Day 2 since awakening as a superhuman.

Two runs through the 1st floor had revealed two crucial facts.

First.

Lea was strong.

Extremely, tremendously, impossibly strong.

Until now, the 1st floor special reward—the Summoning Stone—had produced a variety of summoned beasts.

Wolves, snakes, rabbits, tigers—all manner of animal-shaped monsters.

However, they all started as hatchlings and never displayed overwhelming power from the get-go.

Even Kim Taemin’s wyvern only grew large enough to ride after clearing the 34th floor.

Because of this, summoned beasts were initially less like comrades-in-arms and more like pets that needed to be cherished and nurtured.

By default, summoned beasts grew by personally slaying monsters.

So in the early stages, meticulous care was essential to keep them from dying to the very monsters they were supposed to fight.

But what about Lea?

From the very start, she was slicing through zombies in mere seconds.

Her movements were faster than a high-level superhuman using a skill.

Was this really okay…?

“Eum, of course it’s okay.”

If it had been someone else, perhaps not. But this concerned him directly—and having a powerful summoned beast, no, summoned being, was obviously a good thing.

And so, he arrived at the very important realization that Lea was extraordinarily powerful.

The danger level of climbing the Tower had now plummeted to rock bottom.

All he had to do was send Lea in and quietly watch her dispatch the monsters.

What if Lea seemed like she might fail?

Then he’d simply use a Return Ticket and slip out gracefully.

…Perfect!

Now then, moving on.

Second.

The Meteor Summoning skill was a gamble.

One heavily dependent on luck, at that.

He had indeed chosen what appeared to be the smallest one this time, but that was purely a gut feeling.

Honestly, distinguishing the size difference between meteorites by eye was nearly impossible.

Since he was only planning to test it anyway, he had selected one right away.

And what actually fell was a single pebble that looked like a grain of sand.

Still, factoring in mass and velocity, it would have been an instant kill as long as it landed on a zombie’s head.

Even though the meteorite was small, the deafening boom it produced upon colliding with the ground was anything but.

However, there wasn’t enough data yet to draw definitive conclusions about the Meteor Summoning skill.

Which meant there was only one thing to do.

Use the skill as many times as possible and conduct thorough, ongoing research.

Tower entry was limited to once per day.

The Meteor Summoning skill could also be used once per day.

And so, Shin Jungho.

Revisited the 1st floor of the tower every single day, repeatedly conducting research on his skill.

For… a full two weeks.

“Eum… I think I’m finally starting to understand the Meteor Summoning skill.”

“Congratulations, my Lord! As expected of your brilliant self—”

Lea vanished mid-sentence.

Jungho entered the Community Forum as usual to check for any noteworthy updates.

└ What’s going on with Mirinae? Cleared the 1st floor in 8 seconds and then total radio silence for two weeks?

└ My guess is they’re holed up in some abandoned warehouse by the Incheon docks ㄷㄷ

└ Soma still hasn’t gotten Kkamangi back yet?

└ They’re testing the waters. Waiting for the right moment to strike without raising suspicion ㅋ

└ Waaah… is the truth of those 8 seconds really going to get buried like this?

└ But even if they got caught, wouldn’t they just go into the Tower and be fine?

└ Yeah, step outside Seoul and you’re a regular civilian ㅋ Can’t even access the Community Forum, let alone the Tower ㅋㅋ

└ Seriously wondering when Mirinae’s name is gonna show up on the deceased list ㄷㄷㄷ

The people who had once eagerly anticipated when the 2nd and 3rd floor clear times would be updated.

Were now waiting to see when the name would appear on the casualty list.

└ Isn’t Mirinae just slowly climbing in stealth mode?

└ I think so too. The fastest clear time bonus is only on floors 1, 20, 40, and 60 anyway. No reason to make a fuss.

Some speculated that Mirinae was deliberately not updating clear times from the 2nd floor onward and was taking things slowly.

Jungho also thought it was a reasonably sound plan.

Not that he had any intention of following it himself.

[Amazing Achievement accomplished!]

[As a reward for the Amazing Achievement, 5 Return Tickets have been provided.]

The Amazing Achievement reward.

This was a bonus that hadn’t existed in previous Tower clears.

It was likely a reward granted for clearing within a certain time limit.

The unfortunate part was that the Amazing Achievement didn’t trigger on repeat runs—only on the first clear.

Was the Amazing Achievement only available on floors 1, 20, 40, and 60, which offered fastest clear time bonuses?

Or was it available on every floor during the first clear attempt?

To verify that, he now needed to challenge the 2nd floor.

That’s right.

A full two weeks since awakening as a superhuman.

The time had finally come to attempt the 2nd floor.

* * *

A secret room known to no one.

Three people gathered once more after two weeks apart.

“A considerable amount of time has passed… and yet no one has managed to find him?”

Park Soyul scoffed at Kim Taemin’s accusatory tone.

“You’ve been looking into it yourself, haven’t you? Haven’t you been tearing through the Superhuman Management Agency all this time?”

Kim Taemin scowled and clicked his tongue.

True to her words, he had bribed the staff member in charge of new superhuman registrations and completed background checks on every newly registered superhuman over the past month.

The results: all clean.

His next plan was to investigate records going back three months, just to be thorough.

“Kahaha! Just sit tight and wait patiently until I find him! Three months—no, two months now? Anyway, I’ll locate that Summoning Stone within fifty days!”

Yoon Changdae laughed boisterously and made a bold declaration.

“Fifty days? You’re dead serious? Looks like I need to step up my game too.”

Park Soyul, sensing competition, felt her competitive instincts ignite.

“Can’t you shorten that any further?”

Kim Taemin also firmly believed that given enough time, Yoon Changdae would find the Summoning Stone’s location.

Iron Heart, Yoon Changdae.

A massive, muscular man with a short crop of hair.

To anyone watching, he looked like a tank—or someone who’d swing a ridiculously oversized hammer. But his true class was…

Assassin.

The moniker “Iron Heart,” his booming voice, his rough mannerisms.

Every bit of it was a decoy designed to prevent anyone from deducing his true nature.

Tower climbing was a solo endeavor.

Because of that, no one knew what skills a given superhuman used or how they cleared floors.

Unless they disclosed it themselves.

Changdae had been passing himself off as a tank to the public while diligently following the assassin skill tree.

After all, concealing one’s true identity was a virtue among superhumans.

Truth be told, assassin wasn’t exactly a top-tier class.

But the fact that he had climbed all the way to the 58th floor with such a class meant he was no ordinary assassin.

Precise mana detection.

Stealthy movement.

With these two abilities, Changdae had overcome countless crises and seized the rank of 3rd.

Only the two people in this room knew the truth.

And if those two were to disappear as well…

Changdae grinned and replied.

“Unfortunately, I only have one body. And I’m busy preparing for the 58th floor clear. Ah, but if you were to supply me with some items that’d help with the climb, I might be able to free up some time!”

Faced with such a brazen demand for items, Kim Taemin felt his stomach churn.

However, without Kkamangi at this point, clearing the 62nd floor would come at an enormous cost.

The remaining time limit for the 62nd floor was 10 days.

He had climbed solo to the 62nd floor in one go to prove he was different from the other two.

And that decision had come back to bite him.

Park Soyul and Yoon Changdae.

If even one of them had been on the 62nd floor with him, he could have negotiated a reasonable deal.

But what could he do.

He had no choice but to squeeze the Superhuman Management Agency once more.

“Would a Skill Enhancement Ticket suffice?”

Changdae’s face lit up with delight.

“Oh! That’ll do nicely! I can cut it down from fifty to thirty days!”

Kim Taemin scowled.

“Are you kidding me? Twenty days for one ticket?”

“Come on, you were going to raid the Agency anyway, weren’t you? Why are you making such a fuss when it’s not even yours?”

“…Huu, I’d appreciate it if you hurried things along.”

“You’ll have it back before the 63rd floor clear, so don’t worry too much. Who knows, maybe I’ll find it tomorrow if I’m lucky? Kahahaha!”

Kim Taemin downed his glass of liquor to soothe his stinging pride.

He had received intelligence a few days ago that the Superhuman Management Agency possessed a Skill Enhancement Ticket.

It seemed he would need to summon the Commissioner for a serious conversation before long.

* * *

“Eum! I’m telling you, the coffee Jungho makes has a depth of flavor that’s just different from anywhere else!”

Unlike her usual once-a-week visits.

Park Soyul had shown up twice in a single week.

Jungho knew exactly why, so he asked as he always did.

“Are you planning to climb the Tower today?”

“Bingo! Do you know what floor I’m clearing today?”

“I don’t.”

“Buuu! How does an employee not know what floor his boss is clearing?”

“I understand the highest floor reached is the 62nd, by Superhuman Kim Taemin.”

“…Tch! I should just be petty and overtake Kim Taemin for the number one spot!”

“Then I suppose I’ll have to memorize your floor number instead, Boss Park Soyul.”

“Yes! Yes! This is practically begging for a full prostration! So, got anything to say to me?”

Jungho, armed with exemplary customer service, replied with a gentle smile.

“Please clear it safely and come back, Superhuman Park Soyul.”

“Huh? I feel like you’re missing something.”

The corner of Jungho’s mouth twitched ever so slightly.

“…Electric Empress Park Soyul, Superhuman.”

“Huhut! Thank you, Jungho!”

Aung! How could her pouting be this adorable?

He wanted to keep her trapped in this cafe part-time job forever.

“Oh, by the way, Jungho. How long can you keep working at the cafe?”

“For now… I’m thinking about a year.”

“A year? Are you going to quit after a year?”

“I suppose I’ll have to see when the time comes.”

Park Soyul rested her chin on her long, slender fingers and pouted playfully.

“Aw, don’t do that. Stay with me forever! Hmm?”

“I need to find my own path in life as well.”

“And here you are, not even batting an eye at these stunning looks! Am I not pretty?”

“That you’re beautiful is a fact acknowledged by most men, Boss Park Soyul.”

“Not other men. What about you, Jungho?”

“I think so as well.”

“…Wow, how can you answer so emotionlessly? Well, that’s exactly what I like about you, though!”

Soyul sipped her coffee and then blurted out whatever was on her mind without filter.

“Oh, right! I need to find that Mirinae person fast!”

Jungho feigned ignorance and asked casually.

“You’re still looking?”

“Of course! I’ve got something riding on this! But if I don’t find them within thirty days, it’s over! Actually, I might need to find them even sooner than that.”

“Thirty days?”

Soyul raised the corners of her mouth slyly and asked.

“Why? Curious?”

Jungho exercised deep patience and maintained his composure.

“It seems more like you’re itching to tell me rather than me being curious.”

“Aw, why are you being so boring? If you’re really not interested, I won’t say anything.”

“…Please feel free to do as you wish, Boss.”

When Jungho politely stepped back with an air of indifference, Soyul was the one who couldn’t contain herself.

“Aw! You got me again! Okay, so there’s this guy, right? Built like an absolute gorilla. He’s been prowling around every night searching for the Summoning Stone, and he might actually find it soon! Ah, I need to find it before he does!”

Jungho barely held back the urge to ask if she was referring to Yoon Changdae, the 3rd-ranked superhuman.

“In that case, you’d certainly need to hurry.”

“See, you have zero interest in this stuff! That’s exactly why I can talk about it so freely with you!”

She occasionally dropped information that even other superhumans would struggle to obtain, completely off the cuff.

To see how he’d react.

But no evidence had ever surfaced that Jungho leaked any of it anywhere.

He was, in every sense of the word, utterly indifferent.

And that was exactly why she liked him.

He was the one person she could talk to in complete comfort, completely apart from the world of superhumans.

“Ehyu! I really need to get going now!”

“I’ll be rooting for you, Superhuman Park Soyul.”

“Come on, you’re missing one thing.”

“Once a day.”

“Puhut! Yes! Yes! Fine! Take care, then!”

After Soyul disappeared, Jungho fell into thought.

This…

Was this a seriously bad situation?