Chapter 27
And before long, a post appeared on Lee Do-hee's fan cafe...
---
[Title] : Is this why she achieved the hidden ending?
[Content] :
I thought I'd heard the name Raymond somewhere before, so I looked into it.
It was in a report someone else had published after clearing Floor 47.
The trial at the time was [Prevent the Destruction of the Kingdom of Trahal], and his name was on the list of spies killed while they were being captured.
So basically, Lee Do-hee just happened to beat to death a spy who had infiltrated the Kingdom of Trahal. Maybe that's why?
[Comments] :
- Then what about the other trials?
ㄴ [Author] : I'm investigating the other trials for now, too. If this is official, it's an incredible discovery.
- Oh, was this it?
- Wow, it really was hidden. They completely concealed it, didn't they?
- Someone else (it's me)
ㄴ [Author] : How did you know?;;
ㄴ Who remembers someone listed in a report like that?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
- This really might be worth investigating, huh?
- Fuck, they hid this way too wellㅋㅋㅋㅋ
---
Starting with this post, the internet detectives began their investigation.
And evidence began turning up one piece at a time.
- Found one in another trial too. A guy named Balmuth, who was executed for plotting treason against the Kingdom of Ravian, was the vanguard commander in the Floor 4 trial.
- I think I found one too. Someone named Kenian, who joined hands with a black magician in the Kingdom of Absence, appears as the vanguard commander in the Floor 4 trial.
- So this is the power of knowledge and history....
- A spy, a treasonous conspirator, and someone who colluded with a black magician. They really are all people who deserve to die.
- Seems almost certain, doesn't it?
The countless reports humanity had produced on the various worlds while conquering the Tower for fifteen years.
As the pieces were fitted together, the truth was gradually being revealed.
And this incident did not end within Lee Do-hee's fan cafe alone.
[Title] : Current articles about the Floor 4 hidden ending.
[Content] :
MNJ Broadcasting : Hidden Ending Discovered on Tower Floor 4?! Will a New Strategy Be Unlocked?
KSB Broadcasting : Lee Do-hee, the World's First Awakener to Receive an SS Reward, Discovers a New Hidden Ending!
Overseas AT News : Korean Awakener Makes History. Method for Raising Tutorial Reward Grades Revealed!!
Everyone's got it on their front page right nowㅋㅋㅋ
[Comments] :
- They put a giant picture of Lee Do-hee's face on itㅋㅋㅋ
ㄴ It gets views, doesn't it~
ㄴ The foreign article only shows her butt, though?
- Guys, it got exported to the rest of the world?
ㄴ For real, they just copied our postㅋㅋ
- I think this has left our hands now?
- Even the major guilds are starting investigationsㅋㅋ
- Sigh... I work for a major guild, and we've gone into emergency mode.
- It's chaos overseas tooㅋㅋ
- Foreigners are going to be shocked when they watch the replayㅋㅋ
- What do we do? Are foreigners going to watch Lee Do-hee's replay now?
- Sigh.... Our streamer is embarrassing no matter where we take her...
Naturally, the major guilds, always obsessed with discovering and nurturing new talent, were not about to let this opportunity pass.
They knew better than anyone how important it was to obtain high-grade traits on the tutorial floors for future growth, so they used all the information at their disposal to review the reports.
And it did not end there. Beyond Korea, countries around the world began racing to report and verify the new discovery.
Information spreads across the internet in less than a day.
Then, a promising member of America's number-one guild killed the commander in the Floor 4 trial and received the same SS rank as Lee Do-hee, proving it beyond all doubt.
Accordingly, about six hours after Lee Do-hee discovered the Floor 4 hidden ending, the World Awakeners Association made an official announcement.
[Condition for the Floor 4 Hidden Ending]
Kill the vanguard commander.
A very short but powerful sentence.
That one sentence sent the entire world into an uproar once again.
Of course, it was an extremely difficult condition, but if you could accomplish it, your reward grade would increase by one level.
- Kyaaa
- Is this national pride?
- Flutter~
- We are South Korea~
- How many achievements is Lee Do-hee going to rack up......
- She is a proud Korean.
Wait a moment.
Then what had Lee Do-hee been doing for those six hours?
[Title] : Is Lee Do-hee in the Tower right now?
[Content] :
I watched up to the Floor 4 clear earlier, but I missed the rest while looking for information. What's she doing?
[Comments] :
- Well, you see......
- Are we becoming a porn-exporting country now?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
- Now she's even getting sexually harassed by foreigners.
- Ugh, this is so embarrassing. She got caught on a foreign live broadcast just like that.
- she is not korean
- Oh, get lost, you idiotsㅋㅋ
- [Author] : ??? What happened?
ㄴ She's doing her real job.
ㄴ [Author] : Her real job? Ah..... No way.
- ??? : Lee Do-hee is a proud Korean.
- Fuck, why did it have to happen at this exact moment!!!
What on earth had happened to her during those six hours...?
***
Six hours earlier.
Tower's Trial, Floor 5.
Floor 5 was uneventful.
It was a trial that ended once you cleared the various traps in a dungeon.
From basic traps where the floor collapsed when stepped on, to mechanisms that fired arrows, devices that spewed flames, and mechanisms that killed you if you stepped on the wrong platform—there were familiar traps one might have seen anywhere, as well as strange devices she had never seen before.
And Lee Do-hee moved through all of them lightly, as if she were taking a stroll.
She flowed through them as smoothly as water, as though she already knew the correct answers.
She had invested all five bonus stat points from her Floor 4 SS-grade reward into Agility, and her body had become even lighter thanks to her buff skill.
- What am I looking at?
- She's just running?
- She just goes through that?
- Is it just me, or do the traps seem to be avoiding her?
She had already reached the final trap.
Large, sharp spike balls swung from side to side above, while sharp spears periodically thrust upward from below.
It was a triple trap, with devices that spewed fire prepared in the walls on both sides as well.
Normally, it was the most difficult mechanism, requiring you to run with incredibly precise timing and thoroughly secure a retreat route in case you made a mistake.
But Lee Do-hee simply ran.
She ran as though the traps were moving aside to let her pass, and it was over before anyone knew it.
"Finished!!"
When she pressed the red button at the end of the dungeon, the Tower's voice rang out.
[You have cleared Floor 5. Choose an S-grade reward.]
- What the fuck is this?
- This isn't the trap dungeon I know.
- It feels like I'm watching some veteran speedrun it.
- How far are you going to keep cheating, Lee Do-hee?!
Unlike the other floors, Floor 5's reward was determined by clear time rather than trial difficulty, and she cleared it in five minutes and thirty-eight seconds.
'What a shame. If it had been under five minutes, it would've been SS grade...'
There was nothing she could do.
It was impossible without using a shortcut like teleporting or breaking through the walls to reach the finish.
And the reward for Floor 5 was a core skill.
But Lee Do-hee did not choose a skill here. Instead, she obtained a Skill Growth Ticket.
A Skill Growth Ticket was, as its name suggested, an item that could raise a skill's level.
To raise a skill's level, you needed a number of Skill Growth Tickets equal to the skill's level.
One ticket for Lv. 1, five tickets for Lv. 5.
It was that simple.
'They're all basic skills anyway.'
The skills learned in the tutorial could be bought easily enough later with money.
She did need to learn a skill that increased her defense, but there was no reason to use it now.
With that decided, she invested all the Skill Growth Tickets into Haste.
<Haste lv.3>
Consumes 7 Mana to increase Agility by 6 for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
At last, the buff skill had become somewhat useful.
And this time, she invested all three bonus stat points from the S-grade clear reward into Strength.
*
Floor 6 was much easier.
The theme of Floor 6 was combat against airborne units.
It had given her considerable trouble in the past, but this time she simply chose a bow and took them down with ease.
Five bees the size of a human torso appeared, but she finished them off in an instant.
- Fuck, she can shoot a bow well too.
- She really has everythingㅋㅋ
- Where's the airborne restraint sex with the swarm?
- Going wild in midair......
"Why would I do something like that!!"
In any case, Floor 6's reward was unfortunately only B grade.
She had received a lot of A and S grades by then, so it was about time a B came up.
The reward for Floor 6 was Special Stat Generation.
<Fighting Spirit>, which grew stronger the stronger the opponent was.
<Insight>, which was useful for identifying items and assessing the surrounding situation.
<Dexterity>, required for crafting skills.
<Regeneration>, which improved natural healing ability.
<Indomitable>, which grew stronger as you sustained injuries.
Among the many traits, the one I chose was.
<Regeneration>.
This trait was useful not only because Regeneration itself was good, but also because I knew how to upgrade its grade, making it extremely valuable to obtain early on.
As a result, my status window was newly reorganized.
<Final Stats>
Strength: 28.8
Agility: 9.8
Defense: 20.6
Mana: 204.6
Regeneration: 1
Bonus Stats: 2
Unfortunately, Regeneration could not be increased with bonus stats.
I took a short break, chatted with the viewers, then left the Tower and had a quick meal before entering the Tower again.
Three hours had passed by this point.
Without wasting any time, I immediately challenged Floor 7.
The theme of Floor 7 was underwater combat.
In this trial, monsters from a species called 'naga' appeared, with claws on their hands and grotesque appearances.
Normally, you had to fight fiercely underwater while protecting the oxygen mask over your face, but only one monster appeared, so I simply stabbed it with my spear as soon as the trial began and finished it.
Naturally, the reward was barely B grade as well.
As a reward, I obtained a mana recovery rate that restored 1 Mana per hour.
The basic recovery rate had originally been 0.1 per hour, but considering how much Mana I had, it was a little disappointing.
And the problem arose on Floor 8.
The theme of Floor 8 was cooperation.
One random person would be matched with you, and the two of you had to cooperate to make it through the dungeon.
You had to work together to clear eight rooms with various themes, including combat, gimmicks, puzzles, deduction, and bosses. In a way, it could be called a condensed version of the tutorial.
"All right~ Who will I meet?"
- I'm going in, wait for me!!
- I climbed all the way to Floor 7 just to do this, but I haven't gone in yet.
- Ah, please...
- The guys above are all lying. How could an Awakener carry a phone into the waiting room?
- Ack
- If you weed out the liars, there might really be someone here?
Honestly, I hoped I would be matched with a viewer.
Even if it wasn't a viewer, it would be more comfortable if it were at least someone who knew me. No matter how much their face was pixelated, I would still need their permission to broadcast them, and it would be reassuring to have someone who would follow my orders.
[Matching has been completed. Would you like to move?]
The matching was complete in less than five minutes.
"Phew...... I'll turn off the chat window and donation alerts before I go in. Please let them be a normal person."
I didn't even need them to pull their full weight. I could carry them if they did only half their share, so I pressed the accept button while praying I wouldn't meet a troll.
- Whoosh~
When I pressed the accept button floating in midair, my body was automatically teleported.
A slightly dim dungeon.
A soft light emanated from the gray walls, and the passage was quite wide.
Various weapons had been placed around us, as if telling us to choose one before proceeding.
And there was one man standing in front of me.
He had a decent build and a slightly obnoxious-looking face, and our eyes met.
"Hmm?"
"Uh.. hello?"
Doesn't he know me?
His reaction was strange.
"Oh...?"
He tilted his head while looking at me, then his eyes widened dramatically as though something had suddenly occurred to him.
"No way!!"
"Yes?"
Did he know me or not?
"The person who got an arrow stuck in her asshole? No, you're still alive and climbing? What, are you an onahole? Wasn't it some strange trait like that?"
'Sigh...'
What was I supposed to do about this?
He was big and seemed dependable, but he was a man with a slightly careless mouth. To put it stereotypically, he was the kind of person who ruined the mood the moment he started talking.
"I-I am. I mean, I am, but... "
"Wow~ How did you climb this far like that? I mean, it is pretty amazing that you made it this far as a woman, but you know how people see things, right? You know what I mean? So I naturally assumed you'd give up."
Something about the way he looked at me irritated me. It was almost as if he were sneering at me and looking down on someone beneath him.
"Ah... yes."
"By any chance, how old are you?"
Somehow, it felt as though he was asking while already guessing my answer.
"I'm.... 21 years old."
That was the age written on my ID, at least.
When I revealed my age, the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
"Ah~ Then I can speak casually, right? You can call me oppa too! You must have had such a hard time getting through the trials in a woman's body~ Leave this trial to me..."
The man was trying to seize far too much control. I couldn't just let it slide.
"Hey."
"...Hey? Did you just call your oppa 'hey'? Oh, look at this tiny little thing getting cheeky. You know you're inside the Tower right now..."
"Shut up and fight me according to the rules."
There was an unwritten rule on Floor 8.
The reward grade for Floor 8 was divided according to each person's contribution to clearing the rooms, and the party leader could determine the contribution ratio with the party member's consent.
Since it was only natural for the stronger person to receive a larger share, you sparred with the nonlethal weapons nearby to reach a sort of agreement.
"Ha!! Don't cry after you get hurt, you little runt. Oppa hits women too!!"
***
Three minutes later.
"Guh... I was wrong.... Stop, I said I lost..."
The man lay facedown in the middle of the waiting room, clutching his entire body and crying out in pain.
"Enough. Hand over party leadership."
"I did..."
"The contribution ratio is 7:3. That's enough, right?"
"Yes... I agree."The talkative, rude man had become docile.'As expected, a beating is the best medicine...'