Earth No. 1,001.

Juhyeok’s world.

After Juhyeok secretly left the Gigant in Yeouido Park, the display Gigant finally revealed itself to the public.

Restaurant owner Mr. Kim, heading home on the first bus after working through the night, spotted it.

Job seeker Mr. Park, who stepped out onto his balcony at dawn to get some air after studying, discovered it beyond the glass.

Mr. Jung, who worked at a securities firm, saw it after coming out of Exit 3 of Yeouido Subway Station on his way to work.

Little Lee from the chick class at Yeouido Kindergarten saw it on the way to school and threw a tantrum, demanding to go to the park instead, leaving his dad at a loss.

Another Mr. Jung, a huge mecha fanatic, rushed to Yeouido after getting a call from a friend from his club and finally saw it in person.

Retired civil servant Mr. Yoon saw it while taking his morning walk along the Han River, panicked so badly that he slightly wet himself, then went home to change his underwear.

People living outside Seoul—or overseas—came across it through the news or on SNS.

It hadn’t been there yesterday.

It had appeared overnight.

The Gigant they had only ever seen in videos was now real.

It had been painted convincingly in matte colors.

And it even moved from time to time.

YouTube streamers swarmed Yeouido Park.

Wasn’t this insane content?

Even silent livestreams with no commentary pulled massive viewership.

L It was real. It actually exists.

L I was at the park yesterday. When the hell did that show up?

L The top Player must’ve set it up secretly overnight.

L It’s huge.

L Damn, they should put that in front of Mansudae in Pyongyang.

L Fuck, we pay the same taxes, but Seoul people get to see that from their balconies.

L The color is nice. Not overdone.

L Whoever painted it has good taste.

L Whoa! It’s moving! It’s turning its head!

L It won’t step on people, right?

L It doesn’t walk around. Just moves its arms and head a little.

L But what’s with the ad on its back? They should get rid of that.

L Exactly! Remove the ad!

The reaction was explosive.

Not just in Korea, but all over the world.

People flooded into Korea just to see the Gigant in person.

Flights to Korea sold out at international airports everywhere.

Until recently, the Black Tower in downtown Tokyo had been the hottest attraction, but that was no longer true.

The Gigant’s popularity soared.

And as a result, Rajix Trading became so famous that there was practically no one who didn’t know the name.

Which meant Rajix Trading’s Gangnam headquarters was in chaos.

“Sir.”

“Yeah, Secretary Oh—did the website come back up?”

“The tech team just reported that the servers are back online.”

“Ha... This is insane.”

And it wasn’t just the website.

The phones were ringing nonstop.

The reason?

The ads.

People were tearing them apart over the ads.

“How bad is the backlash?”

“Almost at the level of threats.”

“...Ugh.”

“They’re saying they’ll start a boycott unless the ads on the Gigant’s back are removed immediately.”

......

“They’re saying we turned our beloved Gigant friend into a joke.”

That was the issue.

It wasn’t about whether the ads were effective.

It was the fact that there were ads at all.

“Hoo...”

CEO Jung Donghoon let out a deep sigh as Secretary Oh Jinsuk spoke carefully.

“What should we do? Maybe we should post a temporary notice saying we plan to remove the ads—”

“No. Don’t do anything yet. I’ll go get permission first.”

“...Understood.”

Oh Jinsuk left the office.

Permission to remove the ads?

Does the top Player have to approve that?

The true owner of Rajix Trading.

No one knew who it was.

His identity was completely shrouded in mystery.

Honestly, one person did come to mind.

But it didn’t seem to fit at all.

Back then—before Oh Jinsuk became CEO Jung’s secretary, when she still worked in general affairs—a former classmate named Bong Juhyeok had visited Rajix Trading headquarters.

The way CEO Jung ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) had treated him.

And then the sudden transfer to the secretary’s office afterward.

Could Juhyeok really be the top Player...?

No way.

Absolutely not.

He was so gentle he couldn’t even kill a bug.

He’d even been bullied once by a delinquent back in school.

Juhyeok probably didn’t know it, but she still remembered going to that delinquent herself and threatening him to stop messing with a good kid.

She had some pull back then.

Her boyfriend had been the captain of a sports team.

Anyway, it couldn’t be Juhyeok.

Even if he were a Player, he’d probably only farm safe floors.

—

The 90th Floor boss, the Apex Demonic Dragon Helcrasus, had descended to the 89th Floor.

Just hearing the name sent a chill down the spine.

Not just a demonic dragon.

Apex.

Utterly hellish.

And it really had been.

Terrifying.

Chilling.

The kind of thing that made you want to crawl under a concealment veil and hide.

But it died.

One gesture from the biker old man, and it was gone.

The administrators had abused their authority and sent down a 90th Floor boss...

...and it got cut apart like, “Who the hell are you?”—slash.

Bisected.

Split cleanly in two.

Ding!

[Apex Demonic Dragon Helcrasus defe... ated. 1/1]

[... 89th-floor mission succe... ssfully comple... ted.]

[Level up... achiev... ed.]

Even the system messages were a mess.

Was it an error?

Shock?

Or disbelief over an old biker casually slicing through space itself?

[Rewa... ar... d...]

Then, eventually—

Ding!

[An error has occurred.]

[Black Tower administrators of Earth No. 675 are absent. Reward and achievement evaluation has been postponed.]

[Normal raid rewards and achievement rewards will be granted after error correction.]

Messages kept popping up, but Juhyeok didn’t care.

All he could see was the old man riding a motorcycle in the sky.

The summoned entities were tense.

Cossack was speechless.

Meatshield was drenched in cold sweat.

Veronica remained on guard.

Bardin was trembling.

Rajix stared with his mouth hanging open.

El watched calmly.

Mari peeked at the old man from the corner of her eye.

No one spoke.

Not the Mad Demon.

Not MacMillan.

Not Diamat.

Not Jepetto.

Especially not Gyeon Dallae.

Unlike the others, her face was full of reverence.

With her hands clasped together, she looked at the old man as if she were praying.

Judging by that expression, he didn’t seem evil.

Then—

Swish!

Something appeared behind the old man.

“...Huh?”

A smartphone.

It was flying.

Moving like a living bird.

Was he filming?

So even that guy liked recording things.

With the phone floating behind him—

Vrrrm!

Vrrrm!

The motorcycle descended from the sky.

It’s coming down.

It’s landing.

What do I do?

Do I greet him?

Thank him?

Throw myself flat on the ground?

Clap sincerely?

He was a transcendent being.

He wasn’t classified as a summoned entity.

Which meant the Three Principles of Summoned Entities might not apply to him.

If he felt like it, he could split everyone here in half just like Helcrasus.

Vrrrm.

Clack.

The motorcycle landed.

The old man swung himself off in a stylish motion.

Then he carefully looked over Juhyeok and the summoned entities gathered around him.

A slight frown appeared on his face.

“Tsk tsk tsk.”

He even clicked his tongue and shook his head.

Is he displeased?

That’s bad...

Gulp.

Juhyeok swallowed dryly.

The old man’s gaze drifted around—

then finally settled on Juhyeok.

“Oh!”

He let out a short exclamation.

“You are...?”

“Ah! Hello. I’m Bong Juhyeok.”

“So you are Young Hero Bong. This old man bears the empty title of Sword Immortal.”

Sword Immortal?

Immortal, as in...

An immortal.

A mythical being who had transcended mortality and attained enlightenment.

Right.

If he was an Immortal, then calling him transcendent made perfect sense.

But why was an Immortal dressed like that?

And why was he riding a motorcycle?

As if he had read Juhyeok’s mind, the Sword Immortal smiled.

“The Immortal Realm where I reside is rather unusual. We have exchanged culture and technology with Earth for a long time, so it is quite advanced. We have theaters, shopping malls, amusement parks—pretty much everything.”

Huh.

Aren’t Immortals supposed to live in the Immortal Realm?

But Earth’s secular civilization had been introduced there?

How did that even happen?

“Why are you so surprised? You yourself possess interdimensional travel, Bong Hero.”

How does he know that?

“Do you think our world lacks people with abilities like that?”

...He had a point.

Dimensional travel.

If you had that, it was possible.

‘So the Immortal Realm and some other Earth exchanged culture, and technology got introduced that way.’

A parallel Earth’s civilization must have crossed over.

That was why an Immortal could ride a motorcycle.

If Earth No. 675 had not been destroyed, it might have exchanged with Juhyeok’s Earth No. 1,001 as well.

“How did such a venerable Immortal come to a humble place like this?”

“You called, so I came. I have never been one to refuse a summons.”

“Thank you very much. You saved us. We owe you our lives.”

At the belated thanks, the Sword Immortal waved a hand dismissively.

“Hardly something worth calling a debt. Everything happens according to karma, does it not? Besides, dealing with a mere demon like that is not even enough to count as a post-meal snack.”

Such humility.

“May I ask which Earth you are from?”

“Hm? Earth is Earth. Why the numbers? Parallel universes or not.”

Right.

Numbering worlds was something only administrators did.

“Does your world also have a Black Tower?”

“You mean this strange space?”

“Yes.”

“No. And if it ever had, I would have destroyed it long ago.”

“Ah!”

The more he spoke, the more he really did seem like a good person.

Still, the summoned entities couldn’t approach him.

Maybe it was because he was transcendent.

If they spent more time together, they might become more comfortable around him.

But the remaining time was short.

Just ten minutes—no, not even five remained.

“Sword Immortal.”

“Speak, Bong Hero.”

“If it’s all right, would you consider staying here for a few days—”

“I would like to, but that will not be possible. Even if I leave, this world will reject me.”

It had been worth asking.

Juhyeok pulled a Residency Rights card from his inventory and held it out.

“This is...?”

After examining it for a moment, the Sword Immortal shook his head.

“This card contains power that binds a soul to a specific space.”

Ah.

An Immortal really was an Immortal.

“However, my soul cannot be bound. It was never possible to begin with!”

As expected.

You couldn’t forcibly bind the soul of a transcendent being.

If you could, they wouldn’t be transcendent.

“Well, if I truly wished to stay, you could accept me.”

So it was possible?

“If I extend a formal invitation—”

“As I said, once I step outside, the laws of this world will twist. As you know, I am not an ordinary human.”

Right.

He was an Immortal.

“And I am rather busy. Many seek me out, one way or another. Hahaha.”

What a shame.

With such a clear refusal, Juhyeok couldn’t push it any further.

“By the way, Bong Hero, I do have one request.”

Huh?!

“A-anything. Please ask for anything!”

Of course he would agree.

He had been wondering how to repay this favor.

“Well, do you happen to have any snacks from Earth?”

Snacks?

“You mean... snacks?”

“Indeed. Snacks.”

Hadn’t he said the Immortal Realm traded with Earth?

Didn’t they have snacks there?

“The malls in the Immortal Realm do sell Earth food, but it is terribly expensive. The transport costs are astronomical.”

“Ah.”

That made sense.

A drink at the top of a mountain cost more than one at the bottom.

Crossing dimensions would be even worse.

“So.”

“Rajix?”

“WAAH?”

“You have snacks in subspace, right?”

“WAAH!”

“Good. Take everything out.”

At that moment—

Juhyeok saw it.

FLASH!

A glint of desire in the Sword Immortal’s eyes.

Swish!

Rajix began taking things out: one bag each of candy and jelly, three chocolate bars, five canned drinks, and several packs of bread.

...That was it?

“Is that all?”

“WAAH.”

Rajix normally kept subspace packed with snacks.

“Who ate all the snacks?”

Juhyeok looked at the summoned entities.

Meatshield and Cossack quietly avoided his gaze.

Tsk.

It wasn’t really something you could scold them over.

But—

“Ooooooh! This much?”

The Sword Immortal trembled with excitement.

This still counted as a lot?

“That is the new chocolate. The one with pistachios inside.”

“You know it well.”

“An Immortal I know in the Immortal Realm spent his entire fortune on that chocolate. He is a beggar now.”

“...What?”

How expensive was that chocolate?

“May I take it?”

“Please, go ahead.”

“Hohoho! Then coming here was worth it.”

Such a modest Immortal.

Juhyeok suddenly felt a little sorry for him.

“Ah, if only we had more time, I’d buy you more.”

“Hahaha, this is enough—”

“I could even open an entire shopping mall for you.”

Twitch!

The Sword Immortal’s ears moved.

“Ho—Bong Hero, are you wealthy?”

“Yes! Extremely!”

“Gasp! A most distinguished person.”

“Oh, it’s nothing. But someone did tell me I’m the richest person in the world.”

Twitch!

His ears moved again.

That was an immediate reaction.

‘...Hmm.’

He seemed rather fond of worldly things.

Even as an Immortal, he had strong material desires.

Then—

“I’d also like to buy you a new motorcycle.”

Twitch! Twitch!

“Custom-made. One of a kind, just for you. All it would take is one phone call.”

Twitch! Twitch! Twitch!

His ears wouldn’t stop moving.

Still—

“Hoo... My heart wavers, but I am an anomalous being. I worry this world would be endangered if I stayed...”

......

“The place where I live is separated from reality.”

Twitch!

“Separated?”

“A completely new space. You could say it’s similar to this place.”

“Oh? Such a place exists?”

“And it has internet. And electricity.”

Twitch! Twitch!

“It has internet as well?”

“You can watch TV. Movies too, whenever you want.”

Twitch! Twitch! Twitch...

He was almost convinced.

“Would you like to come and see it for yourself?”

“Hm. I would regret leaving just like this.”

“I would too.”

“Perhaps I could stay a little longer... a week, perhaps?”

Got him.

“I won’t let you regret it.”

“...It is not simply because I want a new motorcycle.”

Drawing on every flattering trick he had learned from Cossack—

“Oh, of course not. I know that. How could someone like you, an Immortal who has transcended the secular world, be swayed by something as trivial as material desire? Your bearing alone is extraordinary. The more I look at you, the more I feel it. You truly are the very image of an Immortal.”

“Hrm hrm.”

“And here—”

Swish.

Juhyeok handed over the Residency Rights card.

The Sword Immortal quietly reached out and accepted it.

SSSK, SSSSK.

Letters engraved themselves onto the back of the card.

White Tower Temporary Resident: Sword Immortal

Temporary.

So he couldn’t stay permanently.

Let’s get him home quickly.

Before that—a moment of silence for Unit No. 2.

Still, we got some incredible footage.

We can release it later.

“WAAH!”

Clang! Ta-ang! Whirr!

Rajix moved.

Where to?

Toward the bisected corpse of the Apex Demonic Dragon Helcrasus.

Swish, ssssssh.

He stored the whole thing away.

Then he also collected the melted, barely recognizable Gigant, along with the demonic sword and shield.

The Sword Immortal watched with fascination.

‘Wow. As expected of our frugal cross-dimensional housekeeper.’

Right.

The rewards were postponed anyway, so we should at least take this.