In the underground bunker’s meeting room of the government-led Emergency Response Committee,
The President, the Director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), and other key figures were seated as commands and reports were exchanged in real-time.
“How is the protection of major players proceeding?”
“There are currently no signs of additional provocations or terrorist activities.”
“There have been no casualties among S-rank and A-rank players, but all personnel have evacuated their residential areas and are currently under the protection of security teams in safe houses.”
“I see.”
The scale of the damage was relatively small compared to the sophistication and planning of the terrorism.
This was because the targets were precisely narrowed down to players.
There were some civilian casualties, but most were the immediate families of the attacked players.
“It’s tragic.”
Had they used their tools for indiscriminate slaughter, the loss of life would have been on a different scale.
Even so, the number of deaths was far from insignificant.
“As of now, 78 players have been confirmed dead. Additionally, 41 civilian deaths have been recorded, and when factoring in severe and minor injuries, the total damage is expected to rise.”
“Was this an attack with clear intent?”
“Given that it focused on specific targets, it was a meticulously planned terrorist attack prepared over a long period.”
They deliberately avoided targeting S-rank and A-rank players, who are typically under heavy security.
The primary targets were B-rank and C-rank players, who live in ordinary homes without bodyguards or security personnel.
“We’ve secured CCTV footage of the attackers and identified the terrorists, but…”
The NIS Director, briefing directly, bit his lip lightly, his uneasy eyes wavering.
“There’s no confirmation of North Korean agents, and it’s been confirmed that the attackers were players within Korea.”
“What did you say?”
Everyone was stunned by the unexpected information.
“Not disguised as Koreans, but Korean players killing other Korean players?”
“Yes. Shockingly, that’s the case. Based on video records and identity checks, these are Korean players with no ties to North Korea.”
The room let out a collective gasp.
“The officially registered domestic players involved in this terrorism number 12… with an additional 6 unregistered players from the domestic underground and 3 Chinese hitmen, totaling 21 individuals involved.”
“Chinese hitmen? There must be a force supplying them with money and weapons.”
The NIS agent swallowed hard before responding.
BAM!
“Shockingly, analysis of the firearms and ammunition revealed untraceable origins—”
The President slammed the desk in fury.
He had thought the moment for retaliation had arrived, only for his expectations to be cruelly dashed.
“Does that make sense?! Are you saying the firearms and bullets just sprouted from the Magic Tower?!”
“Shockingly, that’s the conclusion of the NIS, the Player Management Office, and CSI, Your Excellency…”
At that, everyone’s eyes widened.
Firearms and ammunition produced worldwide are assigned unique serial numbers.
Even if they were made secretly without numbers, analysis isn’t difficult.
By examining the materials or components of the firearms, or even the bullet’s composition, it’s possible to roughly determine where, how, and when they were made.
“Forensic analysis… even after dozens of cross-checks, confirms this. We considered internal errors and collaborated with the U.S. for analysis, but the conclusion is that these were not made in any factory on Earth.”
“They made weapons in the Magic Tower… and used them in reality?”
“That’s not all, Your Excellency. While the investigation isn’t conclusive yet, there’s a high probability that summoned beings were used to involve Korean players in this crime.”
At that, the senior cabinet members collectively furrowed their brows.
They weren’t unaware of the implications.
“Are you talking about psychological manipulation summons… and their backers are North Korea?”
“Tracing the motive, that’s likely, but shockingly, Japan is a prime suspect.”
“Japan? I can’t understand it. Why would they support terrorism?”
“It’s possible there was collaboration between North Korea and Japan—”
The President shook his head.
“Not a single thing is certain! Nothing is clear! Over a hundred of our citizens, including players, were brutally killed by terrorists, and we can’t even clearly identify the masterminds! Do you realize how incompetent this looks?!”
The NIS Director bowed his head, continuing as if to explain himself amid the President’s outburst.
“It’s clear that this is an organized crime involving multiple forces—”
“Even a passing dog would know that! How could a large-scale terrorist attack like this be the work of a mere domestic terrorist group?!”
Given that two player rental apartments were targeted and individual players’ homes were attacked with gunfire, it was highly likely that the terrorists had spent a long time selecting targets and gathering information.
The President waved his hand dismissively, as if tired of the inconclusive discussion.
“What about the captured prisoner?”
“The interrogation results… point to Japan as the mastermind.”
“And any connection to North Korea?”
“Nothing specific has been uncovered.”
“This is driving me insane. The terrorist mentioned Japan, but there’s no evidence?”
“…The player is indeed a Korean-born awakened player. He has no record of traveling abroad, let alone to Japan.”
“Through special drugs and interrogation, we extracted all his records and memories, but there’s no evidence of contact with specific individuals. It’s as if he was enthralled or had related memories completely erased.”
At that, everyone expressed confusion and frustration.
“If we push forward with this level of evidence, claiming North Korea and Japan are behind it, we could face backlash, Your Excellency.”
The President nodded.
“We must find the summoned being behind this. They’re surely hiding within Korea.”
After a brief pause, the President nodded again.
“In that case, we have no choice but to deploy our asymmetric forces to apply pressure.”
“…You mean?”
“Mobilize domestic S-rank and A-rank summons, including Hana. I also authorize conquering the Japan Magic Tower through Hana.”
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
“We’ll show them. The unprecedented power of Hana, an asymmetric force in the player world.”
The nation entered a period of mourning, and a national address revealed the investigation results regarding the terrorism’s masterminds.
The address didn’t explicitly state that North Korea and Japan were suspected as the masterminds.
However, it deliberately mentioned suspicious circumstances involving North Korea and an unprecedented request for Japan’s cooperation, leaving a meaningful implication.
That day, North Korea responded with a provocative official statement.
The Korean government answered by deploying 15 Magic Tower re-entry tickets, breaking records by climbing the Kaesong Magic Tower to Floor 15 in one go.
The top raiding team, originally set to conquer the Suseo Magic Tower, formed a joint expedition and climbed 15 floors in Paju with fury, implicitly signaling that they could sweep the hidden rewards and major rewards of their Magic Tower at any time.
Magic Tower re-entry tickets and potions, high-value consumables, were sometimes prioritized for purchase by guilds and nations worldwide over magic stones.
Since North Korea couldn’t afford to expend such resources to climb the Magic Tower, it was a pressure tactic to make them back down.
Over the two days as the situation settled,
Choi Junseok’s status window had changed as follows:
Name: Choi Junseok
Affiliation: Korea
Level: LV.53
Trait Skills: [Appraisal] [Magic Stone Detection] [Summon Ally]
General Skills: Inventory Summon, Magic Tower Entry (Once per day), Summon Ally
As those two days passed and the situation stabilized,
Choi Junseok consecutively cleared Floors 17, 18, and 19 of the Suseo Magic Tower.
Of course, they were record-breaking clears, and clearing Floor 18 earned him an additional bonus reward box for five consecutive fastest clears.
The reward obtained there was a Skill Breakthrough Ticket.
As expected, using the breakthrough ticket on himself added a new ability to Choi Junseok.
Skill: Inventory Master
Category: Non-combat
Rank: F-rank
Description:
- Can equip all bags, which become inventoried upon equipping.
- Optimizes space utilization.
- Can remotely summon items from the inventory.
- Can summon multiple items from the inventory
simultaneously. - Can rotate items in the inventory upon summoning.
(NEW)
Honestly, at first, he wasn’t sure what to make of it.
It didn’t include the remote item retrieval function he had hoped for.
Yoo Junhyuk also clicked his tongue, saying, “What a pathetic F-rank skill breakthrough.”
But upon testing its performance, he couldn’t help but be satisfied.
After picking up a dozen pebbles in an open field and storing them in his inventory,
The moment he summoned them with rotation and acceleration toward the front,
Tatatatatatang!
For a moment, Choi Junseok thought someone was firing a machine gun above his head.
With bullets as large as anti-tank rounds.
Simply by storing pebbles in the inventory and summoning them with acceleration, he achieved firepower comparable to a machine gun.
It was as if rifling had been added to a gun, increasing air resistance and penetrating lethality.
Rotating and plunging a weapon downward further amplified the destructive power of the holy sword.
With one remaining Magic Tower entry ticket,
Team Leader Kang gave Choi Junseok a two-night, three-day vacation in Shibuya, Japan.
He even arranged hotel accommodations and flights.
Additionally, he handed over a forged passport.
“It’s been almost a month since you started climbing the Magic Tower. It’d be good to take a break.”
Examining the flight ticket, Choi Junseok immediately understood the implication but responded casually.
“Haha… not a first-class seat?”
“…”
“Well, it’d stand out too much, so we went with business class.”
“Just kidding.”
“Here’s the pre-exchanged travel funds. It’s fine to return right after finishing the job, but there won’t be any issues with your identity or safety.”
The meaning was clear immediately.
As soon as Choi Junseok arrived at the airport, NIS agents dispatched to Japan, dressed in plain clothes, followed him closely with tight security.
As he rode a taxi, the massive Magic Tower in Shibuya, Tokyo, came into view.
Song Hana had been secretly dispatched to that Magic Tower.
It was a clear and definitive warning from the Korean government.