44 – 1st floor settlement (1)

It was a story of brothers connected by blood.

A great older brother and an even better younger brother.

Nevertheless, the two brothers, who were family, got along well in their own way.

… But that was my brother’s mistake

Jang-jae’s brother was so jealous of his brother that he hated him.

In the end, the older brother was devoured by his ugly jealousy and walked the path of his depravity.

The tragedy that followed was as Haktan had said before.

By the way.

‘I never thought they were real brothers.’

In that story, the older brother was the outcast Harban, and the younger brother was Haktan.

Suddenly, unlike other corrupters, I thought of an outcast who gained parasitic power.

Where did the outcast who was so jealous of Haktan want to live as a parasite?

Whose body did he try to take?

… It’s something you don’t need to know now.

Even while sorting out the nauseous speculation that came to my mind for a moment.

Haktan’s past was slowly coming to light.

“After my brother became like that, I lost my warrior soul.”

“Is it because of guilt?”

“Because I wasn’t sure about myself, rather than feeling guilty…”

Be confident in yourself.

… hahahaha

If someone close to you suddenly changes and tries to kill you.

Once in a while, you’ll wonder if you’ve done something wrong.

Haktan seems to have been more sensitive to that.

“Having lost both my older brother and the soul of a warrior, I felt as if the years I had been living had been denied.”

“You seemed to say that I am not a warrior.”

Fortunately, the negative story ended here.

“But when I saw my brother reawakening his warrior soul, I realized.”

“The soul of a warrior does not prove that he is a warrior.”

“The soul of a warrior is manifested in those who prove that they are warriors.”

‘… We just fought.’

It’s embarrassing to hear compliments for something unexpected.

“Just because you lost a warrior’s soul doesn’t mean you aren’t a warrior.”

“Brother was a warrior. From the moment I first met him.”

“…Khehehehe.”

It seemed like a great warrior to the point of being a bit excessive.

Although it became a little harmful after being recognized as a brother.

“Funny enough, the warrior’s soul came back after I completely gave up on the warrior’s soul.”

“You’re back in your rightful place.”

“Yes…”

Haktan smiled with a complicated expression.

“I owe a lot to my brother.”

He said with a deep sigh.

“But now I’m going to do my job as a manager.”

“Hmm?”

“Congratulations on passing the first floor exam, brother.”

… What?

“First of all, everyone who valiantly participated in the battle has been able to embrace the buds of the soul. It’s something to celebrate.”

“No, wait.”

“Everyone can bloom the flower of the soul like a brother.”

Not a warrior’s soul, but a soul flower.

There, I fully realized that Haktan was talking about the tower.

… That’s right, there should be a manager who will give you a reward.

I thought it would be after an angel appeared or was taken to the waiting room like last time.

Suddenly Haktan.

‘Something feels complicated.’

I’m trying hard to manage my embarrassment.

“My brother passed out, so I’ll have to check his contribution first.”

With Haktan’s gesture, a notification appeared before my eyes.

[Nam Hyun-woo – 1st place in contribution]

[Contribution: 140320 points]

… It’s surprising that I’m ranked first, not Seoyeon.

‘Is it because I caught the Great Warrior?’

Coming to think of it, Seo-yeon scooped up all the things like Gi-yeon.

… It seems like I sucked up all my contributions.

“And the 1st place will receive a special dungeon ticket on the 1st floor as an additional reward.”

“Hmm? If it’s a special dungeon…”

“Perhaps what the brothers think is right.”

Are you talking about the place where instant death curses and zombies are rampant?

“Can I get another reward after entering?”

“It’s not impossible.”

“…Ooh.”

It took me a while to say that it wasn’t impossible.

I thought there would be nothing wrong with going in—but.

… I forgot that my arm was not moving.

“I think it would be difficult with the arm in this state.”

Does your arm return to its original state even if you die in a special dungeon?

“Yeah, looks like a bunch.”

“Then how…”

“If you want, I’ll make it transferable to someone else.”

‘… Then what about my reward?’

I wonder if that kind of thinking is evident on his expression.

Haktan spoke softly.

“There is one brave warrior among the warriors of the brother tribe.”

“Hmm?”

But it wasn’t about compensation.

“Your name…Was Lee Seon-hwa?”

‘Suddenly, Lee Seon-hwa?’

I was taken aback by the sudden flow.

“I met him before the war when he couldn’t awaken the warrior’s soul.”

Even in the midst of my bewilderment, Haktan persisted.

From noble mtl dot com

“Perhaps he noticed that I was suffering and would give me advice.”

“Advice?”

“Yes. If you can’t find the answer yourself, you said it’s a good idea to look for answers in others.”

“….”

“Looking blatantly at your brother.”

Look for answers outside.

Although it could just be a story about learning by looking at others.

If that’s the case, isn’t it telling me to openly come under me?

“…This one is rude.”

“Keuhehehe, but whatever. In the end, it’s true that I found the answer from my brother, so it’s okay.”

Hakutan who floated his luck with just—.

“It sounds like your loyalty is a bit excessive.”

“…Yes.”

“Those subordinates are rare, but sometimes they act unexpectedly out of loyalty, so you’ll have to control them.”

Anyway, loyalty.

‘Was there a reason to be loyal to me?’

Or did my existence permeate well in a situation where my mind was unstable?

I was curious about that too.

Haktan must have had a different intention for suddenly bringing up the story of Lee Seon-hwa.

That, of course, also transfers the admission ticket.

… Looking at the situation, the intention was obvious without a second thought.

‘I’m asking you to hand over the ticket to Seonhwa Lee.’

What should I do?

I also secretly felt it, but she respects me quite a bit.

According to Haktan’s words, it was based on loyalty.

‘… What will it be like?’

I was worried for a while.

I finally made a decision.

“I will hand over the ticket to Seonhwa Lee.”

“Good choice.”

“Mmm.”

“Sometimes there are things that only others can give that you cannot get yourself.”

I was very dissatisfied with the transfer.

There must be a reason why Haktan mentioned Seonhwa Lee.

I decided to trust the brothers for now.

I wonder if Haktan understood my feelings roughly.

We moved on to the next step with a grin.

“Now, in addition to the special reward, I can choose an item to exchange for my brother’s contribution.”

“Oh.”

A list of tradeable items popped up in front of me as soon as Haktan finished speaking.

“Other summoners have already exchanged contributions and rewards, so you can choose slowly.”

“Okay.”

Although the kindly written description did a good job of explaining how useful these items were.

‘Is it because it’s on the first floor?’

I took a quick look… There was nothing I didn’t like.

Did your eyes get too high while going through the special dungeon?

I thought so, and inadvertently checked the equipment that had to pay the most contribution.

For 100,000 points.

I found a familiar ax that is a mountain range destroyer from its name.

‘… It’s Haktan’s axe.’

Well, if you attack a mountain, it doesn’t come with a function like this.

The insane stat of simply increasing strength by 10 and increasing physical strength by 3 stood out.

… But.

‘As long as I don’t drop my weapon like last time, I won’t be using an ax in the future.’

If you need explosive firepower, you might find another one, but… If you use the mountain crusher once, your arm will be crippled.

Wouldn’t it be possible to use it properly only after the ability has improved a little?

“It would have been better if the durability had increased by 10…”

I’m sorry I can’t do it. Let’s mumble that.

“Do you need defensive gear?”

“…That’s right.”

“Hmm…”

Haktan pondered for a moment.

He pulled out an object from behind his back.

It was the scales of a black snake.

… No way.

“Is this by any chance?”

“That’s right. The scales of an outcast.”

I hurriedly searched for the reward, but found nothing.

In other words, a kind of preferential treatment given to me by Haktan as a brother.

“Is it good?”

“Of course. It is also something that is not normally obtainable.”

“Hmm.”

Should I listen to an explanation?

“These scales still contain parasitic powers.”

“Ugh.”

“You can use this by ‘parasitizing’ it to your armor.”

A parasite on equipment.

Growth equipment… It sounds like

“Wouldn’t that mean I could be eaten by the scales?”

“That’s okay…But I’ll make some adjustments, so that’s fine.”

“Adjustment?”

“Originally this is impossible, but aren’t we brothers?”

I wondered if it would be okay to see Haktan casually overdoing the administrator’s authority.

… Even before entering the 1st floor, there was an angel who pushed me into the special dungeon that was the reward for perfect clearing the 1st floor, so I thought it would be okay.

But out of etiquette, I asked.

“Are you okay?”

“If the contribution of the brothers is all, it is possible by the margin.”

“Mmm.”

A little regrettable answer came back.

Well, it would be impossible not to receive anything in return.

Anyway, if it’s all contributions, even if you buy Haktan’s axe, you can still pack a gear or two.

Is that armor really worth it?

‘… I guess.’

Aren’t they the scales that made it possible to survive even after being hit head-on with Haktan’s ‘mountain smash’ that turned the sky and the earth upside down?

Now that it was destroyed once, it won’t be like that.

If you grow properly someday, you won’t know again.

I decided to make a bold investment.

‘… Just in time, there’s equipment that’s perfect for parasitizing.’

“Then which armor do you want a parasitic?”

“This is it.”

I tried to show ‘complete preparation’ while saying that.

… I forgot that my arm didn’t move.

In an instant.

I’m having a serious inner conflict about whether I should ask Haktan for this.

– Smart.

“Can I come in for a minute?”

Lee Seon-hwa just arrived.

She was a little puzzled, but she couldn’t be kicked out, so she went in.

“They gave me the ticket to the special dungeon.”

Thanks came right back.

“So—I’m here to say thanks.”

Her

Watch her for a second as she politely bows her head as she speaks.

“You don’t have to.”

She opened her mouth quietly, thinking about the authenticity of her allegiance.

“If it’s Seonhwa Lee, she deserves it.”

“Ah—.”

“Please take good care of me in the future as well.”

Lee Seon-hwa’s expression brightened noticeably after hearing my words.

“Yes! Of course!”

“I hope you clear it and get good equipment or results.”

“I will never disappoint you!”

I could feel Lee Seon-hwa’s mana greatly increasing.

… Was it that kind of ability?

I’ve been worried about her for a while, but I think I know a little bit about her loyalty.

“Then let’s go.”

“Yes. Oh, could you help me for a moment before you go?”

“Anything.”

“…Please.”

I succeeded in taking off the ‘complete preparation’ with the help of Seonhwa Lee, and after seeing off Seonhwa Lee, I handed it over to Haktan.

“This is another valuable piece of equipment.”

“I was lucky.”

“It’s not something you can get by luck alone.”

… You’ve become a manager.

By the way, when I was talking to the administrator, Haktan, I felt something uncomfortable.

“Brother is too humble. You should know how to show yourself off if necessary.”

“Okay…I have something I want to ask if you don’t mind.”

“Huh? What is it?”

“Is there only one brother who manages the first floor?”

“Is that the story…”

Haktan hesitated for a while.

“Yes. I am alone.”

“….”

“By the way, it wasn’t until the end of the war and the first floor exam that I became aware of myself as a manager.”

That’s why I didn’t cheat in the first place——Haktan explained.

I don’t know what I misunderstood, but I didn’t care about that.

At least, from what I feel, Haktan has treated us wholeheartedly.

That’s the problem.

The only administrator is Haktan.

If Haktan awoke after the war ended.

… Who is the ‘voice behind his back’ who called Haktan the King of the Jungle?

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