IRHHAC 10

Chapter 10

Episode 10 – Labyrinth of the Minotaur (1)

Normally, hunters who reached the 7th floor were only around level 10.

And even those were the ones who had spent day and night hunting on the outskirts of Thebes. Most never even made it this high and broke down long before.

But Kim Jun was different.

Level 36.

After implanting the Dragon Heart into his body and obtaining a complete set of equipment, his growth had exploded.

Even defense values exceeding a thousand were now nothing more than thin paper to him.

“Stop.”

At his low utterance of dragon speech, the surrounding gargoyles froze as if time itself had stopped.

Among the stone-like statues, only Kim Jun’s footsteps echoed.

Step—step—

A faint smile formed on his lips as he entered the lord’s domain.

“It’s been a while.”

The Gargoyle Lord was at least three times larger than ordinary gargoyles.

Its skin was like limestone hardened over a thousand years, its fangs sharp like spears, and the wind from its wings shook the entire 7th floor.

Kim Jun slowly drew his greatsword.

The blade, engraved with red dragon-scale patterns, gleamed under the dim light.

“KIEEEEE!”

With a deafening roar, the ground shook.

The Gargoyle Lord charged straight at him.

A moment that would normally freeze any hunter in terror.

But Kim Jun simply stood still, waiting calmly.

Whoooosh—

The monster closed in.

And at the exact moment it reached him—

Fwoooosh—!

A single slash split the air.

A fiery explosion erupted along the sword’s arc, like the breath of a dragon.

The Dragon Claw glowed red as its innate skill, “Dragon Armor Break,” activated.

The Gargoyle Lord’s rock-like body melted as if it were butter.

The sound of stone melting echoed like twisting metal.

1,000 defense shattered in just one second.

“Dragon Armor Break” ignored 10% of the enemy’s defense. Normally insignificant—but not for Kim Jun.

That 10% became the crack through which molten destruction flowed in, melting everything else.

“KIEEEEEEE!!”

The gargoyle screamed in agony as it was engulfed in crimson flames.

Its massive body split in two and crashed to the ground.

What had once been a fortress-like body was now nothing more than melted stone.

[Quest Complete: Subjugate the Gargoyle Lord]

[Reward: 1,000 EXP, 1,000 Coins]

[First Clear Reward: “Gargoyle Core” obtained]

Floor 8 – Temple of Ice Golems

An Ice Golem swung its fist at Kim Jun.

He ignored it.

One swing of his greatsword.

Flames spread instantly.

The six-meter-tall golem vanished into steam.

Kim Jun did not stop walking.

Floor 9 – Library of the Mage

Mage Belfast cast ten elemental spells simultaneously.

Kim Jun swung his sword once.

The mage’s body disintegrated into ash.

[Globa Hunter Announcement]

• First-ever clear of Floor 7 achieved!
• Clear Time: 04 minutes 12 seconds
• Conqueror: [Identity Hidden]
• First Clear Reward: “Gargoyle Core” obtained

“What? Already Floor 7?”

A group of hunters fighting in the mines near the outskirts of Thebes’ 5th floor stared at the announcement in shock.

One of them drank from a water flask.

“It’s probably either the Blue Dragon Guild or Black Tiger Guild. Only they can do that.”

“But that’s way too fast… we only just reached Floor 3 two days ago…”

Before he could finish—

Ding!

[Global Hunter Announcement]

• First-ever clear of Floor 8 achieved!
• Clear Time: 01 minute 38 seconds
• Conqueror: [Identity Hidden]
• First Clear Reward: “Core of Eternal Freeze” obtained

What? Floor 8 already?”

“This doesn’t make sense…”

The hunters’ faces turned pale.

And then—

Ding!

[Global Hunter Announcement]

• First-ever clear of Floor 9 achieved!
• Clear Time: 00 minutes 58 seconds
• Conqueror: [Identity Hidden]
• First Clear Reward: “Rune of Elemental Amplification” obtained

“This speed is insane…”

“This isn’t human…”

The “Hero’s Rest” tavern in Thebes was packed with hunters.

Everyone was drinking while waiting for the next announcement.

“Hey, Floor 10 is the final boss of this region. Even at top speed, it should take at least an hour,” said a scarred hunter named Kim Do-hoon.

“What are you talking about? Did you see the speed so far? I bet 100 coins it clears in under 10 minutes!” Park Jae-hyun slammed the table.

The tavern owner, Black Joe, widened his eyes.

“Here we go again. You already cleaned me out last time.”

“Black Joe, this time I’m serious! I’ll follow the rules!”

Black Joe sighed. The “Hero’s Rest” was the oldest tavern in Thebes.

A former Tower challenger, he had retired and opened this place.

One of his special talents was fairly mediating bets between hunters—so the tavern naturally became an unofficial betting hub.

“Fine. I’ll bet 200 coins on 20 minutes!”

“I’ll bet I clear it today!”

“I’ll bet 500 coins it doesn’t get cleared today!”

Betting escalated rapidly.

Black Joe wrote everything on the board.

Prepayment. Two witnesses. 10% fee. No objections to final ruling.

“Bets close in 5 minutes!”

Coins clinked across tables.

Some hunters even emptied their entire savings.

Ten minutes passed.

Twenty.

One hour.

Still no announcement.

“Hah! I win!” shouted Choi Seo-yoon.

“Hey, the day isn’t even over yet,” someone argued.

At that moment—

Ding!

The tavern froze.

[Global Hunter Announcement]

• First-ever clear of Floor 10 achieved!
• Clear Time: 11 hours 13 minutes 43 seconds
• Conqueror: [Identity Hidden]
• First Clear Reward: “Minotaur Horn” obtained

“Exactly five seconds before midnight. Barely counts as ‘within the day.’”

BANG!

Choi Seo-yoon slammed the table, face pale.

“Five hundred coins… all my savings…”

The tavern erupted again.

Cheers, shouting, and laughter filled the room.

“Minotaur… so the Floor 10 boss was a Minotaur.”

“That means Floor 10 is on another level entirely.”

“People like us would’ve died for sure.”

“Yeah, better stay in Thebes…”

Just then—

A hunter near the window shouted.

“Hey! Look!”

Everyone turned.

Outside the tavern, a man was walking slowly down the street.

His body was covered in red liquid—at first glance, it looked like blood.

But it wasn’t his.

It was Minotaur blood.

And astonishingly—

His armor was completely intact.

Not a single scratch.

Unbelievable for someone who had supposedly fought a Minotaur for 12 hours.

Only dust and blood marked the aftermath of battle.

Most noticeable was the massive greatsword on his back—and the huge horn in his right hand.

“Man… I’m exhausted.”

Kim Jun stepped onto Floor 10 and immediately felt a familiar dizziness.

The Labyrinth of the Minotaur.

A maze that itself was the boss’s domain.

[You have entered Floor 10.]

[Quest Triggered: Subjugate the Minotaur]

[Objective: Defeat the Minotaur.]

[Reward: 5,000 EXP, 5,000 Coins]

High stone walls surrounded him.

Black mist covered the ceiling.

Kim Jun frowned.

Even in his previous life, this was one of the most troublesome floors.

“This time… it’s a bit different.”

BOOM—!

He swung his flaming greatsword into the wall.

The stone exploded.

But instantly—

Space twisted.

A new wall appeared where the destroyed one had been, as if it had always been there.

Useless.

Every destroyed wall regenerated instantly.

A magical labyrinth that couldn’t be brute-forced.

Even Kim Jun’s power was meaningless here.

“…Smell.”

A beastly stench filled his nose.

Blood. Bull. Rotting moss and mold.

Minotaur clones lurked throughout the maze—ambush predators.

Weaker than the original, but deadly in a trapped environment.

Rooooar—

A distant roar echoed.

The Minotaur was hunting.

Its direction was impossible to determine—the maze distorted sound.

The true purpose of this labyrinth was simple:

Drain intruders until they collapsed… then force them to face the Minotaur King.

I wasted a month here last time.

He recalled it.

Lost in this maze for an entire month.

He only survived because of a relic he happened to find.

“Ariadne’s Thread.”

The mythological thread used by Theseus to escape the labyrinth.

Kim Jun closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.

“Skill activation: Detection C.”

The skill he had obtained after defeating the hidden boss Goblin Shaman on Floor 6.

His eyes glowed blue.

The maze walls turned semi-transparent.

Mana currents spread through the labyrinth.

One stood out.

At the end of a left corridor.

A wall glowing faint blue.

It looked identical to the others—but it wasn’t.

“That’s it.”

A faint smile formed on Kim Jun’s face.

The Ariadne Thread.

This time… it wouldn’t take a month.

One day would be enough.