This is Totally Lucky Skebe
This is totally lucky skebe. Blink. Blink.
I woke up from sleep and was just blankly staring at the sky.
Neukgu had crawled into my right armpit and was wagging his tail.
The warmth he gave off was soothing, calming my mind.
So I just kept staring blankly into the air.
Ding-dong. Ding-dong.
“……”
The doorbell rang, but I didn’t bother getting up. No one should be visiting this place, so I figured it was probably some cult recruiter.
Ding-dong. Ding-dong.
But the doorbell rang again. Frowning at the interruption to my rest, I forced myself up and headed for the front door.
When I checked the intercom, I saw a suspicious figure with their face completely wrapped up.
“…Kim Soyeon.”
It was her. Of course it was—only she knew about this place.
I unlocked the door and opened it, and the first thing I saw was Kim Soyeon’s haggard face with her mask pulled up right under her eyes. She kept glancing around like she was wary of someone, looking exactly like a criminal.
Well, she did commit a crime. Against me.
“…What brings you here so early in the morning?”
“I… brought what I promised… you.”
She spoke in a shrinking voice and handed me a black bag.
So this is it. The spatial expansion bag. A faint trace of mana was leaking from it, proving it was a magical tool.
“The ring?”
“It’s inside… you.”
The mana recovery ring I’d been promised was apparently inside the bag too. She’d kept her promise and achieved her goal, so normally she should’ve left right away, but Kim Soyeon hesitated and couldn’t bring herself to turn away.
…Well, her goal was obvious.
The way she kept glancing inside, the way she lingered.
“Haa.”
I let out a long sigh, pretending to be exasperated. You really do love dogs, huh.
She was just loitering around a grown man’s house because she wanted to see Neukgu, who was following me and wagging his tail behind me. Is she in her right mind?
“…Not leaving?”
“I-I am. I was going to….”
…Ah, wait. Neukgu was still so young that he had endless energy day and night, which had been secretly troublesome. He was getting hard to handle. This was perfect timing.
“Want to come in and play with Neukgu for a bit?”
“Neukgu… his name is Neukgu?”
“Yeah. Don’t like it?”
“N-no!”
“Then, want to play with him?”
Kim Soyeon nodded vigorously, as if she’d been waiting for this. I rationalized that there was no reason to refuse and opened the door to let her in.
“Ujuuju! Neukgu, have you been well? Did you miss me?”
The moment she stepped through the door, she crouched down and started making baby talk. Then she hugged Neukgu and rolled around with him. Same as before.
Leaving her behind, I flopped onto the sofa and stared at the ceiling. Then I opened the Heroine Gallery. Last night we’d talked about the 15th floor hidden piece, so I wanted to check if the heroines had discussed anything overnight.
When I opened the gallery, sure enough, countless posts were piled up—so many they filled my entire view. They must’ve had a lot to say, throwing around all kinds of theories while debating.
And when I looked at the very final, final, final post:
…So in the end, they were saying I only found it because I was stupidly strong and just smashed everything. Even naturally gifted hunters usually learn how to fight while climbing the lower floors and gradually adopt efficient methods—that was their consensus. But since I never even considered that option, I discovered it by accident. In other words, because I just kept pounding away without needing to follow the standard approach.
“Hmm, that actually makes a lot of sense.”
It was the kind of thing that should’ve hurt my pride, but I didn’t feel bad at all. If anything, I nodded at their theory and thought it was quite reasonable. The wording was just blunt, but ultimately they were calling me a munchkin.
Before I knew it, the sky outside had darkened and the clock read 11:30 PM. It was about time to head to the tower. I put on a light coat, then paused when I spotted Kim Soyeon. She was still lying on her back, grinning while Neukgu used her stomach as a bed. She’s really enjoying this.
“Hey, are you planning to stay here forever? I need to leave now.”
I’d asked expecting her to leave, of course. But Kim Soyeon didn’t stop petting Neukgu and answered completely calmly.
“Go ahead. I’ll stay here and play with Neukgu.”
“…What?”
“Right? You’d like that too, wouldn’t you, Neukgu?”
She wasn’t even listening to me. She was saying she’d stay in someone else’s house and keep playing even after the owner left. I looked down at her in disbelief, but she didn’t spare me a glance, her eyes fixed on Neukgu.
“…Do whatever you want.”
Eventually I gave up, shook my head, and walked out the front door. The most important item, Thor’s Gauntlets, was already stored in the spatial expansion bag anyway. There was nothing in the house worth stealing.
After walking for a while, I arrived at the familiar tower entrance.
Would you like to enter the tower?
[ YES / NO ]
Without hesitation, I pressed the accept button. My vision warped grotesquely. After the usual dizziness faded, a vast red rocky terrain reminiscent of a dry canyon spread out before me.
Current remaining attempts: 5 / 5
Time limit: 00 hours 30 minutes 00 seconds
Would you like to begin?
[ YES / NO ]
The monster that would appear this time was already decided. Since I’d been running the orc route, the 16th floor would have one High Orc and one regular Orc.
The moment I touched YES, a squealing sound came from the corner of the rocky area. A High Orc, one head taller than a regular orc with red skin, and a regular orc following behind it, kicking up dust as they charged. Still in a straight line.
I’d heard this formation was quite threatening to regular hunters. The moment you clashed weapons with the front orc, a follow-up attack would come from behind, and one wrong move could mean getting injured. I’d never felt that threat because I always one-shot them. But even knowing that, would it change anything?
I concentrated mana at my fingertips and lightly chanted the activation words.
“Lightning Bolt.”
The massive blue lightning bolt that shot out instantly pierced through the High Orc’s heavy battle axe and struck the orc behind it as well. The High Orc had tried to react, raising its battle axe to guard its body, but—
KWAAANG—!!
With a thunderous explosion, both monsters’ massive bodies turned to ash and scattered into the air.
You have successfully cleared the 16th floor!
Clear time: 00 hours 00 minutes 05 seconds
This is an incredible feat! You have broken the world record for the fastest clear of this floor!
As a reward for achieving a new record, all stats permanently increase by +1.
16th floor clear reward granted. Acquired 40g of mana stone.
Along with the rapid succession of system notifications, a mana stone dropped from the air. Normally I would’ve been fully satisfied with this exhilarating clear message and left the stage in a good mood.
“Alright, monsters are dealt with. Time to start the real game.”
My goal today was different. Instead of where the monsters had been, I looked around at the red cliffs and rough terrain visible nearby. The 15th floor hidden piece had appeared when lightning shattered the cliff face. So maybe there was one on the 16th floor too.
“I’ve got plenty of time left anyway.”
I raised my right hand and aimed at the cliff.
“Lightning Bolt.”
PAAANG—!
The lightning mercilessly struck the center of a rock pillar, sending massive chunks of stone crashing down.
“Lightning Bolt.” “Lightning Bolt.” “Lightning Bolt.” “Lightning Bolt.”
Every time the cooldown finished, I spammed the spell. Smashing and smashing again. I destroyed everything in sight. After a while—
“Haa… haa… khack!”
I coughed, inhaling the dust that filled the terrain. The surroundings had been completely devastated. I’d smashed cliffs and terrain, destroying almost everything, but all that remained were rubble.
“Spamming it is a bit much.”
Even for a hidden piece, getting lucky breaks in a row felt excessive. But I couldn’t hide my expectations. If not the 16th floor, then the 17th. If not the 17th, then the 18th. I could check every floor.
In the end, I pressed the tower exit button with a hollow feeling. By the time I returned to the officetel, it was already almost 2 AM.
Beep. Beep-beep beep-beep-beep.
I unlocked the door and stepped inside. The moment I did, a strange sense of dissonance washed over me.
Why isn’t Neukgu coming?
Normally he should’ve come wagging his tail to greet me at the door.
“What’s wrong, Neukgu? Where are you?”
I took off my shoes and went inside, but the house was quiet. Living room, kitchen, and then the bedroom. Only when I entered the bedroom did I let out a sigh of relief. The sight before me was so absurd that a laugh escaped me.
Kim Soyeon was asleep on the bed. And in her arms, Neukgu was lying on his back, snoring.
“…Haa, seriously.”
I quietly took off my coat, hung it on the rack, and sat on the edge of the bed. Then I began carefully studying Kim Soyeon’s sleeping face. Her usual sharp eyes were nowhere to be seen. Her gentle breathing was so peaceful. Long, full lashes, a delicate jawline, and slightly parted red lips. Now that I thought about it, her appearance really was unreal. Every time she breathed, her disheveled black hair swayed ever so slightly.
“……”
I swallowed without realizing it. For just a split second, I’d thought she was prettier than I expected. It was a bewildering, unfamiliar feeling—one I didn’t want to acknowledge. I quickly shook my head and looked away. Getting flustered just from looking at a sleeping woman…
I swallowed a cough and quietly opened the Heroine Gallery in the air to make a post.
Kim Soyeon is currently asleep in my bed hugging Neukgu. What the hell am I supposed to do about this?