Let's keep running forward
Player Headquarters, Director's Office.
The elderly director had been quite troubled lately.
'Baek Jinwoo.'
A rising star who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere had swept through the lower weekday dungeons, shattered the intermediate records, and had now even conquered the first floor of the Tower of Trials.
And at an incredible speed.
"Secretary."
"Yes, sir!"
"Why is there still no news? Have you still not managed to establish contact with Baek Jinwoo?"
"Th-that is…"
"If it's not working, make it work. Don't you understand? You climbed all the way up to being the director's secretary because you're capable, yet you can't handle something like this?"
"..."
The secretary made a resentful expression.
'You old bastard.'
You don't make any effort yourself.
And besides—
'How am I supposed to make something work when it simply won't?'
Since personally visiting Baek Jinwoo last time, he had tried everything.
He contacted Yoobaek, and even asked Park Changseok for help.
The answers he received were similar.
-I'm sorry. Although he is one of our affiliated players, we cannot control him 100%.
-Why did you have to offend him in the first place? You ignored him when we tried to help. There's nothing we can do now. He's already beyond my control. There's an old saying—treat people well while you still can.
Yoo Jia and Park Changseok both expressed their refusal politely.
Park Changseok, in particular, even mocked them subtly.
He tried visiting Baek Jinwoo several more times, but—
-I'm sorry.
-Didn't I tell you last time? Please go through Yoobaek.
-I'm sorry.
-Sorry.
'….'
Later on, Baek Jinwoo would simply raise a hand in dismissal and whoosh!—disappear without a word.
Whenever that happened, the secretary's pride in working at the nation's top elite public institution—the headquarters—crumbled in an instant.
'What on earth did I do wrong?!'
If there was one mistake, it was simply being the director's secretary.
Because of that alone, his once-high self-esteem was gradually collapsing.
And in the midst of all this, the director kept spouting nonsense like, "If it doesn't work, make it work!"
Ugh!
"I have a question."
"What, for me?"
"Yes."
"What is it?"
"Why are you so obsessed with Player Baek Jinwoo? He may be trending these days, but he isn't even a ranked player yet, nor is he a national representative. His weekday dungeon records are impressive, but a player's skill cannot be judged solely by that."
A valid point.
Just as there are players specialized in dungeons, there are also players specialized in PvP.
But the director shook his head and grinned.
"That's not what's important, you idiot."
"Then what is?"
"He's handsome."
"…Pardon?"
The secretary doubted his ears.
That was the reason?
Player Baek Jinwoo… well, ahem, his appearance was indeed quite outstanding.
But still—
How could that possibly be a reason to recruit him to the headquarters?
"A player needs star quality. That way, the public recognizes them, and the politician standing beside them gains name value as well."
"…Ha."
So, in the end, it was all about securing votes.
As expected.
Whether it was the National Assembly or the headquarters—all politicians were the same.
"But that guy is a bit too stubborn, which is a shame."
"Are you finally giving up?"
Just as the secretary's eyes lit up with hope—
"Director!"
Bang!
An employee burst through the door.
It was a staff member directly under the director, responsible for managing the Tower of Trials—specifically handling privacy-related information.
"What is it?"
The employee glanced at the secretary.
"He's fine. He's also under contract."
Only those who had formally signed confidentiality agreements could share such information.
If disclosed to an unauthorized person?
They would have to bear the system's curse.
"Th-that is… Player Baek Jinwoo has conquered the Tower of Trials again."
"Oh, really? I thought it was something serious."
The director nodded as if he had expected it.
For a player who had cleared the first floor, clearing the second floor wasn't particularly surprising.
The early floors of the tower were said to be of similar difficulty.
"He cleared the second floor? How long did it take this time?"
"If that were the case, I wouldn't have rushed here in person to report it."
"…Then?"
"He… he cleared up to the 9th floor… and it took less than an hour since he entered. This is an impossible speed not just domestically, but even worldwide…"
"What?"
The secretary was shocked.
"Wh-what!?"
The director sprang to his feet.
"Is that true? He was on the first floor just yesterday!"
"We couldn't believe it either. When he first entered and came out of the second floor, we assumed he had only cleared that floor and saw him off. But when we checked the records… there were consecutive clear records up to the 9th floor."
Outside the first floor of the Tower of Trials is a record room.
When a player clears a floor, it is automatically recorded there.
"He defeated floors 2 through 9 consecutively, without even coming outside."
"He's completely insane."
The director's face flushed with excitement.
The 9th floor of the Tower of Trials?
Even among South Korean ranked players, fewer than half had reached that far.
Although rankings are officially determined after the world league at the beginning of each year, Baek Jinwoo had effectively entered the ranks of the elite with this achievement alone.
"Hah, so there was a reason he was so stubborn?"
"…He is an astonishing individual."
"Baek Jinwoo, that guy… I want him even more now."
"…."
The secretary shook his head.
Some things simply cannot be forced.
They had to admit it.
They had failed to recognize the gem and had instead treated him poorly.
Rather, it was impressive that Yoo Jia had recognized his worth.
'There's only one way now.'
Abandon Im Heesoo and reach out to Park Changseok.
Whether that old man realized it or not…
'He probably does.'
After all, one does not become a member of the National Assembly by playing children's games.
'But…'
If Park Changseok were to ask why he should even take that hand?
'Well…'
It didn't seem likely.
* * *
"Phew."
Baek Jinwoo arrived home and stretched.
At the same time, he summoned his familiars—only the elite EX-grade ones: Lamba, HunGyo, and Explosive Dragon Sorcerer.
"Good work. You guys should rest today as well. I'm completely drained."
Thud!
With that, he flopped onto the sofa, lying spread-eagle.
He had pushed himself for the first time in a while.
From the 2nd to the 9th floor.
He blasted through them like a storm, following the routes he already knew.
2nd Floor: A mission to go to the metropolis Chrome and rescue a senior researcher in danger.
3rd Floor: Escort the rescued researcher to the outskirts of another metropolis, Helio.
4th Floor: Open a secret door leading to the laboratory.
5th Floor: Clear out the monsters inside the laboratory.
6th Floor: Travel to the power plant to resolve the blackout inside the lab.
7th Floor: Subdue the monsters at the power plant and reconnect the severed power lines.
8th Floor: Return to the lab and assist the senior researcher with their research.
9th Floor: Discover the existence of the King of Monsters, the S-rank Cyclops, and move to its location after concluding that eliminating it would resolve the large-scale monster outbreak.
Having experienced everything before, Baek Jinwoo moved without hesitation.
He utilized every piece of information he remembered and pushed forward without rest.
And now, the final step remained.
Only the battle with the final boss, the Cyclops, stood before him.
'And…'
The Cyclops was still far beyond what he could handle at full power.
He needed to equip higher-tier runes with better options, and Explosive Dragon Sorcerer needed further growth.
He also had to increase its intelligence to boost damage, and it would be even better if it learned Explosive Dragon Transformation.
'Still…'
His growth speed was remarkably fast.
Compared to God Ji-nu during Battle of Summoners?
'It's incomparably faster.'
Information and experience truly were overpowered advantages.
If before it felt like carefully walking a thorny path, now it felt like sprinting along a smooth trail.
—Yaaawn! So we're resting today? Hehe.
As Lamba stretched and plopped down onto Baek Jinwoo's chest—
What do you think you're doing?
—HunGyo's eyes flashed dangerously.
—Eek?
Startled, Lamba quickly got off Baek Jinwoo's chest and hovered in the air.
—My lord, I apologize. Rather than training, I should have corrected her habits first.
"It's fine. I'm okay."
He truly was.
Lamba wasn't heavy—it just felt like a pet lying on top of him.
—No, my lord. You have worked hard today. Please rest well. However, we cannot rest yet.
—Whaaat? What kind of thunderbolt announcement is that!
Lamba protested loudly.
Tremble, tremble.
Explosive Dragon Sorcerer, who had been resting comfortably on another sofa, began to shake.
No way…
After clearing those brutal dungeons back-to-back, he wanted to train again?
—Didn't you hear Jinwoo? He told us to rest today!
—Lamba.
—What!
On the 7th floor power plant—when you defeated the giant monster—your attack speed increase dropped slightly. Do you remember why?
—Ah, that…
Lamba began to sweat nervously.
—And on the 8th floor, while dealing with the Monster Lord, you paused three times without swinging your staff. Why was that?
—H-how can you remember things like that!
Lamba was horrified.
—Seriously!
During such intense battles, he had remembered and counted all of that?
What a freak!
—That's too much! How is a fairy supposed to swing her staff all day long!
—Have you considered that such selfish thinking could cost our lord his life?
—That's an exaggeration! We could have defeated a mere Monster Lord even without my buffs!
—Our lord will continue climbing the tower. The difficulty will become incomparably harder than now. Will you make the same mistakes then?
—….
She had nothing to say.
When her mistakes were pointed out so precisely, what argument could she possibly make?
—And Explosive Dragon Sorcerer.
—Hic!
Explosive Dragon Sorcerer flinched.
——On the 5th floor laboratory—twice. On the 7th floor power plant—once. On the roadside of the 9th floor—twice. You missed Explosive Dragon Wave, didn't you?
…Yes, I'm sorry.
Explosive Dragon Sorcerer bowed her head deeply.
She looked so pitiful that Baek Jinwoo felt uncomfortable.
—Everyone can make mistakes. However, recognizing mistakes and choosing not to address them is a serious problem.
—…..
—…..
Unable to refute him, both familiars lowered their heads.
"Alright, that's enough."
Baek Jinwoo finally stepped in.
"HunGyo, you're also at fault."
—…!
"I told you to rest first. What's more important—training or my command?"
—Th-that… Of course, my lord's command takes priority. I was short-sighted. I apologize.
Slightly flustered, HunGyo stepped back and bowed.
"That doesn't mean HunGyo is wrong either."
This time, Baek Jinwoo looked between Lamba and Explosive Dragon Sorcerer.
"Mistakes should definitely be addressed. So we'll rest today, and starting tomorrow, we'll focus on improving those areas together."
They were already moving fast enough.
Pushing even harder for more speed?
That would only increase the risk of burnout. They needed a bit of relaxation.
'First…'
His body was fine, but mentally he had been exhausted lately.
'I should get some sleep.'
Then, after waking up, he would sort through the rewards.
From the 2nd to the 9th floor—
A total of eight rewards!
He would check them tomorrow during the training session with the others.
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