Chapter 392: Eighty-Eighth Floor, Waiting Room (2)

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So the rumor really is true.

I had expected it, but having that suspicion confirmed still left me momentarily speechless. It wasn’t just because of that.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Wait, seriously? Doesn’t he ever train? Or does he just have infinite free time?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): I’m not sure. I’ve heard they’ve got some kind of internal network. But the way he reacts, it’s fast. Like, really fast. Honestly, it feels like he’s watching for you constantly, except for the moments he’s actively training.

I couldn’t help but laugh incredulously.

The Leaderboard shifted constantly, but as far as I knew, Park Sang-Hyuk had managed to retain a ranking within the three hundreds this entire time. Yet he had supposedly maintained that spot while spending all his time lurking on Community forums?

Come to think of it, perhaps he should have regressed instead.

Of course, I was half-joking about that.

Although if Park Sang-Hyuk really has been tracking everything this whole time...

If he weren’t part of the Shadow Su-Hyeok fan club, he probably would have broken into the top 100 on the Leaderboard—perhaps even the top 50. From what I had heard, he was fairly skilled.

Of course, anyone ranked that highly worked hard for their spot, but if I had to categorize him, he was gifted, not a grinder.

In any case, the conversation had gone off track after the joke. I decided to bring it back.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Anyway, putting that aside, how was the eighty-seventh floor for you?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): It went smoothly, and nothing out of the ordinary happened. Although, since I disappeared out of nowhere, the others were kind of stunned.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): That makes sense.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): So when I got back, I told them you’d killed a god. To be honest, I didn’t expect them (especially Ho-Su) to believe me.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): And?

I had a feeling where this was headed, but I still played along.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): But they just nodded and went, “Yeah, if it’s Su-Hyeok, that makes sense.” Honestly, they caught me off guard.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Hahaha.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): I mean... “That’s Su-Hyeok for you. Amazing.” Sure, I get it, but come on. It was still surreal, you know what I mean?

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Haha, yeah, I know exactly what you mean. But really, it’s not that strange.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Even I, as a regressor, went, “Wait... that actually worked?” after defeating a god. But you? I guess you really are on a whole other level. The way people believe in you is borderline irrational.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Hey now, those people have faith in me. Be nice. Besides, it’s not like they’re wrong. I am that good.

Then, after a short pause, I added.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): But, well... it’s all thanks to you.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Huh? What are you talking about? You’re the one who did everything.

She had always downplayed her own efforts. It was something I had noticed from the beginning.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): I’m not just talking out of my ass. I’ve told you this before, but I’m always grateful. Everyone acts like I did all this on my own, but that’s not true. We did it.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here now. I’d probably still be stuck deciding which class to pick. And I probably would have become a mage. Since I’m thinking of it now, I’ll say it again. Thank you.

My message was half sincere, half teasing, but she didn’t respond immediately. I could picture her going silent, completely flustered.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Well, yeah... That’s true. As long as you know it, that’s enough.

I found her delayed but seemingly nonchalant response oddly endearing.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Hehe.

I was grinning widely, and almost as if to deflect from her own embarrassment, she changed the subject right away.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Anyway, no incidents this time? I figured the eighty-seventh floor would be easier after how hard the eighty-sixth was.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Not quite. Something did happen, something big, actually. I thought I was going to die.

After sending the message, I paused, worried she would overreact. It wasn’t exaggerated, but I still quickly followed it up with a clarification.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): I mean, not as bad as the eighty-sixth, but still.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Huh? What happened?

Before I dove into the full explanation, there was something I needed to get out of the way. It was related to the trial, but rather than explain it halfway through, I thought it would be better to explain it outright.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Before that, there’s something I should tell you.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Seriously? Are you going to keep me in suspense?

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): I used the Essence of Decay. Sorry.

It had been necessary to clear the elephant in the room. From Ha Hee-Jeong’s perspective, this news could come as quite a shock. We were just about to start the eighty-eighth floor, and our carefully laid plan had just unraveled.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Huh?

From how swiftly she had replied, I could almost see the stunned look on her face. It wasn’t as if I had done something wrong, but I still felt the need to explain myself.

As I began typing an apology, she beat me to the punch.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): It’s fine. It’s not like you did anything wrong. You needed it, right?

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Still, it ruins your plan.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Don’t worry about it. We cleared that floor in my last life, remember? We had backup plans even before getting the essence. And let’s be honest. You don’t need it anymore. Not with your current strength.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): You really think so?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Of course. You just defeated a god. Honestly, I’m not even worried.

That was Hee-Jeong. I hadn’t expected her to be upset, but her easy acceptance still left me quietly grateful.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): So what made you use it? Was the enemy that strong?

She seemed to be misunderstanding something. Given that the Essence of Decay could be used to absorb or detonate corruption, her assumption was understandable.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): I didn’t detonate it. It was for something else. I’ll explain during my story.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Okay. Just explain it slowly. It’ll help you process it, too.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Oh, and one more thing. Something kind of incredible happened.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): What the fuck!? Don’t keep me waiting. If it’s not actually incredible, you’re in trouble.

There was no danger of that, unless she had secretly regressed again.

I typed confidently.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): I got a divine beast.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): What? A divine beast!?

Just as I expected.

It felt like I was surprising Ha Hee-Jeong more often than usual today, but since everything I had said was true, there wasn’t much I could do about it.

I calmly began explaining what had happened on the eighty-seventh floor.

As I had with Cho-Yeon, I didn’t gloss over the specifics. That made the retelling even harder in some ways, perhaps because I wasn’t particularly eloquent, or because certain things were just difficult to put into words.

Trying to describe communing with Poong-Wol, the forest, or the experience of walking through the fog was all too abstract to capture clearly in speech.

Even offering up my very being and divine power to the forest before that lake of black water was easier to do than to explain.

Moments like those felt strangely intimate. Describing them aloud left me feeling slightly embarrassed, like I was saying too much. Even though I recounted the events exactly as they had happened, I worried she would think they were exaggerated.

I had struggled with this before, but it wasn’t any easier this time.

Maybe it is because I am talking to Ha Hee-Jeong?

It made me more inclined to downplay things rather than to boast.

Honestly, this was one of the reasons I believed the tower’s system needed an overhaul. Earthlings—and even the dead climbers—could view these exchanges, after all.

Still, Ha Hee-Jeong listened intently as ever, always filling in the blanks with that sharp, vivid imagination of hers.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Whoa, seriously?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): That feeling like your existence is syncing with something else? I think I sort of get it. Now I want to try.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Geez. You got a great outcome, sure, but what were you planning to do if things had gone wrong?

Her reactions came in many shades, but it was always easy to talk to her. She listened well, empathized easily, and responded in kind.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Honestly, even if it cost us the Essence of Decay, it was definitely worth it.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Right?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): You used it for something far more important. You made the right call.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Hearing you say that really puts me at ease.

As our conversation began to wrap up, Ha Hee-Jeong started focusing on the forest

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): You called it Seorden’s forest, right? Mind if I visit sometime? I want to see your divine beast.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Of course. How about we go later? After we meet with Natalie, we can all head there together.

We had originally planned to visit Natalie’s world after clearing the eighty-sixth floor, but the ordeal had disrupted that.

This time, it felt like we would finally have the chance to go as a group. Ha Hee-Jeong readily agreed.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): I’d love that.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Look forward to it. It’s elegant and ancient in its own way, plus the fairies are adorable.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): But now that you own it, why are you still calling it Seorden’s forest?

It wasn’t that I hadn’t considered renaming it; I had just chosen to keep the name. There was no real reason to strip it of that identity.

That forest represented the lives of the mystical beasts and fairies. Not only that, but the Primordial God had created it, and Seorden’s Bracelet had saved my life.

Besides, calling it Kwon Su-Hyeok’s forest felt a little excessive.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Yeah. The name holds meaning for the others, too. No reason to change it.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Good. I was worried you’d name it after yourself or something.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Come on. What do you take me for?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): I mean, wasn’t your old game ID xUltimateSuHyeokx?

The memory made my face flush instinctively.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): That was ages ago. I made that in elementary school, okay?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Hahaha. “Ultimate Su-Hyeok.” You’re killing me.

Best response to embarrassment? Retaliation.

I immediately started digging through my memories of her for an equally embarrassing one. There were plenty to choose from, but just as I was narrowing it down, a message arrived.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): You were totally trying to think of one of my embarrassing stories, weren’t you? You’ve had a rough day. Go shower.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Tch. If you’d waited one more second, I would’ve hit you with the perfect comeback.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Eighty-eighth Floor): Haha. Enough! Go wash up. We’re meeting Natalie. I’ll use the time to see if there’s a better way to tackle the eighty-eighth floor.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Eighty-eighth Floor): Alright. I’ll be back soon.

***

[There is no timer until the next floor begins. Please take a rest.]

There was one thing that had been nagging at me.

The rate at which I was receiving divine energy had surged recently. More precisely, it had begun to grow disproportionate to the effort I was putting in. I had first noticed it a while back, and again on the eighty-seventh floor.

Even accounting for the forest and all of its inhabitants, the sheer volume of divine power I continuously gained made no sense.

Not that I am complaining.

I just couldn’t wrap my head around it.

Both the number of people I could save and the audience that could witness my actions were limited.

I felt like I had a good grasp of the former. As for the latter, it was mostly Earthlings and the souls of fallen climbers.

At this point, anyone inclined to believe in me probably already did. So where was this influx of divinity coming from?

Maybe belief truly had no ceiling.

Well, whatever the reason, I will take it. Hopefully, someday, I will find out.

Anyway, thirty minutes ago, I had woken Doppy, exchanged a few greetings with Ha Hee-Jeong, and then we all headed to Natalie’s world together.

The atmosphere was warm and lively. We drank tea, shared some treats, and admired the flowers in bloom. The scents suited Ha Hee-Jeong perfectly.

Then, as she had once before, Natalie pulled me aside. She said that it was related to our contract, and it would be easier to speak one-on-one. I followed her without much thought.

That didn’t prepare me in the slightest for what she was about to say, however.

“Oppa.”

“Yeah?”

“What are your thoughts after meeting the Tower of Ordeal?”

“What?”