“Damn it!!”
BOOM!!
Hyeon Chae-rin’s foot slammed hard into the floor.
She had put so much force into it that several floor tiles shattered and flew in every direction.
One fragment struck a nearby flowerpot.
Another……
“Aah!!”
“……Ah.”
It grazed the cheek of the female employee who had been quietly waiting beside her.
“I-I’m sorry…… Yujin.”
“Ah, haha…… I’m fine…….”
Hyeon Chae-rin did not know what to do with herself.
She did not even think to change out of her ruined clothes.
Instead, she hurried over to Yujin.
She was the only member of the Support Team who had remained by Hyeon Chae-rin’s side after everyone else left.
Aside from the Guild Master, she was the only person in White Lotus whom Hyeon Chae-rin considered to be on her side.
‘……What am I doing?’
She had failed the challenge.
She could not even accept that failure.
And now, after taking out her frustration, she had injured an employee who had simply been waiting nearby.
As Hyeon Chae-rin pressed a tissue against the scratch on Yujin’s cheek to stop the bleeding—
Yujin quietly asked,
“You…… failed, didn’t you?”
“……Yes. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay! I’m sure you’ll clear it next time!”
“……Thank you.”
The same encouragement as always.
No matter how many times Hyeon Chae-rin failed—
Yujin always smiled brightly and offered words of support.
Even now, with a thin trickle of blood running down her cheek.
The employee eventually left Hyeon Chae-rin’s side.
“Haa…….”
Hyeon Chae-rin tossed the tissue in her hand toward a nearby trash can.
Tap.
It missed.
The 40th Floor challenge.
This was already her fifth failure.
‘At this rate, I’ll end up just like Jeong Sohyeon…….’
Jeong Sohyeon had failed twelve times—
but if things continued like this, it would not take Hyeon Chae-rin very long to reach the same point.
At least Jeong Sohyeon had somehow managed to break through her wall.
Whether Hyeon Chae-rin could do the same was another question entirely.
Under her contract with White Lotus, any guild member who failed to produce any meaningful results for more than two years would have their contract forcibly terminated.
It was only natural.
The guild was not a charity.
When Hyeon Chae-rin first saw that clause, she had assumed it would never have anything to do with her.
Two years meant twenty-four months.
Enough time to challenge the Tower twenty-four times.
Failing to climb even a single floor after twenty-four attempts?
Could someone like that even be called a proper Awakened?
But five months had already passed.
Time moved far too quickly—
while growth came far too slowly.
‘……I didn’t understand back then. The difficulty rises exponentially with every floor you climb.’
Even after pestering the Guild Master into recruiting new Buffers for her—
the result remained the same.
The 40th Floor.
That damned 40th Floor.
‘……Is this the limit of my ability?’
Hyeon Chae-rin looked at the Dagger lying on the floor.
Then at the legs she had trained ever since Awakening.
Among Awakened who had cleared it, the 40th Floor was nicknamed the Floor of Trials.
There was only one reason.
Before and after the 40th Floor—
monster defenses differed to an absurd degree.
Until the 39th Floor, her Dagger had sunk into monsters without much trouble.
Starting from the 40th Floor—
she could not even leave a scratch.
She could kick it.
She could use Acceleration at full speed and slam into it hard enough to break her own body.
Yet that rock-like monster would not budge an inch.
“……Why did I have to awaken an ability like this?”
Jeong Sohyeon.
She had been born with a rare Martial Arts-Type ability and cleared the 40th Floor without any trouble.
Swinging that absurdly enormous greatsword, she had even said—
‘The 40th Floor? ……Was it any different from the floors before?’
“……So irritating.”
Her mood worsened.
There was no way she could honestly claim that she and Jeong Sohyeon got along well.
Jeong Sohyeon had been born talented and spoke in a way that sounded as though she looked down on everyone else.
How were they supposed to become friends?
To make matters worse, Jeong Sohyeon was indirectly connected to the reason Hyeon Chae-rin kept failing the 40th Floor.
The Buffers who had joined White Lotus solely because of Jeong Sohyeon.
Once Jeong Sohyeon hit her wall—
how many of those Buffers had left the guild?
“Ugh…….”
Hyeon Chae-rin picked up the Dagger and headed outside.
Training.
At times like this, training was the only thing she could do.
She needed to cool her overheated head.
As she walked toward the training room—
“Who?”
“I’m talking about Hyeon Chae-rin. Hyeon Chae-rin.”
‘……?’
She instinctively concealed herself.
Her name.
She had heard her own name.
‘……Who is that?’
Suppressing her presence, she cautiously looked toward the source of the voices.
She was confident in her ability to hide her presence.
There was little chance of being discovered.
And then—
“……!”
Her legs nearly gave out beneath her.
“She failed again, you know? Ugh…… The Team Leader stuck me with this crap, so I had no choice but to deal with her, and now look at this.”
“Hmm…… Everyone already knows Hyeon Chae-rin’s growth has stopped. There’s nothing we can do until that bastard Team Leader leaves the guild. But what happened to your cheek?”
“I don’t know! She got pissed after failing the challenge and took it out on me!”
“……Seriously? Shouldn’t you tell the Guild Master?”
“Ugh, idiot. If he’s going to fire someone, do you think he’ll fire Hyeon Chae-rin or me? She’s still a mid-floor clearer, for what that’s worth…….”
“Sigh…… I guess this is what life is like when you don’t Awaken. At least White Lotus pays well.”
Yujin.
The person who had always greeted her with a smile.
“…….”
Hyeon Chae-rin silently left.
She felt nausea rising in her throat—
but forced it back down.
‘I already knew.’
She had already known that Yujin talked badly about her behind her back.
She also knew that her reputation inside the guild was poor.
Still—
hearing it directly felt strange.
Three days passed.
“Wow∼!”
The sprouts had emerged from the soil in only a day.
And not long afterward—
greenery spread across the rooftop room.
“So this is the joy of farming.”
It felt completely different from when I grew the cherry tomatoes or the Tower Plant.
It was the sheer scale that made it impressive.
Every single plant had grown healthy and strong.
I could not have felt prouder.
In a good mood, I pulled up one of the Lettuce plants I had planted closest to the door.
‘This one looks different from ordinary vegetables too.’
Normally, Lettuce had jagged leaves spreading outward almost like a rose.
But the Lettuce I grew had long, narrow leaves shaped like flickering campfire flames.
They even seemed slightly reddish.
‘It kind of looks like it’ll be spicy…….’
I wondered what it tasted like.
Without thinking, I almost brought it straight to my mouth.
I barely stopped my hand before it touched my lips.
“……Before I eat it.”
I should at least check the basic information first.
‘Who knows what might happen, like with Azure Breeze.’
[Jeong Sohyeok’s Lettuce]
―Rank: R (Rare)
―Freshness: Excellent
―Blessing Type: Heat Immunity
“Heat Immunity……?”
This was not a simple buff like ‘Strength’ or ‘Mana.’
‘……Should I test it?’
I cautiously tore off a single leaf.
Pop!
The leaf came away cleanly.
Then—
“Oh!”
The leaf, which had been green with a faint reddish tint—
instantly turned bright orange like the flame of a match.
It felt as though I were holding a living flame.
“……Thanks for the food.”
Honestly, it had been much easier to put in my mouth when it was green.
Still, I squeezed my eyes shut and bit into it.
CRUNCH!
“Mmm…… Hmm……?”
An enormous amount of juice burst out with every bite.
It almost felt like eating watermelon.
As for the flavor—
‘Slightly sweet…… spicy, and sour…….’
“……Kimchi?”
No.
It was a little different.
The texture itself was no different from ordinary Lettuce.
“It’s not bad…….”
CRUNCH.
Chew, chew.
The blessed cherry tomatoes had possessed a sweetness that made it impossible to stop reaching for more.
This Lettuce was different.
What should I call it…… addictive?
Yeah.
It had an addictive flavor.
“……Ah.”
Before I realized it—
I had eaten the entire head of Lettuce in my hand.
Including the dirt still clinging to it.
“Ptooey, ptooey! Ugh…… dirt…….”
Why had I not noticed while eating?
My mouth felt disgusting.
Only now did the fishy, earthy taste of soil begin to register.
I was heading inside to rinse my mouth when—
[Individual Name: Jeong Sohyeok’s Lettuce]
[Buff Type: Heat Immunity]
[Not compatible with your body.]
“Ah?”
The Status Window appeared.
‘The same kind of message as with Azure Breeze…….’
Did it now immediately tell me whether something was compatible with my body?
It seemed that as my ability evolved, the Status Window had changed as well.
The difference from Azure Breeze was—
‘……Not compatible.’
It did not feel particularly good.
I had been looking forward to it.
‘Why isn’t it compatible?’
Cherry tomatoes.
Lettuce.
Azure Breeze.
What was the difference between them?
‘A Tower Plant.’
Could it be that only Tower Plants were compatible with me?
Was that also why my Mana increase had been greater than my sister’s?
“Hmm…….”
I would have to test the others as well—
but I doubted the result would be any different from the Lettuce.
“At times like this……”
‘I have no choice but to call in a substitute.’
I took out my phone and searched for my sister’s number.
I had grown these plants at her request in the first place.
She would probably come running happily.
Then—
“……Huh?”
Just before I pressed the call button—
my phone started ringing.
‘……It’s not Sis?’
An unfamiliar number.
I had a bad feeling about it.
“……Gulp.”
Beep―.
After hesitating for a moment, I accepted the call.
A voice came through the phone.
―Oh! Sohyeok?
“……Guild Master?”
The caller was none other than Baek Yulheon.
“Why are you calling from this number……?”
―Something came up, so I borrowed an employee’s phone! More importantly, are you busy right now?
“Uh…… It’s not like I have nothing to do…….”
―Perfect! I’m already near your apartment building, so get ready!
Click.
The call ended.
“……What?”
Near where?
At that moment—
HOOOONK―!!
“Whoa!?”
A car horn blasted loudly enough to shake the entire building.
Thinking there had been an accident, I hurriedly leaned over and looked down.
“……That car.”
I recognized it.
I had even ridden in it before.
It was Baek Yulheon’s car.
Then the door opened.
“Baek Yulheon…….”
Sunlight reflected from his gleaming forehead.
Even from above, there was no mistaking Baek Yulheon’s silhouette.
“Oh, Sohyeok!”
He was waving up at me.