Chapter 28: The Tower's Trial: 8th Floor: Yoon Seong-gi♡
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 28: The Tower's Trial: 8th Floor: Yoon Seong-gi♡
"Hey, I'm just gonna speak casually, alright?"
"Huh...? Ah, ahh... Y-You can speak casually."
The guy suddenly got all polite.
When I glared at him, he immediately agreed, bowing and scraping.
He wasn't a small guy, but his confidence had been so thoroughly crushed compared to before that he felt like he'd shrunk.
Still, we couldn't set off like this, so we did some basic introductions.
First, his name was Yoon Seong-gi.
"Pfft!! How can your name be Seong-gi... hehehe...!!" [T/N: Seong-gi is also the Korean word for genitalia.]
"Ugh... Does that mean your trait is also..."
"Hey, you wanna die?"
"......"
Might makes right.
After a brief, awkward silence, the introductions continued.
His class was just Swordsman. A typical guy who fights with a single sword.
'How the hell did he make it this far?'
He still had the air of a normal person, which made me wonder. I figured that by the 8th floor, you should at least look like a warrior who's been through the wringer, but this guy just seemed like a scrub.
His stats—Strength, Agility, and Defense—were all in the mid-to-late teens. It seemed he hadn't acquired many good traits either.
'Did he just get lucky and clear only low-rank trials?'
He might be the complete opposite of my case.
His guild was called [Felix], was it? I'd never heard of it, so it had to be a minor guild.
Calling it a minor guild was being generous. They were basically just individual Awakeners.
After I gave a rough explanation about myself, getting his permission to broadcast was a piece of cake.
"You'll blur my face, right...?"
"Yeah, but the viewers already know your name is Seong-gi."
"What...?"
"Ahem... My bad. Let's get ready to go."
I ignored him, who looked like his soul had left his body, and grabbed my weapon.
He had a sword. I took a spear.
Once again, no armor was provided. I went out wearing the same thin dolphin shorts and tank top I usually wore.
"You've looked into what this place is about, right?"
"Yes. I've memorized all the information, down to the last detail. For this floor, we have to clear all the rooms within the eight-hour time limit. If we fail to clear a room's mission, our reward grade drops, and we have to start over from the beginning."
"You know the basics. Then you also know that a strategy guide is useless here, right?"
Of all the trials, the 8th floor had the most variables.
With eight rooms, it was possible for a past trial to reappear, but even if you knew about it, it would either be a meaningless combat trial or the details would be subtly changed, making prior knowledge a hindrance.
It was a place where new trials popped up every time, as if an AI was slightly modifying the problems.
"O-Of course. I heard that improvisation and cooperation are the most important things."
"Good. Then you follow my orders, and only my orders. Got it?"
"Uh... W-Well, that's..."
"Got it?"
I raised my fist slightly.
"Haha... Is there any doubt?"
Seong-gi immediately bowed his head.
But was this okay?
I was a little worried that this might stir up controversy or become some kind of incident for an Awakener streamer, so I peeked at the chat—
- lololololol
- Serves him right~
- How dare that annoying-looking bastard!
- He's totally deflated lol
- I knew it from the moment he started acting up, tsk tsk
It seemed I hadn't crossed a line yet.
Besides, he was the one who disrespected me first, and it was a duel based on fair rules, so there shouldn't be any controversy.
And this method would be better for him, too.
"Hey. Just trust me and follow my lead. I'll make sure you get a high-grade reward, too."
"Ah... Okay."
His reaction was lukewarm, but he'd soon find out.
*
The first room.
I pressed the start button on the electronic panel in the center.
[Defend the crystal orb from the approaching enemies.]
As the trial began, the room's structure changed.
- Rumble... Craaack!
As if a cube were shifting, the tiles on the floor and walls rose and fell, splitting apart and coming back together. In the blink of an eye, the large, empty space transformed into a single straight corridor.
It was about three meters wide and open at both ends. In the middle of the corridor, a crystal orb rested on an ornate pedestal.
The moment the restructuring finished, skeletons emerged from both ends of the corridor.
Front and back.
If even one side was breached, the crystal would shatter, and the mission would be a failure.
'The numbers are different.'
At a glance, they looked similar, but there were about twenty-five in the front and fifteen in the back.
"Listen up. I'll take the front, you take the back. Hold on tight!"
"Okay..!"
I quickly assigned our positions and faced the skeletons.
I didn't wait for them to approach.
I charged forward, and before a sword-wielding skeleton could even react, I thrust my spear and shattered its skull.
- Crack!!
Starting with that satisfying crunch of bone, I took down the skeletons one by one.
'The difficulty... is easy.'
One at a time.
The skeletons, armed with various melee weapons, crumbled like sandcastles.
I attacked and defended simultaneously, picking up the pace. I dodged their attacks by a paper's breadth, never ceasing my spear thrusts.
It felt like I'd been at it for about fifteen seconds when—
- Craaack!!!
- I finished off the monsters on my side by smashing two at once.
But the problem was...
"Aaargh!! Help!!! Help!!"
'Ugh...'
I turned around to see a skeleton, just a torso, clinging to his ankle while he was locked in a clash of blades with another skeleton. And while he was stuck like that, a skeleton with an axe was closing in.
"Hey, just push that bastard off!"
I shouted as I ran toward him, but he didn't budge.
'Did fear freeze his brain?'
There was no time.
I threw my spear, hitting the head of the skeleton that was about to bring its axe down on Seong-gi.
- Whooosh...!!
- Crack!
The powerfully thrown spear took out the skeleton just a moment before the axe would have hit Seong-gi.
"Snap out of it, you idiot!"
I gave him a light smack on the back of the head, picked up a nearby sword, and swung it.
With me joining the fray, the skeletons were cleared out in an instant.
The first room was over just like that.
And...
"Seong-gi?"
My voice turned so cold it even surprised me.
Seeing him fight was so pathetic that my emotions slipped into my expression and tone.
"Ugh... This... I mean, I definitely sliced its torso..."
He flinched under my gaze and started making excuses, sweating profusely.
"Haa... Don't you know you have to destroy a skeleton's neck or head, just like a zombie? Didn't you say you memorized all the strategies?"
"No, I just... I panicked and..."
[First room cleared. Changing to the waiting room.]
"Haa... We'll talk later, you hear?"
"......"
His shoulders slumped even further.
- Ruuuumble... Thud...!!
The room had already rearranged itself, and we were back in the waiting room we'd seen at the start.
'How did he get this far with those skills?'
There were still 7 hours and 57 minutes left.
The first room was over in just three minutes.
'Right, I should give him some feedback.'
This was more for his sake than mine.
During the 8th-floor trial, if one partner dies, the survivor's reward grade is lowered, and they're matched with someone else.
If your partner is too much of a scrub, you could just let them die and find a better one, but that didn't feel right. It was a person's life, after all.
So, giving him feedback like this was actually me being nice.
"Seong-gi."
"Yes, Noonim..."
"Listen carefully. I'll give you a quick lesson on how to use a sword and your own strength. Why are you locking blades with a skeleton that's weaker than you? You should be pushing it back and swinging your sword! Haa, and your posture is..."
...
..
.
For about twenty minutes.
I gave him feedback from the world's strongest player, the kind you couldn't get even if you paid for it.
However,
"You should be able to handle the rest with just this much, right?"
"Yes... I can do it..."
I could tell he hadn't understood a single word.
If anything, his confidence had only plummeted further.
"Haa..."
'Was this counterproductive? His confidence is completely shot...'
I never imagined he wouldn't understand what I said and would just sink deeper into his own self-pity...
His arrogant attitude from when we first met was much better. In this state, he wouldn't even be able to swing his sword.
If I were a man, I would've yelled, "What the hell is a man like you doing?! Cut your dick off!!" and beaten the shit out of him, but I had a feeling that saying something like that in a woman's body would cause some kind of controversy.
It couldn't be helped.
This was something he had to overcome himself.
If he couldn't, he would die. If he could, he would grow.
"You're not injured, right? Then let's go to the next room."
"Yes..."
Amidst the awkward atmosphere, we started the second room.
*
[Beginning the second room. Kill all enemies.]
Three Orc Warriors.
It was a very simple and easy difficulty.
"I'll take two. You take the one on the far left!"
"Okay!"
*
The result of that fight...
He ended up with a minor injury this time.
"Ugh... I'm sorry."
"No, how can someone who's made it to the 8th floor not even handle a single orc properly? Haa..."
There was a lot I wanted to say, but I let it go for now.
Looking at his face, he seemed to be on the verge of a mental breakdown. If I added another word, it would only be counterproductive.
His injuries were a sprained wrist and a twisted ankle.
I just wrapped them with bandages from the waiting room and moved on to the next room.
*
The third room was similar to the first.
Instead, a horde of goblins rushed out, and once again, I had to save him from the brink of death for us to barely clear it.
The fourth room was a boss battle.
The boss mob we had to fight was a large Minotaur.
It was a high-tier orc monster with a massive, three-meter-tall muscular body.
And as soon as the battle started, the Minotaur charged like crazy.
Yoon Seong-gi panicked at the sight, tripped pathetically while trying to run away, and in the end, I had to kill it by myself.
"......"
When I glared at him, he hung his head so low it was practically touching the ground.
"I'm sorry..."
At least he seemed to know it was his fault.
Seeing him stare at the ground, looking ashamed, I didn't feel like saying anything more.
'Fine, let's just clear this quickly and get out...'
Without even asking about the next trial, I started it immediately.
*
[Fourth room. Find the three pearls inside the cave.]
Thank god.
If it had been another combat trial, Yoon Seong-gi might have actually died.
The square, gray room began to rearrange itself in an instant, leaving only a single narrow cave entrance. Next to the entrance, a small box and a flashlight were visible.
A simple trial where we just had to go into the cave and bring back three pearls.
The problem was probably the time.
I doubted they would have put any life-threatening obstacles inside the cave.
"I'll go first. You can at least follow, right?"
"Yes. I can do that."
There was only one flashlight.
I took it and shone it inside the cave. It was quite cramped.
'Looks like we'll have to crawl...'
I didn't like the idea of him being behind my defenseless back, but there was no choice.
'It's not like he'd try anything, right?'
Seeing how dejected he was, I didn't think he'd pull anything. There were still three rooms left, and he knew I was broadcasting, so it should be fine.
"Let's go."
I squeezed my body into the dark cave.
*
'I can see even without the flashlight.'
A very faint, gentle light emanated from the walls.
'I don't think I have to worry about getting scratched...'
The cave was so narrow I had to crawl on all fours.
I was worried about getting scraped by sharp walls, but the ground was somewhat soft. It felt a little damp, too, but all in all, it wasn't as bad as I thought.
"You okay back there?"
There wasn't enough space to turn around, so I couldn't check on him properly.
"Uhm... Yes. No problem!"
It sounded like there was some kind of problem, but it didn't seem to be a major one.
"Then keep up. If you can't, make sure to tell me."
I crawled through the narrow, damp cave.
The temperature inside was a little high.
After crawling like that for about ten minutes, sweat started to trickle down my body.
'Haa... damn it, where the hell are these pearls?'
*
Yoon Seong-gi's point of view.
All he could see was her ass.
'Haa... up close, her ass is fucking huge.'
Her short dolphin shorts couldn't cover her massive buttocks, leaving more than half of the desirable, plump flesh exposed as she crawled, swaying it from side to side.
He felt like he was being seduced.
Had he ever seen such a hot ass before?
It wasn't sagging, had no flaws, and formed an incredibly lewd, bouncy curve.
With every move she made, it jiggled, bringing to mind the soft texture of her skin.
How good would it feel?
If only he could touch it, what an amazing sensation it would be.
It was so desirable.
He wanted to squeeze it and grope it.
He wanted to grab it, pull it to the side, and pound into her.
He wanted to restrain her so she couldn't resist and pour his baby seed deep into her precious baby room.
A man's instinct.
The desire to breed was surging, but...
He held back.
In the past, he might have pretended to touch it by accident and played it off smoothly, but right now, he was in a fragile state of mind.
If he touched her ass, he might get beaten to a pulp, or she might let him die on purpose and find a new partner.
Most importantly, his pride had taken a massive hit.
Yoon Seong-gi.
He had lived his life thinking of himself as a genius.
Decent looks and education.
And even climbing the Tower as an Awakener.
He'd bragged to his friends about being an Awakener, and just yesterday, he'd had a one-night stand with a woman he met at a bar.
Pretty girls he met at clubs or bars would spread their legs for him so easily when he said he was an Awakener, so his pride was sky-high.
He lived his life showing off and lording it over others.
Then, today, he met Lee Do-hee.
When he first saw her, all he could think about was hitting on her and fucking her.
How strong could a female Awakener be? She must be a support class who got lucky and survived... he thought, but as time went on, that thought began to change.
When he lost the initial duel, he just thought she was strong because she'd gotten a lucky trait. He thought it was plausible since he'd only ever faced low-rank trials.
But after his huge mistake during the skeleton fight, his pride began to crumble.
He'd never imagined that the skeleton he'd cockily sliced in half to show off would end up grabbing his ankle.
If she had been even a little late in helping him, he would have died.
And during her subsequent lecture, he realized the vast gap in their understanding of martial arts.
Where to put your weight, how to plant your feet, your posture and balance when swinging a sword, the relationship between distance and power... he couldn't understand a single word.
He pretended to understand and nodded, but her disappointed, cold gaze was like she was looking at an insect.
She probably wasn't actually looking at him that way, but that's how Yoon Seong-gi felt.
Hopeless. A talentless dunce. A bug. Incompetent.
For Yoon Seong-gi, who had lived his life thinking he was in the top tier of society, it was an enormous shock.
And as he went through the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th rooms, he felt it keenly.
'I was just a scrub.'
Unlike him, a fake, she was a true, shining 'genius.'
The word 'genius' wasn't for him; it was for women like Lee Do-hee.
That's why all he could do was stare intently at her ass.
He couldn't have it, but he could look, right? Just looking at her ass felt somehow healing.
But then,
"Wait...!"
She suddenly stopped.
But Seong-gi, who was staring at her ass and lost in lewd thoughts, didn't react in time, and his face slammed right between her butt cheeks.
- Smush!
"Heek!?"
"Oof!"
Her plump butt cheeks acted as an excellent cushion, and Yoon Seong-gi's face settled softly between them.
'Huh...? Is my face... no way?'
He could have immediately pulled his face back, but he didn't.
It felt like his body was refusing. His mind was telling him to get out quickly, but his body wouldn't listen.
'Ahh... why does this feel so good?'
The soft, squishy sensation that warmly enveloped his face.
A fragrant scent that was hard to believe came from a sweaty woman.
And that place, slightly damp from sweat yet so soft.
This was heaven. This had to be heaven.
It was a warm and comfortable space, like his mother's embrace when he was a child.
He had been with all sorts of women and had smelled plenty of bad odors. That's why he thought the guys who talked about burying their faces in butts were idiots who'd never even been with a woman.
But he was wrong.
He had just never encountered a proper woman's ass until now.
A proper woman's ass was so good that he felt he could die with his nose buried in it and be happy.
'Sniff... haa... so fucking good...'
As he was savoring her ass.
"Hey!! You, get your damn face off me right now!!!"
'Ah...'
When her fiery command fell, his body reacted automatically, and he flinched back in surprise.
"No, it wasn't on purpose!! What was I supposed to do when you stopped so suddenly..."
"Ugh... Be more careful from now on. It's a fork in the path. I'll check the left side first. Follow me."
He started following her again.
But in his mind, the feeling of that plump ass was still vivid.
It was on a completely different level from the women he'd been with before.
A blissful texture and scent that seemed to have been created solely to make men happy.
'Just one more time... I want to bury my face in it again. I want to rub my face all over that ass...'
Power began to gather in his lower body.