Chapter 23: Inside the Labyrinth (1)
RUMMMMMMMBLE!
No sooner had the proctor finished speaking than a violent tremor surged up from beneath the ground.
The examinees staggered, unable to stay upright—some even collapsed on the spot.
“Grrgh…!”
“Ugh!”
“An earthquake!?”
Though dozens of examinees filled the arena, only a handful managed to steady themselves in the sudden quake.
“Damn it! No one said anything about the combat assessment changing! Agh, don’t tell me that brat knew…!”
“The first exam format change in decades, and it had to be on our year? …Puhaha! What rotten luck!”
“Timur! Is now the time to be laughing!? Aah… all that strategy and planning… completely useless now!”
“Oh my~ things just got interesting~”
Among them were several of the most promising Hunter candidates—including Gale.
“Seems like now’s not the time to settle things. We’ll take care of your treachery another time, Calix.”
“Ha! Works for me, Zares.”
“…Human race, warrior trial—very complicated. Us merfolk warriors—only need to prove strength.”
“Haha! Guess merfolk and humans really are different!”
Some drove their swords or spears into the ground for support. Others unleashed magic or relied on their honed physical abilities.
Each one used their most reliable skill to keep from collapsing.
“Hold your ground with everything you’ve got…!”
And in that moment, they all thought the same thing:
‘If I fall here, I’m out!’
Even if they weren’t disqualified outright, they’d lose any early advantage.
They didn’t know what the proctor’s ultimate goal was—but it was clear there was an intention behind this test.
“Hoho!”
As if confirming their suspicions, the proctor’s eyes gleamed with interest.
“They said this batch would have some real talent—and I can see that might just be true! Though we’ll have to wait and see if they live up to it!”
Grinning, he shouted boisterously.
“Alright! Time to move on to the next phase!”
SSSHHK!
He casually pulled his staff, which had sunk halfway into the ground, free—as if retrieving an umbrella from a stand.
Then, twirling it expertly, he shouted,
“No need for more chitchat, right!?”
Above his loosely hanging sunglasses, his eyes sparkled with a dangerous glint.
“Only real combat proves a person’s worth!”
He raised the staff high. From it, a blinding light burst forth—bright enough to sear the eyes.
CRACK!
That’s when it happened. A foreboding sound like something breaking echoed through the air.
“Wait—do you hear that?! Something's cracking!”
The examinees felt a strange sensation—like their bodies were sinking, completely out of their control.
Gale quickly looked down at his feet—and saw it.
CRACKCRACKCRACK!
The ground was fracturing!
The dazzling, rapidly spreading fissures looked so unreal, it was like watching glass shatter in slow motion.
“…Wow.”
Gale smiled faintly.
“We’re screwed.”
The ground finally gave way completely.
All of the dozens of people inside the arena dropped downward at once.
“AAAAAGHHHH!”
“Save me!”
“What the hell is this?!”
The examinees screamed.
In stark contrast, the proctor’s cheerful voice rang loud and clear.
“Hahahaha! Prove yourselves… in the Labyrinth!”
“Best of luck!”
Once again, the examinees all thought the same thing:
They really wanted to punch that smug proctor in the face!
***
Huff, huff—HUFF!
Gale panted heavily as he barely managed to land safely.
“Whew! That could’ve killed me!”
The reason he was unharmed was simple: mana.
Just before hitting the ground, he had layered mana thinly over his whole body—and in the final moment, burst it outward, reducing his falling speed.
“If it had been me just a few days ago…”
He looked up toward the hole he’d fallen through. Even at a glance, it was absurdly high.
“Ugh.”
He shook his head.
“I’d have died on the spot. That kid, Elwin…”
Had he foreseen this and drilled him in controlling his movement through mana during training?
—A true Hunter should be able to maneuver even in midair. You can adjust your speed by manipulating mana output. But this method…
“How much mana do I even have left?”
—…only works well if you have plenty to spare.
“…This is bad.”
He was down to about half his total mana.
“Wh-What do I do!?”
Sweat trickled down Gale’s temple.
He never imagined he’d be using this much mana from the very start.
And then—!
[Ah-ah, mic test. Mic test. Can everyone hear me?]
A voice rang out from somewhere. The voice of the exam proctor.
Following the source, Gale spotted something strange.
“…What the hell is that?”
A fish, floating in midair.
It had delicate, gossamer-like wings similar to a butterfly or insect, and emitted a faint glow across its entire body.
[What you’re looking at is a Sky-Glow Fish. A rare creature that emits light and can fly, even in darkness.]
[Each of you has been assigned one. Through them, you’ll be able to hear my voice. Also, your current state will be broadcast to me, the exam committee, and even the spectators above. See that sphere below its gills?]
Beneath the fish’s gills, a round orb resembling an eye was attached—
Blink. Blink.
Right on cue with the proctor’s words, the eye opened and closed, repeatedly.
“Ugh, that’s unsettling…”
Gale shuddered.
It was because the blinking, unblinking "eye" beneath the fish’s gills felt alive, as if it was truly watching him.
[For the record, those fish are specially managed by the Hunter Association. If you harm or kill one, a penalty will be imposed accordingly.]
[So even during "combat" or "escape," you'd better keep close tabs on where your fish is, got it?]
At the proctor’s mischievous tone, Gale suddenly lifted his head.
“…Combat? Escape?”
He muttered softly, unsettled by how out of place those words felt.
“Didn’t he say earlier that the theme of the exam was survival?”
Survival, by definition, meant staying alive—securing food, finding shelter, enduring each day.
But there was no time to ponder the inconsistency further.
[James Chelon, Ilmail, Christine Leff, Hugan, Roselinda Walker…]
Fwoosh—! Names and photos began appearing midair, one after another.
It was the same magitechnology system Gale had seen upon arriving in Mediale.
“Names and faces…”
He didn’t know exactly what this system did—but he could tell what it meant.
The faces in the photos were the very examinees who had stood beside him aboveground just moments ago.
He found out why their faces were now being shown soon enough.
[The above-named examinees have failed to meet the standards… and are hereby eliminated!]
SLASH!
A bold red X slashed across each photo.
Then, the faces darkened and vanished from the display.
[Of the third-round qualifiers, the number who landed in the Labyrinth in one piece is… 49. At least more than half of you weren’t total idiots who failed by falling mid-trial.]
[You 49 who can hear my voice now—you are the official third-round combat assessment participants. Fewer competitors! That’s great news for you! Feel free to celebrate!]
The proctor’s voice came through the floating orb in a tone that was gleeful… or maybe even mocking.
[Those who couldn’t endure even that much of a challenge were nothing but trash. They would’ve been eliminated soon anyway!]
[Or maybe they were lucky. Sure, their dreams are crushed—but at least they’re alive. Remember this, all of you.]
Right now, Gale could only hear the proctor’s voice.
Yet it felt like he could see a twisted grin, leering at him from the darkness.
He broke into goosebumps.
[In the Hunter Exam… we take no responsibility if an examinee dies.]
It was a death sentence, delivered cold and sharp—like a guillotine.
KRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!
From deep within the cavern came a monstrous roar.
A cry so thunderous it shook the very earth and made the walls groan in protest.
“What the hell is that…?!”
Gale’s pupils dilated in fear. It was beyond his comprehension.
His gut told him: that thing—whatever it was—was neither human… nor even a beast.
If it wasn’t a monster…
Then what was it?
[You must be wondering. As Hunter hopefuls, your instincts must’ve told you: that roar didn’t come from a human… or a monstrous beast.]
And just like that, the proctor answered his unspoken question.
[The place you’re in now is a Labyrinth buried beneath Mediale Island—created by an ancient civilization.]
[It’s filled with monsters that supposedly went extinct when monstrous beasts first appeared. Powerful, dangerous… ancient foes once capable of standing against humanity itself.]
As those words sank in, the air around Gale felt like it had suddenly dropped several degrees.
It was as though unseen predators lurked just beyond the mist, watching… waiting.
It felt as if something had already set its sights on him.
[From this moment forward, you 49 examinees may cooperate… or compete. It doesn’t matter. For the next three days—a total of 72 hours—you must survive against the monsters!]
Gale swallowed hard, his face stiff with tension.
He understood now—the real exam was just beginning.
[Welcome to the Labyrinth beneath Mediale!]
***
Meanwhile, somewhere far from Gale’s location…
“…Found one.”
Elwin stood in a different part of the Labyrinth, looking down at a man who appeared to have lost consciousness.
He placed a hand near his ear. Inside his earlobe was a tiny wireless communicator.
“One eliminated. Both legs appear fractured. Possible internal injuries as well. Please have a cleric on standby.”
[Understood. Warp system ready. Please confirm your current coordinates, Elwin-nim.]
“Coordinates… B97-4628. Initiate warp.”
WUUUUUUNG!
The man’s body began to glow—and then vanished without a trace.
“Eliminated examinees: that was the last of them. I’m returning to my original assignment.”
As a covert proctor for this secret trial, Elwin’s role was to observe and score the examinees in secret—while also retrieving disqualified participants who were injured too severely to continue.
[Understood. Elwin-nim, we’re counting on you to oversee the rest of the exam.]
The intervention of top-ranked Hunter Elwin Krieger—
It was the best—and boldest—solution the World Hunter Association had come up with for the first exam format change in decades.
“Haha! Don’t worry, Arey.”
Most of this year’s participants were major figures within “LAMPAS.”
In the original timeline, Gale wouldn’t have taken the Hunter Exam until the following year.
But Elwin’s involvement had changed that—pushing his entry a full year ahead.
“I’m looking forward to this trial, too…”
Because who knows what’s about to happen.