Lee Ji-soo stopped the entrance test and immediately came out of the Tower. After reporting to Kim Jeong-bin about the crazy human, she went straight to her quarters, drew a half-bath, and cracked open a can of beer.
‘This is madness.’
She tried to put the day’s experiences behind her with her own unique way of healing.
Voom!
Her smartphone vibrated. Even when the name ‘Chief Secretary’ appeared as the caller, she didn't think much of it. On the contrary, she was certain.
‘He must have realized I was right.’
That Kim Jeong-bin would apologize the moment she answered the phone. - Ms. Lee Ji-soo, please prepare for a hunt.
"What did you say?"
Hearing Kim Jeong-bin's sudden words, Lee Ji-soo spoke in a tone of disbelief.
"Excuse me, Chief Secretary. Have you been drinking?"
Although she was well-regarded in the Comet Guild, it was not something one should say to Kim Jeong-bin, the real power within the Comet Group who could even place his own people over the Comet Guild's master. In other words, that was how dumbfounded Lee Ji-soo was. - I do not drink.
And the current situation is more serious than you think, Ms. Lee Ji-soo. At that point, Lee Ji-soo considered it.
‘Fuck it, I’ll just hand in my resignation letter.’
She decided to just leave the Comet Guild. She had dedicated most of her Hunter life to this place, but she hadn't dedicated it to play the clown in such a ridiculous situation. - Ms. Lee Ji-soo. This is not something I can discuss over the phone, so I cannot give you the details.
Please come to the location I sent you.
"Excuse me." - Ms. Lee Ji-soo.
But the moment Kim Jeong-bin’s voice changed, Lee Ji-soo realized. - This is a request. Please follow my orders.
‘This is not a joke.’
Something had happened. At that, Lee Ji-soo no longer showed her temper. She quickly finished her bath and headed to the location Kim Jeong-bin had sent.
And the moment she arrived there.
"Huh? Supervisor!"
"Noona? What brings you here?"
The moment she saw the five Hunters already there, Lee Ji-soo couldn't help but be surprised.
‘He’s gathering the 1st floor specialists?’
The people greeting her had remained at level 10 for at least two years. In other words, they were the 1st floor specialists the Comet Guild kept solely for the purpose of clearing the missions on the 1st floor of the Tower. Though they were level 10, their abilities and value were by no means cheap.
Far from being cheap, they were like national assets. In fact, there were at least ten instances where the nation of South Korea had overcome a crisis thanks to the 1st floor specialists of the Comet Guild.
"Why is everyone here? Where are your other party members?"
"The Chief Secretary only called for me."
What's more, these people were originally party leaders who led nine other companions. He gathered only the leaders? By then, everyone, including Lee Ji-soo, knew.
‘He’s planning something on the 1st floor.’
The reason for gathering the 1st floor specialists couldn't possibly be to say, "Thank you for all your hard work. Let’s all get together for a company dinner! The meal will be on the corporate card!"
‘Something incredibly dangerous.’
By the time nine people, including Lee Ji-soo, had gathered, Kim Jeong-bin finally appeared. Kim Jeong-bin spoke briefly.
"We are going to hunt the Floor King."
"The Floor King?"
"If you defeat the Floor King, that floor will be conquered. That is all I can explain."
It was a very short explanation, with no head or tail, but everyone, including Lee Ji-soo, understood.
‘My god.’
They couldn't know the details, but they knew that a mission capable of changing the very concept of the Tower had appeared.
"This is dangerous work. That is why I have summoned you all. I believe that the nine of you here can solve any mission on the 1st floor."
At that, Lee Ji-soo opened her mouth.
"Who is the other one?"
The maximum number of people who could enter the 1st floor was ten.
"The one who acquired the Ticket to Challenge the Floor King."
As he spoke, Kim Jeong-bin looked into Lee Ji-soo’s eyes, and from his gaze, she had a premonition.
‘Crazy!’
She knew who that one person was. Another person, the Hunter Lee Do-seong, who did not know this fact, asked a question.
"Who is he?"
"For security reasons, I cannot reveal his name. And even if you happen to find out, pretend you don't know."
"Pretend we don't know?"
In response to the question, Kim Jeong-bin took out a document and said.
"This is an order from the Guild Master."
It was a document bearing the signature of Baek Ah-rin, the master of the Comet Guild and the swordsman whose skill was second only to the Tyrant of the Comet Guild. The moment they saw it, everyone shut their mouths. Guild members obey the orders of the Guild Master.
That was the most important rule of the Guild.
"Then when do we depart?"
Instead, they asked a different question, and to that question, Kim Jeong-bin answered.
"We will depart as soon as the item selection is finished."
There was a saying among the Hunters of the Tower. Skills are good, but items are a jackpot. That was how important skills and items were to Hunters, and among them, the most important was the item.
Anyone who had played a few games could understand the importance of items without needing a long explanation. Needless to say, the value of items from the Tower, especially weapons and armor, was beyond words. Even Red Grade, or common grade, items were traded for sums in the tens of millions.
When it came to Orange Grade, or rare grade, the price surpassed the hundred-million mark. From Yellow Grade, or unique grade, they were rarely traded for money, and from Green Grade, it was correct to assume that they were not traded at all. They had to be considered national treasures.
Naturally, even a prominent Guild did not possess many items of Yellow Grade or lower.
"This is a list of Yellow Grade items under level 9. Do you have a preferred type of weapon?"
And now, the Comet Guild was about to lend one of those precious yellow items to Park Jin-soo. It was a very exceptional act, which in other words, meant that Kim Jeong-bin was taking this situation very seriously. Of course, for Park Jin-soo, it was different.
‘Looks like something big is underway.’
From Park Jin-soo's perspective, he could immediately tell that this Ticket to Challenge the Floor King was a tremendous item. He hadn't lived his life without at least that much sense. However, his deliberation was not deep.
‘Well, it’s obvious what I have to do anyway.’
Whether it was a big deal or not, knowing that didn't change Park Jin-soo's situation.
‘I have to kill that thing called the Floor King.’
He was a prisoner, his life was currently in the hands of the Comet Guild, and the only way for him to be recognized for his value was to smash monster heads in the Tower. So, there was only one thing to consider now.
"Do you have any hammers or axes?"
"A hammer or an axe, you say? Not a sword or a spear?"
"Yes, I've almost never used something like a sword. Except for cutting Achilles tendons or sinews. Ah, please pretend you didn't hear that.
Anyway, I'm using an axe now, but I'm also good with a hammer. Both are useful in a real fight. The hammer is surprisingly useful.
If you hit someone hard in the head with this, even a weak woman can easily crack the head of some damned tattooed gangster pig. It's much more useful than things like pepper spray.
That's why the government should provide subsidies for self-defense hammers and distribute them to the elderly and weak, but instead they're just handing out things like whistles, tsk tsk."
"There are no axes, but there is one hammer."
"Oh!"
And the Comet Guild had one Yellow Grade item of the type Park Jin-soo wanted.
"Is it one of those huge hammers you have to hold with two hands?"
"No. It's larger than a hammer used for nailing, but small enough to be used with one hand. You can think of it as being a similar size to the axe you are currently using."
"Then I'll take that one. For the rest of the armor, please find something suitable. As light as possible, please."
The moment the item selection was finished, a call came from Kim Jeong-bin. - All preparations are complete. I have formed the team.
"That's a relief. But I have one thing to ask." - They are all trustworthy and skilled individuals.
And they have no criminal records whatsoever. There will be no unnecessary incidents.
"Phew, that's a relief. I want to fix this personality of mine, but as you know, it's not easy to fix something like this, is it? Even the profilers and psychiatrists who saw me said it was a lost cause." - You don't have to fix it.
"Hearing you say that makes me feel at ease. So, do we just meet up and tear the ticket together now?" - Yes.
But there is a process. You, Park Jin-soo, will enter the Tower with your identity concealed.
"My identity?"
Park Jin-soo didn't question that condition much.
"Well, if it were me, and someone told me to enter the Tower with a serial killer, I'd report them first."
It was perfectly normal for Hunters who had lived honestly to feel repulsed at the idea of working with a criminal like Park Jin-soo. - It's more than that. Your personal safety has become too important now, Park Jin-soo. If your identity becomes known, your life will be in danger.
Hunters can only use their abilities inside the Tower. Of course, the measures Kim Jeong-bin took were for Park Jin-soo's sake.
"I know that what you have achieved is a threat from the perspective of other nations."
"Ms. Lee Ji-soo? Ah, the Supervisor?"
At the mention that Lee Ji-soo was included in the team, Park Jin-soo's face brightened. - However, you have nothing to worry about. You may not know about the others, but as for her, you can trust her in any situation.
"I know. The way she utterly despises me makes her seem like the most trustworthy person. By the way." - Yes.
"Listening to you, it feels like you're telling me not to trust anyone but Ms. Lee Ji-soo."
To that question, Kim Jeong-bin said. - Park Jin-soo, just come back alive. By any means necessary. Your life is more important to me than anyone else's. At those words, Park Jin-soo didn't hesitate any longer.
"Yes."
Someone once said. History is made in an instant. The same was true for this historic moment, the departure to hunt the Floor King, a being that had never been defeated in the five years since the Tower appeared.
The time it took from Kim Jeong-bin contacting the 1st floor specialists, including Lee Ji-soo, to the arrival of the items Park Jin-soo had chosen—that is, the time it took for all preparations to be completed—was just over four hours. And the moment the preparations were finished, the entry began immediately.
"Greetings."
Park Jin-soo, who appeared wearing a mask, showed the Ticket to Challenge the Floor King to everyone and spoke.
"I look forward to working with you."
Rip!
With that brief greeting, Park Jin-soo immediately tore the ticket, and at that moment, the figures of the ten people, including Park Jin-soo, disappeared. Their world changed. The world that had been filled with electric light changed to darkness.
‘Ah!’
Just like that, everyone entered a world of deep night, where only a single full moon shone brightly. In that moment, everyone realized.
‘Night!’
That this job was no ordinary matter.
‘How!’
And for good reason. In the Tower, except for a few very special floors, it was always a bright space. There was no place where night fell.
[You have entered the Floor King's domain.]
At that moment, a notification was delivered to everyone.
[To see the Floor King, you must defeat 100,000 goblins.]
[A Return Mission has been issued.]
[Defeat 99,999 goblins!]
And the moment they heard the given mission, everyone's mind went blank.
‘What is this!’
They had expected the difficulty to be high, but wasn't this in the realm of impossible, not just high? It was enough to make even the 1st floor specialists terrified.
"Everyone."
The one who brought them back to their senses was Lee Ji-soo.
"Focus. We are Hunters. We are those who hunt."
At her words, everyone's gaze changed. Faith appeared in their wavering eyes.
‘As expected of Noona.’
‘We just have to trust the Supervisor.’
It was none other than Lee Ji-soo who had selected these specialists during their entrance tests. It was the same for Park Jin-soo.
‘Her experience is on another level.’
He could feel the party uniting around Lee Ji-soo, and that fact made Park Jin-soo feel secure. That was why.
"Excuse me."
Park Jin-soo carefully approached Lee Ji-soo and asked.
"I have something to ask."
"…Yes, go ahead."
In this situation, Lee Ji-soo no longer excluded Park Jin-soo or anything of the sort.
"Only you know my identity, Ms. Lee Ji-soo, right?"
"Yes."
"Then there's no one here who would hold a particular grudge against me, right? Since they don't know me. Is that correct?"
"A grudge?"
"Yes, someone who holds a grudge strong enough to want to tear me to pieces."
"What are you talking about?"
It was at that moment. Park Jin-soo, he picked up the hammer embedded with a yellow gem and brought it down on the foot of the Hunter Kim Jae-byeong, who was nearby.
"Kuaaaack!"
Kim Jae-byeong, who couldn't avoid the sudden attack, let out a scream, and to that screaming Kim Jae-byeong, Park Jin-soo said.
"Why are you trying to kill me?"