Juhyeok wasn’t oblivious to Kozak’s concerns.
His awakening characteristic was Summoning.
The combat style of the Summoning characteristic relied on summoned beings to handle most of the player’s combat power, rather than fighting directly.
There was no need to fight personally.
Juhyeok was especially unique.
Not a typical Summoning characteristic, but an irregular one.
By drawing high-grade summonees or increasing simultaneous summons through characteristic enhancement runes or special benefits, he could climb the tower while barely lifting a finger.
‘Anyway, we need to conquer the 21st floor.’
Orcs appeared from the 21st to the 25th floor.
In the early days of the tower, this section had caused numerous casualties.
It had been chaotic back then.
Suddenly, an inexplicable surge in missing persons cases.
Now, with better quality items available and conquest success videos easily accessible, players rarely died here.
‘I should be careful, right?’
Even with his newfound confidence, he had no intention of being reckless.
‘Who am I kidding.’
Somewhere in a parallel universe, there was someone with the same characteristic and skills as him.
Kozak’s previous summoner.
Surely he hadn’t fallen due to lack of ability.
He must have been stronger than Juhyeok.
Probably decked out in special benefits too.
Yet he had died.
His world had perished.
For these reasons, Juhyeok understood Kozak’s worries.
How could he not know why Kozak kept sighing deeply?
But he was human too.
He had just started to enjoy being a tough guy.
And now that he’d learned a new skill, he had to try it out.
‘I’ll persuade him. After all, absolute obedience is his basic principle.’
He summoned Gobang.
[Barbarian Warrior Meat Shield has been summoned by designation.]
Then Kozak.
[John Kozak has been summoned by designation.]
“…At your service. I-I’m here.”
Why so gloomy?
His shoulders were slumped.
“Did something upset you?”
“…”
Was it because of the attack skill I gained yesterday?
Kozak finally spoke:
“…The attack skill acquisition might become poison. Honestly, I was anxious even on the 20th floor. It was only because they were goblins…”
So that was it.
The attack skill acquisition was the cause.
He thought Juhyeok would rush forward to try out the skill, putting himself in danger.
“Goblins were one thing, but orcs are different. I apologize in advance. I’ll be committing a mortal sin. Invoking the 3rd principle of summonees.”
“…Huh?”
What the hell.
That damned 3rd principle?
The one that allows summonees to disobey in order to protect the summoner’s life?
“Uh…”
“There’s no other way.”
Stay calm.
As experienced before, the scope of the 3rd principle was broad.
At this rate, he might not even get to swing his mace once.
The S++ conquests were also related to the 3rd principle, if you thought about it.
Finish the conquest before the summoner becomes endangered.
Moreover, accumulate Platinum badges to draw out special benefits and strengthen the summoner.
He must have thought his actions had crossed a line.
Intending to nip the danger in the bud.
“…Are you saying you’ll tie me up? With a ribbon bow?”
“How should we restrain you? I think Gobang will just safely hold onto Summoner Bong. I’ll handle the conquest alone,”
Juhyeok looked at Gobang to see if he’d really do it.
“…”
He quietly averted his gaze.
These two had conspired.
“Don’t do this. I’ll be careful from now on, I promise.”
“I can’t trust that.”
Sharp.
Did he have some truth-discerning eyes?
No choice then.
He had to be sincere! Truly sincere.
Mind control.
He repeated internally.
From now on, I’ll be extremely careful.
Won’t rush out recklessly.
Will protect myself.
Safety first.
That should do it.
“Really! I swear on everything! I won’t charge ahead again.”
“…Do you mean it?”
“Instead of just standing around, I’ll take down just one. Carefully, slowly. That’s okay, right?”
Kozak pondered.
“Trust me just this once! Safety first! Self-preservation!”
Then,
“If you insist… But! I’ll escort you closely to ensure your safety. If a dangerous situation arises, I’ll intervene immediately.”
“Deal!”
“At your service!”
Phew.
Thank goodness.
Kozak spoke with a confident voice.
The persuasion had worked.
Considering Juhyeok’s level, armor, skills, and so on, Kozak deemed it somewhat safe.
Juhyeok was relieved too.
“Shall we go then?”
To the 21st floor.
[Entering the 21st floor of the Black Tower, Republic of Korea.]
From the 21st floor onward, orcs appeared.
The type was forest-dwelling common greenskin orcs.
Their individual combat power was stronger than goblins.
However, their slightly lower intelligence was a weakness, if you could call it that.
“Orcs are stupid. Of course, they’re probably smarter than Gobang.”
“I smarter than orc.”
“Yes, yes, shut up.”
They may be dumb, but look at their bodies.
Pure muscle.
If an orc caught you, your limbs would be torn off before you could use a healing potion, resulting in death.
Good thing he’d agreed to take down just one.
“Anyway, Summoner Bong, make good use of Shadow Step. It’s perfect for fooling orcs. They’ll tire themselves out chasing shadows.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll just take down one. Trust me.”
“Yes, sir.”
First, they equipped their gear in the safe zone.
“Wait a moment. Let me practice just 10 times before we go.”
Let’s practice before we start.
The mission would begin once it appeared.
“You can do it 100 times if you want.”
Juhyeok held his shield in his left hand and the adamant mace in his right.
Skill: Primordial Thunderbolt Staff, First Form ‘Falling Lightning Soul Chaser’.
Woong!
Mana concentrated in the mace.
The first form was a simple vertical strike.
However, its speed and power were anything but simple.
Swish!
Crackle!
The mace fell like a bolt of lightning.
‘Is this right?’
Once more.
Swish!
Crackle!
He swung it five or six times, but…
“Hmm.”
It still didn’t feel quite right.
Seeing this, John Kozak said:
“How can you practice properly without a target?”
“Right? I guess I’ll have to try it out in actual combat…”
“Still, jumping straight into battle is too risky. It takes sufficient practice for the skill to be effective.”
“Then what should I do?”
“There’s always a way.”
Kozak turned his head to look at the barbarian Gobang.
“Gobang.”
“Speak, assassin.”
“Kneel down for a moment.”
“A warrior doesn’t kneel to just anyone.”
“Not to me, to Summoner Bong.”
“I kneel.”
Thud!
Juhyeok and Gobang’s eye levels became almost the same.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to Juhyeok.
He had a feeling.
“…Oh.”
Surely not…?
“Here you go! Gobang makes a perfect practice dummy. Go ahead and swing away!”
“…”
Sigh.
Had he really lost his mind?
“You want me to hit Mr. Gobang?”
“Isn’t it great? You can hit him with all your might and he won’t even get a scratch. He’s perfect for practice.”
“…”
“I’m too frail, you see… hehehe.”
Then Gobang chimed in:
“Summoner, you can hit. I don’t feel pain.”
“You heard him? He says it’s fine, so just hit him 10 times and let’s get started.”
“…”
This was driving him crazy.
Kozak telling him to hit, Gobang saying it was okay.
They were both the same.
Juhyeok’s choice?
Not even worth considering.
“Let’s go receive the mission.”
“Ah, but if you just hit 10 times…”
“Shh! Keep this up and I’ll charge in alone, got it?”
“Yes sir! I’ll keep quiet.”
Shortly after leaving the safe zone.
[21st Floor Mission: Defeat 30 Forest Orcs.]
[Time Limit: Within 4 hours.]
“Shall we begin?”
“I’ll take point!”
“I go too.”
Juhyeok stayed behind.
He’d promised to take down just one, so he had to keep his word.
Krch! Kuek! Krng!
Forest orcs poured out in droves, making strange noises.
He remembered a video he’d seen on YouCube.
A player with the same Summoning characteristic conquering by summoning golems.
‘Was that player level 30 at the time?’
As he recalled this, forest orcs were being swept away.
At this rate, he might not even get to take down one before it ended.
Better choose quickly.
Suddenly!
One forest orc was left behind, separated from the group.
‘That one looks good…’
Juhyeok made eye contact with Kozak.
Can I take that one down?
Nod.
Kozak nodded his head.
“Okay!”
Swoooosh!
Approaching in one breath with Shadow Step,
“Kuek?”
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Disorienting it with several afterimages, he got behind it,
Swish!
Bringing the mace down on its crown.
Crackle!
Crack!
“Keeee…”
It collapsed from electrocution and skull fracture.
“Oh!”
Easy.
Too easy.
‘One more?’
No.
He could feel a burning gaze on the back of his head.
It would be trouble if the 3rd principle activated.
[You have successfully completed the 21st floor mission.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Reward: 2.1kg of magic stones]
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ grade conquest on the 21st floor of the Black Tower (Korea).]
[S++ Conquest Reward: A Platinum Badge is awarded.]
The next day, he took down one during the desert orc extermination mission on the wasteland terrain.
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ grade conquest on the 22nd floor of the Black Tower (Korea).]
On the 23rd floor, in a dark cave environment with traps scattered about, he took down one cave orc during the extermination mission.
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ grade conquest on the 23rd floor of the Black Tower (Korea).]
On the 24th floor, he managed to kill one volcano orc with difficulty on the land where red-hot lava flowed.
[Notice: You have achieved an S++ grade conquest on the 24th floor of the Black Tower (Korea).]
‘Tch.’
Taking down just one at a time was frustrating.
But he had to build trust for now.
Now for the long-awaited 25th floor.
After resting for a day or so.
‘Maybe I should hand over the rune while I’m at it?’
He hadn’t been able to give the item because Gobang and Kozak had always been together.
So the next day, Juhyeok summoned only Kozak.
“At your service! I’m here.”
“Welcome.”
“Didn’t you say we were resting today?”
“That’s right, but… Oh! I picked this up on the way. Take it.”
“Hm? Is it food?”
“No. Check it out.”
As if it were nothing, casually, Juhyeok tossed the Summonee Grade Increase Rune to Kozak.
Kozak’s eyes trembled as he caught it.
“Oh my…”
He brought it close to his eyes, even tried biting it,
Suddenly!
“Huuuk! What, what is this? G-grade enhancement?”
“Nice, right? Do you like it?”
“A-are you really g-giving this to me?”
“Yes.”
“…Amazing. Grade increase, I’m overwhelmed.”
Is he really that happy?
“I’m truly delighted. Now I can protect Summoner Bong even better.”
Well, he seems pleased at least.
“Want to start the grade increase now?”
“No, we mustn’t. It’s dangerous to rush. I need to prepare mentally too. I’ll do it when I return.”
So it’s not that simple.
“Then I’ll see you tomorrow after your grade increase?”
“Yes, sir!”
He’ll handle it well, I’m sure.
“Since you’re here, why don’t you stay and hang out for a bit?”
“Then I’ll just watch TV…”
Kozak skillfully turned on the TV with the remote.
Juhyeok, feeling bored himself, joined in watching.
Whir whir whir whir!
The channels were changing too quickly.
“Let’s just watch one. Just one!”
“Hmm, I was watching something, looking for a rerun.”
“Just use the on-demand service.”
“Isn’t that expensive?”
“What’s the point of saving that money! Let’s just use the on-demand… Huh?”
Just then.
“Wait a second!”
Juhyeok pointed at the TV screen.
“What’s wrong?”
“Go back a channel.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Forward, more… Stop!”
It was a public broadcast news channel.
A woman with a red band around her head was being interviewed by a reporter.
A very familiar face.
‘…Mom?’
It was Juhyeok’s mother, Mrs. Hong Geum-ja.
But why was she appearing there?
***
Hong Geum-ja was staging a one-person protest in front of the headquarters of Jinsaemmul Water Purifier Company.
She held a picket sign with slogans like “Oppose Unfair Contract Termination,” “Improve Treatment of Water Purifier Managers,” “Prevent Company Abuse of Power,” and so on.
She had told her family she was going out to look for a job, but every day she came to the water purifier company headquarters.
She couldn’t stand it anymore.
She had been unfairly dismissed from her contract.
When she visited a home to change the water purifier filter, they asked her to sort food waste and recyclables on her way out. Was that acceptable?
Hong Geum-ja was different from her husband or sons.
She confronted the issue head-on.
She told them she was there to manage water purifiers, not to run errands.
But the company told her to apologize to the customer.
Apologize? For what? She had done nothing wrong.
In the end, she was dismissed from her contract.
That’s why she started this one-person protest.
It had been over ten days since she began.
The broadcasting stations and press didn’t seem interested in covering it.
The company must have blocked them.
During this time, company executives had passed by her, but they ignored her, their eyes full of mockery.
Hong Geum-ja bit her lip hard.
She would never give in.
At that very moment!
“Are you Mrs. Hong Geum-ja?”
A well-dressed man in a suit appeared before her as she protested.
Handing her his business card, he said:
“Who are you?”
“You’ve worked hard. I’m Lawyer Lee Chang-seok from Park & Kim Law Firm.”
A lawyer?
And from Park & Kim Law Firm at that.
The top law firm in South Korea.
Famous for representing major corporations, state-owned enterprises, and especially for providing legal advice and representation to players at the request of the Awakened Management Office.
The appearance of a lawyer here meant…?
Hong Geum-ja spoke sternly:
“Is the company going to sue me? Tell them to go ahead. I won’t back down.”
“Hahaha! Not at all. Quite the opposite, in fact.”
“Pardon?”
“Let’s formally sue Jinsaemmul Corporation. Our law firm will represent you free of charge.”
“W-what?”
The lawyer’s words were completely unexpected.
Had she heard wrong?
This was ridiculous.
If it wasn’t a scam, this couldn’t be happening.
“No need to worry. This isn’t a scam. It’s part of a project to help the socially disadvantaged. Most law firms do this… If you come with me to our office, you’ll understand soon enough.”
Hong Geum-ja stood there, dazed for a moment, then said,
“Umm, I don’t really understand…”
“Do you have a phone? You can record this here. We’re establishing a verbal contract.”
She was utterly confused.
It didn’t seem like a scam, no matter how she looked at it.
What should she do?
Should she accept?
“Please trust me. I stake my honor on this. And we will definitely win.”
She pondered for a long time.
Well, she’d come this far. Might as well go all in.
“Alright. I’ll entrust you with my case.”
“As expected, you’re decisive. Well then…”
Lawyer Lee Chang-seok snapped his fingers.
“Shall we start with the media work?”
“…Pardon?”
Suddenly!
Reporters and broadcast cameras swarmed towards Hong Geum-ja.
“When answering reporters’ questions, feel free to go into detail, even if it takes longer. They’ll edit it later. Don’t leave out any of the unfair treatment you’ve endured.”
Hong Geum-ja could only nod in agreement.