This was the third time clearing the ghouls on the 64th floor.
And it was the fastest clear yet.
After Gobang swung the human holy sword Bardin a few times, it was already over.
It really seemed that compatibility mattered—
In front of radiance, the dark aura wasn't even as strong as sugar-water tanghulu.
[64th Floor mission successful.]
[Reward: Magic Stones 6.4 kg]
Spot!
Back to Juhyeok's penthouse.
Gobang still hadn't canceled gigantification.
Dangling from his hand, swaying limply, was the human holy sword Bardin.
"Devious heathens! Stop humiliating me and just kill me instead! Summoner, grant me the chance to be martyred with dignity!"
"Radiance."
"Light!!!"
Flaash!
Radiance lit up the entire living room.
Kosak spoke with a regretful expression.
"Oh dear, what a waste."
"Ah! You're right. I think we've gotten into a bad habit."
That precious radiance.
This wasn't even an undead fight—he shouldn't be triggering it everywhere.
"Just a moment."
Spot! He vanished—
Click-click-click-click!
Kosak turned off all the lights in the house.
Even so, the interior was still bright thanks to the radiance.
"We gotta save on electricity. Now it's okay to manifest radiance."
"…"
Electricity bills were what he cared about? Evil. Truly evil.
At this point, Bardin was starting to feel pitiful.
Maybe this outcome had been inevitable from the start.
He'd picked a fight without reading the room.
Fake madness, after all.
Kosak aside, Gobang was no less frightening.
Swinging Bardin around without blinking an eye.
"Should we send him back and just never summon him again?"
But Gobang coolly opposed the idea.
"The summoner may command, and the warrior will obey. But the warrior desires retribution. The princess almost came to harm. He must pay with his body."
Kosak agreed.
"This guy ain't just a simple fanatic. The attempt on the princess was a thoroughly calculated move."
Calculated…
"You mean he deliberately targeted Princess Gyeondallae?"
"That's right. The princess is a non-combat support—physically weak among summoned beings. If he'd gone after me or Gobang, I could've understood."
Selective rage management disorder, or something like that?
"And their attributes are similar. Holy knight or shrine maiden—both are essential in the undead section. If he removes the princess, he's the only one left. His value goes up."
Now it made sense.
"So if he makes the princess unsummonable for 100 days, the only one to rely on in the undead section is him?"
"Exactly. He secures the seat."
Then he'd preach, demand repentance, and torment everyone afterward.
"Mr. Bardin, was that really your intention? Answer honestly. It's an order."
"…Summoner, why would a witch be necessary when this holy knight stands here?"
Unbelievable.
A holy knight who believes in god—
"Lord Bong, not all religions place good and evil as their highest values. Usually, belief itself comes first."
True.
That was exactly what the background description said.
Lucius Bardin wasn't really a heretic inquisitor—he was just a murderer.
If the god Nigel truly valued good and evil, he would've stripped Bardin of his holy power long ago.
The Holy See of Nigel had also looked the other way at first, only removing him later when public sentiment became a burden.
God or holy knight—same old stew, different garnish.
"Huh? Summoner Bong, it's getting dark."
"Bardin, radiance."
"Light!!!"
Gobang raised Bardin high, like a torch.
"Ha! The mood's great."
First holy sword Bardin, now lighting fixture Bardin.
"You demon! How dare you treat Bardin, apostle of Lord Nigel, like this! You shall suffer divine—"
"Shh!"
An LED bulb is talking?
"From now on, don't say anything except 'Light!!!'"
"Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!"
"Not even mmph."
"…"
Nice.
Bardin, multipurpose edition.
Honestly, it'd be a waste to use him just once and seal him away.
Originally, they'd planned to stop climbing after the 64th floor—but how about going up to the 66th?
It might help Rajiks with searching for item fragments, too.
"Summoner, it's getting dark."
"Radiance."
"Light!!!"
As for the summoned beings' thoughts—
"Shall we climb floors 65 and 66?"
"That sounds agreeable. Now that we have a famed blade, it would be a waste not to use it."
"I agree. After using this weapon, the handling feels better than expected."
"Oh my, climbing decisions are always Summoner Bong's prerogative."
"Hoeng!"
"Sergeant Veronica Caliber, just give the order. Certain victory!"
"Alright, let's make full use of Holy Sword Bardin."
Then what about the original holy sword?
It could just be rented out.
Of course, it needed repairs.
For the customers' sake.
Well, since he wouldn't be using weapons anymore, he could put it away.
Juhyeok quietly murmured,
"Dismiss Lucius Bardin."
Spot!
He could just take him out again next time—if he was going to use him, better to conserve him.
With healing potions prepared.
"Let's head out. Shopping time—everyone ready to spend money?"
"Haa, shopping… this maiden is deeply nervous."
"Princess, take whatever you like. I'll pay for everything."
"The warrior requires only training clothes."
"Come on, get a suit too."
"Am I not allowed to buy combat gear?"
"Let's look for a military-style outfit—something you can wear over a reinforced suit."
And then—
"Mr. Rajiks is…"
"Hoeng?"
This was awkward.
What kind of clothes should he buy for him?
First, he needed some proper going-out clothes.
Something that could sufficiently cover a hamster beastman's body.
"Do you have anything like work clothes?"
"Hoe, I do."
Rajiks rummaged through his subspace backpack and pulled out some clothes.
They were overalls.
They looked just like a miner's work outfit.
"You had clothes? Then why haven't you been wearing them this whole time?"
"They're uncomfortable to move in. Hoee…"
"Ah!"
That made sense.
If they were uncomfortable, not wearing them was reasonable.
"Just wear them for today."
"Hoeng, okaay."
Juhyeok and the group walked down the street.
There were too many people to take a taxi.
He really needed to buy a car soon.
Since they were downtown, the department store wasn't far.
Thanks to the perception-interference talisman,
no one paid them any attention.
It would be a bit different when directly dealing with department store staff, but so what?
On the surface, they just looked like an ordinary Korean high-school girl, a foreign laborer, some tourists, and a morbidly obese child.
They finally arrived at their destination.
The alpha male's department-store blitz began.
They grabbed whatever caught their eye and swiped cards without hesitation.
This, that—buy everything.
Clothes, shoes, hats, all kinds of accessories—if the size fit and they liked it, they bought it, no questions asked.
Soon, they couldn't even carry all the paper shopping bags.
Whenever it got inconvenient, Juhyeok would duck into the restroom with Rajiks, the morbidly obese child, and—
"Put these in here."
"Hoeng!"
—stash everything into the subspace backpack.
Then it was back to shopping.
Before long, even shopping started to feel exhausting.
Now he'd dismiss the summoned beings, go home to rest a bit, then call them back.
They still had to go to the fourth round.
Juhyeok exited the department store with the summoned beings.
Then he spotted a smartphone store next door.
'An Apple Store… should I stop by there too?'
He'd heard the new Apple Pad had just come out.
There was a time when owning one had been a dream.
Back then, he couldn't even afford to dream—but now?
"Want to wait here for a moment? Or you can come in with me."
"I shall wait outside. I can see clearly through the glass."
"Go take care of your business."
Juhyeok went inside.
In the past, it had been hard for him to even speak to the staff, but now he could do so confidently.
Reliable summoned beings waiting outside for him.
And overwhelming wealth—enough to buy everything in the store at once.
What was there to be embarrassed about?
Just say "I'll take it," pay in full, swipe the card, and walk out with the goods.
"Um…"
"Yes, how can I help you, sir?"
"I want to buy the latest pad."
"Oh? Just tell me the model you'd like."
Just as expected.
The conversation flowed smoothly.
"Apple Pad Pro 13-inch, 2TB, black, Wi-Fi plus cellular. Six units, please."
"…S-six units?"
The employee flinched in surprise.
"I have people to give them to as gifts."
"And payment?"
"Card. One-time payment."
Juhyeok took out his card and handed it over.
"Ah, yes, I'll process the payment."
Ahhh!
He felt like a billionaire.
Beep-beep-beep-beep! The card went through without issue.
Of course—it was unlimited credit.
"May I ask your name…?"
Why ask his name? Did the payment fail?
It could have.
Six pads alone cost 18 million won.
"…Bong Juhyeok."
At that, the Apple Store employee clasped their hands to their mouth and shouted loudly.
"Everyone!!!"
Suddenly? What were they—
'…Ah! D-don't tell me?'
He'd heard about this before.
When you buy something at an Apple Store, the staff sometimes…
"May I have your attention, please."
Oh no. No, no, no.
"Customer Bong Juhyeok has just purchased six of the latest Apple Pads with a one-time payment. Let's give him a big round of applause!"
Clap clap clap clap! Whiiistle!
Applause and whistles erupted.
Juhyeok's face turned red like a carrot. He felt like losing his mind.
'…Oh god.'
He couldn't lift his head.
They could've at least asked first.
Outside the glass, the summoned beings watched the scene.
"Our summoner is being applauded by people."
"Hoee."
"As expected of Summoner Bong. People are finally recognizing his greatness."
"A needle in one's pocket will always reveal itself."
"I'm proud of you, Commander. Let's clap too."
"Clap hard!"
Applause was contagious by nature.
Passersby stopped and joined in.
Even people riding past on buses applauded.
That day, Juhyeok nearly fainted from unbearable embarrassment.
Jeong Dong-hun, CEO of Ilseong Apparel, had zero interest in whatever was happening in China.
Kidnapped players escaping? Rumors of a top Chinese leader's illness?
Who cared about that crap.
His own peaceful life was about to be threatened.
Jeong Dong-hun had been summoned by his uncle, Jeong Seong-tae, chairman of Ilseong Group.
After his parents died in an unexpected accident, Jeong Dong-hun was left alone. As was typical of chaebol families, there was no blood or tears where money was concerned.
His relatives had taken Ilseong Trading, which had been his father's share, leaving him only the clothing and fashion company Ilseong Apparel.
Trading, construction, heavy industry, electronics, semiconductors—those were Ilseong Group's core businesses.
Compared to them, the fashion division was the smallest affiliate in the group.
Still, that was fine.
With the Ilseong name, it was one of the top fashion companies in Korea.
Unlike his cousin brothers and sisters, he had little ambition or greed.
He just wanted to maintain the status quo.
Thankfully, his employees were capable, and sales were on the rise.
Jeong Dong-hun wanted to live comfortably.
Ilseong Apparel alone was more than enough—why want more?
And then, disaster struck.
Jeong Dong-hun met his uncle Jeong Seong-tae in the chairman's office.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Useless fool."
"During the meeting with the Administration, I happened to be in New York for a fashion show—"
"Silence! You think that's an excuse? You're always running off overseas at the drop of a hat."
The truth was, being abroad was simply more comfortable.
Everyone was a stranger there, so there was no need to read the room.
"Didn't you even know that HG Fashion built a leather-processing plant in Korea?"
"…I did know."
"And yet you still didn't catch on?"
It had been strange.
Leather processing was originally a heavily polluting industry.
Regulations were extremely strict.
Just building purification facilities for pollutants cost a fortune.
And you had to endure constant government oversight.
From an efficiency standpoint, it was far better to import processed leather from developing countries.
That was exactly how Ilseong Apparel had been operating.
"S-sorry."
"Good grief!"
To be fair, Chairman Jeong Seong-tae hadn't been much different.
When Goyeon Ha of HG Fashion announced a new brand launch showcase, he'd only sneered.
At best, they'd sell a few bags.
But then came "Wildflower & Basilisk."
When he realized what "Basilisk" actually meant, his head spun.
Commercializing basilisk leather?
Was that even possible?
Leather materials from the Tower were extremely rare.
Players barely had enough just to make their own armor.
Unless Tower leather rewards were pouring out in massive quantities, mass-producing consumer goods should have been impossible.
That was what he'd believed.
But HG Fashion had done it.
Even now, their bags were impossible to get.
The entire world was in an uproar.
Famous celebrities, renowned politicians, CEOs of global corporations—
Everyone was scrambling, desperate to get their hands on just one bag.
At the same time, the stature of the entire HG Group skyrocketed.
Even the sales of its other affiliates shot up across the board.
Only then did Chairman Jeong Seong-tae realize, far too late—
This wasn't just about selling bags.
"So what are you going to do about it?"
"…Our current management situation isn't in trouble, but I'll come up with a countermeasure."
"A countermeasure? Are you planning to go into the Tower yourself and skin a basilisk?"
"…"
Jeong Seong-tae clicked his tongue.
The more he looked, the more pathetic the man seemed.
An eyesore.
Just like his father.
"I-I'll go directly to the Administration and—"
"That's enough. Take this."
Thud!
Chairman Jeong Seong-tae tossed a folder onto the desk in front of Jeong Dong-hun.
"This is…?"
"I got this information from a reliable source. A player who's a prime candidate for being the basilisk leather supplier."
"What?"
Jeong Dong-hun hurriedly opened the folder.
Personal information appeared.
Bong Juhyeok… Elite Contract Player.
"Go talk to him and secure a leather supply contract."
"I'll try. I'll ask the Administration first—"
"You idiot! Do you think they'll give permission? Meet him in secret. This is your last chance. Fail, and I'll take everything you have."
Jeong Dong-hun's vision went dark.
Meet an elite player in secret?
That was extremely dangerous.
If you contacted an elite player without authorization, would the Administration stay quiet?
The Korean Awakening Management Administration had the power to erase a mere fashion company CEO with a single stroke.
Jeong Dong-hun wasn't stupid.
He understood exactly what his uncle was trying to do.
'He's trying to get rid of me.'
To take even Ilseong Apparel—the last thing he had left.
And honestly, he doubted the authenticity of this information as well.
Did it make any sense?
A twenty-five-year-old young man being the supplier of basilisk leather?
"Will you do it, or not?"
"…I'll do it."
In a way, this was fine.
Maybe it would be easier on his heart to throw everything away and live quietly in seclusion somewhere.