Chapter 12: The Second Floor of D Tower

“Level 15.”

I had reached level 15. Starting from level 15, the ‘Item Shop’ becomes accessible. Just as I expected, a notification about the Item Shop availability reached my ears.

[You can now use the Item Shop.]

[It is a Tutorial-grade Shop.]

[The Item Shop at the Tutorial grade can be accessed through a ‘Mid-level Manager’.]

The so-called Mid-level Manager referred to Seniora. In system terminology, a Mid-level Manager. In our terms, a BJ. Seniora has been observantly marking and watching me all this time, just as I wanted. I have become quite the quality content.

“Seniora.”

Seniora appeared before me. It seemed like she knew why I called.

“I will explain about the Item Shop.”

There has never been an open store during the tutorial. Though I know quite well about the shop, I decided to listen to Seniora’s explanation for now.

“This is the Tutorial Field. The grade of the Item Shop has been adjusted to ‘Tutorial’, and the list of purchasable items has been limited to four.”

There wasn’t anything special about it. The Item Shop had opened.

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[Item Shop – Tutorial Grade]

1. Low-Grade Health Potion 100COIN

2. Low-Grade Mana Potion 100COIN

3. Low-Grade Healing Potion 200COIN

4. Low-Grade Safe Zone Return Scroll 3000COIN

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The Item Shop at the Tutorial grade was very restricted.

‘I can only buy four items however…’

This was enough within the Tutorial. Moreover, I had as many as 8,000 coins remaining.

“I would like to ask player Kim Hyukjin. Do you truly not have a real name?”

“It doesn’t concern you.”

What is a real name? I don’t even know what that is. At my words, Seniora’s wings fluttered once more. Still with an expressionless face, but with a voice that was half a tone higher, she retorted to me.

“I’m not particularly curious.”

She seemed quite curious actually. But I didn’t pay much attention to Seniora. I glanced once at the direction where Kwon-Ong Masanghyeon and the others had gone towards. At the end of that direction was ‘D Tower’.

‘With this…’

With the potions, it was manageable. Like when hunting the sub-boss monster ‘Goblin Soldier’, I wouldn’t need to rely on leveling shenanigans. I could hunt sufficiently just by enduring with the health and healing potions.

“Player Kim Hyukjin.”

“What?”

“You have not yet checked the title of ‘Outstanding Hunter’.”

There’s only one reason why she’s mentioning this: She wants to disclose it to the Guardians. Announcing that the player I’m broadcasting has earned such and such title. The Guardians must be curious too.

“Yeah. I’ll do it now.”

“Do you want to check your ‘Outstanding Hunter’ title now?”

“I’ll take care of it myself.”

“……”

Seniora remained expressionless.

“You look displeased? As if you were expecting me to openly activate a public display to check it?”

“I reiterate, I am not curious about you in the slightest.”

Having finished her words, Seniora became semi-transparent again, indicating her disinterest in further involvement.

‘Such an amateur.’

In ten years, the BJs will have the smooth ability to even handle ranked players. This one seems really like a beginner. In other words,

‘She’s easy to handle.’

This is good for me. For an ‘excellent play’, it’s best not to expose my information too much to the Guardians. Maintaining a certain level of mystique is most advantageous for the play. My current role is to stimulate the Guardians’ curiosity and satisfy their desires.

‘Let’s see.’

I wonder what title I received. The hidden field-based hidden monster, the Lycansrop. Normally, it is an impossible monster to hunt. I decided to check what reward I would receive for catching that thing.

‘Check.’

The title window opened.

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[Outstanding Hunter]

A special title given only on the Tutorial field.

It applies only to ‘non-sapient beings’ recognized by the system.

1) Additional damage calculation of 20%.

2) Movement speed increase by 10%.

3) Can use the skill ‘Hunter’s Strike’ – With a small chance, ignores special traits of the hunted entity.

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‘If it applies to non-sapient beings…’

It seems this applies to monsters like the Lycansrop I just hunted, Urban Wolves, and Urban Foxes. Goblins would be concerned. Most low-level monsters are covered.

‘It will definitely be useful in a low-level area.’

Monsters that are sapient usually have high levels. They are difficult to deal with. It can take a very long time to encounter them, which means the title has significant utility in a low-level area.

‘To achieve two titles in the tutorial…’

It was an unexpected harvest. In the past, nobody had accomplished this. Only when Kwon-Ong Masanghyeon received the title ‘Tutorial Finisher’.

‘I even obtained a skill.’

That skill even had an option applied to it.

‘To disregard the hunted creature’s special traits with a small probability.’

That’s fairly good, too. ‘A small probability’ is disappointing, but it means I can break through some kind of special defense capability the monster might have.

After finishing the Lycansrop hunt, I fell into contemplation. Hidden by the buildings and out of sight, but D Tower seemed clearly visible to my eyes.

“Sunhwa.”

“Yes?”

“Let’s go to D Tower.”

“Are you talking about the place where you caught the Goblin Soldier? The Tutorial Dungeon.”

“That’s right.”

To be precise, I’m going to the second floor of D Tower. Masanghyeon and his party have already gone that way. At this moment,

‘They seem to be looking around the first floor.’

They wouldn’t have gone to the second floor yet.

“Do you think, brother, you’re thinking about going up to the second floor?”

“Yeah.”

“They said it was extremely dangerous up there.”

It’s definitely dangerous. The creature on the second floor of D Tower is typically an impossible one to hunt. Even Kwon-Ong Masanghyeon regretted entering there.

“Think back to when you first met me.”

At the very beginning. At that time, this child struggled even against a baby goblin. She merely shook with fear, begging for help.

“What do you think it’d be like if you met a baby goblin now?”

Even if a horde of goblins appeared, it would be fine. If it’s about physical ability, Sunhwa is quick to understand.

“That means you, brother, have become a lot stronger, right? More than expected?”

“……”

I didn’t reply to that, and Sunhwa, with a face full of seriousness, crossed her arms and nodded to herself as if grasping the hidden truths and principles of the world, mumbling to herself.

“After all, brother is a born supergenius.”

“That’s why. I’m also a bit confused.”

My standard is that Sunhwa is a real genius. But it seems I’m more of a genius than Sunhwa. No. Looking at the current situation, I am indeed more of a genius.

D Tower. I recalled the second floor.

‘I can’t beat it in a head-on fight.’

It’s not a creature that can be tricked like the Lycansrop. Instead, it’s a very tricky creature to deal with. I intended to avoid it if possible. However, circumstances are different now. I know well about that creature. And I have calculated that I can catch it with my current abilities.

‘I have a plan.’

I’ve laid out all the plans in my head. It might be a lie to say it’s not dangerous,

‘I can do it.’

I can. There’s confidence that I can do something.

‘No. I want to accomplish it.’

A sense of achievement about wanting to accomplish something billowed up from within me. It was almost the first time I’d ever felt it in my life. There was no such thing during my days as a civil service examinee. For sure, the present me is different from the past me.

“You don’t have to come if you don’t want to. Go to the safe zone and hide.”

If everything goes as planned, if everything goes as planned, I can obtain something much larger than just surviving the tutorial. How many times have I had such an opportunity in my life?

‘Never.’

There were no opportunities. My mother passed away early. My sister had leukemia, and I was a perpetual civil exam candidate.

Now is the time to seize the opportunity.

* * *

Masanghyeon’s group had entered ‘D Tower’, the tutorial dungeon. They heard the notification of a ‘dungeon’. The word ‘dungeon’ made even Masanghyeon tense.

“What the? There’s nothing here?”

“Yeah, we were needlessly anxious.”

They felt quite. Confident they have adapted to the system.

“After all, it’s just the tutorial, right? How tough of a guy can be in there?”

Meanwhile, Masanghyeon spotted something.

‘That is…’

He approached near the ATM machine. The partition of the ATM was terribly torn. It appeared as if something with tremendous rotational force had pierced through the partition.

‘What in the world? That destructive power, I have never seen it in the outer fields.’

It gave him the creeps. That level of destructive force.

‘I might not have been able to withstand it myself.’

Masanghyeon had a hunch.

‘Someone… has already been here.’

Someone had been here and cleared the place. At least the first floor, that is.

‘Who could it have been?’

Somehow, one person came to mind. The man who had been with a young girl, leaving behind a strong impression, suddenly popped into his thoughts. For some reason, the presence of that seemingly ordinary individual had strongly etched into his memory.

That’s when someone shouted.

“Here! The escalator can be clicked on!”

It was like an RPG game. Of course, it wasn’t possible to actually use a mouse to click on it. You naturally knew at a glance. This was a ‘clickable’ object.

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[Escalator Heading to the 2nd Floor]

The main field of D Tower. An escalator heading to the second floor. Up to 15 people can move at a time.

Cooldown: 20 minutes

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Several people spoke excitedly.

“What should we do? Shall we go up to the second floor?”

They were having quite a lot of fun with the play. In other words, they somewhat had the qualities to become ‘rankers’. If they didn’t find fun in play, they couldn’t become rankers. Enjoying play was also a kind of talent. Their bodies grew hot with excitement.

“Isn’t it dangerous?”

“Except for the first and second attacks, it wasn’t so dangerous, was it?”

“But since it’s a dungeon… Soon the tutorial field will be released. I’m not sure if it’s too risky to proceed…”

Masanghyeon also fell into consideration.

‘Should I go up?’

If the goal is to survive, then it seems okay to stay put. Is it really necessary to conquer the second floor? This place seems fairly safe without any particular monster regeneration.

“What do you think, Masanghyeon-nim?”

That’s when a notification came in.

[There are 24 hours remaining until the opening of the tutorial field.]

The quest’s content changed for reasons unknown.

[The content of the tutorial quest changes.]

[Clear the tutorial dungeon.]

[If you fail to clear the tutorial dungeon, all personnel within the tutorial field will die.]

This notification was a ‘full field notification for the tutorial’. The answer was clear. Masanghyeon made his decision.

“Let’s go in.”

“That’s fine. Anyway, with Masanghyeon around, everything works out.”

Everyone except Masanghyeon had full confidence. They activated the escalator to go to the 2nd floor.

Unaware of what lay ahead. Later on, what Kwon-Ong Masanghyeon would call ‘the most regrettable thing’ was the ‘Tutorial Dungeon 2nd floor raid’ they were about to face.

Just a few minutes ago. D Tower was visible in the distance. Kang Sunhwa spoke.

“We’ve come back again.”

Kang Sunhwa had come along saying, ‘I just want to play too. I think I can be of help.’ Kang Sunhwa didn’t have the common grown-up considerations or complex thoughts. She simply followed along, vaguely thinking she could be helpful.

“Yeah.”

Kim Hyukjin himself didn’t think he would return here. D Tower at Gwanghwamun. The location where the sub-boss monster ‘Goblin Soldier’ was. They had returned there. The notification also reached them.

A full field notification for the tutorial resonated.

[The content of the tutorial quest changes.]

[Clear the tutorial dungeon.]

[If you fail to clear the tutorial dungeon, all personnel within the tutorial field will die.]

For Kim Hyukjin, the notification did not exist in what he had studied. It was also a notification of despair. If you don’t clear the tutorial dungeon, a notification that 150,000 people would perish.

Kim Hyukjin was not flustered.

‘The content has changed.’

The situation had changed. And yet,

‘It’s different that I’m here too.’

Kim Hyukjin remembered ten years ago. In the past, two people who did not exist are here now. He wasn’t particularly moved by the change in content. It was a sudden change, but he naturally accepted it.

[Enter the tutorial dungeon ‘D Tower’.]

Two people, who did not exist ten years ago, Kim Hyukjin and Kang Sunhwa, entered the tutorial dungeon.