Labyrinth Exploration 101 - Chapter 144

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Labyrinth Exploration 101 Episode 144

 

Spear Ghost(7)

 

│Episode 11 Ending Seol Ha-woon, Defense Labyrinth Anticipation Rising│

 

Seol Ha-woon was selected as the ending for Episode 11. Ironically, Seol Ha-woon, who received the ending cut at 96th place in Episode 1, proved in this Episode 11 that he is the core figure who will penetrate not only the upcoming labyrinth but this entire season, receiving shout-outs from explorers….

 

│Mitamnan Episode 11 viewership rating 31.1%. First time hitting 30% in nearly 5 years│

 

│SP) Seol Ha-woon ending scene wow│

 

│SP) Mitamnan first tally│

 

│SP) Mitamnan eliminated contestants video│

 

│SP) Episode 10 Seer monologue still lingering│

 

│SP) Seol Ha-woon Episode 1 ending vs Episode 11 ending comparison│

 

In Episode 1, he looked at the camera alone and forlornly, but in Episode 11, he gazed at the camera with confidence.

 

—Personal opinion) I see him winning the championship

 

—Regardless of fandom differences, the way Seol Ha-woon’s narrative is building up right now is insane. The higher-ranked guys are just holding on with their pre-accumulated votes, but if it goes to the end, Seol Ha-woon will win

 

└Pre-accumulated votes my ass lol really just spouting bullshit lol

 

“Oh… Episode 1 and Episode 11. Did they edit this intentionally?”

 

Seoul Gangnam Police Station.

 

Lee Young-ho was walking down the corridor with an iced americano in one hand and reading community posts with the other.

 

│Review of Dwae-sun Gukbap that Seol Ha-woon and Kang Hyeon visited│

 

The Dwae-sun Gukbap restaurant that Seol Ha-woon and Kang Hyeon visited during their break.

 

They say it was famous before, but now the waiting is even crazier. Waited about 2 hours.

 

Somehow got in and ordered pork soup and boiled pork, and it was delicious lol

 

This is Seol Ha-woon and Kang Hyeon’s autographs and photos hanging on the wall. They even marked where the two sat lolol

 

I went because I heard rumors, but the regulars in this area must be crying tears of blood?

 

─That regular is me lolol fuck

 

─Wow the quality is insane

 

─Look how solid it is

 

─Should I go tomorrow…

 

─It’s Dwae-sun Gukbap lol This place was originally doing well lol

 

│Seol Ha-woon’s real-life impression│

 

Photos and videos of Seol Ha-woon’s real-life impression taken at Dwae-sun Gukbap.

 

People used to say Seol Ha-woon falls short compared to Kang Hyeon and Lee Jun-ho, but according to real-life accounts, he surprisingly holds his own? Maybe it’s because the styling suits him perfectly.

 

─Ha-woon just ruins the atmosphere whenever he appears.

 

─If he cuts his hair, his visual appeal will be cut in half lolol

 

─It’s right to put Kang Hyeon, Lee Jun-ho, and Ryu Yeon-hwa in the top tier, and Seol Ha-woon comes next. He’s one level above the line of Lee Jong-soo, Im Hae-jun, Kim Dong-ha, Jo Woon, Ji Woon-yul.

 

─Honestly, he’s fucking obviously handsome.. I want to live with that face

 

└But you’d have to take the legs too, okay?

 

└Even if I had to cut off one leg, I’d trade…

 

Lee Young-ho also moved his fingers tap tap tap and wrote a comment.

 

─Seol Ha-woon.. when I saw him in person, he was so~~handsome and polite lol.. my daughter’s top pick is also Seol Ha-woon~~ there’s a reason he climbed up from 96th place~~?

 

Seol Ha-woon had signed dozens of autographs with Truck’s body and gave not only goods as gifts but also the hard-to-get Mitamnan t-shirts. It was the first time he’d seen his daughter smile like that.

 

Even when he bought her Tuna King before, it wasn’t to that extent.

 

This kind of public opinion manipulation was courtesy he had to provide.

 

└Old man, go fix your dentures

 

“This bastard… Ah~ If only I were 10 years younger, I’d be on Mitamnan too.”

 

It’s regrettable for no reason. Even now, whenever he goes to media briefings, they still make a fuss calling him the handsome ranker inspector.

 

“Being born early is an honor, an honor~”

 

He sighed and walked on, when suddenly.

 

His eyes stiffened.

 

Static electricity sparked at his fingertips.

 

The cause was the glass window in the interrogation room corridor.

 

Someone’s hand faintly visible through the blinds.

 

A hand wrapped tightly in bandages.

 

“….”

 

A conversation from a few weeks ago flashed through Lee Young-ho’s mind.

 

What Kim Yoon-jun’s mother had said on the day someone dug up his grave.

 

‘There were no traces of injury either.’

 

And my answer.

 

‘There would have been scratches at least.’

 

Scratches.

 

Inspector Lee Young-ho grabbed a random passerby.

 

“Hey?”

 

“Ah, yes Inspector.”

 

“Who’s inside?”

 

He asked, pointing to the interrogation room.

 

“Ah~ It’s a reference person for the Kim Yoon-jun case.”

 

“So who is it….”

 

In that instant, the interrogation room door opened first.

 

As if time had slowed down, one person walked out from inside.

 

Looking at him, Lee Young-ho managed his expression. He maintained a poker face.

 

He was a man wearing sunglasses even in the police station.

 

Was it because he didn’t want to give up his trademark? Or was it because his eyes behind the sunglasses were too pure?

 

DK.

 

He shook hands with the investigator and turned around to look at Lee Young-ho. A smile carved into the corner of his mouth.

 

Lee Young-ho also responded with a smile without showing any emotion.

 

“Oh my. Isn’t this Mentor DK.”

 

“Hey~ Lee Young-ho ranker… no, you’re an inspector now? Long time no see.”

 

While saying this, he extended his hand to him. His left hand wrapped tightly in bandages, blatantly.

 

At that moment, Lee Young-ho’s cerebral cortex stirred. His thought circuits heated up intensely.

 

Why did DK wrap his hand in bandages?

 

Was this person the one who dug up Kim Yoon-jun’s grave?

 

Even so, it was strange.

 

It was a trap set with explosives. Of course, if it had been an ordinary person, their torso would have melted, but a ranker of DK’s level would have recovered quickly, leaving only scratches.

 

Nevertheless, DK had deliberately wrapped bandages.

 

So conspicuously, like this.

 

How should I respond?

 

If he gritted his teeth and didn’t ask about it, that would be even stranger. Anyone could see it was conspicuous.

 

If he were to ask, in what way?

 

However, there wasn’t much time. His reaction couldn’t be delayed by even a single second. He had to deliver the most natural words without revealing even a hair’s breadth of his inner thoughts.

 

Such is the world of rankers.

 

Recognition, judgment, execution. All these processes are completed in units of zero seconds.

 

“Where did you hurt your hand?”

 

“Ah… got bitten by a damn rat.”

 

Had DK prepared this answer in advance?

 

“Must have been a big rat. Looks like you’re still continuing your adventures.”

 

“I’m thinking of retiring now. I’m worried I might get stabbed like Kim Yoon-jun.”

 

DK mentioned Kim Yoon-jun while lifting the corners of his lips.

 

That’s when Lee Young-ho had an intuition.

 

This man didn’t come here to be investigated.

 

He came here to ‘find’ something.

 

“Don’t worry. Magic formulas and scientific technology have advanced so much these days. I can’t even sleep at night because of work.”

 

“Still, do five-digit rankers make it? So many four-digit rankers have died.”

 

“Ah~ Haven’t you heard that news?”

 

Lee Young-ho glanced around as if checking his surroundings, then whispered very quietly.

 

“They’re moving from the volcano.”

 

Bluffing, a lie.

 

Still, at least one of them must have come down by now. Their inspector died, after all.

 

“That’s a relief, then. I’ll be going now. Keep up the good work.”

 

Tap. DK placed his hand on his shoulder, smiled, and left.

 

Lee Young-ho watched his retreating figure and clicked his tongue.

 

“…That young bastard speaking informally to me.”

 

“Huh? Inspector, aren’t you and DK the same age?”

 

Joo Dong-seok had approached at some point. He was a junior sergeant.

 

“I’m a year older since I was born early in the year. Don’t you know?”

 

“You told me to stop using the ‘early birth’ excuse.”

 

“Oh my.”

 

Lee Young-ho shook his iced coffee and sat in his chair. Joo Dong-seok, who had followed him, muttered as if something was suspicious.

 

“You know, Inspector. About Kim Yoon-jun’s grave. It exploded, right?”

 

“Yeah. It blew up.”

 

Calmly, he looked at the monitor.

 

“But DK had burns on his hands just now. Doesn’t that seem strange, Inspector?”

 

Joo Dong-seok’s words, burns.

 

Lee Young-ho pretended nothing was wrong and sipped his iced coffee.

 

“DK had burns?”

 

“Yes?”

 

Joo Dong-seok tilted his head.

 

“Did he say they were burns directly?”

 

“Uh… No. I didn’t ask, but aren’t those kinds of wounds usually burns?”

 

Lee Young-ho chuckled.

 

“He told me he got bitten by a rat. Must have been embarrassed about how he got hurt.”

 

“Haha. I guess so…”

 

“And hey. That grave exploded weeks ago. A ranker like DK would have recovered completely by now. It was a trap made to catch grave robbers.”

 

“Ah… That’s true.”

 

This was a sufficiently reasonable response.

 

It was an ordinary thought that anyone would have.

 

“But then. Kim Yoon-jun’s body definitely exploded there, right?”

 

“That’s right.”

 

Joo Dong-seok sighed.

 

“Sigh. His mother must really… what must she be feeling. The world torments people even after death.”

 

Lee Young-ho suppressed a sigh instead.

 

Dong-seok. Since when did you start making such emotional complaints to me?

 

You said you were INTP and had trouble empathizing.

 

“Still, I understand the mother’s feelings. Rather than let grave robbers pick at it… Tsk. What’s the point of talking about it.”

 

“Haah… It’s sad.”

 

Joo Dong-seok went to his seat and sat down, while Lee Young-ho examined the documents.

 

No, he pretended to look at documents while raising his eyes to survey the inside of the office.

 

Sergeant Joo Dong-seok. Officer Kim Tae-jun. Sergeant Jang Min-ho. Officer Choi Ji-hoon. And countless other police officers coming and going…

 

Among them, there’s an informant.

 

There might not be just one.

 

Lee Young-ho pretended to click his mouse while lost in thought.

 

Did DK kill Kim Yoon-jun?

 

No, rather, DK definitely didn’t kill Kim Yoon-jun.

 

If he had killed him, he would have retrieved the body right away that day.

 

The fact that DK was looking for Kim Yoon-jun’s body meant he was at least on a different side from the perpetrator.

 

Then, is DK an ally?

 

Is he looking for whoever stole the body because he’s an ally?

 

…No.

 

That’s absolutely not the case either.

 

The changed atmosphere at the police station since some point proves this. Since the moment Kim Yoon-jun died, something has been changing.

 

It’s a labyrinth.

 

All the fragments are scattered like puzzle pieces, but he hasn’t even collected a single piece yet.

 

There’s only one hypothesis he can be certain of with his intuition.

 

Labyrinth Exploration NaN.

 

The truth definitely exists within it.

 

* * *

 

A neatly organized room’s TV!

 

A laptop in front of the TV!

 

Lee Si-ah in front of it!

 

“Whew!”

 

Lee Si-ah calms her pounding heart! She sits on a cushion waiting for the live broadcast! But her heart won’t settle down! The exclamation marks won’t disappear either!

 

-A day felt like a year, open the door

 

-Open the door, I’ve waited long enough

 

-Open it before I break it down

 

-Fucking open the door

 

-Door!!!!!

 

-Guys, Seol Ha-woon is the main character of this labyrinth, right? hehe

 

The ending credits of the last episode featured Seol Ha-woon, so how could anyone endure it?

 

Lee Si-ah also smiled and typed in the chat.

 

-Open the door~ I’ve been waiting, Colonel~

 

┌──Labyrinth Exploration NaN Episode 12──┐

 

Finally, the main broadcast begins!

 

[Defense Team Mercenary Selection]

 

From the opening, the defense team deliberates and chooses mercenaries.

 

─Yoon Hwa-rim: I’ll… go with this side. I’ll work with the B-rank mercenaries. Construction team, defense team, cooking team all separated… there’s even a distribution specialist mercenary?

 

Yoon Hwa-rim picks mercenaries one by one like choosing from a delivery menu.

 

-300,000ⓒ

 

She spent 300,000 of her own money excluding bonus coins.

 

─Ryu Wei: One S-rank mercenary. And 15 B-rank mercenaries.

 

Chinese mage Ryu Wei chose one S-rank mercenary.

 

-200,000ⓒ

 

He’s quite popular too. Jo Ja-ryong is naturally the continent’s top pick, but he’s right next in line.

 

─Jo Woon: I will hire fifteen A-rank mercenaries.

 

Jo Woon cleanly chose fifteen A-ranks.

 

-400,000ⓒ

 

He spent 100,000 more than Yoon Hwa-rim.

 

─Kate: First, I’ll hire three S-ranks.

 

Fighter Min Seok-jae, Rose Brigade Ellis, Night Runner Kellinik.

 

─Kate: Twenty B-rank mercenaries. Three A-rank mercenaries.

 

-700,000ⓒ

 

700,000 of her own money. That’s incredible.

 

-The higher ranks definitely have an advantage because of vote counts

 

-Isn’t that too advantageous? If someone with low voting rank had chosen defense, the balance would’ve been broken.

 

-People vote to give them advantages lol

 

-Fuck, fans of lower ranks must be so frustrated living like this

 

-Ah, spend just a bit more. This labyrinth looks kinda tough for some reason..

 

-But they’ll really have to campaign hard for votes;;

 

-It feels kinda proud seeing my votes used like that lol

 

-What’s there to be proud of lololol you’re a slave to the bone lololol

 

Fandom wars were getting worse these days, showing no signs of lessening.

 

So in real life, asking “who did you vote for” has become almost presidential election-level taboo.

 

There was even a real news article about some company manager getting sued for pressuring employees with questions.

 

─Seol Ha-woon: Akiman of Clear Mirror Still Water. Smeshion. I’ll choose only these two.

 

It’s Seol Ha-woon!

 

-200,000ⓒ

 

200,000 of his own coins. Since this was still a time when coins weren’t abundant, it feels like he’s being frugal.

 

“I feel bad for no reason…”

 

As a fan, I really want to support him, but the profile voting that can be used with coins is limited to once per verified account for life.

 

[Base Selection]

 

All defenders choose their base locations, spend coins to purchase various daily necessities, then prepare for labyrinth entry.

 

──Mercenaries… are good. Mercenaries can be good companions, or work.

 

“…Huh?”

 

Suddenly an interview scene was inserted.

 

──Depending on how you handle them, they can become a sword or a headache.

 

It was Yoo Ji-in.

 

──There’s a trap with S-rank mercenaries.

 

She smiled meaningfully.

 

──The actual Mercenary District is similar. If an employer recruits mercenaries of too high a caliber compared to themselves, and thus becomes unable to control them…

 

Gulp.

 

Lee Si-ah unconsciously swallowed.

 

──They might get devoured, you know?

 

Why would she say something like that. Making people anxious.

 

-lol isn’t this blatant foreshadowing? Seol Ha-woon brutal death ending

 

-Nah, no way. Then I can’t comfortably eat soup lol

 

-No, maybe that’s why he’s clinging to Kang Hyeon? Because this labyrinth is fucked.

 

As expected, talk about Seol Ha-woon comes up.

 

Because these production crew bastards have precedent. An explorer who got the ending credits in the previous episode got crushed in the very next labyrinth.

 

Was it Kim Seok-jun, who was 9th place last season?

 

“…No way.”

 

Just as Lee Si-ah bit her lip.

 

[What should we eat today~? Don’t worry about it~]

 

A commercial break right away.

 

“Why are there ads already!”

 

Lee Si-ah slammed the desk.

 

-Are they kidding

 

-Ah fuck, ads after just 15 minutes

 

-Looks like three people picked S-ranks, Ryu Wei and Seol Ha-woon are screwed and only Kate will do properly

 

-Seol Ha-woon definitely can’t control S-ranks lol he’s someone who won’t bend even 1cm so he’ll definitely get crushed

 

-Isn’t that what you guys wanted? lol

 

-Lately Kate’s fans have been attacking Seolhyun like crazy lol seems like they don’t want her to be associated with the existing Sera line.

 

Actually, when you look around SNS, people who have Kate as their main or openly sold their sub-accounts are cursing at Seol Ha-woon.

 

Fucking horse right, damn horse right, shit horse right….

 

The familiar discord and restraint tactics of the top voting ranks, the front lines.

 

It’ll get even worse since they’re on the same defense team.

 

-Would mercenaries like someone who acts like a fucking horse right?

 

-As an active mercenary, let me tell you the facts. What mercenaries hate most is acting dogmatically like a damn horse right…

 

The countless people on SilTalk also began predicting Seol Ha-woon’s dark future.

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