Chapter 188.

[Lv . 11 Medea’s Palace]

Standing in the heart of Prestige was a lofty palace that served as the symbol of the city .

The Gothic spires and stained glass decorating the walls gave it an antique charm, and the mana crystals adorning the ceilings and walls shone even in Prestige’s eternal darkness .

This mystical palace was built and sustained with only the power of magic . It was a symbol of sovereignty of the ‘abandoned princess’, Medea .

The halls of the palace were a maze that one could only enter with Medea’s permission, and the palace’s walls had magic cannons that could shoot down any outside enemy .

The fact that she even added eight legs to the palace so she could escape with it if it was necessary showed how much she loved the place .

“Hnn…”

Currently, Medea was surrounded by her faithful servants, who followed her every wish, and was looking at a table filled with delicacies that came from the upper floors of the Tower . Despite all these, she was in a bad mood .

There was just one thing that was bothering her .

‘…There shouldn’t be anyone in Prestige with the skills to craft such an item . ’

Medea thought back to the event she held four days ago .

The robe that the first ranked man who introduced himself as Buyong was wearing .

The surface of the robe was soft like flowing water and its beautiful engravings exuded a faint aura .

‘Aura’ .

It was a flow of magic power and art that could only be seen by those who possessed the Aesthetic Eye .

Medea could see the aura being emitted from his robe . The aura was very natural as if it had been that way ever since it was first created .

‘…Who could have made such a robe?’

Medea was simply curious . To her knowledge, there wasn’t anyone in Prestige with such skills . If there was, she would’ve brought them to the palace a long time ago .

It wasn’t something that could be found outside the 3rd floor either . A civilization that could produce such luxuries would be on a much higher floor than Prestige .

“Could it be…?”

Suddenly, she thought of Hephaestus who should be hiding somewhere .

But she quickly shook her head .

That ignorant man wouldn’t be able to make something so delicate . It was that blacksmith’s fault that dwarfs, who possessed far more dexterity than elves, avoided cloth and weaving and focused only on gold and iron .

“…Tsk . ”

It all seemed so pitiful to Medea after a while .

Everything in Prestige was cheap anyway .

She was a bit curious about the robe but that was all . It wasn’t something she was dying to get her hands on . Only items like the ‘Blue Wave’ and the ‘Song of Sorrow’ were worthy of holding her attention .

“Reiley . ”

Medea stopped thinking about the robe and called in the old butler who had been working for her for a long time .

Suddenly, a part of the room trembled and the old butler appeared out of the blue .

It was a simple teleportation that only worked inside the palace .

“Yes, Your Highness . ”

“When is the next Administrator Conference?”

The Tower’s administrators, who were in charge of a floor or a sub-floor, frequently held meetings .

Of the many administrators, some were apathetic to the whole thing, some were kind enough to help Players go higher up, and some tried their best to disturb them . .

Medea was the self-indulgent type, an apathetic administrator .

She couldn’t care less about who died . She only wanted to focus on gathering performance points and TP, so she could manifest herself in the phenomenon realm .

After all, being stuck inside this damn Tower for the rest of her life would be very boring and sad .

“The meeting is scheduled… 10 days from now . ”

“Is that so?”

Medea smiled oddily and licked her lips .

“Then, let’s get one more thing done before then . ”

There was still one thing left to do .

Although it was a bit of a difficult and impertinent task, she knew it wouldn’t be her that would shoulder the burdens .

“Isn’t it about time that Prestige gets a sun?”

Medea’s enchanting voice filled the spacious palace .

**

[Lv . 6 Strange Valley of Darkness]

I entered the valley to escape Jin Seyeon’s sight .

“It should be around here somewhere… . ”

It was hard to see through all the dirt and ores, but I finally managed to find [Krakoon’s Vault] using my Thousand-Mile Eyes .

It was a tightly-sealed, cubic safe .

Again I opened it easily using the Mystic Key .

“…?”

But there were only documents inside .

I looked at them carefully and found they were land documents and slave contracts .

===

[Magic Land Document]

—A land document made from magic power .

—Upon the death of the original owner, ownership can be transferred to another person .

===

[Magic Slave Contract]

—Slave contract made from magic power .

—Upon the death of the original owner, ownership can be transferred to another person .

===

First, I infused my magic power into the land document .

[The owner of ‘Valley of Darkness’ has been changed to the Player ‘Extra7’ . ]

[Currently, there are about 480kg of dark ore buried within ‘Valley of Darkness’ . ]

“…Oh?”

So, there was something like this .

But even if I become the land owner, how was I supposed to dig up all this dark ore?

[TIP! Lv . 1 Player Shop sells an ‘automatic miner’ for 800TP . ]

“Ah, thank you . ”

So there was something like that .

There was a lot I didn’t know .

I purchased an ‘automatic miner’ from the Player Shop . It was a machine that looked like a drone .

===

[Lv . 1 Automatic Miner]

—A cute machine that searches for ores buried in a mine and automatically digs them out .

○Lv . 1 Ore Mining

—Digs up to 1kg of ores per hour .

○Lv . 1 Ore Searching

===

I bought three automatic miners and released them . Then, I began to search the Valley of Darkness for enslaved human NPCs .

“Aah!”

“W-Who are you?”

The sudden incident threw them into confusion . I approached them gently so they wouldn’t be surprised, asked for their hometown, and released the shackles around their necks .

There were 16 of them in total .

They were all formal Prestige residents .

I tore up their slave contracts, collected the ores they had dug, and sent them back to Prestige . I also sent a message to Henry and Kiri, asking them to introduce the freed slaves to Kedrick . Since Kedrick went through tough times with them, he was likely to take care of them somehow .

“Thank you! Thank you!”

“I won’t forget your kindness!”

We were standing in front of the crystal stele that let one travel between the 3rd and the 4th floor .

The moment the 16 NPCs shed tears, a system window popped up .

[You defeated Krakoon, the administrator of the Valley of Darkness, and rescued the NPCs . ]

[Subquest complete . “The Wishes of the NPCs at the Prison Camp – Murder of the Valley Executive”]

[All of your stats increase by 0 . 3 points . ]

“…Mmm . ”

All stats by 0 . 3 .

I nodded my head in satisfaction and wondered what to do next . I didn’t want to act hastily with Jin Seyeon so close by .

Should I go check out the 5th floor for a bit?

With my Master Sharpshooter Gift, scouting was extremely easy .

I climbed up a mountain, which was very commonly found in the Demon Realm, focused Stigma’s magic power in my eyes, and looked around . I was able to see the entire land with my eyes .

Among the many Players struggling on the fifth floor, I studied the alliance team that was moving together .

A group of about 50 people were busy discussing a ‘castle attack’ .

The two best guilds ‘Essence of the Strait’ and ‘Frost Sanctuary’ were getting ready to attack [Lv . 7 Demon’s Castle No . 1] along with the English Royal Court guild .

—Inside the No . 1 Castle are about 150 demons and 800 undead .

Those were Rachel’s words . She appeared delighted to be with the upper guilds and couldn’t hide her excitement .

—Are you sure?

Kim Youngjin, Essence of the Strait’s team leader, asked .

“Yes . My wind elemental personally investigated the area . ”

Rachel nodded with a needlessly solemn expression .

In response, Kim Youngjin smiled .

—An elementalist has a great tactical value for sure .

—…No, I’m still just a beginner .

Rachel seemed happy at Kim Youngjin’s praise but still kept a humble attitude . She was probably jumping with joy on the inside .

—There are only 50 of us . Maybe the difference is too much .

—What do you think about asking Aileen-nim for help?

Kim Youngjin’s concerns were answered by Jung Hosun, the team leader of Frost Sanctuary .

“…Aileen . ”

Hearing this, I wondered where Aileen was . I took my eyes off of them and started looking for Aileen .

She was easy to spot .

After all, she was the only white-haired shorty in the world .

—Yongha, I have 1030TP on me right now . Remember that .

—Huh? Why are you telling me that?

Aileen and Yi Yongha were surrounded by at least 100 undead and 5 demons .

“Well, I just thought we should check them beforehand . I can’t lose them again . ”

Even with so many enemies before them, Aileen’s only concern is how much money she had in her pocket . She was probably thinking that she lost the TP that Jain had stolen from her by mistake .

—Okay . 1030TP . I’ll remember that .

—Good .

Aileen nodded and looked ahead .

Not daunted by the ghastly undead and the demons, Aileen smiled .

—Hey kids . Hail is falling from the sky right now .

The demons were confused . The sky above was as dark as ever, without any sign of precipitation .

However, to them, her words were equivalent to a death sentence .

—You see, those hailstones will… split your heads!

Anything a Spirit Speech Master said became true .

Hailstones filled with magic power poured down from the sky at that instant .

Kugwagwagwagwang!

It was hard to tell whether it was hail or a meteor shower . The enormous magic completely wiped out the demons . The armors they had on were crushed as soon as they came into contact with the masses of ice; the skin and flesh of the undead monsters cracked and pulverized before they walked even one step .

“… . ”

I scratched the back of my neck as I watched the massacre .

For the past month I was Lu Bu or the “Hegemon-King” Xiang Yu . Was that all just a midsummer night’s dream?

“Ehew . ”

I should try harder from now on .

Now that I could get more dark ore, I shouldn’t lose to them . Every time I obtain a dark ore, I could use [Synthesis] to compress them into my arrows .

In any case, that was it for my surveillance .

I took out the Dwarven Supercar from my inventory and returned to Prestige .

[Lv . 5 Chameleon Troupe’s Hideout]

“I’m back . ”

—Is that you, Hajin?

As soon as I stepped inside I heard Boss’ voice coming from the bedroom . I smiled and headed towards her room .

Boss was lying on the bed with my [Orb of Regeneration] in one hand and patting Spartan with the other .

“How do you feel?”

“Much better . I think I’ll recover by tomorrow . This orb is effective . ”

“That’s good to hear . ”

I sat next to Boss’ bed and made a comb out of Stigma’s magic power . With it I brushed Boss’s messy hair and began thinking .

Chameleon Troupe was the product of my ideas . I didn’t write much about it in the settings book, and everything was just in my head .

That was because I was agonizing over what kind of background to set .

To be more specific, I purposely left it blank to fill it with more attractive settings .

But all that agonizing was in vain, since I stopped writing the novel before Chameleon Troupe and Kim Suho became equal . In terms of time, it should be about 2 or 3 years in the future .

I regretted it .

Now, there were too many things I didn’t know .

Jin Sahyuk’s relationship with Bell .

Bell’s relationship with Boss .

Boss’ relationship with the former boss .

Had I known this would happen, I would have written more .

Well, that was probably why I was a failed writer .

Kim Hajin, the pitiful writer who couldn’t even finish his own novel .

“Hmmm… . ”

A low humming came from under my hand . I glanced and saw Boss enjoying my combing with her eyes closed .

I looked at her calmly . There was only one way for me to know what I don’t know .

I had to ask Boss directly .

“Hey, Boss . ”

—Oh? Looks like Hajin is here .

A noise came from the entrance .

I tilted my head and stood up .

“Wait just a moment . ”

I stopped brushing her hair and stepped outside . At the entrance was Jain and one other person .

“When did you get back, Hajin~? Right, so this time we’ve got two more members in the Tower . You know him, right?”

Jain spoke first .

Then, the gentle-looking man next to Jain smiled at me .

“Hey, Newbie . ”

It was Jin Yohan, the Seat of Green .

I smiled back at him .

“Yes, hello . ”

I sounded composed but my mouth twitched with tension .

Chameleon Troupe’s vital members had started to gather .

Silver should be the next color to arrive .

What that meant was that there wasn’t much time left until we met Kim Suho .

**

“Auu, I’m exhausted~”

On the other hand, Kim Suho had returned to [Lv . 1 Creator’s Sacred Grace’s Hideout] after grinding his stats and skill levels on the 4th floor .

Today, he had more guests than usual . On top of his usual companions, Chae Nayun and Shin Jonghak had also followed him back .

The small 55-square-meter Lv . 1 hideout thus became crowded with people .

“You didn’t have to follow me all the way back… Anyways, come in . ”

Kim Suho scratched his neck as he guided them in .

“Pft, what a tiny place . ”

Shin Jonghak’s sneer came out naturally . However, he was clearly different from before . Although he was still a little rude, he wasn’t going out of line like he did in the past .

Did he become an adult?

Kim Suho grinned and nudged Shin Jonghak’s shoulder like they were close friends .

“…Are you crazy? Did you just shove me?”

Shin Jonghak immediately turned serious .

Startled, Kim Suho let out a dry cough .

“Stop being so noisy . Here, it’s a housewarming gift . ”

At that moment, Chae Nayun gave a bundle of potions to Kim Suho .

“Oh, what’s this?”

“A potion set from Riry Shop . It’s worth 1000TP, so you better be thankful . ”

“1000TP? Wow, thanks . Call me if you ever need help . I’ll be there right away . ”

Kim Suho took the potions gratefully . Seeing Kim Suho’s child-like excitement, Chae Nayun smiled .

“Take a seat everyone~ I’ll make dinner~”

Venessa Fermun went into the kitchen and the rest sat down near the kitchen table .

“Hey, doesn’t this remind you of the good old days?”

Yi Yeonghan began to chatter the moment he sat down . He was reminiscing about the past . Looking around the familiar faces at the table, he spoke .

“We’re only missing those two . Yoo Yeonha and Kim Ha— huuk!”

Before Yi Yeonghan could finish saying ‘his’ name, Kim Suho pinched his side . However, it was too late . Chae Nayun’s expression turned sour, and Kim Suho glared at Yi Yeonghan .

“Uuuu, my side… . ”

Yi Yeonghan was too busy enduring his pain to feel anything amiss .

Kim Suho quickly changed the subject .

“So Nayun, how have you been doing? I heard you got inflicted with a curse . ”

“…Oh, that? How did you know? I guess rumors travel fast . ”

It seemed Chae Nayun didn’t want to think about such things as she smiled bitterly and shook off what Yi Yeonghan said .

“I heard from Yi Jiyoon . ”

“Yi Jiyoon? That girl is too light-mouthed… . ”

Chae Nayun sighed hearing what Kim Suho said . She once again reaffirmed her belief that Yi Jiyoon shouldn’t be told any secrets . She was just too bad at keeping secrets . Now, everyone knew about how she was embarrassingly cursed…

“It’s fine now . Someone I know treated me . ”

“Oh? Who?”

Yi Yeonghan asked .

“I’m not going to tell you, but he’s really famous in the Tower . ”

Chae Nayun made a smug face .

Because of her background, Chae Nayun naturally knew many people . However, she only had a few acquaintances she really trusted .

With this incident, Extra7 had become an acquaintance she could really trust . His status had risen at least two levels in her heart .

“What’s his nickname?”

“Extra7 . ”

The Player who made a name for himself in the tutorial, Extra7 .

His achievement became a legend that was still being told in the Community .

“…Ah~ that’s the person who made 20000TP in the tutorial!”

Chae Nayun widened her eyes at Yi Yeonghan’s sentence .

“Eh? You knew? How?”

“He got famous outside the Tower too . You don’t know what’s going on outside, right? The world is only talking about the Tower of Wish . I’m not even exaggerating . Every news station is reporting on the internal structure of the Tower and analyzing the tutorial, 2nd floor, 3rd floor, and so on . ”

“Oh? Interesting… Ah, then keep it a secret that I know him . You guys aren’t like Yi Jiyoon, right?”

In case Extra7 Hyung-nim would be bothered, Chae Nayun asked the others to keep their relationship a secret .

“Sure, but how do you know Extra7?”

Hearing Kim Suho’s question, Chae Nayun replied with a confident smile .

“I’ve known him for a long time . I first met him when I was a cadet . ”

Although she had never met him in person, she had interacted with him like a normal friend . Back in the day, they had played a match together at least once a day .

“…Oho . Hey, can you ask him to lend me some money? There’s an item I want to buy . ”

Yi Yeonghan asked with a smile .

“Shut it . ”

Chae Nayun looked at him with disgust .

At that moment, system windows suddenly popped up around them .

[Hello, everyone . This is Medea . ]

“Uwoah!”

Startled, Yi Yeonghan jumped out of his seat and fell backwards . This was the first time he was encountering Medea’s quest .

“Be quiet . This is really important . ”

On the other hand, Chae Nayun quickly became focused . Last time, she had failed to participate in Medea’s quest because she was sick . This time, she was determined to do well and rank in the top 100 .

[I hope you’re having a nice day, Players . I believe you know what I will say . ]

Medea’s breath-taking beauty quickly attracted the attention of Yi Yeonghan who had run away from her just a moment ago .

[It is time for another quest . ]

Medea made a dazzling smile .

[The name of the quest is ‘Sunlight’ . This is a very important quest . ]

It was the kind of smile that gave off a creepy feeling because it was too perfect .

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