Emergency Situation Lifted
Upon investigation, the tower collapse was confirmed to be due to a clear. The association will handle the rest of the cleanup, so feel free to use the gallery as usual^^
“Uh... Mr. Kim Hyun-bae?”
“Yes.”
“Please have a seat comfortably. Think of this as a simple... well, formal investigation.”
“Yes.”
Kim Hyun-bae sat down in the gray-white interrogation room.
“I'm Park Ji-young, association investigator. I've been assigned to this case.”
“Nice to meet you.”
Kim Hyun-bae bowed his head politely.
“Ah, no need to be so formal. It's just a formality, after all.”
Park Ji-young scratched her head with her ballpoint pen as she read over the case summary.
“Around 8:30 a.m., you posted a rescue request to the association via the gallery under the nickname StrongMan, correct?”
“Yes, that's me.”
“Did you receive a potion from a gallery moderator?”
“Yes. I received it and drank it.”
Kim Hyun-bae nodded.
It had all happened in the gallery, and there was no point denying such an obvious fact.
Park Ji-young typed up all of Kim Hyun-bae's statements.
The white screen filled with key words, but the most crucial one was still missing.
“So... could you tell me how the tower was cleared?”
“I didn't clear it.”
“Then who did?”
Park Ji-young skimmed the association's preliminary report.
Around 9 a.m., when association staff arrived and attempted entry, the tower clear was confirmed. Climbers returned to reality. One dead, three injured.
And Kim Hyun-bae walked out unscathed, without a single wound.
It was an impossible record.
The small raid team that had entered was skilled, but only for B-rank difficulty towers.
Tower breaks typically raised the difficulty by two levels, meaning Kim Hyun-bae had faced an S-rank monster. Even freshly hatched from its egg and weak, it should've been at least A-rank.
A B-rank that no lone tank could solo, let alone clear.
Someone had helped.
The association was dying to know who that 'someone' was.
Kim Hyun-bae haltingly explained the situation.
When signs of tower break appeared, he'd gone outside to taunt, but instead of monsters, a mysterious climber arrived.
“They told me not to say anything...”
“Mr. Kim, it's fine. Our conversations here aren't disclosed externally.”
“...Really?”
“Of course.”
Park Ji-young nodded confidently.
Kim Hyun-bae studied her face, then slowly opened his tightly shut mouth.
“They were decked out head to toe in what looked like S-rank items.”
“...Decked out in S-rank items?”
“Yes. And their appearance...”
Kim Hyun-bae described the mysterious climber in detail.
Wearing a mask, full-body tights with armor over them. A cape, and weapons pulled from a strange pouch to dispatch it in one shot.
Park Ji-young jotted down every word.
“They took down the dragon in one strike and vanished somewhere. Then I was able to exit the tower.”
Park Ji-young finished typing and looked at Kim Hyun-bae.
His face was confident and vibrant. Not the face of a liar.
“...Understood.”
Hard to believe, but it seemed to be the truth. No reason to lie.
Park Ji-young narrowed her eyes.
Assuming everything was true, that climber wasn't association-affiliated.
Foreign climber, or unregistered.
Either way, a headache, but the real problem was that this climber had one-shot an estimated S-rank monster.
Such a powerhouse roaming uncontrolled outside association and guild oversight. Major issue.
Park Ji-young summarized and messaged her superiors.
This case would go to another investigator now.
“Moving on to the next investigation. Our analysts re-evaluated the tower, but even accounting for every variable, the clear failure probability was under 1%.”
The association supported clears, not failures.
Some were unavoidable, but this quest was 99% clearable even in worst-case scenarios. Zero risk.
“I'm ashamed about that. An NPC just needed to purify the egg, but the NPC failed...”
“...Failed?”
“Yes. Come to think of it, a teammate near the egg saw something... Not sure if they're alive now.”
Kim Hyun-bae smiled bitterly.
Failed raiders usually meant death.
He'd nearly died too, saved only by the potion.
“What's your teammate's name?”
“Joo Won-se.”
Park Ji-young messaged the association staff at the hospital immediately.
'Interrogate climber Joo Won-se ASAP if possible.'
'Got it.'
Quick reply.
“Checking now.”
'Currently alive. Conscious.'
“Good, they're alive.”
“Haaah...”
Kim Hyun-bae sighed in relief.
Another survivor besides himself. Truly fortunate.
Park Ji-young stared piercingly at her screen.
Lucky clear this time, but it nearly broke. How? What variable?
Needed to confirm and report to analysts.
'Interrogation results. Report.'
Silence, then a message.
'Clear failure cause confirmed as irregular.'
Park Ji-young bit her lip.
...
“Two chickens to go...”
The part-timer gave me a super bewildered look.
What? Why?
First climber you've seen?
I stood tall and took the chicken.
The kid flinched but, driven by the will to get paid, asked for payment.
“Payment...? How...?”
“I don't have money right now.”
“Pardon?”
“But I'll give you a potion instead.”
I pulled a potion from the pouch Rohan gave me.
Not one I made—dropped from the tower.
Hell, I just exited the tower. Where would I get cash? No smartphone either.
The part-timer eyed the potion skeptically, but the boss behind him lit up with joy.
Good enough.
I bolted out of the chicken joint.
Noon o'clock.
Cleared faster than expected, so plenty of time.
Almost a shame to head back to the tower right away.
That's why I hit the open chicken spot.
Ordered, and it was ready fresh.
“Heh heh heh.”
This smell.
This warmth.
Aaaah... missed it so much.
I hurried to a secluded spot.
Best to eat chicken where no one's around.
Don't wanna be disturbed.
I settled at some abandoned workout equipment on the neighborhood hill.
No signs of people here.
“Perfect. Let's eat here.”
I opened the chicken box.
“Grooo...”
Oil-scented bliss wafting up.
I'll gain weight if I eat this? Still gonna eat it? taunting me.
Yeah, I'm eating it.
Couldn't resist, like yelling 'Kill me!' in front of an orc as a knight.
“Alright then...”
I grabbed a golden drumstick.
Crispy skin.
Big bite.
Crunch!
“Haaaah...”
Honestly regretted exiting the tower for that dragon-whatever, but this absolves everything.
Chicken's worth risking life for.
Damn right.
“Oh yeah. Gallery.”
Chicken euphoria didn't last.
Gallery popped into mind.
“Gallery while eating chicken? Can't resist.”
Shoved chicken in mouth, opened gallery.
“Tower Gallery access.”
“Hm?”
Mystery climber who stopped the tower break?
“...Is that me?”
I definitely told them not to say anything.
My threat didn't stick?
“Hmm...”
Chicken-eating pace slowed a bit.
“Gotta tweak the plan.”
Originally, chill gallery, savor chicken, enjoy modern civ, then back.
Situation changed.
If association clocked me, they might come looking.
“...Still gotta check gallery first.”
Chicken and gallery first.
Handle those two.
Blasted through backlog posts at light speed, demolished chicken same way.
“Whew, good eats.”
Tied trash in bag, chucked it somewhere.
No time for bins.
Fixed my mask pronto.
“First, fix the bow.”
Pulled out World Tree Branch from pouch.
◈ A branch from the World Tree. Overflowing with vitality, as if freshly cut.
And the bow.
◈ Once shone brilliantly. Now snapped in two. Good for kindling? Made from World Tree branch.
Combine with broken bow...
Materials confirmed. Proceed with repair?
[Confirm]
Click.
◈ Regained its brilliant glory. Every third shot unleashes a gale with the arrow. Made from World Tree branch.
“Phew. Worked fine.”
Worried it wouldn't outside the tower.
Urgent stuff done.
Time to return to the tower.
Wouldn't be this hassle if info didn't leak.
“Tch. Next time, threaten harder.”
Clicked tongue, opened gallery.
Straight to info tab.
“Recent tower nearby.”
Seemed like some outskirts city in Gyeonggi-do.
Enter nearby tower, hide out, head to Rohan's.
“This one's good.”
One 10km away, popped up a month ago.
Enter there, back to my tower.
“Hoo...”
Let's go.
Back to the tower.