<How to Conquer the Tower as a Bottom-Feeder 6>
The Awakener Management Agency in Hannam-dong, Seoul.
Yesterday, once again, an all-broadcast announcement rang out for an S++-rank clear of Floor 10.
Conquering a floor doesn't always trigger an all-broadcast message.
There is only one case where an all-broadcast goes out.
When a new floor is cleared.
That's how it had always been, until now.
But he had just learned there was one more case.
An S++-rank clear message.
Probably a world first.
And in South Korea, of all places.
They had to find him.
There was no doubt the player belonged to a Korean tower, but there was no way to identify him.
All they could do was wait for a phone call.
Commissioner Park Gyeongsu asked Elite Management Team Leader Jeon Gwangil.
"Team Leader Jeon, how did it go? I hear you got another inquiry call yesterday."
"Yes, sir. I sent staff to verify, and it was a genuine player. A 27-year-old woman residing in Daegu."
"Could it be...?"
"This one doesn't appear to be the S++ record-holder either."
"Hmm. I wonder if he'll ever show himself."
The number of players always stays at a certain level.
When someone dies inside the tower or forfeits the conquest entirely, having their qualification revoked, the opportunity passes to others.
So one or two calls a week come in from people asking to register as players.
The way to verify whether someone is truly a player is to watch them enter the tower up close.
Since they vanish in an instant—poof!—it's easy to tell.
One more item gets added to that.
Assessing the player's talent.
How, you ask?
With their consent, have the player film themselves conquering the tower and show you. That's all.
It's possible because you can carry a smartphone or camera into the tower.
Video recording is highly useful.
For players in the Elite Team, filming is mandatory without exception.
Only through analysis can they develop better strategies for conquest.
"Still, this player is decent. They said they got a B-rank on the Floor 8 mission. I watched the footage, and B-rank certainly looked achievable."
"Oh! Good."
"Yes, and they're strongly motivated to join the Elite Team. They more than qualify for the reserve corps."
"Then that's settled. Sign them."
Talent is one thing, but that single desire to join the Elite Team is already a pass. The most important quality is the will to keep climbing the tower.
Whatever they lack, the state can fill in.
Players can bring items into the tower.
Large objects are impossible, but pocket-sized items are allowed.
Clothing, combat-useful items, various potions—even things like handguns.
Beyond that, the benefits the Elite climbing teams receive are enormous.
Never mind the salary—they even receive protocol privileges on par with National Assembly members.
They get every perk the state can offer.
They're even granted immunity for serious crimes like murder.
The government specially manages around 150 Elite Team members.
Even within the Elite, there's the first squad and the reserve corps.
They are the core force that climbs the new floors.
It can't be helped.
The ranks have to be divided that way.
To avoid the tragedy of the tower's collapse.
But the 'General' teams are different.
Since they have no active desire to climb the tower, they receive little support.
Compared to the Elite, it's a drop in the bucket.
Still, because they bring out magic stones that contribute to national development, they receive a monthly stipend of two million won, sales agency services for tower reward items, and even legal support.
And what if a player with an S++-rank clear record inquired about registration?
Commissioner Park Gyeongsu was prepared to lavish upon him whatever he wanted.
Then it happened.
Ziiing, ziiing.
Team Leader Jeon Gwangil checked his smartphone message and spoke to Commissioner Park Gyeongsu.
"Commissioner."
"Hm?"
"Another player registration inquiry just came in."
"Again? What region?"
"Seoul."
"Seoul, you say? That's close by."
"I'll go in person."
"Right, Team Leader Jeon. I'm counting on you. If it really is him..."
"I will bring him into the Elite Team, no matter what."
"Offer the best benefits the Awakener Management Agency can provide."
"Understood."
※ ※ ※
Bong Juhyeok's expression wasn't great.
"Haa..."
He'd made the decision bravely, but the regret and worry lingered.
What could he do?
That's just the nature of a bottom-feeder commoner.
'...Someone's coming over, so I'd better clean first.'
It might be a shabby one-room apartment, but he should still keep it tidy.
He swept and scrubbed diligently, sprayed air freshener, did the dishes, emptied the trash bin, and bustled about, but—
'This is nerve-wracking.'
Someone he'd never met was coming to visit this place.
'...Should I call Kosak?'
No.
He couldn't summon high-grade personnel for something like this for no reason.
He might get found out.
And at that very moment!
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone was knocking on the front door.
'H-he's here.'
With a tense heart—
"Who is it?"
"We're from the Awakener Management Agency. May we come in?"
Juhyeok opened the door to greet his guests.
"C-come in. Y-you can sit here."
A middle-aged man, and a young woman.
Two of them.
In that fleeting instant, their probing eyes crossed.
"Hello. I'm Team Leader Jeon Gwangil from the Management Agency."
"A pleasure to meet you. I'm Section Chief Lee Mina. I'm also a player."
"...Ah! I see. I'm Bong, Bong Juhyeok."
The three sat facing one another across a small table placed in the center.
"First, a question. Mr. Bong Juhyeok, you have awakened, correct?"
"...Ah, yes, yes. I've entered the tower. I've even cleared it."
"Oh! Then up to which floor?"
"Floor 10. Up through the beginner adaptation section. Here are the magic stones I've gathered so far."
Juhyeok laid out a total of 5.5kg of magic stones.
'Floor 10...'
Team Leader Jeon Gwangil's eyes gleamed.
The S++-rank clear record had been for up to Floor 10.
Could this be the one?
It was hard to say.
After verifying the weight with the portable electronic scale they'd brought—
"Player Bong, may I ask you one thing?"
"Yes."
"Have you heard the all-broadcast that's been going around lately?"
"Ah! The S++-rank clear? I did hear it, but... I-I'm curious who it is. I'm sure they must be a truly incredible player."
Jeon Gwangil tilted his head slightly, then continued.
"First, let me explain the contract terms. Our government manages players in two parts. The first part is the Elite climbing teams, and the second is the General climbing teams."
"Uh-uh, yes, yes."
"If you join an Elite climbing team, your base annual salary is..."
The tedious explanation went on.
The gist was how the Elite climbing teams were structured, what kinds of benefits they received, how much the risk of conquest had dropped thanks to state support, and so on.
But why were they explaining Elite privileges so earnestly, privileges he didn't even need to hear about?
Did they suspect he was the S++-rank record-holder?
'Judging by the way they're looking at me...'
Not a chance.
Elite climbing team? As if!
"However, the Elite climbing team requires proof. We'll film a conquest video with the body cam we brought, and..."
This won't do.
Better to state his intentions clearly.
"U-um, w-wait a moment."
"Yes?"
"C-could I share my thoughts?"
"Please, say anything."
Juhyeok took a deep breath for a moment.
"I'm satisfied with the General team. I don't want to join the Elite team."
"Huh? Really? May I ask why..."
"Honestly, I have no talent."
That was the truth.
"And it's f-frightening, you know. I plan to stop at a reasonable floor and just collect the rewards."
That was also the truth.
Jeon Gwangil's face turned aghast.
This bluntly?
The will to climb—the most basic requirement for the Elite Team.
Without it, Elite membership was impossible.
"Please don't come to a decision so quickly..."
"No! I've already made up my mind."
At Juhyeok's firm tone, Team Leader Jeon Gwangil's disappointment was plain to see.
"...Very well. I'll respect your decision."
"Th-thank you."
"Could you enter the tower today?"
"I can."
"Then we'd like you to enter from here, please. It's a necessary step for verifying your awakening."
"Okay."
Only then did the stiffness leave Juhyeok's face.
Just the final procedure remained.
Once he entered and came back out of the tower, he could sell the magic stones for money.
"I-I'll clear it while I'm in there, since I'm going anyway. It'll take almost two hours, so if waiting is inconvenient..."
"It's quite all right. That's our job. We'll wait."
"W-well then."
After putting on his shoes and properly gearing up,
Juhyeok activated the tower-entry skill.
Spot!
Watching Juhyeok vanish, Team Leader Jeon Gwangil spoke in a bitter tone.
"So he really has awakened."
Then, to Section Chief Lee Mina who had come along—
"What do you think?"
"I can't speak to his talent, but he certainly seems very timid. His manner of speech is so cowed, too."
"Thought so, did you?"
"It's hard to say how far he'll get. He might even give up on Floor 11."
"Huh? Why?"
Section Chief Lee Mina spoke with a look of certainty.
"I know because I've done it. Floor 11 is a floor that tests a player's fear."
"You mean the long-tailed tunnel centipedes?"
"In truth, they're monsters not that difficult compared to their appearance. But they're genuinely repulsive. Their numbers are horrifying, and the mission is to kill a hundred of them... Can he manage it?"
"Hmm."
She had a point.
"If you're right, this will end quickly."
"He'll run back to the safe zone and abandon the mission. I'm certain of it."
This one was hopeless too.
"I'd better call the Commissioner."
That no matter how he looked at it, Bong Juhyeok was not the S++-rank record-holder.
So please don't get his hopes up.
※ ※ ※
[You are entering Floor 11 of the Black Tower (South Korea).]
He summoned Kosak.
[Righteous Kosak has been designated-summoned.]
"Chyargh! Thank you for summoning me, sir!"
Kosak, ever energetic and dutiful.
"Let's go."
"I shall lead the way, sir!"
They left the safe zone.
[Floor 11 Mission: Kill 100 Long-tailed Tunnel Centipedes.]
[Time Limit: Within 3 hours.]
[Clear Condition: Long-tailed Tunnel Centipedes 0/100]
[Failure Condition: Death or mission abandonment]
"...Good grief."
A proof-of-awakening clear, and yet—
'Why did it have to be centipedes?'
A whole hundred of them.
Well, not that he'd be fighting them himself.
"I'll dispose of them quickly, sir! A hundred tunnel centipedes is a five-minute job for me, sir!"
That's exactly what you can't do.
"No. This time, we go very slowly."
"Yes?"
"Drag it out as long as possible. Over an hour. So that no S++-rank record gets set."
Why else would he have insisted on going in and clearing it?
All he needed to do was show himself entering the tower.
It was to hide.
To show that he wasn't the S++-rank record-holder.
By presenting a conquest proof of 1.1kg in magic stones.
That way, he'd be completely free of suspicion as the S++ record-holder.
"Aha! I understand your intent now, sir!"
"And today, I'll dismiss you from summoning inside the tower. There are eyes watching from outside."
"That matters not to me, sir!"
A perfect plan.
He'd verify his awakening, and also erase any suspicion that he was the S++-rank record-holder.
Spot!
The deranged assassin Kosak charged forward.
Then, from beneath the earth, Long-tailed Tunnel Centipedes, some three meters long, came wriggling out.
They weren't venomous, but their considerable size and countless writhing legs made them utterly repulsive creatures.
And there were so many of them.
Even from a distance, his hair stood on end.
"Uuugh..."
Squirming, squirming.
The ground itself seemed alive.
But Kosak didn't seem frightened at all.
Hopping along, slowly, one by one, one by one.
'...Isn't this too fast?'
And so—
"Kosak, catch them even more slowly."
"Yes, sirrr!"
The hunting pace slowed considerably.
'Good job.'
Kosak, obeying every order without question, unconditionally loyal.
How reliable could one get?
But right at that moment!
Shoosh! Sliiither!
"Huk! S-son of a—!"
A swarm of Long-tailed Tunnel Centipedes rising up right at Juhyeok's feet.
From over here—shoosh!
From over there—shoosh.
Completely surrounded.
They reared their upper bodies rigid and straight like king cobras, glaring at Juhyeok.
The creatures' pale yellow eyes met Juhyeok's.
"Aaaaagh..."
They'd slipped out of Kosak's attack range and crept all the way here without him noticing.
They moved underground, so he hadn't sensed them at all.
'D-did I stall too long?'
His body had frozen solid.
What to do?
This was a first—an enemy like this.
Until now, he'd only ever watched from the back.
He had to use his skill, but his mind was a complete blank.
And in that instant!
"Summoner Bong! I shall die for you!!!"
Papapat!
Kosak's eyes bloodshot, he came sprinting like a madman.
The daggers in both hands swung at a speed the eye couldn't follow.
The moment Juhyeok fell into danger, Kosak went berserk like a man possessed.
Tswit! Tswipit!
Skrrk, skrkkrk, skrkkrkrk!
The tunnel centipedes' necks snapped off, clank, clank.
Juhyeok's senses snapped back.
"W-wait!"
The kill count was skyrocketing.
"S-slowly! Too fast!"
"Cannot! Must kill quickly, sir! There are too many, sir!"
"That's an order. Slow the pace as much as possible."
"I must defy that order! Summoner Bong's life comes first, sir!"
"O-oh no..."
Aaaaagh!
The damned summoned-being principle, Article 3.
Skrrk, skrkkrk, skrkkrkrk...
"No, not like that! If you work that hard, it'll—"
...
[Announcement: You have achieved an S++-rank clear of Floor 11 of the Black Tower (South Korea).]
[S++ Clear Reward: A Platinum Badge is hereby conferred.]
"Damn it all!"
It was over.
The all-broadcast had rung out again.
Kosak scratched his head with an apologetic look.
"I am sorry, sir."
"...Dismissed."
Shwiiiip.
[You may now challenge Floor 12.]
[You are exiting the Black Tower (South Korea).]
Spot!
Juhyeok returned to his one-room apartment.
Not even ten minutes had passed since he'd entered the tower.
Section Chief Lee Mina stared blankly at Juhyeok, her eyes round with shock.
She was a player too.
"P-Player Bong, d-don't tell me..."
Naturally, she'd heard the all-broadcast.
"Hmm, it seems there's some misunderstanding, but..."
A shameless denial, no matter what.
"Anyway, it wasn't me."
"...".
"Really! It's a coincidence."
"...".
"By pure chance, the Floor 11 clears must have overlapped at the same time. Wow! Someone cleared it? What an incredible player!"
"...".
I'm telling you, believe me?
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