NOVEL NEXT Chapter 33
I spent my time making various Dolls. Occasionally, whispers of going astray reached my ears, and some returned to the Open Field for a breather. I promoted my Dolls to them, earning a few more points.
But I heard no news of anyone finding treasure. Instead, several Coffins began arriving in this place.
The first guy to show up was clearly a victim of traps, all pierced and broken all over. He had lost four legs, leaving behind a tragic sight.
Yet, the Coffin he carried was still somewhat intact. I quickly retrieved the poor soul who had barely made it to the Open Field and opened it up. Contrary to its battered exterior, the inside was surprisingly stable.
And inside lay a blood-soaked man. One leg was torn off, blood gushing everywhere, and there was a massive hole in his chest, big enough to see through. What kind of battle had he fought?
The Dolls pulled him out of the Coffin. As soon as he emerged, he started gushing blood. I quickly sealed all his wounds with magic. The man, whose blood had already drained away, looked pale as a ghost.
He gazed at me, half-eye closed. I smiled and held his hand.
“Don’t worry. Just rest your eyes for a moment, and you’ll be fine.”
Then, I started drawing a Magical Circle. Upon a quick glance, I could see that his innards were half gone. The preservation magic from being in the Coffin was the only thing that kept him alive, but it was only a matter of time before he died.
I instructed the Dolls. The most important things were the heart and the lungs. The Dolls opened their own bodies and retrieved the organs that corresponded to the areas that had disappeared in this man. All of those were artificial organs I had prepared in advance.
One by one, I fused those with the man’s magic. I needed to find organs that suited him best. Some rejected strongly, and others just didn’t match his magic’s strings.
I quickly inspected them one by one, finding the right organs for him. Once I connected them, he looked incredibly grotesque. Since all these artificial organs were external attachments, they clung to his body, making it look like they were devouring him.
However, despite this bizarre appearance, the man’s insides began to stabilize. What mattered to a Mage was just the magic. The flesh was merely a set of accessories that came with it.
All these artificial organs were alleviating the burden so that his magic could sufficiently handle his body. Soon, the feeble magic within him began to flow vigorously. It started from his wooden parts, wrapping around his body and covering the lost areas.
Slowly, the missing parts began to regenerate. Bones sprouted from his legs, and the hole in his torso filled up. His magic pushed out the artificial organs I had set up and filled the gaps.
To assist this process, several Dolls drew Magical Circles. It was a recovery magic for growth and regeneration. Based on that, the man soon regained his original body.
He gradually rose from his position. With eyes still closed, gathering magic, he bowed his head.
“Thank you. You’ve saved my life.”
“Oh, no worries. If I earned valuable points, shouldn’t I do something in return?”
I said, helping him to stand. I led him to a table placed in one corner of the tent. Pouring him some tea, I smiled gently.
“Professor, why don’t you take a break for a bit? There’s still plenty of time left.”
“Then I’ll just recover my body. By the way, I’m Jun. Just call me that.”
Jun. I rummaged through my mind. I had memorized all the Student records. He had been enrolled for seven years and was still stuck on the first floor.
“So you’re Jun. I’m Ebron. Just call me Ron. Now, relax.”
With that, I stood up from my seat. He nodded and closed his eyes again. The surrounding magic began to flow into him, looking to recover his body.
I took this time to examine the Doll he arrived with. The primary Magical Circle forming the Coffin was unharmed. It could be reused. I attached new legs to it. After tidying up the damaged body, it looked as good as new.
The little guy started moving and seemed to check its body. Once it sensed no abnormalities, it shrank and returned to my hand. Jun, who had recovered enough to move, was watching it by my side.
“So, how does it feel? This cute little one brought you here. Are you thinking of renting it again?”
I offered the Doll to him. Jun silently nodded and presented a ring. I received points through it and handed over the Doll.
Jun then exited the Open Field hastily. He was still not fully healed, but his urgency was notable.
Such events kept recurring afterward. They borrowed more Coffins, and others, witnessing them moving fine again, took Coffins as well.
Seeing my points increase steadily filled my heart with joy.
Shall I start moving too?
Of course, I didn’t mean leaving the Open Field. I’d be out of my mind to step out of this safe zone. The ones moving were the Dolls.
No customers? Just force a sale.
It was the lesson worth a thousand points I learned at orientation. I had to emulate that behavior.
I scattered flying insects in all directions. Following behind, several Dolls trailed. They would scout around, revealing the labyrinth’s structure to me.
The paths kept branching off and merging back. In this repetition, the labyrinth created a bizarre maze. It was hard to tell even the routes I had already traversed.
I directed the Dolls only to places where someone had already passed. Most traps had been dismantled. Sure, some Dolls broke due to traps left behind by those who ventured ahead, but all in all, it wasn’t a major problem.
The Dolls continued searching for people, passing through numerous paths. Some broke the Dolls, while others sent them first to check for traps.
In this process, I could discover a severely wounded individual struggling to breathe. It was a man pierced through by a Tentacle descending from the ceiling. Hmm, I recognized him from the Open Field, but he hadn’t bought any Dolls from me.
The Tentacle was voraciously sucking magic from the man. The Dolls approached cautiously, but the Tentacle merely swayed calmly, unperturbed.
And the very moment a Doll attempted to touch the magician, dozens of Tentacles burst from the ceiling. They immediately pierced through the Dolls. Instantly, every defensive spell the Dolls had shattered before that onslaught.
Then, bright red patterns began to emerge all over the Dolls’ bodies. Those patterns absorbed all their magic, in turn drawing a gigantic Magical Circle on their backs. The Tentacle sensed the danger and tried to crush the Dolls, but the activation of the Magical Circle was quicker.
The Dolls unleashed a massive explosion using their bodies as catalysts. The Tentacles were tossed around by the blast. But in the grand scheme of things, the damage was minimal. They merely got momentarily disoriented by the shockwave. I didn’t expect much anyway.
All I wanted was to create an opportunity for the Coffin Doll to snatch that Student. With the explosion as propulsion, the Coffin Doll shot out. It rapidly expanded in size.
It crashed into the Tentacle that was feasting on the magician. The impact sent the magician tumbling down, while the Doll quickly stowed him away into its Coffin.
Infuriated by the loss of its meal, the Tentacle charged at the Coffin, but the Doll hurriedly maneuvered its four pairs of legs, escaping the area.
The Doll returned to the Open Field where I was waiting.
Upon checking the Coffin, I found the magician was nearly breathless. He looked rather similar to Jun from earlier. If his magic had been drained any further, he would have likely dropped dead right there.
Just like with Jun, I quickly healed his body. His magic restored his physique, and as a result, he regained consciousness and opened his eyes. I smiled as our gazes met.
“Don’t worry, you’re safe here. This is the starting point of the labyrinth.”
“Ugh…, thank you.”
I waved my hand dismissively at his thanks. I was just providing a service; how could I accept gratitude for that? I extended my hand, the one wearing a ring.
He stared at it with an utterly bewildered expression. Grabbing his limp hand, I brought my ring close to his sparkling one.
“The rescue fee is 10 points.”
His face showed bewilderment.
“But the rental fee for the Dolls is definitely just 2 points…”
I interrupted him. Instead, I presented an invoice before his eyes. On it was a detailed account of all I had done for him, along with the respective costs.
“That’s simply the cost for renting the Doll. Here, we factor in the effort to locate you, the magic used for transportation, and the Dolls consumed in the process, among other things. All of that adds up to 10 points.”
Then I handed him the Coffin Doll that had carried him back.
“You might face situations like this again, so how about renting one in advance? It’s available for 2 points.”
He accepted the Doll with a reluctant expression. With that, he submitted 12 points and headed back into the labyrinth. However, I caught him again.
“Oh, do you experience difficulties exploring the labyrinth? For such professors, I have something prepared. How about this Doll? It’s very useful for rescuing you, specifically designed to stick to traps and explode…”
And just like that, I wrangled 3 more points from him.
Satisfied, I watched him leave with a grin. Indeed, opportunities lay alongside danger. Such on-site rescues were the easiest way to earn points. There were plenty of Coffins and even more people.
About six hours passed. During that time, I didn’t gather points like grains of sand, but I certainly built a small hill.
While each point brought joy, a bitterness lingered in my mouth.
It turned out to be harder to retrieve Coffin Dolls than I thought. Just over ten percent of them had yet to return. I tried to locate their signals, but none could be found.
It was anticipated bloodshed. Still, considering their worth, I couldn’t suppress my frustration. Those Coffins were like pieces of a Turtle’s shell. Just in terms of material value, each Coffin was worth at least 10 points.
I unfurled the map. It displayed a simple structure of the labyrinth that the Dolls had drawn. Most parts remained unexplored, but I could at least comprehend everything around the Open Field.
Although the labyrinth kept changing, it wasn’t terribly severe. Just a few paths added and erased here and there.
Upon rough assessment, the labyrinth’s progress seemed over half done. Most traps had been neatly dismantled, and hardly anyone was getting lost anymore.
A shiver crept down my spine. Did the Professor really let things unfold this easily?
No way that would happen.
The moment I sensed this, I hastily summoned the Turtle. The Turtle upscaled its size to that of a cart, lying down before me.
I smoothly transferred the tent over it. Ready to depart at any moment.
Yet, nothing particularly noteworthy occurred. The labyrinth gradually revealed itself, and the Dolls soon reached the precinct’s end.
But treasure was nowhere to be found.
The anxiety only escalated. I reduced my baggage to a minimum, stowing it inside a spatial pocket, and organized the tent’s interior, leaving only a few Dolls behind.
Then, at that moment, the uneasy feelings morphed into reality as the labyrinth began to shake violently.
I first thought it would be akin to previous tremors, but that notion soon changed. The shaking intensified.
This was on a different level. The ground and ceiling flipped upside down, and the paths were shredded apart.
My Open Field was no exception. The earth cracked, and rocks rained down from above. The Turtle scrambled to dodge them.
But an even greater barrage of boulders descended. They were laced with magic, targeting me precisely. Oh no, this was definitely the Professor’s doing. She wasn’t pleased that I was having it so easy.
The Turtle sprinted to evade them, but they veered mid-air, homing in on me. There was no escape in the Open Field.
Ultimately, I had no choice but to leave the Open Field and step onto the wildly shaking path.
My original entry route got blocked off. Boulders shattered it to bits.
I barely had time to catch my breath before the ground beneath me began shaking violently. I could only hold onto the tent with magic and endure the vibrations.
Finally, once the shaking subsided and the labyrinth stabilized, I looked outside and could only muster a wry smile.
The familiar visage of the labyrinth had vanished completely, replaced by a newly shaped structure surrounding me. It was broader and contained a more potent aura of magic.
Surely it was filled with dangers far beyond what was present before. A chilling murderous intent radiated beyond the path. I couldn’t tell if it was from Monsters, but the peril was undeniable. And it was undoubtedly inching closer.
It was a presence too formidable to challenge.
I had to flee quickly before it noticed me. The Turtle ramped up its speed. I had no clue where traps might be, but I needed to move regardless.
Everywhere in this new labyrinth felt saturated with the Professor’s malice.