If the empire learns of this fact and decides to participate in the labyrinth, a great disaster will occur.
Anyway.
'I need to prepare.'
Giving ten days for entry is a way of saying to finish all preparations before entering.
It also means to fill in the pieces of the Golden Rule needed for exploring the labyrinth.
'The pieces are sufficient.'
I have enough pieces to last nearly a thousand hours, so there's no need to worry about this part.
However, the one thing that concerns me is whether to form a party.
Isaac and Isabella.
Both of them possess pieces of the broken Golden Rule.
We obtained them together while overcoming trials.
Though they only amount to a few dozen hours, it's clear they will be helpful in the early stages.
I need to properly enhance their abilities during the remaining time and also improve my own proficiency to prepare.
'There’s no time to delay the rewards.'
The Abyssal Labyrinth, where I must pour all my resources.
I immediately took out the golden fruit from my pocket.
A gift from the Radiant Throne of the Glorious Hero as a reward.
It's a kind of elixir.
However, my body is resistant to most elixirs. Due to my many talents and traits, consuming elixirs doesn't improve me any further.
'But this fruit is different.'
However, this fruit is different.
It's so different that it's a major issue.
To be honest, it seemed dangerous, so I hesitated, but now there's no time to hesitate.
Without hesitation, I put the fruit in my mouth.
At that moment.
Gurgle! Gurgle!
My stomach churned wildly, and an intense pain swept through my body.
“...!”
I bit my lip and clamped my mouth shut.
If I opened my mouth, I would have vomited the fruit at that moment.
An unimaginable rejection reaction.
This kind of excruciating pain was something I had never experienced since becoming a player.
I clutched my throat with both hands. The fruit continued to stimulate my throat as if trying to come out.
I was already thrashing about.
My whole body turned red, and my mind grew distant.
‘Crazy...!’
Regret flooded in, but I couldn't give up once I started.
Just as my mind was about to drift away.
...
*
The Demon Realm.
The Demon King, seated on the throne at the end, looked down at his body.
'This body... is perfect.'
The Demon King was in the process of making Wilhelm's body completely his own.
The more control he gained, the more he marveled.
A body honed to the extreme.
Although the star that was granted with life was taken away, the experience of surpassing limits still remained in the body.
The Demon King had never seen such a perfectly formed body in all his long life.
Even though he can't grow any further due to the goddess's trickery, it's enough.
If he can make it completely his own, he will be several times stronger than before.
"The 'Abyssal Labyrinth' has opened, my king."
The seven rulers of the resurrected layers knelt before the Demon King.
Hearing their words, the Demon King stroked his chin with interest.
"Finally, the spirits of the abyss are beginning to emerge."
"Will you just watch?"
"Of course not."
The Demon King chuckled and clapped his hands.
Then, a woman appeared from the darkness.
The rulers of the layers were quite surprised to see the woman.
"Is she...?"
"Isn't she the wicked henchman of the goddess's cult?"
The Demon King nodded.
Then, he looked at the woman and spoke.
"You know what you must do, Saint Seira."
"Yes."
Saint Seira, who sacrificed herself to protect her comrades in the grand expedition.
She didn't die.
To be precise, she wasn't killed.
Instead, all her will was eradicated, and she was turned into a puppet.
The Demon King's smile deepened.
'Despair in everything you thought was hope, humans.'
Attitude towards a deity
How much did I struggle in pain?
After resisting the temptation to log out nearly a hundred times, the pain finally subsided.
I instinctively knew that logging out and fleeing would greatly affect the absorption rate.
"Are you feeling better?"
"... Hudson."
When I opened my eyes, I was in the bedroom.
Hudson was sitting beside me.
He let out a deep sigh of relief and then asked with a serious expression.
"Why didn't you log out?"
Hudson had already figured out that I was a player.
From the moment he brought me the top-tier elixir.
He, too, was a player, so he knew.
Moreover, he also knew my name, Randolph, so it would be strange if he didn't.
I shook my head and sat up, saying,
"How much time has passed?"
"Two days. You didn't log out once during that time. Did you take some kind of special elixir?"
"Yes."
The fruit of the World Tree.
To maximize its absorption rate, I didn't log out for two days.
I gritted my teeth and endured the continuous pain.
Hudson shook his head.
"Most players log out when they take such things. No player can endure pain for two days."
I didn't know that.
Elixir.
It refers to a medicine with miraculous effects.
Most of them come with pain when consumed, and most players can't bear the pain and log out.
But after enduring this time, I don't think logging out is always the best option.
"I stayed by your side in case something happened. Of course, Priest Andrew is always on standby outside... Don't do such a foolish thing again."
"I can't promise that."
"You're going to do it again?"
"The absorption rate drops if you log out after taking an elixir."
I was certain. The absorption rate drops if you log out. You must endure the pain completely to get the proper effect.
"It's only about a 1% difference."
"1% is significant."
"..."
Hudson looked at me as if wondering what kind of person could exist.
Would anyone really endure such pain for two days just for a 1% difference?
'Probably not.'
But that 1% accumulated to create Wilhelm.
I know this well, so I didn't give up.
After a moment of thought, Hudson seemed to make a decision and spoke firmly.
"Mr. Randolph, are you taking good care of your real body?"
"Enough to not die..."
"Is not logging out for two days considered enough?"
"Since becoming a player, my real body has become abnormally tough."
"It's a placebo. Players' real bodies are the same as ordinary people's."
Placebo effect.
Believing a fake to be real and making it have the same effect.
Players who have become strong warriors believe their real bodies are also strong.
But reality is different.
Hudson knows better than anyone the gap between this Pangea and the real world.
'But it's true.'
However, my real body has indeed become stronger, even if it's a placebo effect.
Muscles grow without exercise, and my strength is enough to lift a person. I can even go without water for two or three days.
Not to Randolph's level, but it far exceeds the standard of an ordinary human.
Is it different for other players?
"Do you know that the 'Abyssal Labyrinth' will open in seven days?"
"I know."
"The players are in an uproar. Not just the interdimensional community, but... According to my personal sources, it seems that not only players will participate."
"If not just players, who else will participate?"
"The goddess cult and the earth god cult have been talking about the Abyssal Labyrinth since the announcement."
"Hmm."
My mind became clear.
The goddess cult and the earth god cult. The two largest groups on the continent are making the same noise.
It will spread to everyone on the continent in no time.
Or perhaps they already know.
And if not just players, but many of Pangea's strong participate?
'It will be a hellish scene.'
It doesn't seem easy.
I didn't ask about the broken pieces of the Golden Rule required for entry.
The monsters in Kramdel also had broken pieces of the Golden Rule.
Moreover, unlike Pangea residents, players have limitations.
Hudson also pointed this out.
"It seems to be a long-term battle. Since logging out resets your position, you need someone to take care of your real body."
"That's true."
I don't know how long it will take to clear the labyrinth.
Moreover, if a fierce competition breaks out, the time will be even longer.
If you enter without thinking, you might regret it.
Most importantly, even if the 'broken pieces of the Golden Rule' last nearly a thousand hours, logging out to take care of your real body will reset your position in the labyrinth.
Even if my real body has become stronger, it's not superhuman enough to be left alone for dozens of days.
And the same goes for other players.
"If you don't have someone to take care of you, come to the UK."
"The UK?"
"Of course, I know Phantom doesn't accept help from anyone... But if you come to the UK, I can provide reliable and discreet assistance."
While saying this, Hudson shook his head inwardly.
He knows Randolph is Phantom, but that's all.
No one knows who Phantom is in the real world.
Thorough secrecy.
There's no way someone like him could break that mystery.
"I will."
"Really...? Ah?! Cough! Cough!"
Hudson started coughing and choking, clearly not believing his ears.
'Hudson is trustworthy.'
He was chosen by Serengeti.
In terms of judging people, Serengeti was better than me.
Moreover, I can see Hudson's 'status window.'
Being able to see someone else's status window is a first since becoming a player.
So I judged him to be trustworthy.
"Where in the UK should I go?"
"I'm going to... No, that won't do. What about your nationality and name? I'll take care of it as quickly as possible."
How much does a flight to the UK cost?
Hudson said he was born into a wealthy family, but even economy class can cost millions. I didn't want to burden him.
"I'll take care of it."
"No, no! It's my duty. Let me do it!"
"If you insist, then fine."
It would be rude to keep refusing when he insists so much.
After I told him my nationality and name, Hudson rushed out of the room.
"Please wait a moment!"
... It felt like a typhoon had passed.
Only after Hudson left the room could I calmly examine the 'changes.'