Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: List of the Deceased
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"What did I tell you? I said practicing stuff like this once means you can use it for life."
Im Ji-hye shrugged as she spoke. She was no longer the naive business major college girl from the past.
After switching classes to Spirit User and gaining her 'power,' Im Ji-hye had developed not just keen insight that pierced through situations, but also a strong confidence that made her feel irresistibly alluring.
'She double-majored in business and philosophy, huh? It wasn't just empty talk.'
In my eyes, Im Ji-hye had a natural talent for delving into people's psyches, spotting logical flaws, and breaking her opponents down.
Take her practice debates with Ariel, for instance.
Most of the arguments I used were things I'd rehearsed with Im Ji-hye in hypothetical scenarios.
She'd warned me that given Ariel's nature, she'd likely challenge everything I did or planned to do head-on, and she wanted me prepared for it.
Im Ji-hye had precisely predicted Ariel's counterarguments and emotional appeals. All I'd done was refine my logic to match.
It had been a hassle, but looking back, without Im Ji-hye, my relationship with Ariel could've easily fallen apart.
'The more I see her, the more she's like a commendable toy.'
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "By the way, that death list earlier... it was really shocking."
Im Ji-hye said as she slurped down the remaining ramen broth from her cup.
"What about it?"
"Two hundred twelve total deaths. I had no idea that many people had died. I thought everyone was just quietly surviving in their villages..."
"The peace you see on the surface is always worlds apart from the hidden truth underneath. Hey, Ji-hye, want me to show you something fun?"
I reopened the tablet and showed Im Ji-hye the same death list I'd shown Ariel.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Day 7] [Days Remaining: 23] [Current Survivors: 788] [Total Deaths: 212] "You said it was fun, but it's not much different from before."
"This is probably the view most summoners like you have. Just '212 dead.'"
I looked at Im Ji-hye and grinned.
"But my perspective is a little different."
The Tower could do pretty much anything if you had enough pt. For example...
⚙ ADMIN ACCESS ACTIVATED ⚙ - Fellios - Away I transferred 10,000 pt to the Tower system and used the temporary 1st-floor admin access it granted me to open the detailed death logs.
There, previously hidden information appeared.
The detailed causes of death for each summoner.
⚔ DEATH LOGS ⚔ Cause of Death: Monster (Goblin) - 29 Cause of Death: Monster (Orc) - 2 Cause of Death: Monster (Wyvern) - 1 Cause of Death: Summoner Dispute (PK) - 21 Cause of Death: Suicide - 2 Cause of Death: Kim Joo-hyuk (Summoner) - 157
157 out of 212 killed by me.
The moment that overwhelming number appeared on the screen, Im Ji-hye's eyes widened in shock.
She swallowed hard, staring back and forth between me and the tablet in disbelief.
"Th-this isn't a joke, is it? It's real?"
"Doubt it? Check it yourself."
I handed her the tablet. By default, only the owner could touch it, but with the owner's permission, other summoners could operate it too.
Im Ji-hye tapped the death log and scrolled down.
The names of the 212 who'd died over the past seven days and their causes of death began to appear.
[Deceased: Lee Cheol-min] [Cause: Head pierced by sword] [Killer: Kim Joo-hyuk] [Deceased: Choi Yeon-jeong] [Cause: Body bisected by sword] [Killer: Kim Joo-hyuk] [Deceased: Kim Wan-deok] ... The further she scrolled, the more 'Kim Joo-hyuk' kept popping up endlessly. Realizing this, Im Ji-hye's pupils began to tremble violently.
"A-all these people...?"
"Yeah."
157 out of 212.
Meaning over 70% of the deaths on Tower Floor 1 were by my hand.
Maybe grasping that fact, Im Ji-hye stared at me, momentarily speechless.
"Uh... so this means... um."
"Why so surprised? This is the result of the 'efficient resource cleanup' I told you about."
I said casually.
"They were gonna die anyway. If not by me, then monster chow or killed by someone else. Better to use them as fertilizer for my growth, right? Way more valuable."
"Th-that makes sense, but still, this number seems a bit much⸺"
I cut Im Ji-hye off mid-sentence and posed a question.
"Ji-hye. Do you know why I killed so many? Wanna guess?"
"For points and stats... right?"
"That's part of it. But there's a bigger reason."
I opened the [Achievements] tab in my status window and showed her one activated achievement.
🏆 ACHIEVEMENT: SERIAL KILLER 🏆 Condition: Kill 100 Summoners (157/100) Effect: Deal 15.7% additional damage to humanoid enemies including Summoners. Total Summoner Kills: 157 "This achievement's effect scales with how many people I kill. The difference between 100 kills, 500, or 1,000 is night and day, right?"
"D-does that mean...!"
I just smiled without answering Im Ji-hye's question.
Whatever she read into my smile, a glaze of fear began creeping into the way she looked at me.
To be precise, it was more than fear.
A queasy gaze born from confronting something on a completely different plane of existence.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Seeing Im Ji-hye's body stiffen, I chuckled inwardly.
What I'd said was just that it 'could' happen depending on the case. I'm no pleasure killer who gets off on murder itself.
If I kill someone, it's always out of necessity.
"Ji-hye, there's one more thing I haven't told you yet. But first, time for today's reward."
'Might as well farm some essence while I'm at it.'
I pulled her onto my lap and gently embraced her from behind. Im Ji-hye flinched and turned to look at me.
"J-Joo-hyuk...!"
Her tone held more than just surprise, but I lightly ignored it.
"Shh. Just relax, and you'll feel good soon enough."
My hand slipped under her thin t-shirt, deftly unhooking her bra. After all the hustle today, her shirt was slightly damp with sweat.
I buried my nose in the nape of her neck and inhaled deeply.
"Eek...! I haven't showered yet... my sweat must stink...!"
Im Ji-hye, not mentally prepared, tried desperately to wriggle away, but the overwhelming stat gap left her powerless.
"Doesn't matter."
"B-but still...! Ahh!"
I slid my hand upward and began gently kneading her breast.
"Hnnngh...!"
Not as voluptuous as some women, but her firm, competitive flesh yielded and tensed under my grip with each rub.
"Ahk..."
Her body, rigid from fear, twitched and shuddered! Sweet sighs escaped her lips, and before long, her once-soft nipples hardened into stiff peaks, bulging noticeably even through her t-shirt.
Im Ji-hye finally gave up resisting and surrendered to the pleasure.
Our far-from-normal relationship meant she wouldn't get bored over something this minor.
"Heh, your nips are hard."
"Th-that's because the way you touch my tits is so lewd...! Hnngh...!"
"And yet your clit feels like it's already rock-hard too?"
Smoothly,
I lifted her hips with one hand and used my grip strength to yank off her jeans in one go.
"Aaah! Don't look!"
Im Ji-hye hurriedly clamped her thighs together to cover her crotch, but I'd already glimpsed her soaked panties.
"What the? I haven't even touched your pussy yet, and it's already drooling this much?"
"...!"
"How excited were you just from me fondling your tits?"
I forced my palm between her thighs, rubbing over her panties.
Immediately, I felt something firm press against it. Her clit.
"Ooh!"
"Whoa. I said it as a joke, but it's actually erect?"
"...!!!!"
As I'd said, her clit was swollen enough to assert itself through the fabric.
"Seriously. The more I look at you, Ji-hye, the more your pervert potential overflows. If it weren't for me, how would you hold back that daily surging lust?"
Drip-.
No sooner said than the center of her panties grew even wetter. When I pulled my hand away, a sticky strand of clear fluid stretched out.
"Wow... you're a total pervert slut."
"P-pervert slut...?!"
"C'mon, drop the act and be honest. You play with your pussy alone, rubbing your clit when I'm not around, don't you?"
"..."
Suddenly, Im Ji-hye went quiet. Glancing up, her face was beet red.
'No way. She actually did?'
"...Well... um, you see..."
I didn't press her, just waited for her to confess on her own.
Moments later, she hesitantly opened up.
"Ev-ever since we started staying in the hideout and you kept touching my body, every time it made me tingle all over..."
'Oh, right. After class-changing to Sex Emperor, I was curious how much essence women produced at climax, so I touched her a few times a day.'
I learned that 1-2 times daily was most efficient for essence yield, and more reduced the amount significantly.
"But aside from the day we moved in, I made you cum once a day every day, didn't I?"
Essence from sex acts comes mainly from 'climax,' so no matter how long the foreplay, it always ended with her orgasm.
Yet even once a day wasn't enough, and she'd masturbated in the hideout?
To my question,
"..."
Im Ji-hye averted her intense gaze.
"No proper answer, and I might stop right here?"
She shot me a 'you wouldn't?' look.
"Depending on your answer, I might not touch you again until the end of the 1st-floor trial."
It's not like she's the only woman on Floor 1.
I could snag another toy for essence farming.
After spending so much time together, she sensed I meant it and hurriedly blurted an excuse.
"I-I'll tell you! So, please don't..."
"So, you want me to keep fingering your pussy and tormenting your clit?"
At my blunt words, she hesitated before nodding faintly.
'Heh, cute little thing.'
Moments later, mustering courage, she slowly confessed about her recent nights.
In summary, after climaxing from my essence-farming touches, a hot ache lingered in her pussy, keeping her up. She tried masturbating to relieve it, but solo sessions never satisfied no matter how many times.
'Hmm. Sex Emperor effect?'
Sex Emperor's passive has this:
[Reveals opponent's erogenous zones, sexual preferences, hidden desires, virginity status, etc. Amplifies all pleasure felt by opponent during sex acts.]
'Yeah, her reactions changed sharply after I class-changed.'
Before, it felt reluctant; lately, she'd been subtly craving my touch.
'Wait, how do I view the sex info? No idea how to use it.'
Right then.
A message window appeared before Im Ji-hye.
💋 SEX EMPEROR PASSIVE 💋 Name: Im Ji-hye Erogenous Zones: Left nipple, clitoris Sexual Preference: Dirty talk degradation Hidden Desire: Wants to suck off Kim Joo-hyuk but too scared of being despised to say it. Recent Activity: Masturbated last night fantasizing about Kim Joo-hyuk. Virgin: Yes 'Oh ho.'
True to passive form, it activated freely with just a 'thought,' no keyword needed. Like a newbie perk granted to me.
'This is insanely useful.'
Detailed info too—no need for 【Third Eye C-】 to scout sex details in the Tower.
Only downside: needs slight mental focus and time.
"Um... Joo-hyuk? That's everything. I told you all of it."
"But your words lack sincerity. Fine. Masturbate in front of me. Then I'll believe you."
"...!!"