Chapter 78: Nightmare, 6th Floor (4)

[All difficulties have completed the 6th floor.]

[The Tower summons new climbers.]

[A new rule has been added.]

[The Masked Auction will be held in 24 hours.]

[When the time comes, 100 climbers who have cleared the 6th floor will be randomly invited to the Masked Auction.]

[Time Remaining: 23 hours 59 minutes 50 seconds]

I was transported to the Reward Room.

I turned my attention to the messages that appeared next.

What now?

Since the 5th floor had not really been a conventional clear-type floor, I had half expected the 6th floor to pass without introducing a ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) new rule.

Apparently not.

Was the Tower going to add a new rule after every even-numbered floor without exception?

‘Masked Auction?’

Climbers who had cleared the 6th floor...

In other words, one hundred climbers who had reached the 7th floor or higher would be chosen at random and invited to something called the Masked Auction.

...Invited?

Did that mean they would be transported somewhere?

And why an auction, of all things?

What was the Tower planning this time?

There was no point dwelling on something I would learn about in twenty-four hours anyway, so I turned my attention to the rewards.

A rare-grade skill stone...

And an item.

Huh.

Wasn’t this the first time I had received an item as an ordinary floor reward rather than for a hidden clear?

It was a pair of earrings set with emerald-colored gemstones.

I checked the item information.

[Item: Rosalia’s Earrings]

[Earrings cherished by Rosalia, the eldest daughter of a noble house. Increases willpower by 20%.]

The effect was simple.

A twenty-percent increase to willpower.

“...A dud.”

At least for me.

Twenty percent was actually a substantial increase, but for someone like me, whose willpower was effectively unlimited, the earrings were useless.

I tossed them straight into Subspace.

Next came the skill stone.

Since the item had been a disappointment, I could only hope the stone would give me a decent magic-type skill.

[Skill: Sword of Light (Rare+)]

[Compresses the power of light within a 1-meter radius to summon a sword. Requires 50 seconds of Mental Concentration to cast. By consuming additional willpower, the Sword of Light may be detonated. Detonation requires 100 seconds of Mental Concentration.]

[Classification: Magic Type]

[Willpower Consumption: 20 per second / 300]

[Cooldown: 5 minutes after detonation]

“Nice.”

A magic-type skill on the first try.

Judging from the description, it was a rather unusual one.

A magical skill that summoned a sword?

[‘Skill: Sword of Light (Rare+)’ acquired.]

I acquired it immediately and activated it.

Whoooosh.

The instant the skill took effect, golden light gathered in my hand, condensing into the shape of a sword.

Just as its name suggested, it was a blade made entirely of light.

I tightened my grip and gave it an experimental swing.

It was far lighter than an ordinary iron sword.

In fact, it barely seemed to have any weight at all.

“Oh.”

I lowered the blade and dragged it across the floor.

It passed through the stone without the slightest resistance.

Pretty powerful...

It felt almost like wielding sword aura.

From now on, whenever I needed a weapon, I could simply summon the Sword of Light.

And because it consumed willpower continuously rather than requiring a fixed cost, it was another skill I could maintain indefinitely.

‘And it can explode too.’

According to the description, the skill did not have a standard five-minute cooldown.

The cooldown only began after detonation.

That probably meant I could summon and dismiss the sword freely without triggering a cooldown, as long as I did not make it explode.

I wondered how powerful the detonation was.

I would have to test that later.

Blowing it up inside the Reward Room seemed like a bad idea.

[Difficulty: Nightmare]

[Floor: 7]

[Level: 80]

[Willpower: 3,600]

[Skills: Destruction Ray (Epic+), Subspace (Epic), Sixth Sense (Rare+) (+2), Teleportation (Rare+), Rapid Regeneration (Rare+), Scorching Zone (Rare+), Sword of Light (Rare+), Flame Strike (Rare) (+5), Lightning Strike (Rare) (+1), Blade Storm (Rare), Exaltation (Rare), Skin Hardening (Rare), Fairy Light Bullet (Normal+) (+1), Minor Poison Resistance (Normal+), Minor Burn Resistance (Normal+), Low-Tier Frost Resistance (Normal+), Leap (Normal) (+2)...]

Before I knew it, I had reached level 80.

My willpower had also risen past three thousand.

Including the level reward from the 5th floor, I had gained twenty levels since entering the 6th floor.

At this rate, it would not be long before I reached level 100.

[Nightmare]

[Climbers: 378,821]

[Time Limit: 1 year 20 days 4 hours 8 minutes 16 seconds]

[Reached Floor: 7]

In any case, I had secured another year for humanity.

By the time I reached the 6th floor, even that had begun to feel strangely routine.

Rather than relief, the first thought that came to mind was whether I would be able to clear the 7th floor as well.

“Diul.”

I called Diul out.

Without question, Diul had been the true hero of the 6th-floor clear.

Plli had certainly worked hard to hold the line, but if Diul had not intervened at the very end, I would have failed.

I wondered what would have happened if I had used the Scales of Life.

“Diul?”

Diul wriggled out of the bracelet.

The moment I saw it, I froze.

Huh?

Diul had originally resembled a small, round blob.

Now it had taken on a humanoid shape.

Not an actual human body, exactly, but a recognizable silhouette.

It looked like a tiny fairy.

“...Diul? What happened to you?”

Back on the 3rd floor, Diul’s appearance had changed slightly when Concealment was unlocked.

Had awakening another ability triggered a second evolution?

Diul fluttered unsteadily around my head, looking utterly exhausted.

‘Idiot!’

A voice rang directly inside my mind.

“...!”

I flinched in surprise.

We had shared emotions before, but Diul had never expressed a thought so clearly.

No, wait.

Come to think of it, during the last Sub-Tower clear, Diul had spoken to me, hadn’t it?

But because it had happened inside a dream, the memory was hazy.

‘Idiot! Dummy!’

After grumbling at me, Diul disappeared back into the bracelet.

How fascinating...

Were we now capable of communicating properly?

Diul seemed thoroughly displeased with me.

Probably because it had been forced to push itself so far on my behalf.

‘...Idiot!’

In any case, I could feel just how exhausted Diul was, so I decided to let it rest.

I should probably rest as well.

Before leaving, I looked up and spoke into the empty air.

“I cleared it, you bastard.”

Next time, make me a better offer.

If you really want to stop me from challenging the Tower that badly.

Chuckling to myself, I left the Reward Room.

***

[ParallelUniverse: There’s no way he’d actually choose the Ark, right? Right?]

[Sandor: How would I know? You never know.]

[Sunlight: Should I seriously start looking at flights to Korea...?]

[Monster: I’m Korean, lmao. Jealous?]

[Cinnamon: The Ark only covers a 3-kilometer radius, dumbass. You think Person123 will let you in just because you’re Korean?]

[Krzysztof: I’m telling you, there’s no way he chooses the Ark. Do you people still not understand Person123?]

After the Tower made its second offer to Person123, the world descended into chaos.

People kept reassuring themselves that he would never accept it.

And yet, unable to dismiss the possibility that Person123 might actually choose the Ark, some immediately began making plans to travel to Korea.

Those with power and influence moved even faster.

“For the time being, why don’t you go to Korea? All the necessary preparations have already been made.”

Xiao Lin spoke carefully.

Ye Tianwei, who was calmly practicing calligraphy, gave no response.

Xiao Lin tried again.

“If Person123 prioritizes guaranteeing humanity’s survival, he may very well choose the Ark, Master Tianwei. Therefore...”

Ye Tianwei laughed as though he had heard something deeply amusing.

“He will not choose the Ark.”

“...How can anyone be certain of that?”

“Only ordinary men who fail to understand him would find it uncertain. That is why the world has once again been thrown into turmoil over something so trivial.”

“...”

“Person123 will challenge the 6th floor, just as he always has. Because...”

At that exact moment—

[The Tower’s offer has been invalidated.]

The message appeared before both men simultaneously.

Xiao Lin’s eyes widened.

If the Tower’s offer had been invalidated, that meant Person123 had ignored it and entered the 6th floor.

Ye Tianwei did not seem surprised in the slightest.

His eyes widened only briefly before he dismissed the message and returned to his brushwork.

“Because he is humanity’s true savior. And this time, too, he will succeed.”

Chao Fan Ru Sheng Ji Shi.

超凡入聖濟世.

Transcend the ordinary, enter sainthood, and save the world.

Ye Tianwei completed the phrase he had been writing and smiled in satisfaction.

Elsewhere, there was another person who had also been certain that Person123 would reject the Ark.

The instant Bilon saw the message announcing that the Tower’s offer had been invalidated, he let out a quiet sigh.

“Mr. Kim has entered...”

Ellen, standing beside him, nodded grimly.

They had met Person123—Kim Seo-hyeon—in person several times.

Not long ago, they had even shared a meal and spoken to each other with genuine honesty.

By now, they understood.

In the end, Kim Seo-hyeon was only an ordinary person.

If he chose the Ark, he would never again have to risk his life climbing the Tower.

Most of humanity would die.

That was true.

But he could save everyone precious to him, including his family, and live peacefully from that point onward.

He could become the king of a new world.

And yet he had cast all of that aside and chosen to challenge the Tower once more.

He was a savior.

Once, they had believed that because of his extraordinary abilities.

Now, they knew his strength was not the only reason.

Bilon could only pray.

He prayed for humanity’s savior to return safely.

He prayed that Kim Seo-hyeon would overcome the 6th floor as well.

[Hydra: Person123 entered!]

[Sprint: He really entered? Are you sure he hasn’t just not chosen yet?]

[Ruiba: It said the offer would be invalidated once he entered, so... yeah. I’m pretty sure he’s inside.]

[Rocks: I knew it! I never doubted him!]

[SolarFlare: This isn’t the time to celebrate. Everyone start praying. Now.]

After Person123 rejected the Tower’s offer, the world that had been drowning in chaos suddenly fell silent.

—It appears that Person123 has rejected the Tower’s offer and entered the 6th floor. He entered several hours earlier than he did during his 4th-floor challenge...

People felt relieved.

Then they held their breath and prayed.

[Darkness: Alejandro failed, but Person123 will succeed... right? Please.]

[Kakadtika: Person123 and Alejandro aren’t the same. Just trust him and wait.]

[Boomerang: Yeah. The only person capable of achieving a first clear is Person123.]

The anxiety was especially intense because Alejandro, the climber known as the super rookie, had failed only the day before.

Time continued to pass.

Far more time than Person123 had needed to clear the 4th floor.

Just as the color began draining from people’s faces, a message appeared.

[All difficulties have completed the 6th floor.]

It was the announcement they had all been waiting for.

Person123 had succeeded.

The Communication Channel erupted first.

[Rainbow: He cleared it!]

[ChocolateChipCookie: Humanity gained another year...!]

[Bonda: Thank you so fucking muuuuuch, Person123!]

[Splendor: How hard was it this time...? Every clear takes longer than the last.]

[Pigeon: Ah, his grace knows no bounds. All of you, convert to the Church of Person123.]

—Person123 has rejected the Tower’s offer and once again saved all of humanity. For his noble decision, we offer our deepest reverence and gratitude...

[The Tower summons new climbers.]

[A new rule has been added.]

[The Masked Auction will be held in 24 hours.]

[When the time comes, 100 climbers who have cleared the 6th floor will be randomly invited to the Masked Auction.]

[Time Remaining: 23 hours 56 minutes 1 second]

Meanwhile, as inevitably as ever, the Tower announced its new rule.

But this time, something felt distinctly different.

An auction.

Climbers being invited somewhere.

The announcement left people both curious and uneasy.

[Goblin: Masked Auction? What the hell is the Tower planning this time?]

[Topur: It starts in twenty-four hours?]

[Crown: Whatever it is, it doesn’t sound like anything good.]

[Alien: Oh shit. I’m on the 7th floor. There’s no way I actually get picked, right?]

Whatever the Tower had planned, humanity had survived for another year.

In the streets, inside homes, throughout offices and workplaces—

Everywhere, the cheers of overjoyed people rang out.