Chapter 9

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 9

Chapter Title: No Free Rides

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Suddenly, the boss defeat notification popped up, and I couldn't help but be flustered.

All I'd done was use Pain Release. What the hell?

Just in case, I scanned the surroundings, but as expected, there was no one around except me.

"...Did it crit or something?"

To confirm for sure that the boss was dead, I tossed a firebomb at it.

Whoosh—

The basilisk, engulfed in flames, didn't even twitch.

I approached cautiously and prodded it a few times with the riding crop. Still nothing.

"No way, it's really dead?"

A gatekeeper like this, writhing in agony until it died? Shock death, maybe?

I was utterly perplexed about how to process this situation.

But that bewilderment soon turned to joy, then outright elation.

"Fuuu—ck—ing! Insane! That's right! This is S-grade! Who's calling it trash?!"

I was in the middle of venting my intense emotions when the clear rewards came pouring in.

"Gasp! ...First achievement?"

The moment I checked the reward details, my mind went blank.

I was so shocked I couldn't move for a good while.

"...I really did something insane."

I never imagined I'd be the first.

An unprecedented feat no one had ever accomplished.

I'd solo-killed the boss. As a healer, no less.

That's when a system alert suddenly rang out.

Ding—

"......?"

A system announcement? That was a first.

And the content was on another level of unbelievable.

"We can re-enter the boss floor now?"

That meant farming and bus runs were possible.

For hunters stalled by the gate or high-spec hunters, this was the best news imaginable.

It was an enormous event.

"What the hell did I do...?"

But somehow, I felt wronged.

I did all the hard work alone, yet everyone else benefits...

"No way. The Tower system can't be that sloppy."

There had to be benefits for the achievement holder too.

I hurriedly checked the reward item.

"Holy shit, jackpot..."

Around the same time,

Hunter Net was absolute chaos.

The system announcement itself was huge, but the content was the real issue.

Boss floor re-entry, once just a hypothesis, had become reality.

The reaction was explosive.

Support-class hunters were especially ecstatic.

Normal floors could be hitched somehow, but boss floors left no room unless you were combat-class.

Clear success or failure meant life or death, so no amount of money guaranteed a party spot.

That wall had finally crumbled.

For hunters blocked by the gate, unable to grow, this flipped the board.

Top guilds mobilized, and the Management Bureau switched to emergency mode in an instant.

"C-grade and above production-class, make contact! Hurry!"

"Assemble a task force now and run 5th floor sims."

"Compile today's entrant list and report."

The 5th floor unlock was Korea Tower-exclusive, but soon the whole world was buzzing.

Flights to Korea sold out instantly, and cooperation requests and inquiries flooded the Bureau.

The ripple effects were spreading at tremendous speed.

Exiting to the lobby floor, I felt an unusual tension and bustle in the air.

Had to be the system announcement.

It was my doing, but it was plenty event-worthy.

Something told me I shouldn't stick around, so to sort my thoughts, I decided to head home for the first time in ages.

My feet naturally led me to my one-room.

Stepping out of the subway and into the alley, some shady figures approached me.

"Cha Yeonwoo."

Black suits. Transparent earpieces.

They screamed out of place in this rundown one-room neighborhood.

Who were these guys? And why me?

"Who are you?"

"Someone wishes to meet you discreetly. Spare us some time."

A chill ran through me as my senses sharpened, crisis instinct kicking in.

This situation was anything but normal.

They knew exactly who I was.

I immediately refused.

"Too tired today. No can do."

"We'd rather not force you. Let's go."

Despite the polite words, they closed in like they were ready to subdue me by force.

Cold sweat trickled down my spine.

On reflex, I opened my inventory and pulled out the sprayer.

Squirt— Squirt—

It made a ridiculous toy-like sound totally unfit for the moment.

Absurd in this situation, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but the effect was immediate.

The men clutched their faces, hit by the pain extract.

"Guhhh!"

"Subdue him!"

At the same time, the unaffected ones narrowed the gap.

I gritted my teeth, firing the sprayer while swallowing the reactivated poison elixir.

"Fuck..."

The pain surged, and I immediately unleashed Pain Release.

"Aaaagh!"

Sprayer in one hand, riding crop in the other.

Backing away while pouring out the pain nonstop.

Does it hurt?

It hurts me too.

But I can endure it.

One by one, the men staggered from the agony.

In the Tower, I'd grab firebombs and the war hammer, but doing that in reality lands me straight in jail.

Thud—

Eventually, not a single one could stand properly, so without a second thought, I turned and sprinted full speed.

Only after escaping the alley and blending into the crowd could I finally catch my breath.

That's when it hit me. My home was no longer a safe zone.

I didn't even enter the one-room, heading straight back to the hotel.

Damn bastards. Couldn't even give me time to grab some clothes.

I didn't know who planned this, but it pissed me off.

Next time I see them, I'll heal-torture the truth out of the ringleader.

As I fumed for a while, my heightened emotions settled.

Then I recalled that moment of brilliance.

"Kuh, totally badass."

How did I even think of that in the heat of the moment?

Chopping pain into bits to use. A method that works everywhere, Tower or reality.

I'm a real genius.

Self-praise lifted my mood a bit.

"Wonder how the announcement reactions are going."

I couldn't resist checking Hunter Net.

I tapped a pinned popular post at the top.

It was super long, but after reading it all, things started clicking in my head.

Support hunters growing for real, flooding the market with crafted gear, boosting overall hunter specs a tier.

With boss mats unlocked too, the entire Tower meta flips...

"This guy's analysis is spot on."

Should remember the name.

Lots of other fun and informative popular posts.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Mostly hope-chaining, even hype about 40F clear succeeding.

Especially eye-catching: analysis on foreign hunters flooding in. Music to my ears.

Because they were all my money.

"Let's check the seal again."

I pulled the intricately engraved ring from my inventory.

Damn, still impressive.

Toyed with it a bit, then cautiously slipped it on my finger.

A system notification popped up immediately.

Heh heh, at this rate, I'm basically a landlord.

Limited to Tower space, just the 5th floor gate, but still.

Like rent. The toll collection right was mine.

Balance showed someone had already cleared.

But how to withdraw?

Poked and prodded, no reaction.

"No one knows this, right?"

Not expecting much, I scoured Hunter Net for similar cases.

Then spotted a title among the populars.

My blood ran cold in an instant.

Info leaking on Hunter Net of all places... I'd set profile public briefly for 1F party hunting and forgot.

"...Didn't switch profile to private, huh."