Chapter 24—Sudden Disaster (1)

“…”

“Ms. Lee Hae?”

“…..”

“Just avoiding eye contact won’t get you out of this situation, you know?”

I quietly turned my eyes away, trying a tiny bit of resistance.

“M-maybe… if you’re okay with it, couldn’t we… I don’t know… settle things quietly and dodge this whole situation?”

“I don’t want to dodge it.”

“……”

She was way more determined than I expected.

I thought she’d give up if I just escaped to the second floor.

But by the time her sturdy arm blocked my escape route, I was already cornered—eyes rolling around like a trapped animal.

You were exhausted just moments ago!
Where did that “too tired to lift a spoon” face go?!

“Please explain, Ms. Lee Hae.”

Her boldness—the same boldness she showed when she protested alone in front of the Babel Management Bureau—was now directed at me.

I swallowed and answered.

“It’s nothing. Really. You’re misunderstanding. It could just be the same name by coincidence, right?”

“Isn’t it way too late in the situation to call this a misunderstanding? I run a shop in this building, too.”

“You don’t pay goodwill fee or rent though…”

… Right, that part was true!
But still! That’s not the problem—
Once the signboard goes up, I’ll get bombarded with questions too!
The meaning of the name ‘Friendly Market’ isn’t something people will let go of!
Do you know how many people wander around here already? I can’t avoid questions forever!”

Her voice rose.

‘…She’s not wrong.’

The mysterious “Friendly Market” that Korea’s Rank 7 Guild openly said helped them clear the 49th floor—the first in the world.

Ever since the interview aired, countless people must be trying to find me.

At this rate, it’s only a matter of time before I’m found.

***

[⁕ The security clearance of an Open Market Administrator is the highest level in Babel :)]

… Wow, thanks for the completely useless reassurance.

“That’s why I need to know something too. So I can answer people, lie properly, or pretend I don’t know—whatever I need to do.”

“…”

I stared at her face.
She looked nervous.

Many ways flashed through my mind.

It wasn’t like I had no way out.

I could just brazenly lie—like I did to the Black Mages on the 49th floor.

But…

“Kang Yeon-hee is my partner.”

We didn’t start this together or anything.
She didn’t invest huge money.
She was just my first tenant.

Some people might say that’s not enough to share a secret.

But…

She says good morning every day.
She asks how I am.
She’s the only one who interacts with me like a normal person.

It felt wrong to slam the door in her face.

So, instead, I sighed heavily.

“…Damn.”

“What… what did you say?”

My tragically soft heart—completely useless in the harsh modern world—was holding me back.

“I didn’t curse at you.”

“You literally said it right in front of my face…”

“That’s because your face is right next to mine.”

She finally realized and awkwardly stepped back.

“I mean… hearing that the impossible 49th floor was cleared thanks to ‘Friendly Market,’ and realizing that’s the name of this building… well, it shocked me.”

Of course it shocked her.

But that didn’t mean I could tell her everything.

So I looked at her embarrassed face and said,

“I can’t explain everything yet. I’ll tell you when things are sorted out.”

“Really?”

“Of course. As much as I can.”

I didn’t need to hide everything—just not right now.

I need to get used to this job first.
I can’t explain anything smoothly if I’m struggling to understand things myself.

“For now, if someone asks, just say you don’t know.”

“But that’s the truth…”

“Exactly. Say you just learned the building’s name today. That you got your shop through a message. That you have no idea who the owner is.”

“Well, that’s not wrong. I don’t know anything. I know you’re a tall woman, and sometimes you sleep here. That’s it.”

She muttered with a pout.

I almost said, “That’s basically everything,” but closed my mouth.

She didn’t even know my real name.

I probably won’t ever tell her.

Living wealthy and anonymous is my dream, after all.
All of this attention is… stressful.

So I simply smiled while hiding my thoughts.

‘My Anonymous skill blurs my face anyway, but still.’

“Well then, I’ll head out for a bit. Something urgent came up.”

“Didn’t you say you were resting?”

“Uh… it suddenly got urgent.”

The truth: I wanted to rest, but being in the same building with her curiosity was too suffocating.

I slipped past her like a greased eel, grabbed the rear door—

“I’ll, uh… Be back later!”

And bolted into the busy street.

“Wait—Ms. Lee Hae!!”

Her voice faded behind me.

“Whew… I almost handed over my liver.”

I was already on my way to the portal to the 50th floor.

***

Meanwhile…

Yeon-hee watched her disappear like a ninja and sighed.

A suspicious landlord who gave her a shop right after she was kicked out of the street vendor zone.

Someone who hides everything perfectly yet is strangely sloppy, cold yet soft-hearted.

Completely unpredictable.

She knew nothing about “Lee Hae” except the name and blurred appearance.

Yeon-hee looked toward the portal where she disappeared and shook her head.

Did she even realize how many awakened people were talking about her right now?

Did she understand how serious this was?

Yeon-hee opened the first-floor window wide.

She set up her display on the window frame, stood the price tags upright, and put on her apron and mask.

Since no outsiders could enter the building and sales were automatic, she could focus on potion development again.

But suddenly she remembered something and gasped.

“Oh!”

She rushed out of the workshop.

She had forgotten something important.

On the entrance table lay a white envelope—its ominous silver lettering shining.

She meant to give it to Lee Hae as soon as she arrived, but everything got so overwhelming she forgot.

Since Lee Hae always used the back door, she never noticed it.

“Maybe she’ll come back today…”

Probably?
She seemed to sleep here often.

Yeon-hee gently placed the envelope back on the table.

“I’ll give it to her when she returns.”

The bubbling of brewing potions echoed again.

The words on the envelope still shimmered coldly:

[Babel Management Bureau—Summons Notice]

***

Back to Lee Hae

“Hm.”

I smirked at the bright white notification floating in the air.

[■ Babel System: 50th Floor Opens in 6D 02:49:36]

Everyone inside and outside the Tower saw this countdown.

… Well, everyone except open market administrators like me.

I looked at the empty 50th-floor landscape and took off my robe.

A cool breeze brushed my cheeks.

Turning off my Anonymous skill made my face feel refreshingly open.

Wow… it’s been so long.

The only time I show my real face is when I’m sleeping.

Now?
It was just me on the 50th floor.

Wolfe Fang must have retrieved their loot and left, so they wouldn’t show up today.

I had a reason for being here first:

If I don’t build early, the 25th-floor mess will repeat.

Everyone will be screaming about Friendly Market soon—so I need to reduce risks now.

I stretched and shouted,

“So wide!”

Blue sky, a small stream, grassy hills—
No human traces anywhere except the portal behind me.

It felt like being dropped into untouched nature.

“WAY better than the 25th floor.”

And reaching the 50th floor meant…

A clue about my brother.

The gryphon floor might differ between dimensions, but as Sam said, gryphons usually appeared around the 50s.

My brother, who prepared everything carefully, must’ve left something behind.

I stared at the horizon, then clapped my hands together.

“So… I’m supposed to build the second branch here?”

First things first.

***

[⁕ 50th floor opened! Market Administrator permissions partially unlocked :)]

“Okay, explain, Sami.”

[⁕ I’m Sam 🙂 You can now use some Market functions outside the Tower. And you can send messages to Tower residents in the same dimension.]

Outside the Tower, I couldn’t use anything—except my status window.

So this update was actually great.

I brightened.

“How limited is ‘limited’?”

[⁕ You can check alerts, restock inventory, and send messages to your middle managers :)]

That alone was good enough.

“And what else? Keep going.”

[⁕ You can spread promotional flyers in towers in your region, create a market logo, message other Open Market Administrators in other dimensions, and finally—design the 50th-floor market district :)]

“…Huh?”

I frowned.

Why did that suddenly sound like I was being asked to become a world-class urban planner?

[⁕ You’ve already built two shops! This will be easier :)]

“That’s NOT the same!”

The 25th floor was basically me randomly dropping a building.
The 75th-floor market already had designated spots.

Designing an entire market district?
That’s totally different.

[⁕ Correct! The district you design will become the foundation layout of the 50th floor :)]

I groaned.

I’m not some urban planning major!
All I know are places like “Times Square” or “department stores!”

I stared helplessly at the untouched natural landscape.

“What am I supposed to do with all this?”