So—back when the breaking news hit about Juhyeok’s S++ clear of Black Tower (France) Floor 69.

The American Player, the magic-swordsman-Trait Gerald Watson, was in the TOWER PLAYER AWAKENING ADMINISTRATION holy sword rental room.

America had been hit by the first curse.

So Gerald also entered Korea with Minister MacMillan and Director Antonio.

Floor 67? A light clear.

The curse was resolved.

But Gerald didn’t go back to America.

As long as the Curse of the Average continued, nobody knew what would happen.

And in the middle of that, the breaking news—

Black Tower (France) Floor 69, S++ clear.

The American side knew too.

They knew Korea’s top Player was under temporary naturalization to France.

Floor 68 was already shocking—Floor 69 too?

Honestly, Gerald’s pride took a hit.

Gerald had been the best Player in the world once.

Gerald had tried entering Floor 68.

Gerald even confirmed Death Knights appeared there.

Of course, Gerald abandoned the mission and came back out.

Death Knights.

Just seeing one from a distance was terrifying.

Still... wouldn’t it be possible with the holy sword?

At least one. I should kill at least one.

This wasn’t about clearing Floor 68.

It was a check—whether it was killable, how long it took. A rehearsal.

So Gerald asked Director Antonio to pick an appropriate time slot and make a holy sword rental reservation.

The request was accepted.

In the holy sword rental room at the TOWER PLAYER AWAKENING ADMINISTRATION, Gerald suited up in advance and put on a bodycam.

[Entering America(NO.1) Black Tower Floor 68.]

[Floor 68 Mission: Kill 4 Dark Death Knights.]

“Whew.”

Courage rose.

Before, entering without the holy sword had felt hopeless.

Four of them spawned at once.

Luckily, there was distance between them—safe pulling was possible.

“Shield, Strength, Haste...”

First, a barrier and buff spells.

“Magic Bolt.”

SPIT! Gerald pulled one.

“Grrrrrrrr...”

A Death Knight stared straight at Gerald with a chilling glare.

And then—

...Huh?

SKREEEEE!

It charged in at a terrifying speed.

Why is it so—

SPIT!

Fast?

A massive greatsword swung like lightning.

Gerald raised the holy sword and blocked.

CLANGCLANG!

“Ugh!”

Steel met steel.

The shock was vicious—felt all the way inside.

“F-fuck...”

One clash was enough to know.

Meeting it blade-to-blade was a losing trade.

So instead—

“Blink!”

POP! Teleport magic—Gerald snapped behind it and cut straight down.

SPIT! THUNK!

“...This is insane!”

Thanks to Radiance, the dark aura split—

but the holy sword stopped cold on the armor.

“Grrrk!”

The Death Knight’s momentum rose even higher.

Like it got pissed off from being hit.

SPIT! SPITSPITSPIT!

The Death Knight’s assault kept coming.

It swung that enormous greatsword like it was a one-handed blade.

Damn it!

This wasn’t a simple pattern.

Changes, finesse, speed—real swordsmanship, all braided together.

CLANG! CLANG!

Gerald was forced back helplessly.

Just barely managing to catch the Death Knight’s blade.

And at the same time, damage stacking up.

A red line of blood forming at the corner of the mouth.

“B-Blink.”

Gerald retreated—

“Shield...”

SPOT! SWOOSH!

It lunged before the barrier could even finish forming.

“Hk!”

CLANG!

“...Ugh!”

Had it been about a minute since the blades first met?

But it was already obvious.

Even with the holy sword, Gerald couldn’t kill it.

At this rate, Gerald might die. Escape was the top priority now.

“Blin—”

SWOOSH! CLANG!

No room to cast.

The Death Knight kept pressing Gerald to the edge.

There wasn’t even time to drink a healing potion.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Guh—

At last, Gerald spat a lump of blood.

A life-or-death crisis.

Focus.

That was the only way to live.

Wasn’t Gerald America’s top Player?

Gerald deflected the Death Knight’s downward smash with the holy sword.

“Blink!”

POP!

A sprint—barely reaching a safe zone—

and immediately—

“Abandon mission.”

[You have declared mission abandonment.]

[You have failed the mission.]

[Exiting America(NO.1) Black Tower.]

SPOT!

Gerald reappeared in the holy sword rental room.

Using the holy sword like a cane, Gerald dropped to one knee—

“Cough!”

Blood still spilling from the mouth.

With trembling hands, Gerald pulled a healing potion from Inventory and drank.

“Gerald!!!”

Director Antonio ran over in a panic.

The medical staff on standby rushed too.

“...D-Director, huff, huff.”

Gerald spoke between ragged breaths.

“Why?”

“I—I can’t clear it.”

“What?”

“It’s too strong. Death Knights... Floor 68 is impossible... e-even with the holy sword.”

“What...?”

Clearing wasn’t the issue.

Just coming back alive was a relief.

*****

Juhyeok’s penthouse.

A simple get-together—and a Platinum Badge award ceremony.

And the Mad Demon was right there beside everyone.

How would the Mad Demon look at an award ceremony this childish?

Honestly, it was a little embarrassing.

It really was like kids playing around.

But it couldn’t be stopped.

The summoned entities were full of anticipation.

So even if it was humiliating, Juhyeok swallowed it.

“Mr. Cossack.”

“Yes, sir!”

Cossack got a badge for the credit of proposing the “interrogate the Copy” idea in Black Tower (France), revealing the True Body’s identity.

“Salute! Thank ya, sir. Tactical genius, Black Tower problem-solver, quick-wit brain, this Cossack will work even harder from here on out, sir!”

At that, the Mad Demon—

“Tsk tsk tsk. Even a three-year-old could guess you’d find the True Body by following the Copy. What are you acting like you did something big for?”

A deeply dissatisfied face.

“...”

Ugh. Watching this right next to the Mad Demon is... a lot.

Maybe this should’ve happened after sending the Mad Demon back.

“...Mr. Meatshield.”

“Summoner, I am here.”

Meatshield got a badge for contributing as a sturdy tank all the way up to Black Tower (France) Floor 70.

“Summoner is always protected by warrior.”

The Mad Demon kept grumbling.

“Ehh. A summoned entity protecting the summoner is obvious. What a stubborn dummy.”

“...”

Next—

“Staff Sergeant Veronica.”

“Staff Sergeant Veronica Caliber!”

Veronica got a badge for major contributions to the Death Knight clear on Floor 68—three massive “swings” that decided everything.

“CERTAIN VICTORY! Please pin it on me personally.”

“Ahem. A-HEM!!!”

This time the Mad Demon only coughed theatrically.

Rajix and Gyeon Dallae each got a badge for the Floor 69 lich clear—Rajix for hauling the Dolby stereo speaker setup using the Subspace Backpack, and Gyeon Dallae for the successful exorcism ritual.

“WAAH!”

“Free rewards. You get an award for delivering speakers?”

“WAAH...?”

“This humble girl is ever unworthy of such excess.”

“Dark arts don’t just confuse the enemy. They confuse allies too.”

The ultimate old-man lecture.

Say things like that out in the world these days and people will call you a fossil.

Bardin got a badge for interrogating Kabalan’s Copy on Floor 70 and exposing the lie.

“My lord! I will become my lord’s sword.”

“Even a mere sword gets treated like a person. All you do is shout ‘Light!!!’ everywhere.”

...Maybe don’t call him again in the future?

Anyway, the award ceremony ended.

Juhyeok couldn’t even clap properly because the Mad Demon was watching.

“Alright, then, we’ll end the ceremony—”

Right then!

Huh?

In the blink of an eye, the Mad Demon appeared right in front of Juhyeok.

Chest thrust out.

Staring with eyes full of expectation.

“...”

No way.

Is the Mad Demon asking for a badge?

No. No way.

An LSSR—Legend Special Super Rare.

The Mad Demon, the worst terror under heaven, the sea of corpses and blood, undefeated across ages—

Still... just in case, ask?

“Um... the badge—”

“This old man is ready. Credit for suppressing the True Body Kabalan’s soul and uncovering where the bastard is hiding.”

“...” 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

“I believe that is more than sufficient.”

So it was asking.

Wait—legends get greedy for badges too?

When Juhyeok froze with a blank face, the Mad Demon asked, looking slightly disappointed.

“S-so... am I not qualified?”

“No, it’s not that. I just figured you wouldn’t need it.”

“Wouldn’t need it? It’s proof I was recognized by my summoner—do you know how proud that is?”

“...”

So the Mad Demon wanted it.

Then Juhyeok had to give it.

“I’ll pin it on you.”

Juhyeok carefully pinned the badge to the Mad Demon’s chest.

“Hrm.”

The Mad Demon was happy.

It showed plainly on the face.

The grin nearly reached the ears.

Then—like something suddenly occurred—

“If we catch and kill the True Body Kabalan on Black Tower (Korea) Floor 70... c-can I get one more?”

“Of course you should.”

“Be sure to call me! I’ll tear the bastard’s body and soul into pieces and kill it for you.”

At this point, Black Tower (Korea) Floor 70 was basically already cleared.

And the Curse of the Average would vanish too.

Juhyeok wanted it to end fast.

Temporary naturalization, my ass.

Juhyeok wanted to go back to daily life—spend the money already earned, rest, and loaf around doing nothing.

If you’re going to live as a weak man, live like a weak man.

To do that, Kabalan’s Curse of the Average had to be ended.

First step: a consultation.

Juhyeok contacted Deputy Commissioner Jeon Gwangil.

Said it was urgent and Juhyeok wanted to meet.

Important things had to be said face-to-face.

*****

At the TOWER PLAYER AWAKENING ADMINISTRATION,

Jeon Gwangil and Park Kyungsoo sat in a heavy mood.

Korea was a third-wave curse target country?

That wasn’t the problem.

This—might be related, in a way, but—

Player Gerald’s failure.

A probe at Floor 68, and Gerald came back wrecked.

Gerald couldn’t kill even one Death Knight.

Gerald almost died.

America’s top Player.

“Do you remember what Player Bong said when the holy sword was entrusted to us?”

“I remember. That Floor 68 could be difficult with only an old holy sword. But this one was repaired. The effect improved a lot.”

“Yes. I thought it would be fine too.”

But the result was mission abandonment without killing a single one.

Floor 68 being hard even with the holy sword—

This was bad. What now?

Of course, Korea itself didn’t need to panic—Korea had Player Bong Juhyeok.

The problem was other countries.

“What did you decide? Did you talk to Director Antonio?”

“For now, we agreed to keep it secret. Nothing good comes from Gerald’s case getting out.”

“Hm.”

Only suffocating.

At this point, America would only stare harder at Player Bong Juhyeok.

And it wasn’t just America.

Senior officials and top Players from around the world were staying in Korea to rent the holy sword.

If news spread about what Gerald experienced on Floor 68, what would happen was obvious.

A tug-of-war over Player Bong.

Or demands for temporary naturalization.

Japan, too—Japan was even saying the acting prime minister would come to Korea personally to sign a mutual national Tower Collapse defense treaty.

Like there was something to pick up and eat here.

“What about Player Bong’s French nationality?”

“The French special envoy delegation is visiting Korea today, so I’ll ask Player Bong and immediately restore the nationality to its original state.”

“Handle it quickly. I don’t like Player Bong not being Korean.”

“Yes.”

Both Jeon Gwangil and Park Kyungsoo regretted it.

If they’d known it would be like this, they should’ve clung to Player Bong’s pant leg.

Should’ve begged: never do temporary naturalization.

Then—DING.

A notification sound from Jeon Gwangil’s smartphone.

“Uh...”

“What is it? Something urgent?”

“Player Bong says to meet. Says there’s something to talk about.”

“Is that so? Go at once. I’ll cover your work.”

*****

Juhyeok’s apartment underground parking garage.

Jeon Gwangil and Juhyeok met inside a car.

First, Jeon Gwangil explained Gerald’s situation.

“...Gerald couldn’t even compete?”

“Yes. Not even one. Gerald barely abandoned the mission and came back alive.”

Cossack had mentioned earlier that Floor 68 might be difficult...

But honestly, Juhyeok hadn’t expected this either.

Not with the repaired holy sword—far better than before.

Still... Floor 68 really was brutal.

Juhyeok had experienced it.

Floor 67 Phantom Reaper, and Floor 68 Death Knight.

The gap between those two was insane.

This is a problem.

If even Gerald can’t clear Floor 68, then how in the world...?

Should I throw it all away and run?

If Juhyeok did that, the world would really end in a few years.

You piece of shit.

This was all Kabalan’s fault.

If it weren’t for the Curse of the Average, there would’ve been time, at least.

Anyway—

“The reason I asked to see you today—my business in Black Tower (France) is done. Can you help me restore my nationality as quickly as possible? There’s something urgent.”

Jeon Gwangil brightened.

Jeon Gwangil had been about to bring it up anyway.

“I’ll process it right away... mm, but if it’s urgent?”

Now it was time to say it.

“The True Body Kabalan is on Black Tower (Korea) Floor 70.”

“...Pardon?”

Jeon Gwangil’s face went blank.

Did Jeon Gwangil hear wrong? Who was where?

“To break the Curse of the Average, Black Tower (Korea) Floor 70 has to be cleared.”

Jeon Gwangil’s pupils shook.

But there was no choice but to believe it.

Player Bong Juhyeok wasn’t someone who lied about things like this.

“If we don’t kill the True Body, the only option is raising the average to Floor 70, right?”

Jeon Gwangil nodded.

True.

If it isn’t killed, then the average has to reach 70.

But “average Floor 70” was a ridiculous target.

And clearing Black Tower (Korea) Floor 70?

That wasn’t easy either.

How many people would need convincing?

“T-this isn’t something that can be decided here—”

“I know. That’s why I’m telling you to think it over. Clearing it isn’t a problem, so once it’s decided, 연락해 주세요.”

And one more thing.

“Once the climb is approved, I’ll clear twice per day.”

“...Pardon? Twice?”

“...I can enter the Tower twice. Enter Tower.”

“H-how?”

Uh. Where do you even start?

LSSR rank, summoning the Mad Demon, achievements...

Explaining everything from start to finish would be a headache.

So—make an excuse.

“Um... there’s something called a Tower Entry Reset Ticket. Th-that makes twice possible.”

It was a lie, but so what? Something like that could exist.

“There’s an item called a Tower Entry Reset Ticket?”

“Yeah, y-yes... turns out I had two? Hahaha. With that, it’s Floor 67 and 68 in one day, then the next day 69 and 70, right?”

“Ah!”

Jeon Gwangil looked convinced.

Anyway, the ball was tossed.

The people up top would decide.

Juhyeok could wait.

*****

Jeon Gwangil returned to the TOWER PLAYER AWAKENING ADMINISTRATION.

And immediately met Park Kyungsoo, explaining everything said with Bong Juhyeok.

Park Kyungsoo was shocked, of course.

The True Body Kabalan was in Black Tower (Korea).

So Floor 70 had to be cleared.

It clearly wasn’t a lie, so a plan was required.

The two spoke in grim seriousness.

And then—

“Either way, restoring Player Bong’s nationality comes first.”

Whether they cleared Black Tower (Korea) or not, this had to happen.

“You meet the French special envoy delegation. Prime Minister Benjamin Adrian should be the delegation head.”

Park Kyungsoo had a job too.

If they wanted speed, they needed division of labor.

“I’ll go to the Blue House. We have to put it on the agenda for the State Council meeting.”

So Jeon Gwangil met the French special envoy delegation that had entered Korea.

The delegation head was Prime Minister Benjamin Adrian of France.

“The reason we came is for a 지속적인 temporary naturalization contract going forward, or to conclude a Tower Collapse defense treaty—”

Jeon Gwangil cut it off.

“Cancel Player Bong Juhyeok’s nationality change first. That’s the precondition for any conversation.”

“No, that’s—”

“If you want to talk, restore it immediately. Player Bong Juhyeok wants it too.”

Jeon Gwangil pressed hard. There ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) was no time.

At the State Council meeting, Park Kyungsoo made an impassioned case.

“Our immediate task is breaking the Curse of the Average. Even if we must sacrifice, it is something we must do.”

Jeon Gwangil and Park Kyungsoo—both did their parts.

The result came quickly.

Jeon Gwangil called Juhyeok directly.

“You should be able to proceed with clearing.”

—...Yes. I’ll start entering from today.

And with that, the decision was made.

Black Tower (Korea) Floor 70 would be cleared.

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