[8-3F Crevon Mainland, Ironblood Duchess’ Mansion]

“Follow me.”

The Ironblood Duchess led me to her office without any explanations. I absentmindedly followed and tried to piece it together in my head, but failed. I peeked at my smartwatch, but no alerts popped up. Recently, it stopped warning me about such changes because they occurred too frequently now.

“Hehe, your face looks funny. Were you that surprised?”

The Ironblood Duchess offered me a seat in her office and smiled.

“S-Stop joking around. Seriously, tell me how you’re here.”

“Should I explain that first?”

“Yes, please.”

She finally explained how and why she arrived here. I only became more dumbfounded, but it didn’t feel impossible. Still, I couldn’t help but ask.

“What? An invitation?”

The Ironblood Duchess casually nodded.

“Yeah. You came in with an entrance ticket, right?”

“…”

I stared at her calm expression. The villain I created and converted to good, Tomer. Once again, she appeared in the main story after a turn of events. Did the co-author want to give a supporting cast an important role?

“What exactly is an invitation?”

“An invitation is an invitation. It invited me to the tower.”

According to Tomer, she joined a group of mercenaries about 4 years ago after dropping out of Cube. She planned to transfer and become a hero after gaining some experience. However, the mercenaries discovered an underground dungeon that winter. They decided to illegally conquer the unregistered dungeon to avoid taxes. Tomer naturally participated as their best soldier.

They successfully conquered it, but she met an unfortunate end. The mercenaries told her to take a break and left her inside. Then they ran away and sealed the entrance. She woke up from her nap and realized they betrayed her. She discovered the invitation after desperately searching for an exit.

“What did it look like? What did it say?”

Tomer shook her head.

“Just something like, You are invited to the land of fantasy. I assumed anywhere would be better than that damp dungeon, so I tore the ticket right away.”

“Did anyone else receive an invitation?”

“Probably a dozen or so?”

“A dozen?”

I panicked. That meant at least a dozen people existed outside the setting.

“Yeah, but no one is as important as me. At least not on the 8th floor.”

“…” I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Does that mean you started on the 8th floor?”

“That’s right.”

Tomer grinned mischievously. Her appearance had changed a lot since I last saw her. She obviously lived a good life after overcoming her trauma. She used to have a sharp look, but seemed softer now.

“Also, what’s up with the Ironblood Duchess title?”

“That’s my nickname, I guess. I trained hard as soon as I arrived. Unlike you guys, I have something called a level system. I can grow stronger by leveling up, so I trained a bit.”

Tomer cheerfully continued, “Monsters come pouring in every month and I made a name for myself while fighting them. I’m already level 35.”

“35?”

“Yeah and I’m also super rich. I even received a title and that’s how I’m posing as a noble here. What do you think? Cool, right?”

She grew nearly as strong as the minotaur, one of the level 40 calamities on the 9th floor.

“You can take it easy. I'll pay you back 100 times, no 1000 times what I owe you.”

Tomer smacked her chest. That’s right, she owed me at least a couple hundred million. I’d been making so much money that I forgot.

“So, I skipped floor 8-2 thanks to you?”

“Yep. Oh, but it’s fine if you want to go back and train there.”

A player could climb to floor 8-2, Crevon’s Temporary Fortress, after reaching the end of the Field of Trials. Players could earn performance points from quests in the fortress to reach floor 8-3.

“No, I don’t need to.”

Only those with potential could grow stronger through fighting. I couldn’t use normal means since my innate talents already reached their limits.

“Why, because you’re already at the top?”

“…?”

Tomer grinned as if she knew something.

“I’m pretty close with the administrators. I’m like their right arm, so I know a secret or two.”

“Really?”

“Yep. Who would’ve thought you took all that money from Medea?”

I silently stood up and stared at the window behind Tomer’s seat.

I could see a full view of Crevon. Shops neatly lined up beside sidewalks. They looked bigger than houses, but smaller than buildings. Nothing like modern ones or Middle Age ones either. A unique world populated by thousands of people.

“Are we on the west side?”

“Yeah. Northwest, to be exact.”

Crevon had 3 districts with a river in the middle. First, the North and the South. Both residential areas equaled the size of Gyeonggido. Then the East, a narrow plot of land between the North and South. They also called it the World’s End, a place where NPCs didn’t dare to go. The World’s End Bridge lay at the very end and acted as Crevon’s final border.

“Here, have this first.”

Tomer handed me something as I looked over Crevon.

[VIP Identification] You are now a guest of the Lv.15 Duchess’ Mansion].

On the surface, Tomer’s mansion appeared higher leveled than Medea’s palace. However, the architecture of Medea's palace easily surpassed even a level 30 palace. Its low level only resulted from its geographic location, Prestige.

Tomer continued, “Stay here for the time being. You have other companions, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then I’ll look after them, too.”

“Oh.”

I smiled. Most players struggled in Crevon due to inflation. The cheapest product at the Upgrade Center on the 7th floor cost 15,000 TP. The level of civilization here resembled the 21st century, so the value of TP decreased even more. Tomer’s words couldn’t be more dependable.

“Trust me. I’ll show you loads of fun events later.”

Crevon hosted several huge events where players could earn TP to make up for this. The Colosseum, the Virtual Reality Game Tournament, the Monster Hunt, and the Dance Competition to name a few. However, players had to dismantle monsters and negotiate prices on their own without any common quests here. Agencies didn’t exist like on Earth.

“How’s the weather right now? Is it cold?” I looked down at the street with patches of snow.

“Yeah. It’s probably around -23°C right now. This place has 4 seasons just like Earth, but it tends to be more extreme.”

“Yeah? And how much are the buildings here?”

The system informed me this time.

[Crevon does not offer the Hideout System due to its dense population and limited residential areas.]

“You can’t buy buildings here. It’s overcrowded, so we decided not to sell any to outsiders.”

“…?”

Once again, this had changed from the original story.

“Really?”

“Yeah. The administrators’ subordinates proposed a legislation one day after receiving a revelation about outsiders.”

The revelation occurred in the original novel as well, but not the legislation. I sighed. The administrators on this floor should still be Agamemnon and Moses.

“By the way, how did you know I was here?”

“You were the first player to reach the 8th floor. It’s been a long time since I saw anyone from Earth, so I went to take a look. I hardly recognized you since your face changed so much. Did you get plastic surgery or something?”

“No. I just became more handsome.”

Tomer frowned.

“I’m kidding. Of course, I didn’t get any surgery. I just lost my baby fat as I grew older.”

“I don’t think that’s it. Anyway, do you know how to go up?”

“Yeah.” I nodded without hesitation.

“Oh, really? How did you know?”

“I have a way.”

I fixed my gaze on Tomer. “I want to ask you one more favor. Is that okay?”

She grinned before I even told her. “It doesn’t have to be just one. Thanks to you, my dad… Cough. Whatever, continue. I’ll do anything my dad’s friend asks me to do.”

I felt slightly guilty at her touching words and nodded with a wry smile.

“Thanks. The thing is…”

I explained my plans to Tomer. She thought for a moment before nodding.

“That’s hardly a favor.”

Nice. Blocking that bridge should be much easier now.

“Thank you.”

“No problem.”

We shook hands to celebrate our reunion. Suddenly, a stern voice came from the crystal ball in the office.

— Your Grace, a player is causing a commotion on floor 8-1.

***

A woman destroyed all their attacks with a terrifying wave of magic power and reached the end of the field. She only took 15 minutes.

A bulwark, an army of soldiers, and a general stood at the end of the field. They respectfully stepped aside and showed her the stairway to floor 8-2. It stretched far into the sky, but she didn’t climb the stairs. Instead, she turned to the general.

“Answer my question.”

The magic power she emitted left marks on the ground.

“Outsiders are not allowed to ask questions.”

Crevon’s general stepped up without being intimidated. He looked even more ready to fight than her. Ssssss… Magic power flowed from his hand and engulfed his blade. This sword reinforcement aura couldn’t be compared to the sword qi that every swordsman dreamed of.

“I will ask again.”

The woman spoke up. Her stern voice echoed across the field.

“Then I shall say it once more. Outsiders are not allowed to ask any questions.”

The general maintained an upright stance like a mountain that didn’t bend or waiver.

“Did a man pass by here or was he killed without making it through? Answer.”

Of course, she knew death in the tower wasn’t permanent. Still, she felt a duty to avenge her subordinates.

“Questions are not allowed. Take the stairway or return to the field. Those are your only options.”

Their conversation didn’t last long. Stones and trees naturally couldn’t communicate. A question left unanswered could only be addressed with violence. The woman emitted black magic power as her eyes turned red. The general’s eyes also glowed with determination. They almost went at each other when a whisper interrupted.

“Boss.”

She recognized the voice right away and turned towards it.

“Stop, Sir Kipha.”

The general also stopped after hearing the voice that spoke next. The tension between them instantly disappeared.

***

I went to the Crevon Mainland on floor 8-3 floor with Boss. We talked while walking along the unfamiliar streets.

“Hoo… oho… ooh…”

Boss acted like a child next to me. Everything piqued her curiosity here. A horde of airships filled the sky and beautiful magic occasionally decorated the sidewalk. Strangely, they still used horses for transportation.

“Hey Boss, why did you try to fight Kipha?”

“Mm? Ah. I would’ve won.”

“Geez.”

I felt touched that she came all the way here to save me, but I should discourage that confidence. Kipha was a legendary flowering knight from history. Boss shouldn’t be sure of victory until she restored at least 70% of her abilities.

“Are you doubting me?” Boss narrowed her eyes at me.

“Of course, you would win in a regular one-on-one match, but you haven’t learned any skills yet.”

Boss must be the only player without any skills at this point.

“Learn what I recommend to you later. Don’t be so picky. Actually, find the skills you want to learn by yourself.”

“That’s not how you should talk to your bo—“

I casually interrupted her. “By the way, how did you come here?”

“You… Haa.”

Boss wanted to say something, but simply sighed. I didn’t know why, but she frequently gave in to me these days.

“Spartan helped me.”

“Ah, did you worry about me?” I smiled at Spartan on Boss’ shoulder.

“T-That’s not it.” Boss waved her hand in a fluster and suddenly looked at the sky.

“L-Look. I’ve never seen an airship like that in my entire life.”

“Ah, really?”

BOOONG. We watched the magical airships that displayed video screens. Then a system alert popped up.

[Lv.4 Black Suit (J-Green Order) has been successfully auctioned.]

I wanted to check who bought it when Boss spoke.

“This floor seems much better than the 3rd floor.”

“Well, on the surface, yes.”

The brighter the light, the darker the shadow. Most players would have a harder time here than in Prestige.

In fact, Prestige wasn’t that bad nowadays. It actively developed towards its full potential. Many ordinary people currently lived there thanks to the work I put in. These artisans and manufacturers couldn’t obtain performance points because they couldn’t hunt monsters.

They would’ve been forced to scrape up 1000 TP to leave the tower, but now they had hope. Ordinary people also slowly obtained skill books and should be motivated enough to develop Prestige as news spread that they could return to Earth with their skills.

“Will you be okay?” Boss said worriedly.

“What are you talking about?”

“People might find out you’re the seat of black if you continue to climb at this pace.”

I smiled at her words. Extra7 is Black Lotus. It sounded reasonable since Extra7 achieved first place in the highest difficulty tutorial and Black Lotus climbed the tower the fastest. I changed my ID to a different one at the Game Center, but someone could still grow suspicious.

“Don’t worry about it. Instead…”

“Mm?”

I placed a hat I made on Boss.

[Lv.4 Hat Made By Kim Hajin] Lv.4 Heat Preservation, Lv.4 Appearance

It looked like a beanie with a cotton ball on the tip like a Santa hat.

“It’s a present since Christmas will be soon.”

“…”

Boss suddenly stopped walking. She blankly blinked for a few seconds before tilting her head to look at herself in a shop window. She definitely smiled, but only briefly. Then she clenched her teeth with complicated thoughts. I wondered if I had done something wrong.

“Thank you.”

She sounded like she had a lump in her throat.

“Boss. Did you do someth— Hmm?”

BEEP— I received a message.

“Hold on a second.”

CaptainBritain: I’ll be heading home now, Hajin.

It came from Rachel and I quickly replied.

Me: Me too. I’ll see you on Earth.

Then I asked Boss.

“Should we head back to Earth now? Looks like today’s the start of rest day.”

It should take at least a week for Tomer to create the system I asked for. Other players would reach floor 8-3 by then. That should be enough time to enjoy a short vacation.

“Okay.”

“Great, then let’s… No wait, you stay here, Boss.”

I stopped her from buying a return ticket.

“What?”

Then I handed her the [VIP Certificate] as she frowned.

“Take this and go to Tom— I mean, the Duchess and decide which skills you want. She should have lots of skill books. You need to choose at least one before I get back. It’s your homework, okay?”

“What? Who in the world gives homework to their boss—“

“It’s all because you’re too difficult. Come, Spartan.”

I called Spartan, who had been sitting on Boss’ shoulder all this time. He reluctantly returned to me.

“I’ll be off then. I’ll check your homework when I get back, so don’t slack off.”

“…”

Boss became speechless and blankly stared at me.

“Let’s go, Spartan. To Earth.”

— Pururu.

Spartan used his authority, the Passage of Light. A circle shone down from the sky and surrounded us. Then a strange sensation enveloped my entire body.