Chapter 173: Forty-Sixth Floor, The World of the Virtuous (6)

People had been just as confused during Ha Hee-Jeong’s previous life. At the time, no one had noticed, but as the floors passed, it became clear that someone had lied. Even so, the climbers had found it difficult to comprehend.

Why would anyone feel the need to fabricate something so trivial?

Getting closer to Ha Hee-Jeong, I whispered, “That was the angel earlier, wasn’t it?”

Her response came after a brief pause, “I’m not certain. It may not have been.”

She gazed emptily to the left, a telltale habit that she was lost in thought.

“You’re not sure?”

“Intelligent beings often reject outsiders. For instance, the angels have laws in place so that climbers have to pay extra... Isn’t it plausible that some angels go out of their way to toy with outsiders they dislike?”

“Ah...”

I began to grasp her point. While they couldn’t outright lie to us, they could still misdirect us with white lies or misleading truths.

“We need to confirm exactly what Ho-Su was told.”

Ha Hee-Jeong nodded, and I turned toward Seo Ho-Su, who was scratching the back of his head, clearly embarrassed.

“Man, I’m not sure what’s going on here...”

“What

exactly

did the angel who gave you directions say?”

“Huh?”

“She obviously misled us somehow, but she didn’t die. I’m just checking for any loopholes.”

“Oh, she said we just had to keep going straight this way.”

Go straight this way? That is undeniably vague.

Sensing the implication behind my question, Cole’s eyes suddenly widened in realization. “Ah! The angel messed with us!”

“

Huh?

What are you talking about?” Seo Ho-Su responded in a steady tone.

“If this world is spherical, like a planet, and the forge is located on the opposite side, then going straight would eventually lead us there. Of course, it could take days, if not longer...”

Seo Ho-Su’s eyes went blank before anger overtook him. “That bitch was hazing us?”

“Not all angels are welcoming. Some don’t like outsiders,” Cole explained.

“Unbelievable. Absolutely ridiculous.”

“With the end of the forty-sixth floor fast approaching, we’ll need to demand precise directions moving forward.”

“Yeah, no more vague answers.

Haaa

...” Seo Ho-Su sighed deeply, his frustration evident.

The deception had soured everyone’s mood. The others frowned, clearly upset and unprepared for such a scenario.

I sympathized with them, for had it not been for Ha Hee-Jeong’s prior knowledge, I would have been just as frustrated. Given that the tower had officially declared that lying was impossible, it meant they wouldn’t question the all-powerful tower.

“Wait, do you think that last angel we talked to lied or misled us as well?”

Is Seo Ho-Su growing paranoid after being deceived once?

He glared suspiciously at the angel disappearing into the distance.

Cole let out a faint chuckle. “We can ask someone else before moving on. It’d be better to have precise coordinates this time.”

Cole took the initiative, stopping another angel and asking them detailed questions. Once he obtained clear directions, he released them. Thanks to his sharp memory, he easily retained the specifics.

With the matter settled, I addressed the group, “Let’s get moving. The longer we waste time, the worse it is for us.”

“Right. Let’s just chalk this up to bad luck.

Ugh

, I’m sorry, everyone,” Seo Ho-Su apologized, looking troubled.

He likely felt responsible for the lost time, even though it wasn’t his fault. No one could have reasonably anticipated, or even suspected, that one random angel walking on the street would mess with us.

“Come on, don’t apologize. That damn angel should be the one apologizing.”

“Exactly! Dad, you didn’t do anything wrong!”

The others quickly reassured him, bringing some warmth back into the group dynamic. Cole took the lead once again, guiding us based on the angel’s directions.

Still, too many doubts lingered in my mind, so I sidled up to Ha Hee-Jeong as we walked.

Cole’s logic about the spherical structure of this world and eventually reaching the forge made sense. However, that was based on the assumption that the angel hadn’t lied. That angel, dressed in elegant attire, remained the most suspicious candidate. To determine if she actually lied, I needed to find her again.

“She’s still suspicious, right?”

“Yeah, but like I said earlier, we can’t be sure whether she lied to us or not.”

“I think we should try to look for her now,” I suggested cautiously.

Ha Hee-Jeong shook her head. “Now? Do you even know where she went?”

“I didn’t get a good look at her face, but I remember her outfit. Wouldn’t it be better to act quickly?”

The angel had worn a fancy black suit with a white-collared shirt.

She shook her head again. “In this city? It’d be pointless,”

“Pointless? What do you mean?”

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

“If that angel is the liar, she’s probably already left the city.”

Her reasoning clicked after a moment. The lie could be uncovered in less than twenty minutes. If the angel was as shrewd as Ha Hee-Jeong suggested, she would have already fled.

Ha Hee-Jeong lowered her voice and glanced at the others before whispering, “Don’t forget our party members don’t know about the liar. Dropping such information out of nowhere feels awkward, to say the least. If we were absolutely certain we could track her down, I’d say we should pursue her, but..."

“The odds of actually locating her are slim, and there’s no real guarantee we’d succeed, right?"

“Exactly. Not to mention, the others would likely find it odd. We’re bound to cross paths with her again as we ascend the next floors, so for now, let’s just act normally."

The more I thought about it, the more sound her reasoning seemed. If we had brought up the lying angel prior to entering this floor, perhaps we could have acted differently. Yet at this point, introducing it felt forced and untimely.

Moreover, I couldn’t keep falling back on Ha Hee-Jeong’s foresight ability as a convenient excuse.

I quietly nodded. However, my resolve to search for her remained unchanged. “I’ll look around after we eat, just in case she’s still nearby.”

“Fine, but Ha-Rin and Hakin will be disappointed.”

“Why?”

“They thought we’d hunt together.”

“Well... I’ll just say I have something else to do.”

“Alright. Just make it convincing.”

“By the way, can you watch Doppy for me?”

Ha Hee-Jeong turned to me with a puzzled expression, one I couldn’t quite interpret.

“I’ll be moving quickly, so it’d be easier to go alone.”

“What are we, babysitters now? Also, if you leave Doppy behind, won’t the others find it a bit odd...”

She cast a glance at the party members’ backs before gazing back at me. “Then again, probably not. They practically revere you like fanatics.”

I smiled faintly. “After all the time you’ve spent together, don’t you think they’d like you just as much?”

“Doubt it. When you’re not around, I push them pretty hard.”

“Really?”

That explained their rapid growth. Her comment piqued my interest, and I couldn’t help but wonder what a training regimen crafted by a regressor would look like.

“Why don’t you ever push me like that?”

“What are you talking about? I do sometimes.”

“No, I mean physically, not mentally.”

“That’s because you do just fine on your own. Plus, I mostly train their group coordination and formations.”

Ha Hee-Jeong shot me a playful glare. “And let’s be honest. You’re practically a one-man army. You don’t need any advice.”

Momentarily thrown off by the unexpected compliment, I faltered.

Uh. Okay. How am I supposed to respond to that?

As I hesitated, awkwardly mouthing wordlessly, Ha Hee-Jeong flashed a knowing smile.

While I mulled over her words, I suddenly had a burst of inspiration. Considering how quickly it came to mind, it was surprisingly solid.

“Oh, right. Let’s make sure we hit the casino tonight.”

“

Huh?

What brought that on?”

“I’ll help you out.”

“Oh! That could actually work.”

Just as Doppy had helped me cheat, Ha Hee-Jeong could use my experience. If the dealer tried to pull any tricks, I could step in to catch them and rake in some easy money. Plus, we had planned to go just for fun anyway.

We just needed to avoid winning too much to avoid raising suspicions.

Of course, I had no intention of offering my services for free, even for the party’s benefit.

“I get half of the winnings.”

“What? Between us? Really?”

I grinned, quoting a line from a movie I liked, “I only plan to take half.”

“

Ugh

, where is this coming from?” Ha Hee-Jeong rolled her eyes and pushed my shoulder in mock frustration.

I let myself stumble a step to humor her. Her exasperated expression brought a smile to my face.

“Relax. I’m just kidding. Since I can’t hang out with them during the day, I figured I should help Ha-Rin and Hakin make some fun memories tonight.”

“So I’ll be by their side, coaching them?”

“Yeah, just make them feel like they are winning through skill alone.”

“What if they develop a gambling addiction?”

“

Hmm

, we can just stop when it actually matters.” Though I shrugged off her concern, it still lingered in my mind.

Gambling can be more addictive than drugs.

While the kids didn’t seem like the type to get hooked, I couldn’t be completely certain. If they fell down the wrong path, it would be disastrous.

After a moment of deliberation, Ha Hee-Jeong nodded. “Well, there aren’t many places to gamble in the tower anyway. A little fun shouldn’t hurt.”

“Letting them lose isn’t the worst idea either.”

“Yeah, we can teach them moderation and make it clear that gambling can be risky.”

“Sure. Anyway, let’s head inside.”

We had reached the restaurant, causing our conversation to trail off as we regrouped with everyone else.

***

Breakfast turned out just as delicious as Seo Ho-Su had promised. It was even better than some of the upscale meals I had eaten in other cities. It proved that cooking wasn’t about price or location, but rather the hands that prepared it.

Before leaving, I had safely entrusted Doppy to the party members for the time being.

Time to hunt down suspect number one.

I didn’t know whether I would succeed or not, but I felt it was worth a try.

Standing atop a high-rise rooftop, I gazed out at Rekun’s skyline. Lit brightly, the streets below teemed with people.

This almost feels like I am playing Assassin’s Greed in real life.

With angels gliding through the skies, however, it was a far cry from that lonely image.

Before long, one of them noticed me, and a city guard in armor descended toward me. “Outsider! What are you doing up here?”

“Oh, I’m looking for an angel.”

“Can I see your pass?”

“Here it is.”

After verifying my pass, the guard handed it back with a nod. “

Hmm

. Looks like you were sent on a request.”

Rather than answering, I simply offered an awkward smile that implied he was right.

Fortunately, the guard seemed satisfied and flapped his wings, taking off again. “You probably didn’t know, but you should head down soon. We don’t encourage climbers to loiter around places like these.”

From his firm tone, I could tell that his polite suggestion had been a discreet order. I nodded obediently. The guard flew off, but not before throwing one last glance my way.

I decided to heed his advice for now.

Well, it doesn’t matter. I can just use Shadow Veil and come back up.

Feigning compliance, I descended partway before stopping. Concealing myself with Shadow Veil, I returned to the rooftop.

Now I really feel like an assassin.

I cracked a mental joke but kept my focus trained on the bustling street below. My plan was to traverse the rooftops, scouring for any trace of the angel.

Alright. Where can she be?

I recalled her black suit and white-collared shirt as I pushed off the rooftop and began my search.