Chapter 30: Earning Foreign Currency
The next day.
Should I go to Japan?
I fell into thought.
S-rank Hunters. Sooner or later, I'll probably have to clash with one.
Japan seemed like the perfect stage to test myself.
Their Hunters shouldn't be much different in strength from Korean Hunters, but they would have absolutely no experience dealing with me.
As for the Korean S-rank Hunters...
They were probably trying every trick imaginable just to catch me.
Then I simply won't go where they want me to.
Traps?
Bait?
Parties?
Try whatever you want.
As if I'd willingly fall for it.
"Hehehe."
I looked down at the black mask in my hand.
I'd bought it yesterday from the Hunter named Kim Jjeopjjeop in exchange for another Low-Grade Magic Stone.
It wasn't an item.
It had no special effects.
But it does hide my face.
When I put it on together with my hood, I looked exactly like an Assassin.
It was a little embarrassing, like something a middle schooler would think was cool.
Still...
This should be enough.
After thinking for a while, I spoke.
"Listen carefully to the conditions I'm about to give you and open a Gate after searching for the best match."
[Please state the search conditions.]
"Anywhere overseas is fine."
I wasn't going straight to Japan.
There was something I wanted to test first.
"Among A-rank Hunters, find someone who has accumulated the most Contribution Points or owns the most Squad Leader equipment. They should have extensive combat experience, especially against Assassin-class Hunters. They must currently be inside the Tower. Open a Gate near someone who meets those conditions."
[Searching for conditions matching the user's request...]
Maybe because the conditions were long and complicated, the search took longer than usual.
After a while...
[Search complete.]
The moment those words appeared, I swallowed.
I'm getting nervous all over again...
What country would it be?
What kind of person?
[Tower of Fate - Russia, Floor 62. Opening Gate: "King of A-Rank."]
Russia.
One of the countries I'd expected.
"But 'King of A-Rank'..."
That clearly wasn't the actual name of Floor 62.
The Tower had probably created the name on the spot.
I shouldn't underestimate this.
Beyond that Gate was someone officially recognized by the Tower as the strongest A-rank Hunter in the world.
At least when it came to fighting Assassins, he was apparently unmatched.
"Haa."
I took a deep breath and stepped forward.
Tower of Fate - Russia, Floor 62.
Whoooooosh!
An icy wind swept through a snow-covered ruin.
A man crouched among broken concrete debris, carefully scanning his surroundings.
Nickname: Volk.
One of Russia's strongest A-rank Hunters.
Current rank: High-Rank NCO.
Quiet.
Volk's eyes swept over every corner of the ruins.
[Life Detection (A)]
Displays living beings within a certain radius in green.
Living beings concealed or hidden are displayed in red.
Thanks to this ability, Volk had never once been successfully ambushed.
He was always the one who discovered his opponent first.
Whether they were hiding...
Or suppressing their presence...
As long as they were alive, they could not escape Volk's eyes.
This ability is why I made it this far.
Full Tower Knights Squad Leader accessory set.
Two armor pieces.
Nine pieces in total.
Total Contribution Points: 700,000.
Among A-rank Hunters, I'm probably number one in Russia.
Volk had every reason to be confident.
His record against Assassins was especially overwhelming.
While other Hunters died to invisible enemies attacking from unseen positions...
Volk hunted those invisible enemies instead.
Assassins relied on concealment to force their opponents into reacting second.
That usually meant Assassins climbed ranks quickly.
By hunting those high-ranked Assassins in return, Volk had accumulated Contribution Points at an incredible pace.
The PvP update was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Volk possessed an A-rank ability, but before the update, he had never stood out much as a Hunter.
A-rank [Life Detection] was certainly useful.
But climbing the Tower normally meant following攻略s made by the first wave of Hunters.
Seeing monsters early didn't provide a huge advantage when everyone already knew what was coming.
Of course, it was better than nothing.
But compared to abilities that directly improved combat power, it fell short.
Against people, however, it's completely different.
In PvP?
This was practically an infamous ESP hack from an online game.
An illegal cheat that displayed enemy locations on screen.
Volk's [Life Detection] was essentially the real-world version.
Then...
Rustle.
What was that?
A faint sound made Volk instantly tense.
He turned toward it.
"...!"
At the edge of his vision...
A red silhouette suddenly appeared where nothing had been a moment earlier.
...What?
No approaching presence.
No footsteps.
It had simply changed from "nothing is there" to "someone is there."
How did he suddenly appear there? There's nothing behind that spot except a rock wall.
Unless someone had fallen from the sky, there should have been no way to appear there.
But Volk didn't waste time wondering.
It doesn't matter.
If someone appeared...
That simply meant Contribution Points.
His body reacted immediately.
Tat-tat-tat-tat!
Volk exploded forward.
He closed the distance in an instant and swung his sword at the red silhouette.
Bam!
Direct hit!
The blade slammed straight into the target's side.
Volk put even more strength into his arms, intending to cut the man in half.
Bam!
"Ugh!"
My eyes widened a moment too late.
...He hit me?
Until now, nobody had managed to hit me like this.
Probably because of the Silent Assassin title.
Whenever I crouched slightly and moved carefully, it felt like the title gave me some strange correction that prevented people from noticing me.
But this strike...
It came along a trajectory that made it seem like he'd known exactly where I was from the beginning.
This guy is different.
But that wasn't what surprised me most.
It doesn't hurt.
Not even a little.
When the Goblin Spearman hit me before...
It felt like someone pressing a ballpoint pen into my skin.
This Russian Hunter's attack?
Did a feather just brush against me?
That might be exaggerating a little.
But it definitely felt weaker than that Goblin Spearman's attack.
So this is what eighty percent damage reduction against fellow humans feels like...!
Come to think of it, this was my first time properly experiencing the defensive power of Tower Knights equipment.
Think later.
My surprise lasted only a moment.
I moved immediately.
"What...?"
The Russian Hunter's eyes widened.
He had probably used all his strength, yet his attack had done absolutely nothing.
Of course he'd be surprised.
