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Chapter 22 – The Maze of Heryond (1)

Thanks to Tae-Shik, Gi-Gyu was able to get a quick shower before going to the hospital. It had been a while since Gi-Gyu last visited his mother, but his mother didn’t act disappointed or blame him. Instead, she just felt guilty, believing her son was overworking because of her.

As it turned out, Yoo-Jung was the one doing all the scolding. “Do you have any idea how much Mother has suffered recently? Just her headaches had been so terrible that she couldn’t sleep!”

Gi-Gyu had asked the doctor to keep Yoo-Jung and their mother in darkness about the diagnosis. So, Yoo-Jung had no idea why he was acting so irrationally or why he stayed inside the Tower for so long.

When Gi-Gyu held Yoo-Jung’s hands gently, she stammered, “H-have you lost your mind, Oppa? What are you doing?!”

“Please take care of Mother even if I’m not around.” Gi-Gyu made a quiet request.

“W-wh-what? What are you talking about?!” Yoo-Jung asked in confusion.

“Just… I think I won’t be able to visit her for a while. That’s all.”

“That’s all? Are you sure there isn’t anything more? Oppa, I’m going to graduate and start working soon, so… Just hold on for a bit longer. Please, don’t do anything dangerous. I’ll make lots of money; then, you can retire. We’ll open a small cafe and live off of it,” Yoo-Jung promised.

“Don’t worry, Yoo-Jung,” Gi-Gyu reassured his sister and stood up.

Outside, someone from the association sent by Tae-Shik was waiting for Gi-Gyu. To Gi-Gyu’s surprise, it was Heo Sung-Hoon.

“General Manager Oh Tae-Shik ordered me to take care of you if I want that bonus,” Sung-Hoon explained, making Gi-Gyu laugh.

“It’s okay for you to leave the portal? Who will protect it?” Gi-Gyu asked.

“There are plenty of other agents protecting the portal,” Sung-Hoon answered easily. With that, Gi-Gyu packed lightly and accompanied Heo Sung-Hoon. Gi-Gyu was told that Tae-Shik had already taken care of all the necessary preparation to enter the new maze gate in the US. All Gi-Gyu had to do was travel to the US. So, before boarding the plane, Gi-Gyu met Tae-Shik one last time.

Tae-Shik said calmly, “Why are you looking so down? No one’s expecting you to clear that gate. Don’t overdo it. Just do the best you can, that’s all. I wish I could go with you and watch you enter the gate personally. But, I haven’t worked much in the last few days, so the association president is refusing to let me go.”

“If I die, please take care of Mother and Yoo-Jung. You should also find a nice woman and get married before it’s too late, Hyung,” Gi-Gyu advised Tae-Shik, who muttered, “Nonsense!”

“And there is an elderly gentleman in Dongdaemun Market who goes by the name of Old Man Hwang. Please give this to him,” Gi-Gyu requested as he handed a bankbook to Tae-Shik; the PIN was on the bankbook’s first page. Gi-Gyu explained, “That’s everything I have left after paying a bit of the family debt, Mother’s hospital bills, and leaving some money for Yoo-Jung and Mother’s living expenses. Please tell him I can’t pay him back in full. Also, tell him I’m proud. Proud that I can use such an amazing item made by the greatest craftsman I know. Ask him to be understanding.”

“You’re talking about that item blacksmith?”

“Yeah.”

“Got it. And don’t worry about your family. I will protect them no matter what,” Tae-Shik promised.

“Thank you.”

Gi-Gyu had finally done everything he could before entering the Tower with Sung-Hoon.

***

“You’re already done?” Sung-Hoon asked in shock when he saw Gi-Gyu.

“Yes,” Gi-Gyu replied.

“That’s amazing…” Sung-Hoon murmured and laughed in astonishment.

Before leaving for the US, Gi-Gyu asked Sung-Hoon to drop by the Tower. There was something he had to take care of before leaving the country—the 20th-floor test.

Gi-Gyu didn’t receive any reward for clearing the 10th-floor test, but he liked to believe the 20th-floor test would be different. If he could gain something, anything, from this floor, it could help him in surviving the gate.

Gi-Gyu explained to Sung-Hoon, “I was strong enough to take this test a long time ago, but I chose not to take it until now.”

Gi-Gyu had been hunting monsters to help Lou level up, which was also why he hadn’t taken the test yet. Normally, it would take an entire day to pass the 20th-floor test for the average player, so when Gi-Gyu returned after just 20 minutes, it was no wonder Sung-Hoon couldn’t hide his shock.

‘I’ve done everything I can possibly do to get prepared,’

The new maze gate in the US was the worst kind of gate. This meant that Gi-Gyu had to get as strong as possible before entering it. He even considered pushing himself and taking the 30th-floor test too, but he knew clearing the in-between floors would take too long. The best thing he could’ve done was clear the 20th-floor test, and that was exactly what he did. Thankfully, there was something he gained from this test, unlike when he passed the 10th-floor test. So, Gi-Gyu opened his status screen to review the changes.

[Level 1]

[Job: Ego’s partner]

[Unique ability: Sync]

[Skill: Assimilation (Grade E: You can now use 35% of your Egos’ abilities.)]

[Retained Ego: Chang-Gyung]

Now, his assimilation skill had a grade, which was uncommon, to say the least. The 20th-floor test had seemingly upgraded his assimilation skill. Before this, Gi-Gyu could use his Egos’ stats and abilities to an extent, but he had no idea what percentage of their strength he was utilizing. Well, that wasn’t completely true. He could feel that he was using a bit of their strength; now, he was using 35% of their strength, way more than what he did previously.

‘I’m only using 35% of their abilities, but my body is already filled with so much energy.’

The power he had before clearing the test was nowhere even close to what was coursing through his body now. Since Lou, El, and Brunheart had all leveled up, their stats were higher than ever. And consequently, Gi-Gyu felt amazing, energized, and in the best shape he had ever been in his life.

‘I understand El keeping quiet, but I’m surprised Lou isn’t saying much either.’

If Gi-Gyu died, all the Egos synced with him would also perish. Even if he did his very best, the possibility of him dying inside the gate was still over 90%. And the same applied to his Egos too.

Based on how Lou had been acting since the beginning, Gi-Gyu expected him to throw all the tantrums in the world just to cancel this trip. Yet strangely, Lou had been quiet all this time.

-Do you think I’m that heartless? It’s your mother we’re talking about.

‘Umm…’

Did Lou have a mother too? Was Lou born an Ego from the beginning?

Or…

-I will always be at your command, Master.

El assured Gi-Gyu, who replied, “Thanks.”

“Player Kim Gi-Gyu?” Sung-Hoon asked when he heard Gi-Gyu speak out loud.

“It’s nothing. I was just reminding myself to be strong.” Gi-Gyu gave a quick excuse. Heo Sung-Hoon smiled bitterly and replied, “I understand. After all, where you’re going is considered hell on earth.”

“Let’s go now,” Gi-Gyu said and nodded.

“Alright. Please follow me.” Heo Sung-Hoon led the way.

The dangerous journey to cure his mother was about to begin.

***

The Tower, the one place every player frequented, connected the entire world. Because there was a separate zone for each country, it was rare for the players of different nations to cross paths. But, there was no question the Tower was connected to every country in the world.

There existed a separate portal that allowed players to travel across different zones. This portal was, of course, controlled by the association. Players the association considered important didn’t have to take planes or boats to travel to another country. Using the association’s portal, a player could go anywhere in the world with ease. Factors like these culminated together to make the association the strongest organization in the world.

“We’re here,” Heo Sung-Hoon announced. They were standing at a secret spot inside the fifth-floor landmark. The zone portal was deep inside the general association branch’s basement, which was one of the biggest buildings in the fifth-floor landmark. Gi-Gyu had heard of this place, but he had never seen it in person. After all, the zone portal’s location was one of the association’s most closely guarded secrets.

Guessing what Gi-Gyu was thinking, Heo Sung-Hoon straightened his chest proudly and explained, “You seem very close to General Manager Oh Tae-Shik, yet it looks like you don’t know him very well.”

“Pardon?” Gi-Gyu asked in confusion.

“General Manager Oh Tae-Shik holds great sway inside the associations. There’s even a rumor that he has already been designated as the next president of the association. An average general manager doesn’t hold this much authority. And more importantly, General Manager is basically taking responsibility for all of your actions by giving you access to this portal. If you told someone about the location of the zone portal, he would have to shoulder a greater part of the responsibility and the blame,” Heo Sung-Hoon explained seriously.

“Oh, I see…” Gi-Gyu replied. Hearing about this side of Tae-Shik from a total stranger felt unreal to Gi-Gyu. Sung-Hoon continued, “Many players in the world hold General Manager Oh Tae-Shik in high esteem, especially those from the association. So, please, never doubt his authority.”

“Oh, of course. I’m sorry if you felt I was being disrespectful,” Gi-Gyu apologized.

“There is no need to apologize,” Sung-Hoon replied with a kind smile before walking up to the employee who managed the portal. To Gi-Gyu’s surprise, they spoke in English. The employee then walked away, and Heo Sung-Hoon asked Gi-Gyu to take a step back.

Whirrr…

Whoosh!

Seconds later, the entire area was filled with loud vibrations. As the piercing noises continued, the air split to reveal a blue rip in front of Gi-Gyu.

It was a gate.

***

‘The zone portal is structurally so similar to a sustained gate… Who could’ve thought that? So this gate is actually inside the Tower?’

Ever since Gi-Gyu became a true player after obtaining Lou, it was as if the entire world did a backflip without telling him. Everything he knew turned into useless crap with no value; his life seemed like a lie. And that was after ignoring the fact that every person was seemingly full of secrets.

“Player Kim Gi-Gyu?” Sung-Hoon called his name.

“Y-yes?”

“Don’t be so nervous. We have arrived.”

They left the Tower in LA and were inside the car on the way to the new gate. Gi-Gyu had been worrying about his passport and visa, but Tae-Shik had already taken care of the paperwork as well.

Sung-Hoon must’ve thought Gi-Gyu didn’t hear him from being too anxious, so he smiled and assured Gi-Gyu, “I’ll be with you to scout the gate, so don’t worry. For now, please take this.”

“Oh, okay,” Gi-Gyu answered and took the documents Sung-Hoon handed him. When he looked down, he saw five A4 pages that included a detailed report.

Sung-Hoon explained, “This is the summary of what the scouting team found so far about this new gate. In this maze, grade C and D monsters have been appearing frequently. They said even grade A monsters have been spotted occasionally. But the scouting team has only examined a small part of the maze so far; please remember that this isn’t a full description of the gate. It might even be better to rely solely on your instincts as a player instead of trusting this information.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Gi-Gyu answered appreciatively.

“If you look at the next page, you’ll see the list of important players and guilds that are participating in this US maze gate. This new US maze gate has been named the?Maze of Heryond,” Sung-Hoon continued.

“The names of the three high rankers who are participating are Ironshield, Athena, and Lucifer,” Sung-Hoon added. The high rankers often used code names for themselves to hide their true identities. These code names were approved by the association based on the high rankers’ unique qualities.

Ironshield was a high ranker from the US, Athena was from Europe, and Lucifer was…

Gi-Gyu asked in surprise, “Did you just say Lucifer?”

“Yes, Lucifer will also be participating,” Sung-Hoon answered.

Lucifer was the second most famous Korean high ranker after Lee Sung-Ho. Her incredible luck and vicious personality were why she was nicknamed after the devil. She seemed more than happy with killing anyone who crossed her or attacked her first. This was why only a few high-level players knew her true identity.

So, Gi-Gyu couldn\'t believe Lucifer was entering this gate as well.

Sung-Hoon continued, “In addition, many other rankers and world guilds are also participating. You can read it over for more details.”

Gi-Gyu asked cautiously, “Do you know Lucifer’s true identity?”

“Of course not. I’m only a lowly association employee,” Sung-Hoon replied.

“Okay,” Gi-Gyu nodded and closed his eyes. Now that he knew so many powerful players were entering this gate, Gi-Gyu reckoned he would be no more than a bottom-feeder. Since it was quite likely he would be the weakest one there, was it even possible for him to get his hands on the elixir?

-Why are you so worried?

Lou asked and continued.

-Don’t worry so much. Worrying won’t change a thing.

Gi-Gyu got out of the car after hearing Lou’s unmotivational motivation. Suddenly, countless people circled him and began whispering among themselves.

“Who is he?” one onlooker asked.

“He was riding the association car, so maybe he’s from the association?” another man guessed.

“Does anyone know who he is?” someone yelled out a question.

“If he came in the association car, he couldn’t be just a low-level player,” a passerby commented.

Gi-Gyu could hear people around him murmuring, but he couldn’t understand because they were all speaking in English. Feeling awkward, he walked ahead with Sung-Hoon. Gi-Gyu was surrounded by many people; as he walked the small path, he could see a blue gate rippling in the air.

This was Gi-Gyu’s first time abroad; before he could even tour a single place, he was faced with this new maze gate.