Escaping the Tower at Hell Difficulty - Chapter 39

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Mordor

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◈ Escaping the Tower at Hell Difficulty ◈

Chapter 39

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[Superhard Alloy Materials Manufacturing Technology - 130,000 gold]

I did my best to sort out my thoughts calmly.

Were they selling technology?

The Goblin Merchant waited patiently, as if my confusion was only natural.

Yuki spoke first.

"Um, do you have a sample or something..."

"Of course. Please look this way."

The Goblin Merchant brought over an ingot that looked fairly heavy.

But when I picked it up, it was shockingly light.

"Oh, this..."

"It's far lighter and stronger than conventional alloys. Its thermal conductivity is suitable as well. It's perfect for the core components of firearms."

So if I paid 130,000 gold, they'd give me the technology to mass-produce this.

"Can it be mass-produced in Earth's environment?"

"Of course. Though the material costs will be somewhat high. Mana Potions, for example..."

Ah, since it would be made outside the Tower, it needed magic power...

And Mana Potions were used to make up for it.

Fortunately, Go Jiho had some left over.

'130,000 gold is pretty expensive...'

The Goblin Merchants wouldn't rip me off.

I'd gotten a lot of use out of the Gale Boots I bought for a huge sum last time.

This would surely be worth more than 130,000 gold.

More than anything, though, the warning written at the bottom bothered me.

[... Warning, sold-out products will not be restocked.]

Could I interpret that to mean that once I bought it, no other hunter could buy the same thing?

The moment I bought the technology, I'd effectively have exclusive rights to it.

Technology wasn't like an object...

I could share it with other countries in exchange for more gold.

'Why are these bastards suddenly dealing in information products?'

There had to be some kind of ulterior motive.

Yuki whispered beside me.

"They're trying to create more ways to spend gold."

"Really?"

"Yes. Ever since the eighth floor was unlocked, the gold supply has increased dramatically."

That was true.

It was still early, so few people had even tried to clear it...

But once a proper strategy was established, gold income would skyrocket.

"But the ways to spend gold stayed the same."

The cost of monster barriers was calculated by land area.

The eighth floor opening didn't make anyone's land bigger, so fixed expenses naturally remained unchanged.

Then, in this situation, new content that cost at least 100,000 gold suddenly opened up.

It was probably telling us not to relax just because gold income had increased and to earn even more.

That was pointless in my case.

I'd planned to do that anyway.

I wasn't interested in complicated political talk.

I asked the Goblin Merchant again. There was one thing I needed to confirm.

"This 220,000-gold item, [Magical Medical Technology]. Could it completely heal injuries to the Mana Heart?"

If I could bring Go Jiho back onto the team, 220,000 gold wouldn't seem like a waste.

Of course, I'd need to hear what his wife thought first.

Unfortunately, the Goblin Merchant's answer was pessimistic.

"You mean the former team leader of Korea's Alpha Team?"

"That's right."

"Hasn't he already taken the Heavenly Elixir? The Heavenly Elixir is one of the pinnacles of Alchemy. Magical Medical Technology offers treatment that is more affordable and widely available than that."

In other words, if the Heavenly Elixir couldn't fix it, Magical Medical Technology wouldn't work either.

That was disappointing.

After thinking it over some more, I looked for technology that could immediately help us clear the eighth floor.

"... The Ultra-Alloy technology is probably the most suitable. How much do the materials actually cost, excluding Mana Potions?"

"Without the Mana Potions, the materials aren't particularly expensive. No matter how much you call it a new material, it's ultimately just a chunk of metal."

That was true.

Even with ordinary firearm parts, barrels were surprisingly cheap for their weight.

After some deliberation, I bought the technology and the materials.

That left me with around 50,000 gold.

"Thank you for your purchase. Here are the technical documents."

It was a fairly thick book.

I could bring this to the Hunter Association.

Just as I was about to leave the room, Yuki grabbed me.

"Benefactor! No... Team Leader! What should I say about this? To the Japanese Hunter Association, I mean!"

"Ah, what? Just tell them exactly as it is."

Was I Team Leader now?

I was getting used to being called benefactor too.

The technology shop would automatically open once someone completed the eighth-floor quest anyway.

It was only a matter of time before other hunters found out.

The Japanese hunters had already seen Yuki and me enter together, so there was no reason to hide it.

Yuki nodded eagerly.

"Understood. And... when exactly should I become a naturalized Korean citizen?"

"You need to stay until the Japanese hunters return. A Hunter Association employee said it could become a legal problem if it looks like we planned this in advance..."

"Ah. I'll act like I changed my mind at the airport."

She understood quickly, as expected.

She must have felt anxious too.

"We've already arranged accommodations, so don't worry. It's the floor below my place."

"Really? That's wonderful!"

I left the shop with Yuki practically bouncing beside me.

The Hunter Association employee completely froze upon receiving my gift.

"W-What is this?"

"I bought it for a lot of money. It's new-material technology. We'll test it soon, so please prepare for it."

"Ah. Understood. We'll treat it as top-secret information."

I checked the time on my phone.

Mr. Brown from HTT would arrive from the United States in a few hours.

"We don't have much time. The Hunter Association has a workshop we can borrow, right?"

"I'll prepare one immediately."

I went straight to the workshop with the staff member.

Apparently, it was normally used by blacksmith hunters affiliated with the Hunter Association.

I'd come here with Brown last time, so I got my bearings quickly.

"The Ultra-Alloy recipe... starts by pouring in Mana Potions."

[Sleight of Hand skill transcended. God's Hand skill activated.]

I heated a small furnace with the Ever-Burning Heart, then threw in the materials.

The shop had packed the materials according to the proportions in the recipe...

It was so convenient that it was practically a meal kit.

Not that I'd ever bought one because they were expensive.

'By the time I started earning real money, the meal kit trend had already ended.'

I pushed the stray thought aside and added the remaining materials in order.

The Heart was so hot that the chunks of metal melted in an instant.

"I should drink a Mana Potion."

"A-Are you all right?"

"Don't worry about me. Bring me a mold!"

Gulp!

I followed the instructions step by step...

Eventually, a large ingot was completed.

It looked exactly like the sample from the shop.

"It worked."

"We'll take it to the lab for analysis."

"It hasn't even cooled down yet, so calm down."

I used all the materials I had to make a few more ingots.

Where could this actually be used?

No matter how good the material was, it probably couldn't be used for body armor and firearms at the same time.

The properties each required were different.

By the time I finished working and was cooling off, my teammates and Mr. Brown entered.

"Mr. Kang. Looks like you had a good trip. Were my creations useful?"

Brown, a huge middle-aged man, shook my hand like he was grabbing my arm.

There was another familiar face beside him.

The American hunter who had given me the Nightfall Custom.

Brown's nephew.

His name was Chad, wasn't it?

"You went into the eighth floor alone for your injured former team leader? You've got a pretty face, but you're completely insane."

"Huh? What brings you here, Chad?"

"Uncle said there was something good to see, so I came with him."

They couldn't stop admiring the Enchanted Firearms from the eighth floor.

"A Marlin 1894 lever-action rifle... This is incredible. Enhanced penetration?"

"This MP7A2 is better left as it is. There isn't much to change. It's already such a compact submachine gun."

As expected of a firearm customization company, their first thoughts were about modifications.

"A sawed-off shotgun. Twelve gauge... Its condition isn't bad."

"The user is a woman, so apparently the grip is a little thick."

"What, it belonged to a woman? Replacing the grip is easy. Let's make it as light as possible."

I handed the MP7 submachine gun to Han Juwon.

Han Juwon had the Ghost Bullets skill, so Han Juwon needed an automatic firearm.

I planned to give the sawed-off shotgun to Yuki.

She'd said herself that she wasn't confident with shooting.

"What should we do with the fire-round-enchanted Luger?"

"Leave that one as it is. You could modify a Luger for full-auto fire, but the chance of malfunction would be high... And since it has a fire-round Enchantment, firing too fast could cause the rounds to explode in the gun. Even if that didn't happen, it would put too much strain on the parts."

"Ah, you're right!"

It was something I hadn't even considered.

Experts really were different.

The two men focused on the lever-action rifle.

It would be my main weapon on the eighth floor...

But it was a little heavy.

I'd weighed it just now, and it was nearly three kilograms.

I had to account for ammunition weight too, so I needed to reduce the weight as much as possible.

Fortunately, HTT was knowledgeable about lever-action rifles as well.

"The trigger group and firing pin are enchanted?"

"Yes. Have you worked with lever-actions a lot too?"

"Of course. Lever-actions are popular for hunting. They have a great feel to them too."

That was reassuring.

Brown made an unexpected suggestion.

"The engagement distances on the eighth floor aren't that long, right? You said it's indoor combat."

"Yes. At most, around 100 meters? Even that rarely comes up because of all the obstacles."

"Then should I modify it into a shorter version?"

"What would that do?"

Brown drew a line across the blueprint he'd brought.

"If we cut the barrel down to ten inches, it'll reduce the weight by around 500 grams. Six-round capacity. Effective range of about 100 meters. We won't touch the enchanted trigger group or firing pin, so you can restore it to its original state if needed."

A six-round capacity.

That was disappointing since it was already tight...

But 500 grams was definitely significant on the eighth floor.

"Don't attach a suppressor. The barrel will be too short for it to work properly because of residual powder."

"Ah..."

"What do you think? Should I do it?"

"Sounds good. But before we start, please take a look at this."

I showed them the Ultra-Alloy ingot I'd made beforehand.

"Huh? What's this?"

"It's a new material I bought from the shop. Do you think we could make firearm parts from it?"

Chad immediately looked troubled.

"No... Not right away. It probably hasn't even been tested properly. Firearms aren't just chunks of metal. The material used differs depending on the part."

Now that I heard it, that made sense.

The Goblin Merchants had said it was suitable for firearm parts...

But Brown thought differently from his nephew Chad.

"Hm? I've worked with this before. It's a rare material often used in the core components of Tower-made equipment."

"Uncle, are you sure?"

"If I couldn't recognize this, I'd have to quit as an official Hunter Association gunsmith. You can even use this for barrels."

Once we calculated it, we concluded that using Ultra-Alloy would reduce the weight by nearly half.

"Good. Shall we get started? It's been a while since I've felt this motivated about a job."

Brown immediately used his skill.

His skill was Replication and Modification.

As long as he had the original and the materials, he could make as many as he wanted.

It was perfect for customization work.

"How can we get more of this?"

"Should I pack some for you before you leave?"

"That would be great. We can replace all your teammates' firearm parts with it too."

I needed to buy more materials from the shop.

After returning from Gwanghwamun Tower, I received the gun, which had already been modified.

Whirr, click!

The shorter barrel made spin-cocking much easier.

My teammates even applauded.

"Ooh, that looks good."

"It's incredibly light. But the balance still feels good too."

I immediately began making more Ultra-Alloy.

Chad, who had watched me work, was amazed.

"You figured out the formula?"

"I bought it from the Goblin Merchant."

"What?"

The United States would clear the eighth floor soon, so there was no point hiding it.

More importantly, these guests had flown for over ten hours from far overseas to help us.

I didn't want to hide it from them either.

"When you clear the eighth-floor quest, the Goblin Merchant sells special recipes. The United States would be interested too, right?"

"Of course... We'd be very interested."

Chad and Brown exchanged strange looks, then spoke quietly.

"We'll keep that information secret from the other American hunters."

"Huh? Why?"

"You may not know the situation, but most American hunters are currently sponsored by an old man. In truth, the Hunter Association isn't in charge. That old man controls it."

"... How is that possible?"

"Because lobbying is legal in the United States. He has been the Hunter Association's biggest sponsor from the beginning. He's invested since the early days of the hunter crisis."

Kim Yuna, who was beside us, immediately searched for the person on her phone.

Apparently, he came right up when she searched the internet.

"This man? Queenbell Hartman."

"That's right."

"Ah, I've seen this person before."

He was the old man I often saw online.

Usually in the role of someone warning people not to make strange investments in stocks.

Han Juwon looked at a photo of the old man in a wheelchair and asked, "This guy is the big shot who pulls the strings of the American Hunter Association?"

"Yeah."

"Then why is he in a wheelchair? He could buy Recovery Potions or Panacea from the shop. Does he have a genetic disease too?"

"Ah, it isn't like that."

Chad explained with a serious expression.

"He could've fixed his body a long time ago if he wanted to... He's deliberately staying that way."

"... Why would he do that?"

"Because he's a pervert who enjoys using money to order powerful hunters around while he himself is old and weak."

"Gasp..."

Chad seemed to dislike Hartman, so I needed to take some of that with a grain of salt...

But even if only half of it was true, I didn't want to get close to him.

"Anyway, if America finds out about this now, Hartman will gather as much gold as possible and try to monopolize every technology. That's the kind of person he is."

"I-I see."

We already had the new-material technology, so we could negotiate if necessary...

But other countries would have to pay an enormous price to buy technology.

It would definitely be best to keep this secret for a while.

"But isn't that good for American hunters?"

"You think a monopoly is good? Old Man Hartman sells it back to hunters in his own country at higher prices."

"Gasp..."

While additional work continued with the ingots I'd made, a message finally arrived saying that the Japanese delegation was leaving.

"Ah, we'll go see our guests off for a moment."

"Those Japanese kids? Go ahead."

Leaving the work to Brown and Chad, we quickly arrived at the airport.

The Japanese hunters were already preparing to depart.