Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 152

Dungeon Journal-152

# 152

Dungeon Journal

Episode 153

The rough, tunnel-like passage that had been dug out had transformed into a smooth path, as if paved with marble. The ceiling, once low enough to force even large summons to duck, had suddenly risen high.

If the old fortress was a warren of interconnected narrow passages, the fortress that had finally revealed itself was like a massive castle.

[The Naga Fortress has completed all preparations to welcome its High Lord.]

[The Naga Fortress has evolved into a Great Labyrinth.]

[The Great Labyrinth is an entirely different entity from existing labyrinths. The existing grades, which have been the standard and limit of growth until now, have become completely meaningless.]

[The labyrinth’s grade has been reset. The labyrinth’s grade has changed from a 7th grade labyrinth to a 1st grade Great Labyrinth.]

[The Great Labyrinth, which has reappeared in the Underworld after countless ages, truly possesses tremendous power as the legend foretold. The existing boundaries that had been artificially limited have completely disappeared, and a vast area has been incorporated into the Great Labyrinth’s domain.]

[The newly awakened Great Labyrinth is somewhat weak compared to its size. It will take some time for the Great Labyrinth to find its complete form.]

[The Great Labyrinth is a truly living labyrinth that judges and grows on its own. The Great Labyrinth is influenced by the surrounding environment, sensing danger and managing its own energy. The birth of the Great Labyrinth, which would have spread throughout the Underworld, was detected by only a select few.]

“Oh, man…”

Kim Jin-woo frowned at the news that the labyrinth’s grade had been reset, but his face soon lit up with anticipation as he confirmed that the Great Labyrinth was a different entity from existing labyrinths.

And as if to meet his expectations, the Great Labyrinth grasped the movements of the Underworld upon its birth and managed its own energy.

That’s not to say it could perfectly evade all prying eyes, but thanks to this, it was able to avoid unnecessarily attracting the attention of those around it.

[The Naga Fortress was a deformed labyrinth consisting of two cores (Main Core, Sub Core). This system, which boasted unbelievable efficiency compared to other labyrinths of the same grade, remains intact even now that the labyrinth has evolved into a Great Labyrinth.]

[But these two cores were not maintained for free. In fact, these two cores were somewhat insufficient to be used as the core of the Great Labyrinth. However, in the process of evolution, the Great Labyrinth chose to absorb the energy of other labyrinths instead of abandoning the two cores.]

[In the process, countless adjacent labyrinths had their core energy absorbed and were annihilated.]

[Thanks to this, these two cores, which form the foundation of the Great Labyrinth, have become incomparably more powerful than before.]

“Crazy!”

Without realizing it, a curse word burst out. The fact that it had absorbed adjacent labyrinths to maintain its core was something unimaginable, even for him, who had experienced all sorts of bizarre things in the Underworld.

But whether he was surprised or not, the message window indifferently blinked and spat out text.

[In the process of merging the existing labyrinths into one, all labyrinths on the 9th floor were unfortunately annihilated. The energy held by the annihilated labyrinths and their cores was absorbed into the core of the Great Labyrinth.]

[The Land of Hammer and Anvil has been annihilated. Malaksu and the dwarves are bewildered, having lost their homes. The dwarves are looking for a new home. Whether to accept them into the Great Labyrinth is entirely up to you.]

[The Land of Dreams has been annihilated. The Queen and the succubi are disoriented, unable to adapt to the sudden situation. The succubi need a place to settle. The Great Labyrinth is wide and deep enough to accommodate them.]

[The Great Tusk Boars have lost their homes and are at a loss.]

[Hecarim and the Centaurs are in chaos.]

[The Silk Frogs hope to create a new home in a corner of the Great Labyrinth.]

News of the endless annihilation of labyrinths, and messages that the residents who had lost their homes hoped to settle in the Great Labyrinth. Kim Jin-woo simply laughed in dismay.

[Now, while the residents who have lost their homes are still struggling to recover from the confusion, you must prepare the Great Labyrinth in advance.]

[The refugees will soon realize that you are related to the source of all this and flock to the Great Labyrinth.]

[Perhaps some of them will not be able to bear the sense of loss and will become violent rioters, baring their teeth at you. Each one of them is an insignificant being, but their madness after losing their labyrinth will never benefit you.]

[Whether you suppress them with force or accept them is entirely up to you.]

[Until the first refugees or rioters arrive at the Great Labyrinth, 71:59:59]

Before he could even grasp all the circumstances, another time limit was set.

Although there were 3 days left, it was woefully insufficient to grasp the ins and outs of the Great Labyrinth, which was completely different from the existing system, and to prepare for the rioters’ rampage.

Moreover, all the facilities in the current Great Labyrinth were deactivated, making its existence meaningless, and the whereabouts of the Nagas, including Dominique, were also unclear.

Perhaps he would have to face the angry ones alone.

“Master?”

Morrigan, seeing him gesturing in the air and cursing again, called him with a worried expression.

“Morrigan, find Dominique and the other Nagas. If you find them, send them to the Owner’s Room immediately, hurry.”

Before his words were even finished, Morrigan disappeared with her signature flapping sound.

“It’s never easy.”

It wasn’t a situation that would make him feel a sense of crisis, but it wasn’t a situation that allowed him to be relaxed either.

If all the labyrinths on the 9th floor were annihilated, the number of refugees created in the process would easily exceed 10,000.

Not all of them would turn into rioters, but even a portion of them would be too many for Morrigan and him alone to handle.

If some of those who had lost their minds deliberately avoided their eyes and roamed the labyrinth, many of the deactivated facilities could be destroyed.

Following the energy of the core that guided him, he saw abandoned facilities.

The laboratory, once crowded with Naga mages, was covered in a thick layer of dust in a short period of time, and the forge, where Naga blacksmiths had been hammering non-stop, was emitting only cold air from the coldly extinguished furnace.

“Hmm.”

The sight of it looking as if time had passed for decades with it being abandoned made him frown.

“Master!”

Kim Jin-woo had to wake up from his thoughts at the welcoming voice calling him.

“Dominique!”

In his eyes was the ‘King’s Advisor’ whom he needed most at this moment.

Dominique had a look full of questions as she had not yet grasped the situation, but she listened to all of his words without interrupting in the middle, and only then did she open her mouth.

“Then that means that there are no labyrinths on the 9th floor except for this place now.”

It was a calm voice, but apart from that, she still seemed confused.

“First of all, the most important thing is to find the missing summons. Understanding the situation comes next.”

It was impossible to grasp the whole picture of the Great Labyrinth in a short period of time. This massive labyrinth had as many hidden secrets as its enormous size.

Instead of carelessly digging into those secrets, it was much wiser to find the missing forces and prepare for the refugees who were flocking to the Great Labyrinth even at this moment.

Dominique seemed to be thinking the same thing, as she put her questions aside and set out to find the Nagas. But the sight of Dominique disappearing like that somehow felt different than before.

But he couldn’t put his finger on what had changed, so he frowned and turned his head.

It was because he had already arrived at the Owner’s Room while talking to Dominique for a while.

“Ah…”

Opening the door to the Owner’s Room, which had become several times larger, he let out a sound that was neither a groan nor an exclamation at the completely changed appearance.

The stone chamber, where only the table with the map of the 9th floor, the core, the altar, and finally the throne were placed, had been transformed into a place that was incomparably more splendid and magnificent than before.

The towering ceiling was in the form of a dome, with blue crystals covering the entire structure, and the spacious area that was widely open in all directions was large enough for hundreds of Nagas to line up at once.

And the stairs made of rock that rose in the center firmly supported the throne, which was lavishly decorated with dragons and snakes.

As if compelled, Kim Jin-woo headed for the throne and looked around from the platform. The scenery in all directions looked quite different from this high vantage point.

He clenched his fist for no reason, and this time he looked at the two cores shining from behind the throne.

The Heart of the Naga and the Heart of the Kyo-ryong [Kyo-ryong is likely referring to a powerful dragon species], the two cores that had supported the fortress, were emitting a more brilliant light than ever before. It was as if the moon and the sun, which could not exist in the Underworld, existed only in this place.

The two cores were emitting a powerful force commensurate with their brilliant light, and Kim Jin-woo already felt intoxicated by the energy, his whole body feeling like his blood was boiling.

But it seemed that it wasn’t just his feeling after all.

[The core of the Great Labyrinth, the Dual Core, has begun to resonate with the High Lord’s energy.]

[The Heart of the Naga and the Heart of the Kyo-ryong are attempting to resonate with you.]

[Once the imprinting is complete, no one but you will be able to interfere with these powerful hearts.]

[The imprinting process will be completed soon.]

[The imprinting process has been completed.]

Only after the message flashed did he feel the strangely boiling power subside.

“Hoo.”

The exchange of power, which was both dazzling and burdensome, was over, and he let out a long sigh.

As expected, the Great Labyrinth was an unknown entity. Although it was his property, this massive creature that judged and moved on its own had more things that were unknown than known.

He couldn’t even imagine how many more things he would have to go through in the future to finally be able to perfectly control this haughty labyrinth.

Thud.

Kim Jin-woo, who had been standing still and looking at the core of the labyrinth, slumped down on the throne only when his vision became blurred by the light emitted by the core.

Sitting on the throne, he grabbed the jewel on the end of the armrest as a habit and called up the labyrinth’s status window.

***

The sleeping forces of the labyrinth were awakening one by one. The first to wake up were the Underworld Trees.

The Underworld Trees, which had been rooted in the outskirts of the labyrinth in the past, were uprooting themselves from the earth one by one and heading slowly towards the Owner’s Room.

“Ah, the Underworld Trees?”

Kim Jin-woo, who had forgotten about the Underworld Trees for a while because they had such a lack of presence, was delighted.

Kueooooh.

The Underworld Trees cried out as if responding to his voice and began to move slowly again. The place they headed to was right below the platform where the light of the core shone best, even in the Owner’s Room.

[The Underworld Trees, which were once among the most powerful in the Underworld, have lost the sun of the ancient Underworld, and have declined to the point where they are now just so-so beings. But they are by no means insignificant beings. If they regain their power, the Underworld Trees will show power beyond imagination.]

[And now, although not complete, they have found a light similar to the sun that existed in the ancient Underworld. They will not move for a while and will concentrate on recovering their power.]

[The Underworld Trees are asking for your permission.]

There was no reason to reject them now that they had already entered the Owner’s Room.

Kim Jin-woo was even glad to see the appearance of the Underworld Trees now that no one else could be seen, so he gladly allowed them to reside in the Owner’s Room.

“Kueooooh.”

[The Underworld Trees are very happy. They are moved by your mercy. If there ever comes a moment when they have to step forward, the Underworld Trees will offer you their last leaf and branch.]

Kim Jin-woo, seeing the roots of the Underworld Trees digging into the solid rock and grabbing the earth, looked at the core of the labyrinth again.

He had heard that there was a sun in the past Underworld, and it seemed that the sun was the core of the High Lords.

The next to come to his senses after the Underworld Trees was Heimdall.

Kieooooooo!

The long-ringing cry of the dawn rooster. Heimdall did not show himself directly, but announced that he had awakened with his signature cry.

And as if awakened from a long sleep by the cry of the dawn rooster, the Great Labyrinth slowly began to awaken.