Player Farming in the Dragon’s Lair - Chapter 36

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

36
Manager Association.
A bureaucratic meeting had been convened.
“Next, I’ll report on Hell Difficulty trends. Current assessment indicates nine adventurers are actively climbing. By floor rank: one at Floor 60, two at Floor 50, two at Floor 40, and three at Floor 10 and below. That concludes the Hell Difficulty report. Moving on to Hard Difficulty….”
The mood was bleak.
Every tenth floor was a reward tier.
In other words, all of them had parked themselves on reward floors and weren’t progressing any further up the tower.
And no wonder—just reaching Hell Difficulty was grueling, and Floor 60 bordered on the miraculous.
“What’s the point of holding these meetings over and over? The adventurers just stay stalled, completely motionless!”
“This isn’t merely an adventurer problem—it’s a failure of management on our part, and we’ll bear the criticism for it!”
The Association’s bureaucrats began hurling accusations at one another in heated voices, each defending their own competence.
They all knew the truth, though.
No matter what they did, there was no solution.
Three hundred years ago.
The absolute rulers of the tower—the Constellations.
The divine beings had entrusted the tower’s management to the Association.
To prevent the Continent’s Erosion, exceptional adventurers needed to clear the tower relentlessly, especially at higher Difficulties.
But what was the current state of affairs?
The frontier adventurers—their last hope—
Had become paralyzed with fear. The Hell Difficulty climbers had all retreated to the tenth-floor reward tiers to ensure their survival.
Individually, it was a sound choice for survival, but for the Manager Association tasked with maintaining the tower—let alone for the Continent’s very fate—it was a catastrophe.
“The Constellations granted us abundant time and opportunity. But now, three hundred years on, the promised deadline approaches, and yet not a single adventurer has even reached the Mythic Difficulty, much less the tower’s summit!”
Of course, the managers knew better than anyone that Mythic Difficulty was unreasonable—practically impossible. Was the upper reaches of Hell Difficulty even designed to be cleared?
Then one bureaucrat muttered aloud.
“But why haven’t the Constellations shown themselves?”
That was the question weighing on all their minds.
The divine beings had granted the Manager Association three hundred years.
They’d said that if, after three hundred years passed, the Constellations judged the cause hopeless, they would cease their involvement in worldly affairs altogether.
“Or… could they have simply left without a word?”
“Heaven forbid, Divine Beings!”
It was a possibility worth considering.
The Constellation who had established and enforced the Grand Rules—the deity of law itself—was known for a cold, austere temperament. If disappointed even once, such a being might offer no second chance and vanish in silence.
It was at that moment.
The Association President, who had been observing silently until now with a benevolent expression, let out a soft laugh and spoke.
“Everyone, don’t worry. The Erosion has stopped.”
“Pardon?”
The President withdrew the Hourglass of Erosion.
The hourglass displayed the Continent’s Erosion rate—and the sand had halted mid-fall, completely still.
“Wait—the Erosion has stopped?”
“What’s happened, President?”
The Hourglass of Erosion was always shedding sand.
It would pause occasionally, but only during periods when Hell Difficulty adventurers were especially active.
“Manager 350 visited me recently.”
Manager 350?
Who was that?
The bureaucrats tilted their heads in confusion.
Though they knew most managers, the number 350 was utterly unfamiliar.
“The manager assigned to Mythic Difficulty.”
Now recollection dawned on everyone’s faces.
A useless cat who’d graduated last from the Manager Academy—and barely graduated at that.
Of course, she’d been rated F-rank.
Perilous and unwanted, the Mythic Difficulty tower had been her assignment; they’d forgotten about her ever since. So when her name suddenly emerged from the President’s mouth, the bureaucrats exchanged bewildered glances.
And what did “recently visited” mean?
“Manager 350 submitted a management log report.”
Whoosh.
The President laid a single sheet of paper on the table.
The bureaucrats swarmed forward to examine it.
[Adventurer Management Log]
[Difficulty: Mythic]
[Compiled by: Manager 350]
– Current Number of Adventurers: 1
– Floor 1: 0
– Floor 2: 0
– …….
– Floor 99: 1
– Clear Status: X
– Remarks
1) Adventurer is Level 1 and was summoned to Floor 99.
2) Sustaining life through farming
The bureaucrats who read the management log blinked in disbelief.
How in the world was there an adventurer in Mythic Difficulty?
And Level 1 at Floor 99, no less.
Something had undoubtedly gone catastrophically wrong.
“Shouldn’t we correct this immediately?”
“That’s right. A Level 1 adventurer in Mythic Difficulty at Floor 99? Something must have gone wrong during the Tower’s recruitment process.”
“But there’s not much we can do about it, is there?”
“Well, I suppose that’s true.”
The Tower’s recruitment lay beyond the managers’ purview.
Managers merely maintained the Tower; the power to select and invite adventurers belonged solely to the Tower itself.
In other words, simply because a Level 1 adventurer was trapped in a Mythic Difficulty Tower at Floor 99 didn’t mean the managers could rescue them.
Unlucky enough to be marked for death.
That was all there was to say about it.
But the Association President thought otherwise.
“From what I can judge, the fact that the Hourglass of Erosion has stopped is thanks to the adventurer here.”
The bureaucrats blinked, clearly confused.
The only way to halt Erosion was for an adventurer to clear the Tower.
“Are you suggesting, sir, that you believe this Level 1 adventurer has cleared Floor 99 of the Mythic Difficulty Tower?”
“No, that can’t be. Absolutely not.”
“Then why exactly would you say that Erosion has stopped because of this adventurer……”
“It’s merely my conjecture. Besides, what other explanation is there?”
One of the bureaucrats spoke up.
“Let’s summon Manager 350 right now and ask them.”
“Very well!”
“No, wait. Let’s go down and see for ourselves!”
It was then.
The Association President spoke.
“I’ll take personal responsibility for Manager 350 and matters regarding the Mythic Difficulty.”
“Sir? The Association President, yourself?”
“But you must be occupied with many other duties……”
The Association President shook his head.
“The rest of you should focus on your regular work.”
“Yes, understood, sir.”
“Let’s adjourn this meeting.”
With those words, the Association President left the conference room.
The bureaucrats filed out after him, tidying up as they went.
They had to return to their posts immediately.
Managing the Tower was exhausting work, after all.
Still, the mere fact that the Hourglass of Erosion had stopped lightened their steps considerably.
* * *
“Wood Chopping, Wood Chopping!”
[Wood Chopping Lv. 4 proficiency increases slightly.]
[Wood Chopping Lv. 4 proficiency increases……]
Ujin had come down to Floor 97 to attend to a small matter(?).
Chopping wood for kindling leveled his skill, gave him exercise, and was practical all at once.
What would he use the firewood for?
Today he was thinking of making french fries as a snack.
He had plenty of potatoes, and when he’d gone out last time he’d bought basic cooking ingredients like salt, sugar, and olive oil, so he had everything he needed.
– I simply cannot fathom this.
– How was it possible to clear all the way to Floor 96 of Mythic Difficulty?
– I sense no such power from him whatsoever.
“I guess you loved me~ can’t forget me~ keep thinking of me can’t take it anymore woo-ooh-oh~”
— Hey! Seriously! When a sword talks, you listen!
“Huh? Oh, sorry. I was focused on the song. What did you say?”
— I asked how you managed to clear Floor 96 on Mythic Difficulty!
Ujin shrugged as he replied.
“I never cleared Floor 96.”
— What?
“Right. I guess I didn’t mention it? I started at Floor 99 from the very beginning when I first came to the tower. And then I worked my way back down, which is how I could reach Floor 97 where you are.”
He started at Mythic Difficulty Floor 99 from the beginning?
Was such a thing even possible?
It defied all common sense.
Yet Amwol found himself choosing to believe, since there seemed no reason for Ujin to lie.
— But wait, how did you even come down? I was under the impression the tower only lets you climb up, not down.
“There’s something called the Manager Corridor. I came through there.”
— Huh?
Crack-crack-crack!
[Wood Chopping Lv. 4’s proficiency increases…….]
Snap!
Crunch!
[A log is stored in your Pocket Dimension Backpack.]
[A log is stored in your Pocket Dimension Backpack…….]
— …Now that you mention it, I’ve heard something like that. The tower is apparently managed by creatures called managers, who literally maintain it. But you’re an adventurer — could you really use a corridor that managers use?
“It just happened that way. Kkamangi… oh, Kkamangi is a manager here. Anyway, I’ve been living with Kkamangi, so I use it with permission.”
— …Fine. Let’s say that’s how it is.
What mattered to Amwol was making a contract with Ujin.
Everything else was irrelevant.
— Listen. I’m offering you terms that are extraordinarily favorable. Look them over and judge for yourself. These are truly exceptional conditions. I can guarantee that.
[The Demon Sword Amwol presents contract terms to you.]
1. Become the host of the left arm
2. In emergencies, surrender complete control of your body excluding your soul
— What do you think?
— Normally you’d have to surrender not just your entire body but your soul as well. These conditions are quite favorable by industry standards.
— The calamities of the tower would contract with me and offer their very souls without hesitation, but you’re getting special treatment — your soul is exempt.
“Let me tell you my contract terms.”
— Yes! Negotiation is the foundation of any contract. Krehehe!
[Ujin presents contract terms.]
1. You will obey my words
2. You will not back-talk me
— Are you joking?
“If you don’t want it, forget it.”
Ujin headed back to Floor 99 without a care.
Farming in Dragon Rare (Serialized)
Author │ Gaebeokg S
Publisher │ Kim Ju-hyung
Published by │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyuk
Address │ 401, Ace Techno Tower 8th, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong)
Email │ [email protected]
Website │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒGaebeokg S 2026
※This work is published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. under contract with the copyright holder. The content may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
Violation of this shall result in criminal and civil liability.

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