Farming in the Tower Alone [EN]: Chapter 393

The heavy doors of the Mercenary Association Branch on Floor 75 of the Tower loomed ahead.

“Huff, huff. Give me the bounty!”

Theo burst into the Mercenary Association, slamming the door open. He had the 1.3 trillion Tower Coins and the Floor 75 land deed. Yuren had been tricked out of these, but Theo got them back.

“Uhehehehe.”

Yuren followed Theo, looking relieved. He held a rope tied to Baka, whose eyes were now a swollen, dark purple.

Mercenaries jumped up, weapons ready. “Who dares—oh?!” one shouted. Then another echoed, “Who would cause such a commotion—oh?!”

The mercenaries, ready to punish the person who dared to burst into the Mercenary Association, quietly returned to their seats.

The mercenaries avoided eye contact with Theo and his companions, as if they had seen something they shouldn’t have.

One mercenary thought, *’Did I almost get killed?’* Another worried, *’Please, no one saw me look annoyed.’*

Not because of Theo.

*Kee hee hee.* It was Iona. She was wrapped around Theo’s tail, giggling happily.

Iona. The Great Destruction Magician. Every mercenary knew the name. She was someone you *never* wanted to anger.

The Master of the Black Tower, who was also the head of the Magician’s Association, was a big client of the Mercenary Association.

Many mercenaries had rushed forward before, only to vanish after underestimating Iona because of her cute looks.

The mercenaries were lucky they knew Iona. But Theo and Bbyot were disappointed. They had missed a chance to… well, it was a missed opportunity.

Soon after,

The branch manager came out himself. “Here is the bounty for Baka, the client killer,” he said. “From the Mercenary Association, it’s 15 million Tower Coins. Plus, other clients offered rewards too. In total, it’s 103 million Tower Coins.”

The branch manager himself came out to count the bounty. He had heard Iona was here.

“Thanks!” Theo said. He handed over Baka and took the bounty.

“Now, let’s go see the Lizard King!” Theo said. They went to Floor 69. The Lizard King was there. They needed to get the Floor 68 land deed for Sejun.

High up on Floor 99 of the Golden Tower,

A message flashed in front of them: [The Cherry Tomato Eating Contest is about to begin.]

Along with the message announcing the start of the contest, a basket filled with cherry tomatoes appeared in front of each of the participating elves.

“Oh! What is this?” one elf cried. “Are these really cherry tomatoes?” another asked. The elves who tasted them looked shocked.

“This isn’t just food for the contest, is it?” one elf whispered. “This is amazing!”

Cecilia was also shocked, but for a different reason. She realized: these were all Magic Cherry Tomatoes!

‘Then what are they giving as a prize?!’ I’m definitely going to get first place!

Cecilia, who had participated to obtain the Magic Cherry Tomatoes, burned with fighting spirit.

But, unlike her burning fighting spirit, Cecilia’s hands moved far too slowly.

Cecilia usually only ate five cherry tomatoes. She ate very little, even for an elf.

Because food was scarce, it was usually a condition that was advantageous for survival, but…

“Ugh… I want to eat more…” Only today, she felt that it was too unfair.

The results appeared: [Cherry Tomato Eating Contest Ranking] A list scrolled down. 1st Place – Botany (30)… 2nd Place – Erajin (29)… Far, far below… 1920th Place – Cecilia (5).

Cecilia finished last. Then she heard excited voices. “Oh?! The cherry tomato is white?!” “Wow! This is delicious, and my magic power went up by 10!” She watched as the top three elves ate something special: Elixir: Cherry Tomato Containing Great Magic Power.

So stingy, not even one for her! Cecilia glared at the other elves. She had to do better in the next contest.

“The third contest must be tomato juice drinking!” Cecilia thought. She loved drinks! She started eating foods to help her liver, ready for the next challenge.

Down on Floor 99 of the Black Tower,

“Fill it with water! And ice!” Sejun ordered. Kkuengi barked happily. “Okay, Boss! Water Ball!” Ajax chanted. *Whoosh!* Water appeared. Moo the minotaur grunted in agreement.

Following Sejun’s instructions, Kkuengi, Ajax, Pink Fur, and the Black Minotaur began pouring water into the huge stone pot.

Ajax used magic, and the others fetched water from the pond and fountain to fill the pot.

At first, the pot was so big that it didn’t seem like much, like pouring water into a broken jar, but as time passed, it gradually filled up.

As the water rose, Sejun added the ingredients for the spicy fish stew. *Snap!* He flicked his fingers. A large flame appeared and he tossed it into the wood.

Then…

Whoosh.

The firewood burned, and flames rose.

But Sejun had put ice in the pot. The water was cold. It wasn’t boiling fast.

“Kkuengi, use your wind breath!” Sejun said. Kkuengi barked. *Woof woof!* [Understood! Wind breath coming!] *WHOOOOSH!*

Then…

Whoooosh.

In an instant, the flames became several times stronger than before.

Thanks to that, the one million serving spicy fish stew in the huge stone pot began to boil quickly.

Heh heh. As expected, firepower is key in cooking.

Sejun seasoned the boiling spicy fish stew, and…

‘Alright. It’s all done. Ajax, call Ramter!’

“Okay, Boss!” As soon as the stew was ready, he called Ramter. They needed to make space for the next batch.

“Collection. Our Sejun is working so hard. Refresh.”

Ramter took the spicy fish stew, pot and all, and cast a recovery spell on Sejun and the others before leaving.

As soon as Ramter left…

“Raise Land!”

Sejun used his skill to create another giant stone pot on the hearth.

And then…

“You guys, pour it in!” He started filling it with water again.

Heh heh. Just nine more times and it’s over.

When he was making the sixth batch… “Almost there, everyone! Just a little more!” Sejun encouraged Ajax, Kkuengi, Pink Fur, and the Black Minotaur. He drank a blue potion to get his magic back. He looked like he was about to collapse from tiredness.

But the others didn’t seem tired at all. They looked perfectly fine. Sejun was the only one struggling. He was still too weak to be worrying about others.

Squeak!

‘Hey! Don’t overdo it! You have to make my food later!’

Even the Ocean Sunfish Fenrir was worried about him.

“Whew. I’m going to take a break for a bit.”

In the end, Sejun took a break by himself.

“I’m so tired. I should drink some coffee.”

When Sejun was grinding coffee beans to try to endure with the power of caffeine…

[Your soul is filled with the Golden Tower Elves’ tremendous praise.]

[Mentality increased by 30.]

A message appeared saying that his mentality had increased.

“Golden Tower Elves?” Sejun wondered. “Did Aileen sell to them?” He didn’t know anyone in the Golden Tower. He guessed Aileen had sold crops there, and they were praising him.

Still, thanks to the great increase in mentality and the significant reduction in fatigue…

“Kuh. Good.”

Sejun happily drank his coffee and was able to go back to making spicy fish stew.

Floor 69 of the Black Tower. Theo looked around at the Draken Grand Farm. Lizardmen were working in the huge fields. “Is this where the Lizard King is?” Theo asked Bbyot.

Bbyot barked, [Yes!] Just then, a voice called out. “Are you Theo Park? Servant of the great Black Dragon, the Golden Cat?” Tamuro, a strong lizardman warrior guarding the farm, hurried over to greet Theo.

Theo remembered Tamuro. They had met before, when locusts attacked Floor 67. Back then, Theo was just a beginner merchant. Now, he traveled with Iona, the Great Destruction Magician, and Yuren, a famous merchant. Theo had become well-known.

“Hey Tamuro, good to see you!” Theo said. “But actually, it’s Theo Park, the Fatal Dragon Claw Golden Cat, servant of the great Black Dragon!” He repeated his full title for Tamuro.

“Ah. Yes. I see. But what brings you here?” Tamuro cautiously asked Theo’s business.

Tamuro was a high-ranking warrior in the Lizard Kingdom. He knew a lot about the Tower. And he knew about Theo’s new reputation: the Slave King.

Theo used to be a clumsy, dishonest merchant. Now, he was known as the cruel Slave King. People watched him carefully now, more than ever.

That’s why Tamuro hurried forward to prevent his subordinates from becoming Theo’s slaves.

“I’m here to buy the Floor 68 land deed from the Lizard King!” Theo announced. “The Floor 68 land deed?!” Tamuro repeated, surprised. “Yes! How much will it cost?” Theo asked quickly. *Attack first!* he thought. *That’s how you get a good price!* He was excited to use his haggling skill again.

But Tamuro hesitated. “Um… Theo Park, I’m very sorry. If the Lizard King had the Floor 68 land deed here, he would give it to you. But… it’s in Dino. That’s our capital city, on Floor 70. We don’t have it here.”

“What?! What does that mean?” Theo asked. “Can’t we just go to Floor 70 and get it?” “Well…” Tamuro started.

Tamuro explained. “The Lizard Kingdom used to rule floors 70 to 65. But after fighting the locusts on Floor 67, we became weak.” He sighed. “We were trying to get stronger again. Then… Sejun disappeared to Floor 77. The Black Minotaurs went to find him. And then, monsters from higher floors attacked Floor 70.” Tamuro’s voice dropped. “Our kingdom was in danger. The Lizard King had to seal off Dino, our capital, to protect it. We moved everyone to Floor 69.” He paused. “After the monsters left, we tried to take back Dino. But…” Tamuro looked down. “A giant bird… a Phoenix, made of fire… it made its nest there. We couldn’t get past it. We had to come back to Floor 69.”

“So,” Theo said, after listening to Tamuro’s story. “If we defeat the bird, we can get the land deed?”

“Yes! But it’s not just a bird, it’s a Phoe—” Tamuro started to explain. “Okay, okay, I get it!” Theo interrupted. “Then the treasure inside is half mine! Deal? Stamp the contract!” He pushed the contract at Tamuro.

“Wait here. I need to ask the Lizard King,” Tamuro said. “Okay!” Theo replied. *This is our chance to take back Dino!* Tamuro thought. *We have nothing to lose.* He grabbed the contract and ran towards the barracks in the middle of the farm.

A short while later.

“Theo, please reclaim our Lizard Kingdom’s capital, Dino!” Tamuro came back with the contract stamped with the Lizard King’s seal.

“Don’t worry!” Theo received the contract and went up the Tower with his companions.

But Theo kept going past Floor 70. “Theo, you went too far,” Iona said. “No!” Theo replied. “First, we go to Sejun!” “Why Sejun?” Iona asked. “Sejun can go to Floor 70 with us!” Theo explained. *We’ll go to Floor 70 with Sejun, defeat the bird, and give him the Lizard Kingdom’s treasure and the land deed! Then we’ll go to Floor 68 to find the power of destruction with Sejun! And finally, Floor 75 for my Great Merchant exam! Sejun will be there to congratulate me!* Theo planned it all in his head.

“That would be fun!”

As Theo was thinking about his trip with Sejun and moving to Floor 99…

“It’s over!”

Sejun handed the 10th spicy fish stew to Ramter and shouted for joy. Finally, a break!