The Little Fish Folk (1)
The chandelier lights, placed throughout the ceiling, reflected off the luxurious marble walls, creating a soft and elegant ambiance. A long red carpet stretched from the main entrance, flanked by massive tables on either side. On those tables sat polished European-style candelabras—gold or silver, it was hard to tell—arranged neatly, surrounded by clean empty plates and cutlery as if waiting for guests.
It was a place that evoked the refined traditions and formalities of a high-end European hotel cafeteria. Yet, despite its opulence, there was not a single person in sight. Or rather, no people. There were, however, plenty of others.
Whispers, whispers—
Beasts huddled in every shadowed corner, avoiding the lights and chatting among themselves. Normally, beasts should wear fur instead of clothes and walk on all fours, but these creatures stood upright on two legs, each one dressed in a tuxedo. It was a contradictory sight.
“He’s late.”
Among them, a black bull stood with his arms crossed in front of the staircase leading to the second floor. His massive frame radiated growing irritation as he grumbled.
“Indeed. He should have arrived by now,” agreed the snake-headed helper beside him, nodding along.
“Well, we must be understanding. The other helpers aren’t as capable as you or I.”
“How arrogant, Echion. Do you truly believe we stand here because we are competent?”
The black bull—Tauron—frowned at the snake-headed helper’s words. Echion, currently ranked third, was notorious among the tower’s helpers for his particularly vicious nature.
“Is that not the case? Look at the helpers gathered here. You and I, Tauron. Even the others stationed around the lobby are all elites from the upper rankings, are they not?”
At his words, the black bull turned his head and briefly scanned the entire lobby. Monsters with rat heads, pigs, monkeys, and various other animals filled the space. Their one common trait was that every last one of them was a high-ranking beast. Their other shared characteristic was that they all managed coordinates from otherworldly realms where magic or martial arts formed the foundation.
Echion was surely aware of this. But he had always possessed a sly, unpleasant personality that delighted in looking down on others. And he was doing so now.
“Hehe. Have you forgotten why these helpers are here? It is because the players they manage have rapidly cleared the second floor. Does that not mean my discretion was excellent?”
“……”
Tauron barely held back a sigh as he looked at the snake head who had switched from “we” to “I.” Tauron currently held the second rank among helpers. It was merely a thought, but he was certain that if his ranking had been lower than Echion’s, this repulsive creature would have treated him with utter contempt.
Actually, if that were the case, he probably wouldn’t have come near me at all. That might have been better.
There was no benefit to keeping someone like this close. He would bow and scrape to your face, but the moment your back was turned, he would pull out the knife he had hidden and stab you in it. That was the kind of creature he was.
Claiming the players’ efforts are a result of his own discretion… How ridiculous.
The role of a helper was to identify players with potential and assist them in climbing the tower. Ironically, despite their title, helpers could do almost nothing to help players clear the tutorial. Their rules forbade direct interference. The only indirect way they could help was by coaxing constellations into changing their missions and scattering coins.
Naturally, constellations had no interest in incompetent players. They were looking for incarnations—what use was there in watching the incapable?
Because of this, those with strength or talent entered the tower with ease, while the rest usually died in the tutorial.
Looking at it that way, that guy really is a capable helper.
Tauron’s gaze shifted toward a rabbit crouched in the corner, muttering to itself. Simply guiding even the weakest players all the way to the tower made one a decent helper. And considering the rabbit had started in the 100th rank and was assigned the coordinate known as “Earth”—a gathering of incompetents—its presence here proved it possessed considerable talent as a helper.
It also meant the rabbit had properly nurtured that group of bottom-tier humans from the very beginning.
Perhaps the next constellation candidate will be that one.
Of course, within this batch, the top five rankings were unlikely to see much change. After all, the coordinate Tauron had received was based on black magic. When destruction came, its inhabitants had simply rejoiced and fought among themselves like lunatics. It was impossible for a coordinate full of powerless humans to contend with such savage monsters.
But whether Tauron thought so or not, the rabbit had other priorities.
“Uwaaaa! Let’s gooooo!!”
The rabbit, squatting in a dark corner watching the players, suddenly let out a wild shriek. Since it wasn’t unusual for low-ranking helpers to behave this way, the others quickly lost interest and returned to their own affairs.
“Hehehehe……”
What the rabbit was watching were the “humans” from the Earth coordinate currently growing on the second floor. And among them, the rabbit paid special attention to five particular individuals. As it observed Kim Siin’s spar, it couldn’t hold back the laughter spilling from its lips.
At first, he had been an invasive species that simply destroyed the balance. Because of that one guy, the other players couldn’t grow properly. It had been so frustrating and unfair. There had even been a time when the rabbit considered raising just Kim Siin into a monster and entering him in the ranking competition alone.
But most of the events that awarded big points in the ranking wars were team battles. There were also precedents of coordinates that raised one monster only to fail miserably in the rankings. So it hadn’t seemed like a good plan.
But if things turn out like this… the story changes completely…!
From a helper’s perspective, Kim Siin was truly something else. He had survival instincts that surpassed cockroaches, was more cunning than a hyena, and more sly than a fox—yet he worked harder than most bulls. In short, he was the perfect talent for the death game that was climbing the tower.
And that guy had begun collecting one, then two of the martial arts manuals that were deliberately made nearly impossible to obtain on the second floor.
Raising one monster had been the wrong approach. The reason those precedents failed was because the monsters they created were empty-headed creatures obsessed solely with combat.
What the rabbit hoped for was a multi-stage martial arts monster. If there weren’t enough monsters, then make the monsters raise more monsters.
“Let’s gooooooooo!!!”
Goodbye to the pathetic lower ranks! And as for you, Echion, you’re finished! This ranking war might actually be worth trying.
The long-awaited sparring tournament came to a successful close. After my victory over Dang Huiso, I stood on the sparring platform and received thunderous applause from countless spectators and constellations.
But I couldn’t ignore the side effects of Wholehearted Devotion. Naturally, I collapsed right there and only opened my eyes again inside the medical ward.
Thanks to Dang Huiso’s care, I barely managed to wake up—only to be greeted by a flood of achievements and coins floating before my eyes. However, the truly important items came from the martial artists who lived on the second floor.
“Are you sure it’s alright for me to accept this? I already belong to a sect……”
“Of course! Absolutely! If you ever develop an interest in our Hainan Sect, come visit anytime! A talent like you will always be treated with the utmost respect!”
The martial artists from the Nine Great Schools had come to visit me as if they had known me for years. Since their goal was to recruit me into their own sects, they pulled out all sorts of bribes to win my favor.
What is all this?
Martial arts manuals containing the foundational techniques of their sects, medicinal pills that helped increase internal energy, neat sets of martial robes, and even various needles and hidden weapons from Sichuan that they claimed would be useful.
This outfit isn’t bad, though.
◈ Clothing made from white thread extracted from the spiritual creature, the Heavenly Silkworm. It contains special spiritual energy, granting excellent durability and resistance to stains.
◈ Effects: Fire resistance, waterproofing
Unfortunately, I couldn’t obtain their exclusive secret techniques or hidden ultimate arts. Still, just the Heavenly Silkworm Robe and the foundational manuals from the Nine Great Schools were a tremendous harvest.
If I needed secret arts, I could simply learn the Cheonwol Divine Art or the Sichuan Black Tortoise Divine Art. Trying to swallow everything at once would only leave me unable to digest any of it and burst my stomach.
“Huu……”
Once everyone had left, Dang Huiso also excused herself, saying she was tired, and headed home early. As the sun set, Jeongmu Academy transformed into a quiet, serene place as if it had never been bustling.
Deep into the night, when a cold chill filled the air. Without any modern lighting or lanterns, the entire academy sank into darkness, as though it had fallen into a deep sleep.
I rose from my bed. Though I would soon be leaving the second floor’s Murim, my body moved out of habit at this hour.
Step, step.
I walked down the now-familiar corridors of Jeongmu Academy. All that could be seen were empty classrooms and silence. Yet it didn’t feel empty. Because there was the moonlight of the night moon, and beneath it, there was me.
I kept walking. Until the end of the corridor. Until the training ground where I had practiced every day appeared. Until my master, Hwayeong, who used to display her sword dance there, appeared.
Swoosh—
The sound of cutting air came from the training ground where she would be. At this hour, there was only one person who trained. For a brief time there had been two, but since I had to leave, I decided not to dwell on it.
Shing—
Shaaah—
After the sound of rough dirt scraping against itself came a beautiful melody that seemed to caress the air. Having reached a certain realm in martial arts, I could now tell just how much stronger her sword had become.
Ding.
The bell that signaled it was time to leave rang in my ears. All I could do was watch her final form with my own eyes.
"Moonlight Sword Art Secret Technique"
⟨ Full Moon ⟩
I savored her moonlight one last time. I had no intention of saying goodbye. After all, there was that saying, wasn’t there? Leave when the applause is loudest.
Time remaining on the 2nd Floor has ended.
Player ‘Kim Siin’ will now be transferred to the 3rd Floor.
All items bound to Player ‘Kim Siin’ will be transferred together.
The transfer began. In the blink of an eye, when I opened my eyes again, I had already left the second floor.
“Wow! You’re here!”
“Everyone, I’ve been waiting so long I thought my neck would fall off!”
As the portal opened in the third-floor lobby, countless players began pouring out. People wearing armor and carrying various weapons. There were also mages holding staves and wearing robes. For a moment, it felt like I had stepped into an entirely different world.
Following them came a group dressed in black robes radiating a sinister aura. Then appeared fish folk who looked almost human except for the gills on their ears.
But not everyone looked triumphant like a general returning from war.
“Whoa! Everyone from the Earth coordinate! You’ve all worked so hard!”
The players from the coordinate managed by the rabbit. Upon seeing their arrival, the other helpers and players from different coordinates reacted in various ways according to their personalities.
“What the hell is that beggar group?”
“Tsk tsk. They look absolutely terrible.”
Excluding a few, most of them openly appeared like beggars. Some were covered in so much blood it was impossible to tell what they had done. Others looked so emaciated their bones were visible, as if they had hidden somewhere to endure the second floor.
But among them appeared one man.
“Whoa! As expected of Player Kim Siin! You really squeezed out every last drop!”
Dressed in neat white martial robes, he stood there holding several worn, unidentifiable books in both arms and stared at the helper.
“Hey. Is there a training hall on the third floor that can be used by groups?”