For half a month, he only ran the repeat missions on the 15th floor.
Waiting for the random summon cooldown to reset, honing his Shadow Steps skill, experimenting with the Energy Shield, and stacking up magic stones as funds for combat equipment purchases.
Ahhh! Four birds with one stone.
Just how fruitful a plan is this?
Complete perfection.
"Energy Shield."
Zeeeeng!
A transparent glass-like barrier enveloped his entire body.
"Shadow Steps."
Swaat! Swawawat!
Juhyeok's new move, zigzagging as he moved.
Afterimages trailing behind him every time.
It looked pretty impressive.
Anyone watching would think it was quite high-level.
Juhyeok felt it too. 'Am I talented?' Nah, no way.
While he was fiddling around on the 15th floor like this...
[Mission on Floor 15 successful.]
[Level up.]
[Reward: 1.5kg of magic stones.]
[Exiting the Black Tower of South Korea.]
The repeat conquest was complete.
The problem was that it took less than 10 minutes.
It ended before he had any time to do anything.
Shadow Steps was one thing, but the Energy Shield?
He had to experiment with it somehow.
Should he ask Kosak to lightly stab him with a dagger?
"Huh?"
"Stab me. With a dagger."
"...Uuuuh..."
Having heard the request, Kosak covered his mouth with his hands and backed away. "Wh-why are you doing this to me? If I've displeased you, then please beat me to death instead. I-I'll never do it again."
"No, it's to check whether the Energy Shield works properly. Just stab me lightly."
"Uaaaaah! I didn't hear anything. I can't hear you, can't hear—"
"..."
What's wrong with him?
He's being ridiculously dramatic.
It's not like he's asking him to kill him, just to give him a light stab.
No choice, then.
He'd have to figure it out himself.
Time passed quickly.
Continued repeat missions on the 15th floor.
The patterns were different every time, but they were goblin workers, so it wasn't difficult.
Juhyeok practiced his skills.
Meanwhile, Kosak beheaded goblin workers on the other side.
I should do something too.
The moment he was thinking that—
"Huh?"
Through the tall grass, he spotted a goblin worker crawling away stealthily, clearly terrified. 'Just one?' And it wasn't even holding anything.
A loner, unarmed, a measly worker.
"Hmm."
The perfect opportunity to test the Energy Shield.
What should he do?
He needed to decide quickly.
The mission would be complete soon, and he'd have to head out. 'Ah, whatever.'
Swawawat!
Juhyeok used Shadow Steps to block the path of the crawling goblin worker.
Thud!
Juhyeok's ankle collided with the goblin worker's head.
Thinking it had hit a tree, the goblin turned its head and moved in the other direction, but— Thwack! Blocked again.
It froze.
Only then did the goblin slowly lift its head.
Juhyeok looking down, the goblin looking up.
Their eyes met.
A brief moment of silence.
And right then!
"Kyaeeeek!"
The goblin lunged and sank its yellow, sharp teeth right into Juhyeok's ankle.
Crunch! Crack!
"Ugh, damn it! That startled me?!"
Biting my leg?!
Bam!
Juhyeok delivered a soccer kick straight to the goblin's head.
"Kehek!"
Whoooosh!
The kicked goblin went flying toward Kosak, who was happily dancing around with his sword.
And Kosak swiftly dispatched the incoming creature mid-air. Slash!
"Nice pass! You must've played socc— gah!"
As if something had just occurred to him, John Kosak came rushing toward Juhyeok with a horrified expression.
"Sum-summoner!!!"
Scrambling frantically.
"A-are you s-saying you f-fought a g-goblin? What were you thinking, a-are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine."
He really was fine.
He hadn't expected his strength to be this high either.
Sending a goblin flying with a single soccer kick, no matter that it was just a worker.
Though he hadn't killed it. 'Well, I am level 16.'
And the power of the Energy Shield—
It had clearly bitten his ankle, yet far from hurting, not even his pant leg had torn. All that remained on the ground were fragments of the goblin worker's broken teeth.
"Haven't I told you time and again? You mustn't be too brave."
"It was just one."
"One becomes two, two becomes three, and three becomes four."
"It was a weak worker."
"A worker becomes a scout, a scout becomes a warrior, and a warrior becomes a shaman."
"..."
"Please take care of your precious body, Summoner Bong!"
What is this guy's deal, really?
He knew the guy's loyalty was high, but the treacherous court official act was too much.
If he'd been a eunuch in the Joseon dynasty, he probably would've been showered with the king's favor.
"Fine, I'll be careful."
And so, he ran only repeat missions for half a month.
His skill proficiency increased, and his magic stones kept piling up.
A whopping 22.5kg—11.25 million won at market price. 'Maybe it's time to check out the Player Shop at the Management Agency?'
To visit the Management Agency, he first had to notify a staff member.
Either the employee he'd met during the contract, or the employee in charge of collecting magic stones.
Juhyeok knew two people.
Team Leader Jeon Gwangil and Section Manager Lee Mina.
The choice was obvious: Jeon Gwangil.
It was easier to deal with a man than a woman.
So he sent a message saying he wanted to visit the Player Shop, and a phone call came shortly after.
"Hello?"
— Ah! Player Bong. You said you'd like to visit the Player Shop.
"Yes, that's right. Can I head over now?"
— I'll send a car right away.
"No need for that, I'll take a taxi."
— Not at all. This is a benefit all contract holders receive. You can also sell your magic stones at the shop.
"Ahem, alright. I'll be waiting."
What? They send a car for regular customers too?
No way, really?
He'd coolly accept this level of special treatment.
※ ※ ※
The number of Players in South Korea was estimated to be around 7,000.
It might be even fewer.
The reason the government couldn't give an exact number, despite having contracts with almost all Players:
Unregistered Players, revoked-qualification Players, and already-deceased Players made an exact count difficult, so the numbers were always fluctuating.
The unregistered ones were completely unknown, so let's set those aside.
Qualification revocation—the system itself erased a Player if they hadn't conquered the Tower for 3 months.
Even the government only found out months later.
Because those were the Players who'd stopped producing magic stones.
The government terminated their Player contracts and revoked subsidies or special benefits.
And then, Player deaths.
The largest number occurred during first-climb missions.
Naturally, the higher the floor, the more dangerous it was.
But did that mean repeat climb missions were safe?
Absolutely not!
Even the same mission didn't always have the same patterns.
During monster subjugation missions, the spawning location and numbers could differ, and in trap breakthroughs, the mechanism locations and types changed every time.
He'd experienced it during the 15th floor repeat conquests too.
If you carelessly charged in thinking it'd be easy since you'd done it once, you could die on the spot.
Abandoning a mission also required running back to the safe zone at the Tower entrance and declaring your surrender.
Meaning you died while fleeing.
Over 20 years, thousands of Players had died in Korea alone.
And when Players died?
They were declared missing.
Because their bodies couldn't be found.
In this situation, the government was making efforts for Players' safety and to encourage magic stone production.
One of those efforts was the Player-exclusive shop.
The shop was located in the basement of the Hannam-dong Awakening Management Agency.
They sold equipment and weapons cheaply at just the material cost—but even so, they were expensive.
Having arrived at the Awakening Management Agency with an employee, Juhyeok was greeted by Team Leader Jeon Gwangil waiting at the front entrance.
"Welcome, Player Bong."
"Sorry for the trouble."
"Not at all. Please follow me."
The Player Shop was in the basement of the Management Agency.
But this wasn't a place you could just walk into either.
"Let's get you registered first. There's a separate procedure for entering the Player Shop."
It wasn't anything special.
A recognition technique proving one's identity through palm vein patterns.
You just pressed your hand against a glass panel and scanned it.
Beep!
"From now on, you can visit and use the shop anytime, without calling ahead."
"Thank you."
"...Shall I show you around the shop interior?"
"No, I'll look around on my own."
"Hahaha, yes, understood. Delivery service is available after purchase, so feel free to use the shop as you wish."
Come to think of it, it had been a very long time since he'd visited an offline store like this.
He could count on one hand how many times.
He'd only ever shopped online.
Talking with staff members.
Not easy.
But he'd already mustered the courage.
Juhyeok placed his hand on the vein-recognition glass at the shop entrance.
Beep beep!
"Ooooh..."
The shop interior was quite lavishly decorated.
Employees selling goods—but not a single customer in sight.
Even if the number of Players was small, this was ridiculous.
Why was no one here? 'Is it really because it's expensive?' This was when the Elite Team had it good.
Equipment items were provided to them for free. 'The magic stone sales booth first.'
Selling magic stones.
He'd currently earned 7 million won from conquering floors 1 through 15.
And if he commissioned the sale of the 22.5kg of magic stones he'd earned from half a month of 15th floor repeat runs?
"We've confirmed 22.5kg. That's 11.25 million won at market price. Once connected with a buyer and sold, the payment will be deposited into your account within 3 days."
"Uh, c-can't I just use it right away here?"
"Of course. That's possible. If you purchase something, it will be deducted from the money you're set to receive, so please keep that in mind."
"Yes, yes."
Now, it was shopping time.
But it wasn't exactly a pleasant one.
Let's buy quickly and go home. 'Weapons...'
The corner where weapons were displayed.
A sword with a gleaming edge, a longsword, a short dagger, staffs, spears, bows, even handguns.
"Are you looking for something in particular?"
"...N-no. Nothing specific, but I'll browse for now."
"Let us know anytime if you have any questions."
It really was hard to talk to a complete stranger.
Thank goodness it was a male employee, at least.
There were things he needed to ask.
"Can all of these be brought into the Tower?"
"As long as they're on your person. They can also be placed inside your inventory."
The Tower-exclusive inventory only accepted items that came from the Tower.
So why could these go inside the inventory?
'Ah, they're made from magic stones and Tower metal.'
Metal produced from the Tower.
From the 30th floor onward, the rewards increased.
Metals that didn't exist on Earth came out in ingot form.
A base of 3kg, and up to 10kg if the conquest went well.
Types of metal included adamant, orichalcum, sectonium, and more.
Equipment made from these metals and magic stones could go inside the Tower-exclusive inventory.
That's why they were extremely expensive.
The cheapest weapon cost 20 million won for a single blade.
There were plenty that cost even more.
And these were items sold to Players at just the material cost.
If you brought the materials, they'd even craft items for free, without labor fees.
"Players are also exempt from sword-carrying permits. However, firearms are rental-only. Entry with them is only allowed at designated locations too."
Naturally.
Player or not, they couldn't just be handing out guns.
But guns had their limits.
They were occasionally usable in the 20s, but on the 30th floor and above, bullets wouldn't penetrate.
They were both ranged weapons, but bows and crossbows worked.
Because there were skills that utilized bows.
Guns, on the other hand, had no skills that could utilize them.
Which would be best?
He needed to have at least one weapon.
Less with the intent of attacking monsters with it, more for self-defense.
Something that would let him crack a monster's skull at the very least if he found himself in a crisis. 'Huh?'
One item caught his eye.
A dark, dull metal mace.
A weapon commonly called a mace. 'That could be useful.'
He asked the employee and actually gripped the handle—the center of gravity was just right, and it wasn't too heavy. 'I like it.'
Honestly, bladed weapons were intimidating.
Cutting and stabbing a moving thing, really?
He couldn't even fillet a live fish.
Alright.
A mace it is.
"How much is this?"
"Ah, this is an adamant metal mace. The price is... hmm, 2 million won."
"Huh?" 2 million won?
Had he misheard?
"It's a c-customer's-change-of-mind refund item."
"..."
Suspicious.
The baseline was 20 million won. 'Could it be...'
Team Leader Jeon Gwangil's face suddenly came to mind.
From sending a car just because he mentioned wanting to visit the Player Shop, to there not being a single customer when he actually arrived, to an adamant weapon costing a mere 2 million won.
Read between the lines, and the answer was clear.
Thanks to his timid personality, he'd always prided himself on his exceptional perceptiveness. 'What should I do?'
Should he call someone over and ask them to sell it at full price?
Or... 'Just buy it.'
Acting like a naive, innocent person who knew nothing.
Since he didn't know, there was no responsibility to bear.
"Wow! This is such a great deal. I'll take it. I'll buy it."
"Shall we gift-wrap it?"
"No. I'll put it in my inventory."
Now that he had a weapon, what else should he buy?
But having actually come here, there wasn't that much to buy.
※ ※ ※
Park Gyeongsu, Director of the Management Agency, asked Jeon Gwangil.
"How is it? Is Player Bong's shopping going smoothly?"
"Yes, it's underway."
"There are no other customers, right?"
"None. We texted all the other Players that the shop is closed today."
One more thing.
"And the prices?"
"I instructed the staff in advance to apply a 90% discount. I didn't think he'd accept if it were free."
"Well done."
He hoped it would be a fruitful shopping trip.
Because that was when he would begin his climb of the 16th floor.