Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Just Rested
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📰 Breaking News
[★ Cola Review] (315) Author: Philosopher's Stone (Photo of a 1L cola PET bottle with about 1/3 missing) Slurrrp... Slurrrp... Glug... 👍 157 👎 325
💬 Comments
— Anon
Fuck, I told you that shit was cursed food, right?
— Anon
Whoa, that's seriously fucking scary; the dude got dumb as a rock and the guys who drank that crap and loved it—what the hell?
— Long-Eared Aristocrat o Elf x
↳ Reply
Are you seriously thinking this is real, you gullible idiots lol
— Long-Eared Aristocrat o Elf x
I could do shit like this too, newbie!!
— Anon
↳ Reply
At your age and you're not embarrassed?
— Long-Eared Aristocrat o Elf x
↳ Reply
Not embarrassed at all?!
— dd
Concept acting my ass lololololol
— Baldness Even 9th Circle Archmage Can't Stop
No, explain what it tastes like or something.
— Philosopher's Stone (Author)
↳ Reply
Newbie told me not to explain.
— Philosopher's Stone (Author)
↳ Reply
They're releasing it in small quantities, so maybe controlling the supply?
— Philosopher's Stone (Author)
↳ Reply
I just wanted it to satisfy my curiosity, and yeah, it's definitely unique... Probably love it or hate it.
— Wisatppi
If it's divisive, I won't give it out anymore.
— Philosopher's Stone (Author)
↳ Reply
The noob drank the cola! Drank it!
— Philosopher's Stone (Author)
↳ Reply
Give me more! More!! You son of a...
— Anon
↳ Reply
lololololololololol
'My power is starting to scare even me.'
Most of the comments were freaking out over the Sage's alt's fall from grace.
A quick search of the posts turned up a bunch of essays that were way beyond my comprehension—actual academic papers.
Almost every one ended with the conclusion "Still unknown," but you could see the traces of countless efforts poured into reaching that point.
"Ugh... Even someone like that is putty in my hands... I'm a real monster..."
I knew I should stop with my limited funds, but I was hooked on the dopamine rush and couldn't quit.
It wasn't even money they were spending on me—it was way more fun watching them squander it on others.
Possessed TP:3,073
Two colas for 60,000 won.
Blood money if there ever was any, but I sent one to the Manager too.
She was the only one quietly cleaning up all the bait I tossed out.
If it were me, I'd have snapped at him to cut it out by now, but she never complained once and always tidied up.
Always worrying about me, replying lightning-fast, helping with experiments perfectly.
My affinity for the Manager inside me was skyrocketing by the day.
'Smart enough not to post proof in the gallery too.'
The first time, "I gave it because it's the Manager" works, but if it piles up, both she and I would get flamed.
Not that I'm hoping for that, so the Manager handling it on her own looked really sharp.
"So what now..."
I had no clue about the conditions for anomalous phenomena, why they appeared, or how to deal with them.
Just like the Sage alt said, I had to figure it out solo.
Truth be told, I had zero desire to encounter more of that crap...
'But clichés exist for a reason—usually, this is when it pops up guaranteed.'
I was worried I'd get exiled to some backwater overnight or something.
Even veterans who'd lived thousands of years hadn't dealt with this, but I had—and it didn't feel like it'd end just like that.
'Still, it's not all worry.'
There might be an escape route hidden somewhere.
I didn't know why they censored it, but just uncovering that the Tower was hiding something was a huge win.
This place seemed perfect, but it sure as hell wasn't.
The moment it showed me that place for some reason, the moment it forcibly censored the gallery—that proved it wasn't flawless.
"Experiments on anomalies... Probably means climbing the Tower again."
Climbing again might recreate the experience.
To climb, I needed TP, and to beat the timers, I had to climb anyway.
In the end, it all circled back to mindlessly grinding the Tower.
'Does it only happen in the Tower of Wisdom?'
That needed verifying too.
If it wasn't coincidence, I had to check if it showed up in other Towers or only in the Tower of Wisdom like it matched the name.
In that case, prioritizing the Tower of Wisdom over sequential 10-floor grinds might be better.
'TP farming's more reliable there too.'
Considering time and difficulty from 11 to 20, pushing to 30 or beyond like this didn't seem bad.
'Gotta confirm if it happens in the Tower of Mind or Tower of Fate too...'
For now, my goal was Tower of Wisdom floor 50.
Gather TP fast, snag weapons and skillbooks, train up, and prep for the Tower of Trials.
Swish.
"Hang in there just a bit longer."
I picked up the shield in the corner and muttered softly.
Iron shields were probably skippable. No need to ditch this and buy new when every penny counted.
Better to upgrade my sword another level or learn attack skills.
So what I needed to do right now was—
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
📰 Breaking News
[Why isn't that newbie bastard climbing the Tower?]
📰 Breaking News
[Stop shitting out crap posts already]
📰 Breaking News
[Throwing mad bait and dopamine everywhere but no cola you fuck]
📰 Breaking News
[Do you... dya? Slurrrp... do...!]
📰 Breaking News
[Gallery users with notifications on the newbie get mad props lolololol]
"Haaa..."
All I could do was sigh.
I told him not to go dark, and now he's just... not going dark.
No follow-up on anomalies, no word on climbing or proof.
Not even tossing out other food like cola.
Just... nothing.
Instead, he was active in the gallery 24/7, laughing and chatting.
'It's not wrong per se...'
But people had gotten way too hooked on the newbie.
Not that I could talk—I was in charge of looking after him, so no choice.
"...Yeah, I have to take care of him."
To protect my little-bro-like newbie, I had to watch him even closer.
Was he hurt anywhere? Tired?
I knew it was a bit much, but I couldn't help it.
Swish.
"I wanna chug that cola soon..."
After all, I'd scored this precious stuff twice without even trying.
Coming back from the Tower daily, washing up, eating bread, and taking one sip of cola—that was pure bliss.
"Is it really okay to do this..."
While others prayed and entered lotteries, or played dumb in comments just to snag one.
I got two for free.
Normal me would've said share it, it's fine—but I couldn't resist the temptation.
I held off posting proof in the gallery and secretly drank it alone.
From 1,500 years watching the gallery, if I posted this, I'd probably never get more. Or the newbie would get hate every time.
So... I selfishly decided to stay quiet.
Hoping he'd give more later, wanting to drink it again.
"Ugh..."
I felt guilty for no reason, but the newbie seemed totally fine.
📰 Breaking News
[Not climbing the Tower, what're you doing?] Author: Wisatppi
Resting right now, yeah?
📰 Breaking News
[Why are you resting?] Author: Wisatppi
Just rested.
'Resting isn't bad at all...'
With weeks left on the section timer, a short break was no issue.
Others rested when tired too. Some pushed hard then took days off in a row.
But...
💬 Comments
— Anon
You wanna see me lose my mind??
— Anon
Fuck, no dopamine without you climbing;
— 543rd Regression
Fr, dying to know where I'll get stuck, don't rest
— Philosopher's Stone
Gimme more anomaly info.
— Bunny Hops
If you're resting, can't you at least give out cola??
— Bunny Hops
↳ Reply
(GIF of bunny perking up its ears)
— Dog Barks at Idiots
↳ Reply
(GIF of dog barking like mad)
"Haaa..."
Every post and comment was about the newbie.
They skirted mentioning the nickname by a hair, but everyone was losing it over the newbie.
'This is worrying for real...'
Not as explosive as the wiki newbie, but there'd been aggro magnets before.
They just didn't end well.
The more the gallery fixated on one person, the bigger the fallout when they died or vanished.
The more popular, the more they entertained—the more they became idols in this stifling space.
And when that person vanished in a flash, everyone faced reality.
'Yep, this is hell alright.'
I didn't want everyone sinking into gloom.
I hoped they'd keep living somehow, no matter how hard or sad, clinging to hope of escape someday.
So, gratitude for the newbie, but please don't get so obsessed—a contradictory mess of feelings.
Worried he'd feel burdened, but—
📰 Breaking News
[Wisatppi's new post] [First-come chicken for one @@@@@@@] Author: Wisatppi
Yeah
💬 Comments
— Wisatppi (Author)
1st place lol
— Anon
↳ Reply
Fuck
— dd
↳ Reply
This guy's actually insane
— Anon
↳ Reply
Wanna beat his ass fr;
— Long-Eared Aristocrat o Elf x
1st!!
— Anon
↳ Reply
Old and slow lol
— Long-Eared Aristocrat o Elf x
↳ Reply
You wanna die for real?!
'Doesn't seem burdened at all...'
Hard to say if that was a relief or not—complicated feelings.
Thud.
Smiling at the newbie laughing everywhere, I stepped forward.
Left the Hideout, glanced around the dim cavern, then looked up at the timer.
-1534-
Apocalypse Timer 30:04:00:37Section Timer 2:04:00:37
[378 / 329]
'Good thing I cleared the Tower of Fate ahead.'
A bit slower than usual pace, but toughest part done, so should be fine.
One floor a day still leaves time.
No idea how long 100-floors take, but probably similar to usual.
[Tower of Trials]
Rumble rumble rumble...!
The moment the door shut, the scenery shifted.
Cawww!
Cawww-!!
A late night under darkness.
Hazy sky with moon behind clouds, ominous crow cries filling the ears.
Swish.
Gloomy forest behind, narrow precarious cliff-path ahead.
"Big one..."
At the end of the cliff-like road, a high wall in ruins.
No fantasy monsters for a while, but looks like it.
Boom—!!
Kaboom kaboom kaboom-!!
"GRRROOOOAAAR!!"
"Dragon, huh."
Sharp talons... or something shredded the wall.
Wall crumbling like sand, massive dragon perching atop.
More precisely, a deep blue dragon mimicking the night sky—I muttered softly.
Step.
'Wonder how long it'll take.'
Grabbing the surrounding waves, I slowly stepped forward.
Even at a glance, hundreds of times my size.
No clue how long.
Days maybe, or I might die.
But not scared.
Just thought I needed to get back before something happened to the newbie.
'Finish quick and go drink cola.'
...That and cola?
Kaboom kaboom kaboom-!!!
"Whew."
Rage mode? Dragon kept smashing the wall—I reached out.
No idea how thick that hide was, but time to peel it layer by layer.
Whoosh—
Casual flick, shot sharp pressure at the dragon's head.
Slashhhhhh—!!!!
"KRAAAAAGH!!"
Long gash from neck to face.
Dark red blood spraying, dragon's scream—I stepped forward again.
'Shallow.'
Tower of Trials wouldn't take long this time either.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
— Eraser Not Me (Author)🔸
Tower climbing
'Manager's in too, guess it's time for me to head out.'
Checked the Manager's check-in notification, stretched, and stood.
Left the now-homey Hideout, glanced up at the cavern timer.
Acting like I was doing jack shit in the gallery.
Pretending to lounge and scrounge attention for no reason.
-1-
Apocalypse Timer 340:19:47:32Section Timer 3:19:47:32
[89 / 28]
Truth was, I'd been diligently climbing the Tower of Wisdom for the past week.
No big reason to hide it.
Just rested... nah, just hid it.
If I had to pick a reason, it just seemed more fun that way.
'Act like resting, then surprise with a 30-floor push—they'll flip.'
Snacks occasionally, too often and they get spoiled.
Reporting every 10 floors would just get stale anyway.
[Tower of Wisdom]
"Whew."
Looked up at the Tower ahead, caught my breath.
Past week, from floor 21 to 49—no anomalous phenomena.
Ask if there were big dangers? Nope.
Well... floors 30 and 40 had some heart-pounding moments, but wiki cleared them clean.
Like floor 20, wiki solved it all.
'Feels like the wiki got smarter since then...'
Strategies aren't perfect answers, so not sure, but kinda felt that way.
Maybe just imagination.
'Just go in.'
Rumble rumble rumble...!!
Shook off stray thoughts, flung the door wide.
The door boomed shut on its own—
Riiiing—!!
"Oh..."
In a blink, the Tower turned into a rustic fantasy village.
Blazing sunlight, creaky well basket swaying.
No people, but traces of life everywhere.
Not super developed... just a plain old countryside village from cartoons or anime.
'Outdoor stage after ages.'
Step—
Staring around blankly, footsteps approached.
"Ahh, you're finally here...!!"
Turned around as if drawn by the voice—
"From the capital, the inspector from the capital, right?!"
"...Yes?"
"You're the one dispatched to catch the suspicious bastard hiding in our village...!!"
"..."
I blinked dumbly at the old man clutching my hand desperately like he'd been waiting.
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