WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B.

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 23: 023

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The Lower Floors of the Tower of Trials were a kind of training facility.

From Floor 1 to Floor 10.

It gave newly registered Tower climbers different situations to face and experience, raising them into proper climbers.

That was why every floor had a different theme.

It taught them how to hide.

It taught them how to find their way.

It taught one-on-one combat, or fighting against many enemies at once.

It taught them how to fight, endure, and move as a group...

The Tower's intention was to gradually help climbers grow by giving them all kinds of trials.

None of that had really resonated with me.

I had cleared every floor the same way, after all.

It wanted me to hide?

Why should I skulk around like a rat? Couldn't I just kill everything?

It wanted me to run through and break past?

Wizards didn't run around without dignity. I just had to kill everything blocking my path.

It wanted me to fight as a group?

Why bother? Wouldn't one Magnet Pet be enough? I could wipe them all out by myself.

I had solved everything with one trick, casting magic.

That was why I had never felt much about the Tower's "intentions" until now.

All I ever did was kill every enemy I saw, grab the loot, and leave.

Even if the themes changed, they all felt the same.

Floor 8 was different.

It was a floor that made you think again about the meaning of Points.

A floor that gave climbers a sense of responsibility.

Something about it struck me.

'Climbers have responsibilities. The responsibility to earn Points and save people.'

Peter, my childhood idol, had said it.

With great power came great responsibility.

And I possessed a fucking great power.

As a Hunter from Extreme Lunatic Hell difficulty, I had absurd strength and potential that ordinary Hunters couldn't compare to.

Was it right for someone like me to chase nothing but profit?

I glanced at my status window.

[Baek Jiho (Republic of Korea: Floor 9)]

[5,460 Points]

5,460 Points.

That was 54.6 million won.

But they were worth more than that.

With these Points, 5,460 people in my country could survive for another month.

I hadn't just earned a few tens of millions of won today.

I had saved 5,460 lives!

It felt like my eyes had been opened.

My chest tingled, burned, and swelled with emotion.

I wanted other people to know this feeling too!

On impulse, I opened Hunter Gallery and quickly wrote a post.

[Post Title: Newbie Hunter Bro Has an Epiphany on Floor 8]

[Author: Blue Dot]

This newbie Hunter bro... cleared Floor 8

and earned 5,460 Points

I gave up the loot income and focused only on hunting, so I regretted it because my total earnings weren't that high...

But after thinking about what Floor 8 says Points mean

I started wondering if it's right to only care about money.

It really hit me that people's lives are in my hands...

From now on, I shouldn't only focus on money. I'll earn lots of Points and save lots of people in our country.

└What's this, a new pattern?

└It's admirable that he wants to earn Points and save people, but why is that coming from a persona-obsessed idiot? LOL

└I'd give anything if the cash-grabbing leeches and unemployed losers lived with that kind of mindset, fuck.

The comments came pouring in.

Did they understand my sincerity?

There were noticeably fewer sarcastic comments than usual.

I felt oddly proud.

After reading the comments for a while, I went to bed.

Tomorrow, I would take on Floor 9.

* * *

Early the next morning, I went to the Climber Branch to check in.

I placed my hand on the familiar crystal ball.

[Please specify the amount of Points to transfer to the ‘Republic of Korea’.]

"All of it."

[Transferring 5,450 Points to the ‘Republic of Korea’.]

The civil servant who checked the crystal ball slowly opened his mouth.

"Hunter Baek Jiho. Five thou...?!"

His eyes widened so much that the sound effect boing came to mind.

He stared at the crystal ball, looked at me, then stared at the crystal ball again before continuing in a stammer.

"...We have confirmed 5,450 Points. We will deposit 54.5 million won into the designated account...!"

The civil servant spoke with trembling eyebrows.

He seemed shocked by the amount of Points I had turned in.

It made sense.

5,450 Points.

Wasn't that an excessive number of Points to earn in a single day?

"The Republic of Korea will remember your dedication."

The civil servant even saw me off with a deep bow.

Usually, he only gave a slight nod when seeing people off.

But with 5,000 Points, he was suddenly bowing at the waist.

"Take care."

I shuffled out of the line.

On the way out, I heard the voices of the Hunters around me.

"Did you see that? Five thousand Points!"

"In one day... no, that means he earned 5,000 Points in two days at the latest?"

"Is he a High Floor Hunter?"

"That's an incredible person."

"But why is he carrying that wooden stick?"

"Wow, it's my first time seeing a High Floor Hunter in person."

They whispered among themselves.

I heard every word.

The hearing of an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter was sharp enough not to miss even the smallest sound.

As I walked, I muttered quietly.

"A High Floor Hunter... Well, I guess it would be easy to misunderstand."

High Floor Hunters.

Hunters who operated from Floors 31 to 40 of the Tower of Trials.

There were around sixty of them in total.

They were top-tier Hunters who earned hundreds of thousands of Points every month.

In other words, they were amazing people.

And I had just turned in enough Points to rival them.

It was only natural that people would look at me with admiration.

Heh. I smiled faintly.

'The admiration of ordinary people isn't bad. Worship me.'

Honestly, it felt good.

My shoulders felt like they might rise into the sky, so I tensed up and forced them down.

This kind of thing only looked cool if you left with an indifferent expression.

I walked out of the Branch and got into my sister's car.

"Sis. I think I'm someone worthy of respect."

"What are you talking about all of a sudden?"

"I'm proud of myself for dedicating myself to the people."

"Did this kid pick up and eat something weird...? Should we head home soon?"

We headed home.

* * *

After getting home, I helped my sister handle the loot as usual.

There wasn't much to processing loot.

We just had to put the items piled in one corner of the house outside before the buyer's truck arrived.

-Vroom.

As we were stacking items outside the villa, a one-ton truck came down the alley beyond the residential complex.

It was an old, shabby truck with the words, "Top Prices for Tower Loot! Fast Purchase! Same-Day Deposit Guaranteed!" written on its side.

It belonged to the loot buyer my sister had been dealing with lately.

-Screech.

The truck stopped, and someone got out.

He was a middle-aged man with a warm, friendly appearance.

"Another large shipment today. Thank you as always! I'll process the payment right away!"

"No need to thank us. Take care."

My sister and the man exchanged documents with the ease of people used to doing business together.

A satisfied look appeared on my sister's face.

She had switched loot buyers recently.

She said she was quite happy with this buyer because he came right away whenever she called, never haggled unnecessarily, was kind, and transferred the money immediately.

As I watched them make the transaction, I suddenly realized something strange.

'But why does that man always arrive so quickly? It feels like he gets here within ten minutes every time.'

We lived in a villa complex.

Naturally, it was quite far from anywhere a Tower loot buying company would be located.

Normally, once you called one, you'd have to wait at least thirty minutes, sometimes several hours.

Yet this man always arrived within ten minutes.

As if he were always nearby.

'And his gaze seems strangely sharp too.'

At a glance, he looked like an ordinary friendly neighborhood man.

Sometimes, though, his eyes turned oddly sharp, and he seemed to examine every inch around the house.

As if he were checking for possible threats...

'Something feels suspicious... No. Don't think pointless thoughts.'

I let out a sigh and shook my head.

Had seeing too much blood lately made me jumpy?

Recently, I often found myself gripped by strange feelings of unease.

For example, I sometimes felt as though someone was watching me.

Or as if someone was following me.

There were times when I felt like I was under surveillance.

Should I see a psychiatrist?

Or... was something really going on?

As I was lost in those thoughts...

"I'll transfer the payment right away. Have a good day!"

"Drive safely."

-Vroom.

The truck loaded with loot left the alley and disappeared from view.

I shrugged and turned away.

'Forget it. It's probably just my imagination. I should prepare to clear the next floor.'

It was about time Hyeji arrived.

* * *

Hyeji and I prepared to clear Floor 9 of the Tower of Trials.

First, we didn't bring bags.

We didn't bring sacks or carts either.

The only things we brought were simple weapons and armor.

"It's finally Floor 9."

"Yeah. Floor 9."

"Do you think... we'll be able to clear it?"

"We'll clear it."

"Don't answer so halfheartedly."

"Don't ask such a halfhearted question."

Hyeji asked with a stiff expression, and I gave an indifferent answer.

She was clearly nervous.

It was understandable.

Floor 9 was famous for being difficult and dangerous.

'The Great Escape.'

That was what Hunters called Floor 9.

Floor 9 was, literally, an escape map.

Not one where you escaped from some small room, though.

'It's a map where you escape from a massive encirclement.'

You started at the peak of a huge rocky mountain.

Then Goblins came rushing in from every direction.

There were several thousand of them...

Maybe even more than ten thousand.

An enormous horde of Goblins would press in from all sides.

They said the sight looked like a green wave, creating overwhelming pressure.

You had to break through that green wave.

That was Floor 9.

'The condition for clearing Floor 9 is breaking through the Goblin horde surrounding the rocky mountain and taking the Escape Portal.'

Naturally, it wasn't easy.

There were too many Goblins charging at you.

Arrows constantly flew in from every direction.

And the scattered Goblin Warriors were dangerous.

I wasn't worried at all.

That was because I was an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter.

If anything, I was looking forward to it.

'If there are that many Goblins, I'll finally get to throw around Fireballs to my heart's content, right?'

I imagined it.

A horde of Goblins swarming around the rocky mountain.

A barrage of Fireballs falling over their heads.

Every explosion shattered and blew apart dozens, even hundreds of Goblins.

Before overwhelming firepower, enemies who were practically an army would collapse in droves.

Ah, yeah.

That would be one hell of a rush.

"This time, it's a firepower battle!"

Who were we?

Koreans!

A nation with a Ministry of Artillery Defense!

A people of firepower!

I had been a little frustrated on Floor 8 because I couldn't use Fireball or Wind Cutter.

I wanted to blow things apart and slice them up, but I couldn't.

This time, though, I would be able to throw Fireballs to my heart's content.

A densely packed Goblin horde swarming toward me.

Perfect prey for my Fireballs.

It would definitely relieve some stress.

There was only one problem...

'I won't be able to collect loot again.'

Even as an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter, it was physically impossible to wipe out thousands, perhaps nearly ten thousand Goblins.

And since we would have to keep moving to avoid the endless horde, we would have no choice but to give up the loot.

That was fine.

I would earn that many more Points.

If I earned lots of Points, I could save lots of people.

The person who would save the future Republic of Korea shouldn't get too hung up on collecting a little loot.

Still, speaking of collecting loot...

I glanced at Hyeji.

"Hyeji. This time, you aren't even acting as a porter. You're getting carried one hundred percent. Don't you have anything to say to me?"

"Thank you so much...!"

"Always be grateful, human."

The SS-rank porter was temporarily out of service.

Still, Hyeji's role had become a little unclear lately.

I had recruited her as a porter, but since she was Easy-rank and lacked the strength to carry much, she couldn't really do porter work.

At best, she was a half-baked porter who only looted items from corpses.

For Hyeji to truly fulfill a porter's role, we would need a Spatial Bag.

But it was too expensive and hard to acquire.

That would only be possible far in the future.

I complained to myself.

'Ah... I wish someone would give me a Spatial Bag for free.'

In novels, kind wizard masters gave out magic books, items, and artifacts like candy.

I wanted someone who would shower me with gear too.

Why didn't I get an opportunity like that? I'm a wizard too.

Anyway.

Shall we get going?

"Enter the Tower."

[Baek Jiho (Republic of Korea: Floor 9)]

[Na Hyeji (Republic of Korea: Floor 9)]

[Please select the floor you wish to enter.]

"Floor 9."

[Entering Tower Floor 9.]

Flash!

The Floor 9 clear began.

Footnotes:

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