Chapter 19: Toward the Wall of Death

[Breaking News] I Bojun Successfully Clears Floor 58 of the Chaos Tower!

An unexpected breaking news alert.

Ranking number one, I Bojun has cleared Floor 58.

In an instant, the entire nation of South Korea was abuzz.

[Attention]

“This just in! I Bojun, who was known to be in a slump, has just succeeded in clearing Floor 58 of the Chaos Tower—.”

A live news broadcast.

[The Spectacular Return of the #1 Ranked Player!]

[Breaking the Slump by Conquering Floor 58 of the Tower! I Bojun Has Returned.]

Online articles.

[I Bojun Cleared Floor 58???]

[Where Did All Those Who Called the #1 Ranked Player Washed-up Go? LOLLLLL]

Even posts across various communities.

All about the same topic.

‘People’s reactions?’

[???????]

[He cleared it??? Just like that?]

[Wait, isn’t Floor 58 the highest floor?]

[What???]

Shock and questions.

[Sounds like fake news LOLLLL]

[No, it’s an official announcement from the Management Bureau]

[But didn’t they say he had no weapon???]

[What? How did he manage???]

‘How did this happen all of a sudden?’

He was definitely in a slump just yesterday…

The news was pouring in nonstop.

And now suddenly he cleared Floor 58?

‘Without a weapon?’

Then, additional news came in.

[Breaking] The new weapon used by I Bojun to clear Floor 58 is reported to have been crafted by the Labor Management Office Head.

[Successful Comeback: We Looked Into the Route Through Which #1 Ranked I Bojun Obtained His Weapon.]

[I Bojun: “The Labor Management Office Head Saved Me.”]

[I Bojun and Baek Hwarang Set New Consecutive Records Using Weapons Made by the Mysterious Labor Management Office Head!]

— [What, again the Labor Management Office Head?]

— [That name’s been heard a lot lately.]

— [Nobody knows what he looks like or who he really is.]

— [But now everyone nationwide knows that name—the Labor Management Office Head.]

This time, the spotlight was even stronger.

— [He keeps making top-tier weapons one after another. Is that even possible?]

— [LOL, that’s his own profession, yet after making a weapon for use on Floor 20, he couldn’t make anything for a whole month;;]

— [Who is this guy anyway?]

— [No idea. But one thing’s for sure—if you get equipment from him, it’s a jackpot.]

His weapons break all known limits.

Two players have already benefited.

And those two are ranked players clearing the highest floors of the Tower.

If you could entrust your gear to him?

— [That would be a life-changer.]

— [Exactly.]

‘Don’t know who he is?’

‘What does it matter?’

He makes weapons like that…

— [I’m sending a Request right away, yeah!]

— [Please accept mine too…]

— [Me too…]

And within just one day?

Even more astonishing news.

[Baek Hwarang Successfully Clears Floor 54!]

Baek Hwarang, who had been stuck at Floor 53 for over half a year, keeps climbing.

And then.

[I Bojun Successfully Clears Floor 59!]

He, too, had been stuck for quite some time but just moved up one more floor.

— [???]

— [What the heck is going on…?]

— [Baek Hwarang is impressive, but what’s with I Bojun???]

Now that he’s cleared Floor 59, Floor 60 awaits.

What does that mean?

— [Just one more floor and we catch up to Russia?]

— [Then we’ll enter the ranks of the five great powers???]

— [If we clear one more floor and stop, we become the 6th great power,]

— [If we go further, surpass Russia and join the top 5 great powers,]

— [Joining the five great powers is within reach.]

‘Is this really happening?’

‘But the problem is…’

— [But it’s tough, right? Floor 60 is brutal.]

— [Yeah, it’s called the Wall of Death for a reason LOLLL]

— [True, only five countries in the world have passed that…]

— [I Bojun will definitely need a lot of prep…]

[The Wall of Death, Floor 60. How Many Months Will It Take? Experts Weigh In.]

It’s not easy.

At least a few months of preparation needed.

Not just online users, even reporters share the same opinion.

But?

[Breaking News] I Bojun Declares He Will Clear Floor 60 Tomorrow.]

‘He says he can do it.’

‘He declares his challenge to Floor 60.’

‘No way…’

‘Can it really happen?’

‘Just by changing one weapon?’

Nah, no way.

***

[South Korea’s I Bojun Crushes Floor 59 of the Chaos Tower! Announces Challenge to Floor 60! Joining the Five Great Powers Is Within Sight!]

The whole of Korea is celebrating.

Meanwhile, the Russian Awakening Management Bureau in Moscow?

It was obviously a funeral atmosphere.

“Ha…”

The Russian Management Bureau Director, Yegor, sighed deeply.

After a pause, he finally spoke.

“I’m pretty sure they said this was an absolutely impossible failure… Am I remembering wrong?”

“Ah, no!”

Right.

He remembered it clearly.

“But how did this happen?”

“Well…”

“The Korean #1 ranked player got a weapon from them? Okay, that’s possible.”

“Clearing Floor 58? Hmph… okay, that’s fine too.”

“It’s been half a year; it’s about time he moved up.”

But…

“Floor 60, huh…”

Trying Floor 59?

‘Does that make sense?’

We thought no way…

[South Korea’s I Bojun Crushes Floor 59 of the Chaos Tower!]

He succeeded.

And now, he’s about to challenge Floor 60?

No.

He confidently said he could clear it…

That dumb guy has no countermeasures at all.

“What about Alexei?”

“He’s still stuck on Floor 61.”

“Any chance?”

“…Sorry, no.”

At this rate, it’s just a matter of time before they catch up.

No choice.

We need a change in approach.

“Labor Management Office Head? We have to recruit that guy.”

Bring him to Russia.

If not possible, at least get a weapon from him.

We have to do something or we’ll get overtaken.

That kind of disaster must be prevented.

“Can we recruit him? I heard even Koreans don’t know who he really is.”

Ha.

Pathetic.

‘Is that even a question?’

If he weren’t some parachute hire…

“That guy also takes Requests for dungeons. As soon as we hear he accepted one, monitor that dungeon’s vicinity 24/7 with full surveillance.”

“Ah…!”

Now they understand.

That’s it.

First confirm who he is, then make a plan accordingly.

***

[Breaking News] I Bojun Declares He Will Clear Floor 60 Tomorrow.]

“Oh, going straight to Floor 60? Our client is bold.”

The Labor Management Office Head, Yoon Hajun, currently?

Proudly watching the internet.

“Rani, come watch too!”

“Wow, she can read Korean.”

Looks fun?

Everyone wants to watch.

Yeah.

Let’s watch together.

“I heard both of them are doing great with the sword Rani made.”

“Heh—!”

“Hwalhwal’s great too!”

Uh…

Requests have been pouring in nonstop.

Even though he posted on the board that he’s not accepting any more production Requests for the time being—.

— [“Please just accept these last few.”]

— [“Sir, if you make this one sword, I’ll respect you forever.”]

— [I really want to clear Floor 30 ㅠㅠㅠ]

Comments exploded on that post as well.

Ugh…

No choice but to take drastic measures.

[Not Accepting Requests]

‘What about the Requests already piled up?’

All rejected.

Of course, those already accepted have to be completed.

So…

“Today I need to clear the A-rank Dungeon I accepted earlier. Arthur, can you really go alone?”

“Right! With Hwalhwal, I can!”

“Don’t push yourself too hard.”

“Piece of cake!”

Yeah!

Feeling confident.

Alright, let’s go.

[Request List]

— [A-rank Dungeon, Queen Spider’s Labyrinth]

— [A-rank Dungeon, Giant Golem’s Fortress]

‘Which one first?’

Glance over, then decide.

“Let’s go to the upper one first. We have to clear both anyway.”

“Sounds good!”

Arthur agrees.

‘Shall we go?’

[Worker Dispatched]

[Dungeon]

[Queen Spider’s Labyrinth – Enter A-rank Dungeon?]

No way.

“Safe! Good! Good! Good!”

“Yeah—!”

That suspiciously accurate pronunciation belongs to the one going.

‘But why is Rani copying him?’

‘Are you coming along too?’

“Great! This looks fun!”

Fair.

It’s ridiculously addictive.

I get an itch just hearing about it…

Still.

“Rani stays here. Arthur, go. Finish up quickly and come back for coffee.”

“Coffee? Nice!”

[Worker enters the dungeon.]

[Automatic Hunting started.]

Okay.

Arthur enters.

We…

“Let’s watch.”

“Yeah!”

At least, we have to monitor A-rank dungeons.

You never know.

“Hwalhwal too!”

“True.”

Agreed.

‘Last time?’

We barely saw anything.

The enemies were just too weak.

This time should be different.

[Monitoring]

Let’s see.

Before, Arthur struggled alone with the A-rank dungeon.

Now, with the new sword Hwalhwal…

‘How will it go?’

Watching with anticipation—

“Wow, insane…”

[Queen Spider’s Labyrinth.]

A dungeon full of spider webs, as the name suggests.

”Set them on fire?’

Of course.

“Hwalhwal burns it all.”

“Yeah! That’s why it’s called Hwalhwal!”

No it’s not.

‘Then Stingy is really Stingy?’

Anyway.

It burns well.

‘Just the webs?’

Nope.

Kye!

A spider the size of a large dog charges viciously.

Flare!

The fire catches there too.

Arthur just flicks his hand and—

Swoosh—!

One down.

“Totally different.”

***

This feels like clearing a C-rank dungeon, not an A-rank.

The boss, Queen Spider, is the same.

Kye!

Large, with poison-tipped claws and fangs glistening.

Looks terrifying, but…

Arthur slashes down.

Flare!

The sword blazes up, slicing the spider in half.

“That’s the Heat Blade!”

“Ah, that special skill?”

“Yeah!”

[Dungeon cleared.]

[Automatic Hunting ended.]

[Clear time – 00:13:39]

Wow…

Last time when I went with Robin, a top-tier player, it took 15 minutes.

‘Arthur alone did it in 13 minutes?’

“That’s crazy.”

One weapon makes such a difference?

“Hwalhwal! So good!”

“Rani made it!”

“Lucky charm!”

“Rani’s a lucky charm!”

No, the weapon Rani made must be different.

Ranking #1 and #2 are also cruising thanks to Rani’s weapons.

But…

If even an advanced player like Arthur does this well, what about Robin?

“Rani, do you still have materials left?”

“Yeah! Tons!”

Right.

Our top client, I Bojun, sent plenty.

“Rani, make weapons?!”

“Hmm… I do need a bow for Robin.”

“Good!”

He’s rushing off to start making it.

No, no.

Not now.

“Let’s rest today. We’ve been busy lately.”

And tomorrow we’re moving.

Once we move into the bigger place, let’s make stuff with full energy.

***

The Labor Management Office Head’s A-rank dungeon clear.

There’s one place that’s been eagerly waiting for this news.

Moscow.

“Labor Management Office Head cleared an A-rank dungeon?”

Unbelievable.

‘What kind of country is South Korea?’

They casually make weapons for the world’s top-ranked players.

And now they clear A-rank dungeons in a snap.

“Thirteen minutes and 39 seconds? Is that even a legit record?”

[Russia’s #1 ranked Alexei.]

He’s stuck on Floor 61 but has cleared A-rank dungeons before.

Usually takes three or four hours.

‘But thirteen minutes…?’

At this point, doubts start creeping in.

“Ha…!”

The Labor Management Office Head, that guy.

‘Can we really control him if we find him?’

‘What can we tempt him with?’

Gear?

‘He makes it all himself…’

Money?

‘Would money even matter when clearing an A-rank dungeon in thirteen minutes?’

“No.”

Let’s be realistic.

Negative thoughts can wait until after we meet him.

“So, what kind of guy is he?”

“Well…”

“Stop stalling and tell me.”

“We haven’t found him.”

“What?”

No way.

‘We told them to monitor with airtight surveillance 24/7 and they failed?’

“No! We reported full surveillance. We checked all footage…”

“Still no sign?”

“Yes…”

Impossible.

There are two possibilities.

Either the watchers were careless, or the Labor Management Office Head pulled some trick.

‘Teleportation?’

Stealth?

No way.

He would have been visible the moment he entered the dungeon.

“What the hell…”

He can’t have entered the dungeon remotely either.

Ha.

It’s maddening.