But even though she couldn’t fully understand what was being said, there was a part of it that felt valid at first glance.

The part about not being a good match.

Suji relaxed her shoulders and took a small deep breath.

Anyone can have someone they don’t get along with well.

Even Suji herself doesn’t get along with everyone. It’s just that her current teammates have become uniquely comfortable with each other, but since her academy days, there were more people she felt uncomfortable with.

Even if they didn’t express it openly, she couldn’t put into words the awkwardness of being with those who implicitly tried to use her, were jealous of her, or feared her.

Come to think of it, the fact that she was able to become so comfortable with her teammates was largely thanks to Leon’s help.

Since he had been with them from the beginning, respected Daphne as the team leader, and kept the team culture in check, such an atmosphere was formed.

So if she couldn’t understand that there was someone he felt uncomfortable with, it would be understandable for Leon to feel disappointed from his perspective.

‘I’m a failure as a team leader.’

Of course, everyone has the freedom to express their opinion, and it’s possible to accept it to some extent.

It’s true that he spoke harshly about Nature, but it wasn’t something Suji could say anything about.

She hesitated for a moment, then flicked her fingers to gather everyone’s attention.

They hadn’t been able to decide anything about whether to set up a base camp here and rest, or to continue climbing to the upper floor as is, or to recruit additional players.

Everyone was still in their armed attire, looking at Suji.

She gave them a slight smile.

“Having a save point is a good opportunity not only for recruiting team members, but also for having a team dinner. Let’s go eat, shall we?”

“Eat…?”

“I’m very much in favor!”

“If it’s combat rations, I’m sick of them. Let’s go eat whatever it is.”

Her eyes met Leon’s again.

He had the same expression he had when Suji said let’s go rest. Or was it when she said let’s play a game?

A hint of surprise flashed across his face, then softly crumbled into a smile. It was a pleasure to see Leon’s face like that.

Suji smiled slightly.

“I think our nerves have become frayed from suddenly fighting battles and only chewing on dried meat after living happily. Both Leon and I.”

“…My nerves haven’t become frayed. I just…”

“Leon, let’s talk about it again while eating something delicious. Are we going to save up money and die with it? We should indulge in luxury.”

“…I understand.”

As Leon stepped back, Suji spoke into the air.

“When we leave the tower, confirm if we can re-enter this floor later.”

[When re-entering from outside, you can choose to enter either the 1st, 50th, or 82nd floor. However, for the 82nd floor, the option will only be visible to those who directly exited from this floor.]

So that’s how it is.

Suji nodded her head.

“Then is it okay to bring in additional external personnel?”

[Additional entry is possible until the total capacity of 300 people for the 82nd floor is filled.]

“Got it. Let us out.”

As Suji said that and extended her hands to the sides, her teammates grabbed her hands as if they had been waiting. Peace grabbed Saint’s hand, who was holding Suji’s hand.

As the ground beneath their feet flashed green, the group opened their eyes in front of the 1st floor of the tower.

“Huh?”

“It’s Team Daphne!”

“Where, where?”

“Over there! Don’t you see the wings?”

“Wow, it really is Ms. Daphne! Her wings are truly radiant…”

“Peace is also incredibly handsome in person.”

Usually, the area around the tower was a desolate zone where not even an ant would pass by.

At most, there were only hunters who wanted to take pictures with the tower as a backdrop, or reporters wandering around looking for a scoop.

Even though it was geographically located in the heart of Seoul, everyone was reluctant to come near this area because of the intimidating appearance of the hideous exterior.

But today, the crowd was bustling. Looking in the direction where multiple voices were pouring out at once, barricades were even set up to make people line up in order to control the large number of people.

Suji looked around, a little puzzled.

Not too far away, she saw a familiar government official with sparkling eyes.

“Hello. You said your name was Saber, right?”

When Suji spoke first, the woman seemed startled but quickly saluted.

“Hunter name, Saber! Meeting SSS-rank hunter, Ms. Daphne!”

Every time they met, she would stutter her words, but at least her symptoms had improved a bit.

Suji asked, looking around.

“It was definitely empty until we entered the tower… Why have there been so many people gathered?”

“Because of the broadcast you did, Ms. Daphne, many teams have gathered, and Ms. Creusa has also entered, wanting to challenge again from the 1st floor!”

“Is that so?”

“Yes! Not only that, but as you gave a warm speech to us government officials, we are also vowing to renew our vigilance and reorganize our minds by patrolling the tower whenever we have time!”

Suji tried to maintain a nonchalant expression, but hearing such things right in front of her, she couldn’t help but feel her cheeks gradually heating up.

Was it just unnecessary nagging to others? As Suji was fidgeting, not knowing what to do with herself, Saber showed the terminal on the back of her hand and added.

“So we are in the process of creating new rules, and the management team, including myself, has come out to manage the area around the 〈Tower of the Wise〉!”

As Saint reflexively took out his terminal and scanned the code there, an announcement filled the screen.

[Temporary 〈Tower of the Wise〉 Usage Guidelines

Purpose: To enable smooth use of the tower without conflict as people flock to the Tower of the Wise.

Things to follow:

1. Attempts on each floor are allowed up to 5 times, and it is recommended to immediately declare giving up upon failure.

2. In case of disputes within a team or between teams, it is recommended to resolve the dispute at the headquarters installed in front of the 〈Tower of the Wise〉 or on the 50th floor.

3. If you find injured or deceased individuals, report to headquarters immediately.

4. If you discover a crack, evacuate from that location immediately and report to headquarters.

…]

‘To the point of creating guidelines for the 〈Tower of the Wise〉…’

Suji looked a bit surprised.

There is a limit to the number of teams that can stay on one floor.

With such a tower structure, if any one floor couldn’t be cleared quickly and was delayed, the floors below had to wait endlessly.

It seemed to be a guidebook created to allow many people to use the tower.

She took her gaze off Saint’s terminal and looked over the numerous crowds looking in her direction.

Both the rules and the sight of people lining up… It was like a waiting line for an amusement park ride.

She laughed slightly.

During the time she practically lived in the tower, there were times when people would flock based on public opinion. There were also those who would rush in, saying they wanted to overtake Team Daphne out of a sense of challenge or heroism.

But they all fell out due to the cruelty of the 〈Tower of the Wise〉.

When you could make money more easily by going to other dungeons, it wasn’t easy to persistently challenge the tower for a long time like Suji.

This was the first time so many people had gathered. She didn’t expect crowds to the point where guidelines to maintain order would be created.

And because of the video she filmed.

Even though it was her intention, she somehow felt embarrassed.

Suji hesitated for a moment, then waved to the people who had their eyes fixed on her.

“Woooooooah!”

“Woah! Ms. Daphne! We’ll follow you!”

“Ms. Daphne! We’re cheering for you!”

“I reached the 60th floor! Ms. Daphne!”

The crowd, which had somehow remained quiet during the conversation, erupted in cheers again at a single gesture from her.

There are so many people in the world.

At one point, she felt like she was the only one being pushed from behind, but to think there would be this many people who decided to climb the tower as she said, just from an insignificant video…

It tickled her inside.

“…Shall we move?”

Suji quickly whispered to her companions, feeling like her face would turn red, and called out her unicorn.

The restaurant the group arrived at was a high-end restaurant that Saint had searched for during the move.

It was said to be a restaurant that only operates by reservation, but they were able to get through with a single mention of making a reservation under the name of Team Daphne.

The group entered the building, taking off their weapons and armor.

It was located between southern Gyeonggi Province and North Chungcheong Province, and it seemed to operate an entire tall building as a restaurant.

After passing through a garden in full bloom with beautiful roses and entering the dim interior, a white-clad employee came out and guided the group to a separately prepared private room.

Inside the large room was a long oval-shaped table.

“It’s a bit awkward to come to a place like this after only chewing on dried meat every day.”

Saint whispered that, but he excitedly sat down on the chair the employee pulled out for him. The other members of the group also seemed excited just by looking at the neatly set table.

Suji felt somehow sorry looking at the faces of her teammates.

They were people who could fully enjoy and live their lives. While she was blinded by revenge, they accompanied her on her journey.

Food is best eaten warm. They had been eating worse than delivered food every day.

Before being pressed for time because of the ‘great beings’ or whatever, she should have visited more nice places.

“He-hello, Ms. Daphne. It-it’s an ho-honor to meet you. This is the chef’s special menu that I s-specially prepared, so if you like it, shall I prepare it like this?”

Only then did Suji realize that the person who had guided the group was not an employee but the chef, and she raised her head.