Who Hit Our Kids?

Tower of Trials, Floor 80.

One person was still challenging it. South Korea's Rank 1 — Park Sejin.

By the eightieth floor, the hunters who made it up were few. This was a height almost no one reached except the very best of each nation. The world's top ten, of course — the United States and China among them — stood higher still.

Even so, the greatest problem in passing this place was the monsters. More precisely, the boss that gave out the clearance stone.

"Hah... today, again..."

Nearly a full year had gone by with nothing but the Floor 80 challenge. Korea's highest floor was 79, and the deadline was one year. If Park Sejin failed, Korea failed with her.

"Haaa—!"

But giving up was not an option. She threw herself at it again and again.

She surged in fast and brought her sword down with everything she had. Steel screamed — and the blade bounced away in a single stroke.

...I can't pierce it.

It was ice, and far too hard. She had to break through that body to kill it, and she simply could not.

Flame licked along the edge. It wasn't even an ordinary weapon — a sword steeped in fire, the very element that should have countered ice. A half-hearted flame, though, did nothing.

Sakamoto. If it were the sword that bastard is holding, it would work. I'm sure of it...

The lower floors had been in an uproar for some time. Word was that Japan and China had joined hands, and that they'd even burned an Item Transfer Ticket to do it. The item they'd moved was no ordinary weapon.

The Flame Enhancement option, the kind that only attaches to Heroic-grade and above. Once that's on a weapon, even among fire-attribute items, the power is on another level.

Flame Enhancement — one of the highest-tier options there was. Not a unique option, but top-tier enough that listings were scarce, and the item's value sat just as high. Sakamoto was the one holding it.

No wonder the people on the lower floors can't handle him.

What else would happen, with him running wild behind a weapon like that? Ordinary hunters had no way to withstand it.

...If I were the one holding it.

Sejin wanted that weapon so badly it ached. With it, Floor 80 would fall in no time.

Was it a little over a month left?

The time remaining to Korea had dwindled to roughly forty days. She had to push the highest floor higher within those forty days. If she didn't, something terrible would happen to Korea.

I stepped onto Floor 12.

The backdrop was a modern city — just not an intact one. Modernity, with an apocalypse stirred in. Buildings stood half-collapsed on every side, cars lay abandoned in the streets, and traces of blood were spattered wherever I looked.

"Hm."

That aside — was this even the right place?

I glanced over the participant list. Most of the nicknames were Chinese or Japanese. A few other nations were mixed in, but not many.

There are a few, though.

Koreans, of course, were here too. About ten of them. A small number. This had to be the place.

Then let's pin down their locations first.

Finding anyone in a sprawl this wide would take forever. But I had a method — the Tower Conqueror's Bracelet. With it, I could see where everyone from the same nation was.

A low hum, then ping after ping. Pillars of light shot up all around. Fortunately, they were all clustered together, and those pillars were moving fast.

...Are those people getting hit too?

Might as well head that way.

One sector of Floor 12. Inside a building whose roof had been torn clean off, a group came into view.

"Ugh, those damned bastards. The exit's right in front of us."

"There really are an absurd number of them."

"Still, it isn't all bad. We made it this far running, and everyone used the national buff to bring monsters back."

"The duration's short, so let's hurry up and suppress them. Before the revived ones vanish."

At first, they'd simply been beaten. But giving up wasn't an option. Scraping their way to the edge of the exit, they'd used the national buff to revive monsters.

"So this is where you were!"

"You ran so hard, only to get boxed in here."

"Koreans, as expected! Stubborn to the end!"

That was when it happened. A group showed themselves on the stairs — no, two groups. China and Japan.

"About thirty of them, wouldn't you say?"

"Yes. This should be doable. Add in the revived monsters and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠we actually have more."

"Let's do it. Suppress these ones and get out fast."

The situation wasn't bad, though. They had the revived monsters.

Footsteps hammered up the stairwell.

"Uh — uh?"

"...They're not running. They're coming?"

"W-we have to fight!"

A move neither China nor Japan had expected. Both sides faltered.

"Keok—!"

"Ghk—!"

"Kkeueok—!"

The result followed just as fast. These were Koreans who had done nothing but run, and the moment they charged, the others were taken down in a blink.

"A few of them got away, but leave them."

"Yeah. Chase and we'll be the ones who get hit. They're spread all over the streets."

"Whew. Still, thank god we won."

A soft hiss, then another. Victory in the fight — and then the monsters dissolved. The national buff had run its course.

"These guys had more clearance stones on them!"

"Nice. With these, all of us can go up!"

"Let's move. The exit's right there!"

They'd beaten the Chinese and Japanese groups, and taken the clearance stones besides. The exit was a stone's throw away. Luck had been on their side.

The Koreans broke into a sprint, out of the building and down the empty street, ignoring every monster in their path. Their eyes were on the exit and nothing else.

A whistle of steel. A hard stop.

"Koreans."

One man stood in the road. Japanese — ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Sakamoto. Flame wavered along his blade.

"...Th-that's Sakamoto?"

"I don't know what the nickname means, but yeah. I think that's him."

"Ah, we were almost there, and of all people..."

That bastard from the rumors. The one said to be carrying a Heroic-grade weapon. And of all moments, he had appeared here. How had he timed it so perfectly?

"Kehehe. See? Why didn't you chase us?"

"That was our mistake. We have very solid backup."

"Whenever we're in danger, Lord Sakamoto always saves us. Does Korea have anyone like that? Bakayaro!"

From the corner, the ones from before slipped back into view — the runners, sneering with all the filth they could muster.

"Let's just try."

But the exit was right there. How could they give it up? The Koreans charged as one.

A blur, and then fire roared out.

"What the fuck!"

"He's blocking every one of our attacks by himself?"

It was over in an instant. They had only met his sword, and the flame riding the blade washed over them — viciously.

"C-careful!"

Fire bloomed.

The katana in Sakamoto's hand. Two people, erased by that sword. Truly, in an instant.

"Th-this won't work. Run!"

"Then we buy time!"

"Someone else might come. Let's at least drag that guy out!"

They bolted. They couldn't beat him — so they would stall.

"Th-they're running!"

"We can't just let them!"

"Catch them!"

Japan wasn't about to quit either. Getting beaten was humiliating enough; letting them go was not an option. The Koreans fled, and Sakamoto and the Japanese tore after them. The place they arrived at was this.

"Whew, Koreans. This is as far as you managed to run?"

"A dead-end alley. Cornered little squeakers!"

"Just like Korea itself! Puhaha!"

"..."

"..."

Nowhere left to run. Of all places, it had to be here.

"If it weren't for Sakamoto, they'd be the ones getting their asses kicked..."

"Ah, fuck."

It rankled. One-on-one, they were confident. And of all things, the other side had called Sakamoto.

"Hm? What's wrong? Feeling wronged? Then call your 'mom,' the way we did!"

"Mom! They hit us! Waaah!"

"Go on, call her! Hurry up! Bwahaha!"

They mocked them, and the heat of it only burned hotter.

That was when it happened. A voice, from somewhere. Not one of them. Where on earth—

Everyone looked up. Up there. Someone was floating.

"...JUNE?"

"W-wait. I-it's real?"

"O-our mom?"

"...Mom's here!"

The Koreans stared, struck dumb. The Japanese were no different.

"Th-that's impossible!"

Sakamoto, especially, looked far too pleased — the katana clenched tight in his hand.

Location confirmed. I went straight over, and—

"They're running!"

"Bwahaha! Grab them, grab them! It's a hunt!"

"Kehehehe!"

One group fled. One group chased, delighted. Anyone could tell which was Korea and which was Japan.

...Those bastards.

They weren't even just chasing. They were laughing their heads off, jeering the whole way. Watching it was enough to piss me off, so I followed. Soon they were bottled up at a dead end — and the taunting started again.

"Hm? What's wrong? Feeling wronged? Then call your 'mom,' the way we did!"

"Mom! They hit us! Waaah!"

"Go on, call her! Hurry up! Bwahaha!"

Call Mom? Did they think our kids were orphans?

I gave them the one line. Heads came up. They saw me and tilted, puzzled.

A tilt. What's there to tilt about.

A snap of the fingers. The ground groaned.

"Uh — uhh—!"

The street collapsed in a chain of roaring cave-ins, stone and asphalt pouring away into nothing.

"Kyaaaa—!"

"Kyaaa—!"

"Kkeueeee—!"

One of them had looked off from the start. The katana in his hand was a fine piece, and the fire along the blade was nothing ordinary. Had to be something good.

Which meant I ought to take it properly. So I used Sinkhole.

The Japanese in front of me went straight into the abyss. The Koreans, on the other hand—

A low thrum, steady as a heartbeat. Something like a barrier wrapped them, and they simply floated, carried onto ground that hadn't given way. The national system had protected them on its own.

"Whoa."

"I-it's really JUNE?"

"You bastards! Our mom showed up too! Bwahaha!"

"Think you're the only ones with a mom, you little shits!"

"HOOOOO—!"

The Korean hunters' cheers rolled over the ruin. ...They'd been holding a lot in, by the sound of it.

Anyway. Bags and gear, all of it mine.

But this wasn't the end. There were still plenty of them here — which meant there was still plenty left to take.

"Watch from there for a minute."

"Huh?"

"W-watch what?"

"What else."

"The fireworks."

I snapped my fingers, again and again, and the sky began to darken. The skill was only one. Fire Rain.

The sky rumbled, and then it came down — a roaring sheet of fire, and another right behind it.

A rain of countless fires poured down — so thick you couldn't see an inch ahead. Explosions bloomed all across the sector, and from far off and from right beside them, screams rose and braided together like an orchestra.

"Whoa..."

"It really is fireworks..."

"This is insane."

The Korean hunters watched, and ran out of things to say.

Dopamine detonated across Korea's Hunternet.