After the Hitchhiker's Debut: Global Fury Ignites

Ever since the Hitchhiker's appearance, world opinion had been in a constant uproar.

Was today any different?

Not at all. It was blazing hotter than ever.

The full brunt of the criticism was focused on the US, China, and Japan.

In truth, stockpiling antidotes in anticipation of the trials wasn't something anyone could really condemn.

It was just sound strategy, after all.

Any country would have done the same.

The real problem?

The blatant intent to manipulate global supply by varying sales volumes per nation and dominate the world.

They'd revealed their hand way too early.

What did you expect? It handed the international community a perfect excuse for outrage.

With every nation directly affected, the backlash was far fiercer than during China's Lycanslope scandal.

The US was catching hell.

Japan was catching hell.

China was getting absolutely roasted.

The karma from Lycanslope had stacked up sky-high, and losing a bunch of high-rank Awakeners had tanked their climbing competitiveness.

They did have an ace up their sleeve. Samples of holy water from Korea.

If it had come from any other country, they'd have scoffed at the "initial batch supply" claim.

Such a scam item in bulk?

Who you tryin' to sell snake oil to?

They'd assume it was just a few bottles split into tiny samples.

But the sender was Korea. The land of the Hitchhiker.

It exists...! They've gotta have something...!

Sensing the ominous vibe, they immediately recalled the officials they'd dispatched to the shops.

Then contacted Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

And received one video.

"Isn't that...?"

"Lee Sera, Korea's S-rank Awakener?"

It was footage of Lee Sera downing holy water in one gulp and assaulting a new floor, shot with tower-exclusive gear.

Production values like a top-tier CF ad.

She swept through monsters cleanly, untouched by any status effects.

And attached proof files.

"Photos too. Detailed specs in shared mode for the holy water... My God, how many bottles is this?"

"Expert authentication confirms: no fakes, no edits."

They gulped hard.

Visions of their own S-rank Awakeners performing like Lee Sera flashed in their minds.

"We secure this at all costs."

"Budget approval incoming!"

Status immunity was one thing.

But the stat buffs were insane.

Tower scores?

Mostly from S-ranks breaking new floors and repeating them.

Build national achievements.

Get stat buffs.

Push higher floors.

Snowball structure.

But mid-to-low nations in a slump struggled to break through.

Holy water? How many extra floors could S-ranks clear?

1? 3? 5?

Maybe more!

Shivers ran down their spines at the thought.

Plus ultimate convenience: dilute and drink as needed.

A golden chance to break free from top-nation shackles.

Thus, management agencies worldwide looped the Korean video, buzzing with anticipation.

Plotting strategies.

Prepping for auction.

And as the community said, the rankings?

Practically stalled.

Only Korea, USA, Japan, and China showed meaningful gains.

Japan and China were even slower than pre-trial pace.

Even with overflowing antidotes, using them mid-battle constantly was another issue.

Climbing difficulty had spiked.

But USA and Korea were different.

For the USA:

S-rank new floor clears.

Mysterious 50k point jumps.

Floor strategies and such.

Korea? One word summed it up.

Hitchhiker.

Korea was going wild.

Meanwhile, analysts worldwide were tearing their hair out.

Hitchhiker.

No slowdown in records?

Drinking holy water?

No way Hitchhiker's the supplier?

Production capability too?

Ugh... head hurts...!

All they could do was wait.

For the auction to resolve some mysteries.

Meanwhile, US/China/Japan kept dropping antidote prices, but the world stayed cold.

Seoul, Republic of Korea.

The avenue in front of the Korean Awakener Management Agency.

A man stood there.

Kageo Shintaro, disguised and infiltrated via plane.

Level 60 Awakener.

S-rank Shadow Walker.

One of Japan's tower-climbing aces.

Normally, an ultra-secret asset never risked on such ops.

But today's different.

Situation critical enough for him.

Plus his newly acquired skill.

Shadow Step.

Wraps the body in dense shadow, evading monster perception.

Tested plenty. Works in real world too.

Look at these dumb Koreans.

Not a clue I'm here.

Perfect skill for infiltration like this.

Who else has such a cheat skill besides me?

Not even Hitchhiker could.

A smug inner chuckle as he approached the agency building.

Activated Wall Adhesion.

Scaled vertically.

Tap-tap-tap-tap—

Roof in seconds.

Vast empty space.

"Huh?"

A bear doll on the railing.

Fanged grin, cute bat wings.

Weird vibe, like staring right at him.

Forgotten by someone? Brushed it off.

Downward passage... that way.

Top-secret intel usually upper floors.

Search from the top.

Main goal: Confirm Korea's mass holy water production capability.

If possible?

Assassinate key figures like Cha Minhyuk.

Gather intel on Hitchhiker.

Quick steps: tap-tap.

Found himself back before the bear doll.

"...?"

What? Hallucinating?

Definitely moved.

Tap-tap-tap-tap!

Again at bear.

Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!!

Bear again.

Why's it standing...? Was sitting...?

"Damn it! Fuck!"

Terror-stricken Shintaro summons sword, swings—

Whoosh!

The doll's shadow swallowed him instantly.

Then a chilling sound.

Crack! Snap! Crunch!

Anyway.

Carmina was on rooftop watch, senses scanning.

Vampire Turret mode.

Her senses far surpass standard S-rank. Rock solid.

7 in two days, huh.

Didn't they teach not to enter during exam prep in the faculty lounge?

Holy water mass production.

Problem solved.

Splish!

"It works?"

Discovered tilting the Grail in water at a specific angle turns the whole basin holy.

What'd I do? Jumped to Lumentia.

Roas River.

Features? Lumentia's blessed river. Never dries. Drink for longevity.

Wedged Grail safely in rocks.

Exactly 47.5 ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠degrees.

Flash!

The entire river turned holy. With an extra special option.

Then commissioned high mages in purified zone.

"—possible? Solved that issue I mentioned."

"No problem! Traveler is our god—we'll stake our lives!"

No need to stake lives. Not a holy war.

Anyway, mages' all-nighter completed auto-production line.

Sizzle!

Condensing air moisture.

Auto ice bottles.

"Too cold—warmer option?"

"Of course. Non-melt setting, or adjustable via bottle cap."

Next? Bottles auto-move, scoop river water.

Whoosh! Glug-glug-glug!

Move along line.

Stack neatly in boxes.

No effort from me—mass holy water churning out.

Prototype still. Not ultra-mass yet.

But plan to refine, expand lines.

Plus easy transport:

"3 days."

Yulia-style sub-space ring in production too.

Click-whirr perfection.

Antidote hoarding?

Why bother?

Just infinite print.

Next day.

The big auction day.

"No invite, no entry."

"Invite? Do you know who I—!"

Chinese official shoved back trying to force in.

Thud!

"Grr... you...!"

Dared shove me?

A mere guard?

Humiliation stung worse than pain.

Other Chinese officials gnashing teeth in rage.

This absurd?

Sought agreement from surroundings.

But.

"Tch, such rude bastards."

"Hoarding scum now eyeing holy water? Shameless."

"Got intel somewhere. Showing without invite."

Only icy glares from other nations' officials heading in.

Creak! Clank!

Hall doors locked after all guests entered.

Left outside?

Just Chinese officials.

US and Japan skipped from pride, no reps.

"Damn! Damn! Damn it!"

"Sneaky Koreans...!"

Fuming Chinese oblivious to inside happenings.

Carmina now in shadow of holy water pile on stage.

Sensory link with her.

"20 units, Set 1 auction starts!"

"—100!"

"—200!"

"— —500"

"— —700!"

"— — —1,000!"

Couldn't resist munching popcorn feeling the electric vibe.

Whoa, can ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it go this high?

More issues to ponder later.

But I can handle 'em like this?

What's the problem? Dopamine-fueled brain 100x sharper solves all.

For now—lightning rich mode, let's go.