〈A Wimp's Tower Strategy Guide 123〉
Black Tower, 69th Floor.
A fierce shockwave shot straight ahead.
A wide path was blown open through the sea of undead that filled the battlefield.
Like the miracle of Moses.
Thanks to that, Juhyeok and the summoned beings leisurely walked forward along the freshly cleared highway.
"It's not something I can use often. There's a cooldown. But it can open a path to the boss."
A skill that lets you reach the boss quickly in boss battles where waves of minions spawn.
As expected of our party-leading tank.
But the truly amazing thing about Gobang wasn't the shockwave.
"I wanted to upgrade my gigantification skill, but I didn't. If my body gets bigger, I get sluggish. Instead…"
Wooooong!
Energy gathered around Gobang.
"Kuuooooh!!!"
A roar of provocation at the Lrssal rank.
In an instant, all aggro was pulled.
Every remaining undead swarmed toward Gobang.
Mummies, zombies, skeletons, ghouls, dullahans, specters, phantoms, death knights.
"Kyaaaak!"
"Kak!"
"Kiiiaaak!"
"Grrrr."
The most popular one here was Gobang.
As if making a love confession, all the undead clung like mad to the gigantified Gobang.
Tak, tap! Tadatadatak!
On his legs, his arms, his torso—some even climbed up his shoulders to his head.
His massive body grew even larger.
And yet, they still couldn't stop Gobang's advance.
Besangsa stared blankly at the scene, as if dumbfounded.
"It's like an armored personnel carrier charging in."
"With armor plating on top of that—he's basically a human tank."
Gobang was no longer bare-bodied.
Pitch-black armor had formed over his body.
The undead couldn't even leave a scratch on him.
Not even the blade of a death knight, thickly wreathed in dark aura.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
Gobang advanced toward the lich.
Undead desperately tried to block him.
But before a human tank, they were nothing more than plastic bottles lying on the road—instantly crushed flat.
"This is most comfortable. The monsters can't even approach us—no, they aren't even trying, sir."
That was true.
With so many undead around, their eyes were fixed solely on Gobang.
They paid no attention to anyone else.
Veronica fired her magic gun at the undead clinging to Gobang, but she didn't pull even a shred of aggro.
Shoot or don't shoot—I'm killing this guy.
Right now, to the undead, Gobang was practically the enemy who had slain their parents.
Meanwhile, Bardin wore a deeply dissatisfied expression.
Muttering to himself in a hurt tone,
"Why won't he pick me up?"
No—why would he?
"Is it because I'm only SSS-rank, so I'm beneath notice?"
The human holy sword, Bardin, seemed to think he'd been abandoned.
Just then!
"Bardin!"
At last, Gobang's call rang out.
Bardin's face instantly brightened.
"O light!!!"
Fwoooosh!
Bardin's entire body blazed with radiance.
Whooosh! He sprinted forward and, stretching his body out, dove toward Gobang.
Grab!
Gobang seized Bardin by both ankles.
At long last, Gobang picked up a weapon.
"…"
This is driving me insane.
"O light!!!"
Bardin was swung.
Papapapapapap…
The undead were shattered.
Crushed against bodies, smashed by a flail.
"Hooeeeh,"
Amidst all that, Rajiks rode his Blood Wolf around, busily searching for items.
Yeah, well, this is how tower goes.
It all felt very familiar.
But are Mr. Kosak and the Mad Demon doing okay?
Please don't cause a major accident.
If you must cause trouble, keep it minor.
A dark night.
Kim In-jung, Chairman of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, lay awake, unable to sleep.
His wife beside him was already fast asleep, but he kept tossing and turning.
Those were the good days.
The days when he just sucked honey without a care.
Twenty years ago.
When towers first appeared by nationality.
The Republic didn't have its own independent tower.
It shared the Black Tower with the Republic of Korea.
As a result, the status windows of Republic players were listed under the Republic of Korea, not the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
As a sovereign nation, it was humiliating.
The Republic being classified as South Korea?
There was nothing to be done.
That was how the system had decided.
No—even small countries with populations of five million had their own towers, so why not the Republic?
But as time passed, he realized something.
It wasn't all bad.
Without the burden of defending against tower collapse.
Without climbing to the upper floors.
By repeatedly farming the lower floors for rewards,
They could climb comfortably.
Then came the great upheaval.
The conquest of the true Kabalan.
High-grade mana stones—the rice grains of the Fourth Industrial Revolution—were monopolized exclusively by the Republic of Korea's tower.
Naturally, North Korean players benefited as well.
Foreign currency poured in like madness.
But that monopoly would soon end.
Once the Black Towers of other countries reached the 71st floor.
Only a few months remained.
So then?
Squeeze as much as possible while it's still possible.
That was why they created the short-term temporary naturalization program.
Conquer the Republic of Korea's Black Tower, where milk and honey flow, and receive the rewards.
Pay the money, and they'd change your status window nationality to Republic of Korea, no questions asked.
In reality, temporarily naturalized players received high-grade mana stone rewards from the Republic of Korea's Black Tower, which had the highest reward rates.
Applications for short-term temporary naturalization flooded in like a tidal wave.
It spread like a craze.
The temporarily naturalized players were extremely satisfied.
Without ever setting foot in North Korea, they could freely enter and exit the tower from their own countries and just siphon off items.
And then, the incident happened.
Player population overcrowding.
A newly established Black Tower of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
And on top of that, it was near Pyongyang.
In the blink of an eye, a national tower had come into existence.
It was nothing short of bewildering.
Who could have predicted this?
There had been absolutely no preparation.
The Republic had no capacity to climb the unchallenged upper floors.
They couldn't even control it properly.
Worse still, some insane bastards had pushed the tower's floor progression all the way into the undead zone.
They did catch the player who'd done it, but—
Something had to be done.
The most reliable solution would be to cultivate state-sponsored players and deploy them to defend against tower collapse.
But at the present moment, that was impossible.
There wasn't enough budget, they didn't even know how to begin,
And in the end, the only place to lean on was the South.
The know-how of the Awakened Management Administration that had turned South Korea into an advanced tower-conquering nation.
And the player-exclusive equipment being sold in player shops.
They didn't even dare hope for an S+++–rank record-holder.
If only they could bring in someone of Vice Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il's caliber to the Republic…
That would turn a crisis into an opportunity.
As these thoughts churned, his eyelids gradually grew heavy.
And just as he was about to fall asleep…
"I think this is the guy."
Huh?
"Mmm, yeah. Just looking at him, that's definitely him."
"Wow, finally found him. We went through so many rooms…"
"If you were just a bit smarter, you'd have found him ages ago."
"Sorry about that. What about the woman sleeping next to him?"
"She's been given a transfusion. She won't wake up until tomorrow morning."
What is this?
Intruders?
No way.
That couldn't be it!
He must be half-asleep, dreaming.
The bedroom where Kim In-jung slept was the most secret and secluded place even within the office-residence complex.
Guards stood watch in every corridor, at every door, every corner.
Who could possibly get in here?
So it had to be a dream.
Or a ghost.
Only a dream or a ghost could explain what was happening.
That was what he firmly believed—
Until someone slapped his cheek repeatedly with the palm of their hand.
"Chairman Kim In-jung, comrade! Wake up, hurry! A nuke's fallen on the Republic."
Slap, slap.
What the hell…?
"The nuke of nukes, don't you know the Mad Demon Nuke?"
"You insolent bastard—"
"…Sorry."
Kim In-jung slowly opened his eyes.
There were two people.
One was a young man, the other an old man with snow-white hair.
"Who are you—"
But Kim In-jung couldn't finish his sentence.
Because his eyes met the old man's.
A chill ran through him.
Just from eye contact alone.
Cold sweat poured down his back.
His heart pounded like it was about to explode.
"It'll hurt a bit. Still, consider yourself lucky. How many humans do you think have survived after facing me? You've caught a stroke of fortune."
What was he even saying?
In the next instant—
The old man jabbed fingers into various points on Kim In-jung's body.
'…Hhk!'
Not even a scream escaped.
He couldn't lift his upper body. His fingers, his toes—his entire body stiffened, frozen solid.
And shortly after.
Kim In-jung encountered pain unlike anything he'd experienced in his entire life.
'Gyaaaaaah!'
It felt like his flesh was being sliced apart.
Muscles tore.
Bones twisted out of alignment, joints snapped backward.
Yet he couldn't thrash or struggle.
His mind was clear, but his body was completely paralyzed.
"Uh, this is a bit much. Couldn't you just talk to him nicely? Is this really necessary?"
When the young man spoke in a worried tone, the old man snapped angrily,
"You little brat! Are you looking to die? How dare you interfere with my work?"
"No, I mean—couldn't you just immobilize him without all this?"
"Shut up! Unless you want to die."
"Yessir."
"Tsk, tsk. Why am I going through all this trouble? It'd be so much easier to just kill them all in one go."
Kim In-jung felt like he was going insane.
From childhood, he'd lived an excessively sheltered life.
If he so much as tripped while walking, the bodyguards assigned to protect him would be reprimanded and dismissed.
Raised like a flower in a greenhouse, he had no tolerance for pain.
It stayed that way even as he grew older.
The supreme dignity of the Republic.
A body that wasn't allowed to suffer even a scratch on the skin.
And yet—this kind of horrific pain?
He couldn't endure it.
Silent screams poured out of his entire being.
He wanted to die.
If he died, it would all be over.
"Aigoo, this is too pitiful. Please, just remove the pain. How are we supposed to talk like this? We need to negotiate."
The young man stamped his feet anxiously, but—
"Hmph! Negotiations go smoothly only when you're sitting on the other guy's head. What kind of talk can you have with someone who dares lift his head in defiance?"
The old man wouldn't listen at all.
"This feels less like a conversation and more like torture."
"So what if it's torture?"
Even through his delirium of pain, Kim In-jung clearly heard the word conversation.
Yes. Conversation.
Let's do that.
Right now.
I'll agree to anything.
"Looks like today's a bust for talking. We'll have to come back tomorrow."
"Suit yourself."
What? Tomorrow?
Why?
We can talk now.
"Let's go."
"Yes, sir! Good work."
"Yeah, you too… Hm? But why did you tie a ribbon in this guy's hair?"
"Eek? Sorry. Force of habit."
And then—spot!
The presence vanished.
They left?
They really left?
Leaving me like this?
Despair washed over Kim In-jung.
The unrelenting, horrifying pain.
This wasn't right.
He couldn't endure this until tomorrow.
He wanted to bite off his tongue and die right now.
But at that very moment—
Rustle.
A presence right beside him.
Who is it?
"Hey… even for an old man, that was a bit too much, don't you think?"
It was the young man.
"All you had to do was keep his body from moving. Why go as far as torture? The poor guy."
He was absolutely right.
Torture was shameless, an outrage against humanity.
If his body ever became free again, he would abolish torture in the Republic.
"Chairman Comrade! Don't worry. I'll make it so it doesn't hurt."
Oh!
"How did I do this again… Was it pressing here?"
Ghk!
N-no, not there—no, not there.
"Ah! Right, it was this spot."
Poke, poke.
"And press here too…"
Ahhh.
It was astonishing.
The agonizing pain that felt like it was gnawing away at his entire body vanished in an instant.
Still, he couldn't move.
Like a vegetable.
Even so, it was something.
At least the pain was gone.
The young man held his hand tightly and spoke in a pitiful voice.
"You must endure this, Chairman Comrade."
Such a grateful person.
"I'd like to tie a ribbon on you to cheer you up, but… next time. Anyway, we'll meet tomorrow."
Leaving behind a Chairman Kim In-jung full of gratitude in his eyes, Kosak stepped out of the room.
Bodyguards lay collapsed in the hallway.
Of course, they weren't dead either.
The Mad Demon had simply put them to sleep by controlling their blood.
By tomorrow, all of Pyongyang would probably be in an uproar.
Outside the residence, the Mad Demon was waiting for Kosak.
"Did you release the bone-locking technique?"
"Yes, sir."
"I don't see why we need to go through all this trouble."
"Don't worry. This method works very well. It's a rapport-building technique with an actual name—good cop, bad cop."
The Mad Demon tilted his head.
"Good cop, bad cop?"
"It means one good detective and one bad detective."
"…So you're the good cop, and I'm the bad cop?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Tsk."
The Mad Demon didn't like it at all.
If you just killed them on the spot, there'd be no future trouble and everything would be clean.
He couldn't understand why they were taking the long way around when an easy method existed.
Awakened Management Administration.
Park Gyeongsu stared blankly, mouth agape, as he listened to Jeon Gwang-il's story.
Only after it was all over did he say,
"So… reunification?"
"Yes."
"Th-that person called Kosak is negotiating with Chairman Kim In-jung?"
"Yes."
"First unify the towers, then full reunification in the long term?"
"Yes."
The answers were perfunctory, but could anything be more definitive?
Yes, yes, yes, yes—it will work. Absolutely.
"…I think so too."
Park Gyeongsu couldn't help but agree.
What's impossible about it?
These were people who could wipe out the North Korean communist leadership in a single night if they wanted.
And yet they were talking about dialogue.
They didn't even need to.
An extremely moderate and peaceful approach.
"Player Bong's influence, right?"
"Yes."
Of course, it wasn't going to be just talking.
"But what are we actually supposed to do about this?"
"About what?"
"How do we report this to the Blue House?"
"Hm."
"Want to do it yourself?"
"…Absolutely not. I have no idea what kind of excuse I'd even give."
That was right.
To make a report, they'd have to disclose Bong Player's abilities to some extent.
But could the state accept that?
A player who could freely use abilities in reality without even using the Rune Necklace of Liberation.
"…It's better not to."
"For now, observing seems like the best choice."
At least until the nationality of the North Korean tower changed.
The next day.
Juhyeok's penthouse.
Honestly, Juhyeok didn't want to know what was happening in North Korea.
From the perspective of a wimp, it was an issue on an entirely different scale.
Though it probably wasn't like that for the summoned beings.
They were people who played on a cosmic scale.
People who'd lived in other worlds besides Earth, experiencing every kind of hardship imaginable.
They must have had a clear reason for doing this.
So they must have done something—and he couldn't very well not ask.
"…Nothing happened, right?"
"Don't worry. We didn't kill a single person."
That was a relief, but—
"Uh, what about negotiations with the North Korean leader?"
"You mean the Chairman Comrade? He's probably in a coma right now. We'll talk starting tomorrow."
Huh?
They didn't kill him, but put him into a coma?
"We only did some pressure-point strikes. Even hit the paralysis points."
Ah! Pressure-point strikes.
Juhyeok knew what that was.
One of the martial techniques that paralyzes the body, turning someone into a vegetable.
"His mind is perfectly fine. It's just that unless this old man releases it, he can't move his body or even make a sound."
Well, he'd expected some show of force, but—
"Don't push it too far. Take it slow, minimize side effects."
"Oh, please don't worry. Who do you think I am? The good cop of rapport-building, the 'Our Kid Has Changed,' customized solution specialist—Doctor Kosak."
Right.
He should trust him.
Had anything Kosak ever done ended in failure?
He always brought back the best possible results.
This time would be the same.
Today, they planned to climb the upper floors again for the first time in a while.
With Gobang back, it was a celebration of sorts.
He was curious.
What kind of mission awaited them on the 74th floor?
It was a two-track strategy.
Tower climbing in the morning, North Korea dispatch work at night.
"Looks like the next few days will be hectic again."
What could he do?
It was a path he'd chosen himself—he had no choice but to bear it.
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