Chapter 694
Three days had passed since the great upheaval.
Fortunately, thanks to the frantic efforts of the administrators, the worst-case scenario of the Tower collapsing did not occur.
Of course, all of that was predicated on Azathoth not fully awakening.
And now.
In the Sky Lounge located on the upper floors of Signiel, the members of the Veteran Corporation were holding a general meeting of shareholders.
“It seems like ‘the calm before the storm’ is exactly the right phrase for times like these.”
Despite having the Necronomicon stolen, the Primordial Beings showed no particular movement.
Whatever their scheme, the inside and outside of the Tower were eerily quiet.
As if a massive bloodbath was about to erupt.
‘Did the Elder Gods make a move? Or do they have some other agenda?’
It was an area where predictions could be made, but no action could be taken. All they could do was respond as thoroughly as possible to match the opponent’s moves.
Jinhyuk gazed at the peaceful Han River.
Vroom!
Honk! Honk!
People living their everyday lives.
He could see them repeating their commutes, living their days like a hamster wheel.
At least to them, it seemed the Tower was being successfully conquered, and the scenario of humanity’s destruction had been completely erased from their minds.
“Still, it’s a bit strange. Now that the Contractors have been erased from everyone’s memories by the Fountain of Oblivion, it doesn’t make sense for them to be so confident.”
Alice’s point was hard to refute.
No matter how much the new nobles or emerging large guilds rampaged, the floor humanity was currently conquering was the 39th.
It wasn’t a level that could be cleared just because the Rankers were running wild.
The only reason they’d had the leeway to hold out in the upper floors was thanks to the appearance of the Apostles of each Mythology, who had formed contracts with the Gods… Could they really be relying on just that?
“You don’t know anything?”
“Not interested.”
Chun Yoosung leaned against the wall and answered flatly.
Jinhyuk sincerely wondered who would ever be willing to take that emotionless robot later on.
Unless it was someone extraordinary, they wouldn’t be able to handle him.
Tsk.
Just as Jinhyuk clicked his tongue and shook his head—
Ding…!
The elevator doors opened, and new members entered.
At the front was Kim Hee-woong, the temporary master of the Black Crow Guild.
“It’s been a while, Player Kang Jinhyuk. You haven’t even shown your face at the guild office, so I’ve been struggling with the management of everything… Please listen! When a person is talking!”
Kim Hee-woong, shouting at Jinhyuk while he covered his ears, let out a deep sigh.
Then, as if resigned, he handed over the data Jinhyuk had requested.
“Hoo. No matter how I think about it, if I die, it’ll be from frustration. From bottled-up anger.”
“Did someone say ‘sturdy’?”
“Ugh… Never mind! The information about Seo Jeonghee is compiled separately here.”
Kim Hee-woong handed over a tablet PC containing the detailed information.
The culprit who sent Swingbat’s hounds, including Jack Eden.
Even while fighting enormous monsters, Jinhyuk hadn’t forgotten about Seo Jeonghee.
Kindness should be repaid 0.2 times, and grudges 50,000 times.
That was the belief Jinhyuk had decided to live by in this world.
“And.”
Kim Hee-woong continued.
“While Player Kang Jinhyuk was away, several unusual things happened. Yoo Yeonhwa and Lee Tae-min must be absent for the same reason.”
Come to think of it, Tae-min and Yeonhwa—the original members—hadn’t shown up at the shareholders’ meeting.
He’d assumed they were simply running late, but was there a reason?
Jinhyuk’s expression changed completely.
“Tell me.”
“All of Korea, as well as various parts of the world, are mobilizing all their capabilities to form a connection with one player. The name of the person who has become a hot potato is ‘Shuette’. Other than the name, their nationality and past traces are all blocked.”
Kim Hee-woong turned on the screen hanging on one side.
Then, a raid party confronting numerous monsters inside a dungeon appeared.
Raid videos were common—thousands, even tens of thousands, easily exceeding the norm—but the person in this video was different.
A white-haired man.
At first glance, he had a beautiful appearance that made one mistake him for a vampire.
However, the Mana and abilities emanating from his body were completely different from those of vampires.
BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOOOM!
An alien yet beautiful trajectory.
Every time the man’s sword cut through the air, fountains of blood erupted among the monsters.
…Strong.
Not only were his physical stats themselves astounding, but even the performance and direction that excited the public seemed naturally ingrained in him.
“I haven’t seen this guy before.”
“Yes. He’s a rookie who debuted after receiving an S-class rating with overwhelming numbers in the Awakened test not long ago. Since then, he has conquered 3 relics in the 30th floor range, 7 labyrinths, and 15 dungeons in a week. In particular, one of the relics was the 27th floor ‘Nest of Apandos’, which is called the graveyard of raid parties.”
Jinhyuk’s eyebrows twitched at the mention of the Nest of Apandos.
A relic located in the mid-levels, but boasting extreme difficulty.
It was a key location for reaching the large ‘Green Magic Stone’ mine in the latter half of the 27th floor, making it a golden goose in many ways.
Green Magic Stones, which had the same effect as room-temperature superconductors, were literally worth whatever you asked for outside the Tower.
‘To think there would be a force capable of conquering it besides us.’
Interesting.
Jinhyuk watched Shuette’s video with a fascinated look.
“He’s quite something, this human.”
“He’s strong.”
Alice and Teresa acknowledged Shuette in their own ways.
“He is currently being called the hero and hope of humanity. There is a prevailing opinion that if it is a raid party led by Shuette, it will be possible to conquer the top of the Tower.”
If he truly possessed this kind of power, it was enough justification to challenge the upper floors.
Now Jinhyuk understood, at least a little, why people were so optimistic and didn’t seem worried.
‘He’s definitely not one of the veterans who used to be active…’
There was always the chance that a monster would emerge even among newbies. The world was wide, and talented people were springing up like mushrooms, regardless of East or West.
Various possibilities flashed through his mind.
What was certain was that a card had appeared—one he didn’t know yet whether it would help or become a nuisance in the latter half of the Tower.
“The last news I have to tell you is this.”
Kim Hee-woong pressed a key, and the screen switched.
Then, a lavishly decorated poster appeared.
[Tower of Trials Ranking Match]
Content: We are recruiting applicants to participate in the war of stars where large guilds and solo players from each country gather to determine the strongest! A grand melee to determine superiority in various ways over a total of one week! Wealth, fame, and recognition. To reach the top of the Tower. And for the future of humanity. We ask for your participation.
Reward.
Total prize money of $1,000,000,000 (1st to 10th place)
Total of 50,000,000 coins (1st to 10th place)
Individual Sacred Relic list
Individual item list
Special material list
In addition, the highest-class hotels and resort flights and Michelin priority reservation rights in a total of 27 countries.
A tremendous amount of text and pictures made their eyes swim.
“……”
“……Hoo.”
“Wow.”
Greed flashed in the eyes of the members watching.
There was too much to check one by one.
Jinhyuk chuckled.
Of course, the Sacred Relics and items offered as rewards were quite excellent, and they were clearly things someone had worked hard to collect.
However, they were still insufficient to satisfy Jinhyuk, whose eyes were set far higher…
…Huh?
Jinhyuk, scanning the reward list roughly, suddenly sucked in a sharp breath.
He couldn’t help being surprised.
There was a reward mixed in there—something he had seen only once in his entire eleven years of playing.
That’s coming out here?
He didn’t know how the World Awakened Association had gotten their hands on it.
However, that alone was enough to justify participating.
“How about it, Player Kang Jinhyuk? Are you a little interested?”
Kim Hee-woong puffed out his chest.
As if to prove he hadn’t been wasting time while Jinhyuk was away.
“You’ve worked very hard… You’ve gathered only golden information that’s truly worth its weight in gold. I’ll trust you with a big role in the future.”
Jinhyuk pressed down on Kim Hee-woong’s shoulders.
At the same time, he started thinking he should consider growing the Black Crow Guild a little in the future.
“Thank you! I will do my best until my bones are crushed to dust.”
Why state the obvious?
He was the one who knew better than anyone that slacking off meant quitting.
“Now that the work is roughly finished. Then, until the competition starts, let’s each rest and do some personal maintenance….”
Jinhyuk was about to declare the shareholders’ meeting adjourned when—
“Surely, you haven’t forgotten your promise to me, have you?”
Alice’s eyes blazed.
…Creepy.
A colder murderous intent than during the battle with Yomaganto crawled down his spine.
Think.
If he answered wrong here, it would be a death ending.
There was definitely a look in her eyes—like she was expecting something.
Come to think of it, Alice had asked for something in return for helping with this…
All the cells in Jinhyuk’s brain gathered to hold an emergency meeting.
He only had one bullet.
He had to drag up every memory lodged in every corner of his mind and reach the right answer.
“Va…cation. We were going to go, right? To the place where you lived.”
Fortunately—
“You remembered.”
Alice smiled brightly.
—
Tower of Trials, 39th floor.
In a place where the great True Ancestor families once held their seats, there stood a particularly isolated old castle.
It sat at the highest point, yet somehow looked lonely.
That was Alice’s home—the ‘Black Castle’.
[You have entered ‘Alice von Ataraxia’s’ base.]
“Ahem!”
Alice proudly spread her arms wide.
Cobwebs hung everywhere, dust floated through the air, and nothing looked maintained. It was a noble’s castle in name only—almost a ruin.
“Umm… Goo, good.”
Jinhyuk nodded reluctantly.
He’d said that since they were going, they should all go together for the housewarming.
However, after seeing Alice’s murderous intent spike tenfold, he had no choice but to take it back.
That was how their vacation alone began.
“Hmm. Hmm. Hmm.”
Alice hummed to herself, as if she were genuinely happy.
“Mogiii….”
Goguma, the only one allowed to come along, trembled anxiously.
Jinhyuk hugged the fluffy Goguma tightly.
“Yeah. Goguma. I don’t have a good feeling either. But if I’m in danger, our cute and loyal Goguma will fight for me instead, right?”
“Mogiii…?”
Goguma squirmed in Jinhyuk’s arms, trying to escape.
But right then—
Thud.
A presence stirred in the old castle he thought was empty.
“…!?”
Enemy?
Jinhyuk immediately opened his Subspace.