World Record
Lee Hyun dashed forward, shouting urgently, “Azhu—ra! Shoot a fireball at the guy next to you!”
With a thunderous BOOM!, the fireballs slammed into the goblins and raptors, instantly wiping them out and shrinking the numbers…
“Fuck! Fuck!”
Even so, three goblins still gripped their staffs.
Five seconds passed exactly as foresight had predicted, and five fireballs lanced straight toward her.
BOOM!
KWANG!
KWAKWANG!
The successive blasts buried themselves in the ground, sending scorching heat rolling up her back.
‘Why the hell isn’t he shooting more fireballs?!’
It looked like the next fireball took time to recast.
Then the immediate threat was ahead, not behind.
Because of the distraction in the rear, goblins wielding spears had closed in.
“Hah… hah…”
She hadn’t run far, yet her body was so fragile that she was already panting.
She made a silent vow to build stamina the moment she returned, then called out the names of the remaining foes.
“Buahe—r. Zara—k. Agumora. Kroas. Skafuru. Kill the goblins.”
First the raptors charging from the front.
Those bastards were the most dangerous.
“Kieek-!”
“Kyaaak-!”
The two goblins riding the raptors shook their mounts violently and hurled them to the ground.
Then the three raptors that had lost their masters bared their fangs and ripped into the limbs of the men.
‘Performance is solid.’
There was no time to relax. Another fireball would come any second.
Before the rear goblins finished casting, she hurriedly issued the command.
“Kara—hu. Horogu—s. Purumo—sa. Kill each other from now on.”
FWURURUK-!
The goblins in the rear began firing fireballs at one another.
“Kieeeek!!”
“Kueeeek…”
The goblins self-destructed with the blasts, and the raptors beneath them burned in the flames and perished too.
The goblins she had commanded and the raptors underneath were caught in the blast radius and died instantly.
“Huu, it’s over.”
Only the five commanded raptors remained.
“You all kill yourselves.”
The instant the command was given, the raptors ended their own lives in different ways.
Some bit off their own front legs, others slammed their heads into the ground.
No pity. They were monsters after all.
They had tried to kill her moments ago.
Truthfully, she wanted to drag them outside and use them as bodyguards.
She could employ them as guards and they would be useful when climbing the tower later.
‘But then I can’t clear it.’
She clicked her tongue in regret.
When the raptors finished their suicides.
A clear notification floated before her eyes.
You have cleared the 1st floor NIGHTMARE difficulty.
Clear grade: S+
Notice: Achieved a world record for the entire world.
Your achievement is recorded in the system.
Please enter the name to leave in the achievement.
Name:
She stared at the system window with wide eyes.
“Was there such a grade as S+?”
She had expected a world record, as she had seen in videos, and it seemed she finished faster than Yeomje.
The problem was the S+ grade. The highest record for tower climbing was S.
She had never heard of anything higher.
If it was the same S grade, rankings were determined by clear time and other factors, she knew.
‘Is it because it’s NIGHTMARE difficulty alone?’
That was the only possibility she could think of. There was no way a new grade would appear otherwise.
“Anyway, it’s good, right?”
Higher than S, right? The rewards differed by grade, so surely better rewards would come.
She pondered the name to register with excitement.
“Hmm… It’s a bit weird to put my real name.”
From the notice, the world record would already be known to all climbers by now.
When conquering new floors or setting records, a global notice was issued.
So she couldn’t use her real name.
It was obvious that hunters from various countries would come running with eyes blazing.
In the worst case, they might try to control her with hypnosis or brainwashing.
Well, the latter was just rumor, but still, be careful. It felt like it might be real.
The association would protect her if asked, but would they stay 24 hours?
She didn’t think so. Even if S+, it was at least next S-grade hunter, what protection?
The purpose of hunters was to conquer gates. The tower was just training.
If training was done well but actual combat was lacking?
When that fact became known, her value would drop to the bottom.
She was a god and invincible only in the tower.
Outside, she was no different from ordinary people.
Therefore, her plan now was to quietly hide and farm in the tower only.
She had no intention of revealing her identity to anyone.
She pondered a nickname for a moment, then entered the one that came to mind.
[Name registered.]
[1st floor ranking]
[1st: Bibi S+]
[2nd: Paewang S]
[3rd: Yeomje S]
The name had no meaning. She had just entered the nickname of the game director she liked.
Since she would live hiding her identity anyway, it didn’t matter much.
When the ranking window disappeared, a new window appeared immediately.
Level has increased by 2.
The player-only community has been unlocked by clearing the 1st floor.
Additional Reward
📍 Location: 1st Floor
🎁 Reward: Skill Enhancement Ticket
“Oh.”
Even the existing rewards were good, and now there was an additional one.
It would be better to give combat skills rather than a skill enhancement ticket, but still, this was good.
Plus, C-grade magic stones were quite valuable, five of them.
“Money worries for a while will be gone.”
All rewards went into inventory automatically.
Note that tower inventory can only hold tower-related items. Outside-world items cannot be placed.
If so, trade companies would have gone bankrupt by now.
She opened the status window to check her level.
[Name: Lee Hyun]
[Level: 3]
[Class: Observer (EX)]
She felt the stat windows rising.
Level up had accumulated points.
‘Where to put them?’
Honestly, all seemed too low, so she was troubled what to allocate.
She had run and stamina was lacking, so she thought to put in vitality first, but agility would be good too.
Mana would be easier to use as it increased.
Strength, well, higher is better, but with this soft body, investing in strength wouldn’t make it that strong.
“Just put evenly.”
[Strength: 3]
[Agility: 7]
[Vitality: 7]
[Mana: 7]
Stat points: 0
She felt a very slight difference after allocating stats.
Not overflowing with power, but condition improved?
Probably from vitality.
“Now let’s go out.”
She wanted to go to the next floor, but the tower allowed only one floor per day.
She had the will to go out, so blue particles surrounded her like when she entered.
She felt the sensation of her body slowly rising, closed her eyes once, and returned to the tower entrance.
“Ugh, annoying.”
Thinking of taking the bus home again, laziness hit her.
“Earned money, just take a taxi?”
Normally she wouldn’t take a taxi for this distance, but now she was going to be rich.
She could flex a bit.
“Order chicken on the way.”
After ordering chicken to commemorate the first tower climb, she went straight home.
***
Meanwhile, while Lee Hyun was eating chicken at home.
In Seoul Gangnam-gu, the Korea Hunter Association was in an uproar.
“Headquarter chief! Big trouble!”
Team leader Oh Tae-woon rushed into the chief’s office without knocking.
Despite panting, he spat out words like a machine gun.
“The first S+ grade has appeared in the Korean tower! Moreover, the difficulty is the Nightmare difficulty that didn’t exist until now…”
“I know.”
The chief, Strongsoo, cut off his words and looked at him with a cold expression.
Strongsoo.
He was an elite among elites who rose to the position of chief in a short time with excellent intelligence.
Therefore, he was analyzing the situation coldly.
It was not only that a new S+ grade appeared suddenly, but a new difficulty appeared.
It meant an unprecedented irregular appeared.
“W-what should we do? Should we compare all the recent awakening records? We should meet them before other countries contact them, right?”
“No, don’t waste energy. We won’t find awakening records anyway.”
“Eh? How do you know that?”
I know. What kind of beings hunters are. They are desperate to show off their strength.
Like the Chinese Paewang, who, right after setting the record, bragged to the whole world that he was the Paewang.
The tower climbing record is an achievement worthy of boasting. When you say you set the record, wealth and honor follow.
But.
“Not only bragging, but no news at all so far…”
It clearly means she is deliberately hiding her identity. Of course, she wouldn’t have registered as an awakener. If so, the association would have contacted long ago.
I didn’t think about the possibility that contact might be late.
“But the probability is low.”
Even if not setting a record, hunters who set good records often contact the association.
They contact to receive benefits provided by the association. Rarely late.
However.
“Even though she can grasp money and honor, no news?”
She has no choice but to think she is hiding rationally.
“Even with this record, no news means she has no intention of revealing herself.”
“Still, we have to find her, right? If we let her contact another country first and become a naturalized citizen, we’ll really be in big trouble!”
Strongsoo looked at him silently. Because his expression was so fierce, Team leader Oh Tae-woon swallowed hard.
The tower can be entered at any time and place once entered.
So, waiting around the tower to find the irregular was impossible.
So, how to find him.
“Find all the clear notice times and CCTV records around the tower. If suspicious person, don’t approach recklessly but investigate. I’ll handle the rest.”
“Yes! Understood!”
Team leader Oh Tae-woon answered smartly and hurriedly left the chief’s office.
“Ha…”
After he left, Strongsoo sat in the chair and pressed his forehead.
Before working at the association, he was an A-grade hunter. Therefore, he could boast to know the hunter ecosystem better than anyone.
Because of that, he had one possibility in mind different from others.
Would the irregular have the will to contribute to the country? Or, is he a good being?
Hunters don’t all work for the country. There are many hunters who work to fill their personal desires.
Usually, hunters are divided into those two types, but sometimes there are hunters who are outside those two types.
Criminals like beings.
The moment a hunter with the power to terrorize a city decides to have evil heart.
Countless victims would occur.
There are few cases where hunters with that level of power become criminals, but it’s not unprecedented.
Even now, various crimes occur among B-grade and lower hunters.
Everyone is used to peace and doesn’t think about such things.
Of course, the system is so well equipped that there are such things, but that’s for S-grade hunters.
If a hunter beyond S-grade appears outside the standard.
The story is different.
Normally, S-grade hunters can confront up to 10 A-grade hunters.
The standard may vary slightly depending on combat power, but it doesn’t deviate much from that range.
But if an S+ grade beyond S-grade becomes a criminal?
Currently, there are total 7 S-grade hunters in South Korea.
If S+ grade, even if not, can confront up to 10, so even if all Korean S-grade hunters put out full power, they can’t stop it.
Actually, even if over 10, I couldn’t guarantee they could stop it.
Hunter grades have increasingly clear gaps.
Perhaps they could easily confront up to 15.
“If such a thing happens… I don’t even want to imagine.”
At this point, one city being blown up is not a problem. It might be a serious issue where one country is erased from the map.
But I couldn’t convey this fact straightforwardly.
Everyone is happy that a new super star has appeared in Korea, and I can’t paint over it alone.
Moreover, whether Bibi is good or bad is still unknown.
Strongsoo had no choice but to agonize alone.
“Just in case, I have to organize a dedicated team in advance.”
I will prepare for the hypothetical situation, but…
I hope his personality is not bad, and Strongsoo prayed to the god.