I Became a 6★ Gacha Character

367 - Broadcasting Genius Han Se-Ah 2

TL/Editor: raei

Schedule: 5/week

Illustrations: Posted in discord

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Han Se-ah stormed down the Magic Tower corridor, her eyebrows twitching, lips mumbling, jaw clenched tight, and fists trembling. She was clearly fuming.

"Oh, Roland? You're... here?" she said, her tone dripping with frustration.

-That f*cking tone lmao

-Teacher Roland entered the Magic Tower at 12:01:08 lololol

-How the hell does someone blow 1.6 million won in 68 seconds?

-I knew Teacher Roland was up to something when he started acting all confident lololol

Whether it was plot convenience or to create a plausible reason for the player, the Magic Tower had implemented all sorts of modern conveniences disguised as "magical devices".

After showing my adventurer's badge to the guard at the entrance, I passed through the automatic door, walked down a brightly lit corridor, and took the elevator to meet Han Se-ah. The Magic Tower seemed no different from the Kingdom or Empire in this regard.

Having missed out on the mission reward by a hair's breadth, she was visibly shaking with frustration.

'I can control Han Se-ah's missions!'

"So, uh... should we head to the Kingdom?" I asked.

-Look at her going from fuming to tucking her tail between her legs as soon as she sees his face, so f*cking cute lol

-Now what?Now what?Now what?Now what?Now what?Now what?

-Doesn't seem like there's much to do in the Empire, might as well take Teacher Roland to the Kingdom?

-Now that you've learned magic, hurry up and go get the other members

-So do you know how to get to the Kingdom? Don't tell me we're starting a two-week carriage journey?

However, her anger dissipated quickly. Having met up but unsure what to do next, Han Se-ah's expression quickly turned bewildered.

She had probably been eagerly waiting for me to enter the Magic Tower and rushed out immediately, but hadn't thought beyond that point. She likely didn't know if I could use the Magic Tower's gate for the player's tutorial. How could she?

Finding her bewildered expression rather cute, I quietly observed her without advancing the conversation. A bead of cold sweat trickled down her forehead.

The awkward silence was broken by a mage who suddenly burst out of a research room.

"Ah, there you are!" he exclaimed.

"Eh, yes?" Han Se-ah replied, startled.

"The master instructed me to guide the guests to the Kingdom gate. It's a prototype, so it might be a bit unstable, but it should get you back to the Kingdom!"

"Kellin! I told you not to say useless things to our guests!"

A young mage with messy hair and a dazed look stood before us, along with an old mage with wrinkles all over glaring at him disapprovingly. Presumably in charge of gate management, they started forcefully guiding the way without even looking at or listening to Han Se-ah's reaction.

It seemed they might be NPCs who appeared because we lingered too long in the Magic Tower. Rather than forcing story progression, it was more natural to think they wanted to send off guests who had been dawdling past midnight after being invited.

Meanwhile, the young mage seemed to know our identities and wanted to talk to me, but couldn't say anything due to the old mage glaring fiercely from behind.

"It's an honor to meet those chosen by the Goddess," the old mage said. "Thanks to you, the Magic Tower has been able to research the unknown field of gates. Surely, all this is the Goddess's guidance."

"Ah, yes..." Han Se-ah replied awkwardly.

After shooing away his own disciple with a glare, the old man chuckled and spoke to Han Se-ah in a friendly manner. No matter how much of a hero you are in the game, it's bound to be uncomfortable for a Korean when a grandfather who looks nearly 70 starts talking about honor and such. Still, whether oblivious or pretending to be, the mage's chatter continued.

He rambled on about various research derived from gate magic, curiosity about the hero's artifact called inventory, and social and economic ripple effects caused by advancing magic.

"Ah... The Empire or the Kingdom, a mage is a mage," Han Se-ah muttered. "How are all these old geezers the same?"

-Looks like the Magic Tower is where mages gather regardless of affiliation with the Kingdom or Empire?

-They say people talk more as they age, so I guess mages talk even more, squared lol

-He's whipped up an entire economics lecture while walking down one corridor

-Wow, did you listen to all that?

-I skipped through it while dozing off, that's why it seemed quick lol

Amidst Han Se-ah's shock at his talkativeness and viewers checking the mood, we finally arrived at the gate. Unlike the one for entering the tower, an empty doorframe with a strange blue light welcomed us.

"What do you think?" the old mage asked proudly. "Once this is commercialized, the mountain range between the Kingdom and Empire will be as good as gone! It'll shut up those fools who want to build flying ships for exchange!"

"Indeed. I'll be cheering for your research." Han Se-ah said, fidgeting awkwardly.

She then quickly disappeared into the gate. The blue light apparently signified the gate's activation, and she plunged in headfirst without asking or checking.

When I glanced at the assistant, he gave me a look as if to ask why I wasn't going, so I stepped towards the gate.

Aren't such spatial transportation devices usually prepared, charged, and put through various procedures before being checked and then having people inserted? Come to think of it, the gate for entering the tower just lets you walk right in.

"Umm, the other comrades, uuuugh?!!!" Han Se-ah's voice called out.

Beeeeeeeeeep――

As I moved towards the gate heading from the Empire to the Kingdom, a sparkling mana light pierced through my eyelids in the blink of an eye, brightly illuminating my vision. A momentary ringing echoed in my ears, followed by Han Se-ah's bizarre voice and the sound of an explosion engulfing me.

---

Raei Translations

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Breaking news! The gate connecting the Kingdom and Empire in the Magic Tower experiences an unexplained explosion!

"...Ah, is this a sign not to cross over to the Empire so easily?"

-This seems like a common episode in RPG games, but experiencing it in virtual reality makes my guts clench

-But does this kill users or companions if they get caught up in it? Like, are they stuck in the Magic Tower walls and stuff?

-No way lol This must be a fixed event. No matter how sh*tty the game is, they wouldn't kill off a core party member in the tutorial, right?

-Forget the companions, if the player messes around enough, they might unlock the "Died by Gate" achievement

-Why would anyone need to die for that lol Just go to the Kingdom nicely instead of choosing to go to heaven

Having been the last to leave for the Empire, I was greeted by worried-looking comrades when I returned to the Kingdom via the gate.

To ensure Han Se-ah's mission failure, I had returned to the Kingdom after midnight, slept for a night, and woken up to find the group preparing meals and gathering at the table as usual, having heard the news.

I thought of the explosion as a kind of fixed event, a sign from the operators not to cheese the travel between the Kingdom and Empire... but to our group, it sounded like the crazy mages' unstable experiment nearly killed the hero and the holy sword's owner.

"Are you really alright?" Irene asked, concern evident in her voice.

Grace chimed in, "Are you sure nothing hurts? No discomfort in your stomach, or trouble controlling your mana...?"

Because of this, Irene kept glancing my way while cooking soup, Grace openly stroked my forearm or poked at my side, and Katie silently circled around me, glaring as if trying to find something wrong. All I could do was smile awkwardly.

By this logic, shouldn't they be worried about Han Se-ah too? When I casually asked, it seemed they were less concerned thanks to her genius mage image.

If the hero and genius mage got caught up in the Magic Tower's mistake, she'd notice any problems herself. Moreover, she had crossed the gate before me and was waiting, so she escaped being an object of concern. Maybe I should have entered the gate first.

"I'm really fine," I assured them, "so let's talk about the tower. We need to decide whether to explore the 51st floor or practice our newly learned skills."

"Alright, if Roland says so."

They were a sight for sore eyes as always, but that was precisely the problem with such beauties. When they stared intently with half-teary or worried expressions, it was as burdensome as it was beautiful.

I brought up the topic while slurping Irene's soup, incomparable to the tasteless slop from the Empire. The rich flavor touching the tip of my tongue, followed by the subtle sweetness of grains, made it embarrassing to even call it the same soup as that nearly spoiled flour gruel.

Grace and Katie seemed to have missed Irene's cooking too, eating faster than usual.

"We don't know what kind of place the 51st floor is yet, right?"

"The advance party that went to the entrance said plains have appeared again."

Katie nodded, "Plains again? That'll be convenient for moving around."

The bowls were cleaned spotlessly, apparently having realized the preciousness of Irene's cooking due to the journey's effects. Enjoying the lingering warmth of the soup in our stomachs, we sat at the table and started discussing the 51st floor.

As there are impatient people everywhere in the world, some high-ranking adventurers had already rushed to the 51st floor while we were taking a brief rest under the name of Season 2.

Everyone's expression subtly relaxed at the news of plains reappearing after the venomous marsh and the highland where forming battle lines was difficult. However, we had to remember that we were inside a game.

"But we can't let our guard down just because it's plains," I warned. "The tower's structure makes the Demon King's power stronger as we go up... This time, instead of goblins, we might encounter something like ogres."

Grace nodded, "True, even if plains are easy to explore, we don't know what kind of monsters might appear there. Wonder if the guild has any news?"

"How about we stop by the guild to check, and then head to the 51st floor?" Irene suggested.

"I'm fine with that," Han Se-ah agreed. "I can practice my newly learned advanced magic on the plains too."

After this reminder not to let our guard down, we headed to the guild, where unbelievably shocking news awaited us.