Labyrinth Exploration 101 - Chapter 293

—————
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 293

Talking to the Moon(5)

Rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle.

Truck is heading out.

“…So damn majestic.”

“Right. Cute.”

Kang Hyeon and Lee Jun-ho followed the guide truck. They went down further and further from the parking garage until they reached the sewers.

“Huh? It’s blocked?”

“Jun-ho. I think it’s a puzzle.”

They could see a passage on the other side, but the area in front of the sewers was filled with water. A warning signboard was also visible.

[Wastewater Toxic Substance Warning]

It meant they shouldn’t swim.

“Let’s think about this. Is there a plank or something around here?”

Creak. Creak. Suddenly Truck started moving its wheels.

Rattle rattle rattle rattle. It searched the interior while going here and there. It shone its headlights up and down, craning its head this way and that. It was incredibly busy by itself.

Lee Jun-ho let out a hollow laugh.

“…Truck is quite curious.”

“Right. Cute. Oh, Jun-ho! Look over there.”

Kang Hyeon pointed at the ceiling. Lee Jun-ho craned his neck. Before they knew it, Truck’s headlights were illuminating that spot.

A large plank was hanging from the ceiling.

“Ah~ Right.”

Whoosh!

He jumped up to grab the plank and brought it down, floating it on the wastewater.

“Let’s go.”

Truck and Kang Hyeon got on the plank together and escaped the sewers.

Outside was full of zombies. They killed their presence as much as possible and followed Truck’s navigation, finally reaching the research facility where the V-3 vaccine was located.

“Truck. This is the right place, isn’t it?”

─Yes. That’s correct.

“Let’s go.”

They entered the interior of the research facility.

“Jun-ho. Another puzzle.”

They arrived at a certain room, and there was one more problem. A monitor sprawled on the floor was filled with some collection of numbers.

15893=1131518191

12384912739=12223241718192

79110101114971161111141011041161101051031101051081901283091283932149807092348123480912390=?

“I think we need to find a pattern here…”

Suddenly Truck stuck its face close to the monitor.

“Hey Truck. Move aside a bit.”

─….

It continued looking without saying anything. It completely blocked the screen so we couldn’t see anything.

“I said move.”

Lee Jun-ho lifted up Truck’s side. Truck suddenly resisted by grinding its tires.

“Why are you acting like this.”

─Let go.

Creak creak creak, it threatened while moving its wheels. Its headlights also went beep beep.

“We need to solve this.”

─Let go. Let go.

“…Ah. Fine, just watch from behind for now. Let us see too.”

Truck and the two people maintained their distance while watching the monitor panel.

─Hmph.

Truck made a strangely boastful breathing sound. As if it knew the correct answer.

“Ah I got it!”

Immediately Kang Hyeon snapped his fingers.

“Look here. The numbers repeat here, 15893=1131518191 right? In the left column there’s one 1, one 3, one 5, one 8, one 9, so it’s 11 31 51 81 91. So if we calculate this last one the same way…”

Anyway, they solved the puzzle to get the password, and used the password to open the secret room containing the vaccine.

“It’s the vaccine!”

They obtained the vaccine from that place.

“Truck. Can you load the vaccine?”

─Possible.

“Okay. Then let’s go.”

They loaded the vaccine into Truck’s cargo bay, left the research facility, and rushed to their final destination, the Quarantine Control Center. Along the way they were chased by zombies, solved a few more puzzles, requested support via radio…

After going through various processes.

“A helicopter!”

A helicopter appeared in the sky. The two people and one truck waved their hands frantically to guide the helicopter.

“Are you the V-3 vaccine carriers?!”

“Yes!”

“It’s here in the truck!”

At their urgent shouts, Kang Hyeon pointed to Truck.

─Please take this.

Truck’s robotic arm handed over the vaccine. The rescue team that received it gestured toward the inside of the helicopter.

“Get in!”

The two people and one truck got on the helicopter and soon arrived at the escape set stage. It was Gangwon Province where the production crew was waiting.

Clap clap clap clap clap!

Amid their applause, Kang Hyeon and Lee Jun-ho held each other’s hand and raised both arms high.

“Escape── success!”

After finishing all the variety show filming.

I met Inspector Lee Young-ho after a long time. It was a contact through Truck.

─…You’ve come.

Campsite on the mountainside. Inspector Lee Young-ho had already finished all the camping preparations.

“It’s been a while.”

─How’s your body? I saw the article. I heard you got injured during variety show filming.

“I’m fine. I’m all healed.”

I answered through Truck, but there was almost no sense of disconnect now. The Sequence’s consciousness connection had become very natural.

─That’s a relief.

Inspector Lee Young-ho said while putting sausages on the grill.

─But we were really going crazy this time too.

“Because of the murder case?”

─Yes. You know, right? Too many serial murders broke out simultaneously. We succeeded in apprehending the culprits, but… every single one of them says strange things.

“Strange things.”

─Yes.

Sizzle. Inspector Lee Young-ho flipped the sausages.

─It was something I had to do. I had to do it. They keep emphasizing justification like that, babbling as if they received some calling. But.

Inspector Lee Young-ho’s gaze drifted toward me.

─They were all Je Mal-ol fans.

“…Je Mal-ol’s fans.”

─Yes. To be precise, they were Bok Mal-ol fans.

Inspector Lee Young-ho held out a case file.

─Take a look.

It was a photo of the inside of the serial killer’s house. There were an enormous number of posters, photos, and drawings.

All of them were Seol Ha-woon.

But not ‘me’. Seol Ha-woon standing on two healthy legs. A man wearing military uniform holding a sniper rifle and revolver instead of a cane.

It was the clone Seol Ha-woon.

─And this is what one of the perpetrators wrote on the internet.

[Bok Mal-ol…]

[I can’t stop crying because of this damn year]

[Ah I’m going crazy]

[I think this is really right.]

[Bok Mal-ol gave me enlightenment]

[Seol Ha-woon always finds a way. He gave me a path too.]

[Now there’s no choice. There’s no way to endure it.]

[Conviction calls forth conviction. I have no choice but to follow him.]

[I too must reclaim freedom like Bok Mal-ol.]

“What is this.”

─You know the Mitamnan Gallery, right? Well, it’s supposedly the biggest site in Korea. Anyway, these are posts he scattered there. He talked only about Bok Mal-ol for a while, then suddenly committed murder.

Inspector Lee Young-ho narrowed his eyes.

─…That’s why I’m suspicious. Not just him, but other murderers are also resonating tremendously with Bok Mal-ol. Not with Seol Ha-woon, but only with Bok Mal-ol.

“Those bastards are fakes.”

It was a reasonable suspicion.

─Yes. It seems so. But why did they suddenly commit murder?

“Because the people they killed are also fakes.”

Bok Mal-ol killed himself because he knew he was fake.

But these fakes are killing other fakes because they themselves are fake.

─Huh. So it seems there is a way for fakes to recognize fakes… Strange. What’s the purpose of the fakes?

That much was easy to predict.

“They want to become real.”

─Hmm… But I also think this. Do all fakes have to die…? Couldn’t they all live together in harmony or something?

I looked at Inspector Lee Young-ho. Inspector Lee Young-ho gave a bitter smile.

“It’s impossible.”

Fakes and real ones get mixed together. The distinction between real and fake becomes ambiguous.

If that happens, then eventually.

“Our world would become no different from a labyrinth.”

─…It’s complicated.

Inspector Lee Young-ho sighed and took a bite of the well-cooked sausage.

“Inspector Lee Young-ho. Please keep this for now.”

I held out a pouch to Inspector Lee Young-ho. It was a bundle containing spell orbs.

“Red ones are for attack, blue ones for defense, yellow ones for escape. I’ve included detailed instructions too, so use them in emergency situations.”

─Yes, thank you.

“You must not die.”

─…I don’t want to die either. I’ll use them well.

He chuckled while shaking the bundle of spell orbs.

─Ah, but this is all I have to give you.

Inspector Lee Young-ho packed well-grilled sausages, sweet pumpkin, mushrooms and such into a Lock&Lock container.

─Enjoy your meal.

“…Yes. Thank you.”

I was just getting hungry.

“Then let’s meet again later.”

I loaded the Lock&Lock container into Truck’s freight car.

─Yep. Well, if I find out anything new about these cases, I’ll contact you right away….

The vacation was over. All the explorers gathered together after a long time.

“Everyone, it’s good to see you.”

Yoo Ji-in appeared. Her face was also a long-awaited sight.

“Now. Finally, it’s not far off. I have many regrets. Various classes were cancelled due to unfortunate incidents, and the time to spend with you all was also reduced.”

Mentor classes, Yoo Ji-in special programming, etc. Quite a few specials were cancelled due to Kim Yoon-jun’s death, but instead the density of the labyrinth deepened that much more.

“Today is the last labyrinth.”

The other explorers gulped nervously. Yoo Ji-in smiled faintly.

“We always think. Where is our path? Where should we go….”

Yoo Ji-in lowered her tone emotionally.

“The theme of the last labyrinth is travel.”

Travel. Just hearing it makes me anxious.

“People say. That travel is truly the act of finding one’s real self. We’ve also come quite a long journey to get here, haven’t we?”

I quickly looked around. There were already many explorers with tears welling up in their eyes.

I don’t know why.

Why are they crying?

“Before that, shall we look back once more at the paths we’ve walked?”

Yoo Ji-in pointed somewhere. Lights turned on and some set stage appeared.

“Oh? That!”

Yoon Hwa-rim’s eyes widened.

“That’s Hyeon’s Kitchen?!”

Hyeon’s Kitchen restaurant. Yoon Hwa-rim and Lee Jong-soo ran over with bright smiles.

“Wow, that’s the Survival Labyrinth cabin, right?”

Seo Ji-woo, who came up beside me, let out a hollow laugh. I also followed Seo Ji-woo’s gaze. There was the cabin I had built long ago.

“That’s right.”

“There’s also the World Labyrinth next to it. Amazing.”

The neon signs of the western World Labyrinth, and the inn of the east.

“Master! There’s the used bookstore over there too!”

Im Hae-jun pointed to the used bookstore of Wolryeong Village.

“That’s right. How nice to see it.”

Not only that, but there were various buildings I didn’t know, but which held deep meaning for other explorers.

“Here’s my tunnel.”

Im Hae-jun giggled as he discovered the tunnel he had dug in the Survival Labyrinth.

Thong─! Thong─! Thong─!

Then a particularly loud resonance echoed through the set stage and new lighting descended. All the explorers turned to look there.

“…Wow.”

“Whoa, that.”

“Ah….”

“….”

I was speechless for a moment.

It was a rocket launch pad. A moderately scaled-down Kennedy Space Center. And next to it, a tree stump that continued on.

There, someone’s military uniform was placed.

“It’s Bok Mal-ol’s….”

At Seo Ji-woo’s murmur, the atmosphere became solemn for a moment. Many explorers were watching Kate and me carefully.

“This set stage will be opened to fans after the main broadcast ends.”

Yoo Ji-in spoke at just the right timing. Everyone focused on her again.

“You can all reminisce about memories again then. For now, over there.”

Yoo Ji-in gestured to the opposite side.

“Please choose a means of transportation for your journey.”

■ Train

■ Car

■ Airplane

■ Boat

■ Bus

■ Bridge

■ Horse

■ Submarine

■ Bicycle

■ Motorcycle

“…Um, mentor. If I choose bridge, I can ride a cart, right?”

Yoon Hwa-rim raised her hand and asked.

“Do as you please. You don’t need to ask me about every little thing.”

Ms. Yoo Ji-in is quite sharp today.

“Master. What are you going to do?”

Im Hae-jun asked. Before I knew it, Kang Hyeon and Lee Jun-ho had also come to my side.

“Well.”

A journey.

I don’t know what kind of journey it will be, or where we’ll end up going.

“I’m fine with anything except the bridge. What are you guys going to do.”

“Hmm… I’ll go with the horse. That’s a riding horse behind there, right? I’m good at horseback riding.”

At Im Hae-jun’s words, I shook my head.

“No. It’s a talking horse. It seems to mean going together with a person.”

“Oh really? Then I need to do something else. I prefer traveling alone.”

“…It’s just a riding horse.”

“Oh what. Really?”

“Yeah. That’s right.”

“You’re lying. Which one is real?”

Lee Jun-ho chuckled and stepped boldly in front of the train.

“I’ll take the train.”

Kang Hyeon stood next to the car beside it.

“I like driving.”

“Oh. Kang Hyeon hyung. Then if you give me a ride-“

“─Oh right. Just because you take the same means of transportation doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll arrive at the same place.”

Yoo Ji-in advised Im Hae-jun. Im Hae-jun quietly stepped back.

“What about you, Master?”

“I’ll….”

I stood in front of the airplane.

“Well then, let’s go in.”

Lee Jun-ho was the first to disappear into the train door.

“See you later, hyung. Hae-jun, see you later too.”

Kang Hyeon also nodded his head and went to the car, and while Im Hae-jun was hesitating, I also entered the airplane.

“…Oh. They made this well.”

The interior was similar to a passenger plane. I found a seat while holding my walking stick.

I would have preferred to ride in first class if possible, but there was only economy.

“Ah well.”

I sat in the chair. At that moment, sunlight shone through the window gap.

“Hm?”

I looked out the window. Before I knew it, the airplane was flying.

“What the… already?”

Kwaaaaaaaang──!

Suddenly a huge impact hit. Some oxygen mask came dangling down above my seat.

Kwaaaaaa─!

The interior shook like crazy,

Weeeeeing-! Weeeeeing-!

As the air pressure rose rapidly and urgent alarms rang out.

“Haah….”

I let out a sigh.

“…This is really fucked up.”

Why does it feel like only I end up like this.

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