Chapter 12
My embarrassing friend Hyeji failed the quest spectacularly!
You failed a quest that easy?
All you had to do was fire off one spell!?
“Ugh. Lee Hyeji, you’re hopeless. Just accept your fate... and walk the path of the martial artist.”
You missed the perfect chance to get your hands on the gear of America’s hero, Noah Johnson.
It can’t be helped.
I’ll have to make sure you get something when I see you later.
Well, let’s go check out the actual gear for now.
Looks like the entities stripped everything off them and gathered it all up.
I put on my work uniform and headed up to Floor -1.
“Miss~ You’re here!”
“Oh, yeah. You all did great.”
[The antipsychotic filter activates.]
Whoa. The blood-red walls just turned rainbow-colored!
I mean, just how horrifying was the scene?
The filter’s going haywire—my head’s burning!!!
“Good grief. Looks like you took care of everything?”
“Yep, of course. We gathered all the gear here, too, miss.”
“Is all that the intruders’ equipment?”
“That’s right. It all belongs to you now, miss.”
“I worked hard to wipe all the blood off, Boss!”
“Hehe. It’s Cheonwoo. Hi.”
“Oh, yeah. You all did great. Wonderful work!”
Kuku and Kkingki were crouched down, polishing the bloodstained gear.
Beside them, Ms. Popo, the Eight-Foot-Tall Ghost, smiled and pointed to a corner of Floor -1.
There really are tons of bags, armor, and weapons here.
The gear is piled up like a mountain.
Some of it even has magic enchantments and rune stones embedded in it.
What on earth is this made of? Why is the blade red?
Every last piece looks ridiculously expensive.
Well, that’s only natural. Those guys from the basement expedition must’ve been successful Hunters backed by their countries.
“Oh, this...!”
I’ve seen this before.
This gauntlet was on the list of the world’s most expensive pieces of armor, wasn’t it?
I think it was handmade by a German master blacksmith using rare metals found only in the Tower.
Anyway, it’s amazing seeing all this stuff I’d only seen online piled up here!
“I mean, how much is all this worth?”
“I’m glad you’re so happy, miss.”
“I’m absolutely thrilled. Here, take a bottle of almond water each. It’s a bonus.”
“Wow! Thank you, Boss!”
“Oh my. What a precious gift. I’ll enjoy it.”
Mom, you can stop working now!
Is this finally my chance to repay her properly?
Even though I’d become the Basement Opener and gotten the title of Administrator...
I still had zero income.
On top of that, becoming a girl had only increased my expenses for clothes and all sorts of other things.
‘At last, I can make a living off the Tower!’
Though it was money from gear looted off corpses!
Still, since it was income from self-defense, couldn’t I say I’d earned it fair and square?
“But what about the bodies?”
The bloodstains were still all over the place.
For some reason, there wasn’t a single corpse in sight.
Surely not?
No way.
I gave them almond water, too.
There was no reason to eat those guys.
Right?
....Why aren’t any of you answering?
“....”
“Ahem.”
“Burp...”
“Who just burped!!!”
Seriously?
You really ate them....
Damn it, you crazy entities!
It’s not like you treat people as nutritious snacks or anything!
I gave you almond water!
Why’d you eat them! Stop eating people!
“I-I didn’t do it! That one did!”
“It wasn’t me either!!! That masked bitch is framing me! It’s not fair! Cheonwoo, believe me!”
“Ugh, seriously.”
Kkingki shook their head, too.
Kuku also insisted it wasn’t them.
When I turned to look at Ms. Popo, she smiled and pointed at the huge hole in the room.
“Hehe. We threw all the bodies into the hole. We didn’t eat them.”
“The hole?”
“Yes, miss. The Hole Worms are excellent cleaners. They get rid of trash in no time. If we left the bodies lying around, they’d rot, so it’s better to toss them into the hole while they’re fresh. If a corpse rots in the basement... Well, let’s stop there. I don’t want to weaken your mental fortitude with needless details.”
“O-okay... That’s enough. I won’t ask any more.”
So the intruders who died on Floor -1 didn’t even leave their corpses behind.
Only their gear was left.
Like a tiger that leaves its hide behind when it dies, all that remained was their gear...
I feel like I’ve become a heartless psychopath and the leader of some evil organization.
“This feels so inhumane. I’m losing my humanity...”
“Oh my. Honestly, miss.”
“Boss isn’t at fault. The Constellations are!”
“That’s right, miss. Think about it. If you hadn’t taken care of those intruders, they would’ve violated you. Kkingki, show her what you prepared.”
“Mm. Cheonwoo, look at this.”
In an instant, Kkingki’s face changed.
That’s... the face of the dead Noah Johnson...?
Kkingki took on the face of the American guy I’d seen on the news and, in his exact voice, recited what he must have said while he was alive.
“The Constellation said we just had to kill her. So if the Basement Administrator turned out to be a woman, we could do whatever we wanted with her. Either way, we just had to kill her.”
“....Is this real?”
“Yeah. These humans bad. They wanted to do bad things to Cheonwoo.”
Must be one of the doppelganger’s innate abilities.
It seemed Kkingki could absorb some of the memories of those they’d killed.
“If I eat a brain, I can see some of that person’s memories from one day of their life. Hehe. I did good, right? Cheonwoo feels a little less guilty now?”
“Y-yeah, I think I feel a little less guilty. But you ate him after all.”
“Ah!”
You! How much of his brain did you eat?
I’d told Kkingki to cut down on cannibalism if they could help it.
But it definitely helped.
Thanks to Kkingki, even the tiny bit of guilt left in the back of my mind had completely disappeared.
“Yeah. Thank you, everyone.”
“So what should we do now, miss? Just give the order.”
“Yes, Boss! I can do anything!”
“Hmm... I don’t know.”
What should I have them do?
The biggest immediate threat was gone.
Maybe I should check Constellation Gallery first?
After all, the Constellations were the ones sending people into the basement.
I needed to keep track of what the Constellations were up to.
====
Title: My Kid Died Again!!!
Posted by: Frozen Heart
How could things have ended this miserably?
What the hell is the basement? Wasn’t it just a storage room?
Are those damn Observers blind or what?
You bastards said the Basement Administrator was an absolute pushover!
So why did my kid die in a place like a dump?
Who the hell is responsible for this!!!
How many points did I invest, and this is the result...?
[Replies]
└Subject of the Magic Rod: Well, who told you to invest in an inferior species? lol
└Abyssal Spider: I seriously don’t get people who raise Earthlings.
└The One Who Peers Behind: I ditched all the Earthlings ages ago. Investing in them is pointless.
└Giant Soldier of the Azure Sky: The fact that they’ve only just reached Floor 60 tells you all you need to know...
└Seven-Star Yinglong: Those who sponsored Earthlings, thinking they were buying in at the bottom, can’t even get out because of their sunk costs.
====
What the hell, Constellation conversations are scary!
Especially this Frozen Heart?
This woman’s anger is so palpable.
Are they going to invade right away?
====
└Laughing Mask: Why not just send an Apostle this time?
└Frozen Heart: If I send an Apostle to the lower floors, I can’t handle the penalty...
└Laughing Mask: What if the basement is worth more than that?
└Frozen Heart: That’s true...
└Frozen Heart: It is tempting.
└Frozen Heart: But I’ve spent all my points. I’m broke.
└Laughing Mask: That’s too bad. Good luck.
└Frozen Heart: Hey! Lend me some!
└Frozen Heart: You’ve got tons of points saved up!
└Laughing Mask: For free?
====
Okay. I get it now.
You guys are broke, huh?
This basement invasion was an all-in effort.
Seeing as they have no points, they probably won’t be able to come into the basement anytime soon.
Maybe I can relax a little?
“Shall we all take a break in the break room?”
“Oh..! I’ve never been in the break room before, Boss!”
“Oh my. I get to enter your room, miss. Hehehe. I’m so happy.”
“Ah... I...”
Kuku and Ms. Popo naturally headed into the break room.
Kkingki, the guardian of Floor -1, hesitated.
It must’ve been because Kkingki was an employee of Floor -1 and couldn’t leave for another location.
But now I was the Basement Administrator.
Couldn’t I change the rules a little?
Kkingki didn’t seem to have any pressing duties like the office worker on Floor -2.
Couldn’t they take a little break?
Employees who do good work get bonuses and vacation time, after all.
“What are you doing? Why aren’t you coming in?”
“I-I have to guard this place...”
“It’s okay. Nobody’s coming to the basement right now. Besides, the Hole Worms will guard it on their own.”
“...But.”
“Kkingki. Come with us.”
I took Kkingki by the hand and brought them into the break room, despite their hesitation.
We’d all worked hard together. It’d be sad to leave Kkingki behind all by themself.
Floor -1 wasn’t a place where people could live comfortably, like the office or the library.
It was just a dark space full of hallways.
If we all left Kkingki here and went off without them, they’d be lonely and sad.
I hate that kind of thing!
I want everyone to have fun together.
“How is it?”
“Bright. Lots of lights.”
“Right? You can eat anything you want here.”
“R-really? I’ve only ever had almond water and intruders to eat. I’ve never had any food before.”
“Is that so? The office worker likes coffee. Want to try this, Kkingki?”
“This is...”
“It’s called chocolate. It’s sweet. Kuku and Ms. Popo, you can have as much as you want, too.”
Chocolate.
Obviously, there was no chocolate in the basement.
Even cheap Korean chocolate with barely any cocoa and loads of palm oil would count as a whole new discovery here.
“I’ve... never eaten anything like this before.”
“There, there. Don’t cry. Have another.”
“I wasn’t crying!”
“Oh, yeah. It’s okay if you cry.”
Kkingki was so moved by just one piece of chocolate.
It was so ironic. An entity who could slaughter high-level rankers from Floor 50 without blinking was moved by a single piece of chocolate!
At least Kuku and Ms. Popo had experienced a lot of the outside world after being fired from the basement once.
But Kkingki must’ve lived on Floor -1 their entire life.
It made sense that this would come as a shock.
“I... you know... today was the first time anyone’s ever held my hand. It’s also the first time I’ve ever eaten anything like this.”
“Really?”
“Yeah... Cheonwoo’s hand. Soft. Warm. Chocolate is sweet. Cheonwoo isn’t afraid of me. I’m friends with Cheonwoo.”
“Friends?”
No, why am I your friend?
I’m your boss at work, aren’t I?
“I can trust Cheonwoo.”
“Hm? Are you going to take something out?”
“I’ve waited a long time. And at last, I found it. So I have to give it to you.”
“Give me what?”
Kkingki hesitated as they searched their pocket.
What were they taking out?
“Administrator, take it. This is a present from me.”
“This is...”
====
[Lost Item Found!]
[No. 2 – Employee Register]
Neglecting your duties is a grave offense!
Manage them properly~
====
What she gave me was a Lost Item.
It was a register listing the names of the entities who had truly recognized me as their Administrator.
“Administrator weak. Cheonwoo weak, so dangerous. So... use that to borrow.”
“Borrow what...?”
“Our power. The basement employees’.”
The Employee Register.
Every entity whose name was written in it had definitely acknowledged me.
‘I see. So Lost Items...’
You had to earn an entity’s recognition to get one.
Every Lost Item I’d obtained so far had come when an entity recognized me.
I’d gotten the HR terminal after making coffee for the office worker, as thanks.
I’d gotten the Library Book Checkout Ledger by hiring the librarian, who’d been lost in the library their whole life, as a regular employee.
This time, I’d gotten the Employee Register by becoming friends with Kkingki, the guardian of Floor -1.
“Thank you, Kkingki! We’re best friends!”
“Yeah. Cheonwoo is my friend. And my Administrator.”
I felt kind of proud!
It wasn’t like I’d really done much, though.
All I’d done was let Kkingki have some chocolate and share the break room with them...!
Still, I’d been acknowledged.
Maybe becoming the Administrator was the right choice after all?