“…You didn’t kill him, right?”
I kept poking Hanseong, who was still lying motionless on the ground with his eyes closed.
He should at least feel ticklish, but there was no reaction whatsoever.
“…You really didn’t kill him, right?!”
I turned to Death Knight and asked again, but he only scratched the back of his head and shrank back, saying nothing.
“Master, shall I kill him?”
Shing!
The Sword Ghost cheerfully unsheathed her sword.
I hurriedly stopped him.
No way was I going to kill my precious employee just because he made a mistake.
“We’re not killing him!!”
“…Aww.”
Looking disappointed, the Sword Ghost sheathed her blade.
Seeing that, Death Knight let out a sigh of relief and clutched his chest.
“Death Knight, you really didn’t kill him, right?”
“I swear, my lord! I did not kill him!”
“…Hmmm.”
Did he just pass out?
Should I heal him?
First, I had to check if he was breathing. I placed my index finger under his nose.
“Oh, he’s breathing.”
Fortunately, he was still alive.
He must have just fainted from exhaustion.
His head seemed fine too.
“His mana flow is normal as well.”
“…Haaa…”
Next to me, Death Knight let out a deep sigh of relief.
He must have been worried about getting scolded.
Monsters have more childlike tendencies than you’d think.
And kids should be praised when they do well.
“You did a great job!”
“…?”
“Praise!”
“T-Thank you, my lord.”
I walked up to Death Knight and patted his skull.
Since he seemed happy about it, I figured he must have been waiting for approval.
“…It must’ve been tough, huh? Sorry about that. You can rest now!”
“Ah, yes, my lord. Understood.”
“Also, from now on, don’t kill humans—just let them go.”
“Yes.”
Death Knight nodded and quickly retreated downstairs as if making an escape.
I tilted my head in confusion and turned to look behind me.
“…Grrrr!”
“Sword Ghost?”
“Ah!”
Sword Ghost was gritting her teeth with a resentful expression.
What’s her deal?
“Something wrong?”
“…It’s nothing, Master.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
If she said she was fine, then I’d leave it at that.
I nodded and lifted Hanseong off the ground.
“…How is an adult man this light?”
I really had gotten stronger.
Even back when I was F-rank, I was strong, but not to this extent.
He felt like a feather.
I tossed Hanseong up slightly, then caught him again, testing my own strength.
“…Ohh.”
It still amazed me.
It felt like tossing and catching a ping pong ball—his weight was completely insignificant.
“I might actually be kind of cool?”
Just as I giggled to myself.
“Master?”
Sword Ghost had trotted over with her arms outstretched, ready to take Hanseong from me, but now he was tilting his head in confusion.
“I’ll lay him down in his quarters.”
“Mm, put him in my room.”
“…You’re putting a human in your chambers?”
Sword Ghost’s face instantly darkened.
“…He’s a guest, so just put him there.”
“…That’s unfair. I wasn’t even allowed inside.”
“…?”
Muttering under her breath, Sword Ghost looked a little embarrassed.
Her childish behavior made me chuckle without thinking.
“You can go wherever you want too, Sword Ghost.”
“…Really?”
“Of course.”
“Hehe….”
Sword Ghost seemed to be in a better mood as she took Hanseong from me and hummed a tune while heading into my room.
“…Wait a second, doesn’t this mean I got into the boss room?”
“Did my plan actually work?!”
That meant I could finally move around inside my own tower freely.
Excitement started bubbling up inside me.
Earlier, I was too worried about whether Hanseong was dead to think about it, but now that I had time to process everything.
I was finally free.
“…S-Status Window!”
Excited, I summoned my status window.
But the response was disappointing.
[You still cannot leave.]
[The target is unconscious, so the Boss Break countdown has not begun.]
“What the hell? You could’ve told me that first.”
Oh well, it didn’t really matter.
“If they don’t let me out, I just won’t let them out either.”
To leave, they either had to kill me or make it down to the first floor.
Escape?
Through Hwarang and Death Knight?
Ridiculous.
Or maybe they’d kill me and open a portal?
“…That could work? But there are two of us on this side.”
If we ganged up on them, it might just be possible.
“…Sorry about this, but I don’t have a choice.”
Being trapped here was more suffocating than I expected.
I was starting to understand why monsters were so desperate to escape the tower.
Being confined in one place was this frustrating?
Most monsters had even less space than my room, so it must be unimaginably bad for them.
“…Still, knowing I can get out is reassuring.”
No need to rush.
I’d be able to leave soon anyway.
I reassured myself, pushing aside my disappointment.
“It’s just a slight delay.”
“If I take really good care of him, maybe he’ll wake up a little sooner?”
All I could do was wait for the rank 1 hunter to wake up.
“…What do I do about my stream today?”
Should I turn it on and at least show his face?
Or should I appear alone and warn people never to come here again?
Maybe I should just skip streaming altogether.
“If people think I’m in danger, that could be bad.”
Just when the public was starting to rally behind me, a major incident like this had to happen.
Everyone probably thought Hanseong was dead, which meant my tower would be labeled a killer’s den.
“Hmm…”
I called up my [Internet Broadcast]skill and debated whether to press “Start Stream” or not.
***
11:30 AM
[Teleportation successful!]
Two and a half hours after the reconnaissance mission began, the S-rank hunters finally exited the tower.
“Noona! Heal him, quick!”
“O-okay!”
Chanseok’s desperate cry rang out, but their condition was beyond terrible.
Mana exhaustion had left blue blotches all over Chanseok, Hanyul, and Yuna’s bodies.
And their tank, Kim Junghan—was a bloodied mess, captured in the cameras of waiting reporters.
His flesh was torn all over, and his armor, having long since lost its function, was now just a pile of scrap metal.
Some of those shattered pieces were even lodged inside his body, making for a truly horrifying sight.
But Yuna’s healing magic gradually began to close his wounds.
“Huff… ha… my, my mana…”
Having overused her body-enhancement magic, Yuna had no mana left.
After completing only the most basic first aid, she collapsed unconscious.
“Hah… reporters… call an ambulance…”
That was the last thing Chanseok managed to say before he, too, lost consciousness.
Four S-rank hunters had entered the tower—not to conquer it, but merely to scout—yet they all returned completely incapacitated.
The entire nation watched the live broadcast in shock, unable to tear their eyes from the screen.
With horror and fear filling their hearts, only one question surfaced in their minds—And soon, that question spread across every online community.
[So where’s Choi Hanseong?!]
[Where’s Hanseong-hyung? Why did only four of them come out?]
[Wait, wasn’t the team originally five people?]
[…Did he die?]
The Mystery of Choi Hanseong’s Whereabouts.
The question spread like wildfire, fueling countless speculations.
Before long, it became widely accepted as fact—Choi Hanseong was dead.
And one hour later.
[Breaking News: Hunter Choi Hanseong has been confirmed as… missing… Yes, m-missing as of 11:30 AM today.]
Two hours later.
[According to a statement from the Hunter Surveillance Bureau, this is an update on the missing Hunter Choi Hanseong.]
[Currently, there are no detectable biological signals from Hunter Choi Hanseong.]
The anchor, seemingly in shock, delivered the breaking news in a trembling voice, filling the nation with sorrow.
Then came the footage released by the Hunter Surveillance Bureau.
A recording of Chanseok, speaking in a voice that quivered with emotion.
And in the video, Hanseong, stepping forward for a duel against the Death Knight.
That moment struck a deep chord with the people, bringing them great grief.
[May he rest in peace.]
[…Choi Hanseong was such an upstanding hunter. I really admired him.]
[…Hunter Choi Hanseong, thank you for your sacrifice until the very end.]
Even the internet, which was usually a battleground of endless arguments and rumors, was flooded with waves of mourning.
And that evening.
A broadcast from the Nine-Tailed Fox Tower went live.
The screen showed Hanseong lying in the fox’s chambers, being cared for by Sword Ghost.
[Everyone! I told you not to come in! Why did you come and get yourselves hurt?!]
The contents of the stream were truly absurd.
***
Earlier That Day.
In the end, I decided to go live.
It took me quite some time to reach that decision.
I had gathered Death Knight, Sword Ghost, and Hwarang to ask for their opinions.
But all three of them just told me to do whatever I wanted.
So, I was left to figure it out alone.
“Already evening, huh.”
I stood outside, letting the cold air brush against me, before wrapping myself in my tails and heading inside.
“Sword Ghost, it’s getting chilly out.”
“Shall I start a fire?”
“Yeah.”
Sword Ghost nodded and ran off toward the kitchen, where the hearth was.
Ondol heating… truly a marvelous system.
So warm.
Now that I thought about it.
Did this place have seasons?
Looking at the mountains, the autumn foliage suggested that it was fall.
If there were four seasons here, that wouldn’t be bad.
I’d have plenty to show my viewers.
With that thought in mind, I glanced at Hanseong, still lying beside my bedding.
“…Thank you for protecting them.”
Honestly, I respected him.
He had thrown himself into danger, fully prepared to die, to ensure his teammates made it out alive.
“I could never do that.”
I hated the idea of sacrifice.
I’d never spent my life doing good things for others—why start now?
“…Hope he’s comfortable.”
Pushing those thoughts aside, I found myself worrying about Hanseong’s comfort.
After all, I was once human too.
I had lived in South Korea, just like him.
And I had been one of the citizens protected by hunters.
“Just wake up! Three days! Stay here for three days, and I’ll make sure you leave in one piece!”
With that, I changed into a light hanbok, something more comfortable for the evening.
“Time to start the stream?”
I had no idea.
That the moment my broadcast went live, people would lose their minds.