This dream had been different from all the others. He was in the present, rather than in the other world, and in a certain building. Sung Joon walked as if he were possessed. At the end of the long, dark hallway, there was a cabinet containing an old map.
Then, Sung Joon awoke from his dream.
âMy lord? Did you dream again?â Rishubalt asked.
Sung Joon nodded his head.
âI did have a dream, but it was a bit different.â
Sung Joon looked at Rishubalt and explained his dream in detail. Rishubalt listened to Sung Joonâs explanation to the end, and then spoke with a calm expression.
âItâs possible that an item greatly stained with your desires is calling out to you. Itâs likely that it has some sort of connection with your past self. Do you know where it is, by any chance?
âIt seems to be in the auction house we went to recently.â
âIn that case, it seems that weâll be paying the auction house a visit soon. It should greatly help you recover your memories, my lord. You must procure it without fail.â
Rishubalt thought an item which was related to Sung Joonâs past self would definitely help him recover his memories.
âItâs imperative that you recover all your memories as soon as possible, my lord,â Rishubalt said.
Sung Joon had to procure the signaling item, if for no other reason than to become stronger, since it could help restore his memories regarding combat.
âLetâs go to the auction house right now.â
Sung Joon didnât hesitate. He immediately drove his car to the auction house. When he arrived, he asked the workers about the item, but he didnât get the answer that he wanted.
âIâm sorry, but we cannot tell you about an item slated to be auctioned off.â
All the other workers echoed the same sentiment. Ultimately, Sung Joon decided to visit the auction house daily.
The next day, he stopped by the Bureau and his payment was transferred into his account. Also, he began to visit the auction house daily. Besides, he had money and time to spare.
On the third day, he finally heard that there wasnât much time before the auction of a map-like item.
âWhere will the auction be held?â Sung Joon asked.
âAuction house number one,â the worker replied.
Sung Joon immediately walked over to auction house number one. Since he had visited the auction house for a few days in a row, he knew where everything was.
When Sung Joon arrived at auction house number one he quickly took a seat.
âThereâs obviously not a lot of people here,â he thought.
A worn-out map wasnât a popular item, and there were few people who showed up for it, so Sung Joon was relieved.
âIt seems like there wonât be any competitors,â Rishubalt said.
Sung Joon quietly nodded his head.
Eventually, the auction began. As he had expected, there werenât any competitors, so he successfully bid for the item at $200,000.
Sung Joon drove back to his studio apartment and arrived home. There, he brought his measuring tool to the item.
[Unknown Map]
B-rank.
Unknown.
It was the same as when they had checked it at the auction house. He wordlessly raised the map towards Rishubalt.
âIâll proceed with the appraisal,â Rishubalt reported, and injected mana into the map. The map absorbed his mana, becoming clearer.
âIâm finished.â
When he was finished, Sung Joon raised his measuring tool over the map once more.
[The Great Labyrinthâs Map]
B-rank.
Verifying the ability to sense a specific location effect.
The measuring tool responded, revealing the itemâs name and function.
âDid I have some sort of connection with the Great LabyrinthâŚ?â
âDo you not remember?â Rishubalt asked.
Sung Joon nodded his head. A couple of his memories were neither whole nor identical.
Sung Joon folded the map nicely and whilst placing it into the storage box, said, âIâll leave the explaining to you.â
Rishubalt smiled faintly.
âIâm happy to explain,â he said.
Rishubalt approached Sung Joonâs side.
âWhen the Empire was first established, The Archmage, Marquis Waltger, created the Great Labyrinth as a training area. Henceforth, the Knight Brigade would use it as an entrance exam or to train. Theyâre probably still using it right now.â
âI think I remember it now.â
Rishubaltâs explanation had jolted his memory. Sung Joon remembered that when he was still a young knight, he had been tested in the Great Labyrinth in order to join the Knight Brigade.
âI also took the entrance exam in the âGreat Labyrinthâ,â recollected Sung Joon, nodding his head while Rishubalt smiled from beside him.
âDo you remember? I was with you.â
âI remember. We were young and I had shorter hair back then.â
âDo you also remember that everyone tried to stop you from entering the Great Labyrinth?â Rishubalt asked, as Sung Joon recalled the nostalgic memories.
âWere we seventeen back then?â
âThatâs correct. Everyone said weâd fail.â
The two had been promising knights of the Empire, but they were still young. Thus, everyone thought that they wouldnât be able to pass the âGreat Labyrinthâsâ test.
However, the two had proved that those concerns were pointless, and became the youngest ever to join the Knight Brigade.
âIf it wasnât for you, my lord, I would have failed.â
The test was taken in groups of two. Rishubalt reminisced about the past and remembered Sung Joonâs support.
That was probably about the time it had started. He followed Sung Joon, or Roukel, and became his liegeâs shadow.
âIt also wouldâve been difficult for me if you hadnât been there,â Sung Joon said.
The memories of his past were scattered and faint, but he was certain of one thing: Rishubalt had always watched his back.
Even until his last breath.
âNow, shall we talk about the map?â
Sung Joon dismissed the melancholic mood with a clap of his hands and raised the map.
âI know itâs a map to the Great Labyrinth, but will I be able to use it?â
âThe Great Labyrinth is managed by the Knight Brigade, so itâs highly likely that an Awakening Dungeon portal will open.â
âWell, I guess that makes sense,â nodded Sung Joon in agreement with Rishubaltâs assessment.
The Awakening Dungeon would open at the places where he bore a grudge.
The Knight Brigade was part of the main force that had attacked Sung Joon on the Ridonia Great Plains, so there was a high likelihood that the Awakening Dungeon would open soon.
âThe Great Labyrinth is extremely complex. Even though my memory is intact, it will take a long time to find the right path. The map will definitely help you,â Rishubalt said.
Sung Joonâs memories regarding the Great Labyrinth were hazy, but he at least knew that it would definitely be hard to find the correct path. From now on, heâd need to carry the map around with him whenever he attacked a dungeon.
They had finished their conversation regarding the âGreat Labyrinthâ, so Sung Joon accessed Hunter.com and perused the top rated bulletin board messages. The top messages were all referencing the specialty training center called âIronâ.
ââIronâ, huh⌠I think Iâve seen this advertisement beforeâŚâ
He remembered browsing Hunter.com and seeing this advertisement not long ago. He suddenly felt curious, so he clicked on the message and read it.
[Have you gone to âIronâ? The facilities are well-equipped, as it was designed for Hunters.]
[Is it a training center for Hunters? It seemed nice. Recommended.]
[Iâm a Hunter so I hadnât been able to use a normal gym, but itâs great that theyâve made a specialty training center.]
[Itâs too expensive, so I donât reallyâŚ]
The comments looked suspicious, but the messages and the comments generally showed a favorable response to âIronâ.
âShould I try going there onceâŚ?â
Sung Joon was curious since they had advertised Iron as a specialty training center for Hunters. The comments confirmed that the membership was expensive, but he wasnât worried about that since he possessed a fortune of over $10 million.
âLetâs go, Rishubalt.â
Moreover, the studio apartment didnât have a training space like the mountain, so he hadnât been able to train. Sung Joon felt like he was in his element and so he drove his car to the training center, âIronâ.
He arrived around thirty minutes later. There was an enormous eight-floor building at the end of the parking lot. It seemed like the entire building was the training center.
âIs this a business started by one of the major companies?â he wondered as he walked towards the lobby.
It mustâve been a major company, because it wouldâve cost an inordinate amount of money to build a huge training center like this in the middle of Seoul.
âHello, is this your first time here?â
The information desk worker had seen Sung Joon looking around and immediately realized that he was a new customer.
Sung Joon nodded his head and she (the information desk worker) lead him to the office. Then they abruptly began to explain the membership, as well as other corresponding products, but it was too troublesome so Sung Joon didnât listen to the end, and paid for a three month membership.
A one month membership cost $10,000, but since they were in the middle of a promotion, a three month membership cost $27,000.
It was a sum that wouldâve made him tremble in the past, but it wouldnât anymore.
âWeâll guide you to the changing room.â
Sung Joon followed the worker down a long hallway. Eventually, they arrived at the changing room.
âYou can change your clothes in here. If you wear this bracelet, you may use all of the facilities inside the training center.â
The worker guided him amicably. When she had finished explaining, she passed him the bracelet that signified his membership with Iron.
âIâll guide you since this is your first time here. Could you please change your clothes and come out?â
Sung Joon changed and came out of the dressing room. The employee lead him to the training center. Maybe it was because the building was so huge, but the training center itself was vast, and there were several Hunters utilizing the training equipment.
âYou may think the fitness center is quite large, but all the exercise equipment here was specially made to be able to handle a Hunterâs strength,â the employee explained, sporting a boastful expression.
Based on her explanation, the first floor was the lobby, the second floor contained changing rooms and showers, and the third floor and upwards were designed to be training spaces.
She didnât have any particular explanation regarding the third or fourth floors, but the fifth floor was different. He noticed that the structure looked a lot different when he entered the fifth floor, and the employee seemed overwhelmingly confident.
âThis is the fifth floor. This is the hottest location in our training center.â
âCould you please explain why?â
âOf course. This place is the hottest location because you can use the simulated combat system on this floor.â
âThe simulated combat system?â Sung Joon asked, and she vigorously nodded her head.
âYes. Itâs powered by a magic stone and materializes a simulated enemy that allows you to train as if you were in a real battle. Itâs our most popular feature since itâs just as tense as a real battle!â
âIt must be expensive to maintain, since you use magic stones,â Sung Joon said.
After all, magic stones were an expensive power source.
âThatâs correct, customer. It is my understanding that not many in South Korea utilize magic stones.â
âI see.â
âThen, letâs continue the tour.â
Sung Joon nodded his head and they continued the tour. He was led to the seventh floor, which was being used as a training facility. He couldnât go into the eighth floor, since it was for faculty only.
He was most interested in the fifth floorâs simulated combat system.
Sung Joon parted ways with the employee on the seventh floor and went down to the fifth floor. There, he unexpectedly came across a familiar face.
âMs. Yoon Seol Ah?â
âMr. Kang Sung Joon?â
They had met so unexpectedly, the two called out to each other, and briefly froze.
Seol Ah was the first to get ahold of herself, and looked at her following retinue.
âPlease go up first and continue your work,â she said.
âUnderstood, Chief.â
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Her entourage of three went up first. Seol Ah turned her attention to Sung Joon.
âHow did you get hereâŚ?â Sung Joon asked.
Seol Ah smiled.
âYou didnât know? The Blue Dragon Group manages this training center.â