Chapter 357: The Ascendant’s Cradle (3)

Lennok confirmed a few more pieces of information from the man’s memories and stood up.

He didn’t forget to place his hand on the forehead of the man, who was sitting blankly, and cut off his breath.

Considering he was a troublesome opponent, it was a clean death, but time was too short to dwell on such things here.

The reason he had to meet the Ascendant. The story about the tool for the answer he would offer was interesting, but he had to put that thought aside for now.

The gate must be about to open completely.

They had to move before others discovered Lennok and Evelyn.

The moment Lennok ended the man’s breath, the form of the scale platform where the two stood blurred faintly, and the true appearance of the Labyrinth emerged.

In the fading Domain, Lennok felt someone’s gaze but, instead of engaging, he stood up and touched his left eye.

“Hoo…”

“Are you done?”

Evelyn, who was standing beside him, approached Lennok and asked.

“What about that woman from earlier?”

Instead of answering, Evelyn pointed her finger at the inner wall of the gate.

The slumped form of a warrior. Three arrows were fully lodged in her chest, revealing the cause of death.

Lennok understood the situation from the sight and nodded.

“She waited without touching the Domain.”

“Just in case. Should I have intervened earlier?”

“No, your judgment was correct. She was a trickier opponent than I thought. If we had acted rashly, things would have gotten even more complicated.”

“That’s all because you were just observing his Domain.”

Evelyn sighed and nudged Lennok’s shoulder.

Lennok stumbled from the push, scratching his cheek.

“That… I have nothing to say. But this guy succeeded in directly manifesting new possibilities of a Domain with just an artifact and a few geas. I couldn’t just ignore that without confirming it.”

An artifact that borrowed another’s Domain. And the efforts he put into perfecting the use of that relic left a significant impression on Lennok.

Lennok had concluded the possibilities by killing him, but perhaps the path he chose was a new way to ascend without completing the Hierarchy.

From the dead man’s grasp, Lennok, holding a complexly rotating crystal ball, straightened up.

He looked for other usable items but found nothing special.

Had the man sensed his potential death in this Labyrinth and hidden his valuables beforehand? It was impossible to know now.

Evelyn watched Lennok from behind him and shook her head slightly.

“You’ve just been lucky so far. I know your curiosity is on a significant level, but… if you don’t want to die, you’d better restrain yourself a bit.”

“…”

“Can you guarantee that you won’t mess things up in a life-or-death battle because of a momentary curiosity?”

Lennok couldn’t answer Evelyn’s words and closed his mouth.

Despite having won most battles without any waste or emotional expenditure,

Lennok also knew that there were moments when he couldn’t control his craving for magic.

But how could he explain to Evelyn that to reach the ultimate peak someday, he couldn’t let any possibility slip by?

Evelyn saw Lennok’s expression, laughed as if there was nothing to be done, and started walking.

“Well, that’s why we’re teamed up and moving like this, to compensate for such things.”

“Evelyn…”

“So, if something like that happens inside this Labyrinth, I’ll help you.”

Lennok gazed silently at Evelyn’s retreating back as she walked ahead.

A considerable amount of time had passed since he knew her, but Evelyn hadn’t changed.

Her unchanging nature, paradoxically, made Lennok’s attitude towards her gradually change.

“Let’s move quickly. It really doesn’t seem like much time is left.”

“…Alright. We should go.”

The gate behind Lennok and Evelyn was now faintly shaking.

The outcome of the melee, which began over a key in the circular room, was about to be decided.

‘Even so, the time spent at the gate is excessively short.’

The time it took Lennok and Evelyn to deal with the treasure hunter they encountered immediately after passing through the gate was less than 20 minutes.

He had entered the battle expecting those inside the gate to fight tooth and nail for at least an hour, but unexpectedly, the rate at which Labyrinth entrants were eliminated was quite fast.

‘Is it because the balance of power is relatively skewed, or if not…’

“Evan?”

At Evelyn’s words, Lennok finally stopped thinking and started walking quickly.

Beyond the gate, through an empty clearing, lay the entrance leading deeper into the Labyrinth.

Passing through the arched main entrance, the two slightly gaped at the sight before them.

“This is…”

“Now it’s starting to look a bit more like a Labyrinth.”

The structure was very different from the long, dark corridors they had passed through.

Not only had the path widened considerably, but the deeper part was winding, with more twists and turns and branching paths.

Moreover, every visible path was constantly moving, changing, altering directions, and recreating itself in real time.

Kugugugugugugugu!!!

The periodic, large-scale structural reorganization that occurred outside the Labyrinth.

That phenomenon was continuously replicated inside the Labyrinth, relentlessly altering its internal structure and paths.

“Now I see why the dead explorers inside the Labyrinth didn’t have maps of the interior…”

Lennok muttered, flipping through the explorers’ notebooks he had acquired in the Labyrinth.

“So it wouldn’t even allow for maps to be made at all.”

“The first gate was like that too, but it seems designed so you can’t pass without trial and error…”

As Evelyn said that, she clapped her hands as if realizing something.

“Perhaps the trial and error itself is what Jindun intended?”

“…”

“If what you say is true, Evan, then the intent behind the Labyrinth’s gates and maze is closely related to Jindun’s Mind Imprint.”

“I don’t think it’s impossible. However…”

Evelyn, who still called Van ‘Evan’ out of concern for any unforeseen circumstances, was also quite quick to grasp the essence of the Labyrinth.

But Lennok thought that if Jindun truly intended to focus on the process of trial and error itself, then entering the Labyrinth would have been difficult in the first place.

However, if entering the Labyrinth was relatively easy instead, then perhaps there was another reason for it.

But instead of sharing that thought with Evelyn, Lennok pulled out his monocular.

There was no point in clinging to unresolved questions here and seeking answers.

The important thing was simply to advance as quickly as possible, having taken a step ahead of others.

“You’re going to use that after all?”

“To find our way in a Labyrinth where magic detection doesn’t work well, we’d have to go through trial and error, as you said. I can only hope it helps us to the next gate.”

He brought his left eye to the monocular’s lens and activated his mystic eye again.

Immediately after, the scenery in one corner of the Labyrinth distorted faintly, and someone’s figure reappeared.

Past the blonde boy, the form of a young man, older and more mature.

The face, once tinged with a degree of innocence, had become much calmer, making his emotions difficult to read easily now.

The young man, as if knowing Lennok was watching, glanced back at him and then began walking towards one side of the Labyrinth.

“…Let’s go.”

Lennok silently put his eye to the monocular and began following the young man.

He couldn’t immediately be certain why such a thing was possible within this Labyrinth, or what the young man’s image in his sight signified.

He merely accepted that nothing was strange within the Ascendant’s Conceptual Realm.

He was accustomed to not being able to grasp clear answers to questions.

The answers Lennok had sought always came at unexpected moments, in forms different from what he anticipated.

Lennok knew that the important thing was not to obsess over immediate questions, but to gauge what could be done and set a direction.

If he kept walking without wavering, eventually he would be able to confirm whether his answer was right or wrong.

He simply moved forward, hoping that the time he had spent had also been unwavering.

Evelyn watched Lennok’s retreating back with a slightly subdued gaze.

“[…][”

“What’s wrong?”

“[If things go on like this, the plan might get a bit derailed…]”

“Plan?”

“[I’ll explain later. For now, passing through the Labyrinth is the priority.]”

The furball, speaking in the Doctor’s voice, floated up and followed Maiya.

Maiya looked at the furball with a displeased expression, then abruptly stood up.

It was the second day since they, who had effortlessly passed through the first gate as if it were natural, had entered the even more complex inner maze.

Although they occasionally hit dead ends, Maiya surprisingly managed to find her way without much wandering.

“[I smell something. Let’s go in a different direction.]”

“Alright.”

The presence of this furball, shedding fur beside Maiya, was helping them avoid walking the same path twice inside the Labyrinth.

“I didn’t expect such an old-fashioned method to work in the Hanghasa Labyrinth. If I’d known, I would’ve tried challenging the Labyrinth myself once upon a time.”

“[It’s natural, considering why Jindun built this Labyrinth.]”

The furball replied in a calm tone.

“[The Labyrinth’s pattern itself has diversified beyond 11-dimensional functions, making it so complex that even my computational device cannot predict its patterns, but it does not hinder the attempt to find a path itself.]”

“There’s another meaning, then. Why?”

“[Because that is the very way Jaigys Ethernor lived.]”

“…”

“[This grand Labyrinth is a Conceptual Realm that faithfully reproduces the time he lived and the Mind Imprint accumulated from it. He lived in an era so tumultuous that it was difficult to predict even an inch ahead, yet it contains the heart of a Transcendent who never stopped reflecting on the past.]”

Maiya’s eyebrows twitched at the much more serious answer than she expected.

“Doctor, I didn’t realize you respected Jindun so much. Aren’t beings like Jaigys Ethernor the very epitome of the stuffiness you dislike?”

Within Pandemonium, the Doctor, along with Spider, was one of the eccentric individuals who held a somewhat unique position.

Not many liked his peculiar, extreme way of thinking and his research direction that discarded all ethical considerations.

He was a typical sociopath who, with a thought process and vision distinct from other powerful superhumans, and undeniable results, silenced everyone.

For words coming from his mouth—one that acknowledged and accepted immediate superiority but never looked up to anyone—it was nothing short of extremely high praise.

“[You’re gravely mistaken. The mere qualification to challenge Ascension makes them worthy of respect. It means they are truly ready to provide an answer that transcends the timeline of this world… Grasping a status that encompasses both past and future requires such resolve.]”

“…You speak as if you know a lot about Ascension.”

“[Huhu, was that an uncomfortable conversation? Considering Machina’s Ascension Gate, it makes sense. Weren’t you drawn here precisely to clean up that magnificent failure?]”

“…”

Confirming Maiya’s expression had stiffened, the furball naturally changed the subject.

“[Jaigys Ethernor’s actions before becoming an Ascendant are relatively well-preserved, and based on that, one can roughly guess what kind of life he led. And the more you learn about Ascendants, the more you realize it.]”

“Realize what?”

“[What it means to be qualified to challenge fate.]”

“…”

“[Now there are fewer than ten people in this world who possess that qualification. Aren’t you curious what decision a Transcendent who has lived for hundreds of years would make?]”

The furball, floating behind Maiya, spoke in a low, gentle tone.

“[All the answers await ahead. All we have to do is cross the Labyrinth, which does not reject those who approach.]”

A black flash streaked through the dark maze.

Bang!

With a low boom, the stone statue blocking the corridor split apart, and stone lions shattered.

“It feels like the traps are getting more intense as we go.”

Evelyn grumbled, rolling her shoulder, but Lennok shook his head despite hearing her.

“There’s no way to avoid them. We’ll have to deal with these obstacles one way or another.”

“Groups that came in together will definitely be at a disadvantage. Should we consider it fortunate that Lapis divided us into teams beforehand?”

Evelyn said that, turning her gaze towards the countless spear blades protruding from the walls.

Not only the place where the two stood, but every corner of the path they had passed was crushed and broken.

A structure where walls and floors rose, and ceilings slammed down.

The Labyrinth itself structurally kept narrowing the space, making it impossible for multiple people to move together.

If a group succeeded in maintaining its numbers deep within the Labyrinth, it meant the individuals were excellent practitioners, but they would also be subjected to stronger spatial restrictions precisely because of that.

Even if they could withstand this level of traps and spatial constriction, eventually, the deeper they went, they would have to split up and reduce their numbers.

“The number of people following us from behind has increased. It seems some factions have finished their trial and error and found their way.”

Evelyn, who had been pressing her ear to the floor and concentrating, said.

Magic detection didn’t work well inside the Labyrinth, which was filled with the Ascendant’s magic, but the vibrations from superhumans using their power still resonated through the Labyrinth.

While Lennok took the lead in finding the way, Evelyn used her sharp archer senses to check the number of people following from behind.

“It’s fine. It seems we’re getting close to the second gate.”

“That’s good news.”

“And… the third will probably be the final gate.”

Lennok’s eyes, peering through the monocular, calmly settled.

The illusion that had become a young man after passing the first gate had now transformed into the figure of a middle-aged man.

Considering the speed at which time passed for the illusionary man, he would likely be an old man by the time they approached the third gate.

If this illusion was indeed showing a person’s entire lifespan, then the next gate was highly likely to be the last.

That, in turn, meant that Jindun Jaigys Ethernor designed this Labyrinth based on passing through three gates.

Not nine, signifying Level 9, nor ten, signifying true Ascension, but three.

WORLD 3.0. The third world.

The three gates created by Jindun’s Hanghasa Labyrinth.

Would it be a misunderstanding to think that number held a meaning Lennok knew?

“…No way.”

“Van, what did you say?”

“We’ve arrived. Get ready.”

Lennok said that and moved his steps to the center of the maze, which branched into three paths.

At that moment, a vast cosmic scene appeared, as if space itself flipped and changed.

In the immense void, so vast it could be mistaken for the night sky itself, a small door floated incredibly high, faintly glowing.

The ground where Lennok and Evelyn stood, and the doorknob floating at the edge of the sky.

And the countless boulders floating seemingly adrift between them.

Various blocks, from a width barely enough for one person to step on, to vast sizes almost akin to Lapis’s Floating Island, floated in the air.

The Hanghasa Labyrinth. The beginning of its second gate.