UTC 07

Chapter 7

[Strategy Rating SSS Achieved!!]
[An unprecedented record!!]

After clearing the 5th floor, I challenged the 6th floor.

As expected, it was extremely easy.

The boar-type monster, Boar, had no way to attack the drone hovering tens of meters above. It stomped around in frustration, and before it could retaliate even once, it ended up as a chunk of meat.

[Do you wish to challenge the 7th floor of Sky Tower?]
[The protection zone will soon be lifted. Prepare for battle.]
[Mission: Monster Hunt – Black Boar 0/30]

The monster on the 7th floor was the enhanced variant, Black Boar.

Yet nothing changed.

The Black Boar still had no anti-air capabilities.

So the command I issued upon entering was simple.

“Exterminate.”

Automatic attack order.

The hunt was so simple it felt as if I had returned to the 1st floor.

I watched the massacre briefly through the projection from the combat drone.

[Mission: Monster Hunt – Black Boar 41/30]

…

[Mission Complete!]

The kill count filled up, and the strategy ended just as easily.

“Now that I see it, the Hunter Drone….”

There was one thing I realized while also clearing the 6th and 7th floors.

Its combat performance was better than expected.

Honestly, when clearing the 5th floor, I only recognized it as a stealth maneuver unit.

But even without considering stealth, its engagement ability was impressive.

Its single shot was weak, but the firing rate was high, making it perform better than ordinary combat drones in extermination battles.

“I kind of want to push all the way to the 10th floor….”

[Level Up!]
[(Floors 6–10) 1 S-rank reward box has been added to your inventory.]
[(Floors 6–10) 1 S-rank material box has been added to your inventory.]

“The material box appeared!”

I cleared the messages and prepared to exit.

Even though I fed 12 million won worth of mana crystals yesterday, today’s climb had consumed a lot of energy.

Before entering the tower today, Neia had about nine days’ worth of energy.

Considering the energy consumption had increased by about 1.5 times, it made sense to exit after clearing three floors.

[Exiting Sky Tower.]

“Gate open.”

After returning to the room, I headed straight to the Core Center.

On the way, I allocated my stats.

[Lv. 8 Kang Sun-woo]
Class: Spatial User
Rank: EX
Strength: 10 (+)
Agility: 10 (+)
Magic Power: 19 (+)
Mana: 19 (+)
Stat Points: 3

As before, I distributed the points into Magic Power and Mana.

Magic Power: 19 → 20 (+)
Mana: 19 → 21 (+)

After closing the status window, I opened my inventory.

I checked the rewards obtained from today’s climb.

【(Floors 1–5) S-rank Reward Box】 1
【(Floors 6–10) S-rank Reward Box】 2
【(Floors 6–10) S-rank Material Box】 1

With nothing else to do, I decided to open the boxes.

First, the 5th-floor reward box.

Inside were 20 low-grade mana crystals added to my inventory.

“Next is this one.”

Then the 6–10 floor reward box.

It contained low-grade mana crystals as well, but in a larger quantity.

30 in total.

“Not bad.”

As the number of drones increased, so did combat energy consumption.

The increased number of mana crystals was a relief.

With a relaxed mind, I opened the remaining box.

“Hmm…?”

I had expected more mana crystals, but something else appeared.

【Dense Cold-Resistant Robe】
-Rank: Advanced
「Additional Stats」
+Mana: 5

“A robe for magic users, I guess?”

Its rank was somewhat ambiguous.

Advanced was right after normal, making it fairly common.

“But the skills are pretty good.”

「Special Skills」
+[Rapid Calculation]
-Casting speed +10%

+[Breath of Healing]
-Mana recovery +10%

As expected from a lower-grade item, it only provided +5 Mana.

But the attached skills were excellent.

They increased casting speed and mana recovery by 10% each, both crucial for mages.

“I wonder how much this is worth?”

Despite being advanced grade, its efficiency was well above its rank.

Stats are mostly the same within the same grade, but skills are entirely random.

And since this robe affects casting speed and mana recovery, even with low values, it would be in demand.

Anyway, it replaced 30 low-grade mana crystals…

So as long as it sold for slightly more than 3 million won, it would be fine.

“I should’ve opened it in the room if I knew this.”

I wanted to check the price, but by then, I was almost at the Core Center.

It would be a waste of time to go back just to check.

I decided to quickly supply mana crystals to the Core Center first, then confirm prices.

I walked faster.

“Next is the material box.”

【(Floors 6–10) S-rank Material Box】

The third material box acquired.

Material boxes had never disappointed before.

Being S-rank, I had expectations, but also a slight unease.

“Please, at least B-rank!”

Hoping for a big payoff like the Lightning Flute, I opened it.

Squeeeeak.

As the box opened, the item appeared in my inventory.

【Blood Boar’s Fang】

The Blood Boar is the floor boss of floors 6–10, just like Kinol.

I checked its rank.

B-rank.

Same rank, B.

“The important part is the price…”

Not all B-rank materials are worth the same.

Price varies greatly depending on purpose and use.

『Welcome, Sun-woo.』

While thinking about Blood Boar’s Fang, I arrived at the Core Center.

First, I unloaded all the mana crystals.

Thump-thump-thump.

“Convert this into energy.”

『Thank you.』

“After charging, there should be about five days of energy left, right?”

『Yes.』

I nodded and walked back the way I came.

“Ah, temporarily transfer the drones’ control to me.”

『Order confirmed. Transfer starting.』

“I have urgent business, so I’ll head off first. See you later.”

Hearing Neia’s quiet voice behind me, I continued walking and arrived at my apartment.

Once inside, I sat at my desk.

I searched the robe first.

The price was surprisingly high.

The Dense Cold-Resistant Robe cost a staggering 10 million won.

Skills aside, its cold-resistant material was highly valued.

Perfect as spare gear for cold environments.

“Next is Blood Boar’s Fang.”

Checking the price, I was shocked.

I rubbed my eyes and looked again.

“1… hundred million?”

Even among B-rank items, a tenfold price difference was rare.

I researched why it was so valuable.

[Wow, got Blood Boar’s Fang]
└ Wow… so jealous.
└ I’ve cleared it repeatedly for two months and didn’t get it.
└ So someone actually gets this.

[Why is Blood Boar’s Fang so expensive?]
└ It’s a skill replacement material. The skill it replaces is Berserk, which is pretty good.

If Kinol’s Lightning Flute was an elemental item, this material was a skill material.

It could replace the skill on equipment.

This allowed “dead” equipment to be revived.

“Berserk…”

I searched a bit about skill replacement.

Found a post with similar questions.

[Is skill replacement material good?]
ㄴ It depends on the skill.
ㄴ If it’s a useful skill, it’s good. Many low-grade skills exist on high-rank equipment.
ㄴ Once replacement succeeds, the skill applies according to the equipment rank, so demand is always high.

Berserk was a highly valuable skill material.

It increased attack and defense over time at the cost of the user’s HP for a limited period.

Highly favored by melee players.

Success rate decreases with higher equipment rank, but it could revive abandoned equipment, keeping the price high.

“Worth the hundred million.”

I immediately listed it for sale.

Blood Boar’s Fang.

Being extremely popular, the sale request came quickly.

Even listing 20 million won above the average, it sold in less than 24 hours.

[Balance: 120,323,101]

After a 1% transaction fee, the amount was credited to my account.

“Is this really my money…?”

I couldn’t help smiling.

Only ten days into my awakening, and I never imagined handling such a large sum so quickly.

I had been incredibly lucky lately.

“I can spend about ten million, right?”

I planned to reinvest the remaining 110 million.

Buying mana crystals to maintain energy.

This wouldn’t fully solve power-saving mode, but it relieved the anxiety of running out during every battle.

“Let’s go buy mana crystals first.”

I prepared lightly and went out.

Today’s destination wasn’t the association.

For purchases over 100 million won, trading through a guild was more advantageous than through the association.

The quantity and price per unit were better.

A few thousand won difference per unit added up to over a million won, so there was no reason not to go.

“Right place, Mir Guild.”

Finally, I arrived at a top-10 domestic large guild.

Few guilds had items worth hundreds of millions.

Mir Guild was one of the few that could handle it smoothly.

Inside the flashy Mir Guild building, I inquired about buying mana crystals.

The receptionist bowed.

“Please wait a moment; I will introduce you to the person in charge.”

Left alone, I happily pondered what to do once energy was secured.

But my thoughts didn’t last long.

Crash! Bang!

The shock shook the table violently, transmitting through the building walls.

Was it an earthquake?

The tremor subsided quickly.

Then I heard furniture breaking.

“Something’s happening…?”

I grabbed the doorknob to check.

“Ahh!”
“Help…!”

Screams.

This guild had skilled members, yet such screams echoed.

Something serious had definitely happened.

I closed the slightly opened door and thought.

“Should I send the Hunter Drone?”

The Hunter Drone had stealth capabilities.

It could scout safely.

But as I tried to open the gate, something concerned me.

“Is there CCTV?”

I quickly checked the reception ceiling and under tables. Luckily, there was none.

Relieved, I opened the gate and deployed the Hunter Drone.

I scouted the lobby.

The projection drone first shocked me with the horrific scene.

Then I was shocked again seeing the occupying force.

“Eclipse?”