For fifteen days, I did nothing but repeat the Floor 15 repeat mission.

While waiting for the Random Summon cooldown to come back around, I also trained the Shadow Step skill, experimented with the Energy Barrier, and stockpiled Magic Stones for the purpose of buying combat gear.

Aaaah!

One stone, four birds.

How packed is that plan?

Perfect—pure perfection.

“Energy Barrier.”

BZZZING!

A transparent glass-like film wrapped my entire body.

“Shadow Step.”

SWAT! SWA-WA-SWAT!

Juhyeok’s new-type movement zigzagging.

An afterimage left behind every time.

It actually looked pretty good.

If someone saw it, they’d probably think I was a pretty high level.

Even I felt it.

‘Do I have talent?’

Yeah, right.

If I keep messing around on Floor 15 like this...

[You have succeeded in the Floor 15 mission.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Reward: Magic Stone 1.5 kg]

[Exiting the Black Tower (Republic of Korea).]

Repeat clear, complete.

The problem was that it took less than ten minutes.

It ended before I could even try anything.

Shadow Step, sure, fine.

But what about the Energy Barrier?

Somehow, I had to test it.

Should I ask Cossack to stab me lightly with his dagger?

“Huh?”

“Stab me. With a dagger.”

“...Uuuuhhh.”

The moment Cossack heard my request, he clapped a hand over his mouth and stumbled backward, then—

“W-why are you doing this to me, sir? If you don’t like me, just beat me half to death instead. I-I won’t do it again.”

“No, I’m trying to see if the Energy Barrier works properly. Just poke me lightly.”

“KAAAAAAH! I didn’t hear anything! I can’t hear it, I can’t hear—”

“...”

What is wrong with him?

What a drama queen.

I’m not telling him to kill me. I’m asking for a light poke.

Fine.

I’ll have to figure it out myself.

Time flew by fast.

Endless Floor 15 repeat missions.

The pattern changed every time, but since it was Goblin Workers, it wasn’t hard.

I practiced skills.

On the other side, Cossack was cutting off Goblin Workers’ heads.

I had to try something.

Right as I was thinking that—

“Hm?”

Between the tall brush, I spotted a Goblin Worker crawling away, terrified, trying to sneak off and escape.

‘...Just one?’

And it wasn’t even holding anything.

A loner, unarmed, worthless worker.

“Hm.”

A perfect chance to test the Energy Barrier.

What do I do?

I had to decide fast.

If I waited, the mission would complete and I’d be kicked outside—

‘Screw it. I don’t know.’

SWA-WA-SWAT!

Using Shadow Step, I blocked the path of the crawling Goblin Worker.

THUD!

My ankle and the Goblin Worker’s head collided.

Maybe it thought it had bumped into a tree, because it twisted its head and tried to go the other way, but—TAP! I blocked it again.

It froze.

Only then did the goblin gently lift its head.

Me looking down, goblin looking up,

our eyes meeting,

silence flowing for a moment.

Right then!

“KYAAAH!”

The goblin clamped its yellow, sharp teeth straight onto my ankle.

CRUNCH! GRIND!

“Ugh, fuck! You scared the shit out of me?!”

It bit my leg?

THUD!

I soccer-kicked the goblin’s head with everything I had.

“KEHK!”

WHOOSH!

The goblin I’d kicked went flying straight toward John Cossack, who was happily doing a knife-dance.

Then Cossack sliced the flying thing up midair—SLICE-SLASH!

“Nice pass! You play soccer, sir— ...Hk!”

Like something had suddenly occurred to him, John Cossack’s face went pale as he sprinted at me.

“SUMMONER BONG!!!”

Flailing, frantic.

“N-no, y-you f-fought a g-goblin? W-what were you trying to do— a-are you hurt anywhere?!”

“I’m fine.”

I really was.

Even I hadn’t expected my strength to be like this.

Even if it was a worker, I’d sent a goblin flying with one soccer kick.

I hadn’t killed it, but still.

‘Well, I am level 16.’

And the Energy Barrier’s power—

I definitely got bitten on the ankle, but it didn’t hurt, and my pant leg wasn’t even torn.

All that was left on the ground were broken fragments of the Goblin Worker’s teeth.

“I’ve told you again and again, sir. You mustn’t be so brave.”

“It was just one.”

“One becomes two, two becomes three, three becomes four.”

“It’s a weak, weak worker.”

“A worker becomes a scout, a scout becomes a warrior, a warrior becomes a shaman.”

“...”

“Please protect your precious body. Summoner Bong!”

What the hell is this guy’s real identity?

I know he’s loyal, but he’s too much of a scheming-minion type.

If he’d been a palace eunuch in the Joseon era, he probably would’ve gotten showered with the king’s affection.

“Okay. I’ll be careful.”

And so, for fifteen days, I only did repeat missions.

My skill proficiency went up, and my Magic Stones just kept piling up.

A full 22.5 kg. If it sold at market price, 11.25 million won.

‘Should I go to the Player Shop at the Administration soon?’

To visit the Administration, I had to let a staff member know first.

Either the staff I’d met when signing the contract, or the staff in charge of Magic Stone collection.

There were two people I knew.

Team Leader Jeon Gwangil and Section Chief Lee Mina.

The choice was obviously Jeon Gwangil.

It’s easier to meet a man than a woman.

So I sent him a message saying I wanted to go to the Player Shop,

and a little later, my phone rang.

“Hello?”

Ah! Player Bong. You want to visit the Player Shop.

“Yes, that’s right. Can I come over right now?”

We’ll send a staff member right away.

“There’s no need for that. I’ll just take a taxi.”

No. Even regular contractors all receive this benefit. You can also sell your Magic Stones at the shop.

“Mm. Okay, I’ll wait.”

What? They send a car even for regular customers?

No way.

This level of special treatment, I’ll accept it coolly.

※ ※ ※

The number of Players in the Republic of Korea is estimated to be around 7,000.

It could be even fewer.

Even though the government signs contracts with almost every Player, they still can’t state an exact number.

Because unregistered Players, Players whose qualifications have been revoked, and Players who have already died make it hard to grasp the exact count, so it always fluctuates.

Unregistered Players—well, you can’t count what you don’t know about.

As for revoked qualifications, if you don’t clear the tower for three months, the System itself is deleted.

The government only finds out months later.

Because those Players aren’t producing Magic Stones.

The government settles the Player contract and stops paying subsidies or strips special benefits.

And then there’s Player deaths.

The largest number happen in uncleared climbing missions.

The higher the floor, the more dangerous it is.

But does that mean repeat climbing missions are safe?

Not a chance!

Even if it’s the same mission, even the pattern isn’t identical.

In a monster-subjugation mission, the location and the number that appear can change,

and even for trap-breaking missions, the location and type of mechanisms change every time.

I experienced that even while repeating Floor 15.

If you charge in carelessly thinking, I’ve done this once so it’ll be easy, you can die on the spot.

And even abandoning the mission requires you to run all the way back to the tower entrance, the safe zone, and declare abandonment.

If you try to run and you die on the way—then you’re just dead.

That’s why over twenty years, the number of Players who have died in Korea alone is in the thousands.

When Players die?

They’re processed as missing persons.

Because you can’t find the body.

In this situation, the state also works to keep Players safe and encourage Magic Stone production.

One of those measures is the Player-specialized shop.

The store is in the basement of the Awakening Administration in Hannam-dong.

They sell equipment and weapons at discounted prices by charging only the raw material cost, but even then it’s expensive.

Juhyeok arrived at the Tower Player Awakening Administration in a car with a staff member.

Team Leader «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» Jeon Gwangil was waiting for me at the front gate.

“Welcome, Player Bong.”

“Sorry for troubling you.”

“Not at all. Follow me.”

The Player Shop was in the Administration’s basement.

But it wasn’t a place you could just walk into.

“First, you should register. To enter the Player Shop, there’s a separate procedure.”

It wasn’t anything special.

An identification method that proves you are you through palm-vein recognition.

Place your hand against a glass plate, scan, done.

BEEP!

“From now on, you can come anytime and use the shop without calling in advance.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“...Would you like me to guide you through the inside of the shop?”

“No. I’ll look around by myself.”

“Hahaha, yes, understood. Delivery shipping after purchase is also possible, so feel free to use it as much as you like.”

Come to think of it, it had been a really long time since I’d been to an offline store like this.

I could count it on one hand.

I only shopped online. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Talking to staff.

Not easy.

But since I’d worked up the courage anyway—

Juhyeok raised his hand to the palm-recognition glass set by the shop’s entrance door.

BEEP-BEEP!

“Ooh...”

The inside of the shop was decorated pretty lavishly.

Employees selling goods—yet there wasn’t a single customer.

Even if there aren’t many Players, still.

Why is nobody here?

‘Is it because it’s expensive after all?’

Times like this, the elite team is better.

They get gear items provided for free.

‘First, the Magic Stone sales booth.’

Selling Magic Stones.

The money I’d made clearing Floors 1 through 15: 7 million won.

And if I did a consignment sale for the 22.5 kg of Magic Stones I got from repeating Floor 15 for fifteen days?

“We’ve confirmed 22.5 kg. At market price, that’s 11.25 million won. Once it’s sold by connecting you to a buyer, it’ll be deposited into your account within three days.”

“Uh— c-can I use it here right away?”

“Of course. Yes. If you make purchases, it will be deducted from the money you’ll receive later, so please keep that in mind.”

“Yes, yes.”

Now it was time to shop.

But not a very happy time.

Buy fast and go home.

‘Weapons...’

The corner where weapons were displayed.

Bluish sharp blades, long longswords, short daggers, staves, spears, bows, and even handguns.

“Are you looking for something in particular?”

“...Ah, no. I’m not looking for anything specific, but I’m just going to look around first.”

“If you have any questions at any time, please let me know.”

It really is hard to talk to a staff member you’ve never met before.

At least it was a male employee, so that was a relief.

If I’m curious, I have to ask.

“Can I take all of these into the tower?”

“If you’re carrying it on your body. Also, you can put them into your inventory.”

Only items that come from the tower can go into the Tower-Only Inventory.

So why do these go into the inventory?

‘They’re made from Magic Stones and tower metal.’

Metal produced in the tower.

From the 30s, the rewards increase.

Metals that don’t exist on Earth come out in ingot form.

The baseline is 3 kg, and if your clear is good, you can receive up to 10 kg.

The types include adamant, orichalcon, sectonium, and so on.

If you make equipment using those metals and Magic Stones, it can go into the Tower-Only Inventory.

So it’s extremely expensive.

The cheapest weapon is 20 million won per piece.

There are plenty that are even more expensive.

And these are goods they sell for Players by charging only the cost of materials.

If you bring the materials yourself, they’ll even make it for free, without any labor fee.

“Players are also exempt from bladed-weapon possession permits. However, firearms are only available for rental. Entry is also restricted to designated places.”

Of course.

No matter how much you’re a Player, they can’t just hand out firearms.

But guns have limits.

In the 20s, you can sometimes use them, but in the 30s, bullets don’t penetrate.

They’re both ranged weapons, but bows and crossbows are viable.

Because there are skills that use bows.

But guns can’t be used.

Because there are no skills that can utilize them.

What’s better?

I should have at least one weapon.

Not because I plan to attack monsters with it, but as self-defense.

Something that can crack a monster’s skull and let me run when I’m in danger.

‘Huh?’

One item caught my eye.

A dull, dark metal club.

A weapon commonly called a mace.

‘That one’s usable.’

I asked the employee and grabbed the handle for real; the balance was right, and it wasn’t too heavy.

‘I like it.’

Honestly, bladed weapons are a burden.

How am I supposed to slice and stab something that moves?

I can’t even clean a live fish.

Good.

A club is perfect.

“How much is this?”

“Ah, it’s an adamant metal mace. The price is... hmm, it’s 2 million won.”

“What?”

2 million won?

Did I hear wrong?

“I-it’s a refund item from customer’s remorse, so...”

“...”

That’s suspicious.

The baseline is 20 million.

‘Could it be?’

In an instant, Team Leader Jeon Gwangil’s face came to mind.

They sent a car the moment I said I was going to the Player Shop, then I get here and there isn’t a single customer, and now they’re saying an adamant weapon is only 2 million won.

If you see it, you see it.

Thanks to my timid personality, I’ve always prided myself on having ridiculously sharp instincts.

‘What do I do?’

Do I call him and ask them to sell it at the proper price?

Or...

‘Just buy it.’

Like an innocent person who knows nothing.

If I didn’t know, there’s nothing for me to take responsibility for.

“Wow! That’s so cheap. I’ll take it. I’ll buy it.”

“Would you like it packaged?”

“No. I’ll put it in my inventory.”

Alright, I got a weapon—so what do I buy now?

But now that I was actually here, there wasn’t that much I needed.

※ ※ ※

Commissioner Park Kyungsoo asked Jeon Gwangil.

“How is it? Has Player Bong started shopping smoothly?”

“Yes, he has.”

“No other customers, right?”

“None. We sent a text to all the other Players that the shop is closed today.”

One more.

“And the prices?”

“I told the staff in advance to do a 90% discount. Since I figured he wouldn’t take it if it was free.”

“Well done.”

I hope it turns into a truly satisfying shopping trip.

That way, he’ll start climbing Floor 16.

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