41. The Unknown
Even the dumbest beast learns its lesson after a good beating. Choi Gil-hyun, the spear-wielding engineer who'd been thrashed with my Mithril Wand for a solid while, didn't dare charge at me again.
"Fuck, fuck..."
He just glared at me with bloodshot eyes, grinding his teeth like crazy.
"You little shit, who the hell do you think you are...? You think you can handle this? Do you even know who my dad is?"
Now Choi Gil-hyun was pulling the "my daddy" card. Unbelievable—turns out even backers have backers.
But no matter how I thought about it, whatever pull this guy had wouldn't touch me. Worst case, what could they do? Once the event ended, I'd head back to Tower of Trials #2661, and I wouldn't run into another challenger for the next three years. Even if they tried gunning for me in the Festival map, I wasn't desperate for this event—I could just bail back to the Tower. No ties in the outside world either, so harassing my contacts out there? Useless.
Whether his backer was some corporate bigwig, the president of Korea, or even the God of Heaven—it meant jack shit to me.
"What, your sudden backer won't tell you?"
I threw the pad lip they'd been slinging at me right back, bold as brass.
"Y-you fucking bastard!"
After dishing out pad lips to others, he couldn't take it himself—Choi Gil-hyun flipped out and lunged. But the trauma from getting his ass handed to him stuck; the second I casually raised the Mithril Wand, he flinched and shrank back.
-Pfft.
One of the onlookers couldn't hold it in anymore and nearly burst out laughing at the sight.
"Who the fuck was that? Who laughed?!"
Choi Gil-hyun's face turned beet red as he screamed bloody murder. Despite the pathetic display, his ranker status shut the crowd up fast.
"Fuck, who was the one laughing just now?! Come out, show yourself, you motherfucker!"
-Clang!
"It was me, asshole."
I gave the spazzing Choi Gil-hyun one last whack with the Mithril Wand, then shoved the crumpled mess aside and pushed through the crowd.
Thanks to the commotion drawing all eyes, the portal I'd been aiming for was wide open—no one in sight.
"Back to the dungeon?"
"Huh? Oh, uh, well..."
As I tucked away the Mithril Wand and approached, Kim Jin-ah fidgeted, her face drained white. Not just her—Kim Min-hyung and Kim Jin-seok looked rough too. Well, Kim Min-hyung had a slightly bitter smirk. Probably realizing he'd nearly gotten the same treatment.
"With the mood like this, maybe today... next time, next time, okay?"
Kim Jin-ah shook her head vigorously and backed away with unsteady steps.
Guess the vibe wasn't right for casually diving into a dungeon. I nodded along and dipped out for now.
* * *
Kim Jin-ah messaged in our friend chat suggesting we take it easy today. I replied sure, but actually thinking about real rest felt weird.
Since entering the Tower of Trials and vowing never to stop, I hadn't taken a single break. Every day was challenge and growth, every moment blood and steel. Sleep and meals were no different. Sleep trimmed to the bare minimum my body could handle, avoiding comfy beds on purpose. Meals? Just numbingly sweet White Rolls and measured doses of poison.
Except for that festival gukbap I got swept up into, it had been forever since anything resembling real food.
I couldn't lose the dopamine rush from growth—miss the momentum once, and I'd slack off forever. I'd lived without pause, pushing myself relentlessly.
But yesterday's serotonin hit—the cozy stability that made me think sometimes this ain't bad—hadn't ruined me. If anything, a light breather sharpened my edge.
They say even eating and resting counts as training in workout communities. Maybe it was time for me to pause, regroup.
"But seriously, what do I even do."
Problem was, I got the need for rest but had zero clue how to actually chill. Just lie around scrolling communities? That wasn't rest—that was wasting time.
Rest had levels too. At minimum, it should be productive rest.
"Hmm..."
I pondered and opened the open community. Scoured the Festival map event list.
Mini-dungeon clears aside, it was just simple mini-games and quests for challengers. None appealed, and they weren't solo-friendly anyway.
Scrolling down, one schedule caught my eye.
[Tower of Trials Strongest Challenger Tournament - Preliminaries]
One of the Festival's main events: tournament prelims today.
I'd never planned to join—didn't even apply. No way a scrub like me could shine against top rankers and high-floor climbers.
But events like this? Watching's half the fun. Scope out high-rankers' skills, broaden horizons, and rest—all in one perfect package.
Today's plan: check this out.
* * *
Grabbed popcorn and soda from a vendor, snagged a seat in the stands. Not even finals, but challengers packed the place—pro baseball game levels.
Made sense: a once-every-three-years sports spectacle in the entertainment-scarce Tower world.
Prelims were battle royale: five challengers per group. Four arenas at cardinal directions, running simultaneously—popularity split by participant caliber.
This crowd? Must be a hyped prelim.
"Who's in this group? Anything good?"
"Kang Tae-jin and Lee Young-won same bracket—finals tier."
"For real? Them clashing in prelims?"
Overheard neighbors yapping—names I'd seen on communities. No clue on Lee Young-won, but Kang Tae-jin was a strategy-focused climber blowing up last year. Ex-amateur boxer turned hunter hopeful, rocking the unique class Storm Striker.
One standout might end it quick, but looks like another heavy hitter in the mix.
[The match will begin shortly.]
"Ah, it's starting."
While eavesdropping, the prelim kicked off.
All five entrants: dudes. Kang Tae-jin was obvious—short hair, gauntlets only, no other weapon, cocky grin. Had to be him.
Lee Young-won? The burly warrior lugging a greatsword his height. Others looked terrified or facepalming in dismay—easy guess.
Let's see what kinda fight they put on.
* * *
The three unlucky scrubs grouped with powerhouses forfeited at the bell. Sure, injuries heal post-match, but no one wants ranker road rash.
Down to Kang Tae-jin vs. Lee Young-won duel. The flow? Eh.
"Fuckin' hell, they fight like total fags."
Yeah, that. Neighbor nailed my thoughts.
Hyped prospect Kang Tae-jin fought gay as hell. Early game was decent: dove bold into tanky one-shot machine Lee Young-won, unleashing Storm Striker-worthy blitzes too fast for my eyes.
Then, ate one greatsword swing and switched gears hard.
-Whoosh, boom!
Wind cannon from Kang Tae-jin's fist slammed Lee Young-won. Unique class perks: brawler with range. But weak sauce—Kang kept distance, spamming from afar.
Dodged meaty melee brute with mobility skills and agility stats, just kiting with gusts. Smart matchup exploit, but for rising star vs. ranker? Pathetic level.
[Match End]
[Due to match time expiration, the challenger with more remaining HP wins.]
[Winner: Kang Tae-jin]
Time-out auto-win for Kang. Untouched at range, obviously.
"Fuckin' wasted my eyes. Why even show up?"
"Watch your mouth, someone'll hear."
Neighbor's grumble leaving the arena echoed my vibe. No flair or skill—just class crutch cheese.
Choi Gil-hyun with his toothpick spear too. Am I overhyping other challengers?
Communities rave, but reality's off.
-Ding.
Ah, perfect timing.