Serena and the Mysterious Labyrinth - Chapter 199

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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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199. Marble Quarry (3)

Aaaaah!

Kuaaaah!

Kyaaaaaeek!

Screams that could be heard from afar, gradually getting closer.

Though the gender and age were ambiguous, they were clearly screams of someone in danger, which startled Sesi.

“Wh-who’s there? It seems dangerous?”

“Did the labyrinths overlap?”

“Uncle Low! It could be the sound monsters make!”

Sesi, Low, and Grey tensely peered outside the quarry through the narrow gap.

Serena, whose concentration had been going well but was now scattered after hearing the screams, gritted her teeth.

‘How annoying!’

Count Randy and Ying made indifferent expressions.

The Alchemist calculated the date and then nodded his head.

“Ah. Has it already become like that? It’s a strong enemy, but a bit early.”

“Strong enemies can be early sometimes.”

That distinctive cry that was beyond familiar – it was utterly tiresome.

Count Randy and Ying had only heard it once, but Serena encountered it every time she came to the 3rd Layer. For a while, that distinctive cry was embedded in her eardrums like a tattoo, to the point where she heard phantom sounds.

That problematic creature – she had forgotten the terror of their first meeting like it was from a past life, and now only felt annoyance and utter weariness.

‘I never thought I’d see it again!’

Serena pushed through her companions and went outside the cave, glaring in the direction the screams were coming from.

The 3rd Layer’s strong enemy, the Labyrinth Deer, had settled on the peak of a mountain and was shrieking.

Kyeeeeeeek-!

“Ugh!”

“Urk!”

“Kuk!”

Sesi couldn’t withstand the fear the monster emitted and fell to her knees.

Grey and Low resisted, but having heard the loud sound up close, their faces grimaced as if their ears hurt.

The Labyrinth Deer stretched out its long neck to look down at the party below and licked its lips.

While looking for a place to land, it seemed to be having pleasant thoughts about how to toy with the humans.

Serena also had pleasant thoughts like the Labyrinth Deer. The Princess raised the corners of her mouth and wished for her imagination to become reality.

Guuuung. Though there were no dark clouds in the clear sky, the sound of thunder could be heard.

Perhaps sensing an ominous presence, the Labyrinth Deer didn’t land below but leaped to another peak.

Even so, it was just a lowly creature under the sky. It couldn’t escape from the lightning Serena had in mind.

“What I desire is!”

Serena completed her magic by adding a magic incantation to her perfectly materialized mental image.

“Destruction that can even collapse mountain peaks!”

Kwaang!

A flash of light flickered in the 3rd Layer’s sky, and then lightning struck down.

The Labyrinth Deer sensed something suspicious and fled with dazzling steps.

Since the Labyrinth Deer wasn’t an ordinary monster either, it had gotten quite far, but that was all.

The lightning changed direction in mid-air and struck the Labyrinth Deer.

The Labyrinth Deer’s fur was completely burned, its flesh burst open, and it fell below the clouds while bleeding both charred and red blood simultaneously.

‘The outside is burned but the inside isn’t cooked.’

She had hoped for it to be crispy on the outside and moist on the inside, but it didn’t turn out as intended. Serena reflected on this.

[You have defeated a strong enemy. The probability of getting a dud from the limited shop roulette wheel has decreased.]

Surprisingly, another notification appeared saying it would reduce the dud probability.

‘I guess strong enemies give duplicate rewards instead of generous rewards when defeated.’

No matter how much they tempted her, it was useless. Serena would never spin the roulette wheel unless the dud probability was zero.

‘The penalty is too severe.’

The proof of that was the 3rd Layer itself, wasn’t it?

“Princess, you’re amazing! So cool!”

“Princess, were you really a magic princess? Magic princesses are so cool!”

“To master 5th-tier magic in just two months. Now you truly deserve to be called the next Grand Mage!”

“Wow, is this what a real mage is like?”

The party’s praise poured out for the Princess’s magical skills in defeating a strong enemy with a single spell.

“Hmm.”

Not everyone praised Serena. There was one pair of eyes that didn’t look up to Serena but observed her as if evaluating and examining her.

“The casting speed, power, and mana consumption were all decent. It’s also useful that the completed spell chased after the monster when it dodged. This much is passing. However.”

The picky Old Man never gave only praise.

Grey narrowed his ash-colored eyes and looked at the Princess.

“Lightning is originally magic with strong attack power relative to its tier, but I’m concerned that Your Highness’s magic has even stronger destructive power. Your Highness’s lightning magic is being swept away by mental imagery. If you can’t control that, lightning will eventually fall on Your Highness.”

‘Go ahead and curse me.’

He said it was passing, but the evaluation was harsh. Sesi, who liked Serena, got angry as if she had received the harsh evaluation herself.

“Isn’t it good if it’s strong? Your words are harsh, aren’t they?”

“It needs to be balanced. If you’re swept away by mental imagery like that, you’ll definitely self-destruct. It will also have a bad influence on other attribute magic.”

“I don’t really understand either, young master. Still, isn’t it good if it’s strong?”

“Oh, my fate.”

Grey tapped his shoulder with his staff.

“Let me give an example. Fire is extinguished by water, right?”

“Yes.”

“Suppose a mage has the firm belief that fire can never beat water. The fire magic this fool uses won’t be able to beat water magic even if it’s high-tier. Because the fire in the mage’s heart will definitely be extinguished when it meets water.”

Sesi and Low made puzzled expressions as if they half-understood. Grey didn’t explain further and moved on, because Serena nodded as if she had realized something.

‘It’s frustrating, but he’s right.’

Especially the part about lightning falling on her own head resonated with her.

Serena seriously asked the Empire’s sage for guidance.

“Then what should I do?”

“How can I do anything about the lightning in Your Highness’s heart? Your Highness has to figure it out yourself.”

‘Ah! I want to pinch his lips!’

Before Serena could reach out, Grey gave additional advice.

“For now, try paying attention to reducing your magic’s power.”

“I understand.”

When Serena stared at Grey to see if there was more advice to hear, the Old Man pointed at the column.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and mine the marble.”

‘Unlucky Old Man.’

Serena missed Philia. If her loyal maid had been here, she would have mercilessly punished the impudent attendant.

“Hey! You’re not concentrating, are you?”

An unwelcome intruder had barged in just as she was about to get the hang of it, so she had to start over from the beginning.

Serena internally burst with frustration and closed her eyes to concentrate on mana detection.

Fortunately, since it was the second time, it was easier than the first. The Princess confidently shouted.

“This is it!”

Clang!

Serena tapped the marble crystal roots protruding from the column with a small pickaxe.

Then the marble fell away from the column.

The Princess obtained one low-grade marble.

Both the marble and the column were intact. Serena smiled contentedly and showed the low-grade marble she had personally mined to the Old Man.

“This is right, isn’t it?”

“Yes. What’s so difficult about this that you took so long? Now find them here.”

Serena’s eyebrows shot upward.

She thought it would be satisfying if she could strike that annoying old man’s head with a pickaxe instead of the stone pillar, but for some reason Count Randy was shaking his head vigorously.

Serena looked at her right hand. Just from thinking about it, the pickaxe was already aimed at Grey’s head.

Serena quietly lowered her right hand.

‘I think I understand why Prince Willow is so weak to praise.’

Would flattery from those around him really resonate? Flattery is just flattery. It can’t be praise. You might not know when you’re young, but you gradually realize it as you grow up.

Serena fell for it even though she was a reincarnated one, and Seraph fell for it despite Serena earnestly warning him.

What about Prince Willow? One thing is certain.

Someone who truly wants to hear praise would be secretly starving for it when treated so coldly.

‘Seraph and I gave up on having any at all, but the Prince has both his father and maternal grandfather alive and well.’

Where’s the Prince’s mother, you ask?

She’s deceased.

The current Emperor of the Astra Empire had the unusual history of being widowed twice.

‘I heard Prince Willow’s mother pretended to comfort the Emperor who was grieving over losing his first wife, then seduced him. Is that true?’

She tempted him saying she would never die first because of their large age gap, then left first.

The daughter must have taken after her father – she had no conscience.

“You’re not concentrating!”

“I know! Don’t rush me!”

Serena, who was genuinely distracted and felt guilty, worked hard to find magic stones.

***

In the end, Serena was only released after mining 10 magic stones by herself.

The Princess, physically fine but mentally exhausted, selected the 1st Floor in the teleportation room.

Light from the magic circle enveloped the party, and when the light faded, they had already arrived on the 1st Floor.

“Wow… This really doesn’t make sense.”

Low, an experienced labyrinth explorer who knew well the overpowered nature of teleportation rooms, was amazed.

“The blessing Princess received from the Labyrinth God is more amazing than the legendary Crimson Key. My brother would probably be shocked if he saw it too.”

“Uncle Low is right. The legend of the Crimson Key only mentions sealed doors, not teleportation rooms.”

“Young master, did you perhaps hear anything about the Crimson Key from Duke Pein? Hehe.”

“Grandfather thought the Crimson Key was a product of delusions harbored by lazy, incompetent, and pathetic fools. In the ancient books Grandfather collected, there’s exactly one record of a labyrinth explorer who possessed the Crimson Key.”

Grey, who had been speaking fluently as if he were the grandfather himself, suddenly closed his mouth.

“What was written there, Grey?”

Count Randy urged his nephew, interested in the story.

Grey glanced at Serena, then bowed his head slightly.

“Well, that labyrinth explorer was said to be an outstanding treasure hunter. There was no door he couldn’t open, no lock he couldn’t pick. His skills were so exceptional that rumors spread saying it wasn’t his skill that was great, but that he possessed a magic tool called the Crimson Key that opened labyrinth doors. The treasure hunter didn’t suppress the rumors and instead encouraged them, saying it was all thanks to the magic tool called the Crimson Key, and then…”

Grey, who had been speaking well, closed his mouth again and glanced at Serena.

The party had already arrived at the lobby. The people in the lobby who had been happily listening to the story expressed their dissatisfaction.

“Why cut off mid-story? Is it paid content? Take my money!”

“Do we have to wait until tomorrow for the rest? Should I sleep now?”

“I don’t know why you keep glancing at me, but speak freely.”

“Um, I apologize in advance. Ahem, that treasure hunter continued to triumph by opening labyrinth doors and treasure chests. He thought there was no door he couldn’t open. Being so arrogant, eventually…”

“Eventually.”

“He was caught grave robbing the Tomb of the Huaim Family, had both eyes gouged out, and was burned alive.”

“What’s grave robbing?”

“Cough. Digging up tombs to steal burial goods, cough. Items placed in coffins, cough. It’s a bad thing.”

“That’s really bad! But killing him was too much, wasn’t it?”

“Right. Burning alive was harsh. Aren’t the living more important than the dead? Is the Huaim Family a noble house?”

Neet turned pale and covered her sisters’ mouths.

“Cough. Sister.”

“Why are you calling me?”

“Cough. Our Princess’s surname. Cough. Is Huaim. Cough cough.”

Sesi’s clear blue eyes widened. Duri’s dim gaze also became sharp.

“Isn’t it Fackling? I heard she was Princess Fackling? That’s not a lie.”

“My name is Serena Fackling Huaim. Our House Huaim has ruled Heuji for a thousand years since our great ancestor founded the nation.”

Hana and Sesi, seeing the Princess’s mysterious orange eyes, froze like mice before a cat.

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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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