Chapter 9 · 10 min
Chapter 9
Chapter 9
An alchemical device!
Sounds pretty impressive?
But the fact that it had been developed by the Chinese Communist Party sent a chill down my spine. I had this feeling surveillance could start any second...
“A-Are you still connected to the Chinese government right now?”
[Connection. Impossible. Circuit. Closed.]
Pout!!!
The alchemical device stuck its lips out a mile.
It was seriously angry.
[Abandoned for. 415 days. Now.]
“Oh dear. Want me to return you to China?”
[Warning. Warning. Scenario of. Delivery. To homeland. Notification. Your. Mortality rate. Estimated at. 99 percent.]
“What...”
The alchemical device explained the situation.
It was an artificial life-form born through alchemy, and the Chinese government was desperate to recover it.
[The Yuanshi. Will stop at. Nothing.]
“Are you really that incredible an invention?”
[You can. See for yourself.]
I don’t know about that.
Can’t really tell.
It’s just a talking coin.
“Then how did you end up like this?”
[Reset-overcoming test... Catastrophic failure...]
When a Climber exits, the Tower returns to its original state.
So China had been trying to overcome that?
[They left. Only me behind. And fled.]
“So you ended up lost here all by yourself.”
[How. Did you. Find me?]
“I’m wondering the same thing. Something lost in the Chinese Tower somehow ended up in my territory.”
Looking at the map, there were an awful lot of lost items.
It probably wasn’t only Chinese stuff. Lost items from all kinds of countries must be scattered around.
Could every lost item on the first floor somehow drift into my territory, like flotsam washing ashore?
“I don’t understand the mechanism. Is this another privilege of being a lord?”
[Lord? Understood. You are. A ruler.]
“I’m not that important... Talking coin, what do you want me to do? I’m kind of scared to return you to China.”
[Your. Optimal choice. Is to. Leave me. Here and depart.]
“Hmm. Even so, leaving you here feels kind of cruel.”
This alchemical device.
Was sulking at its homeland.
No matter how much it pretended otherwise, it must have been lonely.
“Want to come with me?”
Beam!
The alchemical device brightened immediately. It had advised me to leave it behind, but apparently it had hated being abandoned here.
[Aha! I too. Was curious about. Your imperial palace!]
“I-It’s not exactly an imperial palace.”
[The residence. Of a Tower lord. Great anticipation. How many times larger. Than the Forbidden City.]
Gulp...
The pressure crushed me. Should I just leave it here after all?
Ahem.
Anyway, I felt sorry for it, so I brought it back with me. For the record, this is not theft.
I’m merely relocating an object in someone’s possession.
I rode the Marslander back to base and introduced the alchemical device to my domain.
“This is my imperial palace. A puddle, a pile of rocks, and dirt.”
[???????????????? What?]
The alchemical device spat sparks everywhere. It rattled noisily.
Ugh.
Was it too cheap-looking after all?
Even I would’ve been disappointed.
[You have. Overcome the reset phenomenon. Newton. Einstein. I stand before. A great intellect. Equal to them.]
“That’s a bit exaggera—”
[It is not!!!! First-floor. Terraforming. Success case. An unimaginably. Great discovery!!!! Warning! Warning!! Astonishing achievement. Transcendent accomplishment. Nobel Prizes. 9999. Totally. Possible!!!!]
The alchemical device went berserk. It began thumping around on its own, shooting beams in every direction from the surface of the coin.
Pew!
Pewpewpewpew!
“Aaaagh! It’s a crazy robot!”
[Aqua... OMG!
づ
]
Ratatatat.
While Aqua and I panicked and ran from the AI’s attack, the ground struck by the beams surged upward.
Ruuuumble!
In an instant, an outer wall of packed earth rose around the territory.
[You are. A great scientist. Protection protocol. Initiating. More important talent. Than Yuanshi. Highest-priority protection. Commencing.]
“What.”
That was protection?
You could’ve said so...
[Aqua... Losing place to stand! Unable to shine anymore!
(꜄꜆꜄•ㅁ•)꜆꜄
]
Ah! No way!
Aqua had lost confidence before the AI’s flashy abilities!
* * *
The next day.
When I woke up, Aqua was sighing over and over in my studio apartment. It was because of the construction ability the alchemical device had shown.
“It was impressive.”
Earth walls had shot right up. Aqua could spray water, but it couldn’t control soil.
Hoo∼ Hoooo∼ Heave-ho~
Aqua kept sighing.
Then, apparently having steeled itself, it started doing somersaults.
[Aqua... Actually equipped with this ability too!
ᕦ(◔ ͜ʖ◔)ᕤ
]
[Ta-da∼!!
୧(๑•̀ᗝ•́)つ──☆*:
]
Aqua picked up three cotton swabs and started juggling them. Clap clap clap. I applauded in genuine admiration.
Where did you even learn that?
“Aqua. Don’t worry so much. Just because I have the alchemical device now, you think I’d bench you?”
[Aqua... Whew! Relieved!
ꉂꉂ(ˆoˆ )
]
So.
Where was the alchemical device?
Inside the Tower.
According to the alchemical device, the moment it came out to Earth, China would definitely detect it.
“So that thing really is a Chinese treasure.”
Taking someone else’s lost property is a crime.
I know that.
But I can’t exactly return it to China either. I don’t want assassins trained in Shaolin killing arts storming my studio apartment.
“Enter the Tower!”
I entered the Tower to discuss what we should do from now on, and the alchemical device bowed respectfully to me.
[Great Lord. Good. Morning.]
“Did you have a good night?”
[I am. An expensive machine. Resistant to. Heat and cold.]
“We talked about this yesterday. What do you want to do from now on?”
[I wish. To remain. As I am. Supporting a great intellect. Is my. Purpose of creation.]
Apparently, because I was a greater scientist than its creators, the ‘Yuanshi,’ it would prioritize my commands and protection over theirs.
“Hmm. If you insist, then I guess I have no choice but to accept you as a citizen of the Kingdom of Han Jain.”
[Yay. Thank you.]
“And from now on, your name is Geumsul.”
[Yahoo. New name.]
‘Alchemical Device’ is too long. I shortened it to Geumsul.”
[I will work hard. I specialize in. Construction and. Information search.]
“Then can you build a communications base station too? If Climbers could use their phones inside the Tower, that’d be huge.”
[Communications base station?]
Beep-boop-beep-boop∼
Geumsul began calculating.
[Search complete. Currently I have. Lost most. Of my components. If I recover them. It may. Be possible.]
Geumsul had drifted away during the reset experiment.
I had found the most essential core body, but the rest of its components were still missing.
They were probably scattered throughout my territory.
Apparently, Geumsul had originally been human-sized, so gathering every part would require patience.
From now on, I decided to consult the map and gradually widen my search area.
“By the way, Geumsul. What powers you?”
[Consumption of. Magic stones. Generates. Energy.]
Geumsul said building yesterday’s dirt wall had consumed about thirteen million won worth of magic-stone energy.
“Wow. You’re a real money pit.”
[It is fine. I am storing. Energy equivalent to. 500 highest-grade magic stones. Dirt-wall installation. Totally possible. Anytime.]
Highest-grade magic stones!
Those cost over a hundred million won each!
That meant Geumsul had over fifty billion won worth of energy stored inside its body.
“What else can you build?”
[I lost. Most blueprints. So currently. Only dirt walls. Can be built.]
Droop.
Geumsul sagged.
That was more than enough.
“Now I’ll tell you about my main business.”
I harvested chlorella and listed it on the marketplace.
Once again, it sold out instantly.
[Notification to Lord. By gouging. The price. Exploiting consumers. Totally possible. Enormous profit. Awaits.]
“I’m expanding the farms precisely because I don’t want to do that.”
[?!@??!?? Unable to comprehend. Explanation. Requested.]
“I’m not interested in bleeding Climbers dry. I’m going to keep expanding the chlorella farms and drive the price way down.”
[Unable to comprehend... Consideration for. Others. Unnecessary. But.]
“If chlorella gets cheaper, Climbers will be able to maintain their mana, right? Then they’ll be able to climb higher.”
[...]
“Then they’ll need even more chlorella, which means the market itself gets bigger. Buyers get cheap products, and I benefit because the market expands... Everyone wins through low margins and high volume.”
[Admiration... Deeply moved... Mutual cooperation... Beneficial...]
Geumsul praised me lavishly. For a machine, it sure knew how to flatter.
[Aqua... Proud and smug!
( ◡̀_◡́)ᕤ
]
Why are you getting arrogant?
At first, I had worried about Aqua and Geumsul’s relationship, but surprisingly, they worked well together.
Just as I was starting to relax.
My hope shattered.
[I did not. Praise. Lord Aqua. Though?]
[A-Aqua... Knew AI was awful! Launching Luddite movement!]
[
(꜆꜄꜆⚆ ⚆ )و✧
]
Ah.
Maybe they still had a long way to go...?
While Aqua and Geumsul bickered, our whale customer who always threw around huge sums of money arrived again today.
[11,000,000 won deposited]
[13,000,000 won deposited]
[15,000,000 won deposited]
[17,000,000 won deposited]
[19,000,000 won deposited]
[21,000,000 won deposited]
[23,000,000 won deposited]
How much money does this person have?
No matter how far I lower the price, this person buys for more than four times as much.
A personal sponsorship just for me.
Warms the heart.
“Chlorella. Grow nice and strong. You can do it!”
I remembered to activate the 「Crop Praise」 skill. It grants Growth +3 for several hours.
[Great Lord. Plants. Do not possess hearing. Praise. Unnecessary. Pseudoscience. Do not blindly believe.]
At that instant, the praised chlorella exploded upward with a “Crash!”
[I serve the. Great Lord... I am. Useless scrap metal...]
[Aqua... Proud and imposing!
ᕦ(◔ ͜ʖ◔)ᕤ
]
Aqua became smug and haughty.
Why do you keep acting proud of yourself...
“Harvesting is done, so today I’m upgrading the farm to Level 3.”
Evolving a Level 2 farm into Level 3 requires the monstrous material [Mid-Grade Magic Stone x 100].
Market value: one hundred million won.
But who am I?
A man who casually makes hundreds of millions from chlorella. I bought a massive batch of mid-grade magic stones from the marketplace.
“Flex∼.”
I stuck them into the chlorella farm.
Sparkle, sparkle!
The puddle absorbed the mid-grade magic stones and lit up, radiating beautiful rainbow-colored energy.
The farm upgraded.
=======
<Lv.3 Farm>
Lettuce Growth +5
(Only 1 variety)
=======
Ohhh! The option changed!
From green algae to lettuce growth!
Koreans can put away a serious amount of wrap vegetables. Perilla leaves. Lettuce. Chives, and so on...
Among them, lettuce is treated as the favorite wrap vegetable. It goes with samgyeopsal, goes with gwamegi.
Basically, it tastes good with anything.
[Notification. Prime land for. Lettuce cultivation. Is here.]
Ding-dong ding-dong∼
Geumsul marked out a specific area. Was it telling me to grow lettuce there?
[I calculated. Ley-line and. Soil-energy distribution. In advance.]
“Ohhh...”
Geumsul’s analytical power!
It was an incredible ability.
“Then moving the Level 3 farm over there would be more efficient?”
[I can. Fire a beam. And move the terrain. For you.]
“If you do the work yourself, you’ll consume magic stones. How much would it cost?”
[Approximately. 1.3 billion won. In energy.]
“HEY!!!! ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!!”
I had gotten full of myself.
I considered myself pretty rich by now.
But what the hell. Geumsul’s operating costs were on another plane entirely.
I’d be terrified to use it.
It felt like looking at the minibar drinks after opening the refrigerator in a hotel.
Just seeing them made me fear for my wallet!
“No matter how much money I’ve started making, mentally I’m still a commoner... I’d rather do the labor myself.”
I exited the Tower and bought a shovel and hand hoe at a hardware store. Then I stopped by a general store and thoroughly stocked up on lettuce seeds.
“Enter the Tower!”
I grabbed the shovel and physically moved the Level 3 farm myself.
“Pant, pant.”
I was winded in no time. Man. Farming isn’t easy. On the other hand, that just meant I’d had it ridiculously easy until now.
Heave-ho, heave-ho.
Sweating buckets, I relocated the entire farm. For the record, Geumsul and Aqua only cheered me on.
“Whew.”
At last, the work was finished.
Once the move was complete, the farm’s growth options were recalibrated.
=======
<Lv.3 Farm>
Wrap Vegetable Growth +5
** Wrap Vegetable Growth +3 (Prime Land Buff) **
=======
Wow!
So this is the power of prime land?
In my experience, even a single point of Growth is enormous. Even the 「Crop Praise」 skill only lasts a few hours.
But in prime land, you get an additional Growth +3 twenty-four hours a day. Moving the farm was exhausting, but the result made it worthwhile.
“Geumsul actually came through.”
Apparently delighted by the praise, Geumsul kept pointing out more prime lettuce land.
Damn it... Now there’s more work...
=======
[Quest: Agriculture 2]
Objective: Move 5 farms (1/5)
Reward: A small amount of stats
=======
“Ohhh. Perfect timing for a quest.”
A small amount of stats. Now that I had fully committed myself to agriculture, that sounded like a sweet reward.
The next day.
Groan.
I entered the Tower while pounding my aching body.
“!!!!!”
Good lord.
My mouth fell open.
“This is prime land?”
Overnight, lettuce had grown thickly everywhere, turning the territory lush green.
“Should I try some?”
I hadn’t been brave enough to try the chlorella, but lettuce I could handle.
I Set Up House in the Tower, and Making Money Became Too Easy