Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: The Ordinary Guy's Tower Conquest Method - Part 3
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Twenty years had passed since the pitch-black towers were erected.
Smooth cylindrical shapes, painted black exteriors, and a scale so immense it dwarfed even the most common high-rise skyscrapers—truly enormous structures.
One to three towers had been erected in each country around the world.
South Korea had one.
Its location was a mountainous area in Hwacheon, Gangwon Province.
When the towers first appeared suddenly, overnight,
militaries were mobilized and scientists and media gathered from each nation to investigate their nature.
But no one could get close to the towers.
They were visible, but physically blocked.
It seemed to deny human entry.
The same was true from the sky.
What in the world is that?
Why did it appear?
No one knew until the Players appeared.
The facts learned after they appeared:
The Tower exists to be climbed.
By whom?
Of course, the Players.
People who had earned the qualification to enter the Tower.
The estimated number of Players relative to the total population was 0.01% to 0.02%.
Out of a global population of 7 billion, roughly between 700,000 and 1.5 million people.
In South Korea, out of 50 million people, about 5,000 to 10,000.
Only Players could ignore the constraints of time and space, entering and exiting the Tower anytime, anywhere, as they pleased.
And when they enter the Tower?
They complete the missions assigned on each floor.
Tower climbing was like a game.
Inside the Tower, Players use their powerful abilities and skills to overcome arduous missions as they ascend.
Fundamentally, Players are independent.
Parties or cooperative climbing are impossible.
It's structured that way.
Even if performing the same mission on the same floor, their phases are separated.
They never meet each other inside the Tower.
Alone, without anyone's help.
In effect, a single Player determines the fate of a nation.
Succeeding in a mission yields rewards.
In the real world.
The Magical Stones they brought back had become an indispensable resource in modern industry.
Rewards grew larger the higher you climbed.
But no one knew how many floors could be climbed in the Tower.
The country that climbed the highest was the United States, reaching the 66th floor, possessing two towers, and successfully conquering the 66th floor in both.
South Korea's climbing speed was also quite impressive.
It had reached the 65th floor.
Just one floor behind the US.
So why climb?
Is there a need to keep ascending?
It's not just for the rewards.
If an unconquered upper floor is not climbed, the Tower collapses.
The deadline is roughly six months.
Within that time, some Players must ascend to the unconquered upper floor.
What if the upper floor isn't renewed?
And eventually,
The collapse of a Tower.
A tremendous catastrophe.
It's not just the Tower that crumbles.
The ground of the entire city where the Tower stood splits open, magma erupts, massive sinkholes appear everywhere, and the entire city disappears.
That's what happened in India three years ago.
India had three towers.
New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai.
Among them, the Mumbai Black Tower climb stalled at the 43rd floor, and after about 180 days, the event occurred.
Over ten million people died, and Mumbai is now a vanished city.
But it doesn't end with one disappearing.
A new Tower rose in Chennai, India.
So India still has three Black Towers.
Collapse, and then creation.
Thus, Tower climbing became a matter for national governments to directly address.
Countries separately formed and managed 'Elite Tower Climbing Teams'.
There is only so much a nation can do for Tower climbing,
like providing items that can be taken into the Tower, caring for Players' mental states, or obtaining and sharing strategy information.
After all, only Players can enter the Tower.
Outside, they are ordinary people, so personal protection is also necessary.
Players also have a time limit.
If they don't enter the Tower for more than three months, their qualification is revoked.
Therefore, nations were desperate to secure and manage talented Players.
Bong Joo-hyuk finished his part-time job at the charcoal grill restaurant and returned home.
He had already said he would take tomorrow off.
He had also called the convenience store owner.
'Let's try entering the Tower.'
Just a taste test.
If it's bad, I can just spit it out.
If I do nothing for three months, it'll just become a passing thing.
[Universal Skills] : Tower Entry (Once per day) / Tower Exclusive Inventory
Since I've decided, I'll get it over with now.
I've researched beforehand what the first floor is like.
The mission is monster subjugation.
Their defense is quite high, but their attack power is almost non-existent.
Just beat them to death and it's over.
They're tough and don't die easily, but...
"Alright, then..."
Wait!
A sudden thought.
Should I summon the mad assassin John Kosak?
Isn't there a slightly better direction?
Summoning someone else, sane, instead of John Kosak.
What if a Legend Special Super Rare grade pops up?
Good.
Let's try it first and then think about it.
One more Random Summon.
But,
'...There's a cooldown?'
Presumably about a month.
Designated Summon for Kosak is 3 hours.
That makes sense.
It doesn't cost any resources, so if there was no cooldown, you could just keep pulling until you get a good grade.
Let's just summon Kosak.
SR, Super Rare is also an incredibly excellent grade, right?
He won't know I tried to call someone else, will he?
I hope he doesn't.
Well then...
"John Kosak Designated Summon!"
Whoosh! Fwip!
This time too, a message appeared asking to rate satisfaction.
Feeling sorry, I gave 5 out of 5.
"Summoner Bong, thank you for the 5 points. Loyalty! Just give the orders."
Aah!
To think he's such an accommodating person.
"I've decided. Let's enter the Tower."
"Oooh! Already? How brave. ...Ah, no, forget what I just said. You shouldn't be brave."
"Don't worry. I just plan to get a taste and get out."
"As expected, you are wise. Once inside the Tower, please don't lift a finger. I will drive comfortably and safely."
John Kosak rubbed his palms together, fawning.
Joo-hyuk nodded his head, seemingly satisfied.
He doesn't know, right?
The fact that I tried to summon someone else just a moment ago.
I'd feel bad if he knew.
"Shall we go? Oh! We can enter together from here, right?"
"Of course, we go together. I am Summoner Bong's tool and hunting dog. Hehe."
Really?
Well then,
Tower Entry.
Current time: 11 PM.
The entry cooldown is on a daily basis.
Meaning, even if I enter now, after an hour passes and it's midnight, I can enter again.
But is there a need to be that diligent?
Naturally,
"To the 1st floor."
Fwip!
From Bong Joo-hyuk's studio apartment,
he and John Kosak vanished simultaneously.
Finally entered.
Simultaneously, system messages scrolled up.
Automatic physical ability enhancement...
I did feel slightly stronger, albeit subtly.
Even though it's only Level 1.
"I will proceed. Please follow."
The entrance was a safe zone.
To receive the mission, we had to go further inside.
Once the mission appears, the conquest begins.
Ding!
[1st Floor Mission]
📍 Objective: Defeat 5 Tough Hide Fat Maggots.
⏰ Time Limit: Within 2 hours.
🎯 Progress: Tough Hide Fat Maggot 0/5
❌ Failure: Death or mission abandonment.
The mission was simple monster subjugation.
But for Joo-hyuk, it wasn't simple at all.
'Sigh...'
Worries piled up like mountains.
Catch maggots?
The terrain was a wasteland without a single blade of grass.
Maggots crawling sluggishly here and there.
Their size was that of a small dog.
I couldn't even tell which end was the front.
No limbs, no eyes, nose, or mouth.
So they likely had no means of attack.
Instead,
'Their hide is tough.'
Meaning they're hard to kill easily.
And that was true.
Listening to other Players' experiences, at best you could kill one every 30 minutes.
There were even Players who messed around and failed the mission.
Well, failing doesn't mean you die.
The first floor is a place to test your skills.
The Tough Hide Fat Maggots crawling around there are a sort of training dummy concept.
Can Mr. Kosak handle it well?
Generally, Players with the Summoning trait share levels with their summons(?).
If Joo-hyuk is Level 1, then John Kosak is also Level 1.
But since he's displayed by a separate grade instead of level, it might be different.
"You know the first floor mission, right?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Then let's go."
"Loyalty! I will obey your command."
Fwip!
Kosak disappeared on the spot.
"Huh?"
Where'd he go?
In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of one maggot.
He threw a glowing red dagger.
Spirit!
Thud!
Boom!
The Tough Hide Fat Maggot exploded.
"...Wow."
That easily?
One down.
"I'll finish quickly."
The skill John Kosak used.
When it pierced the maggot's body, it just exploded.
Spirit! Thud! Boom! Spirit! Thud! Boom! Spirit! Thud! Boom...
Two, three, four... the fifth and final one.
Followed by,
'...What is this,'
It was an instant clear.
At the very least, he wasn't Level 1.
And the S++ Conquest Grade.
Does the conquest get graded too?
'Must be something good.'
Whatever it is, it's definitely something amazing.
That's why there were two rewards.
Normally you only get Magical Stones.
'A Platinum Badge...'
What's it used for?
Seems like it's given for achieving an S++ Conquest Grade.
Fwip!
The environment changed in an instant.
It was Joo-hyuk's studio apartment.
'Home.'
Already finished the mission and came back?
'How much time passed?'
I entered at 11.
But now it's 11:03.
Only 3 minutes passed.
Reading the messages on the first floor took about 1 minute.
Moving to the mission area took about 1 minute.
The actual time spent killing maggots... 1 minute, no, less than a minute.
"Good work. Hehe,"
John Kosak smiled brightly.
"I just stood there without doing anything..."
"That was well done."
"..."
Is this a dream?
Spirit! Thud! Boom! and then, Fwip! and we're back.
'It was really easy?'
The status window showed [Level] : 2LV
I heard others say they're exhausted from desperately beating maggots by the time they finish.
Let's check if the rewards came in.
Tower Exclusive Inventory.
It works outside too.
However, you can only store and retrieve rewards received from the Tower; other items can't be placed inside.
'...It's here.'
Magical Stone 100g.
Also, the Platinum Badge.
It was a real, physical badge.
'Am I supposed to wear it on my chest?'
How embarrassing.
I took out the Magical Stone.
A shiny piece of stone the size of a fingernail.
100g is worth about 50,000 won at current market prices.
The price of Magical Stones has been falling day by day.
They were quite expensive initially.
That is, when humanity first got their hands on Magical Stones.
Now they're in abundant supply.
'The first person to conquer a floor must have made a fortune.'
I heard there's a first conquest system for each Tower.
The Player who first completes each floor's mission receives rewards multiplied by 10, sometimes up to 50 times.
And rewards aren't just Magical Stones, right?
Completing high-floor missions above the 30th yields all sorts of bizarre items.
'Still, I made 50,000 won.'
And in just 3 minutes.
Beaming, a light seemed to shine from Kosak's face beside him.
"Shall we get some late-night snacks? What do you like?"
"I eat anything well."
"How about pig's feet?"
"...S-spicy pig's feet?"
"No, garlic pig's feet."
"Garlic is... also spicy..."
He's severely weak to spice.
"Then I'll order regular front leg."
"Ehehehe, I'll enjoy it. Thank you for your kindness."
What kindness with pig's feet.
"By the way, Mr. Kosak."
"Yes, sir!"
"Is your speech pattern originally like that?"
"Which part do you mean?"
"No, the way you shorten the endings so much."
"Th-that's from being with my previous Summoner for a long time..."
Ah.
So it's like the handiwork of an ex-boyfriend?
In this case, it would be the previous Summoner's handiwork.
"If it's uncomfortable to hear, I will fix it."
"No, the more I hear it, the more fun it gets. Hahaha!"
"Hehehe!"
Anyway, I gained confidence.
'It's doable.'
Not dangerous at all.
Even if it's just the first floor.