Still concealed, I watched the researchers.
Their outfits looked surprisingly modern.
Was floor 4 so kind of setting where civilization and technology were way more advanced than the other floors?
I glanced around and started walking down the corridor.
Besides the two who had just passed, other researchers were scattered up and down the hallway.
Surrounded by people in white coats, I stood out like a sore thumb, so I couldn’t drop Concealnt.
This wasn’t like floor 3. I was inside a building called a workshop.
If anyone spotted , they’d take for an intruder, wouldn’t they?
‘I can’t keep Concealnt up forever either…’
But what the hell was I supposed to do now?
I’d already found the people. The story was supposed to progress on its own, right?
The basics of clearing a hidden stage: understand the setting.
For now, I’m keeping an ear on the conversations of the researchers passing by.
It was all experint talk I couldn’t follow, or mundane chatter about what to have for lunch. Nothing worthwhile.
Suddenly the researchers around started bowing their heads.
An elderly man in a white coat, wearing a monocle, was walking toward .
Behind him trailed two people in sleek, chanical-looking suits. Were those the guards?
In any case, he had the air of soone important.
I stepped aside too, against the wall, so I wouldn’t bump into them.
Then the old man suddenly stopped walking.
Then he stared blankly at the spot where I was standing.
‘…?’
…What?
Our eyes t.
I was concealed, wasn’t I? Had he seen ?
“Is sothing the matter, Lord Iska?”
“It’s nothing.”
The old man pulled his gaze off and kept walking.
I tilted my head, watching him go.
Our eyes had definitely t, though…? Ah.
Sothing clicked, and I followed after the old man.
If he’d spotted and let it slide, it probably ant he wasn’t an enemy.
And if he wasn’t an enemy?
Going by every hidden stage I’d done so far, he was a character I needed for the route.
‘But how the hell did he see ?’
Diul’s Concealnt had never been pierced, not even once.
And I still had no idea why he had pretended not to notice.
Following him all the way down, I ca to a door at the end of the corridor.
The two guards gave the old man a bow and peeled off elsewhere.
Which left just the concealed and the old man, alone together…
“Co in.”
Without looking back, the old man opened the door and spoke.
So he had seen after all.
I cranked up my guard and followed him into the room.
It’s not yet certain that he’s an ally.
If anything felt off, I needed to be ready to react imdiately.
Click.
Half the room was sothing like an office, and the other half resembled a laboratory.
I quietly put so distance between myself and the old man as he closed and locked the door.
The old man stared at blankly.
“Are you going to stay like that?”
I dropped Concealnt.
If he could see anyway, there was no point wasting strength keeping it up.
“…”
So… what the hell was this situation?
My Sixth Sense reported no hostility coming off the old man, at least.
He spoke again.
“Where did you co from? The Northern Resistance? The Twilight Order? Or the Shadow Blade?”
…Sorry, but I have zero idea what any of that ans.
Knowing nothing, I kept my mouth firmly shut.
“I’m sure you’re wondering why I pretended not to see you.”
I nodded. Yeah, I was curious about that.
The old man took a cigarette out of his desk drawer, lit it, and took a drag. Smoke curled up.
“I don’t know what purpose brought you here… but whatever it is, it can’t be a favorable one. I won’t ask anything else. Just answer two questions. Are you an enemy of the Workshop?”
“…”
…How was I supposed to answer that?
Yes? No?
The old man was clearly from this Workshop, yet he was acting strangely. Hiding an intruder, chatting with him.
Even now, it sounded like he wanted to be an enemy of the Workshop. No, he’d already made up his mind that I was.
Slowly, I nodded.
The old man nodded too, then asked again.
“Then, hypothetically, if this Workshop were to be blown to pieces… would that align with your purpose as well?”
…Blown up? The Workshop?
The atmosphere was practically begging for a yes, so I nodded again.
The old man drew deeply on his cigarette, exhaled, and said,
“Then we may be able to help each other. Because I intend to destroy this Workshop.”
“…”
“I am Iska, the senior researcher of this Floating Workshop. What do you say? Will you cooperate with ?”
Floating Workshop?
Finally, I opened my mouth and asked.
“…Why would a researcher want to blow up the Workshop?”
“Just as I asked nothing of you, I believe you have no need to ask that of .”
So he wasn’t going to tell .
“Do you doubt my sincerity? The fact that I’m hiding an intruder like you is proof enough, no? Just understand that I have absolutely no reason to do this otherwise.”
“No, I understand. I’ll cooperate.”
I accepted the offer.
Blowing up the Workshop, huh. I still wasn’t sure if this was the right route to be taking…
But for the mont, he was the only character I could interact with.
And I had a feeling that refusing would get the guards called on on the spot.
“So how am I supposed to cooperate, exactly?”
Iska stubbed out his finished cigarette in the ashtray.
“There is sothing called the Master Code. I need you to bring it to .”
To summarize Iska’s explanation:
The Master Code was, put simply, the highest-authority code of the Workshop.
The Workshop was divided into ten sectors, numbered one through ten, and the Master Code was stored in a room sowhere in Sector 1.
He wanted to go there and copy the Master Code.
“Only the Workshop Master can enter the Master Code Room. To be precise, you need the Master Key that he carries. So the order is this: first, you must steal the Master Key from the Workshop Master, then make your way to the Master Code Room.”
…That sounded pretty damn difficult.
Still, listening to him, I felt a little more confident I was on the right path.
The way he was laying things out, like a walkthrough of a ga’s story progression, matched the feel of every hidden stage I’d cleared so far.
“You use so unknown power, not mana. If your abilities are enough to infiltrate this Floating Workshop without causing any disturbance, I believe you may be capable of this task… What do you say?”
Was he talking about Diul’s ability?
I asked,
“How did you see through my Concealnt, anyway?”
Iska tapped the lens of his monocle a couple of tis.
“My eyes are simply a little special. There is no one in this Workshop besides who can see through your ability, so you needn’t worry about that.”
Iska pulled sothing from his breast pocket and handed it to .
It looked like a small USB drive.
“A tool for copying the code. Once you enter the Master Code Room, there should be a device that looks like a capsule in the middle of the room. Touch this tool to it. When the tool’s light turns blue, the copy is complete.”
I took the tool and asked,
“How do I steal the Master Key from the Workshop Master?”
“The Workshop Master always keeps the Master Key on his person. He’s usually in Sector 1, so find him and take it.”
“…That’s it?”
“Be wary of his personal bodyguard. A monster of a man, a forr Imperial Executor. You’ll need to steal the key without being spotted.”
No, wait.
Wasn’t there anything more specific?
All Iska was telling was, basically, he’s got the key, so figure out how to pickpocket him.
Iska walked deeper into the office and ca back carrying a white coat and sothing like a card, which he handed over.
“The ID card of my apprentice researcher. Wearing this, you’ll be able to walk around the Workshop openly without drawing suspicion.”
A fake identity on top of everything else.
Was floor 4’s hidden the, like, an espionage infiltration action thing?
I slipped the tool and the card into my pocket and put on the coat.
“The Master Code refreshes every hour on the hour. So if you copy the code at 1:20, you must bring it to before 2:00 sharp. Understood?”
“Yes… for now, at least.”
Lastly, I was given a smartphone-like device containing a map of the Workshop’s interior.
“Off you go, then. Take as long as you need.”
Feeling more pushed out than dismissed, I left Iska’s office.
Hands stuffed in the coat pockets, I walked the corridor a little self-consciously.
The researchers passing by didn’t spare a glance.
So I’d picked up the quest… hmm.
Well, I’d figure it out as I went.
The mission ca down to two parts.
Steal the Workshop Master’s key, then use it to reach the Master Code Room and copy the code.
And apparently, how I pulled all that off was entirely up to .
First, I decided to scout the location of the Master Code Room.
The Master Code Room was in Sector 1. I was currently in Sector 6. Getting out of here was the first step.
On a sudden thought, I opened the Shop window.
[Shop]
– Physical Damage 10% (500P)
– Magic Damage 10% (200P)
– Willpower 10% (100P)
– Attribute Conversion (500P)
– Force Field (50P)
– Slow (50P)
– Freeze (100P)
– Special Gacha! (5,000P)
Points held: 30,500P
[‘Magic Damage 10% (200P)’ has been purchased.]
‘It still works.’
When I tried buying Magic Damage, the purchase went through.
Did that an I could keep using this as long as I was on floor 4? That was one piece of good news.
Anyway, how ridiculously big was this place…
I fumbled around with the Workshop map, struggling to find my way.
Just finding the exit out of the building took forever.
‘Oh, there’s an elevator.’
After switching elevators a few tis and riding down, I finally made it outside the Sector 6 building.
The mont I stepped out, wind slamd into .
“…?”
Was that fog all around … no, clouds?
Stunned by the view I’d never imagined, I walked toward the outer edge of the Workshop.
“Wow…”
What the hell.
Earlier, when he’d said “Floating Workshop”, I’d just assud it was the Workshop’s na.
It wasn’t.
It was truly a floating workshop.
The landscape around was nothing but sky. Like a small island, the entire Workshop was flying up in the air.
“You shouldn’t stand out there, it’s dangerous.”
A passing guard called out to .
“Ah, sorry.”
Thankfully he didn’t seem suspicious. He just kept walking.
I gave up on sightseeing and headed back toward my destination.
Still, there was sothing kind of romantic about all this. A workshop floating in the sky.
Shwoom!
Just then, so kind of small airship descended to land nearby.
A gust of wind blew past, and a researcher walking toward dropped the stack of papers they were carrying.
“Oh no…!”
I helped the flustered researcher gather the papers back up.
“Ah, thank you so much!”
Once every sheet had been collected, the researcher bead and thanked over and over.
“Really, thank you. It’s nice to et soone so kind.”
“It’s nothing, really.”
“Are you a Sector 6 researcher? I’m Selona, from Sector 3. The researchers in my sector wouldn’t even have looked up if sothing like this happened, you know? I’m jealous. Sector 6 must not be that cold and dreary.”
Ugh, I shouldn’t have bothered helping.
Selona had launched into impromptu small talk, and I was stuck there, smiling awkwardly, when…
People started disembarking from the airship that had just landed.
Our eyes naturally drifted in that direction.
People with the appearance of handcuffed prisoners.
“Move it! Stop dragging your feet!”
A guard kicked a child who had fallen and was in pain.
The child, face pale with terror, limped along after the rest of the line.
By any modern standard of ethics, it wasn’t remotely normal. My expression hardened as I watched, but Selona, still cheerful as ever, said,
“Looks like this month’s fuel has arrived.”
“…Fuel?”
“Seriously, though, can’t they land a little farther from the building? My papers almost got blown away.”
She grumbled.
“Oh, sorry, have I been holding you up? You must be busy. Let’s chat again soti!”
Selona smiled and walked off.
I looked back and forth between the departing airship and the line of people who had been unloaded.
Fuel…? But only people got off that thing.
No way. Those people were the fuel?
‘Romance canceled.’
Was this, by any chance, a dystopia-thed world?
I moved my eyes off them and went back to my task. Focus on clearing this.
Following the passageways linking the sectors, I finally arrived in Sector 1.
Checking the map, I made my way close to the Master Code Room, then took a look around and activated Concealnt.
Hm… surprisingly, no guards?
I walked down an unbelievably long corridor, and at the very end stood a massive door.
Beside it, I spotted sothing that looked like a scanner, etched with an intricate circuit pattern.
I figured touching the Workshop Master’s Master Key to it would open the door.
‘Easier than I thought, maybe?’
No one was around, so as long as I got the Master Key, the rest would be a breeze.
Of course, the real question was how hard getting the Master Key would be…
Then a thought struck .
Wait, couldn’t I just teleport in?
Teleportation worked even if the space between was blocked, as long as the destination itself was an empty space. It could also be used without seeing the destination, simply by orienting in the right direction.
aning this door wasn’t an obstacle at all.
The thing couldn’t possibly be more than ten ters thick, right?
I froze ti and went into ntal Concentration.
Excited at the thought of cheesing this, I fired off Teleportation right away, and…
Zap!
Sparks crackled, and with the shock of slamming into so invisible wall, the teleport failed and my body was flung backward.
“…??”
What the hell.
While I stood there in shock, the corridor suddenly flushed red, and sirens blared.
– Intrusion attempt detected. Incineration started.
The entire ceiling of the long corridor clunked open.
At the sa instant, my Sixth Sense was screaming death, death, death! like a frantic alarm bell.
‘Ohh boy…’
Yeah, I was cooked.
[Do you wish to exit the Tower?]
I’ll take the retry.
I slamd the ergency exit button and bailed out instantly.
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