Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: The Average Curse
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The Average Curse cast by Cabalan.
The nations selected in the first wave were climbing the un-conquered upper floors one by one.
Then, as if it were a lie, the tower collapse deadlines returned to normal.
Countries that had been delaying, even though they could pushed forward.
Starting with Mexico, South Africa, the Netherlands, Malaysia, and Kazakhstan succeeded in their conquests and set their tower collapse deadlines to six months.
Gerald, Antonio, and Minister MacMillan from the U.S. also landed at Incheon Airport.
Immediately upon arrival, Minister MacMillan held a press conference himself.
"The Holy Sword is the savior and lifeline that will prevent the collapse of towers worldwide. Any player from any nation who loses or damages the Holy Sword will have to face the wrath of the United States."
Anyone watching would think the Holy Sword's owner was American.
"Furthermore, we plan to recommend to the Korean Awakening Management Bureau that any player wishing to use the Holy Sword must have undergone at least one trait enhancement and submit a psychological evaluation report."
Meaning, if you're going to borrow it, borrow it properly,
having experienced the precedent with Saudi Arabia.
Anyway, Gerald arrived at the Awakening Management Bureau.
He immediately borrowed the Holy Sword and set out for the conquest.
The result?
Naturally, success.
It wasn't the bland radiance of before.
A dazzling, brilliant radiance of victory.
Once enveloped in that radiance, the Phantom Reaper's long-range dark aura attacks were useless.
And so, the list of first-wave selected countries gradually shrank.
People were reassured.
They thought the tower collapses would start any moment, but when you got down to it, it wasn't even a threat.
It's not that Japan didn't want to conquer it.
It's that they couldn't, not that they wouldn't.
Even the citizens seemed to have given up, with reactions tinged with self-deprecation.
And so, all countries except Japan breathed a sigh of relief.
The danger of tower collapse seemed to be decreasing.
But as if to laugh at those people's feelings, another World Announcement appeared.
.
.
The world was thrown into chaos again.
Since the World Announcement could be heard by everyone, players and ordinary people alike, the shock was even greater.
The announcement of the second wave of selected nations for tower climbing.
A whopping 20 countries.
This time, Korea was also absent.
Korean Awakening Management Bureau.
Chief Park Kyung-su said with a sly smile.
"Hehe, Korea is out again this time. It wouldn't hurt to be included once in a while, you know."
At that moment, Jeon Gwang-il raised his voice sharply.
"Chief!!! Why on earth would you say that?"
"Oops, sorry, sorry. My mouth runs away from me. It just shows how comfortable we are in Korea..."
"Ah, come on!!!"
"...S-sorry, I take back everything I just said."
Park Kyung-su was a living testament to the saying that words become seeds.
"If you're bored, please take on some other work. I'm so busy these days even ten bodies wouldn't be enough."
"Well, that's because you're trying to do everything alone. Delegate the manageable tasks to your staff."
"My staff hasn't been home for three days. How bad must it be for the bureau to start smelling rotten?"
"Oh dear!"
They were truly swamped, without a moment to breathe.
Inquiries about Holy Sword reservations, adjusting reservation schedules, managing elite players, guiding foreign players coming to borrow Holy Swords.
"Give me a task too. Even as the Chief, I should lend a hand."
"Well, it's fine. Later, just the corporate card or..."
That's when it happened. Bzzz! Jeon Gwang-il's smartphone rang.
"May I take this call for a moment?"
"Who is it?"
"It's Player Bong Joo-hyuk."
"Gasp! Answer it quickly. Don't mind me."
Jeon Gwang-il pressed the call button and answered.
"Yes, this is Jeon Gwang-il. Hahaha! Busy? The world has suddenly changed, we have to run like our lives depend on it."
He answered with a deliberately hearty laugh.
"But what can I do for you.... Ah! Yes, yes, conquering the original Cabalan Duke is indeed the best method... That's right. Reaching an average of 70 floors is possible, but it will take a lot of time. Yes, yes, uh, yes?"
His complexion instantly changed drastically,
"I, I must have misheard, but one more time... Gasp! A-are you serious?... N-naturalization, you say?"
Hearing that, Chief Park Kyung-su also jumped up.
"What? Naturalization? What are you talking about? W-wait! Let me listen too."
He switched the smartphone to speaker mode.
- It's not permanent naturalization. Temporary naturalization. For France.
"Temporary naturalization is still n-naturalization. Temporary can become permanent later."
- That's why I'm asking the Bureau to handle it safely on my behalf. Two weeks should be enough. So I can meet the Cabalan copy and come back. Please.
"..."
Jeon Gwang-il couldn't bring himself to answer.
Park Kyung-su was the same.
A bolt from the blue they never expected.
Player Bong Joo-hyuk's request for temporary naturalization to France.
"Ch-Chief, what should we do?"
"No, why are you asking me that?"
"Then who should I ask?"
"Well, that's true..."
After pondering for a moment,
"Deputy Chief, can you persuade Player Bong?"
"...It seems he's already made up his mind."
It sounded that way to Park Kyung-su too.
"What's the possibility of him permanently naturalizing to France later?"
"Slim. It's clear he's in Korea now, and he's not the type to lie."
"Surely he wouldn't go to France directly later, would he?"
"He won't. If his goal is climbing the Black Tower."
One more thing.
"Assuming Player Bong temporarily naturalizes, what risks might appear?"
"His identity could be revealed."
"Player Bong Joo-hyuk couldn't possibly be unaware of that."
"He probably knows. Knowing his personality, he must have considered everything before calling."
Park Kyung-su nodded and said.
"Then let's process the paperwork for him. You go to the French Embassy."
"...Sigh, I suppose we must. We have no right to stop him anyway. How much should we tell France?"
"Give them a vague explanation. Whether they find out later or not. And let's keep this matter between just the two of us."
"Yes."
And so, Joo-hyuk's temporary naturalization to France was decided.
Joo-hyuk finished the call with Jeon Gwang-il.
He wanted to take time to think, but delaying would lead to big trouble.
The second World Announcement.
Another 20 countries selected.
Cabalan, that son of a bitch, is probably hiding in the tower enjoying this situation.
He couldn't just leave it be.
He had to show just how scary an ordinary guy can get when he's pissed off.
Of course, he wouldn't do it directly.
An ordinary guy had his own way.
'He keeps bothering me. Please teach him a lesson.'
"Designated Summon: Gwang-ma."
Poof! Gwang-ma appeared.
"Summoner."
"Long time no see, Gwang-ma-nim. Actually..."
"The demon Cabalan Duke has appeared."
"...Yes."
It seemed Gwang-ma's restriction regarding the 70th floor had also been lifted.
"Is it the original, or a copy?"
"It's a copy for now. I plan to use the copy to find the original."
"Surely it's not the Korean tower? Summoner, have you ascended to the 70th floor..."
"No. The French Black Tower."
"Ah! Then someone must have used a loophole to ascend."
Gwang-ma nodded and continued.
"Summoner, if you've decided to find the original... You're planning to naturalize to France?"
"Yes, just for a few days, temporarily."
"Good, very good."
As expected of Gwang-ma-nim.
He saw through many things with just a few words.
"May I hold your wrist for a moment?"
"Please do."
Joo-hyuk obediently offered his wrist.
Whoosh, an energy seeped in.
"How much have you trained in the Heaven-Earth Unity Art?"
"I make sure to do at least an hour every day."
"Hahaha, as expected."
"...Is my training insufficient?"
It felt like having his homework checked.
Should he have trained harder?
"No, it's just right. Advancing your realm too quickly disrupts the harmony of Essence, Energy, and Spirit; excess becomes poison."
He did an hour a day, and that's excessive?
"You are overflowing with talent."
"Me?"
"It shouldn't be the first time you've heard that."
"..."
Kosak had mentioned it before.
He took it as half flattery, half truth.
"Anyway, there's no need to worry. Still, don't let your guard down. If something dangerous happens, summon first and ask questions later."
Ahh. To think he's such a considerate person.
"I've prepared a drinking table. Let's have a drink."
"I shall not decline."
Their third drinking session with Gwang-ma.
Given the state of the world, it wasn't the time for heavy drinking, but this was also part of the business.
"There's something I'd like to ask of you, Gwang-ma-nim, in the French Black Tower.... If it's not too much to ask..."
Right then! Gwang-ma frowned and turned serious.
"Hmph."
Oops, did he make a mistake?
"Summoner."
"...Yes?"
His expression wasn't good. Well, he had a right to be angry.
When he hadn't even accepted his opinion, asking for a favor while pouring a few drinks—who wouldn't be upset?
"Um, if you're displeased..."
"As I mentioned before, this old man is your sword and blade. In such matters, you should not request, but command. This old man will gladly obey."
"Uh..."
So that's what it was about?
He suddenly felt sorry.
"I'm sorry. I didn't even know that."
"If you're sorry, let's take over France while we're at it. France has a presidential system, right?"
"..."
"Kehehehe... I jest."
It didn't seem like a joke.
He really couldn't let his guard down.
"Call me anytime. If we leave Cabalan alone, it'll be a disaster. What good is conquering a world full of holes from tower collapses? Even this old man doesn't wish for that."
Anyway, he got Gwang-ma's firm agreement too.
Now all that's left was processing the naturalization documents.
The next day.
Counselor Lavio Henri, working at the French Embassy in Korea, went to the promised location.
A request had come from the Korean Awakening Management Bureau.
One of Korea's elite players wanted to acquire French nationality for 15 days.
The reason?
Just because he wanted to conquer the French Black Tower, even if only for two weeks.
It was absurd.
A Black Tower is a Black Tower.
Did he think baguettes came out as rewards from the French Black Tower?
Normally, he should have refused.
Granting temporary naturalization without a special purpose, not even permanent naturalization, was something you couldn't do even for a player.
Maybe if it was for climbing an un-conquered upper floor.
However, the French Black Tower was currently conquered up to the 69th floor.
Entry to the 70th floor was also possible.
It was the world's number one Black Tower conquest progress that they never wanted.
Because of a terrible accident they didn't even want to think about.
Because of this, the French government was in a tight spot.
Europe's troll nation that brought Cabalan's curse upon them, the nuisance country that shortened the tower collapse deadlines.
But now the Korean Awakening Management Bureau said they would defend France.
Saying it wasn't France's fault.
That it was just an accident due to an individual's transgression.
The prestige of the Korean Management Bureau, the entity lending the Holy Swords, was higher than any other national organization.
If they could really do that for them, what couldn't they do in return?
Temporary naturalization?
An easy task.
Since the procedure was manualized, it could be processed simply.
So he hurriedly prepared the documents and rushed to the promised location, a coffee shop in Cheongdam-dong, Seoul.
They had called ahead.
He had asked for a description, so finding him wasn't difficult.
"Are you perhaps Mr. Bong Joo-hyuk?"
"Ah, yes. You must be Counselor Lavio Henri?"
"Please call me Lavio. You wish to temporarily naturalize, I hear."
"Umm, just for about two weeks. Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Lavio."
Counselor Lavio Henri took out documents and placed them on the table.
"Please fill out the documents by hand. Gender, age, name, address here."
Who would have known?
That he would be signing naturalization documents.
"You know how the system works, right? Temporary naturalization for players is more like a system-based naturalization rather than an actual one."
"I know."
He had looked it up in advance.
"It's not over just by filling out the documents. The will of the player wishing to naturalize is important. The will to naturalize, that is. Otherwise, it won't process normally."
The reason Joo-hyuk had to appear in person.
If not for this, he would have sent Kosak instead.
"The temporary naturalization period is 15 days. We'll meet again then to complete the procedure for canceling French nationality."
Joo-hyuk diligently filled out the documents and finally signed.
"All done. It will take about 3 hours for the documents to be sent to the French naturalization office and processed. Check your status window later."
"Thank you."
The procedure was simpler than expected.
It was a matter of meeting just two conditions.
The player's will to naturalize, and official document registration.
Renouncing nationality was the same.
The player's will to renounce nationality, and the French government's approval to allow the renunciation.
That's why forced naturalization was also possible.
Use torture or threats to change the player's mind, and force them to sign the documents.
And so, Joo-hyuk parted ways with Counselor Lavio Henri and returned home.
The result of the naturalization would come soon.
How to check?
Just look at the status window.
[Name] : Bong Joo-hyuk
[Affiliation] : Black Tower (France)
Like that.
'How strange. My nationality changed.'
Even if it's just system-wise.
Now, for the Summoned Beings first. Poof!
"Boo! Kosak is here."
"Bonjour!"
"...Huh?"
"It's a greeting."
"What, really?"
"Yes, from today I'm French. Please call me Monsieur Bong from now on."
"Y-yes, sir..."
So, like a proper French person.
"Oh, Monsieur Gobang, let's have some Camembert cheese after we finish the conquest later. With some wine."
"..."
"Oh! Bonjour, Mademoiselle."
"...Yes, yes. Young Master."
"Monsieur Razix, merci beaucoup as always."
"Hooong?"
"Mademoiselle V..."
"Zzz, zzz, zzz,"
"She's asleep."
Now, then, French Tower entry.
No need to go to France directly.
From the penthouse, floor 61.
Why specifically floor 61?
Because there was something to check first.
Entering France Black Tower Floor 61.
Dark Mummies and such,
"Let's finish this quickly. Monsieur Kosak."
"Yes, sir! Monsieur Bong Summoner-nim."
He took out the Holy Sword,
"Light!!!"
Gobang and Kosak beat them to a pulp.
Whack whack whack whack!
'...Hmm.'
Exiting France Black Tower.
Poof!
As expected.
Joo-hyuk's current level is 67.
A 6-level difference from the appropriate level for floor 61.
It seems a badge isn't awarded with a 6-level difference.
'Then what about floor 62?'
One more entry.
Honestly, going back and forth from the penthouse didn't make him feel like he was naturalized.
When entering tomorrow, he should use the Tower Exit Ring to go directly to France.
Might as well do some sightseeing in France too.
Entering France Black Tower Floor 62.
Dark Zombies.
Same as before.
"Light!!!"
Whack whack whack!
Gobang beat the zombies to a pulp in the blink of an eye.
🏆Reward:Platinum Badge
"Oh!"
A 5-level difference was recognized as an S++ conquest.
He also received a Platinum Badge.
How many in total?
68 from normal conquests, 1 from the multi-national tower access pass, and 1 from the French Black Tower floor 62 after naturalization.
Total badges: 68.
Two more for the special privilege.
And in the midst of that.
Players affiliated with France finally heard the S++ rank conquest record announcement they had only heard about.
Wait, what is this now?
Why is an S++ rank conquest message coming from France?