Survive the labyrinth with EX-grade traits

The layer portal glowed blue, and the escape portal shone yellow.

As we reached the end of the bug zone and stood before the two portals, I felt a strange sense of unease.

‘Higher-level species, special species, or even mutant individuals or random events… Nothing has happened yet?’

I never expected to move on to the next floor so smoothly, whether it was a flag or not.

Why are they letting us pass so easily?

Is it just a matter of luck this time?

No way.

I tightened my nerves, remembering the advice to always expect the worst when in the dungeon.

“Let’s go. To the third floor.”

We had rested two hours ago, so everyone was ready.

We entered the third floor through the layer portal.

.

.

.

The forest where goblins appeared.

It felt familiar, as this was already our third time on the third floor.

Woosh.

Veronica, the experienced one, and Lumia, the catfolk, landed gracefully, and even Yeriel had a stable landing form.

“Pee!”

Was it because we had left the dark cave terrain of the bug zone?

Seeing El happily chirping on a tree branch, I felt a bit brighter myself.

I looked around and glanced up at a particularly large tree, and Lumia said,

“Wait a moment. The forest is too dense, and I can’t get a sense of our location. I’ll climb up and take a look.”

I handed her the map and compass, and she quickly climbed to the top of the tree.

“Wow, that’s fast. How can she climb trees like that?”

“It’s not just agility, but a combination of her senses and skills. It’s a unique talent of the catfolk, Lumia.”

“I’ve met a few beastkin before, but her sense of balance seems exceptionally good.”

“Hmm. According to the book, beastkin have various positive factors, such as their ears, tails, eye movements, fur, and innate traits, that contribute to their abilities.”

Lumia’s catfolk sensory trait was indeed C-rank, wasn’t it?

“Lumia seems to have been born with enhanced senses, as her trait suggests.”

“It’s a shame she became a witch. If she had honed her skills, she could have become a great explorer, or even a rogue or archer…”

[Chaos whispers that the cat girl would have been sad if she had heard that.]

“That might be true. But, as you know, everyone has their own circumstances. Life rarely goes as planned, doesn’t it?”

Lumia was about to descend, or perhaps she had already started.

‘But her expression is strange. Why is that? Did something happen along the way?’

“Let’s stop this conversation here. Look over there. She’s coming down!”

Thud.

Lumia landed flawlessly and spoke with a somewhat ambiguous expression, neither completely dark nor bright.

“Ahren, I’ve thoroughly examined the surroundings, and it seems we’ve gotten ourselves into another strange situation.”

What did she mean by a strange situation?

During Sena’s daily one-hour lessons, I learned about the cracks and hidden realms of the lower floors.

However, the list didn’t include the dense forest of the third floor as the main feature.

Then… The only thing I could think of was a random event, like the Transcender’s Altar or the cave where we met Jacob.

“Can you describe what you saw up there in more detail?”

“Yes. It seems like the terrain in this area has completely changed. The landscape in the distance matches the map, so it’s unlikely that the entire third floor has changed.”

“Unlikely?”

“About thirty minutes east from here, I saw a gathering of adventurers. There were about thirty of them, if I had to guess.”

Thirty, huh? That meant at least six parties were gathered there, considering the standard party size of five.

Veronica, who had been listening, spoke up.

“It’s rare for such a large number of people to gather in one place… It’s likely that there’s some beneficial opportunity that many people can enjoy simultaneously, or they’re gathered to deal with a rare species.”

The former was a random event, added randomly each time a portal opened, and the latter was a rare species with an extremely low probability of appearance.

“What do you all think?”

Even though I was the party leader, in this case, I needed to listen to everyone’s opinions and carefully decide the party’s direction.

Of course, I thought it would be good to go to the place Lumia had discovered, but the other party members might have different ideas.

One of them might suggest ignoring it and quickly moving on to the next floor.

“I think we should visit the place where the adventurers have gathered before heading to the layer portal.”

Veronica was the first to speak.

“As you all know, the dungeon is a separate space filled with mysteries. There are treasures, special equipment, and mysterious traits. No one knows what anyone can gain from any experience.”

‘That’s true. Except for hunting easily known monsters, information about cracks, hidden realms, and layer bosses is known to only a few.’

In reality, it was almost impossible for middle and lower-floor adventurers to obtain such information unless they were nobles or former higher-floor adventurers.

Veronica continued,

“We should seize any special opportunities that come our way. To be honest, at our level, the chances of encountering dangerous situations on the third floor are very low, right?”

Yeriel raised her hand in agreement.

“I agree! If those thirty people aren’t all from the same large clan, they’ll be busy watching each other and won’t dare attack us.”

She added that even if a terrifying monster appeared, they would naturally join forces if their lives were in danger.

“I abstain. I’ll follow Ahren’s decision.”

Two in favor, one abstaining. It was decided.

“Great! Then let’s slowly approach the gathering of adventurers, but if anything seems off, we’ll retreat immediately.”

Satisfied with the decision, Veronica and the energetic Yeriel followed Lumia, who led the way.

I wondered what could have gathered so many people in one place.

.

.

.

As we reached our destination, the reason became clear.

Just as the adventurers came into view,

Zing—

I felt something brush past me, and it seemed like we had entered a different space.

A bad feeling prompted me to turn around, and I saw an opaque barrier blocking the rear, making the outside world blurry.

‘What is this barrier? Is it a barrier?’

I lightly punched it.

Thud.

It didn’t feel like a solid wall, but more like I had struck a highly elastic jelly or slime.

I clenched and unclenched my right hand, and Veronica, who had been observing the barrier, spoke.

“In my experience, this kind of barrier can’t be broken by ordinary attacks. Since we were able to enter safely, it’s not magic, but a simple barrier with a mysterious power that prevents retreat…”

Yeriel closed her eyes and placed her palm on the barrier, adding,

“It’s not sacred magic either. In any case, retreat seems impossible. What should we do?”

As I tried to think calmly, an old man’s voice shouted from a distance.

“It’s no use! No matter how much you touch it, it’s a barrier that can’t be broken! Give up and come this way!”

“Let’s go… El, hide in my pocket, it’s dangerous.”

“Pee!”

Hiding her displeased expression, we headed towards the old man.

“Finally, the last party has arrived.”

“You almost gave me a stiff neck waiting for you! We’ve already been stuck in here for two days!”

“Hmph. Just two days? We’ve been trapped for five days, you know? You made us waste five days’ worth of food on the third floor. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

The adventurers from various parties chattered noisily as they saw our party.

Damn it. They’ve been trapped here for five days?

I expected something unusual, but I didn’t think it would be because they were forced to stay here.

There was no sign of the rare species, and it was just another random event.

‘Wait a minute. They all seem to know something. The last party…’

“Do any of you have any information or guesses about this situation?”

I raised my voice to ask, not wanting to single anyone out.

“Hey, hey. You’re trying to get something for nothing as soon as you arrive.”

“You’re the one who demanded information, and now you’re acting like you paid for it with some great sacrifice?”

“What did you say? Are you done, bro?”

“Grrr. Human warrior, are you threatening our party leader?”

“Hey, handsome! Ignore them and come over here! I’ll kindly explain everything!”

What a chaotic bunch. Why are their egos so strong?

I sighed and was about to walk towards the party that offered to kindly explain when the old man shouted again.

“Over heeere!!!”

The old man, a mage with a staff, must have used a magic to amplify his voice, as it echoed loudly, silencing the room.

───

[Dyson Laceus]

[Strength: C] [Agility: C-] [Endurance: B-] [Vitality: B-] [Mana: A-] [Luck: B-]

[Traits] (Collapse)

Elemental Magic Proficiency
Wisdom
Multi-Attribute Affinity
Ancient Document Scholar
Old Age
Wall of Inscription
Double-Jumping Heart

───

It seems that even a strong person like him, belonging to a party, can’t escape a random event.

The old man, whose name sounded like a good cleaner, approached me and spoke, breaking the silence.

“I am Dyson Laceus, the mage of the Erebon party. Well, are you the leader of your party?”

“Yes, I am.”

“I see. You asked if anyone knew anything about this situation, right? Follow me.”

After saying this, the old man turned around and slowly walked towards an unknown destination.

“Let’s follow him for now.”

I thought it wasn’t a trap since the proud adventurers only argued verbally and didn’t draw their weapons.

After making eye contact with everyone, I followed the old man.

“Hmm.”

I could feel the other parties staring at us with a mix of curiosity and caution, but I ignored them and kept walking.

“We’re here. Place your hand on this, and your questions will be answered.”

He pointed his staff at a huge tombstone.

The tombstone, taller than an adult male, had mysterious carvings on its surface.

Seven stars and their branching paths? That’s the only way I could describe it.

‘If I touch it, will I hear something, or what?’

“Ah! But first, there’s something you should be aware of. Once everyone, including your party, has been confirmed, something big will definitely happen, although I’m not sure what it is.”

I bowed my head in gratitude for the old man’s kindness in advising us to prepare before touching it.

“Haha. There’s no need to stand on ceremony when it comes to cooperation. Let’s get going.”

After the old man, who laughed heartily, left, I checked everyone’s condition as he had advised.

“Here, take a potion. Just in case, put one in your pocket.”

“Okay.”

“Will we suddenly be separated or something?”

I took out spare potions from my backpack and handed them out, then thoroughly checked if there was anything else we needed.

“Then let’s touch it.”

Thud.

I placed my palm on the center of the tombstone.

“Ugh!”

Whoosh!

Light emanated from the seven stars on the tombstone, and the bright lights converged into one point.

Soon, the light transformed into a scroll with readable text and gently fell to the ground.

How flashy. Let’s take a look.

I picked up the rolled-up scroll and unfurled it, and we all looked at it together.

──────────────

The journey of hardship begins when the seven stars gather.

I implore those who walk towards the stars:

Do not be arrogant.

Do not be stingy with sharing.

Do not envy what others possess.

Do not harm those who stand at the starting point.

Suppress your lust.

Control your greed.

Beware of laziness.

And… Be cautious in your choices.

──────────────

‘Is this… the seven deadly sins or the seven cardinal sins, or something similar?’

As I pondered over the contents of the scroll,

Rumble—

“Ahh!”

“Everyone, grab me!”

The scroll turned into light and disappeared, and the ground shook violently, making it difficult to stand.

________________________________________

[You have entered the crossroads of the seven stars.]

Before we knew it, all seven parties, including ours, were teleported to an unknown location.

This time, unlike the altar or the cave, a system message appeared, informing us of our location.

“Is everyone okay?”

“Ugh. I feel dizzy.”

Nod.

“Where are we…?”

“We’ll have to find out.”

I turned to look at the other adventurers, and they were all muttering to themselves or slowly regaining their senses.

“Hey! Look over there!”

At someone’s startled voice, I immediately looked towards the front.

Seven portals.

Seven identical portals, the same size, shape, and color, shone with a bright white light.

“They all look the same.”

“It definitely said to be cautious in your choices. There must be some difference, no matter how subtle. There’s no way they would end a message with meaningless words.”

[Chaos reacts at the crossroads of choice.]

They all look the same?

…No, they’re different.

Only I could see it.