Chapter 458: A Competitor Joins
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 458: A Competitor Joins
The moment the naked forms of the man and woman were revealed, three similar yet slightly different thoughts surfaced in the women's minds.
'Isn't... isn't that too big...?'
Gulp.
Lee Serin, who already knew about their relationship, was shocked by the size of Kang Hyun-woo's dick, which easily surpassed her imagination.
“S-Sir Kang...?”
Wi Ryeong-ah, who had grown up as the youngest daughter of a powerful local family, gasped involuntarily at a sight she had never witnessed before.
Moreover, since she held a subtle affection for Kang Hyun-woo, who had saved her several times, it was only natural that her gaze kept drifting downward.
And then there was Yoo Ah-rin.
“...”
She stood silently, her lips pressed tightly together.
Her blue eyes were trembling more violently than ever before.
Unlike Lee Serin, who had gained her sexual knowledge through all sorts of visual media, Yoo Ah-rin had spent her entire life swinging a sword, day and night. It was perfectly natural for her to be flustered by the scene before her.
If she were the type to express her feelings honestly, wouldn't she have let out a shrill scream by now?
“How long are you going to stand there staring!”
Slam!
Lucifer, having finally come to her senses, yelled as she slammed the door shut.
From her perspective, she had just finished a round of sex with her boyfriend and was leisurely basking in the afterglow when three uninvited guests suddenly appeared. It was perfectly reasonable for her to be angry.
Sensing Lucifer's foul mood, Kang Hyun-woo furtively started getting dressed.
It was morning.
*
Thirty minutes after the completely unexpected incident in the interrogation room.
An awkward tension and uncomfortable silence hung in the air among those gathered in the first-floor pub.
With the exception of one person.
“This is Wi Ryeong-ah from the Boundless Heaven Sect. She'll be joining our party until we pass the 9th Floor test. It's only for a short time, but we'll be comrades for now, so everyone, feel free to introduce yourselves.”
“...”
Kang Hyun-woo, whose sense of decency was so shattered it was doing backflips, offered a friendly smile.
Watching him from the seat right next to him, Lucifer barely suppressed the urge to punch him.
There had been an accident along the way, but her relationship with him was so satisfying it was beyond words.
To exaggerate slightly, the happiness and fulfillment she gained from sex with Kang Hyun-woo were greater than all the numerous achievements she had experienced living for eons as a Constellation.
There was a reason for the saying that a good night in bed changes the breakfast table the next morning.
Aside from Lucifer, who was suppressing various emotions like anger and frustration, the other three glanced at each other, testing the waters.
Then, Wi Ryeong-ah mustered her courage.
No matter how she looked at it, she was an outsider, and she decided she needed to be brave to maintain a good relationship.
“I am Wi Ryeong-ah of the Jemunwi Family. My skills may be lacking, but I'll do my best not to be a burden.”
Lee Serin responded to her bright greeting.
“I'm Lee Serin. I look forward to working with you. Ah, if you don't mind me asking, how old are you...?”
“I'm 22.”
“...So I'm the older one.”
But the moment she realized this competitor(?) was three years younger than her, her energy visibly deflated.
Of course, that didn't mean she was openly hostile or rude.
It wasn't in her nature to do so in the first place.
Before being dragged to the Tower, she had been known as the 'nation's singer,' but starting with plagiarism accusations, she was tormented by a flood of malicious comments and articles from all sides, eventually driving her to the brink of suicide.
Ironically, however, entering the Tower allowed her to escape the public eye, and by subconsciously relying on Kang Hyun-woo as her emotional support, she was slowly finding stability.
However, the depression that had taken deep root in her heart over the past few years still held her back, making it impossible for her to be harsh with others.
Even now, she found it difficult to even make eye contact with people she'd just met, but not wanting to show her struggle, she was merely acting like the 'social butterfly' she used to be.
“Yoo Ah-rin, 20 years old. I look forward to working with you.”
“May I call you Miss Yoo?”
“Yes.”
Yoo Ah-rin, on the other hand, exchanged a simple greeting, shaking Wi Ryeong-ah's hand.
Although there had been a rather embarrassing situation earlier, that was a matter to be resolved between Kang Hyun-woo and Lucifer.
If anything, there was no particular reason to feel awkward with Wi Ryeong-ah, who had been in the same position as an 'observer.'
Above all, their relationship as comrades was only temporary, and since Yoo Ah-rin had no intention of getting deeply involved with anyone, she could treat her more comfortably.
“So, what's the plan now?”
Lucifer, who had been pinching and poking Kang Hyun-woo's side, let out a sigh and spoke.
“First, once you guys pass the 5th Floor test, the goal is for all of us to challenge the 9th Floor test together.”
“But it's still a lower-floor test, isn't it? Wouldn't it make more sense for you to form a party with her, pass the test quickly, and let the rest of us establish a clan on our own?”
“Well, I thought so too until recently...”
In response to Lucifer's words, Kang Hyun-woo explained what had happened during the 5th Floor test in more detail.
More detail than he had given in the interrogation room.
The intervention of the Boundless Heaven Sect's elder wasn't the main issue. While not common, it wasn't unheard of for a large clan to interfere in a lower-floor test.
The thing to focus on now was the Constellation's avatar that had appeared during the 5th Floor test.
'As I thought...'
Lucifer, who had already guessed the situation to some extent, wore a serious expression.
The Tower must present players with tests that are clearable.
The ones that oversee this are the 'System' and the 'Tower's Deterrent Force'—the greatest laws that exist to maintain the Tower's balance.
'The difficulty of the 5th Floor test must have increased because the Tower's Deterrent Force intervened. The System, which has to mediate between the Constellations on the upper floors, wouldn't have the capacity to micromanage the lower floors.'
But even with the Tower's Deterrent Force at play, deploying a Constellation's avatar in a mere 5th Floor test...
It seemed excessive to view it as a mere measure to keep a middle-floor player with sealed powers in check.
Furthermore, releasing a Constellation specializing in tracking and hunting into a forest teeming with magical beasts at midnight was a blatant attempt to give that Constellation an advantage.
A lesser divinity? Restrictions on its authority?
Those were just empty words.
If Kang Hyun-woo hadn't been there, every player present that day would have been annihilated by the Constellation's avatar.
But as mentioned before, the Tower doesn't create such absurd tests.
'It must have judged that it had balanced the scales, from its own perspective.'
In this situation, only one possibility came to Lucifer's mind.
She looked at Kang Hyun-woo and sighed.
“...I have a feeling this is your fault.”
“What is?”
“There's only one explanation for why neither the System nor the Administrator overseeing the test took any action, even when a Constellation's avatar crashed a lower-floor test.”
Lucifer tied up her hair and adjusted her posture, then tilted the teapot to fill a cup.
“It means there was a player who shattered the test's balance. Someone on a completely different level from that pathetic Daoist.”
She didn't mention a name, but everyone knew who she was talking about.
Although the reason why the 5th Floor Administrator mentioned Eumjin's name as an excuse was still unclear, the reason for the test's increased difficulty was now certain.
“But the 3rd Floor test was fine, wasn't it?”
“Of course. If the Tower had to micromanage floors that low, there would be no point in having Administrators.”
Lucifer tilted her teacup, pausing for a moment before continuing.
“But you already caught the System's attention back in the tutorial. With that being the case, the elder from a large clan just had to interfere in the 5th Floor test, causing the Tower, which was watching closely, to recognize the existence of 'Kang Hyun-woo.'”
The Tower only ever calls upon the weak.
In other words, monsters like SSS-rank Hunters, archmages, or masters of the Profound Realm never enter the Tower.
That's why, even if gaps form due to faction, talent, or luck, a certain level of balance is maintained among players who have just entered the Tower.
But when a tiger—not a wild dog or a wolf—suddenly appears in a pasture full of sheep, the shepherd can't just stand by and watch.
“If we're only thinking about the difficulty, it would be right for us to take the test without Kang Hyun-woo.”
“...Go on?”
“No.”
Lucifer shook her head at Lee Serin's question.
“It's true that Kang Hyun-woo is strong, but once you reach the middle floors, the Tower's Deterrent Force weakens. To put it in human... no, player terms, it's like leaving the beginner zone. Besides, by that point, there are usually one or two monsters in every test who've grown strong with the support of a large clan.”
Generally, floors 1 through 30 are classified as the lower floors.
It was common knowledge that reaching the middle floors beyond that would inevitably take a considerable amount of time.
“...So Hyun-woo has to either take the tests alone until the 30th floor or find another party? That's... that's too harsh...!”
Despite the tearful edge in Lee Serin's voice, Lucifer remained indifferent.
'Look who's worrying about whom.'
Who would believe that a player who just entered the Tower possessed power comparable to an upper-floor player?
In fact, it would be much more convenient for Kang Hyun-woo to move alone up to the middle floors. He'd be able to move freely instead of being tied down looking after others.
“Don't jump to conclusions. Let people finish what they're saying.”
“...People?”
Thwack.
“The Tower, at least on the surface, pursues equality and fairness.”
Lucifer propped an elbow on the back of Kang Hyun-woo, who had collapsed forward clutching his side, and continued.
“When the difficulty of a test increases because of one person, the Tower is bound to give a reward to match. It's a law of the Tower that not even a Constellation can defy.”
As a reward for passing the 5th Floor test, Kang Hyun-woo received 4,500 WP and a Floor Transfer Ticket.
It was a woefully inadequate reward compared to what he'd been through, but since the difficulty of the 5th Floor test had been adjusted so abruptly, the Administrator had given him the maximum reward he could.
Now that the 'Tower' itself had recognized and started paying attention to the irregular named Kang Hyun-woo, it was clear that both the difficulty and the rewards of future tests would be raised by at least two or three levels.
“It might be a bit of a hassle, but if you're aiming for greater rewards, it's right to climb the Tower with Kang Hyun-woo. Even if the test difficulty increases, on the lower floors, it can only go so far before it hits a ceiling of common sense.”