The Return of the EX-Class Wizard - Chapter 41

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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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The Return of an EX-Rank Mage Episode 041
‘The 13th Floor has been cleared again?’
In just one hour?
Joshua was bewildered.
Merely an hour had passed.
As if catching one’s breath and turning the page, the EX-rank Awakener had reached another pinnacle.
“There’s a gimmick on the 13th Floor, apparently…”
“Ah.”
Joshua continued speaking slowly, masking his astonishment.
“If the Golem takes counterattack damage exceeding a certain threshold, it self-destructs. An area explosion at that. Interception can’t cover it effectively.”
“Thank you for the advanced intelligence.”
Joshua chuckled softly and shrugged his shoulders.
A composed powerhouse. That was his role.
Yet his mind was far from at ease.
‘Isn’t he a tank specialized in interception?’
Joshua’s thoughts churned once more.
Explorer-class movements. Rumors of +9 enhancement. And EX-rank.
Belonging to nothing, definable by nothing.
That was what truly terrified him.
Indefinable meant unpreparable for.
Meanwhile, Choi Kang-mok greeted Mayo.
“Thanks, Mayo.”
-Self-destructing Golems are about as simple as cooked potatoes, I’d say.
-Explosions are beautiful, self-destruction can be art too, explosions burst, I love it, ah!
A Sapphire Golem self-destructing—who would have thought.
Kang Hye approached with a grin spreading across her face.
“You madman. You cleared another EX floor.”
A notebook was held in her left hand.
“So? Was there any special information on the 13th Floor?”
In her right hand, she held a bottle filled with cold water.
Choi Kang-mok gulped down the cold water Kang Hye offered and shook his head.
“It self-destructed. The Golem.”
“Self-destructed? Really?”
“A notification appeared, but it happened so fast I couldn’t see it clearly.”
Choi Kang-mok rubbed his own neck.
For the first time in a while, something other than his own magic sent a chill down his spine.
[Shield (9): 72]
The shield had been reduced by a full 28 points from the sudden explosion.
It was damage unimaginable for something taken on a lower floor.
Everything had happened in such an instant that he hadn’t even been able to activate invulnerability.
-I’ve meticulously documented every detail.
-The blast pattern, propagation range, even the vibration coefficient.
Mayo drifted through the air toward me and displayed text above my head.
[※Mayo’s Unofficial Report: The Golem self-destructs on intercepted damage, but exceeding a certain threshold multiplies the self-destruct damage by 10,000 times.]
Mayo transformed into the shape of a file folder.
-According to records, you have observed the Golem’s explosion trigger for the ‘first time in the world’.
-As a result, you have been granted a title. Please check it. 🙂
“Oh….”
Kang Hye let out an exclamation.
“What is it? What is it? What is it? Why are you amazed?”
[You have obtained the title ‘Golem Floor Conqueror’.]
[You gain complete immunity to all self-destruct attacks from Golem-type creatures.]
Complete immunity to Golem self-destruct attacks.
A moment of silence. Then, a rush of admiration.
Kang Hye gave a thumbs up.
“That’s right! For a world-first discovery, this kind of reward is only fair. Hehe.”
Her expression was filled with pride.
Choi Kang-mok chuckled softly.
Having someone who was happier for me than I was for myself—
it turned out to be quite a pleasant thing.

* * *
Floor 13 had been cleared at EX-rank.
And one hour later.
───────
[Hall of Fame (Floor 14)]
[South Korea]
1. -(Seoul EX)
…
───────
The community absolutely exploded.
[Are you serious? How many floors are they clearing in a single day?]
“So where did all those self-proclaimed experts who said it would take a long time to prepare go now? lol”
└The guy who said “Floor 11 onwards is different” needs to take a breath
└The EX-rank Awakener is tearing through the Hall of Fame >__<
Joshua, in a meeting with Lee Byung-gyu, had his composure severely shaken as well.
'Again?'
Was this manipulation?
An EX-rank clear.
I have no idea how to accomplish such a feat.
The clear times are short, and there's no visible preparation process.
'What method could possibly work?'
My mind grew tangled.
Does he possess far greater power than we realize?
Despite his low level, can he truly stand shoulder to shoulder with high-level rankers?
"Surely we can meet with the EX-rank Awakener now?"
"My apologies. The EX-rank Awakener has conveyed that he does not wish to meet at this time."
Joshua's eyebrows twitched.
He nearly said that persuading him was their job.
Joshua forced himself to nod.
"Ah. He must be exhausted right now. I understand."
"…Thank you for your understanding."
Joshua rose from his seat.
"Then shall we take some rest as well? I've left the strategy guides for the 30s here. From Floor 40 onward, there are some things I'll need to teach directly, so I'll return in six hours."
Joshua needed personal time.
'I can't leave this entirely to the Seoul Guild.'
This wasn't diplomacy—it was espionage.
The name EX-rank Awakener was no longer merely a subject of 'observation'.
He had to be classified as either 'acquired' or 'eliminated'.
Joshua immediately opened his system mail.
The recipient was Kim Kang-hyun, a ranker from the Busan Guild.
That unfortunate man who had given EX-rank Awakener the most first-place clears.
-The EX-rank Awakener must certainly be overexerting himself. Accordingly, potions that alleviate Tower addiction and various elixir-type artifacts are being delivered to him. All such materials have sold out from Korean auction houses and the like. The quantity is beyond what can be transmitted via system mail. If we track the flow carefully, we should be able to pinpoint EX-rank Awakener's location. I will do my utmost to assist. Please, you must kill EX-rank Awakener.

* * *
The Seoul Guild moved with breathless urgency in its own way.
"Gather every craftsman we can summon."
A rapid clear from Floor 11 to Floor 14. A sprint no one had anticipated.
Why he had suddenly accelerated,
the Seoul Guild understood.
'He is sacrificing himself for Seoul.'
The Seoul Guild's leadership had judged Choi Kang-mok to be a man who understood justice and greater purpose.
A vast vessel who grasped precisely the responsibility his power carried.
They aided the Seoul Guild according to his convictions, and so the Seoul Guild too had to live up to those expectations.
"All production lines are running Tower Addiction Potions. We're proceeding with maximum concentration."
Yet concentration did not increase effectiveness linearly.
Concentrate 100 and the effect was merely 20.
Concentrate 1,000 and it was only 30.
Therefore, concentration beyond a certain threshold was irrational.
In other words, wasteful spending.
But everyone understood. This was not a matter of simple calculation.
'The EX-rank Awakener is giving everything.'
The craftsmen also ascended the Tower.
So they knew. How cruel that world within truly was.
Western Europe recommended over 24 hours of rest.
Some nations even legally prohibited re-entry within certain timeframes.
Seoul had no such regulations.
So they had to be all the more desperate.
The craftsmen, with the same resolve, poured all their skill into their work.
They took to the battlefield in their own way.
And then more news arrived.
"Floor 15 is cleared."
"Floor 15 clears happen every day."
Wasn't Seoul already flooded with low-level Awakeners?
"Don't talk to me, I'm busy."
"No. I mean the EX-rank."
"What nonsense is that?"
That nonsense became reality.
───────
[Hall of Fame (Floor 15)]
[South Korea]
1. -(Seoul, EX)
2. Kim Kang-hyun (Busan, SS)
…
───────
100 million Diamonds.
1 EX-Point.
Plus an additional 5 EX-Points from clearing 5 consecutive EX-Floors.
[Blood Lineage Blessing +9 effect applied.]
[EX-Points doubled!]
In total, I obtained 12 EX-Points.

* * *
An EX-rank Awakener's consecutive ascent.
This became nothing short of a massive sensation.
The community erupted in a frenzy bordering on hysteria.
[Is this even possible?]
└Whoosh~ whoosh~ (the sound of waving the national flag)
└This is the world's first consecutive EX-Floor clear
└This is what a nation looks like lol
└EX hyung is tier 1
South Korea erupted in jubilation,
while overseas reactions bordered on bewilderment.
The news was simply too surreal to accept.
[LOL Koreans starting their fabrications again]
└They must be getting off on this lol
└Isn't that Hall of Fame screenshot doctored too?
└4 consecutive? No, 5 consecutive EX? That's insane
└You actually believe that? Are you kids joking?
But Britain was different.
A nation with borders half-open to the world.
As the Hall of Fame expanded to a global tab, individual rankings were made public.
───────
[Hall of Fame (15th Floor)]
[Global] [Individual]
1. – (South Korea, EX)
…
───────
That name displayed by country.
Not Seoul, but South Korea.
An undeniable record of 'World Rank 1'.
[Global and national rankings are currently updating.]
While the national rankings remained locked, British Awakeners who witnessed the individual rankings with their own eyes could only whistle in awe.
"So the rumors about an EX-rank Awakener were true."
"The London Guild really does their work well."
[No way. I don't believe it. We're in the Tower civilization era—nothing's impossible. 200% chance they're a Hall of Fame manipulator.
└But you just said nothing's impossible….
└A manipulator makes more scientific sense than consecutive EX clears.
└What science are you even talking about, you idiot
As the rankings opened, some British Awakeners made their way directly to the Seoul Tower.
And they checked the Hall of Fame for each floor.
From the 1st Floor to the 14th Floor.
One person occupied the world's 1st place in every single ranking.
Amid all this, controversy erupted about the EX-rank Awakener being overworked.
[Isn't the Seoul Guild going too far?]
└The EX-rank's body is going to break at this rate
└Even promising young baseball players got worn down like this
└What does he see now that's making him like this? Pure dopamine rush
└The Guild should stop him. Their management is nonexistent
└Don't you know Germany bans entry within 12 hours?
└We're not an advanced nation like that. We just have one anomaly
At that moment.
Choi Kang-mok, caught in the center of overwork controversy, was sitting comfortably on a sofa, resting.
"Oppa, don't push yourself too hard."
"What do you mean?"
"You're running yourself ragged like that for Seoul."
"That's not it."
"That excuse doesn't work anymore."
"…."
"I support your decision to concentrate your strength on the Seoul Guild rather than other guilds. Guild Master Lee Byung-gyu seems like someone trustworthy too."
"…?"
"That's why I know you're pushing yourself."
"I'm not."
"Don't hide it from me."
Kang Hye's gaze was serene, yet
countless worries melted within those eyes.
In her right hand, she held a steaming cup of ssanghwatang.
"It's something everyone already knows. From the 11th Floor onward, the flow of time in reality and the Tower diverges dramatically."
Kang Hye's expression was deeply serious.
"There's no way to confirm from outside the Tower how much time you've endured and overcome in there."
The passage of time differs. The exact mechanism hasn't been revealed yet.
One thing was certain: time in the Tower moved far slower than in reality.
Even if you spent a day in the Tower, not a single minute might have passed in reality.
I wasn't sure of the details, but you'd certainly experienced an incredibly dense span of time.
It must have been an incredibly grueling ordeal.
Yet Choi Kang-mok spoke in true Choi Kang-mok fashion.
"It took only a few seconds."
It genuinely took only a few seconds.
"Of course you'd say that."
Kang Hye's skepticism was perfectly reasonable.
Choi Kang-mok simply reiterated the truth.
"Don't worry. Tower addiction is fine."
"Before I'm Korea's hero, I'm your family."
"Look at this."
Choi Kang-mok produced a talisman and held it up for her to see.
"What? What is that?"
Kang Hye's eyes widened as round as the full moon.

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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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