WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B.

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 18: 018

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I quickly copied the pattern in front of me.

It was a simple structure, so it wasn't particularly difficult.

'Four small squares inside a large square. Then four smaller squares inside each small square.'

Of course, I didn't forget to modify the pattern as well.

'I'll fine-tune the spacing between the particles. I should clean up the overall shape too.'

Like the other patterns I'd seen in the Tower, this one had a few awkward, imperfect parts.

I couldn't help but tinker with it.

After improving the pattern, I activated it.

Hummmmmm...

Spiritual waves radiated from the tip of my staff.

They began seeping into the surrounding terrain.

Then I felt something strange.

'It feels like the earth around me is obeying me.'

It felt like I could move the dirt and rocks around me however I wanted.

If I poured in enough Blue Motes, it felt like I could even reshape the terrain itself.

Was this magic that controlled the earth?

I tried using it.

Krrrkkk!

I waved my staff and pulled up the ground.

The earth rapidly rose, forming a mound of dirt that looked perfect for sitting down and resting on.

How interesting.

"Wow! What was that just now?!"

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who found it fascinating.

Hyeji, who had been watching beside me, cried out in surprise.

I shrugged.

"I just learned a new spell."

"You learned it just now?"

"Yes."

"Um, I don't know much about magic, but isn't magic normally hard to learn? That's what it looks like in romance fantasy novels."

"I'm an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard, so I learn fast."

"What even is that...?"

Hyeji seemed to be a romance fantasy reader.

So she was from the neighborhood next door.

I read regular fantasy more often than romance fantasy, though.

Anyway.

I got a feel for how to use the spell as I worked with it.

'If I maintain the pattern like this, then move the small squares little by little... it feels like I can make any shape I want.'

Krrk! Krrk! Krrrkkk!

Dirt and stone moved according to my will.

They became cylinders, then right-angled walls, then spheres.

At one point, I got playful and made a middle-finger-shaped mound of dirt to show Hyeji.

Hyeji kicked it apart.

"It feels like I've gone back to elementary school and started playing with clay again," I muttered.

The difference was that I could do it by remote control without getting dirt on my hands.

It required Blue Motes as fuel.

And if I had enough Blue Motes to put into it, I could even alter the terrain.

I nodded.

'I think I got myself a decent utility spell.'

I hadn't researched it properly yet.

Still, if I used it well, it seemed like it could be useful in all sorts of ways.

I could raise pillars or right-angled walls to block enemy attacks.

Or I could move the earth under an enemy's feet to restrain them.

It was a spell I liked well enough.

'I've been too much of a one-trick offensive wizard so far. I've been wanting defensive or utility magic too.'

Until now, I only knew how to attack.

Fireball, Air Bullet, Wind Cutter...

Every one of them was powerful, but they could only be used for killing.

Then I gained Earth Manipulation.

With this spell, I could cover utility and defense to some extent.

It would make my abilities more complete.

I had been testing the new spell for quite a while when it happened.

Rumble!

"...What?"

All of a sudden, the dead-end wall right in front of me began collapsing.

Na Hyeji cried out in shock.

"Goblins! There are Goblins behind the wall!"

Beyond the collapsed dirt wall lay a group of Goblins sprawled across the ground like corpses.

There were a full hundred of them.

Had they been dormant until now?

One after another, they staggered to their feet with blank expressions and grabbed their weapons.

At that moment, I understood the exact structure of Floor 6.

'So the rooms at the ends of the passage collapse one after another, releasing the Goblins inside.'

That was why hundreds of Goblins didn't rush in all at once, instead coming at us in groups at regular intervals.

The Blue Motes pattern I found must have been magic meant to dismantle that wall.

Anyway, the structure of Floor 6 wasn't important right now.

'Perfect timing.'

My hands had been itching to properly use this new spell.

This was the perfect chance to test its power.

I controlled a large amount of Blue Motes and began manipulating the dirt and rock around us.

My goal was simple.

'Crushing them to death.'

Rumbleeeee!

From the ceiling, the ground, and both walls, a massive amount of earth and stone poured out, crushing the Goblin horde.

Krrr...?!

Krrk! Krrrrk!

The Goblins let out startled cries.

They flailed their arms and legs, trying to claw their way out of the mound of dirt...

But there was no way they could manage it with their pitiful strength.

Even Goblin Warriors, with all their strength and physical ability, couldn't possibly resist pressure measured in tons.

Crack. Crunch. Snap.

The sounds of bones breaking and bodies being crushed came from beyond the dirt mound.

The Goblins had woken up only to die under a massive pile of earth without even knowing what was happening.

A moment later...

Rumble...

I moved the dirt mound away again.

What remained were the horribly crushed corpses of a hundred Goblins.

Na Hyeji broke into a bright smile.

"Wow! You deliberately handled them without making them bleed? Thank you! It'll be easier to collect the loot now!"

"..."

Strictly speaking, I had only been testing my new spell.

Still, Hyeji was happy, so let's say that was why.

The Floor 6 raid was over.

[Baek Jiho (Republic of Korea: Floor 6)]

[You have completed Tower Floor 6.]

[You have defeated 204 Goblins (1).]

[You have defeated 157 Goblin Archers (2).]

[You have defeated 42 Goblin Warriors (10).]

[Points are being calculated.]

[Tower Floor 7 has been unlocked.]

[Returning.]

* * *

After returning to reality...

"Phew!"

Na Hyeji let out a long breath as she removed her gas mask and protective suit.

She must have been very hot, because the smell of sweat wafted off her.

"Hyeji, how was it? Are you getting used to porter work?"

I asked while studying her expression.

Maybe the gas mask and protective suit had really helped.

Her face wasn't pale like yesterday, nor did she seem mentally shaken.

She only looked a little tired from the physical labor.

At my question, she nodded.

"I think I can handle it. As long as I have the equipment, anyway..."

"Oh...!"

You've grown, Na Hyeji!

Even if the equipment had carried her, she'd handled more corpses in even worse condition than yesterday, yet she was still completely fine.

I felt oddly proud of myself for putting her through all that.

Na Hyeji frowned at me.

"What is that look? It's making me uncomfortable."

"I'm just proud of you."

"Proud of me, my ass..."

She threw her gas mask down in irritation.

I was just in a good mood.

I'd collected a mountain of loot, watched my porter grow, and even learned a new spell.

There was no way I could feel bad after gaining so much.

Anyway.

I cleared Floor 6 without any trouble today too.

Now it was time for my post-climb routine.

'I need to make a post on Hunter Gallery.'

If I didn't post on Hunter Gallery right after climbing, it felt like thorns would grow in my mouth.

Somehow, I had become addicted to online communities.

Click!

I took a picture of the cart and bags piled high with loot.

Then I quickly wrote a post.

[Post Title: Newbie Hunter Cleared Floor 6 Today...]

[Author: Blue Dot]

(Photo of a cart and bags filled with loot)

Newbie Hunter... went to Floor 6 today

Just like I heard, it was an entrance-blocking map

So I was going to spend time killing Goblins from my spot like the guide said...

But the Goblins came out way too slowly, it was so frustrating

Only a few dozen at a time, what am I even supposed to do with that... it was so boring

So I just went into the passage and killed them all...

Made a lot of money today!

204 Goblin daggers, 157 Goblin bows, 42 Goblin Warrior Longswords...

12.5 million won from loot sales after tax...

Plus 938 Points.

Is that 21.88 million won total?

My daily income finally passed 20 million won!

Clap clap clap clap! Applause!

Everyone, congratulate me!

└Clap clap clap clap (the sound of me slapping the shit out of your face)

└LMAO what kind of bullshit is this? You got tired of waiting, so you went into the passage and killed them? Cleared Floor 6 alone? Stop talking out of your ass

└Even Hard-ranks can't clear Floor 6 alone, what are you talking about

└Congratulations on losing your mind, patient. Time to take your meds

└A Floor 6 scrub claiming to make 20 million a day, I seriously want to beat the shit out of you

└└They're an attention-seeking faker, just ignore them and don't get worked up lol. You'll only lose out if you engage

The comments were full of insults again today.

I clicked my tongue and muttered.

"Hmph. Hunter Gallery is still full of people who turn away from the truth and close their eyes. Is there truly no one who has opened theirs?"

At my muttering, Na Hyeji gave me a pathetic look.

"You're stirring up trouble on Hunter Gallery again, aren't you? Don't you get tired of doing that every day?"

"Not at all. It's fun every time. It feels new whenever I do it."

"Ugh... How did I end up becoming the porter for a crazy person like this..."

"You can immigrate if you just stick with me. Work hard."

"That's true. That's honestly why I'm still here..."

Na Hyeji nodded readily.

The Republic of Korea had three months left to live.

She had to escape before then.

But Lower Floor Hunters could never immigrate unless they had wealth on the level of a corporate chairman.

Whether she liked it or not, she had no choice but to follow me.

That didn't mean I planned to treat her poorly.

I believed that even if someone worked hard, they should be properly compensated.

"Hyeji. I was thinking of giving you around ten percent of every day's earnings as porter wages. What do you think?"

Ten percent of the earnings.

That was the amount my sister and I had decided on after discussing it.

'She's my sister's friend, and she has to keep my secret. Giving her this much is only right.'

An ordinary Hunter wouldn't pay a porter.

They'd make the porter pay them instead.

After all, they were carrying them through the Tower.

But Na Hyeji was my sister's close friend.

On top of that, I needed to hide the fact that I was a wizard.

And she worked far harder than ordinary porters did.

I wanted to give her decent treatment.

At my offer, Na Hyeji gave a small laugh and shook her head.

"That's too much."

"Too much? It's only ten percent. That would be around 2 million won today. I think you deserve that much for all your hard work."

"That's how it is now. But if we keep going at this rate to Floor 10, Floor 20... the earnings will become enormous, won't they? By then, I might be getting tens or hundreds of millions of won just for porter work."

"Well... that's true?"

"I'm not completely shameless. I can't accept that much money for getting carried."

Huh?

I couldn't help being genuinely surprised.

I was offering her money.

And she was turning it down?

I'd seen plenty of people ask for more money, but this was the first time I'd seen someone refuse money they were being offered.

"And it's not like I'm hurting for money either. I have quite a bit saved up, you know?"

That was true.

Before being drafted under the Hunter General Mobilization Order, I had heard she was a successful proprietary trader at some securities firm.

She was a capable person who had lived on an annual salary in the hundreds of millions of won.

That was why she could buy all that expensive equipment for her porter work.

"So you don't need to give me a single won. Just give me a little bit of Points each day so I don't get detained again. Instead..."

"Instead?"

"Floor 20. Just carry me to Floor 20."

Na Hyeji said she didn't need money.

She just wanted me to carry her.

"I know what an incredible opportunity this is. Reaching Floor 20 safely in times like these... But I can't accept money too."

"..."

"So don't abandon me. I'll keep doing my absolute best as a porter. Okay?"

Ah...

She was volunteering to be an unpaid porter.

It felt like she had a halo around her.

I had no choice but to admit it.

I had misunderstood her all this time.

She was never trash-tier.

'I believe in you, Na Hyeji. You really are an ace porter.'

She wasn't a trash-tier porter.

She was an ace porter.

A porter willing to work for free.

She was an SSS-tier porter!

I held out my hand for a handshake.

"I look forward to working with you, Hyeji."

"Likewise."

Clasp!

Na Hyeji grabbed my hand and shook it.

She must have been very hot, because her palm was warm and damp with sweat.

'No, damn it. Wipe your hand before grabbing mine.'

How dare she dirty the palm of this Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter with sweat.

Hyeji was demoted one rank from an SSS-tier porter to an SS-tier porter.

"Oh, right. I have one favor to ask."

"A favor? What is it?"

"Could you leave the corpses a little cleaner? Even if it's magic... collecting the loot is a little..."

"That'll be difficult."

"Please...!"

Hyeji started whining again, seeing her chance.

Demoted from SS-tier porter to S-tier porter.

Keep this up and you'll become trash-tier again, you know?

Anyway.

I cleared Tower Floor 6 without trouble again today.

Tomorrow, it would be Floor 7.

* * *

Climber Management Department Headquarters.

The vice minister's office.

It was a bleak room filled with a large desk, filing cabinets, and the like.

The director of the Climber Management Office slowly spoke.

"Vice Minister. It's certain. Baek Jiho is from Hard-rank."

They continued while holding out a report.

"Based on his climbing records in the Tower, the amount of Points he pays every day, and his financial records... there's no doubt that he's a Hunter from Hard-rank."

Rustle.

Numerous documents scattered across the desk.

Every one of them contained records on Baek Jiho.

His basic personal information, Tower records, Points payment records, financial records from selling Tower loot...

Even the bizarre posts he had written online until now.

A complete collection of information on him lay on the vice minister's desk.

The director continued.

"Our country's sixth Tower climber from Hard-rank has appeared."

Footnotes:

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