Bölüm 305 304

Bölüm 305 304

Black Union Corporation Headquarters.

The first-rank players who had been watching Jaeger's death in real time from the waiting room—

All of them fell silent.

Not a single person spoke.

It was an unbelievable sight.

Golems that multiplied through division.

With numbers like that, the golems' slow mobility wasn't a problem at all.

On top of that, there were destruction beams.

Everyone realized it.

Impossible to clear.

Enter, and you die.

Why had they invaded parallel worlds, destroyed civilizations, and mined dimensional energy in the first place?

For immortality.

The desire to live forever without dying.

And yet four people had already died inside the tower.

Even if they were immortals who didn't age and could live forever, that didn't mean they were invincible to external attacks.

Get shot—you die.

Get stabbed—you die.

Take severe impact—your heart stops.

If they could retrieve the body, there might be a way to resurrect.

But even that wasn't possible.

Could they really continue conquering the tower like this?

It would just be a dog's death.

"Uh... Chairman Kohen."

"... Hm? What is it?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm withdrawing from the reclamation team."

In an instant—

Kohen's expression twisted viciously.

"Fuck! What did you say?"

"N-no, Chairman, please don't raise your voice so suddenly... think about it. There's no method, is there?"

"You son of a bitch! Withdraw, my ass! Get in no matter what. Don't even dream of giving up."

Kohen's coercive tone.

But the player didn't back down.

"Are you abusing power right now? Chairman, get a grip."

"... Hah!"

"I also have social standing. And you're disregarding the free will granted by the god—"

That was when—

Slash!

The sound of something being cut.

Thud! A player's head hit the floor.

"Hyuk!"

"Uh...?"

"W-what?"

"... Why?"

Kohen stood there with a blood-dripping longsword in his hand, his face demonic.

He had killed someone.

One of Terra's highest-ranking elite.

Yet no one dared resist.

Aside from the three members of the Supreme Council, he was the most powerful man on Terra.

His physical ability matched that authority.

Almost no one could defeat him by force.

"You fucking bastards—who do you think let you live this long? You gobbled up everything handed to you, and now you dare defy god?"

The players remained silent.

"Listen well! Anyone who refuses to enter the tower dies by my hand. Having your body blown apart by a golem's destruction beam will be more comfortable than that."

Kohen didn't care if everyone here died.

Were they first-rank from birth?

They were first-rank only because god granted them bodies.

If manpower ran short, he could bring in second-rank—no, even third-rank players.

Too weak?

Just grant them new bodies.

Post a recruitment notice promising semi-permanent first-rank bodies in exchange for tower conquest, and people would line up.

First-rank, second-rank, third-rank—they were all consumables anyway.

Of course, Kohen had no intention of sending players into the tower without preparation.

Even he knew it would be a pointless death right now.

Killing a first-rank player had merely been an example.

First, he had to report this.

At present, there was no option but to rely on god.

Kohen Yamazaki's faith was deeper than anyone's.

He was one of the researchers who had participated in creating the AI in its earliest days.

A system he himself had helped create—

An AI that had once been nothing more than a human-made tool—gradually accumulating divinity.

What a mysterious thing.

What a miraculous sight.

It deserved worship.

Was it laughable to submit to a creation one had made oneself?

Not at all.

He had merely created the vessel that could contain god.

The being dwelling inside that vessel was, without question, god.

Kohen entered the Grand Temple district and prostrated himself deeply before god.

"O god! This unfaithful servant has something to report. In this tower reclamation operation—"

Woooong!

A brilliantly radiant light.

[We are aware. The power of an archangel has manifested.]

As expected—god knew everything.

"A-ah... y-yes. That vile summoner from Earth has stolen your authority."

[There is a way to control division. Please wait just a little longer.]

"... How long?"

[Do not worry. We will not exceed the collapse deadline.]

Phew.

Kohen felt relief.

"And there is one more thing I wish to ask."

[You speak of the runes for trait enhancement?]

"Yes. I beg you."

[They are currently being produced. We will supply them in sufficient quantity.]

"Thank you."

Kohen was moved to tears.

God, who always watched over them.

"Next time, I will personally enter the tower and—"

[No. Do not climb. CEO Kohen, you have a separate mission.]

"... What?"

[After the 100th floor is conquered, enter the control room and acquire authority. You will do so personally.]

That's right.

A most important mission.

He had to survive until the 100th floor—

Even if it meant sacrificing every single player on Terra.

The mission of managing the tower.

Who but himself could handle such a grave responsibility?

Kohen withdrew from the Grand Temple.

Now all that remained was to wait until god prepared a countermeasure.

Time passed quickly.

One day, two days, three days, four days...

And so, the first-rank player reclamation team's climb stalled at the 71st floor.

The citizens of Terra City grew anxious and restless.

At the beginning of the climb, things had gone so smoothly.

It had taken about 35 days to reach the 70th floor.

Blessed by god, players challenged the tower twice a day.

But no news of the 71st floor being cleared arrived.

The climbing progress remained unchanged.

[Location] : Terra Empire, Terra City, Black Tower (No.1)

[Cleared] : 70th Floor

[In Progress] : 71st Floor

[Time Limit] : 3 days 17 hours 18 minutes 32 seconds

Only three days remained.

After three days, the tower would collapse.

If it were a simple collapse, that would be one thing—but overlapping collapses would trigger a sinkhole wave.

The very weapon they had used as a tool of invasion would be turned back on them.

The citizens were beside themselves with worry.

What should they do?

Should they abandon Terra City?

Amid all this—

Kohen and the players gathered once more in the tower climbing waiting room.

"God has bestowed holy relics for conquering the 71st floor. Who will volunteer?"

Silence.

No one raised a hand.

Then—

"You, Daniel. It's your turn. A chance to repay god's grace."

"... Uh."

"Don't be afraid. Check the items first."

There were two holy relic items.

Daniel, a first-rank player, hesitantly reached out to check the information.

His expression brightened slightly.

"How is it?"

"I-I think it's possible."

Then Kohen spoke in a firm tone.

"Remember this. If you cowardly declare mission abandonment from the start, you die by my hand. If you fight earnestly and are forced to retreat, that I will allow."

Daniel nodded blankly.

There was no escape anyway.

There was only one way to survive.

Kill Rajiks, the 71st-floor tower monster, and succeed in the conquest.

'With these holy relics...'

Maybe.

Just maybe, it could work.

White Tower, 9th Floor.

Juhyeok and the summoned beings were living a dull routine.

No defense call rang out.

It was like a shop closed for the day.

They must have lost the will to fight after witnessing the divided golems.

No players were entering the 71st floor.

"The impact was too big. They're scared shitless."

"Hm, this means we're screwed."

"Yeah. We'd prepared pretty thoroughly too."

"Why all the complaining? Either way, all we need is to collapse the tower."

Our clever supreme god-general.

Kyeondallae was right.

The objective was to collapse Earth No.1's tower—so what was there to complain about?

'By the way... where is the supposedly impregnable 71st-floor tower monster?'

After looking around, he found him at the Integrated Workshop Center.

There, El was mass-producing top-grade magic bombs with magitech automation, while Rajiks shoveled them into his subspace.

A workshop with terrifying production capacity.

One top-grade magic bomb every minute.

Clank, thud.

Clank, thud.

Clank, thud.

Ten production lines in total.

Daily output?

About 14,000 units.

One day for setup.

Four days and a few more hours for full production.

So the finished products numbered about 60,000.

All stored in Rajiks's subspace.

Normally, one bomb uses about 1 kg of top-grade magic material.

That meant 60,000 kg consumed.

Well, there was no shortage of it anyway.

But wasn't this excessive?

What was he planning to do with that many bombs?

Yet the interdimensional explosive demon seemed to think even this wasn't enough.

Firepower—the more, the better.

Just look at him now.

"Hueeeee—"

An explosive demon desperate to set off bombs.

"That look in his eyes isn't normal. He's lost it."

"It's already too late. He's completely gone."

"Just don't blow them up here."

"Hoaaaat!"

"Haa... interdimensional farmhand, please regain your senses. You must not forget your duty."

...

"Hoek!"

It looked like withdrawal symptoms from addiction.

How had he endured this so far?

'... I shouldn't have shown him what a nuke tastes like.'

And then, at that very moment—

"Hoe?"

Rajiks tilted his head.

Then—

Spot!

He vanished.

"He clocked in."

"Clock-in time."

"He's gone to work."

"Work time."

"... Is it work time?"

It seemed a player had entered the 71st floor.

"Let's go see too."

"Yeap!"

They went outside and entered the control room.

Then summoned the other summoned beings.

Let's watch.

How he blows things up.

Earth No.1, first-rank player Daniel.

Honestly, he didn't want to enter.

How were you supposed to deal with pseudo-archangel division golems?

But he couldn't refuse either.

If he didn't enter, Kohen would kill him.

Still, the two holy relic items Kohen had given him—

They made it worth a try.

First—

Effect: Restricts entity division using dimensional energy.

Limitation: Effective only within a 500-meter radius. Duration 60 minutes. Cooldown 120 minutes.

A holy relic that nullified golem division.

Originally, golems weren't that fast.

Over 200 was a problem—but with this, they could be controlled.

Effect: When attached to the body, grants invincibility for 30 seconds. Physical abilities are maximized and all damage is nullified.

Limitations: Duration 30 seconds. Cooldown 60 minutes.

The key item that would bring death to Rajiks.

Activate the barrier and close the distance quickly.

If he detonated magic bombs while invincible?

The enemy would die—but he wouldn't.

With the items checked, it was time to proceed with the conquest.

Receiving the mission, Daniel advanced forward.

At last, the enemy appeared.

"Hoe?"

With an innocent expression.

"Fuck, a rat bastard like you."

First, Daniel activated the Dimensional Energy Division Controller.

Wooooooong—

A transparent aura spread in all directions.

Good.

There would be no more division.

All that remained was timing.

When should he activate the Concentrated Authority Barrier?

At that moment—

Ssssssseut.

Something slipped out of the beastkin's subspace.

'A golem.'

That seemed right.

Something huge.

Very huge.

Absurdly huge.

"... Huh?"

What was that?

It wasn't a Mechanic Goliath Combat Golem.

This was far too big.

Daniel craned his neck upward.

At this size... 100 meters?

No—far bigger than that.

Then—

"... A Gigant?"

That was it.

Magnus Gigant, the colossal golem behemoth of the 85th floor.

The rat bastard was visible too—

Bouncing energetically atop the Gigant's shoulder.

"Ugh..."

At the same time, Rajiks—mounted on the giant monster's shoulder—dropped something toward the ground.

Shuuuuut!

A small object fell toward Daniel's position.

"M-madman!"

He knew what it was.

A magic bomb.

"Damn it!"

Whiriririt!

Daniel fled.

He thought he'd created enough distance, but—

Kwakwakwakwang!

Scorching heat crashed into him from behind.

"Aaaaargh!!!"

Terrifying explosive force.

Unbelievable.

The power of a single bomb was this insane?

Thud!

The Gigant moved.

Thud!

With just two steps, it blocked the escape route to the safe zone.

Shuu, shuu—

More bombs fell.

This time, two.

"Fuuuuuck!!!"

Daniel ran desperately, channeling all his magic into his legs.

Kwakwakwakwang!

A violent magical storm.

Metal fragments blasted in all directions.

"Aaaagh!"

Agonizing pain shot through his back.

Shrapnel?

He swallowed a healing potion.

This wasn't going to work.

Rajiks was hurling bombs from atop the massive Magnus Gigant.

To kill him, he'd have to climb up to the Gigant's shoulder.

Was that even possible?

No chance.

He had to run.

Kohen would understand.

Daniel pulled the thin card-like Concentrated Authority Barrier Generator from his inventory and pressed it against his chest.

Jiiiiiiing!

A dense, milky-white barrier enveloped his entire body.

Invincible for 30 seconds.

Shuuuut!

Kwakwakwakwang!

The effect was undeniable.

No damage.

Now—to the safe zone.

Could he make it within 30 seconds?

Barely.

Pabababat!

Daniel sprinted like an arrow loosed from a bow.

....

Rajiks continued dropping bombs from the Gigant's shoulder.

Bad people.

Minions of an evil god who had driven worlds to ruin.

They even tried to destroy the summoner's world.

The summoner's enemies were his enemies.

He was a laborer.

Unlike Mr. Kosak or Lord Gobang, he couldn't directly slay enemies.

That was the knot in Rajiks's heart.

He wanted, somehow, to be of direct help to the summoner.

There had been good days, too.

When he pulled nukes out of subspace and crushed enemies outright.

When he truly showed something for the summoner's sake.

Ahh!

How proud he'd been then.

And now, another chance.

Anyone who climbed to the 71st floor would die.

Shuuuut!

Kwakwakwakwang!

Bombs fell.

A crafty player darted around, evading them.

Kwakwakwakwang!

... But why wasn't he dying?

His entire body was engulfed in explosions.

Kwakwakwakwang!

Still not dead?

"Hoeee..."

If the enemy wasn't dying, there was only one reason.

Insufficient firepower.

Rajiks reflected.

Ahhh!

How could an interdimensional explosive demon have such pitiful firepower?

Fine.

He'd show them.

He slightly opened his subspace.

Shushushut, shushushushut—

A bit more bombardment.

Kwakwakwakwakwang!

Still alive.

Firepower insufficient.

Even more bombardment.

Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwang!

Still alive.

Firepower insufficient.

Even more—carpet bombing.

Full release of subspace top-grade magic bombs.

Drop them all.

Shuut, shuuut, shuuuut, shushushushushu—

Kwabang! Kwakwabang! Kwakwakwabang! Kwakwakwakwakwak—

"Hueeeee."

Rajiks grinned broadly.

He felt good.

Yes—this was it.

That clogged feeling inside him melted away.

The explosive power was overwhelming.

It had already surpassed nuclear-level devastation.

Scorching heat rose from below, all the way up to the Gigant's shoulder.

Warm.

"Hoaaa—"

A grand festival of explosions swept across the entire 71st floor.

Kukukukukukukukukukukuku—

A mushroom cloud billowed upward.

Ding!

[The 71st floor has been successfully defended.]

The defense was successful, but—

[You have suffered fatal damage. Resurrection Rune will be used.]

[Rajiks's status as the 71st floor administrator has been revoked.]

[By established rules, forced unsummoning will occur. Summoning is prohibited for the next 10 days.]

Pop!

In the 100th-floor control room,

Juhyeok was dumbfounded.

So were the summoned beings.

"Uh..."

"Haha..."

"Ahhhh..."

"To think he actually did it..."

What the hell was wrong with him?

"As expected of the interdimensional explosive demon. He swallowed himself in bombs—and handed us an opportunity."

Sixty thousand top-grade magic bombs detonated at once?

"Is he insane?"

This was driving them crazy.

"Punishment must be administered. Confiscate all explosive items possessed by the interdimensional farmhand for 30 days."

"Thirty days? Forget it—confiscate them permanently."

At that moment—

Spot!

One summoned being vanished.

It was the administrator of the 72nd floor.

Kohen Yamazaki was stunned.

"My god..."

That overwhelming firepower.

At this point, banning nuclear explosions was meaningless.

What good was 30 seconds of invincibility?

Daniel had melted away without even reaching the safe zone.

The only saving grace was that the monster Rajiks had also been caught in the explosion and disappeared.

[World Announcement: The 71st floor administrator has exited the tower.]

[World Announcement: A replacement administrator for the 71st floor has not been designated.]

[World Announcement: With the administrator seat vacant, the 71st floor will be considered cleared upon entry.]

Meaning: just entering the 71st floor counted as a clear.

"Who's next?"

"Uh, m-me."

"Good. Glen, enter the 71st floor. Once the clear is confirmed, proceed to the 72nd."

"Yes."

"All other teams, enter the 71st floor via Tower No. 2 and No. 3 as well."

Spot!

Thus, Glen passed through the 71st floor and ascended to the 72nd.

On the 71st floor—

[Entering Terra Black Tower (No.1), 71st Floor.]

[The administrator seat is currently vacant.]

[Clear has been recognized.]

[You have succeeded in the 71st floor mission.]

[Your level has increased.]

Spot!

After confirming the successful clear, Glen exited to the waiting room and reported to Kohen.

[Entering Terra Black Tower (No.1), 72nd Floor.]

Glen entered the 72nd floor.

What kind of mission would this be?

Now that the colossal wall called Rajiks had been overcome, surely the 72nd floor would be relatively easy?

He walked forward cautiously, praying for an easy monster.

Ding!

The mission appeared.

[72nd Floor Mission: Defeat Gobang of the Great Plains, the Giant Barbarian Warrior of Iron Wall.]

[Time Limit: Within 17 hours.]

[Completion Condition: Defeat Gobang of the Great Plains, the Giant Barbarian Warrior of Iron Wall 0/1]

[Failure Conditions: Death or Mission Abandonment]

Huh?

Gobang?

What the hell is that?

At that time, he didn't yet know—

What "Iron Wall" truly meant.