Floor 7: The Eerie Forest and the Mad Tiger-Men (4)

"Gahk!"

"D-Dad!"

The man's eyes, which had been smiling as if to say he was fine, wavered violently. At the same time, his trembling body began to swell.

What do I do?

I panicked and looked back at Ha Heijeong, but she was just as lost, a bewildered expression on her face, clearly unsure what to do.

Had this never happened during her first run?

…Come to think of it, that was probably it.

What were the odds of someone drinking the Tiger King's blood on the 7th floor? It would only happen if you killed the Tiger King or offered a sacrifice—one of the two.

If things kept going the way they were… would I have to kill him?

…I suppose I would.

For Seo Harin's sake, and for the man's own.

He wouldn't want to become a monster either. Who in the world would want to attack their own comrades, their own daughter?

Right. I'd kill him. I'd send him off peacefully.

The instant I steeled myself, a notification window popped up.

My sponsor deity, whose whereabouts and reasons I hadn't known until now, had suddenly sent me a message. These were beings that dangled an unavoidable choice before you at the very moment you couldn't refuse.

"Yes."

A pre-sponsorship, plus an extra 20% on my shareholder ratio. It worried me a little, but I nodded.

I'd asked Ha Heijeong about shareholder ratios before. She'd told me to remember only one thing: the higher the ratio climbed, the worse it was for me. But she'd also said there was no way to stop it. Climbing the Tower meant raising your ratio, whether you liked it or not.

This was probably exactly the kind of moment she'd been talking about.

She'd also told me not to obsess over a rising ratio, though. It could be reduced depending on my own effort. And if I was lucky enough to get a good sponsor, the deity would burn through the ratio on my behalf, she'd said.

Twenty-one percent. That was certainly a high number. But it wasn't worth more than the man's life. All I had to do was work harder. If my sponsor deity was benevolent, it would be a blessing on top of it.

While I was lost in thought, the Neutralizer had somehow appeared in my hand. There was no time to waste. I hastily fed it to the convulsing man. A few drops spilled down his jaw as he thrashed.

This much shouldn't be a problem.

"Dad! What's wrong? Are you okay? Huh? Say something…"

It was medicine given by a deity—maybe that was why it worked so well. Before long, the man's convulsions stopped and he came to. His wildly rolling eyes found their focus, and his body stopped swelling.

But something had changed, unmistakably.

"Dad! Are you back with us?"

"Ah… yeah. Wh-what happened…?"

The swollen body didn't shrink back down. He'd already been an imposing man, but now he was even bigger. On top of that, his skin had taken on a strange brightness—less the peach tone of an East Asian man and more… a hint of a tiger's orange. And though faintly, his gaze had sharpened into something like a wild animal's.

"He lost his mind when he saw himself turning into a Tiger-Man…"

"Suhyeok saved him! The medicine just appeared out of nowhere…"

The man looked back at me with a dazed face. Then his eyes grew moist, brimming with gratitude. The bigger-than-ever man pulled me into a rough embrace.

"Thank you, Suhyeok. Thank you… thank you…"

"It's nothing. I told you I'd save you both, didn't I? You and Harin. Don't you remember?"

"…Thank you."

His rough hand thumped my back. I couldn't just stand ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠there either, so I lightly patted his in return.

How much anguish must he have gone through in that brief span of time? A daughter left behind in the Tower of Trials, a wife waiting on Earth. I couldn't begin to fathom it—I'd never married, never had a daughter.

All I could do was slowly stroke his back.

"Suhyeok, how did you do it?"

"My sponsor deity backed me. Something called a Neutralizer."

"So the deities really do sponsor people."

"It was a pre-sponsorship, apparently. It hasn't been unlocked for everyone yet. I'd guess it opens up on higher floors, like the community and the shop."

"Ah… so that's why no one's ever mentioned getting sponsored."

Cole nodded along, then seemed to remember something and asked another question.

"If pre-sponsorship was possible and yet no one ever received one—except you—that means…"

"The shareholder ratio with the sponsoring deity goes up even more."

At the mention of an increased ratio, the man's eyes went wide, and he started fidgeting anxiously. I gave him a faint smile and nodded to reassure him.

"…No, that was expected. There'd naturally be a penalty for us. What I meant is the penalty the deity receives."

A penalty for the deity?

Come to think of it, if only the sponsored party paid the price, there would have been no reason for deities not to pre-sponsor. A higher shareholder ratio was a good thing for them.

Cole paused for a moment before continuing.

"The community never looked favorably on rising shareholder ratios. There was no room to, really. A ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠climber's ratio going up most likely benefits the deity."

"And yet no deity ever pre-sponsored anyone. Which means the penalty on their end must be no small matter either?"

"Exactly. If they're willing to raise the ratio anyway and still won't do it, the penalty must be even greater."

The pre-sponsorship had added 20% to my ratio. One-fifth of the whole. No small figure by any means. Extrapolating from that, my sponsor deity had probably taken a penalty even larger than mine.

What kind of penalty had he suffered?

I had no way of knowing. But one thing I could be sure of: I had chosen my sponsor well. He had pre-sponsored me for my sake, accepting his own loss to do it.

…Hold on. For my sake?

Something didn't add up. Was saving that man really worth the deity accepting a loss? It wasn't like I was the one turning into a Tiger-Man.

Of course, the bald man was a good person. But to be cold about it, his death wouldn't have caused me any real harm. I would have felt grief, but there was no reason for my sponsor deity to shoulder a penalty over it.

…Is there something about that man I don't know?

That couldn't be it either—he was someone who didn't exist in Ha Heijeong's memories at all.

Why, then, had my sponsor deity saved him at his own expense?

I looked at the man with the question still hanging in my mind, but he was only staring back at me helplessly. Perhaps thinking along similar lines, Cole spoke up carefully.

"I don't understand why Suhyeok's deity chose to help Seo Hosu. But I believe we owe thanks not only to Suhyeok, but to his deity as well."

"Ahem. Suhyeok, thank you. No matter how many times I say it, it won't be enough. Thank you."

"Thank you, Oppa!"

The man bowed his head in thanks once more. Seo Harin, standing beside him, bowed too. When they raised their heads, the man looked up at the sky.

"And… I don't know if you can hear me, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but—Suhyeok's sponsor deity, thank you."

"Thank you too, Sponsor Deity!"

The sight of the father and daughter bowing toward the sky was a little cute, and a little funny. But their expressions were so earnest that I couldn't bring myself to laugh.

When I turned my gaze elsewhere, I realized the fog of the Eerie Forest had vanished at some point. The sky had been clear even when the man and Harin were bowing, in fact. Warm sunlight poured down over the woods that had once radiated a dark, menacing atmosphere, and a cool breeze drifting in from somewhere brushed past my cheek.

The trees that had looked so grotesque no longer seemed strange at all. Stirred by the wind that swept past me, the forest swayed pleasantly side to side. Shaaa— the rustling of leaves was peaceful.

And the moment I felt that peace, I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠decided to stop overthinking things.

I didn't know why my sponsor deity had saved the man. But my sponsor was probably benevolent, and the man was a good person. Wasn't that enough?

"Shall we get moving?"

Ha Heijeong said it flatly, cutting through the quiet. But her voice was warm—she was clearly in a good mood. Probably because she thought the man was a good person too.

"To hunt more Tiger-Men? Seo Hosu did receive a healing spell, and we already took down the boss… wouldn't it be better to rest a little longer?"

"No—my Foresight skill. It activated after I killed the King. I don't know if it's a hidden mission, but there seemed to be something to gain."

"…I see."

As Cole nodded with an embarrassed look, the man beside him let out a hearty laugh and thumped his chest.

"Heh heh, Cole, I'm fine. I gained a skill called Tiger Blood, and my stats shot way up."

"Tiger Blood? Ah, I thought the sponsor's gift was a 'Neutralizer'…" He had a point. It hadn't been an antidote but a neutralizer. The man's appearance was definitely different from before. Not quite a Tiger-Man, but look closely and there was a faint tigerish quality about him.

A skill called Tiger Blood. As its level rose, wouldn't the tiger's blood in him grow stronger? Would he end up looking like an actual Tiger-Man someday? If so, would the man even want that?

"Look at these muscles, huh? Awesome, so awesome! The tiger's energy is already surging through me—I can't wait to see what happens when the skill levels up."

…Ah. Right. This man was a gym rat.

He raised his forearm and flexed. Beaming from ear to ear, he didn't seem worried in the slightest.

Was he just trying to put us at ease? Probably not. His excited expression was the same one he wore whenever he shouted out some bizarre skill name. Hmm. Looks like I worried over nothing.

"Heijeong, where are we heading?"

"Not sure. I did spot something like a cave, but I don't know where we are, so we'll have to search for it."

"Heh heh."

Mid-conversation, the man who'd been showing off his muscles suddenly chuckled darkly. What was this all of a sudden?

"Guys, I think I know where that place is."

"What?"

"Well, ever since I got the Tiger Blood skill, I keep catching this unpleasant smell from one direction. That's probably it, right?"

He grinned, looking positively smug. I hadn't even caught a whiff of it—so this was a tiger's sense of smell?

That was great news. Even if Ha Heijeong knew something, we'd fled in such a hurry that none of us knew exactly where this was. Going straight there beat hunting it down the hard way. The forest was so vast that we might never find it otherwise.

"Then let's move."