Chapter 26 Win-Win
Is it going to help?
Whether it was the truth or a random remark, she managed to spark his interest. Yoon-seok stared at Ragna, thinking that he should hear about this once, at least once.
Gulp.
Ragna swallowed back saliva, too nervous about speaking. If it didn’t get his attention, he would’ve immediately knocked her out again, without wasting any more time so that he could get back to training.
“Let me introduce myself first. Ragna Hambledon, Count Hambledon of the Levant Neutral States, is my father. He runs one of the top merchant houses on the continent.”
After saying that, Ragna glanced at Yoon-seok. His eyes were already bored as if to say, ‘So what?’ Her pride felt a sting even though she’d expected it. Aside from the fact that her family’s prestige didn’t work on interesting him, how could he look so bored in front of a young, pretty woman?
‘Do you like training that much…?’
Ragna used to feel somewhat exhausted from all the attention she gained wherever she went. Well, even though she was in one piece still because of a guy like him…
“Levant Neutral?”
It was courtesy to say your name when someone introduced themselves first, but Yoon-seok only replied with a question. Thanking the gods for even the slightest touch of interest, Ragna kindly explained.
“It’s one of the seven countries of Seheranbad. The Levant Neutral is a maritime country in the Heffron Ocean, with a total of 4,819 islands…”
Ragna suddenly stopped talking. Yoon-seok’s expression was no good. It was a look that told her to get to the point.
‘Sure, it’s not like I haven’t seen this type of person before!’
Count Hambledon was a merchant family. Due to a shortage in staff, Ragna, who was born as the next in line, helped with the work from an early age. She had negotiated several times with aristocrats much more arrogant than Yoon-seok. There was no reason to pick a fight, just do what they want, and they would stop.
Ragna gave a quicker summary.
“I can give you information about the Tower.”
“…?”
Yoon-seok tilted his head at Ragna’s confident expression. As far as Yoon-seok knew, all the challengers were those who were kidnapped by the Tower. That meant they were all in the same boat. Yet she was going to give him information about that?
Were there secrets that weren’t shared in the chat room? With growing expectations, Yoon-seok waited for her to continue. The words that followed were shocking.
“This isn’t the first time that a Tower has opened. It was opened five hundred years ago in three dimensions.”
“How do you know that?”
“My ancestor was a challenger. He warned his posterity many times that the Tower would open again someday. ‘This story should never be recorded in the written word, but it must be passed down to next-in-line descendants.’ That was his last will.”
It didn’t matter if the story of her ancestor was true. The next-in-line descendants of the Hambledons grew up listening to their ancestors’ stories since childhood. They respected the ancestor who established the family with their bare hands and passed on the blood of the aristocracy.
Of course, she didn’t believe the story. It felt like hearing a mysterious and old story that had nothing to do with her.
Ragna thought so until she arrived at the Tower.
“The will is a little strange. It would’ve been better if he had just recorded everything down without twisting the facts.”
“Truth is…it’s not that he didn’t record it, it’s that he couldn’t. If someone tried to record his story elsewhere, something strange would happen, and the records would be ruined. Suddenly a fire breaks out, or the books were completely soaked due to a leak springing from the roof…”
Suddenly, Yoon-seok’s eyes deepened. The story was too detailed to be fake.
Was it true then? He couldn’t give up his doubts.
“You said three dimensions earlier, aren’t you mistaken?”
“No, Killian, Seheranbad, and Moorim. It’s three dimensions. Five hundred years ago, there were no challengers from Earth.”
“…”
Yoon-seok closed his mouth. It was five hundred years ago, so there was nothing more he could say. Whether it was the truth or not, he listened attentively.
Ragna relaxed at his look of interest.
“You’re from Earth, aren’t you?”
“…Yes.”
“Do you plan to climb up the Tower?”
“…I haven’t thought about that.”
Ragna was surprised at Yoon-seok’s honest answer. While watching him train so hard and how he saved her life, she was under the impression that he was a born warrior. And most of all…
“Twice…no, if we win one more time, we can return, right? But you haven’t thought about it?”
A fully irreversible C-rank ticket. The price was 200,000 AP. But before he knew it, Yoon-seok had reached the part where that seemingly huge figure was just one step away. 128,000 APs for this match and 256,000 APs for the next.
If he won the next match, Yoon-seok could return to Earth. But…
“The plan was to go back, but now I’m not sure.”
Going back alive. This proposition had been the biggest priority since Yoon-seok was brought to the Tower. However, that goal started to blur somewhere in the process.
The Tower made Yoon-seok grow. He was able to break up the bad relationships he was bound to and finally found freedom because of the Tower. That alone took away his negative perception of this place. Even more so after meeting the Heavenly Devil and seeing what real martial arts were.
To build himself up and be strong, facing an enemy with one’s life on the edge of a sword. It would be pointless to deny it now. Even when he was nervous while predicting the odds, Yoon-seok found himself enjoying the process. If he decided to return to Earth completely, he would never feel this joy ever again.
Because that was what Earth was.
He could be better and more talented than anyone here but spend his life somewhere on Earth as a failure.
“I see…”
Ragna looked at Yoon-seok with pity. There were such men among the soldiers she had seen, crazy warriors who were addicted to the thrill of risking their lives. They eventually ended up looking for blood even after the war and found themselves in the cold ground, not in a warm bed.
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