Chapter 609: "Ahh, This is the Life."

Battle Shop Headquarters.

“So, the moment the Bull King and Balrog started fighting, the Bull King smashed Balrog’s head right away.”

“Lucky it was a virtual battle. Otherwise, Balrog would’ve gone straight to the afterlife.”

“Exactly. Who would’ve thought Battler-nim had such a fantastic power? I see him in a whole new light!”

“Haha, it’s nothing special.”

The God of Battle, Battler, and the God of Hunting, Hunt, were recounting the incident that had taken place on the Sejun Company’s full-time employee communication network.

“That Balrog sure is fearless. As the God of Valor, I should’ve witnessed that scene…”

“I’d have liked to see it myself.”

They were speaking in front of the God of Valor, Bev, and the God of Storms, Thunder.

“If you’re feeling left out, get Theo to stamp you in.”

Battler subtly prodded Bev, but—

“No way. I’m still a god, after all…”

Bev wasn’t quick to take the bait.

However—

It wouldn’t be all that bad becoming an employee, right? Plus, it’d be a chance to get close to Sejun…

Inwardly, Bev was torn, largely because of the divine artifacts that Battler and Hunt had received from Santa Sejun.

Though it was a forced arrangement, Battler and Hunt, who had cooperated with Theo, had been gifted a spear that could pierce foes by bending space and a bow that could pursue enemies across dimensions as Christmas gifts—both earning immense envy from the other gods of battle.

Naturally, Bev and Thunder were among those jealous gods.

By comparison, Bev had only received the “conversation pass” with Sejun, and Thunder had received the same with Kuengi as his Christmas gift—just a one-time chat coupon that became useless after Sejun or Kuengi reactivated the mute.

He wanted a divine artifact but didn’t want to be stamped… Ah, what a dilemma.

As Bev continued to wrestle with himself—

“I’ll do it! I’ll let Theo stamp me!”

Thunder stepped forward, declaring his desire to become a Sejun Company employee.

“I… I’ll join Sejun Company too!”

Bev found himself blurting out his own commitment.

“Hehe. Good choice. Isn’t that right, Hunt?”

“Hehe. Absolutely, both of you have made excellent decisions.”

Battler and Hunt smiled brightly as they looked at the two new recruits.

Bev, now you’re beneath me.

Thunder, you’re now my subordinate.

The hierarchy in Sejun Company was strictly based on the order of entry if the strength levels were similar.

“You won’t use your seniority to boss us around or make us do weird things just because you joined first, right?”

“Of course not! That kind of thing doesn’t exist at all in Sejun Company! Right, Hunt?”

“Yes, absolutely! There’s no such thing whatsoever!”

Since they hadn’t been stamped yet, Battler and Hunt made sure not to give any hints of the truth.

 

[Arriving on the 77th floor of the Blue Tower.]

…

…

“Hmm?”

What’s that salty smell?

A strong scent of salt filled the air.

At the same time, Sejun saw the moon high in the night sky, its reflection shimmering in the water.

Swish.

Crash.

Gentle waves could be heard lapping at the shore.

Sejun slowly took in his surroundings.

“Oh?!”

He realized he was standing on one of the many islands in a ria coastline, with waves surging forward and then retreating.

The 77th floor of the tower was an entire ocean.

“Lucky.”

If he’d arrived at a slightly different spot, he might’ve ended up in the water. Though it wouldn’t have been a problem—he could easily dry his clothes.

Just then—

Creak.

“Chairman Park! I missed you, nya!”

As the subspace storage door opened, Theo leapt onto Sejun’s face.

Squeak!

Kuengi and the Kamangi family followed right after, clinging to Sejun.

“For now, let’s get some rest and move tomorrow.”

“Hehe. Got it, nya!”

Squeak!

Squeak!

Thrilled at the prospect of rest, his companions quickly agreed.

“Raise the ground.”

Sejun used Myler’s hoe to create a shelter.

“Enlarge the crops.”

He enlarged the medicinal king oyster mushrooms to create a bed and laid out a blanket on top.

“Alright, I’ve got food ready for Bat-Bat. Now, let’s sleep.”

After setting some fruit next to the mattress for Bat-Bat, Sejun laid down with his companions in the center of the mushroom bed.

At first, Sejun’s body sank deeply into the mattress, but gradually, it found its bounce and cushioned them comfortably.

Crr.

Squeak.

Squeak.

…

…

In no time, Sejun and his companions were asleep.

And—

(Bat-Bat here. Wishing everyone a good night!)

Bat-Bat, now fully awake, began his nightly patrol.

Chomp, chomp.

After finishing the fruit Sejun had prepared, he fluttered around, checking out his surroundings. Most of the islands were rocky with little to see.

Once he’d looked around, Bat-Bat returned to Sejun’s shelter.

Swish.

Crash.

He perched on the windowsill, listening to the sound of the waves and gazing at the moon’s reflection on the water while watching over his sleeping friends below.

…!

An idea struck him.

(All alone in this silent night…)

Bat-Bat softly hummed a lullaby he’d just made up, filling everyone’s dreams with pleasant scenes.

(Lying with my head on your lap…)

“Hehe…”

It seemed that Theo, especially, enjoyed Bat-Bat’s song; he clutched Sejun’s knee with his front paws, sinking into an even deeper sleep.

Thus, the serene night on the 77th floor of the Blue Tower passed peacefully.

 

The next morning.

“Ahhh…”

Stretching with a big yawn, Sejun got up.

Then—

“Nyaa…”

Squeak…

Squeak…

He gathered his sleepy companions and took them outside for a stroll around the island to shake off their drowsiness.

“Doesn’t look like anything special here…”

The island was peaceful.

Maybe the ocean has lots of fish that our dear Vice Chairman Theo likes?

Sejun squinted, gazing into the clear blue waters, but he couldn’t spot any swimming fish.

“I’ll check the water after breakfast.”

Deciding to fill his belly before taking a dive, Sejun snapped his fingers to light a fire and began cooking.

Then—

“Hehe. Chairman Park, are you grilling my fish too?”

“Of course. A super-sized fish for the Vice Chairman.”

“Hehe. Love it, nya!”

Squeak?

[Dad, what are we eating?]

“Hehe. Today’s breakfast is soy bean stew with an ocean view.”

Squeak! Squeak!

[Love it! Kuengi’s going to mix rice with soybean stew!]

Squeak?!

[Hey, Butler! What about the Great Kamangi’s roasted sweet potatoes?!]

“Don’t worry, it’s right here. If you behave while we eat, I’ll give you two.”

Squeak! Squeak!

[Got it! The Great Kamangi will be on his best behavior!]

Theo, Kuengi, and the Kamangi family, who had just woken up, chatted with Sejun to make sure their meals were properly prepared.

After a little while.

Once breakfast was over—

“Ahhh, that’s nice.”

Sejun lay down on a sunbed, enjoying a cup of iced coffee Kuengi had prepared for him as he digested his meal.

“Time to see what’s in the water!”

The real adventure began as he got ready for a swim.

Splash.

Sejun dove into the water with his companions clinging to him, creating bubbles around their heads to help them breathe underwater, thanks to Theo’s water affinity.

This bubble helmet meant they could explore the ocean without any worries.

Sejun spent quite a while wandering the seabed.

What’s going on? Why is there nothing here?

All he saw was rock and water, with no other signs of life. There were no other living creatures besides himself.

If I could just encounter something, maybe I’d get a land deed quest… Is this a salt field?

Just as Sejun was thinking of exiting the water and exploring other islands—

“Oh?”

He spotted something black and massive moving gently with the currents.

Then—

Swoosh.

The dark object spread out like a thin thread, dispersing around him.

“What is this?”

When Sejun touched it—

[A quest has been generated.]

[Quest: Due to mutant seaweed contaminated by the energy of Destruction, the ocean creatures are in distress. Please eliminate the mutant seaweed.]

Reward: Recognized as the rightful owner of the Blue Tower’s 77th-floor seaweed farm, restoration of the marine ecosystem.

Finally, the land deed quest appeared.

This was seaweed?!

Sejun was thrilled when he saw the quest details. One of his New Year’s goals—to acquire seaweed—had come to fruition much sooner than expected.

And it wasn’t only Sejun who was excited; the mutant seaweed eagerly coiled around him, trying to eat away at his skin.

“Hehe. Nice try.”

Sejun’s <Authority: Reinforced Body> protected him, so it was useless.

“But how should I take it out?”

It would take too much effort to handle it strand by strand.

After a moment’s thought—

If it’s a marine plant, maybe it’ll die if I pull it onto land?

Grasping the seaweed wrapped around his body, he swam to the shore and climbed onto the beach.

[You have eliminated Mutant Carnivorous Seaweed.]

[You have gained 10 experience points.]

…

…

As soon as they reached land, the seaweed instantly shriveled and died.

“Well, that was easy.”

Sejun felt a little let down, as he’d considered using fire.

Once he figured out how to get rid of the seaweed—

“Go, Mukbupal!”

Swoosh!

[Yes! Muk Ink Splitter!]

Sejun had Mukbupal lure the seaweed, which the team then skimmed off the surface and dealt with.

After about five hours of harvesting the seaweed—

[You have completely eliminated the mutant seaweed.]

[Quest complete.]

[Quest rewards: Restoration of marine ecosystem, recognition as the rightful owner of the Blue Tower’s 77th-floor seaweed farm.]

With that, the quest was complete.

Meanwhile, Sejun rinsed the dead seaweed in water, spread it thinly over flat rocks, and left it out in the sun to dry.

While he was engrossed in preparing the seaweed—

“Hehe.”

Theo clung to Sejun’s lap, savoring a peaceful moment.

Squeak!

[Kuengi caught something!]

Squeak!

[Brother! The Great Kamangi caught one too!]

Kuengi and the Kamangi family, now free from the seaweed menace, played with clams they found in the sand.

At that moment—

Squeak!

Kuengi’s belly rumbled, signaling lunchtime.

“It’s already time for lunch?”

Hearing Kuengi’s stomach alarm, Sejun headed to the kitchen area.

Squeak! Squeak!

[Dad! Kuengi and Kamangi caught these clams! We want to eat them!]

Kuengi handed Sejun the clams they’d gathered.

“Oh! These are short-neck clams?”

With the clams as inspiration, Sejun instantly settled on the lunch menu.

A refreshing short-neck clam noodle soup to enjoy by the sea.

“And how about some seafood pancakes with a glass of samyangju? Ah, perfect.”

His plan was complete.

He quickly prepped the clams, kneaded the dough for the noodles, prepared the broth, made fresh kimchi, and stirred up a batter for the seafood pancakes, adding squid and other ingredients before frying them up.

Soon after—

“Everyone, lunch is ready!”

He called his companions to the table.

“Alright, cheers!”

Sejun raised a glass filled with samyangju.

“Hehe, cheers!”

Theo held up a glass filled with his favorite cat treats,

Squeak! Squeak!

[Cheers!]

Kuengi held up a glass of honey water,

Squeak! Squeak!

[Cheers!]

Kamangi lifted his own glass of sweet potato milk, and they all clinked glasses with Sejun’s.

Then—

Gulp.

After downing his samyangju, Sejun took a spoonful of the noodle soup broth.

“Ahh.”

The spicy, refreshing broth soothed his throat and stomach.

Slurp.

He took a big bite of noodles, then a piece of seafood pancake.

The mix of green onion fragrance and chewy squid filled his mouth with flavor.

Gulp.

Then, he took another sip of samyangju.

“Ahh, this is the life.”

Perhaps because he was by the sea, he felt more relaxed and noticed he wasn’t getting tipsy.

Gulp.

In high spirits, Sejun polished off five shots of the strong samyangju before finally exceeding his limits and drifting off to sleep.

“Hehe.”

Squeak! Squeak!

His companions also found cozy spots on his body and joined him for an afternoon nap.

While Sejun and his friends slept, the seaweed continued drying in the sun and sea breeze.

Then—

“Vice Chairman Theo, I’ve brought the new hires!”

Battler arrived in Theo’s dream world, accompanied by Bev and Thunder.