Chapter 1

[A new A-rank Hunter has been born in our country. The Hunter, formerly an actor, has cleared a high-level tower…]

On the screen, a handsome man stood under the spotlight, smiling for the cameras.

Was he the actor who became a Hunter because he was good-looking?

“What a different world they live in.”

Good looks, awakened powers, and strong abilities?

Honestly… I wasn’t even jealous.

“Even if I awakened, what would I do with it? I don’t even have the guts to fight.”

Everyone has their own nature, right?
Some people are just content where they are.
Even if I could make a lot of money, I wouldn’t want to risk my life doing it.

That’s why I work part-time at a convenience store.

Well, it’s not like I’m going to awaken or anything…

[Congratulations, Namjoong Kim! You have awakened.]

Just as I thought that, the system window popped up, like it had been waiting for me.

“Huh?”

…I awakened.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

The basic requirement to be a Hunter — awakening — had just happened to me.

1 in 100 people. Just awakening alone puts you in the top 1%.

“Is this for real?”

Most people would consider this a blessing.

In a world where towers and gates exist, Hunters are a privileged class.

Even a low-rank Hunter who only hunts goblin-level monsters earns at least 4 million won a month.

And that’s with a 4–5 day work week.

But not me.

“If I were going to get lucky, I’d rather win the lottery.”

I hadn’t even checked what ability I got, but I was already sighing.

Me, Namjoong Kim — a man who hates pain.

I always sit behind the driver’s seat in taxis — it’s statistically safer if there’s an accident.

I never fly. What if the plane crashes?

I walk on sidewalks far from the road and live on the second floor — not too close to ground-level crime, and not so high that I could fall.

I am the embodiment of a risk-averse person.

And now I’m supposed to be a Hunter? Don’t make me laugh.

“Can you sell awakenings, maybe?”

Honestly, being a Hunter isn’t all bad.

4 million a month isn’t too shabby, and the best part is the flexible schedule.

No need to clock in every day, no overtime, no stress from office politics.

Even in raids, people work in teams, so the chance of dying or getting hurt is pretty low.

Of course, with my cowardly nature, I’m not sure I could even handle fighting monsters.

But that’s not even the biggest issue.

“I’d probably get stuck in a tower for life.”

To become a Hunter, awakening isn’t enough — you have to clear a tower.

At first, your abilities are weak, and only by clearing towers do they grow stronger.

There are four tiers of towers: low, mid, high, and top-tier.

Even the lowest tier has casualties.

And the worst part? You can’t leave the tower until you clear all 100 floors.

Plus, it’s solo play.

Party play might be allowed in higher tiers, but low and mid-tier are all solo.

Someone like me would either die screaming or rot alone inside until I die of old age.

“No convenience stores, no food delivery, no computers, no games. Ugh, just imagining it is hell.”

The environment in the towers is awful.

Even buying a piece of bread feels like a waste of points, and the food is far from delicious.

So what’s the point of earning 4 million a month if I can’t even survive to spend it?

To me, ordering fried chicken delivery while gaming is nightlife. That’s my version of clubbing and drinking.

“Still… maybe I should at least check what I got?”

People say awakening is all luck.

What if I got some ridiculous overpowered ability that lets me breeze through towers with zero effort?

And I’m curious anyway.

Before that…

[BGM for pulling good items]
[Frequency for successful awakening]

…just in case.

I took a deep breath and opened my mouth.

“Status window.”

[Name]: Namjoong Kim
[Trait]: Tower Outsider (塔外者)
[Tower Clear Status]: X

“Tower Outsider?”

Sounds kind of cool, but is it good?

I tapped the trait for more info.

[Tower Outsider (塔外者)]
– You may enter and exit all towers without restriction.

“Oh…”

A useless ability?

It’s certainly helpful for someone like me, who was about to give up because I thought I’d be trapped in a tower.

But without any combat ability, how am I supposed to clear a tower?

Am I crazy?

If they were going to give me something, they should’ve thrown in a combat trait too.

With this, all I can do is wander in and out of tutorial zones.

Maybe I can use “Topmu,” the in-tower community that only tower entrants can access?

A 1% awakening, and all I got is a membership to an online forum?

Pathetic.

I’ve never heard of anyone else with this same ability.

“Sigh… Yeah, what tower stuff anyway.”

Even if I had gotten a normal trait, I probably still wouldn’t have entered a tower.

No matter what your power is, killing monsters and risking injury is a given — and I absolutely hate that.

“Let’s check out Topmu at least.”

I awakened, might as well peek in once.

What are people even talking about in there? Monster weaknesses? Or just random chatter like normal people?

I thought you had to enter a tower before you could use the tower community, but thanks to my trait, I could access it without stepping inside.

But…

Topmu wasn’t what I expected.

There were some useful posts, and some nonsense, but those were the minority.

Most of it was:

“Ugh, I want ramen.”
“I feel so lonely in the tower.”
“I finished all the tablet videos, do I have to buy more?”

That kind of thing.

I had just said it, but I’d already forgotten — tower life is brutal.

There’s nothing from the outside world. Not even ramen.

So it’s no wonder people get homesick.
If there weren’t a place like Topmu to vent, half of them would’ve gone mad already.

Actually, some of them had gone mad.

Despite their status as heroic defenders of humanity or lucky elites, most looked miserable and pitiful.

And I would be too — that’s one reason I never wanted to enter a tower in the first place.

Of course, if you’ve got the money and power, it’s a different story.

“I’m using three tablets right now.”
One for movies and dramas, one for “happy time,” and one as backup in case the others break.

[Comments]
– I’m so jealous…
– I regret buying one just for dramas. Should’ve gotten an NSFW one.
ㄴ NSFW tablet… gross.
ㄴ Wait… you’re a girl?

In a tower, you’re allowed to bring just one item.

Most people bring weapons rented from the Association.
But some bring tablets instead — to sell.

Because the tower has a shop system, where you can trade items with Tower Points (TP) or even hold auctions.

In a place with nothing, a single tablet can fetch 30,000 to 50,000 TP — about 300 to 500 million won.

So people sell the tablet, clear an easy tower, and walk away with the cash.

Why not buy a weapon afterward instead of renting?

Because weapons cost a minimum of 100,000 TP — around a billion won.

So for those who have no intention of climbing high-tier towers and just want quick cash, selling a tablet is the best option.

Easy towers are basically tutorial level, full of the weakest monsters.

“Wait a second…”

A thought suddenly struck me.

I’d overlooked something major.

My awakened ability might be useless for fighting, but in another sense, it’s insanely broken.

[You may enter and exit all towers without restriction.]

“Without restriction” — meaning I can bring in multiple outside items.
I can also come and go freely, carrying items from inside the tower to the outside world.

If I bought a bunch of tablets online, loaded them with videos, and brought them into the tower?

Boom. I’d be a billionaire.

“This isn’t a lottery win… it’s a jackpot.”

I stared blankly at the status window again and again.

Was there a hidden penalty I missed? Was this just a hallucination?

But no matter how many times I looked, the description was short, simple, and clear — no way to misinterpret it.

“Hahaha… ha ha ha ha…”

I used to say I was satisfied with my life, but it’s not like I didn’t want to make money.

Who doesn’t like money?

I just hated the endless rat race to climb the corporate ladder.

Even if I made less than minimum wage, working a stress-free convenience store job was enough for me.

Riiing—

My phone rang loudly.
The name “Eunji Lee” popped up.

I don’t have many female contacts, so that could only mean one thing:

She’s the part-timer working the shift after mine.

And usually, when she calls, it’s never for anything good.

“Hello?”

– “Hi, Namjoong! How are you?”

Soft voice. Friendly greeting.
Good — that means I didn’t mess up.

If I had, she’d be snapping at me from the get-go.

“What’s up?”

– “Ah, so… something came up. Do you think you could cover my shift tomorrow?”

Knew it.

She’s a repeat offender.

Every time something “comes up,” she asks me to fill in.

It’s practically a weekly routine now.

Right, something did come up for her.

Last time she asked, I stepped outside to relax after work and saw her dragging a suitcase.

Probably went on vacation or something.

Once, she even called me half-asleep at the end of her shift to beg for a fill-in.

Normally, I’d say yes.

I only have 2,400 won in my account, and I don’t like causing conflict.

But today’s different.

Time to teach her that I’m not a pushover.

You can do this, Namjoong Kim.

I took a deep breath and put on a serious face.

“I’m not exactly overflowing with free time. You’ll have to find someone else.”
“What? Wait, what do you mean…?”
“I’m hanging up now!”

Click.

…A little uncomfortable, but still — progress. Growth.