The precipitous downfall of Seoul Tower’s hero, Swordmaster Kim Taemin, began with a sudden media exposé.

<Kim Taemin. Is He a Hero or a Fraud?>

<Shocking! Soma Kim Taemin’s Double Life! Behind the Honor Built by the Sword…….>

<Kim Taemin Scandal: From Hero to Criminal, the Shocking Twist!>

One of the greatest sources of Kim Taemin’s power to sway the media had been his political connections.

But the situation had shifted so dramatically that the current administration was openly targeting him.

With Kim Taemin’s value clearly headed for rock bottom, not a single politician—nor any conglomerate—was willing to extend a hand.

Rumor had it that one of Kim Taemin’s former secretaries had gone missing.

Word was that the last person the deceased 5th-ranked superhuman had met was Kim Taemin.

Stories that had circulated only as rumors, lacking any substance.

In the past, any outlet that published such articles would face immediate lawsuits and suffer blows severe enough to make them stagger.

Now, however, all those who had once covered for Kim Taemin had washed their hands of him.

And to top it off.

<The Electric Empress Park Soyul Personally Reveals the True Face of Swordmaster Kim Taemin!>

Seoul Tower’s rank 2.

The Electric Empress Park Soyul had openly taken aim at Kim Taemin.

“That bastard Kim Taemin, it’s all a façade, I’m telling you. Even when the three of us gathered, he’d come down with a case of emperor syndrome and try to play king—it was so pathetic to watch! And when Mirinae first appeared, he was practically foaming at the mouth, howling about killing him on the spot to take back his summoned beast! ……Me? I’m looking for Mirinae too! Because he seems…… sexy?”

Hardly the most appropriate remark for an official interview.

But everyone knew Park Soyul wasn’t one to spout nonsense, and the superhumans erupted in fury.

└ That bastard Soma really tried to harm our Lord Mirinae?

└ Whoa…… if the US hadn’t stepped in at the right time, things could’ve gotten really bad?

└ But Mirinae can’t go to the US now T_T The Grace of Evasion will all go to waste T_T

└ If Mirinae had felt threatened on the 11th floor and gone to the US, that would’ve been a disaster! Shouldn’t we figure out how to sanction Soma?

└ To think a piece of shit like that is a fellow Seoul citizen!

└ Soma’s probably shitting bricks right now lol

└ It’s still just circumstantial suspicion, so legal action would be tough, right?

└ Can’t we just go execute him by firing squad?

└ Someone like Soma would have precautions against that kind of attack lol

└ Park Soyul’s on the news for the first time in a while? With those looks, she could become an actress and outshine them all

└ But her personality is so refreshingly blunt lolol That’s part of her charm though lol

└ Who’s Park Soyul dating? Don’t know who, but I’m jealous as hell T_T

└ Her taste is pretty unique lolol I’m jealous too T_T

Everyone vented their fury about Swordmaster Kim Taemin.

But there wasn’t much they could actually do about it.

No matter how far Kim Taemin was falling.

He remained the rank 1 of the Seoul Tower.

And having occupied that position for so long, the power he wielded was still formidable.

So they had been simmering with frustration—until a refreshingly satisfying solution presented itself, one that would uncork their bottled-up rage.

└ Fellow devotees of our glorious God Miri^[1]! Now is the time to punish the despicable Swordmaster Kim Taemin! How, you ask? By climbing the Tower! If 5, 10, or even 100 superhumans climb the Tower and reach the same 63rd floor as Kim Taemin, what would happen then? He would be nothing more than one in a hundred—one man who could disappear without anyone batting an eye!

└ Ohhh, good point? I get to become a ranker AND screw over Soma lol

└ Ah, I’m on floor 46—anyone selling Tower Entry Tickets? I’ll do whatever it takes to reach floor 63

└ I’m a stealth superhuman on floor 53. I’m going for it—floor 63

└ Whoa…… what’s with this energy? At this rate, are we actually going to end up with 100 floor-63 rankers in our Seoul Tower?

└ That’s a bit of a stretch lolol

Not that Korean superhumans needed the push—their Tower climbing had already begun to accelerate in earnest.

With the ability to exit the Tower at any time, what was there to fear from battling monsters?

If anything, sensing opportunity, they dove into a flurry of item trading—purchasing and renting equipment, buying and selling Tower Entry Tickets.

And that.

Dumped an avalanche of work onto the Superhuman Management Agency.

Vice Commissioner Han Donggeon appeared in Commissioner Jung Woojin’s office looking slightly worse for wear.

“Hahaha, our Vice Vice Commissioner is looking a bit rough, isn’t he?”

“Phew, I’m dying here! Staff recruitment—when is that going to happen?”

The Superhuman Management Agency handled all transactions of superhuman items—sales, equipment rentals, and the like.

As a result, the sudden surge in inquiries repeatedly caused operations to seize up before sputtering back to life.

But this wasn’t just any matter—lower and mid-floor superhumans were dead set on climbing to the 63rd floor, and that wasn’t something they could simply ignore.

Moreover, the workload hadn’t increased from that alone.

“I’ve sent temporary dispatch requests to every other department, so we should hear back soon.”

“I don’t need ‘soon,’ I need them right now…….”

“Ha, you’re not usually one to panic like this.”

“I’m working through the night and dying here! I’ve lost count of how many days it’s been since I last went home!”

Jung Woojin lowered his voice slightly and asked.

“I see…… Do you think he might be among them?”

What Han Donggeon did after hours was make contact with stealth superhumans.

It used to be only one or two cases a week.

But with the frenzy of Tower climbing in recent days, stealth superhumans who had been lying low emerged in droves to make contact.

In particular, screening the stealth superhumans to identify the gems and offer them Hongik Superhuman status required painstaking effort to vet each and every individual.

Truly, even forty-eight hours a day wouldn’t be enough!

“Phew…… I’m still not sure.”

Whether Mirinae would seize this opportunity to contact the Superhuman Management Agency was a matter of intense curiosity.

If Mirinae were to reveal his identity, they would give him absolutely everything they had!

The mere fact that he had handed Kim Taemin a giant middle finger was enough to earn him treatment as a hero of Korea.

But given his unique circumstances, his identity had to be kept strictly confidential.

Even if he volunteered to reveal himself, they would have to talk him out of it.

There were far too many hands reaching for Mirinae in this world!

His death would be a disaster; his defection to another country would be equally disastrous.

Even now, news that other nations were burning the midnight oil to uncover Mirinae’s identity made every day feel like walking on thin ice.

Worry if they find him!

Worry if they don’t!

A piece of joyous news arrived for the two men during their brief, sweet respite.

Or rather, a new mountain of work came knocking.

“Sir, a 57th-floor superhuman from the New York Tower has requested a temporary affiliation transfer to the Seoul Tower.”

The two men blinked at the secretary’s report, wondering if they had heard correctly.

A New York superhuman suddenly wanting to transfer to the Seoul Tower?

But after putting their heads together, the answer came quickly.

“……It’s because of the Grace of Evasion.”

“Yes, that seems to be the case. Being able to climb the Tower without Return Tickets is an enormous advantage for a superhuman.”

In effect, it was like carrying a hundred Return Tickets.

But since that stockpile diminished over time, they had requested the transfer immediately, within days of the grace taking effect.

“How many Tower Affiliation Change Tickets do we have for the Tower 25?”

“We have three.”

Tower Affiliation Change Tickets were exceedingly rare items.

But since there was almost no private trading between individuals, all the tickets that had surfaced were stored by the Superhuman Management Agency.

Tower Affiliation Change Ticket.

An item that allowed one to change affiliation to the corresponding numbered Tower.

If the invited party accepted, the affiliation would change immediately—but there was one restriction.

The inviting Tower’s highest cleared floor had to be at or above the invited superhuman’s highest reached floor.

For instance, if a superhuman was climbing the 65th floor.

They could transfer to a Tower that had cleared up to the 70th floor.

But they could not transfer to a Tower that had only cleared up to the 60th floor.

Therefore, the rank 1 of the New York Tower, who was climbing the highest floor in the world, could not transfer to any other Tower.

While a newly awakened superhuman could transfer to any Tower.

Provided, of course, that a superhuman from the target Tower used a Tower Affiliation Change Ticket to meet them in person and issue the invitation.

“Hmm…… if stealth superhumans keep coming forward, how many more might we get?”

Stealth superhumans traded Magic Stones and items through underground channels.

But scams were common in that process, and their identities were often exposed, so they naturally preferred the safe and reliable transactions offered by the Superhuman Management Agency.

So while they might not have Magic Stones, there was a good chance they held items like Tower Affiliation Change Tickets.

“Even with the most optimistic estimate…… wouldn’t one or two be the most we could expect?”

“Is that so? Hmm…… Euheuheuhe!”

Jung Woojin let out a remarkably low, satisfied laugh.

“Phew…… Are you enjoying this? I’m dying here!”

“Hahaha! You should enjoy it a little too! All this time, I’ve been going overseas, suffering every humiliation, begging and pleading! And now? Now I get to see them beg and plead instead! Wahahaha!”

“Even so, we should keep one in reserve, just in case.”

“Ha, that’s a problem for the ones doing the begging, not me! Wait, how should I set up a bidding war to make sure word gets out that we did it right?”

Han Donggeon smiled wryly as he watched Jung Woojin lost in his own private paradise, chuckling with unbridled glee.

I’m the only one dying here.

I’m the only one dying……!

* * *

Another day passed, and the Tower became available for climbing once more.

Without a Tower Entry Ticket, that meant only once per day.

Now that he could use Meteor Summoning twice, being limited to a single climb per day felt like a real shame.

He currently had three Entry Tickets remaining.

That meant he could tackle two floors a day for three consecutive days—six floors in a row.

With round-the-clock guard duty now possible, there was no longer any need to rush up the Tower.

But since rewards improved with higher floors, there was no reason to take it slowly, either.

……What if I just did two floors a day?

Besides, if he cleared six floors, wouldn’t more Tower Entry Tickets drop?

Farm tickets, clear floors.

Farm tickets, clear floors.

……That could actually work?

And just like that, he settled on climbing the Tower twice a day.

Naturally, it would start with the 21st floor.

Whether he could clear the 21st floor with an Amazing Achievement would determine the plan going forward.

Hmm, but anyway.

Shin Jungho turned his head to look at Maya, who sat beside him.

The moment she was summoned, she had greeted him and immediately perched herself in the exact center of the single bed.

To the left.

To the right.

Dead center, without a hair’s breadth of deviation!

Truth be told, Jungho hadn’t thought much of it at the time.

In his cramped studio apartment, the bed mattress was the only place to sit anyway.

So he had simply sat at the head of the bed, just like the day before.

But before he knew it.

Lea had quietly sidled over and planted herself right in front of him, standing pressed close.

Standing at attention as if standing guard…… while watching a drama!

And so, with the Scholar Demon Maya pressed against his left and the Radiant Lea standing flush in front of him…….

Things were growing steadily more awkward.

He could understand why both of them were subtly vying to stay close to him.

It seemed less like affection and more like…….

A competitive spirit to become the first retainer of the one they served.

Not that there was anything wrong with that.

They were taking the initiative to get closer to him of their own accord—how could he not find that endearing?

Especially since Lea, who had always been indifferent about such matters, was volunteering to act on her own—a tremendous leap forward!

Still…….

The fact that this peculiar state of close contact had persisted for a full six hours…….

Hmm.

Should I…… seriously start looking for a new place?

It felt like just yesterday he had breathed a sigh of relief when the summoned beings’ summoning time increased to eight hours.

He never dreamed that longer hours together would bring this kind of awkwardness.

Jungho checked the time and readied himself for the climb.

“Lea, Maya. Let’s climb the Tower now.”

“I am ready at any time!”

“I, too, have awaited only Your Highness’s command.”

Alright—time for the slime section.

Let’s see if we can pull off an Amazing Achievement again this time!

[You have entered the Tower 25, Floor 21.]

= Objective: Defeat 500 Common Slimes.

= Time Limit: 3:00:00

# Remaining Monsters: Common Slime (500)

# First Clear Reward: 21 Magic Stones

# Amazing Achievement Condition: First attempt, clear within 15 minutes

# Amazing Achievement Reward: 1 Random Box

# Bonus Reward Acquired: 2 Tower Entry Tickets

……Oh?

The rewards for this floor look quite promising, too?