84
＜Delicious Fish Cake (Ltd.)＞
＜Factory Location: Incheon, Namdong-gu…＞
＜Phone Number: 032-4xxx-xxxx＞
The Hotbar factory was in Incheon.
It was a company that had been producing fish cakes for 50 years, and although it was a medium-sized company in terms of size, it had built a reputation in the fish cake industry that was not inferior to that of large companies.
They supplied products to famous marts and convenience stores nationwide, so Minhyuk also knew the company name.
The instant fish cake soup he sometimes ate when drinking soju was also made by this company.
‘Can I buy Hotbar directly from the factory?’
It was different from when he bought sesame oil from a small-scale factory run by a university alumnus last time.
To buy items directly from a factory of this size, B2B (business-to-business) transactions might be essential.
‘I’ll find out if I call them.’
Minhyuk called the Hotbar factory.
“Hello, this is Delicious Fish Cake.”
“I need a lot of shrimp-flavored Hotbar, but can I buy it directly from the factory?”
“If you receive a phone consultation and send us a copy of your business registration certificate and necessary supporting documents, you can purchase wholesale prices from the factory after a partner contract.”
“Is a business registration certificate essential?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
As expected, it was impossible to buy Hotbar directly from the factory as an individual.
Hmm-
For now, I should buy the quantity I need right away from a warehouse-type mart and an online shopping mall.
However, I will soon get a business registration certificate and sign a B2B contract with the Hotbar factory.
There was a reason he wanted to deal directly with the Hotbar factory as a business-to-business.
How many Noscos would he need to grow his mana pool to a satisfactory level?
‘Even 10,000 won’t be enough.’
Ten Noscos of Accumulation were needed to increase his mana pool by as much as the mana contained in one small, low-grade magic bead.
He couldn’t even guess how many Noscos would be needed to grow his mana pool to the level of a dragon’s heart.
He needed a huge amount of Hotbar.
Even if his mana pool were to grow as large as a dragon’s, would he be satisfied at that point?
It would be natural for a person to want to increase their internal energy from the first cycle to the second and third cycles.
The same went for the mana pool.
‘The bigger, the better.’
So, Nosco of Accumulation would continue to be in steady need.
Like an egg that turns into a red potion.
Eggs are not likely to become difficult to obtain unless something major happens, like a national bankruptcy or a war.
But hot bars were different.
The factory could suddenly go bankrupt or the product could be discontinued.
To continue to procure Nosco of Accumulation, production of the shrimp-flavored hot bar had to continue no matter what.
However, Minhyuk couldn’t just put everything aside and only focus on keeping the hot bar factory running.
That was why he was trying to get a B2B deal.
If something happened to the hot bar factory, he would be able to know in advance as a partner, rather than as an individual.
If he knew in advance, he would be able to prepare some kind of solution.
In the worst-case scenario, if the hot bar factory was in danger of going bankrupt, he might even take it over.
‘Anyway, that’s for later.’
Thud-
Minhyuk drove his truck to the warehouse mart.
.
.
.
He bought out all the shrimp-flavored hot bars at the warehouse mart.
Just in case, he put a different manufacturer’s shrimp-flavored hot bars in the refrigerator, but they turned into something completely different.
Only the shrimp-flavored hot bars made by Matnara Eomuk turned into Nosco of Accumulation.
Minhyuk went around to not only the warehouse mart but the big stores nearby and bought out all the hot bars.
He ended up buying 10,000 hot bars.
There were 250 boxes with 40 in each.
He went home and put them all in the refrigerator.
The refrigerator was about 10 pyeong, so he was able to put them all in at once.
“Return.”
Pow-
With a flash of light, he returned to the first floor of the Magic Tower.
He checked the refrigerator and saw that the 10,000 hot bars had turned into 10,000 Noscos.
Rustle-
Minhyuk began to unroll the Noscos.
The scrolls turned into particles of light and wrapped around Minhyuk.
＜The amount of magic power that can be stored in the body has increased.＞
Rustle-
He continued to unroll the Noscos.
Even if he unrolled one every second, it would take almost 3 hours to unroll all 10,000.
Rustle-
Rustle-
Minhyuk unrolled them with all his might.
Since he was unrolling them at superhuman speed, he was able to unroll several at a time.
＜The amount of magic power that can be stored in the body has increased.＞
＜The amount of magic power that can be stored in the body has increased.＞
Rustle-
Rustle-
Without thinking, I opened the scrolls over and over again.
After opening thousands of them, I could barely tell if I was a scroll or the scroll was me.
I entered a state of selflessness, just like when I was meditating.
＜The amount of magic power that can be stored in the body has increased.＞
＜The amount of magic power that can be stored in the body has increased.＞
.
.
.
And finally, I opened all 10,000 scrolls.
In just one hour, I had achieved something incredible.
My mana pool was now as large as an Archmage’s.
‘That’s enough for today.’
I wanted to buy more Hotbars and continue increasing my mana pool.
But I had to think about the soldiers waiting outside the Magic Tower.
I would go up to the 2nd floor without delay.
But before that, there was something I had to do.
My mana pool may have gotten bigger, but it was still empty.
I needed to fill it with magic power.
Swish-
Minhyuk took out a magic bead from the refrigerator and began filling his mana pool.
To fill it up, he needed 1,000 small low-grade magic beads.
That’s why he had also bought plenty of canned ham when he bought the Hotbars.
It would be nice if I could use large magic beads.
However, large low-grade magic beads were military-grade, so it was impossible to procure them in large quantities.
For the time being, I had no choice but to fill my mana pool with canned ham.
Swish-
It took about a minute to absorb 1 magic bead.
So, it would take 17 hours to absorb all 1,000.
‘That’s going to take even longer than increasing my mana pool.’
But there was no other way.
Another boring grind began.
Swish-
Swish-
After absorbing about 100 magic beads,
＜Magic absorption ability has increased.＞
＜You can absorb magic power at a faster rate.＞
The speed at which I absorbed magic power doubled.
I could now absorb one magic bead in 30 seconds.
Swoosh-
Swoosh-
After absorbing about 200 more magic beads,
From Noble mtl dot com
＜Magic absorption ability has increased.＞
＜You can absorb magic power at a faster rate.＞
The speed doubled again.
I could now absorb one magic bead in 15 seconds.
And after absorbing 400 more magic beads, the speed doubled again.
Perhaps the standard amount for increasing absorption ability was set in a geometric progression of 100, 200, 400, 800.
In any case, the more magic power I absorbed, the faster the speed became.
This was also a benefit that only Minhyuk could enjoy, as he could procure magic beads in bulk with the refrigerator.
It would be difficult for ordinary magicians to get their hands on hundreds or thousands of magic beads.
I was thrilled that I could become infinitely stronger through sheer quantity.
‘Sweeet!’
I was so engrossed in absorbing magic power, like a bee sucking honey, that my mana gauge was full before I knew it.
Now it was really time to go up to the 2nd floor.
Whoosh-
Minhyuk flew into the sky.
He passed through the hole that led to the 2nd floor.
Splash-
Strangely, the other side of the hole was underwater.
He held his breath and swam upwards.
After swimming for a while, he reached the surface.
Phew-
He stuck his head out of the water and looked around. He was in a vast lake.
‘How strange.’
The hole in the ceiling of the 1st floor was connected to the bottom of the lake on the 2nd floor.
It was strange that the water didn’t pour down.
He noticed an island in the distance.
Thud-
Minhyuk used his flight magic to fly over the water.
Whoosh-
He flew to the island and landed on the grass.
It was a small island with colorful flowers blooming everywhere.
Even without anyone explaining it to him, he could sense that this was the safe zone of the 2nd floor.
“Guide.”
Minhyuk called for the guide of the magic tower.
“Yes, sir.”
He turned his head toward the source of the voice and saw the guide standing there.
A puppy with eight legs and a pair of wings.
“Congratulations on reaching the second floor of the Magic Tower.”
“Didn’t you say the top floor is the ninth?”
“Yes, that’s right. The master of the Magic Tower is waiting for you there.”
There were only seven more floors to go.
Minhyeok asked about the people he had encountered on the first floor.
“Who exactly were those people?”
“They are those who made a voluntary transaction with the master of the Magic Tower. They sold their souls in exchange for what they needed. They became slaves to the Magic Tower and are forced to die and live again eternally within the Magic Tower. That is all I am allowed to tell you.”
He wouldn’t tell me any more even if I asked, so I asked something else.
“Am I the only guest in the Magic Tower right now?”
“No, you are not.”
“Who else is here besides me?”
“I cannot provide information about other guests. However, I can tell you that there are three of you, including yourself.”
There were two more people in the Magic Tower besides Minhyeok.
He wondered who they were.
“Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“Not for now.”
“Then I will see you on the third floor.”
Swish-
The Magic Tower guide disappeared.
Minhyeok immediately cast the Fly spell and left the island.
When he reached the lakeside, a message appeared before his eyes.
＜You have left the safe zone.＞
There were colorful flowers growing on the land outside the lake as well.
‘Where should I go now?’
He needed to get a map to find out how to get to the third floor and where Nosco was.
For now, he moved around aimlessly, not paying attention to direction.
Then he came face to face with a large beast.
Kwang-
A giant golden lion roared.
It charged at Minhyeok as soon as it saw him.
Drrrk-
Minhyeok fired his Gatling gun.
The target was large, so it was easy to hit.
In an instant, the lion was riddled with holes and collapsed.
Then it turned to dust and scattered.
‘The second floor is nothing special.’
The Gatling gun was originally a weapon designed to fight dragons.
It was bound to feel underwhelming when used to hunt other beasts.
Anyway, Nosco remained in the place where the lion disappeared.
＜Discharging Nosco has been found.＞
＜You can learn a magic spell that discharges magic power by unfolding Nosco.＞
It was a Nosco opposite to the absorbing Nosco.
It was a magic spell that could discharge magic power and infuse magic power into magic tools or the bodies of other magicians.
Minhyeok first put Nosco in the refrigerator to check what it would turn into.
The discharging Nosco was a sprayer.
A pesticide sprayer that you carry on your back and spray by pumping it with your hand.
Minhyeok checked the manufacturer and model number of the pesticide sprayer and returned to the magic tower.
Zzzzzz-
He unfolded the discharging Nosco.
＜You have learned a magic spell that discharges magic power.＞
Minhyeok drew his greatsword and infused magic power.
Wheeeng-
A whirlwind blew powerfully from the blade.
Clang-
He also unfolded the magic barrier.
In the past, every time he used the magic in his greatsword, he had to charge it with a magic bead.
But now, there was no need for that.
As long as his mana pool was not depleted, he could use magic continuously with his own magic power.
Thanks to Nosco, his combat ability had jumped up another level.
He thought it was really good that he came to the magic tower.
‘I should have come sooner!’
That was when.
He felt a strange energy behind his back.
Swish-
Minhyeok turned his head.
There was a huge beast.
＜Yak Dragon has been found.＞
＜You can earn 120 hours of return time by killing the Yak Dragon.＞
Its overall appearance resembled a dragon.
The difference was that it had a hump on its head instead of horns.
He had been looking for a dragon to repair the altar of Sylphid anyway.
But he found it on the 2nd floor of the magic tower.
‘Nice to meet you!’
If he put the heart of the dragon in the refrigerator and changed it into something easy to obtain in large quantities, he would be able to repair the altar of Sylphid and use the dragon’s heart to fill his mana pool in the future.
He also expected to get some great Nosco if he killed it.
Clank-
Minhyeok loaded the Gatling gun and aimed it at the dragon.