Chapter 483 – The Seven Towers of the King (3)

-Bang!!

As the walls of the building were torn apart, the people inside cried out in shock.

“King Mokryeong…!”
“I didn’t give you a place to do something like this.”
“Damn it… You’ll never be in a good position either.”
“That’s your opinion.”

-Swish.

With a single stroke of the sword, the man’s brain and flesh burst forth. The convulsing body of the man lay sprawled on the ground.
Blood spouting like a fountain.

“Ah, ah… What!”

As their leader’s life was taken in an instant, the disoriented members of the organization began to run towards the back door.

“Move…! Let go!”
“Damn it, they said we wouldn’t be caught!! That damned bastard!”

They pushed each other, desperately trying to escape.
But it was all in vain.
Regardless of age, he swiftly ended their lives with sweeping motions of his sword.

“-Kreurup?!”

“Kyaaaagh!! Save me, save me! I, I was wrong. I’ll never do anything like this again-“

Thud.
The surrounding noise died down with a dull sound.
Rebellion is tiresome.

[Three family members, involved in drug dealing… and slavery. You did all sorts of things. Good. You made quite a bit of money.]
“Uh.”
[This is pretty much over. Are you ready to go to the tower?]

-Brush.

A man shuddering behind me. Could he still be alive?
I’m on the phone with Gu-seul, and he doesn’t even glance at him.

“Ugh, ugh….”

The desperate man crawled towards the main gate, hands bloodied.
At the end of where he reached, Ebony stood with a sword in hand.

-Plunge!

The sound of a sword being thrust. This is the end.
Ebony, casually wiping off the blood, stepped on the corpse and walked towards me as if she was used to it by now.

“I’ve taken care of the meeting room below too… Sir.”
“Good job. Well done.”
[Is she a puppy?]

He reached out his hand, unfazed by Gu-seul’s tackle.

I vigorously rubbed Ebony’s soft hair.

“…”

At first, she showed resistance when I stroked her head, but lately, when I reach out, she leans her head in on her own accord. The sight of her nervously closing her eyes while being petted is truly breathtaking. I stroked her head even more diligently.

“Aww, such a good girl, so pretty~ and cute! That’s right, good job.”
“Ugh…”
[Sometimes, I wonder if you see your disciple as a dog or a pet.]

Isn’t this the joy of being a master? When I think about it, Heaven used to stroke my hair often too. It would happen when I was sleeping or had finished training better than usual.

‘That felt so good back then.’

This is what it feels like to be loved by your master. During my inexperienced days, I could walk forward, driven by my master’s warmth.

And so, I lavished her with praise.
Good girl, good girl!

“…Now, please.”
“Huh?”

At that moment, Ebony, who had been extending her head cautiously, brought her hands together and held them out. A crumpled sheet of stickers was gripped in my disciple’s hand.

“Grape stickers.”

Hmm… You are quite accurate with your calculations as well.

“Give me one.”

The grape stickers had already passed the halfway point. I wasn’t sure what she would ask for, but I could somewhat anticipate it. U45, the name of her test subject. She was likely trying to uncover traces of a friend she had made during that time.

I had been having my subordinates look into it little by little, so I thought I could fulfill her request without much difficulty.

“Let’s withdraw slowly.”

Due to this incident, the workload for Guseul and Dongbaek had increased. Rebellion was a loss in itself, but making up for the subsequent losses was even more troublesome. The somewhat lax discipline needed further adjustment.

I led Ebony into the castle using spatial magic.

– Oof!

As soon as the warp ended, Ebony, who had the sticker plate pressed firmly against her chest, spoke to me.

“Sir, I’ll store this away.”
“Take a break. Today’s tasks are finished.”
“Then I’ll be at the training grounds.”

She truly is a girl with an exceptional drive for self-improvement. As Ebony strode towards her room, I made my way to Dongbaek’s office.

*Thud.*

The moment I opened the door, I saw Camellia. She appeared to be sorting through documents with Dongbaek sitting beside her, and Camellia’s hands moved briskly.

“What should we do with this section, Miss?”
“Is there anything more urgent? Removing personnel from here right now seems…”
“Then let me search for a moment— Ah.”

Our eyes met through the gap in the doorway.

“Camellia. What’s going on?”
“…No, it’s just that the King has arrived.”

Camellia harbored no resentment towards me, but she couldn’t be separated from her master. That day, she reluctantly offered me a token of submission.

That was enough. After all, Camellia would never betray her master.

“Ah, Your Majesty?”

On the other hand, Dongbaek offered me a slightly bright smile.

Perhaps it was due to our intimate sleeping arrangement, but she suddenly seemed more interested in me.

“Can you do it?”

“It’s alright. I’m not in great shape, but… somehow, I’ll manage.”

As I half-listened to Dongbaek’s words, I examined the documents on the table.

‘Impressive, indeed.’

Previously, we barely managed to clear issues through collective effort, but now, they were being resolved neatly thanks to Dongbaek’s skilled abilities. Her decisions, imprinted on Camellia’s writing, exuded confidence.

If her physical condition were to improve, I wondered just how efficient she’d become at handling tasks.

“Siheon…sir?”

Camellia shyly utters my name, her head tilted to the side.
Camellia was a blessing, so much so that I felt a pang of guilt for treating her harshly for weeks.
At the same time, I was relieved.
Even without me, the land could go on. My anxiety subsided, and my heart felt lighter.

“I promise to fix your eyes.”

For my sake, for your sake.

“Huh? What? Why do you say that all of a sudden…?”

Her once white hair transforms to pink in an instant.
Camellia becomes flustered, and as she observes this, her namesake flower seems to display a hint of displeasure.

With this, the rough preparations were complete.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

In the afternoon, I visited Alba’s residence.

“Where’s Wiki?”
“In the study. Do you want to see her?”
“No, that’s fine for now. I’m here on business this time.”

“It must be about the Tower of Time.”

Prior to the tower’s assault, I sought counsel from her, a knowledgeable individual. In truth, it would have been better to inquire about the tower with Engahero, my second-in-command and loyal servant, but… I couldn’t trust him.

“Still, I think there’s a significant difference between asking and not asking.”

“I asked a long time ago. What was the answer then?”

The gist of it was as follows:

[Concerning the tower, I cannot divulge any information. The prophecy handed down to you, Your Majesty, is all there is. The tower is a place where trials have been prepared for you.]

It’s a trial meant to elevate me to greater heights, so I cannot reveal anything even if I were to die soon. At that point, I lost interest.

“The king’s subjects follow the former King Mokryeong, not me with a truly devoted heart.”

They merely act according to the prophecy and, for now, hitch their wagon to my cause.

“Hmm, is that so?”

Alba responded with a hint of irritation. Various types of papers lay haphazardly scattered across the table.
Does a former sage need to consult scholarly articles?

“So, do you know anything?”
“Hmm, well, there hasn’t been anything definitively revealed about the king, even in Eden…”

Despite her words, she might already know everything.
As I stared intently at her, Alba let out a derisive snort.

“-Of course, I’m not completely ignorant. Do you know that the Tower of Time has a dual structure?”
“Yes.”

Although it is referred to as the king’s seven towers, the actual divisions consist of four distinct areas.
This is because six of the towers, excluding one, are conjoined in pairs.

“By the way, has this been discovered?”
“It was uncovered unofficially not too long ago.”

The sage unfolded a paper and said:

“Dimension.”

Time and dimension.
In the paper presented by the sage, several theories about timelines and multi-dimensional spaces were detailed.

“The Tower of Time and Dimension?”
“Yes. You must go there yourself to determine whether the two towers present different trials or the same ones.”
“You’re not aware of the nature of these trials?”
“Yes, but… hunters who have ventured into the Tower of Dimension claim it induces sweet dreams.”

Sweet dreams. An enigmatic phrase, difficult to grasp.
Perhaps, like what Baekyang did for me, it shows the past.
It would be wise to entertain such thoughts and prepare accordingly.

“And…”

The sage paused briefly, wearing a meaningful smile.
It was an expression he often revealed when observing us from a distance.

“It seems they too are heading to the tower.”
“…That’s dangerous.”
“I cannot see any perilous actions taken within the tower.”
“I understand.”

I sigh. What if they get hurt?
Moreover, the location is the tower itself. I cannot guarantee my own safety there.

If a crisis arises…

“Tsk.”

Perhaps it would be best to synchronize the timing as much as possible.

“When are you leaving?”

The sage replied,

“In two days.”

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Click, click!!

Star’s brow furrowed at the incessant sound of the camera shutters.

“I told you not to come like that…”

How on earth do these reporters know when we’re arriving, and show up just to take our pictures like this? A throng of journalists stood in the airport, eager to spend days in tents, just to capture photographs of Star.

“Please, say something!”

Suddenly, a reporter’s microphone was thrust right in front of Star’s face, causing her irritation to surge. Lee Se-Young gently pushed Star’s back, encouraging her.

“Go on.”

“Oh, dear.”

He snorted like a puppy desperate to relieve itself. The ‘hunter’ strode haughtily through the crowd, appearing well-accustomed to this sort of situation.

The camera shutters furiously clicked at the sight of the full plate armor, reminiscent of a medieval knight. The Knight of the Lake. This was the title some foreign portals had given the ‘hunter’. A blue hue shimmered like silver scales from the armor, which led many people to remain uncertain of the ‘hunter’s’ gender.

“Ah!”

As the trio moved further away, disappointed voices filled the airport. They managed to reach the private jet, having navigated through the throngs of people. Byul, who had been practically thrown into the large airplane seat, gulped down carbonated water.

“Phew… Dealing with those reporters is the hardest part,” Byul complained.
“If you get caught again, you’ll be the talk of the town,” Se-Young warned.
“Eh~ Let them talk~ My power is the best~”

Despite Se-Young’s caution, Byul giggled, pulled out a backpack, and began rummaging through it.

“Hey Yellow, hand me your backpack. I need to check the items.”

At the seat next to Se-Young, the ‘Hunter’ who had been curiously fiddling with the carbonated water, flinched at Byul’s words. Byul reached out a hand and said,

“Give it to me.”
“…”
“Se-Young, take it from him.”

Was it the hesitant attitude that led Byul to suspect something? Se-Young smoothly intercepted the ‘Hunter’s luggage and handed it over to Byul.

“Let’s have a look.”

Byul, licking the corner of his mouth and opening the backpack, was utterly astonished.

“Hey, you! What kind of expedition did you think this was—”

A bright red plastic cup. A long, soft-looking food item depicted on the instant food packaging made him sigh all the way to the back of his throat.

“Who brings cup tteokbokki on a trip like this?”
“…Uh.”

Even if water could be used for magic, this was just too much. Cup tteokbokki with its bulky packaging on a journey with an unknown duration.

“No way… You even brought uncooked tteokbokki. Would you die without tteokbokki? Does your blood dry up without it?”

At the star’s reprimand, the dejected “hunter” held out both arms, attempting to relieve the star of its burden.

“Please…”

“Hold on just a bit longer. I haven’t seen everything yet!”

“Spicy…”

“That darn spiciness!”

Caught up in the “hunter” and the star’s squabble, Se-Young found herself in the middle. Just before feeling like a shrimp about to burst, she narrowed her eyes slightly.

Witnessing this, Baekyang uttered a remark.

【These are amusing individuals.】

A heated sigh escaped Se-Young’s lips.

‘…It is entertaining.’

【Hehe.】

They are indeed exasperating youngsters.