WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B.

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 25: 025

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Morning.

I went to the climber management branch and checked in.

Placing my hand over the familiar crystal ball.

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

"All of it."

[Transferring 9,308 Points to the ‘Republic of Korea’.]

I transferred the Points.

The civil servant checked the number floating above the crystal ball, then swallowed dryly before slowly opening their mouth.

"Hunter Baek Jiho. We have confirmed 9,308 Points. We will deposit 93.08 million won into the designated account."

Bow.

The civil servant gave another deep bow today.

"The Republic of Korea will remember Hunter's devotion."

"Keep up the good work."

I shuffled away from the line.

The ordinary people whispered among themselves.

"Isn't that the person who paid over five thousand Points yesterday? It's nine thousand today...!"

"They must really be an High Floor Hunter."

"But why would an High Floor Hunter come all the way to the branch to submit Points? Don't they have a civil servant assigned to them?"

"They must have their reasons."

"Wow, they make several thousand in a single day. They're on a completely different level from us."

The ordinary people spoke as they watched my back.

Their admiring, curious gazes weren't so bad.

Once again, I had to struggle hard to keep my shoulders from rising all the way into the sky.

The path of maintaining my cool was truly difficult and treacherous.

After leaving the branch and getting into the car, I said to my sister.

"Sis. I think it's really hard to maintain my cool."

"What kind of nonsense are you saying this time...? Anyway, if we're done here, should we head home?"

"Yeah."

On the way home in the passenger seat, I looked around the inside of the car.

It was an old, shabby car that was nearly twenty years old.

The signs of age showed everywhere.

My sister had bought it secondhand when she had just started working, and she had been driving it ever since.

It was truly old and unimpressive.

Wasn't it far too low-class for someone like me, an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter, to ride around in?

I made up my mind.

"Sis. After we come back from Floor 10 today, let's go buy a car."

"A car? Why a car all of a sudden?"

"I'm going to buy you one. I've made quite a bit of money by now... It's about time I spent some of it. We have around thirty million won in debt left, right?"

"Yeah."

"After paying that off, I think we'll have around 240 million won left. Pick out a car you want within that price range."

"...Really? You're really going to buy me a car?"

My sister's expression gradually brightened as she held the steering wheel.

Anyone could see that she was excited and touched.

"Jihooo..."

"Argh! You're insane!"

A curse slipped out of my mouth on its own.

My sister had spoken in a nasal cutesy voice, and it gave me instant goosebumps.

A blood relative's cute voice was far more disgusting than I had imagined.

Whether she understood how I felt or not, my sister rattled off words with a face full of happiness.

"Can I really buy a car? Really?"

"Yeah. Buy one. You've worked hard taking care of a useless little brother all this time."

"What's useless about you? Extreme Luna... What was it again? Anyway, you're an amazing Hunter now."

"That's only now. Honestly, I only caused you trouble before. I'm paying you back, even if it's late. And you're still working hard as my manager."

"Jiho! Thank you so much!"

"Sis, the light changed. Get going. They're honking behind us."

Vrooom.

The car began moving, and my sister drove with a wide grin on her face.

She seemed thrilled by the thought of buying a new car.

I smiled faintly.

'She's this happy over something like this.'

This was only the beginning.

After Mom and Dad passed away, my sister had struggled alone for years.

I had been a useless little brother who only weighed her down.

Now that I was making a lot of money, it was only natural that my sister was the first person I looked after.

The first thing was a car.

After all, my sister was a complete car fanatic.

As I made more money, I should gradually replace things like our home and clothes too.

Of course.

'I absolutely can't let her buy a sports car.'

A sports car was far too dangerous for someone whose personality changed the moment she grabbed the steering wheel.

Just look at her now.

Vroooom!

"Sis! I told you to drive slowly!"

"Vroomie's days are numbered! We need to make some intense memories until the very end!"

"What the hell is Vroomie?"

"My car's nickname!"

Ah. Its nickname was Vroomie?

Either way, I was absolutely not buying her a sports car.

With that resolution, I headed home.

* * *

After returning home, my sister eagerly began looking at cars to buy on her computer.

When I casually looked over her shoulder, she seemed to be browsing cars from a famous German brand.

I couldn't help being surprised as I watched.

'Wow. Imported cars really are expensive. How can a compact car cost ninety million won?'

German imported cars were surprisingly common on the streets, so I hadn't thought they would be that expensive.

It seemed imported cars cost far more than I had expected.

That little car cost a whopping ninety million won...

There were really a lot of rich people in this world.

If even a compact car cost ninety million won, how expensive were the midsize imported cars that were all over the streets?

Maybe she noticed me watching from behind.

My sister rolled her eyes around before showing me the screen she had been looking at.

"Jiho, what do you think of this?"

"I don't know much about cars. Is it good?"

"Yeah. It's really good."

"It looks like a compact car... Wouldn't it be better to get something bigger? You can spend all 240 million won. You can get something even more expensive. We'll probably make several tens of millions more after going to the Tower today anyway."

"No. This is enough. Anyway... Jiho, it's okay, right?"

"Hmm..."

I looked over the appearance of the car my sister had picked.

It just looked like an ordinary compact car.

Its design was plain, and the logo belonged to a foreign car brand I often saw on the street.

The specs said things like six cylinders, 3,000cc, and 480 horsepower, but I had no idea what any of that meant.

I didn't know much about cars.

Anyway.

It looked ordinary, and the logo was from a common imported car brand.

So it wasn't a sports car.

I nodded readily.

"Okay. If you want this one, let's buy it."

"Thank you!"

My sister beamed brightly.

Seeing her so happy made me feel proud too.

It felt worthwhile to give her the gift.

Once I made more money, I would get her an even better car.

For reference, the screen my sister showed me said, “BNW M2.”

* * *

I prepared to conquer Floor 10.

I searched Hunter Gallery for “Floor 10.”

[Floor 10 guide... There isn't one?]

[Wow, a completely random map? That's too much.]

[So all we have to do is kill ten Goblin Shamans?]

[Please let me get an easy map please let me get an easy map please let me get an easy map...]

[Aren't Goblin Shamans completely unfair? How the fuck are we supposed to kill those things?]

Posts poured out one after another.

Every single one was full of confusion and irritation.

Click.

I read one post that caught my eye.

[Post Title: Floor 10 Guide... There Isn't One?]

The map is generated completely at random?

The clear condition is killing ten Goblin Shamans in a random map?

But the map generation is completely luck-based, so you could get an easy map or a hell map?

Tower of Trials, what the hell.

This isn't right, you bastard.

Goblin Shamans are already strong as hell, and now the map is completely random too? What the fuck are we supposed to do?

└For real. Floor 10 is just a luck test.

└Some people got an open-field map and had an easy time sniping them with bows, while others got maze maps and wandered around forever.

└If it was a maze, there'd be nowhere to dodge Fireballs. That sounds completely fucked. Did they clear it?

└Nope lol. They got hit by a Fireball, lost a leg, and retired.

└Wow, they still managed to survive somehow.

└Mazes are still better. The absolute worst is a straight-line map lol. There's nowhere to dodge, and they can see you coming from a mile away, so you get hit by Fireballs right away.

└This luck-based climbing is fucking garbage.

Just as the posts said.

Floor 10 was a floor with no standard strategy.

The map itself was generated completely at random, so guides had little meaning.

I muttered quietly.

"So the theme of Floor 10 is luck."

Floor 8 of the Tower of Trials emphasized a climber's “sense of responsibility,” while Floor 9 tested their “endurance” by making them face an overwhelming enemy without running away.

Then Floor 10's theme was luck.

A completely randomly generated map.

Once you killed ten Goblin Shamans, an Escape Portal would open, clearing the floor.

Depending on the map you got, the difficulty of clearing it could differ like night and day.

If you got an open-field map, you could snipe from range with a bow and run away quickly, making it somewhat easier to clear.

But if you got a cramped indoor area, it was supposedly very difficult because Fireballs were hard to dodge.

"Luck must be part of a climber's skill too."

You could be born lucky and clear it more easily.

Or you could face misfortune and overcome it through skill.

I snickered.

"After teaching us so much from Floors 1 through 9 of the Tower of Trials, the final answer is ‘luck.’ What bad taste."

It felt like the Tower was saying something.

That in the end, everything came down to luck.

Even a capable person could collapse meaninglessly without luck.

And even a useless person could survive to the end if fortune followed them.

The strong weren't the ones who survived. The survivors were the strong...

Something like that, perhaps.

Of course, none of it mattered much to me.

'No matter what map comes up, I can destroy it all.'

In the face of overwhelming power, luck became meaningless.

With the strength of an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter like me.

No matter what map appeared, I could clear it easily.

So I waited for my porter.

"Enter the Tower."

[Baek Jiho (Republic of Korea: Floor 10)]

[Na Hyeji (Republic of Korea: Floor 10)]

[Please select the floor you wish to enter.]

"Floor 10."

[Entering Tower Floor 10.]

Flash!

The conquest of Floor 10 began.

* * *

The bright glow faded.

I slowly opened my eyes.

First, I checked the surrounding terrain.

For now... it was indoors.

Torches hung along the walls, scattering dim light.

The air was damp and musty.

Looking ahead, I saw a wide-open passage.

Behind me stood the Return Portal and a tightly shut door.

[10]

The number “10” floated above the door.

Once we killed ten Goblin Shamans, that door would open and reveal an Escape Portal.

As I assessed the surroundings.

"Ah...! We're screwed! Of all things, it's a straight-line map!"

Na Hyeji stomped her feet with a worried look on her face.

A straight-line map.

It was the most unpopular map on Floor 10.

Since it was a wide-open straight path, it was difficult to approach enemies while hiding, and there were limited places to dodge Fireballs.

It was a battlefield overwhelmingly favorable to Goblin Shamans.

But it was different for me.

"What do you mean we're screwed? I was actually thinking we got lucky."

"...You think we're lucky? It's a straight-line map."

"At least we won't have to struggle to find monsters. If we just follow the path, we'll be able to kill all ten Goblin Shamans."

Open maps might be favorable for combat.

But I heard they took a long time when it came to finding monsters.

The maps were huge, and the monsters' locations changed every time you entered.

You had to scurry all over the vast map to find and kill enemies.

But straight-line maps were different.

All you had to do was walk forward, and you would encounter monsters.

For someone like me with overwhelming power, there were few battlefields this convenient.

"All right. Let's get going."

Step, step.

Hyeji and I slowly moved forward.

How long had we walked?

After what felt like a little over ten minutes, we finally found an enemy.

'Five Goblin Warriors.'

The first things I noticed were the Goblin Warriors.

They were much larger than ordinary Goblins.

Behind them stood a smaller Goblin.

It wore a drooping leather cloak.

Around its neck was a necklace made of animal teeth. It had crude tattoos and held a wooden staff in its right hand.

'A Goblin Shaman!'

My master's fellow disciple.

In other words, my senior uncle!

Senior Uncle was right there!

"Senior Uncle! Your junior, Baek Jiho, greets you!"

Tap tap tap!

I ran toward Senior Uncle with joy.

A wizard shouldn't run around without dignity...

But how could I dare keep up appearances before such a revered senior?

A junior had to act like a junior. When you saw a senior, you rushed over and gave them a proper greeting!

That was the etiquette of the martial world!

Sadly.

There were rude beings trying to interfere with my reunion with Senior Uncle.

"Kerruk? Kerruk!"

"Kerrrruk! Kerrrruk!"

"Kieeeek!"

The guards beside Senior Uncle, the Goblin Warriors.

They stepped in to interfere with the touching reunion between a senior and junior.

Unforgivable!

How dare they ruin this moving scene of a senior and junior meeting?

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

I fired Air Bullets and swiftly put holes through their foreheads.

Their brows were pierced clean through, and the Goblin Warriors collapsed while scattering blood and brains.

Their swords clattered loudly to the floor.

"K-Kerruk...?!"

Senior Uncle, who had just gripped their staff and begun preparing a spell, opened their eyes wide.

They seemed surprised that the guards had all fallen at once.

Tap!

I stood before the Goblin Shaman and held out my staff.

"Senior Uncle! Please bestow your teachings upon this junior! I want to learn new magic!"

In short, I was asking Senior Uncle to teach me something besides Fireball.

Since Senior Uncle had studied magic longer than I had, they probably knew other spells too, right?

At my request, Senior Uncle.

"Kerrrruk! Kerruk!"

Senior Uncle began preparing a spell by arranging Blue Motes.

Hummmmm...

The arrangement of the shifting Blue Motes.

It was familiar.

'A circle, a diamond inside it, then another circle... Isn't that Fireball's arrangement?'

It was a spell I already knew.

And it was crude, at that.

"Teach me something else, Senior Uncle!"

I reflexively swung my staff.

The arrangement of Blue Motes that the Goblin Shaman was manipulating scattered apart.

Then.

Fsssss...

The Blue Motes dispersed weakly before the spell could be completed.

At that moment, I realized.

'Huh? Isn't this Dispel?'

Magic nullification.

In other words, Dispel.

It was a technique fantasy novels described as possible when there was an overwhelming gap in ability between wizards.

And just now, I had easily dismantled Senior Uncle's magic.

Which meant that my skill had already surpassed even Senior Uncle, my distant great senior.

'The student surpasses the master!'

That was right.

In less than two weeks since becoming an Extreme Lunatic Hell Wizard Hunter.

I had already surpassed someone on the same level as my master!

Master in the heavens.

Are you watching?

Your disciple is growing this quickly.

I, the rising talent of the sect, will take responsibility for its future.

'Kerruk, kerruk. Kerrrruk. (Well done, Baek Jiho. You are the pride of our sect.)'

It felt as though I could hear Master's gentle voice in my head.

I lowered my gaze and looked ahead again.

"K-Kerruk...? Kerruk? Kerruk?"

Maybe they were flustered that their magic had been interrupted.

The Goblin Shaman fumbled with their staff.

I made my request again.

"Come on, Senior Uncle! Please show me another spell! I want to learn new magic!"

"Kerruk...? Kerruk? Kerrrruk???"

Step by step.

The Goblin Shaman backed away cautiously, eyes filled with fear.

Footnotes:

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