Hwang Mungi scratched his head vigorously.
Still, it did not seem like the other man was trying to scam him.
Someone this powerful had spared his life and was even proposing a transaction.
“So, how much are you paying me?”
“I’ll pay you with an item.”
“An item? Between the remaining five hundred million won and a request from someone as strong as you, it should be worth several billion—”
“Legendary.”
“…What?”
“I’ll give you a Legendary-Grade item.”
“…….”
Hwang Mungi’s mouth fell open in shock at Yugeon’s curt reply.
There still were not many Legendary items in existence.
Naturally, being told he would receive one left him stunned.
‘I know a Legendary item that’ll suit you perfectly.’
A useless Legendary item that Yugeon himself did not need and that had no place in the future he was planning.
He intended to hand it over to Hwang Mungi.
“You really… have a Legendary item?”
Hwang Mungi stared at Yugeon as though he could not believe it.
Legendary items were extremely rare.
As far as he knew, there were only around forty.
There were countless Awakened across the world, yet only forty had been discovered so far.
“You don’t exactly have any choice but to believe me, do you?”
“Hmm…. That’s true.”
“You understand quickly.”
“Haa…. What exactly do you want me to do?”
In the end, Hwang Mungi decided to trust Yugeon.
Considering how powerful the man was, Hwang Mungi should already consider himself fortunate just to have been spared.
“It’s similar to what Lee Hyeoksu asked you to do.”
“You want me to retrieve something?”
“Yeah.”
“From which floor?”
“Floor 23, [Rock Canyon].”
“Are you insane? No.”
The instant he heard Floor 23, Hwang Mungi immediately rejected the idea.
And understandably so.
Floor 22, [Cracked Earth], was mostly flat terrain like a desert.
As long as one was careful, moving through it was relatively easy.
But traversing Floor 23, [Rock Canyon], alone was impossible.
Every floor of the Tower varied in size.
Some were extremely small, while others were nearly as vast as an entire country.
Floor 23 itself covered a wide area, but there was only one Rock Canyon, so pinpointing its location was easy.
The real problem lay elsewhere.
“I can’t do it with my abilities.”
“You should be able to. Stealth isn’t your only ability.”
Hwang Mungi possessed a Stealth ability, but his true strength lay in his movement abilities.
Freedom of movement.
That was Hwang Mungi’s real power.
If it were him, he could rapidly move back and forth throughout Rock Canyon.
“Just who the hell are you? How do you know so much about me?”
“So, are you doing it?”
“No. I said I can’t. Movement isn’t the problem. The monsters are.”
The monsters inhabiting the canyon were Gargoyles, Rock Monkeys—and Harpies.
“The Harpies flying freely throughout the canyon make it impossible for me to move between the cliffs.”
Traveling along the ground was no better because Rock Monkeys swarmed everywhere.
And from the midpoint onward, Gargoyles hid inside the canyon walls.
“Floor 22 was fine because everything was underground….”
Floor 23 was different.
It was absurdly difficult even with a full party.
How was he supposed to enter alone and search for an item?
“Don’t worry about that part. I’ll help you.”
“You’ll help me?”
“Finding the item will be your job. I’ll take care of the monsters.”
“…….”
Hwang Mungi was dumbfounded by those words.
Did this man even know how many monsters were on Floor 23?
And he was saying he would deal with all of them?
“I really will take care of the monsters, so don’t worry. You can move after they’re all gone.”
“Haa…. You can really wipe them all out?”
“Yeah.”
“If you can do that, wouldn’t it be better for us to just search together?”
“It’ll take too long. Probably even for you.”
That was precisely why Yugeon was asking Hwang Mungi to do it.
If anything, it was fortunate that Hwang Mungi had come looking for him.
Thanks to that, Yugeon now had a way to obtain what he needed.
“What if other people show up?”
Other Awakened could enter the floor.
If they saw that there were no monsters, they might interfere.
“If there are no monsters, they’ll just leave. They won’t bother you.”
“Ah…. Yeah, I guess that’s true.”
“Don’t kill anyone. Just find the item and bring it back.”
“Wow, after wiping out the whole Guseong Gang, now you’re telling me not to—”
“Let me correct myself. You can kill anyone who’s given up being human. Otherwise, leave the other Awakened alone.”
“…….”
At Yugeon’s words, Hwang Mungi immediately understood what kind of person he was.
He could see where Yugeon had drawn his line.
“Sigh. Fine. I accept the request.”
“Good choice.”
“What am I supposed to find?”
“A black stone buried somewhere in the canyon.”
“…Good lord!”
Hwang Mungi clutched his forehead.
Damn it.
He had expected the request to be unusual after hearing about the Legendary item and being warned that it would take a long time.
But now he was being told to dig through that entire massive canyon.
“It’s just a black stone? That’s all you know? There’s no more information?”
“It’s round and shiny like obsidian. There aren’t any fragments of ordinary rock stuck to it or anything like that, so apparently you’ll recognize it immediately once you see it.”
“Ugh…. You’re really giving me a Legendary item.”
“Don’t worry. The Legendary item I’m giving you is easy to obtain.”
“Haa…. ‘A Legendary item is easy to obtain.’ Am I really supposed to believe this guy or not…. Tch. So when are we going?”
“Tomorrow morning. Ten o’clock. Meet me in front of the Tower.”
“Which one? The Tower in Seoul?”
“Yeah. I’ll head in early and clear out the monsters first.”
“Got it.”
WHOOSH.
With the conversation finished, Hwang Mungi lowered his head and walked away.
He was going to buy pickaxes.
If he had to search that entire place, it seemed like he would need quite a few.
‘This worked out well.’
Watching Hwang Mungi walk off into the distance, Yugeon nodded.
The next morning.
STEP. STEP.
“Looks like you made up your mind.”
Standing in front of the Tower entrance, Yugeon gave a faint smile when he saw Cha Mincheol approaching.
Mincheol had gone home saying that he needed time to think.
The fact that he had come to the Tower entrance meant he had made his decision.
“To be honest, I thought about it all day yesterday.”
He still did not really know what kind of person Yugeon was.
And there was also what had happened with Lee Hyeoksu.
Even so, Mincheol had decided to trust him.
Someone that powerful could simply kill him if he wanted.
There was no reason to drag him around with lies.
Besides, Yugeon had saved his mother.
“I’ll go with you, hyung.”
His mother’s treatment.
And his own growth.
He intended to grab hold of the lifeline called Han Yugeon.
“Good choice. I look forward to working with you.”
“I look forward to working with you too!”
Mincheol greeted Yugeon energetically.
Area 3, Floor 23, [Rock Canyon].
“It’s probably been a while since you were last here.”
“Yes. I haven’t come back since I cleared it.”
Mincheol looked around and nodded.
He had come here before because clearing Floor 23 was unavoidable if he wanted to reach Floor 24.
“Other Awakened avoid Floor 23 too….”
“Because it’s difficult to fight here.”
Rock Monkeys roamed the ground.
Harpies flew through the sky.
The monkeys and Harpies were not particularly friendly with one another.
Yet strangely enough, whenever humans appeared, the two species immediately joined forces against them.
That was why so many Awakened avoided this floor.
“It’s funny how they work together when they aren’t even Other Races.”
Other Races climbed the Tower alongside humans.
Their worlds existed in other dimensions, and when they left the Tower, they returned to worlds of their own.
Of course, they did not appear on the lower floors.
Awakened only began encountering them from Area 3 onward, after leaving Area 2.
“By the way, hyung, how far have you cleared?”
Mincheol had currently climbed as far as Floor 44 in Area 5.
He had been on the verge of attempting Floor 45, but abandoned the plan after discovering Lee Hyeoksu’s true nature.
“I made it to Area 5 too.”
Of course, Yugeon had only managed it by joining a party.
‘Back then, I joined as a porter.’
In reality, he had not even possessed the ability to climb Floor 20 on his own.
But through a stroke of luck, he had managed to stay with one party for quite a long time.
Thanks to that, he had reached Area 5.
“Mincheol.”
“Yes, hyung.”
“First, I need to see what you can do.”
Yugeon pointed down into the canyon.
Countless black dots swarmed below.
“Go fight them.”
“M-Me? Alone?”
“I’ll help if things get dangerous, so don’t worry.”
“Ah, yes! Understood.”
RUSTLE.
CLANK.
THUD!
Cha Mincheol strapped the enormous shield on his back into place and gripped a massive hammer in one hand.
A huge frame.
A shield.
And an enormous hammer.
Anyone could tell at a glance that he was a Tanker.
‘I’ll need to change his weapon soon.’
An axe suited Cha Mincheol better than a hammer.
That was because the dormant Heavenly Killing Star Trait inside him did not mesh well with a hammer.
SWISH!
BOOM!
“Come at me, you damn monkeys!!”
Cha Mincheol leaped down into the canyon in a single burst and activated his Roar Skill.
It was a Taunt Skill that enraged monsters and forced them to attack him.
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE.
The monsters’ eyes glowed red as they all charged toward Mincheol at once.
THUD!
BZZZZZZ.
‘Oh! He already had Indomitable Bulwark at this point?’
An opaque blue mana barrier spread out from Mincheol’s shield, and Yugeon nodded in approval.
Indomitable Bulwark.
The countless Awakened who had failed to break through that barrier would eventually become prey for the Heavenly Killing Star and be slaughtered without mercy.
BOOMBOOMBOOM!
‘As expected!’
Watching Mincheol charge forward and bulldoze the monsters out of his way naturally drew admiration from Yugeon.
Of course, the large level gap between Mincheol and the monsters played a part.
But Mincheol had always excelled at gathering mobs like this.
‘Still, it should start getting difficult now.’
WHOOOSH!
WHOOOSH!
FWOOSH.
“Ghk!”
A sudden gale swept through the canyon, causing Mincheol to frown and look upward.
FLAP. FLAP.
Harpies.
Countless Harpies were beating their wings furiously, creating powerful gusts of wind.
Then—
GAPE.
SKREEEEEECH!
“Ghk!”
Every Harpy opened its mouth wide and unleashed a shriek.
An enormous high-frequency sound slammed violently into Mincheol’s eardrums.
‘Th-This is a little dangerous…?!’