Episode 31: Twilight Colosseum (3)
All staff at the Tower of Records were on high alert.
Today was the opening of the Twilight Colosseum.
Boss details are announced an hour before the event, and to quickly analyze and inform adventurers, Team Leader Lee Jung-yul and team member Park Tae-gyun were on standby.
“Team Leader, it’ll be no big deal, right?”
“We don’t know that.”
“The Twilight Colosseum has always been a breather. It’s basically a flex fest for guilds.”
“There’s no guarantee it’ll be the same this time.”
Park Tae-gyun wasn’t alone in thinking this event would be easy.
Most staff agreed—historically, it had been.
But Lee Jung-yul sensed that pattern breaking.
Especially since the new episode was announced, things had shifted.
Sudden labyrinth patches and artificial difficulty spikes before updates.
As she frowned, deep in thought…
Beep! Beep! Beep!
A blaring alarm echoed through the Tower of Records, signaling an update.
All staff stopped and turned to the screens.
The flashing display began showing event boss details.
《A new challenger enters the Twilight Colosseum.》
《Prevent the challenger from dominating the Colosseum.》
《This challenger’s body… is blazing hot!》
“…This feels bad,” Park Tae-gyun muttered.
“Not a debuff-type boss, right?”
Groans filled the room.
If it was just a fire-based boss, the description wouldn’t be so vague.
It’d focus on raw power instead.
《The challenger’s steps will blaze fiercely, and touching the flames will set your body ablaze.》
《The rising flames will rage in the challenger’s hands.》
The staff shut their eyes tightly.
“Team Leader, it’s a debuff boss, isn’t it?”
“Highly likely.”
The next message made them cover their faces.
《The Twilight Colosseum’s challenger is Athenica, Wreathed in Ashes.》
《Time until containment: 96:59:54》
《Failure to contain will result in Athenica invading Earth.》
《Containment score requirement: 4,000 points.》
“4,000?!”
“What kind of number is that?!”
“The highest we’ve ever hit was 3,200…”
Korea’s record for the Twilight Colosseum was 3,200 points.
Now, the containment line was 4,000.
The nation faced an unprecedented crisis.
But one person—Lee Jung-yul—saw beyond the crisis.
***
The community and media were in chaos.
[Debuff Hell Awaits… Twilight Colosseum, Athenica Joins! Can We Hit 4,000 Points?]
[Who Can Stand Against Athenica? The Colosseum Is Already Ablaze.]
Headlines screamed national doom.
The community wasn’t much better.
- 4,000 points? Whose dog is named that?
└ Even the US would struggle with that ;
- Looks like a debuff fest.
└ We’re screwed lol
└ You’re laughing?
This chaos was my golden opportunity.
The more people panicked, the higher my stock would rise as the one who perfectly understood Athenica’s strategy.
So, what’s my move right now?
‘What else? Leveling.’
Partly because I’m not done leveling, sure.
But even otherwise, I plan to delay my strategy release.
I’ll wait until the clamor for a “hero” grows louder—until my performance shines brightest.
As I prepared to re-enter the Tower, my phone buzzed.
Vrrr—
An unknown number with a message: ‘Safe Number, Tower of Records’.
‘Why’s the Tower calling me?’
Thinking it might be a contract issue, I answered.
- Thank you! Thank you so much!
“Huh?”
- Oh! This is Team Leader Lee Jung-yul from the Tower of Records. Adventurer Oh Hyun-woo, are you free to talk?
I remembered Lee Jung-yul from my meeting with the association head.
She’d given me a tour of the Tower.
Her voice sounded urgent.
“Yes, I’m free. What’s this about?”
- Could… could you do us a favor?
“A favor?”
- We need help creating a guide for the Twilight Colosseum.
A guide? For who? Major guilds aiming for high scores make their own strategies.
…Oh, I see. That’s what this is.
“You mean a guide for public distribution?”
- Yes! Ideally, one centered on low-grade summons so as many adventurers as possible can participate.
Note the phrase ‘as many as possible’.
The Tower of Records wants to turn this event into a nationwide power boost.
Regular adventurers won’t contribute much to the clear, but rewards aren’t just for first place, right?
The more adventurers participate and earn rewards, the stronger Korea’s adventurer force becomes.
That’s why they’re asking me.
Sure, I’ll do it. But doing it for free? Nah.
- …We’ll do our best to meet your expectations.
She’s practically begging me to name my price.
But I’ve already got everything I need for this event.
The Adventurer’s Association doesn’t have much I want.
In times like this, there’s only one thing to do.
“I’ll take cash.”
- Understood. The amount…?
“This much.”
- …We’ll do our best to secure it.
Some time later—
Vrrr—
I confirmed the deposit in my personal account.
“Send me the email address. I’ll get the guide to you soon.”
- Thank you! Truly, thank you!
Her tone practically screamed she was bowing over the phone.
I’m just doing a job for pay, and I’ll stock up on the summons used in the guide, so all this gratitude is a bit much.
But one thing piqued my curiosity.
“Can I ask something?”
- Yes, anything!
“Weren’t you worried about this Twilight Colosseum?”
While everyone’s fixated on the crisis, she’s preparing for what comes after.
Encouraging ‘as many adventurers as possible’ to join while others fret about doomsday?
What an odd person. I asked lightly—
- It is worrying. But…
“But?”
- Someone has to prepare for what’s next.
***
Tower of Records
With Oh Hyun-woo’s help, Lee Jung-yul published the guide on time.
She was amazed by his shared strategy.
Three budget decks, each with detailed usage, summon setups, and situational counters.
‘What a relief.’
Hyun-woo’s requested reward was processed proactively under her “act first, report later” approach, with full authority from Association Head Jeon Myung-il.
The payment approval should come through today.
The amount was… well, quite steep.
But if this guide boosts Korea’s adventurer strength, it’s a bargain.
As she mulled this over, Park Tae-gyun spoke up.
“Team Leader, it’s about to start, right?”
“Yes, the first scores should appear soon.”
The Tower staff clasped their hands, eyes glued to the leaderboard.
They awaited the Twilight Colosseum scores.
The event allows three attempts, with the highest score counted for the ranking.
The first day is typically for scouting—analyzing the boss’s patterns and weaknesses rather than aiming for high scores.
So, expecting big numbers was unrealistic…
‘But top rankers are different.’
With overwhelming power, vast experience, and ample support, rankers often hit near-containment scores on their first try.
Guilds then share info, refine strategies, hit the containment line on the second attempt, and compete for top scores on the third.
The first attempt is a key indicator of the event’s success.
Some time passed, and the first challenger’s score appeared.
《Sword Realm Guild Jo Jung-hyun’s Twilight Colosseum score: 1,231 points.》
“What the—?”
“Jo Jung-hyun, only 1,231? He scored over 2,700 on his first try last event!”
“If a top-30 ranker backed by a major guild is this low…”
“It’s just the first challenger! Let’s wait.”
But things only got worse.
《Sword Realm Guild Lee Min-ah’s Twilight Colosseum score: 857 points.》
《Fire God Guild Jeon Su-bin’s Twilight Colosseum score: 1,054 points.》
《Unaffiliated Bae Young-min’s Twilight Colosseum score: 593 points.》
Disastrous.
Promising rankers from major guilds couldn’t break 2,000.
Yet, one sliver of hope remained: Korea’s top ranker, Seo Ju-hyun.
“Surely Seo Ju-hyun will be different!”
“Yeah, he’s always close to the containment line. He’ll pull through, right?”
“Please, Seo Ju-hyun, you can do it!”
Then, his score appeared.
《Fire God Guild Seo Ju-hyun’s Twilight Colosseum score: 1,543 points.》
The office sank into despair.
The leaderboard was broadcast live on news and XTube, plunging public sentiment to rock bottom.
- Thanks for loving Korea until now.
└ Still joking in this mess? Go pray for doom.
└ No need, we’re already doomed lol.
- Isn’t this actually serious? If the top ranker’s this bad, we’re screwed by the third try, right?
└ Nah, I’m in the US, I’m fine~
└ Ban this guy, seriously.
But one person was smiling amidst the rankers’ failure.
‘The mood’s ripe. Time to make my move.’
The rookie drawing all eyes: Oh Hyun-woo.