Only My Skill Tooltip Is Strange

Chapter 99

Should I be glad to see her?
As memories of the 1st floor slowly resurfaced, it seemed that I hadn't parted ways with her on bad terms.

‘The craziest person I've met in my life of over 20 years.’

Eunseoryeong left a strong impression on me.
When I was summoned to the Tower of Struggle, her crazy actions stood out, and it was impossible to forget them.

‘She somehow survived.’

I thought she'd die before getting very far, given her twisted personality that tended to strike first.
But Eunseoryeong had survived on her own strength and made it all the way here.

‘Was it luck, or is the peak level higher than I thought?’

From my experience, a peak-level martial artist wasn’t exactly someone you’d call a true powerhouse.
If a group with a good combination of skills ganged up on them, survival was not guaranteed.

At the peak level, that is.

‘If she was rampaging around like Eunseoryeong… hunters would definitely show up.’

Eunseoryeong’s appearance was one that invited enemies.
Especially her well-endowed chest.
Even men who weren’t interested in women couldn’t help but glance twice at her.

The pirates on the 3rd floor would not have let her off easily.
The goblins on the 4th floor might, but what about the 5th floor?

As I wondered how Eunseoryeong made it here, she approached Namgung Hyuk with a bright smile.

“Did you call me Jeomchanggwanggyeon?”
“…Ah, my bad. I misspoke. Haha. I wouldn’t mistake the righteous Seomgwanggeomhui for Jeomchanggwanggyeon.”
“Right?”

Namgung Hyuk’s voice trembled sweetly.
It was the same frequency as when he faced the Heukammun men.

“Don’t go overboard. Do you think I would harm Namgung So-hyeop?”
“……”

Eunseoryeong patted Namgung Hyuk’s shoulder as if telling him not to worry.

But Namgung Hyuk couldn’t take her words at face value.
It was the pain of being the weaker one.

“It’s been a while. Great Hero.”

Eunseoryeong bowed respectfully.
I returned the greeting.

“It’s been a while? What are you talking about?”

Back on the 1st floor, I had been mistaken for a dragon in a cosplay.
Eunseoryeong still thought of me as a dragon.

So, I immediately threw some shade.
I made sure to wear the most arrogant expression I could.

Eunseoryeong didn’t seem to mind my attitude.
She passed over it without a hint of awkwardness.

It was clear my acting had become natural.
If there were a proficiency system, I’m sure it would be pretty high by now.

“You’re slower than I expected to reach this floor. I thought you, Great Hero, would have reached the upper floors by now.”
“…Is there any rush? I can take my time enjoying the Tower of Struggle.”
“Truly impressive.”

Namgung Hyuk, looking confused, stared at the exchange with a surprised expression.
He didn’t understand the situation at all.

I ignored Namgung Hyuk’s gaze and asked Eunseoryeong.

“When did you reach the 7th floor?”
“It’s been about three months.”
“……”

Eunseoryeong’s answer was shocking.

‘It’s not impossible.’

Thinking back on the time I spent on the 3rd floor, staying on the 7th floor for three months wasn’t a big deal.

“Did you pass through the 3rd floor quickly?”
“I was lucky.”

She said she had joined another party to bypass the 3rd floor.

Since pirates roamed the 3rd floor, any player with a certain level of power was welcomed.

‘It probably helped that she’s a woman, not a man. It’s easier to blend in.’

Even if they’re strong, men don’t trust each other easily, but they’re more trusting of women.
It’s a matter of emotions; there’s nothing you can do about it.

Plus, Eunseoryeong seemed disabled on the outside.
It would’ve been strange to raise suspicions about her.

“By the way, Great Hero, did you help Namgung So-hyeop again?”
“I didn’t try to help. It just happened that way.”
“…You did the same on the 1st floor.”

Eunseoryeong smiled sweetly, nodding her head.
It seemed like she was reminiscing, though there wasn’t much of a memory to recall.

‘…Seomgwanggeomhui. The expert Namgung Hyuk was talking about must have been Eunseoryeong.’

When Namgung Hyuk applied for the Yongbong Gathering earlier, he had questioned why he chose the more difficult path.

That nickname, Seomgwanggeomhui, was hers.

‘He said the difficulty of the Yongbong Gathering fluctuates because of Seomgwanggeomhui.’

The staff also seemed hesitant to recommend it.
Considering Eunseoryeong’s skill, I understood their reaction.

“Are you going to participate in this Yongbong Gathering?”
“Yes. I need to participate regularly to stay on the 7th floor. Otherwise, I’ll have to move up to the 8th floor.”
“…Why not go up?”

From my perspective, the 7th floor was not developed enough to stay on.
The social infrastructure was terrible.

‘The 5th floor is much better.’

I had just moved up from the 5th floor, and I hadn’t even been here a day.
I stayed only briefly, and all I could do was sigh.

I marveled at the infrastructure on the 7th floor.
A negative kind of marvel.

‘I’d prefer to move up quickly.’

It felt like a backward rural area.
It was worse than my parents' hometown, which I only visited on holidays.

So I didn’t understand Eunseoryeong’s choice.

“You came up to the 7th floor today, right? So, you haven’t met the administrator yet?”
“No, they didn’t show their face.”
“Most are martial artists, so they don’t care about other dimensions. Administrators focus on closed-door training to improve their own realm. Though some administrators work with the floor’s owner to gather fate power…”

Eunseoryeong shrugged as she continued.

“They all lack talent in that area.”
“Fate power?”

I focused on the new term I heard in Eunseoryeong’s explanation.
When I asked about fate power, Eunseoryeong looked surprised.

“Great Hero, have you never heard of fate power? Any administrator should’ve told you about it…”

Fate power.
Just from the tone of the word, I had an inkling of what it might mean.
I had enough intuition.

Whether I could hear it from an administrator or not, that seemed more important.

‘I never had an administrator who would tell me.’

The goblins on the 4th floor tried to say something, but they were blocked by an intangible force and couldn’t speak.

Eunseoryeong summarized fate power for me.

“I don’t know much either. I’ve only heard the bare minimum.”

After hearing about fate power, my thoughts were simple.

‘Causality. Probability. It’s a similar concept.’

Even the floor’s owner isn’t eternal.
To guard the floor, fate power is necessary, and players’ trials are designed to gather it.

“So, is that why you’re staying on the 7th floor and holding the Yongbong Gathering?”
“Yeah. It’s to conserve fate power. Managing players carefully.”

I had seen similar situations on the lower floors.
So, it didn’t feel strange.

“This time, I applied for the Yongbong Gathering.”
“Oh, really?”

I tested Eunseoryeong’s intention, suggesting that she should just forfeit.
She kept smiling as she answered.

“It’s actually a good thing. I get to share a sword with you, Great Hero.”
“……”
“When else would I get to compete with you, Great Hero? Hehe.”

Eunseoryeong wasn’t afraid, even though she knew I was her opponent.
She boldly declared she would face me properly, almost like a challenge.

I could only chuckle in disbelief.

“…Are you acquainted with Seomgwanggeomhui?”

After Eunseoryeong left, Namgung Hyuk asked in a subtle tone.
He seemed curious about our relationship.

“I met her on the 1st floor. During crew making.”
“Ah, I remember. I didn’t realize there was such an exam…”

How much time had passed in the Tower of Struggle?
Namgung Hyuk seemed lost in thought, his expression distant.

“Seomgwanggeomhui is a peak-level martial artist. Do you know how powerful the peak level is?”
“60, right? Kinminche.”

When a martial artist achieves enlightenment, their stats drastically increase.
The gap is so huge, it clearly divides the levels within the dimensions.

‘Top-tier and peak. The wall is one, but the gap is indescribable.’

To put it bluntly, even if you brought dozens of top-tier martial artists, they couldn’t beat a single peak-level martial artist.
Of course, if you use the Soul System well, you might create an opening.

“Do you think I can’t beat Seomgwanggeomhui?”
“Oh, no! There’s no one Great Hero can’t defeat.”
“You’re full of doubts.”

I understood.
I decided to accept Namgung Hyuk’s rudeness.

Not everyone can recognize my strength just because I broke Heukammun.
That’s overestimating players.

It still takes skill to recognize strength.
Since Namgung Hyuk was weak, it was laughable to scold him.

‘Even peak-level martial artists are not to be taken lightly.’

Namgung Hyuk looked at me with wide, uncertain eyes.
His gaze implied that he thought I was weaker than Seomgwanggeomhui.

I got a little annoyed, but I chose to understand him generously.
Without my survival instincts on, I would indeed be weaker than Eunseoryeong.
I partially accepted that.

“If we stay here, Heukammun will come. We need to clear them out first.”
“Are you really going to do it?”
“Looking at the state of the 7th floor, I’m sure they’ll ambush us without hesitation.”

Even if I wanted to rest today, Heukammun had to be dealt with.
Knowing the administrators wouldn’t interfere, I had no reason to hesitate.

I glanced at Namgung Hyuk.

“Lead the way.”
“Me? Really?”
“Then who else? I don’t even know where Heukammun is located.”
“Ah…”

Namgung Hyuk looked like he didn’t want to go.

I glared at him fiercely.
I made sure my killing intent showed.

Namgung Hyuk flinched and started walking.

“Th-this way.”
“By the way, Heukammun must have a lot of money, right? Their base or whatever.”
“Of course…”
“Good. Nice. I can get the roasted duck cost back.”