Ex-level Player With the Greatest Civilization of All Time - Chapter 108

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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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Chapter 108

“Brother.”
The voice calling to me dragged my hazy consciousness to the surface in an instant.
A flash of clarity.
‘Where am I…?’
Darkness so complete I couldn’t see an inch ahead.
The surroundings were pitch-black.
But I could identify the owner of the voice.
Once I focused my eyes hard enough, I managed to make out a shape.
It meant concentrating mana into my eyes.
My prior experience came in handy.
In a crisis, nothing proved more valuable than experience.
“Are you alright, sir?”
The voice calling to me belonged to Baek Jin-seong.
“Yeah… I’m fine. How about you?”
“Yes, I’m unhurt.”
I was about to ask what had happened, but stopped myself.
The events from moments ago flickered through my mind.
“I didn’t think Gluttony would swallow me whole.”
Looking back now, I suspected the area where I’d been standing had also been within Gluttony’s domain.
That’s why the Mark hadn’t guided the way.
“Mew—”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
The creature pressed itself against me, mewling softly.
I stroked its horn gently while speaking to Baek Jin-seong.
“But you’re awfully composed about this.”
When I pointed out Baek Jin-seong’s calm demeanor, he replied.
“Well, we’re the only ones swallowed, aren’t we?”
Ar, Sermin, Krail, Pluto, and Tia.
They were all outside.
My entire fighting force, you could say.
So Baek Jin-seong clearly had faith that they would prevail.
“Since they’ve already defeated Gluttony twice, surely they’ll handle it themselves, no?”
“Yeah… I can’t argue with that logic.”
Still, trusting in them alone didn’t put my mind fully at ease.
The world rarely unfolds exactly as planned.
And what if this time, it doesn’t go right?
What if I’m left here, unable to act, and everything goes wrong?
Then I’d simply starve to death, eventually becoming nothing but bleached bones.
A heavy sigh escaped me.
I needed to prepare for the worst before it was too late.
Life was always full of twists and turns—when one disaster struck, it often came with a second, and a third layered on top of it.
Preparing afterward was always too late.
Only those who built the ark beforehand survived.
“Speaking of which, what about your broadcast?”
Normally, I should’ve seen worried messages in the chat by now.
Since it seemed oddly quiet, I asked.
“Strangely enough… it won’t turn on.”
Baek Jin-seong had already tried other skills like Community long ago, but none of them worked either.
Neia must be worried sick.
“…Wait. Then could it be…?”
I hastily attempted to open a Gate.
“Gate Opening!”
But nothing happened.
My abilities were useless too.
I’d been considering cutting Baek Jin-seong’s broadcast and attempting an escape through a Gate as a last resort.
Even that loophole had been completely sealed off.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this…”
The situation is starting to become clear.
This didn’t look like something simple—not what Baek Jin-seong had imagined.
I brushed the dust from my clothes and got to my feet.
“What are you planning to do?”
“While we still have strength, I want to scout around a bit.”
We needed to move before it was too late.
There might be an escape route—I had to check.
But before we set out, I took inventory of our current power.
Baek Jin-seong and me, plus two useless Magikarp.
Three Combat Drones.
Two Hunter Drones.
One Aegis.
And one Projector Unit, I think.
“Meow—”
“Right, and one cat too.”
Either way, this was far from ideal.
Our power was weaker than I’d hoped.
I wish Pluto had come along with us.
Next time, I’ll need to give stricter escort orders….
“Sigh….”
This felt like the very beginning of Tower Climbing—our power was that sparse.
Honestly, I was hesitant.
Part of me worried that staying put might’ve been the right call.
But I’d decided to try, so let me at least take the first step.
I can always give up later anyway.
“Let’s move.”
I designated the two Hunter Drones as the core force for this expedition.
Hunter Drones were fundamentally suited for reconnaissance.
So I positioned one at the very front and one at the very rear.
“The Combat Drones take the back position.”
The Aegis would stay right beside us.
We humans were the most vulnerable to sudden threats.
Finally, we were ready to depart.
With the drones’ lights to guide us, the exploration moved faster than expected.
And as we walked, I recognized something.
“This is that place from before….”
The City that we’d sent forces to investigate.
The distinctive buildings made it unmistakable.
Though the darkness kept us from seeing far, even what little I could make out confirmed it.
I stopped short.
I was moving carefully, turning to scan the area once more in case I’d missed something, when it happened.
I had no choice but to stop walking.
The lead Hunter Drone had shown a halt signal light.
The moment I stopped and looked ahead.
More than a dozen monsters emerged from the darkness.
‘Can we win this?’
Truthfully, it wasn’t impossible.
The drones were strong enough.
But if we forced combat here and suffered power losses, then…
the chances of facing a worst-case scenario became far too high.
We were already stretched thin; we couldn’t afford to lose more.
‘Damn it… what do I do?’
Fighting was clearly not the best option…
Couldn’t they just go somewhere else?
I held my breath and watched the situation unfold, hardly believing this was happening.
The wandering monsters kept drawing closer.
I couldn’t shake the feeling they’d already sensed us and were closing in deliberately.
And when the monsters had gotten so close that I could no longer put off a decision.
“Meow!”
Kamang-i, who had been nestled in my arms, descended with confidence and produced a hazy fog from his horn.
The mist that lay low across the surroundings soon wrought a miracle.
The monsters that touched the fog abruptly twisted their direction and retreated.
If it had been just one or two, it might have been coincidence.
But after observing for a while, it was clearly no accident.
Every single monster that made contact displayed the same behavior.
“Now that I think about it, we had a situation like this before.”
Baek Jin-seong spoke once the monsters had withdrawn.
“Before?”
“When you were still unconscious.”
Back then too, a horde of monsters had approached, only to suddenly wheel around and vanish.
That’s when something clicked in my mind.
A story I’d heard from Shurin long ago—about the characteristics of the Luer Cat.
Something called Illusion Fog, wasn’t it?
“Mya—”
When I looked down at Kamang-i, the creature let out exactly that sound.
I lifted him up and praised him.
“Good work.”
When I touched his horn, he was absolutely delighted.
What an adorable creature.
“If that’s the case, everything changes.”
I’d been worried about lacking combat power.
But thanks to Kamang-i, we were now completely immune to monster encounters.
It was like spraying insect repellent before entering the brush.
And unlike a hundred steps or two hundred steps, this was an unlimited cheat with no restrictions.
I was lost in wonder at this glimmer of light in my despair.
“Huh!?”
Baek Jin-seong suddenly let out a sound.
Which startled me in turn.
“You scared me half to death, you fool.”
I really need to keep an eye on him as he enters….
“Ah… I apologize.”
“So what is it?”
Baek Jin-seong scratched his head sheepishly as he spoke.
“It’s about the quest, sir.”
“The quest?”
I followed his gaze to the quest window and was stunned.

[(Outer Tower) Quest: City Investigation – Investigation Rate 1%]

The investigation rate had increased.

* * *

I was utterly dumbfounded.
“Wait… so you’re saying…”
Now that I thought about it, this place we were walking through.
It was indeed a city.
Not the city that existed outside, but this one inside Gluttony—was that what it meant?
If so, it made sense that the quest window hadn’t responded at all before.
“Maybe… we could actually escape?”
Of course, if this weren’t the Outer Tower, I would have been certain.
But here in the Outer Tower, it was hard to speak with absolute conviction.
Because the system here doesn’t automatically transport you to the waiting room once you clear it.
But humans are beings capable of endurance when hope exists.
Unlike simply wandering aimlessly, the feeling now was entirely different.
This was an enormous discovery.
If the broadcast were running, the viewers would’ve given me three “no-shame coupons” for this.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, sir!”
With Kamang-i’s efforts in full swing, each time we walked and walked through the contract loop,
“Meow!”

[Outer Tower Quest: City Investigation – Investigation Rate 5%]
[Outer Tower Quest: City Investigation – Investigation Rate 11%]
[Outer Tower Quest: City Investigation – Investigation Rate 23%]

The investigation progress on the quest window climbed steadily.
In barely two hours, we’d come this far already—that’s ridiculously fast.
This fog really is absurdly broken.
We can push our speed without a second thought, no penalties.
At this pace, I almost believe we’ll accomplish the quest before our stamina runs out.
‘Though it does feel a bit hollow, I admit.’
Ordinarily, there’d be the viewers cheering us on.
Their energy and engagement would carry us forward.
Without that, something felt empty.
Is this what they call broadcast addiction?

[Outer Tower Quest: City Investigation – Investigation Rate 30%]

We’d finally broken through 30%.
“Where should we head next?”
“What about over there?”
I looked toward where Baek Jin-seong was pointing.
The darkness made it hard to see clearly, but….
Squinting my eyes, I focused on that spot.
A familiar structure came into view.
“That’s… a Core Center…?”
Of course, it looked distinctly different from the Core Center in Nemesis.
Yet there was no mistaking what its function was supposed to be.
‘Did we see a building like that back outside?’
No. Definitely not.
If it had been there, neither Neia nor I could have missed spotting it.
A Core Center was basically a city landmark—a building of considerable size.
It wasn’t just some town hall storing energy, handling administration, and filing documents.
There’s no way we’d have overlooked a structure that size if it were actually there.
“Well done, Baek Jin-seong.”
“I don’t know what it is, but we found something good?”
“That’s right—you’ve got a real knack for this.”
I’d lost count of how many discoveries he’d made just today.
With Kamang-i’s help, I moved swiftly toward the structure.

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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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