Episode 576 Move, Vampires!
A passenger at the entrance to Odric’s hideout. At first glance, he looked like an ordinary person living a normal life, but the badge pinned to his lapel had the Vega Party emblem engraved on it.
Vega Party is a place with extremely little external activity. To contact the inside, you need to be a 2nd-tier monster hunter or higher.
From what I heard on my way back from work, the monster hunter ranks were quite detailed.
It was common to start from level 9 and go up to level 1, and above that there was a special level.
Although it was not an official qualification granted by the state in the first place, I think it has a certain level of credibility since even nobles respect it.
Even if you only reach level 2, you are considered an expert who can be considered first-class wherever you go. He said that the number of such experts is not that high.
Being a monster hunter was so dangerous that many people died, and only those who survived and killed more dangerous monsters could rise to higher levels.
In that sense, the man in front of you.
“Odric, it’s been a while. The person next to you is a face I’ve never seen before. I’m Ader Filgarten, a first-class monster hunter.”
“It’s Evil Ah. There is no separate level.”
He was a skilled person of the first class.
It definitely feels different. If Audric feels like a one-handed expert, then this guy is… … .
‘Strong.’
It was similar to the feeling of strength you get from climbers or NPCs.
I should say that it felt out of the norm. I felt like there was a gap between me and the 2nd class that I couldn’t fill.
No matter how much of an expert you are in a certain field, you are still within the realm of humans.
He used his power by grabbing the hand extended by his opponent.
[Eder Pilkaten]
-This is an NPC on the 92nd floor!
-Belonging to the Vega Party.
-You’re a first-class monster hunter!
Oh my. It was a real NPC.
I thought the way he was looking at me was strange. He’s the first NPC I’ve met since coming here.
“Ahem, I didn’t know we would meet like this. At this hour without any notice.”
“You can’t just sit still when things turn out like that. This time, there were some things that were a bit excessive.”
“No, didn’t we do that?”
The direction Eder pointed to was the business we had visited. For some reason, there was a fire and black smoke was rising, and there was a commotion as people rushed to put out the fire.
Odric also brought a can of oil to start a fire, but it was stolen midway and he just escaped.
‘Who started the fire shortly after we came out?’
It’s unlikely that the fire started by accident. The gas pipe wasn’t connected separately, and if there was a problem there and the fire started, you should have heard an explosion.
If a gas lamp or other heating device had fallen over and started a fire during a battle, it would have been noticed long ago.
What kind of guy is he? It doesn’t seem like much of a difference in time from when we left.
I think it might be one of the vampires that manages the store. The one that turned into a cockroach also showed up at the last minute.
It wouldn’t have been strange if another guy had come at a similar time to that guy, and since he was also running an illegal gambling facility and a loan business that sucked people’s blood to lend money, it wouldn’t have been strange for him to set fire to cover up his tracks.
I glanced at the sky.
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The sun has already risen. It’s not a time for half-assed guys to be wandering around, so someone with some confidence in their skills must have come.
“I just finished work and want to rest a bit. How about coming by later?”
“I know you’re tired. If it weren’t urgent, this time wouldn’t have come. But you’ll need time to get ready, so wash up and come. I’ll be waiting inside.”
Odric opened the shop door, frowning at Eder’s words.
Although the hideout is located in the Black Market, which comes alive at night, it is not empty during the day.
Even though I said nothing, I didn’t look normal to other people, so I just stayed outside.
After Odric and the others disappeared, I sat down in a suitable place.
Since I have cleaning and shower skills, I don’t have to go wash up.
I could have used it right on the way here, but I didn’t want to show off the skill I could use. There’s no other reason.
‘You know that all magical things here are used by vampires.’
It was similar when I caught a vampire running wild in a house last time. I asked him if he was a vampire. He started talking nonsense like he was a great person.
I’ll use my skills and whatever else I need, but I don’t plan on using them openly. However, it’s different in front of this guy.
[Clean (S) Lv.MAX] [Shower (S) Lv.MAX]
As soon as I used it, the things that had gotten on my body and clothes fell off and I felt refreshed.
Although it is a life skill, it is quite effective when leveled up to its maximum.
“It’s been a while since I’ve been a climber.”
The other person doesn’t avoid saying that he’s a climber, as if he has no intention of hiding the fact that he’s also an NPC.
Whatever it is, each NPC has a role, and it is in the form of influence that the climber has on climbing the tower.
There’s only one thing I have to worry about: whether the other person is hostile to me or not.
In that sense, Ether didn’t seem hostile. He had no reason to attack me, and a climber who had reached the 90th floor was strong enough to fight an NPC.
If he was going to do something, he would have done it more covertly.
I looked at Ether while stretching my refreshed body.
“I guess there aren’t any other kids here? There were quite a few this time.”
“The 92nd floor has many different areas. It’s possible that you haven’t been able to get up from the 91st floor yet.”
“How many floors are there in 92?”
I asked something I had always wondered about.
The 90-story building is a structure that digs inward from the outside. As you get closer to the center where the 99th floor is, the number of surrounding floors decreases.
It was obvious that there would be more as the floor got lower, but I didn’t know how many there were.
“I don’t know exactly. I’m not sure, but it’s probably more than 12.”
It’s a larger number than you might think. If the 92nd floor is like this, the 91st floor would be even higher.
At this point, it’s a wonder that I met the magma fairy on the 91st floor. If this is how it goes… … .
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‘I’ll have to go up to the 94th floor to meet the members or other people.’
If I’m lucky, I might be able to meet you before then. But in the meantime, I have to keep in mind that I’ll be moving around alone.
Since this isn’t the first or second time I’ve worked alone, there shouldn’t be any problems.
“There must be a reason you came here, right?”
“I started noticing Evil Eye at the Vega party. And a guy named Miya too.”
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“Are you going to invite me?”
“As long as the safety verification is completed.”
“Is it not enough to just be a climber?”
A climber who climbed up to the 90th floor. What could be more powerful in demonstrating the will to climb?
He was saying that in order to go up, wouldn’t we cooperate to catch the vampire?
“That won’t do.”
“Is it because all Vega Party members are neutral NPCs?”
That makes sense. Neutral NPCs are essentially residents of the world that serves as the background for the floor. They don’t even know what a climber is.
“That’s not true. There are neutral NPCs, but there are also many people like me. I’m just worried that Evil Eye might take more damage than necessary while ascending.”
Although it stung a little to hear that it was unnecessary damage, I tried to maintain my composure.
I haven’t had any major accidents here yet. I’ve had some accidents elsewhere.
“I know everyone’s thoughts may be different, but for us, this is our new home. We’ve been here longer than we were in the destroyed world.”
He nodded slightly.
A world that has already been destroyed. Like it or not, the tower is a living space for NPCs.
This is also the reason why everyone wants to go to a safe zone.
In other words.
‘The appearance of a climber might not be so welcome.’
As you go up, there are many cases where you have to fight unintentionally.
The tower is not merciful. The system is vicious. It does not allow you to go up without any conditions, so it gives you appropriate trials and challenges.
A structure where only those who have proven their worth can move upward.
“I hope this peaceful period can last as long as possible.”
“Peace is the best. I am a pacifist too.”
“Him?”
Deokchun expressed his doubts, but was simply ignored.
“I have no intention of causing a scene here. I just need to get upstairs. I think the condition for getting to the next floor is to catch Corpse Sculptor Caliber.”
“That’s not wrong. In order to move up, you have to prove your influence in that stratum.”
Ede’s explanation continued.
The 90th floor is a place where you can act autonomously. There is also a ruler who sets the rules for the floor. Like the fragments of chaos you encountered on the 91st floor.
At that time, I earned the right to go up by defeating the guy who ruled the 91st floor.
So in order to climb to each floor, you have to catch the ruler of that floor?
‘That can’t be true.’
If it was simply like that, I could have decided from the beginning and rushed into it.
The theme of the 90th floor is chaos. It is a place where confusing and common sense-breaking rules exist.
The atmosphere here is also in turmoil right now due to Caliber.
According to Eder, the way to get up there was simple: capture the ruler or something.
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‘Calming the confusion.’
Both approaches are not mutually exclusive.
The game that the Chaos Shards played also added to the confusion. As a result, it was like resolving a situation that was already a mess.
What I’m a little worried about is Alios on the 91st floor.
“If the ruler manages well, wouldn’t there be no chaos?”
“That’s not true. Problems always happen. Of course, depending on how you manage it, the timing can be delayed.”
Eder rubbed his chin for a moment and then continued.
“The system will plant objects that will cause chaos. Maybe even create shards of chaos.”
He frowned. Anyway, it’s not going to be easy.
For now, let’s trust Alios. He’s the strongest NPC I know. After some time, the Union people will come up too, so he’ll be helpful.
‘First, I have to focus on what I have to do.’
If I can’t solve what’s right in front of me, there’s no answer.
And what if something goes wrong?
‘I can go find it then.’
Since you have infinite coins, if you’re in a really dire situation, just go down and that’s it.
I rubbed my forehead and assessed the situation.
In the end, it’s Caliber that I have to catch. Vega Party can be my helper, but they don’t fully trust me.
There are even vampire forces divided into three factions.
This might turn out to be a pretty good picture, right?
“The purpose of the Vega Party is to catch vampires, right?”
“Yes. As long as they’re here, things will continue to happen.”
“That will be fine.”
I think I might get an invitation to a Vega party sometime soon.
* * *
There is a saying.
If you want to catch a tiger, you have to go into the tiger’s den, and if you want to get honey, you have to poke a beehive.
So how do we catch the corpse sculptor who is clearly a vampire?
“What should I do? I have to make him come out on his own feet.”
-Kwaaaaaaaah!
I nodded as I watched the exploding building.
One of the shops where vampires work. Odric’s information was correct, as he was able to eliminate four shops in two days.
Monster hunters would invade, which was a common occurrence, so at first there wasn’t much of a reaction, but now it was different.
“You f*cking dogs!”
“Do you think you’ll be okay after doing this?”
As the sales offices were continuously destroyed, it became clear that this was a deliberate attack.
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It wasn’t even a random attack. It was a persistent attack on the workshop of Shinepa, one of the vampire factions.
The reason was simple.
“The balance must be broken for others to move.”
Even though the balance of power is tight now, it’s a different story if one side is hit.
Isn’t it obvious that other guys will also move to take advantage of the opportunity?
That’s it for the first goal. This is the second goal.
“Audric, did what you asked go well?”
“Is there anything that money can’t do? Phew. Since we’ve grown this much, we have no choice but to grow it even further. That way, we can bring in other guys and share the burden.”
I checked the newspaper in my hand.
-The corpse sculptor reappears. He looks even more violent and doesn’t hesitate to destroy property.
I put Caliber forward as the culprit who attacked the sales premises I had robbed.
It might be unfair to him, but what can he do? If he keeps arguing, he can step forward and claim that it wasn’t him who did it.
The truth isn’t important. What matters is that the public believes it.
As Caliber’s notoriety grows, the vampires’ areas of activity shrink. Whether it’s the security forces or the special forces, they’ll be more likely to stir things up.
If you don’t want that… … .
“You guys, get moving too, you vampires.”
Do I really need to find him alone? I can just make the others move too.
I smiled as I looked at the burning building.
