Chapter 74
Chapter 74
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 74
Chapter Title: Tower Lord's Ordeal #6
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The world inside the tower is cold-hearted.
A brutal realm where everything is predetermined by one's origins and innate talents.
'Fucking idiots.'
That's why Ridley, one of the hunters who had picked a fight with Do-yoon, carried immense pride in his own background.
'I'm different.'
He possessed a lineage that other hunters could only envy.
The Upper Council, established to maintain the tower's overall balance.
One of its heavyweights had his back.
Ridley brimmed with confidence.
So he formed a clique with like-minded individuals, aiming to impose proper discipline on hunters of the same rank.
Because he was a chosen hunter.
A hunter worthy of such authority.
'Th-this is...'
'A fragment of the progenitor. Use it wisely.'
The key to the 15th floor that his senior hunter had once handed down to him.
He had it in his possession.
"Heh."
Ridley had lived his life with the unshakable conviction that he was the protagonist of this era.
And so—
'Stupid bitch.'
He couldn't help but look down on Lakia Bells, who was now fawning over Do-yoon like a pet.
He didn't know what wind had blown her way, but her attitude toward a hunter from Earth—with no notable background whatsoever—was deeply irritating.
He'd heard the stories.
That he'd shone in the Theme Stage and actually helped a lot of hunters.
"Bro, honestly speaking, couldn't we have done the same thing?"
Ridley nodded as if it were obvious.
"They're all the same. You, him, everyone—they all overcame the Theme Stage trials just like the rest."
"Exactly!"
"No reason to spotlight that guy in particular!"
"Fucking morons. They must've fallen for some cheat or scam."
Ridley felt a duty.
A duty to open everyone's eyes.
'Still, I need to squeeze out whatever info he has on the object.'
If even part of the rumors were true, it would surely help with conquering the 15th floor.
So despite the guy's lowly origins, he graciously extended a hand to pull Do-yoon in.
'I'll give you a chance.'
Grab my hand.
Do that, and I'll even forgive your insolence for strutting around with that trash background.
"Get lost."
"...?"
The bold rejection hit him like a slap, souring Ridley's mood immensely.
"You fucking punk. You got lucky clearing the Theme Stage, and now you think the whole world belongs to you?"
"We'll handle it ourselves."
Even as Ridley growled threats, Do-yoon showed no sign of agitation, simply leaving with Lakia Bells.
"..."
"That bastard...!"
"Bro, should we beat him down?"
At those words, the second-in-command beside him smacked the back of the head of the hunter who'd nearly started something earlier.
"You dumbass. You know causing trouble here means instant death?"
"Ah, s-sorry."
"Let it go."
Ridley's mood was foul, but he showed mercy, eagerly anticipating what was to come.
He could already picture that clueless hunter begging in agony on the 15th floor after rejecting his offer.
"No need for me to save some punk who doesn't know his place."
"Kehahaha, wise words indeed."
"Let's go."
Their guild objectives were already met anyway.
They'd familiarized themselves with the useful hunters and gathered plenty of intel.
'Looking forward to seeing you again.'
Imagining the idiot hunter groveling at his feet, he leisurely departed the guild.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 📰 My Post Title: Wine Lord's a Celebrity - I'm on the 9th floor right now, and some weirdos acting all high and mighty, name-dropping the Wine Lord like they're hot shit lol In the end, he couldn't hold back.
Do-yoon, brimming with anticipation, tossed a massive bombshell into the gallery.
— Huh? What bait? Whose name are they dropping? — Wtf lololol Aged Wine is...*) Hoe? Hoe?! HOOEEEEE!!! — That gradient rage is hilarious lolololol — [Newbie, what the hell are you saying?] [Current Situation Summary.txt] [It's like this, right? lol] [The assholes running the tower are name-dropping whose name? lolololol] [This is why hunters get lumped together and trashed] 📰 Title: Newbie You Lunatic Nickname: Paper Enthusiast* - What am I supposed to do if you drop a nuke like that outta nowhere The captains have to handle the fallout!!!!!! — We still need to know what's up If it weren't for the newbie, we wouldn't even know lol Don't you feel wronged by everything we've suffered so far? lol The boss mobs' pent-up grievances erupted.
Hunters.
Long ago, trust in that profession had evaporated among them.
They treated the tower as a marketplace, blocking the paths of emerging sprouts and preventing any circulation.
From the boss mobs' perspective, the image of that entrenched elite was anything but favorable.
— No suckers still think the hunters' system is healthy, right? lol [Ooh, no graduation ahead. But ejection is coming] [Fuuuuck] 📰 Title: Hehe, the Kids Are Pretty Pissed~ Nickname: Short-Eared Goblin* - But it was something that had to come out eventually~ It's about the lord of the tower, after all? If it weren't for the newbie, the tower's very foundation would've been toyed with by them~ — Heeng... Mommy — Heh, only Goblin seats on my side — Goblin? Speak properly — Dae Hwang P — Aged Wine is...*) No, we got screwed, so why's Goblin getting all the support...! — lololololol As the mood heated up, Do-yoon stirred the pot further.
📰 My Post Title: Alright, Everyone - I fully understand your anger You've all felt so alone and wronged, right? Now come with me. I'll be by your side...! — Dude, why do you talk like that — Are you trying to get us to vote or something? — Uh uh uh — Paper Enthusiast*) You maniac, stop pouring oil on the fire!!! Do-yoon had one wish.
"How the hell am I supposed to hold this in?"
The expressions of that group, who strutted around confident in their knowledge of the boss monsters and everything in the tower right in front of him.
Knowing what the gallery users had been struggling with and hating all this time,
Do-yoon gladly played along with the hunters' attitudes to reveal the 'truth.'
📰 Title: Oh, Is That It? - Their goal is tower conquest anyway, breaking through the Theme Stages on each floor That's why they're swaggering around name-dropping the Wine Lord Just flexing hard — So what's that got to do with the newbie? — You think they'd leave the newbie alone? They'd trash his rep again lololol — Ffs, can't stand that — Who's messing with our newbie now!!!! "That's right, bite."
He'd finally succeeded in drawing the reaction he wanted.
Do-yoon immediately got to work.
📰 My Post Title: I Figured It Was Something We Needed to Know ㅇㅇ - Honestly, it's not normal They didn't look right when I saw them earlier Threw fairness to the dogs, formed their own clique, picking fights with other hunters left and right They even tried to recruit me with Eira, so I told them to fuck off — Good job — Ffs, who do they think they are eyeing — Wine Lord gonna sit still after hearing this? — Aged Wine is...*) ...The gallery vibe's off... Need to change the mood — Paper Enthusiast*) No. Just wait. They did that to the newbie too? — Paper Lord hero appears ㄷㄷ Just before the bloodbath, a captain blocked the Wine Lord.
— Paper Enthusiast*) Messing with the newbie too means we really need to rethink this — Aged Wine is...*) Wh-what... — Paper Enthusiast*) What if they pressure him and his ability gets exposed? You think the newbie can operate normally then? Hunters are greedy.
That greed intensifies and festers the higher you go.
But what if it came out that a gallery user could directly communicate with the boss mobs on each floor?
— [Ooh, chills just now ㄷㄷ] [Wine Lord, spill the beans quick!! Or we'll all get ejected] The existence of Hidden Pieces, the truth behind raid points.
They had to back the newbie somehow here.
Enough to stop those guys on the 15th floor Theme Stage.
— Aged Wine is...*) No, the newbie already got the Hidden Piece ticket... — Yeah, that's his right, but we need info to prep for the 15th floor object, right? 📰 Title: Geez, Can't Get Through to You - Teacher, just admit it lolol Everyone knows you're dodging your black history lololol Eira, you clearly have even darker history than Grape Juice Lord, of course you'd deny it — Fact: True — But we're curious too lol what makes you try to ban just for mentioning — Normally it'd be a gallery rule ban, but this time it's king — Aged Wine is...*) Hoeoe...! Gallery users are dead set on dunking the captain...! "Perfect."
Do-yoon wanted this.
Training via Theme Stages was great, giving him an edge over other hunters, sure.
'There too.'
As he'd felt on the 5th floor before, knowing and taking a hit versus not knowing was worlds apart.
"So cough it up."
— Aged Wine is...*) Hoe, hoeeee...!! — Brutal lolol Gonna hold out? — Aged Wine is...*) Hoeeeeng...!! The sturdy walls of the Wine Lord's fortress, which had held firm,
— Aged Wine is...*) ...Can't I just tell you? Finally, the Wine Lord, who'd been gritting her teeth, signaled her surrender.