What Are Wigglers?! Those Are Breads!

Towering trees blotted out the sky, and the undergrowth grew so thick that every step was a struggle.

Twelve people picked their way through the jungle, green spiderwebs strung between the trunks like tripwires.

Degore turned to the red-haired woman in the robe.

"Remy, how much mana left?"

"Around eighty percent? Not many monsters here either."

She pushed back her hood and scanned the surroundings. From the moment those green webs appeared, the jungle was supposed to vomit poison spiders by the dozen. An hour after Degore's party had entered, they had killed a grand total of twenty.

"Shh. Enemy, southeast, a hundred twenty meters."

The man in front, bow already in hand, raised his left fist. Everyone melted behind the nearest trunks. Moving in a slow, silent advance behind the archer, they spotted three giant spiders clinging to the trees, each leg longer than a meter.

Degore lifted his hand and flashed the prepared signal. The party scattered without a sound, taking positions. Moments later a fist-sized fireball arced into the sky.

—KWAANG!

The explosion ripped through the forest.

"Attack!"

At Degore's shout, arrows and thrown weapons rained down on the poison spiders.

"Kiiiiiik!!!"

"Two left! I've got the left one! Leo!"

"Ready!"

Degore drew his two-handed sword and planted himself in front of the spider on the left. At the same instant Leo, massive axe already swinging, smashed into the survivor on the right.

—Puhk!

"Damn things are tough!"

"Remy! Next attack when?!"

"Ten more seconds!"

A spider leg scraped across Leo's thigh; blood welled, then the flesh began to turn a sickly green.

"Ready!"

"Get clear!"

Remy finished her cast and hurled another fireball. Arrows from the rest of the guild poured in after it.

—KWAANG!

—Kwajik.

"Good. Combat over."

Degore confirmed the points had landed and declared the fight finished.

"We've been in the jungle an ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hour. Rest here a bit, then we move."

"Fewer spiders than I expected… still, we made more in one hour than all of yesterday."

Leo, still poisoned, checked the new total and grinned ear to ear.

"Ugh, if you keep getting hurt like this my mana's going to run dry."

The white-haired healer woman cast a detoxification spell over Leo's leg.

"We have to get hurt so you healers can rack up contribution."

"Healers get contribution even if nobody gets hurt, you know."

"Meaning you want an even bigger share."

"You talk a good game."

The Tower's contribution system ran far more rationally than most people realized. Simply having a healer present—even if she never cast a single spell—gave everyone the psychological safety net of knowing treatment was available. That safety let them fight harder, and the system rewarded the healer for it.

"Kh… half my points stolen just for the poison cure?"

"Then don't get hurt."

After combat, any healing automatically transferred a portion of the earned points to the healer. If the wounded party member didn't have enough, the score simply went negative. Tower law; no one to complain to.

"Five minutes, then we move out!"

"At this rate we might clear a thousand points today."

Sweat poured down their faces as they pushed through the jungle; insect bites itched like fire. Yet even split twelve ways the points were generous enough that Leo's smile never faded.

"…Am I seeing things?"

"Quiet. We get out of here now."

Degore's party had been exploring hard when a purple lake suddenly opened before them. White eggs cracked open in the water, birthing new monsters. In the center, a mermaid with purple scales lounged on a rock.

They backed away slowly. Once they were clear, Leo hissed from behind a tree,

"Shit. That's a Dimensional Predator nest."

"Quiet. We're still too close."

"When Rui said he thought he saw a Void Hound we should've bolted straight back to the city!"

Leo raked sweat-soaked hair with both hands, voice low and furious.

"You were the first one to vote against retreat."

"I thought he was seeing things!"

"Shh. Captain, something's coming."

Rui, the scout, raised a hand.

"What is it? Void Hound?"

"Doesn't feel like it… more like people."

"People?"

They were deep in the wilds, far from any city. Running into strangers was possible, but the odds were razor-thin.

"What do we do, Captain? We're going to cross paths at this rate…"

"If we dodge, they'll walk straight into the nest. Expedition members should cooperate."

Degore rose and headed in the direction Rui indicated. Five figures wearing animal masks emerged from the trees and approached.

"There's a Dimensional Predator Legion nest this way. We're heading east, so—"

"Whoa! Finally found you! This mission was a real pain!"

The man in the fox mask spoke in a breezy, almost cheerful tone.

"You're Jan Degore, right?"

"…"

A chill ran down Degore's spine and he stopped mid-sentence. The woman in the cat mask pulled a sheet of paper from her pocket.

"Light brown hair, blue eyes. Matches the photo."

"Let's wrap this up quick."

"What the hell are you trying to pull?"

"Captain, something's wrong."

The rest of the party closed in at the noise.

"Nothing much. Just offering you a golden opportunity."

—Snap!

"Khuh?!"

The fox-masked man flicked his fingers. Degore clutched his head and dropped to his knees.

"Ghhh… how can you attack fellow expedition members…"

"Wow, so this is the new high-ranker candidate? Nice gear, too."

Degore's party members crumpled one after another, unconscious. They all carried E-rank mental defense items, but those were nowhere near enough against the fox-masked man's assault. Only Degore, wearing a B-rank piece, managed to keep his eyes open through the swimming vision and stare the man down.

"Can't have a proper chat like this… I'll ease up for a second."

—Tak.

Clarity slammed back into Degore's mind; the world snapped into focus.

—Chang!

"Straight to the attack? Sorry, but I'm a thrice-awakened veteran. Not going down to a greenhorn like you."

Degore drew his sword and charged. The fox-masked man casually blocked with a short dagger.

—Puhk.

"Guh!"

"Just listen first. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance!"

He kicked Degore flat and planted a boot on his back, voice booming.

"Still don't know who we are? Future comrades this dumb are going to be a problem…"

"You… filthy villain bastards…"

"That's right! You call us villains! Without even realizing we're prophets of the true god!"

Degore tried to retort, but the man steamrolled right over him.

"Degore, I'm giving you a chance. Abandon that useless Tower and serve the true god."

"…"

"Still don't get it even after this? Our god can interfere inside the expedition itself! Ever wonder where all those villains go during an expedition?"

Degore remembered the briefing back at the guild. Roughly fifteen percent of awakeners turned villain. Most were low-tier nobodies, but named villains existed who could threaten even high-rankers.

"Look at the ranking board! Nothing but Tower slaves! You think every single villain just sat this expedition out?"

The cumulative point rankings always showed only the publicly known high-rankers. Low-tier villains might skip it, sure—but some named villains had killed top-ten high-rankers.

"No way! Villains would never pass up a chance to get stronger!"

The fox-masked man waved his arms like an actor on stage.

"You don't even need to climb that Tower to become a true powerhouse. Join us and—"

"One question."

Degore had used the monologue to catch his breath.

"If I join you, what happens to my party?"

"Hmm? Oh, them? If any are useful we might take them… but those are all insects."

"You're going to kill them."

"Bingo! Big service, actually. Once you're in, every awakener you kill earns merit. Consider them your joining gift—"

"What if I want them left alive."

The man's body went rigid.

"Disappointing. New blood this soft…"

—Pook!

A spear that had been lying on the ground shot up and punched through the fox-masked man's side. At the same moment Degore erupted with mana, shoved the man off, and staggered to his feet.

"…Sword of Intent? Haaah, life really is unfair. Some people grind their bones for trash skills while others awaken with broken abilities right out of the gate."

"I'll heal you."

The rabbit-masked woman who had been hanging back stepped forward.

"So the offer's rejected?"

"Spare the others and I'll accept. Verbal promises don't count."

"Just die."

The fox-masked man raised his hand. Degore wrapped his head in mana, bracing for the mental strike—

"…Huh?"

The villains in front of him vanished.

"Stealth?!"

Degore flared his mana in a wide sweep. Nothing registered.

"What the—? Instant teleportation, maybe…"

He turned his head, hunting for the enemy.

—Thud.

—Thud.

—Thud.

Headless bodies dropped from the sky and hit the ground. Degore looked up. Void Flowers perfectly camouflaged against the trees stared back. Several of them were already writhing as they digested the fresh heads they had just claimed.

"This is… the Head Collector?"

The Void Flowers had blended so completely with the surroundings that they were invisible until they struck. A few of them pulsed contentedly around their new prizes.

"Urgh… Captain…"

"Leo! You okay?"

Degore wondered why the flowers hadn't attacked his own group, but he shoved the question aside, gathered his people, and headed straight back to the city.

'That is all, my Queen.'

"Hmm… I was curious how the villains get stronger. Wish they'd talked a little longer."

'My apologies.'

"Ah, that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wasn't aimed at you guys!"

I sorted through the report from the Void Pond managers. Most of it matched what I'd already heard while working at Celestial Palace Guild, but there was plenty of new intel too.

"Gate Worshippers, huh… the Empress is going to love this."

Earth had every flavor of villain imaginable. Straight-up criminals who used their powers for crime. Awakener supremacists who believed every non-awakener should be ruled.

Cult leaders claiming divine selection. Idealists chasing their own perfect world. Plenty of people had shattered the old order, but the group high-rankers actually called "villains" was singular.

"People used to argue forever about whether their god was real. Looks like we have to admit it is."

Villains who attacked fellow expedition members and still weren't expelled back to Earth. That meant they weren't bound by the Tower's system at all.

"Still weird, though. Why wait until he reached the mid-layer? Can mid-layer users not go down to the lower layers?"

The Gate Worshippers had painted the Tower as hopelessly incompetent and their monster god as all-powerful, but reality looked different. They hadn't dared strike until Degore entered the mid-layer. That strongly suggested some restriction they never mentioned.

"Eh, just a bunch of losers who got scared of the Empress and went into hiding."

If their claims were true, they would already rule the world.

"So there's a way to join the expedition outside the Tower system. Solid intel."

I filed the new information and reviewed the plan ahead. Everyone already knew the underground villains hunted talented new awakeners for recruitment—or disposal.

"That's why I can't even eat a proper meal and have to hide out in Ansan."

"Woof!"

"Man, I want some gukbap. Later I'll buy Poppy some spicy pork stir-fry, okay?"

"Woof! Woof!"

"You want everything? Look at you, knowing good food."

Ever since I'd gone to ground in Ansan, the only real meal I'd had was the one Count Wellington treated me to on the fourth floor of the Tower. Blaming every empty stomach on the villains put me in a foul mood. In the end it all came down to one thing: I needed enough power to protect myself from them.

I spent the remaining time racing through the forest, racking up points without mercy. At last settlement time arrived.

"Cleared it with more room than I expected."

"Woof!"

Hunting every monster in sight without caring about risk had paid off. Even after upgrading Stealth I still had nearly half a million points left. I scrolled back through the system messages I'd been too busy to read.

The new unit, Void Monkeys, could use both hands exactly like humans. Normally they picked up rocks and sticks for throwing weapons; hand them a bow or crossbow and they mastered it in no time.

"Give them guns and I'll have a whole rifle squad."

"Woof?"

Like the rest of the Legion, their skin was covered in chitin armor with fur growing over it. The chitin gave them solid defense, and on top of the dexterous hands they were just plain strong. High utility across the board.

Preparations were finished. All that remained was to risk our lives racing through the forest where S-rank monsters lived and claim the High ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Elf's corpse. The Legion had already sacrificed a great deal for this.

"Report remaining Legion status."

'Void Pond No. 2: 73% of the Legion has fallen.'

'Void Pond No. 11: 85% of the Legion has fallen.'

'Void Pond No. 15: 67% of the Legion has fallen.'

The moment I gave the order, the Void Pond managers tumbled over one another to report. To scrape together ten million points by Day 6, the Legion had hunted dangerous prey without flinching. Countless children had died taking those kills. Day 7's rewards would probably be meager.

"Got it. Wigglers, take care of the last day too."

"What are Wigglers?! Those are Breads!"

Lucy yanked on my hoodie the second the words left my mouth.

"Breads? What's that supposed to mean? The managers are mermaids, so their tails wiggle—Wigglers. Super intuitive and cute."

"Breads is way more intuitive! Just look at them!"

"Woof."

Poppy shook its head with an expression that somehow managed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to look deeply unimpressed, but since our Poppy would never trash my naming sense, I decided it was just my imagination.

Regardless, the argument over what to call the Void Pond managers went nowhere, and under Poppy's mediation we settled on simply calling them Managers.