Chapter 257: The Witch of Lamentation on the 15th Floor (Part 1)

“There’s a hotshot ranker from India named Nirasha these days, a monster widely known since Namgoong Cheon.”

Nirasha…

The name I had anticipated popped up.

“Rumor has it that you had a showdown with her in the empire, right?”

“There’s a bit of history there. Anything else?”

“In addition, Dangun and Olympus have made their moves. Dangun has sent a rookie ranker named Park Jung-jin, and Olympus has Maria, a sorceress, leading their raid party. They’re all prominent rankers.”

Gandhara, Dangun, Olympus.

A coalition of three major guilds.

The information Yu Yeonhwa and Lee Taemin conveyed was quite thrilling.

It meant that those who would die of pride had their noses bent.

“Indeed, so they can’t do it alone and need to band together.”

Jinhyuk’s lips twisted slightly.

As always, the idea was ridiculously simple.

The site where the Witch of Lamentation resided wasn’t something that could be cleared by merely having a large number.

Still, finding this place meant they had recruited some experienced veterans who had been playing the Tower of Trials for a long time.

“Was there anything else unusual?”

“Ah, there’s one more thing. I found out through a contact that they’ve posted a subscribers-only notice that they’re going to tackle this place. But it seems they’re still just drinking water. The notice was posted five days ago.”

“You’re right, sis. The main forces are still waiting outside the ruins, and the healers seem overwhelmed treating the injured.”

Yu Yeonhwa and Lee Taemin added their comments.

‘A restless raid party and… continued failures. And the characteristics of the ruins with the Witch of Lamentation.’

Things are getting interesting.

Maybe a more efficient raid than originally planned might be possible.

“Listen carefully to what I’m going to say now.”

There will be a significant risk…

But it doesn’t matter.

I have reliable friends right here to sort it out.

Thump. Thump. Thump… Boom!

The rhythmic sound suddenly turned into a massive explosion.

The table shattered into dozens of pieces, scattering in all directions.

“Ha. Ha. Ha.”

A face flushed with anger and shame.

It was Nirasha, the leader of Gandhara and the ranker known as the Ceiling of India.

At the unexpected loud noise, a muscular man entered the tent.

“Master… Are you alright?”

“Leave me.”

“But…!”

“Don’t you see we’re in a meeting? Get out!”

“Ah, understood.”

Nirasha’s temper was more than just uncomfortable.

It couldn’t be helped.

Ever since the Tower of Trials appeared, Nirasha had never tasted despair or frustration.

No, thanks to still prevalent systems like the caste and conglomerates, Nirasha had been guaranteed a successful life from the moment of her birth.

But.

What kind of joke was this?

It had been five days since she arrived here, and they hadn’t even made it inside the entrance, continuously tasting defeat.

For the combined raid party that had set out so confidently, this was more than just a dent to their pride.

“I understand you’re angry, but this won’t change anything. Besides, we knew from the beginning it wouldn’t be easy.”

The man standing at the edge of the tent spoke.

It was Park Jung-jin, leading the raid party from the Dangun guild.

Maria from Olympus was also there.

“We’ll need to clear this up first.”

Maria sighed softly and swung her staff.

Whooosh!

The shattered table magically restored to its original form.

“Player Park Jung-jin is right. What’s important now isn’t to rage about our failures but to find a way to succeed in the raid. Perhaps we should stick to the original plan and tackle the main gate route…”

“The main gate? You know, Maria, how long it will take if we go through the main gate.”

The standard method to tackle the ruins would be to use the main gate route.

However, the raid party had attempted an alternate route.

They had used long-range detection magic to scan the inside, and the route from the main gate to the boss room was too long.

At least a month.

Maybe even longer.

“We must somehow defeat the Gate Guardian and secure the shortest route. If we keep dragging this out, the whole world will see our large guilds as complete fools.”

Of course, this was somewhat ironic.

The large guilds hadn’t been just idling away up until now.

They had been desperately climbing the tower, exploring labyrinths and ruins, trying to build their reputations.

As a result…

They had managed to tackle significant sites on the 12th, 13th, and 14th floors.

Still…

…it wasn’t enough.

Even the achievements earned with a readiness to die weren’t captivating enough to grab the viewers’ attention.

The effort they put in compared to the results they got was just too minimal.

“Do you see? The kind of feedback we’re getting for our achievements?”

Nirasha pointed to a giant screen in the center of the tent.

It displayed videos of large guilds tackling the Tower of Trials and their community reactions on ViewTube…

• yeo: Oh, it’s the ‘Sun Jungle’ maze on the 13th floor. Was this the one Dangun guild was bragging about?
• cho: It’s a B-rank maze. Wow. So they had to bring in all their main raiders just to beat this?
• Lee Si-young: It’s so-so, but it’s disappointing. It’s different from what I expected. I don’t find these videos interesting anymore. Is it just me?
• Sh: You know why? It’s because of Kang Jinhyuk. It’s true that Dangun isn’t living up to its name, but it’s because you guys have raised your standards.
• Jeon: Ah, right. That makes sense.
• Lee Hwi-min: LOL, I thought it was just me. Feels like I’ve eaten a million sweet potatoes after only watching veteran videos.
• Gdd: Can’t help but agree.
• Marihuana: It hasn’t been long since the 90-day count was updated, but it already feels like things are starting to go wrong.

And thousands more comments followed, mostly of a similar vein.

“Clearly, there are a lot of hard-hitting comments. Since views translate directly into coins, these negative comments becoming top comments is quite damaging.”

“Our videos also haven’t been receiving good responses. Stable coin supply is essential for fast growth, that’s an undeniable fact.”

Park Jung-jin and Maria looked bitter.

All this…

Yes.

‘Kang Jinhyuk…’

It was all because of that one human.

Nirasha had never imagined that a player with no background or capital could bring her such immense shame.

Currently, all the attention was indeed focused on Jinhyuk.

Just recalling his smug face from the recent live broadcast was infuriating.

• Stay away from him if possible.

Even the principal deity of India, Shiva, and other deities had warned her not to get involved with Jinhyuk.

Of course.

It was inconceivable.

‘To imply that I am beneath him just because he pushed me back once.’

At that time, she hadn’t yet undergone her second awakening…

But now, the situation was completely different.

She had ascended to a new level and acquired a new mandala.

‘This time, I will definitely rise above.’

And the key was on the 15th floor, to kill the Witch of Lamentation and grasp the title of being the first in the world.

Nirasha slowly rose from her seat.

Now that an alliance was formed, she would succeed by any means necessary.

And on the day the 15th floor falls and the 16th opens…

People will remember the name Nirasha.

But it was at that moment.

“Master!”

The man who had entered a bit earlier came back in, his face pale.

“Didn’t I clearly say not to enter? Do those of an inferior class dare to take my words lightly?”

“I’m sorry, but there’s an urgent matter I had to report. I’ve committed a rudeness.”

“…Speak. Let’s hear this damn urgent matter.”

“It’s… There are players who went to the Gate Guardian without our permission.”

“What? What did you say?”

Nirasha exclaimed in surprise.

An idiot who acted alone, ignoring the command of the raid leader.

Who would be so foolish to approach the Gate Guardian, whom hundreds couldn’t even scratch?

But then the next words…

“…Kang… Jinhyuk.”

The expressions of everyone in the tent crumbled.

Step.

Jinhyuk, Yu Yeonhwa, and Lee Taemin entered the alternate route of the ruins.

“Kreee…”

Obviously, the passage wasn’t empty.

A slender giant of 4 meters tall.

A guardian clad in thin plate armor and wielding a long scythe blocked the entrance.

Its eyes were covered with a patch, but black smoke drifted from between its sharp teeth.

Jinhyuk’s gaze shifted slightly downward.

Thump. Thump.

Drops of blood still warm were dripping along the scythe.

How many players had fallen to that scythe?

If they didn’t know how to tackle it, more victims would surely follow.

After observing the guardian for a moment, Jinhyuk shook his head.

At the same time.

[The broadcasting system has been activated.]

He started a personal broadcast.

“Brother, is it really a good idea to do a live raid?”

“Aren’t we attracting too much aggro?”

Yu Yeonhwa and Lee Taemin seemed quite uneasy about the situation.

Indeed, showing up in someone else’s hunting ground and broadcasting it boldly wouldn’t lead to a warm reception.

It was natural for them to be worried.

But.

“Don’t worry. They won’t be able to do anything. This way, we can control the game.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve started a live broadcast in a place where the large guilds keep failing. What do you think will happen?”

The anticipation on the ground would rise, and the whole world’s attention would be on this spot.

What if the large guilds stop it?

Or fail to assist despite lacking the ability?

They wouldn’t just be criticized; they could be completely buried.

Ultimately, whether it’s Nirasha, Dangun, or Olympus, they would have to plead to collaborate.

At least outwardly, that’s how they’d have to appear.

For their own safety.

Right then.

• Cow: 5555? What’s this? Is this for real?
• Jinn: OMG. It’s real. And it’s the ruins of the Witch of Lamentation.
• Oh Se-jun: The one the three major guilds announced they were going to tackle?
• Choi Geon: Yeah. The one they just keep announcing without ever managing to raid.
• bluesky: I thought they at least made it halfway through the entrance, but they haven’t even breached it yet? I wondered why there was no news, but it’s worse than I thought.
• Cookie Baking Master: Looks like Jinhyuk got fed up and went himself.
• Chocolate Syrup: Wait! Does him starting the broadcast mean he’s going to show us the raid live?

Viewers poured in.

Despite not announcing it, within 30 seconds of going live, the chat was bustling with hundreds of comments.

“Hello, everyone. I’m really sorry for dropping in unannounced. The reason I’ve started this broadcast is… well, I’ve joined the raid on the Witch of Lamentation.”

He added a guilty expression by biting his lip.

“I didn’t want to interfere with another guild’s hunting ground, but I couldn’t just stand by watching them fail continuously. I’ll help them get past the first Gate Guardian, and then proceed with the raid party’s permission.”

He added a humble attitude from a lower position.

The modulation of his voice, the treatment of his gaze, even the movement of his facial muscles.

Everything was perfect.

“Just to avoid any misunderstandings, this live broadcast will only go until we defeat the Guardian, and then it will be replaced by edited video as usual.”

Jinhyuk continued.

His oratory skills, honed during his days as a BJ, made it easy to take control of the situation.

• Gtg4: Wow. Jinhyuk really is decent.
• Lpr: Honestly, there’s no such thing as your own area in the Tower of Trials. The first to clear it wins.
• Yu Yeon-jun: Isn’t he an angel for helping out when they can’t even clear it?
• lsi0: Truly magnanimous. It’s rare to see a player who has both skill and integrity.
• OUY: Everyone run! You’re being fooled by a devil!
• Kim Ki-tae: Seems like the large guilds have even planted their workers here. Caught red-handed!
• Chae Hyeong-seok: Caught you!
• 999e: Officer, over here!
• doh: Are you doubting such a kind and great person because you have no one else to suspect?

While some viewers were quick to notice, most were fooled by his act.

The good reputation he had built up was shining through now.

Good.

Now that the stage was set, it was time to move.

Jinhyuk pulled a fang from his subspace inventory.

Fzzzt!

Blue sword energy gathered along with black demonic energy.

Then.

“Kreee!”

Responding to that killing intent, the Gate Guardian also let out a long, howling scream.

The broadcast… had begun.