I Conquered the Tower with the EX-Class Character That I Raised - Chapter 26

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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 26
After approximately thirty minutes of haggling, the developer finally purchased the goblin dung they’d originally listed for a thousand points.
This was my declaration of surrender.
“Mind your manners.”
I ceased my assault and reposted the item.
89.
“Warehouse 89 should suffice.”
It was the storage number for miscellaneous equipment that fell short of legendary or unique grade.
This was the upper limit of what I would “sell” to the developer.
‘Still, since they’re being so presumptuous, I should charge double the usual price.’
* * *
“A satisfactory transaction.”
Of course, it was only satisfactory for me.
Gazing at the accumulated mountain of points, I felt my lips curve upward.
Naturally, I wasn’t forcing myself to vent stress.
The grand scheme I had planned ahead required an astronomical amount of points.
‘Killing two birds with one stone.’
The most reliable and fastest source of funds was draining this fellow’s wallet.
Even if it seemed petty, there was no helping it.
You need money to save the world or not, after all.
What’s interesting is…
The developer seems unfamiliar with the specifications of the items I sell.
They purchase genuinely useless items at premium prices simply because the names sound impressive.
Yet they rejected without hesitation the truly excellent spear, the Fisherman’s Harpoon.
Instead, they eagerly purchase trash items with flashy names like the One-Handed Shield of Deep Twilight, which they wouldn’t even use if given to them.
‘Could the reason they covet Nameless be merely because of its prestigious title rather than its performance?’
Judging by this, the developer is clearly a gaming novice.
Either someone obsessed with aesthetics over performance.
“…Wait, hold on.”
Are they really a gaming novice?
What’s more likely—that the developer is a novice, or that they’re actually skilled?
‘Unless there’s a separate person managing the auction house…’
What if they’re merely pretending to be a gullible fool?
What if they’ve already seen through the true value and identity of Nameless completely, and are simply playing dumb to lower my guard?
Either way…
This one is quite suspicious.
‘Well, it doesn’t matter either way. If they’re truly a fool, I’m grateful. If it’s an act, I’ll simply strip away that mask and consume it whole.’
“Lulu.”
I should order pizza and chicken.
Punishment for daring to waft those aromas from outside and torment me in my own home.
On the flip side, I’m the type who can’t eat food that smells off unless it’s a ‘truly special occasion’—so I’m guilty of making them frustrated!
I’ll make them pay by eating it all!
“I’ve gone through all the delivery food.”
I feel a bit bad for Chul-soo next door, who’s out there suffering after being called in.
But I also requested that they not lift my summons because I wanted to rest easy for a bit.
‘Honestly, I’m not sorry at all. Hardship when you’re young becomes bone and flesh. It’s all for your own good, so go ahead and suffer a little, Chul-soo.’
The required deadline was seven days.
But I’ve earned a full fifteen days!
With three days still remaining until the conference, I can afford to rest for at least a day!
‘I need to recover my body condition anyway, so I’ll rest plenty.’
Should I get some tteokbokki too?
* * *
Kang Hyo-jun was taken aback when he saw the order form.
“…Chicken, pizza, tteokbokki?”
Had the Alchemist lost his mind?
“Does he actually… like these things?”
So he wasn’t a madman obsessed with calorie sticks after all?
This man actually knew how to eat ‘normal’ food!
“And he doesn’t even have points. He already spent all the mana stone money long ago.”
Kang Hyo-jun rubbed his brow.
The payment from the first sale, when he’d asked to keep it on account?
It was all spent and then some just on the price of ‘six fingers’!
And yet.
Because the Black Market had declared that the Alchemist should be treated as a VIP, Kang Hyo-jun had been supplying necessary items while even draining the emergency funds of the Black Market Korea Branch.
‘That earring of Min Ji-hee’s… how much was that worth anyway. Ugh.’
When the sole VIP requested something, what could a mere branch manager like Kang Hyo-jun do?
So the Black Market Korea Branch was now running on fumes financially.
And now, an order for such premium food.
“Ugh…”
Kang Hyo-jun ultimately decided to dip into his own pocket.
‘I’m billing all of this. Damn it.’
When the next budget cycle came around, he’d be able to recover everything he’d spent, so he just had to hold on a little longer.
‘For now… I guess I’ll be eating those pathetic calorie sticks.’
His stomach ached.
Shortly after taking on the Alchemist as his exclusive charge, Kang Hyo-jun had developed chronic gastritis.
Was it simply because dealing with the Alchemist was difficult?
That was part of it, but that wasn’t the core issue.
For now, thanks to the Black Market’s discretion, no one knew that a connection had formed between the Alchemist and Kang Hyo-jun…
But a long tail gets stepped on eventually.
If rumors ever started circulating like ‘You can meet the Alchemist if you go through Kang Hyo-jun’…?
‘The big players from around the world will pressure the Black Market Korea Branch…’
“Ugh.”
Just imagining it made Kang Hyo-jun’s heart race and his stomach churn.
Stumbling down into the basement, Kang Hyo-jun began typing out an order for ingredients from the Black Market.
‘Let’s see…’
His eyes sharpened with intensity.
Kang Hyo-jun was a gourmet.
He couldn’t just order any random ingredients!
“Chicken—size 11. Fresh meat butchered the same day, not frozen. Free-range raised. As for the price… that’s not a concern.”
Tap. Tap.
“Milk with at least 4% fat content, not low-fat. Breading flour mixed at a 3-to-7 ratio of wet to dry. Rice cakes for tteokbokki in a 7-to-3 ratio of wheat to rice cakes, and fish cakes with at least 90% fish content.”
If any subordinates had been present, they would have fainted dead away.
The director of the Black Market Korea Branch was sitting there with such a solemn expression, deliberating over the proportions of rice cakes for tteokbokki of all things.
But Kang Hyo-jun was deadly serious.
‘To perfectly execute the menu The One requested, the ingredients must be flawless. Besides, this is a dish passing through my hands—I cannot allow even a fraction of error.’
“And the cheese…”
After that long, exhaustive order was finally complete.
[What is the cost?]
“It’s a request from the Alchemist, Black Market. For now, I’ll cover it personally…”
[Payment processed.]
“…Payment?”
That’s strange?
Kang Hyo-jun’s eyes widened.
If an administrator used their authority to defer payment, the system should display “confirmed.”
“Payment processed” meant the transaction had gone through…
Which meant the Alchemist’s account had points.
‘Could it be?’
A flash of lightning struck through Kang Hyo-jun’s mind.
‘Did points get added?’
The one thing all Black Market employees wondered about!
The Alchemist’s account received point deposits periodically.
This must be happening right now!
Hastily gathering the premium ingredients tumbling from the portal, Kang Hyo-jun rushed to the terminal.
‘Codename Alchemist. Transaction history. Sales records…’
[None]
“What?”
…Nothing!
“No, no. That doesn’t make sense. Didn’t I sell magic stones just a few days ago!”
Hadn’t he personally handled that transaction?
There was no way he could have forgotten.
The probability of me being mistaken? Zero.
However, the Alchemist’s transaction history shows ‘none’.
‘…!’
Kang Hyo-jun arrived at a chilling conclusion.
‘It’s been deleted.’
Now it made sense.
The reason the Alchemist could accumulate massive points without any transaction records.
Someone was meticulously erasing the transaction history.
Who?
‘Only one person could do something like this.’
The owner of the Black Market.
Market.
He was definitely erasing the records himself…!
Click.
Kang Hyo-jun hastily closed the transaction history window.
His heart hammered against his ribs as if it might burst through.
‘…I saw nothing.’
And he made a vow.
Forget it. Just forget…
‘…But.’
So how many points were actually charged? I’m curious. It’s terrifying, yet I’m dying to know…!
Does human curiosity truly overcome even fear?
Kang Hyo-jun opened his eyes slightly and casually—as if by accident—touched the Alchemist’s account.
[Insufficient Access Privileges]
‘…Ha. Haha.’
Tap.
Kang Hyo-jun closed the terminal.
His fingertips trembled.
His heart pounded so violently that his chest ached.
A branch manager naturally possessed account access privileges.
The amount of points in an account was the bare minimum filter to determine whether a customer was a drifter or a heavyweight.
An account that even a manager couldn’t access.
That meant Market was managing it directly.
‘I don’t know anything. I’ll just pretend I know nothing. Yes. Let me forget everything.’
He realized that digging deeper would be dangerous.
Kang Hyo-jun stopped thinking and staggered toward the kitchen.
“Chicken, pizza, tteokbokki.”
Kang Hyo-jun tied an apron with trembling hands. The man who had been drenched in cold sweat from terror moments before had vanished, leaving only the keen gaze of a master craftsman observing his ingredients.
With shaking hands, he measured the flour’s weight with precision.
“Dough temperature: four degrees. This suppresses gluten formation.”
Fundamentally, the Black Market’s “delivery menu” is handmade by the manager.
That’s why even the branch director of the Black Market itself was sweating profusely while personally frying chicken and kneading dough.
“With the highest quality… I’ll prepare it perfectly.”
Moreover… this was the Alchemist’s order.
I should put extra care into the preparation.
* * *
“Delicious.”
It tasted like mother’s cooking… no, it was a carefully prepared dish that bore the touch of a first-class chef.
“Black Market, I’m alive.”
To feel such refinement in delivery food.
Money truly is supreme.
Finally, I finished the meal by quickly drinking a bottle of the “potion” I’d purchased before.
“Hmm, let me see.”
My mouth is content, but my mind cannot rest.
I said I’d rest, but that doesn’t mean lounging in bed all day.
In this crisis where the nation teeters on the brink of collapse, I can’t afford to shut down my brain completely.
After defeating the Frost Dragon, the Tower unleashed its ultimatum in the form of two bosses: Scathaha and Resonar.
They are raid boss monsters that exist in Lost Honor.
Simultaneously, they’re designed to precisely target Han Seol-ah, the ice-attribute hunter.
Suppose I defeat Resonar.
The next boss monster to appear will certainly be one with a counter as well, won’t it?
So I compiled a full list.
And what I discovered as a result.
‘…It’s remarkable.’
There are exactly four monsters capable of reliably countering Han Seol-ah.
Scathaha, the boss that drove the nation to despair even more than the Frost Dragon, ranks surprisingly at only fourth among these four in terms of strength.
Resonar is third.
‘…The next ones will be second and first rank, logically speaking.’
Up to Resonar, there’s a strategy—a precarious one, but it exists.
However, the two above that tier are impossible to defeat with my current specs, no matter how hard I try.
Let me judge this coldly.
Han Seol-ah is at her peak right now.
Min Ji-hee isn’t a combat specialist.
Jin Cheon-jin may be fine against humans, but he’s weak against large-scale monsters.
If I don’t grow stronger, annihilation is guaranteed.
‘The difficulty is insanely high.’
Right. Reality has always been about actual combat.
Zzzzzt—
That’s when it happened.
The TV from Chul-soo’s place next door spewed out a voice mixed with static.
That wasn’t all. The TVs in the front house and the neighboring houses flickered on simultaneously.
“…?”
[Ah, yes. Can you hear me, Apostle?]
Looking out the window, I saw the entire neighborhood’s windows blazing with light all at once.
Every TV in the complex had awakened at the same moment.
“What the—”
[Please don’t be alarmed. We’re broadcasting only on the Incheon-exclusive channel.]
“Ah, I see.”
It was Min Ji-hee’s voice. Once I understood the situation, I let out a hollow laugh.
‘Impressive.’
Unless one were a fool, there was no way they wouldn’t realize that with such technology, they could target just my TV alone.
Whether it was a powered-off TV or a radio, they deliberately expanded the range to leave me plenty of room to hide.
‘A declaration that she won’t overstep, and a graceful retreat. She really is a sharp woman.’
[A Hunter Watch for you, Apostle, has been prepared. We’ve left it packaged in the Conference Room, so please take it whenever you’re ready. After that, we’ll contact you through the Hunter Watch.]
“Come to think of it, you have no way to reach me.”
She was desperate to pinpoint my location right now, yet maintained her composure on the surface with ‘we’ve prepared it, so take it whenever convenient.’
Efficient work.
“Maybe I’ll take a walk.”
The distance was close, and I was full anyway—perfect timing.
“Wow. A walk, you say. The world really has changed.”
To think the day would come again when I could freely leave the house!
* * *
“Oho.”
On the Conference Room desk.
A Hunter Watch rested elegantly inside a small box.
White and sophisticated in design.
Yet clearly crafted with restraint.
“It suits Han Seol-ah perfectly.”
Click.
The expensive-looking white leather strap wrapped snugly around my wrist.
“…Heh.”
Is this what the wealthy feel when wearing an expensive watch?
Beep.
After a brief alarm sound, a hologram materialized from the Hunter Watch.
[User ‘Apostle,’ it’s an honor to meet you.]
“Impressive.”
It felt like becoming a special being from a classic film.
But does a hologram normally appear like this…?
Shouldn’t it just beep with an alarm and require me to check the watch screen?
This is the first time I’ve seen a function that recognizes the user and greets them first.
[Please do not be alarmed. This watch is exclusively for special agents and has a function that displays a hologram visible only to the wearer.]
‘Quick on the uptake.’
The flexibility to read the master’s mood in advance and adapt accordingly.
It certainly seems useful.
[To restrict usage of this watch to authorized personnel only, personal registration is required on the first activation.]
Immediately after, a hologram requesting fingerprint registration appeared.
‘This is a bit….’
Uncomfortable.
I am an unawakened individual who doesn’t exist in the South Korea Hunter Database.
Personal registration and fingerprint registration?
It looks dangerous at first glance.
“I’d rather not register.”
And what if someone hacks it?
I can’t install the security tools I developed myself on the watch like I did with my computer.
Then the watch responded immediately.
[Assessment: User is hesitant to register biometric information for security reasons.]
[Response: Skipping registration procedure immediately and switching to ‘voice authentication’ mode.]
“Huh? That’s allowed?”
A Hunter Watch is like a modern national ID card.
Through it, all accounts and contact information linked to individuals are accessible, making it even more important than an ID card.
I could think of it as another version of myself—not made of blood and flesh, but living and moving in the digital realm.
Yet they’re bypassing this crucial personal registration?
Whoosh.
The hologram vanished, and a soft light illuminated the watch screen.
An AI voice far more composed and refined than before reached my ears.
[Of course. This watch is equipped with the 12th generation A.I, Snow White. Resolving your difficulties is my highest priority.]
Interesting.
[You have been granted ‘highest-level’ authority. You can access virtually any function you desire.]
[Additionally, as a special feature, I can create a ‘false identity’ for you. Would you like to confirm this now?]
“Nice.”
Impressive. They thought of this.
What I need most when hiding my true identity?
A legitimate false identity.
‘I was wondering if I’d need to ask separately, but this function is already built in.’
I only wanted a standard watch, yet they’ve delivered something far beyond that.
Preparing exactly what’s needed without being asked.
Min Ji-hee’s competence exceeds imagination.
Truly, the mind that sustains South Korea.
I was about to answer ‘confirm immediately’… but I hesitated.
“Let’s continue this once I get home.”
This is outside, after all.
I smiled with satisfaction and tapped the watch screen lightly.
“Not bad.”
It felt like I’d gained a reliable secretary.
“I should head back and run some proper performance tests.”
My steps toward home felt considerably lighter.
* * *
“You’ve worked hard.”
···
Min Ji-hee lay collapsed.
She had pushed herself to complete it as quickly as possible.
To avoid making the appearance too conspicuous, she had crafted it in the most classic design.
However, the leather used inside was of the highest grade.
The finishing materials and components were all premium quality.
Due to the urgent supply need, she had reluctantly dismantled and repurposed parts from Jang Ho-hyun, an A-rank informant known as the “Silent Assassin.”
Jang Ho-hyun’s watch was top-tier, custom-built with components he had personally sourced from the Black Market and elsewhere.
In exchange, Jang Ho-hyun received the most ordinary watch under the guise of “simplicity is best.”
She wanted to give him the joy of starting from scratch.
Jang Ho-hyun wept, but his tears were silent, so no one noticed.
Min Ji-hee splashed her face with cold water.
Time had been so tight that while calibrating Snow White in its final stage, she had focused on only three core functions.
First, a firewall of the highest quality that even national agencies could not breach.
Second, the highest-level authority that granted unrestricted access to anything that could be done through the watch.
And the final third.
A function the Apostle would need most, yet could not bring himself to request aloud.
‘Identity laundering.’
He was a man dwelling in shadows.
To step into the world, he would need a perfect mask to envelop him.
‘…He will soon realize just what he can accomplish with that watch.’
A long exhale.
‘I hope he understands this is the highest level of trust we can offer···.’
Min Ji-hee rolled her stiff neck and gazed out the window.
The night sky over Incheon was unusually bright.
“I hope it pleases you.”

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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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