Labyrinth Exploration 101 - Chapter 306

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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 306

My Happy Ending(1)

Tick- Tock- Tick- Tock-

The Magic Bookstore with an analog clock ticking away. Mage Tae-woo is reading a book.

“…Well, I don’t think he’ll be eliminated.”

The bookstore owner, David Han, said this while gauging Tae-woo’s reaction. Tae-woo showed no response whatsoever.

Rustle.

Only the sound of pages turning could be heard.

“This kind of bait should only happen once or twice. Editing to make it seem like elimination when there’s no elimination, sheesh. Do they think viewers are idiots?”

Tae-woo says nothing. He doesn’t even make a sound breathing.

“…But those production bastards are really vicious. They target exactly those points. They exploit the loophole in human psychology of ‘maybe this time it’s a reverse of a reverse of a reverse of a reverse?'”

Rustle.

A page turns.

“Will it be a reverse of a reverse of a reverse of a reverse of a reverse, or will it be straightforward? But I’m dissatisfied with that. Even if they didn’t pull such bullshit, we’d still watch the next episode. All citizens would, so why torment the entire nation like this~ That’s the thing.”

Rustle-

A page turns.

Tae-woo’s expressionless face is saying something.

Is there a dog barking somewhere, or a cow mooing?

“Hey, you bastard.”

David Han couldn’t hold back.

“You bastard.”

“…Why do you keep calling people bastard?”

Tae-woo raised an eyebrow. David Magic Bookstore Owner let out a deep sigh.

“Stubborn guy. I’ve been chattering for hours next to you and you haven’t blinked an eye.”

For David, he wondered if he could give even the tiniest hint.

Tae-woo said quietly.

“Life isn’t that fun when you get spoilers.”

“What’s that?”

“I can’t know just bits and pieces. If I’m going to know, I need to know everything. When you want to know when and how you’ll die, ask me then. I’ll tell you whether you’ll be eliminated as a bonus.”

“…Scary guy.”

David Han shook his head back and forth.

The space-time mage. If you asked when and how you’d die, this guy would really tell you.

But no matter what kind of bullshit you pulled, you couldn’t avoid death.

Because that’s the kind of future it is to begin with.

Tick—!

Tae-woo’s wristwatch shook greatly. At the same time, all of space-time vibrated. Of course, it was a resonance limited only to Tae-woo.

Thud.

Tae-woo closed his book and shut his eyes.

“Farewell.”

David Magic Bookstore Owner’s goodbye.

Rummmmmmmble──

The fluctuation of space-time. When he opened his eyes again after that, it was some broadcast waiting room.

“You’ve arrived.”

Seol Ha-woon was there. His face looked powdery as if he’d already received full makeup.

He checked the time on his smartphone and laughed as if amazed.

“You’re precise with time appointments.”

Tae-woo sat on the waiting room sofa.

“By any chance, did you change your name? Last time we even had a conversation about ‘considering changing your name.'”

It was Seol Ha-woon’s words considering his own time.

Tae-woo narrowed his eyes.

“I like the name. My mother gave it to me. I just want to change the surname.”

“So I’m asking if you changed your surname.”

“Under domestic law, you can’t change your family name that easily. It’s much harder and more troublesome than changing your given name.”

“Ah. Is that so?”

Seol Ha-woon chuckled and changed the subject.

“MoMo’s release date has been set. But what does MoMo mean exactly?”

“It’s simple.”

Tae-woo’s words stopped. Seol Ha-woon waited.

There are two ways to make someone angry. The first is to stop talking mid-sentence.

“….”

“….”

Seol Ha-woon waited for a long time before asking.

“Are you trying to make me angry?”

Tae-woo tends to speak little, and the current Seol Ha-woon is still too young to have a complete conversation with him.

“Saying it’s simple is the hint.”

Then Seol Ha-woon let out a hollow laugh.

“The mage gives hints too?”

“MoMo’s name itself has already been announced to the press. It’s not really a spoiler.”

Seol Ha-woon chewed his lips and tied his long hair like a ponytail. He stood up from his seat, gripping his walking stick.

Today was a physical filming day.

“Mage.”

Suddenly, a voice mixed with sighs. Tae-woo looked at Seol Ha-woon.

“We’re both displaced in time.”

Those words contained quite a lot of meaning. There was also a small fear uncharacteristic of Seol Ha-woon.

However.

“You don’t need to worry. It’s already decided.”

Tae-woo, as the space-time mage, would accompany this peculiar traveler to the end.

“…It’s different.”

I looked at the door before my eyes. It was clearly different from the one in my memory. Instead of complex patterns carved as if space-time had been twisted and engraved, there were crude lines clumsily imitating them.

Could it simply be a reproduced imitation?

Disappointment washed over me, but it couldn’t be helped. There was no way Labyrinth Exploration NaN would have an object identical to that ‘door.’

“Anyway. If there’s a door, you have to open it.”

I delivered my line to the camera that would be watching me from somewhere and opened the door.

Creeeeeeak….

Beyond it, a whirlpool of mixed light and darkness surged forth. It pulled me in strongly.

Whoooooosh──!

My vision collapsed,

In the sensation of my sense of balance twisting──

Congratulations!

Spotlights descend from all directions. I blink and look around. It’s a huge stage. The live broadcast of Labyrinth Exploration NaN, the ranking announcement ceremony.

Ah, right.

Today was the last day.

The third season of the Labyrinth Exploration series, NaN’s 1st place.

I looked at the countless spectators filling this stadium. I felt nervous.

I thought I wouldn’t feel nervous.

My heart pounds thump-thump. My mouth is completely dry too.

Seol Ha-woon!

Seol Ha-woon’s name appeared across the entire electronic billboard. The vote count was enormous.

Almost, what, several billion.

I climbed to the very top of the Pyramid Set, leaning on my walking stick. The other explorers applauded for me. Smiles spread across their faces too.

“Je Mal-ol, congratulations.”

“As expected, master!”

“Ah. But the vote difference is too big.”

“Oppa! Give me a hint for question 9 when it’s over. Please, as a commemoration of 1st place.”

“…Congratulations.”

I climbed to the very top and waved to the viewers. I received the microphone and conveyed my gratitude to everyone.

After Labyrinth Exploration NaN ended like that.

Countless broadcast schedules came flooding in.

The purest mage who stirred up not just South Korea but the entire world.

The introduction is incredibly burdensome.

The mage of the battlefield and Earth’s representative explorer, Seol Ha-woon!

I walk toward the greatest MC on Earth with an embarrassed smile. There’s no crouching chair as usual, but a proper chair. I’m receiving special treatment thanks to my legs.

“Wow~ Mr. Seol Ha-woon.”

“Wow. In person.”

The two MCs stand up and applaud when they see me.

“You’re much more handsome in person.”

“Thank you.”

“Your skin, your skin doesn’t make sense.”

The assistant MC, Mr. Joseph, admires my skin.

“I think it’s because I received some camera massage.”

It’s thanks to MoMo’s item, but there’s no need to explain that.

“By any chance, during the initial interview. There was an incident with PD Kim A-rang…”

I had a conversation with the two MCs. I shared a bunch of interesting stories from Labyrinth Exploration NaN.

“Wow~ You’re good at talking.”

“Thank you.”

“And… oh right. Various stories that came out from the Memory Labyrinth became a hot topic, didn’t they?”

“…They did.”

“Yes. Mr. Seol Ha-woon’s past. And… your unit members.”

Unit members.

My expression hardened momentarily at those words, but why?

There’s no need to look serious.

I smiled again immediately.

“Yes. Actually, that friend really wanted to meet you, MC.”

I pointed to a friend standing among the production staff.

“That’s Yoon Jeong-hyeop.”

The camera briefly showed him, and Yoon Jeong-hyeop kept bowing his head.

“He’s currently working as my manager, but his dream was to appear on New Quiz.”

“Oh really? Actually, he could come into this industry too, couldn’t he?”

“He’s quite tall and handsome.”

At the two MCs’ words, Yoon Jeong-hyeop doesn’t know what to do. His face turns bright red and looks like it’s about to burst.

Will he really appear on TV like that.

“Not just Jeong-hyeop, but everyone else is living well too. They’ve been contacting me since appearing on Mitamnan…”

I had various talks related to my unit members, and

“…Then, now it’s quiz time!”

It became quiz time, the last part of the talk show.

“Mr. Seol Ha-woon, you started at 96th place in Mitamnan and won as 1st place, right?”

“That’s right.”

A video appears on another monitor in the distance. It’s the video of the ranking ceremony where I was announced as 1st place.

“It’s embarrassing. Well…”

“Then, who debuted at 8th place at that time?!”

The options appeared, but there was nothing to think about. I counted the rankings in my head.

1st place, Seol Ha-woon

2nd place, Lee Jun-ho

3rd place, Seo Ji-woo

4th place, Kate

5th place, Yoon Hwa-rim

6th place, Ryu Yeon-hwa

7th place, Jo Woon

8th place, Im Hae-jun

I suddenly tilted my head.

It feels like someone is missing.

“You’re thinking too hard?”

“Haha. The answer is Im Hae-jun.”

“Archer Im Hae-jun?”

“Yes.”

“The one who follows Mr. Seol Ha-woon like a teacher… Correct!”

Ding dong dang. I received applause from the MCs, got 1 million won, and stood up from my seat.

The MC said.

“Mr. Seol Ha-woon. Next is Ms. Seo Ji-woo’s filming.”

“Oh really? Then I’ll wait a bit-“

“What are you waiting for. I’ve been waiting.”

Seo Ji-woo appeared at some point.

“What. When did you come?”

“Just now.”

My filming was finished, and I approached them while leaning on my walking stick.

“Hey.”

I spoke to the guy behind Seo Ji-woo rather than to her.

“Why are you wearing glasses? Since when has your eyesight been bad?”

“…I have to do this to at least look somewhat like a manager.”

Seo Ji-hyuk pushed up his glasses with his finger.

“How’s your body?”

“I’ve told you countless times I’m fine. It’s not something to worry about that much anymore.”

Seo Ji-hyuk had suffered major damage during a military operation and was discharged after losing his abilities as a mage, but at least he didn’t die. There was no threat to his life.

It was truly fortunate.

“Ha-woon, stop sending me wild ginseng too. I couldn’t even finish what you sent last time.”

“Don’t whine about not finishing it all and just eat it quickly.”

Having a lot of money made me particularly concerned about such health foods.

I even set up a wild ginseng garden at the workshop.

Seo Ji-woo tapped my shoulder.

“No, seriously. Oppa, you smell like red ginseng candy. Hoisya!”

Then she suddenly snatched my walking stick away. I frowned.

“Give me back my leg.”

“Nice walking stick. I should buy one like this too.”

“I said give me back my leg.”

The two MCs approached us.

“Seo Ji-hyuk, you also participated in that operation, right? You three must be really close.”

“Huh? Oh well…”

Then Seo Ji-hyuk looked back and forth between me and Seo Ji-woo and smiled slightly.

“…Honestly, well. We’re like family now.”

Those words made me proud. Though I tried to hide my feelings, this was the future I had always hoped for. Perhaps I had finally achieved such happiness.

I tapped Seo Ji-hyuk for no reason.

“What kind of family only sees each other once a month?”

“Real families often only see each other once a year.”

“Whatever, do well with the filming.”

I stood in front of the elevator, leaning on my walking stick.

“Oh, Sergeant Seo… no, that’s not right. Manager Seo.”

Meanwhile, Yoon Jeong-hyeop stood in front of Seo Ji-hyuk.

“What? Manager Seo? Wow~ look at this guy?”

“What do you mean? This isn’t the military.”

“Wow~ look at this guy, look at this guy?”

“What do you mean ‘this guy’? Please watch your words. I’m the 1st place manager, and Manager Seo is the 3rd place manager.”

“Wow~ look at this guy. Hey Ji-woo. Look at this guy! I raised this kid and he’s stabbing me in the back like this…”

The conversation between Yoon Jeong-hyeop and Seo Ji-hyuk was funny.

“What do you mean you raised him? You should have raised me instead.”

Seo Ji-woo glared at Seo Ji-hyuk with a bored expression. Seo Ji-hyuk also made a pouty face.

“…If you had gotten 1st place, this wouldn’t have happened!”

“Why are you taking it out on me?”

“Let’s go, Jeong-hyeop. Come out.”

“Yes.”

I came outside with Yoon Jeong-hyeop. The sky was particularly clear today.

Ring ring.

A call came in just then.

“Yes. CEO Yoo.”

─Oh Ha-woon. Are you done with your schedule?

CEO Yoo Seok-hoon. He who was our commander in the past had now become the CEO of my company.

“Just finished.”

─Yeah. We got a Mitamnan labyrinth conquest scheduled. Before that, there’s also a 1st anniversary filming prepared by the Mitamnan production team. Get ready.

“Yes.”

I hung up the phone.

1st anniversary filming site. Cameras were gathered in abundance in a place decorated like a party room.

Kim A-rang approached me and tapped my arm.

“Ha-woon. I watched you on New Quiz. Did you talk behind my back?”

“How is that talking behind your back?”

“Then what is it?”

“Talking in front of you.”

“…Wow~ really not recognizing your benefactor. How big was my contribution to you getting 1st place?”

I smiled slightly and asked.

“What are we doing today?”

“Well, 1st anniversary Q&A, party, and then we need to prepare for the next labyrinth right away.”

“Are all the kids here?”

“Yeah. Go in and see.”

I entered the filming studio. Familiar faces, the Mitamnan debut group members were gathered.

“Alright. Everyone take your seats.”

Kim A-rang clapped her hands as she came in and assigned seats.

“Here’s Seol Ha-woon.”

1st place, Seol Ha-woon.

“Next to him, Jun-ho.”

2nd place, Lee Jun-ho.

“Here’s Ji-woo.”

3rd place, Seo Ji-woo.

“Kate, you’re in front of Ha-woon.”

4th place, Kate.

“Hwa-rim, you’re next to Kate.”

5th place, Yoon Hwa-rim.

“Yeon-hwa, you’re here.”

6th place, Ryu Yeon-hwa.

“Jo Woon, here.”

7th place, Jo Woon.

“Hae-jun, you’re over there.”

8th place, Im Hae-jun.

I examined each of their faces.

Suddenly, I was seized by a strange feeling.

“Here are the script cue cards. The fans are really looking forward to this, and this will get tons of views too, so everyone do it properly. Ha-woon, please host.”

I silently picked up the cue cards.

“Nice to meet you.”

I recited the script while looking at the camera.

However, I kept having this thought.

──Why is one person missing?

“This is the 1st anniversary Q&A.”

Even while continuing the filming, I kept searching through my mind.

“We’ll answer the things you’ve been curious about, and what happened to us during this past year…”

I think of a certain name.

I remember that guy.

The one who said he existed only as the real thing.

That friend who endured hundreds of years alone and asked me to remember him.

I definitely remember him.

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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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