Chapter 136
Chapter 136
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: The World Observes
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Joo-hyuk was at his parents' house.
He ate the home-cooked meal his mother had prepared and chewed on some fruit.
"Is everyone doing alright?"
"Can't you see? Things are so uneventful it's worrying."
It seemed that way.
His parents looked very healthy, and Min-hyuk had gained weight like a piglet.
"But Joo-hyuk, about unification. Is that really happening? Has the Awakening Management Bureau decided to set up a branch in North Korea?"
"I think so? I heard they've already selected all the personnel to be dispatched."
"Chairman Kim In-jung... that man has finally come to his senses."
Actually, he was forced to come to his senses, but still.
His younger brother Min-hyuk chimed in.
"I heard someone else's influence was greater than Chairman Kim In-jung's."
"Someone else? Who?"
"They say the real power in North Korea now isn't Kim In-jung but the new Minister of People's Armed Forces, and that person is spearheading the unification effort."
"Ah! Mr. Kosak."
"Kosak? That's 'Gosa-geuk'. Did you go abroad or something, hyung?"
Hmm, this clueless kid.
"How do you even know the names of high-ranking North Korean officials? Have you been interested in current affairs?"
"It's famous on the Tower Climbing Gallery forum. North Korean players post and comment there too."
"And you still go there?"
"I followed a link and found it interesting. It's the most popular forum lately."
"Really?"
Tower Climbing Gallery forum.
Joo-hyuk had also visited it a few times early in his awakening to gather information.
"Is 'Gosa-geuk' the most popular there?"
"No."
"Then who is?"
"The greatest player on the Korean Peninsula, the S+++ grade record holder, the Tower Plunderer, the one who climbs the Tower using Shukuchi."
Shukuchi, what nonsense.
But hearing he was popular felt good.
His shoulders perked up a little.
"Especially the North Korean players, they practically worship him like a god. Oh right! They even chant your name, hyung."
"...Why my name?"
"'Joo-hyuk manse!' They say it's short for 'Juche-style Revolutionary Spirit'."
"..."
"If it were 'Democratic Revolutionary Spirit', it'd be 'Min-hyuk manse'."
This was driving him crazy.
At this rate, his name might become a global catchphrase.
"Anyway, eldest son."
"Yes?"
"Stop climbing the Tower now and just collect the Holy Sword rental fees while resting comfortably."
"That's right. The top player will handle everything, so you might as well retire now."
"...Hmm, I'll handle it myself."
If he retired now, it would be a disaster.
The world would be in chaos, wouldn't it?
Forget unification, another war might even break out.
Things have gotten too big.
It's reached a point of no return.
"By the way, Min-hyuk."
"What?"
"Don't you want to awaken?"
"You'd have to let me."
"I'm asking if you would if I let you."
"No! I absolutely won't become a player? I'm definitely going to be a civil servant."
He knew it.
"...What kind of civil servant?"
"A community center civil servant, obviously."
"What about the Awakening Management Bureau? I hear the salary is higher and promotions are faster there compared to other places."
"I don't want it. I want to work unnoticed, in an ordinary job, even at a low rank, for a long, long time, and retire quietly."
As expected, this guy is a true ordinary man.
Suddenly!
*Ding!*
It was the notification sound from his smartphone's SNS messenger.
"Hmm."
"What is it? A loan text?"
"No, a friend."
"...Hyung had a friend?"
"Yeah, Gosa-geuk, the Minister of People's Armed Forces. He says to meet him quickly."
"It's a loan text."
Even if he told the truth, they wouldn't believe him.
Anyway, he should get going now.
It seems something urgent has come up.
Kosak was in a car heading toward the Pyongyang Black Tower.
He had arranged to meet Summoner Bong at the Black Tower.
He wondered how happy he'd be when he handed over the Trait Enhancement Rune.
*Screech!*
The car arrived right by the Black Tower.
From afar, he could sense Summoner Bong's presence.
"Comrade, you may go now."
"Huh? Then when you return..."
"I will manage on my own, so comrade, clock out and rest well."
"Ah, understood. Joo-hyuk manse!"
"Joo-hyuk manse!"
After confirming the car was heading back toward Pyongyang...
*Spot! Patpatpatpat!*
Using Shadow Step, he dashed over in a single breath.
"Boong Summoner-nim!!!"
Joo-hyuk witnessed Kosak charging toward him fiercely.
What's so urgent that he's running here all out of breath?
"Why did you call? Did something happen..."
"No problem. No problem at all!"
"Then?"
"Spe! It's a special!"
Special?
Did he eat rice soup and come?
"Wait a moment, please. Let me check my pocket... Huh? Where did it go?"
Fumbling, Kosak frantically searched his pockets.
"I, I definitely put it in my pocket. Uh? Uh? What's this?"
Tsk tsk, so careless.
He must be stressed from his North Korea dispatch assignment.
Well, it must be tough.
It's not like he gets paid extra for overtime.
"Ah! Here it is. Please accept it. It's my heart."
"..."
Anyway, Joo-hyuk accepted the small, dark something Kosak was handing over.
'Hmm.'
It's hard.
A stone.
There are unfamiliar patterns engraved on its surface.
Its shape is exactly like...
"Whoa!"
Crazy! Why is this here?
"I, is this it?"
"Yes. A Trait Enhancement Rune."
"How did you get a rune...?"
"I traded for it."
Traded?
"You didn't threaten someone and take it, did you?"
"No, what do you take me for? The master of negotiation, an offer impossible to refuse, the black hand among black hands, a seasoned negotiator, that's me, Kosak."
With whom?
Kosak continued his explanation.
The head of an underground market guild had been kidnapped and held in a North Korean player detention camp.
In exchange for his release, Kosak received the rune.
"Oh! Truly a splendid Comrade Minister of People's Armed Forces!"
"I am embarrassed. As you sow beans, you reap beans; as you sow red beans, you reap red beans. Wouldn't it be natural for an excellent summoner to have an excellent summoned being under them? Hehehehe."
"Aigoo, beans and red beans, that's the perfect expression. Hahahaha!"
He really never imagined this.
Bringing me another Trait Enhancement Rune.
This is already the second rune Kosak has brought by himself.
"I really don't know how to thank you."
"This Kosak understands Summoner Bong's heart completely. Between real men, words aren't necessary, right?"
Right.
A shared look is enough.
However,
"Here, here, how many badges should I pin on you?"
"Aiyoo, why make my heart so heavy? Badges are precious."
Saying this, Kosak thrust out his chest.
This definitely calls for the three-badge treatment.
One pin, two pins, three pins.
"Loyal!!! I will repay Summoner Bong's grace with an unstoppable supply of runes from now on. Joo-hyuk manse!"
"Gosa-geuk manse!"
"Hehehehe."
"Hahahaha."
How satisfying.
What would I have done without our founding hero?
I wouldn't have even come this far.
"Our founding hero Mr. Kosak, I will absolutely never delete your entry from the catalog."
"...Huh?"
Kosak tilted his head in confusion.
Why suddenly talk about catalog deletion?
"Once all 10 slots in the catalog are filled, they say if you do another Random Summon, it deletes the oldest summoned being first."
"...Huh?"
Kosak was taken aback.
"Who do you think the oldest entry is? It's you, Mr. Kosak. If I do a Random Summon, they say Mr. Kosak gets deleted from the catalog."
"...Wha, wha-at?"
His hands and feet were trembling.
"Hahaha, don't worry. You think I'd really throw you away?"
"Uh, re, really?"
Kosak's face had turned as pale as a vampire Jepetto.
"Hey, why are you so scared? I told you I really won't do it!"
"Ye, yea-ah..."
How could he ever discard Kosak?
'Anyway, if I use this, does it mean I can summon 10 at once?'
He could summon the entire catalog at once.
When Princess Gyeon Dal-rae succeeds in her breakthrough and comes, let's climb the 77th floor together.
True to being an advanced nation in tower climbing, South Korea's Awakening Management Bureau was a place where various information about the Tower was shared and disseminated.
For example, information about the 74th-floor fox spirits, the 75th-floor earthbound spirits, and the 76th-floor Korean-style monsters.
Also, advice like: if possible, just complete the basic missions; but for certain floors, even the additional optional missions are worth attempting.
And one more thing.
Refrain from climbing the 80th floor.
Wouldn't it be better to go up as late as possible?
Refrain from climbing the 80th floor.
Everyone had noticed this.
That the 80th floor probably wasn't ordinary.
Because they had already experienced it once before.
The Cabalan Equilibrium's curse on the 70th floor.
What if a similar phenomenon occurred on the 80th floor?
It was clear the first nation to go up would bear the brunt.
So, everyone had reached an implicit agreement.
To park at a suitable floor.
But do things in the world go as planned?
It started with a single video uploaded to YouTube.
The video featured about ten people wearing animal masks.
They introduced themselves as the 'Apostles of Divine Faith'.
In the video, they made one demand to the U.S. government.
- Close and burn down all churches and religious temples within the United States.
- If the demand is not met, they would climb the Western Tower to the 80th floor.
That was all.
An absurd claim.
Close and burn all religious temples in the U.S.?
And if not, climb the Western Tower to the 80th floor?
Is this a threat?
Even if you only perform basic missions, the 70s aren't an easy section by any means.
This ridiculous video was briefly talked about by people before soon fading from memory.
Then, the video sparked controversy again.
Because such a thing actually happened.
The Western Tower's progression was at 73 floors cleared, challenging the 74th.
That Western Tower's 74th floor was conquered yesterday.
Did the top player conquer it?
But it wasn't Gerald.
Someone unknown.
Could it be the Apostles of Divine Faith?
The media began to pay attention.
The White House Department of Homeland Security was put on alert.
The next day.
Another threatening video was uploaded to YouTube.
A person wearing a lion mask demonstrated entering the Tower with a *Spot!* before disappearing.
A short while later.
The Western Tower's 75th floor was conquered.
The U.S. was thrown into an uproar.
There are two kinds of players.
Those under government control, and those not.
The former are state-nurtured players.
They contract with the state, receive meticulous management from professional personnel, and aim for higher-floor climbs.
The latter are general players.
They are free.
They have no obligation to climb higher floors.
Their main purpose is to receive magic stone rewards through repeated conquests.
In terms of numbers, general players are far more numerous.
Over 95% are general players.
Then, what about talent?
Are general players less talented compared to state-nurtured players?
Absolutely not.
State-nurtured players are strong because they receive government support.
Items, potions, trait enhancement runes, etc.
Proportionally, there might be even more talented people among the general players.
We just don't know because they haven't been discovered.
In the past, the U.S. experienced this.
There was a player who climbed unconquered higher floors faster than the state-nurtured players.
Back in the days when the collapse timers didn't overlap,
when you had to fill the full 6-month period before climbing the next floor...
Three unconquered floors of the U.S. Western Tower were conquered in just one month.
Uncontrolled conquest.
But there was no way to stop it.
How could you know when and where a player enters the Tower?
As the floors got higher and the difficulty increased, such incidents disappeared.
But now.
The same thing was happening again in the U.S. Western Tower.
The difference was there was a clear purpose this time.
A terror act using the 80th-floor climb as a means.
The FBI launched an investigation.
But revealing their identities based only on the video and the group's name was impossible.
Secretary MacMillan and Director Antonio conversed with serious expressions.
"This is insane. Apostles of Divine Faith? What kind of people are they?"
"A typical cult organization."
"And players capable of conquering the 70s belong to such a cult?"
"They must, since they conquered it."
"Sigh."
Of course, since the conquest timers overlap now, it has nothing to do with Tower collapse.
In a way, it's a good thing.
But what if they really succeed in climbing the 80th floor?
How can we know what will happen?
For example, a curse descending upon the entire Black Tower like the 70th-floor Cabalan.
"Antonio, what do you think? Do you believe they'll succeed in climbing the 80th floor?"
"At first, I thought it was impossible, but given they've conquered up to the 75th floor..."
The environment for it had been created.
The barrier of the undead section was gone.
The relatively easier 70s, the supply of Tower reward equipment.
Perhaps it could become a reality.
The possibility was sufficient.
As if to prove it,
the next day a new video was uploaded, and a person wearing a tiger mask entered the Tower.
And the 76th floor was conquered.
The U.S. was in an uproar.
Uncontrolled higher-floor climbing.
The 80th floor getting closer and closer.
Joo-hyuk also watched the breaking news on TV with his summoned beings.
It was the very thing he had worried about.
But he never expected it to happen this way, and in the U.S. of all places.
"Can they really climb it?"
The Mad Demon nodded as if it were obvious and spoke.
"Summoner has experienced it too. The basic missions of the 70s are very easy. With a certain level of talent and equipment, they can be conquered easily."
That's true, but...
Just the basic mission Inmyeonjo of the 76th floor is at the level of a wyvern, no, in some ways easier than a wyvern.
...Should he stop it?
He did have one Tower Floor Intrusion Ticket left.
Maybe he could stop them on the 77th floor somehow.
But those climbing now weren't individuals.
They are a strange group organization called the Apostles of Divine Faith.
What if there are two or more people climbing?
Even if I catch one, how do I catch the other?
"May this old man share his thoughts?"
"By all means."
"Whether they climb the 80th floor or fail, I think it might be fine to just leave them be."
"Hmm."
"It's a floor we have to climb eventually anyway. If stopping them was possible, that would be one thing, but if not..."
The Mad Demon's opinion was to let it be.
Since it's a floor we have to go up eventually.
"If something happens, will we be able to handle it?"
At Joo-hyuk's question, the Mad Demon smiled and said.
"Summoner."
"Yes,"
"In all my years, having personally experienced and indirectly heard of many summoners... among them, there has not been a single one, past or present, as strong as you."
"..."
The Mad Demon is good at flattery too.
"Who else could command ten summoned beings and move them all as one heart and mind?"
"..."
His face felt hot.
"It's not empty praise. You are the best. There will never be another summoner like you."
"..."
My chest swelled with pride.
"So, no matter what happens, don't worry. You will be able to overcome it."
Well, if you put it that way, He guessed there's no choice.
It's an American matter, so America would handle it.
The other summoned beings weren't particularly concerned either.
Razix was playing catch with Hyeol-rang, Veronica was napping, Bardin and Gobang were training their stamina, and Kosak was giving Jepetto mental training.
"I will memorize it. Summoner Bong's blood tastes bad."
"Tastes bad!"
"Just smelling it makes me want to vomit."
"I'll vomit!"
"The most delicious blood in the world is Gobang's blood."
"Gobang's blood is the best!"
Jepetto was thoroughly disciplined.
Even though they were the same grade, he couldn't defy Kosak.
Especially with the Mad Demon and Gobang glaring with wide eyes beside him.
"We must do well. We must be perfect."
"Perfect!"
"Bong Summoner-nim must have no need for Random Summon anymore."
"Random Summon absolutely not allowed!"
"Good. You're doing well."
Such was the peaceful world.
And finally, the very thing we feared ultimately happened.
Humankind encounters the Monarch of Monsters, Diamat (Copy), for the first time.
The Monarch of Monsters, Diamat (Copy), observes the world through the player who climbed the 80th floor.
Information of the world is transmitted to the original Diamat through the copy.
The Monarch of Monsters, Diamat (Original), manifests outside the Tower.
Manifests?
Like summoned beings?
But wait.
Is that it?
It was.
There were no following world announcements.
What about a curse or something?
A day passed, two days passed, three days passed...
The world remained quiet.