me.

“What’s this?”

It was a ping-pong-ball-sized object glowing blue.

Seo Ji-woo’s eyebrows wiggled.

“It’s a Mana Socket. Don’t you know?”

A Mana Socket—a vessel that stores mana. Like a phone power bank, but for mages. Crazy expensive. This tiny thing probably cost 20-30 million won.

“Just… thanks for helping me. I don’t need this anymore. Doesn’t sync with my main socket. Was gonna sell it, but… call it a ‘cabin thank-you.’”

Mana Sockets can generally only be used one at a time. They’re artifacts that supply mana to your circuits, so they’re super sensitive—wearing more than one causes interference.

I shook my head.

“Don’t need it.”

“Oh? What a coincidence. I don’t need it either.”

She tossed the socket past me into the room, grinning like a gremlin before scampering off.—*tadadadak!*

“……”

I stared after her, then closed the door. Picked up the socket from the floor.

When infused with mana, the user can reshape its size at will.

I turned it into a bracelet and slipped it onto my wrist.

Since I received it anyway, it felt like a waste to throw it away….

*Knock knock.*

“Who’s it now?”

I opened the door.

This time, a brown-curly-haired guy with an annoyingly bright smile.

“Hyung~!”

It was Lim Hae-jun.

Dangun

I'm currently Translating the following novels: "Labyrinth Exploration 101" & "The Monarch Who Levels Up by Devouring " If you want to support me and read more chapters please subscribe to my Patreon!