Ex-level Player With the Greatest Civilization of All Time - Chapter 61

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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 61

Flash—Crackle-crackle-crackle—

A beam of annihilation descended on the 22nd Floor as well.

[Blood Ogre 731/30 Red Skin-snake 421/30]

The 22nd Floor Clearance finished in an instant, just as expected.

[Clearance Rank SSS achieved!]

The Clearance Rank was naturally SSS.

[Level increased.]
[Level increased.]

I gained two levels at once.
Though I was already well above the recommended Level, the sheer overkill more than compensated for it.
‘The Reward Boxes are the same as before…’
Three from each floor, just like after clearing the 21st.
At this rate, barring an absolute disaster, I’d pull in enough to cover the Shizurunner operational costs.
‘Still, breaking even feels a little anticlimactic…’
But my thoughts and the chat’s mood seemed to diverge.

– Is 23rd Floor gonna be a full bombardment too?
– Let’s finish strong.
– Dopamine party let’s go!

These people never got bored, did they.
They still wanted more Shizurunner to watch.
I hesitated for a moment.
But this time, I decided to cut off the viewers’ requests gracefully.
“Let’s save the Shizurunner for next time.”
Of course, I couldn’t deny the advantages that came from using it.
Dense terrain was a goldmine for abnormal Experience Points gains.
‘The thing is, right now money matters more to me than levels…’
My situation was different from players who moved and fought with their own bodies.
The drones fought in my stead.
The benefit of levels was proportionally diminished.
On the other hand, Reward Boxes had an expected average value, but could also go south—badly.
I wasn’t about to overtax them without even checking what I got.
“Instead, I’ll show you something else.”
I offered a compromise to soothe the crowd and gauged their reaction.
As expected of the viewers.
They took the bait.

– Something else?
– Is it as good as Shizurunner?
– CEO Neia, choose wisely. You gotta ‘satisfy’ us.

[…has been forcibly removed from chat.]

When the voice chat cut off mid-sentence, I glanced at Baek Jin-seong.
“…You kicked them out?”
“Yes, they seemed to be crossing a line.”
This guy’s got an authoritarian streak, I swear.
Not that I’m one to talk.
“In any case, I can say with certainty.”
This too is something the viewers will find entertaining—I’d stake my reputation on it.
It’s true I was shocked when I first saw Shizz Runner’s bombardment.
But compared to something we’ve already wrung dry twice, this completely fresh approach will be far superior.
As my confident answer came through, the viewers themselves seemed to kindle with interest.
They hadn’t expected me to commit myself so firmly.

– So we can really expect something?
– Something on par with Shizz Runner, then…
– Wait, is it just me or did Shizz Runner suddenly lose his shine?

“Entering the 23rd Floor?”
“Yes, sir.”
Baek Jin-seong and I entered the 23rd Floor together.

[Entering the 23rd Floor.]

I opened the Gate and immediately linked up with the Humanoids.
After waiting my turn in the queue, I received the mission.
Exterminate eighty Blood Ogres and eighty Red Snakes.
‘It’s convenient that this is another extermination mission too.’
I gave Crail an order.
“Crail.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“Can you do that thing again?”
Crail’s lips curled up slightly—he understood.
“Of course, sir. I’ll put on quite the spectacular show.”
Crail released the hawk from his shoulder.
As I watched it, the massive holographic monitor that Crail had conjured came to mind.
Thanks to it, I could observe with a sense of immediacy.
As always, Crail had impeccable instincts.
The hawk soared through the air, searching for a densely packed monster zone.
Finding a suitable spot, it glowed crimson, and then…
Crack—
The hawk exploded, and an Electrical Field unfurled.
The colosseum opened, and the slaughter of monsters began.
To be honest, I’d worried the 20-tier monsters might simply burn up in the field entirely.
But it seemed Crail had modulated the output.

– Wait, why are they fighting each other?
– Don’t tell me Crail did this?
– This is absolutely insane.

The viewers were immediately drawn into the monsters’ brutal struggle.
Which monsters were stronger, which were weaker—opinions had always been divided in the community.
Since the outcome hinged on whoever had more time that day, the viewers’ reactions were intensely heated.

– Red King Snake wins?
– What’s with these people acting shocked as if they just figured it out now?
– So what if it releases an aura? Once those fangs sink in, it’s game over.
– Ah, those grudges we’ve been struggling against this whole time… at last, an end comes to them. My gratitude to Neia…

‘Why is he letting them ascend on their own…’
But just before transcendence, a grudge was yanked back down.
Because there wasn’t just one match.
Inside the Electrical Field, countless monsters’ battles raged on.
And different outcomes than before were becoming apparent.

– No wait, this one had the Blood Ogre beat the King Snake.
– Oh great, so now we’re doing mental gymnastics about “it just happened to be a stronger individual”?
– Snake bastards, are you coming to your senses now?

Yet the situation flipped back and forth like confetti, time and again, with each exchange.

– Kyaaah, trembling at that ogre poison gas—how adorable~
– Oh, here’s the snake meat you ordered.
– So the Blood Ogre became a Purple Ogre? Isn’t that precious?

Just an endless cycle of mockery.

– Ogre muscle-heads, are you coming to your senses?
– Snake bastards, are you coming to your senses?
– Coming to your senses?
– Coming to your senses?
– Coming to your senses?

Looking at it objectively, the win rate was nearly even—surprisingly so.
I couldn’t say if it was the same across all floors.
But entities bound to the same level seemed to have comparable combat strength regardless of their species.

– What, it’s already over?

The Colosseum hadn’t lasted long, of course.
It ended in about ten minutes.
At the site of carnage, where they’d torn into each other, the last surviving ogre roared.
Sorry, but that doesn’t net me 4.56 billion.

[Moving to the 23rd Floor waiting room shortly.]

I sent Crail and the drones back to the City, then finished the 23rd Floor.
The moment I arrived in the waiting room, the tally began.
As expected, the Clearance Rank was SSS Rank again.
Though the reward afterward was leaner than before.
No Level Up, naturally.
For the box—just a single Reward Box.

[(Floors 21-25) S-Rank Reward Box]

No material box in sight.
Sparse as it was, this was normal, so I had no regrets.
“Next is the 24th Floor.”
I cleared the 24th and 25th Floors consecutively.
Today, having rested long enough, I planned for at least five floors.
That’s what I’d set out to do.

[Entering the 24th Floor.]

Ding—

[Quest completed.]
[Moving to the 24th Floor waiting room.]
[SSS Rank Clearance achieved!]
…

The 24th Floor was a collection quest, so I cleared it by gathering a hundred Blood Herbs growing in the corners of the grassland.
On the 25th Floor…

[Slay the Vampire Queen awakened from deep slumber. 0 / 1]

An unfamiliar name had appeared.
I looked at the Quest and turned to the viewers.
“Do vampires appear as monsters on the 25th Floor?”

* * *

– What? Vampires? Where’d that come from?
– Is there even a monster like that?
– First time I’m hearing it too… The Floor Boss here is the Blood Twin-Head Ogre anyway.

In the Tutorial section, Floor Bosses appeared at regular five-floor intervals.
Naturally, they continued to spawn occasionally afterward.
And the Crimson Grassland Floor Boss was supposed to be the Blood Twin-Head Ogre….
That’s what I knew, and that’s what the viewers were saying too….
‘So what is this? Is something happening again?’
An Anomaly.
They say great power brings great responsibility—or so the saying goes.
In my case, responsibility or not, Anomalies seem to follow me around.
Naturally, my experience on the 15th Floor came to mind.
But I quickly found my composure again.
‘No, this is completely different from back then.’
The Anomaly in the Aerial Garden had begun when ordinary players were excluded.
But unlike that time, there are dozens of players on this field right now.
Dozens of them, excluding myself and Baek Jin-seong.
It was clearly a different situation from before.
Which meant this wasn’t even a Seven Deadly Sins, at minimum.
My mind suddenly eased.
As long as it’s not Seven Deadly Sins, it’s a sure win.
“By the way, is this a Joint Mission?”
“Yes, I heard people talking about it over there, and it looks like we’re all assigned the same Quest.”
There were cases where all players in the queue received identical missions.
And perhaps for that reason, the dropout rate had been low.
“Oh man, are we getting carried?”
“Just gotta wear the belt, right?”
“Awesome, gotta brag to my friends about this.”
“Experiencing Baek Jin-seong vicariously—this is incredible!”
Judging by the atmosphere, they were expecting quite a lot.
I turned to Crail.
“Crail, what about the Baller?”
Players getting carried was unavoidable, honestly.
The system had decided it that way—what could I do?
But regardless, I still needed to secure the SSS Rank clear.
The Vampire Queen, lurking somewhere in this vast field.
I’d asked because I needed to find her….
“I apologize, but it will take several hours before it can be generated.”
“Right… I figured as much.”
Honestly, Crail had nothing to apologize for.
I’d given the order, after all.
Regardless, this meant using a Baller to locate the Vampire Queen was out of the question.
‘Should I just give up on the clear?’
The field was vast.
Pinpointing a target without a Baller was essentially a gamble.
If I wanted to maintain the SSS Rank clear, it might be wiser to give it up now.
Otherwise, I’d deploy the drones and actually find her, but then fail to locate her within the time limit.
That would waste both time and energy—a worst-case scenario.
It would be a catastrophically costly situation.
Better to disappoint the expecting players and abandon the attempt early, securing what I could instead.
“Jin-seong, let’s call it here for today….”
That was when I spoke to Baek Jin-seong.
Something fell right at my feet with a soft thud.
It gleamed, shrouded in a crimson glow.
I had seen this before.
So I picked it up with my hand and examined it properly.
It was something I knew well enough.
“Why is this…?”

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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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