Chapter 5
White House Situation Room.
A gathering of all the key figures of the government and the military, including the President of the United States of America.
In a solemn atmosphere, everyone was solely focused on the large screen.
\[02:46:32\]
As the count displayed on the screen ticked down, deep shadows fell over their faces.
The time limit for the Tower Nightmare Difficulty.
The time that would spell the end for humanity.
"What is the situation, Director Van?"
The President quietly spoke up.
Director Van of the newly established Tower Climbing Management Bureau replied while staring into mid-air.
"The rate of decrease in the number of people is accelerating. The number of people is currently at the 76,000 level, but... if the time limit decreases further, the number of people might drop drastically all at once."
No one felt like blaming them.
A difficulty that no one had been able to clear even after tens of thousands had died.
Even with the apocalypse right around the corner, what human would want to throw themselves into a death trap with a 0% survival rate?
On the contrary, the courage of the over 20,000 people who had challenged it so far was commendable.
Who could have even imagined this just a year ago?
The world would face destruction in this manner—not from climate change, not from nuclear war, and not from a meteor strike.
The world underwent a cataclysmic change as the Tower appeared; climbers climbed the Tower, and they brought a new substance called magic stones out of the Tower.
It didn't take long for nations to realize that the future world would be restructured around the Tower and the climbers.
The United States had also been swiftly preparing for the changing world, but in the end, it was all in vain.
Even the supposedly horrific Hard Difficulty has now surpassed the 6th Floor.
Just what was Nightmare Difficulty that they couldn't even clear the 1st Floor?
Soon, the curse foretold by the Tower would descend.
When the time was up, 99% of humanity would die.
It was utterly absurd, but how could they ignore it?
It was a prophecy delivered by a transcendent being capable of making a massive tower sprout in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, selecting random people worldwide, and granting them supernatural abilities.
It wouldn't be strange if it were possible to exterminate humanity overnight.
The only desperate struggle they could make was to unleash the maximum firepower of the technology humanity had built up against the Incomprehensible Tower.
The preparations were already complete.
If no one managed to clear it by the time the time limit reached 30 minutes, a nuclear bombardment would commence against the Tower of the Pacific. It was the final Maginot Line they had set.
humanity's final operation, which had already been agreed upon with China, Russia, and others.
However, everyone in this room had a premonition that it was a meaningless act.
It had long been concluded that the Tower of the Pacific, which was speculated to have taken root all the way to Earth's inner core, was impossible to destroy no matter what methods were used.
The unidentified energy barrier covering the Tower's surface blocked all external physical forces, as if it alone existed outside the physical laws of space.
So, it was nothing more than a final, desperate struggle.
"Dear God..."
Everyone could only pray.
That anyone among the remaining people would clear it successfully. That a miracle would happen.
"If the time limit drops to 1 hour, I will also enter the Tower. I will call someone else in advance to report the situation."
The eyes focused on Director Van's words.
He, too, was a climber assigned to Nightmare Difficulty.
"Tens of thousands of people have sacrificed their lives. As the Director of the Tower Climbing Management Bureau, shouldn't I also fulfill my final responsibility?" "...Understood. Thank you for your dedication, Director Van."
The people merely nodded with heavy hearts.
The probability of overturning this dismal situation just by adding him was close to zero.
Director Van also checked the remaining number of people with somber eyes again, when...
\[The 1st Floor Clear is complete for all difficulties.\]
\[The Tower calls for new climbers.\]
Messages popped up before his eyes.
Director Van blinked, then his eyes widened as if they would tear apart as he checked the status of Nightmare Difficulty.
\[Nightmare\] Participants: 175,837 Time Limit: 1 year 2 hours 39 minutes 2 seconds Reached Floor: 2nd Floor
"It... It's done!"
Director Van forgot his dignity and ended up shouting.
People stared at him with surprised eyes.
"Holy fucking shit! It's done! It's done! The Nightmare 1st Floor has been cleared successfully!" "...Is that true?!" "A message just popped up saying the 1st Floor Clear for all difficulties is complete! I've also confirmed that the time limit for Nightmare has increased by 1 year! Hahaha!"
Waaaaah—!
People embraced each other, filled with joy. Some even shed tears of relief.
Director Van also shared a joyful hug with Deputy Director Samuel and laughed.
"I'm so glad, Director!"
With this, Humanity survived.
Even though they had barely extended their lives by a year, no one cared about that right now.
"The number of people for each difficulty has increased by another 100,000. It happened along with the message of Clear Complete for the 1st Floor across all difficulties." "Really? Could it be that the number of people increases every time a whole floor is cleared?"
The joy was brief, and they had to think about the tasks they needed to handle moving forward.
The clearing of the Nightmare Difficulty, the 1st Floor, and the new climbers.
It seemed they would be busy without a moment to catch their breath in this newly unfolding phase.
"By the way, who could it be? It's the hero who cleared Nightmare Difficulty for us." "We'll have to find that out from now on."
The First Clear of Nightmare Difficulty, from which not a single person had returned alive until now, has been achieved.
No matter which country they were from, an announcement would probably be made soon. That is, unless they were unregistered climbers who hadn't reported to the government.
Whatever the case, one thing was certain.
That person saved humanity this once from the brink of extinction.
---
My eyes opened.
I sat up and looked around.
"...?"
I'm alive?
I examined my body.
The arrow that had pierced my stomach was nowhere to be found, and my stomach was perfectly fine, as was my neck.
There were no bloodstains, and my torn clothes were intact. It was as if everything had been completely restored to its original state.
I think I saw a message saying I cleared it right before I lost consciousness... Did I do it?
It seemed I really had succeeded, since my body had recovered, indicating I had successfully cleared it.
Looking at the progress status of Nightmare Difficulty, I soon became certain.
\[Nightmare\] Participants: 175,830 Time Limit: 1 year 2 hours 38 minutes 31 seconds Reached Floor: 2nd Floor
The floor number had changed to the 2nd Floor, and the time limit had increased by 1 year.
For some reason, a hollow laugh escaped me first.
"Haha..."
I really succeeded.
Is the world not going to end?
Joy and relief are complex and subtle emotions.
It felt like I had succeeded in a bet where I wagered absolutely everything. And in reality, I had.
‘...But what's with the increase in participants?’
Not just Nightmare Difficulty, but the number of participants for all difficulties had increased by 100,000 each.
I tilted my head in confusion before looking around again.
A round, wide space like the cavern I was just in earlier.
I thought I knew where this was, too.
“Is this the reward room?”
It was said that climbers weren't immediately kicked outside after they successfully cleared a floor, but rather, they received their rewards in a place called the reward room.
Ah, I'm slowly starting to remember the messages that popped up right before I lost consciousness.
I quietly muttered.
"status window."
\[Difficulty: Nightmare\] \[Floor: 2nd Floor\] \[Level: 10\] \[Willpower: 100\] \[skill: - \]
A simple window popped up before my eyes.
So this is the status window.
The common reward that climbers who for the first time successfully cleared the Tower's 1st Floor were said to receive.
Through this, climbers grew stronger and became superhumans the more they climbed the Tower.
And the communication window too... I'll check that later.
I stood up.
Since my body had been overflowing with energy for a while, I tried jumping in place.
My body lightly soared several meters into the air.
"Whoa."
My physical ability had grown stronger as my level increased.
I experienced my completely changed body by jumping around and throwing punches.
This is pretty awesome.
But why is my level so high? Is it 10?
I knew that the higher the difficulty, the more the level increased. Was it because it was Nightmare Difficulty?
I stopped testing my body and decided to check my rewards slowly.
Two stones emitting different lights were lying haphazardly on the floor nearby.
I first approached the stone emitting a golden light and checked it.
\[Highest Grade Magic Stone\] A magic stone of the highest grade.
Information popped up as I picked it up.
"So this is a magic stone."
This is one of the rewards you could receive from the Tower.
It was said that climbers made big money by selling these.
I heard they were treated as an incredible resource, capable of greatly advancing human civilization, but I didn't really know much about that.
I put it back down on the floor and examined the other stone.
A teardrop-shaped stone emitting a green light.
\[skill Stone: Flame Strike (Rare)\] Upon use, you can acquire “skill: Flame Strike (Rare)”.
\[Would you like to use “Skill Stone: Flame Strike (Rare)”?\]
Ah\~ So this is a skill stone.
A stone that grants a Skill when used.
But I thought I heard skill stones weren't rewards that dropped from the 1st Floor. Plus, a rare grade?
"Flame Strike... Does it shoot fire?"
I could roughly guess what kind of Skill it was just from the name.
I immediately acquired the Skill.
\[You have acquired “Skill: Flame Strike (Rare)”.\]
The skill stone in my hand softly scattered into light and was absorbed into my body.
\[Skill: Flame Strike (Rare)\] Fires condensed flames forward to cause an explosion. Requires 20 seconds of mental concentration to cast. Category: Magic Willpower Cost: 100 Cooldown: 30 seconds
I read the description.
Can I try using it right here?
"Ah."
I belatedly remembered the outside.
I shouldn't be doing this here; I need to hurry and go home.
When I looked at the time limit, it had been over 30 minutes since I entered.
\[Would you like to exit the Tower?\]
The message popped up as soon as I thought about leaving.
"Exit."
The scenery before my eyes shifted.
I returned to the alleyway exactly where I had entered.
I put the magic stone in my pocket, left the alley, and headed home.
Will my family be relieved and glad when I return?
The alarm I set hasn't gone off yet, so they probably haven't seen the will I wrote.
Yeah, for now... let's get some rest.
I wanted to go back and throw myself right onto my bed.