Chapter 117: Nightmare, 8th Floor (5)

[Floor 8 has been cleared on all Difficulties.]

[The Tower summons new participants.]

[A new rule is added.]

[In 24 hours, the ‘Proof of Qualification’ will begin.]

[The top-floor Climbers of each Difficulty are to prove their qualification as the Vanguard of Humanity.]

[If a Difficulty has more than one top-floor Climber, one will be chosen at random.]

[Time Remaining: 23 hours 59 minutes 49 seconds]

I had been transported to the Reward Room.

I watched the messages appear one after another.

‘...Proof of Qualification?’

I had cleared an even-numbered floor, so once again, something new had appeared.

Was the Tower planning to do something with the Climbers who had reached the highest floor?

If so, that included me.

But I didn’t have the luxury of dwelling on it.

Thinking about it now wouldn’t give me any answers anyway.

I could deal with it once it actually began.

More importantly, I checked the remaining lifespan displayed on the broken Scales once again.

Remaining Lifespan: 305 days 23 hours 16 minutes 25 seconds

Haa...

All I could do was sigh.

I had boldly gone and burned through the entire 99 percent.

And as a result, I now had less than a year left to live.

Not that I hadn’t expected this.

‘...There was nothing else I could do.’

I didn’t regret it.

If I had offered up some half-hearted amount instead, there was no telling what the result might have been.

Maybe 98 percent would still have been enough to clear the Floor. Maybe it wouldn’t have.

There was no way to know.

Since I couldn’t predict the outcome, sacrificing the maximum possible amount really had been the best choice.

Right. So there was nothing to regret...

What I needed to think about was what came next.

I was the only one who could clear Nightmare.

And now I, of all people, had become a man with barely a year left to live.

Somehow, I had managed to put out the immediate fire that was Floor 8.

But the price was that I had sold away the future.

My future, and the future of the world as well.

...With things as they were, there was only one answer.

Climbing the Tower once a year was no longer an option.

For however much life I had left, I would have to climb Nightmare as quickly as possible.

[Skill: Radiant Incarnation (Legendary+)]

Borrows the power of holy radiance to transform the body into light. While the skill is maintained, the user takes no damage of any kind and can move omnidirectionally at the speed of light. Casting requires 1 hour of Mental Concentration. The skill can be maintained for up to 10 minutes.

Type: Magic

Willpower Cost: 5,000 per second

Cooldown: 72 hours

Still...

At least I had gotten a Legendary+ grade skill out of it.

I had sacrificed practically my entire life. A skill of this grade was the least I should have received in return.

I read through the description again.

Radiant Incarnation.

Not only did it let me move at the speed of light.

While the skill was active, I apparently couldn’t take any damage whatsoever.

In other words, it was a ten-minute lightspeed movement skill that doubled as complete invincibility.

That eerie sensation of my body turning into light was still vivid in my mind.

Could I use other skills while Radiant Incarnation was active?

The description didn’t say I couldn’t, so it would probably work.

I wanted to test a few more ways of using it, but with a 72-hour cooldown, that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

I sighed and checked the rest of the rewards.

An Epic-grade Skill Enhancement Stone and an item.

[Item: Revillus’s Ring]

A ring containing the power of Revillus, the Demon Grand Duke who subjugated all demons. Every Familiar the user subjugates grows stronger in proportion to the master’s power.

I read the description.

So... apparently, any Familiars under my command would grow stronger in proportion to my own power.

I slipped the ring onto my finger and summoned Plli.

Hssssss.

Black smoke gathered and condensed before Plli emerged from within it.

His body and claws had grown slightly larger.

“Run to that wall and back, Plli.”

Wham!

Plli sprang forward, streaked toward the far wall of the Reward Room like an arrow, touched it, and raced back.

He was definitely much faster than before.

I patted Plli on the head.

Until now, no matter how many floors I climbed, Plli’s abilities had remained unchanged, leaving him with no choice but to fall farther and farther behind.

With this ring, Plli would grow stronger alongside my Level.

It looked like I had gotten a pretty decent item as a reward.

As for the Epic-grade Skill Enhancement Stone, I could use it to upgrade Hellfire Eruption or something...

Still, I didn’t use it right away.

‘Come to think of it, the Hidden Route didn’t open.’

Normally, as part of the first-clear reward, a message would appear announcing that the Hidden Route had opened.

This time, there was nothing.

Back when I met the Sage, I had been told the route would remain closed until the error was fixed.

But if that was the case, shouldn’t they at least give me some other reward instead...? Did this Tower have no conscience?

Sure, the Sage had probably given me something important. Important enough to cause a bug, even.

If it had actually helped me on Floor 8, I might not have felt so cheated.

But far from helping, I still had no fucking idea what it even was.

Of course I felt cheated.

Grumbling to myself, I finished sorting through the rewards.

[Difficulty: Nightmare]

[Floor: 9]

[Level: 105]

[Willpower: 6,050/6,050]

[Skills: Destruction Ray (Epic+), Subspace (Epic), Hellfire Eruption (Epic) (+1), Sixth Sense (Rare+) (+4), Teleportation (Rare+), Rapid Regeneration (Rare+)...]

[Nightmare]

Population: 476,805

Time Limit: 1 year 7 days 6 hours 10 minutes 11 seconds

Floor Reached: 9

[Do you wish to exit the Tower?]

After checking my status window and the Time Limit, I left the Tower.

Returning to the hotel room felt strange.

Thirteen days in the desert.

It felt as though I had spent far, far longer there.

The first thing I did was check my phone.

“...”

Missed calls and messages from my family had piled up in ridiculous numbers.

As I went through the texts, another sigh escaped me.

Bzzzt.

Just then, my phone rang.

It was my mother.

I hesitated over whether to answer, but in the end, I couldn’t bring myself to.

...I wasn’t ready.

I didn’t even know what I was supposed to say.

My thoughts were too tangled.

– I’m okay. I’ll come straight home tomorrow.

That was all I sent before throwing myself onto the bed.

I was exhausted.

I hadn’t gotten a proper night’s sleep once during Floor 8.

I closed my eyes and surrendered to the wave of drowsiness washing over me.

***

It had been thirteen days since Person123 entered Floor 8.

The world was descending further and further into chaos.

[Baffled: It’s over. The world’s really going to end after all]

[Haruku: Quit talking shit. Can’t you see Person123 is still in there clearing it?]

[Chicken Leg: It’s day thirteen. This isn’t even supposed to be possible]

[Cloud: Let’s all hold onto hope. There’s still 7 days left on the Time Limit]

[Thomas1: You mean there’s only 7 days left]

[Sun Bear: It’s over, you morons. Hope, my ass]

Some lamented that the end had finally come.

Others desperately clung to hope because the number of people in the Nightmare Communication Channel still hadn’t decreased.

Either way, both groups were mired in the same despair.

Now that things had gone this far, it was obvious that something had gone wrong with the clear...

Whether Person123 was alive or dead, and whether Floor 8 could actually be cleared within the remaining seven days, no one could say.

It was much like the days of Floor 1.

Crime surged in every corner of the world, and governments entered emergency mode.

– Person123 is still in the process of clearing Floor 8. Fellow citizens, please, do not lose hope...

Presidents and national leaders delivered addresses of their own.

But the atmosphere of impending apocalypse showed no sign of calming.

Instead, it only grew worse.

“...I should prepare myself.”

Bilon, who had been following the news from his office, slowly closed his eyes.

His secretary, Ellen, stood beside him, his expression every bit as grim.

It was an unprecedented crisis.

Thirteen full days had passed, yet Nightmare remained uncleared.

Even though Bilon continued to believe that Person123 would succeed, he could not help preparing himself for the worst.

Preparing himself to accept the end of the world.

Person123.

Kim Seo-hyeon.

Bilon knew that the fact he had made it this far at all was already a miracle.

Even if the world ended here, humanity had only been granted these extra years because of his sacrifices.

If only Bilon could leave him one final farewell.

To tell him: I was grateful for your devotion...

“Ellen.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Do you think Mister Kim would actually want this?”

If Floor 8 remained uncleared until the Time Limit fell below a single day, Bilon intended to reveal Person123’s identity to the entire world.

The greatest hero in human history.

A man who had saved humanity time and again.

Even if, once the Time Limit expired, that very history would scatter like a handful of dust...

“No. I’ll do it anyway.”

For a hero like him, Bilon believed it was the final thing he could do.

And so Bilon prayed with everything he had.

That it would never come to that.

That Kim Seo-hyeon would perform one more miracle.

US Climbing Bureau Headquarters.

“All right. I’m going in now.”

Taylor was preparing to enter Floor 7.

The Bureau staff, including Max and Director Liam, watched her with grim expressions.

Originally, the plan had been to challenge Floor 7 only after a long interval, if she challenged it at all...

But now, plans like that no longer meant anything.

Floor 8 still hadn’t been cleared, and Nightmare’s Time Limit was rapidly running out.

The Bureau’s official position was to wait just a little longer.

But Taylor had decided there was no longer any time to hesitate.

She had to clear Floor 7, recover completely, and then challenge Floor 8 herself.

Of course, even her chances of clearing Floor 7 were vanishingly small.

But she intended to fulfill her duty as a Nightmare Climber to the very end.

[Squirrel: This is Taylor Miller, America’s Nightmare Climber. I was grateful for your devotion, Person123. And I respected you.

Before I enter Floor 7, I’m leaving you my first and last Whisper. I truly hope you’ll have cleared Floor 8 and come out to read this message.]

She also left a Whisper for Person123 through the Communication Channel.

After all, there was still a chance that he would clear the Floor and return within the seven days remaining on the Time Limit.

“We wish you good fortune, Taylor.”

With her final checks complete, Taylor drew a deep breath.

And just as she was about to enter Floor 7—

A message appeared before her eyes.

“...!”

Taylor froze and stared at it.

***

The streets of Gwanghwamun, Seoul.

Countless people stood packed shoulder to shoulder, without enough room even to take a single step.

And every one of them was praying.

The gathering, centered around followers of the Person123 Church, had continued without interruption for thirteen days.

Even with despair and dread gnawing at them, every last one continued to pray for Floor 8 to be cleared.

“Savior, please, save humanity...!”

They cried out until their throats were raw, calling his name.

And it wasn’t only Korea.

The same thing was happening across the entire world.

Humanity had once again been forced to realize that none of the clears until now had ever been guaranteed.

That mankind’s existence was no more secure than a candle flame flickering in the wind.

All they could do was desperately wish for one more miracle.

And then—

[Floor 8 has been cleared on all Difficulties.]

A miracle truly happened.

With 7 days, 6 hours, 16 minutes, and 50 seconds remaining on Nightmare’s Time Limit—

The message appeared.

A roar greater than anything before erupted through streets all across the world.

Wraaaaaaaahh-!

If there had ever been a narrow escape from destruction, this was it.

– They’ve done it! Person123 has done it! After thirteen days of struggle, Nightmare Floor 8 has finally been cleared, and...

As though they had been dragged back from the very depths of hell, people erupted into delirious celebration.

Then celebrated all over again.

Family, friends, lovers, and even complete strangers threw their arms around one another, weeping and rejoicing.

[Bear Trap: We’re alive! We’re alive, I tell you!]

[Fighter Jet: holy fuck I really thought we were dead this time lmaooooo KYAAAAH asdfgh]

[ToYou: Person123 is a god! Person123 is a god! Person123 is a god! Person123 is a god! Person123 is a god! Person123 is a god!]

[Chameleon: I told you so! I said we’d pull it off in the end!]

[Fløvig: my heart is beating way too fast right now. i think im gonna die]

[Kim Cheol-su: how horrific must it have been to take a full 13 days for real...]

[Knight of the Skies: Person123 really is Person123 after all]

[Cheonma: I was a fool for ever doubting. I can only worship him]

Person123! Person123! Person123...!

All of humanity rejoiced, chanting the name of the great hero who had emerged victorious.

The world had been granted another precious year.

***

I stood in front of the door.

My nerves taut, I entered the passcode, opened it, and stepped inside.

The first thing I saw was the startled faces of my family.

All three of them were standing in the entryway.

“...I’m back.”

I tried to say something more, but the words died in my throat.

My mouth wouldn’t open.

I had no idea what I was supposed to say first.

Then my mother walked toward me.

Without saying a word, she wrapped her arms around me.

My father came over as well and gently rubbed my back.

“You’ve been through so much, son...”

My younger sister, her eyes brimming with tears, stepped over and hugged me from the side.

There was no need for unnecessary words.

Looking at the family who had been waiting to welcome me home, I simply smiled.

“I’m home.”