I Conquered the Tower with the EX-Class Character That I Raised - Chapter 61

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

Chapter 61
Crossing through the portal, Happy set foot on Korean soil for the first time in ages.
“It’s been a while. Hyo-jun… huh?”
“….”
Happy flinched upon seeing Kang Hyo-jun in the darkness, his eyes gleaming with an eerie intensity.
It was the savage gaze of a starving beast eyeing its prey—a murderous glint that made her blood run cold.
“What, what’s wrong?”
The moment Happy approached him with an awkward smile, she gasped in shock.
“Gasp.”
Kang Hyo-jun looked like he had physically embodied exhaustion itself.
A body-enhancement hunter who typically shrugged off ordinary physical fatigue now bore the appearance of someone who wouldn’t be out of place in a coffin by tomorrow from overwork.
‘What on earth happened here?’
“…I’m busy. Skip the pleasantries.”
Kang Hyo-jun hurriedly led Happy along.
Happy followed him up the stairs, his unsteady gait making her stumble in turn.
Gulp.
Something extraordinary was unfolding.
The moment they reached the top of the stairs.
“…!”
Happy gasped in horror.
The floor, the walls, the desk—papers were piled everywhere.
The only empty spaces were the chair where Kang Hyo-jun sat and another chair that had clearly been brought in recently. Just two chairs, while the rest had become a graveyard of documents with no room to set foot.
“What, what is all this?”
“…I’m planning a foundation.”
“Huh? Are you insane? You’re the Market manager. Why are you planning a foundation? This is a conflict of interest violation…”
Kang Hyo-jun raised his hand sharply.
Happy felt the silent pressure emanating from him and clamped her mouth shut.
“There are circumstances I cannot discuss, so don’t ask. Just remember two things: this is something ‘absolutely impossible to refuse,’ and the Market has already approved it.”
“….”
“Don’t wonder who gave the order or why. Don’t ask about such things. Do you understand?”
“…Understood.”
Kang Hyo-jun navigated through the sea of documents covering the floor, stepping only on palm-sized gaps, and made his way to his chair.
“Check this first.”
“The Golden Foundation? What kind of place is this?”
“Check the stack of papers next to that.”
Happy pulled out the thick bundle and began reading.
[Current Status of South Korea]
Flip.
After reading only a few pages, Happy set the bundle down with a heavy sigh.
She didn’t need to read more to understand.
‘What is this? Is this even a country?’
The situation was appalling.
Food. Clothing. Shelter.
Everything was in ruins.
‘So this is what happens to a land that never conquered The Tower…’
The despair I’d only heard rumors about was now quantified and written across these documents.
Millions of people were crammed into the narrow strip of land called Incheon.
The government had long since dissolved after Min Ji-hee’s purge, having colluded with Pandemonium’s puppets to line their pockets.
Food self-sufficiency hadn’t reached double digits, so most citizens who weren’t Hunters relied on calorie sticks.
Without means to earn Points, the tanks were equipped with tattered gear.
On top of that, any competent Hunters had either fled overseas long ago or been ground to dust trying to stop the Breaks.
‘…Shouldn’t I have collapsed long ago?’
Page after page was filled with evidence of just how thoroughly this nation had failed.
‘I had no idea the situation was this dire.’
From what I knew, South Korea was like a weed.
Whenever it seemed like it would finally perish, it miraculously survived.
But that wasn’t the case.
A weed? More like withered, desiccated grass.
About to wither away completely…
‘So why hasn’t it collapsed yet?’
I flipped through a few more pages and found the answer.
‘Han Seol-ah, Min Ji-hee, and Jin Cheon-jin…’
Three outstanding heroes were holding together South Korea—a canvas on the verge of being torn apart—under the banner of the Korean Hunter Association.
“Right. I understand it’s been trampled like a tomato under a giant’s foot.”
“The Golden Foundation is an institution designed to resurrect that ‘crushed tomato’ into a ‘pristine tomato.'”
“Okay. Analysis complete.”
Now that I understood everything, I smiled brightly.
And I stood up abruptly.
“I can’t do this.”
“Sit down.”
Kang Hyo-jun spoke calmly.
“Are you insane? How can a single foundation manage this? It’s absolutely impossible.”
“Making that impossibility possible—that’s what you and I have to do.”
Kang Hyo-jun flicked a card toward me without taking his eyes off the documents.
It landed with a snap.
I caught it reflexively and examined the card.
A Numbers card. The number was…
“A Golden Mine card?”
“We’ll draw our funds from there.”
“Hmm. You think we can use all of it?”
Happy placed a weight on the mental scale in her mind.
One side read ‘impossible’, the other ‘possible’.
With the Golden Mine’s entire fortune, the odds did improve slightly.
The scale tilted ever so faintly toward the ‘possible’ side.
“Still, it’s nowhere near enough.”
“Min Ji-hee will help.”
“Ah, that incredibly brilliant—”
“—she might be listening. Watch your tongue.”
“That brilliant woman, you mean?”
With Kang Hyo-jun’s abilities and Min Ji-hee’s support, the odds climbed considerably higher.
The scale tilted further toward the ‘possible’ side.
Yet it still fell far short—desperately far short.
“Money and ability alone won’t cut it.”
“That’s why I need you.”
Kang Hyo-jun lifted his eyes from the documents and looked at Happy.
“The Golden Mine’s wealth. My abilities and Min Ji-hee’s. And your connections.”
Kang Hyo-jun’s eyes burned with intensity.
“In other words, you’re the final piece.”
“What? Haha!”
Happy laughed brightly and shook her head.
“I thought you were just asking for a little help, but you want me to dive in headfirst?”
Happy’s laughter faded, replaced by a serious tone.
“Why should I mobilize my network for this? You’re not someone who understands what that means, what weight it carries.”
It was everything Happy possessed.
Her weapon, forged in the Black Market through years of grinding away her life!
It was never meant to be wagered on some venture with such meager prospects.
Yet Kang Hyo-jun answered without hesitation, his expression unmoved.
“Because that’s what Special One instructed you to do.”
As if helping were the most natural thing in the world.
“Special One? He’s just some guy who can sell a few potions. What’s so great about—”
“Happy, that person is not someone who can be bound by Numbers 1 or anything of the sort.”
“…?”
Kang Hyo-jun’s gaze shifted.
“You don’t know, do you…”
“Know what? What?”
The look of someone gazing upon something pitiful.
Eyes filled with sympathy.
“Well, it might be good for you to learn now…”
Kang Hyo-jun turned his attention back to the documents.
“What is it? What do you know?”
“If you’re not going to help, then leave.”
Kang Hyo-jun answered flatly.
“…Am I really leaving? You won’t regret this?”
“Regret? Ha.”
Kang Hyo-jun laughed as if it were absurd.
“That’s something you’ll experience.”
* * *
After concluding the meeting with Kang Hyo-jun, Happy sat in the reception room waiting for Special One.
With the Saint risk to resolve and the need to synchronize stories once the supply resumed, there were more than a few issues to address beforehand.
‘What kind of person will they be?’
Sitting in the reception room and waiting for Special One, Happy felt curiosity welling up inside.
A person’s face reveals much.
But Special One’s face wouldn’t be real.
It would be impossible to read much from their expression.
Still, Happy was confident.
There were parts that didn’t change even when the face was altered.
Happy could read much from the eyes alone.
Reading eyes.
It was the accumulated experience and ability of Happy, who had brokered supply deals with high-ranking officials sitting at the core of power and true powerhouses.
‘What kind of eyes will they have?’
“I apologize for being late.”
The moment Special One opened the door and entered, meeting their gaze for the first time.
Happy couldn’t dare to speak.
‘W-what kind of eyes are those…’
Arid and parched.
Deep and dark.
Solitary and aloof.
Yet no mere words could fully capture this sensation.
The closest feeling would be gazing into the bottom of the lightless abyss or the void of a universe where all stars had died.
Darkness ripples in those depths.
‘I think I’m going to be sick…’
The moment Happy stared directly into that darkness, dizziness washed over them.
Standing alone between heaven and earth…
The eyes of an absolute being.
Overwhelmed.
“…No, I just arrived as well.”
Happy managed to smile and stood up.
Bowing their head slightly while avoiding their gaze.
‘Phew.’
Taking a mental breath, Happy sat back down.
“The Saint will arrive in approximately one hour.”
“Hmm.”
Special One regarded Happy with deliberate slowness.
‘…Oh.’
Feeling the chill creep into my limbs, I continued speaking.
“The reason I’ve taken the liberty of requesting this meeting is to discuss the future supply of holy water…”
“About that.”
Special One cut me off with weighty finality.
I naturally found myself overwhelmed, my mouth closing shut.
“Happy. Why do you monopolize the supply of holy water?”
“…Pardon?”
As if commanding silence before an answer, Special One ignored my question.
“…I, I have… been developing holy water alongside the Saint since before she grew accustomed to her divine power. With my assistance, the Saint was able to create the highest-grade holy water, and through that contribution, I obtained the exclusive right to supply it.”
“I see.”
“Based on that right, I’ve cultivated connections with high-ranking officials, elite hunters, and magnates…”
“Hmm. About that…”
Whether intentional or not, Special One spoke with deliberate slowness, and those eyes turned toward me.
‘This time I’ll hold firm…! Who do I think I am? I’m Happy!’
I braced my core and straightened my spine.
I fought to keep my gaze steady.
What is Italy?
The birthplace of the mafia.
I was the one who never flinched before those dark kings who killed men without a second thought.
Rather, I was the one who wielded holy water as a weapon, manipulating them at will—the one called the ‘serpent who grasped holy water’.
…Or so I believed.
The moment Special One glanced down at me with those indifferent eyes.
‘Eek…’
Okay. I absolutely cannot win.
I admitted it honestly.
I was intimidated by that gaze.
And I was crushed beneath that leisurely demeanor and oppressive aura.
Complete defeat.
I rapidly shifted my stance.
Into full cooperation mode.
“Yes.”
“Kang Hyo-jun mentioned you. That you have solid connections with the upper echelons and are skilled in dealings with such individuals?”
“That would be accurate. My networks are extensive, and my relationships are firmly established.”
“I see… people like that are necessary too.”
Special One murmured softly to himself, nodding with measured deliberation.
A brief silence descended.
An invisible, colossal hand seemed to grip my throat with crushing force—a suffocating pressure that made breathing difficult.
Like being bound in the depths of the abyss, my chest compressed beneath the weight of a suffocating silence.
‘What do you want from me, exactly!’
“If I were to supply the Holy Water myself, what would become of Happy?”
“…She would lose her position.”
“Excellent.”
As if delighted by this outcome, Special One smiled wickedly.
“…Pardon?”
Sinking deeper into the plush sofa, Special One continued.
“From now on, I will monopolize the Holy Water supply.”
“What do you mean—”
Finally unable to contain herself, Happy cried out in protest.
“Do you want a commission? I’m willing to offer one. But this system—the Saint and I built it from the ground up! You can’t simply seize this position through brute force in a single day…”
“Happy.”
Special One cut her off decisively.
“Do I seem to you like I’m after mere commissions?”
“….”
‘Mere? Holy Water commissions are mere?’
The Holy Water trade was essentially sustaining an entire nation—Italy itself.
As Happy stood frozen in bewilderment, Special One’s words continued.
“I need you, Happy.”
“….”
The smile vanished from Special One’s face.
In that instant, the air in the room became as heavy as lead.
Happy felt the pride she had painstakingly maintained crumble away, and she froze solid.
“You are necessary to me.”
The words were dressed in the form of a polite request. But Happy understood instinctively.
This was no proposal that entertained the possibility of refusal.
‘…This crazy bastard!’
Was Special One saying she would seize the monopoly on Holy Water just to have Happy?
Setting aside whether such a thing was even possible or impossible…
The notion that someone could casually devour such a colossal commodity as Holy Water—one whose interests were tangled with the elite and the powerful—was utterly absurd.
“…A Holy Water monopoly isn’t something you can simply…”
“Haha.”
As if she had heard the most amusing thing, Special One laughed.
“Is that trivial matter so difficult? Happy, you’re really entertaining.”
“I’m not joking. Holy Water is a critical commodity desired not only by the power elite and high-rank Hunters, but by billionaires across the globe! The web of interests between them is extraordinarily complex…”
“That’s not my concern.”
With a dismissive tone that suggested it was nothing, Special One cut through her words, leaving Happy gaping.
“…What?”
“If you don’t like it, just don’t buy it.”
“S-sir, the elixir isn’t an absolute leash that allows Sung-soo to command the big players at will! It merely helps maintain strong connections with them, but it doesn’t grant the authority to give orders or—”
“The elixir you and the Saint created would be like that. Given its value.”
‘…What?’
“The elixir I create is somewhat different.”
Special One withdrew a glass vial from his pocket and set it down.
Milk-white liquid inside, shimmering beautifully as if ground pearls had been mixed into it.
‘What… is that?’
Special One had risen to Numbers 1’s position in one stroke by submitting the “transcendent” elixir called the “Crimson Elixir.”
In other words, Special One’s power came from that elixir.
If this too was a transcendent elixir beyond common sense?
Gulp.
Happy swallowed hard without realizing it.
The moment that liquid in the vial flooded the Market, the power Happy held there would become worthless scraps of paper—she felt it instinctively.
Special One looked directly at Happy with a serious expression.
“The Foundation needs you. So…”
And with a kind smile, he spoke.
“First, I’ll eliminate your place in the Market with this.”
‘…What insane nonsense is this madman spouting, as if bestowing a favor!’
Sweat dripped down.
Happy froze, unable even to think of wiping it away.
‘…He said “first.”‘
Happy had just rejected Hyo-jun’s proposal to join the Foundation.
Her position in the Black Market was secure, the power was intoxicating, and the salary was more than satisfactory.
Why would she abandon all that to join a Foundation that hadn’t even established itself yet? There was no reason whatsoever.
And then this man…
declared he would erase Happy’s value from the workplace she considered comfortable.
It was logically impossible.
Happy’s position and the elixir’s value weren’t easily replaceable.
But this man speaks as if it were “nothing special.”
And he treats it as merely the “first”—the opening move.
Then what could the second and third be?
“I’m offering you the chance to join my Foundation.”
“….”
“If you understand, you may leave now.”
She understood nothing.
But the clear dismissal was unmistakable.
Happy fled the reception room—or rather, nearly crawled out of it.
And she hurried away, rushing down the corridor as if escaping.
‘Damn it, damn it… where did such a monster come from!’
When I’d put enough distance between us…
I made a call.
[Is it over?]
“Kang Hyo-jun!!!”
[…My ears work fine. Hang up if you’re going to keep screaming.]
“You insane bastard!!! What the hell is that thing!!! What is it?!]”
[What do you mean, what?]
“That monster—what exactly is it… Is it even… human?”
The terror I’d barely managed to suppress came pouring out unfiltered.
[…Now you understand? Struggling is pointless.]
Kang Hyo-jun’s cold, unwavering voice doused Happy’s mind like ice water.
“This doesn’t make sense.”
[What doesn’t?]
“…You’re saying you’ll erase my position at the Black Market? That’s impossible. Do you understand what the Black Market is? No matter how monstrous someone is, a single individual can’t just eliminate a branch manager’s head.”
[Hmph, you still don’t understand…]
I heard Kang Hyo-jun chuckle softly.
[It will happen exactly as The One has said.]

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