Labyrinth Exploration 101 - Chapter 272

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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 272

Call Me Call Me(1)

Munch munch. Munch munch.

Im Hae-jun is eating with Seo Ji-woo when he suddenly looks up into the air.

His expression is shown in close-up. A deep smile spreads across his puffed cheeks. Rich expressions like a lead actor in a heist movie.

Im Hae-jun’s status window appears.

[Player: Im Hae-jun]

[Money: 13,156 Caring]

[Current Job: Thief (Low-grade)]

[Special Notes: Constantly Scheming]

-Oh what lol

-Thief?

-Lolol ah so there was a reason he sticks to Seo Ji-woo

-Lololol

-He’s gonna backstab Seo Ji-woo lolol

-That’s really a job only Im Hae-jun could have..

-He’s totally gonna fail lolol

-He actually believes in that, so pathetic lololol

─Im Hae-jun: Hehehe….

─Seo Ji-woo: What are you grinning about.

─Im Hae-jun: I’m just so happy to be on the same team as you, sis.

Lee Si-ah laughed out loud.

These two are like real siblings. If they made YouTube videos together, they’d probably get tons of views.

─Seo Ji-woo: …This won’t do, you bastard. Get lost.

─Im Hae-jun: Huh? Why?

─Seo Ji-woo: You’re up to something.

At that moment, Im Hae-jun’s expression crumbles. He answers while making beeping sounds like an overheated robot.

─Im Hae-jun: N-no I’m not. Up to? Up to? What does up to something mean?

Lee Si-ah laughed again.

There are famous comedy characters in Mitamnan. Im Hae-jun, Lee Jong-soo, Kim Dong-ha.

-Lol why is he going “up to up to” lolol

-Lololol

-That guy is just cute lolol

-Now if he can’t steal anything and gets kicked out, it’s the Hae-jun ending lolol

-Lololol

-Im Hae-jun’s conversation style: revealing everything lolol

[Player: Yoon Hwa-rim]

[Money: 130 Caring]

[Current Job: Manager (Low-grade)]

[Special Notes: Thinking of business items]

Meanwhile, this time Hwa-rim appears. She’s riding around on a cart while pondering something.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Manager… what should I manage….

She holds the handle with one hand and strokes her chin with the other while thinking.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: …Huh?

Her eyes widen as she looks somewhere.

Swoosh! The camera moves cinematically too.

It’s Kang Hyeon inside some restaurant. A man who stands out even from afar.

He’s incredibly handsome.

In Mitamnan, there are cast members who make you feel comfortable~ and excited~ the moment they appear on screen. It’s not just their visuals, but because the overall atmosphere including the story becomes as sophisticated as movies and dramas.

Representative examples are Seol Ha-woon, Kang Hyeon, and Lee Jun-ho.

Of course, among them, Seol Ha-woon is the best. A.K.A Human Cinema.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Hyeon!

Yoon Hwa-rim runs toward Kang Hyeon.

─Kang Hyeon: Oh, Hwa-rim. Good to see you.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Hyeon, what’s your job?

─Kang Hyeon: I’m a chef.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Cook… Chef? But why are you doing serving?!

Yoon Hwa-rim’s head spinning round and round is visible to the viewers too.

─Kang Hyeon: They said there were only server positions available.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Only server positions….

Pop. Pop. Now fireworks bloom above Yoon Hwa-rim’s head.

It’s actual CG editing.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: If we open up the hall so you can see the kitchen and cook there… Ah, Hyeon. First, are you good at cooking?

─Kang Hyeon: Yeah. I tried it and there seems to be job compensation.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Good! How much money do you have?!

─Kang Hyeon: I don’t have much. 30,000 Caring.

Yoon Hwa-rim thinks. 30,000 Caring. It’s woefully insufficient to open a business, but.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: …Hyeon. Let’s open a restaurant.

─Kang Hyeon: Restaurant?

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Yeah. A restaurant.

─Kang Hyeon: Will 30,000 be enough?

Yoon Hwa-rim laughs confidently and taps her cart.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: There’s a pawn shop nearby. If we pawn this, we could get a lot for it, right?

She’s trying to pawn the cart she treasures so much.

─Kang Hyeon: Are you sure? You said you stayed up all night for weeks making it.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: We’re going to get it back anyway!

-Hwa-rim is cool

-She’s really changed a lot from the beginning

-This is why labyrinths make explorers grow

-But do labyrinths like this actually exist?

-Yeah, all the labyrinths shown here are based on real cases.

-There was a labyrinth where the goal was to become the world’s richest person lol. Was it Ohio in America?

Kang Hyeon quits the restaurant and borrows money from the pawn shop with Yoon Hwa-rim.

Their initial capital is 500,000 caring.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Oh, but we need a friend to do odd jobs too.

─Kang Hyeon: I’ll do the odd jobs too.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: No. You need to cook… Huh?

In the distance, someone comes into view.

A warrior who clearly has ‘I’m good at odd jobs’ written all over his face – tall, big, and handsome, but somehow seems half-stupid.

─Yoon Hwa-rim: Hey! Jong-su! Lee Jong-soo!

Yoon Hwa-rim waves her hand and runs toward Lee Jong-soo.

LIFE GAME

Mitamnan is still being broadcast from the Seoul National University Lab.

Seol Ha-woon is doing night patrol at the Magic School.

But the inside of the security room has changed dramatically.

One wall is filled with monitors and CCTVs spread out like a honeycomb.

-Wow what’s that

-It’s developed before we knew it

-Lololol is that also mental visualization?

-No, looks like he added some standardized magic

-He’s become Big Brother entirely

“It’s Seol Ha-woon.”

“Seol Ha-woon’s scenes definitely have a different quality to them.”

Sizzle─

Seol Ha-woon grills meat. Without even cutting it with scissors, it goes straight to his mouth.

It’s Seol Ha-woon style mukbang.

That famous Seol Ha-woon style mukbang.

“He really eats deliciously.”

“…I should buy pork belly today too.”

-He’d become a famous YouTuber even doing mukbang

-His visuals are like a mage young master but he eats like a bandit lololol

-He doesn’t eat much when you watch, but he eats so efficiently

──Grrrrr.

The CCTV catches suspicious movement. Near the rear wall. Something is writhing in the darkness.

It’s not human in shape. A monster with a twisted form that crawls on all fours.

“Phantom beast.”

Professor Lee Yun-se’s words,

─Seol Ha-woon: It’s a phantom beast.

Seol Ha-woon says the exact same thing.

──Graaak.

The monsters crawl over the wall in low postures. Seol Ha-woon leaves the security room. He follows their presence while leaning on his walking stick.

Tap. Tap.

Reaching the intersection, he draws up his magic power and fires multiple mana bullets.

Shwaaaak───-!

The magic bullets embed in their backs. It’s not simple penetration. Explosions occur inside their bodies.

───-!

Flash rises up, and the monsters decompose like dust.

“Explosive bullets. They used to only penetrate.”

“He must have added more mental visualization.”

Battlefield Mage. They named him well.

However, Professor Lee Yun-se shook his head.

“Phantom beasts are just phantom beasts.”

He continues as if giving commentary.

“What’s important is the mage controlling the phantom beasts. If you don’t catch the mage, you’ve only damaged a little magic power at best.”

Phantom beasts also have a controllable range. Because the mage’s magic power must be supplied.

─Seol Ha-woon: ….

Seol Ha-woon looks beyond the wall. He hears presence near his ear.

Rustle rustle.

Not far away, three presences are fleeing.

“If we let them go like that, it would actually be a loss. The purpose of phantom beasts is ultimately information gathering.”

Seol Ha-woon seems to have the same thought as Professor Lee Yun-se, but… he looks down at his left leg.

“A mage with a collapsed left leg. There are limits.”

Then Seol Ha-woon raises his head.

The Seol Ha-woon on screen is silent, but his monologue is inserted.

Even if my legs are broken, there are no limits.

A clean and deep bass tone, characteristic of Seol Ha-woon.

Because physical constraints are the freedom of magic power.

Seol Ha-woon concentrates his magic power with his eyes closed. Magic power spreads beneath his feet.

Tadadadatat──-

The sound of fleeing enemies’ footsteps echoes throughout the speakers.

Probably the sound Seol Ha-woon is hearing right now.

I can mobilize. In a way that distinguishes me from any other mage.

The moment his words concluded,

Tssssst─!

Magical sparks burst in the atmosphere, and Seol Ha-woon opens his eyes.

He releases magic power into the air. Mana projected in particle form creates a formula at high altitude.

Gooooo──-!

Ultra-high density energy on a completely different level from mana bullets.

A ballistic missile created by Seol Ha-woon’s mental visualization.

Kwaaaaaa──-!

Blue flashes flicker in the sky.

A massive cluster of light brilliantly illuminates the screen, then splits into three and descends.

They are precisely dropped at the enemies’ coordinates.

Flash! Flash! Flash!

The radiance sinks to the road surface. The ground caves in and dust clouds rise.

Boom- Boom- Boom-!

Enemy mages whose entire bodies explode without even being able to let out death cries are shown in sequence.

-Wow

-Wow?

-Wow

-????

-?

-?Shit

-Hahahaha

-Crazy shit

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ when did you learn to use missiles

-He just does an air strike himself

-One-man army;;

-Wow

-Mal-ol-haem is just insane

-He develops infinitely..

-Fucking awesome lol the legs are broken so the magic actually got faster

-Physical constraints are the freedom of magic power.. Amazing

-Another scene to add to the World Cup highlight reel lol

-He’s really changed the most from the beginning

-Wow hahaha that’s fucking refreshing, shit

-Glass cannon lololol just solves everything from a standing position.

“….”

The graduate students glanced at Professor Lee Yun-se.

“He utilized the technique of radiating magic power as an air strike.”

He was analyzing Seol Ha-woon with a professor’s eye.

“Yes, yes. That’s right.”

Meanwhile, time in the life game flows on.

─Seo Ji-woo : Hey. You’re not cooking properly?

─Im Hae-jun : …I did it properly though.

─Seo Ji-woo : Bullshit. You’ve never cooked rice before.

─Im Hae-jun : …I have though.

─Seo Ji-woo : What do you mean you have. This is really why silver spoons don’t work. I’ve been cooking rice and side dishes myself since I was 5.

─Im Hae-jun : …Good for you.

Im Hae-jun gets scolded by Seo Ji-woo every camping trip, and Seol Ha-woon earns money doing security work and illegal tutoring.

─Yoon Hwa-rim : Jong-su, that’s it! Good! Just hang the sign there! Hang it there!

Yoon Hwa-rim, Kang Hyeon, and Lee Jong-soo complete the restaurant.

The sign reads │Hyeon’S Kitchen│.

─Lee Jun-ho : Hmm… You want to receive our protection?

Lee Jun-ho, who established the Hao Sect, has a conversation with casino officials. On the street, of course.

─Casino Manager : That’s right. Pickpocketing and robbery are rampant, and police power has its limits.

─Lee Jun-ho : Isn’t it because you’re from backgrounds that can’t receive police support?

─Casino Manager : ….

─Lee Jun-ho : Well, backgrounds aside, asking for protection for just 50,000 caring doesn’t make sense.

A battle of wills between the manager and Lee Jun-ho. Lee Jun-ho flutters his loose-fitting clothes while wearing a deep smile.

He’s a real murim person.

-This guy’s starting to look like he belongs in a martial arts novel lol

-Call the waiter

-Hahahahaha they’re gonna fight like crazy at the inn.

─Lee Jun-ho : Instead of cleaning everything up, 1 million caring. I won’t even listen to anything less.

─Casino Manager : 1 million? You beggar bastards-

─Lee Jun-ho : Watch your mouth.

At some point, a sword protrudes from Lee Jun-ho’s back. A long, sharp long sword. It moves smoothly and taps the manager’s shoulder.

─Lee Jun-ho: You.

Lee Jun-ho stares intently into his eyes and speaks with deadly intent.

─Lee Jun-ho: You just died.

-This bastard.. A butcher who only looks after kids..

-If words are long, heads roll. Don’t you know the Murim saying?

-hahahaha

-He’s just a fighting chicken for real

-He’d communicate well if he went to Murim

Emerek Magic School

Scenes of various explorers pass by, and Seol Ha-woon returns again.

─Seol Ha-woon: What’s going on?

─Silo: Ah, Mr. Seol Ha-woon. Well, regarding this month’s magic problem… Professor Arkal has summoned you. He said to come to his office right now…

Professor Arkal. To all viewers, he’s a stereotypical villain.

─Seol Ha-woon: Is it here?

─Silo: Yes.

Seol Ha-woon stands in front of his office.

─Silo: Don’t be too nervous. Though you don’t seem nervous anyway.

Knock knock.

─Silo: Professor. Security guard Seol Ha-woon is here.

─Professor Arkal: …Tell him to come in.

It’s an irritated voice. Just hearing it makes you think it won’t be easy. The kind that gives graduate students PTSD…

Seol Ha-woon opens the door. The luxurious interior, and Professor Arkal himself sits at his desk at the far end, ostentatiously scribbling with a feather pen.

It’s the epitome of putting on airs.

─Arkal: Silo. You may leave.

─Silo: Yes.

Assistant Professor Silo withdraws.

─Arkal: Security guard. I heard you solved this month’s problem.

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. I happened to solve it by chance.

─Arkal: Strange. It shouldn’t have been a problem that someone like you could solve?

It’s a very shitty way of speaking.

The graduate students in the lab put their hands to their foreheads one by one.

Honestly, professors like that aren’t nonexistent.

No, there are surprisingly many.

“I’m not like that.”

Professor Lee Yun-se suddenly said that.

“Yes, yes. That’s right. You’re not like that, Professor…”

─Seol Ha-woon: ….

“With Seol Ha-woon’s personality, he probably can’t stand that kind of thing.”

“Does Seol Ha-woon have a fiery personality?”

Professor Lee Yun-se asked.

“Um… I’d say he’s like cold fire? He’s incredibly calm but when you see him act, he’s passionate.”

─Arkal: Answer.

Seol Ha-woon stares into Arkal’s eyes. The tension is taut. This is worrying. Because he’s not someone who would ever give in to anyone…

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. It was a difficult problem.

“Oh?”

The graduate students looked surprised.

-What

-He’s giving in?

-I thought he was gonna get a bullet right in the face lol

-You’re mistaken, Seol Ha-woon isn’t a thug;; He’s just a machine that conquers labyrinths.

-Isn’t a machine a thug?

─Arkal: Hmph. I suppose so. Since you probably didn’t solve it yourself. Why don’t you tell me about the content too?

-No, why do you keep provoking me, damn it lol

-Professor just let it go if you don’t want to die

-Are all professors originally like that;; I’m getting PTSD

─Seol Ha-woon: It was a tremendously good problem.

─Arkal: …A good problem?

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. I was impressed while solving it. When I served in the military, I once studied mana operation and spell structure through self-study.

Flattery that no one could have imagined Seol Ha-woon would give follows.

No, it pours out.

─Seol Ha-woon: That’s when I first saw Professor Arkal’s research paper. It was a new world for me. I have respected Professor Arkal since that day.

Seol Ha-woon flattering is novel, and it’s even more novel because the content is very sincere.

─Seol Ha-woon: Though I’m merely a security guard, the reason I insisted on this magic school wasn’t because it’s prestigious. I wanted to meet Professor Arkal.

Each line is masterful. Not praising too crudely, but restrained yet very sophisticated speech.

─Seol Ha-woon: Professor, you were my role model. You were the lamp that lit my path.

─Arkal: …Hmm.

Professor Arkal let out a light breath. His lips were twitching.

300% hooked.

“Wow….”

The graduate students were impressed. Professor Lee Yun-se quietly looked around at them.

“You don’t need to do that with me.”

Professor, you’ve been making comments since earlier.

Does it hit close to home?

─Arkal: I was your role model?

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. I also read your research paper on Circuit Emission that you published last time.

─Arkal: …Did you understand it? You?

─Seol Ha-woon: I clung to it desperately. Because it was Professor Arkal’s paper.

-Wow for real lmaooooo

-lolololol this guy goes all the way to the end with everything he does

-Wow Seol Ha-woon lolololol

-If a guy like Jemal-ol flatters me like that, I’d fall for it too

-A man who knows when to bow his head

─Arkal: …Ha. Living this long, I get to meet someone like you too. Well, the world is wide after all. If you know me that well, you should be able to solve my problem.

Then he suddenly stands up.

─Arkal: Follow me. I’ll show you my workshop.

─Seol Ha-woon: …Yes.

“You have to know when to bow your head to become a great person.”

That was Professor Lee Yun-se’s maxim.

─Arkal: Look around comfortably.

Professor Arkal’s Workshop. There are all kinds of related books. Standardized Magic, principles of magic formulas, specialized texts, etc.

─Seol Ha-woon: …Wow.

Seol Ha-woon’s expression is very pleased. Like a child who came to an amusement park.

─Arkal: How is it?

─Seol Ha-woon: This is the first time in my life I’ve seen a workshop like this.

─Arkal: Haha. I suppose so.

─Seol Ha-woon: May I look at a few books?

─Arkal: I’ll allow it for you.

Arkal sits in the workshop chair and asks Seol Ha-woon.

─Arkal: I heard there was some commotion last night too. Was there another intrusion?

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. They’re presumed to be related to the Corrupt Council, but I dealt with them all.

─Arkal: Hmm. How should we announce this.

He pretends not to know and strokes his chin, and Seol Ha-woon tells him what he wants to hear.

─Seol Ha-woon: How about announcing that Professor Arkal handled it personally?

─Arkal: Me?

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. After all, the source of my magic formula is Professor Arkal.

─Arkal: …It’s not wrong, but.

“That guy’s shameless.”

“That professor is a comedy character too.”

The graduate students laughed. Hahahaha. Lee Yun-se also smiled slightly, but soon pondered the words and quietly muttered.

“That professor ‘too’?”

“…Pardon?”

─Arkal: Ah, but you see. This is a paper I’m currently writing. I was thinking of giving you, who admires me, the privilege of reading it first.

─Seol Ha-woon: It’s an honor. May I lightly polish it?

─Arkal: Hmm, you?

─Seol Ha-woon: Yes. Though polishing it will require some cost.

─Arkal: Cost?

─Seol Ha-woon: I’ll show you the first draft result first. You can decide whether to support it after seeing that.

─Arkal: …Good. Let’s do that.

-Oh Seol Ha-woon is seriously making money now

-So he’s enduring it to make money lolol

-Is the mage community still fighting about Seol Ha-woon?

-No they were talking shit about Seol Ha-woon being trash but now they’re suddenly studying hard among themselves lolol

-The bastards who said 133 are getting torn apart lol they say the answer is definitely 237.

-As expected of Jemal-ol..

The mage community now acknowledged that Seol Ha-woon was right, and furthermore, they were in heated study about ‘Seol Ha-woon’s intuition.’

It was an effort to ‘theorize’ his pure intuition.

-Will they show Seol Ha-woon’s revised papers on the broadcast too?

-The mage communities seem to be secretly expecting it lol so funny

-They’re just bastards. If the result is good they’ll praise it and take it, if it’s bad they’ll curse the hell out of it, ungrateful bastards

-Mages do have a lot of envy and jealousy

Professor Lee Yun-se is also constantly moving his hands, taking notes.

One of the graduate students casually brought it up.

“You didn’t know it was this kind of academic program, did you~?”

“I see.”

“But what have you been writing down since earlier?”

“Assignment.”

“…Pardon? Why?”

Kim A-rang came up to the rooftop while quickly skimming through the mage community reactions.

│I’m curious about Seol Ha-woon revising that paper│

│Will it appear on the live broadcast?│

│Come out already lol If you don’t show up it’s fake│

│I want to learn from Ma-ol-ja too│

│Just studying Seol Ha-woon really makes me feel my level as a mage rising steadily│

│Those bastards who worship Seol Ha-woon aren’t in their right minds. They’re X-gods born as demonic sect instead of orthodox sect from the start…│

“Really easy to understand people.”

The theories that Seol Ha-woon developed in this Life Labyrinth are already being produced as a ‘Comprehensive Spell Book’.

A spell book containing Seol Ha-woon’s efficiency. The platform is Magic Hat. As the author wishes, all proceeds will be donated.

They’ll release volume 1 first, then decide on releasing volumes 2-3 based on sales.

“Why do mages especially go wild on the internet?”

It’s a mystery to Kim A-rang. Warriors, swordsmen, and archers just fight each other or visit directly when things go wrong, but mages have a particularly high rate of hiding behind screens.

“…Well, I was a mage too.”

She pushed open the rooftop door.

“Huh?”

At the railing of that open-sky place, there was another unexpected person.

Mage Tae-woo.

“Mage-nim. You come here often? …Wait, don’t tell me something happened again?!”

Kim A-rang hurried over to him. Tae-woo turned to look at her.

“Nothing happened.”

“Huh? Uh… Then what are you doing here?”

“Gaming.”

Kim A-rang looked at Tae-woo’s smartphone. It was some mobile game.

“Ah… But why are you suddenly using formal speech?”

Tae-woo stared at Kim A-rang for a moment.

“I was using informal speech.”

“What’s with you all of a sudden. You always use informal speech when meeting someone for the first time.”

“No. That rarely happens.”

“…?”

Kim A-rang blinked and pointed at Tae-woo’s phone screen.

“But what game is that?”

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