NOVEL NEXT Chapter 102: Research!
He leaned forward, letting the silence settle for a few seconds. The house was quiet, but not in an eerie way. It felt… solid. Grounded. Safe. For now.
"This is it," he said softly. "The start."
Mia looked over at him. "You're really going to go through with it… The Great Labyrinth?"
He nodded once. "I have to."
She didn't argue. She knew better.
Ethan leaned back, eyes trailing along the ceiling, listening to the hum of mana flowing through the walls. This place, for all its simplicity, was a foundation.
A base.
Something he'd never had before.
He stood up suddenly. "Alright. Time to run a full system check."
"What? Now?" Mia asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"Yes. Before I start prepping for the Labyrinth, I need to know this place won't fail me. Systems. Enchantments. Security. Everything."
She gave him a tired look. "You're obsessed."
"I'm prepared," he corrected.
Mia smirked. "Same thing."
***
The sun was beginning to dip beneath the jagged skyline of Valeron Cross, casting long shadows over the metallic walls of Unit #314. Inside, Ethan sat in front of a glowing console, scrolling through holographic data on Labyrinth creatures and layouts. Charts hovered mid-air, displaying Rank 1 monster variants, danger zones, mana density fluctuations, and recent expedition logs.
The room was quiet—just the low hum of mana circuitry running through the walls and the occasional tap of his fingers on the display as he scrolled through pages of text.
His eyes moved quickly. He read with focus, mind absorbing details like a sponge. The display was filled with data on the Great Labyrinth—first-hand reports, archived footage, scattered research notes pulled from the open-net. Some of it was outdated. Some felt like glorified myths. But he wasn't looking for stories.
He was looking for truth.
He leaned back for a moment, rubbing the side of his neck.
The Great Labyrinth.
A sacred rite of advancement for many. A place of unending layers, like a world folded upon itself—rank-based segregation that only let in those within a particular level of power.
Right now, that meant only Rank 1s. Nothing higher.
But even Rank 1… had depth.
It was easy to think of himself as overpowered after clearing that goblin dungeon with ease. But that had been surface-level. Entry-tier. Goblins were nothing. Pests.
The Labyrinth… was something else.
Here, even among the Rank 1 monsters, there were deadly threats. Creatures that were born and evolved inside a mana-dense, ever-changing ecosystem. Beasts that weren't just stronger—they were smarter, faster, and trained by survival.
Ethan frowned as he pulled up a subsection: "Documented Races and Entities – Tier 1 Segment."
He tapped the screen.
A list populated in front of him.
— Slimes: Small, small, and semi-intelligent. Can camouflage, and has corrosive abilities with low physical strength.
— Drakekin Scouts: Tribal and cunning. Wield primitive weapons coated with paralyzing venom.
— Ashscale Lizards: Camouflaged ambushers. Highly territorial. Often hide in lava crevices.
— Lowborn Phoenix: Rare, radiant creatures. Their flame isn't hot enough to burn fully, but they can incinerate living tissue over time.
— Ironhide Minotaurs: Heavy hitters. Weak against ranged magic, immune to low-tier piercing attacks.
— Young : Almost invisible in low-light conditions. Known to constrict victims silently.
— Lizardmen Clans: Organized. Communicative. Some even lay traps.
— Whelp-tier Dragons: Rare. Dangerous. Fortunately, limited in flight due to spatial pressure in the Rank 1 zone.
Ethan exhaled slowly, his eyes narrowing.
"Any one of these… could kill someone if they're careless," he muttered.
Strength wasn't everything here. He knew that already.
No matter how powerful his raw stats were, a stray trap, a hidden ambusher, a poisoned weapon—one mistake could end everything.
That was the Labyrinth's true danger.
It wasn't just about power. It was about awareness. Strategy. Control.
He tapped a few options and pulled up simulated videos—recorded battles from those who'd entered and exited alive. The footage was chaotic but revealing. Slimes luring adventurers into narrow choke points. Lizardmen mimicking the calls of dying creatures to bait rescuers. Drakekin using coordinated attacks to overwhelm lone fighters.
They weren't mindless. They were evolved.
A soft knock echoed from the front door.
Ethan stood, already knowing who it was. He opened the door to find Selene Evernight leaning against the frame, arms crossed, a sleek black jacket over her usual training gear. Her twin daggers were sheathed at her hips—never far, always ready.
"You're not the type to keep your feet still for long," she said, arching a brow as she stepped inside without waiting for an invitation. "Yet here you are. Reading."
"I do that sometimes," Ethan muttered, motioning toward the open files. "Especially when going into a place where even your shadow could kill you if you're not careful."
Selene's gaze swept over the floating projections. She gave a faint nod. "The Great Labyrinth isn't forgiving even with your strength there's still high probability of danger. But you already know that."
Ethan closed one of the files. "I'm not underestimating it, if that's what you're implying."
"I'm not implying anything," Selene replied smoothly, stepping deeper into the room. "Just… surprised. Most people rush in thinking their power makes them untouchable. You've got the strength to walk through dozens of Rank 1 beasts like they're twigs—and yet you're studying their patterns like a scholar."
He shrugged. "Power without preparation is still suicide. I know I'm stronger than most of what's in the first tier… but even a rabbit can kill a lion if the lion's stupid enough to step in the wrong place."
Selene gave a quiet laugh—brief, but genuine. "That's true. I've seen Rank 1s get torn apart not by the strongest monster… but by a damn slime that corroded their armor while they were distracted."
She paced a little, then turned toward him. "You've gone through the standard maps, right?"
"Yeah," Ethan replied. "And cross-referenced expedition logs from the past two years. The outer zones are mostly goblinoids, feral beasts, some elemental creatures. But there's diversity depending on the region. Drakekin, Lizardmen... even reports of juvenile Phoenix broods near the Obsidian Hollow."
Selene tilted her head. "You're aiming for the Hollow first?"
"Maybe," Ethan said. "It has higher mana density and slightly better loot drops. But I'll take it slow. First few runs will just be for mapping out anchor points."
Selene folded her arms again. "Good. Just... remember this—"
Her voice lowered slightly, her tone more serious.
"Most people who die in the Great Labyrinth don't die because they're weak. They die because they hesitate for half a second… or because they think they understand it too well. You'll see creatures that break logic. Environments that don't follow natural laws. The Great Labyrinth isn't just another dungeon, Ethan. It's alive. And it hates being underestimated."
Ethan paused for a moment, letting her words settle.
"Thanks for the warning," he said at last, nodding. "I'll keep my guard up."
A brief silence passed between them before Selene smirked faintly. "Of course, if you ever find yourself in a situation too strange to handle… you could always call me. I might be bored enough to save your ass."
Ethan chuckled under his breath. "Noted."
She moved toward the door but paused just before stepping out.
"One more thing," she said, her eyes glinting with something unreadable. "Don't get comfortable in that house. The Great Labyrinth doesn't just test your strength. It tests your mind, your resolve… everything. Let your guard down for a second, and it'll devour you whole. This is just overall details, I don't want to spoil everything for you, you'll discover the rest as you read more"
And with that, she was gone, the door clicking softly behind her, leaving behind only silence and the faint glow of Ethan's screen.
He didn't move for a while.
Her words still lingered in the air like smoke—sharp, pointed, and entirely accurate.
But this wasn't the time to dwell.
Ethan sat back down and resumed his research, flipping through more entries, old expedition logs, and theoretical notes from former explorers. Most were low-ranked, barely surviving long enough to leave any worthwhile data behind.
Then something caught his eye.
A flickering entry labeled: "Sanctum Protocols – Labyrinth Tier 1: Access, Survival, and Dominion."
He tapped it open.
The information that loaded made him stop scrolling.
Sanctums.
Structures—almost like cities, Ethan realized—embedded deep within the fabric of the Great Labyrinth. Some formed naturally over time, others were remnants of ancient races who had once tried to claim dominion over parts of the ever-changing dungeon.
Sanctums weren't just safe zones—they were hubs of power, control, and most importantly…
Stability.
Ethan leaned forward, his eyes narrowing as he read more.
"Upon entering the Great Labyrinth via dungeon core teleportation, individuals will be placed at a randomized, mana-compatible zone. Exit from the Labyrinth is impossible without a stabilized teleportation circle—most commonly found within or linked to a sanctum."
He frowned. 'So the first jump into the Labyrinth was one-way.'
That changed everything. Things turned out to be more hard than he had expected, this was completely out of his expectations.