〈A Wimp's Guide to Clearing the Tower 111〉
Namyangju, the villa.
Juhyeok sat across from the Mad Monk at an outdoor table, just the two of them.
The first round had ended with everyone gathered together, cheering and celebrating.
This was the second round—and since only two people actually enjoyed drinking, it couldn't be helped.
The other summoned ones were scattered around, each resting in their own way.
Gyeon Dallae was reading under the warm sunlight, Rajiks was tending the vegetable garden, Senior Officer Bea was holed up sleeping, while Gobang and Bardin chatted quietly together.
Juhyeok uncorked a genuine bottle of Moutai he'd bought at a department store and poured it smoothly into the Mad Monk's cup.
"Hmm, a fine aroma. To think I'd get to taste liquor like this. Summoner, you should have a cup as well."
Pour, pour.
"Thank you."
Kosak was in charge of side dishes.
He lit charcoal nearby and laid meat on the grill.
Sizzle—!
After perfectly grilling a piece of premium Korean beef ribeye so the juices wouldn't escape, he placed it neatly on a plate.
"Please try it. This is grilled by me, Chef Ko—steak expert, master of fire control, Michelin three-star global chef."
What even is Chef Ko?
The Mad Monk chuckled and spoke up.
"You've got the order wrong. You should serve the summoner first, not me."
"Huh? This ribeye is Summoner Bong's."
"…Then mine?"
"I'm grilling it right now, ain't I?"
Kosak grilled a thick sirloin steak and placed it on a plate.
"Hm, this meat's different."
"It's good meat too. You looking down on Korean beef sirloin?"
Saying that, he stuffed a piece of sirloin into his own mouth.
"It melts."
He washed it down with a gulp of cola.
"Kyah! …Mad Monk sir, what are you doing? Hurry up and eat. If you don't, I'll eat it all."
"…Ahem! Alright, alright."
The Mad Monk cautiously moved his chopsticks toward the meat.
"That's not yours. I said the ribeye is Summoner Bong's."
"..."
Wow.
That audacity.
Kosak really had no fear.
He'd witnessed the Mad Monk's mass slaughter with his own eyes, yet he was still acting this shameless.
Then again—
It was all there in his background description.
Even when his rank was only SR, he'd tried to assassinate a Sword Master and died.
Would the target being the Mad Monk make any difference?
The Mad Monk seemed at a loss for words.
With a wry smile, chewing his sirloin, he spoke.
"Summoner."
"Yes?"
"You did very well today. I was worried you might rush forward, but you held your center firmly."
Holding center is easy.
You just don't step in.
"You did well too, Mad Monk—uh, well… haha."
"Hohoho, I understand how you feel. I'm fine."
He wanted to praise him, but the words just wouldn't come out.
It was the Tower, thankfully—but what if he'd unleashed that crescent qi boomerang wave on an anti-Korean protest in Japan?
Tokyo would have turned into a sea of blood.
Truly a dangerous summoned one.
At least he obeyed orders.
Still, he couldn't let his guard down.
What if one day he decided to invoke Clause Three of the Three Principles of Summoned Ones?
"That aside, when is the badge ceremony…?"
"Oh! I was about to start."
"Oh! I see… hmm, will this old man receive one as well?"
"Of course. For… mass slaughter—ah, no— for excellently completing an ultra–high-difficulty mission. Haha."
Honestly, he'd have to give one even if he'd done nothing.
He was scary, after all.
At the announcement of the badge ceremony, the summoned ones gathered in a rush.
Shall we begin the distribution of merits?
First, Gobang—who'd worked the hardest.
But he was excluded.
He was about to advance to LSSR with twenty-two badges anyway.
Next, Gyeon Dallae, Veronica, and Bardin.
They'd worked hard too, but their contributions fell just short of earning badges.
Judging by their expressions, they seemed to know it themselves.
First up: the Mad Monk.
"As the eldest among the summoned ones, and for your tremendous martial prowess in… uh… cleanly eliminating potential threats, you are hereby awarded a badge."
"Hrm!"
The Mad Monk clasped his hands in a martial salute.
"I thank the fellow warriors of the martial world for their fiery support."
Next—
"Mr. Kosak."
"Yes, sir!"
Kosak had to get one.
Even if there was no merit, one would be invented.
He was the most senior among the summoned ones—
Yet he still only had three badges.
Even the Mad Monk and Veronica had four.
That had always bothered Juhyeok.
"For your remarkable trap-disarming abilities in guiding the cosmic farmhand into the royal treasure vault, you are awarded a badge."
Kosak received one badge.
Honestly, Juhyeok wanted to give him two.
Without trap disarming and lockpicking, could the cosmic farmhand even have entered the vault?
But Kosak didn't seem to expect that.
With a grin, he thrust out his chest as the badge was pinned.
"Thank you. I'll work hard."
Next—Rajiks.
How many should he get?
Last time it was two, so two again.
"For once again sniffing out item scents with uncanny precision and stealing—no, relocating—a massive number of items from the royal treasure vault, you are awarded two badges."
"Hoh!"
Rajiks raised both hands and cheered.
This was exciting.
With two more badges, he'd complete five.
Ten in total.
Would another skill upgrade happen, just like last time?
Juhyeok carefully pinned them on.
Flaaash!
Five badges shone brilliantly—
Then vanished.
[The cumulative number of badges awarded to Summoned One Rajiks is 10.]
[Summoned One Rajiks has earned the summoner's trust and recognition.]
It appeared.
[One of the summoned one's skills will be upgraded to LSSR rank.]
[The summoned one may choose the skill to upgrade.]
A second skill upgrade.
Which one would he choose?
'He won't upgrade something like Cleaning, right…?'
Well, even cleaning would be fine.
If Rajiks wanted it, who could stop him?
Still, Juhyeok believed—
In the ambition gleaming in Rajiks's eyes.
"What did you choose?"
"Hoooehh…"
No explanation was necessary.
You could tell just by looking.
Flaaash!
The subspace backpack Rajiks was carrying began to change.
"…Subspace?"
"Hoh, yes."
That's right.
The cosmic farmhand's identity—his signature skill.
Subspace, upgraded to LSSR rank.
First of all, the backpack's outward size shrank dramatically.
If before it had been the size of a mountaineering pack, now it was about the size of a child's picnic bag.
Of course, appearances and actual performance were two very different things.
"How much bigger did it get?"
Once again, Rajiks answered with actions.
He toddled over to the camping van—
Then, with a light touch of his hand—
Sliiide,
The camping van vanished.
'My god…!'
And when he extended his hand again—
Sliiide,
It reappeared exactly where it had been.
That fits in there?
Before, he couldn't store bulky items like that.
So just how large was the capacity now?
"How many of those camping vans fit in the subspace? About ten?"
Rajiks shook his head.
"More?"
He raised his hand higher, signaling keep going.
"…Uh, a hundred?"
The hand went higher.
Still more?
"Five hundred?"
Still not it.
"Then… one thousand?"
Rajiks tilted his head, thought for a moment, then—
"Hoh. They all fit. Even more than that."
What?!
A thousand camping vans.
That was possible?
An LSSR-ranked, vast subspace.
Just how enormous was it?
'This is insane. Completely insane.'
The changes to the subspace weren't limited to capacity.
When Rajiks reached in, the items he wanted poured out, already sorted by type.
On the wide clearing: superior magic stones on one side, weapons on another, then armor, then elixirs and potions, gems, gold bars.
Neatly.
As if deliberately stacked—beautifully organized.
"Can you separate Tower-exclusive items from normal items too?"
Nod nod. He could.
Applause burst out naturally.
"Incredible, worker! This warrior is in awe."
"Ahhh, Lord Rajiks has transcended the cosmic farmhand. He is now the infinitely transcendent farmhand."
"Eh, that name doesn't roll off the tongue. Cosmic farmhand sticks better."
"With a quartermaster like you, what war couldn't be won?"
"As a knight serving the same lord, I am proud of you. O light!"
"This one will acknowledge it—just this once."
Grin.
Rajiks smiled.
"Hoh."
He wasn't satisfied.
His greed had no end.
The ambition to remain with the summoner forever.
This 73rd-floor S+++ clear was announced to the world as well.
Broadcast news and media articles poured in.
〈They've done it again. Korea's Black Tower achieves S+++ clear rank on the 73rd floor.〉
〈Collapse timer on Korea's Awakener Administration lobby display: 703 days.〉
〈Player shops begin selling Tower reward items.〉
〈Players flood in the moment shops open; supply is sufficient.〉
〈Korean players purchase items and begin climbing higher floors.〉
〈Superior magic stones being mined in rapid succession, now supplied to corporations.〉
〈South Korea to become a global leader in room-temperature superconductor utilization.〉
〈Foreign players flood Korea with permanent naturalization requests.〉
〈Interest in Korea surges especially among Japanese players.〉
〈UN advises Korean government to refrain from recruiting foreign players.〉
〈Korea's Awakener Administration: Naturalization is a personal freedom, but applications will be suspended for the time being.〉
On the Tower Climbing Gallery, frequented by Korean players, countless posts appeared.
Korea's Black Tower?
It's basically just a superior magic stone mining site now.
Must've gotten tons of rewards, huh?
Being limited to once a day is the real tragedy.
Items too?
Not sure, but I heard they give them out generously.
So what? Even if your odds go from 0.01% to 0.1%, would you even notice?
0.1% is insanely good though?
The odds definitely went up. Go to the player shop—my wallet got wiped out by the impulse-buying god.
Heh, you idiots climbing the Tower with items.
What are you talking about? Then what are you buying items for—making soup?
Reselling. You have no idea how many foreign players are coming into Korea. I charge double—no, triple—and they still buy.
You bastard, you're a reseller?
You piece of shit! Selling Korean item assets overseas?
So what?
If our top player knew, he'd be pounding his chest in anger.
Yeah. He didn't open the road to the 73rd floor for people like that.
Foreign money or Korean money—it's all money. If it sells well, I bet he'd be happy too.
In reality, a significant number of foreign players were indeed buying items sold in Korean player shops through brokers.
With good items, Tower-clearing difficulty dropped sharply.
Was money really the issue?
When you could mine superior magic stones.
Meanwhile, articles also appeared in the United States.
〈Player Gerald! Perfect clear of Eastern Tower 71st floor.〉
〈Due to the nature of the mission, bodycam footage will not be released.〉
〈The U.S. also begins rewarding superior magic stones.〉
〈New item appears: Tower-exclusive Holy Water of Divine Power—possible substitute for holy swords?〉
Bravo! America's now the second producer of superior magic stones.
Third. After China and Korea.
Oh! Right, China. They've been awfully quiet though.
Is superior magic stones really China's problem right now? Two top leaders died back-to-back.
True.
Anyone here tried the holy water? Or planning to?
— Me! I drank it and I'm planning to climb the 61st floor tomorrow.
— Oh! What floor did it drop from?
— 56th.
— So it doesn't only drop from 71+ floors.
— I'm gonna drink holy water and clear the Western Tower's 70th floor. That four-item gift set is mine.
— You think the government will just sit back and watch?
— What's the problem? They won't even know who got it.
— Hm. Guess I should try too.
— Buy items first. Even with holy water, it's better to enter fully equipped with Tower reward items.
— I might as well go to Korea and buy some while I'm at it.
The Black Tower.
Until now, it had been the greatest threat humanity ever faced.
But now, things were different.
The Tower could become a blessing to mankind.
And in reality, it already was.
A revolution across all industries was being foretold.
Having witnessed the success of Korea and the United States, countries around the world began pouring all their efforts into reaching the 71st floor.
First, just reach the 71st floor.
Then, if possible, push even higher.
Thus, the entire paradigm of Black Tower clearing was completely transformed.
The player shops were crowded with customers, but it was also true that resellers—scalpers—were becoming a serious problem.
Jeon Gwang-il and Park Gyeong-su were both getting headaches over it.
Was there any way to regulate reselling?
"It's impossible."
"Why?"
"We can't just stop selling items in the player shop, and there's no way to track whether someone resells them afterward."
"Hm."
Since Tower items went directly into player inventories, how could you catch them?
You absolutely couldn't.
"So the only options are raising prices or setting overall purchase limits."
"That's right. But neither is a great solution. Regular players could end up getting hurt."
Exactly.
The shop existed solely for players.
It hadn't even started as a profit-driven business.
It was created so players could safely carry out missions inside the Tower.
"However, we do plan to regulate habitual resellers. We've already compiled a list."
"Good. Revoke their player shop access."
At the same time, it was hard not to sympathize with foreign players.
How desperate must they be to come all the way to Korea just to buy items?
And those items weren't cheap.
At minimum, each item cost hundreds of millions.
Accessories started at five hundred million.
Still, this was actually cheap.
In foreign shops, prices were even higher.
Sometimes more than ten times as much.
"Oh right! The holy water—did it work in the undead zones?"
Jeon Gwang-il nodded with a grave expression.
"Elite players tested it, and it was effective. Not as strong as a holy sword, but the undead dark aura was significantly weakened compared to before…"
"And supply?"
"It's dropping in fairly large quantities in various places."
"I see."
It seemed like the holy sword rental business would have to be phased out soon.
It had been temporary from the start.
Once it was confirmed that holy swords weren't particularly useful past undead zones, their fate was sealed.
Still, as if trying to squeeze out a final burst of profit, the Awakener Administration was packed with foreign players lining up to rent holy swords.
Even though holy water was now appearing, nothing matched holy swords yet.
Speed was everything when climbing.
"The holy sword rental business is nearing its end."
"We've earned more than enough. Player Bong will be satisfied."
"Still, he'll be buying buildings. Plenty of them. Cash."
A 61-floor building in Gangnam worth 1.3 trillion won.
Soon, it would belong to Player Bong Juhyeok.
"I just hope the end of the rental business won't hurt Player Bong's revenue streams."
"It'll be fine. Items are selling well, and wyvern leather products will be launching soon."
Right—why worry?
Money didn't come only from holy swords.
"By the way, what are you planning to do about the Japanese players?"
"That's been giving me a headache."
Twenty Japanese players had submitted a group asylum request through the Korean embassy.
They wanted to naturalize as Koreans.
Japan's political situation was currently very unstable, and public safety had begun to suffer.
It was natural for players to feel threatened.
Unprotected players could easily become targets of crime.
Still, it wasn't something they could accept lightly.
Just then—
Ding!
A message notification rang on Jeon Gwang-il's smartphone.
He glanced at it.
"Hm?"
"What is it?"
"Ah, yes. Player Bong says he'll be coming to the Administration tomorrow."
"Really? For what?"
"That, I'm not sure."
Park Gyeong-su's eyes lit up with anticipation.
"He's not going to ask us to handle the sale of another massive batch of items, is he?"
Jeon Gwang-il chuckled, clearly thinking that was impossible.
"Come on. As if there's another treasure vault inside the Tower."
"Hahaha. Right?"
They say never say never…
But still—surely not.
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