Class: Necromancer
Rank: Not Yet Measured
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<Rank Information: View Details>
S-Rank Sealed.
Collect information after killing the Tower’s 40th floor boss.
Perk after seal release:
You will have priority in all judgments related to spirits.
Death’s Oath applied.
Stage 2 Seed being generated: 0%
Stage 2 Quest being generated>
<The Title owner’s class is Necromancer.>
<Necromancer is a class for which cooperation with spirits is important. Therefore, it is necessary not to fear spirits, but to think of them familiarly, like friends who are always by your side.>
...Fear spirits?
I looked for a moment at the room-corner ghosts in my house.
“Homeowner, why?”
“What is with that look?”
[Homeowner, are you not feeling well?]
“......”
The System had clearly misunderstood something.
<Title Stage 2 Seed Quest generation complete. Current location reflected.>
<Be with 100 or more spirits. (24 hours)>
―Available Areas: Goesan Dungeon, Baekgol Fortress Dungeon, Hansando Dungeon, Jinju Fortress Dungeon, White Horse Hill Dungeon, Gaemi Pass Dungeon, Yanggu Dungeon.
―Reward upon quest completion: Event Stage Admission Ticket, Skill Exchange Ticket.
―Hint: The count begins immediately upon entering the corresponding area. Rewards vary depending on your affinity with the spirits.>
In other words, in the worst case, even if I did nothing in the Dungeon and merely spent time there, the quest would still be completed.
Of course, it would be good to receive an improved affinity reward, but one always had to consider the worst-case scenario as well.
That was how dangerous Dungeons were, even for ordinary active Hunters.
But I saw familiar places among the available areas.
“White Horse Hill, Gaemi Pass, Yanggu Dungeon.”
“Homeowner, why those places?”
“They overlap with a quest I received before.”
They were definitely the locations from the U.S. military-related quest I had received at Washington Monument Tower.
“Oh! That is good! We can take care of two things at once!”
Unlike Cha Jun-hyeok, who looked pleased, Lee Se-a looked puzzled.
“Hm? Are Dungeons not operated on a bidding system?”
“They are. A bidding system. Why?”
“No, other guilds cannot enter, can they? Was it not like that for you, Cha Jun-hyeok?”
“What does that matter? The Rank 1 Korean Hunter says he is going. If I say I will clear it with them, they should bow in gratitude.”
Lee Se-a narrowed her eyes at Cha Jun-hyeok’s strange logic.
“How nice for you. Since you were Rank 1.”
“Naturally.”
“But the homeowner is different.”
“Ah! Would even state power not work?”
Of course it would not.
“Do not worry, homeowner. You can just buy one Observation Pass. Among those three, White Horse Hill would be best.”
[Observation Pass? What is that?]
“A ticket to watch guild members hunt inside a Dungeon.”
“The Association was the first to create that, was it not? In any case, they have a phenomenal nose for money.”
“Let me see. It is the end of the month right now, so the sales period is probably over. Still, if you add about twenty times the premium, you can buy a Premium Observation Pass.”
“......”
“You are going to buy one, right?”
As he said that, Cha Jun-hyeok winked.
“...No.”
“What? Why?”
Things like this were all legal blind spots.
I had no money to waste on something like this.
I would rather wait another month and choose to go next month.
Besides, once one entered a Dungeon, no one knew how many days the clear might take. For now, I still wanted to focus more on the Tower.
“Homeowner, what are the quest rewards?”
[Ah, right! What does it give this time?]
The spirits looked at me with sparkling eyes.
“An Event Stage Admission Ticket and...”
“Oh! As expected!”
“What is with a Legendary-Grade Title? It is truly in ‘I will hand everything out’ mode.”
[The Event Stage was fun. And? Is there something else too?]
“A Skill Exchange Ticket.”
[A Skill Exchange Ticket?]
[What is that?]
Was there an explanation for this too?
Remembering how I had inserted Essences when raising the Seed, I pressed the item name on the Status Window.
Then, as if it had been waiting, an explanation appeared.
<Skill Exchange Ticket>
<Exchanges one skill you possess for a skill suited to the player’s rank.>
“...That is what it says.”
“...Huh?”
“......What?”
[So that means if you give it an old skill, it changes it into a new skill suited to your current rank?]
Probably?
If the meaning was exactly as written here, then would it not mean that?
“...No, wait. Homeowner, sit down here for a moment. Let us discuss this.”
“This is an item that actually exists...? The System gives out things like this? I have never heard of it.”
It was also my first time hearing of it today.
“Wait, ...no, homeowner. Wait! I am telling you to stop for a moment. Let us discuss this!”
“I keep learning new emotions these days. Is this what it feels like when rising prices steal my salary or something?”
The atmosphere among the spirits was unusual.
Cha Jun-hyeok and Lee Se-a examined me strangely.
“There is something... There is definitely something!”
“That is what I am saying!”
And then the two looked at me again with blazing eyes.
“......”
There was one way to refresh an atmosphere like this.
Since ancient times, what strengthened internal cohesion was always an external enemy.
“Soul Collector.”
“Huek?!”
“Kyaak!”
[I have not covered my ears yet...!]
A gust of wind swirled through the air.
“Six goblins.”
<6 Goblin souls have been collected. 30/200>
Click!
At the same time the box closed, the spirits returned to perfectly pure gazes.
“State power should be at least this much!”
“Living beings need genetic diversity to survive, you know? Sometimes, rare genes like our homeowner’s are necessary.”
[As expected of our homeowner!]
With our bonds firmly strengthened in this manner, we returned home.
However, the opportunity for me to legally enter a Dungeon came much sooner than expected.
Recently, a new page had appeared on the website of the courts of the Republic of Korea.
<It is time to look at this week’s hot issue. The newly established “Court Petition Board” corner is quite heated.>
The news came on the television at the gukbap restaurant.
The Commissioner glanced at the news and opened his mouth.
“Is it starting?”
<We have invited legal scholar Kim Yong-pil to learn about the Court Petition Board menu. They say there is strong opposition within the legal community?>
<Yes, it was a sudden reform. Some are even saying that the government is trying to control judicial power, and so on. They say it is a decision that shakes the banner of separation of powers.>
<Ah, but in the current public opinion poll, the result shows that 85% support it. Across all generations. Recently, there had even been talk of AI judges, had there not?>
<The recent problematic ruling was, that is, half a year ago, there was the wedding of the opposition party leader’s son. They say about one billion won came in as congratulatory money. This was viewed as suspected bribery, and the case was sent to trial without detention, but a few days ago, an acquittal was handed down...>
The Commissioner clicked his tongue.
“They crossed the line by a long way.”
Recently, while we were conducting negotiations with America, the first-trial ruling for the opposition party leader had been issued.
The reactions of the restaurant patrons watching the news were far from ordinary.
“Damn it!”
“What a mess.”
“Rotten bastards.”
“I heard some place in Yeouido had its entire staff show up and leave after giving one million won each as congratulatory money. Ten billion won gathered like that? Wow, if that works, I would get married ten times. Ten times. Would that not be one hundred billion won? That is practically the Lotto.”
The Commissioner also nodded, saying, “Ten times sounds good.”
“It seems the higher-ups had been waiting for their chance, and the case was perfect.”
Leaving the verdict aside, the problem was the written judgment.
The nuance that, at a time when the country was in turmoil, a person who could present the correct vision should not be shaken so that he could not focus on state affairs had properly provoked the public’s sense of justice.
Thousands of comments were being posted every day under every related video.
―I have seen your ruling saying that if you want to give bribes, you should actively use family events.
―What kind of person was that judge?
―A judge specializing in diminished capacity for drunk driving. I heard he is famous in that field.
―Why do my taxes feed people like that? Let us introduce AI instead!
―I strongly support AI judges!
“It would be good to have something that can keep them in check. I heard a civic group is even making an award like the Ig Nobel Prize.”
The Commissioner laughed heartily and set his spoon down on the table.
“If you are finished eating, let us head upstairs. Administrative Officer Choi will come today.”
That was rather unexpected.
“...Will he continue working here?”
“Yes. You will know once we go upstairs.”
Administrative Officer Choi, whom I met in Ms. Su-a’s office, apologized first the moment he saw me.
“I am sorry.”
Choi Hyeong-woo’s face had grown much gaunter in just a few weeks.
Jingle—
Behind him, his younger sister was still there.
His younger sister, watching him with eyes as sorrowful as Choi Hyeong-woo’s, suddenly looked at me.
Then she raised her right hand and began writing letters in the air.
Tell
him
The words his younger sister wrote one by one with all her strength and all her sincerity were:
It is all right. It is not your fault, big brother.
Then she looked at me pleadingly.
“......”
I looked at Choi Hyeon-ju and nodded.
“Mr. Choi Hyeong-woo.”
“Yes.”
“Ms. Choi Hyeon-ju asks me to tell you something.”
“My sister...”
Even before I said anything, tears had already welled in Choi Hyeong-woo’s eyes.
“She says it is not your fault, Mr. Choi Hyeong-woo.”
However, Choi Hyeong-woo grew angry as he shed tears.
“...No, why! You are the one who died, so why are you... why are you worrying about me, Hyeon-ju... Hyeon-ju!”
The one he was angry at was probably himself.
This was a burden on the heart that Choi Hyeong-woo would have to carry for the rest of his life.
And in his current state, if that guilt disappeared, Choi Hyeong-woo might disappear with it.
Rather, Choi Hyeong-woo’s guilt had become the link that kept him living.
And his younger sister’s words did not end there.
Choi Hyeon-ju concentrated again and began writing letters.
Alive.
‘Alive? ...Who? Ah, perhaps?’
So-hyeon.
“Choi So-hyeon. Is that your youngest sibling’s name?”
“Yes! But why...?”
“She says she is alive.”
“What?! Where...! Where is she?!”
Choi Hyeon-ju shook her head.
It seemed that she did not know either.
“It seems she could not determine that much.”
“Ah......”
Choi Hyeong-woo lowered his head deeply again.
The Commissioner, who had been quietly watching us, opened his mouth.
“Section Officer Choi.”
“...Commissioner.”
“At times like this, it is better to work.”
“Yes......”
“Thank you for making a difficult decision.”
“...Not at all.”
“Of course it is. You probably want to kill the Association Chairman just by looking at him.”
“......”
The Commissioner looked at me and introduced Choi Hyeong-woo’s new identity.
“This is Section Officer Choi Hyeong-woo, who has decided to become a double agent. Say hello.”
“A double agent, you say...”
“Double is just the wording. Of course, the weight is greater on our side. We will leak fabricated information, and he will bring fresh information from their side.”
According to the Commissioner, that was why they had not separately raided Choi Hyeong-woo when they brought him out of the American hotel.
Instead, in Choi Hyeong-woo’s case, they had made him walk out of the hotel on his own.
After that, he had rendezvoused with the black operatives at a secret location and crossed the Canadian border with me in the freight truck.
“At first, it took some effort to persuade him. But after he met you, he turned sides immediately.”
The Commissioner patted my shoulder as though offering encouragement.
“Section Officer Lee, thank you for always exceeding my expectations.”
I had merely conveyed things exactly as they were.
“It seems the other side did not want to lose Section Officer Choi either. I heard they kept holding onto him and begging until today. They were probably even more anxious because they feared their secret might leak. In any case, thanks to that, he came in a little late. Ah, and...”
The Commissioner sent some incomprehensible hand signal to Ms. Su-a.
Then,
BANG! BA-BA-BANG!
Ms. Su-a suddenly began setting off fireworks.
<Congratulations on the promotion!>
“Everyone, rejoice! The Hunter Management Agency is now an official agency!”
It was the news we had been waiting for.
“Section Officer Lee, your tariff negotiation performance bonus will also come in soon, so look forward to it!”
And the cryptocurrency account under the black operative name that I checked at dawn the next day was...
<Total Assets Held: 3,831,552,310 won>
[Homeowner! Did you rob a bank somewhere?!]