Juhyeok visited his family home.
He'd called ahead to say he was coming today.
Ding-dong.
He opened the door and stepped inside.
"Hm."
His father, mother, and younger sibling were sitting quietly in the living room.
But it was cold.
A heavy, sunken air weighed down the entire house.
Trying to stay calm,
"…I'm home."
"Come here and sit down."
"Y-yes."
His mother's low, subdued voice.
He didn't know why, but… should he run?
Anyway, once he sat down—
Thud.
A bankbook was tossed onto the living room floor.
"So it's this."
At the very bottom, the amount was written.
A staggering ten billion won, deposited by Bong Juhyeok.
"What is this money?"
"Ah, th-that's just allowance. The gift tax has already been taken care of, so you don't have to worry—"
"We know you're an elite player and that you make good money. We've always been proud of you."
That's right.
I make good money.
Ten billion won is something I can earn just by mining ores for a few days.
"But you expect us to live in luxury on money you earned by risking your life? Are you trying to turn your parents into shameless people with no decency?"
"I-it's not like I risked my life or anything."
I don't even move.
I want to hunt monsters, but they won't let me.
There are people who take care of everything, and I even have a cute little worker.
"Use the money you earn for yourself. You've worked hard. We don't need it. Take it back. We already feel guilty just receiving this big house."
"I-it's not even that big."
The penthouse I live in is three times larger than this place.
Do you know how many rooms it has?
There was no helping it. Time to reveal the truth.
"Um, Mom… do you know what a holy sword is?"
"…What?"
His father and sibling reacted too.
"I know. They say above a building owner is a holy-sword owner."
"I heard it costs ten billion won just to rent one."
To be precise, ten million dollars.
Over thirteen billion won.
"I'm the owner of a holy sword. I picked it up in the Tower. Total lucky drop."
"…"
"…"
"…"
Everyone looked at him like he was spouting complete nonsense.
"Hyung, if you keep lying, it'll become a habit. Even if fraud doesn't apply between parents and children, morally—"
"Here, look!"
Juhyeok opened his banking app on his smartphone and showed them.
"See this? Holy sword rental fee: 26.8 billion won. The management agency deposited it."
Minhyuk's eyes went wide as he stared at the phone screen.
His father leaned his face in close too.
"Huh? It's real. W-wait, that circled number is—ugh?!"
"Let me see too. Where, where? One, two, three, four… gah! Y-you little punk! You were rich?!"
With a faint grin, Juhyeok said,
"So you finally noticed? I don't even have to climb the Tower. Just renting out the holy sword is enough to live very comfortably."
"Oh my, dear son, in this humble place—"
"I, Bong Minhyuk! Will pledge my loyalty to big brother!"
"…"
Even his mother looked utterly shocked.
She kept glancing back and forth between the account balance on the phone and Juhyeok's face for a long while.
"Good grief, you idiot! You worked so hard for that money—does it feel good giving it to others?"
"Yes, ma'am!"
So what if I'm a sucker?
That's just how losers are.
Still way better than being a psychopath.
What's the fun in earning money just to spend it alone?
If the family I love gets to use the money I worked hard for and live well, that's joy in itself.
Somewhere in Seoul.
Deputy Director Xiao Jun reviewed the operation plan.
At first, Xiao Jun had come to Korea almost as if he'd been driven out, with no idea what he was supposed to do.
Bring back Korea's S++-rank Tower conqueror?
How?
Even knowing who it was would make it difficult.
The Chinese government knew it was impossible too.
So why send him anyway?
They probably just want me to try something.
He had to show something.
Show his loyalty to China.
Arrogant Korea.
Strutting around, calling itself an advanced Tower-climbing nation—just thinking about it made his blood boil.
How dare such a small country.
China couldn't even clear the 59th floor and had practically begged Russia for help.
And the 60th floor didn't even look remotely conquerable.
Meanwhile, Korea was guaranteed to clear the 67th floor.
No—70 floors would probably be nothing to them.
The gap would only keep widening.
While China trembled in fear of Tower collapse, Korea would hold its head high, boasting as a Tower-climbing powerhouse.
Xiao Jun couldn't bear to watch that.
They needed punishment.
Like the player terror incident that had occurred in the United Arab Emirates.
Then an opportunity arose.
He received information that a fashion brand showcase would be held at the HG Hotel in a few days.
Rumor had it that elite players would be attending.
How could he stay still?
Kill them all.
Make Korea taste the despair of Tower collapse.
If China's Tower collapses, then Korea should suffer the same fate.
Wasn't he underestimating the National Intelligence Service and the Korean government?
So what—are they gods?
Even the CIA, the world's top intelligence agency, makes mistakes.
Just type keywords like "CIA humiliation," "CIA failure," or "CIA mistake" into an internet search engine, and countless stories pop up.
They get caught wiretapping, exposed while trying to assassinate enemy officials, and have even had their lists of intelligence agents leaked—leading to arrests or mass expulsions.
The Russian intelligence agency?
It's been a global joke for ages.
When things like this happen, some people usually say:
They're too sloppy.
How can a nation's top intelligence agency fail to prepare for something like this? Even a novel would flop with that kind of weak plausibility.
Nonsense.
What in this world is perfect?
Reality is a horrific mess.
Worse than movies or novels.
No matter how tight the security, holes always appear.
Because it's people doing the work.
Even now, they don't even know that they've entered Korea.
Special intelligence teams infiltrated Korea through Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
"This is war. There must be no hesitation."
"Yes!"
No matter how meticulous a plan is, most of the time it doesn't go exactly as intended. Variables arising from unexpected situations can never be fully predicted.
What matters is bold execution.
Doing without hesitation what others think, Surely they wouldn't go that far.
That is the key to success.
This time, it would be the same.
Juhyeok finally made his decision.
To climb the unchallenged upper floor—Floor 61.
After returning from his family home, he had continued searching for fragments through repeated Tower missions.
At the same time, he skinned basilisk hides, skinned wyvern hides, and mined ores.
He mainly ran floors in the 50s, and even dipped into the 40s for basilisk hides, but there were no real gains.
The items that dropped were basically trash—worse, there weren't even rune or ticket fragments.
"It's because the floors are too low. You gotta go Floor 61 or higher."
Kosak's opinion.
"And even if you did find items on the lower floors, they'd be useless anyway. No offense to the dead, but would gear carried by low-level players really be worth using?"
That was true.
Climbing unchallenged upper floors was essential.
However, he planned to stop at Floor 66.
He couldn't just recklessly clear floors.
What if some talented, insane player suddenly blasted through Floors 67, 68, 69… in just a few days?
The world would be doomed.
Nations have no way of knowing when, where, or which floor a player is challenging.
They can't block entry either.
And when the limit of Tower climbing is reached, the consequences fall squarely on the nation.
From Floor 67 onward, everything had to be aligned with the collapse deadline.
In step with the government's plan.
Juhyeok went down to the underground parking lot.
There was something he needed to pick up.
As always, the car had changed—this time, Team Leader Lee Mina was there.
"Just a moment ago, a Norwegian player cleared Floor 66 and left the country."
"Oh, really?"
"They asked me to pass along their thanks to the true owner on their behalf…"
"Ah, that's good to hear."
Thanks, my foot.
As long as the rental fee gets deposited regularly, that's enough.
"Here…"
Whoosh!
The holy sword emerged from Team Leader Lee Mina's inventory.
As he accepted it, he checked the item information.
"I'll return it… before the next reservation."
"Player Bong."
"Yes?"
"Please clear Floor 61 safely too, without a single hair harmed! Fighting!"
What the—
How embarrassing.
Lee Mina looked like she still had something to say.
"Oh! Are you coming to the showcase event tomorrow?"
"…I haven't decided yet."
"Yes~ Just call anytime. The security team will come pick you up. Other elite players do the same."
Since it was an event jointly hosted by HG Fashion and the Awakened Management Agency, other elite players would also attend.
Should he go, or not?
Honestly, he was curious.
What those kinds of events were like.
In his twenty-five years of life, he hadn't even been to a single concert.
People need to experience some social life now and then.
And it wasn't often you got to see famous people up close.
Juhyeok returned to the penthouse.
The summoned beings waiting for him.
"Tada!"
He pulled out the holy sword from his inventory and showed it off.
"Is that the holy sword? It looks even more worn than before. At this rate, all the engravings'll be erased."
Tsk.
Way to kill the mood the instant it came out.
"Why? You want to take a closer look?"
"Hoeng!"
When he gently placed the holy sword on the floor—
Snap!
Rajiks pulled out a large magnifying glass from the subspace bag.
It even has a magnifying glass in there?
Rajiks carefully examined the engravings carved into the holy sword.
"Hoeee…"
Then, shffk, he pulled something else out of the bag.
A book?
It was a thick tome almost half his own body size.
What a strange bag.
Cleaning tools, pickaxes, tongs, a magnifying glass, even books.
Flip, flip—frrap, frrap—
He rapidly turned the pages.
"Hoeng? Hoeee…?"
Rajiks fell into deep thought.
He muttered to himself, closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then rolled around here and there.
"Hoeng! I can fix this."
What?
"…You can fix it?"
"I need materials. If I find them, I can fix it. Hoeee."
"W-what materials?"
"Hoeng… I need to look for them."
"So if there are no materials, you can't fix it?"
"Hoe… yes."
"Can you obtain the materials in the Tower?"
"Yes."
Meaning nothing was certain.
It might be fixable—or it might not.
Still, having even a possibility was something.
If the holy sword's effects get better… I'll have to charge higher rental fees, right?
He'd have to search diligently.
Starting from Floor 61.
"Let's go in."
[Entering the Black Tower of the Republic of Korea, Floor 61.]
The beginning of the undead zone.
Juhyeok held the holy sword.
That was the safest option.
Come to think of it, even though I'm the owner of the holy sword, this is my first time using it inside the Tower.
Ooooooh…
A soft white radiance enveloped his entire body.
Confidence welled up inside him.
It felt as though the light itself was protecting him.
[Floor 61 Mission: Defeat 20 Dark Mummies.]
[Time Limit: Within 15 hours.]
[Completion Condition: Dark Mummies 0/20.]
[Failure Condition: Death or mission abandonment.]
The mission appeared.
Dark mummies.
The weakest of undead.
Accordingly, their dark aura was very faint.
"Grrr…"
"Kraaah!"
"Grrrrrr…"
They shambled forward slowly.
Corpses draped in rags so rotten they looked ready to slough off at any moment.
If not for the dark aura, their skeletal bodies looked like they'd crumble from a single punch.
But underestimating them would be a grave mistake.
Just touching the dark aura was enough to corrupt a player's mind.
In truth, there was something he was more curious about than the holy sword's effects.
How did the shaman Gyeondallae neutralize this dark aura?
"Dark aura, in essence, is the resentment, hatred, and malice humans held in life, condensed into a tangible form of energy."
Gyeondallae stepped forward lightly.
"If the holy sword suppresses and subdues dark aura through overwhelming holy power, then this girl's method follows a different path."
She took a portable speaker out from her robes.
"Young master, do you know which gut ritual this girl learned first from her master?"
How would he know?
And she clearly wasn't asking for an answer.
"It was the Ssitgimgut."
Ssitgimgut?
"A ritual for the dead—also called the Ogugut. It is a shamanic song, a muga, meant to soothe and comfort pitiful souls who, unable to release their grudges in this world, wander the nine heavens, and to pray for their rebirth in Paradise."
Gyeondallae lightly gathered her skirt with both hands and stepped forward in socked feet.
Then came the sound of a drum—
Doom, dudoom, dududoom, doom, dudoom, dududoom.
An extremely slow rhythm.
Moving to that beat, Gyeondallae drifted gracefully among the dark mummies in flowing dance steps.
Her bearing was noble, solemn, and so sacred it felt untouchable.
She gently shook her bells—jingle, jingle—and a mournful melody flowed from her lips.
"Impure and agonizing Saha World, life has ended and only the soul remains, yet there is nowhere to go. Release your bound resentment, cross the River of Three Crossings, and go to the flower garden of the Western Paradise. Come now, come along."
The dark mummies seemed affected by her song and dance, shrinking back as one.
Ah—
It was beautiful.
It was holy.
The cleansing ritual of the foremost shaman-maiden of the Heavenly Empire, gently consoling the dead.
Juhyeok was left speechless.
So were all the summoned beings.
The dance of the Ssitgimgut.
And the song that pierced straight into the heart.
The dark aura pouring from the mummies' bodies was visibly weakening.
In that instant—
Swoooosh!
Gobang, his body enlarged through gigantification,
stepped forward.
Thud!
He swung his fist.
Crunch!
The dark mummy shattered into dust.
Only then did Kosak and Veronica snap back to their senses and charge into the battlefield after Gobang.
Juhyeok moved as well.
This time, no one stopped him.
Crunch! Crash! Crunch!
There was no need for skills.
With every swing, a dark mummy crumbled and vanished.
At this point, did he even need the holy sword?
It didn't seem to matter whether it was repaired or not.
Still, since it wasn't a holy sword he'd be using himself—
Better to get it repaired, right?
Thus, the first clear ended.
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ clear rating on Black Tower (Korea) Floor 61.]
[Dark Mummies defeated 20/20]
[Floor 61 mission completed.]
[Level Up.]
[Reward: Magic Crystals 6.1 kg]
[S++ Clear Reward: Platinum Badge awarded.]
[You may challenge Floor 62.]
[Exiting the Black Tower of the Republic of Korea.]
It ended far faster than expected.
Then came the second run.
He left just one dark mummy alive.
From here on, it was Rajiks time.
Under Gobang's protection.
"Hoeng!"
Roll—crack crack crack!
"Hue?"
Roll—crack crack crack!
"Hoeee!"
Search results.
He completed one rune fragment.
And attached two ticket fragments.
The haul exceeded expectations.
As expected, the higher the floor, the better the gains.
"Hm."
He had a feeling he knew what one of the tickets was.
A multinational Tower access ticket.
Once completed, that would be valuable too.
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