The Automatic Rooting Range Is Too Wide - Chapter 173

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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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Auto Looting Range Too Wide Episode 173

Episode 173: Higher-ups (3)

* * *

While Mincheol was visually confirming Ramakan’s capabilities.
The third-rank managers were embracing each other, tears of joy streaming down their faces.
“Ugh, thank goodness. Truly, thank goodness!”
“When we heard that The One was descending, we even prepared ourselves for the dimension to collapse….”
“Nothing happened at all… I’m not dreaming, am I?”
When they first heard the news that The One was descending, the third-rank managers had worn expressions as if attending a funeral.
Even when a second-rank manager descended, it was a major incident—but The One, who stood incomparably higher, was another matter entirely.
Moreover, The One’s mere movement placed tremendous strain on the dimension.
Had something gone wrong, a catastrophic rift could have torn through the dimension itself.
“Not only did the dimension remain safe. The One resolved our concerns for us, did they not.”
“When that human Kim Min-chul defeated Hisolikan, the future seemed bleak. Yet The One actually bestowed compensation upon us directly….”
“For our dimension, it’s an absolute blessing. We managed to avoid a tremendous loss.”
“Come now, enough chatter. Let us adjourn. We cannot continue to leave our posts vacant.”
At someone’s words, the managers opened dimensional gates and began to disperse.
Ursongbarsong also rose from his chair to leave the meeting room.
Then, he sensed someone approaching.
“You seem pleased that things are flowing as you desired.”
The Green Bear.
Yaslra looked down at Ursongbarsong and spoke.
Ursongbarsong adjusted his bowler hat and replied.
“How could I not be pleased? We’ve prevented an innocent Awakened from dying unjustly.”
“Young Novice, mind your tongue. Before I rip it out.”
At Ursongbarsong’s mockery, Yaslra growled menacingly.
“I don’t know why you protect that human so, but understand this much—it’s foolishness.”
“Foolishness, you say… It seems your aesthetic judgment is quite lacking, Yaslra. To say such things after witnessing that Awakened achieve victory against Hisolikan.”
Though kept secret from Mincheol, Hisolikan was no ordinary being.
First, his very species was extraordinary.
A race born with formidable mana and divine authority—it was no exaggeration to say that every member stood with one foot in the divine realm.
Normally, combat between humans and such beings would not even be possible.
“And you speak like the Young Novice you are, with such narrow vision. Judging all value by the exploits of the lower floors.”
Yaslra sneered.
“The most important thing in the Tower is raw power. No matter how exceptional other talents may be, weakness in power creates limitations.”
It wasn’t an unreasonable assessment.
The Tower grew more dangerous the higher one climbed.
Beyond that, competition with other Awakened was unavoidable.
To overcome all these adversities, one’s own power had to be formidable.
“The greatest factor determining power is one’s unique skill. From that perspective, that bastard’s unique skill is already disqualified.”
“Kim Min-chul has integrated his unique skill into his tactical approach.”
“I’ll grant that his tactics are quite powerful. But the fact remains—it’s not a combat-oriented skill, and that won’t change.”
Yaslra added with supreme confidence.
“Mark my words. It won’t work from the middle floors onward. That bastard is destined to remain ordinary.”
With that, Yaslra opened a Dimensional Gate and vanished.
Ursongbarsong watched Yaslra’s departure with cold eyes.
“When are you two ever going to get along?”
A rabbit in sunglasses.
Gangto nudged Ursongbarsong’s ribs and asked.
Ursongbarsong shrugged with an aggrieved expression.
“I wish to be on good terms. But Yaslra seems unwilling to open her heart.”
“You’re a hopeless one. You don’t have the heart either.”
Gangto chuckled and placed a cigar between his lips.
Then he asked Ursongbarsong.
“Want a smoke?”
“I appreciate the gesture.”
“You young folk are no fun.”
Gangto skillfully bit off the end of the cigar and lit it.
Ursongbarsong watched Gangto puff on the cigar before asking.
“Has the Awakened that Yaslra takes such interest in reached the late stages of Floor 40?”
“Probably.”
Gangto answered without concern.
The rumor that Yaslra favored—even showed outright bias toward—a certain Awakened was already well-known.
Of course, Yaslra desperately denied it as mere gossip.
“Late Floor 40, then….”
Mincheol had currently reached Floor 34.
Given Mincheol’s climbing pace, he would arrive at Floor 41 soon enough.
‘We’ll meet before long.’
Of course, the two came from different nations.
Yet Ursongbarsong was certain they would meet.
From Floor 41 onward, the classification shifted to the middle floors, and competition among Awakened expanded globally.
The so-called World Game—inter-national competitions—occurred frequently.
Of course, since nations faced off directly, only the most exceptional Awakened could participate.
Mincheol would have no difficulty meeting the participation requirements.
The same would be true for that Awakened whom Yaslra favored.
‘If the two of them clashed, who would come out on top?’
Of course, given how openly Yaslra favored that Awakened, their talent was extraordinary.
What stood out most was their unique skill specialized in combat.
The Top American Guild had practically begged to recruit them based on that unique skill alone.
But Ursongbarsong didn’t think Mincheol would lose.
‘Regardless of anything else, my eye for recognizing Champions is second to none.’
After all, Ursongbarsong hailed from Aksria, a world of Champions.
In that sense, Kim Min-chul possessed the finest talent I had ever encountered.
‘Let’s see who remains ordinary, Lord Yaslra.’
The corners of Ursongbarsong’s mouth curved upward.

* * *

After that, Mincheol left Floor 34 and returned to Earth.
“Whew, I’m absolutely exhausted.”
“Kkwak kkwak.”
Mincheol and Kkwaekkwi headed straight for bed.
“Oh right, I need to let Whitey out too.”
Mincheol retrieved Whitey from his Inventory and placed it beside the pillow.
Putting fire on top of bedding would normally be insane, but there was no problem whatsoever.
Whoosh—
Whitey simply rolled around without setting the bed ablaze.
“Master, you get some proper rest!”
Bokdol-i, seemingly tireless, immediately grabbed the vacuum cleaner.
It flew freely through the apartment, beginning to clean.
Being small, light, and possessing the ability to levitate, it could navigate the cramped studio apartment with ease.
“Master, what would you like for dinner? Just say the word! I’ll prepare it right away!”
One of Bokdol-i’s specialties was perfectly recreating recipes from world-renowned chefs.
If Mincheol simply asked, he could enjoy signature dishes from Europe’s most famous chefs.
“No, I’m planning to eat out today.”
But Mincheol declined Bokdol-i’s cooking.
“Huh? Why? Is my cooking not tasty? If you have complaints, tell me everything! I’ll fix it all! I’ll become more useful! So please don’t abandon me!”
The tone was as earnest as if clinging to his pant leg.
Mincheol suppressed his annoyance and spoke.
“That’s not it, so calm down…”
“Phew, thank goodness. But then why won’t you eat my cooking? I must have made a mistake, right? That’s it, isn’t it?”
“No, I said it’s not that.”
Dismissing the questions, Mincheol quickly explained before Bokdol-i could cause another commotion.
“There’s a restaurant I always go to whenever I struggle in the Tower. It feels like a reward to myself.”
“Ah, so that’s what it was? I thought something had gone wrong with me.”
Bokdol-i sighed with relief and spoke.
“Then I’m heading out. Kkwaekkwi, what about you?”
“Kkwak.”
Kkwaekkwi answered while sprawled across the bed.
It meant he wanted to rest at home.
“Alright, get some rest.”
Mincheol said so and left the house.
Bokdol-i waved his hand until Mincheol closed the door.
And the moment Mincheol stepped outside, he muttered quietly.
“…In the end, that restaurant’s food is better than my cooking, isn’t it?”
“Kkwak.”
“Kkwaekkwi, what do you think? What if the Owner abandons me because my cooking isn’t tasty?”
“Kkwak.”
“That can’t happen! I don’t want to be trapped in the Tower again! I have to win back the Owner’s heart no matter what!”
Bokdol-i clutched his head and groaned.
Shake, shake—
Kkwaekkwi merely cast a glance at Bokdol-i filled with irritation and annoyance.

* * *

Mincheol headed toward Cheonghe along the familiar path.
Ding, ding—
The moment he stepped inside, the Owner greeted Mincheol.
“Welcome, you’ve come by quite quickly this time.”
“Business has been pretty good lately.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful. Please, have a seat.”
Mincheol moved toward the bar table in front of the Owner.
But there was already a customer seated there.
“Oh?”
“Mincheol?”
Yoo Cheon-hee and Yeonhui, a pair of siblings, were already there eating.
“Wow, this time we got here before you did, Mincheol. Please, sit here.”
Yoo Cheon-hee, the younger sibling, tapped the seat beside him and spoke.
Mincheol sat down without hesitation.
A meal with the two siblings was always welcome.
Once seated, Mincheol first opened the menu to look over the options.

Set A – 30,000 won.
Set B – 82,000 won.
Premium Sushi Set – 105,000 won.

The last time Mincheol came here, he’d ordered the pricey Set B for 82,000 won.
He’d wanted to try the Premium Sushi Set, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
‘Maybe this time I should go for the Premium Sushi Set?’
Part of me wanted to order it.
But the price tag over 100,000 won was the problem.
I still hadn’t overcome the psychological barrier of spending over 100,000 won on a single meal.
‘Ugh.’
After deliberating for a while, I ended up ordering Set B again.
‘I can always challenge the Premium Sushi Set later….’
I was comforting myself with that thought when Yoo Cheon-hee spoke to me while savoring her sushi.
“Did you see the news today? Something incredible broke.”
“No, what happened?”
I shook my head and asked.
I’d been so busy today that I hadn’t even had time to log into the Hunter Community.
“A Mega Hidden Stage was discovered.”
I tilted my head in confusion.
A Hidden Stage is a Hidden Stage. What in the world is a Mega Hidden Stage?
“You don’t seem to know about it. Older Sister, could you explain?”
“You can explain it yourself.”
“But you explain things so much better than I do.”
Yeonhui let out a long sigh. Still, she didn’t refuse her brother’s request.
“A Mega Hidden Stage is a Hidden Stage where multiple people can enter simultaneously.”
“Is it like an event?”
“It’s different. Events operate on a time-limited basis, right? Hidden Stages remain until they’re cleared. And unlike events, you can’t revive in them.”
In that case, it wasn’t much different from clearing the Tower.
The only difference was that it was multiplayer instead of solo play.
“Each Mega Hidden Stage has a different entry method. The previously discovered Mega Stage required an enormous amount of money to enter. This time, only people with tickets can get in.”
“Tickets?”
“They apparently drop randomly as you clear the Tower. No one knows exactly how many are in circulation.”
“Even Seolangdo only managed to get one ticket. Right, Yoo Cheon—ow!”
Yeonhui stomped hard on her brother’s foot.
Yoo Cheon-hee winced, keeping his head down.
“…If you have a ticket, up to five people can enter. Those five form one team.”
“That’s quite an unusual system.”
“That’s why every guild is desperately trying to obtain tickets right now. They want to get as many people inside as possible.”
“That’s why every Guild is desperately trying to get tickets right now. They’re trying to get as many people inside as possible.”
Yeonhui picked up her water glass and took a sip to soothe her throat.
She seemed to have a sore throat from talking too much.
“But if it’s not just a Hidden Stage but a Mega Hidden Stage… the rewards must be incredible, right?”
Mincheol asked with gleaming eyes.
That was what I was most curious about. What kind of rewards would it offer?
“They’re enormous. Inventory Expansion Vouchers, Unique Skill Enhancement Vouchers, Skill Level Increase Vouchers, and even three or four Unique-grade items to start with. Common items pour out like mountains.”
“Wow.”
“Actually, those rewards are nothing. From a Mega Hidden Stage, at least one Legendary-grade item is guaranteed to drop.”
“Woooow….”
Mincheol’s eyes sparkled even brighter.
The value of Legendary-grade items was beyond description.
First of all, they were incredibly rare.
Even high-tier Awakened ones had only one or two at most.
One is guaranteed to drop? And at least one at that?
Wasn’t that saying there might even be two?
‘Well, it’s just a pipe dream anyway.’
The Mega Hidden Stage that appeared this time required a ticket to enter.
Even Seol-aeng had only obtained one, so how could I get one?
Even if I did get one, there was another problem.
From what I heard, it would become a battleground for Large Guilds, so what could I accomplish in there?
“Your sushi is ready.”
The food was finished at just the right moment.
Mincheol completely forgot about the Mega Hidden Stage.
After all, happiness right before my eyes was more important than a tree I couldn’t even climb.
“By the way, I’m so happy to see you again, Mincheol! What floor are you climbing now? I’m currently….”
Mincheol chatted away with the Yoo siblings while eating his sushi.
It was the perfect time I gave myself after all that hardship.

* * *

When Mincheol returned home after finishing his meal.

【A message has arrived from ‘Romantic Adventurer’.】

Park Du-nam had contacted me.
Mincheol opened the message, wondering what it could be about.

-Romantic Adventurer: Older Brother! Do you happen to be free two weeks from now?
-Butcher: What’s this about?
-Romantic Adventurer: Ah, our Teacher recently obtained something quite interesting!
-Butcher: Something interesting?
-Romantic Adventurer: Have you heard the news about the Mega Hidden Stage that was discovered?
-Romantic Adventurer: Our Teacher managed to acquire a ticket to enter that Hidden Stage!
-Romantic Adventurer: Each ticket allows up to five people to enter, so we’re assembling a party!

Mincheol read the next message with a sense of foreboding.

-Romantic Adventurer: If you’re willing, come with us! Having you join would be like gaining ten thousand allies!

It was the moment an irrefutable proposal arrived.

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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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