The Shut-in Vampire Does Business in the Labyrinth - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Progenitor’s Outpost

TL: DDTL

“…Outpost System?”

From what I’d seen online, most awakeners’ ability enhancements usually just added skills or passives.

I’d figured I’d get another skill or something too, but….

[Progenitor’s Outpost LV1]

-Can declare a space in reality and Labyrinth Layer 1 as an outpost.

-Special functions unlocked as the outpost’s level increases.

-The outpost’s level rises proportionally to the level of the thralls and Progenitor residing there.

“…What the hell does that even mean.”

It was the kind of ability where I wouldn’t know what was special about it until I actually tried it.

Should I give it a go?

“Declare outpost.”

[Scanning space.]

[10-pyeong studio apartment. Designate as real-world outpost?] [TL Note: 10 pyeong ≈ 33 m² / 355 sq ft]

“Yes.”

[Outpost designation in progress… Real-world outpost can be changed later.]

Flash.

The room was flooded with light for an instant.

[Outpost designation complete.]

[Real-world outpost: 10-pyeong studio apartment.]

[Please set your Labyrinth outpost.]

“…”

The real-world outpost had gone smoothly enough, but the Labyrinth outpost wasn’t going to be that easy.

What the system was telling me, in the end, was to get my ass into the Labyrinth.

“Hah. I really don’t want to go in there.”

But it wasn’t like I could just not do it.

An additional system unique to me, not even a skill.

This was definitely going to be an enormous advantage.

“Fine. Screw it, let’s do this!”

It was just Labyrinth Layer 1.

Go in, declare the outpost, find a nearby exit, and get out.

Exits existed on the outskirts of the Labyrinth too, and the Layer 1 outskirts only had regular goblins.

“Labyrinth ent… haaah.”

Now that I was actually about to go in, I was scared shitless.

That was when my eyes met the goblin sitting quietly in the corner of the room, watching me.

Our hero who’d brought back the ether.

“…Still, I should prepare thoroughly before I go, right?”

We’d probably get separated the moment I entered, but there was a chance we might run into each other and it could help.

“Come here.”

“Grrk!”

The goblin scurried over and stared up at me blankly.

“Class change.”

Ding.

[Please set your desired class.]

“Goblin warrior.”

[Please bestow your blood.]

“…?”

Bestow my blood? As in, give my blood to this goblin?

I picked up the Sharp Dagger, a memento left behind by Goblin No. 3 who had departed for the great goblin beyond.

Surely I didn’t have to personally bite it or something?

That I genuinely did not want to do.

I pricked the tip of my finger lightly with the dagger and blood trickled out.

As if it knew exactly what was coming, the goblin suddenly dropped to its knees and raised both hands together.

I let a single drop of blood fall onto them.

The blood seeped into the goblin’s skin as though being absorbed.

Flash!

Light burst from the goblin’s body.

Crack. Crack!

Its frame grew slightly larger, and muscles formed on its once-scrawny limbs.

A warrior goblin that looked distinctly stronger than a regular one.

“Grrrrk!”

The voice was incomparably more powerful than when it had been a plain goblin.

[Goblin Warrior LV 1]

-Strength: 5 > 7

-Agility: 5 > 7

-Intelligence: 4

-A warrior-class goblin with enhanced combat capabilities.

The level stayed at 1. Apparently goblins needed to kill monsters to level up too.

Still, its base stats in strength and agility had gone up.

Would’ve been nice if intelligence had risen too.

“…Come to think of it, you’re the first one, aren’t you? I can tell from the bite mark on your shoulder.”

“Grrk grrk!”

The goblin warrior grinned proudly and thrust its shoulder forward so I could see clearly.

Not a goblin’s tooth mark, but the mark I’d left when I bit it to survive.

My very first thrall, and on top of that, the hero who’d found the ether.

“Alright. From now on, you’re Gob.”

“Grrk!!”

Ding!

[Gob LV 1]

-Class: Goblin Warrior

-Strength: 7

-Agility: 7

-Intelligence: 4

-A goblin whose contributions have been recognized and who has been bestowed a name by the Progenitor. He will devote his loyalty to the Progenitor.

What had been “Goblin Warrior” as a name shifted to a class, and Gob now had a proper name.

The description had changed a bit too, but the stats were the same, so there didn’t seem to be much practical difference.

Still, it was the firstborn, so a name seemed fair enough.

The others, though, that’d be a problem.

Goblins were only going to keep multiplying from here. When would I ever have time to name them all?

I’d die of old age naming goblins.

“Here, give me that, and this is a gift.”

I took the dagger Gob had been holding and handed over the Sharp Dagger that No. 3 had brought back.

The very dagger that had pricked my finger.

It was meant as a keepsake, more or less, but.

“GRRRUUUK!!!”

Gob, who had been bouncing around after receiving the dagger,

Slurp, slurrrp!

“…”

started licking the blade furiously with its tongue.

Ugh, should I not have given it that?

Leaving Gob to keep licking the dagger, I activated Thrall Third-Person View.

Nine goblins still roaming around in the Labyrinth.

I’d secured a dagger for a weapon, so now what I needed was armor.

“Hey guys, look for some armor nearby.”

-Grrrrk!

-Grrk!

Just armor, and then I’d head into the Labyrinth.

***

Preparations didn’t take long.

Nine goblins ransacking the Labyrinth.

No bags, just two hands each, so they could bring back eighteen items, but that was plenty.

[Low-Grade Leather Top]

-Grade: Normal

-Defense: 5

-A shabby leather armor piece. Better than nothing.

[Crude Cloth Pants]

-Grade: Normal

-Defense: 3

-A crude cloth armor piece.

[Low-Grade Cotton Gloves]

-Grade: Normal

-Defense: 2

-At least they’ll keep your hands from getting scraped.

[Low-Grade Leather Shoes]

-Grade: Normal

-Defense: 4

-Tough, but there’s nothing to be done about the sweaty feet.

In the Labyrinth, the clothes worn in reality were no better than plastic wrap.

Even low-defense gear with actual stats was a far better choice.

I’d gotten as much armor as I was going to get.

“Grrrrk!”

“Grrk!”

“Grrk grrk!!”

Ten Vampiric Goblins, all promoted to warriors including Gob, were in my room.

“Listen up. Once we enter the Labyrinth, find me first. Got it?”

“Grrrrk!”

“Grrk!”

The goblins nodded as if they understood, and I took a deep breath.

Full set of armor, weapon and all.

It was just Layer 1 of the Labyrinth, and I did wonder if I was making way too big a deal out of this, but.

Of course I was being careful.

My life was on the line here.

If a wild goblin shanked me from behind, I’d be dead.

But with a full set of armor on, I should be able to handle one goblin without too much trouble.

Let’s go!

“Enter Labyrinth.”

Flash!

The world went white and the surroundings shifted.

No longer my cozy 10-pyeong studio, but somewhere in an apocalyptic ruined city.

Layer 1 was daylight around the clock, but I felt nothing from the sunlight, so apparently this light didn’t count as actual sunlight.

Did that mean it was artificial light?

The moment I entered the Labyrinth, I could feel the air change.

Dust filled the air, and the smell of mold and moss crept through my nose and down my throat.

This was the Labyrinth.

The unexplained space where some people died and others struck it rich.

That was when a system window appeared before my eyes.

[You have entered the Labyrinth for the first time!]

[Huh?? Only now?! Pathetic achievement!]

…What the hell is this thing?

[A reward is granted for you, coward!]

[Reward: Blood Scent (A)]

Okay, I take that back. Thank you, System-nim.

For an A-grade skill, I should be bowing in gratitude.

I checked the skill immediately.

[Blood Scent (A)]

-A vampire’s blood leaves a special trace.

-The Progenitor can sense the location of thralls.

-Thralls can find the Progenitor no matter where they are.

-Thralls can locate other thralls nearby.

“Nice.”

That was exactly the skill I needed right now.

I quickly used Thrall Third-Person View to check on the goblins.

-KYAAAHK!

-KIEEEK!

-Grrk!

All the goblins, Gob included, were sprinting furiously in my direction.

I could feel it too, the thralls racing toward me.

Of course, Layer 1 of the Labyrinth was the size of Seoul, so the ones that could actually reach me were probably just two, including Gob who’d landed nearby.

The rest had unfortunately dropped on practically the opposite side.

With the new skill confirmed, I gripped my dagger and surveyed the surroundings.

Where I’d landed felt like a residential neighborhood.

Low-rise buildings packed tightly together.

They called it an outpost, but where would be a good spot?

I walked slowly, scanning the area.

Farming would’ve been nice, but the reason I came into the Labyrinth was to set up the outpost.

Keeping my guard up in case a goblin popped out, I carefully explored the surroundings.

“Man, it really does look like a city.”

People thought of the Labyrinth as another world.

I’d figured it was more like a VR game, but seeing it in person, people were right.

The smell of the air, the texture of the ground underfoot, the dust rising from crumbling walls.

This was unmistakably real.

After wandering a bit, I found a wide open lot.

Not sure whether the lot or a building would be better, I went and stood between the open lot and the wall of a one-story house nearby.

Let’s try it here.

“Declare outpost.”

[Scanning space.]

[Coordinates 243.57. Designate as Labyrinth outpost?]

“Yes.”

[Outpost designation in progress…. Labyrinth outpost cannot be changed.]

Flash.

The real-world outpost could be changed, but the Labyrinth one couldn’t?

Rumble rumble rumble!

As if an earthquake had struck, the surrounding terrain shifted along with the light.

The open lot stayed as it was, but the building right next to it melted away as though dissolving.

And in its place appeared a circular stone wall enclosing the lot, a wooden crate in one corner.

And last, a single door sitting right in the center of the outpost, all by itself.

[Outpost designation complete.]

[Labyrinth Outpost Lv1]

[Outpost Facilities]

-Outpost entrance

-Simple storage Lv1

-Defensive wall Lv1

“This is what an outpost is?”

I could feel a space the size of a schoolyard coming under my control.

This was now my base of operations.

I checked the door in the center first.

There it stood in the middle of the outpost, a single door that looked like it needed to be locked down.

Was this the entrance?

I grabbed the handle and pulled. The door opened smoothly.

And beyond it was none other than.

“…What? That’s my apartment?”

My 10-pyeong studio.

The moment I stepped through, I naturally left the Labyrinth and was back home in reality.

Wait, was it really this easy to go in and out of the Labyrinth?

“This is insane.”

The reason the Labyrinth was such a pain was that every time you entered, you dropped into a random location.

Because of that, party farming with other people was virtually impossible.

The reason nearly every awakener played solo was precisely because of the random entry.

But if you had a direct passageway like mine…

“I don’t even need to scatter the goblins around!”

I’d made them enter with me for nothing.

I could’ve just set up the outpost myself, opened the door, and called them in.

I returned to the Labyrinth outpost through the newly appeared door in what had been a wall.

Next I checked the area called the simple storage.

Crates were lined up neatly.

I opened one and reached inside, feeling around, and the space felt much larger than it looked.

“Are you kidding me?! A pocket dimension?!”

It was a tiny pocket dimension, only about double the visible size, but even that was incredible.

And given that it said level 1, it seemed like the level could be raised.

So it could be expanded?

Either way, this meant I didn’t have to worry about piling farmed goods in my apartment.

With this, the outpost’s purpose was crystal clear.

Arm and manage the goblins here, then sweep through Layer 1 of the Labyrinth and hoard every item.

Now the only thing left was the defensive wall…

“Hm?”

I heard a noise from the outskirts of the outpost and headed that way.

Climbing up onto the stone wall and peering over the other side,

“KYAAAHK!”

a wild goblin was banging on the wall.

So this was the defensive wall.

If I’d had any Control Power left, I would’ve just hopped down and bitten it, but I could feel my No. 1 retainer sprinting toward me from nearby.

Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!

Thunk!

“KYAHK!”

“Nice one, Gob.”

Gob, arriving right on cue, drove its dagger into the goblin’s neck in a single strike.

Then, as if it had been starving, it pulled the fallen goblin into an embrace and chomp!

Slurp, slurp.

It sucked the blood like it was sipping a juice box.

“…”

Definitely a vampire alright. Though I didn’t feel any urge to do the same.

Was that because I was a Progenitor?

“When you’re done, dump the body nearby and come inside.”

Nod, nod.

Leaving Gob frantically nodding while gulping down blood, I went back inside.

This place was now completely my territory.

Only goblins were in the area, and judging by what I’d just seen, regular goblins couldn’t get over the defensive wall.

In other words, a safe zone had been created inside the Labyrinth.

“That’s a relief. I was wondering where I’d house the goblins if I kept making more.”

This way, it didn’t matter if the goblins grew to a hundred or a thousand.

The goblins would stay at the Labyrinth outpost, and I’d issue orders from the real-world outpost.

Having drunk its fill, Gob wiped its mouth and came inside.

But its expression looked somehow unsatisfied.

Gurrrrgle.

Gob’s stomach roared loudly.

“…Didn’t you literally just drink blood?”

“Grrk! Grrk grrk! Grrrrk!”

Frantic gestures, full-body charades.

“Blood is… something you drink?”

“Grrk grrk!”

“And food is separate…?”

“Grrrrk!!”

Gob nodded vigorously.

“So blood is water, and you need actual food on top of that?”

“Grrk!!”

“…”

These guys had upkeep costs?

I immediately opened the door and returned to reality.

A glance at the clock said it was 3:30 a.m.

Too late for deliveries.

“…Just hang on a little longer.”

“Grrk!”

Gob clutched its stomach and collapsed on the spot.

Wait.

They eat food? Then that means…

“Every time I get more thralls, the food bill goes up???”

Guess I need to start making money off the farmed loot first.