I’m the only magic tower owner Chapter 1

I’m the only magic tower owner episode 001

“Please go to Sanggye-dong.”

When I said that while sitting in the back seat of a taxi, the driver opened his eyes wide and asked back, as if in confusion.

“Sanggye-dong?”

“yes.”

The man turned on the fare machine and stepped on the accelerator.

“Why are you going to that gloomy town?”

“……Haha, I just have some business to attend to.”

“I usually don’t try to go to that area. There’s a strange tower.”

“Yes.”

You say it’s the overlay phenomenon?

For several years now, scholars have said that the reason why alien monsters suddenly appear on Earth and plants that have never been seen before grow is because another world has been overlaid on Earth.

Of course, not only animals and plants were transferred to Earth.

A treasure from another world.

The language of another world.

An alien civilization.

And above all, the ‘remains’ of the other world were also transferred.

The ancient imperial palace, the hanging garden, the dragon’s nest, and the underwater city were unmistakable traces of an otherworldly civilization, although there were no people inside them.

And there is one of these ruins in Seoul, South Korea.

A huge ‘tower’ that metastasized with the overlay incident.

The city of Seoul had suddenly acquired its third tower, joining Namsan Tower and Lotte Tower, but people’s perception of this new tower was not very positive.

“The rumors are so scary.”

The driver said.

“It’s a tower that attracts monsters. It’s going to be swarming with monsters that will invade the world.”

I nodded. Citizens at the time, who had seen irreparable damage from monsters, had a tendency to reject anything from the other world.

In fact, the area around the tower was also a restricted area where monsters often appeared.

“They even went to the military and tried to demolish the tower. Well, that doesn’t mean that guns or missiles didn’t even make a dent in the tower!”

“Incredible.”

“Looking at your outfit, you seem to be a hunter, but still take care.”

I nodded and smiled slightly at what the chatty driver said.

Actually, there is a story I cannot tell this man.

I am a wizard, not a hunter.

And the tower.

It’s mine now.

* * *

6 months ago.

After the ‘Overlay’ incident, in which Earth and another world overlapped, humanity faced a new natural enemy called a monster.

Just as weeds grow in abundance when an empty lot is left alone, we have entered a strange era in which monsters suddenly appear without any reason.

And a being that can hunt that monster.

‘Player’.

They are literally like characters playing a game, who can become infinitely stronger by hunting monsters and raising their abilities.

but.

Not all players can become ‘professional hunters’.

Name: Kim Yu-shin

Unique Ability: Detection

Personal characteristics: [Overindulgence Lv.6] [Analysis Lv.1] [Mana Child Lv.1]

Basic stats: [horse power 56] [acceleration 7] [strength 5] [stamina 5]

Special abilities: [Concentration 3] [Patience 2] [Intelligence 2]

Total ability score: [80]

‘It still hasn’t climbed today.’

By going to an expensive player-only gym to increase my strength level.

To increase your physical strength, you can even do aerobic exercise on a high-intensity schedule.

I maintained this pattern for five months, but my abilities showed no signs of increasing.

It’s already been 2 years since I awakened as a player. Even though growth is slow, it is still very slow.

“Whoa.”

I tilted my chin back with a tired face.

Inside the shaking city subway.

Several people come into view.

Middle school students laughing and talking while spouting strange new words, a father waving to his young daughter on a video call, a young lady trapped in her own world wearing earphones, etc.

It’s an ordinary daily life, just like any other day, but at the same time, today’s scenery has not changed anything from yesterday.

To me, everyday life means stagnation without being able to take a single step forward.

… … What am I saying again?

I just felt depressed for no reason.

To change my mood, I switched from my out-of-breath status window to the smartphone screen.

As always, news of famous hunters dominated the main page of the portal site.

[Oracle Guild Team 1 led by Team Leader Hajin Kim. Finally conquering the ‘Temple of Ink Thunder’!]

[Spotlight! What kind of dungeon was the ‘Temple of Inkrei’ that three guilds successively failed to conquer?]

[Team leader Kim Ha-jin, ‘Cha Young-ho, who plays the tanker position, has a bigger role than me.’]

[The item ‘Dark House Ring’ excavated from the Temple of Mukrei is estimated to have a market value of KRW 70 billion.]

Wow, I’m jealous.

I also want to go to a dungeon.

In fact, it is much more efficient to increase a player’s abilities by hunting monsters in a dungeon than by following Earth’s training methods.

It’s not that I don’t know that fact, but in the hunter world, I was evaluated as ‘out of power’ and had no qualifications to enter the dungeon.

Why ‘other than power’?

Simple. The most important thing for modern hunters is ‘unique ability’.

It is the element that ultimately determines the player’s combat style.

And my unique ability, ‘Detection’, is the ability to see other people’s status windows.

If someone asks, ‘But isn’t it useful because it’s an information collection ability?’ If you ask me, I will answer you with a friendly smile.

‘Then please fight by looking at the status window! ‘Monsters don’t even have status windows!’

… … Hmm, anyway, as a hunter, I don’t have the ability to feed him.

I might be able to get a job as a guild scout, but what I want is a real ‘hunter’ who can run in the field.

I sighed in resignation and looked back at my status window, which I didn’t even want to look at.

Basic stats: [horse power 56] [acceleration 7] [strength 5] [stamina 5]

It’s a shabby status window, but the only advantage it has is its magic power.

This one is abnormally high. Perhaps because of his personal characteristic of being a ‘child of mana’, his magic power increases just by breathing.

But there is a problem here. The player’s ‘magic ability’ is an effect that strengthens special abilities such as unique abilities.

For example, if a person capable of using fire has a high magic ability, the fire power of the flame becomes stronger, the range increases, and various applications become possible.

My ability to spy on other people’s status windows?

There is a subtle feeling that the status window is more visible and opens faster than before, but the conclusion is that it is just useless.

My only advantage is magical power, but magical power is no different to me.

Even if it gets twisted, is it possible for it to get twisted like this?

The reactions of my friends who heard about my status window were all similar.

Damn.

A warrior character full of magical power.

Status window shuttle forever suffering.

Still, I didn’t want to give up on becoming a professional hunter.

In the end, there is only one way for me to become a hunter.

All you have to do is use your body to increase your strength and stamina, which are directly helpful in battle. But since you can’t go to the dungeon, this isn’t easy either.

While I was sighing and looking at the status window, I heard a train announcement.

-This station is Sanggye Station, the final station of this train. This is Sanggye Station. The door to get off is on the left.

The quiet train was bustling with people packing their luggage.

As I stood up carrying the bag I had also brought, the view of the terminal station was reflected through the glass window on the other side.

‘Okay, what’s the point of complaining?’

I gathered myself together and got off at the last station.

* * *

Sanggye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul.

Old, gloomy, gray houses were crowded together, and broken concrete debris was rolling around on the ground. This is probably the neighborhood with the cheapest housing prices in Seoul right now.

I raised my head and looked at the cause of the decline in house prices.

“That’s it.”

A huge gray tower that is considered an eyesore in Seoul.

It was very visible in this neighborhood.

There were rumors going around that that tower was attracting monsters and that the devil was living inside.

Although it is mostly just an unverified urban legend, the area around there is a ‘controlled area’ where monsters appear due to the strong influence of the other world.

There is no doubt that it is a dangerous area.

And there is only one purpose for which I came to this place.

I turned on my smartphone and went to the page I had previously linked to.

-Monster hunting spot.

-Simple without a hunting permit, dungeon license, or hunter license!

-How to break into the restricted area without getting caught.

right. My purpose is illegal hunting.

I was now feeling the limitations of earthly growth methods such as simple physical training.

If the association won’t allow me to enter the dungeon because it’s ‘out of my power’, I’m going to force myself to kill monsters and raise my abilities.

As the day grew dark, I walked towards the control area.

Past the gray concrete buildings, I saw a spot in the distance where exotic trees were growing luxuriantly like a jungle.

The area was surrounded by barbed wire and barricades and was filled with signs prohibiting access, as if to prove that it was a dangerous area.

A silent warning to turn away immediately.

I drooled unconsciously.

‘Okay, let’s go in.’

I checked the entry and exit locations once again.

Well, even though it is a restricted area, security is not very tight.

Basically, monsters in controlled areas stay within their own territory. Sometimes hunters go in and clean up, but monsters constantly appear out of nowhere, as if they were regenerating.

So, the troublesome land that both the government and the hunter association have abandoned is this control area.

Dispatching dozens of regular hunters to a place like this is itself a waste of power.

For the association, it is difficult just to stop monsters that spawn directly in large cities.

I climbed up a deserted hill as instructed on the Internet, climbed over the barbed wire, and entered the restricted area.

Fortunately, there were no cameras or security personnel in sight.

‘Okay, then get ready.’

He put down his bag on the floor and took out something that looked like a white baton.

There is an official name for it, but I just call it an iron pipe. It is a weapon that can be made by mixing monster bones and metal and can store mana.

I closed my eyes and maximized my concentration.

I can feel the mana flowing leisurely through my body.

He gently interfered with the flow, guiding mana as if he were turning the water of a flowing river, and slowly pushed it into the iron pipe he was holding in his right hand.

Ugh!

I felt like my body was losing strength, and the outside of the iron pipe took on a bluish color.

It’s a success.

This is mana coating, the basic skill of players.

It is a technology that transforms ordinary objects into weapons that can defeat monsters by giving them mana.

After getting everything ready, I slowly walked around looking around.

It must have been around 19:00 now, but the dark forest was extremely gloomy.

It’s not too late.

I have to go back now.

I shook my head and tried to clear away the anxious thoughts that came up intermittently.

Player evaluation day is coming soon. Until then, I had to raise my strength and stamina abilities to somehow escape from the ‘other than full power’ judgment.

After that, you can grow by catching monsters through normal procedures. That’s how desperate I was.

Savzak, Sabzak.

A presence was felt beyond the bushes. I approached with as little noise as possible and hid behind a tree. And I just peeked my head out.

There is a monster!

Gurma.

A monster with eyes, nose, and mouth attached to its face without any regularity, giving it the appearance of being created by the creator. It bounces around with a body like a roly-poly, and attacks people using its large rabbit-like ears as arms.

Thank goodness.

Gurma is considered the weakest rank 1 player among players.

If the monsters in this control area had been rank 2 or higher, I would have had no answer.

I wanted to approach without being noticed and ambush him, but he must have spotted me first, curled his big ears and clenched them like fists, and jumped towards me.

‘Calm down.’

I watched Gurma’s movements from my spot to the end and then bent my back.

Buuuuung!

The hair on my entire body stood up as the attack passed before my eyes, cutting through the wind.

Although powerful, the pattern is honest.

I dodged the next attack by pulling back my shoulder and headed toward Gurma’s side.

Baaaaagh!

I swung the iron pipe with a full swing.

Its side caved in like jelly and turned gray.

-Gruruk!

Gurma jumped up like a roly-poly and rushed at me again and started firing a series of attacks.

Yes, it’s just a repetition of the monotonous one-two pattern. I thought, avoiding it repeatedly.

Where else is this guy’s weak spot other than his side?

Oh yeah.

After avoiding the attack by tilting my head, I placed my left foot on the tree behind me and lifted myself up.

And just like that, floating in the air.

Buuuuuung!

A heavy blow was delivered to the head.

It’s like jelly! With an explosion sound, more than half of his upper body turned gray.

As soon as I landed, I blocked the swinging attack, twisted my body, and threw a kick.

Knock knock!

Finally, Gurma’s entire body turned gray and collapsed with a crunching sound.

… … Won!

[Magic power has increased by 1.]

“Huh! Huh! Huh!”

I caught a monster!

Are you watching? Association bastards! Why am I out of power!

… … After being in a state of narcissism for a while, I came to my senses and checked my abilities.

Everything else is good, but even though I engaged in close combat, my magic power increased, not my strength or stamina.

It really is a f*cking constitution.

Well, at this rate, it won’t be long before my other abilities increase. I vigorously got up and resumed hunting.

* * *

After getting a taste of hunting, I swung the iron pipe without even realizing that it was late at night.

Today’s harvest is 2 horsepower and 1 quickness.

Strength 1.

Considering that there was no change even after working out like crazy for several months, the pace is incredibly fast.

‘I guess that’s all for today.’

Actually, my condition wasn’t that good.

My physical strength was no problem, but since it had been a long time since I had fought a monster, the mana in my body was boiling uneasily.

I don’t know what the symptoms are, but I’m a little scared. Stories of players dying from mana reflux are common on the internet.

Now I looked back with the intention of going back.

“…….”

As I was frantically hunting Gurma, the surroundings became completely pitch black. The sight of trees with bare branches spread out all over the place was even more gloomy.

Getting out of this would be a task.

I turned on my smartphone and launched the GPS and map apps. When I checked the location, I found that I was deep into the forest.

‘… … Me too.’

know.

I too am aware of my problems.

I’m the type of person that once I get hooked on something, I can’t get out of it.

There seems to be a reason why the first characteristic I gained upon becoming a player was ‘over-immersion’.

‘Let’s hurry.’

I walked, relying on the map app.

The surroundings were so dark that I wanted to turn on the flash, but I had to hold back since it might attract the attention of other monsters.

Tuk.

At that time, something stepped on my feet.

A sensation that is distinctly different from the bare ground travels through your toes and lingers in your mind.

I lifted my leg and stepped on it again.

“……!”

This time it was bare ground.

I got goosebumps all over my body. She quickly turned off her smartphone and took a few steps behind her.

In the pitch-black darkness, a low, gloomy cry sounded.

Damn it!

It’s not like a guruma. Without any hesitation, I ran in the opposite direction from where I heard the sound.

-Kyaaaaaaa!

And then, as if waiting, a roar erupts from behind.

I quickly jumped into the bushes.

I couldn’t see clearly in front of me, so I had to lunge with both arms in front of me.

Scratches from tree branches appeared all over the body.

Ujikkeun! Kwasik!

And right behind me, the sound of trees being broken and uprooted hit my ears.

A situation where you are being chased by a strong-looking monster. Moreover, the mana in my body, which had been boiling anxiously from before, was fluctuating more and more strongly.

“……Huh! Hah!”

A rough breath came out of my mouth.

Still, the physical training I did to improve my abilities is helping at this moment.

But in the end, I won’t be able to outrun him at my speed and I’ll catch up.

Now maybe it’s good?

perhaps?

Huh!

Suddenly, I heard the sound of the wind behind me, and I instinctively ducked.

A cool sensation passed by right above my head.

I raised my head as I felt cold sweat coming down my face.

The black-furred monster moving upward was glaring at me with wide-open eyes.

It’s crazy, really!

Sigh!

The furry monster skidded and scratched the dirt floor, then leapt back flexibly. Driven into a corner, I gritted my teeth and lashed out at the metal pipe.

terup.

However, he was easily caught in the guy’s grasp.

When I, horrified, put down the iron pipe and stepped away, he simply folded it in half and threw it backwards as if to show off.

… … The level is different.

It seems to be at least a rank 3 monster.

He rushed at me again and swung his arm, and I quickly retreated.

thud!

I dodged the attack, but in my haste to retreat, I didn’t see the tree behind me and crashed into it.

My body shook from the sudden shock and I lost strength for a moment.

-Crrrrr.

And the monster that had cornered its prey was approaching to hand down the death sentence.

Bare hands without weapons.

The unique ability is detection.

No matter how much of a player you are, there is no way you can beat such a monster.

“……Keueuuuuu!”

To make matters worse, something happened.

The mana in my body, which I had tried so hard to ignore, began to boil over like an active volcano.

A red light went on in my head.

“……Huh! Huh!”

I gritted my teeth and stretched out my trembling arms towards the monster.

I did this because I thought that if I didn’t somehow empty the mana out of my body, my body would explode before I got hit by that guy.

It has to be released somehow.

I induced the feeling of expelling the mana boiling inside the body through the palms of the hands. Unlike when blowing mana into an iron pipe, the violently fluctuating mana flowed down the forearm as if it had been waiting.

OK.

Hwaaaaaaaaa!

With a sense of liberation as if solving years-old constipation, the mana gushing out from the palm began to form in the air.

‘… … ‘What is it?’

Mana became a line and continued to be woven to complete a single shape.

The shining light drew a flowing circle as if filling the dark void with paint.

It looked like a huge magic circle.

Kiiiiiiiing!

The pillar of light that shot out from the magic circle hit the monster’s body directly.

The monster was engulfed in a dazzling light and was immediately pushed out of the visible range. I too was swept away by the recoil and rolled on the floor.

Kukukukukukukukukukukuk!

The sound of trees falling could be heard from afar.

‘… … ‘Is this really what I did?’

I was staring blankly at my palm and turned my head.

Before we knew it, we were right near the gray tower.

And surprisingly, the same pattern I had unfolded earlier was drawn on the body of the tower.

“…….”

Seoul’s hideous things.

The home of monsters.

All kinds of bad rumors popped into my head, but I walked towards the tower with an entranced look on my face.

It was not a decision based on logical thinking.

Moving my legs right now is just instinct.

I am convinced that if I don’t get in there now, I will regret it for the rest of my life. And inevitability.

Finally, I walked to the front of the Magic Tower on my own feet and placed my palm on the tightly closed front door.

Shuuuuuk!

Then, like a lie, I was sucked into the door.