The Conquest Was Already Over

The Tower conquest was, for all intents and purposes, already over.

In my head, anyway.

Now I just have to wait.

Hypotheses, tests—all of that was just procedure to get everyone else on board. What was my Hunter Management ranking again? Like I'd be sweating the 57th Floor.

Though it was pretty fun, I'll admit.

A brand-new event. A ragtag roster instead of my dream team. An environment where I couldn't even touch the controls.

Now I get why hardcore difficulty exists.

A game that's too easy is boring. I felt that for sure this time. Jack the difficulty through the roof, and suddenly it actually gets fun.

Hahh... now I suddenly want to play Hunter Management.

I hadn't so much as launched the game since I got a job. Raising hunters in real life was way more entertaining. I was climbing the Tower myself. No way ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a game was going to hold my attention.

But tasting that strategy-sim flavor again after so long, I was craving Hunter Management.

Except they had to go and shut the servers down...

Worse than a shutdown. It had vanished completely. I couldn't even go back and reminisce.

I'd played a lot of games in my life. Plenty of them had ended service, games I'd never touch again. A familiar story for any gamer.

But Hunter Management was different. I'd poured my entire youth into that game. And just like that, it was gone.

Now my ability, and the reality called the Tower, had become my Hunter Management.

A thought occurred to me.

If I ever reach a point where I can't Master Clear anymore—if clearing becomes hard, becomes dangerous... could I actually stop climbing?

I couldn't even quit Hunter Management after more than a decade. And now even the substitute, the game itself, was gone?

I'm in trouble.

My life, I mean.

A laugh slipped out. This wasn't the time to be worrying about America. I was a full-blown Hunter Management addict.

The recon team was going in today, right?

I wondered how things were going, and put in a call to Director Jeong Sangguk.

"I was curious how things were going on the American side, so I thought I'd call."

"You don't have a direct line? Those people, I swear! I'll put in a complaint myself."

"No, no, I have a line. I just figured they'd be swamped right now. I thought maybe the Korean headquarters would be getting real-time updates."

"Ah, that's right."

Preparations were proceeding well, he told me. David and Joseph would be heading in that afternoon.

Everyone over there was wound tight, apparently. Maybe I was the only one being too casual about it.

No, wait. My control doesn't work on them. If the characters mess up, they die on the spot.

I should at least wish them a safe return. Fighting!

"This may be presumptuous of me, but..."

"Yes?"

He was choosing his words with extreme care.

"Do you think... this conquest has a chance of succeeding?"

"Ah."

"I know there's little point in asking at this stage. I know the odds of success are quite low. I don't mean to put any pressure on you."

Cutting someone off mid-sentence would be rude, wouldn't it? We were close, but he was still a fairly high-ranking official in Korea.

The closer you are to someone, the more careful you should be about overstepping—that's what they always said on the forums.

Look at me. A real working professional.

I waited quietly.

"Haaah..."

I covered the mic for the yawn, of course.

"It's just that Hunter Kang Minji is practically a national treasure, so I'm worried about her safety. And if the American Tower collapses, the damage to Korea as an allied nation would be enormous. We could be looking at a global depression. The stock market alone—"

"Ah, stocks!"

"I beg your pardon?"

I hadn't even thought of that. With the American collapse risk hanging over everything, stocks worldwide would be trading at a discount right now!

"Thank you! Looks like I'll be making some money thanks to you."

"I'm sorry?"

"I've got some Mana Stones stockpiled, you see. I can convert those right now too, yes?"

"Ah. Yes, of course. But you must be terribly busy—please don't trouble yourself with a trip. We'll come collect them."

"Oh, really? Then I appreciate it."

Director Jeong's handling of things really was the best. Wait, what had we been talking about?

"Ah, sorry. What was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it you'd asked?"

"I had asked about the conquest, but please, just let it go. I was making needless noise and putting pressure on you."

"That's already done."

"I'm sorry?"

The tone of Director Jeong's voice changed completely.

"W-what on earth do you mean by that!?"

"I've got the strategy all mapped out, and it shouldn't be that hard. Tomorrow? The day after? We'll have it cleared, I expect. Oh, and Director—buy stocks ahead of time."

"Stocks?"

The nuance was what are you even talking about. Maybe I'd taken the conversation too fast. Not very professional of me.

"That... is somewhat different from what I was told by TASH. They said they're only just about to begin verification work..."

"Don't worry. It'll work out."

Silence, for a moment. A distinctly troubled vibe came through the line.

"Even so... I am, after all, a public official with a great deal of responsibility, so I feel I ought to prepare for the possibility of failure as well... I-I want to be clear that I am in no way doubting you, Mr. Hyeonseok."

"Ah, no, that's the right call."

"Huuuh..."

"Hm?"

"I'm sorry? Ah—uh! Um... ah, right! There was something else I needed to tell you!"

The flow of this conversation did not feel smooth. Hmm. Maybe I still had a long way to go as a functioning member of society.

"What is it?"

"We've detected signs of outside interference in American public opinion."

"Huh? So what happens then?"

"Right now, public opinion is being shaped to push Hunter Kang Minji onto the 57th Floor as quickly as possible."

"Wait, what?"

Who would do that, and why?

"China and Japan."

"China? Those bastards again! But Japan's a new one. What's that about?"

"The goal would be to check Korea, I imagine."

The actual goal, he explained, was to shove Kang Minji onto the 57th Floor and get her killed. Because the 57th Floor was a death sentence.

"What!?"

"Both countries have found Hunter Kang Minji to be a thorn in their side."

Even after this collapse, America would still have to conquer the 57th Floor. With Kang Minji in the picture, that would go a lot faster.

If I hadn't been involved, they might well have swallowed this collapse, chosen Kang Minji's safety, and held her in reserve for a later attempt. A conservative play.

China wanted her eliminated to keep America in check. She'd abandoned them and flown off to a rival nation, after all.

"And Japan?"

"It's obvious, isn't it. Korea and Japan have been hunter-power rivals for a long time. Japan's been losing ground ever since Mr. Do Hyeoncheol retired, but still."

Recently, though, Korea had been surging up the ranks. They'd be worried about getting overtaken. Checking Korea was the point.

"Those bastards!"

Both countries would have to conquer the 57th Floor eventually. Just wait until then. We'd see if I helped them!

And they're climbing on a Tracking cheese strat, of all things.

With the combat power of modern hunters, even dreaming of the 57th Floor was a stretch. They'd all end up like China's Team 1.

I'd remember this. Every last bit of it, you bastards.

"Anyway, Hunter Kang Minji is going to be having a very hard time of it. Perhaps a phone call from you would help. She relies on you a great deal, after all."

"Thanks for letting me know."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Yes. I'll let you get back to it!"

I should give Minji a call soon.

It's sleeping hours in America right now, so first...

I called my mom.

I went all-in myself, too.

American public opinion grew hotter by the hour.

Indiscriminate condemnation of the American government. A few people watching it unfold sensed something off about the current.

The court of public opinion, however, was swept up in a frenzy almost immediately.

A present soaked in fear and chaos. People wanted someone—anyone—to take the blame. They attacked that someone indiscriminately, chasing the dopamine hit.

Before long, the spark jumped somewhere it had no business going.

A portion of that public opinion was moving in an organized fashion. The masses loved sensational material. Of course they got swept along.

Under ordinary circumstances, the American government would have responded immediately. Right now, however, every ounce of administrative power was poured into the mass evacuation. America had no choice but to be shaken by a scheme from the outside.

Kang Minji didn't know the details. On standby orders, she was staying in the TASH guest quarters.

Endless waiting that was practically confinement. Naturally, anxiety and boredom kept her glued to her phone all day.

Chewing her nails, Kang Minji scrolled through the comments.

What do I do, what do I do...!

Kang Minji was one of the public too. She believed the current of opinion as if it were gospel.

At this rate, she would clearly be driven in like someone being thrown out. Onto the death sentence that was the 57th Floor.

I don't want to. I don't want to go onto the 57th Floor...!

She pulled a pillow over her head and trembled.

Mom, I want to go home. Uncle Hyeoncheol. Mr. Hyeonseok...

And not long after that.

The emergency response conference room.

The recon team had just gone in. Twenty seconds remaining.

"Do you think the recon team will succeed?"

"I don't know... no matter how I look at it, this operation seems reckless."

"If they fill up the Urgent Life-Shortening Decree count again, what happens then?"

"Hey! Don't jinx us!"

Kang Minji sat in a corner of the conference room, bouncing her leg. The room was thick with pessimism, and every word of it fed her anxiety further.

On that last call, Mr. Hyeonseok seemed confident, but...

Thinking it over again, it didn't add up. As far as she knew, Hyeonseok's own floor wasn't that high.

Kang Minji had been coached by him before. She knew his ability well.

But that was limited to technical instruction. Unlike Jo Youchan and Lee Yeonhwa, Kang Minji had no idea whatsoever of Hyeonseok's actual conquest skill.

If the count fills up again...? If—if Mr. Hyeonseok pushes a reckless operation and sends me into the Tower...?

The TASH Director was no less anxious.

It all sounded very plausible, but in the end it's entirely a hypothesis. If the hypothesis is wrong on this attempt, we go right back to square one.

Then what? They'd already invested two days in this. Could they start over from scratch with roughly four days left?

The recon team had only been inside for twenty seconds. To everyone in that room, it was a long, terrifying twenty seconds.

Every pair of eyes in the room kept flicking, endlessly, to the second hand of the clock.

If they succeed, the two of them will be back in twenty seconds.

If they failed, twenty seconds would pass and they would not return. Because they would be dead.

The conference room would be still. As if nothing had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠happened at all. And that silence would be the most terrible disaster of all.

Two people appeared in the center of the conference room.

"H-hahahaha! F-fucking Dark Emperor! Hallelujah, Master Do! Hahahahaha!"

Everyone in the conference room shot to their feet. The Director's eyes flew wide.

Before the Director could even recover the two men's cameras, Kang Minji had already run in and thrown her arms around them both.

"Aaaaaah—!"

"We did it! We did it! Miss Kang Minji, your master was right!"

"Hallelujah! Master Do is a god! I came back alive!"

"Aaaaaah!"

Video analysis started at once. Everyone watched. And everything was perfect.

"Ohh!"

"Good heavens!"

"Damn, David! You're a real man!"

"Shh, please focus! If the hypothesis is right, next is..."

"Whoa!"

"Yeah—!"

"Hah, not a single inch of error!"

"Ahahaha!"

"Joseph, were you thaaat scaaared?"

"Y-you try going in! I went in ready to die, okay!?"

"Cut it out. Joseph, who walked in ready to die, is the real man here."

The atmosphere had loosened completely. Jokes were flying now.

The final highlight.

"Hah!"

"Th-they actually stripped the stealth!"

"This is unbelievable. They really analyzed the Dark Emperor's weakness...?"

"How did he even calculate the dispel magic? Does he have a gift for magic too?"

"Shh! The next scene is the most important!"

That was David's shout.

What else was left? Stripping the stealth had been the final objective.

Everyone focused again.

"Hell yeah!"

"That's it, David!"

"See that? Play that footage at my funeral someday."

"Damn it, I flipped off the Dark Emperor at the end too! They just didn't catch mine on camera!"

"You blowhard, Joseph. I'll believe you this once. Well done!"

There was nothing left to discuss. From the first point to the last, the hypothesis had slotted into place without a single gap.

A lead to stop Washington's collapse had finally come into view.

"Hurrah! Master Do, hurrah!"

"Hallelujah, Master Do!"

Everyone grabbed hold of each other and celebrated.

"That's it! The citizens of Washington are safe now!"

"I was so scared I'd get thrown onto the 57th Floor and die!"

"You coward!"

"Hey, you think I was the only one? Right, Hunter Kang Minji?"

"Hngh-hhh..."

"H-huh, is she crying?"

"Let her cry! Can you imagine how terrified she was?"

Heat filled the conference room. In the middle of it, the TASH Director sat still. In a pleasant exhaustion, he dragged a dry hand down his face.

We did it...

No. It wasn't over yet. This was where it started.

"What are you all doing! Start the additional video analysis!"

"Yes, sir!"

From here on was the real beginning. They had to help Mr. Hyeonseok's analysis and his conquest strategy.

Four days left... this won't be an easy fight for Mr. Hyeonseok.

He would surely be racking his brains until they split. It would take a considerable amount of time.

What did America need to do right now?

Just help him. As much as they possibly could.

"Ah—before the analysis, send the footage to Mr. Do Hyeonseok first. Drop everything else and transmit it!"

The conference room sprang back into motion.