How a Black-Haired Barbarian Survived the Labyrinth in Another World – Chapter 35

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: JayM
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Lionel and Gillian were standing at the doorway.

They seemed to have just finished searching the tower.

Lionel’s eyes widened when he saw Jeong Yoo-shin was up.

“Oh! You’re awake!”

“Yes.”

Gillian approached him and patted him on the shoulder.

“Thank you. You saved us.”

Jeong Yoo-shin shook his head.

“Don’t mention it. I just did what I had to do.”

He turned to Lionel.

He had a question he needed to ask.

“I heard you went upstairs. Did you find anything useful?”

Lionel shook his head with a dejected expression.

“Nothing. Everything of value had already been looted. All we found were some earth-type magic scrolls. I don’t even know if they work.”

Jeong Yoo-shin’s eyes widened.

“There are scrolls here?”

Gillian answered,

“Various magic items appear from the fifth level onward. Magic weapons, spell books, magic scrolls, and so on. Most of them are found in chests or carried by monsters. Good magic items can be sold for a high price, but there’s nothing valuable on these lower levels.”

“Do better items appear in the deeper levels? Why do they appear at all?”

“The probability of finding better magic items increases the deeper you go. And don’t ask me why they appear. I don’t know. If you’re curious, go to the Labyrinth Academy.”

Jeong Yoo-shin frowned.

Dalmong had told him it cost ten gold coins a year to attend the Labyrinth Academy.

‘Ten gold coins for the academy? Sigh.’

He couldn’t afford such an extravagance.

He returned to the main topic.

“Did you go all the way to the roof?”

Gillian crossed her arms and shook her head.

“No. It was too high up, so we turned back. I’d estimate it’s about fifteen floors.”

He looked around.

Ahiman was nowhere to be seen.

“Where’s Ahiman?”

Lionel pointed at the left wooden door.

He approached the door and opened it.

He saw the stairs leading down to the second floor. Ahiman was standing there, his back to him.

“Ahiman? How are you feeling?”

“…Yumashuom.”

Ahiman muttered something unintelligible.

He scratched his head and replied,

“I see.”

He then returned to Lionel.

The party members sat around the torch.

“I don’t see any way out of this.”

Lionel muttered dejectedly.

“If we hold out a little longer, the other investigation teams might arrive.”

Gillian replied.

“…”

Karin remained silent, her expression grim.

Jeong Yoo-shin chewed on his jerky without saying anything.

“We don’t even know where Hans’s party currently is. How can we expect the other investigation teams from the fourth level to find us?”

“Lionel, don’t give up hope.”

“I’m just being realistic, damn it!!”

Despite Gillian’s attempt to comfort him, Lionel slammed his fist on the ground.

“Ahiman’s magic is also reaching its limit. We need to find a way out of here.”

Lionel chewed on his lip, but then he saw Jeong Yoo-shin eating his jerky.

“Barbarian, is that tasty? Can you even swallow it, knowing we’re about to die?”

‘Not even a dog would bother me while I’m eating.’

He took a piece of jerky from his pouch and offered it to Lionel.

“Want some?”

“No.”

Lionel and Gillian resumed their argument.

Jeong Yoo-shin stood up.

Lionel looked at him.

“Where are you going?”

“Just need to use the restroom.”

“…Alright.”

He took a new torch and went upstairs.

The upper floor was the same as the lower ones: dusty bookshelves, tables, and chairs.

He went up another floor. Nothing changed.

Other fantasy protagonists always found hidden items and miraculously escaped from dangerous situations because of it, but he had to struggle and rack his brains, barely surviving each crisis.

But even he had his limits. He couldn’t see any way out of this one.

‘Shut up.’

He slapped himself.

But his frustration remained.

He went up a few more floors.

He reached the eighth floor.

He opened the wooden door, entered, and looked around with his torch.

‘Nothing here either.’

Just dusty bookshelves and a decaying wooden table.

“Huh?”

His eyes landed on something in the corner.

A wooden chest.

Wasn’t this what Gillian had mentioned?

Gillian had told him not to get his hopes up, but he had to try. Perhaps it contained a magic item that could save them.

Maybe it was a hidden item.

A chest that only appeared to those who were alone.

Or perhaps it only appeared to virgins.

His heart pounding, he approached the chest and opened it.

Creak.

The chest opened with a creaking sound.

‘Huh.’

Inside was a parchment sealed with a green wax seal.

A magic scroll.

Similar in appearance to the one Kelton had given him.

With trembling hands, he picked up the scroll and hurried back down to the third floor.

He wanted to explore the upper floors more, but Karin’s words echoed in his mind.

Ahiman couldn’t hold the barrier for much longer.

Lionel’s eyes widened when he saw him running to them.

“What?! Are there monsters coming down from above?!”

“No.”

“Then why are you running?”

“Look, I found a magic scroll.”

Everyone’s attention turned towards him.

Lionel approached and examined the scroll, then frowned.

“It’s useless.”

“What?”

“It’s a Random Teleportation scroll. Isn’t this from the eighth floor?”

“Isn’t that good? We can all escape!”

Jeong Yoo-shin exclaimed excitedly.

Lionel sighed.

“Don’t be ridiculous. This is a first-generation scroll. It can’t transport you between levels, and its targeting system is outdated. Let me put it simply: if you open the portal and step through it, you’ll become one with the wall or the ground. It’s completely useless. And we’re in a city. You’ll be lucky if you only get your ass stuck in the wall.”

Jeong Yoo-shin’s shoulders slumped. He racked his brains.

He remembered something Karin had said at the inn.

Monsters avoided portals.

His eyes lit up.

“Can’t we use this to block the entrance?”

“The portal’s duration is too short. It won’t last long.”

“Damn it.”

It was a dead end. He couldn’t think of any other options.

‘No, there has to be a way.’

He sat down and closed his eyes.

He desperately searched for a solution.

He couldn’t die here.

‘Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Even if the sky is falling.’

Wait.

His eyes snapped open.

‘Falling?’

‘Way?’

He spoke.

“I have a plan.”

“…Tell us.”

Gillian said.

He explained his plan.

The others listened, their expressions becoming increasingly strange.

“…How about this?”

He finished his explanation.

“…”

Silence.

Lionel muttered,

“Is he crazy?”

“…”

“Does this even make sense? He’s completely lost it.”

Lionel’s voice rose, laced with hysteria.

‘He’s been nitpicking since the beginning.’

Annoyed, he retorted,

“Are all elves this timid? Is it a racial trait?”

A vein throbbed on Lionel’s forehead.

“Why you little…”

“Don’t swear. It’s unbecoming.”

Lionel chuckled dryly and looked around.

The others were seriously considering his plan.

“It’s reckless, but it might work.”

Karin said.

“I agree. I hope it works, but I’m a bit worried.”

Gillian also agreed.

“Ha…”

Lionel shook his head.

“Fine. Let’s do it. There’s not a single sane barbarian in this world.”

Jeong Yoo-shin went to Ahiman and explained his plan.

Ahiman listened silently, then spoke.

“Umtaku.”

“Do you agree?”

“Hadopfpua.”

“If you agree, please nod.”

Ahiman nodded.

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The preparations were complete. He gathered his belongings.

He also picked up the one-handed sword Lionel had lent him.

Gillian turned to them and said,

“Let’s go.”

The others nodded silently.

Ahiman dispelled the barrier.

Roars echoed from below.

Crash!!!

Gillian charged up the stairs.

The symbols on her great sword glowed with a golden light.

The stairs were narrow, leaving the human-faced centipedes no room to dodge.

They were sliced apart with each swing of the great sword.

They quickly cleared the second floor and reached the first.

The first floor was swarming with human-faced centipedes.

“Haaaa!”

Gillian gathered her strength and swung her great sword.

Slash!!

The great sword swept through the centipedes, clearing a space for them to stand on.

“Ahiman!!”

Ahiman took his position and immediately began chanting.

Jeong Yoo-shin stood next to Gillian, providing support.

Slash!

He stabbed and sliced with his sword, but he didn’t have to do much.

Gillian held the line, her overwhelming strength decimating their enemies.

‘A true intermediate-rank explorer.’

Karin also darted among the centipedes, her daggers flashing.

She wasn’t faltering like before.

[Abyss Strike]

Ahiman cast his spell.

Tentacles emerged.

Instead of attacking the centipedes, the tentacles struck the pillars of the tower.

It was the plan Jeong Yoo-shin had suggested.

Even if the tower collapsed, there would still be a way out.

The Tower Collapse Plan.

Bang!!

Bang!! Bang!!

The tower shook. Dust and debris rained down from above.

Lionel broke the seal on the scroll.

The earth-type magic scroll he had found in the tower.

[Dig]

The floor of the first level caved in.

Lionel jumped into the hole.

Bang!! Bang!! Bang!!

The tremors intensified.

Rumble.

Larger chunks of debris fell from the ceiling.

Karin retreated and jumped into the hole.

Gillian swung her great sword, clearing a path, and then jumping in.

At that moment…

Ahiman’s magic stopped.

The tentacles vanished, and the tower stopped shaking.

He had run out of magic power.

A cold sweat trickled down Jeong Yoo-shin’s back.

He heard Lionel’s scream from the hole.

“Skar!! You son of a bitch!!”

He quickly grabbed Ahiman and pulled him into the hole.

“Whoaaaaaaa!!”

Ahiman let out a strange cry as he disappeared into the hole.

He heard the sounds of bodies colliding, curses, and groans.

He gritted his teeth.

They needed one final push. One final strike to collapse the tower.

[Sacred Weapon]

‘I’ll make it work.’

He willed a war hammer into existence.

Magic power surged into his hand, forming a massive war hammer far larger than any he had created before.

“Haaaaaaaa!!!”

He swung the war hammer at a pillar with all his might.

Kaboom!!!

The pillar shattered, and the tower began to collapse.

He rolled across the floor while dodging falling debris, shook off the clinging human-faced centipedes, and jumped into the hole.

“Oof.”

Ahiman, who broke his fall, grunted.

He took the Random Teleportation scroll from his pocket.

He ripped off the seal, and a portal appeared above them.

[Random Teleportation]

The portal glowed with a yellow light.

Lionel, at the bottom of the hole, yelled,

“Are you sure about this?!”

Irritated, he shouted back,

“I don’t know!!”

“You crazy barbarian!!!”

Lionel screamed.

A massive chunk of debris fell from above.

‘Please.’

His wish was granted.

The portal above him swallowed the debris.

But the portal wasn’t large enough to cover the entire hole. Smaller pieces of wood and stone rained down on them.

They wriggled around like a pile of worms, trying to avoid the falling debris.

He and Karin bumped into each other.

“What are you looking at?”

Karin stared at him without answering.

Many people followed her. Few stood beside her. And even fewer led the way for her.

As the daughter of the Beast-person Alliance representative, she had led and fought alongside countless people along the borders of the Eastern Alliance.

She had seen many people, but none were like this barbarian.

He had strength of character despite his weakness.

He didn’t run away even in the face of despair, and he had protected the party until the very end.

She could still see him wielding his sword with unwavering determination against the swarm of monsters.

What was this feeling?

Yes.

He was someone she could rely on.

She lowered her head and buried her face in his chest, inhaling his scent.

His strong, musky scent, which couldn’t be masked by the dust and grime.

A comforting, reassuring scent.

An arousing scent that made her stomach flutter.

Was this what her father, whom she had never met, smelled like?

The absurd thought made her blush.

She buried her face deeper into his chest, unable to look up.

He looked down at the top of her head.

‘What’s with the sudden hug?’

“Aaaaagh! I’m dying!!!”

Lionel’s scream was drowned out by the roar of the collapsing tower.

Rumble.

Crash.

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A massive tower crumbled in the northern part of Ingrave, the Forgotten City.

An arm emerged from the rubble.

Then a face.

“Gasp! I… I thought I was going to die.”

A pale elf crawled out of the debris. Then Ahiman, Gillian, Karin, and finally, Jeong Yoo-shin.

As soon as he emerged, he took out his flint and steel, and lit a torch.

The surroundings were quiet.

Most of the human-faced centipedes had been crushed by the debris.

The few survivors had either fled or scattered.

The party members, covered in dust and grime, sat huddled together amidst the rubble, looking dazed.

“Hahaha.”

Lionel suddenly started laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

Jeong Yoo-shin asked.

Lionel stopped laughing and started crying.

Large teardrops fell onto the rubble.

‘What’s going on?’

“Domuta.”

Ahiman gave him a thumbs-up.

“I’m the best? Thank you.”

Ahiman shook his head, but Jeong Yoo-shin looked away, pretending not to notice.

Karin stared blankly at his face.

Gillian stood up.

“Let’s go. We need to leave the labyrinth. It’s not safe to stay here any longer.”

The others also stood up.

They walked through the silent streets.

There were no attacks, so they reached the transfer stone in the north without incident.

“Karin…”

Gillian looked at Karin, her gaze conveying their inability to continue.

Karin nodded.

“Let’s return to the Labyrinth City and regroup.”

Gillian placed her hand on the transfer stone.

The blue and red portals appeared.

They stepped into the blue portal.

They emerged from the labyrinth into the warm sunlight and fresh air.

This was the first time he had emerged unscathed.

His heart pounded, and a sense of liberation washed over him.

He knew instinctively.

An imprint.

He had obtained an imprint.

His heart raced.

He looked at the faces of his party members.

They failed their mission, but they had survived.

No one had died, and he was grateful for that.

Perhaps he could join Karin’s party from now on?

He was confident he could overcome any crisis with them.

Just as he was about to speak, something happened.

“Oh!”

Lionel suddenly cried out. His body began to glow.

‘An imprint?’

A flash of light.

Lionel vanished, leaving only his clothes behind.

Jeong Yoo-shin’s eyes widened.

“…A duck?”

A duck waddled out of the pile of clothes.

“Gah!”

Ahiman also cried out. His body began to glow as well.

“What the hell?!”

Another flash of light.

Ahiman also vanished, leaving only his clothes behind.

A small lizard crawled out of the pile of clothes.

“Quack!”

“Chirp. Chirp.”

He stared at the duck and the lizard, then quickly looked away.

Gillian stood there silently.

“…Gillian?”

“…”

He called out to her, but there was no response.

“Excuse me.”

He approached Gillian and lifted her visor.

“Huh…”

Saliva drooled from Gillian’s mouth, and her eyes were unfocused.

Click.

He closed the visor.

“Karin?”

Fortunately, Karin seemed unharmed.

She sighed and scratched her dusty hair.

“This is troublesome. I need to go smell Skar’s towel and…”

She stopped herself mid-sentence, clapped a hand over her mouth, and blushed. Then she suddenly ran off.

“Hey, where are you going?”

He asked, feeling deflated.

“Quack!”

“Chirp. Chirp.”

“Huh…”

He looked at his party members. His legs gave way, and he collapsed onto the ground.

He saw clerics and guards approaching them from a distance.

But he just stared at his former party members, or what was left of them.

He should have known it was too good to be true.

“…I don’t think I can handle this.”

Seriously.

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T/N – So ends the MC’s third labyrinth run. Honestly, the chapter title feels like a troll. 3 negative imprints out of five explorers. 2 of MC’s party members turned into small animals and one became an idiot. And this is all after surviving a life-or-death situation. The labyrinth truly is a gacha game.

If you find any mistakes, feel free to point them out in the comments.