Ladder

Beep- beep- beep-

The noisy sound shattered the room's silence.

In the darkness, the tiny sand doll on the desk twitched.

The doll still had no name.

Its master had called it Chohogi for convenience.

Chohogi turned toward the source of the noise.

A small rectangular machine glowing and wailing by the master's bedside. That was the problem.

Its master hadn't moved at all. He seemed to be in a deep sleep.

Chohogi made up its mind. It had to stop that noise.

Chohogi jumped down from the desk.

Its tiny body, just over 10 cm tall, landed on a pile of soft clothes.

There was no impact.

The distance to the bed was far.

With its small body, it felt like climbing a huge mountain.

Chohogi whimpered as it clambered up the bed leg, and finally stood before the troublesome machine.

Unreadable letters were flashing on the screen.

Chohogi remembered what its master had done.

If you swiped that screen with your finger, the sound stopped.

Chohogi brought its tiny sand finger to the screen.

And pushed the screen sideways.

[Fingerprint does not match.]

The screen turned red.

Though it couldn't read the text, Chohogi knew what this screen meant.

Chohogi felt a shock as if the world itself had stopped.

It was the master's duplicate. A being made to imitate everything about its master.

And yet why was this stupid machine rejecting it?

Chohogi tried again and again. But the result was the same.

Then there was only one way.

Use the master's finger directly.

Chohogi groaned and grabbed one of the sleeping master's fingers.

And with all its strength, tried to drag it toward the machine.

But it didn't budge at all.

One of the master's fingers was the same size as Chohogi's entire body.

The difference in scale was overwhelmingly one-sided.

In the end, Chohogi decided to use the last resort.

Waking the master up.

It went back down to the floor and headed for the desk.

Then it picked out the sharpest, most pointed weapon it used for training and took it in hand.

***

"Agh!"

I woke up from the sharp pain stabbing the sole of my foot.

When I opened my eyes, groaning, an unbelievable sight unfolded before me.

A sand clone no bigger than my finger was holding a toothpick like a spear and stabbing the bottom of my foot.

Once I got up, it set the toothpick down as if satisfied.

"What the.... What are you doing."

I muttered groggily.

How dare it wake me up.

This thing seems to be getting more and more arrogant.

Should I turn it back into sand?

"Why didn't the barrier activate again...?"

I was briefly puzzled.

If my guess was right, the automatic defense skill should've been activating even while I slept.

"...Maybe it got classified as an ally."

I immediately understood.

It wasn't an outside enemy.

It was part of my body, a clone made from my mana.

It probably didn't even have the intention of harming me.

Which must be why the system recognized it as friendly.

The sand clone climbed back up, grunting, and pointed at the smartphone by my bedside.

Beep- beep- beep-

Only then did the noisy alarm that had woken me reach my ears.

"Ah.... What is that now."

As I searched my memory, I vaguely remembered.

The 7 a.m. wake-up alarm I'd ambitiously set when I thought I'd finally try living on a regular schedule, and never once kept.

I stretched out my arm and roughly swiped the phone screen.

The noisy sound stopped.

"Mmm...."

I burrowed back under the blanket. Five more minutes.

That was when it happened.

Prick.

A sharp pain hit my sole again.

"Hey! What the hell is it now?"

When I snapped irritably, the clone pointed at the phone again.

But this time, it seemed to mean something else.

It alternated between my phone and its own locked training smartphone, desperately trying to express something.

"You want me to turn on the phone? Now?"

The clone nodded vigorously.

"Damn, seriously..."

I held my throbbing head and got out of bed.

In the end, I opened the locked training phone as it wished.

Only then did the clone seem satisfied, taking a seat in front of the phone.

Then it went back to watching yesterday's video.

"Sigh, seriously...."

I sighed and sat down in front of my computer.

I was awake anyway.

It was earlier than usual, but time to start the day's routine.

***

My daily routine starts with browsing the gallery.

Before I knew it, Chohogi had climbed onto my shoulder.

The thing played around, grabbing a few strands of my hair and waving them around in the air.

"Hey, that's itchy."

Despite my complaint, it didn't care.

In fact, it swung my hair even more vigorously.

Damn, should I make it a friend or something?

But having two fingers missing would be way too inconvenient....

My typing speed would slow down.

I sighed and turned my gaze to the screen.

[Title: Unexpectedly hot character.jpg]

[Title: Snow crab is, after all, really damn tasty....]

[Title: I'm a tank on the 12th floor, looking for a party. Women only.]

Usual clickbait, trash posts, and the occasional recruitment post.

I scrolled aimlessly with my mind blank.

Then my finger stopped in front of one post.

[✪ Title: Had some free time, so I did a little house cleaning.]

Author: ㅇㅇ(119.204)

I'm a healer, and these days work's been slowing down.

At times like this, I think it's important to have some peace of mind.

You guys worked hard.

(Photo of a living room apartment with a view of the Han River.jpg)

(Photo of a foreign car key on the table.jpg)

"This is that guy from last time. Never gets old, does it."

It was the same B-rank healer who had briefly set the gallery on fire last time with his 3 billion won asset verification.

This time, he'd gone one step further.

Blatant photos. Even the tone was preachy.

The textbook definition of a humblebrag.

As expected, the comments were already on the verge of exploding.

ㄴ I don't envy your Han River view at all. The Tower blocks the whole view anyway~

ㄴㄴ Don't cry, just say it

ㄴ Isn't that car a Lamborghini? Damn.

ㄴ Gas is precious too, so walk, you bastard.

ㄴ How much do you have to make to pull something like this off?

ㄴㄴ (Author) About 200 million this month? Compared to the A-ranks, I'm still a long way off.

A blatant flood of jealousy and envy poured out.

The writer, that B-rank healer, poked at people's nerves while pretending to be humble.

"This bastard..."

I swallowed my quiet anger as I watched that sight.

This bastard is wrecking our gallery.

"My Hunter Gallery isn't like this..."

This was supposed to be a wholesome place where we shared information and occasionally tore into each other for fun.

It wasn't a place for dividing people into classes and creating a sense of alienation.

This is absolutely not because I'm jealous.

I have to protect the gallery's peace.

It's the only thing I can do.

"Ah, so there really is someone working this hard for the gallery's peace?"

I will completely root him out so he can never again dirty the gallery with that pathetic humblebragging.

I typed on the keyboard with a solemn expression.

"You don't brag about money like that in the gallery."

[Title: One chicken. Ladder until 5 minutes.]

Author: ㅇㅇ(G33.333)

The guy bragging about money underneath is completely ridiculous.

If you're going to brag about money, at least run a ladder. Right?

The moment my post went up, comments poured in.

But their content was different from what I'd expected.

ㄴ Line

ㄴㄴ Damn, it's a Tower anon. Oh, I don't believe you~

ㄴ Are you starting bait posts again?

ㄴ Does that guy not have a job? Feels like he's on the gallery 20 hours a day.

ㄴ Seriously, the scary thing is that even right before I go to sleep, he's on the gallery, and when I wake up and check, he's still there.

ㄴ If it were a registered account, it'd probably have legendary post/comment totals lol

"Why the hell is nobody believing me?"

What was the point of the diligent image I'd built up all this time?

Tears welled up at this cold reality that goodwill wasn't being repaid.

I'm working this hard to protect the gallery's peace.

[Title: Proof) I really am sending them, okay?]

Author: ㅇㅇ(G33.333)

(Screenshot of chicken gifticon purchase history.jpg)

I sent it to the guestbook of the person who lined up earlier. Check it ㄱ

Once the verification post went up, the atmosphere in the gallery began to shift subtly.

A little while later, the verification post from the user who had made the first comment went up.

[Title: Hey, I really got chicken, damn]

Author: Bugeoji

(Screenshot proving the gifticon was used.jpg)

Tower anon, salute salute

Starting with that post, the gallery began to stir.

ㄴ Ah, damn, I should've lined up.

ㄴ Tower anon, do one more round. I'll hit recommend on every post from now on

ㄴ Can't you just give it to me? We had a good thing, didn't we.

The mood warmed up a little.

I didn't miss that moment and posted the next thread.

[Title: Two more coming. lol]

Author: ㅇㅇ(G33.333)

Five minutes. Ladder for 2 people.

The moment my post went up, the comments blew up.

Dozens of comments poured in every second, and the scroll shot upward like crazy.

ㄴ Line

ㄴ Line

ㄴ Line

I ran the ladder and sent the chicken as soon as time was up.

Once the verification posts went up, the gallery instantly turned into a festival.

ㄴ Tower anon punch! Tower anon punch! Tower anon punch!

ㄴ Is Tower anon a god? Is Tower anon a god? Is Tower anon a god?

ㄴ Brother, the guy who just got one had posted earlier, 'You believe crap like that?' Should we cancel it and run it again?

People were ecstatic.

But I had no intention of stopping here.

This was only the beginning.

[Title: Three more coming.]

People's reactions gradually began to change.

Amid the loud cheers, a faint uneasiness mixed in.

ㄴ No, again?

ㄴ 1+2+3 and he's already at 6 chickens ㄷㄷ

ㄴ This guy must have money.

ㄴ Maybe he's a building owner?

ㄴ If you receive this, doesn't it hack you or something?

Watching their reactions, I added one chicken at a time with some time between each one.

[Title: Four chickens.]

[Title: Five chickens.]

The atmosphere of the gallery, which had been full of joy, had now changed completely.

People were no longer excited about the chicken.

Instead, all their attention had gathered in one place.

It was all about me—the identity of Tower anon.

Come to think of it, Tower anon had also shown item proof last time. A 30th-floor boss item.

Then that would mean he's an A-rank party member?

Could he be an A-rank himself? If it were you, would you give your party member items?

But A-ranks are almost all registered accounts.

Then who is it? There's nobody among non-registered accounts who'd do something like this.

Does that even make sense? A guy who's spent all day maliciously trolling can't possibly be an A-rank hunter;;

Seriously, if that were true, the country would be finished.

[Title: 10th chicken, here we go]

The fun had long since turned into awe, and then into fear.

ㄴ Bro, why are you like this? I'm scared....

ㄴ No, what the hell even are you?

ㄴ Wow, did you really send 55 chickens?

ㄴ In 10 minutes, you burned 1 million won on gallery posting ㄷㄷ

ㄴㄴ These days one chicken is 50,000 won, so that's 3 million.

ㄴㄴ Wow, when did chicken prices go up again, damn.

ㄴ Next is 11 chickens?

And then, at last.

When the chicken I'd sent reached 100.

[Title: 100 chickens sent. Going to sleep now.]

The gallery completely blew up.

[Title : 100 chickens나 돌렸는데 못 먹은 놈 없제 ㅋㅋㅋ]

[Title : 아 ㅆㅂ 자다가 지금 왔는데 갤 뭐냐?]

[Title : 오늘부터 탑유동 글에 개추 100개씩 누르기로 함]

Of course, there were still some malicious trolls trying to ruin the mood.

[Title : Ah, the gallery's ruined. In a no-friendship gallery, aren't you supposed to be able to say names?]

But the trolls were quickly suppressed by those who understood justice.

ㄴ You're obviously just mad because you didn't get any chicken lol

ㄴㄴ Chicken? You can just buy that yourself, who cares?

ㄴㄴ So you got chicken? Didn't get any, huh? Mad, huh?

ㄴㄴ You don't make any sense. I'm out.

ㄴㄴ Can't say anything, so you're running away? Mad, huh?

ㄴㄴ Ah, you bastard, where do you live?

[Title : Even the board admin lined up lol]

(Screenshot of the board admin writing 'line' on the ladder.jpg)

ㄴ Ah, damn, board admin!!!

ㄴ But is a board admin supposed to get chicken?

ㄴ If we think the board admin should cough up the chicken he got, upvote this lol

[Title: The Han River view bastard deleted his post and ran lol]

(Archive before deletion.jpg)

Deleting it won't help. I've already saved screenshots~.

ㄴ If you're going to do "money bragging" <<<< this, you need to send out 100 chickens, upvote this lol

ㄴ Seriously, anyone who brags without sending 100 chickens should be hit with an immediate 30-day ban.

The B-rank healer had been thoroughly roasted and pinned up on the best posts as a public joke.

A satisfying day: I protected the gallery's peace and restored my own dignity.

"Phew, I'm tired."

I leaned back deep into my chair and muttered.

A wave of satisfaction washed over me.

100 chickens. I spent close to 5 million won, but I didn't really regret it.

"Spending money like crazy was more fun than I expected..."

Come to think of it, after making a big sum last time, I hadn't actually spent any of it.

I'd always lived frugally, so even when money came in, I never knew what to spend it on.

I made up my mind. I should try flexing like this once in a while.

"If I make more money, what should I spend it on..."

As I thought about where to spend the money, certain people suddenly came to mind.

The people who had kept helping me.

I still don't fully trust people. My personality is twisted beyond help, I guess.

But shouldn't I return at least as much as I've received?

"Well, for now, those guys are richer than I am."

It was hard to repay their kindness right away.

Anyway, before long I'd be A-rank. There'd be a chance.

I turned my computer back on.

Hunter Gallery was still in a festival mood, filled with posts praising me and guessing my identity.

Seeing the best posts plastered with my name made me satisfied all over again.

I captured the screen and saved it.

I tucked it carefully into a desktop folder.

"I'll have to pull this out whenever I'm feeling down later..."

After that, I logged into Mage Gallery.

There, as always, it was quiet.

A little disappointing.

I was hoping this place would be in an uproar too.

I carefully posted a thread.

[Title: Who got chicken today?]

Author: ㅇㅇ(G33.333)

Thankfully, pkkatju replied as if waiting for me.

ㄴ pkkatju: Thanks to you, I got 10 chickens lol. I used up all the back-up IDs I'd been hoarding.

"What? He got 10 out of the 100?"

I was at a loss for words for a moment.

This person was really on an entirely different level.

Still, I decided it was a relief that the gloomy look they'd been wearing for the past few days seemed to have disappeared.

"But still, 10 chickens is a bit much.... Is this really okay for an A-rank hunter?"

Soon, the other mages began to show up one by one.

ㄴ Magic Is Firepower: Hey, don't spend money on stuff like this. Spend it on yourself. What a waste of money.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ(G33.333) : This is for me. People can't live on bread alone.

ㄴ Magic Is Firepower : What kind of nonsense is that?

ㄴ pkkatju : With 5 million won, you became the king of the gallery, so it's worth it. I might try it sometime too.

"As expected, you understand my heart..."

But please don't imitate me. Then my good deed will lose its shine.

Just then, an unexpected comment appeared. It was Beetle.

ㄴ Beetle: I got one too. Thanks.

ㄴ Refrigerator : Huh? You got one too? This is seriously absurd.

ㄴ Beetle: Yeah. I happened to be hungry, so I'll enjoy it.

An S-rank waiting in line for the chicken ladder.

I burst out laughing.

As expected, the only normal person here was me.

It had truly been a satisfying day.