Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 017
Chapter Title: Awakening
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Through Kamiya, I'd obtained mana stones.
They varied in grade according to their size.
She'd been kind enough to honor my request.
'From lowest-grade to highest-grade. How much must all this be worth?'
I'd made my living off mana stones.
I'd even handled low-grade ones myself, so I knew the market prices.
'Mid-grade ones jump in price like crazy.'
I wasn't sure if the prices were still the same now.
It had already been months since I'd been trapped in here.
"Even mid-grade goes for millions of won per 100g."
High-grade and top-grade double or triple from there.
Tens of millions, even hundreds of millions per stone.
"This haul has to be over ten billion won at least."
To hand over something like this so readily.
She truly was at the pinnacle of Japan.
Kamiya was definitely loaded.
"But I can't sell them here, or even make use of them."
There was a problem.
I could utilize the lowest-grade ones myself.
They filled exactly 10 mana.
The issue came with anything higher.
I'd thought my mana capacity would expand to match what I consumed.
But no such luck.
The overflowing mana just leaked out.
I didn't even want to know where it went.
"So I figured I'd have to settle for lowest-grade ones."
But the tower had provided exactly what I needed, right on cue.
Eating this would let me store mana too.
The capacity, previously capped at 10, would grow.
I was about to find out by how much.
Gulp.
It was pill-shaped, so swallowing was easy.
As the pill slid down my throat...
"What?"
It triggered a change I hadn't anticipated at all.
Predation intervened, just like when I ate mana stones.
It recognized the pill entering my body.
I hurriedly opened my status window.
The numbers had gone up!
Mana limit from 10 to 11.
And a cryptic phrase appeared beside it.
"Digesting, huh."
A mana storage organ must have formed.
Instead, the changes from eating mana stones had evolved.
When that "Digesting" bar hits 100%.
That would be the end of the evolution.
'So waiting it out is the way? Wonder how it'll change.'
Waiting was something I was used to.
I'd grown numb to killing time that way.
"Gotta train mana control."
So I trained radiation control.
Pour in mana, and when it depletes, eat a mana stone.
I was in the middle of repeating this cycle.
"Oh!"
An unexpected bonus.
(10/12) Digesting: 2%
Does it go up by 1 per 1%?
Any positive change was welcome.
'Wonder if it'll transform big-time once digestion finishes.'
The unknown evolution excited me.
Motivation surged.
No rest until the passive levels up!
Not that my body needed rest anyway.
I was deep into training when...
A new alert appeared before my eyes.
"Earth... Quest?"
A notification I'd never seen before.
I examined it closely.
Earth Quest: Compete against another region's tower.
📍 Current region's tower monopolist: JYS. Teammate: ()
⏰ Time Limit: 359:59
🎁 Winner: Gains ownership of loser's tower for 90 days.
📍 Please select teammate by staring!
⏰ Failure to select within time limit results in 90-day loss of monopoly!
Reading it calmly, the picture was clear.
The winner kicks the loser out of their tower.
Same if you can't pick a teammate.
Wait. Kicked out?
"Ah, no way!"
It wasn't just a forced logout.
My situation was different.
Countless people milling around the Tower of Trials.
Hunters, reporters, officials, you name it.
Me popping out right in front of them.
I could picture it all too vividly.
Melting monsters.
Paradise turning into a death zone in seconds.
I broke out in a cold sweat.
"I need to pick a teammate."
It was a life-or-death survival issue, right then and there.
I'd be fine, sure.
But my morals. My sanity would shatter.
That much, I had to protect.
My family. My precious blood ties—I needed to see them safe.
"Whew. It'll be okay."
Regaining my composure, I thought it through.
Can't go back to cleared floors, so pass.
Yurek Han was recent, so cooldown.
Ways to meet outsiders here.
Go down, or get a related buff.
'Wait. Buff?'
Come to think of it, I'd given one to Kang Gut-geon.
The buff from conquering -6F this time.
Recalling it brought relief.
I couldn't come here right away, nor could he.
But we could make it happen.
"Phew, one worry down."
Sending a message to Lee Ha-rin would do it.
I wiped the cold sweat and composed one immediately.
Now, just wait.
I knew exactly what to do meanwhile.
'Passive. Level it up as much as possible!'
Bonus: Expand the mana tank too.
And so, 24-hour training commenced.
The new Earth Quest.
A week had passed since it appeared.
The age of despair had brought massive changes.
Insane difficulties. Nations falling.
Citizens trembled in fear.
They clung desperately to stronger hunters.
The middling ones got swept away.
They'd seen it all in footage, so the reaction was natural.
This time too.
A quest pitting nations against each other outright.
Each country's communities buzzed with speculation.
A flurry of opinions flew back and forth.
But the hottest topic was one.
Users backing different nations clashed.
Who's strongest, this side or that.
The communities were cyber battlefields today too.
Amid it all.
A post grabbed everyone's attention.
Topics shifted by the minute.
But one question lingered in every user's mind.
'So, who does JYS pick?'
Clink.
Lee Ha-rin set down her teacup.
She stopped scrolling through her smartphone.
Placed it down.
The hunter community app glowed on the screen.
"Kang Gut-geon."
She called to Korea's sole S-rank hunter.
Kang Gut-geon stabbed his fork into the cake.
Shoved a whole slice into his mouth.
Some might call it primal charm. Or disgusting.
Lee Ha-rin leaned toward the latter.
"I'm not stealing it."
"An animal's weakest moments are eating and sleeping. Meals are but an extension of battle."
Who'd attack him here anyway, weak or not.
It was the back of a private café.
A VIP-only space.
Regular patrons couldn't enter.
"Sigh, I called you here to talk."
"What is it?"
"A prophecy from JYS."
"Prophecy?"
Only then did Kang Gut-geon show interest.
He paused midway through devouring a whole cake.
Placed his thick, interlaced hands on the table.
"Now that's a tantalizing topic."
"Knew you'd think so. He had a message for you."
Teammate. If you wish, come down.
She recited the prophecy verbatim.
It was from the recently updated -6F.
Lee Ha-rin had intuited it.
'The new buff went to Taeguk!'
That explained the prophecy.
Blood tears welled up inside.
Why not her, but Taeguk.
She could do better.
More loyal than the brute before her.
'Sob sob.'
Regret and resentment bubbled up.
Irreverent thoughts. She reined them in with measured breaths.
"Sigh, do you understand this prophecy?"
"Of course."
Kang Gut-geon grinned.
Only a fool wouldn't.
The recently granted buff.
If from the noble one, it made perfect sense.
"The noble one granted me swift feet to go anywhere if Korea faces peril."
"Curious. Care to share the buff details?"
"With words alone?"
"You'll reveal it at the international conference anyway."
True enough.
All nations had agreed.
Public disclosure created invisible deterrence.
That was the point of the new international law.
"Can't win against you."
Kang Gut-geon raised a hand and explained the buff.
"Phase Shift... Formation?"
"Focus on the ether state."
That was the key.
In simple terms, the body turns ghostly.
Can pass through anything in that state.
That was why JYS gave it to Kang Gut-geon.
'He's Korea's only S-rank.'
He hoped it'd guard the nation well.
Her heart swelled.
How deeply he thought of everything.
"Huh? Ha-rin, why the sudden prayer?"
"...Stretching. Feeling stiff."
Praying in front of others was embarrassing.
Brushing it off, Lee Ha-rin asked.
"Heading there right away? Tower of Despair."
Records showed JYS on -6F.
If going, he could go now.
Especially in a state defying all matter.
"Have to. Thanks to you, Ha-rin. If I hadn't learned today, I'd have wasted it on some Korean crisis."
That would have been too close.
15-day cooldown on the buff.
Waste it casually, and Earth Quest fails.
"Then, I'll step out."
Lee Ha-rin needed to check her own skill growth too.
Steady progress thanks to his grace.
S-rank soon no pipe dream.
Then he'd favor her more, right?
'JYS. I'm working so hard for you.'
Her killing intent softened, mood swings lessened.
Lately, Lee Ha-rin felt truly alive.
Bzzz. Her smartphone vibrated.
Checking, it was Kamiya Akane.
The powerhouse who ignored her nation's pleas.
She'd finally arrived in Korea. The text read:
-Ha-rin. Trying Korean food. Heard Jjimdak? Sounds famous. Join me?
Couldn't pass this up.
Chance to see her bawl over spice.
Lee Ha-rin smirked and replied.
-Picking you up. Where?
Kang Gut-geon stood before the Tower of Trials.
The tower now deeply excavated.
A sealed black spire loomed in the deep underground.
The Tower of Despair.
"Radiation still present?"
"Yes. No one's approached yet."
"Then this body will be first."
"JYS was first."
"Ahem!"
Kang Gut-geon cleared his throat and advanced.
Hunter Bureau staff parted naturally.
He'd informed them already.
Kang Gut-geon going to meet JYS!
Of course, it was top secret.
Only a handful knew.
Staff just followed orders to let him pass.
"Shall we?"
Considering duration, he went alone.
At the danger zone, Kang Gut-geon activated the buff.
'Emergency Counter Formation.'
A magic circle bloomed instantly underfoot.
Unknown mana surged up.
The moment it enveloped him, his body changed.
"Oho."
Semitransparent form.
Body moved as he willed.
Just like a ghost.
Whoosh!
In seconds, he soared to the deep underground.
Terrifying speed.
Faster than any fighter jet.
Hypersonic missile level, if anything.
'Filthy fast.'
Anyway, he'd arrived.
The radiation-ravaged bottom.
Tower of Despair entrance welcomed Kang Gut-geon.
'That's the Tower of Despair.'
First time seeing it in person.
JYS endured solitude inside there.
Finally, he'd meet him.
Swallowing dryly, he advanced.
Swish.
Entered without issue.
A strange thrill washed over him.
Finally seeing the Tower of Despair myself!
'Hm? Nothing special.'
Expectations turned to disappointment.
No lush flora or environments like the Tower of Trials?
Nothing here.
Just desolate, silent white space.
So JYS had endured this space all along...
'How did he keep his sanity alone?'
Fit for a psychiatric ward.
He clicked his tongue involuntarily.
His mind. His realm.
Felt it indirectly. Shivers ran through him.
Truly the hidden supreme, the noble one.
Swallowing rising respect.
Kang Gut-geon descended further.
Passing -2F, -3F, -4F.
Soon reaching -6F.
'There!'
Someone sat in lotus position ahead.
Kang Gut-geon was certain.
Only one person in this tower.
Korea's Tower of Despair monopolist.
The noble one making Korea great again!
'Hold on.'
Was about to approach.
But something felt off.
He was breathing.
Mana around him surged in rhythm.
Kang Gut-geon noticed the change.
'No way... Awakening?!'
Handful across the world.
Beings beyond S-rank criteria.
A rare experience only they knew.
Transcending limits, breaking walls.
'Mana envelops them, forming shapes, they said.'
Just like the interviewee described.
Mana around JYS drew a shape.
In that slow transformation.
Kang Gut-geon held his breath.
Green circle.
Rhombus extending from center.
To south, northeast, northwest.
Like a radiation symbol.
The shape settled above his head.
It emitted a vivid glow.