The 31st Piece Turns the Tables

Chapter 3

‘I can’t believe I can see the options…’

It was strange.

For some reason, Seol was able to see the options available to him.

It was almost like it was hinting him toward the correct solution.

Seol was someone who memorized even the useless parts of the rulebook as if he had an exam on it.

So he obviously had already memorized all of the options to clear the tutorial so that his pieces that started off weak could survive until later in the game.

But because what he memorized was the trial version and not the official version, there were chances it was different.

However, those doubts disappeared once he saw his options.

‘I don’t know why I can see this, but it’s a relief… I was worried about what I’d do if the options changed to something else..’

The options he saw in front of him were the exact same as they were in the trial version.

Creak.

Click.

After he pulled the right lever,

Creak.

Click.

He pulled on the left lever.

Rumble Rumble Rumble.

The Forgotten Moon Ruin, an Adventure notorious for having harsh traps, revealed itself.

- How did he know? He even disarmed the arrow trap first too;

- I thought he was a newbie! A newbie!

‘Can everyone see the options?’

Whether that was the case or not, it was clear that this was going to be a huge help to him.

Because when it came to picking the correct answer out of various options, Seol was the best at it.

[[You see the 1st Gate. What do you do?]

1. Step on the First Tile.

2. Step on the Second Tile.

3. Step on the Third Tile.

4. …

…

9. Step on the Ninth Tile.]

But it wasn’t like the hints were absolute. In situations like this, where there were many options to choose from, it was hard to be confident in his memories.

- I smell a noob… It smells like noob here…

- All of the other humans are getting fucked here LOL

‘For the 1st Gate… all you had to do was step on the tiles in the correct order, right?’

It was true. All you had to do was step on the tiles in the correct order.

But if you stepped on the wrong tile, a trap would activate.

It was very simple.

‘It’s set up so that you’d be forced to take damage to learn the order at the start.’

But losing HP in a game is much different from spilling blood in real life.

‘This is why it was disadvantageous for casters.’

When characters who didn’t invest in dexterity triggered traps, they would often have to pay the price with their bodies.

If an arrow flew at them, they’d have to tank it with their bodies. If poison spewed out at them, they’d have to just accept that they’d be poisoned.

‘I could die if I mess up.’

Obviously, that was the worst-case scenario.

But Seol had no plans of allowing anything that would ever lead to that.

Seol had played with various starting talents in the 17 years he played The World of Eternity.

And through that, he was able to find tons of special options.

‘I’m pretty sure… the hidden option here was that, right?’’

[…

9. Step on the Ninth Tile.

10. [Required: Archeology 1, Theology 1] Translate the Password Written on the Gate in Front of You and Proceed in That Order.

11. [Required: Disarm Trap 1] Proceed While Disarming the Traps Which Catch Your Eye.]

Options 10 and 11 were practically cheating.

But these options, obviously, required the necessary talents to choose them.

Because ‘Disarm Trap’ required actual talent, the only option left for Seol was Option 10.

‘The password written on the gate, huh…’

Shown in the list of options, there was something written before the 1st Tile. Seol couldn’t read it though.

[A passage you can’t read is written here.]

‘It’s probably because I don’t have Archeology and Theology.’

But just because he couldn’t read it didn’t mean that Seol didn’t know what was written there.

Seol, with a bit of time, was able to remember the phrase.

- The ferocious lion does not yield and the docile sheep chooses to be last. The benevolent moon embraces them while the jealous wolf chases the lion.

The sentence was practically nonsense.

And even though some parts of the sentence might’ve been wrong, Seol was sure that he got the core of it.

‘I finally remembered it.’

The first was the ferocious lion.

The second was the jealous wolf.

The third was the benevolent moon.

And the last was the docile sheep.

And it repeated after that.

‘As long as I keep that order, I won’t get hurt.’

Seol found the tile with a lion on it and started routing his path.

He routed the path he would take, all the way up to the end.

“Alright, it’s go time.”

He boldly stepped on the tile with a lion on it.

Click.

“......”

When nothing reacted to his first step, he realized that his memory was most likely correct.

He then started walking without fear.

Click.

Click.

Click.

[‘thisaintright’ has donated 100 Madness!]

[I thought I smelled a noob… I definitely… smelled like one… sniff sniff…]

- Woah… that’s insane!

- His footsteps are breathtaking…

- He basically cleared the 1st Gate for free… Let me see here… the guidebook says that you need Archeology and Theology to choose that option???

- So this guy chose Archeology and Theology as his talents? What a maniac lmfao

- This isn’t what I wanted at all… I wanted him to suffer more…

Seol had an incredible memory, exceptional enough that people in real life acknowledged him for it.

There was no way someone like that would forget an important part of an Adventure.

Click.

Seol took his foot off the last tile.

[You have cleared the 1st Gate of the Forgotten Moon Ruins.]

[You may select your rewards.]

[A ‘copper chest’ has been generated.]

[You have cleared the gate without taking damage.]

[Your reward has improved.]

[The ‘copper chest’ has improved to a ‘steel chest’.]

[If you choose to take your reward, you may choose to finish your Adventure here.]

“That was easy.”

- Easy, so easy hehe

- That’s because it’s the tutorial lol… but also 50 million people died from it…

- Seriously? Lol

Seol was now one step out of danger.

If he chose to take his rewards, he could proceed with the next Adventure. There also wasn’t any real reason to risk himself with the unnecessary danger from the traps.

‘But if I stop here, I’ll get less rewards…’

Snowman had never shrunk back from a grand adventure.

“I have to continue.”

- DADDYYYYYYY! That’s it!@!!!

- Let’s gooooooooo!!!

- I’ll go with you! (my cheers, not me)

- You got this! (cheering hard uwu)

Proceeding through the Forgotten Moon Ruins is like the dilemma of purchasing a new car.

The mindset of ‘I’ll buy one after I save up just a bit more’.

Because reaching all the way up to that point was a lot of work, people kept going because they thought it would be a waste of their effort.

A lot of players choose to keep proceeding through the ruins in Moonlit Dance.

‘But it does get dangerous at that critical point.’

The Forgotten Moon Ruins was trying to teach new players to know their place. It wanted to teach the players that if they kept diving deeper for better rewards, they could just as easily die in vain.

‘But it’s an Adventure that I am extremely familiar with. I won’t make any mistakes.’

Slide.

As Seol passed through the 1st Gate, he saw a ceiling.

He was worried that he would be going in blind because the moonlight wasn’t hitting the room anymore, but luckily, there were torches on each side of the hallway.

Flare.

Flare.

Seol could finally see what the contents of the 2nd Gate was.

‘So this is what it’s like to see what my pieces saw in person.’

There were scary-looking needles on each side of the walls and there were various, small holes in the ceiling.

There were three different colors of tiles this time, red, blue, and black.

‘I really don’t want to do this…’

There were no tricks to clearing the 2nd Gate. This Gate was practically the essence of the Forgotten Moon Ruins.

A trap.

‘Was it always this long?’

Seol couldn’t see the end of the hallway.

It was going to be physically and mentally difficult.

Most people would want to turn back after seeing something so disheartening.

But Seol, rather than being disheartened, only grew more resolved.

Seol could see his reflection on the shiny needles.

He looked miserable.

He was wearing old scraps and in his hands, a staff on the verge of breaking.

But there was something that made him even more miserable.

A black line engraved on his neck.

It was tight on his skin to the point people might mistake it for a choker.

He knew why he had that black line on his neck.

‘That noose made of lightning…’

The one that restrained him in his dreams.

It didn’t disappear, it left a trace on his body.

He looked like someone who miraculously survived the gallows.

That black trace on his neck reminded him of that pain and nightmare.

His situation could definitely be compared to someone who stood on the gallows too since he was in the same situation now.

Seol touched his neck, his eyes cooled. He resolved himself once more.

‘You’ll see me again… no matter what.’

Though he was resolving himself, to the onlookers, he looked like he was terrified of the traps.

- Wh-why don’t we call it a tie?

- This gate really is shit lol. You have to think hard…

Seol, after clearing up his thoughts, stepped on one of the tiles, the red one, without hesitation.

Click.

“......”

Nothing happened.

“ Fuu…”

Click.

He then stepped on the black tile.

Rumble—

And like that, the walls slightly narrowed in on him.

If he continued to step on the wrong tiles like this, the walls would close in on him and flatten him into a sheet of paper.

The 2nd Gate’s options generally worked like this. He could see the same options as well.

[[You see a tile.]

1. Step on the Red Tile.

2. Step on the Blue Tile.

3. Step on the Black Tile.

……]

There were additional options based on the talents you had but it wasn’t easy to abuse it like the 1st Gate.

‘It would’ve been easy if I had Mechanical Engineering or Disarm Trap, but…’

Seol remembered how to proceed through the 2nd Gate.

‘I have to remember the order of the colors.’

The 2nd Gate required you to pass through the hallway while stepping on the colors in the correct order. Every time the player messed up, a trap would activate.

‘So… The first one was red, and…’

Click.

When he stepped on the first red tile, there was no response.

‘...And then red again.’

Click.

That was the answer.

The 2nd tile was also red.

‘Then this time…’

His foot hovered over the blue tile.

But this time, he was wrong.

Boom!

Bam!

“Guaargh!”

A fist-sized sphere flew out from the left wall and hit his arm.

“Urgh…”

- Oh no, he got it wrong~

- This is it kekeke How dare you try to get a free pass!

- You gotta get hit if you don’t know!

- It’s not the blue tile~ You’re not allowed to do that~

It hurt like hell.

Thankfully, he was able to react in time and twist his body to reduce some of the damage. If he hadn’t, he would have broken a bone.

“Haha… how fun.”

- Shocking! I’ll clip 3:12 for later!

- Send me the link too kekeke

- It’s a disease really kekeke

- He’s laughing after getting hit by an iron ball!

Seol let out a groan but his gamer instincts didn’t forget what he had to do.

“Red… Red.. and then next is…”

Click.

Click.

After the two red tiles, Seol stepped on the black tile.

Fwoosh!

Baaam!

“Guaaargh! Fuck!”

Another ball shot out, this time hitting his right thigh.

“Three red tiles in a row… is way too mean.”

- LOOOOOL Will you be taking back your statement?

- Come on~ There’s no way he would rush bunkers 3 games in a row in the finals, right? Keke

T/N: Reference to a Starcraft game between BoxeR and YellOw where BoxeR, a Terran player, rushed bunkers 3 games in a row to win the series.

- Yeah, not gonna work~ Try again~

It hurt badly.

Seol thought that if he gets hit again, he might even faint from the impact.

“Let’s see who will win in the end.”

Click.

Click.

Click.

After taking three steps, Seol had to pick a new option again.

‘Don’t tell me…”

Seol stepped on the red tile again.

Click.

‘...You bastards are awful.’

- Sheeeesh lol

- You didn’t fall for it this time? loool

It was red four times in a row.

At this point, Seol thought he might have to only step on the red tiles all the way through.

‘No, my memories are correct.’

The tiles had to be stepped on in a certain order.

Seol hesitated between the blue and black tiles, ignoring the red tile.

“Blue!”

Click.

Rumble—

The walls closed in on him a bit more.

They had gotten close enough for him to start feeling claustrophobic.

- BZZZT wrong LMFAO

- What a shame! It wasn’t blue!

- This is where it really starts kekeke

Seol looked behind him.

He had long passed the starting point. He was probably standing around the midpoint.

He was standing there, not as a piece on the board, but as the piece himself. He was horrified.

‘You won’t even be able to walk back if you don’t know the right order.’

Because if the walls closed in on you while you headed backward, it would be the end.

People who were scared of the pain, scared of death, would most likely stand still here, unable to do anything.

- Ah… is this the end…

- You can’t go forwards or back, huh? You’re fucked~

But Seol smiled.

He was confident he could pass it.

‘The strategy’s complete.’

He walked forwards without hesitation,

Click.

* * *

Translator - goguma

Proofreader - Karane

* * *

After four red tiles, Seol stepped on the next tile without stopping.

He had stepped on the black tile.

Click.

- …Oh?

- What are you gonna do next though? Lol

Seol stepped on another tile.

Red, red, red again, and then red one more time.

Click.

And then black.

- This ain’t right……

- Hello? Huh? What?

- It’s repeating? What the fuck?

- Who the hell half-assed the trap like this?

‘The tiles repeat after 5 times.’

If the trap was red 5 consecutive times, the order wouldn’t have mattered at all. Because Seol knew that, he deduced that red couldn’t be the last option for the last tile and chose between blue and black.

This was only possible for people who were experienced with the puzzle.

And once a trap’s rule has been figured out, it’s useless.

Seol started to run.

Tmp. Tmp. Tmp. Tmp.

- Damn it! He figured it out!

- How did this bastard know! TT

- Why don’t you play here a bit more before you go?

And like that, Seol reached the end of the tunnel.

[You have passed the 2nd Gate of the Forgotten Moon Ruins.]

[You may select your rewards.]

[A ‘silver chest’ has been generated.]

[You have passed the gate without triggering more than 10 traps.]

[Your reward has improved.]

[The ‘silver chest’ has improved to a ‘gold chest’.]

[If you choose to take your reward, you may choose to finish your Adventure here.]

“Haah… Haah…”

Before he knew it, Seol had reached the final Gate.

His body which felt hot was still trembling from getting hit by that hard ball earlier.

‘I can’t stop here,’ thought Seol as he approached the gold chest.

And whenever this moment comes up in the future too, I’ll make the same choice again.

He passed by the gold chest.

- This psycho lol

- He’s going to go for more? I’m pretty sure he has bruises from the traps.

- This guy’s a complete lunatic lmfao

- Excuse me, are you a masochist?

- We have a… ‘fun’ newbie here.

Seol could tell at a glance that the stone door to the final Gate was sturdy.

Something was written on there…

‘Don’t be conceited, know your place, be humble.’

Seol stood in front of that stone door and looked at the options.

[1. Ignore the Warnings and Enter to Prove Your Worth.

2. Know Your Place and Go Back.]

There were no hidden devices or actions here. There were only those two options.

What choice would Snowman make?

‘I never picked Option 2.’

When Seol touched the door, the stone door started opening on its own.

Rumble.

Behind the door was a room with an open ceiling, the moonlight poured in.

Seol could already feel his stuffiness from being in a cramped hallway go away.

And…

“Insolent. How dare you enter this room.”

A knight stood in the middle of the room, wearing armor which absorbed the moonlight.

Seol gave a huge smile, even showing his teeth.

It was almost like he had seen an old friend.

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