Labyrinth Exploration 101 - L.E Chapter 58 (Part 1): Let you down (6)

[Estin Corporation]

I arrived at the corporate building Zeka had introduced me to. It was among the tallest structures in the heart of Raynos.

“Stop.”

A security guard blocked my path. Not just his eyes and limbs, but even parts of his torso were cybernetic. At that point, was he more machine than human?

I handed him my business card.

“…Please wait a moment.”

He communicated with someone, then stepped aside.

“77th floor. Have a good day.”

I entered the elevator and pressed the button for the 77th floor.

*Ding.*

As soon as the doors opened, a secretary greeted me.

“This way.”

It was an executive’s office.

Inside, a man stood gazing out the window. I took a moment to admire the view beyond the glass.

Advertising drones flitted about, projecting holograms. Air taxis carrying VIPs zipped through the sky. Neon signs flickered in a chaotic, dazzling cityscape. It was vastly different from Earth, yet a world where Earth’s imagination had been fully realized.

“You’ve arrived.”

The man turned to face me.

“Pleased to meet you.”

He was impeccably groomed. His pomade-styled hair was parted two-to-eight, his suit pristine. In a world where cybernetic eyes were the norm, he wore rimless glasses—a peculiar choice.

“I’m ‘Sier,’ the Raynos branch manager of Estin Corporation. Please, have a seat.”

Sier gestured to a sofa. I sat without a word.

“Your name is Ha-woon, correct?”

“Yes. You said you had something to discuss.”

“Indeed.”

He took a seat across from me.

“As you may know, Estin Corporation is one of the leading conglomerates in NaN.”

NaN. The name of this world.

I cut in.

“You can skip the preamble.”

Time wasn’t exactly on my side.

“Of course. I’ll get to the point. We’re planning to expand our operations to the outskirts of Raynos. A business venture.”

He placed a video chip the size of a USB on the table. *Wiiiing.* A hologram began to play.

“But recently, scavengers have been swarming our construction site. We suspect someone’s orchestrating it.”

The footage showed masked assailants conducting guerrilla sabotage.

“As a result, the project is delayed, and we’re incurring astronomical losses.”

I tilted my head.

“Can’t the company deploy its own personnel to handle it?”

“Our security forces are currently tied up elsewhere. Diverting them is likely the enemy’s goal.”

“So you know who’s behind this?”

“Yes.”

Sier nodded. I leaned back, feigning contemplation.

“You expect me to take on this pack of wild dogs alone?”

“To be precise, we’re looking for a mage with that level of skill.”

[ Quest Triggered ]

■WP 3,000

A 3,000-point quest.

“…….”

I quietly scanned the office. My eyes caught a neatly packaged bottle of liquor on a shelf behind him. I nodded toward it and asked,

“Do you enjoy drinking?”

Sier followed my gaze.

“No, not particularly. It was a gift.”

He stood, picking up the bottle of snake wine. Sharp instincts.

“If you’re the mage I believe you to be, Ha-woon…”

*Thud.* He set the snake wine on the table.

“This wouldn’t be part of the contract—it’d be a gift.”

I studied Sier, the labyrinth dweller.

My first impression: a finely honed blade. A man steeped in business to his core, skilled at concealing his true self. The type you shouldn’t trust lightly…

But that snake wine was too tempting.

【Lucky Snake Wine】

■ Grade: Unique

■ Overview: Snake wine that grants luck. Drinking it feels like fortune will smile upon you for a while.

■ Effect: +5 Luck for 180 minutes upon consumption. Permanently +0.5 Luck.

This was why I hadn’t opened my random boxes yet. Luck is a stat that fluctuates wildly based on specific consumables or locations.

Drinking this would boost my Luck by 5 for three hours. It’s the difference between pulling a Rare from a Common random box or a Unique from a Rare.

“Well, if you’re offering it as a gift…”

I’d be a fool to refuse.

* * *

A dark construction site. A half-built skeleton of a structure, barely resembling a building.

I stood at its center. A hollow wind swept through. Acrid smoke and tiny stone fragments scattered against my gas mask.

*Thooom.*

The noise signaling the start of construction echoed. The work was left to machines.

*Thud. Thud. Thud.*

Robots, unlike anything I’d seen on Earth, moved chaotically—digging the ground, hauling steel beams, erecting pillars…

Leaning on my cane, I looked up at the sky. The full moon was clear. Stars burned like cigarette embers.

*Wiiiiing. Kwoooom. Tang. Tang.*

As the cacophony of the construction site reverberated, a fleeting moment passed.

Multiple presences brushed against my ears.

An ambush.

I lowered my gaze. The mana in my nervous system surged. Time slowed. My vision widened. My hearing sharpened.

I saw what shouldn’t be seen, heard what shouldn’t be heard.

Fifteen enemies.

Armed with mana submachine guns.

No—already firing.

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!

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