White Tower, 17th Floor.
At the very moment Ju-hyeok was carrying out merciless nuclear carpet bombing to clear the 96th floor—
Doo-u was receiving a guest while farming.
Today again, Ju-hyeok's father Bong Su-cheol had come with a fishing rod.
The family tree was tangled, but Doo-u and he were friends.
"Hey, Doo-u. You been well? … Where's Ju-hyeok?"
"Summoner. Tower raid. Elevator."
"Another Earth?"
"Correct."
Bong Su-cheol smiled with satisfaction.
"That kid's really something. Brave, just like me, right?"
No chance.
Doo-u looked dumbfounded.
"Opposite. Bong Su-cheol. Summoner. Completely different."
"What are you talking about! He's my son. You can't ignore genetics."
"Summoner. Brave. Maternal genes, likely. Second son Bong Min-hyeok. Paternal genes."
"…."
So what Doo-u meant was:
the eldest, Bong Ju-hyeok, took after his mother;
the younger, Bong Min-hyeok, took after his father.
Honestly, Bong Su-cheol agreed.
Who could have imagined that a guy who seemed like a complete wimp would awaken as a player and become the world's most praised top player?
"W-well, still, some of my blood's in him. Look at me—I come here all the time. You know how scary this place is."
True.
Even entering the 17th floor took tremendous courage for Bong Su-cheol.
"Anyway, Doo-u, my mouth's bored. Got anything to eat? Bring out some of what you grew."
"Wait. Stand by. Well-ripened …"
That was when—
Wooooooong!
The White Tower's 17th floor began to vibrate.
"H-hey! Doo-u! It's an earthquake! An earthquake!"
"Calm. Not earthquake."
"Then what's this shaking?"
Even Doo-u was slightly startled.
Something had definitely changed.
The air quality on the 17th floor felt different.
He inhaled deeply.
"…Hmm."
This—
he knew this energy.
Something he'd encountered in life before.
"Holy power."
"Huh? What's holy power?"
"God's power. God's will. God's authority."
"Ju-hyeok's nonreligious. So am I."
But it was holy power, unmistakably.
A sacred energy was spreading throughout the entire 17th floor.
Bong Su-cheol felt it too—
a warm current spreading through his body.
"Feels good."
He even felt healthier somehow.
But then—
"Huh? Doo-u! Over there!"
Bong Su-cheol pointed.
It was the Seondo Tree.
The tree that had bloomed not long ago and caused an immortal-energy shower.
Now its branches were trembling violently.
Don't tell me—again?
But it wasn't an immortal-energy shower.
Step, step, step.
Doo-u hurried over to the Seondo Tree.
Thud, thududud, thud.
The Seondo flowers were rapidly falling.
Why?
He couldn't be certain, but perhaps the holy power was affecting the tree.
At that very moment—
From where the flowers had fallen—
pop, pop, pop—
plump fruits began to form.
"Ooooh! Peaches! Peaches!"
"Seondo. Fruit."
A fragrant Seondo aroma spread throughout the White Tower.
At last, the Seondo had borne fruit.
As if possessed, Bong Su-cheol approached the tree,
and just as he raised his hand to pick one—
Smack!
Farmer Doo-u grabbed his wrist.
"Contact prohibited. Summoner permission."
"…J-just one."
"Denied."
"Come on! It's fine. I'll explain it to Ju-hyeok later—"
Doo-u shouted toward the warehouse near the plaza.
"Blood Wolf."
Excluded from the expedition roster, Blood Wolf came running—tatatatata.
"Woof woof!"
"Guard Seondo Tree. Absolute protection."
"Woof!"
Bong Su-cheol backed away with a sulky expression.
"You really gonna be like this? Between us?"
"…."
"Sorry. Apology. Instead—cherry tomatoes. One box."
Cherry tomatoes.
They were fruit too, but—
"Are they good?"
"Delicacy. U.S. Secretary of State. Surprised. Wonderful. Thumbs up."
"Yeah right… bullshit—"
Why would the U.S. Secretary of State care about cherry tomatoes?
"Fine, whatever. I'll take them. Thanks."
Doo-u grinned.
The Seondo had fruited sooner than expected.
Thinking about how happy the summoner would be made him feel good.
From now on, he'd guard it so no one could approach.
China.
After the Liberation Rune Necklace incident, martial law had once been declared.
But now stability had returned quickly.
The policy: one magic-sealing scroll per household.
To implement it, massive funds were poured into importing hundreds of millions of magic-sealing scrolls from Pyongyang.
As a result, villain player rampages had nearly vanished, and martial law was lifted.
Meanwhile, policies regarding player treatment hadn't changed much.
On the surface, they preached appeasement and claimed to stop oppression,
but behind the scenes they maintained surveillance—even drafting blacklists.
Instead, preferential policies for state-sponsored players were strengthened:
higher salaries, improved social status—
a thoroughly elite-centric policy.
As a result, China also broke through the 80th floor.
All three towers.
Now it was time to climb the 81st-floor giant-monster section.
For that, renting magic guns was essential.
Chinese State Councilor Wei Quan entered Korea and visited the Awakened Management Agency.
"Director, it's been a while."
"Councilor, welcome."
He already had acquaintance with Director Jeon Gwang-il from the previous scroll import negotiations.
Wei Quan was also fluent in Korean.
The atmosphere was cordial.
"Our top Chinese player also cleared the 80th-floor Nightmare."
"Is that so? Congratulations."
"It's all thanks to the Dream Resistance Kits sold by the Awakened Management Agency."
"Hahaha, I'm very glad they helped."
"On behalf of China, I thank Player Bong Ju-hyeok and the Agency."
"I'll pass it on to Player Bong."
Time for the main point.
"Our Chinese government would like to be added to the magic-gun reservation list."
"Of course. Ah—would you like some warm tea?"
"I'd appreciate it."
They prepared the tea set and brewed the tea.
"We'll buy plenty of ammunition. It was one million dollars per round, right?"
Sluuurp.
Jeon Gwang-il paused silently as he sipped.
"Councilor."
"Yes?"
"About the magic-gun ammunition price."
"Yes."
"The sales conditions have changed slightly."
"How so?"
"For nuclear-armed states, ammunition purchases require providing nuclear warheads."
Wei Quan doubted his ears.
"…Pardon?"
"There are discounts, too. The more nukes you hand over, the bigger the discount."
"…Huh."
Was this absurd statement real?
"You must be joking."
"I'm sorry, but that's the decision."
"No, that makes no sense. Do you really think magic-gun ammunition is comparable to nuclear warheads?"
"Magic-gun ammunition, you say."
Jeon Gwang-il chuckled.
"I understand. China's Black Tower isn't about to collapse right away, so ammo for the 81st floor probably doesn't feel urgent."
Wei Quan fell silent, his face stiff.
Jeon continued calmly.
"You've got plenty of time anyway. Five years left, right?"
From stacking floors 71 through 80—sixty months.
"Plenty of time to discover your own method for clearing 81 without magic-gun ammo."
Wei Quan slowly opened his mouth.
"…So this is how you're going to play it?"
"Pardon?"
"After the scroll deal and the Baekdu Mountain half-territory exchange, I thought our relations had improved. Seems I was mistaken."
"I'm not sure what you mean. Baekdu Mountain was taken by North Korea, wasn't it?"
Jeon replied smoothly.
Wei Quan's face, meanwhile, flushed red and blue.
"Was this Player Bong Ju-hyeok's demand?"
Wei Quan had seen the Agency videos too.
Probably every Chinese citizen had—short clips were everywhere.
So he knew why Ju-hyeok needed nuclear warheads.
Still, it was impossible to believe.
"I don't understand your intentions. You're trying to seize strategic nuclear weapons based on videos of questionable authenticity."
"Seize? If you don't want to trade, don't. Simple."
Wei Quan grew agitated.
"An alien god invading Earth through the Black Tower? For dimensional energy? Hah! You expect us to believe that nonsense?"
Jeon chuckled casually.
"Believe it or not—it's up to you."
"This looks like Korea trying to pressure China by acquiring nukes."
"What benefit would Korea gain from pressuring China? And if we truly wanted to ruin you, we wouldn't have exported scrolls in the first place."
The discussion ran in parallel lines.
"So you're serious—no ammo unless we provide real nuclear warheads?"
"How many times do I have to say it? Yes. That's the policy."
China had no intention of handing over nukes.
The Agency needed them.
"Then I'll see you out. I'm busy. I wish China the best of luck. Do clear the 81st floor within five years."
At that moment—
"World-ranked top player, Bong Ju-hyeok."
Jeon froze mid-rise.
"Age 25. Lives in a Cheongdam-dong penthouse. Family: Bong Su-cheol, Hong Geum-ja, Bong Min-hyeok… no current girlfriend."
Wei Quan smiled languidly.
"Ah, don't worry. I'm not planning anything."
"After all, the magic-gun ammo belongs to Player Bong Ju-hyeok anyway."
"Since talking with the Agency isn't working, it might be faster to negotiate directly with Player Bong Ju-hyeok."
Jeon's face hardened.
His expression twisted—then—
"Hey."
"…What?"
"You fucking bastard."
Suddenly?
An unexpected curse.
Wei Quan stared, mouth agape.
"Want to die?"
Was he insane?
Such a sudden outburst—
"W-wait! What do you think you're doing? Where are your manners? Director! I will formally protest this to the Korean government through diplomatic channels—"
Jeon Gwang-il went a step further.
Wham!
He grabbed Wei Quan by the collar.
"Shut up and take it all the way in!"
"… "
His eyes shook.
So shocked that Wei Quan couldn't even resist.
"If you so much as approach Player Bong Juhyeok, you're dead for sure. You think that's all? The entire leadership of the Chinese Emergency Committee—high-ranking officials—heads will roll one after another."
"… Ghk!"
"So if you want to rent machine guns, put nuclear warheads on the table. If you don't like that, go back to China and keep your head down. I'm saying this for your own good."
The bastard had crossed a line he should never have crossed.
If it were up to him, he wanted to rip out his teeth, but—
"You dumb bastard. Please, assess the situation properly. I'm begging you."
Jeon Gwang-il was sincere.
This was all for China's sake.
Would Player Bong's blood-summoned beings really stay still?
If people kept dying in droves again, chaos would be recreated, and it would negatively affect neighboring Korea as well.
"Get lost!"
"T-this! We'll see about this!"
Judging by the look of him, he'd probably try to approach anyway.
Well, nothing to be done.
All he could do was pray for his soul.
Skewer—
Sssrrrk—the elevator doors slid open.
Juhyeok and the blood-summoned beings arrived on the 17th floor of the White Tower.
They said a blessing of divine power had descended.
"Does something feel different?"
"Hup! There's something in the air."
"It does seem to be divine power."
"Oh!"
So a blessing really did come down.
Then what got better?
"At the very least, it should be good for paladins."
Sure enough.
Radiant wings sprouted from his back—
Whoosh!
Bardin floated into the air, gliding as if swimming through space.
"That guy's not even going to walk anymore."
Meanwhile, Kosak didn't seem pleased.
"Flight's a holy skill. He's really got it made."
"Why? You want to fly too?"
"Hmph! What's the point of flying?"
"If you can fly, it's nice."
"There's an old saying—those who fly can't beat those who walk."
There was a saying like that?
"A true gentleman doesn't run even when it rains. But flying like that—doesn't that make him a commoner?"
What kind of logic is that?
"Greenie, Bardin, the succubus, Jephet, and Old Man Hawk are classified as the flying faction. Eat separately."
You're even dividing people up?
"Our walking faction shouldn't even share a table with those frivolous flying types."
It was obvious.
That was all jealousy.
Because he had no way to fly.
Then Gyeondallae raised a question.
"This lady can also fly. Then I'm part of the flying faction."
"Just barely floating a little above the ground—does that count as flying? You're walking faction."
The mad monk too.
"This old man can fly as well."
"How is air-stepping flying? That's lightness skill. I can do that too. Old Monk, walking faction."
Rajiks raised his hand enthusiastically.
"Huek!"
"Don't tell me you're claiming that—teetering and spinning around—is flying?"
"Huh?"
"Dimensional farmhand—walking farmhand."
"Hueeeeh …"
What is this even about?
"Walking faction, be proud. Our Summoner Bong belongs to the walking faction."
I don't want to be lumped in there.
Suddenly I want to fly.
Just then, Mackenzie approached quietly.
"Summoner, would you like me to teach you the Fly spell?"
Huh?
"I can learn it too?"
"Normally, Fly is learned at Circle 5 or above, but this mage has his ways."
Tempting.
"Private tutoring! With Mackenzie, you too can become an aerial mage."
Sounds good.
Bong Juhyeok soaring freely through the sky.
Should I just learn it?
"… Old Man Hawk."
Kosak had already come close.
"What is it?"
"Can I use Fly magic too?"
"I thought you were walking faction."
"Honestly, flying faction is cooler."
I knew it.
From the start, he was just jealous of Bardin.
"You're disqualified."
"… Why?"
"What reason do I have to teach you Fly—"
That was when—
Step, step, step.
Farmer Dou came striding quickly toward Juhyeok.
"Oh! Mr. Dou, you've been well? We cleared up to the 99th floor. Only one floor left now."
Even if this was Earth No. 675.
"Report to the Summoner."
"Huh? Did something happen?"
"Seondo tree. Fruit. Harvestable."
"Ah! I see."
… Wait!
"What did you just say?"
"Seondo bearing fruit. Bumper harvest."
The Seondo bore fruit?
Juhyeok dashed straight toward the Seondo tree.
Rumble, rumble.
Everyone followed.
"Oh!"
"Ah!"
"It's Seondo."
"Ho ho ho."
"The glory of the 17th floor."
Aaaah!
That large, luscious-looking jade-like fruit.
A treasure brimming with immortal energy.
The Seondo, said to bloom only in the Immortal Realm, had now begun production on the 17th floor.
Truly a moving moment.
Grow strong and plentiful from now on.
"We should guard it well. So no one touches it."
Well, with Dou always on the 17th floor, it was reassuring.
"Earlier. Seondo. Theft. Attempt. Occurred. Prevented. Attempted."
"… What?"
What are you talking about?
"So someone tried to steal the Seondo, and you stopped them, Mr. Dou?"
"Correct."
Then Kosak exploded in anger.
"What?! A thieving bastard in this sacred White Tower?! I'll tie his head up with ribbons myself. Who's the culprit?"
"Seondo. Culprit."
"Please say it."
"Bong Sucheol."
"Sucheol? That bastard, you've really done it now—I'll chop off your—"
In that instant!
Kosak blinked.
Bong? Bong Sucheol?
"Summoner. Father. Bong Sucheol. Seondo. Theft. Attempt. Culprit."
"… Yes?"
Gulp.
Kosak swallowed his dry saliva.
"Uh, um …"
I should've known.
How many ordinary people even come in and out of the White Tower?
Jeon Gwang-il, Jung Dong-hoon, Lee Min-ah, Kim In-jung—and the Summoner's family.
This is bad.
The Summoner might not say anything to him, but the problem is—
"This is blatant treason. At once, Kosak—hang that man by the neck."
"Ho ho ho, have you lost your mind? Such arrogance has gone too far."
"How dare you put ribbons on whose head?"
"Perfect. Let's tie ribbons on that assassin bastard's head."
"An act of filial impiety—one hundred flicks to the forehead."
"A flick? One bullet is enough. You're executed!"
"They say Old Man Manny will freeze him solid."
"That works too."
"Hueeeek!!!"
Staggering backward, Kosak retreated.
But he was already surrounded.
He couldn't jump and escape either.
Damn it—the flying paladin had blocked the sky route.
"Tsk."
Juhyeok thought for a moment.
"… Should I stop them?"
No.
Let it be.
Was this the first or second time?
And yet Kosak always survived.
"I should pick a Seondo fruit."
Carefully holding it with both hands.
Gently twisting—pop!
"Hmm, smells nice."
At that moment!
From where the fruit had been plucked, another round fruit immediately began to form.
"Oh!"
Unbelievable!
A new fruit forms the instant you pick one?
Still, better to eat them sparingly.
Anyway, I should head to the auction house.
It's been a while since I listed anything—people must be waiting.
A few days later.
A video was uploaded to the Awakening Administration.
Title: Nuclear Weapon Usage Settlement Report
Sponsors: United States, India, Pakistan, Russia, France
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