Moon’s Labyrinths

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

<Welcome to Armstrong City>

He read the large neon sign with the name of the city on it . Sungyoon felt like he was standing in front of a cabaret club as he blankly stared at the neon sign .

Tap! Tap!

Someone tapped at his shoulder . He looked around to see Jimin giving him a strange look .

“Is something wrong?”

“No . It’s nothing . ”

Sungyoon pulled his eyes away from the neon sign and quickly rejoined the group .

They were in the tunnel between the docking station and the outer wall of the Armstrong city . When they exited the tunnel, it didn’t take them long to arrive at a location filled with buildings and people .

In an instant, he felt his weight increase . It was as if unseen hands were pulling him towards the ground . The moon had 1/6th the gravity of earth, and now he had escaped the gravity of the moon . He felt like he was back on earth .

“This city has similar gravity to earth . They placed a state of the art device and a massive moonstone underneath the city to achieve this . ”

At Sungyoon’s puzzled look, Jimin gave an explanation .

“It seems the moonstones can do everything . ”

Sungyoon stamped on the floor a couple times .

“That is why all countries are dying to have them . ”

Jimin replied .

When his body got used to the gravity, he looked up at the ceiling .

<Aldrin Spaceport>

He saw the large letters near the ceiling . It was probably the name of this spaceport .

“…Aldrin Spaceport . ”

Sungyoon spoke in a hushed voice .

“Buzz Aldrin . His full name is Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr . He was the second human to step on to the moon after Neil Armstrong . This space station is named after him . In some ways, he is an unlucky figure . He was on the same mission as Neil Armstrong . However, because he got off second, most of the masses don't remember him . ”

Jimin gave an explanation . Sungyoon had heard Neil Armstrong’s name until his ears fell off . However, this was his first time hearing Buzz Aldrin’s name .

“He was one of the first two humans to land on the moon, and he has a space station named after him . I guess they gave him his due in the end . ”

Jimin continued to walk as she talked . Sungyoon looked at his surroundings as he slowly followed Jimin .

The Aldrin spaceport looked as good as any other airport . One might assume that since it was a facility on the moon, the spaceport might be small . However, it was as big as any airport on earth . It also possessed facilities that could be found at a regular airport . Still, this spaceport blew Sungyoon’s mind . It ruthlessly blew apart any preconceived notion he had .

The ceiling rose up high, and light came down from the ceiling . The floor was so smooth that one could see one’s face reflected if one looked down . A crowd of people could be seen lining up at a counter . They had to go through the entry and departure procedures .

The best part about the spaceport was the walls that were made out of glass . It allowed one to see the space and the countless stars . The gray surface of the moon could also be seen . As a bonus, one could also see spacecrafts continuously land or depart from the spaceport .

Sungyoon let out a laugh inside when he saw a little cleaning robot move past him . This was an airport in space, yet it was well furnished like an airport on earth .

Jimin, who had been walking in front of him, started going through the entry procedure at the counter .

“Please pay attention . You’ll be doing this by yourself next time . ”

Sungyoon looked over her shoulder to see what she was doing . He made careful observations .

However, it looked like the usual procedure one went through when going through customs . In fact, it was simpler .

“It isn’t difficult . The act of going to the moon is like going to a foreign country . Moreover, all countries send people who had their identities verified . That is why the entry process isn’t complex and meticulous . ”

Jimin pulled out her ID which had been issued on earth . She gave it to the receptionist manning the counter .

“You just have to give them your Connector registration card . ”

Sungyoon took out his wallet from his pocket . He took out the registration card, which had been issued from the Office of Business and Administration for the Moon’s Labyrinth . The receptionist compared the picture with Sungyoon . It was as Jimin had said . They weren’t too meticulous in checking his identity . It seemed they weren’t going to go all out in stopping all illegal entries .

The receptionist returned the documents and IDs .

“There is another reason why it is difficult to enter Armstrong city . ”

Jimin neatly put away her documents, and then she took out an envelope . She gave it to the receptionist, and the receptionist started to take out and count its content . It was money .

“What is that for?”

Did they need a bribe in order to enter the city? Maybe, they were acting corrupt since they were far away from earth . However, he was mistaken . The money was for something unexpected .

“It is a visiting fee . ”

“Visiting fee?”

“Yes . It is exactly as it sounds . It is the price for staying in the city . Since I’m staying here for two days, I need to pay $2,000 in total . ”

For a moment, Sungyoon thought he had misheard .

“…did you say $2,000 for two days?”

Sungyoon looked at the money in the receptionist’s hands . He saw hundred dollar bills .

“Don’t worry about it . Only non-Connectors must pay the visiting fee . You don’t have to pay it . ”

“Still, it costs thousand dollars a day to stay here . Isn’t that excessive?”

If he assumed that one dollar equaled a thousand won, they were talking about a million won . A million won covered the visiting fee for only one day .

“Does this include lodging and food expenses?”

If those were included, the price made sense . However, Sungyoon’s naivete was broken in an instant .

“This isn’t some vacation package . We must pay separately for lodging and food . This is merely the price of staying in this city .

Sungyoon’s mouth fell open a little bit .

“It takes an astronomical amount of money to repair and maintain this city . Even the air has to be produced in an artificial manner . That is why there are fees involved in using the city’s resources . I don’t know what kind of preconceived notion you have about this city, but it’ll be quite different from what you expected . ”

Sungyoon thought about the day when Insoo had spoken about this city . This city was an unbelievably pricey city .

“This city puts taxes on the air you breathe . ”

It seemed the Lunar city Armstrong wasn’t a city full of hopes and dreams .

* * *

Sungyoon and Jimin exited the airport . Jimin looked a bit more comfortable now as she fixed her collar . It seemed the spacesuit had been quite uncomfortable .

At first sight, the Lunar city looked like any other city . The road looked well kept, and the buildings looked sturdy . There were even cars on the road .

As soon as Jimin exited the airport, she took a right turn . Sungyoon wordlessly followed behind her . They walked for 20 minutes when she opened her mouth .

“This place is Armstrong’s District 1 . This place holds the spaceports, the consulates of the various countries, and the research facilities . It is also where the Beginner’s Labyrinth is located at . Basically, it is the most important location within Armstrong . ”

Jimin stopped in front of a building . It was one of the larger buildings . It was three stories high and was surrounded by a low brick wall with a heavy iron gate . Sungyoon saw the Korean flag planted in front of the building .

“This place is the Korean consulate . If something happens, you should come here to ask for help . ”

She ended her explanation about the building and then walked past it . Sungyoon didn’t know anything about this city, so he looked like a little duckling following his mother . He had no choice but to follow after Jimin .

It happened when the two of them walked for 10 more minutes .

Sungyoon’s face hardened with tension . His gaze remained fixed in one location .

There was a large hole on the outer wall of the city . It looked like the maw of an ancient beast trying to eat its prey . The fear brought up a primitive response .

When Jimin noticed that Sungyoon had become tense, she walked up next to him .

“You can probably guess this, but that’s the Beginner’s Labyrinth . ”

He saw people entering and exiting the entrance to the labyrinth . However, their number was quite low .

“There’s not many people there . I guess it is to be expected . Most of the Connectors are probably already in the labyrinth at this time . ”

Sungyoon took a glance at her .

“What do you think? Do you want to go in right now?”

Sungyoon glared at the entrance to the labyrinth as if it had killed his parents .

“It is best to rip off the Band-Aid . I want to go in . ”

He pressed down on his nervousness as he walked towards the labyrinth .

* * *

Jimin handed something to Sungyoon before he entered the labyrinth .

“This is… . ”

“It is Mr Sungyoon’s weapon . ”

Sungyoon looked at what she had given him .

He held a bracelet in his left hand . It didn’t have any ornaments . It was a smooth bracelet with four fingernail sized slots . The grooves were wedge-shaped, cross-shaped, x-shaped, hexagonal-shaped . In her right hand, she held fingernail sized gems . Their shapes were an exact match to the slots .

“Devices and Gems . Do you know about them?”

Sungyoon nodded his head .

“I’m sorry . I’ve already spent a lot of my money, so I can only provide you with this level of equipment . ”

Jimin lowered her head as if this was inexcusable . However, Sungyoon was unperturbed .

“It’s ok . ”

She had opened future for him and his daughter . There was no way he would be disappointed in her for this .

‘So, this is a Device . ’

He stroked the smooth surface of the bracelet with his thumb as he had that thought .

The Gems had to be slotted into the Device, and it brought out the power of the Gems . Even if one possessed a good Gem, it would be useless without a Device . It would merely be pretty stones .

He took a closer look at the slots on the Device . The Device’s surface was a dull silver color, but there was a purple light being shone in the slots .

“All four slots are purple rank . Amongst the rainbow rank of Gems, you can only equip the lowest ranked purple gems . ”

As he heard Jimin’s words, he brought the wedge-shaped gem up to his eyes . The gem was also purple .

“As you know, you can only equip equal or lower rank Gems into a Device’s slot . Purple rank is the lowest rank, so you can only use purple Gems . ”

Sungyoon placed the wedge-shaped gem into the slot .

“Did you learn how to activate a Gem?”

“Yes . ”

He learned it in basic training not too long ago .

‘I wanted to experience activating a Gem before this moment . ’

However, it wasn’t possible . The amount of energy being generated by his heart was weak on earth . In order to activate a Gem, he had to be on the moon, or he needed another source that would provide enough energy .

Sungyoon put an image in his mind . He visualized his magical energy activating the Gem .

“When activating a Gem for the first time, it takes a while . You don’t have to rush this . You should take your time . ”

He took Jimin’s advice . He concentrated after closing his eyes .

It took around 20 seconds .

Ssssk!

There was a slight flash in his hand, and in an instant, he was holding a long spear .

His eyes shone . He heard about this, but this was the first time experiencing this phenomenon . It was amazing .

Tuhk!

He grabbed the spear with both hands . It was made from an unknown wood, but the shaft was long and slim . It also felt good in his hand .

He took a light swing .

Hoohng!

The sharp spear blade at the end of the spear came down . It was heavy at the end, and it allowed him to rotate his spear .

Sungyoon wanted to get used to the weapon, so he swung the spear a couple more times .

“…what’s wrong?”

Sungyoon looked at Jimin, while he placed the spear on his shoulder . She was looking at him with surprise in her eyes .

“It is nothing . This time don’t imagine yourself feeding your magical energy into the weapon . You should think about the weapon itself . The image of the magical energy flowing into the Gem is only used when activating the Gem for the first time . If you think about the ability of the Gem itself, you can activate it much faster . ”

Sungyoon did as he was instructed . He dismissed the spear then he visualized the spear in his mind .

Ssssk!

The spear appeared almost at the same time as he visualized the image .

“…is something wrong?”

She once again looked surprised as she looked at him . He queried Jimin .

“No . Nothing is wrong . I was just thinking that you activated the Gem quickly . It even takes an experienced Connector a long time to activate a Gem . ”

‘I think I heard about that before . ’

He was sure he had been instructed on that fact .

‘Whatever . ’

This was a good thing for him, so he didn’t think too deeply on it .