BCST 29

chapter 29

Painuf wiped the blood off his sword and sheathed it.

At the same time, a monster the size of a large dog collapsed to the ground.

Thud.

“Don’t these things at least leave a corpse now?”

This marked the twentieth beast-type monster he had slain.

It was all because of that damned artifact.

It had kept sending strange phantom monsters, and once it went into overdrive, it started sending even more powerful creatures.

“More importantly… how do I get out of here?”

Painuf scratched his head and looked around.

At first glance, it still looked like the underground of Neuroteca 58.

But if you wandered around and paid attention, it was clear that nothing was normal.

Objects were broken and scattered, as if a graphic glitch had occurred.

Even the room’s structure seemed misrendered—the walls half-transparent, overlapping, and long corridors stretching beyond windows that shouldn’t exist in the basement.

It was, in short, a space like a failed simulation.

[Kreuhng-!]

As he stepped into another corridor, yet another monster appeared out of thin air.

Chaaak!

From head to tail, it was cleanly bisected.

But Painuf didn’t care about such small fry.

What annoyed him now was the brazen wizard who had shown up at a critical moment and tried to steal the fruits of his effort.

“That dark wizard…”

At first, it had been an Arcane Blast.

He didn’t know what the second beam was, but since he had safely blocked it, the next encounter would surely be easier.

‘Next time I see you, it’ll be your funeral.’

However, Painuf noticed something unusual about the wizard.

His attire was unnaturally clean.

After first touching the artifact, BD, in the underground, he had been forcibly teleported outside Neuroteca.

When he returned, many things had changed.

Beast-type monsters now swarmed the archive, and some people, as if possessed, attacked him.

At first, he had killed a few innocent people before understanding the situation…

‘Can’t be helped.’

They had attacked him, so they deserved to die.

How many lives in this world fade away like that?

Surely they had thought the same while living in District 58—that such things could happen to anyone at any time.

But apart from that…

‘That wizard… he must have fought through all that, but there’s no trace on him.’

He looked as if he had never fought once.

But that couldn’t be.

The closer he got to the artifact, the more monsters attacked him.

So that wizard must have faced them too.

In other words, the dark wizard dealt with countless beast-type monsters without leaving a single mark on his attire.

Clearly, he was a formidable opponent.

Especially because of his controlled demeanor.

If they hadn’t met at the Loss Records Storage, Painuf might have even mistaken him for a regular visitor.

‘But that’s not the problem right now.’

There were multiple issues in this place.

The biggest problem was the sheer murderous aura this space radiated.

“It feels like I’m inside a monster’s stomach.”

Painuf rubbed his eyes, as if the density of this killing intent made the world appear red.

The malice here was unlike anything he had ever encountered.

Even being exposed to it drained his mental and physical strength in real-time.

Without the special method he learned at the Swordsmanship Academy to maintain a clear mind, he would have been in serious danger.

‘But even so… that dark wizard won’t last long here either.’

It was an environment like the legendary barrier outside.

Could a dark wizard, who relied solely on raw power without any training, endure this?

Painuf shook his head internally.

No.

That was impossible.

Even he, without his method, would have struggled to walk, let alone fight here.

How could an ordinary person survive?

They wouldn’t even be able to breathe properly.

So, when Painuf encountered the figure ahead in the next room, he couldn’t help but be silent.

“Helloooo…”

A woman’s slightly timid voice.

She was small, wearing a baggy hoodie that reached her thighs.

But she held a massive greatsword, almost as big as her body.

Given that he had assumed only he and the dark wizard were active here, encountering her meant… she couldn’t be an ordinary person.

Just possessing a greatsword like that confirmed she was another ability user.

Still, Painuf smirked.

“Hmph, a swordsman. Would’ve been easier if you were a mage.”

Swordsmanship was straightforward.

Though there were various schools and sword magics, skills were clearly ranked compared to facing other types of ability users.

Among sword users, as skill rises, even a paper-thin difference becomes nearly impossible to overcome.

Thus, low-ranking mages could occasionally defeat high-ranking swordsmen due to unpredictability.

In that sense, it was unfortunate for the woman to face him.

She could never have imagined seeing a fourth-tier swordsman here.

“Still, as a senior, I’ll give you a chance. Decide: will you lose your life by my hand, or cut off an arm and become incapacitated? If you choose the latter, I’ll spare your life.”

Judging by her presence, she seemed as unimpressive as the dark wizard had hidden himself earlier.

But Painuf had other reasons to believe she wasn’t a true expert.

Her stance was a mess, an anomaly in swordsmanship.

She couldn’t even maintain a proper footing.

To someone like him, it was as if she was silently screaming to correct her posture.

And she wielded a massive sword?

This was the age of cyberware, magic, and mechanical swords.

Anyone could wield a heavy sword with no restrictions.

But she showed no mastery of strength or balance.

Even if a baby were handed a greatsword with servo-motors, anti-gravity stabilizers, and auto counterweights, they could swing it properly.

Thus, in Painuf’s eyes, she was no better than a street thug with no real training.

“Alright, let’s count. One, two…”

As he counted, a faint but clear voice interrupted.

“I’m sorry… I’m not on your level.”

Shrek.

“…Three.”

Before he reached three, Painuf’s diagonally split face slid down.

The weapon hadn’t even been drawn.

Had the sword even swung?

Thud.

Painuf fell, his head severed, unable to comprehend what had killed him.

Blood pooled on the floor.

The hooded woman glanced at something and said,

“There are still more…”

She quietly walked on.

“I’m fed up.”

Before him stretched a basement corridor lined with doors.

U.M.O.’s dungeon style—trap anyone thrown in here with no hints.

Still, he approached the door that seemed most appealing.

Worried about something strange behind it?

Not really.

His [Sense] was active.

It would unconsciously guide him in the right direction.

No point overthinking, and nothing triggered [Mana Detection], so going with the strongest instinct was best.

Creak—

He opened the door to a jumbled server rack.

A ‘server room.’

Everything was off; nothing unusual.

Another door led to what seemed like a power room.

Again, nothing of note.

“Annoying.”

His only concern was the potential of the ‘artist behind the scenes.’

How extensive could this maze-like area be?

Without water or food, wandering long-term would be dangerous.

So, while he still had energy, he had to find the core—the ‘artist behind the scenes’—and finish this.

Creak—

“Ah…”

Finally, something notable.

Pools of blood and sword marks—traces left by Painuf.

They were on the same path.

Following these traces made chasing him easy.

Even if he had gone another route, he would eventually confront this enemy.

Guided by [Sense], he pursued Painuf.

Wait… could it be that the swordsman caused the collapse here?

According to his game knowledge, Neuroteca was a controlled area left in ruins.

So Painuf had caused this scale of destruction alone? Strange.

Sure, U.M.O.—the ‘artist behind the scenes’—was a factor.

But it didn’t match what had been shown so far.

Still, there was no choice now.

Keep moving.

He relied on [Sense] and [Mana Detection].

Hope [Sense] worked in random situations, and [Mana Detection] would confirm if Painuf was nearby.

“Found you again.”

Finding Painuf’s traces repeatedly helped him identify a pattern.

The path that had appeared after opening a door five times decreased to four, then three, then nearly two.

He caught up with Painuf’s trail at increasing speed.

Creak—

Another door revealed more blood and sword marks.

Swipe.

Touching it, the blood was fresh, not dried, without stickiness.

“Ten minutes… no, maybe less?”

Almost there.

Could encounter him after the next door.

He fought every time he moved.

The last room was checked ten minutes prior.

So the next encounter was very close.

Only two doors remained.

A 50% chance.

He channeled his mana and stood before one.

Then…

Opened the door as guided by his sense.

Click.

Creaaak—

“This is…”

A stairway descending into the basement opened ominously.

Hmm.

“Should I turn back?”

He might find Painuf in another room.

But he could have gone straight here.

It was the first staircase in this ‘backroom’-like place.

Perhaps this led to the core.

Most importantly, his instinct pointed here.

“….”

After a moment’s hesitation, he decided.

Down the stairs he went.

If not him, who would trust his sense?

He slowly stepped toward the descending staircase.