The Sherpa's Retaliation
Mu-saeng’s expression barely shifted from moments before.
Yet Wahsh could tell. The light in his eyes was entirely different now, and Wahsh was hardly blind to the kind of resolve burning within them.
[You won't be able to take revenge on that primitive beast with your own strength.]
"......"
Revenge.
Wahsh had listened to the human in the broadcast babbling away. While he had not grasped every single nuance of the primitive apes' language, the reality of the situation spoke for itself.
That human left him behind—no, he betrayed him and fled.
If he had merely been abandoned by accident, his eyes would never hold such a chilling glint. This was blatant betrayal, plain and simple, without an ounce of room for misunderstanding.
Just like those bastards at the summit...
Wahsh drifted smoothly through the air until he hovered directly before Mu-saeng's face. Mu-saeng did not spare him so much as a passing glance. Aside from a momentary check of the GPS navigation, his gaze remained locked onto the road ahead, periodically sweeping the side and rearview mirrors.
It was not a deliberate snub. To consciously ignore someone meant you were acutely aware of their presence. In that sense, Mu-saeng was in a state of absolute, razor-sharp focus.
That, too, struck Wahsh as remarkable. He was driving straight toward the target of his vengeance with an ally of immense power riding shotgun, yet he paid him no heed whatsoever?
[Hmph. Well, if you're acting cocky thinking you can lean on me, I'll tell you right now: forget it. That 'dungeon' place was fine, but—]
It was meant as a warning that he could not manifest his power outside spaces bound to the Mythic Tower. But that had been the exact reason Mu-saeng had not bothered asking him in the first place.
"I never expected anything from you to begin with, Wahsh."
He had no intention of relying on him.
Wahsh tilted his yellow head curiously.
[Then what do you plan to do? There's a con~siderable gap between you and that runt, to put it mildly.]
"Using Awakener abilities outside the Tower or dungeons is a direct breach of the Nevada Treaty anyway. If an outfit the size of Geumseong wouldn't dare violate it, One Way sure as hell won't."
[Nevada?]
In response, Mu-saeng swiftly tapped his smartphone screen and pulled up a video.
It appeared to have been filmed from an immense distance. Across a sprawling desert canyon, a skyline glimmered faintly on the horizon. In the heart of that dazzling metropolis, an explosion erupted without warning. A searing sphere of light expanded outward, followed an instant later by a colossal mushroom cloud tearing into the heavens. The city of endless revelry, bustling day and night, had been wiped clean off the face of the earth.
[...The power of a red dwarf.]
"During the early days of awakening, the Apostle of Apollo lost his temper over a gambling dispute and unleashed his full strength. Vaporized the whole of Las Vegas in a blink. Man, I really wanted to visit there at least once."
Once humanity witnessed just how cataclysmic an SSR-rank ability could be, global cooperation became unavoidable. Under the Nevada Treaty, using an Awakener ability outside the Tower or dungeons—regardless of how low its rank might be—would invite the harshest penalties under international law upon discovery. Depending on the severity and circumstance, its provisions even authorized summary execution on the spot.
[Hmph~ Even so, he still has primitive goons guarding him... And judging purely by physical specs, your chances of pulling off revenge are practically zero—]
VROOOOOM!
[—Kkwak?!]
As the sedan suddenly surged forward, the floating rubber duck bumped lightly against the passenger headrest. Mu-saeng was well aware of the odds. Yet that was precisely why he kept his foot on the gas.
"That's why I'm going right now. Because that's what everyone expects."
Their complacency. And a newly discovered method.
Reaching into his duffel bag, Mu-saeng fished something out and swallowed it whole.
"Ugh, tastes awful."
He uncapped a water bottle and gulped down several mouthfuls.
"Phew..."
"Tremendous work, Managing Director!"
"Incredible job, sir!"
As Lee Eunwoo wiped a sheen of sweat from his forehead and stepped backstage, One Way Group's chief secretary, administrative aides, and private security detail bowed in unison. The eighteen-year-old boy accepted their deference as his natural birthright, slumping casually into a leather armchair.
"A five-minute recess?"
"Yes, sir. We already announced you would be revealing exclusive intel regarding the Master of Snakes, so nobody will dream of leaving early."
"Hmm... good. Any word from my father or grandfather?"
"The Chairman hasn't reached out directly, but the President was exceedingly pleased. We also received confirmation that chartered flights carrying elite Awakeners from One Way Philippines and One Way Cambodia have already departed."
"Heh. Those bastards will be crawling on their knees just to hear a whisper of my intel... Perfect."
A smug grin spread across Eunwoo's face. His chief secretary stepped forward cautiously, lowering his voice.
"We've already coordinated stories with Section Chief Park Dohyun and the other boys, so there won't be any complications, Managing Director. We also arranged to send a formal legal notice to the sherpa agency."
"Naturally. When you put on a show, you do it properly. Right, Chief Jang?"
Chief Secretary Jang Hagook nodded vigorously in agreement before venturing carefully, "On that note, sir... granting a modest bonus to Section Chief Park Dohyun and the security team might be, well, an excellent way to bolster morale, don't you think?"
"From my pocket?"
Eunwoo's expression hardened.
Jang Hagook tensed, swallowed nervously, and pressed on. "Yes, sir. After all, they did make it back from the 66th Dungeon at your side—"
"Isn't that an employee's basic duty, Chief Jang? Isn't that why the company pays their salaries?"
By cold corporate standards, Eunwoo wasn't wrong. Yet as his dedicated chief of staff, part of Jang's responsibility was polishing the boy's public image and solidifying his internal authority. It was purely meant as sound counsel, but...
"O-Of course! You are entirely correct, Managing Director! But when running an organization, in terms of boosting company loyalty—"
"My, look at our Chief Jang! I had no idea you were such an authority on corporate management. Should I pass that wisdom along to my father? Better yet, should I tell my grandfather? 'Chief Jang says to toss extra cash to the underlings because it helps run the company, so make sure you and Dad keep that in mind'—"
"N-No, sir! Forgive me, Managing Director! That wasn't what I meant at all! I would never presume to overstep my bounds!"
In the end, all the thirty-seven-year-old Jang Hagook could do was bow repeatedly like a broken doll. Only then did Lee Eunwoo's petulant scowl soften into satisfaction.
"If bonuses are given, I'll give them. Whatever gets done, I'll handle it my way. Don't butt in uninvited. Am I clear?"
Even if you're right, don't ruin my mood.
Keeping his waist bent, Jang Hagook answered, "Understood, sir. It won't happen again."
"Good. I'm heading back out, so make sure the teleprompter is queued up."
Step, step, step...
Striding back onto the dais, Lee Eunwoo looked out across the packed press hall when a strange sound caught his ear.
"Hm?"
A commotion was brewing near the distant entrance. While entry hadn't been strictly barred for this open press briefing, seasoned security personnel stood guard to maintain orderly lines—guards who had climbed the Tower and invested heavily in their physical stats. Yet they were failing to halt a single man.
"Who the hell are you?!"
"Gah! This guy—"
"Grab him! Block him! Don't let him inside!"
Shouts rose above the din, followed by dull thuds. Before long, even the journalists and corporate observers sent by rival guilds were craning their necks.
"Whoa!"
"What's going on back there?"
The intruder wasn't moving at blinding speed. Rather, he was weaving through the dense crowd as if he had already memorized every single gap, blind spot, and escape angle. The guards reached out only to grasp empty air where he had stood a second before.
It was an overwhelming display of pathfinding.
"Block him!"
"Where does this bastard think he's going—"
Assessing the layout in a heartbeat, then charting the most optimal route imaginable.
"Wait... that's a dungeon sherpa—"
That was Kim Mu-saeng's absolute domain.
By the time Lee Eunwoo recognized his face, Mu-saeng was already vaulting onto the platform. Standing before Eunwoo were Park Dohyun and another bodyguard. Though their sworn duty was to charge forward and tackle the intruder immediately...
"K-Kim Mu-saeng—"
The moment Park Dohyun saw him, his limbs locked up. He was supposed to be dead. He was the living sacrifice they had abandoned in the lair of the 66th Floor's boss!
"H-How...?"
The bodyguard beside him was equally petrified. Both men had stood inside that ancient temple. Paralyzed by disbelief, unable to lift a finger, they stood frozen as Mu-saeng blew past them like a storm.
"Wait, hold on—"
"You worthless piece of shit."
Mu-saeng drove his fist straight into Lee Eunwoo's cowering jaw.
CRACK!
With a clean, thunderous snap, Eunwoo was hurled off his feet. Only then did Park Dohyun, the second bodyguard, and the rest of the venue's security staff snap back to reality and dive forward.
"M-Managing Director!"
"Seize him! Where did this bastard come from?!"
"Restrain him! Get a rope!"
"Who sent you?! State your affiliation!"
Mu-saeng lacked the raw physical stats to throw off a dozen trained guards by brute force. But he didn't need to fight them off.
He only needed to shout his name.
"I'm Kim Mu-saeng!"
That single sentence was enough.
Though bewildered by the sudden brawl, everyone present was intimately familiar with the Tower and dungeons, and their ears were razor-sharp to industry rumors.
"Kim Mu-saeng...? The dungeon sherpa? Isn't that the guy?"
"...It really is! The ace sherpa! Kim Mu-saeng!"
More than that, these were people whose livelihoods depended on spinning stories, sparking controversy, and chasing scoops. The instant the words dungeon sherpa and Kim Mu-saeng registered, the gears turned at lightning speed.
"Why is Kim Mu-saeng here? Wait, didn't One Way just claim their sherpa led them into the 66th Dungeon—"
"What really happened in there?! Kim Mu-saeng boasts a flawless, zero-fatality record! There's no way he would have proposed exploring an unverified ruin first!"
"Did something else take place? Was it done under client orders?! Mr. Lee Eunwoo, answer the question!"
Had Eunwoo's press conference been a web of lies? Was there an untold story, a dark secret lurking beneath the surface?
"Ugh... th-that's... I mean..."
Clutching his swollen, bruised jaw where Mu-saeng's knuckle had connected, Eunwoo stared out at the flashing cameras in utter panic. In that moment, stripped of his corporate veneer, he looked like nothing more than a frightened eighteen-year-old child.
"Order! Everyone, please remain calm! We will take questions one at a time from designated press outlets! Please, order—"
Chief Secretary Jang Hagook scrambled to regain control, but the fire had already caught; there was no extinguishing the blaze. With reporters shouting demands for the truth, the security detail could hardly pin Mu-saeng to the floor and beat him under the glare of dozens of live lenses.
"Hup!"
The moment their grips relaxed, Mu-saeng wrenched himself free and took off at a dead sprint.
"H-He's getting away!"
"What do we do, sir?!"
The One Way guards were caught flat-footed, and they weren't the only ones.
"Wait, where is he running?!"
"Didn't he come to blow the whistle?"
The journalists eager for a dramatic exposé were left slack-jawed. By the time anyone moved to pursue, Mu-saeng was already out the auditorium doors, bolting toward his parked car.
[Kkyakyakyakyat! Oh, this is rich! So that's all you needed, huh?!]
Floating alongside him, Wahsh cackled with manic glee.
"More than enough," Mu-saeng muttered.
From the knuckles of his right fist, a single translucent drop fell free. It was neither sweat nor blood. The instant it hit the concrete: Sssssssss...
A thin wisp of acrid smoke hissed from the pavement.
Sraken, the Master of Snakes, secretes venom directly from his fangs rather than poison glands. Exercise extreme caution, as mere contact can induce intoxication. Poison effects vary depending on the dosage.
Geum Soo-ah’s eyes widened.
"A living sacrifice... He had to have been offered up as a living sacrifice. Yes, that's the only way a coward like Lee Eunwoo could have escaped. But still—"
Having conquered the 66th Floor herself, Geum Soo-ah had assembled every piece of the puzzle. What had transpired between Lee Eunwoo, One Way Group, and Kim Mu-saeng had become crystal clear to her.
Which was precisely why she couldn't fathom it.
"A-A living sacrifice... doesn't that mean he was literally sacrificed, Vice Head?"
"Exactly. How is this possible? How did he..."
Even Geumseong had been forced to surrender during their initial expedition. Someone had to be sacrificed for the rest to survive. Yet the man appearing on the broadcast screen right now—how had someone designated as a sacrifice walked out alive? How on earth had he handled Sraken, who had spawned in the 66th Dungeon as the boss of the 66th Floor?
"Perhaps because it was a dungeon, the parameters differed from the Tower—"
"Since the day the Tower and dungeons appeared, that has never happened once," Geum Soo-ah cut in crisply. "There is only one structural difference: the Tower assigns quests, while dungeons do not. Terrain, topography, monster distribution by zone, even the bosses—everything else is entirely identical."
"...T-True, but still..."
"Well, I suppose the simplest way is to ask him directly."
Debating the impossible was a waste of breath. When the person who possessed the answers was out there, spending time in speculation was foolish.
"Secretary Choi, please contact Sherpa Park Mu-shik. Tell him I would like to arrange a meeting at his earliest convenience. Any time, any place of his choosing."
Geum Soo-ah delivered the directive with utmost formality, ensuring the request was as polite and respectful as possible.
"Understood, Vice Head. And, um..."
"Yes?"
"It's Sherpa Kim Mu-saeng, ma'am."
...Except she had gotten the name wrong.
Geum Soo-ah cleared her throat repeatedly in flustered embarrassment.
Around Mu-saeng, the twin titans of One Way Group and Geumseong had begun to move.