Chapter 124
Sungyoon also sat down in front of his companions .
“Ah . Somehow we are alive!”
Tim fully extended his legs .
-Koo-roo-roohk!
However, a fiendish cry interrupted their sweet resting time . He saw three Goblins walking toward them .
“These bastards won’t even let us rest!”
They were tired, but they couldn’t remain sitting when faced with the monsters . Tim frowned as he tried to get up, but Sungyoon stopped him .
“It’s fine . You can just sit there . ”
After he said those words, Sungyoon opened his hand and pointed it towards the Goblins . His magical energy flowed into his Gem, and a spell activated .
Kwah-jee-jee-jeek!
Sharp stalagmites appeared all around the Goblins . They shot up with great force and skewered the Goblins .
“Hweeeeeek~!”
Tim whistled when he saw this . As always, Sungyoon had the crazy ability of instantly activating a Gem . And when that ability was paired up with a magic Gem, he could display terrifying firepower .
“Mr . Sungyoon’s spells are amazing . Can’t you clear most labyrinths with these spells?”
Sungyoon shook his head at Tim’s admiration .
“It isn’t that great . Above all else, a magic Gem can only be used for a finite number of times before requiring a cooldown . That was the last spell that I can cast with this Gem . ”
If he wasn’t so mentally exhausted, he wouldn’t have used his last spell like this . He would have saved it .
“I don’t care . We get to rest thanks to you . I like it . ”
Sungyoon followed Tim’s example and stretched out his legs .
However, they couldn’t rest for long . Although this was a low-level labyrinth with Goblins and animal type monsters, it was still a labyrinth . It couldn’t be taken lightly .
When they determined that they had gotten the minimum amount of rest, the party immediately started to climb up the labyrinth . They didn’t need any directions . They just needed to follow the signs pointing towards the entrance . The only thing they had to was to slaughter the monsters that got in their way and pick up the moonstones .
Finally, they had ascended to the labyrinth’s entrance .
The three of them were very happy to see the desolate surface of the moon spread out in front of them .
They spent the night in their respective Moon Surface Vehicles, and headed toward Armstrong on the next day .
After all sorts of events, this labyrinth exploration run had come to an end .
* * *
When they arrived at Armstrong, they were extremely tired . Connectors faced danger every day in their adventures, but this labyrinth run had been too spectacular .
“What should we do now?”
Sungyoon asked .
Normally, they would go have a drink before going their own ways . However, that was impossible right now . Above all else, Sungyoon still possessed the corpse of Mrs . Ross .
“I know you must be tired, but can you accompany us to our company?”
Tim spoke .
These were the streets of Armstrong . Of course, if Sungyoon handed over a corpse to the Ross siblings here, they would become the center of everyone’s attention . If people got the wrong idea, they might call the police . No, he was sure they would get arrested . It would be best to tell the complete account of their adventure to their company before handing over the corpse .
“Understood . ”
The three of them headed towards the sibling’s company .
The Ross siblings took the lead . Sungyoon followed from behind, observing the two of them .
He noticed the they were walking tall, and could understand their feelings .
‘They are happy because they can now restore their mother’s honor and reputation . ’
The people from the siblings’ company thought Mrs . Ross had died at the hands of weak monsters . In reality, she had fallen to a powerful existence, the Golem . Even if it was weakened, their mother was able to defeat such a being . Once this became known, no one would be able to look down on her . Sungyoon wished their mother’s honor and reputation would be restored after this . However, he didn’t think things would go as smoothly unlike what the two siblings expected . It would be a toss-up in his opinion .
‘Life doesn’t work out the way you want it to . ’
He had tasted the highs and lows of what people called life .
Soon, they arrived at a familiar building . It was the Ross sibling’s company building . He hadn’t come here often, yet he felt familiar with this place . Sungyoon inwardly let out a bitter laugh .
“Hey . I’m here!”
Tim yelled out loud as he pressed the doorbell . His confident and proud voice rang out .
Click!
It didn’t take too long for the door to open .
He wanted to tell everyone that they had found their mother . He wanted to tell them about the adventure undertaken by her, and the foe she had defeated in the process . He had been ready to talk . However, his face crumpled when he saw who had answered the door . Emily stood behind him . This time she wouldn’t stop her brother if he went on a rampage . Even Sungyoon frowned a bit when he saw the person .
‘His name was . . . Louis?’
The man that the Ross siblings hated the most stood in front of them .
“Oh hey . Look who it is! “
As much as the Ross siblings frowned, Louis’ face was filled with a mocking smile .
“You are early . What’s wrong? Your vacation hasn’t ended yet . It isn’t as if it’s time for the Mana Stream to erupt in your precious labyrinth . When you left, you acted as if you would live there for two months . ”
“Get out of the way . It is none of your business . ”
At the very least, he didn’t want to tell Louis what they had gone through . So, Tim spoke in a cold manner .
However, Louis didn’t plan on listening . Instead of moving out of the way, he looked over the three of them . The mocking smile on his face deepened .
The labyrinth floor had collapsed on them, and they had fallen from a height equivalent to a third-floor building . Then they had to run away from the Golem . This was why all three of them were in a rough state . Their clothes, which weren’t covered by their defensive gears, had been ripped apart . Moreover, dust and dirt covered their body .
“What? Did you perhaps run away from that place?”
He had asked the question, but he spoke as if he already had the answer . He had asked the questions rhetorically in order to mock them .
“I said get out of our way!”
Tim was forceful with his words . However, Louis seemed to enjoy seeing Tim riled up . He didn’t show any signs of getting out of the way .
Emily, who was behind Tim, was about to say some sharp words .
“What’s going on?”
A man appeared from behind Louis . It was the man who had argued with the Ross siblings when they had said that they wanted to go to their labyrinth .
He looked between the Ross siblings and Louis . Then he pinched the bridge of his nose as if he had a headache .
“You guys again? What happened this time?”
“These guys ran away from that lousy labyrinth, Mr . Cohen . ”
“We didn’t run away!”
Tim was very forceful in his retort . However, Louis refused to let it go and spoke in a sarcastic manner .
“So what happened? You came back early in that state . Are you trying to say you were able to successfully clear the labyrinth and returned early? Both of you were so adamant about spending all your time in that labyrinth . ”
Laughter could be heard .
Sungyoon looked behind the man called Cohen . Several people had started to gather behind Cohen . It seemed they were other Connectors contracted under this company . They had come because of the commotion .
‘It is hard to call them comrades . ’
Even if they weren’t hostile towards the Ross siblings, it was clear that they held no love toward them . Sungyoon was able to discern this truth .
“You bastard!”
Tim was greatly angered, but Cohen tried to soothe him .
“Come in for now . Let’s talk after that . ”
The Connectors behind Cohen weren’t the only lookers . People walking on the streets had also stopped to look with deep interest upon hearing the shouts .
“You can leave now . ”
Cohen looked annoyed as he gazed at Sungyoon . It was a look one gave towards an irritant .
“Wait a moment! I asked for a favor from him! Don’t do as you please by sending him away!”
Tim pushed back . Cohen frowned . For some reason, he glared at Sungyoon . However, it was as if he had some kind of idea, so he nodded .
“If that’s true, please come in . ”
What was he plotting? Sungyoon knew Cohen would never welcome him, so he looked at him with mistrust . However, Cohen had already turned his back on them, walking back into the building .
Louis and the other Connectors of the company followed suit . Tim entered as he fumed with anger .
“Let us go too . ”
Emily lightly pulled at Sungyoon’s arm . Normally, the introverted Emily wouldn’t have dared to make such a gesture, but she was beyond the point of caring now . She was feeling a great deal of anger and had become charged up .
Sungyoon didn’t turn her down .
They arrived at a large common room . Cohen, Louis, and the other Connectors sat down in various chairs . Tim didn’t sit . He folded his arms, looking down on them with a disgruntled attitude .
“In the end, you brought him in here?”
Louis glanced at Sungyoon, and he smirked .
“They really don’t know their place . . . ”
“Shut the hell up, Louis!”
Tim growled .
“Both of you should stop now!”
Tim and Louis looked like they were about to fight, so Cohen tried to put out the fire . Tim huffed in anger, and Louis just shrugged .
“Ok . So, why did you bring him here?”
When one looked at his attitude and tone of voice, it was clear Cohen didn’t like Sungyoon . However, Cohen had the courtesy of treating him with some respect .
“You should hear this, Cohen! We found something amazing!”
He would finally be able to restore his mother’s honor and reputation . Tim’s voice subconsciously became louder .
However, the people around him didn’t give his words much merit .
‘Even if they found something amazing, it is from a low rank labyrinth . . . ’
Everyone had the same thought .
“What? Did you find your mother’s corpse?”
Louis once again antagonized the two siblings . Tim, who had been about to speak, shut his mouth . He glared at Louis with blood in his eyes . It was said that even a blind squirrel could find a nut . Louis had guessed the right answer, but everyone knew he hadn’t spoken for the benefit of the Ross siblings . He was using their dead mother to insult them .
“Louis!”
Cohen yelled out once again . This time the complexion on the faces of the other Connectors changed . However, Louis remained nonchalant .
“I know . I know . You want me to watch what I say, but I can’t help it . ”
He looked annoyed .
“How long are we going to accept their tantrums? I spoke out because I’m frustrated . ”
It seemed Louis really thought he was in the right . The Ross siblings found his assertions to be ridiculous .
“When did we throw a tantrum?”
Tim gritted his teeth as he asked .
“We did as the company asked . We entered all the labyrinths according to schedule . After we graduated the Beginner’s Labyrinth, we faithfully followed the company’s schedule . ”
“You asked for that trash labyrinth . ”
“As a Connector, we have the freedom to ask for any available labyrinth . In the first place, our contract doesn’t stipulate that we have to take on a labyrinth chosen by the company . ”
“The company told you to not go on a raid this time . ”
“It is something we decided to do on our time off . As Connectors, we are free to do whatever we want during our time off . If it interferes with our future labyrinth raids, it might be a different story . But at the very least, that’s not an issue now . You would only have a valid argument once our performance starts to suffer under a labyrinth raid under the command of the company . ”
Did Louis think he was losing the argument? His expression worsened . So he suddenly switched his attention over Sungyoon . A cruel expression appeared on his face .
“What about you guys traveling with that trash over there?”
Louis insulted Sungyoon by calling him trash . Everyone knew it . Of course, Tim became angry .
“Shut up, Louis!”