Juhyeok continued waiting for Rajix on White Tower Floor 17.

All the summoned entities had gone out to the Pyongyang Black Tower site.

They said the volume of orders had piled up,

that there weren’t enough hands,

and that mass production of the Obesity Escape Bracelet had to be rushed.

It got to the point that even Mari—the shut-in alchemist with severe social anxiety—had been dragged out

to make chemicals for treating scroll paper and ink.

Spending time alone was fine.

He’d done it plenty in the past.

And as he waited like that—

SPOT!

Commissioner Jeon Gwangil appeared.

“Welcome, Commissioner.”

“Oh, you’re alone.”

“Everyone’s out.”

“Huh? Um—where did they go?”

“To the Pyongyang factory.”

“...Ah.”

They chatted for a while.

“We ran an experiment using another Liberation Rune Necklace.”

“What kind of experiment?”

“Resistance testing on high-level Players.”

The scroll had its limits.

The higher the mana, the stronger the resistance.

“Even Players in the level-70 range experience the same mana-sealing effect. But the duration is shorter.”

Compared to Players in the level-50 range, it was less than half.

A twenty-level gap was enormous, after all.

Mackenzie had mentioned it before—

that S-class Awakened, 7-circle mages, and top-tier sword masters could ignore scroll magic.

“Even at the same level, it varies by individual.”

“Is it talent?”

“Probably.”

Time passed in idle conversation.

Commissioner Jeon Gwangil left again for work.

Juhyeok was alone again, waiting for Rajix.

But when was that building going to light up?

It’s peaceful, which is nice... but...

He was starting to get sleepy.

He nodded off, opened his eyes again,

and let time drift by—

Then, suddenly—

FWAAAAASH!

“Oh!!!”

Juhyeok sprang up from his chair.

Light.

The top of the landmark building shone like a lighthouse.

“It’s coming!!!”

PATPATPATPAT!

Juhyeok hurried to the building lobby.

It was descending.

The elevator was slowly coming down from the top of the landmark.

Why was it so damn slow?

Hurry up already.

Back when Rajix was SSR, the Catalog entry for Universe All-Purpose Laborer had read:

<Catalog: A loyal, reliable, all-purpose genius laborer of the Beastfolk race>

A perfect description.

Loyal by default, more reliable than anyone, capable of anything, and a genius.

Then what would LSSR Rajix be like?

“Hurry up and get down here. Hurry.”

ZIIING!

Almost there.

And finally—

Ding!

The arrival chime rang.

SSSK.

The doors opened.

“WAAH!!!”

A clear, refreshing hamster’s mighty roar.

It was Rajix.

“You’re here!!!”

Rajix saw Juhyeok too.

“Rajix!”

The moment he saw him, Rajix rolled forward with momentum,

then sprang up into the air right in front of Juhyeok—

WHIRRRR!

“Whoa!”

Spin—spin—spin!

Like a gymnast, he did five midair somersaults—

“WAAH!”

THUD!

One knee on the ground, one hand on the floor, the other stretched back—

a hero landing.

“Oh my—our Dimensional Laborer!!!”

GRAB!

“Huh?”

Juhyeok pulled Rajix into a tight hug and rubbed his face against him.

“WAAH! WAAH!”

“Do you know how much I missed you?”

Only after fully satisfying himself did Juhyeok finally let go.

“Ahhh...”

“Hahahaha!”

Now he could properly look at Rajix.

There weren’t any major changes to his appearance.

His fur was even fluffier and glossier.

The same round head and body, the same stubby limbs.

If anything, he looked even cuter.

But the safety helmet had changed.

It used to be gold—now it was silvery white.

Not silver.

Matte, with a dignified sheen.

Wait... could this be...

Platinum.

Yes. Exactly like platinum.

Did he upgrade from gold tools to platinum tools?

What about the info?

Was the breakthrough a success?

<Catalog: A dimensional grand master who has reached the absolute pinnacle as a laborer>

Name: Rajix

– Grade: LSSR (Legend Special Super Rare)

Dimensional grand master!

Then that made him... a Dimensional Laborer!

“Wait here a moment.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll call everyone in a minute.”

He couldn’t enjoy this joy alone.

He had to tell everybody.

Juhyeok rushed outside and entered the Tower,

then used the Ring of Tower Exit to move to the Pyongyang Black Tower.

“Summoner Bong, you’ve arrived!”

“You didn’t need to come out.”

“We’ll handle all the work. The summoner should rest.”

“Since you’re here anyway, let’s have a drink of Taedong River wild-berry liquor.”

Cossack scolded the Mad Demon.

“Old man, all you think about is booze whenever you get a chance? Do some work. Our shut-in alchemist is stuck alone in that building making ink and can’t even enjoy her tablet hobbies.”

“Kh-hm!”

Juhyeok grinned.

“There’s someone I want to introduce.”

“Who...?”

“Someone I like.”

“Eh? D-don’t tell me—it’s your girlfriend?”

“A joyous occasion! The Bong family line can continue!”

“...Don’t tell me it’s Jinsuk. Dating is fine, but marriage is a no.”

What are you even saying?

“She’s not my girlfriend.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll call him.”

He took a deep breath.

“Rajix, Designated Summon!”

The summoned entities jumped in surprise.

“Eh?”

“Gasp!”

“Oh!”

“Ah...”

“Already?”

Rajix? The real Rajix?

And then—

SPOT!

“WAAH!!!”

A fluffy ball of fur appeared with both hands raised.

“He’s here!”

“Hooray!!!”

“That’s not a squeak anymore. That’s a full battle cry now.”

“Hahaha, welcome.”

“My, I can’t help but admire him. Such a dependable presence.”

“Veronica Caliber, reporting! Victory assured!”

Even the Blood Wolf, assigned as a guard dog for the Pyongyang Black Tower printing plant, rushed over.

“GRRRR!”

Its tail spun like a propeller as it charged toward Rajix.

“Eh?”

“Keee-ing!”

Lick, lick!

The Blood Wolf enthusiastically licked Rajix’s face.

“Alright, what are you doing? Time for a cheering toss.”

And so Rajix was flung high into the sky above the Pyongyang Black Tower.

“WAAAH!”

Our Dimensional Laborer wasn’t afraid of being tossed anymore.

He was enjoying it.

Spinning and flipping in the air.

Which raised the question—

how much had his actual abilities improved?

Even as an SSR, rule-breaker Rajix had terrified ordinary LSSR units.

Juhyeok was burning with curiosity, but—

What’s the rush?

He could find out little by little.

Delicious things were meant to be savored.

White Tower Floor 17.

A welcome celebration for Dimensional Laborer Rajix.

All the summoned entities attended, and even CEO Jeong Dong-hun was invited.

“Mr. Jeong, welcome. Has your magic improved much?”

“T-thanks to you, Master...”

Commissioner Jeon Gwangil couldn’t miss this either.

He paused his work and came to White Tower Floor 17 at Juhyeok’s call.

“Oh! Commissioner Jeon, I saw the press conference. Your eloquence was impressive.”

“I heard it too! Our Korean Awakening Administration stands with Players! Incredible.”

“Indeed, someone worthy of great deeds.”

Jeong Dong-hun and Commissioner Jeon Gwangil congratulated Rajix on his breakthrough.

They had even prepared gifts.

Jeong Dong-hun handed one to Rajix.

“This was custom-made. It should fit perfectly.”

“Huh?”

Sunglasses perfectly sized for Rajix’s face,

with chains on the arms so they wouldn’t slip off.

“Oooh! Charisma!”

“WAAH!”

“He looks like a special secret agent.”

“Huh?”

“It suits him perfectly.”

Ding!

<Mari>: He’s cute.

Rajix puffed out his chest with pride.

Mackenzie cast a special spotlight spell on him.

Rajix strutted around with his shoulders raised.

The spotlight followed him, fireworks bursting overhead.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

“WAAAH!”

Rajix shouted confidently, utterly satisfied.

“That’s the walk of an LSSR.”

“I’m so pleased I want to hug him.”

“The helmet looks great too.”

“Yeah, gold was too gaudy. Platinum is classier.”

Let’s get the party ready.

Chairs and tables first—

But suddenly, Rajix raised a hand.

PATPATPATPAT!

In an instant, tables and chairs appeared,

with fully prepared dishes already set on top.

“Wow!”

“One-touch table setup!”

“This is what LSSR means!!!”

The feast continued noisily.

Rajix rolling around, Veronica Caliber singing, Gyeon Dallae dancing—

And after the celebration ended,

what was the Dimensional Laborer’s first task?

Cleaning, of course.

While Rajix had been away breaking through, Floor 17 had become a mess.

He cleaned the residential area,

then the landmark building, the roads, the warehouses—

Last was magitech engineer El’s workshop.

The dirtiest place of all.

“WAAH...?”

After staring in shock at what looked like a landfill—

Roll, wipe. Roll, scrub.

He worked diligently.

And it didn’t even take long.

One pass—clean.

Shine!

There was even a gloss left behind where he’d passed.

Truly the cleaning skills of an LSSR laborer.

Juhyeok found himself absorbed in watching Rajix clean.

It was satisfying—

watching filthy chaos transform into neatly ordered space.

So this was what healing felt like.

Even magitech engineer El was standing there absentmindedly, holding a strange rod-like object.

A rod?

Why was he holding that?

Probably because he was afraid Rajix might mistake it for trash and throw it away, so he was keeping it in his hands.

Wait.

That thing looked familiar.

Is that... a magic gun?

That was right.

It was a magic gun.

It looked similar to the old-model magic gun Veronica Caliber had used back in the SR days.

“El, is that a magic gun by any chance?”

“Yes. I made it for giant monster raids.”

It was a loaner magic gun.

He had mentioned before that he was planning to make one so other Players could challenge the 81st Floor.

“This is an early prototype.”

“Does it use mana-crystal rounds too?”

“No. The ammunition is specially made.”

As he said that, he opened a wooden box in the corner of the workshop.

...

“These are the rounds. The attribute applied differs depending on the type of monster.”

“Oh!”

“This one is a delayed-penetration drill-round magic gun—specialized for the 81st-floor Behemoth. It burrows into the body and detonates inside.”

What about the 82nd Floor?

“Floor 82 uses rotary saw-blade rounds. Apophis’s hide is relatively weak in certain areas. The rounds are small, but the rotation shreds it.”

And the 83rd?

“Wide-area incendiary rounds. Special rounds enchanted with fire magic by Mackenzie. We burn everything.”

Floor 83 had the queen spider and her brood, so burning them made sense.

In any case, there were three types of rounds in the box.

“We haven’t finished the research yet, so we haven’t made it, but for the 84th-floor Colossus Condor, we plan to use venomous stinger rounds.”

Venom, huh.

With an alchemist around, making poison wouldn’t be difficult.

“Could you handle the 85th Floor too?”

“Yes. I’m thinking of making EMP bombs in bullet form.”

As expected of a magitech engineer.

He had already whipped up three types of elemental ammunition.

“The special metals, components, and mana circuits we obtained from the Gigant helped a lot. Honestly, without Rajix, it would have taken much longer.”

He was humble too.

“Mind if I try holding the magic gun?”

“By all means. But it’s a prototype, so it’s still very lacking.”

It felt quite heavy when he picked it up.

“There’s no guidance function. Adding that would take an enormous amount of time.”

It stirred up memories.

His difficult days in the military came back to him.

What had Juhyeok’s military service been like?

Surprisingly decent.

Thanks to years of survival instinct, his ability to read the room was well developed.

He had an exceptional sense for that kind of thing.

“Can I try firing it?”

“Yes, I’ll set up a target.”

“Let’s not use a target—let’s test it in actual combat. Starting from the 81st Floor.”

Should he gather everybody?

It had been a while since their last Tower raid.

The goal: a live-fire test of the prototype magic gun.

Juhyeok assembled the summoned entities.

Did they need a lot of people just to test a prototype?

Only the necessary ones.

The rest stayed behind to guard the Pyongyang Black Tower factory.

Cossack, Meatshield, the Mad Demon, Veronica Caliber, Mackenzie, Gyeon Dallae, magitech engineer El—and Rajix.

[Entering Republic of Korea Black Tower (NO.1) 81st Floor.]

Mission accepted.

[81st Floor Mission: Defeat 1 giant monster Behemoth.]

[Time Limit: Within 15 hours.]

A massive bear-like creature.

A quadrupedal giant land monster.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The ground shook with every step it took.

It was huge—no matter how many times you saw it.

Should he try hitting it?

“Do you have any experience using a magic gun?”

“Don’t you just aim and pull the trigger?”

El nodded.

“That’s correct. However, magic guns are fired using the user’s mana. The total mana output affects the power as well. If you grip the handle and inject mana—”

Ah.

So it needed mana.

That was why it was called a magic gun.

“You’ll probably find it hard to hit. It’s fine if you miss—”

Cossack suddenly cut in.

“Hey now, are you underestimating our military-trained Summoner Bong?”

That’s right.

Who did he think he was looking at—this proud, honorably discharged Korean serviceman?

That thing was huge.

It felt like even a rough shot would land.

“He’s Private First Class Bong, known for perfect accuracy! Didn’t he even get reward leave for marksmanship?”

“Huh?”

...

Why make things up?

That just added pressure.

Especially with Veronica Caliber watching with sparkling eyes.

Carefully aiming at the Behemoth,

he injected mana through the handle—

ZIIIIIING.

Ugh.

Aiming alone was fine, but trying to inject mana at the same time made the barrel shake violently.

Still...

He put strength into his index finger.

BANG!

In that instant—

“Gah!”

A massive recoil.

The muzzle jerked sharply upward.

SHWAAAAK!

The delayed-penetration drill round tore through the air.

But it flew far past the Behemoth’s head, shrinking into a distant dot.

It missed by such an absurd margin that the Behemoth didn’t even realize it had been attacked.

It didn’t even look this way.

“H-home run.”

“...”

At Cossack’s flippant comment, the summoned entities all shot him murderous glares.

Ahhh.

How embarrassing.

“That’s...?”

Veronica Caliber immediately grilled El.

“You handed a weapon to the commander without proper zeroing?”

“She’s right. The gun is at fault.”

“Ridiculous. With the barrel shaking that much during mana injection, even I couldn’t hit.”

“At the very least, it needs a laser sight.”

Even Cossack, who had joked about a home run, quickly joined in.

“That Behemoth’s at fault too. If the Summoner fires personally, shouldn’t it shove its head into the shot?”

“I’ll hold its head still.”

“WAAH!!!”

El nodded calmly, expression unchanged.

“This is my fault. It’s a defective product.”

“As long as you know.”

“An LSSR magitech engineer making a gun like that and offending the summoner’s feelings.”

“El, conduct self-criticism! Otherwise I’ll convene a people’s tribunal under my authority!”

Please stop.

This was getting even more embarrassing.

“...I’ll try once more.”

Gulp.

He swallowed.

Aim, then inject mana.

ZIIIIIIING.

DRDRDRDRDR.

The magic gun vibrated violently.

It was hard to control.

Even for a level 86 Player.

Gulp.

Focus. Focus harder.

He recalled training with a pebble balanced on the barrel.

BANG!

SHWAAAAK!

PAAT!

Recoil again.

The round barely missed the Behemoth’s head.

“Ah!”

“So close.”

“It was the wind. The aim was correct.”

“WAAH...”

Wind, my ass.

What was this, a golf ball?

Still, it was better than before.

The Behemoth stopped moving and glared this way.

Should he keep shooting?

There was no quitting now.

This time, he’d hit.

He had his pride.

Hang in there, PFC Bong.

ZIIIIIING!

BANG!

SHWAAAAK!

THUD!

“Gruik?”

This time, a direct hit to the Behemoth’s torso.

That’s it!

“I am Reserve Private First Class Bong Juhyeok!!!”

Then—

BOOM!

A small explosion erupted inside the Behemoth’s body.

Kweeeeeek!

The Behemoth screamed in pain.

Redemption!

“Deadshot Bong Snake!!!”

“You’ve got the zero dialed in now.”

“Truly a sharpshooter.”

“Hahaha, splendid.”

CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP!

Whew.

At least he’d saved face.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.

What about Veronica Caliber?

“Want to try?”

“Veronica Caliber, reporting. I’ll try.”

“The zero is off, so you might miss.”

“That’s fine.”

Veronica Caliber took the prototype magic gun.

The enraged Behemoth was charging straight at them.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

She braced the gun against her shoulder.

No careful aiming.

Mana injection was instant.

The barrel didn’t vibrate at all.

She fired immediately.

ZIIING!

BANG!

Recoil?

Negligible for her.

No wobble.

THUD!

The round struck the Behemoth squarely in the knee.

A moment later—

BOOM!

Delayed detonation.

THUD!

The Behemoth collapsed.

The difference was obvious.

She fired effortlessly.

She hit effortlessly.

“Well now, Veronica Caliber, you’ve got no sense.”

“Wasted experience.”

“Showing off your shooting skills?”

“Did you ever play soccer in the army? If your superior is the striker, you’re supposed to miss on purpose.”

Still, for most Players, handling this magic gun would be difficult.

The vibration during mana injection made it hard to control,

and the recoil was brutal.

“I’ll remake it.”

El reflected seriously.

But Cossack said—

“It’s fine. ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ You made it well. Good job, magitech engineer.”

“Why?”

“Wasn’t it made to be loaned out to other Players?”

That was true.

“Just sell ammo. If it doesn’t hit well, more ammo gets sold.”

A merchant mindset down to the bone.

Still, Cossack was the only one worrying about his wallet.