Only My Skill Tooltip Is Strange

20 – 1st Floor, Point Distribution.

Joo Sohee spat out her words harshly.

The player who had asked the question flinched and shut their mouth.

“…….”

Joo Sohee stood at the podium and scanned the players.

Her expression was similar to when she had divided the passers and the failures earlier.

I swallowed hard.

How far will I fall?

‘If it were up to me, I’d want to ask for all of it. That’s the most efficient way to use the points.’

But I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

What would I say if Joo Sohee asked why she should give it to me? I wouldn’t have an answer.

‘Unless I reveal the skill tooltip error. It absolutely can’t happen.’

From Joo Sohee’s perspective, an error being is just a player who got a good skill.

Since I showed something.

It’s possible to give more than others, but betting all 100 points…

Honestly, it was impossible.

Still, I have hope.

[1st floor, distribute]

Ascender Joo Sohee has completed the point distribution.

Check the points allocated to you.

How much did I get?

‘Only 10 points?’

My brows furrowed.

「If you have complaints, come out.」

People murmured.

But no one stepped forward.

They just grumbled among themselves.

“Why didn’t I get anything?”

“Who am I supposed to give just 1 point to?”

“If they were going to give this little, why did they say to halve it? People just died for nothing.”

There are over a thousand people left in the auditorium.

Even after halving, this many remained.

With so many people, there were many who received little.

Even if each of them voiced one complaint, it would be roughly a thousand complaints.

It was bound to be noisy.

「If you have complaints, come out.」

Joo Sohee growled harshly.

Her gaze, looking down at the players, was like facing the eyes of a fierce beast, making my legs tremble.

‘This is an Ascender…’

Could I block Joo Sohee’s strike?

‘Even if I use Cheolpo Samgong, it’s instant death.’

I shook my head firmly.

There was a reason why an Ascender was an Ascender.

‘A person who climbed to the 50th floor while being treated like a bug. He wouldn’t be ordinary.’

Maybe he’s more of a monster than I am.

No matter what others murmured, I kept my mouth shut.

「You have a lot of complaints. Well, I understand. Points must feel as precious as life.」

“How many people have I killed! I killed them all because you told me to! But not giving me a single point, does that make sense?!”

「…Do you want me to explain the reason?」

Even if I explained the reason, they wouldn’t understand.

This was not a matter of reason, but of emotion.

‘I’m similar. If I hadn’t received points, I would have been furious like them.’

Joo So-hee, looking at the player with an expressionless face, spoke.

「First. Adaptability and decisiveness were prioritized. Those who showed exceptional reactions were given 1 point each.」

“…….”

「Second. Regardless of how we are treated, there must be players who challenge the throne. I gave 1 point to those who showed determination, hoping it would help.」

“…….”

「Third.」

Joo So-hee pointed at me and continued.

「Rather than distributing points to ambiguous individuals, I thought it would be more beneficial for the survival rate of Earthlings to concentrate points on the anomalies, so I gave points.」

“…For that reason…!”

「Then let me ask you one thing.」

The spotlight shifted to the middle-aged man who was venting his anger.

He flinched and looked around, seemingly uncomfortable with the attention.

「Do you have any intention of helping Earthlings while climbing this damn Tower of Struggle?」

“…Of course! Helping my hometown people is something I must do as a human….”

Joo So-hee’s eyes were intense.

The middle-aged man, intimidated by her gaze, closed his mouth.

「Most Earthlings are prey for beings from other dimensions. Zero potential, weak-willed, but full of greed, they inevitably cause trouble.」

“……”

「From the perspective of beings from other dimensions, we are no different from pigs that waste food. In fact, we are more despicable than livestock pigs that waste food because we stab our teammates in the back.」

Joo So-hee shook her head and sighed as if she was fed up.

For a moment, her face was filled with regret.

「People from other dimensions don’t trust us. It’s only natural, given the karma accumulated over hundreds of years. But that doesn’t mean we can give up. We don’t know who will take the seat, but the summoning will continue.」

“……”

「I thought it would be good for the Earthlings who survive and climb the tower to have a reliable pillar to lean on. So, instead of distributing points to several worms like you, I decided it was better to concentrate them on a promising error.」

“You, you called me a worm? You little brat who still has milk on her lips!”

「You shouldn’t judge someone by their appearance. For your information, I’ve been climbing the tower for longer than you’ve been alive. I may look like a girl your daughter’s age, but I’m not. So, watch your words. I’m letting it slide because we’re both Earthlings. There won’t be a second time. Remember that.」

The murmuring crowd fell silent.

They realized that no matter how much they argued, they couldn’t overturn Joo Sohee’s decision.

“Then… those who didn’t receive points… are you telling us to just die…?”

Someone muttered.

The fire was about to be rekindled.

Joo Sohee spoke.

「If someone would die because they didn’t receive 1 point, they would have died soon even if they had received it. So, stop whining.」

She seemed to care for the Earthlings, yet at the same time, looked at them like insects.

It was a duality, but…

I could somewhat understand Joo Sohee’s feelings.

‘Because I’ve felt the contempt directed at Earthlings.’

Joo Sohee looked at me.

「I’m not asking for much. I just want one thing. Help the Earthlings. Don’t stab your fellow Earthlings in the back.」

“…Isn’t that two requests?”

「I’m not forcing you. Do as you wish.」

With that, Joo Sohee stepped back.

「You have a week of training time under the pretext of a course ticket. You can rest on the first floor for up to a week. So, rest well and then climb.」

“……”

「If you have any questions, feel free to come and ask.」

* * *

As Joo Sohee stepped back from the auditorium, a whisper from an entity penetrated her mind.

『You should have concentrated them.』

A familiar tone.

Joo Sohee chuckled and replied.

“What do you think will happen if you give it all away?”

『Then you wait for the next time.』

“And if you can’t pull yourself together next time?”

『Then you wait again.』

Joo Sohee shook her head.

“This is the best. The best way to sow the seeds without getting caught by the owner of the first floor.”

『What about Blinky? Do you think she’s noticed?』

“…I don’t know. Judging by her reaction, it seems like she hasn’t.”

A crazy elder dragon immersed in managing the first floor.

Blinky Ryu Creamscale.

She was strangely only interested in the error person.

She didn’t seem to care much about Joo Sohee.

『Speak of the devil.』

The voice that had been ringing in her head hid its presence.

It had left this place.

Joo Sohee faced Blinky standing in front of her room.

Unlike before, she felt uncomfortable because she had done something suspicious.

“Sohee, hello!”

Blinky greeted her cheerfully.

Even though she had just dumped a player from her home dimension onto another manager, she was very confident.

“…What’s the matter?”

“Your voice is so sharp! Do you dislike me?!”

“Why would I like you? Either way, it doesn’t matter.”

Joo Sohee answered calmly.

There wasn’t a hint of trembling in her voice.

She was also a human worn out from the Tower of Struggle.

Her face was already covered with thousands of layers of steel.

“That’s a relief! I thought you hated me!”

“…I’m tired and want to rest. What’s your business? Speak quickly.”

“Oh, I see! Got it!”

What will Blinky do?

Will he rush in to stop the trick that she and her brother had pulled?

Joo Sohee watched Blinky with bated breath.

“I liked what you were trying to do, Sohee! So I wanted to help too!”

“……”

So he knew everything.

It felt like she couldn’t breathe.

Joo Sohee was ready to run away at any moment.

Blinky stopped her.

“You’re trying to make the error player a candidate, right? I don’t know if they’ll qualify and become an ascendant, but the more challengers, the better! Right?”

“……”

“I want to help too!”

Does he think it’s funny that Earthlings are struggling so desperately?

His reaction made her even angrier.

“Give this to the error player!”

Blinky handed two artifacts to Joo Sohee.

They were the lowest-grade artifacts, useless to ascendants.

“He added such ‘settings’ to the game. If you give them as a gift, they’ll be surprised and delighted.”

Blinky couldn’t hold back a sly smile, as if something was amusing him.

Looking at the crazy dragon, Joo Sohee didn’t know how to react.

Blinky whispered to her.

“Giving just 10 points was a very good choice. If you had given too much, it would have ruined the error player’s game.”

“…Game?”

“10 points is just right. The justification you gave was plausible, so the error player must have liked it too. Well done.”

With that, Blinky turned his back.

“I’m in a good mood. I’ll spare your brother, who’s parasitizing the first-floor master.”

“……!”

“Be careful next time. I’m a very merciful dragon, so I’ll forgive you, but I don’t know how the other administrators will react.”

Watching Blinky slowly retreat, Joo Sohee couldn’t find the words to respond.

“Oh, and please refrain from interfering with the test. That’s my authority. It’s uncomfortable that you’re trying to control the test by sneaking into the first-floor master’s thoughts.”