Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang────!
A peculiar monster that looked like a cross between a dinosaur and a lion was torn to shreds and sent tumbling against the huge cave wall.
“Hup…!”
Faced with overwhelming power, the close-range dealers of the raid team gasped.
It was a powerful monster over ten meters in length, its vicious muscles wrapped in a hard outer shell, yet it was ground down with absurd ease.
The martial prowess displayed by the twenty Super Strengthened Androids was beyond imagination.
Kieeeek!
Thud— Crunch— Craaack—!
A charge without a shred of fear, an attack without a hint of mercy.
The European Union’s S-grade Admittees couldn’t even dare think of joining the battle where the Strengthened Androids rampaged wildly; they could only watch.
They felt they would only get in the way if they intervened unnecessarily, and at worst, they might get hurt themselves.
At a scene that was less a battle or raid and more a one-sided massacre, the S-grade Admittees stood in full gear, in formation, ready stances taken, muttering blankly.
“We have nothing to do…”
“What is this…”
“Should we be worried about our livelihoods…”
The busiest people were the team leader and vice-leader giving orders to the Strengthened Androids—that said it all.
Whether large or small, monsters that charged with physical strength and speed, or poison and other special attack skills, were ripped apart by the Super Strengthened Androids, and whenever enemies with ambiguous physical forms and element-oriented ones appeared, Android Ascends unfailingly stepped out by attribute and swept them away.
Of course, since it wasn’t a team accompanied by Suho, there were no luxury vehicles or module houses, but the very absence of life-or-death battles made it feel like nothing more than a camping trip.
The S-grade Admittees—‘elite among elites’ selected from across Europe—had virtually nothing to do but set up base camps, pitching sleeping tents and moving on foot.
“If we keep going like this… will we be able to receive the full raid participation reward after the raid ends…?”
“What are you talking about? We have to stick to the contract!”
“Right, that’s a separate matter. What’s due is due.”
“Haha, anyway it’s so unrealistic…”
The European Union team reached the 60th floor in just a month and a half since entering.
It was much slower than Ultimate Line, but still a climbing speed worthy of being counted among the all-time records.
And upon reaching the 60th floor of that tower, many Tower Random Boxes became visible.
Random Boxes positioned everywhere.
There were so many huge boxes that felt like truck beds attached to the walls that it drew bitter smiles.
“These damn trash boxes sure are numerous…”
“Ugh…”
“Hey, but I heard Ultimate Line got a ton of items from these dud boxes.”
One team member who hadn’t properly seen the related news laughed scornfully.
“Sure, they got some. The problem is they’re trash.”
“No, they say Ultimate Line mainly got S-grade items.”
“What!? What nonsense.”
“Don’t you watch the news? They got dozens of them.”
“Right. It was such a huge fuss over that… Were you cooped up in some monastery or something?”
“R-really?! D-do they have some special item that raises luck…? Otherwise how could they get them from dud boxes…”
“Who knows.”
“Th-then, should we try too…?”
“Hmm… yeah, who knows if something changed in the tower system itself starting from when Ultimate Line did the raid?”
“Oho, you’ve got a point there? We’ve got nothing to lose, so let’s try.”
“We might have nothing to lose, but if we lose, we lose with this.”
“That’s… true, but…”
Still, the mood quickly tilted in favor.
Was it because Ultimate Line’s precedent was too sweet, or because the Strengthened Androids’ exploits had relieved the tension of battle too much and made things boring, the European Union’s S-grade team gambled on something they would never normally do.
And…
“Fuck…”
C and D-grade items obtained as the result of sacrificing countless A and B-grade Etheriums were scattered on the ground.
Someone kicked the useless items with his foot, sending them bouncing and flying all over.
“This… who was the bastard that first suggested we do this…?”
The raid team’s atmosphere grew dark.
* * *
It was mid-May.
According to the reports Suho received intermittently, Switzerland seemed to be raiding smoothly with the borrowed Strengthened Androids…,
The space industry picked up speed like a ship with full sails with the Qinghua Group coming on board.
Even when Suho chipped in just a bit of money and materials, it showed a face of growth as fast as a train with fresh fuel, making the countries leading the world in space industry nervous.
Chairman Baek of the Qinghua Group, this gentleman certainly is helpful.
So he must live healthily for a long, long time.
‘Maybe about two bottles every ten years…’
After all, eating it more frequently than that wouldn’t mean much anyway.
Suho decided to steadily supply Chairman Baek with anti-aging elixir.
Another major event was the completion of the TDM Convention Center.
TDM, which had been additionally expanded and relocated to convention-grade standards, was a complex space equipped with large-scale facilities that could be utilized for various purposes.
Large convention halls capable of hosting international conferences, exhibitions, and corporate events; large exhibition halls for various expos; hundreds of multi-purpose medium and small meeting rooms; hundreds of spaces for seminars and workshops; VIP private lounges for distinguished guests; upscale dining restaurants and cafeterias; shopping malls; business centers; performance halls; theaters; galleries; outdoor gardens; and accommodation facilities…
The TDM Convention Center boasted a massive parking space capable of accommodating 6,510 vehicles alone, with a scale of 9 underground floors and 16 above-ground floors, and a total floor area reaching 165,000 pyeong.
Major TDM figures (Narae, Seongsik, Jiho, etc.), Ultimate Line members, Elysium Heights residents, as well as government and community figures, media and press personnel, and partner company representatives attended en masse as a grand completion ceremony and opening ceremony were held.
Having prepared extensively, there were performances, congratulatory speeches by dignitaries, a tape-cutting ceremony, commemorative photography, guided internal tours for attendees, and other tedious procedures that went on for hours.
During the reception time when refreshments and a banquet dinner were provided for attendees, Narae and Jiho holding wine glasses approached Suho.
“Suho-hyung, he’s over there. Over there.”
“Aah…”
Both were dressed handsomely in suits and a dress.
Beside Jiho who was walking over waving his hand eagerly, Narae made eye contact with Suho and bowed her head politely.
“Wow… I almost didn’t recognize you two?”
Suho smiled roguishly, tapped Jiho’s shoulder, and whispered.
“By the way, is it going well? With Narae?”
Jiho was startled and looked around, but fortunately Narae was currently greeting someone else who had approached.
As Suho giggled regretfully, Jiho glared with his eyes and cornered his hyung toward an isolated spot.
“Hyung, hyung, you have to be careful what you say. I’m working on the groundwork right now. Still in the middle of it…”
“Ugh… just how many meters of groundwork are you laying? You’re going to die buried under it.”
“I have a plan too…!!”
“Forget it, just make your move already. Is being a total dimwit at dating a family trait or something…? Hurry up and confess, get it over with, you punk. …Well, it’s not my place to say…”
“Right, it’s not your place to say! You’re the one who should find a partner quickly. Obviously I’m much faster, you know?”
“Haha… I admit it. I admit it.”
Having finished her greetings, Narae approached the two and asked Suho.
“But Chairman, what’s the purpose of the space in the center of the TDM Convention Center? Everyone’s been asking.”
“Ah, the Central Hall?”
Although Suho hadn’t revealed its purpose to anyone yet, in fact, there was one unusual thing about this TDM Convention Center.
The gigantic Central Hall, taking up over 20% of the entire building, was inexplicably empty at Suho’s request.
It was a massive hall that seemed capable of accommodating tens of thousands of people at once regardless of its purpose.
“Right, what is that hall for anyway? Are you planning to put in an indoor amusement park or something?”
When Jiho asked, Suho shook his head.
“No, why would I need an indoor amusement park when Lotte World is nearby… I still need to finish designing it a bit, so I’ll tell you later.”
“Yes, you must tell us, okay?”
Looking at Narae smiling with her eyes, Suho was newly reminded that she was quite a beauty too.
No matter how he looked at it, Narae was too good for this stupid guy… if things worked out with Jiho, she’d become his sister-in-law. Anyway.
He wished they’d hurry up and get married. Having more family was always a joy. He wished there would be many nieces and nephews too.
While he was lost in idle thoughts, another voice welcomed Suho.
“Yo, is the main character holed up here?”
Another TDM executive, his close friend Seongsik, dressed sharply, spotted Suho and approached with quick steps.
“Holed up? I’m just standing here.”
“The person who should be at the center of the dignitaries from everywhere is standing around like this, so you are holed up, aren’t you.”
“Ah, whatever. I’m tired. Why did so many people come… I need to end the ceremony quickly and send everyone home. This really isn’t my taste. Such a noisy, bustling event…”
As Suho shook his head, Seongsik, Narae, and Jiho smiled as if they understood.
“Ah, right, hyung.”
“Hmm?”
“This time we TDM folks, I mean the executives, decided to go on a trip. We’ve really put a lot of effort into this until completion and everyone worked hard… so we decided to rest a bit before the full opening. Want to come, hyung?”
Suho had been so busy lately that he almost said “I’m busy” without thinking, then closed his mouth.
He realized that all of this was his doing, he was the owner, and who would say anything if he adjusted his schedule for work-life balance; such an obvious thought came to him.
So he changed his mind to the positive side and asked.
“A trip? Who all is going?”
“Me, Narae, Seongsik-hyung, Suji, and Seonwu for now?”
“Really? How come Mom and Dad aren’t going?”
“Mom and Dad were excluded by Suji. She said why do old folks keep trying to join young people’s gatherings.”
“Haha… so they did try to join. Really can’t stop them. So, where are you going?”
“At first we thought about going to the scenic spots on hyung’s artificial island, but we’ve already been there a lot, so we decided to go somewhere completely different!”
“Oho…?”
“To Switzerland’s Jungfraujoch!”
“Jungfraujoch?”
“Yeah, Jungfrau, the Roof of Europe! Of course, climbing to the peak is difficult unless you’re a professional mountaineer, but tourists can easily get to Jungfraujoch. The highest train station in the world, have you heard of it? A whopping 3,454 meters!”
“That’s high… but why Jungfraujoch?”
“We discussed it a bit, and everyone wanted to see the spectacular scenery looking down from a high place. That’s where our opinions aligned, and that’s the place we found. You could call it the highest-altitude tourist spot you can comfortably reach by train.”
“A high place? So you wanted to see the scenery from a high place?”
“Do you know a better place? There’s nowhere this high, right?”
“Why wouldn’t there be? If you’re going to go all out, forget the Roof of Europe and go to the Roof of the World, the Tibetan Plateau. The Himalayas, the Karakoram Range, the Kunlun Mountains—they’re all there.”
“Argh… everyone knows those are higher. But that’s not a tourist spot. You can’t go there through normal means.”
“Why can’t you go? You just go.”
“Huh…?”
“Huh? To Everest? Can an ordinary person even go there?”
“Didn’t I show you the photos from when I went there before?”
“Uh… when did you go?”
“Whoa… seriously, you went there?”
Jiho and Seongsik asked with blank faces.
“Ha, you country bumpkins. This hyung will take you there once. What’s so great about the measly Roof of Europe? I’ll show you a proper roof.”
* * *
The travel plans briefly mentioned at the completion ceremony reception proceeded in rapid succession since there was no reason to delay them.
First, since he wasn’t going alone like last time, he couldn’t secretly zip there and back using Tempestbane Wings and Powered Armor.
Since it was a six-person trip to Everest, they needed to follow proper procedures.
So he conveyed his intention to visit Nepal in order to obtain a visa through the Nepalese Embassy in Korea and receive an entry ticket for Sagarmatha National Park to visit the Everest region,
but the situation unfolded differently from what he had expected.
For starters, the Nepalese government was thrown into an uproar at the mere mention that Suho was visiting.
Having suffered from severe power shortages for decades due to geographical conditions and economic constraints, Nepal's economy had developed by leaps and bounds as the power problem was nearly resolved by Suho's supply of Aether power generation, and the people's standard of living had greatly improved as well.
Thus, Suho was revered by the Nepalese people as the "Savior of the Modern Age," so when he said he was visiting Nepal under such circumstances, they could not remain idle.
The Nepalese government planned a grand welcoming ceremony for Suho as a VVIP state guest.
Suho and his party traveled on a direct flight aboard a private jet from Incheon International Airport to Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal,
but the atmosphere seemed unusual right from the airport entrance.
From where the plane had landed, a red carpet was already laid out, and security details and youth choirs dressed in traditional Nepalese attire were standing in rows.
All members of the party, including Jiho, Narae, Seongsik, Suji, and Seonu, were bewildered by the scenery outside the window.
"Looks like some famous person is coming?"
"Who do you think it is?"
"Uhh...?"
"No way... don't tell me..."
That "don't tell me" soon became reality.
As soon as Suho and his party disembarked, key figures of the Nepalese government came out personally to greet them, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nepal welcomed them by placing a welcoming garland around their necks.
Even as they moved toward the limousines, when a performance began at the airport with Nepalese children dancing a welcome dance to traditional instruments and music, everyone was left dumbfounded.
But that was only the beginning...
"Waaaaah!!"
"Jeong Suho!! Jeong Suho!! Jeong Suho!!"
"It is an honor that you have come to Nepal!"
"Over here, please look over here just once!!"
"Nepal will never forget your grace!!"
Thousands of citizens had gathered near the airport, cheering and waving placards written in Korean.
"This... I guess a quiet and comfortable trip is out of the question..."
Suho let out a light sigh and unknowingly pressed a hand to his forehead.
The schedule that followed was even more exhausting.
They held an official welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace of Nepal, participated in a welcoming event with tens of thousands of people gathered at Durbar Square in Kathmandu, then moved to a high-class banquet hall and had traditional dishes at a dinner hosted by the President.
When the first day's schedule ended, as they settled into a top-class hotel in Kathmandu, all six collapsed without even changing their clothes.
The five-star accommodation, combining traditional Nepalese architecture with modern luxury, was a splendid hotel equipped with an enormous suite and even a private pool villa.
Of course, to those residing in Elysium, it looked no better than a cramped boarding room.
"Ugh..... I'm exhausted......"
"Suho, you punk, what kind of trip is this..."
At Seongsik's grousing, Suho complained in return.
"What, so I should've snuck in on a stealth aircraft? This can't be helped... Still, I didn't know they'd make this much of a fuss... I'm dying too, really..."
"Don't tell me that from tomorrow too, government officials and protocol teams will keep following us around, dragging us to historical sites and places like that?"
At Seongsik's words, Suho, coming to his senses with a start, jumped up from the bed he had been lying on.
And he contacted the head of the protocol team, who had told him to reach out if there was anything he needed.
"Yes, this is Jeong Suho. No. No. There's nothing else I need. From tomorrow, we would like to do independent free travel. Yes, yes, that's right. Without attendants or bodyguards. No, no. It's fine. I am more than capable of protecting our party myself. I'm fine with my own strength, and I have many other androids. It's really fine. So please, make sure we can travel on our own. Ah, and one more thing, please allow us to stay for a long time at the summit of Everest. Yes, that's all. Thank you."
As soon as he put down the receiver, everyone crowded around Suho, their eyes shining.
"What did they say?"
"So we can travel by ourselves starting tomorrow?"
"Yeah, that's right. I had them remove all protocol and security, and lifted all restrictions too. They'll only provide the conveniences we want."
"Phew...!"
"Yeah, that's what a trip should be!"
But Jiho and Suji, family members who had yet to fully grasp Suho's strength, asked with concern,
"Still, shouldn't there be at least some bodyguards? In this unfamiliar country?"
"Hmm..., we won't need any at all."
Suho merely smirked.