TSOT#1 Chapter 31

A dazzling light surrounded the area, scattering the team members in all directions.

Joo-ah hardened her expression as she scanned her surroundings.

Dense trees and bushes formed tall walls, creating an endless maze. Above, a timer displayed numbers in the sky.

[29:41]

The quest had already begun. The treasure chest had to be found before the timer ran out.

Joo-ah moved cautiously, keeping her guard up. The unnaturally quiet stillness made the atmosphere feel ominous.

Where were her team members?
Was there only one treasure chest in the maze?

If so, it might actually be better for the team to be scattered, each searching individually. Finding the chest in such a vast space within a short time wouldn’t be easy.

Grrrr— Grrrr—

A D-rank monster leapt out of the bushes.

Joo-ah retrieved a mid-tier longsword from her inventory and swiftly struck the monster’s head.

Swish—

With the sharp sound of the blade, the monster was defeated with little difficulty.

[D-rank Mana Stone: Increases Agility by 1]

Although it was a minor improvement, boosting her stats, even slightly, seemed like the best option given the situation.

【You used the ‘D-rank Mana Stone.’】
【Agility increased by 1.】

She resumed walking immediately, her pace quicker than before thanks to her enhanced agility.

The maze-like forest stretched endlessly, making it impossible to determine her location.

Tall, green paths.
Simple routes.
Unchanging scenery.
Occasional battles with the same type of monsters.

Clang—

After slashing a monster’s head with a dagger, Joo-ah looked up.

“…That’s already the fourth one.”

Frowning, she retrieved another mana stone from the monster’s body. She increased her agility once more and opened the system window to check the number of monsters left to kill for her second awakening.

[Second Awakening: ??? (Defeat 100 monsters. Progress: 9/100)]

Joo-ah glanced around.

The dense greenery made it difficult to tell where she was. She pulled out the hair tie securing her hair, letting her brown strands fall messily over her shoulders. Then, she used the tie to bundle nearby leaves.

“This should help me mark the path I’ve taken.”

If her team members saw it, it would also signal her location.

Joo-ah continued walking again.

After some time, she stopped abruptly, her eyes fixed on something.

“…No way.”

Her gaze landed on a very familiar hair tie.

She stared blankly at the path she’d just walked.

“I’ve been going in circles this whole time.”

Even though she’d walked straight ahead, the final stop was the very place she’d marked earlier.

By now, over 10 minutes had passed, and the treasure chest was nowhere in sight. Judging by the quest’s progress, the other team members likely hadn’t found it either.

Time remaining: 19:21.

Joo-ah scanned her surroundings cautiously.

The sky above was strikingly clear, and the silence was interrupted only by a faint breeze.

“…Too quiet.”

Surely the other team members had encountered monsters like she had.

But apart from the rustling of leaves, there wasn’t even the faintest sound of a blade.

Her gaze shifted to the tree-covered walls of the maze.

She pulled out a taser gun and aimed between the trees.

Just as she was about to pull the trigger—

Clang—

A sudden gust of wind split the trees in two, revealing a familiar figure.

“…Hunter Shin Jae-rim?”

It was none other than Jae-rim, holding a longsword.

He looked at Joo-ah with slightly widened eyes before sheathing his sword and approaching her.

“Hunter Seo Joo-ah, are you injured?”

Caught off guard, Joo-ah nodded and replied.

“I’m fine.”

“That’s a relief.”

His calm voice prompted her to awkwardly stow her taser gun back into her inventory.

Looking around, he spoke.

“It seems there’s a barrier above the trees. Only by breaking through it could I find another path.”

He was right.

Magic had been cast on the trees forming the maze, causing her to loop around endlessly without finding any traces of her teammates.

“Was there no treasure chest where you were?”

Joo-ah asked.

“No, there wasn’t,” he replied.

Did that mean the chest was where Yeon-joo and Chan-hee were?

Joo-ah glanced at the timer floating in the sky.

“We need to break through more barriers along other walls.”

Clearing as many paths as possible would make finding the treasure chest easier.

Jae-rim seemed to agree, pulling out his longsword again. The blade radiated an immense magical energy, causing the invisible barriers beyond the trees to tremble.

As he prepared to slash through the wall—

Boom!

The trees suddenly shot upward and exploded downward toward Joo-ah and Jae-rim.

Jae-rim immediately shielded Joo-ah, forming a protective barrier.

Green leaves scattered amid the thick dust cloud that obscured their vision.

Taking advantage of their distraction, thorny vines crept up from the ground, entangling both Joo-ah and Jae-rim.

The plants, clearly a monster, began draining their stamina and magic power rapidly.

“Ugh.”

Joo-ah grimaced, trying to move her hands. But her stamina was depleting so quickly that she struggled to summon her usual strength.

Jae-rim swiftly cut through the vines binding him with his sharp blade. Turning to free Joo-ah, he was suddenly attacked by a massive shadow.

“Hunter Shin Jae-rim!”

Joo-ah shouted urgently as a B-rank monster appeared out of nowhere, mercilessly throwing Jae-rim into a far wall.

Boom!

The ground quaked with the impact.

The monster, covered in green foliage, took a step forward.

[Level: B-rank]
[Attribute: Wind]
[Special Skill: Thorny Vines]
[Note: A monster from the 300th floor gate of the Third Tower.]

Its thorny vines rapidly approached Jae-rim. He dodged, clutching his injured shoulder, and sliced through the vines with his sword.

Meanwhile, the vines binding Joo-ah tightened, making her wince. Sensing Jae-rim’s gaze, she raised her voice.

“Don’t worry about me, Hunter Shin Jae-rim.”

He stopped mid-step, and Joo-ah shifted her grip on her dagger, pointing the blade downward.

“I can handle myself.”

Clang—

She swiftly cut through the vines binding her. The severed pieces scattered into the air as she landed safely on the ground.

Jae-rim, slightly surprised, smiled faintly.

“It seems Hunter Yoo Chan-hee’s training was quite effective.”

Though it was purely her own skill, she let the comment slide with a shrug, unwilling to credit Chan-hee.

With Joo-ah free, Jae-rim focused entirely on defeating the monster. His heavy longsword created gusts of wind as he attacked its weak points. The massive creature collapsed, leaving behind only a cloud of dust.

Jae-rim retrieved a mana stone from its chest and called out.

“Hunter Seo Joo-ah.”

Approaching with a puzzled look, she saw him extend the mana stone toward her.

“It’s not very high-grade, but it will help increase your defense. You should use it.”

Joo-ah tilted her head.

“But you defeated the monster. Why give it to me?”

“In a team, whoever needs it most should have it.”

He pressed the stone into her hand. A blue system window appeared.

【Use the ‘B-rank Mana Stone’?】
【Yes/No】

After a brief glance at Jae-rim, she clicked Yes.

【You used the ‘B-rank Mana Stone.’】
【Defense increased by 4.】

“Are you two getting a little too close?”

A familiar voice interrupted.

Turning her head, Joo-ah saw Chan-hee casually approaching.

“Where did you come from?”

She asked, and Chan-hee gestured behind him with his taser gun.

“Did you make that mess?”

Jae-rim asked in disbelief.

Behind Chan-hee, the tree walls were completely destroyed, and several monsters lay dead nearby.

“More importantly, was there a treasure chest here?”

Chan-hee asked, glancing around.

Apparently, he hadn’t found the chest in his section of the maze either.

Joo-ah looked up at the timer.

Only 7 minutes remained.