The 31st Piece Overturns the Game Board

Seol was covered in incomplete shadows, revealing only one cheek and his eyes.

It wouldn't be weird if someone thought that it was the face of someone dead.

"Why did you enter the labyrinth? Ah, hihihi… I guess it's obvious why you came here. It's to get strong, right?"

When Shin Hyun, the second brother, asked with a smile, Seol nodded in agreement.

Everyone who sought the labyrinth had the same purpose. It was to become stronger.

Shin Rip walked ahead silently while Shin Hyun kept talking to Seol, seemingly curious about him.

"Where are we going?"

"To our dwelling, of course."

They seemed to be living on one of Stone Mountain’s peaks. Their path was heading toward that prominent hill.

Seol had been lost while surrounded by a dark shell.

He couldn't tell how long it had been. However, it was a very unpleasant experience.

He could have died—no, it might be more accurate to say he did die.

However, such circumstances had brought unexpected fortune.

He encountered Shin Rip and Shin Hyun, two formidable beings who used to be his pieces.

'How are the two of them together…?'

The Pitch Black Labyrinth only connected when one reached its end.

Surely, they had gone through different doors. And they shouldn't have met since they never reached the end of the labyrinth.

'Could it be that a fissure was created when Shin Kang escaped the labyrinth?'

When Shin Kang, who had become a one-armed swordsman, cut through the Darkness to get out of the Pitch Black Labyrinth, causing things to get distorted, the current situation made sense.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Were the two of you together from the start…?"

"Even what you're curious about is strange. Hmm… It's a bit complex to explain, so I'll tell you later."

Seeing how they had no intention of answering, Seol placed Agony on his shoulder and followed them to their dwelling.

Finally, upon reaching the middle of Stone Mountain, their dwelling appeared.

There was a wooden platform made from the labyrinth's trees. It had been made astonishingly well.

"Sit over there."

Seol sat on the platform just as Shin Rip told him.

"I've already said it, but it's as if you'd already died once. If it weren't for that strangely shaped being, your consciousness would have been taken by the labyrinth without you even realizing."

It was just as Shin Rip said.

After hearing that, he was curious about something.

"But the two of you…"

"We've already gone through that process. However, I can't say we're in the same position. After all, you're alive, and we're dead."

"…"

In Seol’s words, Shin Rip and Shin Hyun were night beasts—creatures that carried souls within black shells.

Of course, unlike others, they had a clear consciousness. However, they couldn't be defined that way.

Those embraced by Darkness exerted unbelievable power, even if the soul embedded within was of someone who was weak throughout their entire life.

However, the strength one has during one's lifetime does influence night beasts. Those who were strong when they were alive became strong Night Beasts.

The swordsmen he encountered were probably Adventurers who came here of their own volition, unlike the other beings he had hunted.

Naturally, he was incomparably stronger than the night beasts that carried the souls of those who were unrelated to combat.

If Seol hadn't forcefully entered the Night Crow, he wouldn't have been able to face it.

"There are night beasts here that even someone as clumsy as you can easily defeat. However, there are also night beasts that are so dangerous that they are a challenge even to us."

"That's right. If you want to escape the Pitch Black Labyrinth, you must become strong enough to defeat them on your own, at least."

To think there were beasts that even Shin Rip and Shin Hyun struggled against.

Shin Hyun took Shin Rip's words.

"Well, seeing how you currently look, it seems like it will take quite some time."

Upon listening to his words, Seol suddenly felt frustrated and tried to deactivate the Night Crow form.

Bzz…

'Huh…?'

Bzz…

'Why isn't it returning to normal?'

Seolf felt suffocated, as if he was wearing a heavy coat.

Shin Rip checked his condition for a moment and shook his head.

"It's because it isn't your power. Someone who doesn't understand Darkness covered himself with it carelessly. That's why Darkness took advantage of the situation."

"That means…"

"You must adapt before removing it. Taking it off comes next."

Shin Hyun chuckled.

"Hihihi! You've been devoured by shadows. You did something very stupid. To think someone who handles shadows would enter the Pitch Black Labyrinth."

"…"

It was a side effect of having forcibly attempted to enter Night Crow.

He felt that he needed to get rid of this so he could resume normal life.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

However, he couldn't think of a way to. He listened to Shin Hyun's words for a moment.

"The Pitch Black Labyrinth is a place where those who handle shadows shouldn't enter. No matter how strong you are, the labyrinth can easily swallow both you and your shadows! To the labyrinth, you're just plump prey."

"…"

"In other words, you and the labyrinth are completely incompatible! The weapon you pride yourself on has turned against you. If you use shadows recklessly, the labyrinth will use them as a medium to swing you around as it pleases."

As Shin Hyun said that, Shin Rip added.

"Now, I'll teach you how to survive in the labyrinth. First…"

Shin Rip pointed at his eyes with his index and middle fingers.

"See through the Darkness."

"You currently aren't seeing us through your eyes, right?"

"…"

Seol was at a loss for words. They seemed to have understood a lot about him from just a single interaction.

"I think I can roughly understand what kind of person you are."

Shin Hyun mocked Seol's actions.

"To think someone who yearns for power would be so obsessed with finding the easy path instead of a direct breakthrough… Tsk, tsk."

"To become stronger, first, you must fix that rotten habit of yours."

"Until then, don't even think about approaching the beasts! You're going to spend all of your time besides eating and sleeping trying to open your eyes."

It was a strategy that resembled monastery training.

Seol, who always sought for efficiency, unknowingly asked.

"How much time must pass before I can open my eyes?"

"Just asking that shows you have the wrong mindset. If you don't fix that, there's a chance you will never be able to see. Listen, time is..."

Shin Hyun poked Seol's chest.

"The purpose of something is decided by whoever uses it. If you want something, make time to achieve it. Why does someone who wants so much expect to gain everything so easily? Do you think the world is an easy place to live?"

"Hyun, calm down. Guide him to the annex."

Shin Hyun gave Seol’s chest another poke.

"Okay, follow me."

Shin Hyun suddenly stood up and took Seol to an annex a bit away from their dwelling.

"This is where you will stay from now on. Stop trying pathetic tricks to check your surroundings. Don't take time lightly! Someone who despises blood and sweat will die here! Remember, only by wholly dedicating yourself will you be able to open your eyes."

* * *

Seol, who was left in an annex that looked like a barn, needed time to gather his thoughts.

A day passed, and he became able to understand his current situation to a certain degree.

'I failed.'

Shin Rip and Shin Hyun were right.

His habit of trying to find the easiest solutions had ultimately backfired.

He nearly stumbled and fell as something caught at his foot.

Seol had returned to a state of lethargy.

Having sealed Strength of the Mind, he wanted to do things as Shin Rip and Shin Hyun said.

It was painful.

But at the same time, he was confident about their method.

He blinked, but that was only a signal transmitted through his senses. He couldn't actually tell if his eyes had been opened or closed because he couldn't see anything.

After a week passed, he thought, 'The Shin brothers still have their promise-keeping personalities.'

Shin Hyun regularly delivered his meals. However, he couldn’t hear any footsteps or notice any presence.

Since he couldn't see them, it was as if ghosts had come and gone, leaving only meals behind.

He felt like an elderly person undergoing long-term treatment.

Having reached this point, he realized that all the problems were his own.

'I was wrong…'

His legendary ten pieces.

He admired their power—because it was fantasy, because it was entertainment. He was thrilled watching his pieces reach places he never could.

Some of the emotions Seol felt toward them were certainly those.

He was given an opportunity.

Being transferred to Pandea might have been life offering him a choice—an opportunity to enter the world he had been admiring and try to challenge it. To swing swords, shoot arrows, and use magic like the heroes he envied, and set foot to the place where they had set foot.

'I didn't do that…'

Seol felt regret because he had taken that opportunity too lightly.

He had forgotten that his legendary pieces had become stronger after enduring countless hardships and instead focused on using the knowledge he had.

That had worked well for a while.

He had grown unnaturally quickly and had reached a place where other transferees would find to catch up with.

However, eventually, he hit a wall.

From now on, he needed 'real' time.

Had he ever truly devoted time and passion to becoming stronger?

'Perhaps… When I met Yoo Hyun…'

When he met Yaksha, the fissure had already started.

Yoo Hyun, who had become Yaksha, was much stronger when he used to be his original self, which he no longer was.

After he returned to normal, he wielded the swordsmanship he used in the past and pushed Seol back despite everything he had at his disposal.

The power he obtained was temporarily overshadowed by Yoo Hyun’s raw strength…

Now, he needed to face it directly.

To beak through the wall, he needed to act like them.

Just like Sleepyhead said, there was no shortcut.

If he wanted to reach faster than them, he needed to run instead of walk.

From the moment he decided that his hellish time began.

Since Seol couldn't see ahead, he needed to receive the help of Agony or feel around to awaken his senses.

Whenever he reflexively tried to use Strength of the Mind, he gritted his teeth and completely sealed his senses.

Exactly a month had passed. He still kept focusing on his senses.

However, he still couldn't see through the Darkness.