Climbing the Mythic Tower as a Cheating Administrator - Chapter 77

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Cheating as an Administrator to Climb the Mythic Tower (77)
Lee Jung-gi stared down at Kim Moo-saeng.
Part of him wanted to whirl those six arms down and flatten him on the spot.
Tremor-tremor-tremor……. His body shook and shook, but it refused to obey his will.
“You…… cough.”
Blood mixed into his cough—not the work of the Oni skill, but something else.
Lee Jung-gi was coming to realize it.
His body was collapsing.
His SR-grade Poison Resistance—supposed to make him immune to all but the rarest toxins—had succumbed to poison.
“How…….”
The question came out between ragged breaths.
Kim Moo-saeng said nothing.
The answer came not from him, but from someone else.
[Kya-kya-kya-kya! You think Kim Moo-saeng could’ve generated this much firepower on his own? You think he could’ve broken through these flames without help?]
Whoooooosh──────────!
From within the roar of the inferno, Wash spoke.
The words wouldn’t carry outside, but to Lee Jung-gi they came through loud and clear.
‘If Wash hadn’t been here, I’d have missed it entirely.’
That was why Kim Moo-saeng held his tongue.
The concept behind Attribute Magic Fusion and its application had been sound enough.
But could that firepower alone bring down Lee Jung-gi?
Wash’s power had filled the gap.
[I can’t exert force directly, Kim Moo-saeng. But I can amplify the power you wield. Not for long, mind you, but enough.]
75.1% Download—the power itself.
Wash said it could do more than just mask skill usage; it could enhance skills themselves.
And that wasn’t all.
The Poison-Snake toxin flowing through Lee Jung-gi wasn’t SR-grade—it was SSR-grade.
To enhance both skills and attacks through artifacts was itself part of Execute with Admin Authority.
“Making it so I’m not cold—you mean Resistance to Cold, right? Then you could raise Fire Resistance in turn?”
[Of course.]
And beyond that, Wash’s casual remark—making it so he’s not cold—had not slipped past Kim Moo-saeng.
Because he’d caught it, he’d conceived the firestorm tactic from the start, and with Wash’s Resistance boost and firepower amplification, he’d driven the finishing blow home.
Kim Moo-saeng now looked down at Lee Jung-gi, who had ceased all movement.
Anything special to say? No. There wasn’t.
Lee Jung-gi had nothing left to say either.
“Skill enhancement and Resistance enhancement……? So you really are…… the Tower’s-.”
He’d understood everything from Wash’s gleeful taunt.
And his lips curved upward in a smile.
That was all.
Thud──────…….
The 2.5-meter frame collapsed.
Kim Moo-saeng looked down at Lee Jung-gi’s corpse and opened his mouth.
“Wash.”
Wash hovered forward into Kim Moo-saeng’s line of sight.
Those beady eyes behind the black-framed glasses were brimming with curiosity.
[What? Feeling guilty about murder? Now you’re taking pity on your enemy-.]
“No, but if we’d amplified Berserk instead, wouldn’t it’ve been easier? 2,000%, 3,000%, even. Wish you’d told me from the start.”
Wash had been about to poke directly at Kim Moo-saeng’s psychological state and emotional condition, but now he had to hold his tongue.
A question like that, at a time like this?
Even Wash was caught off guard and had to scramble for an excuse.
[……Kya-kya-kya-kya! Stupid question, Kim Moo-saeng. If I’d done that, the backlash-.]
“I know. Just saying it out loud.”
And Kim Moo-saeng cut Wash short.
Of course he’d considered it; of course he’d thought of the reason. He knew perfectly well.
For now, he was simply looking at the man he’d brought down with his own hands.
‘Brought down……. No, there’s no need to hide behind that kind of phrasing.’
A man I killed with my own hands.
He simply gazed at Lee Jung-gi’s corpse.
The ominous presence, the hideous scheme.
And beneath it all—a spark of admiration and awe that flickered even stronger than fear. An enemy.
Shhhhhhh…….
The whirlwind of flames began to dissipate gradually.
As the heat spread outward and those inside and outside the space could finally see one another,
everyone in the underground chamber gasped.
Because of the corpse of Lee Jung-gi lying motionless?
It wasn’t only that.
“Kim Moo-saeng? When did you— how did you— wait, where did this skill even come from…….”
What exactly had Moo-saeng done?
“It’s incredible……. More than I anticipated, far, far more than I expected—! Kim Moo-saeng! I’ve discovered several things, no, I— I’ll tell you about this later. I absolutely will! You have to take my calls!? You must! Absolutely must! You understand!?”
How on earth had Moo-saeng managed this?
“I’m Robert Kay, sent here on instructions related to the Eight-Ring Eyes……. But before such formalities, I must offer my thanks first. Thank you.”
How could Moo-saeng possibly be capable of such a thing!
Receiving the flood of attention and piercing gazes directed at him, Moo-saeng laughed awkwardly.
The first words from a powerhouse who had defeated an Oni of SR-grade?
It wasn’t boasting, nor was it taking credit, nor relief.
“Still, I’m glad you’re all here. That counts as self-defense, right?”
As he gazed at everyone, stunned into silence, only Wash broke into hearty laughter.
* * *
“I guess I was more tired than I thought. Apparently I slept for nearly a whole day.”
“……damn, you went through all that and only slept a day? I would’ve been knocked out for a week.”
Park Hyun-gu handed Moo-saeng a glass, his tone one of utter disbelief.
―The Awakened ability Oni, SR-grade; Lee Jung-gi’s death.
―CEO Lee Han-il’s disappearance and the dissolution of Korea One-Way Group.
―Geumseong’s acquisition of the One-Way license.
―A mysterious explosion in the Abandoned Factory Underground in the heart of Seoul, among other things.
Having heard the truth behind events that had dominated the news for the past two days, it was only natural.
“True enough. I should have a drink with you today and sleep soundly. I have to go to the police station again tomorrow.”
“That’s right. You know expensive thirty-year-old spirits don’t leave hangovers, right? Drink as much as you like and rest well.”
Moo-saeng had killed Lee Jung-gi.
That investigation, that questioning, was far from over.
Though it was genuinely self-defense, the verdict would come through faster and more cleanly than that.
There were Lee Jung-gi’s well-documented misdeeds, the World Awakener Association’s active testimony, and furthermore the backing of Geumseong chairman Geum Byeong-chul and Geum Su-ah.
“Oh, by the way. In three days I’m doing something with Geumseong. That okay?”
Above all else, Geum Su-ah had thrown herself into it with fierce determination.
She, who had been unable to ask Moo-saeng many questions.
She, who was anxious he might return to the Tower again.
With Geum Su-ah running with sweat dripping down her palms just to somehow join Moo-saeng in Dungeon 67, Moo-saeng reckoned the basic closure of the incident would likely come through by tomorrow.
“Huh? What kind of work? Wait, why are you asking me that?”
“Schedule management. The Tower.”
It was only natural that Moo-saeng refocus on reality.
He needed to grow.
Though he’d certainly grown at an extraordinary pace, he was acutely aware there was still a long way to go.
Moreover, through the fight with Lee Jung-gi, his own shortcomings had become starkly apparent.
‘I need a skill. One that can utilize Attribute Magic Fusion.’
A strong wind alone wouldn’t register as wind-element in Attribute Magic Fusion.
A campfire or the flame beside a gas range wouldn’t be caught as fire-element in Attribute Magic Fusion.
Only attributes derived from Awakened abilities and skills would qualify as fusion targets, and……. To grow stronger, he needed to learn that kind of skill.
‘The problem is such skills don’t appear naturally. Should I just pick up an elemental skill at the next skill acquisition floor? Hmm, it’d be useful, but it feels wasteful to miss the chance to learn another useful skill.’
Specifically, as someone with Transfer, it was difficult for him to access such things easily.
How was he to resolve this problem?
“Geez. Why do you worry about such things? If you can go, you go. If you can’t, you can’t. You just need to let me know. I’ll handle the coordination. We just need a solid ten-person base, right?”
Since actual growth could only happen by climbing the Tower, it was natural that Moo-saeng felt driven to enter it somehow.
What had he gained from the battle with Lee Jung-gi?
“Hah, your instincts are sharp as ever. You and President Lee Jung-gi must have gotten along well.”
Combat experience? Intuition? Or perhaps memories?
However it was, there was no tangible result left in Moo-saeng’s hands, nothing clearly visible, so regret was inevitable.
Watching Moo-saeng mention Lee Jung-gi, Park Hyun-gu flinched slightly.
Wasn’t this Moo-saeng the one who had killed Lee Jung-gi with his own hands?
“Get along? Are you kidding? The Korea One-Way employees who received disability ratings from being near that bastard fill a whole truck. He deserved to die. That guy never saw heaven— absolutely not. Yeah, you did right, Moo-saeng.”
Park Hyun-gu laughed loudly and offered comfort that wasn’t quite comfort.
Knowing what he was about to say, Moo-saeng allowed himself just the faintest smile.
[Kyakkyakkyak! Having a crisis of conscience, Kim Moo-saeng? So much so that the brute’s name tumbles out of your mouth before you even realize it?]
Wash seemed to understand Moo-saeng’s unconscious slip just as well.
Moo-saeng simply shrugged.
“But I’ll swing by the police station tomorrow, and before we head to Dungeon 67 with Geumseong… doesn’t that open up a window? What’ll we do then?”
Tomorrow: the police station. In four days: Geumseong.
So what about the day after tomorrow?
Moo-saeng’s mouth curved upward.
“Morning’s got a meeting with the World Awakener Association folks… and the afternoon’s packed too. I’ve got plans with Hildegard Schmidt—I mean, Metal Rhine.”
“Another artifact she’s making for you? Nothing left over for the rest of us?”
“Hey, hold on—I’m not exactly scrounging for scraps here. We’re not meeting because of an artifact.”
“Then what?”
The reason for his good mood despite the busy schedule was unmistakable.
“I can’t really say right now. But anyway… a genius is a genius, you know? That sort of thing.”
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”
It was because of the text message Hildegard had sent.
—The thing is, we’re trying to find Wash’s true body! Given that wave signature and everything… I think it might actually work inside a dungeon! I got the idea when I saw the signal and wave patterns that were detected when you used that skill and my hideout blew apart! Not outside, but—
When Wash’s fire tornado, strengthened and violent, tore through the underground space and erupted upward.
When it unleashed firepower capable of destroying even that space made by the Hand of Aetri marked SR-grade.
Her data analysis had formulated a hypothesis.
—Inside a dungeon, at Raid-class difficulty with plenty of skills deployed! It would serve as a kind of “decoy signal” while Wash searches for the real body. Of course, the higher the level, the better! What do you think? Can you arrange a situation like that?
The point being: inside a dungeon, they might be able to execute the Download without being detected by the Tower’s presence.
It was a method even Wash had deemed worthy of attempting, clicking his mandibles with genuine satisfaction.
“Anyway… I don’t know whether to be happy about this or annoyed.”
Whether Hildegard had known what she was saying or spoken without realizing it, Moo-saeng couldn’t say for certain—but one thing was clear.
Since he understood just how crucial raising Wash’s Download rate was, and how much it stood to benefit him…
‘I’ll need to slip Hildegard into Dungeon 67 without being noticed. Not just getting her in, but I’ll have to deceive Geum Su-ah and the other Geumseong people so she can help with Wash’s Download too.’
There was no way he could leave Hildegard behind in three days when the Dungeon 67 expedition was scheduled.
The highest-caliber personnel in South Korea would be moving through a space that was an exact replica of the highest environmental conditions.
“What is it? What? Tell me the details.”
“Ugh, it’d take forever to explain. Just manage the Tower party roster for me, will you?”
He couldn’t afford to miss this chance.
The next objective was Wash’s Download in Dungeon 67.
Moo-saeng wanted to push it up to at least eighty percent.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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