The Hartman father and son.
They looked alike, and their personalities were similar too.
First of all, both of them talked a lot.
Still, Ju-hyeok listened to their conversation from the side without interrupting.
It was heartwarming.
Beautiful.
So pleasing to watch.
"I killed that bastard, the assassin guild's guildmaster, nice and clean. I got my revenge."
"What about Emperor Kalius?"
"I did kill him once, but it wasn't enough. I'm gonna go back and kill him one more time."
"If possible, don't kill him all at once—kill him slowly while engraving the pain into him."
"Yes, sir."
The back-and-forth conversation itself wasn't exactly beautiful, but—
"Father, since your soul has been freed, how about applying to become a blood-summoned while we're at it?"
"A blood-summoned? You're telling me to work at the same place as my son?"
"Yes, sir!"
" …If I get summoned, I'll be under you?"
"Isn't that obvious? If you join later, you're a rookie. Even if we're father and son, rules are rules."
Look at that—Kosak, that shameless liar.
Every time he opens his mouth, it's nonsense.
So that would make the old Mad Demon his subordinate?
Anyway.
Lord Hartman as a blood-summoned…
'That's a bit awkward.'
How is Kosak supposed to give orders to his own father?
"Thanks for the offer, but I'll have to decline."
Thank goodness.
"Why is that?"
"I need to go look for your mother."
"Oh!"
"It seems there's an afterlife, so I'll have to search for her somehow."
"If you find her, please pass along my regards. Tell her I'm doing well. And that if things work out later, I might come visit."
"Understood. I'll tell her that."
Please—let it turn out that way.
"Oh, right! It'd be better not to mention that you killed me by splitting my upper and lower body in one stroke."
"Mother might kill Father."
…What?
Are you out of your mind, Kosak?
How can you say something like that in this situation?
"…Back then, how was my swordsmanship?"
"At the time, I knew it was coming but still couldn't dodge it. But now, I think I can manage. I'm a Swordmaster too. Kyahahahaha."
"Oh? Then let's have a go at it."
Kosak grinned.
"Are you confident?"
"Be careful. You might get cut in half again—this time between life and death."
Like father, like son.
They're exactly the same.
"I'll pay you back for it."
"Come at me. There's also something I want to show you."
"What're you gonna show me?"
"The sword technique passed down through our family for generations—the Hartman Sword Style."
Chsht!
Hartman drew his sword at lightning speed.
Clang!
Kosak deflected it with ease.
"Good. This is worth crossing blades over."
"Get careless and you'll regret it."
"Don't underestimate Rersal."
Chshshsht!
The sword style grew sharper.
Kosak was forced to retreat step by step.
"H—huh?"
"What? You said it was worth crossing blades."
"…Is that a sword meant to kill your son again?"
—Halt! Hartman's blade wavered.
Cheng! Kosak didn't miss the opening and went on the offensive.
"I'm joking. Don't mind it."
Wow. Look at how wicked he is.
Shaking him like that?
But that was Kosak's way of fighting.
Assassination, infiltration, frontal kills, disruption, intimidation, plunder—
a frenzied Swordmaster.
Perhaps because of that, Hartman let out a wry chuckle as he continued facing Kosak.
"Come at me."
"Yes, sir!"
Cheng! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Swords crossed back and forth.
Hartman's sword style looked fierce, but in truth, it wasn't.
It was teaching.
The same movements were repeated, and once they seemed familiar, a different sword form followed.
I think I understand.
A father's heart, trying to pass down his family swordsmanship to his son before leaving.
How could Kosak not understand that feeling?
He followed the sword forms with all his effort.
"Truly moving."
The Mad Demon stepped up beside Ju-hyeok and spoke.
"I agree."
"It looks like that assassin bastard is making a fuss just to ease his father's guilt."
That's right.
The horrific tragedy of a father killing his son.
'It's all in the past now.'
'I'm fine enough to joke about it.'
'So don't carry any guilt—let's laugh. It's okay to laugh.'
As if he wanted to convey that resolve.
So Ju-hyeok, the Mad Demon, and Marie quietly watched the sword-bound conversation between father and son.
But cruelly, the moment of parting was approaching.
Hartman's body was growing fainter by the second.
They must have realized it too.
Their blades clashed harder, more fiercely.
At last—
Hartman stepped back and sheathed his sword.
"Rihan!"
"Ah—Father!"
"I'll be going now. Take care!"
"Uh—uhh…"
Spat!
Hartman vanished without a trace.
"Father...…."
Kosak let his sword droop and swallowed his tears.
"W-why did you have to leave so suddenly! You should've at least seen Team Leader Bae in a bikini before you went! Dad!!!"
Kosak's desperate cry—
tears and snot everywhere.
"Sniff, sniff… They say Yangyang on the East Coast is such a hot place, and you didn't even get to visit…"
And while he was crying so pitifully—
"Mm."
As if nothing had happened, he abruptly stopped crying.
"Phew, being a filial son is hard. Summoner Bong, was it like that for you too?"
[Guaranteed rewards have been granted.]
[The liberation of Hartman's soul belonging to the Tower has been completed.]
[Earth Black Tower 77th Floor ultra–high-difficulty optional mission has been replaced with the elimination of the serial-murder Swordmaster Jordik.]
[The difficulty of Republic of Korea Black Tower (NO.2) 81st Floor has been changed to Normal Mode.]
I received everything—both the base rewards and the guaranteed rewards.
What's next?
'They're not giving the S+++ clear rewards and the Platinum Badge?'
[World Announcement: You have achieved an S+++ clear rating on Black Tower NO.2 (Korea) 81st Floor.]
[S+++ Clear Reward: 2 Platinum Badges have been granted.]
'So they are giving them.'
Satisfying.
An utterly perfect clear, with utterly clean rewards.
World announcements usually go off only for S+++ clears or when a major incident occurs in a Tower.
Today, it was this.
[World Announcement: You have achieved an S+++ clear rating on Black Tower NO.2 (Korea) 81st Floor.]
L What, the North Korean Tower again?
L No—what's wrong with our top player? Did he defect north or something?
L Seriously, why isn't he clearing Tower No.1? He's stuck on the 76th floor.
L Comrades, have some generosity! The South Korean Tower still has more than three years before collapse, doesn't it?
L Shut it—if he clears Tower No.2 again, I'm gonna sulk.
L You punk, don't pick sides over Towers that are all part of the Republic of Korea.
But the next day,
a rather strange world announcement rang out.
[World Announcement: From now on, the use of conventional firearms inside the Tower will be strictly restricted. Explosive reactions based on Earth science—such as gunpowder, nuclear fission, or nuclear fusion—will not occur.]
L What?
L I get restricting guns, but nuclear fission and fusion?
Did something like that even happen?
Anyway, if gunpowder reactions don't occur—
L Guess pistols are useless now.
L Well, you can just bring a crossbow instead.
L Damn it, do I have to learn how to use a crossbow now too?
L Crossbows are easy. You pull it back, aim, and pull the trigger.
L This is a good chance to pick up a Tower-reward crossbow. They've got more stopping power than pistols—and longer range too.
L What about bows?
L Those are kind of hard. You need a specific trait skill.
L But what's with banning nuclear fission? Did someone actually set off a nuke inside the Tower?
L Wasn't me, at least.
L Comrades, did you just say nuclear weapons? Aren't nukes our republic's specialty?
L Did North Korea set one off?
L Don't spout nonsense. How would you even carry a nuclear warhead into the Tower?
L Well, could their Supreme Leader make a nuke out of pinecones or something?
L Hehehe, South Korean comrades are really amusing.
Who could have imagined it?
That a nuclear explosion had happened inside the Tower.
But there was one person who had a hunch.
Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il.
He was the one who had helped create the gigantic shovel and the makeshift fallout shelter.
Because of the sudden world announcement mentioning nuclear fission and fusion,
the Korean Awakened Management Agency also received inquiry calls, asking if they knew anything about it.
He had a guess—but how could he explain it?
Better to say he didn't know.
Still, just to be sure, he called Player Bong Ju-hyeok.
"Did a nuclear weapon really go off?"
— Yes. Exactly two shots. Blew the super–giant monster Titan Behemoth to pieces.
Unbelievable.
An actual nuclear clear.
"Th-then is that why the Tower issued the world announcement?"
— Sigh, yes. It's such a waste I could cry. I went through all the trouble of making a giant shovel and a makeshift fallout shelter… If only I could've used them a few more times.
Then where did Player Bong get the nukes?
That was easy enough to guess.
North Korea, obviously.
If he asked, they'd have had to give them to him.
There'd have been no way to resist.
Suddenly, Chairman Kim In-jung seemed pitiful.
— Oh, right! Did you level up much?
"Yes. I'm level 23."
— Oh dear! You're still a newbie. If you'd ridden the bus, it would've been so easy. Honestly, I barely did anything and I'm already level 82.
"…Uh, is that so?"
What was that?
Was he making fun of him?
— Anyway, I'm on vacation right now… If you've got time, come visit. I'm at a beach on the East Coast.
So he was teasing him.
He knew perfectly well how busy Ju-hyeok was and still told him to come hang out.
After ending the call with Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il, Ju-hyeok lay back down on a sunbed and gazed at the deep blue sea.
On the sunbed beside him lounged the Mad Demon,
and behind them, a camper van was parked.
The camper van was for Marie's personal space.
And what was she doing?
"Master, here..."
"Oh! Thank you, Jepet."
Marie mixed a highball cocktail in perfect proportions.
She would quietly set it down through the narrow opening of the camper van door,
and Jepet would serve it.
"Mad Demon, yours is here too."
"Did you add an extra shot?"
"Yes, double shot."
What a wonderful vacation it was.
Lying on a sunbed on the sandy beach, sipping a cocktail mixed by a Rersal alchemist, spacing out while gazing at the sea.
In truth, the weather wasn't very good.
Perhaps because it was monsoon season, rain poured down steadily.
Still, even that had its own charm.
"No matter how I think about it, this old man seems to have been born with great fortune."
"Pardon?"
"Summoner—being summoned by you was a blessing."
Ah.
That's embarrassing.
"Before, I'd only experienced nuclear explosions outside the Tower. Who could've imagined seeing one inside the Tower? Those administrators must've been scared witless. Just thinking about it is exhilarating. Hahahaha."
I understood what he meant.
Interstate wars sparked by conflicts engineered by the Tower, or monster floods caused by Tower collapses.
And then, nuclear weapons detonated outside the Tower.
The destruction of the world would only have accelerated further.
It would have been tragic.
And they would have been helpless.
"Haah, what a shame. If only I could've set off just three more inside the Tower, I'd have no regrets."
Ju-hyeok felt much the same as the Mad Demon.
It had been an effortless clear, after all.
"So what, they get hit by one nuke and immediately change the rules? Tsk, tsk—petty bastards."
"Agreed. The administrators are even more small-minded than I am."
"Hm? Why would the summoner be small-minded? You're the manliest of men."
"Oh, you flatter me. Haha."
"Hohoho!"
Anyway, despite the rain, the blood-summoned were having a great time at the beach.
Rajiks, with his short limbs, swam in the shallow water.
Gobang, Kosak, and Bardin formed a trio and tossed anyone they caught straight into the sea.
Kosak had his wish fulfilled.
Veronica in a bikini.
Gyeondallae in a bikini.
Even Diamat in a bikini.
Aaaah!
I don't even know where to look.
So he put on sunglasses even though it was raining.
Well, the men were no less impressive either.
Were the blood-summoned ordinary people?
Gobang, Bardin, and Kosak.
Broad, squared shoulders, bulging chests, sharply defined abs, solid thighs and hips.
Bodies that made passersby turn around at least once.
Even Ju-hyeok, another man, thought they looked great.
Then Jepet, who had been grilling meat, asked Ju-hyeok,
"Um, isn't the youngest an incubus? But then why does he get to play while I'm the one who's…"
"Just grilling meat?"
"Uh, well, it's not that I'm complaining, but—"
"Just think of it as the punishment for not being able to wear a bikini."
Jepet accepted that surprisingly easily.
Even though he was a vampire, he was a blood-summoned with an innocent nature.
Anyway, maybe it was time to jump into the sea.
"Mad Demon, would you like to come too?"
"An old man butting in while the youngsters are playing is just asking to get cursed at."
Well then—
Let's go!
Into the sea!
"Summoner Bong is coming in to swim!!!"
"My lord! I shall escort you."
"Please come. We have been waiting."
"Team Leader Veronica Caliber, ready for combat swimming."
"Hooeeee!"
Blowing up something big really does lighten the heart.
I'd been worrying about a lot of things, but it felt like they were all blown away together with the nuke.
One way or another, the vacation came to an end.
I couldn't just laze around at the beach forever.
So then?
Time to get back to work.
Tower No.1—up to the 81st floor as well.
Thanks to liberating Mr. Hartman's soul,
it looks like an S+++ clear will be possible on Tower No.1's 77th floor.
They said the ultra–high-difficulty optional mission was changed to eliminating the serial-murder Swordmaster Jordik, so that should be something Kosak can handle easily.
Still, I don't feel like working right away.
The aftereffects of the vacation are still lingering—I'll ease back into daily life first.
Ju-hyeok came to the White Tower's 17th floor.
A menu immediately appeared.
[Basics] [Placement] [Grant Residency Rights] [Resident List]
I'd already tinkered with everything under Basics.
Next was Placement—the core menu for city construction on the White Tower's 17th floor.
Placement had two submenus.
Copy >
Copies up to 100 object items. Copy can also be used outside. No cost required.
Paste >
Places the copied objects. Costs superior mana stones proportional to height, volume, and value.
Earlier, I'd asked Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il to buy a few nicely designed small buildings or countryside houses in provincial areas where real estate was cheap.
Whenever I had free time, I'd gone and copied them bit by bit.
Now it was time to paste those copied buildings here.
It was exactly like a game.
The building appeared in a shrunken simulation view, and when a place on the ground lit up green—meaning it could be pasted—
I slowly moved it, fixed the position…
'Paste.'
[The cost to paste this building is 30 kg of superior mana stones. Proceed?]
"Proceed."
Thud!
A real countryside house appeared in an empty space.
"Wow!"
I went inside to take a look.
There was no furniture or household items at all.
A brand-new house, right after construction.
I could decorate it later.
'The first resident has to be Rajiks.'
That way, he could bring furniture and electronics here using his subspace backpack.
Anyway, having just one house sitting there alone felt lonely.
Paste, paste, paste, paste…
The cost in superior mana stones varied by size.
20 kg, 25 kg, 30 kg, 40 kg.
Before long, a small residential neighborhood took shape.
I even laid down asphalt roads.
1 kg per 10 meters.
Stretching them out smoothly—
ah, right. Each house needed a parking space too.
The White Tower's 17th floor.
It truly was a fascinating space.
At this point, wasn't it practically a self-sufficient world?
Of course, there were restrictions.
Residents.
The cost to grant residency was 1 kg of supreme mana stones.
Because of that, only a very limited number of people could enter this place.
Well, it's not like a lot of people would be moving in anyway.
If the Earth didn't end, this place would just be a simple vacation home.
And one more thing.
…
The elevator.
From now on, I'd need to secure 1,000 tons of superior mana stones.
When would I ever finish mining that much?
Would I even be able to install the elevator?