Chapter 224. The Great Maze of the Ains (5)

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Crunch!

Uuudududuk!

“Phew. You had fun with the bugs up until now right? Don’t be so upset now.”

“Ugh…”

“We’ll use your artifacts to buy some drinks for ourselves.”

Christopher clenched his teeth as he looked at the player who was eyeing the artifacts on his body.

And his comrades had been turned into a mess around him.

People who had been caught and had been ripped apart on the way to Hansoo.

Christopher looked at these people with pained expressions.

‘…I shouldn’t have come this way.’

Because it was such a complex structure, he didn’t think they would get caught on the way to Hansoo.

But because they were in such a rush, they forgot the most important part.

The fact that nobody in this world was on their side.

There were people who were shouting around him.

“Isn’t there anything for us? We were the ones who gave in intel.”

“Though you guys are the one who killed them we did something as well! How would you have done it without us!”

They were trying to negotiate with prey which had been trapped already.

Though they didn’t dare to fight the bug players, they could at least give directions.

Because of the others, who had given away their positions, they had been driven into the corner like this.

‘…This is the end.’

As Christopher gave up.

Rumble.

The land which they had been standing on.

The surface started to tremble intensely.

***

Rumble.

As the inner parts of the pyramid was quaking.

Ooooooong!

A ray of golden light poured out from where Kameira stood before.

And soon the golden light disappeared as a humanoid walked out from it.

Kameira, who had been logged out, had come out.

She then cursed as soon as she came out.

“Uaaaaaa! Fucking bastard! Does he know how expensive the immortality stone is!?”

Boom! Boom!

Kameira, surrounded by the golden light, exclaimed her rage while stomping upon the ground.

Immortality stone.

An artifact that allowed one to revive on the spot where they died without any penalties.

She had bought it in order to use it on the 5th floor if she got ambushed in order to rejoin the party right away but for her to use it like this!

The revived Kameira looked around her surroundings and then made a happy expression as she looked at Hansoo.

“Oh? You used it as well?”

She was happy to have found a comrade.

Hansoo adjusted the Demonic Dragon Reinforcement’s golden light and made it look like the light of revival as he nodded.

“Yes. This expensive thing…Ugh.”

“Anyways, what the hell was his quest.”

Kameira kicked away the spot where Ecliptic Mania was standing at as he grinded his teeth.

He wouldn’t have had any reason to perform revenge or anything.

He would’ve done it for a quest.

At that moment.

Kiiiiiing!

Kameira looked around and then turned towards where a ruckus was coming from.

She then made a shocked expression.

“Huh? What? That still works?”

As Kameia was making a confused expression while watching the red gem shining brightly red.

Kiiiiiing!

The gem slowly radiated its red aura as if it was going to show them something.

Then.

Rumble.

A intense tremor rang out from beneath the floor of the pyramid.

“Huh? What is this?”

As Kameira exclaimed out in shock.

Boooom!

A thick hand exploded out from beneath the floor.

“Aaaaaak!”

Kameia freaked out as she saw this.

A hand with pieces of flesh missing.

And pus which filled the entire arm.

Along with the red eye that could be seen through the gaps where the hand came out from.

Kameira screamed out in disgust.

“God damnit! They said all the infected soldiers had been eradicated! Why is this happening again!”

Kameira groaned out as she stomped upon the ghoul like soldiers who were crawling out from beneath the ground.

Infected soldiers.

The name given to the immortal creatures who resembled ghouls or zombies on the first floor of the pyramid.

Stomping on a few wouldn’t do anything.

— Kuuuuhhh…

— Kwaaa…

Thousands of hands were sticking out from the melted floor.

And Kameia freaked out again as she saw all these hands.

The soldiers who had been buried here after the eradication.

Kameia was shocked as she saw all these zombies.

‘Damn! If I knew it was like this then I wouldn’t have revived!’

Each and every one of these guys weren’t pushovers.

They were all at least level 190 and above.

The stronger ones even reached level 195.

They had no fear and even had immortality.

She herself would die from fighting just a few dozens.

Since this place was somewhere where people fought in dozens or in hundreds instead of being alone.

Kameia hurriedly looked around and then spoke to Hansoo with a brilliant idea.

“Hey! Let’s break that! We can probably break it too!”

Hansoo shook his head as he looked at Kameia who was shouting while pointing at the slightly cracked gem.

‘It won’t do.’

That gem was not something that could be broken with strength.

Everyone thought that people broke that gem and found peace in the first level of the maze but that was not the exact facts.

That gem, <Dead Man’s Remark> was merely a part of this giant maze.

Of course that gem worked as a transmission tower that raised the dead by converting energy so breaking it could buy them time temporarily.

But it would eventually get restored by the strange aura within this place.

The reason why this gem hadn’t been working until now was not because it had been broken by players.

It’s because the mana formation made by the skulls had separated the energy from the outside and from the inside.

The mana formation created by the Keil Kingdom was the reason why the 1st floor of the maze had been able to stay sustained.

‘And the ones who broke that formation are probably…The Korin Kingdom.’

Seeing the relationship between the Keil and Korin Kingdoms after the maze had been found, anybody would figure out who had broken this mana formation.

Hansoo looked at the red gem and spoke to Kameira.

“I’m leaving.”

“Hhu? Why?”

“It’ll be hard with just us. Did you not hear what they had to go through in order to break it?”

“Ugh…”

Kameia remembered.

He was right.

While an elite group of people which consisted of master players surrounded that gem and prevented the zombies from approaching it, the top tier player <Ragnarok>, who was famous for his brute strength, and a few other high tier master players assaulted it in order to break it.

For over 5 minutes.

Of course it was just 5 minutes but the formation they had created had almost been annihilated, it was not possible with just the two of them.

‘Damn.’

As Kameira smacked his lips.

Boooom!

An explosion rang out from the tunnel that lead outside the pyramid.

Hansoo had started to smash apart the zombies which were charging towards him.

Hansoo mumbled as he created a path.

‘…Could probably break it but there’s no reason to.’

Hansoo thought of the skull that was quietly sleeping in this pocket.

He had long accomplished his goal.

And if he showed the might of breaking that gem, it would cause others to suspect him.

Since despite Exodus having countless players, there weren’t many people as skilled as him.

And according to what he knew those players were basically top stars in their world.

‘Since there’s a witness it’ll be tedious. Shall I log her out?’

Hansoo pondered for a moment and decided not to.

Since there wasn’t a need to.

Boooom!

‘Wow.’

Kameia exclaimed out in shock as she looked at Hansoo who started to focus on clearing the road.

She thought he only had good control but he had a lot of power as well.

‘The Arrancar zone? He must’ve been quite famous there.’

Kameia looked at the zombies being smashed apart and supported Hansoo from behind.

“Ugh… It’s a shitshow.”

Kameia swallowed her saliva.

“Damn! Why are these guys suddenly crawling out!”

“Fuck! Serious? Aaaak! My sign! I paid so much in order to get this spot!”

“Shit! I’m an alchemist class! Damnit!”

Crunch!

Uddududuk!

The Level 1 Supply Zone was filled with ghouls and zombies.

The ones who had crawled out started to chomp apart the players and were creating a ruckus after stealing weapons.

It was an army of the dead.

The stronger people had gone into the 2nd floor and below so the ones who were on the first floor could only suffer.

Kuuuduududuk!

Crunch!

Hansoo continuously smashed apart the ghouls who were charging towards him.

But Kameira couldn’t.

Though she was skilled, the Exodus was not a place a small group of people could go through.

Crunch.

Uduk.

“Ugh! This is annoying! Tell them I’m going ahead! Fuck! Ecliptic Mania, you just fucking wait! Ugh!”

Kameira couldn’t handle the attacks infected soldiers as she returned surrounded by golden light.

She looked so pissed that she would’ve smashed apart Ecliptic Mania if he was right in front of her.

Hansoo chuckled.

‘Well. Since she even used that expensive Immortality stone and died again, it would be quite annoying.’

The Immortality stone was an artifact could only be used once so even if she did revive she would revive at the saved revival spot, the plaza of the War Fortress.

Hansoo looked around and then pondered.

Whether to go in deeper into the maze where his objective laid.

Or to regroup with his group members.

But he soon realized it was a pointless train of thought.

Since the reason why he had found the party was in order to not arouse any suspicion.

But nobody would suspect him for roaming around by himself in a situation like this.

‘I’ll go down alone.’

Ooooooong.

As Hansoo’s spear was about to smash into the infected soldiers.

“Kuhuuk!”

A different kind of scream rang out from the distance than those of the infected soldiers.

Unlike the screams of the players who had died unluckily, it was a scream filled with lament and despair.

Hansoo’s head turned subconsciously.

And he saw the shape of the player who had found him in the distance.

The player who had been chased by the Bug killers and had gotten to this point.

The man looked towards him and the location behind him as he pondered.

Specifically Hansoo and his underlings who were getting chased around and being killed.

‘Did he come for me?’

Hansoo clenched onto the spear in his hand.

Since the moment that player, who had been found out as a bug player, shouted for help he could get swept in it as well.

Since the bug killers would go for him as well.

But that moment.

The man seemed to have hardened up as he turned his head around.

As if he didn’t notice.

‘…He’s not asking for help? Why?’

Hansoo’s eyebrows twitched.