Two days after Gerald cleared the 81st floor,
news reports exploded across the world.
At last, the method for clearing the giant-monster zone was revealed to the entire world.
Not only through news articles, but through actual clear footage uploaded to YouTube.
The video showed Player Gerald clearing the floor while giving commentary, like a BJ streamer.
It wasn't from his very first clear of Tower No. 1.
That run had been too rough.
Instead, it was footage from his second clear—America's Tower No. 2.
— That's Behemoth. I'm going to take it down now… This is the mana-gun. And this sharp thing here is the delayed-drill round. Pretty big bullet, right?
Click!
Gerald loaded the mana-gun.
— Alright, here we go.
He began aiming.
— Don't curse me if I miss. The vibration when injecting mana is no joke.
Pashuk!
— Jesus! Missed. Again.
Pashuk!
Another miss. Two shots wasted.
— Grrrrraaah!
Behemoth charged toward Gerald ferociously.
Thump, thump, thump, thump!
— Aggro's on me. I've got to hit this one.
Pashuk!
Thunk!
— Oh! Hit! Since it's a drill round, as long as it hits, it pierces Behemoth's hide easily.
Spapat!
Using Blink, Gerald—who had the spellsword trait—created distance.
— Why does it still look fine? Right now it's probably just like being pricked by a needle. Wait about five seconds…
BOOM!
A portion of Behemoth's body exploded.
— See? Delayed explosion. It's like a bunker buster. It doesn't explode on the surface—it drills in and detonates inside.
But one shot wasn't enough.
Thump, thump, thump, thump!
Behemoth charged again in rage.
Spapapat! Papapat!
Gerald frantically kept his distance.
Pashuk!
— If you're going to hunt Behemoth, remember this: mobility is key. Whether it's skills or items, prioritize mobility before entering.
Thunk!
Another delayed-drill round hit.
— It's also good to practice outside beforehand—especially controlling the vibration when injecting mana.
Despite its wounds, Behemoth stubbornly pursued Gerald with massive strides.
Thump, thump, thump, thump!
It was fast.
Fast enough to catch him if he slipped up.
— Now you see why I keep talking about mobility? Escaping is more important than shooting.
Papapat!
Run, gain distance—then—
Pashuk!
Run the other way—
Pashuk!
Boom!
Some shots hit.
Whoosh!
Some missed.
After playing a deadly game of hide-and-seek across the entire 81st floor—
— Grrraaaah!
Thud!
Behemoth collapsed.
Clear achieved after 50 minutes.
— Haa… done.
Gerald's ragged breathing filled the mic.
— It's not that hard. But remember this—mobility and accuracy. As long as you have those two, the mana-gun and delayed-drill rounds will do the rest.
Before exiting, he added one last thing.
— You'll need about ten hits, but as you can see, it's really hard. So buy plenty of ammo. Even twenty rounds might not be enough.
And one more warning.
— If it feels impossible, quit immediately. You can always try again. Nothing's more important than your life.
With that, Gerald's video ended.
The reaction was explosive.
The world became a little safer.
A path had opened to break through the 81st-floor range and extend Tower collapse deadlines further and longer.
Governments and state-sponsored players around the world began preparing their strategies based on Gerald's footage.
And the mobility he emphasized—
Items with movement-speed options skyrocketed in price.
Players with mobility-related traits saw their value rise as well.
Reservations for mana-guns flooded the Awakened Management Agency.
Even if clearing wasn't immediately possible, players needed to personally experience the vibration and recoil during firing.
Juhyeok also watched the video on the 17th floor of the White Tower.
It was good that the mana-gun worked—
But the ammo consumption per kill was too high.
Even for a bullet business, this was excessive.
"Isn't there a way to help players overcome the vibration? Mana-gun modification isn't possible, right?"
El, the magitech engineer, replied.
"It's an inherent limitation of the mana-gun. For now, that's the best it can do."
So it couldn't be helped.
"Even the ultimate mana-gun owned by Master Bei has tremendous vibration and recoil. You can tell just by how his body sways every time he fires."
That was true.
Still, he shot it well.
But then again, Master Bei was a true mana-gunner by class.
Meanwhile, Kosak looked pleased.
He grinned and said to Juhyeok.
"Player Gerald did great. Worth saving him. He even told people to buy plenty of ammo. Business will be booming. Probably more profitable than the holy sword."
Was this guy possessed by the money devil?
"And while watching the video, I got an idea."
"What kind of idea?"
"Mobility. Why don't we solve that for them?"
"How?"
"We sell potions or elixirs that enhance movement speed, bundled with the ammo."
"…"
What else are you selling now?
He really is possessed.
"Summoner Bong, you should ask Mari directly. If I say it, I'll just get cursed at."
Honestly, it wasn't a bad idea.
Not just for profit—but for safer clears.
"Alright. I'll ask her."
"Yes, sir!"
Kosak couldn't stop smiling.
"You really like money that much?"
"There's a lot to spend on. Just making the magic sword base alone costs a fortune. Where do you think that money comes from?"
True enough.
A 60-meter adamantine giant sword.
Even ignoring materials, labor costs alone would be absurd.
But could it really be made?
They would make it.
They had to.
There was plenty of time.
Until it was finished, they just wouldn't climb higher floors.
Anyway—
"Oh! Kosak!"
"Yes?"
"Can you go to North Korea and meet Chairman Kim? I'll take you to the Pyongyang Tower."
"Sure. What do you need?"
"Just ask for a few nuclear warheads… modified so they can detonate with a button press, like before."
"That's easy enough, but… where do you plan to use them?"
"Well, in the Black Tower of Earth No. 675… maybe if a dragon shows up?"
But Kosak shook his head.
"Won't work on dragons. They're smart. They'll block it from the start."
Probably true.
If they recognized it as a nuke and clung to it, there'd be no solution.
"Well then,"
"Let's just detonate it anywhere. At least it'll scare them."
After entering the Black Tower and using the exit ring to take Kosak to the Pyongyang factory,
Juhyeok went to see Mari.
He knocked on the door of her house.
Knock, knock.
"Mari?"
Scurry!
He heard her behind the door.
Ding!
She replied through the tablet messaging app.
He opened the door halfway and slipped something through the gap—
The Tongue of Gremory, obtained on the 80th floor of Earth No. 675.
"It's the tongue of Gremory, Lord of Monsters. Use it if it's useful as a material."
"Hahaha, sure. Oh, right—I wanted to ask something."
"Is there some kind of medicine that can boost a player's mobility?"
"Can you make them? We want to distribute them to players renting mana-guns."
"Haha, thanks as always. And if you ever want anything, just let me know."
"Yes?"
"Yeah, I did."
"What to?"
"That's fine."
Gigant metal—two units dismantled would be enough.
"How much high-grade magic crystal?"
This was insane.
Two hundred tons of high-grade crystals and thirty kilograms of top-grade ones?
Trying to make a magic sword would bankrupt the household.
Should he never have said he'd do it?
But he couldn't show weakness now.
"Don't worry about anything, Mari. Just focus on your research. I'll take care of everything."
Damn it.
Looks like he'd have to mine even harder.
If he wanted to supply materials for the magic sword base, that was unavoidable.
He had to climb the Tower diligently.
Thank goodness for the five daily Tower entries.
Was that achievement reward given for this exact reason?
Oh, right!
He should also check the perks.
He had accumulated 150 badges.
[You have accumulated 150 Platinum Badges. A perk has been granted.]
[Perk: Tower Mission Reset Tickets have been added to your Tower-exclusive inventory.]
Nice pull.
He already had more than ten from inheriting Max Kruger's legacy, but—
The more, the better.
Kosak first stopped by the Pyongyang Mana-Sealing Scroll printing factory and the automated Obesity Escape Bracelet factory.
The bracelets were now in pilot production.
If you placed the pre-made casing into the magitech enchantment auto-engraving device El had created, the patterns were engraved automatically, and finished bracelets popped out one by one.
Those bracelets were then fed into an inspection device to check for defects, and once they passed, they moved on to packaging.
It required a lot of labor.
No—more accurately, they employed a lot of people even where labor wasn't strictly necessary.
The demand was enormous.
They also had to be replaced every three months.
Just the Obesity Escape Bracelet alone could support the entire North Korean economy.
Once economic stability improved, reunification could proceed gradually.
After finishing the inspection tour,
Kosak headed to the Pyongyang Presidential Palace.
"Welcome, Comrade Kosak!"
"Chairman Kim, you been well?"
"No issues at all. Under the guidance of the great Supreme Player Comrade, our people are living full and satisfied lives."
"Good! Anyway—"
Kosak explained his purpose to Kim In-jung.
"… You mean nuclear warheads?"
"That's right. With detonation devices installed, like before."
"H-how many?"
"As many as possible! Scrape up everything you've got."
"Oh…"
Kim In-jung hesitated briefly.
"Well, it's not difficult, but… is this an order from higher up?"
"You think I'd decide something like this on my own? It's his command."
"Then may I ask just one more thing?"
"Go ahead."
"Where will the nukes be used?"
Kosak widened his eyes and said,
"To show nuclear hellfire to the counterrevolutionary scum—the Black Tower's imperialist invaders, those tower-monster jackals."
Understanding immediately, Kim In-jung nodded firmly.
"Understood. I'll prepare them at once."
"Good. That's reassuring."
"Just give the word anytime! To mercilessly punish the republic's mortal enemies—the tower monsters! Long live Juhyeok!"
"Long live Juhyeok!"
The two shouted together, facing each other.
"… But will nukes even detonate inside the Tower? I recall a world announcement saying nuclear fission was prohibited."
"There's always a way. Don't worry."
After all, was there only one Black Tower in the universe?
The conquest of Earth No. 1,001's Black Tower resumed.
No—calling it Earth No. 1,001 didn't feel right anymore.
What numbers?
This was just their Earth.
Juhyeok repeatedly cleared the 84th and 85th floors.
On the 84th floor, he mined high-grade and top-grade magic crystals.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
"Hoeeek!"
On the 85th floor, he hauled back Gigants.
"Hoaaah!"
Their dimensional farmhand worked tirelessly—Rajiks.
Even with five Tower entries per day, it wasn't possible to haul back five Gigants.
Rajiks's subspace backpack was vast, but it could only transport one Gigant at a time.
If one Gigant was already inside, trying to add another simply wouldn't work.
They had to dismiss Rajiks, set the Gigant down in the White Tower, wait three hours, then go back in to haul another.
So at most, they could bring back two per day—three if they pushed it.
But still—that was more than enough.
The 85th floor, where Gigants duplicated endlessly.
They hauled them back nonstop.
Yet something felt strange.
What were the administrators doing?
They were just letting this happen?
They reacted instantly when a nuke detonated before.
"Are they just letting us take them?"
About a week later,
Juhyeok and his party entered the 85th floor again to haul another Gigant.
They detonated a mana EMP round.
Pababat!
The Gigant froze.
Ziiiiing! Sword Master Kosak and the Berserk Mage manifested their fighting energy and sliced through the armor plates, while El manipulated the Gigant's mana circuits.
"… Hm?"
El tilted his head.
"What is it?"
"… I've found a circuit diagram I've never seen before in the Gigant's central processor."
"What?"
"Upon inspection, it appears to be a self-destruction circuit."
Self-destruction?
"Please give me a moment."
El traced the mana circuit carefully with his fingers, studying it intently.
Then—
"It's definitely a self-destruct circuit. It's designed to explode automatically one hour after combat begins."
So the administrators had intervened.
If they'd hauled it away without knowing, it would've been disastrous.
Those sneaky bastards.
A stealth patch without any announcement?
"Can't we just remove the self-destruct circuit?"
Like cutting a blue wire or a red wire—
That cliché from movies.
"No. Attempting to remove it would trigger an immediate explosion. If we had more time, maybe—but right now…"
Damn.
What a waste.
Still, there was a silver lining.
When other players tried to clear Gigants—
There had been an unresolved issue with clearing the 85th floor using mana-gun rentals.
They could immobilize the Gigant for five minutes, but what came after?
Once the five minutes passed, it reactivated.
You had to clear it during immobilization—but did any players have the ability to cut through the Gigant's armor plates?
Armor that even Kosak and the Berserk Mage had to team up to slice?
"Then if we just wait one hour, does the mission auto-complete?"
"That, I'm not entirely sure…"
Let's test it.
When the Gigant began moving again after the EMP wore off, they fired another EMP round.
If it moved again, another.
Five minutes per EMP—
Twelve rounds would keep it immobilized for an hour.
After one hour passed—
[The Gigant will self-destruct shortly. Please evacuate to a safe zone. 10, 9, 8 …]
At least it warned them of the explosion timing.
Juhyeok and the party retreated to a safe area.
When the countdown ended—
BOOOOM! RUMBLEEEE!
The Gigant collapsed from the inside out, like a controlled building demolition.
[ Giant Golem Magnus Gigant 1/1 ]
[ You have successfully completed the 85th Floor mission. ]
[ Reward: 85 kg of High-Grade Magic Crystals ]
Clear successful.
Immediately—
Clatter, clang, spin!
"Horarat!"
Rajiks vacuumed up the scattered Gigant metal fragments like a vacuum cleaner.
"Heh. Even without telling him, he knows exactly what to do."
Their thrifty farmhand.
Those scrap metals could be given to Mari for magic sword production.
All in all, things worked out.
It was actually easier now.
Just use EMP rounds and survive for one hour.
But hauling Gigants was over.
Still, the gains were substantial.
When Juhyeok and the summoned ones returned to the White Tower—
"How many did we bring back?"
"Whoa!"
Sixteen Magnus Gigants stood lined up in the White Tower plaza.
"Beautiful. Just beautiful."
And the storage corridors were filled with high-grade and top-grade magic crystals.
But there was bad news too.
The 84th-floor ore vein of Tower No. 1 was already depleted.
Partly because Rajiks's mining efficiency was absurdly high.
"We cleaned out the pantry."
Only Tower No. 2's 84th-floor vein remained now.
That was worrying.
What if that got depleted too?
In the end, they'd have to open the 84th floor of Earth No. 675's Black Tower.
High-grade and top-grade crystals were needed in far too many places.
"I'll go in tomorrow, I guess."
Just open the path.
Grab some badges while at it.
That was when it happened.
Hwaaaaah!
The landmark at the top shone like a lighthouse.
That light meant—
"He's here!!!"
It was Bardin.
The holy knight had arrived,
having successfully broken through his rank.