Chapter 19: Crisis in America: The Red Gate

Ding–

The next day, a message arrived early in the morning.

A photo of Pildu, whom Dohyun said was the right person.

Probably intended to get approval from our physiognomy master, Bib Teacher.

“How is it, Bbyak?”

Bbyak-bbyak?

The photo showed a burly man.

They said he was a second-generation chaebol, but the image was very different from what I had imagined.

How should I put it… he looked more like the uncle next door.

After looking at the photo, Bbyak hesitated for a moment, then flapped his wings.

A sign of approval.

Bbyak-bbyak!

The physiognomy master, Bib Teacher, who reads a person’s true nature, gave his approval.

That means he’s trustworthy.

No need to worry.

Well, after all, he’s someone Dohyun guarantees. There’s no way he’s a bad person.

– “Please take good care of things.”

He said he would talk over drinks with his friend last night, but it seems he didn’t drink until now.

Since he must be tired, I left a text instead of calling.

In no time, a reply came flying back.

– “Woo min, please stay put. We’ll handle things smoothly.”

Truly reliable.

Then, I’ll leave the business matters to Dohyun and Pildu and focus on what I have to do.

What is that?

Of course, climbing the tower.

[Entered floor 11 of the Tower.

Mission: Defeat Giant Moths 0/10

Time limit: 12 hours]

From floor 11 onward, no more slimes appeared.

Instead of round and cute monsters, only disgusting, large insect-like monsters appeared.

Their name alone was giant moth.

I already disliked them, and now they got even bigger.

It felt like looking through a microscope enlarged 200 times.

Just seeing them sent chills down my spine.

“Bbyak, Somi, Toto, take your positions.”

Each moved to their assigned roles.

The fighters, Bbyak and Toto, took the front line.

The healer, Somi, settled on my shoulder.

Why is Somi the healer?

Because while staring at the disgusting giant moths, I needed mental stability.

While stroking the fluffy Somi with one hand, the real battle began.

Well, the outcome was obviously one-sided.

[Notice] First in the world to clear the Black Tower floor 11 with an SSS rating.

[Reward] Golden Ticket acquired.

[Reward] 22 kg of Magic Stones

[Reward] 10 useful stamina recovery potions

[Reward] 50 kg of Magic Stones

[Reward] 15 g of giant moth sleep powder

[Reward] 3 random magical beast food draws

An exhilarating SSS-grade reward, as always.

Plus, the random magical beast food draws appeared.

Thanks to the recently opened shop, the rewards became even richer.

“Good job, everyone.”

A brief moment of praise.

Everyone eagerly begged to have their heads petted.

They stretched out their heads to get more attention.

It was a shame I only had two hands.

I could only pet two at a time.

Since Somi was still on my shoulder, I decided to be generous to the brothers who had just finished the fight.

Carefully, I lowered Somi to the ground.

Bbiee–

She went completely still.

Her ears drooped.

Is this the sadness of the second child?

But soon, Somi perked up.

She’s good at sharing.

Maybe she knows the feelings of the second child.

Bbyak and Toto came over and petted Somi’s head in her place.

I regretted that I was the only one seeing this scene.

We cleared floor 11, so let’s head back to the hidden plain.

Currently, we own about 4000 kg of Magic Stones.

Thanks to Seo Rin and Dohyun transferring all their personal Magic Stones, we became rich enough to buy various things.

“Everyone, take a break.”

Bbyak-bbyak!

Bbiee!

Pachi Pachi!

The three brothers answered energetically.

They were now completely a trio.

Bbyak freely flew in the sky, Somi was making something somewhere alone.

Meanwhile, the youngest Toto dug into the ground and hid acorns while scrolling through the shop’s purchase list.

The prices were brutally high.

Still, we managed to buy a few items.

“Received: Auto Feeder purchase, Automatic Water Dispenser purchase, Workbench purchase.”

A total of 3500 kg.

Most of the Magic Stones we had were flexed, but it didn’t matter.

We could always get more Magic Stones later.

Touching the shop window, the items we bought were delivered with a blue glow.

A feeder shaped like a round can on a tray about the size of a serving plate and a water dispenser.

You could tell what they were for at a glance.

They felt like automatic feeders often used for raising pets.

Opening the lid, the inside was empty.

“Do we have to put food and water here?”

Water was easy.

We could just buy drinking water and fill it up immediately.

The problem was food.

There wasn’t anything suitable to put inside.

If we put the random foods we got from the draws, the quantity was too small.

We didn’t even have enough food for the three brothers to eat ourselves; we couldn’t put it there.

So, what should we put?

Premium dog food?

Bbyak-bbyak!

Bbiee–

Pachi-pachi!

No, we should think a bit more about that.

The three brothers could eat outside anyway.

Bbyak didn’t care about anything, Somi liked all kinds of vegetables, and youngest Toto was the same.

Just one almond made him look like he owned the world.

Since we knew how to use it, I immediately checked the land we received.

Along with the blue glow appeared a patch of developed land.

About 10 meters wide and long.

A perfect size for the parents to garden for fun.

What should we plant?

Of course, lettuce, right?

I’ll ask the parents about that later.

More than that, there was one thing whose use I couldn’t understand at all.

A crafting table.

A wooden table with a hammer, tongs, and other tools on it.

The most basic workbench you see in games.

If I put my hands on it, a list would probably pop up.

Carefully, I grabbed the wooden hammer on the table.

[Craftable items]

Shoddy axe

Shoddy sickle

Shoddy toolbox

Shoddy hoe

Shoddy watering can

Shoddy fishing rod

A list of shoddily made craftables.

Why were all the craftable items so low quality?

Is it because it’s the most basic crafting table?

I should ask an expert in this area.

Who is that?

Of course, our second child, Somi.

“Somi!”

I called loudly.

From afar, she ran over with her wagging fluffy tail.

She stopped in front of me and immediately stood up.

“Somi, do you know how to use the crafting table?”

Bbiee–

Our second nodded.

As expected, a versatile McGuyver.

True to her rabbit nature, she jumped onto the table with high agility and inspected everything.

Then,

Thump thump thump–

She began to busily craft something.

She had brought some wood and small stones from somewhere, and quickly made some crude tools.

However,

“They’re so small?”

Everything was made in Somi’s size.

About the size of a finger joint.

Too small for a human to use.

Bbiee–

Somi grabbed the hammer again, looking embarrassed.

She promised to make a size that fits me?

How thoughtful.

But it’s okay, Somi.

Let’s rest first and worry about work later.

I lifted Somi up and laid her down on the plain.

Bbyak and Toto gathered one by one.

Lying under the drowsy sunlight, sleepiness began to creep in.

Since there was no place to contact anyway, might as well sleep.

I will heal in the tower today too!

***

New York, USA, the atmosphere was tense.

Police gathered, controlling traffic, while reporters delivered live updates.

“It’s been 24 hours since the Red-grade Gate appeared.”

“Team Hero was dispatched to prevent the gate from going berserk, but they failed to clear it.”

Everyone wore serious expressions.

Gate berserk phenomenon.

A recurring event where, if not prevented within 72 hours, monsters pour out.

In other words, it’s a collapse.

When that happens, it’s called a ‘Reckoning,’ and no one can stop it.

That’s why top-ranked players in the U.S. gathered to attack the gate.

Team Hero.

The largest U.S. player team composed of S-rank players.

“Mr. James, what is the current status of the raid?”

“I heard it’s a species of magical beast never seen before. Is that true? Does Team Hero have the capacity to stop this Reckoning?”

A middle-aged blonde man sat among the reporters.

It was James.

The hero born in America.

Wearing blue clothes symbolizing the American flag, with 50 stars emblazoned on his chest, flying through the sky, he resembled the Superman from movies.

The true image of an American middle-aged man.

Lush blond hair and blue eyes.

A symbol of America.

James was also the current team leader of the U.S. association.

When this gate incident occurred, he was the first to take action.

However, the results weren’t good.

“I’ll have to decline comment. Just know that Team Hero is doing their best for the people.”

James smiled awkwardly and called for the security guards.

Men in black suits rushed over and chased the reporters away.

“Phew, it’s not easy.”

James frowned as he applied a potion to his wounds.

The Red Gate.

It represented the most difficult gate that had occurred so far.

It was determined before even entering that this would be a tough raid.

But once inside, the situation was more serious than expected.

The gate boss monster was the Big Giant Frog.

A giant poisonous frog.

With immense stamina and strength, most players couldn’t even face it.

But who was Team Hero?

A player group America was proud of.

With seven A-rank players and two S-rank players deployed, it was expected they’d clear it without major problems.

However, reality was far from what they thought.

The countless baby frogs born from the Big Giant Frog and the lethal poisonous gas trapped their feet.

“James, can we do this?”

“We have to try as much as possible.”

James smiled confidently, boosting the morale of his teammates.

Showing signs of giving up means it’s all over.

Even if it’s impossible, you have to see it through.

That is the duty of a hero.

At that moment, someone called James on his phone.

“Woo, Mister Kang.”

The caller was none other than Dohyun, head of the Korean Association’s management team.

How did they know each other?

They were actually college classmates.

When the tower appeared and people began to awaken their abilities, Dohyun and James were the first graduates of the player training school established in the U.S.

– “The situation in America isn’t looking good. How are you holding up?”

“Feeling like death. The boss monster is a monster, but the damn baby frogs make it impossible to advance.”

James confided things he hadn’t told the reporters.

Not only was Dohyun trustworthy, but they were old friends, so there was no reason to hide anything.

– “How much time is left before the collapse?”

“48 hours now. We’re trying whenever stamina recovers, but there’s not enough firepower to clear the baby hordes and move forward.”

I wanted to ask Dohyun for help immediately.

Because I could personally vouch for Dohyun’s strength from their days as the top two in school.

However, Dohyun was currently retired due to injury.

Realistically, it was difficult to get help.

– “I have a good solution.”

But Dohyun spoke confidently.

There was a way to bypass the baby frogs.

– “Korea is running a new item rental business, and I think it’d be perfect for you. I guarantee its performance. If you use it, the raid could be over in half the time.”

Dohyun boasted.

What kind of item was he renting that made him say that so confidently?

– “But the price is steep. It’s not cash, but Magic Stones. About 1000 tons. Is that okay?”

1000 tons of Magic Stones.

That’s a staggering 200 billion won in cash.

But there was no time for hesitation.

The gate collapse time was slipping away.

“Got it. Rent it right now.”

James made a firm decision.

Without a single word of hesitation, he paid 1000 tons of Magic Stones.