Calculate the Function's Value (2)
Rattle! Thud!
The moment the door shut, the vehicle pulled away smoothly.
"You know who I am?"
"Is there anyone among Korean-speaking players who doesn't? Ah, of course, aside from us, no one knows your real name."
It was a subtle threat.
Choi Junseok was ready to summon Lee Nayeon at the first sign of trouble.
"How did you find out about me?"
"Well… let's just say we have a special source."
"A summon, perhaps?"
"…!"
The driver and the woman in the passenger seat both froze at once.
Got it right.
It wasn't hard to guess. Choi Junseok caught the subtle twitch in the woman's eyes after she removed her sunglasses and felt certain.
There was no reason the restrictions on summoning would apply only to him.
There were hundreds of towers across the world. Each had different difficulties, rewards, and hidden reward conditions, but it was reasonable to assume at least several hundred players had obtained summons as hidden rewards from the first floor.
"Someone must have a summon with support, prophecy, or reconnaissance abilities. And you two aren't from the Korean government, are you?"
"…."
…What?
Their expressions asked how he knew, but it was a simple deduction.
The Korean government doesn't have the means to find me right now.
If they did, they wouldn't need to advertise so loudly. Their message was basically a desperate plea: "Please come to us."
That left the five major guilds or foreign powers.
"It's obvious. Why are we playing games? We're both players here. You already knew my information before coming."
"…As expected. You're sharper than I thought, yes. Mr. Junseok. You're correct."
"Don't try to deceive me. And don't even think about taking a detour to Garak Market."
The steering wheel, which had been turning left, straightened back to a direct path.
They had planned to loop around to buy time for conversation, but corrected course immediately. No need to earn his dislike from the start.
Most items, including artifacts, couldn't be used outside the Magic Towers.
Therefore, the only possibility is a summon.
There wasn't just one Magic Tower in the world, after all. By now, hundreds of summoning rights had likely been distributed globally. It was natural to assume some of them possessed prophecy or detection abilities.
"We won't try to deceive you. We're from the American Player Management Agency."
"From America."
"Yes. And… as you probably expected, we have no intention of threatening or coercing you into coming with us. We'll offer a fair price and…"
"Am I some kind of merchandise that you need to pay for?"
"…."
The broker driving swallowed dryly. Through the rearview mirror, Choi Junseok's expression remained calm. Anyone else would have been intimidated, but he showed no such sign. Instead, there was a relaxed confidence, as if he were looking down on the situation from above. He was even countering their words and seizing the initiative.
They had successfully recruited dozens of Korea's top players to America before, but never someone like Choi Junseok.
Ah… it's because of the summon.
That made sense. The power of a summon obtained by clearing the first floor's hidden mission could easily crush ordinary people like ants.
"Come to think of it, your summon isn't accompanying you?"
The tone was openly probing for information, but Choi Junseok responded leisurely.
"Oh, it's sitting on the roof right now. You didn't notice?"
"…!"
Both their eyes widened in shock. Yet neither had felt any presence or seen anything.
"Then, Mr. Choi Junseok's summon is…"
"That's right. It's a stealth type. Ah, of course, it's invisible, so you won't see it."
"…An assassination type. Is it okay to tell us that?"
Choi Junseok shrugged casually.
"By the way, Mr. Junseok, what I'm curious about is how you achieved the record on the first floor by yourself. Clearing the second floor in two seconds could be attributed to the summon's power, but…"
"Listen here."
His voice dropped, laced with clear displeasure. Both swallowed nervously at once. For the brokers, an eerie silence followed.
Choi Junseok leaned back as if pondering, crossing his legs, though he was only pretending to think. After a few seconds, he nodded meaningfully and slowly continued.
"Never mind. Let's get to the point. You came to scout me for America, didn't you?"
"That's correct."
"Then let's hear your offer."
The woman's face lit up at his positive response.
"Well, regarding how Mr. Choi Junseok achieved that first-floor clear record…"
"Honestly."
Choi Junseok cut her off the moment she started speaking, as if he hadn't been waiting for an answer at all.
"I don't have any patriotism. Even if a Korean wins a medal at the Olympics, I don't feel like 'Korea did well' or any sense of community. I'm just glad that person's effort was recognized."
"…?"
They looked confused by the sudden shift.
"But, you know, if someone's going to win a medal anyway, it's better if it's a Korean. Or at least someone of Korean descent. Right?"
"…That's true."
"But people like you, poaching Korean players for foreign countries… doesn't sit well with me. Right?"
"…."
Their expressions turned cold, but Choi Junseok chuckled and turned his gaze out the window.
"I'm joking. Just joking. Why so tense? We're all just trying to make a living. Who needs patriotism for that?"
"So, about our offer…"
Choi Junseok deliberately cut in again before she could continue.
"But if I follow you to America, I'd be banned from entering Korea forever, wouldn't I?"
They didn't deny it. They simply wondered if the man reflected in the rearview mirror was truly only on his first day as an awakened player.
Did the emotion skill malfunction?
He was clearly an F-rank Level 5 with the utterly F-rank skill Inventory Master. Yet he was more thoughtful and composed than any S-rank they had ever seen. Without some ability to absorb entire stages into a bag, those first- and second-floor records wouldn't be possible. But because they were caught up in Choi Junseok's pace, they hadn't realized the secret.
The broker, growing impatient after being interrupted twice whenever he tried to state the conditions, offered the best deal America could provide.
"They said they'd provide a penthouse in America and full support for your activities as a player. A top-tier sports car, language learning assistance, a personal interpreter, and a secretary…"
Choi Junseok smirked, but the broker continued.
"Additionally, we'll ensure the safety of your family members by relocating them together. On top of that, you'll receive bonuses in the hundreds of millions of won for each floor cleared. I hear the Korean lottery jackpot is at most 2 billion won? Clearing just four or five floors would get you that much…"
The broker soon fell silent. Choi Junseok was still gazing indifferently out the window.
"America. America's great. Of course it is. The American Dream, right?"
"…."
"But, well, I'll accept it anyway. Do you have a business card? Ah, drop me off up ahead, please."
The woman immediately handed over a business card as if she'd been waiting for this. The spot Choi Junseok had requested was an alley just before entering Garak Market. It felt exactly like hailing a taxi.
"By the way, my summon has excellent eyesight and memory."
"…."
It was a warning to be careful about his information leaking. At the same time, Choi Junseok remotely summoned an item from his inventory onto the vehicle's roof—a monster's blood-stained thigh.
The moment blood touched the surface, he remotely retrieved it back into his inventory, leaving the roof drenched in bloodstains.
Vroom…
The vehicle, unaware of what had happened, drove off immediately. The woman, now wearing her sunglasses again, let out a sigh.
"He's no ordinary player. That presence is…"
Just then, the car came to a sudden stop.
Screeeech!
"Agh, damn it! What the—?! Why?!"
The driver gasped and shook his head. Soon after, the woman's face turned pale as well. Blood was streaking down the windshield, as if it were a warning.
'My summon has excellent eyesight and memory.'
The man hurriedly got out and looked up at the roof, but there was nothing there except bloodstains.
Gulp.
It seemed to remind them of Choi Junseok's clear warning.
—How unexpected.
—What is?
—I thought you'd pack your bags and board a plane to America right away.
At Sword God Yu Junhyeok's sharp remark, Choi Junseok gave a bitter smile.
—If I did that, I'd probably get scolded by someone.
—By me?
—Well, maybe?
—I don't particularly care, but clearing America's Magic Towers is still saving people, just like in Korea.
—That's true.
—But if possible, I'd rather you save Koreans first before Americans.
—That's surprising coming from you. I thought you'd say going to America wasn't even an option.
—I would have done that, but your goal isn't self-made success, is it?
—Exactly.
—But you're giving up on America?
—Do you know how many rich people there are in America?
—How would I know?
—And I've heard that the best place for wealthy people to live is Korea.
—I've heard that too.
—Besides, Koreans are most comfortable living in Korea.
And above all, there were his father's words.
'Live with pride and without shame.'
If he went to America like this, no matter how much money he made, he was certain he wouldn't be able to sleep soundly. That conviction was there.
The towers were what had brought his family down overnight. Though the towers' emergence had caused the aftermath, and the collapse had been prevented by the sword in his body… no, by the Sword God.
Anyway, that was how it was.
—You chose well. Even when I was conquering Incheon, I know many colleagues secretly crossed over to America. None of them met a good end.
'There's no paradise in a place you've fled to.'
No matter how much paradise was promised, it wasn't hard to imagine the hardships that would come with enjoying it. What sin had the two of them committed to live in a place where they couldn't even communicate?
"I can live well enough here too."
As if steeling his resolve, Choi Junseok confirmed no one was around. Then he immediately summoned the backpack that had been stored in his inventory.
Whoosh! Thud!
In an instant, a massive 1.5-meter-tall backpack appeared. It was large enough to fit two people if they were crammed inside. Choi Junseok naturally shouldered the enormous bag. The heavy weight pressed down on his shoulders, but compared to what he usually carried, this was light. The bag reached from the top of his head down to below his thighs.
This was the black market where he had once sold materials he'd secretly taken using his Inventory skill. Even though it was broad daylight, once he entered deep into the market, all signs of people vanished. He followed a narrow path between the parking lots of forklifts and massive trucks. Soon, the path narrowed into a gap between buildings, and at the end of that path, the space suddenly opened up to reveal a huge warehouse.
A man blocking the front of the warehouse saw Choi Junseok's backpack and stepped in his way.
"Never seen your face before."
Choi Junseok responded with an openly mocking tone.
"Do you remember the faces of everyone inside?"
The man glared down at Choi Junseok with a menacing expression, but when Choi Junseok didn't even blink, he eventually stepped aside.
Inside, under dim lighting, stalls and tents were set up here and there. Moreover, on the second-floor railing of the warehouse, armed soldiers with rifles were patrolling, watching both inside and outside.
The merchants inside were divided into sections like shops in Dongdaemun Market. Choi Junseok knew exactly where to sell which materials and who paid the highest prices.
Choi Junseok's massive backpack, combined with the appearance of a new face, made people lick their lips as if they'd found easy prey.
Sure enough, two burly men blocking the alley in front and behind grinned at Choi Junseok.
"Leave the backpack and go quietly. Don't cause a scene."
But Choi Junseok hadn't expected this. With his regression, his old connections had disappeared too. Before, if he'd asked the nearby merchants to intervene, these small fries would have backed off on their own. But now the merchants were pretending not to see or hear what was happening right in front of them. He hadn't built any rapport with them yet, after all. They were just staring at their phones.
"Heh heh… Leave the backpack and go. Unless you want to leave an arm and a leg behind too, yeah?"
The moment a bald giant behind Choi Junseok grabbed his shoulder with a smirk, a woman placed her hand on the giant's wrist that was on Choi Junseok's shoulder.
Thud!
"Stop."
Choi Junseok was just as surprised by the sudden appearance of the unfamiliar blonde woman. After all, it was Lee Nayeon, whom he had never summoned before, who had appeared.
"Move again, and I'll break your hand."