REAPER SCANS
Monopolizing Skills to the 666th Floor
[Translator – Darkraider 2.1]
[Proofreader – Nine]
Chapter 31 - Park Se-hee’s Resolve
The Triad watched as Tae-seong observed Se-hee from a distance.
[How does he know about my acolyte?] Harmonia wondered.
[He is a regressor, after all,] Kairos said.
Orcus sighed. [Damn regressor. Would it hurt it to give us a heads up?] he grumbled.
He was unhappy about all this, but he also had to admit that no one could beat Tae-seong when it came to the sheer breadth of information he held.
Orcus continued to rant nonetheless. [Are we just going to watch as he does whatever he pleases?!]
[It’s not like we have a choice. In terms of knowledge, Tae-seong holds the upper hand.]
[As a regressor, I’m sure he has a reason for his actions,] Harmonia said, trying to justify Tae-seong's behavior.
However, that sentiment didn't last long. She frowned as she watched Tae-seong follow Se-hee. [Why is he stalking my acolyte…?]
[Hmm. I am not sure…]
[That pervert. I knew he’d pull something like this.]
Fortunately, Tae-seong didn’t do anything other than advise her to enter the Labyrinth and become an acolyte of the Triad.
However, he still crossed a line. He had essentially scouted someone without their permission or any prior discussion.
[Orcus! Please open the Chamber of Eternity. I need to know why he told my acolyte to enter the Labyrinth!]
[Yes. Please do so, Orcus,] Kairos agreed. [I am also curious.]
[Fine. I’ll do it. No need to nag me.]
Orcus sent a message, and after a moment, a door opened.
“So we meet again, Gods of the Triad,” Tae-seong greeted them in a laid back tone. He looked like he had known that they would call on him.
[Regressor, please explain yourself,] Harmonia began. [It’s not a coincidence that you met my acolyte, Park Se-hee, is it?]
She seemed ready to interrogate him if he had denied it. However, contrary to her expectations, he had no intention of doing so.
“Of course not. As if a meeting like that could be a mere coincidence,” he said. “It may not have fully registered in your minds yet, but I’ve already experienced the future. I know who you picked for your 12 acolytes, and what they’ll do.”
He began to approach Harmonia. “Park Se-hee, an acolyte of Lady Harmonia, will be selected as the 11th acolyte of the Triad after proving her worth by clearing a few floors of the Labyrinth. However, it would be far too late by then.”
[Is that why you decided to intervene? To pull ahead of that timeline?]
“Exactly. That’s why I advised Se-hee to start earlier on.”
[Why her specifically? Is she perhaps important for clearing the Labyrinth?]
Tae-seong smiled as he held Harmonia's gaze. “You catch on quick. That’s exactly right,” he said. “Out of all 12 acolytes, Se-hee was the only one who could provide support. This was partially due to the fact that by the time she had been selected, there was nothing more to give her than support skills. However, she took on a valuable role as a result.”
Harmonia got directly to the point. [Are you telling us to raise Park Se-hee?]
Tae-seong nodded in response. The other gods immediately bristled, incensed.
[You want us to raise a support role? That’s nonsense.]
[Would it not be better to foster Joshua, my acolyte?]
Those with support roles were noncombatants. It was widely considered a useless role in the Labyrinth, where combat was unending.
However, Tae-seong had a different opinion.
“No role is as crucial as support,” he said. “Of course, Joshua is an essential member of the 12 Acolytes, but Se-hee is equally as indispensable.”
[Se-hee has yet to even challenge the Labyrinth. To be honest, I regret giving her my patronage,] Harmonia admitted.
“I know that, and I understand your frustration. You went through the trouble of making her your acolyte and gifting her an S-rank skill, yet she’s been busy focusing on her day job.”
[So, you are well aware.]
“But you’ll realize later that her survivability is unlike any other. Isn’t the reason why you haven’t chosen any of the other 12 Acolytes because you aren’t certain if they’re capable of surviving until the end?”
[Well…]
[That is true.]
[...]
The Triad were in agreement. Although they had each individually selected a handful of acolytes, they had yet to pick anyone else as an acolyte of the Triad as a whole. They lacked the capacity to discern which acolytes had what it took to make it to the end, so they were waiting for the mediocre picks to fall off and the talented gems to shine on their own.
“However, with me, you no longer have to wait. Since I have seen the future, I know the people we need to clear the Labyrinth,” Tae-seong said.
[Then, can we trust your assertion that Park Se-hee is capable of surviving until the end?] Kairos asked.
“Yes, Lord Kairos. And you can trust your acolyte, Joshua, as well.”
Despite Tae-seong’s assurances, the Triad seemed unsure.
[Can I be honest?]
“Please go ahead, Lord Orcus.”
[Even if you may be a regressor, I’m having a hard time believing you.]
“Do you need more proof?”
[No. It’s not a matter of proof. It’s a matter of trust.]
Tae-seong nodded his head. “I understand that you still lack confidence in me. I’m sure it’s not easy having to receive orders from me. What god would allow themselves to be ordered around by an acolyte?”
[My thoughts exactly…]
Although the other gods remained silent, Tae-seong understood that their silence was a form of agreement.
Situations like this only had one solution.
“Then, why don’t we do this?” Tae-seong suggested.
[Do what?]
“I’ll propose my ideas to you three first instead of simply acting on my own. If you find my plans agreeable, you only have to follow along. In other words, let’s have a discussion before we make any big decisions.”
[So, you won’t just be a dictator…?]
“Yes. Let’s be democratic and decide through a vote. How does that sound?”
With three gods present, only two had to side with Tae-seong for him to get his way.
‘You’ll have the power to vote on things, but in the end, you’ll have no choice but to agree with me,’ Tae-seong thought. ‘After all, I have information none of you have.’
The democratic process was merely a veneer to ease the opposition of the gods.
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator - Darkraider 2.0
Proofreader - Nine
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* * *
“Right now, the biggest point of contention seems to be whether or not we accept Park Se-hee as an acolyte of the Triad,” Tae-seong said. “As for Joshua, I don’t think there’s any problem with accepting him since he's already strong enough to be acknowledged by everyone present.”
[Is Se-hee truly that important?] Kairos asked.
“Yes. The existence of a support role is crucial. Having someone that looks after you in battle can mean the difference between life or death.”
The Triad thought long and hard. Tae-seong’s convincing plea started tipping the scales in his favor.
However, Orcus butted in with a counterpoint. [I don’t see the value in them. The Labyrinth isn’t a team game, so why do you insist on needing support?]
“Then why is the Triad looking to form a raid team by collecting 12 acolytes?”
Tae-seong turned the tables against Orcus, catching him off guard.
[Uh, well… Having a few elites is easier to manage. And clearing the Labyrinth should be easier if they enter together…]
“There we go. You just stated the benefits of having a party.”
[...]
“The Labyrinth is primarily designed to be cleared solo, but it’s possible to clear it with greater ease as a party. Doing so provides an unbelievable increase in survivability.”
A challenge being easier to tackle with numbers was such a straightforward concept that it was practically elementary, especially since being in a party didn’t even increase the difficulty of the missions.
“I also agree with forming a raid team,” I continued. “On the early floors, it’s easy enough to clear the floors alone, but as time goes on, more people will die. And you won’t be able to recruit new acolytes since the system’s acolyte recruitment period only lasts a month. Am I wrong?”
[To even know that… As expected of a regressor,] Kairos said.
[I have to give it to you,] Harmonia added. [I see the logic in your stance.]
[...]
At the sight of the other gods siding with Tae-seong, Orcus furrowed his brow. At this rate, it would look like he was only disagreeing for the sake of opposing Tae-seong.
“How many acolytes have you formed a contract with other than me?”
Kairos hummed thoughtfully. [I have chosen 21.]
[I have selected 18,] Harmonia said.
“What about you, Lord Orcus?”
[11,] Orcus responded with a growl.
“So, that’s 50 acolytes in total. That’s more than enough. From here on out, you should avoid forming meaningless contracts.”
[It hasn’t even been a month, yet you want us to stop sending contract messages?] Orcus asked.
“Having more acolytes is not a good thing. What matters more is who you give your powers to.”
[What do you mean, Tae-seong?] Kairos inquired.
“Pre-regression, there was an incident where one of the 12 acolytes attacked a fellow acolyte of the Triad. After he killed his comrade, the attacker demanded that the Triad give him the dead acolyte’s skills.”
[There are psychos like that out there?] Orcus asked, shocked.
“Yes. Do you by any chance have a contract with a man by the name of ‘Liu Wei-hao’?”
Orcus hesitated. [That guy was my first acolyte…]
“Liu will attack one of his fellow acolytes one day. Even if he proves his worth, never select him as one of the 12. He will covet the skills of others until he eventually causes the incident I described.”
Orcus’s face went blank. He couldn’t believe that the first acolyte he had picked had something seriously wrong with him.
“Now, does anyone still oppose selecting Park Se-hee as one of the 12 acolytes?” Tae-seong asked.
Orcus, the only one that was against it, lost all will to protest the decision.
* * *
After returning home, Se-hee was at a loss.
‘Who was that man? How did he know that my patron spirit is the Goddess of Concord?’ she wondered.
She was thinking about the man that she had faced in the alley. Contrary to her fear of being attacked, he simply gave her some unsolicited advice before disappearing.
‘Why did he even give me that advice?’
Normally, she would have brushed off the stranger’s words, but he was far too convincing.
‘He said that becoming stronger by clearing the Labyrinth is the only way to save more people.’
It wasn’t like she hadn’t thought of entering the Labyrinth at all. In fact, she had been keeping tabs on the state of things through Transcendent Net. She had even read Amon’s guides.
She had yet to enter, but it wasn’t like she was uninterested. She wanted to enter the Labyrinth too.
So, why hadn’t she even cleared the first floor yet?
‘I don’t have the time. I’m already busy enough saving as many people as I can.’
Everyday was a battlefield in the ER. Injured people arrived in droves nonstop. This was a fact that the appearance of the Labyrinth hadn't changed.
‘I can’t take time off to clear the Labyrinth.’
She had no free time to clear the Labyrinth when every waking moment was spent thinking about saving as many people as possible.
‘So, for clearing the Labyrinth to be the key to saving more people…’
It never once occurred to her that she could help the hospital more by becoming stronger in the Labyrinth. It was a novel idea, but she also couldn’t take the mysterious man’s advice at face value.
‘And what did he mean by getting more skills by becoming the Triad’s acolyte? I thought you could only have one patron spirit?’
Se-hee had accumulated some knowledge after perusing Transcendent Net. Acolytes could only select one patron spirit, and they were only awarded on skill upon awakening. That was why most acolytes only had one skill so far, including herself.
‘So, how could I be given more? Also, what even is the Triad?’
He had told her that she could be selected as an acolyte of the Triad by proving her worth… but she hadn’t seen anything about that anywhere on Transcendent Net.
The lack of information frustrated her.
‘Maybe I need to go into the Labyrinth and find out for myself… Should I just go for it?’
Normally, she would have gone to bed to rest for work the next day. Instead, she seriously considered entering the Labyrinth. She could at least clear the 1st floor...
As if lured by her questions, messages began to pop up.
[The God of Time ‘Kairos’ asks you to enter the Labyrinth and prove your worth.]
[The God of the Underworld ‘Orcus’ offers to accept you as an acolyte of the Triad if you can prove your worth.]
[The Goddess of Concord ‘Harmonia’ explains that to prove your worth, you must reach and clear the 4th floor alone.]
Se-hee hadn’t received a single message from her patron spirit in a long time, yet she suddenly found herself with multiple. The Goddess of Concord hadn’t been the only one to act, either. There were messages from gods she had never even heard of before.
A sudden rush of clarity engulfed her.
‘This is what he meant by becoming an acolyte of the Triad.’
However, the only thing that worried her was having to clear the 4th floor alone.
‘Can I do it…?’
She had the Light of Harmony for a skill. Although it could be used offensively, it was normally meant for healing.
‘What if I mess up and die?’
As a new worry filled her head, a notification blinked into existence.
[A person has stepped into the 40th floor of the Labyrinth for the first time.]
An acolyte—referred to as the ‘Savior’ by some and the ‘Pioneer’ by others—began clearing the 40th floor.
‘That’s probably Amon, right?’ Se-hee thought. ‘He’s working tirelessly to save humanity… yet here I am, hesitant to even reach the 4th floor. If I can succeed, I can save more people.’
She couldn’t just sit there and do nothing.
Mustering up the courage, she put on her coat.
It was time to finally enter the so-called sinkhole.
____
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