Chapter 293. The Eternity Tower (6)

[Open the door and proceed to the next trial area.]

They had found the door.

“Let’s go immediately,” Eun-Ho said.

Even though it hadn’t even been five minutes since the trial began, there was no reason to linger now that they had located the exit.

Ji-Eun turned and called out to Jae-Hyuk and the Skeleton Knights.

“I’ll lift everyone!”

“Thank you, Noonim!”

“Okay!”

Eun-Ho, the Skeletons, and even Jae-Hyuk, who was flushed red as he strained, let go of the wheel and floated upward.

The wheel lost its driving force and came to a halt.

Thud—!

“Hyungnim! It stopped!” Jae-Hyuk shouted.

Of course it did. The wheel had only been forced into motion despite being embedded deep in the ground. The moment they let go, it was bound to stop.

The real problem is that, Eun-Ho thought.

Fsssh—!

The stars that had filled the sky vanished in an instant. They were sucked back into the now-motionless wheel, as if being reclaimed. The door was also nowhere to be found.

Darkness swallowed the sky once more. They had neither light nor path left.

“The door is...” Eun-Ho muttered.

“What’s going on?” Jae-Hyuk asked.

“It looks like it only stays open while the wheel is turning!” Ji-Eun said uncertainly.

“Then...” Jae-Hyuk gulped hard. “I’ll stay behind.”

“What?” Ji-Eun blinked. “Stay behind?”

“I’ll keep the wheel turning while everyone else escapes,” he explained. “There’s no time.”

The timer read four minutes and fifty-one seconds remaining.

“So go ahead and get out first, find the stock certificate and—” said Jae-Hyuk.

“What are you saying?!” Ji-Eun snapped. “Didn’t they say we could lose our lives if we fail the trial? What do you think will happen if you stay behind alone?!”

“Noonim, we don’t have a choice,” Jae-Hyuk said quietly. He scratched his head with an awkward smile. “Honestly, I’m the one who was doing most of the work turning that wheel anyway, right? If someone has to stay, it should be me.”

Jae-Hyuk tried to make it sound lighthearted, but no one laughed. Behind his resolute expression, the countdown continued.

[04:32]

The door only appeared and remained open while the wheel was turning.

It’s basically telling us to leave one person behind. But I’m not the type to follow instructions that easily, Eun-Ho thought.

“Can you lower me down?” Eun-Ho asked.

“Oh, yes!” Ji-Eun replied.

Eun-Ho descended back into the pit. “Summon. Activate.”

The green card appeared in his palm then vanished instantly. In its place, an iron door materialized beside him.

The Skeleton Knights who had followed him down stared.

“Commander!”

“Are we going home?”

“No,” Eun-Ho replied.

I wonder if their training really stuck, Eun-Ho wondered briefly.

Then, he said, “We’re going to call the youngest here.”

***

“That’s your junior.”

“Huh?!”

“Make it just like you.”

When it first heard those words, the being known as the Abandoned Ridge had laughed.

“Blades won’t work on him. It’s better to...”

Even as a man whispered instructions and the Skeleton beside him rattled enthusiastically in agreement, the Abandoned Ridge had only scoffed.

So he’s giving it a different weapon instead of a sword, the Abandoned Ridge thought.

It hadn’t heard the rest, but it already sounded like a foolish plan. All it had to do was activate its Adamantine Body. What could those brittle bones possibly do to it?

“Hah, hey boneheads? I may have ended up here by accident, but I’m not some rookie who needs training from the likes of you.”

The Abandoned Ridge thought they were just bones, after all. They were things it couldn’t even eat.

It was starving, but there was no reason to waste energy here. Therefore, it had planned to brush them off quickly.

“Let’s each mind our own business, yeah? When that guy comes back, I’ll smooth things over with him,” said the Abandoned Ridge to the Skeletons.

“There’s plenty to eat there. So just go hunt for yourself.”

He said there’s plenty to eat here, right?

The moment the Abandoned Ridge licked its lips at the thought of food, it noticed something change. The Skeleton’s gaze changed.

“What did you just say?” the Skeleton asked.

“That I’d smooth things over?”

Despite having no eyes, a dark violet glow flickered where the Skeleton’s gaze should have been. Then the others, including those Number Ten or whatever they were called, slowly surrounded it.

“What’s with you guys? Acting like amateurs.” The Abandoned Ridge took a cautious step back, trying to defuse the situation. “Fine! I’ll say the training was intense! That my shoulder rock almost fell off and my knee rock nearly popped out!”

That was when it began.

The lead skeleton declared, “I am deeply disappointed in this recruit’s attitude.”

“Re—what?”

“You dare spew vulgarities toward our Commander! And you even consider lying?!”

The Skeletons lunged at it with terrifying force.

“Yeah! Maybe you’ll come to your senses once your rocks start cracking!”

There were five in front and five behind—a total of ten.

I’ll just activate my Adamantine Body, block their attacks, and crush them one by one, the Abandoned Ridge thought, hardening its entire form.

Clang!

Just then, the Skeletons threw away their swords and charged in barehanded, making it freeze for a split second.

What are they?! Boxers? Or did they coat their hands with poison or something?

The Abandoned Ridge shouted boldly, “Whatever. Come at me!”

They grabbed onto its head rock, its shoulder rocks and even its calf stones, clinging to him. Then, they twisted, wrenched and ripped them right out as if they were unscrewing parts.

Crack— Creak—!

“W-wait! Waiiit!” its dislodged head rock screamed, but it was no use.

The Skeletons had rolled the massive chunks that were bigger than themselves away, scattering them across the ground.

“What the hell are you doing, you lunatics?!” It could feel its precious rocks rolling across the dirt through soil, over crawling insects, and even through what could have been mud or worse. “Are you insane?!”

“This is a customized training regimen designed specifically for you!” the lead skeleton barked. “Has it knocked some sense into you yet?!”

“Then just fight me! Fight me properly, you bastaaards!” the Abandoned Ridge’s screams echoed. “Fight meee! Fight meee! Fight meee!”

The echoes continued for what felt like an eternity inside the training grounds, where time flowed differently from the outside world.

A month later, the Abandoned Ridge’s long prayer flowed like a chant inside a cave. “The Commander is the light and salt who granted us life, the one who vanquishes evil and governs the company for the sake of the Commander.”

The lead skeleton praised, “Excellent!”

“Yeah, great.”

“Never forget the rule of ten thousand repetitions!”

“Yeah, yeah...”

Even a ridiculous prayer like this became tolerable after repeating it thousands of times. It came out automatically now like some kind of reflex.

“Good! Now eat as much as you want!”

More importantly, all it had to do was pray, and it could eat.

“The Commander said we must always make sure to eat. After all, everything we do is to survive.”

The Abandoned Ridge had to admit that it liked it here. How could it not? It was well-fed, warm, and comfortable here. There were no pests buzzing around like in the wastelands. It had been so long since it had experienced this kind of peace.

“Damn, that was delicious!” However, there was just one thing it didn’t like. “Hey... No, I mean, misters, why are you all stuck here?”

“Stuck? We are not stuck,” one of the Skeletons replied. “We train and await the Commander’s call. That is our mission.”

“Ha! You think that bra—no, I mean the Commander, even notices what you’re doing?”

Idiots, morons and brainless... Well, they are Skeletons after all, so that part checks out, concluded the Abandoned Ridge.

Somehow, low-tier monsters like them had gained self-awareness, only to devote themselves fanatically to this so-called Commander.

“To the higher-ups, guys like us are disposable chopsticks. Use once, toss away. That’s it.”

The Abandoned Ridge knew better than anyone that they would be discarded the moment they outlived their usefulness. That knowledge made it suffocating.

“Recruit! Have you had enough to eat?” the Skeleton snapped.

“Tsk. No sir.”

Yeah, well what’s the point of trying to reason with a bunch of bones?

Click—

Just as the Abandoned Ridge let out a deep, resigned sigh, a door suddenly rose up from the ground. Then, that man stepped out from within, saying something about a trial.

Noticing the Abandoned Ridge busily chewing on fried mealworms, Eun-Ho asked, “Is it good?”

“Huh? Yeah man. I mean—yes sir.”

Eun-Ho’s gaze was emotionless. “Eat as much as you want.”

It was as if he had completely forgotten their previous fight. Perhaps, to him, a starving lump of rock wasn’t even worth acknowledging.

“Commander, isn’t the recruit coming with us?” one of the Skeletons asked.

“We shouldn’t disturb even a dog while it’s eating. We don’t have time, so we’ll go first.”

Just like that, he disappeared.

The Abandoned Ridge muttered, “What the hell is up with that guy?”

It could have run. In fact, it did run very briefly and came back.

For some reason, it found itself just a little concerned about those foolish Skeletons who would be left behind with that long-winded Commander.

Tsk. If that guy ditches these Skeletons, maybe I’ll take them in as my subordinates, the Abandoned Ridge thought and waited for a bit.

Soon enough, the man returned. “If you’re done eating, follow me.”

Reluctantly, the Abandoned Ridge followed. “Yeah, sure.”

They arrived at a pitch-black plain, where a massive wheel stood. Eun-Ho said something about having to roll it.

“You want me to roll this?”

“The door only appears while the wheel is turning,” Eun-Ho explained. “That’s why I need you.”

Ha. Wait a second.

“So while I keep the door open, you’ll all escape?”

“Yeah,” Eun-Ho replied simply.

So they too are going to leave me behind. I knew it.

“Ice Golem and Jae-Hyuk, lift from this side. Rock and the Skeletons will pull from the opposite side,” said Eun-Ho.

“Oh! If we push from both sides, it’ll be easier, Hyungnim!” Jae-Hyuk said.

“The rock’s heavy too, so it’ll help,” Eun-Ho added.

Of course. They’re all the same, chided the Abandoned Ridge inwardly.

“Jae-Hyuk, you push and climb up. Ji-Eun, bring him up the moment he gives the signal.”

“Got it!” Ji-Eun replied.

“Understood!” Jae-Hyuk nodded.

The Abandoned Ridge thought that to people like Eun-Ho, subordinates would fall into only two categories: the disposable kind, used once and thrown away; and the reusable kind, used again and again before being cast aside.

“The wheel must not stop until Jae-Hyuk makes it inside safely,” said Eun-Ho. “The Ice Golem won’t manage on its own, so you’ll have to pull from the other side.”

So that tanned bastard is reusable and we must be the disposable ones, thought the Abandoned Ridge.

“Damn it.” It was obvious. Yet, anger still boiled inside it because it knew just how loyal those stupid Skeletons had been to this man. “Is that why you brought us here?”

“What are you talking about?” Eun-Ho asked.

“You dragged us here so you could ditch us and make your escape, didn’t you?” It growled, grinding its heated stone teeth together as it went on bitterly, “Fine, maybe I don’t matter, but leaving those guys behind too, that’s going too far!”

“You’re talking nonsense,” Eun-Ho replied flatly. “Who said anything about abandoning anyone? You’re my newest recruit. Of course I’m taking you all the way to hell with me.”

With a small tilt of his chin, Eun-Ho gestured somewhere behind the Abandoned Ridge. It was their door, still open and connected to the cave beyond.

“Do you not remember where you came from?” Eun-Ho asked.

“What?”

“When I give the signal, go straight in,” Eun-Ho instructed. “That door won’t stay open long without me.”

As the Skeletons clattered loudly, snapping into a boisterous salute, the Abandoned Ridge felt something deep within itself shift.

“Make sure you eat properly,” Eun-Ho said.

Beneath the pitch-black night sky, under a scatter of stars blooming like flowers, a heavy and grinding movement echoed from its core.

***

[The Third Trial has been cleared!]

The moment Eun-Ho stepped through the door formed by the constellation, the air changed abruptly.

What is this?

Something was definitely different from before. He just couldn’t pinpoint whether it was the quality of the atmosphere or the flow of time.

Bzzzt—

A crackling noise followed, just like a broken radio struggling to tune in.

[Your rank has slightly...]

[... to Trial Site Four.]

The guidance broadcast that had accompanied them until now became distorted and broke apart.

“Ji-Eun?!”

Neither Ji-Eun nor Jae-Hyuk was anywhere in sight. For a moment, Eun-Ho wondered if it wasn’t the broadcast failing, but his own consciousness fading.

Then, light exploded. A brilliant flash, that was whiter than snow and brighter than the sun, forced his eyes shut.

In the darkness behind his eyelids, a woman’s voice drifted in like a faint breeze. “O’ revolutionary of the dawn.”

Gentle yet indistinct, the voice sounded so fragile that even a passing breath could scatter it.

“Who are you?” Eun-Ho asked.

The woman answered calmly, “We are beings who have lost our names. A star that has already fallen.”

Lost their name?

Someone came to mind. There was the unknown god, the one who had given him a gift and intervened in the grand design.

“What do you want from me?” he asked.

“Overcome the Tower’s trials,” she replied.

He already was. Judging by the rise in his rank, which should reach sixty percent after this round, there were likely two trials left.

“And if I succeed?” he pressed. “What do I gain?”

“You will become the master of the new era.”

There was still so much he wanted to ask.

He pressed on. “Then what do you gain?”

“We...”

Why does it have to be me? Why had she helped? And why did she say we and not I? Eun-Ho wondered.

However, before the answer could come, a sharp, piercing tone cut through everything.

Beeeeeeep—!

[Moving to Trial Site Four.]

The familiar alert came late, as if delayed, and the overwhelming light began to dim.

“Time is short,” she said, now hurried. “The Undying...”

As the world around him faded, her words grew fainter with each passing second.

Ruuumble—! Craaaack!

Suddenly, a jagged crack split the pure white sky, and black lightning tore through it. The heavens themselves seemed to rip apart.

“That one is here.”

Then, Eun-Ho’s vision was swallowed by darkness. It was not the kind of darkness a torch could dispel, but a heavy and suffocating void that crushed even the smallest spark before it could ignite.

“Remember, you mus... overcom... the Tower’s trial...”

It felt as though something like wind grasped at his hand, trying to hold him back as her voice faded further. “The Eternity Tower is...”

Then, she was gone and a blinding light surged once more.

Eun-Ho gasped. Thrown between extremes of light and darkness, he felt as though he were alternately plunged into ice and boiling water. He shook his head, trying to clear the haze. Then, someone tapped his shoulder.

“Eun-Ho? Are you okay?” Ji-Eun asked.

“Ah. Yes. I’m fine,” he replied.

There was no way Ji-Eun or Jae-Hyuk had experienced what he just did.

Seeing no reason to worry them, he opened his eyes fully, answering calmly, “Ji-Eun, are you—”

“Ji-Eun, are you—”

“Ji-Eun? What’s wrong with you, Eun-Ho? Did you have some kind of dream?” she asked.

Why am I in the office?