episode_0086

After Hong Chang-gi made contact with his daughter, Lea, he disappeared for ten days.

Meanwhile, at the Mechanic Guild-

“Guild Master, we have received some new information.”

“…What is it?”

The guild master’s office was filled with empty bottles.

Inside were the drunken Bridgeta, Ian, and the executives of the Mechanic guild.

Reporting to them was none other than Sunglasses, a high-ranking member of the Mana guild.

“The 15th floor?”

“Yes. It seems that a search party sent by another guild encountered a Scavenger near the Sunflower Elementary School.”

“Again? We’ve told them multiple times that we take on requests.”

“We tried contacting the System guild that distributes requests, but they seem to be taking their time in responding.”

“Is the Vanguard side claiming that this incident wasn’t their fault?”

“The System guild remains neutral, but they are one of the 6 major guilds like us. There’s no reason for them to create conflict.”

“So, this means that the requests are being distributed from some hidden place…”

“I happened to discover a suspicious request on the Dark Web. I suspect they might have responded to that request.”

“…So, there are enemies targeting us.”

While Ian was anxious, Bridgeta, who had sobered up, slammed the table in frustration.

“Who is targeting my daughter?”

“Yes. Since the Mechanic guild is a large guild, they are probably demanding something as a threat rather than for a rescue mission.”

“Damn it. What should we do… We can’t just ignore this…!!”

“So far, Chang-gi has been protecting her, so she should be fine. The hunters who were attacked were powerful and managed to be subdued without being killed.”

“Who were the highest-ranked hunters among those captured!?”

“They were an A-rank party from overseas. They specialized in summoning magic, but they were defeated in the end.”

Ian chuckled and crossed his legs at Sunglasses’ words.

Unlike the hesitant Bridgeta, there was a strong sense of trust towards Ian.

“He’s really something. Shouldn’t we report him for rank manipulation to the Association?”

“So, I looked into it as well. According to the Association, the last time he was tested was in high school.”

“Ranking isn’t determined by the Association in the first place. The Tower responds to the test there, so it should be automatically updated here.”

“Well, there might be some special circumstances…”

Since he was a complicated person.

While Ian was convinced, Bridgeta’s mind was elsewhere.

For her, this conversation was not important.

“Shouldn’t we do something after all? Instead of leaving it all to Chang-gi, shouldn’t we send our own people… somehow…”

“If we act now, we’ll expose Lea’s whereabouts. From what I heard, she only intervenes when a hunter is in serious danger.”

“But what if something happens to her!?”

“She’s still not responding to texts, so let’s not worry too much.”

Despite Ian’s reassurance, Bridgeta was gloomy.

“I heard that she told everything to Chang-gi?”

She didn’t know what Bridgeta had been up to all this time, but she had spilled everything to Chang-gi.

He had relayed that information to this side via text.

“That’s right. Jita is really unreliable. How can she not hear the same story that even Chang-gi heard?”

“Ugh~!”

Trying to reach for a drink to relieve stress, a hammer suddenly smashed it.

“…Damn bastards.”

“Oh my. Are you calling us bastards?”

“Miss, as much as you’re going through a hard time, you’re drinking too much.”

“How can you speak like that about our late Miss?”

“But…”

Even the guild members were like this.

It was all for Bridgeta’s peace of mind and Lea’s safety.

“Did you guys talk to Chang-gi yesterday? Did you see Lea!?”

“I couldn’t see it up close, but I watched from afar, hidden at the end of the alley.”

“I was watching to see if you were there or not, and even at a glance, the child has grown up beautifully.”

“…Is that so?”

“It seemed like you were getting along well with that heavily burned hyena.”

“Even when you were going back, you were holding hands.”

“The child seemed to have said something harsh to you, right?”

“……….”

Although they were relieved to hear that the two were doing well, it was still stressful.

Their stepdaughter, who only met with them.

She had shown her face to her guild members, but…

“Mrs. Jita. Stop beating around the bush and tell me. What did you do to Leia to make her come out so harshly?”

“……….”

“You’ve been living your life reflecting your face in this guild and that guild. Was there something going on back then?”

“……….”

“Or is it related to the fact that you’re ‘going around like that’?”

“Please don’t….”

“I haven’t mentioned it until now out of kindness. I thought there might have been a change in your state of mind. So, I deliberately didn’t touch on those painful wounds. But when things turn out like this, I have no choice but to ask.”

“Please… don’t….”

Bridgetta scratched the desk, but Ian didn’t stop.

It had been ten days.

“How long do I have to put up with the whining of a child-like woman? I’ve accommodated you as much as I could. You know what you did to the child was wrong, don’t you? Otherwise, that clever child wouldn’t have come out like that.”

“Ian….”

“Stop being a nuisance to those around you and speak up.”

Finally, he asked.

“Why are you pretending to be your dead sister?”

*

– The three years I spent here were enjoyable.

– The nanny was difficult to get along with due to her obsession with spirits and masturbation, but since she wasn’t evil, it wasn’t uncomfortable to be with her.

– The kids from the same school were all nice, making me feel like I had become a bad kid.

– The kids were so childish that it was difficult to match their level.

– But since I was also a child, we laughed a lot together and had many happy moments.

– The vice president was a good kid.

– Wanting to look smart, he followed me right away and even got glasses like mine.

– Sometimes he was jealous of me, but if he didn’t like that side of himself, he honestly confessed.

– It was an impossible confession for an adult. That’s why they can say such embarrassing facts.

– The vice president probably doesn’t know.

– That it was me who helped him when I first came here and felt awkward because I couldn’t match his level.

– We were always in the same class and did events together as a team of two.

– Once again, I thought of myself as a child.

– The events here that made me realize I was a child were all satisfying.

– There were times when I was tired because it was all for the kids, but that’s why I emptied my mind and played.

– Maybe I thought less about the surface world.

– I didn’t want to think about Auntie’s business.

– I thought it might be okay to stay a child forever until at least the 10th floor was conquered.

– Unwanted people are approaching us.

………….

…I peeked at Leia’s diary.

Well, not really peeked, but is there a bit of a barrier.

I entrusted her with my permission.

“Do you want to live here forever?”

“This floor is like heaven. As long as you don’t graduate, you can live like a fool for the rest of your life.”

Today, I was treated to a meal by an elementary school student again.

While Leia did the dishes, I read her diary.

“Are you going to become a spirit here because you like it so much?”

“That’s one way to put it. The vice president who helped me has been an elementary school student for 20 years already. His body hasn’t grown, and his mind has been fixed, missing the opportunity to grow. But he has completely assimilated without any sense of shame. In a world like this, I thought it would be okay to become a cog in the wheel.”

“…It’s not a bad idea to let the child do it.”

“It was my foster mother, Cynade, who fed me a multi-billion-won baby bottle for your sake. I think it had an influence on you.”

A multi-billion-won baby bottle.

Could it really be?

『Baby bottles have effects that help children’s growth. Antibodies, motor skills, sensitivity, memory… They’re not all outstanding, but I heard that they excel in one aspect.』

『…Baby bottles are like a miracle, right?』

『That’s right. The drop rate is low, so you have to catch tens of thousands just to get one… Today, we got lucky with this one. It’s worth 4 billion.』

The item obtained by me and Seres while conquering the 13th floor.

A baby bottle with effects that are close to miraculous, boasting the drop rate of hell.

This makes the timeline strange.

“Has the Mechanic Guild been attacking the tower for that long?”

“What’s strange about it?”

“Baby bottles come out from the 11th floor. But the tower closed 3 years ago…”

“It took 2 years even for the vanguard to attack. If you think about it, the 11th floor opened 5 years ago. So the Tower Lord gave a grace period of 5 years.”

Oh, so they were told to clear it within 5 years…

It wasn’t just a random deadline, which is surprising.

“But you were in 1st grade back then. Did you become so smart because of that?”

“Oh~! I understand what you’re talking about. It wasn’t what I drank back then. When the Golden Tower first appeared, people didn’t approach it due to the danger, so even on the lower floors, high-level items came out, and that’s when my foster mother got it.”

She summarized the story of drinking it when she was younger.

She was born as an elite with a multi-billion-won baby bottle.

“So you lured the outside hunters with that cheat item?”

“Yes. By the way, it’s in the history books. To become a teacher here, it’s one of the educational courses.”

Why am I learning the history of the tower from an elementary school student??

It’s unbelievable.

Anyway-

“I understand about your birth now. About you being happy here. I know everything now.”

The sound of water stopped.

I finished washing the dishes and sat on the bed, watching me rummage through the floor.

“Are you going down?”

I was packing my things.

“You’ve been here for a long time. I’m going down for a moment to tell you the stories I’ve heard today and come back.”

“Are you taking on the role of a messenger?”

“Yes. If you don’t want to meet like that, what can I do? I’ll be the pigeon. You might forget and act like a birdbrain, so I have to tell you everything without hiding it.”

“Thank you. And I’m sorry for causing trouble.”

“Don’t be sorry. It’s the age to cause trouble around you, so don’t apologize.”

I persuaded her to speak without worry.

After spending about ten days playing and listening to stories, Leia trusted me and confided in me.

“My aunt killed my mother.”

I lost my mind.