Conquering the Labyrinth with a Trash-Tier Trait - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 27
“It’s been forever!”
“Tell me about it. What, three months?”
“I heard your instructor was worried about your career path?”
“I joined the Drake Guild.”
“Drake? You mean Geeks?”
A name I knew all too well.
“Yes. Of course, I’m not an official member yet—I’m attached to the 8th District subsidiary guild—but that’s where I am.”
“I recommended him. A man like Geeks won’t let petty ambition block a guildmate’s potential.”
Jerik cut in and clapped Kirk on the shoulder.
His expression was unmistakably proud.
So I decided to chime in as well.
“That tattoo on your right arm—you didn’t get that just for looks, did you?”
“Ahem. Of course not, sir. Don’t you see it moving?”
I couldn’t tell if it actually writhed the way he claimed, but the vivid green giant etched across his arm was certainly striking.
“An ogre?”
I’d heard that the first-class tattoo is largest when you obtain a Special Class.
Kirk’s covered almost the entire right arm—far larger than Geeks’s.
“Yes, sir! I earned sixty percent contribution when hunting ogres on the 10th Floor. Out of a four-man party.”
“Impressive. So what’s your Class?”
The boy grinned at my question.
“Vanguard Spearist. A Special Class! And it’s Rare Grade, no less!”
Behind his confident voice, I caught Jerik’s satisfied smile.
He’d already told me about Kirk’s Class.
“Now that’s a name with some weight to it.”
“Yes, sir. The class effect is even more—”
“All right, that’s enough. Haven’t you been taught not to blab that stuff around?”
“Come on, Master and you aren’t strangers.”
“Don’t test me, kid.”
I already knew the details from Jerik, but I’d meant to warn this guileless boy against careless talk.
Then something caught my eye—he was wearing earrings.
A pair of them, dangling from long gold chains, with small blue crystals set at the center of each.
“What’s with the earrings?”
This rugged kid was actually wearing earrings.
“Oh, yeah, they don’t look great, I know. But they’re essential equipment, so there’s no avoiding it.”
“Essential equipment?”
“Yes. It’s a Voice Filter Earrings artifact. Most decent guilds use them these days.”
“A voice filter?”
I’d never heard of such a thing.
“What it does is make your designated commander’s voice come through crystal clear during combat—like they’re whispering straight into your ear.”
“Huh.”
Even at first glance, it sounded like a pretty practical enchantment.
Once you got past the 10th Floor, you’d run into adventurers from the other nine cities, and there were frequent skirmishes in the deeper Labyrinth.
People even said that the reason the 10 Kingdoms and their four-race order didn’t war as much was because everyone was already fighting in the Labyrinth.
But what caught my attention about those earrings was something else entirely.
“If it’s standard issue that most guilds use, it’s got to be cheap?”
“Um, well, I heard they go for about fifty silver a pair. Cheap for an artifact.”
“Per pair?”
“Yes. They function as a pair, so that’s the cost.”
“Huh.”
“If you like them, hurry up and graduate from Novice status. Join our guild. We’re not bad.”
“Ah. Yeah, I’ll think about it.”
It was good to see Kirk after so long, but I found myself fixated on that “cheap artifact.”
“But the voice filter is the only function? No other options?”
“If there were more, it would cost more. But honestly, it’s incredibly useful. Just the other day when I made a mistake on the 13th Floor and nearly died—”
I let the rest of Kirk’s story flow in one ear and out the other.
I mean, what grand enhancement could possibly come from synthesizing a voice filter function?
‘Cheaper than Cleansman’s Underwear!’
That single fact was already pulling hard at my impulse to buy.
‘Mana-infused items change properties when synthesized. Let me just try it. Who knows if I’ll hit the jackpot?’
The moment that thought crossed my mind, my feet were already moving toward the door.
“……Huh? Where are you going?”
“Something just came back to me. Do they sell that at the Magic Tower?”
“Yes. Well. We’ve been getting bulk orders from various guilds, so……”
“Okay. Thanks!”
“Wait!?”
Ignoring Kirk’s desperate call, I bolted straight for the 1st District in the city center, toward the Magic Tower.
* * *
“So. An order for 400 pairs of Voice Filter Earrings?”
“Yes.”
“Which guild are you from?”
“I’m alone.”
“……Alone?”
“Yes.”
The apprentice mage I’d seen before looked confused, but I kept my expression neutral.
“……May I ask why you’re buying such a large quantity of these earrings?”
“They’re pretty.”
“……I’m sorry?”
I couldn’t explain the real reason, so I answered offhandedly, and his expression grew increasingly strange.
“Because they’re…… pretty?”
“Yes.”
“Pretty. Four hundred pairs of…….”
“Do you have the items in stock?”
“Oh, no! Just a moment! Let me check. These are artifacts sold at the Magic Tower at a bargain price, so even large purchases don’t qualify for a discount…….”
“That’s fine.”
“……You’re not concerned about that.”
The apprentice mage’s glances at me grew stranger, but I didn’t bother paying attention.
[Voice Filter Earrings (Advanced)]
-Allows you to hear the voice of a designated person even in loud noise (100m, on/off possible).
-Duration varies depending on the Mana Stone installed (currently equipped with lowest-grade Mana Stone. Duration: 50 hours of active use).
‘Hmm. Advanced grade. That’s a bit disappointing. No, I shouldn’t be disappointed right now. Bump it up two grades and it becomes Rare. How am I supposed to get a Rare item for 200 gold?’
I pushed away the disappointment, reminding myself that the Storm Axe I’d sold earlier had been priced at 300 gold.
“With 200 gold, you could actually purchase a Supreme-tier artifact weapon……?”
If anything, the apprentice mage seemed more disappointed than I was.
Sensing this might drag on awkwardly, I prepared a swift closing remark.
“It’s fine. I’m still a Novice, so my Mana is low.”
“Ah…… I see…… Oh, I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine.”
There’s a reason why Mana matters so much.
First, you need at least 1 Mana to even use an Advanced-tier artifact.
Over 10, you can use Supreme-tier. Over 20, Rare Grade. Over 30, Super Rare Grade artifacts. Beyond that, even the tiers jump in a different scale entirely—Unique Grade and beyond.
The only artifacts someone without Mana can use are consumables.
‘Like Cleansman’s Underwear.’
If your Mana level falls short, the artifact either won’t function or might actually harm you.
The higher grades require exponentially more Mana, but that’s something I can’t even dream of attempting right now.
‘And I can’t just load myself down with cheap artifacts either.’
An Adventurer can equip a maximum of 10 artifacts.
Regardless of size or grade, if the Mana flows affecting the body exceed 10 pieces, they interfere with each other, making anything beyond that pointless.
“We’re, ah, short on stock. It’ll take at least a week to gather 400 pairs……”
“A week. Yes. Well, I can wait. Should I come back in a week?”
“……Yes.”
Disappointing as it was to hit this snag, it wasn’t a major problem.
‘Well, I need to train anyway.’
[Name: Ko Cheol-woo]
[Race: Human]
[Level: 16]
[Stats]
Strength: 14 (+1.7)
Endurance: 17 (+3.4)
Agility: 11 (+5)
Mana: 26
Physical Resistance: 3
Magical Resistance: 4
[Mana Skills]
Resonance Spear (Advanced-Lv.10), Balgar Spirit Cultivation Method Stage 1 (Advanced-Lv.3), Volante Step Technique Stage 2 (Advanced-Lv.10), Butchering (Advanced-Lv.10). Piercing Strike (Supreme-Max)
[Level-up Points: 18]
[Innate Ability Slot (Full)]
Multiple Spirit Summoning.
[Traits]
-Additional information available.
Both my spear technique and footwork had reached their skill level caps.
‘Butchering can be trained through actual use…….’
I’d need to continue refining those two skills, but what intrigued me most was the Balgar Spirit Cultivation Method.
‘……Even now, maneuvering and cultivating mana has become so much easier.’
But if Bartus was right, its true power wouldn’t reveal itself until I completed a Perfect Clear and obtained my Class.
Then the skill I should focus on training immediately was the newly registered Supreme-tier Piercing Strike.
‘I still don’t understand why it showed Max the moment I learned it. Not even Lv.10.’
I’d only used it once when I caught Grash, but the aftereffects were so severe that I hadn’t dared use it since.
‘Or is that the stranger part?’
Either way.
‘Jerik would know.’
With that thought, I placed a pre-order for the Voice Filter Earrings and headed straight back to the Martial Arts Hall.
Kirk was still there.
“Oh. You’re back quick?”
“Aren’t you going to the Guild Dormitory?”
“Nah. I still have some attachment to this place. How could I just say goodbye and leave?”
“Kirk’s been coaching the kids on spearwork.”
“Ah…….”
“By the way, what was that thing you said you forgot?”
“Right. That thing.”
“What is it!”
“It’s a secret, you brat!”
“Aw, that’s mean……!”
Had this brat always been so clingy?
I let out a hollow laugh, but my mood wasn’t sour.
Though I didn’t particularly want to humor him.
“Master, could you take a look at my technique sometime?”
“Your technique?”
“Yes. I picked up a rather vicious technique somehow, and I was wondering if you could…….”
“Ah, I understand. The students will be leaving soon, so let’s do it right after.”
“Thank you!”
“Hey, can I learn that technique too?”
“You’ll die if you do.”
“Nah. No way.”
“I’m serious—you’ll actually die.”
I wasn’t joking, but Kirk’s eyes showed he didn’t believe a word of it.
“Fine. Try it on Kirk first.”
“Master!?”
“This brat got a Special Class and his head’s gotten too big. Knock some sense back into him.”
“Aw. I’m still a Special Class though…….”
Watching Kirk grin and shrug, I felt an odd competitive fire kindle in my chest.
“Master, do you have any potions that can treat fatal wounds?”
……Is it that bad?”
“Yes.”
“Aw! You’re exaggerating……!”
At those words, both Jerik’s expression and mine shifted identically.
“……I’ll try to step in and stop it. Let’s fix this kid’s recklessness.”
“Yes. Absolutely.”
* * *
“That guy ordered four hundred pairs of Voice Filter Earrings? Why?”
“Because it was… pretty, or so he said.”
“What?”
The man seated at the desk stared back with an expression of disbelief, while the knight only bowed his head deeper.
Only then did the man realize he hadn’t mishearing, and a hollow laugh escaped him.
“Last time it was underwear. Now he’s obsessed with earrings… He’s male, right?”
“Yes. He is male.”
“Could he possibly be…?”
“I cannot say with certainty, but it’s possible….”
In this barbarous world, there was no nation that recognized sexual diversity.
Between the man and the knight, their opinions aligned, and for a moment both wore an identical expression of disdain.
Rumor had always been born this way.
But seeing their views converge, they each grew inwardly certain.
“Heh. I’ve seen plenty of mad Summoners, but never one quite so varied in his madness.”
“Indeed. He is certainly a unique case by temperament.”
“In any case, he seems to have genuine ability in making money, though we haven’t grasped it yet?”
“We… assigned a Summoner with whom we have connections, but he’s fallen silent.”
“He’s gone dark?”
“Yes.”
Neither of them could have imagined that Kim Hyun-sik, who had obtained a 1st-tier Class as an Assassin, had fallen to a Novice.
Naturally, their conclusion took a different turn.
“Could it be that he…?”
“He hasn’t returned to the Royal Palace either. It seems he vanished without a trace after that time. We’ll wait a little longer, and if he doesn’t return, we’ll issue a warrant for his capture.”
The knight’s expression grew cold in an instant.
The man who received the report felt the same.
“Tsk, tsk. These Summoners, regardless. There are few I truly approve of. One and all, they’re rotten to the core….”
“But they remain useful tools, do they not?”
“…Yes. That much is true. They possess strange abilities—Traits, and all. That one. His Trait was information-class, wasn’t it?”
“Yes. It was judged as a useless Trait, but now it seems he possesses hidden ability.”
“So he’s become capable of finding treasure?”
“There are no significant changes to his equipment that we know of.”
By an adventurer’s nature, the finest treasures are usually kept for oneself.
“Then what?”
“Rather than treasure, I suspect his Trait has evolved to find things of monetary value. We know he spent considerable time living as a beggar after being expelled.”
At the knight’s words, the man let out a soft laugh.
“A beggar, he says….”
A Summoner’s Trait can sometimes evolve according to that person’s desires and growth.
And desires follow circumstance.
The word “beggar” only deepened the man’s prejudice.
“A beggar’s life creates evolution toward finding things of value. Yes, that tracks. It makes sense then.”
The same inference about the same situation.
The two men confirmed their opinions aligned once more, made their hasty judgment of Ko Cheol-woo’s ability, and grew more convinced.
“Well, it’s certainly a useful ability….”
Since the appearance of the Labyrinth, had any Royal Palace ever lacked for money?
The man’s interest was plainly waning—even the knight could see it.
In fact, it was their faction that had decided Ko Cheol-woo was worthless and driven him out.
Already prejudice upon prejudice had left their thinking inflexible.
“He’s on the 5th Floor now, isn’t he?”
“Yes. He was slow up through the 4th Floor, but cleared the 5th in a single day.”
“One day? Hmm….”
Tap. Tap.
The man drumming his fingers on the armrest fell silent for a moment.
“…Well, let’s just keep watching until he gains a Class. If he has something genuinely special beyond expectations, it’ll show itself by then.”
“Yes. And the measures we take are…?”
“Keep an eye on him. The one who doesn’t return—issue the warrant.”
“Understood, sir.”
The conversation within the Royal Palace’s inner chambers ended there.
Meanwhile, there was a group that had reached an entirely different conclusion through the same reasoning.
“An ability to find things of monetary value? That’s a jackpot?”
“Exactly. If he can earn that much during the Novice stages, then in the upper tiers….”
“If it’s true, it’s a jackpot—but we need confirmation.”
“That’s certainly true.”
“Then…….”
Those who buy for profit. The conversation had come from within the Merchant Guild.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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