Labyrinth Exploration 101 - Chapter 3

—————
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 003

One Day, Magic Power Sprouted from My Head (2)

Assistant Director Kim A-rang had a necklace hanging around her chest.

A necklace with a pendant. But the pendant’s bezel frame was hollow. This meant the contents were clearly visible.

Inside it was magic power. A mass of condensed magic power.

The circular form of the magic power was beautiful.

So I wanted to see it.

Closer, larger.

“Number 1,356?”

Strangely, such a desire arose, and the next moment my retina was tinted blue. Then my vision expanded and focused on a single point.

The target was the mass of magic power inside the pendant.

I looked at it ‘closely.’

“Excuse me? Hello, can’t you hear me?”

Kim A-rang was saying something, but I couldn’t hear her well.

My consciousness was entirely focused there. Not just the condensation pattern of the magic power, but going deeper, penetrating the outer layer,

The pattern drawn by the magic power inside the pendant.

The distortion of strange biological-like lines—I captured the magic formula.

“…A double helix forming a circle.”

“What did you say?”

I observed the structure of the magic formula. At the same time, its operating principle was naturally understood.

I don’t know why.

If there had to be a reason, perhaps it was due to the harmony between my Magic Power stat of 11.5 and [Good Ears, Good Eyes].

As I am now, I simply accept intuitively what that formula is for and what results it will cause.

“When it detects a threat, magic power is released to protect the wearer.”

I gestured toward the assistant director’s necklace.

“It’s a barrier. Must be a protective artifact.”

“Barrier… Huh?”

PD Kim A-rang finally seemed to understand my words and looked at her necklace with surprise.

“How did you know… You guessed, right?”

“I analyzed it.”

“What do you mean analyzed.”

Kim A-rang twisted her lips.

“Usually most artifacts like this are for protection anyway.”

“I see. I didn’t know that.”

“What?”

Kim A-rang looked incredulous.

“Okay. Then can you prove it? Proof that you just analyzed it.”

“…Just a moment.”

Right now I can see what mages call a magic formula, the flow of magic power governing the [Barrier]. The overall framework is a structure where a double helix magic circuit forms a circle, but there are other devices inside as well.

I thoroughly examined those detailed elements. As I looked with my eyes, I understood remarkably well which part served what purpose.

It means I simply ‘know’ it by intuition.

“…Found it.”

“What?”

Among the [Barrier]’s magic formulas, especially the trigger that detects danger. The part where the [Barrier] would probably be deployed if touched slightly.

The way to touch it is by releasing magic power?

No.

There doesn’t seem to be a need for that.

I’ve never done it before and never learned it, but somehow it feels like a simple principle. It’s accepted like a self-evident law.

Observation that carries magic power in one’s gaze.

In other words, Direct Sight is sufficient.

Humans are originally like that. They absorb light through their eyes to perceive images, and through the interaction of those lights, they ‘see’ the world.

However, mages can go one step further and carry magic power in their gaze.

It’s enough to interfere with the flow of the formula. If I precisely strike the framework where the [Barrier] detects threats among the magic formulas inside the pendant with my gaze…

────Whiiiing!

A barrier was deployed from Kim A-rang’s necklace.

“Ah! What!”

She hastily stood up from her seat.

I explained.

“…I’ve proven it. By touching the part of the barrier’s magic formula that detects threats-“

“T-turn this off, turn it off!”

Kim A-rang flailed about frantically.

Now that the barrier was deployed forward from the necklace, every time she moved her body, objects on the desk touched the barrier and fell over with crashes.

“How, how did you do this?”

“I forcibly activated the trigger of the formula contained in the pendant.”

The assistant directors and writers looked back and forth between me and Kim A-rang with surprised expressions.

Kim A-rang said.

“Then turn it off now!”

“…It’ll disappear in a minute anyway. Please wait.”

Actually, I don’t know how to turn it off.

“Do you know how much this costs? Is it broken then?!”

“I think you could get it repaired.”

I felt slightly satisfied, but suddenly became afraid of the future.

My goal is to pass the first round, pass the second round, pass the final as well to appear on Labyrinth Exploration NaN, and then get eliminated from the Debut Team quite regrettably. But if I get on someone’s bad side like this before even starting.

“Ugh… I really. Anyway, I just have to wait and it’ll be fine, right? Ow!”

Kim A-rang tried to sit down but hit her chin on the barrier. I held back my laughter.

She gritted her teeth and placed her fingers on her temples.

“…Sigh.”

It’s fortunate she’s not the main PD.

Kim A-rang is the main PD’s right hand, so it’s still a bit problematic.

“For now, everyone please leave. Thank you for your hard work.”

Im Hyeong-uk, the assistant director next to Kim A-rang, stepped forward to handle the situation.

“Yes.”

I calmly left the Interview Room.

[ Seol Ha-woon experiences a small achievement. ]

[ Magic Power grade increases. ]

■ D → D+

* * *

“…What kind of guy is he?”

After the chaotic self-PR ended, Kim A-rang muttered while fiddling with her pendant.

“Right? Pretty amazing though?”

Assistant Director Im Hyeong-uk in the next seat was impressed. Kim A-rang was honestly curious too.

How did he activate the barrier just by looking at it?

“What do you mean awesome…”

“It has as much impact as his limping. Wow~ putting magic power into his gaze… Is the barrier okay?”

“…It did turn off.”

As 1,356 said, the barrier naturally turned off, but the artifact’s light had dimmed compared to before.

These protective artifacts are usually consumable, so their effectiveness drops significantly with each use.

“Really like a damn stubborn fool… growing his hair out like a mess too.”

The youngest writer spoke to Kim A-rang, who was grinding her teeth furiously.

“PD Kim. That person just now has a really unique story.”

“What is it? He’s just a cripple.”

The name of number 1,356 was Seol Ha-woon.

His specialties were, presumably, Mana Manipulation and Analysis.

His class was naturally ‘Mage’.

“Or did he graduate from Magic School?”

Magic School. Literally a school that cultivates mages who handle magic power.

Since talent for magic power is confirmed at a relatively late age, the average enrollment age is between 15-17, so people in their twenties aren’t uncommon.

“No. He didn’t go to Magic School, just… an orphan?”

“An orphan?

“Yes. He was raised by his grandmother. Only until he was six. Then he enlisted as soon as he became an adult and served in UDT until age 26.”

“UDT? That UDT I know of?”

“That’s right. But he got caught in an explosion during an operation and was in a coma for several months. He was diagnosed with total paralysis but overcame everything except his left leg.”

“…Hmm.”

Kim A-rang quietly crossed her arms.

If his background was factual without embellishment, there was definitely a reason he passed the document screening. It was an incredibly compelling story.

“His looks weren’t bad either.”

Seol Ha-woon. His hair was excessively messy, but his face was better than average.

In the 「Labyrinth Exploration」 series, looks are quite important. After all, appearance is also a distinctive feature.

Just look at Lee Taek-man from last season – he’s definitely not handsome, right? Rather, he looks incredibly fierce.

Despite being TOP3 in skill, that’s why he barely debuted at 8th place.

“We could move him straight to the 3rd round.”

Though her first impression was quite unfavorable, Kim A-rang was thorough about separating personal and professional matters. Besides, she could always torment him later.

“Yes. I think he looks good too. The potential of a UDT-origin mage! Something like that.”

“What mage. Don’t mention that field unnecessarily. Those high and mighty people don’t like it.”

“Ah, yes.”

In this world, mana appeared 124 years ago, precisely in 1900.

Though there were vague imaginings about wizards during the Renaissance, medieval times, and even earlier ancient periods, when magic-like mysteries—magic power—became reality, the standards for ‘real’ mages skyrocketed.

Currently, there are fewer than 1,000 mages recognized by the Magic Association worldwide.

Therefore, each one is beyond normal standards. Their value is astronomically high, so they don’t bother involving themselves in labyrinth exploration.

“Mark Seol Ha-woon for the 3rd check.”

“Yes.”

Thud. The youngest stamped Seol Ha-woon’s application form.

“…Ah, but should I buy something more expensive? I got screwed buying something cheap.”

Kim A-rang fiddled with her pendant while pouting her lips. Assistant director Im Hyeong-uk beside her chuckled.

“No matter how cheap it is, it wouldn’t get penetrated like that. That mage was talented… How much was that?”

“6 million won.”

“Huh? That is cheap. Hey. If you’re going to buy one, you should get one worth tens of millions. Like me.”

Im Hyeong-uk proudly showed his wrist. A sparkling watch was fastened there.

“This has an Artifact Movement built in-“

“I’m saving the money I’d spend on that stuff to buy a house.”

“Hey hey. What if you die doing that? The fandoms are really intense these days. They might kill you for evil editing.”

The title of being ‘one of the directors of the 「Labyrinth Exploration 101」 series’ is quite glorious, but it’s not without side effects. Like constantly being called devil’s editing when she’s not even a devil.

Actually, she bought this artifact on the day she received a death threat letter.

Kim A-rang casually nudged the youngest writer.

“…Tell the next person to come in.”

“Ah, yes. Next person~”

* * *

“Haaaaaam~”

Returning to my studio apartment, I lay on the mattress and yawned lazily.

I’m sleepy.

Really sleepy.

Thinking about my remaining time, I feel like I should exercise even during spare moments, but I’m excessively sleepy.

It’s probably a side effect of using magic power.

“…Haaaaaam.”

I yawned while turning on the TV.

─The first preliminary round of Labyrinth Exploration Season 3 NaN has begun…

There’s quite a lot of content related to Labyrinth Exploration. It’s definitely hot.

After all, it’s a cable channel that gets over 20% viewership these days, and the program itself is quite a ‘mysterious’ invention.

I listened to the TV while quickly skimming through internet articles on my smartphone.

─Celion affiliate prospect Lee Jun-ho also showed up at the first preliminary venue.

Lee Jun-ho. The swordsman I saw at today’s first preliminary with a long sword on his back.

The current 1st place candidate, future 2nd place.

─Jeiros affiliates Ryu Yeon-hwa, Seo Ji-woo.

I saw Ryu Yeon-hwa during the first preliminary too, and Seo Ji-woo is…

A girl I know. My friend’s younger sister.

Pass.

─Additionally, Termion affiliates Ji Woon-yul, Yoon Hwa-rim, Han Yu-ah. Independent Kang Hyeon.

“First place.”

I let out a hollow laugh as soon as I saw the name Kang Hyeon.

A cheat character who took 1st place despite being independent.

He was perfect in every aspect.

If you expressed his talents as stats, almost all of them exceeded 9-10, especially Appearance and Agility were around 13-14 level.

With his perfect exterior and slightly off-kilter clumsiness, he gathered an enormous number of votes.

In my opinion, he was the pinnacle of life’s impermanence.

Someone born with the fate to live well and eat well his whole life died at the mere age of early twenties.

“To look good on camera…”

Should I stick with these successful kids? Or should I build my own independent narrative?

By the way, narrative is quite an important character element in 「MoMo」 too.

Even with completely identical stats, the amount of recognition gained varies tremendously depending on the narrative.

Because of that [narrative], I’ll probably definitely pass the 1st round. PD Kim A-rang is someone evaluated as having proper skills despite her harsh personality.

[ Recognition Level Up! ]

[ Recognition Level: 2 ]

[ An additional 31 days have been granted. ]

“Huh? Oh!”

I suddenly leveled up. There was quite a delay compared to the interview, but it was probably because some rumors spread among the PDs.

[Recognition] doesn’t just shoot up immediately when you do something. Like this, my reputation must first be passed along through word of mouth or some medium before it rises.

[ Karma: A level-up gift is given! ]

Thanks to karma or whatever, some past deed, I receive a special gift every time my recognition level becomes an even number.

“What are you going to give me this time…?”

[ 1 Ability Point ]

“!”

My eyes widened instantly. My eyeballs nearly popped out. I almost bowed without realizing it.

An ability point with no restrictions whatsoever. If I put this up at an auction house, I could really get tens of millions of won, no, if I sold it to some rich person in China or America, I could get hundreds of millions.

Where should I use it.

I hesitated for a moment.

Should I raise a physical ability stat to secure at least minimal stamina…

“…No.”

Having come this far already, even if I invested in other stats, I’d still just be a scrub character.

I’ll make up for the lacking mobility and durability with artifacts, like that PD Kim A-rang.

“All in.”

[ Magic Power selected. ]

Finally, I raised Magic Power to 11.

Strength　　│　2(-5)　│　F　　Stamina　│　2(-5)　│　F　　Agility　│　2(-5)　│　F　　Endurance　│　2(-5)　│　F　　Magic Power　│ 　11　　│　D+　Perception　│ 　9　　│　B　　Mental Power　│ 　9　　│　B　　Appearance　│ 　7　　│　C+　Luck　│ 　6　　│　C+

Here are my stats. If I had to categorize myself as either a ruined character or a blessed character, I’d say I’m neither.

This is a character designed purely for concept play. The total stat allocation is far too low to be considered a viable character, and if you actually sent a character like this into a dungeon in “MoMo,” they’d get obliterated in 3 seconds flat. Still, 11 magic power is pretty valuable.

Anyway.

I leveled up.

In 「MoMo」, you acquire something called [Tech Points] every time you level up.

What kind of points are these…

To be continued next episode.

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