The Ruined World Was Mistaken for a Game-Chapter 114: Faith (4)

The Ruined World Was Mistaken for a Game-Chapter 114: Faith (4)

Translator: Dreamscribe
The heroes underestimated the underground labyrinth.
They entered smoothly from the 1st to the 3rd floor, neutralizing traps by smashing through walls and floors. In Arsilan Worlds, the walkthroughs were posted in detail, so the underground labyrinth had become nothing more than a site for treasure or material mining.
But then, a sudden change occurred in the underground labyrinth.
[An evil darkness awakens from the depths of the underground labyrinth.]
As that kind of system message appeared, the entire labyrinth transformed.
"Ugh, ahhh!"
“Crazy!”
A party over level 70 was running madly down a long corridor. A Minotaur, a monster with a bull’s head and a human body, chased the heroes wielding a massive mace.
After a hard appraisal using the appraisal skill, its level was revealed to be 85.
“Fire Storm!”
A mage gathered magic power while running and cast a mid-tier D-rank spell. Though it was D-rank magic, thanks to the mage’s +7 staff, the actual power neared that of C-rank. As flames turned the corridor blazing red, the heroes momentarily stopped to stare at the Minotaur engulfed in fire.
No one said anything like “Did we get it?” laced with jinx. They were veteran heroes, after all.
Swoosh!
The Minotaur’s hand pierced through the rising flames and ripped them apart. The fire that had heated the entire corridor vanished in an instant, like a candle being snuffed out.
Hot steam rose from the Minotaur, but not a single hair was harmed.
“H-high magic resistance...”
A blue light shimmered over the Minotaur’s body. A monster with that level of magic resistance was usually a boss monster. However, the Minotaur wasn’t a boss mob, but classified as an elite mob.
The heroes tried to run again, but
Squelch!
A sticky liquid rising from the floor clung to a hero’s feet.
“A-a trap?!”
"Ahhh!"
“I-I can’t get loose!”
Even though they had been using trap detection skills, they couldn’t detect it. The entire floor had subtly transformed.
Thud! Thud!
The Minotaur approached the immobilized heroes. It blew air through its nose, looked down at them, and sneered. It was a mockery, as if saying, “You’re not worthy of being here.”
Smash!
Black aura gathered on the Minotaur’s mace, and it smashed the heroes’ bodies to bits. And this was only the 2nd floor, yet a party in their 70s was wiped out.
Compared to this, what the heroes had done, tearing up walls and floors, felt like a brief remodeling phase. The underground labyrinth boasted a vicious level of difficulty.
Jinwoo overhauled everything from the 1st floor to the deepest level. He poured the soul of a game developer into placing traps and monsters. But it wasn’t just about difficulty. He fine-tuned it so the challenge would feel satisfyingly intense.
Title: Underground Labyrinth Is Insane.
What we’ve seen so far was just an appetizer.
It's chaotic because of the moving maze and traps, and there are even boss rooms in between. If you make it to the Goddess Statue, you can revive party members, so there’s a path to clearing it.
Anonymous1 (KR): Can't even break through now. It changes immediately and we fall into traps.
Anonymous2 (KR): There’s some romance in it. Feels great when you meet another party on the 2nd floor.
Anonymous3 (JP): Luckily there’s a sanctuary, so we can rest. We can also recharge lantern light here.
TacoBob: Please put this in the update notice.
└ Jam-sik: You guys already spoiled itㅋ
└ Anonymous4 (US): It’s our karma. Let’s keep our mouths shut.
Comfortable: Let's work hard and take on the challenge!
They have to surpass their limits to clear it, that level of spiciness.
That was Jinwoo’s true underground labyrinth.
Jinwoo created a “Sanctuary” on each floor. A beneficial space without monsters or traps. In the sanctuary on the 1st floor, they could obtain a lantern to light the dark underground labyrinth and recharge its light.
“Phew, this is really scary.”
“So we’re supposed to take the lantern from here, right?”
Haebyul and UruBear caught their breath in the sanctuary on the 1st floor. Jinwoo entered the labyrinth as a party with Haebyul, UruBear, and the Romance Heroes.
All the heroes who entered the underground labyrinth were scattered the moment they stepped onto the 1st floor. They were transported to vacant spots, and once those were filled, new spaces were generated. It made them feel like they’d been dropped alone into the labyrinth.
“This... is that a giant?”
“It won’t move, right?”
The Romance Heroes examined the sanctuary.
The sanctuary was large and spacious.
The giant, now transformed like a mummy, had its hands raised to the ceiling, as if supporting the sanctuary of the underground labyrinth. In front of it lay a lantern.
The size of the giant was even larger than what they had seen during the Great War and the Domain War.
Creak!
The ceiling trembled and threatened to collapse, but the giant was holding it up. When Haebyul picked up the lantern, another one immediately appeared in its place. The light of the lantern could be recharged at Ella’s statue within the sanctuary.
-Wow, the atmosphere is insane.
-This is what adventure is.
-There’s something on the wall?
Jinwoo held up his lantern and shone it on the wall.
There was a mural painted there. The chieftain of the giants stood beside Ella, holding a massive shield and blocking monsters.
“Looks like there’s some backstory here.”
“Yeah.”
Haebyul and the Romance Heroes closely observed the mural. Jinwoo, watching them from behind, moved toward the staircase leading downward.
“This seems to be the stairs to the 2nd floor.”
The 1st floor was just a taste, starting from the 2nd floor, it was the real deal.
Jinwoo (Comfortable): You’re all doing well, right?
└Griffin (1st floor): Yes, we’re diligently killing them.
└Alraune (2nd floor): We won’t let them pass easily.
└Manticore (3rd floor): Three parties have entered.
└Behemoth (4th floor): I’m bored.
└Hasman (Dark Priest): Standing by. When will you arrive?
He left the dynamically changing labyrinth to his summoned creatures. The summons had mastered numerous games circulated within Arsilan Saga, and were even doing speedruns. Now, they played better than most heroes, an excellent decision.
As they entered the 2nd floor, the shape of the labyrinth immediately shifted, and something began crawling from the darkness. Dozens of ghouls filled the corridor and charged toward them.
“Hey, camping the entrance is cheating!”
“Hold the line!”
The Romance Heroes engaged the ghouls in battle. Jinwoo stayed behind, casting sacred techniques to support them.
Creak!
A wall nearby opened up, revealing a dark corridor. Ghouls began pouring out from within.
“T-there’s way too many!”
“Let’s just run for now!”
The Romance Heroes started running toward the opposite side.
"Ahhh!"
“Ack!”
One of the leading Romance Heroes fell into a trap and vanished.
‘They’re having fun.’
The summoned creatures were controlling the monsters and traps, and in the case of the floor bosses, they even disguised themselves and put on impressive performances. Jinwoo used sacred techniques in moderation, protecting his party members.
As Jinwoo spread both hands, a sacred technique manifested and restrained the ghouls.
“As expected of Comfortable nim!”
“This is the power of the Romance Bishop!”
Haebyul and UruBear looked at Jinwoo with eyes full of admiration. Jinwoo had undergone a second class change and became a Bishop. It could also be displayed as “Bishop”.
As a Bishop, he could use advanced sacred techniques and build a Church within a domain. Once a Church was constructed, numerous buffs helpful to the domain would be activated, and support funds would also be distributed from the Grand Temple.
Tens of thousands of heroes were wandering on the 2nd floor of the underground labyrinth. When Jinwoo focused and enhanced his hearing, he could hear the screams of heroes from the 2nd floor.
"Ahhh!"
“Ugh! Damn, what kind of thorns are these...!"
“Kyaaa! Get these bugs off me!”
Satisfied.
Just like his summons, Jinwoo was happily enjoying Arsilan Saga. The sanctuary on the 2nd floor also bore traces of the giants. He revived fallen heroes at the statue of the Goddess and examined the murals together.
“Looks like the chieftain of the giants sealed something evil in this land?”
“Yeah, a lot of giants died and turned into mummies.”
“Oh! That shield the chieftain is holding, I think I know what it is.”
The Romance Heroes made various guesses as they looked at the mural. The chieftain had blocked a monster of Erosion crawling out with his own body, then handed the shield to someone.
It was a man wearing a robe.
The mural was drawn simply, but all the heroes recognized who that man was.
“That shield is the one Leon nim used during the Great War, right?”
“He blocked the final attack with that, didn’t he?”
“Ah, that time....”
Countless heroes had thrown themselves at the breath of darkness, and Leon blocked that breath with the shield.
-That’s kinda sad.
-I thought it was just a siege weapon, but it wasn’t.
-Shouldn’t we let Prince Leon know about this?
Haebyul and the Romance Heroes felt sorrow as they looked at the mural. Having experienced the Great War themselves, the story depicted on the wall struck a chord. If the chieftain hadn't been there, Arsilan might have turned out very differently. Jinwoo quietly watched the Romance Heroes from behind.
After wandering for a while on the 2nd floor, the Romance Heroes were able to enter the boss room. The boss of the 2nd floor rose from the darkness.
[I am Jess of the Chain Scythe…! Become a sacrifice for the resurrection of the Dark Priest nim!]
Alraune appeared in full costume, having dressed up herself.
-Oh, it’s Jess of the Chain Scythe.
-Other parties had different bosses.
-Seems like it’s different per party.
-Why is Creator God so serious about this?
Now that the underground labyrinth was under Arsilan’s territory, there was no risk of contamination by Erosion. Mid- and high-tier summons that couldn’t be summoned to Arsilan dressed up as bosses and appeared in the boss rooms. As a result, boss monsters became extremely diverse.
The bosses provided heroes with thrilling battles. In the first encounter, they acted like an impenetrable wall, and starting from the second time, they showed slight openings. As attempts increased, they began to take hits dramatically and eventually exited the stage.
[Ah, O Dark Priest! Kyahhh!]
Jess of the Chain Scythe clutched her chest, screamed, and vanished. Upon clearing the 2nd floor, a Hero’s Flower was generated, and the starting point shifted to the staircase leading to the 3rd floor.
“Waaah!”
“We did it!”
“Took us a whole week!”
“Now that we’re used to it, we’ll clear the rest in no time!”
All the heroes thought the 3rd and 4th floors would be just as easy. But even after a month, no party had cleared the 3rd floor. When laments from heroes began to appear on Arsilan Worlds, Jinwoo smirked and posted an announcement.
[Balance Patch Notice]
*The difficulty level of the underground labyrinth has been deemed an excessive challenge for current heroes, and a balance patch will be implemented.
[Apology Rewards]
*10% discount coupon for the Platinum Coin Shop
*Title
[D] You Held On Well
You didn’t clear it, but you still did well.
*5 Platinum Coins
*(E~D+) Rank Accessory Random Box
The balance patch will be applied in one week.
We apologize for the inconvenience. Arsilan Saga will continue to grow.
Not just named heroes, but even those who hadn’t yet entered the labyrinth felt their pride wounded by the announcement.
‘Excessive challenge? Ahhhhh!’
‘Ugh, they’re patching it just because you guys couldn’t clear it. Tsk, look at the hero standards these days.’
‘We’ll clear it within the week.’
‘A one-week time attack? Can’t ignore that!’
‘Is it just me, or does this feel like provocation?’
All the lament posts on Arsilan Worlds vanished. If they didn’t clear it within a week, the current difficult bosses would disappear, so it only ignited their determination even more.
As a result, the Romance Heroes achieved the miracle of clearing the 3rd and 4th floors within a week. It was a grueling push, but their faces were full of joy rather than exhaustion. Because it was incredibly fun.
An electrifying sense of accomplishment wrapped around them.
"There aren't any pathetic heroes who haven't cleared the 4th floor yet, right?"
“After tomorrow, you’ll never be able to clear it.”
“Bosses cleared after the balance patch don’t count.”
-If it weren’t for Comfortable Bishop nim, we would’ve all wiped.
-High-tier sacred techniques are so busted. How do you go from near death to full health? ㅋㅋ
In Arsilan Saga, the "Global Recognition Association" emerged. They argued that clearing bosses after the balance patch didn’t count as a real clear.
Haebyul and the Romance Heroes entered the sanctuary leading to the final floor.
Haebyul spotted someone standing inside the sanctuary.
“Huh? LifeHunter nim?”
“Haebyul? Been a while.”
On the 4th floor’s sanctuary, the Romance Heroes encountered LifeHunter’s hunter party. Before the balance patch, only the Romance Heroes and the hunter party had made it this far.
“Want to merge parties?”
“Hm.”
LifeHunter accepted Haebyul’s offer.
In the underground labyrinth, if they died more than three times, they couldn’t be revived. Both Haebyul’s and LifeHunter’s parties had lost many members, so even after combining, there were only sixteen people.
“We’ll name the party Hunt for Romance.”
“Hunt for Romance, huh… I like it.”
LifeHunter gave a wide grin and praised them. The number of viewers on Haebyul’s stream began to spike rapidly. It was no exaggeration to say that every hero in Arsilan had her stream playing.
Once she switched chat to subscriber-only mode, the chaos in the chat finally calmed down.
The heroes examined the final mural.
Countless giants were shown using their bodies to block Erosion, becoming a wall that protected Arsilan.
The chieftain and the giants sealed away the evil being with their own bodies. The power of that evil had caused the Erosion and created this massive underground labyrinth.
[To await the miracle that will come one day, we seal the Dark Priest here.]
Such words were written.
Jinwoo had captured the story of the giants in the mural with calm sincerity.
‘That’s exactly what happened in reality.’
The giants knew that if they succumbed to Erosion, they would suffer for eternity, and yet they threw themselves in. They only wished for the survival of Arsilan.
“Let’s go!”
As Haebyul stepped forward, all the heroes nodded and headed toward the final floor. The massive space that had been teased to heroes in advance finally revealed itself.
At the center of the space stood an enormous door.
The Dark Priest, bound in chains, stood in front of it, and a giant so huge it seemed to touch the sky was holding onto the chains.
Darkness and Erosion burst forth from the Dark Priest’s body, surging violently.
[Kuhuhuhu!]
The Dark Priest was sealed here.
Feeding on the energy flowing down from the underground labyrinth, he slowly floated upward.
[I am free at last!]
Crack!
The chains began to crack, and shockwaves exploded outward.
“Ugh!”
“Hngh!”
The force was so powerful that the heroes were pushed far back.
The situation was turning dire.
[Arsilan] Shine light upon the darkness!
The great giant warriors had endured long years sealing the Dark Priest. Their bones and muscles became chains and spikes, restraining him.
The Dark Priest was now trying to break the seal and return to the outside world. If the ruler of Erosion and Darkness were to be completely unleashed, Arsilan would once again fall into peril.
Purify and resurrect the giants with the light of Ella.
A main quest appeared.
The Dark Priest let out a loud laugh and began to rise from the underground labyrinth. The chains that bound his body were pulled tight but looked ready to tear at any moment.
“The lanterns... they’re glowing!”
The lanterns held by the heroes began to emit light. As the light touched the chains, the cracks began to slowly repair themselves.
The moment the light reached the giants, their bodies began to move.
“Shine the light on the giants!”
At LifeHunter’s shout, everyone raised their lanterns and pointed them at the giants.
Creak!
The giants, now bathed in light, began to move their massive bodies. Over their mummy-like, shriveled forms, faint spirit-like silhouettes began to rise as if their souls had returned.
[How dare you...! Pathetic vermin!]
The Dark Priest glared at the heroes and unleashed a blast of dark sacred technique. It was powerful enough to annihilate all heroes present. It resembled the dark breath that had once split apart Marogo and Solis.
Just before the dark sacred technique could be fully unleashed, one of the giants rose and blocked it with his entire body.
Boom!
The giant pulled on the chains and dragged the Dark Priest back down. However, the Dark Priest had already broken free from the seal. As he unleashed all his power, the chains snapped. At the same time, the wave of dark energy shook the entire underground labyrinth.
-He’s breaking loose!
-Aaah!
-What is this cutscene? The whole dungeon’s about to collapse!
-Do something!
-(Novice): Must be a cutscene. (Veteran): Maybe they’re about to blow up the entire dungeon for the balance patch.
The heroes, who had been frozen watching the scene, hurriedly raised their lanterns and shone them on the Dark Priest.
[Kuaaaagh!]
The Dark Priest screamed in agony, writhing in pain.
The giants, as if they had made up their minds, turned and opened the massive door behind them.
Grab!
They seized the Dark Priest and shoved him into the door.
Tentacles extended from the Dark Priest’s body and clutched at the door, but the giants used all their strength to push him back inside.
Boom!
The massive door slammed shut, and the Dark Priest vanished. He, who had tried to escape into Arsilan, was now sealed away in the Giant Realm.
The bodies of the giants, pushed to their limits, began to break down. They knelt before the heroes as they crumbled.
[The giants, awakened by Ella’s light, have sealed the Dark Priest, who sought to invade Arsilan, within the Giant Realm. The Giant Realm is the land where the giants lie dormant.]
As the giants' bodies collapsed, a Hero’s Flower emerged in their place.
“Wow…”
“That’s huge.”
The Hero’s Flower was much taller than a person.
[The giants have entrusted the Giant Realm to the heroes who overcame trials and adversity. Head to the Giant Realm and thwart the Dark Priest’s scheme! From here, you may travel to the Giant Realm via the massive Hero’s Flower.]
[Be careful! The Giant Realm operates under different laws than Arsilan.]
-Giant Realm?
-Ooooh! A new land?
-I thought this was just a dungeon update!
The heroes watching the stream went wild.
Jinwoo smiled inwardly at their reactions. They’d be even more surprised once they saw the Giant Realm.
“Server maintenance is tomorrow, so let’s hurry up and go take a look.”
At Jinwoo’s words, everyone nodded in unison and immediately used the massive Hero’s Flower to the Giant Realm.
“Gasp!”
“Wow.”
“Crazy!”
The heroes who arrived in the Giant Realm were beyond impressed, they were stunned by the overwhelming scenery that spread out before them. Trees taller than buildings stretched skyward, and enormous mushrooms and flowers filled their vision.
Fruits lying on the ground were as big as a hero’s body. An ant the size of a bull crawled by and turned its head to look at the heroes. Massive butterflies fluttered overhead, and in the distance, bees and spiders could also be seen.
LifeHunter was mesmerized by the sight of the insects.
“Is this… paradise?”
Romantic prey full of charm filled his vision.
The hunters who heard LifeHunter’s muttering nodded absentmindedly, their expressions blank.
-What the hell is this…
-What have you created, O Creator God?
-That ant is freakin' huge ㅋㅋㅋ
-Can you ride the ant? Tell me can I ride the ant!
-Aaaah! Let me in! I wanna go too!
Haebyul and UruBear were also left speechless, their minds blank.
At that moment, something emerged from the bushes. It appeared to be an ordinary rat. Jam-sik used his appraisal skill on the rat.
[Lv.75] Sewer Rat (Giant Realm)
A common sewer rat.
Eats pretty much anything.
The problem was, that “common sewer rat” was as big as a troll. The heroes hurriedly drew their weapons.
Screeeee! Screech!
At that moment, a massive spider burst up from the ground, snatched the sewer rat, and dragged it back underground.
-Uh... I’ll go later.
-What the hell… what did I just witness?
-This is real wilderness.
The Romance Heroes froze in place, unable to move for a while.
“Wahaha!”
The sound of LifeHunter’s laughter echoed out as he rode atop an ant.
He looked happier than anyone else.
*****
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Chapter 114: Faith (4)