This Place Delivers Well
Outside the tower, shortly after 11:00 AM.
A short distance from My House Tower sat the Chinese restaurant, The Golden Dragon Emperor. Even on regular days, it was a famous local hotspot that bustled with customers the moment it opened. Today, however, the restaurant was swept up in a bizarre situation that put any ordinary lunch rush to shame.
"Jajangmyeon, jjambbong, sweet and sour pork, fried rice, fried dumplings, kkanpunggi, jellyfish salad, palbochae, chili pepper japchae, yusansul, chili shrimp... What? They ordered all of this?"
The head chef stared at the long receipt trailing across the counter, doubting his own eyes. Every single item on the menu—without exception—had been ordered. At first, he thought it was a malicious prank, but it was a legitimate order, fully prepaid through a delivery app.
Just then, a man burst through the front door, panting heavily. With his disheveled suit and half-undone tie, he was none other than Kim Hacheong, a government security agent.
"You saw the order, right?! All of this is for the Tower Administrator! Please, I beg of you, make it as fast as humanly possible!!"
At the agent's near-tearful plea, the chef's eyes instantly sharpened. Food for the Tower Administrator...? With those words, his expression grew incredibly solemn. The legendary "Tower Administrator," the talk of the entire nation, wanted to eat his food? In that instant, deep within the chef's chest... his pride and honor as a master of Chinese cuisine erupted into a roaring flame!
"You all heard him! We're cooking the entire menu right now! Get every wok on the stoves and crank up the heat!!"
The kitchen instantly went into battle mode. The staff moved at three times their usual speed, and pillars of fire erupted from the woks—the ultimate symbol of Chinese culinary mastery.
"Double portions of jajangmyeon and jjambbong going out first!"
"Is the Sichuan jajang and ganjajang ready? Plate the pan-fried jajangmyeon, quick!"
"Udon and jellyfish salad done! Pack these up and send them out first!"
"Hurry up and deliver them before the noodles get soggy! Then come right back for the next batch!"
The sheer volume of food was far too much for a single delivery driver to handle. The chef immediately mobilized his entire network, calling in dozens of extra drivers. As soon as each dish was ready, it was packed into traditional metal delivery boxes. With over thirty different dishes ordered, this was no longer a simple food delivery—it was practically a wartime logistics operation.
Soon, a fleet of delivery motorcycles tore down the road between The Golden Dragon Emperor and My House Tower. The government immediately implemented emergency traffic control, granting the delivery drivers full authorization to run red lights to complete their mission.
The moment the drivers arrived at the barricades and unloaded the metal boxes, waiting government personnel snatched them up.
"Get them inside the tower, fast! Don't let the food cool down even a single degree!"
"This isn't just a dinner; the fate of our nation rests on this mission! Everyone, move, move, move!"
The government officials transported the food with the precision of a military operation. The ordinary government staff, who had no idea what was actually happening inside the tower, found the situation hard to comprehend. But with the field commander's orders handed down, action took precedence over thought.
In truth, even the field commander was sweating internally. I don't know if the agents who came out of the tower are suffering from some mental attack or if they actually heard those words... but it's better to overprepare than to trigger a national disaster by doing nothing. Thus, the government was putting forth its absolute best efforts for a highly unexpected reason.
Meanwhile, at a nearby supermarket! A horde of government-affiliated Climbers was sweeping through the aisles!
"Cola! Where's the cola?!"
"There are 1.5-liter bottles in the refrigerated section over there!"
"Grab five each! Everyone take exactly five!!!"
They swept up every single 1.5-liter bottle of cola in sight. The Climbers who arrived late had no choice but to dump dozens of smaller bottles into their baskets. Amidst the chaotic frenzy, a bewildered cashier tried to help.
"Um... what about payment...?"
"I'm leaving my wallet here, just charge it! I'll come back for it later!"
"Excuse me...?"
"This is an emergency! We're taking the Fanta and Welch's too!!!"
Having no time to spare even for a transaction, the Climbers grabbed every carbonated drink they could find and bolted straight back to the tower.
And so, a mountain of food and drinks arrived at the lobby of My House Tower's 1st floor.
"We have arrived with every variety of jajangmyeon!"
"The kkanpunggi and sweet and sour pork are here too! We packed the sauce separately!"
"We brought plenty of cola as well!"
As the metal boxes were opened, the rich, savory aroma of Chinese cuisine filled the lobby. Perhaps because the government had spared no effort in finding the best restaurant, the quality of the food was outstanding. Everything was perfectly packaged, still piping hot with steam rising from the containers.
Tricia scanned the array of dishes, nodded in satisfaction, and lightly raised her hand.
"Maids! Move all of this to the 99th floor and cast preservation magic on it!"
"Yes, Lady Tricia!"
Several maids appeared instantly and began moving in perfect unison. They took the food, transported it to the 99th floor via the warp point, and immediately applied preservation magic to keep it fresh. Meanwhile, Tricia popped open a bottle of cola right then and there.
Psssssh!
Perhaps because it had been shaken on the way, foam erupted from the bottle. Tricia quickly extended her wings to block the escaping spray. Though her feathers got slightly damp, a quick flutter dried them instantly. She immediately pressed the bottle to her lips and began to chug!
The moment the dark liquid entered her mouth, an indescribable, complex sweetness combined with the refreshing sting of carbonation danced wildly across her tongue! As it slid down her throat, the sugar and carbonation surged through her body, triggering an absolute explosion of dopamine!
"Khaaaah!!!"
This was the taste of real cola! Drinking this heavenly beverage for the first time in decades, Tricia's face flushed with pure bliss.
"Give me a sip too!"
"Sure, here!"
Tricia popped open a fresh bottle and handed it to Ruki.
Ruki took the bottle, gave the rim a quick lick with her tongue, and then tilted it back to drink as heartily as Tricia had. The moment the liquid slid down her throat—Ruki's eyes went wide. After taking a few more deep gulps, she pulled the bottle away.
"...Khaah! What is this? What does it even taste like?"
"This is the taste of capitalism."
"That literally explains nothing!"
Tricia burst out laughing, thoroughly enjoying Ruki's reaction. After sharing the cola and sending the rest of the delivery up to the 99th floor, the lobby grew quiet once more. Tricia turned to face the government officials again. Unlike before, however, they stood frozen in place, their faces pale with terror.
Ruki glanced back at them and whispered to Tricia.
"Hey, shouldn't you send them off now? Your plan was just to scare them a little and then accept their negotiations anyway."
"I did only mean to scare them a little... Did I overdo it?"
Hearing Ruki's words, Tricia turned her attention back to the group. She pulled an envelope from her robes, handed it to the officials, and spoke with dignified authority.
"The official talks will take place in one week, inside My House Tower. And this is the contract regarding the Holy Water. It has been translated into Korean, so please deliver it safely to your government."
Since Kim Hacheong was shaking so hard he looked ready to faint, Lee Woncheong stepped forward and took the envelope with a slightly trembling hand.
To share a quick bit of trivia: those who awaken as Climbers automatically receive a Translation skill, which completely eliminates language barriers when speaking. However, this effect does not apply to written documents or text. Because of this, Climbers occasionally found themselves flustered when trying to communicate with the maids, unable to read documents written in the language of Eriel. System-generated text was automatically translated, so they hadn't faced any major inconveniences so far. But Tricia figured that handing the government officials a document written in Eriel's language would only lead to confusion. Thus, she had gone out of her way to prepare a meticulously translated Korean version.
"Oh, and this is a token of my appreciation for the jajangmyeon."
At Tricia's gesture, a maid brought out a box containing twelve bottles of Holy Water. Coincidentally, there were exactly twelve government officials present.
"Since the numbers match perfectly, you may take one bottle each."
"...?"
Question marks popped up over the officials' heads at Tricia's sudden offer of free Holy Water. Exchanging hesitant glances, they each accepted a bottle. A large label was affixed to each one.
[Climber Personal Use]
"This is...?"
"Exactly what it says. You are free to use it for personal healing. You may also use it to heal others free of charge."
Tricia paused briefly, then narrowed her eyes, adding a chilling warning.
"However, should you violate those terms, you may face Divine Punishment... so I suggest you exercise wise judgment."
At her words, the officials stiffened once more. They bowed in unison and scrambled out of the tower as fast as their legs could carry them.
And then... a few hours later.
The government was thrown into utter chaos yet again upon receiving a document titled: