Back home.
I finally let out all the happiness I had been holding in.
I slipped my hands beneath Fire's arms, lifted him high, and tossed him into the air.
"Our household treasure! Our precious little gem!"
-Hehehe! Waaah!
[Fire(EX) laughs happily!]
[Fire(EX) says that, as expected, the Contractor would be nothing without him!]
"Of course! Absolutely! I'd be nothing without Fire!"
Tonight, I would accept anything he said.
Anyone would probably feel the same in my position.
The amount of money I had earned was considerable.
"75.73 million won!"
And that was how much remained even after buying seven Lowest-Rank Fire Spirit Stones.
How could I possibly not be happy?
The day when I held one hundred million won in my own hands was not far away.
Now that I had made a fortune, before starting the party—
"Let's send some money first."
About two million won.
Compared to what I was earning, that might seem rather little.
But it was still too early to tell my family that I had awakened.
They were the kind of people who would oppose it outright because it was dangerous.
I would tell them once I had properly established myself.
The moment I sent the money, I received a call.
I smoothly explained that I had gotten lucky and received a bonus from work.
I told them I had more than enough for living expenses, so there was no need to worry.
They sounded suspicious, but eventually said they understood and hung up.
Had I sent money again too soon?
Next time, I needed a more convincing excuse.
-Waaah!
[Fire(EX) pesters you to hurry up and start the party!]
"All right. The delivery's arriving right on time."
DING-DONG.
-Waaah!
[Fire(EX) says the smell is incredible!]
His reaction became even more intense once I opened the packaging.
I had ordered practically everything from the Chinese restaurant.
Gan-jjajang and seafood jjamppong were only the beginning.
There was palbochae, yangjangpi, assorted seafood scorched-rice soup, shark fin, abalone, and even other high-end dishes!
"Normally, Chinese food is better when you eat it at the restaurant, but it's already late."
-Waaah! Waaah?
[Fire(EX) says he doesn't care at all!]
[Fire(EX) asks whether he can eat now!]
"Of course. I ordered it for you."
I did not hesitate for even a moment.
Fire immediately threw himself at the food.
Before that, I set aside some gan-jjajang and sweet-and-sour pork for myself.
I was starting to get used to his bottomless appetite.
-Waaah!
[Fire(EX) asks for Mana Stones too!]
Mm.
Never mind.
He really was a pig.
How many A-Rank Mana Stones had he already eaten?
This was not the time to celebrate earning 75.73 million won.
If I did not keep making money, he would burn through all of it in no time.
'Tomorrow worries me too.'
Once Fire reached Level 10, his new skill would unlock.
Naturally, just like at Level 5, there would probably be an additional condition for unlocking it.
'Last time it took ten Lowest-Rank Fire Spirit Stones. Does that mean it'll require Low-Rank ones this time?'
One Lowest-Rank Fire Spirit Stone cost ten million won.
The next grade up, a Low-Rank one, cost thirty million.
If I needed only ten, that would still be three hundred million won.
Just when I thought I might finally escape this tiny studio apartment—
'I've still got a long way to go.'
I would only know for certain tomorrow.
For tonight, I decided to simply enjoy myself.
Even though it was delivery, I had ordered from a famous Chinese restaurant, so the gan-jjajang was the real thing.
It was not ordinary jjajang with a few extra onions tossed in.
It had genuinely been stir-fried fresh.
I poured on just enough sauce so that it would not become too salty, then thoroughly mixed the noodles.
One bite of the thickly mixed gan-jjajang.
"SLURP! Ahhh! That's the stuff!"
The savory richness of lard and the crisp sweetness of onions blended perfectly with the chunjang.
And when I followed that with some sweet-and-sour pork?
The exhaustion from all my hard work melted away like snow.
This was happiness.
I was going to sleep very well tonight.
Five in the morning.
Perhaps because of the Spirit Shelter's Set Effect, I woke up early.
I was in perfect condition too.
I quickly made myself some rice with soy sauce and egg, then entered the Trial Tower.
The difficulty had risen again with another floor.
[You have arrived at the 7th Floor of the Trial Tower.]
[Find 5 objectives and return safely.]
[Objectives: 0/5]
The increased number of objectives was not the only difference.
Kobolds dressed in nothing but rags carried crude weapons.
The shabby tunnels had become a complicated labyrinth.
The difficulty had doubled compared to the previous floor.
But for me, one skill was enough.
[Fire(EX)'s possessed skill, 'Meteor(EX),' activates.]
KABOOOOOOOOOM!!
After that, all I had to do was use Spirit Eyes to find the objectives.
[You have cleared the 7th Floor of the Trial Tower!]
[Objectives: 5/5]
[Crude Kobold: 9,000/9,000]
[Crude Kobold Vice-Captain: 30/30]
[Crude Kobold Captain: 3/3]
[You have completely annihilated the entire Kobold Labyrinth on the 7th Floor of the Trial Tower!]
[A new record has been achieved!]
[The Trial Tower 7th Floor World Ranking has been updated to Rank 1!]
[Clear Time: 4 minutes 22 seconds]
[You have succeeded in overwhelmingly clearing the 7th Floor of the Trial Tower!]
[Flimsy Cloth Made by Crude Kobolds × 633 has been awarded!]
[Crude Kobold's Excellent Club × 745 has been awarded!]
[Crude Kobold's Worn Shield × 411 has been awarded!]
[Crude Kobold Vice-Captain's Excellent Charm × 7 has been awarded!]
[Crude Kobold Captain's Shining Jewel × 2 has been awarded!]
[Lowest-Rank Mana Stone(F) × 836 acquired!]
[Low-Rank Mana Stone(E) × 611 acquired!]
[Lower-Intermediate-Rank Mana Stone(D) × 453 acquired!]
[Intermediate-Rank Mana Stone(C) × 332 acquired!]
[Upper-Intermediate-Rank Mana Stone(B) × 210 acquired!]
[High-Rank Mana Stone(A) × 14 acquired!]
[Highest-Rank Mana Stone(S) × 2 acquired!]
I had cleared it one minute faster than last time.
I was getting used to running around too.
More importantly—
"S-Rank!"
For the first time, something above A-Rank had appeared.
An A-Rank Mana Stone filled 50,000 Hunger.
How much would a Highest-Rank one provide?
Surely at least 100,000.
-Waaah! Waaah!
[Fire(EX) asks for a high-ranked Mana Stone because he worked hard!]
"Wait. Let me check the unlock condition first, then I'll give it to you."
His Hunger was almost at 500,000.
If the unlock condition required something other than Spirit Stones, things could get troublesome.
[Hunger has reached 500,000!]
[Fire(EX)'s Level increases by 1!]
❰Fire(EX) Lv. 10❱
❰Possessed Skills: Hellfire(EX), Meteor(EX)❱
❰Hunger: (0/1,000,000)❱
……A new skill will be unlocked upon reaching Lv. 15
……Lee Chanyoung will unlock a new skill upon reaching 1,000,000 Hunger
……Spirit Shelter Research can now be unlocked
The Hunger requirement had doubled.
Still, compared to some of the previous increases, this was merciful.
I checked the skill-unlock condition first.
[Highest-Rank Mana Stones(S) are required to unlock the next skill!]
[Highest-Rank Mana Stone(S): (0/25)]
"STOOOOOP!!"
-W-Waaah!
[Fire(EX) hurriedly puts down the Highest-Rank Mana Stone(S) he was secretly trying to eat.]
Good thing I had not given him one.
Why the hell did unlocking a skill require twenty-five S-Rank Mana Stones?
Today was the first time I had ever obtained S-Rank Mana Stones, and I had only gotten two.
In other words, I had to gather twenty-three more.
Spirit Stones had actually been merciful by comparison.
A single S-Rank Mana Stone cost one hundred million won.
"I shouldn't have been celebrating over seventy million."
Still, it was not completely hopeless.
If I kept climbing the Trial Tower, I should continue obtaining S-Rank Mana Stones.
The only problem was how long that would take.
"Can't some S-Rank Mana Stones just fall out of nowhere?"
-Statistically, that is impossible, Human.
"I know, you bastard."
If it could not be helped, then so be it.
I could work on the newly unlocked Research first.
Before that, I checked the skill I had obtained.
[Successfully reached 500,000 Hunger.]
[Skill, 'Lucky Charm(C-),' activates!]
[You acquire a skill one grade higher!]
[Skill, 'Meld into Darkness(B-),' acquired!]
<Meld into Darkness(B-)>
Description: With the power of a Dark Spirit, you can meld into any place where darkness exists.
"Oh! A skill one grade higher!"
The Lucky Charm had remained quiet for several days, so I had briefly forgotten I even possessed it.
"And it triggers now."
The skill was an Active Skill.
Its range was within one kilometer.
I could not use it very often, and the range was short, but I was more than satisfied with just this.
Darkness existed everywhere in the world.
It would reduce the amount of traveling I needed to do, and more importantly, it meant I could launch surprise attacks.
Sneaking into places would be possible too.
I decided to test it immediately.
The moment I designated a place containing darkness, my body naturally moved.
My entire body melded into the darkness.
"Can you see me?"
-Waaah! Waaah!
[Fire(EX) says he can see you, but other people probably won't be able to!]
I could emerge whenever I wanted.
I could even move from one dark location to another while remaining melded into the darkness.
As I continued experimenting with the new skill and moving around—
There was darkness one kilometer below me.
Underground.
Meld into Darkness could reach it.
"Underground? It can't be a subway tunnel. What is it?"
-Subway tunnels are not that deep.
"Exactly. I heard there are Sandworms underground. Could it be one of those?"
At a depth of one kilometer, it seemed likely.
From what I had heard, Sandworms had recently become a major nuisance because they stole expensive Mana Stones.
If there was a burrow down there, this should be the right depth.
"Fire."
-Waaah?
[Fire(EX) tilts his head and asks why you called him.]
"I want to check that out."
Even if it was dangerous, I had nothing to worry about with Fire beside me.
We moved together immediately.
My vision darkened, then brightened again almost at once.
It was thanks to Spirit Eyes.
Darkness like this posed no problem even without a light.
The underground space was enormous.
'Wow! This place is ridiculously huge.'
It was dozens of times larger than a World Cup soccer stadium.
But what caught my attention more than anything else was the pile of deep-blue stones lying in one corner.
[Highest-Rank Mana Stone(S) × 27]
"……?!"
To think the very thing I had desperately wanted was sitting underground like this.
But I could not let myself get too excited.
When I looked around, I found monsters nearby.
They resembled centipedes.
Actual Sandworms.
I had no idea who they had stolen these from.
But—
'Finders keepers.'
Fire was already drooling heavily.
Before the Sandworms noticed us—
"Let's go."
[Fire(EX)'s possessed skill, 'Hellfire(EX),' activates.]
KABOOOOOM!
ROOOOAR!
Dark crimson flames swept through the vast underground chamber.
If one attack was not enough, then another.
It did not matter how strong they were.
After repeating the attack several times, every Sandworm was reduced to ash.
Only the Mana Stones remained.
-Waaah! Waaah!
[Fire(EX) charges toward the Mana Stones at full speed!]
[Fire(EX) becomes somewhat crazed at the sight of the high-ranked Mana Stones!]
I calmed the excited Fire down, collected the Mana Stones, and returned home.
"This is seriously exhausting. Why do we have to suffer this much because of those damned Sandworms?"
"Please hold on a little longer. We're almost there."
"This is all your fault. Why did you leave those expensive S-Rank Mana Stones lying around in the first place?"
It was a characteristic of Sandworms.
They did not harm people, but occasionally they stole expensive Mana Stones.
That had become a considerable problem throughout the world.
They also restored every tunnel they dug to its original state afterward, making them extremely difficult to locate.
Normally, anyway.
Fortunately, they knew the location of this burrow.
"Come on, Hyung. Let it go. We found them in the end, didn't we?"
"Good thing we did. Otherwise…… Sigh."
He did not finish the sentence.
They had been extremely difficult to find, but they had found them in the end.
They finally arrived at the Sandworm burrow.
Everyone prepared themselves for battle.
But—
"They're gone?"
"Huh? What happened?"
Not even a hair of a Sandworm could be seen.
The S-Rank Mana Stones were gone as well.
All that remained was the acrid smell of smoke and charred air.
Faced with the completely unexpected sight, everyone froze with their mouths hanging open.