020. Return (4)
Kung.
The Goblin King, a huge monster with a crown on his head, staggered to the ground.
“You have defeated the Goblin King, the goal of the trial.”
The Tower of Trials tells you that the goal of the 4th floor of the trial has been achieved.
“Are you going to absorb the spirit of the Goblin King?”
The black smoke emanating from the corpse also tells us that the Goblin King is dead.
I took a deep breath and calmly spoke of the victory.
“I won.”
It was a difficulty that was worse than facing competitors alone.
The Goblin King didn’t even have a unique trait that bound me.
Even so, it wasn’t like he was reading the trajectory of my sword.
He wielded a steel club and destroyed everything around him, but that was it.
My agility was above my level, and I received the buff and actively dealt damage while pulling all the aggro.
The only thing that could be called team play was Lee Ha-yeon giving me a buff.
Of course, the process was not too burdensome or difficult because he had become accustomed to it after going through the ordeal on the 4th floor.
And the result was such an easy victory.
“Congratulations, you have broken through the 4th floor of the Tower of Trials.”
“As a breakthrough reward, all stats increase
by +4.” “You have acquired ‘5500 points’
as a breakthrough reward.” )’.」
「You acquired ‘2000 points’ as an additional breakthrough reward.」
「Go to the waiting room.」
The effect that all stats increased was immediately applied and vitality surged from your body.
It’s a little bit, but it feels like the fatigue accumulated in the body is slightly relieved.
In terms of utility, it may not be as good as skills or items, but it was a good reward.
Basically, the higher your ability level, the more you can do.
‘Nice reward.’
It was a great reward for having suffered so much.
Whoops!
A portal appeared in front of the great throne on which the Goblin King sat.
ok this is the end
On the 4th floor, the ordeal of competition came to an end like this.
but.
“…”
My feelings were still tangled like a ball of thread, and there was no room for unraveling.
It was then.
“…Excuse me, can I go first?”
Lee Seong-hoon, who was treated with respect in an unsuitable way, quietly asked me a question.
Well, after breaking through the 4th floor ordeal, where else could I go?
“Why are you asking me that?”
“…then let’s go now.”
Lee Seong-hoon hesitated, then jumped over the portal as if running away.
Whoops.
Now, with this, the bad relationship that has been going on since the beginning of the 4th floor must have ended.
However, the remaining one remained motionless behind me.
It was Lee Ha-yeon, the hunter who supported me from the rear.
“Do you have something to say?”
When I asked, Lee Ha-yeon answered right away.
“…it may sound presumptuous, but he just did what he had to do.”
“is that so.”
“Yes, someone should have done it, and if Sungyoon hadn’t done it, I would have done it.”
“I’m glad you thought so.”
It was obvious what he was saying.
It was implicitly talking about the murder and the act of pressuring Lee Sung-hoon.
Thinking back on it, on this fourth floor, I acted like a guy who had no blood or tears.
I acted with a bit of conscience left behind, but that was a line that I was uncomfortable with.
Because I didn’t want to kill people unless it was an assignment from the ordeal.
“Seongyun-ssi is strong. Even if he was a player, he must have been strong outside.”
I was a little taken aback by that statement.
‘No, that’s not true.’
Rather, he entered the tower and became incredibly strong.
Then Lee Ha-yeon suddenly tapped her finger in the air.
“…?”
I didn’t know what he was doing at the moment, but I soon understood.
「Challenger Lee Ha-yeon sent you a friend request.」
It was a ‘friend request’ that was one of the functions of the community.
Of course, I had no interest in it because I had nothing to write about, but I never thought this would appear here.
“…”
I was speechless in surprise for a moment.
Lee Ha-yeon hurriedly opened her mouth, perhaps understanding it with an attitude that seemed burdensome to receive.
“Um, if you’re uncomfortable with it, you can ignore it.”
“No, not like that. Just wondering why you are sending me this.”
“It’s just that Seong-yoon-san broke most of the ordeals on the 4th floor, but it’s a bit like not paying anything back.”
“….”
“If you return to Earth later, please find Lee Ha-yeon of the White Silver Guild.”
“Well, if you were invited to join a guild…”
“It’s not like that! Apart from that, I wanted you to come if you needed anything.”
Lee Ha-yeon was embarrassed and laughed at the words.
I didn’t know because he was only making serious expressions, but I thought he was able to make such expressions.
“I can arrange guild merchants, hunter dungeons, etc. Our guild is capable of that kind of thing. Of course, if you come, we’ll do anything for free. You have that much discretion.”
I nodded my head at the words of Lee Ha-yeon, who spoke like a salesperson.
To be honest, it was tempting to some extent, and it was hard not to accept it when they said they would pay for it.
‘I don’t know, but if he’s trying to use me, I’ll be able to figure it out in detail and make a decision.’
It wasn’t that he was so thoughtless, so he was able to distinguish between goodwill and malice.
“Okay, I’ll call you when I get out of the tower safely.”
“Challenger Lee Ha-yeon’s friend request has been accepted.”
Lee Ha-yeon laughed at the message that came to mind.
It wasn’t a smile with a sense of distance like before, but a genuinely happy smile.
“Then I’ll go too. I hope you can safely reach the 8th floor.”
“Yes, go see it. I hope Lee Ha-yeon returns safely.”
Whoops!
Then, as Lee Ha-yeon smiled and disappeared beyond the portal, silence came.
“…”
To be honest, deep down I was feeling grateful for this tower.
Because it was this tower that gave me, who had nothing, a chance to become a loser.
However, the tower pushed people to the limit under the name of a challenger.
It led to life-threatening battles and even murder.
‘The battle with the monsters wasn’t that difficult.’
It seems to stimulate the limit moderately and send it upward so that it does not die.
So I felt the pleasure of climbing the tower and became intoxicated with the sense of growth.
But now, freed from all those emotions, I was able to calmly face the reality.
Hungry for growth, I was just blinded by the tower’s rewards.
The Tower of Trials did not normally make people stronger.
however.
“…”
On the contrary, after experiencing that ruthlessness, I didn’t want to stop any more.
Besides the desire to become a Hunter for the first time, other desires welled up inside.
I want to climb the Tower of Trials.
There was a desire to become stronger, but above all, the Tower of Trials was a phenomenon close to ‘cataclysm’.
Where do monsters come from and why do gates exist?
I had a hunch that I might learn a lot about it while climbing the tower… But
above all, I know that those who have the advantage in a world facing cataclysms are the ones who adapt to the current situation faster than anyone else.
of course.
‘Even if that’s not the case, it’s not like there’s nothing to be gained.’
There was also the merit of being able to become strong without power.
In any case, the Tower of Trials gave me a chance, and I decided to seize it.
Even if we have to compete with each other, I want to become stronger, and the Tower of Trials can make that happen.
Even if they had to defeat others and trample on others to climb up…
It seemed that those who had made up their minds would have less hesitation in going up.
After the 8th floor, only those who climbed the tower voluntarily will remain.
So, for now, I decided to absorb all the spirits in the spire.
「You have absorbed the command of the Goblin King.」
「You have absorbed the command of player ‘Lee Jin-hoo’.」 「
You have absorbed the command of player ‘Ishian’.」
「You have absorbed the command of player ‘Im
Sang-yoon ‘.」 …!
All of the markings coalesced like a whirlpool and were absorbed into the palm of my hand.
‘If I have to absorb the spirit, I will.’
I wouldn’t kill people to get stronger, but I would if I had to.
Because it’s too late to be bound by that kind of ethics.
Keep the lines you can keep, and if you can’t, you’ll get the best efficiency.
‘Should I stop absorbing the spirit?’
After absorbing all the spirits, I approached the portal without absorbing them all.
Well, checking the reward can be postponed until later.
「Move to the waiting room.」
Right now, it was urgent to deal with the fatigue and wounds accumulated in the body.
***
“You have entered the waiting room on the 5th floor.”
“All status ailments and injuries are completely recovered.”
“The recovery effect is always applied in the waiting room.”
As expected, familiar phrases and recovery effects greeted me.
However, the next message that came to mind was an unfamiliar form of phrase.
「The number of people who have broken through the 5th floor ordeal has exceeded 1000.」
「System expansion begins.」
「The ‘trial settlement’ system that ranks the challengers’ breaking through the ordeal will be created.」
「The category of the store will increase. .]
「New items are added to the goods shop.」
「Nickname change becomes possible.」
“System expansion.”
As we have heard before, the system has begun to expand in earnest.
Of course, I knew this, but just seeing this made me feel strange.
It seems like just yesterday that I fought to the death with a sand golem on the 1st floor…
‘I got really strong too quickly.’
I fell in love for a moment, but I did not forget to check the newly added system.
“The Trial Settlement.”
The moment I said that, a gorgeously decorated hologram appeared in front of my eyes.
「4th Floor Ordeal Settlement Edition」
-1st place Kim Seung-hoon (SS+)
-2nd place Lee Jung-
hoon ( SS)
-3rd
place Nickname change?
-6th place, level 6 (S+)
….
….
“It’s intuitive.”
Just as all commands had an intuitive form on the first floor, this settlement board was the same.
When I clicked the name of the top challenger, a detailed explanation came to mind.
-1st place Kim Seung-hoon (SS+)
-4th floor ordeal breakthrough time (00:34:21)
-4th floor ordeal breakthrough process (SSS)
-4th floor ordeal breakthrough result (SS-)
-4th floor ordeal total settlement (SS+)
“. …”
No, is this a record that humans can achieve?
‘How did you clear the 5th floor trial in 34 minutes?’
It was a name that I sometimes saw in the chat window of the community, but it was stronger than I thought.
There was a lot of incongruity to be the same person.
“This must be the power that real hunters have.”
They are beings that you cannot see even if you raise your head to low-level hunters such as C-class or D-class.
It’s unusual to say, so I guessed that it was a high-ranking hunter.
‘I never thought it would be this much.’
Then, as I was about to look around the balance sheet, something strange caught my eye.
-What is the 3rd place nickname change
?
However, seeing the name that seemed to have been created by someone like this, I couldn’t help but be stunned for a moment.
‘Ah, come to think of it…!’
There was also a phrase that the nickname could be changed.
I hurriedly set aside the settlement board and accessed the community to see the part with my name written on it.
[Change name]
When I clicked on the newly added phrase, an input window popped up.
“Please write down the nickname you want to use.”
If you can change your name, you should do it now.
In a situation where information was leaked like the 4th floor ordeal, you could lose money just by making your name known.
‘I can investigate people like Lee Seong-hoon behind the scenes.’
then it gets in trouble
I thought about what to write, but after thinking about it for a while, I decided to write it at random.
“Your nickname is ‘Hunter’ from now on.”
It was just a nickname I came up with without thinking, but it wasn’t bad.
No matter what you try to find out with the nickname hunter, you won’t be able to find out.
It’s perfect for a decent camouflage.
“phew.”
Now that we’ve had a good time with this, it’s time to look at the settlement board again.
‘Do I want to be in the rankings of the settlement table?’
It was the part I was most curious about, so I read the settlement board carefully and got down.
I was meticulous in case there was something I couldn’t read.
And soon found out.
-16th place hunter (A-)
-4th floor ordeal breakthrough time (11:14:51)
-4th floor ordeal breakthrough process (SS+)
-4th floor ordeal breakthrough result (B+)
-4th floor ordeal total settlement (A-)
thoughts I was surprised at the higher rank than that, but what was even more surprising was the message that came next.
「Challengers ranked in the top 50 will be designated as “pioneers.”” 「If they are
designated as “pioneers” consecutively until they reach the 8th floor, they will receive a special privilege to obtain a halo.”
Even if you are not designated as a pioneer, you get benefits from the 8th floor.”
“Halo?”
I think it means the light shining from behind.
Unlike the intuitive words that the Tower of Trials has shown so far, it is a figurative form.
‘Are you giving me some kind of skill or…’
Do you mean to give a background that makes something stand out more?
If it was a figurative expression, I could only think of it as that.
‘Hmm, this is something we’ll find out later.’
First of all, I looked at the settlement rankings and changed my nickname, so it’s time to look at the store.
It was decided what to look for.
Hearthstone.
I needed to know how much the item said to return to Earth cost.
Using the store’s search bar, it was easy to find.
“…”
But seeing the price of the Hearthstone, I couldn’t help but be startled.
「Returning Stone (F+)」
「Price – 500 points」
「Description – An item that allows you to escape the Tower of Trials and return to your original place for 3 days.」 ‘
…No, isn’t this too cheap?’
Even if it was a temporary return, I was speechless at the seriously cheap return stone.
“There is nothing more to see.”
If I could go to Earth even for three days, there was no reason not to go.
As much time had been emptied, there was a mountain of things to deal with. 「You
have
purchased the Returning Stone (F+)」
