I Conquered the Tower with the EX-Class Character That I Raised - Chapter 83

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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 83
‘…What am I looking at right now?’
I was left speechless upon seeing the ‘flyer’ that Lee Hyung-je had brought to distribute to each nation.
Min Ji-hee, who had been reviewing the document beside me, already had her mouth agape in shock.
“Commander Lee Hyung-je, have you lost your mind? Not admission tickets, but you’re selling ‘the right to sit at the negotiation table’ through a gacha system?! And no refunds? This isn’t diplomacy—it’s an international scam against the entire world…!”
“Ha ha. If you don’t like it, just don’t buy it.”
Lee Hyung-je chuckled and flashed a distinctly mercantile, chilling smile.
“But what can you do? We’re the only ones monopolizing this product worldwide. If America tries to act tough and refuses to buy? China will spin a thousand pulls right next to them and snatch the guaranteed right. Then America will flip out and end up scratching for the VVIP Ultimate Edition. That’s capitalism, and that’s the terror of monopoly.”
A demon.
A demon has appeared!
“Commander Lee.”
“Yes, Apostle. Should I revise it?”
“No. It’s excellent.”
Perhaps this man was a far more terrifying monster than the Outer God’s dregs on the 94th Floor.
“Send it to all the association heads’ emails right now. And add one more thing at the end.”
“What should it say?”
“This glorious payment… no, this auction party opens immediately. Those who arrive early gain advantage, and there are benefits if the association head moves personally.”
Min Ji-hee cried out in alarm.
“What?! You’re summoning all the world’s association heads to Seoul? They’re already jackals desperate to devour us! What if a terrorist attack happens?!”
Recalling my ultimate weapon that I had unlocked—the ‘Sword Saint’—I chuckled.
“Don’t worry. I’ll personally handle the security.”
“You, Apostle?”
“Actually, I’d love it if they tried something. I’d strip an entire nation bare under the guise of breach penalties.”
Whether it’s America or Pandemonium.
It doesn’t matter who’s setting off alarm bells on my aggro radar like madmen.
I have a freshly drawn sharp blade, and Lee Hyung-je has laid out a perfect stage for me.
* * *
“Cash? We don’t accept that.”
“P-please, have mercy…! I have no more points to offer!”
“No points? Then you’re no longer a customer. Throw him out.”
“Please! Commander! Just this once…!”
Hanam Fortress.
The fortress that had been chaotic days ago fending off monster waves was now filled with the wails of high-ranking officials from various nations.
“Hmm. I’m not sure if this will be enough.”
Jin Cheon-jin, who had just thrown the French Hunter Association Chairman out of the negotiation hall, wore an uneasy expression.
“What’s troubling you?”
“I’m wondering if you’re being too ruthless.”
Jin Cheon-jin continued, gazing at the door.
“Min Ji-hee’s plan was excellent. Using the Holy Maiden’s assistance as justification to bring Italy into our fold, and strategically appease the great powers to serve as a solid shield for the 95th Floor conquest—a rational diplomatic strategy. Don’t we know better than anyone how harsh the isolation of having no one to help you in a crisis truly is?”
Jin Cheon-jin sympathized with Min Ji-hee’s cause.
Her plan to build justification and friendly relations to prepare for the next crisis was, in his view, the perfect answer.
“I’ll admit it’s an excellent plan, but it’s naive thinking.”
However, Lee Hyung-je cut through Jin Cheon-jin’s sentiment with a single stroke.
“You’re still soft. Ji-hee is fighting within the ‘common sense’ of politics and diplomacy. Righteousness? Gratitude? Friendly relations? Those are mere illusions that only exist when both sides have comparable cards and can communicate as equals.”
“….”
“Think about it. Did they refuse to help us because we didn’t show them gratitude? Not at all. It was simply because we were ‘the weak,’ ‘the ones it was acceptable to ignore.’ That’s how this world works.”
“Hmm.”
“If we show gratitude to such people, they’ll help us in the next crisis? Absolutely not.”
Lee Hyung-je tapped the terminal in his hand.
The screen displayed the astronomical amount of points and gold he had just squeezed and extracted from the association leaders of each country.
“Cheon-jin, my friend. Change your paradigm. If you monopolize the only oasis in the middle of a desert, do you need to share water with the thirsty and beg them to form an alliance, asking for their help next time?”
“…!”
“After all, only we in the entire world can open that golden gate from the 71st to the 94th Floor. Let’s abandon the hollow justifications like alliances and gratitude, and squeeze their wallets until they’re on the verge of bleeding to death.”
Lee Hyung-je’s eyes gleamed coldly.
“That’s how you create the reason they ‘must absolutely obey us.'”
Jin Cheon-jin felt a chill run down his spine. The strategist’s extremely rational and perfect diplomatic plan had been lightly trampled by that greedy merchant with the crude violence of ‘monopoly capitalism.’
“…Brother.”
“Cheon-jin. Help isn’t something you beg for—it’s something you force by seizing them by the collar. With this money and…”
Lee Hyung-je glanced toward the waiting room in the corner of the fortress, shrouded in the deepest darkness, and continued speaking.
“With the power of the one over there.”
Jin Cheon-jin, recalling ‘him’ settled in the corner of the fortress, also nodded in agreement.
‘This is something South Korea never had until now.’
“Right.”
“Well, it’s idealistic, naive, and foolish, but that’s the true nature of the hero Jin Cheon-jin. That’s why everyone followed you, isn’t it?”
“…Is that praise or criticism?”
Jin Cheon-jin scratched his cheek awkwardly with a dry cough.
“Hehe. I’ll fill in the parts you can’t. That’s why the Apostle put me in this position. Trust me.”
Lee Hyung-je thrust his thumb upward with a snap.
“I’m Golden Mine. There’s no one on this earth better at business than me. I’ll suck every last drop of marrow from those fools.”
“Understood. I’ll focus on my duties. Next is…the Italian forces.”
“Ah yes. I know well. That frightened old rooster. We’ll play with him a bit, then throw a tantrum and kick him out.”
* * *
“Damn… this is hell itself.”
In the waiting room prepared for me in the corner of the fortress.
The sight visible beyond the glass window is quite the spectacle.
Those driven out by Lee Hyung-je roll across the floor wailing, while association leaders desperately scramble to secure additional funds—all visible at a glance.
With flushed faces, they continuously made calls to somewhere.
[Agent, we are currently wiretapping all communications within the fortress.]
Whitey sent real-time translated audio files through the watch.
— Secure cash immediately, even if it means draining the national treasury!
— Not enough points right now? Borrow money if you have to and bring it!
— Damn it, I got kicked out for misspeaking! Does anyone here know Lee Hyung-je well?
These are the faces of Hunter Association Chairmen from countries classified as ‘Great Powers’—nations worth living in.
In other words.
[Limited Edition] They’re wealthy men who purchased exclusive 1:1 rights to a product.
After bearing such enormous expenses just to meet Lee Hyung-je, being cast aside on the spot—the money they’d lost must be dancing before their eyes, driving them to madness.
But what can they do? They’ve already spent a fortune.
If they fail to secure farming rights in unexplored dungeons after this, it’s simply a loss.
If they succeed, it’s an investment.
‘The problem is that this product has no such thing as success.’
Not my concern.
I just need to rake in the money smoothly.
‘If it bothers you, don’t buy it, you bastards.’
But they can’t help but buy, can they?
Tempting. Hehehehe.
These are the very men who’ve been treating South Korea like a fool and draining its lifeblood all this time.
I’ll make them vomit back far more than what they’ve taken.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
The Association Chairmen from ‘poorer’ nations remain calm.
Ultimate Edition? They already know it’s a tree they can never climb anyway.
Instead, they’re waiting to pool all their strength and attempt the [Standard] grade product—the ‘gacha’.
And since Gold and Points are strategic assets, they’re carefully deliberating just how much to invest.
Rich nations. Poor nations.
A hell equally distributed to all.
And the demon ruling this place—Golden Mine Lee Hyung-je…
“Sales tactics terrifying in their brilliance.”
The cries of Association Chairmen driven to the brink translate into the sound of money flowing into my ears.
Using that melody as my BGM.
I was monitoring the aggro radar in this dark, cramped corner.
‘Whitey, any movement on the West Sea side?’
[I’ve redirected the satellite camera to the coordinates you indicated, but nothing is identified in the footage. Should I continue with detailed scanning?]
‘No, hold for now.’
The red dot marked on the West Sea hadn’t budged since earlier.
Whether it’s hiding to avoid satellite detection or some barrier is deployed.
If I approached and examined it directly, I’d surely expose myself, but…
Right now, dealing with the red dot here at Hanam Fortress is more urgent.
‘The United States.’
The red dot that had appeared on the continent across the Pacific was Richard Sterling, the American Hunter Association Chairman.
Richard, who arrived in South Korea with great fanfare, purchased the Ultimate Edition immediately despite imposing absurdly demanding conditions, and was now waiting for his meeting with Lee Hyung-je.
[For reference, a special EMP field is deployed within a 10-meter radius of the American Association Chairman’s VIP waiting room. It blocks not only ordinary electronic devices but also my access.]
‘Thorough.’
Using an EMP to disable all electronic devices and sever external communications?
A perfect sealed room with no emergency contact network.
It was the ideal environment to handle matters quietly, without worrying about others’ eyes.
Gripping Nopi in my left hand, I clicked.
I deactivated the synchronization.
“Phew.”
My body reverted to that of a worthless Awakening-Disabled person.
A frame so fragile that a single shove would send me screaming to my death, but…
there was one absolute advantage I possessed.
The absence of mana.
Even Han Seol-ah, now an EX-rank Hunter, couldn’t locate me in Awakening-Disabled mode.
Of course, if I sharpened my five senses—listening for footsteps, breathing—I’d be discovered.
But Hunters were like human bats, naturally detecting through mana 24/7, 365 days a year.
There were virtually no eccentrics who invested their five senses in mana perception and kept their minds razor-sharp.
In other words.
Once I entered Awakening-Disabled mode.
I became the most covert person in the world.
Pushing Richard Sterling’s turn to the very end was an extension of that strategy.
Impatience and anxiety gnaw away at human concentration.
No matter how keen an S-rank’s senses were, an unstable mental state would blind them to even the shadow behind their back.
Clenching Nopi firmly in my left hand.
I stepped outside the door and walked exactly twenty paces.
I arrived at the waiting room where I’d sent Richard Sterling.
‘Big brother’s here, you bastard.’
* * *
Richard Sterling, Chairman of the American Hunter Association, reclined on the plush sofa of the VIP waiting room, stroking the magic stone hidden in his breast pocket.
‘Stupid Koreans.’
It had been quite pleasant when they prepared a separate VIP waiting room and the Director, Golden Mine, said he would visit in person, trembling with deference.
They’d cleared the 94th Floor, but South Korea remained precarious—a candle before the wind.
To surge ahead using this favorable opportunity, the aid of the superpower that is ‘my America’ would be absolutely essential.
Their desperation was palpable in every gesture.
‘I told them to bring Min Ji-hee along, so they’ll come together. Heh heh. I need to show them clearly who’s on top.’
The moment Richard’s thoughts, as he smiled, touched the magic stone in his breast pocket.
Tsk.
Richard clicked his tongue in displeasure.
He greatly anticipated the main event itself that was about to unfold, but the fact that this situation had been created by someone’s ‘coercion’ left a fresh bitterness in his mouth.
The Guild Master had given him a mission to reveal this magic stone ‘in a place crowded with people.’
With a warning that failure would cost him ‘one strike.’
‘…I’ve already failed the Master’s missions twice. If I fail even once more… I die.’
What happens if you break a promise with the Guild Master three times?
No one knew the answer.
Because they were all dead.
Richard Sterling did not wish to die; he wanted to live long and enjoy “my America” forever.
Therefore, the Master’s mission was his top priority objective.
‘After all, there’s no better bait than this magic stone to subjugate them. I’ll enjoy my amusement and complete the mission—that’s all.’
Richard, having forced down his lingering unease, returned to the face of an arrogant predator.
‘Still, how tedious.’
Given that he had to venture into a foreign land with his precious self, Richard had equipped himself with every conceivable safety measure of the highest caliber.
The mana detection network he, an S-rank Hunter, had meticulously spread throughout was merely the foundation.
Any living creature with mana could not escape his keen sensory web, no matter how skilled they were at concealment.
Beyond that, he had even secured a supreme-grade protective artifact against surprise attacks within his possession.
Still unsatisfied, he had constructed a special EMP zone that completely blocked the use of electronic devices.
As a result, Richard himself could not use electronic devices either and had to simply lounge about killing time.
But that also meant there were no variables whatsoever to threaten him.
A predator within the fortress.
That was how Richard perceived his current position.
‘?’
Then, suddenly, the fine hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
There was no fluctuation of mana.
No sound of a door opening, no footsteps, not even the slightest disturbance of air.
Yet the beast’s instinct, the most primal intuition for survival, was sounding an alarm.
Run.
A predator is hunting you.
At that eerie sensation, Richard reflexively turned his head.
And his body went rigid.
The waiting room door, which should have been firmly shut, stood silently open.
And a man was standing there.
‘What, what? When did that bastard get in?!’
Richard’s blue eyes wavered with confusion.
Even though the man was visible in his field of vision, his mana detection network still registered “nothing whatsoever.”
A state of perfect “void”—devoid of even a shred of mana, more harmless than a stray stone rolling outside.
‘A ghost…? Am I seeing things right now?’
In Richard’s bewildered vision, that unidentifiable something raised a terminal in its hand.
‘A laptop?’
The EMP was definitely still running.
Electronic devices should be unusable…
Click.
The moment he thought that, “it” clicked the laptop’s touchpad.
“…Gasp!”
In an instant, ‘it’ transformed into a colossal mountain pressing down upon the heavens.
Richard’s breath caught in his throat as a crushing pressure seemed to collapse his lungs.
A razor-sharp aura erupted from the man’s entire body, carving through his heart like an invisible blade.
‘Gahhh! Gahhhhh!’
Richard clawed desperately at his chest, his silent screams tearing from his throat as he fumbled instinctively through his robes.
Praying desperately for his protective artifact to activate.
‘Why… why won’t my body move…’
Crack—!
In the blink of an eye—a moment Richard couldn’t even register—
The man’s fingers, approaching like a phantom, pierced through the back of his neck.

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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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