WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Mordor

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Escaping the Tower at Hell Difficulty ◈

Chapter 25

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Shopping Before Taking On the Seventh Floor.

We decided to spend some gold at the shop.

I currently had around 5,500 gold.

5,000 came from my share of the previous run's profits...

The remaining 500 was the gold bonus I received for escaping.

Starting from the second run, successful escapes awarded skill experience and a gold bonus.

Even for top-ranked hunters, 5,000 gold was a considerable sum.

It'd be a waste to die while carrying it around.

So I decided to reinvest it.

"Show me artifacts worth 1,000 gold or more."

It wasn't an official term or anything.

Still, people generally called the Tower's creations artifacts when they were rare, powerful, and impossible to find on Earth.

The Goblin Merchant understood at once and showed me several items.

They didn't carry every product either.

Sometimes their stock changed in real time.

"Shall we start with the items in the 1,000-gold range? A Small Subspace Pouch. You already own one, Hunter. This one is available for 1,500 gold."

"Ah, this..."

I already had a Small Subspace Pouch that I used constantly.

It had dropped from a fifth-floor boss.

I hadn't killed the boss myself, but I had taken it from a goblin that was running off with the loot.

The Tower's subspace pouches weren't infinitely spacious, as people often imagined.

Their weight reduction and space efficiency felt like roughly 120 to 130 percent.

Things weighed less, and more of them could fit inside.

On top of that, I could retrieve exactly what I wanted just by putting my hand over the pouch's opening.

If I thought of a magazine, one would pop right out automatically.

Nothing beat it for pulling out grenades or magazines during combat.

Still, it was only slightly bigger than a pouch attached to a tactical vest...

It could hold maybe two magazines and a few grenades at most.

I was starting to feel its limits, especially after switching to 6.8mm rounds.

"... How much for a bigger one?"

"This is a 40-liter backpack. Thanks to subspace magic, it can hold much more than that. Its listed price is 5,000 gold."

"Five thousand?"

A 40-liter pack was about the size of a hiking backpack.

Factoring in the efficiency of a subspace backpack, it would be more like 52 liters.

That was still smaller than the 60-liter backpack I was using.

Of course, everything would weigh far less, so I'd want one if I could afford it.

'But 5,000 is a little...'

When I was making 50,000 gold per escape, it hadn't felt real.

Looking at it this way, subspace bags really were expensive.

After some deliberation, I bought the 1,500-gold small pouch.

I could always take off my backpack during a fight...

But I had to wear my tactical vest.

I'd definitely notice the reduced weight.

And it was incredibly convenient.

That left me with 4,000 gold.

Nothing in the weapons section caught my eye, so I ignored it for now.

Most artifact weapons had bizarre abilities, which made them less versatile.

If I had a gun that could kill with a flick of my finger anyway, what was the point?

When I openly dismissed the weapons, the Goblin Merchant recommended something else.

"We have armor as well."

"An artifact capable of stopping bullets would be expensive, wouldn't it?"

"Of course it would. But could it possibly cost more than your life?"

This bastard knew how to sell.

What it recommended was a small bracelet.

"What's this?"

"An Active Mana Shield. Feed it magic power, and it creates a small shield. It can easily stop bullets."

Wooooong!

When I used it as instructed, a blue shield appeared.

But it was too small.

Besides, I already had a pretty heavy burden on my magic power.

My body still couldn't handle Transcendence skills.

Even with a Transcendence skill active, this probably couldn't stop something like fully automatic fire.

"I don't like it. Anything else... Do you have an artifact that helps with mobility?"

"As expected, you have a discerning eye. I happen to have an excellent item, but it is correspondingly expensive..."

The merchant paused for effect, then brought out a pair of boots.

"These are Gale Boots. They're lightweight and durable. They have adjustable sizing, insulation, waterproofing, and the mobility-enhancing function you requested..."

Listening to the explanation felt like watching a home shopping channel.

Would I get a free gift if I called now?

No way those goblins would do that.

I tried them on and jogged lightly.

They didn't feel bad.

"How do I use them?"

"Put some distance between yourself and where you want to go, then imagine firing yourself forward..."

"Firing?"

The next instant, my body shot forward.

Shwaaaak!

I slid a considerable distance in an instant.

It wasn't as fast as Kim Yuna's teleportation...

But it covered more distance.

"Whoa, how does that work?"

"It's an ability that activates through charging."

Charging?

Then did that mean it didn't use my magic power?

That meant it put less strain on my body, too.

The charging itself was fairly slow, taking about thirty minutes after each use.

Even that was only because it charged quickly inside the Tower.

It was equipment that charged faster on higher floors.

"How much is this?"

"20,000 gold."

"What?"

That was way beyond my budget.

Still, there was a reason it cost so much.

Anyone could wear them thanks to the adjustable sizing, and anyone would want an ability like that.

Mobility was always valuable.

The fact that one was even for sale at the shop was surprising.

Normally, something like this would go to auction...

Had a hunter without government approval sold it?

As I groaned over the decision, Team Leader Go Jiho came over.

"Twenty thousand gold? Want me to buy it for you?"

"Ah, no... Are you serious?"

"When something like this comes on the market, you buy it. We'll pay for it from Alpha Team's funds."

"Ah, so you had money saved up?"

This was worth investing in.

We were heading to the seventh floor to get the [Key of Snow].

If we got the key and could use the sixth floor's Direct Exit...

We could gradually produce S-rank hunters.

They would only need to enter the sixth floor and leave through the Direct Exit.

"Wow, Kang Hyun really went all out shopping."

"Thank you! I'll put them to good use."

I put on the new boots and attached the subspace pouch to my tactical vest.

After hearing our destination, the Goblin Merchant asked, "Are you perhaps planning to go to the eighth floor?"

"The eighth floor? Not right away... Why?"

"There's something I would like you to bring back from the eighth floor. I will reward you generously."

There was something on the eighth floor that the Goblin Merchant wanted.

Was this a quest?

Tower Escape had those too.

Every single one had been underhanded and infuriating, earning endless complaints.

"... I'll think about it later."

"Thank you. When you go to the eighth floor, I will provide as much detailed information as possible."

They were even offering information for free.

Those goblins were serious.

Once we finished shopping, we gave our equipment one final check before entering the Tower.

Kim Yuna and I had switched our rifles to 6.8mm rounds.

The rounds were much bigger and heavier, so we couldn't bring as many as before.

That made our secondary weapons even more important.

"You're really bringing that?"

"Yes. And 9mm pistol rounds drop more often in the Tower."

The custom 2011 Nightfall.

It was the pistol an American hunter had given me last time.

We had one more new piece of equipment, too.

"You all received the Tower Radios, right?"

They were developed by a Korean company for use inside the Tower.

They had apparently been improved based on the last field test.

"These are prototypes, so think of them as freebies. Their communication range probably isn't that wide, either. Did everyone make sure to eat properly before coming?"

"Whew, let's all make it back alive."

We entered again as soon as the one-month time limit ended.

"Entering the seventh floor!"

Flaaash!

[You have entered the 7th floor of the tower. Upon successfully escaping, you will receive a gold bonus and skill experience.]

We landed near the radio tower.

It was one of the taller buildings on the seventh floor.

Once secured, it would give us a view of the entire aboveground area of the seventh floor.

It was also an excellent sniping point.

But instead of getting greedy, we immediately began looking for the Underground Shopping Mall.

"Kang Hyun takes point. Let's move as we trained."

On the seventh floor, stealthy movement was more important than anything else.

Monsters patrolled frequently...

And if you killed one, ten more would come running.

Even if we cleared out an entire area, we'd burn through supplies at an alarming rate.

Meanwhile, the items dropped by Orc and Goblin soldiers were worthless.

'That's why we entered at night this time.'

I activated Complete Senses and took the lead.

It was midnight, so there was barely any visibility, but it was too early to use night-vision goggles.

The seventh-floor Underground Shopping Mall, the sewers, the underground section of the sixth floor... There were more than enough places where we'd need them.

But the batteries lasted seven hours at best.

We had brought spares, but we needed to save them for now.

"How far is it?"

"Since we're at the radio tower, it isn't too far. Even moving carefully, maybe one or two hours?"

"Oh..."

Of course, rushing wasn't always the answer.

The Underground Shopping Mall had limited entrances, making it difficult to get out in an emergency.

We were prepared to spend two or three days lying in wait nearby and observing the situation.

How long had we been moving like that?

"Patrol ahead. Four of them."

"Should we go around?"

"No, it'd take too long. Let's take them out. I'll handle the two in front."

"Okay."

I drew my pistol.

I hadn't expected to use it so soon.

Pshht, pshht!

The moment I rounded the corner, two Goblins fell.

The startled Orcs reached for their triggers, but Sang Hajun and Kim Yuna, hidden atop a building, took care of them.

We continued on, and it wasn't long before we reached an entrance to the Underground Shopping Mall.

We didn't go in recklessly. First, we checked the area around it.

"... There doesn't seem to be an ambush. I don't know about inside, though."

It was a massive two-story underground shopping mall, so even my skill couldn't read the whole place at once.

Sang Hajun hid a camera orb created with his skill beneath a trash can near the entrance.

"Installation complete."

"Hajun, how many can you install at once again?"

"Three. The reception range should be enough. Where should we use the other two?"

"Let's check the other entrances."

As an underground shopping mall, it had more than one or two entrances...

We placed additional orbs at locations we could use to escape in an emergency.

"Going through the sewers would be best if possible. That route connects to the Descent Exit..."

"There's too high a chance of running into other hunters in the sewers. The risk of an ambush is high too."

"That's true."

Even my skill had trouble detecting people who stayed completely still and held their breath.

Unless I got close enough.

We hid in a nearby building to rest for a while, then finally decided to go in.

"No noise for over an hour. We should be good to enter."

"It hasn't already been killed, has it?"

"No way. There may be plenty of idiots bold enough to enter the seventh floor, but how many of them could actually kill the boss?"

Besides, the Underground Shopping Mall's boss, the Manager, was a ghost type with a Physical Resistance skill...

To kill it, you had to come prepared.

You couldn't get lucky, kill it quickly, and escape.

"All right, move in. We'll farm the outer shops first and work our way inward."

Zzzzing.

The night-vision goggles lit the world in green.

A few lights still worked here and there throughout the Underground Shopping Mall, but it was dark overall.

All kinds of goods had been left behind in the wrecked shopping district.

This was one of the seventh floor's main farming areas.

At this point, it wouldn't be strange for an artifact to suddenly turn up.

"Oh, enhanced 9mm rounds."

I picked up the bullets packaged in a small box and carefully put them away.

You could never have too much Tower ammunition.

"Ooooooh...!"

A chilling groan echoed from far away.

It belonged to the boss, the Manager.

"Good, the boss is alive. No signs of other hunters."

"Should we hit it fast and get out?"

"Yeah. We'll do it as we trained."

"Whew..."

I set my backpack down in a suitable spot, then slipped away to the side alone.

[Shadow Walking skill transcended. Firmament Veil skill activated.]

It would be dangerous if the fight dragged on, so I decided not to hold back.

Sssst.

As my body vanished, Han Juwon, the machine gunner, aimed at the second floor of the Underground Shopping Mall.

Creak!

Startled by the unexpected footsteps, the Manager came out.

"Who... A customer?"

You could call us customers.

But we had no intention of paying.

Tudududu!

A hail of machine-gun fire answered.

The real bullets passed right through the boss's body...

But Ghost Bullets were different.

"K-Kyaaaak?!"

They definitely hurt it.

But they were far from enough to kill it.

Ghost Bullets were weaker than real bullets, after all.

What made them terrifying was the ability to unleash two or three times as much firepower.

I watched from the boss's flank.

I wanted to stab it with the Instant-Death Dagger...

But it was bone-chillingly cold near the boss.

It spread cold over a wide area, so if I got close, it would definitely notice me.

'Would the dagger even work on that thing in the first place?'

"Kyaaaak!"

The boss raised one arm and aimed in the direction the bullets had come from.

For the brief instant its body became solid, I transferred the shadows covering my body to my rifle.

An additional effect of Firmament Veil.

It could inflict considerable damage proportional to its remaining duration.

Pshht!

The 6.8mm round struck its head dead on.

"Aaah?!"

Truly shocked, it reeled violently.

I pulled every Incendiary Grenade from my Small Subspace Pouch and threw them.

Ssssss...!

Tududududu!

Trapped in the flames from the Incendiary Grenades, it was hit by Ghost Bullets once again.

Even then, it showed no sign of dying.

Kim Yuna's voice came through the radio.

[The effect seems weak.]

I agreed.

The Incendiary Grenades were less effective than expected.

It was definitely weak to heat.

But the cold seemed to be weakening the grenades themselves.

'Those things are supposed to work underwater...'

Just in case, I pulled out the artifact I had prepared.

The Ever-Burning Heart.

Maybe this would be different.

Fwoosh!

When I activated the heart at maximum output, an incredible wave of heat surged forward.

Normally, even my gloved hand would have suffered severe burns...

But the cold was so intense that I didn't need to worry about that.

"What is that?! A demon's heart! Aaaah!"

Maybe because the flames were packed with magic power, the effect was undeniable.

'Demons in hell, please...'

Holding out the heart as if praying desperately, I pulled the trigger with one hand.

Footnotes:

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