Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Part 4

‘Of course, not anymore.’

Tap.

Before long, both earthenware bowls had been completely emptied.

“H-Haha, I really ate like there was no tomorrow, didn’t I?”

“If that wasn’t enough, order more.”

“No. This is plenty.”

Mincheol waved his hands.

Then his expression turned serious as he looked straight at Yugeon.

“May I ask you one thing?”

“Yeah.”

“Why did you help me? We don’t even know each other...”

“There are two reasons.”

“Two reasons?”

“First, I was already planning to deal with those Guseongpa bastards.”

“Ah...”

“Awakened like you and me can’t stay far from death. Either we kill monsters, or we kill Awakened who come after us.”

“That’s true...”

“Even if we climb the tower like that, there is still a line that shouldn’t be crossed.”

“That’s right.”

At Yugeon’s words, Mincheol nodded.

As he himself had grown to level 50.

He had fought countless battles and clashed with many Awakened.

But not even once.

Had he ever abandoned his humanity.

“The second reason is that I wanted to recruit you.”

“Me...?”

For a moment, Mincheol flinched.

After all, only a few hours ago, Lee Hyeoksu had done all that because he wanted to recruit him.

“You...”

“Han Yugeon.”

“Pardon?”

“My name is Han Yugeon.”

“Ah... Yes. I’m Cha Mincheol. You’re older than me, right?”

Nod.

Yugeon nodded.

“Brother Yugeon, why do you want to recruit me?”

He knew.

He knew this man was different from Lee Hyeoksu.

But a powerhouse who had killed Lee Hyeoksu and several level 30 Awakened in an instant.

He wanted to know why someone like that wanted to recruit him.

“To save the world.”

“Pardon...?”

“I’m going to clear the hundredth floor of the tower and remove the monsters and towers from this world. That’s my goal. And I can’t accomplish that goal with my strength alone.”

Of course, if he used One Sword of Heavenly Destruction, he could likely cut down any enemy.

Nothing and no one can stop your sword.

Even if that being is an immortal, undying, regenerating god.

‘But that alone won’t stop the destruction.’

Preventing the end of the world was not merely a matter of fighting enemies.

That was why he needed trustworthy companions.

Of course, with One Sword of Heavenly Destruction, he could kill any enemy in a single blow.

But he was not in a position where he could freely use One Sword of Heavenly Destruction whenever he pleased.

“And if you help me, I’ll grant your wish.”

“My wish...?”

“The reason you climb the tower. It’s because of your mother.”

“How did you...”

“When I was gathering information to deal with Lee Hyeoksu, I heard about you too.”

“Ah... But how exactly are you going to grant my wish?”

“Your mother’s illness. I can cure it.”

Mana poisoning.

A disease that afflicted ordinary people who were not Awakened.

Even now, no proper treatment existed, and all anyone could do was slow the progression of the disease.

The reason Cha Mincheol climbed the tower was precisely to find a way to cure that mana poisoning.

‘And eventually, a cure does get discovered.’

But by then, less than half of humanity remained.

Cha Mincheol’s mother had long since died as well.

“Can you really... Really cure her...?”

Cha Mincheol stared at Yugeon in disbelief.

Even the most renowned doctors and Awakened around the world had yet to find a proper treatment.

And yet he was saying he could cure it?

“Don’t worry. I don’t lie. And there’s another benefit besides that.”

“?”

“Your growth. You’re currently stuck at level 50, aren’t you?”

“...”

The notorious wall for Awakened.

Level 50.

Cha Mincheol was stuck exactly there as well.

_____________

Step. Step.

An empty park.

As Yugeon walked, he suddenly turned around and looked somewhere behind him.

After exchanging contact information with Cha Mincheol and parting ways.

He had been heading somewhere to take care of a small matter.

“You can come out now.”

“...”

Swoosh.

“Hmm... My stealth skill is pretty good, but you found me just like that?”

A long-haired man emerged from behind the restroom building, brushing off his shoulders as he walked out.

Black hair reaching down to his shoulders.

A man in his late twenties.

Hwang Mungi walked toward Yugeon.

“Nice to meet you. My name is...”

“Guild Master of the Shadow Guild, Hwang Mungi.”

“...”

Hwang Mungi narrowed his eyes.

The fact that he was the master of the Shadow Guild had not yet been made public.

Only a handful of even the guild members knew their master’s face.

Yet someone he had just met knew that fact.

“If I ask how you know... you probably won’t tell me.”

“You know me well.”

Yugeon gave a faint smile as he looked at Hwang Mungi.

Hwang Mungi.

An Awakened he had fought alongside in his previous life.

Calling them comrades would have been a stretch; they had been closer to business partners.

He was someone who acted strictly according to contracts.

If the agreed payment came in, he always fulfilled the deal, and if he sensed any sign that someone planned to betray him, he noticed it and betrayed them first.

‘Damn it, I don’t even know why I’m doing something that doesn’t pay... I’ll save you guys, so if we make it out alive, each of you hand over one item.’

Floor 81, [Boiling Lava River].

Before the regression, he had taken the attacks meant for his companions and lost his life.

“What business do you have with me?”

“By the way, how old are you? You look younger than me, but you keep speaking casually.”

“Twenty-five.”

“You said you know me, right? Then you should know my age too.”

“I don’t remember exactly, but at this point in time you should be twenty-eight or twenty-nine.”

“At this point in time? What does that mean?”

“There’s a reason.”

“Haa... Fine, you know my age well enough. But you keep speaking casually...”

Hwang Mungi ran a hand through his hair and let out a deep sigh.

Fine, whatever.

So what if he spoke casually.

“Fine, do whatever you want. You asked why I came looking for you, right? I’m here to collect something.”

“What?”

“Compensation for damages?”

“?”

Yugeon furrowed his brow.

Compensation for damages?

“Guseongpa. You killed their boss. So I came to collect compensation.”

“...”

This was the first he had heard of it.

Had Hwang Mungi been backing Guseongpa?

Before the regression, they had never been close enough to have serious conversations, so he had not known about something like this.

“Were you Guseongpa’s backer?”

“I know what you’re misunderstanding, but I wasn’t their backer. They still owed me payment for a commission.”

“Looks like Lee Hyeoksu had commissioned something from you.”

“That’s right.”

“Then why not raid his safe? That should cover your commission fee.”

“I actually just came from doing exactly that.”

“If you still came to find me after that, then the remaining balance must be quite large.”

“Wow, you catch on pretty fast.”

At Yugeon’s words, Hwang Mungi snapped his fingers.

His insolent attitude aside, he was quick-witted, which made conversation easy.

“How much is the remaining balance?”

“Five hundred million won.”

“He must have made an unreasonable request if that much is still left even after you emptied his safe.”

“He asked me to retrieve something from the twenty-second floor.”

Area 3, Floor 22, [Cracked Earth].

It was a desert inhabited by sandworms, where enormous monsters would emerge to harass you after only a short walk.

“You must have used your stealth to move around secretly. If you went to the twenty-second floor alone, no wonder the fee was expensive.”

“...”

At Yugeon’s words, Hwang Mungi’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

He had inferred even that much from just a few words.

“And you deliberately mentioned the twenty-second floor too.”

It was a warning.

He was strong enough to go to the twenty-second floor alone, so Yugeon should not make the situation unnecessarily difficult.

He really had not changed at all from the future.

“I owe you a debt, so I can give you something valuable. But I don’t like you trying to show off your strength.”

“A debt? What do you mean...”

Ding!

【Transcendent Eye】 has been activated.

Whoooooom!

While dealing with Lee Hyeoksu, Yugeon had figured out how to use Transcendent Eye.

‘Transcendent Eye isn’t merely for checking levels.’

It could also project the user’s intent directly onto the target through their gaze.

Transcendent Eye amplified the user’s intent and directly engraved it into the mind of whoever their gaze touched.

Just like now.

“Ghk?!!”

As an overwhelming killing intent suddenly crushed down on him, Hwang Mungi dropped to his knees and trembled violently.

The primal fear of death consumed his entire body.

“You... what the hell is this...”

Unable to even raise his head, Hwang Mungi clenched his teeth and trembled.

He wanted to look at the person before him, but his head simply would not rise.

Just what the hell was this man?!

Ding-!

[Accumulated growth has been reflected in your attributes.]

Senses　　　+1

‘Huh? Even doing this raises my stats?’

When his Senses stat suddenly increased, Yugeon gave a faint smile.

Whooooosh.

Spring!

The moment the tremendous pressure crushing his body disappeared, Hwang Mungi, who had been straining against it, sprang to his feet.

“You understand now, right? Don’t try to show off your strength to me.”

“...”

At Yugeon’s words, Hwang Mungi could not say anything.

Even after unleashing such overwhelming power moments ago, the other man’s expression had not changed in the slightest. He remained completely calm.

That meant this had not been anywhere near his full strength.

“Of course, don’t worry about the remaining balance. I’ll pay it.”

“You’ll pay the balance...?”

Why?

If he was this strong, he could simply ignore what Hwang Mungi had said.

If anything, Hwang Mungi should be grateful he had not been killed on the spot.

“I told you. I owe you a debt.”

A debt from his previous life, when Hwang Mungi had saved his life.

Now that they had met again like this, he intended to repay it.

He was willing to do so, and Hwang Mungi was someone worth doing it for.

“I have a commission for you too. I’ll pay you for mine, cover the remaining balance, and settle the debt as well.”

“What debt have you been talking about this whole time? This is the first time I’ve ever met you.”

“There’s a reason.”

“Urgh... I think I may have gotten involved with the wrong person.”