The basic outline of the plan was this:
Climb one floor per day.
However, clear each floor twice.
The first clear is done quickly for an S++ rank—no skinning.
Rajiks said he could skin one or two, but was there any need to push it?
Instead, on the second clear, they skin the monsters.
Slowly, escorting Rajiks so he can work comfortably.
After exiting, everyone goes out for a cheerful group dinner.
That ends the day's schedule.
They repeat this up to the 45th floor.
After that, they hunt there continuously for a while.
[Entering the 42nd Floor of the Black Tower (Republic of Korea).]
Long-Tailed Basilisk—once again, the mission was to kill fifteen.
Since the plan was to wipe them out quickly in one go, Juhyeok looked for an opening to join the fight himself.
The moment he casually took out the Golden Mace of Cold Twilight and the Golden Aegis of Warm Dawn, the blood-summoned let out collective sighs.
"Mm…"
"Aaah."
"Please."
"Hoe…."
Even Rajiks.
He understood their concern, but a true man inside the Tower never backs down.
He plastered on a shameless expression—
Swat! Swat-swat!
"Young Master! Please restrain yourself!"
"Hueeeng!!!"
The Long-Tailed Basilisk had a blade attached to the tip of its tail, making it dangerous to approach from behind.
However, Juhyeok's Shadow Walker—Shadow Steps—had already reached a high level of mastery.
Spot! Papapapapat!
Even the sound of his movement was different now.
Dozens of Juhyeok's shadows were left scattered across the battlefield—so many that it was impossible to tell which one was his real body.
Any tail attack that barely made it through was blocked by the shield.
Clang!
The shadows surrounded the Long-Tailed Basilisk.
Meanwhile, the real Juhyeok was already standing on top of the monster's head.
Might as well open with a finisher.
Once used, it could only be activated again after ten minutes—but judging by the flow, he'd only get one kill anyway.
'Falling Thunder Flash.'
Shwaaaak!
The mace came crashing down onto the basilisk's head.
Lightning surged from the skill.
Freezing power erupted from the weapon.
The basilisk's head burned and froze at the same time.
Tzzzt! Clang! Crunch!
Its body twitched a few times, then went completely limp.
That satisfying feeling in the hands—something he hadn't felt in a long time.
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ clear on the 42nd Floor of the Black Tower (Korea).]
[S++ Clear Reward: A Platinum Badge has been awarded.]
See?!
I knew it!
It ended instantly.
The moment I killed one, it was over.
I almost didn't even get a single kill.
Everyone exited together.
After resting briefly at home—
"Alright! Re-entry!"
The re-clear was for skinning only.
Until Rajiks's backpack was completely full.
Before, it had held six hides along with other materials, but if it was leather only, it should fit seven.
The repeat mission began.
They killed fourteen.
The backpack was stuffed to the brim with leather.
But they deliberately left the final one alive.
"Rajiks, are you ready?"
"Hoee…"
"Then… let's begin."
Gobang locked the Long-Tailed Basilisk's head in a headlock, completely restraining it.
Crunch!
Right after, Kosak's sword energy pierced through the monster's eyes, turning its brain to mush.
The basilisk went limp.
"It's dead!"
[Long-Tailed Basilisk defeated: 15/15]
[42nd Floor mission completed.]
[Reward: 4.2 kg of Mana Stones]
"Rajiks, now! Hurry!"
"Hoeeng!"
Gobang and Kosak quickly retreated.
Rrrrrroll—
A ball of fur rolled toward the fallen basilisk's corpse.
Slice, snip, shhk—
Rajiks's blade cut rapidly across the body.
He grabbed the jaw—
Shrrraa—
At that very moment!
[Exiting the Black Tower (Republic of Korea).]
Spot!
Juhyeok and his party returned to the officetel.
So close.
They failed to skin it in time.
If they'd been just two seconds faster, it would've worked.
"Hoeeeng…"
He's crying again. Crying again.
"It's practice. For a first run, you did great. You'll do better next time."
Juhyeok comforted him.
"Rajiks the farmhand was only a bit slow. Don't be sad."
"I'm sorry. I should've moved out of the way faster."
"Worker Rajiks does not cry. Did we lose our country? What can't be done must be made possible. Only give up when counting cabbages."
"…Hoeeng."
There was a reason they were practicing even before reaching the 45th floor.
The 45th-floor boss, the Rainbow Basilisk, only appears after killing all sixty basilisks of every type as the first mission.
Once the boss is killed, all missions on the 45th floor are completed.
And in that tiny sliver of time between the mission success message and the forced exit—
They must skin it and put the hide into the backpack.
If they're late, no hide.
That's why Rajiks was training like his life depended on it.
They must skin the Rainbow Basilisk.
Just looking at its luster, you could tell how expensive it would be.
Twice the value of standard basilisk leather?
No—probably three times or more.
Then the next day—
The 43rd Floor: Iron-Jaw Basilisk.
Same process.
The day after that—
The 44th Floor: Spiked-Scale Basilisk.
The spikes made it hard to skin and even harder to process.
They only did the initial S++ clear and skipped it.
And now—
The long-awaited 45th floor.
They'd finally arrived.
Two objectives had to be achieved at the same time.
The privilege, and the hide of the boss, the Rainbow Basilisk.
Getting the Platinum Badge wasn't an issue.
They just had to do what they always did.
But obtaining the Rainbow Basilisk's hide—
That depended entirely on Rajiks.
They would challenge it on the first clear.
And they would challenge it again on the second.
If they succeeded, they would obtain two hides today.
Rajiks had practiced a lot—he would do well.
[45th Floor Mission: Defeat 60 basilisks of any type and 1 Rainbow Basilisk.]
[Time Limit: Within 13 hours.]
[Completion Conditions: All types of basilisks 0/60, Rainbow Basilisk 0/1]
"Let's go!"
The raid began.
First, the sixty basilisks.
Gobang on aggro, Kosak on damage, Gyeon Dallae on buffs.
Juhyeok did not participate in combat and stayed right beside Rajiks.
Focus. Extreme focus.
The kill count rose rapidly.
They needed to save time for the boss, so the fodder had to be cleared as fast as possible.
Rajiks stared at the battlefield with sharp eyes.
He looked fully resolved.
In his backpack, he had left space specifically for the boss's full hide.
"Hoeng!"
He would skin it within the time limit.
Strip it clean and stuff it into the backpack.
"Hoeeng!"
At that moment—
From afar, tongue flicking, walking on four legs, came the multicolored Rainbow Basilisk.
Parrrr—
Rajiks's round body trembled slightly.
Then he slowly began rolling forward.
Roll, roll, roll.
He stopped occasionally to measure distance.
Meanwhile, Gobang and Kosak were locked in a fierce struggle.
Killing the boss itself wasn't difficult—but they were struggling desperately to avoid damaging the hide.
"Grab it! Damn it, I missed."
"The skin is too smooth—it slips away."
"Then grab the jaw! The jaw! Grab the lower and upper jaws, spread them, and stab the throat."
"Got it."
Even amid all that, Rajiks continued rolling steadily toward the battlefield.
Roll, roll.
Juhyeok followed behind him like an escort.
If he stayed too close, he'd interfere with the hunt.
He kept just enough distance to be able to spring forward instantly.
At last, Gobang caught the Rainbow Basilisk's jaws with both hands.
Gobang's forearms and biceps bulged massively.
"Gnnngh!"
Creeeak!
The monster's mouth was forced wide open.
Rajiks's movement suddenly accelerated.
Accelerating while approaching was far faster than starting from a standstill.
Kosak charged straight into the Rainbow Basilisk's open mouth.
Half his upper body plunged inside.
"Die!"
Tsspt!
Thud!
A dagger loaded with sword energy pierced through the roof of its mouth and straight into the brain.
"Killed it!!!"
[45th Floor mission completed.]
That was when—
Rajiks accelerated explosively.
He shot forward like a bullet.
"Hoeeeeeek!!!"
Shwaaaak!
Like a blue hedgehog straight out of a game or anime.
Thunk!
In an instant, he reached the Rainbow Basilisk's corpse.
Slice, slash, skrrrch!
He cut across the body, shoved his hands into the gaps between flesh and hide—
"Eek!"
Then rolled back while pulling with dazzling speed.
Riiiiip!
Perfect separation of inner flesh and outer hide.
Flap!
The Rainbow Basilisk's hide fluttered like a flag.
At the same time—
Whoosh.
The full hide was sucked into the backpack.
Success.
Rajiks planted both hands on his waist, wearing a proud expression.
"Huek!"
Rajiks—his form was insane.
Juhyeok threw an uppercut into the air and shouted,
"Rajiks is the best! You did great!"
Roll—roll—
Rajiks rushed over and jumped into Juhyeok's arms.
"Hoeeng!"
The other blood-summoned rushed over as well, cheering.
"Well done."
"That was amazing! Perfect."
"You did incredibly well. The farmhand among farmhands."
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ clear on the 45th Floor of the Black Tower (Korea).]
[S++ Clear Reward: A Platinum Badge has been awarded.]
[You may now challenge the 46th Floor.]
[Exiting the Black Tower (Republic of Korea).]
It was a huge success.
They skinned the Rainbow Basilisk on the very first clear.
All thanks to Rajiks.
"Oh, you're just too adorable. Let's work hard just one more time, Rajiks."
"Hoeeng…."
They entered the re-clear.
The second run was easy.
No—everything would be easy from now on.
Because it was repeat farming.
No more racing against time.
They finished the repeat clear and skinned another Rainbow hide.
What next?
Now it was time to check the privilege.
The moment Juhyeok checked the forty-five Platinum Badges in his inventory, a message appeared.
"…Should we do it tomorrow?"
"That would also be fine."
"Wouldn't tomorrow be too late? It's probably better to check right away."
"That would also be fine."
"No. Maybe we should perform a ritual first—"
"That would also be fine."
Zap!
Juhyeok shot Kosak a sharp glare.
Kosak flinched and quickly averted his eyes.
He knew how nerve-wracking this was, yet—
His reactions were terrible.
"Summoner Bong, even if it is not what you hoped for, what of it? It may instead become a blessing, allowing you to achieve great fortune at the 50th-floor privilege."
As expected of Gyeon Dallae.
She showed textbook-perfect reactions.
If something good came out, that was good.
If something bad came out, it meant better luck next time—also good.
"Summoner, I don't care what it is."
"Hoeeng!"
Let's check now.
Juhyeok opened his inventory.
The radiant glow of forty-five Platinum Badges filled his vision.
[Privilege granted for accumulating 45 Platinum Badges.]
What is it?
Don't tell me it's another random box or roulette.
Just give it outright.
Don't mess with my nerves—
[Privilege: One Multinational Tower Access Ticket (Single-Use) has been added to your inventory.]
…Huh.
"Did something good come out? Don't tell me it's trait enhancement?"
What the hell is this now?!
"Ah, damn it…"
[The Multinational Tower Access Ticket allows entry into any Tower regardless of nationality. However, entry into floors exceeding your own level is not permitted.]
I got a ticket this useless—what am I supposed to do with it?
I'd rather have gotten mana stones.
I wasn't even hoping for trait enhancement.
If only a rune for upgrading blood-summoned ranks had dropped, that would've been amazing.
"Ugh!"
Haah… I really wanted to see SR Rajiks.
Maybe I should've held a ritual before doing this.
"Next time, for the 50th-floor privilege, we must do a ritual first."
"Y-yes, I understand."
"I got bad luck this time, so next time it's guaranteed to be good, right?"
"I believe it will go exactly as you wish, Young Master. I shall prepare with utmost care."
Don't be disappointed.
When the clunker leaves, the Benz arrives.
There are plenty of chances ahead.
No reason to be down.
"Let's have a get-together! A feast!"
"Shall we go outside and buy food?"
"No, delivery. Grab beers from the fridge too."
Kosak scratched his head.
"Alcohol while on duty is—"
"Absolute obedience?"
"…I'll have one can."
"Let's have two."
"Yes'm!"
They ordered chicken, pizza, hot dogs, tteokbokki, hot dogs again, jokbal… organic carrots and paprika too.
They had a great time.
Though because of noise complaints, they couldn't exactly laugh out loud—
The next day.
Juhyeok waited alone in the officetel for someone to arrive.
His inventory was packed to the absolute limit with basilisk hides.
Thirty in total.
Twenty-eight regular basilisk hides, and two Rainbow Basilisk hides.
Ding-dong!
The doorbell rang.
Juhyeok opened the door.
"Congratulations on your S++ clear of the 45th floor, Player Bong."
"Welcome. Vice Commissioner Jeon—every time, you start by congratulating me."
"Hahaha, of course I do."
There was one more person with Jeon Gwang-il.
"It's been a while, Player Bong Juhyeok. Congratulations to you as well."
"…Ah, yes—welcome. Manager Lee Min-a."
Lee Min-a—an Administration employee and a player herself.
He'd called them over to hand off the accumulated leather stock.
Juhyeok took out the full hides one by one from his inventory.
Massive full hides slid out of thin air.
"…Wow! There's Long-Tailed too—and this one's Iron-Jaw."
"Yes."
As Juhyeok took them out, Lee Min-a stored them into her own inventory.
Manager Lee Min-a was a talented player who worked at the Administration while clearing up to the 59th floor and currently challenging the 60th.
When she'd first met Juhyeok, she was on the 55th floor—she'd cleared four more floors in the meantime.
That was why her inventory space was larger than Juhyeok's.
"Twenty-eight hides? That's an insane amount. How did you even—"
"No. There are two more."
Finally, a silvery hide emerged from the inventory.
"Ah!"
"My—my goodness!"
Exclamations burst out.
As the hide unfolded, dazzling seven-colored light spilled forth like a rainbow.
Manager Lee Min-a was left speechless.
Jeon Gwang-il was the same.
Is this really something I'm seeing with my own eyes?
"…A—a Rainbow Basilisk?"
"Yes. Please sell this one too."
Honestly, it was surreal.
Who would've thought they'd ever see a full hide of a 45th-floor boss Rainbow Basilisk in the real world?
Then again, by that logic, even regular basilisk full hides were unbelievable—
But Manager Lee Min-ah gazed at the rainbow hide with rapturous eyes.
It was stunningly beautiful.
Crocodile leather was practically trash in comparison.
If I just cut off a tiny piece and made a wallet… that would be incredible.
What if this were released onto the civilian market?
Say, turned into a leather coat?
It would be beautiful—but more importantly, functional.
It would be bulletproof armor in and of itself.
Even bullets wouldn't pierce it.
She couldn't even begin to imagine what price it would fetch.