Chapter 6: The National Museum of Korea (3)

Chapter 6: The National Museum of Korea (3) "You'll regret... this! I will remember this incident!" Min Jung-woo glared at Jin-hyuk, grinding his teeth with murderous intent. Sort of.

He didn't seem to grasp the situation properly yet. Who was the superior here and who was subordinate? Jin-hyuk just shrugged his shoulders. "Don't you understand why I burned the map?

You don't get it?" He was saying he didn't need the information up to the 10th floor. Meaning, he already knew everything up to that point. "Could it be......" Only then did Min Jung-woo's eyes widen. "If you want to safely climb to the 10th floor of the tower, stop messing around and just do as I say." Stick to the left if I say left, stick to the right if I say right, as simple as that. Maybe, if you follow instructions well enough, you'll get a reward? "Considering you even burned the map, it seems you might possess a unique ability related to 'information search'.

That confidence of yours is understandable." Min Jung-woo made his own assumptions. And then, he looked at Jin-hyuk with a gaze brimming with murderous aura. "But, why should I listen to such nonsense? I could just burn you with fire and extract the information I want, couldn't I?" Right now, he was drained of magic power.

But if he could recover it, burning one human to ashes would be a trivial matter. He wasn't wrong. Torture and threats.

Definitely an effective measure. However, "If you think you can fight me one-on-one and win..." Jin-hyuk's eyes turned cold. At the same time, red flames emerged from his hands. [Lv1 'Element of Fire' is triggered!] Whoosh!

A giant flame began to rise. "No, no way, is that?" Min Jung-woo's pupils shook wildly. He was about to scream in disbelief at the sight in front of him. "How... how can you possess the same ability as me?" No. Not the same ability.

A stronger, hotter flame. Without a doubt. It was flame magic of at least one or two higher tiers.

The gap was clear due to their different understanding of stats and skills. Gulp. Min Jung-woo swallowed hard as he contemplated the situation.

Even if his magic power had been fully intact, "Could I win?" After pondering, Min Jung-woo finally shook his head. "Impossible." It's not possible for a smaller flame to swallow a larger one. Now he understood why Yi Yuri was defeated. The statue she had would have been inadequate.

However, there was just one thing that didn't add up. "If you had that kind of power, why did you hide it? If you had shown your power from the beginning, you could have killed me easily." "The reason?" Jin-hyuk smirked. And then he stepped through the barrier to stand in front of Min Jung-woo. "Do I need to explain every little thing to you?" "Tha-that's..." "I'm the one asking the questions and giving the commands, so you just need to follow along, sir." Min Jung-woo flinched and then averted his gaze upon meeting Jin-hyuk's eyes. "Your answer?" "I... understand." As expected.

He completely conceded. Jin-hyuk extinguished the flames. "I'll contact you later. Until then, take the girl on the lower floors with you and focus on leveling up." It was customary to discard what was too weak to be of use. 'At least make yourself useful before I consider using you.' Jin-hyuk left with his back fully exposed as he moved down the stairs.

Thud. It was a completely defenseless posture that would allow any attack to hit him. "..." However, Min Jung-woo didn't move a muscle. No—he couldn't.

He had no choice. 'If I threaten clumsily, it might give him an opportunity to strike back.' That's how human psychology works. If you get angry, you crave revenge. That's why you have to engrave it in your very bones.

To think that you should never dare to engage, no matter the situation. Only then will you have a piece to freely manipulate. *** Jin-hyuk returned to his neighborhood just as the morning sun was beginning to rise. It was truly a long day.

As if several months were compressed into one. "Ugh!" Jin-hyuk stretched. As he slowly relaxed his arms and legs, the stiffness in his body seemed to lighten. 'The Trial Tower opens in the evening, so I should eat and rest until then.' Resting well and eating properly are just as important as being active. More than anything, you can't perform at your best if you're not in good condition.

But before he could properly relax, there was something he needed to check. "Status window." Jin-hyuk murmured to the air. Ding! ———————————————————— Name: Kang Jin-hyuk Gender: Male Age: 27 Level: 1 Strength 8 Agility 8 Stamina 8 Magic Power 11 Owned stat points: 0 Job: None. Unique ability: Fusion (融合) Skills: Lv1 'Element of Fire', Lv1 'Eyes of Truth' ———————————————————— The status window had changed.

New information had filled the previously empty unique ability and skill slots. "Wow..." An exclamation escaped his lips unconsciously. He had obtained one of the most overpowered unique abilities, after all. He was just starting, but the thrill of anticipation was undeniable. 'Calm down.' Jin-hyuk soothed his trembling heart. 'The first thing I need to do is acquire as many unique abilities and skills as possible.' There are over 50,000 types in the world.

It meant a long journey ahead. 'I need to prioritize and gather the abilities I need first.' The conditions for copying 'Element of Fire' from Min Jung-woo were not that demanding. But that was because it was only level 1. As the level and rank increased, the conditions for copying would undoubtedly become more demanding.

Of course, he couldn't rush things. If he hurried too much, he could complicate matters. Historically, there have been countless cases of failure due to haste.

By learning from others' mistakes... 'I won't repeat the same mistakes they did. Never.' ... most veteran players would think. In reality, the number of veterans who appeared at the National Museum, including Jin-hyuk, was only four.

He understood their reasoning⁠—they wanted to minimize risk. But hoping to get ahead while being careful and prudent? Did they expect everyone else to just twiddle their thumbs and wait for them?

The world always smiles upon those who take risks and challenge themselves. Not for those who only seek safe paths out of fear. So please, keep acting that way. 'In the meantime, I will continue to move forward.' While he had only one body and couldn't monopolize all opportunities... he would certainly monopolize the juiciest, most critical ones. 'Let the rest of you squabble over the scraps.' Jin-hyuk smirked to himself and closed the status window. 'But now, I'm reaching my limit.' As his thoughts settled, a gnawing hunger surged forth.

Rumble! His stomach vibrated violently from being empty all night. 'At times like this, it's beef soup.' The hot, milky broth, the generous amounts of meat, and the tangy kimchi were the perfect combination. For 7,000 won, there was nothing better.

The saying 'rather than buying something else with this money, just get a good bowl of beef soup' wasn't made up for no reason. 'Somewhere must be open by now...' And there it was. A beef soup restaurant that seemed to have been around for generations. Jin-hyuk headed straight into the 24-hour sundae soup restaurant.

Clink! Clang! The door opened with a noisy bell.

However, Something was off about the restaurant's atmosphere. "Dear heavens..." "I can't believe it was real." The dozens of customers, the staff, even the owner... Everyone was captivated by the breaking news on the television. -The government is currently investigating the unidentified structure known as 'Trial Tower' and has established a special department called 'Awakened Association', comprised mainly of officials who have gained the ability to use special powers. "Hmm." Jin-hyuk muttered with interest. 'The Awakened Association, huh...' The government's response was faster than expected. And the fact that they formed a department with those who had awakened unique abilities indicated that they'd decided to approach this incident flexibly. 'This is unexpectedly good.' He thought it would take at least a few weeks. -It's probably because of what happened today at dawn, right? -Yes, that's correct. There was an incident at the National Museum of Korea where at least 23 people died and more than 50 were injured.

The number of deceased is expected to rise as several are in critical condition. -How could they do something like that? -It seems they were after the relics stored in the museum. Similar incidents have occurred all over the world such as in the United States, Europe, China, and Japan. The British Museum in England, the Louvre in France, the Museum of Natural History in the US. 'As expected.' Players from other countries moved as well.

To obtain replicas. And to prepare to climb the tower. -Now, let's take a look at the CCTV footage from inside. The screen changed.

What appeared was a scene where a man and a woman were fighting. The woman who enlarged the Anubis statue was surprising enough, but... Thwack! Knocking a flying spear away with his bare hands.

Crack, crack, crack! And the part where a tiger was summoned from a painting was downright shocking. When the tiger ripped apart five statues, it seemed that even the announcer momentarily lost words.

There was no choice—it was a scene that far surpassed all common sense. -...I, I know it's hard to believe, but this is not an exaggeration. It's reality. After a few seconds of silence, the announcer stuttered her reply.

The restaurant became even noisier. "That's impossible. Can humans even do that?" "My God." "Who could that be?" The older customers mostly tilted their heads in confusion. However, "That, that's the person who was on the Trial Tower community recently!" "Oh, the one who dealt with the mangrove tree in the video?" "Right.

That reflex, that movement! It's that high-level player!" The younger generation recognized him right away. He was the biggest topic on all portal sites and communities at the time. "I'm really curious.

What's his identity?" "He could be some secret ultimate weapon the government has been developing." "There's also talk that he's a famous BJ." Speculation ran wild. Jin-hyuk awkwardly scratched his cheek, hearing such talk directly. Just then, A new figure appeared on the TV.

A man in his early to mid-40s, with a sharp demeanor. -...My name is Han Sang-jin, and I will be overseeing the Awakened Association. A man with a scar across his face and cold eyes. 'Han Sang-jin...' Jin-hyuk's eyes narrowed. If he was in charge of the association, he must possess a sufficiently good ability.

Or maybe he has simply played Trial Tower for a long time. Hopefully it's the former. That way, he might be able to copy that ability if they ever met.

As Jin-hyuk licked his lips, Han Sang-jin continued to speak. -I'm here to recruit those who have awakened. Although it will differ by grade, I promise you a minimum annual salary of 60 million won and treatment equivalent to a 7th-grade civil servant. Given Korea's current job climate, the offer was more than generous—enough to make people's heads spin.

It seemed they really wanted to gather the awakened ones, but it was debatable how many people would choose to become a civil servant over the land of opportunity. -Of course, the person shown in the broadcast is an exception. As the chair of the association, I'll give you my word. If you join us, the government will support whatever it is you desire.

So all that fuss was for... 'The target was me.' One skilled player is far more valuable than a hundred mediocre ones. Han Sang-jin knew this, offering a blank check in an attempt at persuasion. But, 'They really see me as an easy mark.' Regardless of what they offered, he had no intention of belonging to any group.

He also had no intention to share the knowledge he had. Jin-hyuk glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. There were 12 hours left.

Precisely at 7 pm. When the hour hand moved to mark the new time, the Trial Tower would open.