"The Basilisk Queen's Blessing?"
Apparently, the Basilisk Queen had left me a gift.
Since I was constantly under my Ancestral God's protection, the concept of a blessing wasn't unfamiliar to me.
What felt strange was receiving a blessing from a monster I'd considered an enemy.
─ She was a being of considerable standing. Even so, it could not have been easy with the Tower interfering. The fact that she bestowed a blessing upon you means she must have given you everything she had left.
"Everything?"
─ She granted you that blessing at the cost of her spiritual standing. She gave you something quite valuable. She is a more admirable creature than I had thought.
My Ancestral God spoke calmly.
But if even he described something as "quite valuable," it couldn't possibly be ordinary.
"Status Window."
I summoned my Status Window to check.
[Status Window]
Name: Cheon Yeong-hwan
Class: Divine Shaman
Level: 3
Trait: Spirit Command
─ First Spirit: Ancestral God
Trait Skills: Lending / Spirit Communion (Inactive) / Divine Descent (Inactive)
Common Skills: Subspace Inventory / Tower Entry Ticket (71:58)
Special Skills: Passive: Nimble Movements / Passive: Basilisk Queen's Blessing
Achievement Points: 2
My level had increased to 3, and my Achievement Points had reached 2.
The Basilisk Queen's Blessing had been registered as a skill.
A passive skill.
"Amazing."
Along with traits, skills were the greatest weapons available for climbing the Tower.
Weren't skills something that could only be obtained with an extremely low probability, even in the Reward Space?
I'd heard that guaranteed skills were only awarded on floors that were multiples of five, which served as major milestones in the Tower.
Just as my Ancestral God had said, the Basilisk Queen had given me something extraordinary.
When I focused my gaze on the Basilisk Queen's Blessing, a more detailed description of the skill appeared.
This was another useful function of the Status Window.
[Passive: Basilisk Queen's Blessing - You are protected by the Basilisk Queen's Blessing. You are less susceptible to injury.]
As usual, the Status Window didn't provide a particularly detailed explanation, but I could understand the general effect.
It was probably a skill related to defense.
And it was exactly what I needed.
Unless an Awakened possessed a healing-related trait or had learned a special recovery skill, injuries were among the greatest obstacles to climbing the Tower.
I'd heard of players who suffered severe injuries during their climbs and couldn't enter the Tower again for weeks, months, or even years.
Besides, wasn't avoiding injuries in the first place better than healing them afterward?
I didn't know how powerful the skill's effect would be, but since it had been officially registered as a skill, it was bound to make a meaningful difference.
"Subspace Inventory."
Feeling satisfied, I checked my spoils as well.
The first things I noticed were the Corrupted Basilisk Hides, which occupied a considerable amount of space.
I could offer those at the shrine's altar.
"Cursed Crystals?"
There were crystals inside the inventory that resembled the Dead One's Resentment.
Unlike the transparent Dead One's Resentment, however, these had a slightly crimson tint.
─ Those are mine as well.
"Yes, sir."
Like the Dead One's Resentment, I could probably offer them at the altar.
It seemed my Ancestral God had secured himself a generous share of the rewards, too.
"The Magic Crystals arrived properly as well."
I'd obtained 15g of Magic Crystals from the second floor.
Combined with the 10g I'd earned on the first floor, that made 25g.
Approximately 2.5 million won.
If I climbed the Tower just twice more, I should be able to cover this month's interest.
Repaying the principal still seemed like a distant dream, but at least I could pay the interest.
Fortunately, our family's debts had been incurred when our financial circumstances were still relatively good, so the annual interest rate was only four percent.
If I kept covering the interest with Magic Crystals, I'd eventually obtain some expensive monster materials or items that would allow me to repay the principal as well.
This was practically perfect.
"Ancestor."
─ What is it?
"Let's go check the rewards."
─ Ahem. Just put your faith in this ancestor of yours.
With my Ancestral God, the god of gacha, by my side, perhaps it wouldn't take very long.
***
The backs of five cards, which had tormented countless Awakened, came into view.
"Phew."
Even though I was choosing with advance knowledge of the answer, I still felt nervous.
The image of those 5kg of Magic Crystals scattering into thin air remained painfully vivid in my mind.
─ Descendant.
"Yes, Ancestor."
─ Let us establish something before proceeding.
"Establish what?"
─ There are occasions when my judgment and your desires do not align.
"Ah……"
I understood what he meant.
When I'd received my reward on the first floor, my Ancestral God must have believed that Nimble Movements would be more useful to me than 5kg of Magic Crystals.
But with the pressure of my family's debts weighing heavily on me, I still couldn't easily abandon my regrets over those 5kg of Magic Crystals.
It was the kind of disagreement that could arise many times as I continued climbing the Tower.
─ Will you trust my judgment? Or would you prefer to make your own choices?
"Your decisions are always made for my sake, aren't they?"
─ Naturally. You and I are bound by a common destiny.
I was still immature.
That was true even when judged simply as a human being, and when it came to being a Divine Shaman, calling me immature was an understatement.
I'd only lived for twenty years, so I didn't particularly regret that fact.
I could simply continue growing.
That was why I believed it was best to rely on my Ancestral God's help for now.
"I'll trust your judgment, Ancestor."
I decided to believe in my Ancestral God and follow his guidance.
A Divine Shaman was someone who perceived the true nature of problems and resolved them correctly.
My Ancestral God was someone who had reached the very pinnacle of that path.
Trusting him was the right thing to do.
─ Very well.
[Please select your reward.]
Five cards floated in the air.
My Ancestral God flew off with a little flutter, crossed the invisible barrier, and examined the fronts of the cards.
─ Choose the second card.
"Yes, sir."
I selected the card my Ancestral God had indicated.
[Reward selected.]
Slowly, the card I'd chosen flipped over.
[Passive: Exceptional Breathing]
"Holy shit."
That wasn't a curse.
It was an exclamation of amazement.
I'd obtained another skill.
Wasn't I probably the only Awakened who had acquired three passive skills after clearing just the first two floors?
─ Ahem.
My Ancestral God puffed himself up with pride.
And he had every reason to.
The remaining four cards slowly turned over.
Once again, one card shone particularly brightly.
[Magic Crystal 6kg]
Six hundred million won.
FSSSH.
The cards I hadn't selected scattered into the air.
Six hundred million won turned to dust and disappeared.
Even though I'd already resolved to accept my Ancestral God's judgment, worldly desires came flooding back.
"Haa……"
I really must be a deeply flawed human being.
Still, I handled it better than last time.
After all, I was a Divine Shaman.
According to my Ancestral God, a Divine Shaman was someone who foresaw the future and prepared for it in advance.
'Floor 16.'
Five kilograms on the first floor.
Six kilograms on the second.
The sample size was still too small to be certain, but at this rate, a reward of 20kg of Magic Crystals might appear around the sixteenth floor.
To give myself a little leeway, I decided to set my target at Floor 20.
If I still hadn't repaid the principal by the time I reached the twentieth floor, I'd choose the Magic Crystals as my reward then.
Once I'd made that plan, my mind felt much more at ease.
Perhaps I was starting to become a little more like a Divine Shaman myself.
***
At that moment.
A System notification rang out to every Awakened in Korea.
[Labyrinth Tower - Korea, Floor 2 has been cleared using the correct method for the first time.]
That was the thing about anonymous online communities.
Even when activity was low, there were always resident ghosts lurking around.
└ It's happened again!
One of the permanent residents of the Awakened community was quicker than anyone else to post about it.
Comments began appearing almost instantly.
└ Fuck, what is this?
└ It's only been three days?
└ Looks like they cleared it the moment the cooldown ended.
└ One attempt, one clear? That's insane.
└ I guess that's the kind of ability you need to achieve a Proper Clear.
└ Has a monster rookie appeared?
└ What kind of trait did they awaken?
The community rapidly became active, descending into complete chaos.
└ Where are all the bastards who said it was a coincidence?
└ Anyone still going to claim this was a coincidence?
Once could be a coincidence.
But it was difficult to consider two consecutive successes mere chance.
At least, anyone who had entered the Tower even once understood that.
The Labyrinth Tower, where unpredictable variables ran rampant, rarely allowed things to happen through sheer coincidence.
└ Who could it be?
└ Seems certain they awakened recently.
└ Why doesn't a Proper Clear reveal the person's name?
A First Clear, commonly abbreviated as FC, produced a message like this.
[Awakened Ji Seo-yeon has cleared Floor 27 of 'Labyrinth Tower - Korea' for the first time.]
The name 'Awakened Ji Seo-yeon' appeared openly in the announcement.
That was precisely why Ji Seo-yeon was universally acknowledged as Korea's greatest Awakened.
Throughout the process of clearing the Korean Labyrinth Tower up to Floor 27, not a single name other than Ji Seo-yeon's had ever appeared.
But a Proper Clear, commonly abbreviated as PC, was announced anonymously.
Naturally, curiosity about the person responsible was growing.
└ Wouldn't the Awakened Management Agency know?
└ They might not know yet if the person's only reached Floor 2.
└ Awakened Management Agency, do your job.
└ Awakened Management Agency, do your job. 22
└ Awakened Management Agency, do your job. 333
Amid all the commotion, another comment appeared.
└ Doesn't this mean we might finally have someone who can replace Ji Seo-yeon?
└ Come on, that's going too far.
└ Don't belittle Lady Ji Seo-yeon's dedication, you fucking bastard.
└ No, it's not like I was insulting Ji Seo-yeon……
***
Ji Seo-yeon had opened her laptop and was browsing the community.
She had also heard the System's general announcement, and there was no better place than the Awakened community to gather various information immediately.
"Nothing useful."
There wasn't much information worth examining.
Everyone was simply excited by the unexpected event and throwing out all sorts of comments.
As she scrolled down with an expressionless face, her finger suddenly stopped.
"A replacement……?"
Someone had brought up the idea and was being thoroughly attacked for it.
But Ji Seo-yeon herself had a somewhat different opinion.
"I hope so."
It was an honest sentiment she could never reveal to anyone.
***
The community wasn't the only place in an uproar.
The Awakened Management Agency.
The government organization responsible for all matters involving the Awakened and the Tower had also been thrown into chaos.
The reason was the general announcement that a Proper Clear had been achieved.
"Director! It's appeared!"
One person's shout sent everyone nearby into a flurry of activity.
This was an organization entrusted with matters directly connected to the nation's survival, possessing authority that bordered on extralegal powers.
Yet even here, the announcement had caused a commotion.
"A Proper Clear…… Is that what you're talking about?"
"That's correct."
"Then we can't consider it a coincidence anymore, can we?"
"It certainly seems that way."
Awakened Chu Gyeong-ho answered the director's question.
The director of the Awakened Management Agency was an ordinary person.
After all, there was no particular reason the head of the agency had to be an Awakened.
However, Chu Gyeong-ho, who could be considered one of the director's closest aides, was an Awakened.
That was why he had personally heard the Proper Clear announcement.
Although Chu Gyeong-ho was an Awakened, he wasn't a Tower Climber.
His awakened trait was Appraisal.
Because Appraisal offered no meaningful advantages in combat, he'd eventually reached the limits of what he could accomplish while climbing the Tower.
That was the director's greatest regret.
Chu Gyeong-ho had been an ace in the Special Forces, possessing exceptional athletic ability, outstanding combat skills, and a sharp mind.
If he'd awakened an appropriate combat trait, he might have become an excellent Tower Climber comparable to Ji Seo-yeon.
"Can you find this person?"
"I'll do my best."
Still, the director's regret wasn't overwhelming.
That was because Chu Gyeong-ho's Appraisal trait made him more valuable to the agency than almost anyone else.
His Appraisal ability could be used not only on materials and items obtained from the Tower but also on other Awakened.
"Focus on the people who register as Awakened from now on."
The first Proper Clear announcement.
Even when everyone else had dismissed it as a possible coincidence, the Awakened Management Agency hadn't remained idle.
They'd conducted a comprehensive investigation of every registered Awakened and had tentatively concluded that the person responsible was unlikely to be among them.
Since the individual had only just cleared the second floor, there was a high probability they hadn't registered as an Awakened yet.
Likewise, there was a high probability they would register in the future.
After all, registration was the best way to sell Magic Crystals and monster materials obtained from the Tower while also receiving various forms of support for future climbs.
"I won't disappoint you."
Chu Gyeong-ho, the Awakened Management Agency's finest ace, set out to find the person responsible for the Proper Clears.
Of course, under the director's leadership, other personnel would also search everywhere for clues to the individual's identity.
"I hope this person becomes a new source of hope."
Although South Korea already had Ji Seo-yeon, the more exceptional Awakened the country possessed, the better.
An Awakened who had caused such an extraordinary stir from the very beginning by achieving Proper Clears would undoubtedly receive treatment comparable to Ji Seo-yeon's.
***
Meanwhile.
I had also gained a rough understanding of the situation.
That was because, for the first time since my Awakening, I'd logged into the Awakened community.
└ Damn, a Proper Clear. If it were me, I'd reveal my identity immediately. Wouldn't the government treat me like some kind of VIP?
└ Once you've awakened and can clear even the first floor, you don't have to worry about money anymore. Proper Clears of both Floors 1 and 2? I don't know exactly what a Proper Clear is, but if it's important enough for a general announcement, it must be incredible, right? You could become famous overnight.
└ Hmm. Is it really that big a deal?
I'd achieved Proper Clears.
I had suspected they were something extraordinary, but I hadn't realized the announcements had been broadcast to every Awakened.
"This has caused quite a commotion, hasn't it?"
I felt somewhat bewildered to discover that I'd suddenly become famous.
Of course, my actual identity hadn't been revealed.
For an anonymous community, the responses were surprisingly positive.
On that particular community, a comment like "Hmm. Is it really that big a deal?" essentially meant "Wow, that's absolutely incredible!"
In other words, there were practically no negative reactions.
─ Ahem. With me at your side, such achievements are only natural.
My Ancestral God's shoulders rose so high with pride that they looked ready to reach the heavens.
"Should I reveal my identity?"
The opinions expressed in the Awakened community seemed reasonable, so I asked my Ancestral God.
He shook his head.
─ Do not. You must never underestimate human jealousy. Remember that the nail that sticks out gets hammered down.
"……Yes, sir."
Although I followed my Ancestral God's advice, I couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
Wasn't that desire present in everyone?
The desire to become someone recognized and acknowledged by others.
─ I am not telling you to keep your identity secret forever. Someone to whom you should reveal yourself will appear before long.
"Is that a prophecy?"
─ Yes.
My Ancestral God had foretold a new encounter.
Someone you met through such a divine prophecy was known as a Benefactor.
It was certain to work out far better for me than carelessly revealing my identity.