Ex-level Player With the Greatest Civilization of All Time - Chapter 22

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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 22

A steaming bowl of rice soup had filled my stomach nicely.
I settled in to watch the consignment sale with a satisfied mood, but then—
“Why’s this guy suddenly so fired up today?”
Baek Jin-sung’s enthusiasm was impossible to miss.
The starting price was already higher than yesterday, yet he was practically salivating at the thought of squeezing out every last coin.
“Ah… could it be that?”
I thought I understood the reason.
His reaction yesterday, right before we parted ways after clearing the 14th Floor—something had shifted.
Now that I thought back, there had been something off about him.
“From his perspective, it’s understandable that he’d feel impatient.”
The contract went up to the 15th Floor, if I recalled correctly.
It made sense that Baek Jin-sung would be anxious.
Especially since he hadn’t been much help with the climb itself.
“To be honest, I hadn’t planned to replace him anyway.”
I’d already felt his usefulness keenly enough.
Just yesterday, hadn’t I sold expensive materials through his efforts?
And strictly speaking, I could credit him for the Forgotten Sacred Artifact as well.
There was also a certain peace of mind in having him absorb the attention that would otherwise have been entirely focused on me.
“Besides, finding someone new isn’t exactly a trivial task.”
Swapping out one person turned out to be far more complicated than it seemed.
It meant finding a partner who could handle the menial work while solidifying my position.
Beyond mere money, it was a matter of trust—trusting a person who, in the worst case, could cost me my life.
Especially since Baek Jin-sung now occupied a position where he could covet the drone or scheme in subtle ways.
Now that trust was building between us, I had no desire to replace him.
In any case, based on my observations these past few days,
I’d come to regard Baek Jin-sung favorably—he had a genuinely positive disposition.
He was tactful enough to avoid sensitive topics.
He didn’t damage our relationship with excessive curiosity.
Just as we were beginning to build real synergy, there was no reason to throw him away on impulse.
“Still, there’s no need to tell him right now, is there?”
If his enthusiasm meant he’d sell things for even a slightly higher price, that was nothing but good for me.
I decided to keep quiet about the contract extension until after we cleared the 15th Floor.
And it was right after making that decision that—

— Guys, guys, this is huge.
— An S-rank Scroll dropped in Feronta!
— Didn’t we never get anything higher than A-rank before?
— Cha Seon-ah’s talking about it on her stream right now.

These messages appeared in Baek Jin-sung’s broadcast chat.
“An S-rank Scroll…?”
Intrigued, I immediately switched to Cha Seon-ah’s stream, but—
“Hmm… I can’t keep up with the pace.”
The conversation had already moved on considerably, making it hard to follow the thread.
Only after consulting the community forums did I manage to piece together the full picture.
There really was no faster way to gather information than the community forums.
“So that woman who was obsessed with the artifact back then was Cha Seon-ah.”
Should I have kept it instead of selling?
In hindsight, perhaps.
The money I’d made from selling the artifact hadn’t been spent wisely.
It had been a substantial sum, yet somehow most of the city reconstruction funds were being covered by byproducts from the Lava Hounds instead, leaving those proceeds essentially untouched.
But an S-rank Hidden Floor—
From what I heard, it was an event that had never occurred anywhere in the world before.
The realization sparked a momentary pang of regret, but then—
“No, there’s no guarantee I could have handled it alone anyway.”
Looking at how this was unfolding, even the Gangseong Guild was mobilizing their elite forces and apparently considering collaboration proposals with other domestic guilds of similar scale.
Even large guilds mobilize all their strength for an event like this—if a newbie like me tried to swallow it all alone, I’d be asking for trouble.
It was a classic case of excess leading to ruin.
So I dropped the idea quickly, reasoning it wasn’t meant to be.
“Guess turning back and farming was the smarter choice after all.”
I’d be content using this differently to my advantage instead.
“Hehehehe.”
The moment I grasped the full dynamics of the S-rank Scroll situation.
One idea came to mind first.
It was how to leverage this incident.
Not that leveraging it would be anything spectacular.
The public’s interest remained high even after I’d pushed Baek Jin-sung forward.
I could deliberately redirect that attention toward Cha Seon-ah instead.
Then slip through the remaining Feronta section quickly while the spotlight had dimmed.
“Honestly, I was worried because Baek Jin-sung’s face is too recognizable.”
The moment I traveled with him, even my Cognitive Obfuscation became useless.
But then, thinking about it properly, the Cognitive Obfuscation was meant to hide my identity outside the tower anyway, not within it, so it’s not the worst situation.
Still, the attention felt burdensome.
Especially with those snipers just itching for their moment of fame.
I was sketching out a reasonable plan while monitoring the broadcast.
Cha Seon-ah ended her stream, announcing that the full schedule would be posted later.
I immediately checked Baek Jin-sung’s broadcast.
“How’s Baek Jin-sung doing?”
I’d spent roughly three hours watching Cha Seon-ah’s stream.
In that time, all the auction items had apparently sold, though—
his substitute purchasing broadcast continued on.
Which was just as tedious.
I left his stream running in the background and dove into the community instead.
The S-rank Hidden Floor certainly had enormous impact.
The community was flooded with talk of nothing else.

[I wonder what rewards an S-rank gives?]
ㄴ Even A-rank had tons of loot aside from Experience, material boxes, and reward boxes.
ㄴ An Elixir alone would be incredible.
ㄴ Skill books too.

[But is it really okay for the Gangseong Guild to mobilize like that?]
ㄴ No penalties? The Aerial Garden is the 15th-floor section, right?
ㄴ Hidden Floors have Stat Penalties but no entry restrictions.

[I heard the Rest Temple is helping? Is that true?]
ㄴ Apparently twenty priest-rank supporters alone.
ㄴ Wow… so it really is an all-out operation?
ㄴ Definitely checking the S-rank Hidden Floor clear.

While I was deep in the community threads.
An alert suddenly popped up with a message.
Ding—

[Special Assembly has activated.]
[Congratulations—one of your created drones has awakened a special power.]

“No way, really?”
Argelayer had appeared just a day ago.
I’d definitely benefited greatly from that.
But now Special Assembly was triggering again…?
“Must’ve broken through a bottleneck.”
Things had been quiet for a while, so maybe I was due for a breakthrough.
The long-awaited progress was finally happening!
Baek Jin-sung’s broadcast was moving slowly due to price negotiations, slower than yesterday…
So I decided to open my subspace and check, without worry.
I made my way to the Core Center.
“Neia.”

‘You’ve arrived, Seon-woo.’

Neia seemed in unusually high spirits today.
Catching the subtle shift, I asked her about it.
“Something good happen?”

‘Indeed.’

“Is your good mood because of the reconstruction work?”

‘My, how perceptive. You’ve hit the mark exactly.’

The city that had been devastated by the Lava Hound attack.
Restoring it was something Neia had always wanted.
Once I’d reasoned it out, I moved on to asking about the Special Assembly.
“I received a message earlier that another Special Assembly event had occurred.”

‘That’s correct. Approximately two hours ago, a special unit was manufactured at factory K-09B5, which is currently operational.’

“Is it waiting in the warehouse like last time?”

‘That is not the case. The special unit, TYPE-Γ AI-Assisted Unit—Krail—has been dispatched to participate in the city reconstruction efforts. Shall I call him back?’

“No, if construction’s ongoing, I’ll head out there myself. Mark the location for me.”

‘Understood. I will guide you via the shortest route.’

Following the azure afterimage Neia had conjured, I spoke to her through the holographic monitor as I walked.

“By the way, how’s Argelayer?”
‘Argelayer requested rest following last night’s operation, so I authorized combat sleep.’
“I see. Anything else noteworthy?”

‘Everything is proceeding smoothly, though I should share a report regarding the excessive energy consumption last night.’

A blue window materialized before my eyes.

「 [Total Power Consumption: 19.3% Reduction]
– Energy Remaining Previous Day: 62 days’ worth
– Current Remaining Energy: 50.1 days’ worth
…. 」

“Hmm?”
My eyes widened as I reviewed last night’s power consumption figures.
I’d supplied an enormous quantity of Mana Stones to the city last night.
Even accounting for materials, that was easily worth two billion won.
But even running the factories at full capacity.
The remaining energy was barely fifty days’ worth.
Nearly twenty percent had been drained overnight.
There was only one power-hungry culprit I could think of.
“Argelayer?”
Reading through the report quickly confirmed my suspicions.

[Detailed Breakdown by Category]
• Argelayer 41.7%…
[Analysis of Details]
• Ultra-Photon Cannon: 51.7%
• Multi-Cannon Array: 23.1%
…

The Ultra-Photon Cannon was particularly problematic.
Nearly half of its total energy consumption had been expended during that single shot, according to the data.
“Even with superior specs, it’s a concern… I’ll keep that in mind.”
Either way, this meant I was already fretting over how much energy the Cipher Runner would devour once I deployed it.
Normalizing the city…
I’d thought it might be possible sooner rather than later, but it seemed it would take longer than expected.
After walking for about thirty minutes with these thoughts turning over in my mind,
“How much farther is the reconstruction site?”

‘We’re almost there,’ Neia replied.

“That’s the fifth time you’ve said that…”
I was on the verge of voicing my complaint to Neia
when faint, familiar sounds—the kind you’d hear at a construction site—began to drift toward me.
Each time I’d asked during our journey, she’d assured me we were close, and my patience had finally worn thin.
But this time was different.
I quickened my pace, and at last, the construction site came into view.
Mechanical robots moved about the site with purposeful activity.
The deeper I ventured toward the center, the more frequent their presence became.
“The construction’s progressing faster than I expected.”

‘With sufficient resources, the city’s restoration capacity is unmatched,’ Neia said with unmistakable pride in her voice.

Her confidence was not without merit.
Compared to the collapsed site I’d observed through the monitor earlier, the transformation that had occurred overnight was almost unbelievable.
‘I never realized there were so many robots stationed throughout the city.’
Robots that normally lay dormant somewhere, waiting.
Material robots carrying supplies needed for construction.
Robots with drills mounted on their arms, boring through obstructed passages.
Robots darting about in flight, erecting steel frames and welding them to buildings.
As I walked, taking in each robot’s movements, something caught my eye—a figure that stood out among them.
A lone presence with an alien appearance amid the machines.
“That must be Krail…”
A muscular middle-aged man wearing a hard hat, directing the robots from the center of the construction site.
Unlike Argelayer, he wore practical combat fatigues devoid of ostentation, yet he carried an unmistakable aura about him.
The moment our eyes met, he approached with measured, urgent steps and saluted.
I returned the salute and spoke.
“So you’re Sergeant Krail?”
“Yes, Successor. May I ask what brings you to this modest worksite?”
“I came to see you, that’s all.”
First the lieutenant, now a sergeant.
I still hadn’t determined how their ranks were assigned.
But based on the information I’d gathered so far, I suspected it stemmed from a distinction between heroic and special units.
I decided to observe a bit longer before drawing any firm conclusions.
“How is the construction progressing?”
“We are doing our utmost to produce the finest results.”
I nodded silently.
It was the same when I’d dealt with Argelayer.
Whenever I interacted with these units, I somehow got swept up in the atmosphere and found myself adopting a more measured tone…
“I see. Carry on with your work.”
“Yes, Successor.”
I stepped back out of the way and watched from a distance so as not to interfere with the construction.
That was when I could naturally discern his abilities.
“Looking at it, he’s clearly a combat-type unit in its original form.”
He was sharing visual data with the robots, providing them with optimal work procedures.
Normally, construction sites would naturally accumulate swirling dust and thick, acrid air, but there was none of that here—a distinctive feature in itself.
It seemed this too was Krail’s doing.
“A proper quartermaster, then.”
A monster of labor.
Dust-slayer, provisions administrator.
The weekend soldiers’ nightmare.
“A quartermaster, did you say?”
I thought it was Neia’s voice, but the timbre was subtly different, so I turned at once to find Argelayer—who was supposed to be resting from combat—standing there.
“Ah, was it you? I heard you were taking a break.”
Argelayer answered with a salute sharp as a blade.
“Yes, sir. I heard word of the Heir’s arrival and rushed out at once. But what you said about a quartermaster just now—ah, you were referring to that person, weren’t you?”
“Now that I think of it, Ar, you haven’t met Krail before either, have you?”
“I have not, sir.”
I nodded and spoke.
“Shall we go and pay our respects?”
“Yes, sir.”
Argelayer approached Krail, who was commanding the labor from the front, her gaze drawn toward the supply depot.
And then I witnessed the legend I’d only heard whispered about.
“So you’re the quartermaster?”

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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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