Moon's Labyrinths

Sungyoon looked at the necklace-type Device .

‘Honestly, this is the one I’m really glad to see . ’

He picked up the Device . There was only one slot present in the middle of the necklace, and the rank of the slot was the lowest of the low, the Purple rank . But, the slot was shaped like a circle .

‘It is a Universal slot . I can equip my Gold Gem with this . ’

If he had been able to activate his Gold Gem in the battle against Soobin, he wouldn’t have been at a disadvantage in the fight . The fact that he had gained a Device that could activate the Gold Gem made him very happy .

He had inspected all of Soobin’s Gems and Devices . However, there was still one Gem left .

When he saw it, a troubled expression appeared on Sungyoon’s face .

‘What was he thinking when he gave me this?’

It was the Gem given to him by Hyunwoo as a token of apology .

Shaped like a hexagon, it was a special-ability Gem . Sungyoon became troubled when he saw the Gem’s color .

‘White Gem . ’

A white light was coming out of the Gem . It was a B&W rank Gem, a rank above the Rainbow rank, and a rank before the Jewel rank . Sungyoon was holding the White Gem which ranked higher than the Black Gem . This was his first time seeing a Gem that was a rank below the Jewel rank .

‘When you are at Sung Hyunwoo’s level, maybe a White rank Gem isn’t considered valuable?’

It was a possibility . Despite this, it was an incredibly valuable Gem to Sungyoon .

He once again gazed at the White Gem .

‘Since it was a token of apology, it should be fine for me to take it . ’

In the end, Sungyoon decided to be happy about the goodwill shown to him by Hyunwoo . However, he couldn’t immediately use the White Gem .

‘I need to find another Device . ’

He needed to find a Device capable of equipping a White-rank special-ability Gem . However, he had no idea how long it would take him to find such a high-level Device .

‘Now that I think about it, I still haven’t received Nicholas’ Device . ’

Sungyoon hoped Nicholas possessed a Device capable of slotting this White Gem .

The newly acquired Devices and Gems would be a big source of power to Sungyoon . Aside from the White Gem, he could use all the others . He had confirmed this already .

However, he couldn’t use these Gems in the labyrinth he was headed to right now .

‘She said I should avoid using the high-rank Gems . ’

He remembered Jimin’s warning . The party he was going to meet and work with would be comprised of regular 1st Gens . They wouldn’t look too kindly at him if he used his high-rank Gems around them .

‘I’ll just have to do my best to only equip Gems and Devices that I normally use . ’

Moreover, he would be prepared for the unexpected . He would wear the necklace-type Device with the Gold Gem equipped in it .

After going over everything, he immediately went into his bed . It didn’t take him too long to fall deep into sleep .

* * *

The display on the Moon Surface Vehicle blinked . The signal meant he was almost at his destination .

Sungyoon increased his speed . Soon, he could see his destination .

It was unlike his labyrinth, where the entrance existed at the highest point on a crater . This labyrinth was located on a flat plain, and the entrance opened up like a sinkhole .

Four Moon Surface Vehicles were parked near the labyrinth’s entrance in no order .

‘They are already here . ’

Sungyoon wasn’t late, yet everyone had already arrived before him .

It seemed the Connectors had caught sight of Sungyoon’s Moon Surface Vehicle . He saw them exit their respective vehicles . Sungyoon found a nice place to park and also came out of his vehicle .

All the Connectors approached him . Their number corresponded with the number of Moon Surface Vehicles . Of the two men and the two women, the first one to approach Sungyoon was a man . He gestured towards the labyrinth . It seemed he wanted Sungyoon to enter the labyrinth where air was present . It would allow them to communicate . Sungyoon nodded .

All five headed towards the labyrinth’s entrance .

The man moved in front of the group and was the first one to jump into the hole . Everyone followed after him . Sungyoon stood at the edge of the hole and looked down . He could see the floor that was about two meters away . The floor extended further downwards on a steep slope .

Sungyoon jumped in .

Tap!

He could hear sounds . When he moved, the small current of air tickled his skin .

There was oxygen . It meant he had entered into the sphere of influence of the labyrinth .

“The slope is quite steep here . If we enter a little further, it flattens out . Let’s talk there . ”

The man, who had entered first, spoke . Everyone just nodded as they followed him deeper into the labyrinth .

They had come here to talk, but they were within a labyrinth, so everyone activated their Gems . Sungyoon also followed suit . Since he didn’t want to be in the spotlight, he only activated his lower-rank Gems . He also delayed his activation time on purpose .

It seemed this was their first meeting, so no one talked to each other . An awkward silence descended amongst the group .

The location mentioned by the man appeared not too long after .

When everyone arrived at their destination, the man turned around to face the group .

“First, I would like to thank all of you for answering my request to form a party . I am this labyrinth’s owner . My name is Jahng Wonho . ”

Wonho gave a deep bow .

Sungyoon looked at the surrounding Connectors . It seemed Wonho’s company had requested Connectors from the same country as him . They were all Korean .

“May I ask everyone to introduce themselves?”

Wonho directed the question to the woman closest to him . She was a woman with a neatly trimmed bobbed hair that reached her shoulders .

“My name is Kim Hweeyae . ”

The bob haired woman nervously kept glancing at the other people as she spoke . It seemed she was a bit of an introvert .

Then everyone’s gaze headed towards the man standing next to her .

“My name is Suh Soochan . ”

His voice was a bit sleazy, and his eyes were slightly upturned . It looked as if the man had a temper .

“My name is Lee Mina . ”

After Soochan, the woman next in line spoke . She had long hair and cat-like eyes . She was a striking woman . But the tone of her voice wasn’t friendly at all, and she gave off a haughty attitude .

After the four gave their introduction, they all turned to look at Sungyoon .

“My name is Woo Sungyoon . ”

Sungyoon was emotionless as he made his introduction .

As they all had made their introductions, Wonho brought down his fist on his palm to get the attention of everyone .

“Since I am the owner of this labyrinth, I’ll take on the role of being the leader of this party . Does anyone object to this?”

No one spoke up . But Soochan cracked his neck as if he didn’t particularly like the arrangement .

“Thank you . I’ll explain the future schedule in detail . We were scheduled to meet the day after tomorrow . However, we’ve already gathered here, so I would like to start the labyrinth exploration tomorrow . If we wait until the day after tomorrow, we’ll just be wasting our time . ”

Wonho paused for a brief moment to assess the expression on everyone’s face . When no one complained, he continued .

“This party will work for a month, and I plan on going as deep as possible . The goal is to determine the rank of this labyrinth, but I don’t plan on avoiding hunting monsters . Isn’t that the original goal of Connectors?”

Wonho spoke in a playful manner as he winked .

“The most important part is how the moonstones are distributed... . ”

Everyone’s expression changed a little bit . This information would have a direct effect on their earnings, and if the distribution was unfair, no one would hesitate to argue with the terms .

Of course, Wonho knew this well .

“We’ll make it fair . We’ll split the moonstone exactly in one-fifths . ”

When Wonho gave his answer, everyone became less tense .

At that moment, Mina raised her hand . Everyone turned to look at her .

“What about Devices and Gems?”

Everyone’s face stiffened once again . Wonho looked a bit cornered by the question . The rights to Devices and Gems were a sensitive subject amongst Connectors .

“Devices and Gems aren’t like moonstones . We can’t divide it equally . This is why we’ll stick to the basic rule . We can auction it on the market, and then we can fairly divide the profits . If a party member needs the Gem, they’ll have to compensate the other members monetarily at fair market price . ”

“I would like to purchase a healing magic Gem if it does drop . ”

Mina was direct as she revealed her intent . It seemed she had an agenda by asking the question about the Devices and Gems .

The surrounding atmosphere cooled . Wonho didn’t look thrilled by her words, and Soochan openly expressed his displeasure .

“You said your name is Lee Mina? I’m sorry, but I also need a healing magic Gem . ”

Soochan didn’t plan on hiding his soured mood . He spoke towards Mina, who fully turned to look at him . Displeasure was evident in her cold gaze . But Soochan didn’t back down as he glared back at her .

“Please let’s all calm down . ”

It seemed Wonho didn’t like what Mina had said, but he was the leader of this party . He didn’t reveal his true emotions . He tried to de-escalate the pissing match between the two Connectors .

‘Healing magic Gem . ’

Sungyoon had two of them, the Purple rank Gem given to him by Emily and the Blue rank Gem that had belonged to Soobin . It seemed at least three people didn’t possess a healing magic Gem in this party .

‘I guess it is understandable . If I didn’t have it, I would desperately want one . ’

Connectors were under constant threat of being injured, so every Connector wanted a healing magic Gem . It had the potential to save their lives .

With Wonho’s intervention, Soochan and Mina ended their pissing match .

“As you all probably know, the chances of a Device or a Gem dropping is extremely low . We haven’t even found one, yet we are fighting about it . It’ll only ruin our mood and adversely affect our team chemistry . At the very least, let’s have this argument after we find a Device or a Gem . ”

Wonho threw in those comments .

The situation hadn’t been resolved . The problem had been pushed to a later date . Since the probability of a healing-magic Gem dropping was extremely low, it was a good solution .

The conversation ended there that day . Everyone exited the labyrinth and returned to their respective Moon Surface Vehicles . Sungyoon also went back to his Vehicle and sat on his bed .

‘The mood is different already . ’

When he had partied up with the Ross siblings, they had been considerate of each other . The atmosphere had been completely different from his current party .

‘This is the reality of a party only forming for profit . ’

Of course, the mood of the party could change . With time, they could become closer to each other . They could develop trust while fighting back to back with their lives on the line . However, as of right now, Sungyoon couldn’t trust his back to any of his current party members .

‘Will this turn out ok?’

He was a bit worried as he looked out the window .

* * *

Sungyoon’s party entered the labyrinth early next day .

Sungyoon heeded Jimin’s warning and didn’t equip the good Gems . He had the evolved Indigo-rank spear and the Indigo Gem that increased his strength by three-folds . He also brought the Blue-rank Gem that enhanced his strength by four-fold, and the Blue rank Gem that enhanced his senses . The only exception was his armor . He brought the Green-rank Scale Mail for his safety, and the Purple-rank healing Gem just in case .

‘If I had it my way, I would use all of Kim Soobin’s Gems . ’

However, those Gems were too high in rank .

Of course, he felt inconvenienced . But he was consoled by the fact that he had his Gold Gem . It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the Gold Gem was his lifeline . He had equipped it on his necklace-type Device and tucked it under his shirt to hide it from others .

‘It’s too bad that I don’t have a shield anymore . ’

He had always possessed a shield in the past, so his left hand felt empty . However, all his shields had been destroyed . This was the reason Sungyoon had decided to use the Indigo-rank spear instead of the Blue-rank mace . Since he didn’t have a shield, he planned on compensating its loss with the long reach of the spear .

When Sungyoon arrived, everyone stared at him . He felt out of place . He hadn’t brought any of his high-rank Gems, yet his equipment stood out .

Most of his party members were wearing leather armor that only covered their upper body . The best of the bunch was Wonho, who had worn a leather armor reinforced with a big plate of steel .