Labyrinth Exploration 101 - Chapter 126
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Labyrinth Exploration 101 Episode 126
In the house(13)
│Seer and Seol Ha-woon’s Endless Suspicion│Episode 9 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
19.32 million views ·9 days ago
│Kang Hyeon and Seol Ha-woon, Clash│Episode 9 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
45.16 million views ·9 days ago
│Give us a dragon, a dragon!│Seo Ji-woo, Lee Jun-ho, Jo Woon│Episode 10 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
10.07 million views ·2 days ago
│Hotel Explosion│Episode 10 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
13.88 million views ·2 days ago
│The business card is wriggling│Episode 10 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
11.02 million views ·2 days ago
│Kang Hyeon, Sword Dance│Episode 10 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
27.32 million views ·2 days ago
│Seer’s Monologue│Episode 10 Clip│Labyrinth Exploration NaN│
25.15 million views ·1 day ago
Main PD Yoon Sa-hyuk’s editing room.
“Look at these view counts, damn…”
Kim A-rang grinned as she watched the highlight compilation videos uploaded to YouTube.
The scale of the view counts was different. Even millions were now considered low numbers. Global view counts that could never be achieved if limited to just the Korean Peninsula.
“PD Yoon, have you seen YouTube?”
She asked while looking at the back of Yoon Sa-hyuk’s head. He didn’t respond. Kim A-rang checked the time.
7:47.
There were still 3 minutes left until break time.
“…He’s really like a robot.”
Completely mechanical. Work for 50 minutes, rest for 10 minutes, work for 50 minutes, rest for 10 minutes.
He’d probably start moving the moment it hit exactly 7:50.
Starting with stretching.
Tick, 7:50.
“Ahhhh~”
As expected, Yoon Sa-hyuk stretched. Kim A-rang suppressed her laughter.
“PD Yoon!”
“…?”
Only then did he turn around. Yoon Sa-hyuk tilted his head first.
“Were you here?”
“Of course I was. I asked you about 10 minutes ago if you’d seen the highlight compilations.”
“Ah. I already saw them. They were well made.”
Yoon Sa-hyuk smiled and picked up his instant coffee.
“I made that for you too. 5 minutes ago.”
“…Thanks.”
He tapped the paper cup with his finger.
“How’s the Seol Ha-woon monitoring?”
“Always good. Another hit.”
“…Looks like you’re watching something else though?”
Yoon Sa-hyuk glanced at the laptop.
“Ah~ These NPCs might get a segment too.”
She was currently watching the duo of Truck and Robot. A cute 2-3 minute travel log.
“More importantly, have you checked the viewer numbers for episodes 9 and 10?”
“Combined, around 6 million?”
“Just passed it.”
Episodes 9 and 10 were already a social phenomenon. Many papers analyzing the aired content with philosophical discourse and whatnot had emerged, captivating not only Southeast Asia and Europe but even North America, reaching the level where ‘if you haven’t watched it, you’re a Labyrinth Person.’
“But what are you going to do about the appearance requests?”
This was why Kim A-rang had come. There were tons of casting offers pouring in for PD Yoon. Almost every talk show including Quiz Show desperately wanted him.
“Couldn’t PD Kim go instead? You’re more famous than me.”
“Come on. Honestly, even if our recognition is similar, you planned everything from the concept to the big picture.”
“PD Kim should appear. If possible.”
“…If you really want to do that, wouldn’t it look better if we went together?”
“Then pick just one.”
“Definitely Quiz Show.”
The talk show of the nation’s top host. Probably the dream program for all entertainment industry PDs.
“PD Im will be really jealous.”
“Come on. PD Im sleeps all the time. I’d acknowledge him if he slept as little as I do.”
“That’s true.”
Yoon Sa-hyuk patted Kim A-rang’s shoulder.
“You’ve worked hard. We’ve finally gotten on track.”
“…If we’ve just gotten on track now, what are we, Jupiter?”
Kim A-rang looked at the clock.
It would be 8 o’clock soon. Communication would be impossible after that. He was someone who pathologically stuck to his routine.
“Well then. I’ll get going. Quiz Show as a joint appearance, and we’ll just skip the rest?”
“Do that.”
“Yes. Get some rest~”
Kim A-rang left the main PD’s office. Fiddling with her smartphone, she went up to the rooftop to clear her head.
“…Huh.”
Then she discovered a rather amusing news article.
│Labyrinth Exploration NaN, Controversy Over Excessive Violence… Massacring Labyrinth People.│
│Labyrinth Exploration NaN, Controversy Over Glorifying Labyrinth People… Should We Now Be Responsible for Labyrinth People’s Lives Too?│
“This is comedy.”
Even the article templates were similar. It was so absurd. Which tune were they supposed to dance to?
She browsed through the popular posts in online communities.
Bind(gray, 1.25em)It’s not a company, it’s a fan club Rokia·payes1230 Our manager told us to vote for Kate then suddenly got into a power struggle with the assistant manager…─Forcing votes is a bit much;─It’s only 7 votes anyway, just write it. Learn some social skills┗? But I only want to vote for my pick?
No, but they said to be prepared for disadvantages if we don’t verify, is this right? New Company·pzpzpzpz Our department head keeps nagging in the group chat to verify votes for his pick;;26─Fuck lol just report to the labor office─lol My mentor doesn’t do it directly but subtly pressures me. Says it’s only 7 votes anyway.
Who needs idols when explorers are the idols.. ASO Entertainment·zzed000 Seol Ha-woon photobook, photocard verification.. I barely managed to buy this.. People at our company are also changing their tablet pads and phone cases one by one lately.. But where did you buy the Jemalot keyring.. I want to buy it too..─Wow fuck how did you get this? Malot’s stuff sold out in 3 seconds─The keyring is sold out. It’s really hard to get official merch from the top rankers these days.─It’s mass-produced, why is it hard to get? Just manufacture more.
All communities regardless of age and gender were the same. Gen MZ and the generations above were all into Mitamnan.
And Seol Ha-woon, riding this tremendous buzz like a wave, finally.
[ 7th Place : Seol Ha-woon ]
He had reached single digits in the profile voting rankings. Right after Kang Jun-ho, Kate Ji-woo, Ryu Yeon-hwa, and Jo Woon. He had completely surpassed all the hills, and now only the real mountains remained.
In Kim A-rang’s opinion, of course, if it went to the end, Seol Ha-woon would beat them all.
“…This is living. This is what living is.”
Leaning against the rooftop railing, she exhaled a clear breath.
“Whew~”
As an entertainment industry PD, I feel an overwhelming sense of fulfillment, as if I was born for moments like this…
* * *
Den Water, the sea where most of the water had already been drained. The submarine was buried in the dirt like a fish dragged onto land.
Hiss. The hatch opened and Robot and Truck emerged from inside.
─Let’s go.
〔…〕
Bzzt. Sparks flew from Robot. They’d already changed the battery three times, but its condition had only worsened.
The power leak was getting progressively worse.
─Not much left. Hang in there. Keep walking.
Still, they moved together.
Leaving Den Water and entering the Escort Ship.
Clatter clatter clatter clatter clatter.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
They advanced down the corridor, matching footsteps to wheels.
〔Pa tient needs to calm down.〕
〔Patient needs to calm down.〕
〔Pa tient needs to calm down〕
〔Patient needs to calm…〕
Past the detention center where senile robots were still tending to zombies,
Welcome! Our Escort Ship is responsible for security according to space law!
For insurance inquiries, call 19820-1092…
Through corridors where advertising holograms startled people.
「Esmos」
They reached the Esmos Ship, now familiar as home.
─Robot. Not much left.
〔…〕
Robot couldn’t even make a sound. Truck’s mouth felt parched.
─Let’s go…
They continued walking with encouragement. Truck kept looking back, worried about falling behind.
─We’re really almost there, Robot.
〔…〕
Finally, they arrived at the Staff Gate covered with graffiti saying everyone would die.
─Let’s go!
Whirrrr.
Truck entered through the gate first.
─Robot!
〔…〕
But Robot couldn’t come in. The panel just flickered while its limbs wouldn’t move.
It was about to shut down.
─Hey! Robot! Snap out of it!
No matter how much Truck pounded with its robotic arm, there was no response.
At this rate, the data would be permanently lost.
─…Damn it. Wait here.
Truck stopped. Soon the sound of running down the corridor could be heard.
Julione.
Having rushed out of the Supervisor’s Office, she sat in front of Robot with tools.
“Damn body damage…”
The body was too severely damaged, so repairing the circuit board was useless. Welding and patching had their limits too. Ultimately, mana would leak out.
Shhhhhh…!
The sound of zombie footsteps from somewhere.
Julione’s back went cold. She turned around.
The gate stood wide open. The spaceship to return home was right there…
‘…Truck could probably do it if you tried. This tape was yours to begin with.’
That voice suddenly came to mind.
Julione spread her palm wide. Magic power. Though she hadn’t learned it deeply, she drew up what was like basic knowledge for a ship crew member.
Mental visualization. Tape that could repair this robot.
Whoosh!
“!”
The tape manifested. Julione quickly wrapped it around Robot’s body.
“Hey! Open your eyes!”
〔…〕
Gradually the panel became clearer. Robot tilted its head up to look at her.
〔Truck.〕
“Yeah. It’s me. Let’s go!”
Thud. Robot raised itself on both legs.
“Good.”
Julione also smiled brightly and was about to enter together when.
──-!
A grotesquely shaped zombie with no eyes, nose, or mouth leaped in. The terrible form filled Julione’s retinas.
Her life flashed before her eyes.
〔Protecting Truck.〕
Robot reached out and grabbed the zombie. Then threw it like a baseball.
Crash!
The zombie slammed into the lobby wall.
“…Hah.”
Julione clutched her chest.
“Good job. Let’s go!”
〔Confirmed.〕
* * *
Cosmos Ship A Sector, the prison. Magic power orbs illuminated the interior in blue.
“From the beginning… did you suspect?”
Seo Ji-woo asked blankly.
“No. I told you. I was confused.”
Many people have the talent to deceive others, but few humans are as exceptional as Eldia.
She didn’t pretend to be good – she did good things. She perfectly hid her true intentions and never showed impatience.
However, there was one decisive hint.
“But you guys didn’t know about Companion Skills.”
I gained a Companion Skill the moment I formed a party with Julione. It meant that deep bonds weren’t necessarily required.
However, Seo Ji-woo and Kang Hyeon didn’t receive a Companion Skill from Eldia.
“Companion Skill?”
“Yeah.”
I pulled out Duct Tape from my palm.
“This tape, I got it from Truck.”
“…Wow. So it really was just good luck.”
Seo Ji-woo muttered enviously.
Anyway, I pretended to trust Eldia as much as possible. I said what she wanted to hear, and I didn’t show my true feelings either.
We were testing each other’s strength.
“Is she dead?”
“I don’t know. Not yet.”
Eldia isn’t an ordinary human. At the very least, the survival instinct of someone with the ambition to live forever is unimaginably tenacious.
“If she’s alive, we’ll have to kill her.”
“…Whoa. That’s brutal.”
“Ha-woon hyung.”
Suddenly Kang Hyeon spoke up. He had been lost in thought for a while, and now he brought up the most realistic concern.
“How should we get out of here?”
“…Well. We need to figure out where the zombies are first.”
The terminal shows zombies swarming everywhere. But the interior is actually empty. At least there are no zombies in the direction we’re looking.
“Wait.”
A bad feeling suddenly struck me.
I raised my head upward. I created light in my palm and made it float. Seo Ji-woo and Kang Hyeon’s gazes also reached the ceiling.
“Oh no.”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
The zombies were ‘stuck’ to the ceiling. There were no gaps. Like some kind of beehive, packed densely together.
Seo Ji-woo swallowed hard.
“…I almost cursed just now.”
“You curse a lot anyway.”
Kang Hyeon’s retort. Seo Ji-woo quickly turned her face away.
“Are you still sulking?”
“First, let’s search for anything on the ground.”
“Yes.”
We need to move while the zombies are on the ceiling.
I spread out my Sequence Radar. I detected waves characteristic of objects somewhere and walked over, leaning on my walking stick.
There was a broken tablet and glasses. Probably some researcher had become food here too.
I charged it with a xenon battery.
Whirr.
It turned on.
“Oh. Did you find something?”
Seo Ji-woo and Kang Hyeon approached.
The tablet had quite a few files. I opened them randomly and read the contents.
〔 Processing Room Usage Manual 〕
Date Created : 2346 / 09 / 01 em0.75
■ Subject processing method for data acquisition.
■ …Zombies can be controlled by threading their central nervous systems onto a ‘host’. Send them down at 1-hour intervals to process subjects.
“…This place. It wasn’t a prison.”
“Then what is it?”
“A processing room.”
I scrolled down on the tablet.
■ To understand the exact principles and structure of the ‘substance’, much more data and specimens are needed. Since mutations occur in uncontrollable environments…
“It wasn’t because of the meteorite either.”
The viral origin factor that Julione and other crew members thought was hull contamination by extraterrestrial material—the meteorite.
“What do you mean?”
Kang Hyeon asked.
“Ah, why are you reading alone.”
I handed the tablet to Seo Ji-woo.
“About why the virus spread. The mothership was originally controlling this substance and the zombies. But they spread it on purpose.”
The diary of the Esmos Ship worker I remember and,
「Worker’s Record」We collided with a meteorite. It was a very small meteorite, but it cracked the hull. That was close.-2348/11/13
The dates on this tablet don’t match.
〔 Processing Room Usage Manual 〕
Date Created : 2346 / 09 / 01
In other words, more than 2 years before the initial virus spread, the mothership had already acquired the substance.
“…What? Why?”
“Because they needed data.”
Since research couldn’t continue with limited data alone, they created data directly.
They manipulated this mothership into an ecosystem called hell.
“This was why Eldia left temporarily. But the zombie mutations were more serious than expected, so she got our help.”
“Crazy… They were way more insane than I thought.”
However, that’s barely the problem right now.
I looked up at the ceiling.
“The zombies will come down soon.”
“Hyung. Let’s create a space with tape.”
Kang Hyeon suggested. My eyes widened too.
“Good idea.”
Building a stronghold. If we preserve a space with tape, the zombies won’t be able to perceive us either.
“Seo Ji-woo. Set up a framework. Use the wall corners to make it like a hut. Okay?”
“Okay.”
Seo Ji-woo raised thick lines, and I placed tape over them.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
