Chapter 7
To sell magic stones, one must first register as an Awakened.
Magic stones, which contain highly efficient energy, are treated as a new energy source and are also used in various weapons industries.
Since some of these stones are used in crimes, countries have made Awakened registration mandatory rather than optional.
In return, various benefits are provided to Awakened, one of which is the ability to trade magic stones and items obtained from the Tower.
Jonghyuk wanted to complete his registration immediately and sell the magic stones and items he obtained from the Tower, but he decided to postpone it for now.
Awakened registration centers are located in Seoul and a few major regional cities, but there is none in Incheon, where Jonghyuk lives.
The nearest one, in Seoul, takes about an hour and a half by subway.
After checking the map on his phone, Jonghyuk clicked his tongue and complained.
“An hour and a half to go around Incheon, and an hour and a half to Seoul… I should just move.”
Putting his phone down, Jonghyuk looked at the magic stones and goblin leather in his inventory and muttered,
“I’ll gather more magic stones and sell them all at once.”
Having reached that conclusion, the first thing Jonghyuk did was climb the Tower.
He planned to repeatedly clear the first floor to check the skill he received from Emiel.
He would have to kill goblins himself, but…
“Compared to being poor, that’s nothing.”
Jonghyuk was confident he could kill goblins without hesitation.
Moreover, solo play wasn’t a problem.
— Lycan-style swordsmanship? Hmm, even at the beginner level, you should be able to handle this much. As long as your footwork is good, even a novice wouldn’t find those clubs threatening.
He had already asked Emiel.
‘Solo runs give better rewards than parties. If you can clear it alone, it’s more profitable.’
Even if he brought Emiel along, it would still count as a solo clear and earn an SSS-grade rating, but there was no guarantee he would get another companion pass anytime soon.
‘I need to get stronger.’
With his resolve set, Jonghyuk quickly ate five triangle kimbap so he wouldn’t get hungry midway, then stood up.
“Entering the Tower. Floor 0.”
Flash!
His vision blurred, and before he knew it, he had been summoned to the plaza of the Polaris Kingdom.
“Awakened, please come this way!”
In the distance, the Association staff were shouting as energetically as ever.
Some people occasionally threw stones or picked fights, but they ignored it and kept shouting at the top of their lungs.
“Must be tough.”
After briefly commenting, Jonghyuk carefully moved so as not to be noticed by other Awakened.
The reason he came to Floor 0 instead of the first floor was to get weapons and armor.
Even if it was the lowest floor, he wasn’t foolish enough to fight in casual clothes.
The Association offered rental equipment for new Awakened, but the quality was low, and even with support, the rental fees were expensive.
Awakened could earn money easily, so even newcomers could take loans without issue, but Jonghyuk found even that wasteful.
On the other hand, all the equipment in Kal’s shop was at least decent, so Jonghyuk planned to get gear from him.
‘I don’t have money, but maybe magic stones will work…’
It was a naive thought, but he set off with a light attitude—if it didn’t work, so be it.
On the way to Kal’s house, a few people glanced at him, but no one frowned or picked a fight.
Clang!
The clear sound of hammering echoed from Kal’s forge.
“Sir, I’m here.”
Following the sound, Jonghyuk turned and found Kal drenched in sweat.
“Oh, you’re here!”
“Hello. You look great today.”
“It’s all thanks to you!”
Smiling warmly, Kal listened as Jonghyuk explained why he came.
“I’d like to buy a sword. And armor too, if possible.”
“A sword and armor?”
“Yes. There’s a lot to prepare if I’m going to climb the Tower.”
“A weapon, huh… Do you know how to use a sword?”
“No.”
“In that case, why not train first? There are quite a few knight training halls nearby. I can introduce you.”
“That won’t be necessary. Just give me a sword that’s easy for a beginner to use.”
“Alright. You must have your reasons. I happen to have just the right one.”
With the excitement of a child, Kal brought something out from the corner of the forge.
It was a sword about one-third the length of a standard longsword, sheathed in leather.
The handle was also tightly wrapped in leather of the same color.
“It’s shorter than a regular sword, but that makes it easier to handle.”
“Oh.”
Jonghyuk drew the sword and let out a soft exclamation.
Though rough and worn, it had been well maintained—the blade shone silver like it was newly made.
“How much is it?”
“I won’t take money. It’s old anyway, and thanks to you, I found a new dream. Just take it.”
“Then I won’t refuse…”
After fastening the sword at his waist, Kal looked at him and asked,
“It would be nice if you worked as a blacksmith with me. What do you think? Want to run the forge together?”
“Thank you for the offer, but no.”
“Straightforward, I see. Hmm, and as for armor, there’s some leather gear over there. I’ll give that to you as well.”
Though worn and darkened, it had been oiled well and was tough and durable.
After putting on the chest guard, leather armor, and greaves, a musty smell rose up.
“Feels like my military uniform from training camp.”
Even now, he could recall the pungent sweat smell.
This smell was no better—if anything, worse.
“Hahaha! I did dry it well in the sun, but once a smell sets in, it doesn’t go away. That’s goblin leather for you!”
“Goblin leather?”
“Of course.”
“Are there goblins in this world too?”
As if hearing something strange, Kal gestured toward the city wall.
“Why ask the obvious? Not just goblins—if you go beyond the walls, there are all kinds of bizarre monsters.”
‘So the 0th floor of the Tower really is a world.’
Jonghyuk nodded, confirming it.
He had vaguely realized it before when entering the Tower with Emiel, but hadn’t asked.
It wasn’t important, and at the time, understanding the Tower and Lycan swordsmanship mattered more.
‘Maybe I can sell goblin leather too.’
To climb the Tower, he would need a lot of help from the Polaris Kingdom.
And the most straightforward way to get help was, of course, money.
‘I should collect as much leather as possible.’
Adding that to his goals, Jonghyuk bowed to Kal.
“Thank you. If you ever need my help later, call me.”
“I don’t need help, so just don’t get yourself killed showing off. I’ve seen too many adventurers like that.”
“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”
After bowing once more, Jonghyuk left the forge.
At last, his first true solo Tower run was about to begin.
When Jonghyuk re-entered the first floor, just like yesterday, fifty goblins were glaring at him, drooling.
[Defeat 50 goblins.]
As the quest window appeared, Jonghyuk drew his sword and resolved to use Lycan swordsmanship.
“Whoa.”
A blue aura rose from the blade and flickered.
Not only that—how to move his feet and how to breathe came naturally to him, as if he had always known.
Swish!
His body moved like the wind as he approached the goblins.
Slice!
The head of the leading goblin fell and rolled on the ground.
“This is easy?”
Though not as skilled as Emiel, the goblins still couldn’t react.
Some swung their clubs, but before they could hit him, he vanished and reappeared behind them, cutting their throats.
“Wow.”
It took him just over 20 minutes to kill all 50 goblins.
Compared to Emiel’s 5 minutes, it was four times slower, but considering skilled Awakened took about 40 minutes and average ones about an hour, it was an absurd time.
“Jackpot.”
Knowing this from the Awakened community, Jonghyuk gave a double thumbs-up to the goblin corpses.
Blood splattered, flesh stuck to his clothes, and goblin heads rolled around—but he didn’t care.
As a reward, he received 10g of magic stones and 5 pieces of goblin leather.
Checking his inventory, he thought,
“I should give some goblin leather to Mr. Kal.”
He got the equipment for free, after all.
At the time Jonghyuk visited Kal’s shop to get a sword—
Hamin was still in the plaza, desperately searching for Jonghyuk, who was nowhere to be seen.
In truth, she had only been searching for two days, but the pressure she felt was indescribable.
Her superior had insisted she must find him and had practically placed the department’s future on her shoulders.
Meanwhile, association executives were competing among themselves to schedule lunch with her.
Without her consent, her next week was fully booked with meals with executives she had only seen, never spoken to.
“At least it’d be nice if the food went down my throat.”
Just thinking about enduring that for a week made her feel like she could vomit without even eating.
She briefly considered quitting, but gave up, knowing no other job would pay as well.
“Money really is the enemy… huh?”
As she sighed and looked around, her eyes suddenly narrowed.
In the distance, a man in modern clothing was walking toward the residential area, looking around.
It was Jonghyuk heading to Kal’s house.
What was strange was that none of the Tower’s residents glared at him or picked a fight.
“Hey, hey!”
“Yes, senior?”
“Put a tracking skill on that guy!”
As Hamin pointed at Jonghyuk, Cheolmin shaded his eyes and looked.
“That man?”
“Yeah.”
“Got it!”
As he clasped his hands and muttered, green mist began to rise between them.
It was his awakened ability—location tracking.
The mist dispersed into the air, and Cheolmin shouted brightly,
“I got his location!”
“Good!”
Hamin clenched her fist.
‘I thought it would take a month!’
The constant pressure had been overwhelming—but it ended today.
Just finding him was enough to secure her promotion.
Not Assistant Manager Lee Hamin—
Manager Lee Hamin.
“Hehehe…”
Smiling to herself, she imagined her brilliant future.
