Chapter 63
I took a step to follow after Yoo Ye-na, but flinched at the force tugging me from behind.
“Boss…….”
Ms. Kim looked at me worriedly.
I tried to smile and tell her I was fine, but I wasn't sure whether it worked.
Smiling is my specialty. Surprisingly, I'm not very good at it in situations like this.
“I'm fine, so don't worry. If I don't come back, make sure you still come to work tomorrow.”
“……You have to come tomorrow.”
Ms. Kim let go of my sleeve and saw me off with a gloomy expression.
Yoo Ye-na glanced over here and asked as she walked through the crowd.
“So that's the kid we saw at the meat restaurant last time.”
“She's one of our employees. She works very well.”
“Horns, white hair…….”
Yoo Ye-na came to an abrupt stop.
Then she fixed me with a reprimanding look.
“So you're the daughter of the owner of Shinseon Do-won.”
“How did you know?”
“I investigated.”
I get the feeling this conversation isn't going anywhere.
“I'm asking why you investigated.”
“Why, you ask—”
After a moment of hesitation, Yoo Ye-na answered in a brief, almost evasive tone.
“Because it was the first time you used your power without permission.”
“……”
“This is the second time. That girl keeps getting mixed up in it.”
“I'll explain once I get there, but this time it's not because of that girl.”
“Okay.”
The words were agreeable, but the atmosphere itself felt distinctly grim.
* * *
Tower Management Bureau.
Literally, the agency that manages the Tower.
Each floor has its own subdivided bureau, but in the end they're all the same single agency.
The one in charge of the 3rd Floor Tower Management Bureau was the United States.
It was the country that maintained balance most steadily, and it even had three of the Seven Extremes.
The bureau itself was located inside the Tower. The Tower was so enormous that having things inside it wasn't strange, and without knowing the way, it would have been hard to find.
Walking all the way there surrounded by Yoo Ye-na and the staff, I finally spotted a huge door at the end of the corridor.
Standing in front of it was a short-haired Black man in military uniform.
One of the United States' Seven Extremes, a man called 'Breakpoint.'
Victor Brook.
Just as our side gives names like Yuseong or Yacha, the United States adds epithets in its own way.
It was also a way of satisfying national identity and belonging.
Victor reached out to stop us—no.
To be exact, he stopped Yoo Ye-na.
“The executives from each floor are gathered inside.”
“……”
“I know you have friendly feelings toward him, but please be careful with your words.”
I thought he was threatening us, but it was advice and a warning. Maybe because he was a former soldier, the way he spoke was rather rough.
The door opened, and I went inside.
There, the head of Earth's Tower Management Bureau, Mecklen, was standing on the podium.
Behind him, three large screens floated up, each matching its own world.
One displayed clouds and divine patterns.
The pope of the Rajesta Continent sat in his seat.
Another was a folding screen with a strong wuxia feel. Beyond it, a person's shadow was clearly visible.
The last one was a cyber city.
The elegant cursive [AXIS] floated there all by itself.
The central control system that oversaw Cyber City.
It was the city-management AI, Axis.
“Welcome, Mr. Juseon.”
Mecklen greeted me in fluent Korean. The faint sweat beading on his forehead seemed to suggest he had been through quite a grueling time.
When I stood in the center as instructed, Mecklen cleared his throat and began.
“No need to be too nervous. This isn't an official meeting, after all—it's unofficial.”
For something unofficial, there were far too many people gathered.
Every one of them was looking down at me.
The first to speak was the AI Axis.
- Initiating situation summary.
- It has been confirmed that the Kim Juseon entity previously activated 'Law' on the Rajesta Continent through independent judgment.
- That act is classified as an application without prior approval and constitutes a violation of the contract terms.
- It also carries the possibility of creating unpredictable disruptive factors for the Tower's order and stability.
- Axis judges this matter to be a major-risk issue.
- Simulation results show that removing all related entities present at the scene at the time is the most efficient way to prevent the spread of chaos.
- The above measure is submitted as the top recommendation.
A chillingly cold proposal.
A result with no malice whatsoever, only fairness and efficiency.
“The reason I activated Law on the Rajesta Continent was because of a demon.”
I began explaining calmly.
“I brought holy knights to repair the seal on a demon named Arhelak, sealed in Silos Cathedral, but I ended up using it because of an unexpected variable.”
Axis answered immediately.
- Under the same circumstances, choosing demon summoning is judged to be the superior option in terms of stability.
- This matter includes the possibility that the existence of the private 7th Floor may become known to outsiders.
- This is not a simple accident, but a significant variable affecting the entire management system.
- In particular, exposing the fact that the 7th Floor's information has been concealed is highly likely to irreparably damage the Tower Management Bureau's credibility.
- The subject, Kim Juseon, has already violated the contract terms twice.
- Judged to be uncontrollable.
- I propose isolation and containment measures.
Axis's proposal was, as always, rational.
Yoo Ye-na stepped forward, offering to act as my representative.
“Though it wasn't public knowledge and wasn't intentional, Kim Juseon has clearly been working to maintain the Tower's balance. Please understand that this incident too was for the sake of the greater good, not personal feelings.”
- Request for explanation.
“The last Azure Dragon descent incident. It was a dangerous situation that could have escalated into a second inter-floor war, but he stopped it with his discretion. He's clearly an unsung contributor.”
- Insufficient evidence.
A cold declaration.
But it wasn't Yoo Ye-na who answered Axis.
- The Old Murim confirmed that Kim Juseon was deeply involved in the Azure Dragon descent incident.
The man behind the folding screen, who had kept silent until then, answered coldly.
- Lord Azure Dragon said so himself, and to add one more thing.
A brief breath.
The man's gaze from beyond the folding screen seemed to pierce straight through me.
- He told us not to lay a hand on his son-in-law.
- ……
Silence fell after that declaration that no further objections would be tolerated.
The gazes of the people fixed on me twisted strangely.
Sensing an opening in the silence, Yoo Ye-na spoke up.
“Though it wasn't public knowledge and wasn't intentional, Kim Juseon has clearly been working to maintain the Tower's balance. Please understand that this incident too was for the sake of the greater good, not personal feelings.”
Yoo Ye-na's words were backed up by the pope.
- It's true that he violated the terms of his contract with us, but for the sake of the future, letting go of the people standing before us right now... I don't think I could do that either.
- Moreover, that isn't the important issue right now.
Tap, tap.
Tapping the armrest with his fingers, the pope's expression hardened.
- The Azure Dragon descent incident last time, and this demon unsealing now. Those are just the big ones, but minor cracks keep appearing in the Tower.
- The movements of those trying to start an inter-floor war have begun in earnest.
* * *
One by one, the screens went dark.
What remained were the 3rd Floor Management Bureau's personnel.
Feeling the tension ease, Director Mecklen approached, wiping cold sweat with a handkerchief.
“Mr. Kim Juseon, well done.”
“No, Ye-na did well, so I was just listening.”
“That was the right thing to do. If the person involved defends himself, it can sound like an excuse.”
Yoo Ye-na walked over, her heels clicking.
She had defended me as neatly as a lawyer from a major law firm, but her expression wasn't very bright.
“It went a lot more easily than I expected.”
“Wasn't it because you spoke up for me?”
“The one who was supposed to be the most troublesome was the Old Murim in the first place.”
Yoo Ye-na looked at me steadily.
She seemed to have a lot she wanted to ask.
“I don't know what you've been doing, but since it got through smoothly this time, I'll just let it slide.”
“What do you mean, what have I been doing? I'm the president of a matchmaking agency.”
I grinned and shrugged, and Yoo Ye-na hesitated for a moment.
“Right... the president of a matchmaking agency.”
At her faintly regretful expression, the director laughed and lightened the mood.
“In any case, it went smoothly, didn't it? As Ye-na said, the Old Murim was originally the most troublesome, but they sided with us, so we were saved. I thought the Imperial Secretary was coming to openly take issue and kill us when I heard he was on his way.”
Hmm?
“The Imperial Secretary?”
When I asked in surprise, the director shrugged.
“The 5th Floor Management Bureau belongs to the imperial family, so he came as the emperor's representative.”
“Juseon, why?”
“No, it's nothing.”
The representative for Young Master Cheonjong did take my business card, though.
Could that have something to do with this?
The director patted my shoulder, looking as if he had finally set his mind at ease.
“In any case, you must never use Law again. Someone on the 7th Floor might notice your existence.”
The 7th Floor.
The land called the Empire of Frozen Earth.
A white hell where fierce snow falls all year round.
My homeland.
“What's it like there now...?”
The director didn't answer and shook his head.
I know it was a meaningless question.
He wouldn't be able to answer anyway.
A hand slipped gently around mine.
Before I knew it, Yoo Ye-na had gently taken my hand and said worriedly.
“It's okay. You can live as Kim Juseon.”
“……”
“I'll protect you.”
Through the resolve conveyed by the warmth of her tightly clasped hand—
All I could do was smile and nod.
* * *
A snow-covered plain.
A massive fortress wall worthy of being called impregnable.
A huge tower surrounded by it.
In front of it stood a tall man in a black uniform.
His gaze rested on hundreds of slaves who were subduing huge beasts with chains and hauling them inside the fortress wall.
The man's name was Yorgan.
The greatest general of the Empire of Frozen Earth and Iron, Eisenrik.
He was a man who had slain and subjugated legendary beasts even in the harshest of environments.
“General Yorgan.”
Then a wrinkled old veteran approached him.
Dead eyes and a low voice.
His gestures were mixed with worry that the frigid wind might carry his voice to others.
“Yesterday, I heard that even Article 3, Clause 1—the higher provision of the Book of Law—was activated.”
“……”
“It probably didn't have much effect since it was only for a moment, but that was probably—”
“My son, probably.”
When Yorgan answered flatly, the veteran's eyes widened.
“So he's alive! Did he go down to the lower floors?”
“Seems so.”
“H-have you told His Majesty?”
“No. He doesn't know.”
Eisenrik is a dictatorship.
A place where a single emperor rules everything.
Ninety percent of the population are slaves, and the paranoid emperor has installed more than five times as many surveillance cameras as there are people across the country.
There were even cameras installed inside homes, so the word privacy itself didn't exist here.
There was only one reason the emperor could do this.
It was because of the Book of Law.
The awakening of Earth.
Rajesta Continent's mana and divine power.
The internal energy of the Old Murim.
Cyber City's oversync.
The unique power each floor possessed.
On the 7th Floor, that power is the Law granted by the Book of Law.
Law is not a power that makes you stronger, but one that grants permission.
It isn't something an individual chooses; only people designated by the state can wield Law.
It's a form of borrowing power from it.
“Looking through the records, I found that the most basic 'Article 1 Response Acceleration' was often used.”
“……Up to Article 1, there are so many people who use it. You managed to use it while staying hidden.”
The veteran marveled at his cunning.
Then—
Woooooong!
The tower behind the two of them began to vibrate.
Kwoong! Kwoong! Kwoong! Kwoong!
Amid smoke, the massive iron door on the tower opened—
Mercenaries from Cyber City came pouring out.
“W-what? Where the hell is this?”
“Weren't we supposed to be going down to the Rajesta Continent?”
“It looked like the elevator was going up, though?”
They were illegal entrants.
They were people wanted in Cyber City who could no longer operate there, so they were trying to pay a huge sum to smuggle themselves into the 4th Floor, the Rajesta Continent.
But sometimes,
the Tower, as if it had malfunctioned, brought them here instead.
The wanted criminals looked around.
Slaves dragging gigantic vicious beasts with chains.
And in front of them, a tall man stood with a sword at his waist.
At a glance, the Rajesta Continent's tower was clearly not like this—
“Hey, shit. Isn't this the 7th Floor?”
When one of them realized it with a flash of insight, the other wanted criminals cheered too.
“The 7th Floor? Right! Yeah! This is the 7th Floor! I heard the 1st and 2nd Floors aren't like this!”
“Damn! Find something valuable right now! If you grab anything here, you'll be rich beyond belief!”
“Kwahahaha! I knew the 7th Floor really existed! Those Management Bureau bastards hid it so they could hog all the benefits for themselves!”
The existence of a new floor was an untapped gold mine no one had ever mined.
The sooner contact with a new civilization began, the greater the chance of making a fortune.
Shhk—!
No one noticed the instant the sword was drawn.
At the same time, the wanted criminals whose legs had been cut off collapsed to the floor.
Yorgan's sword, drawn like lightning, returned to its scabbard.
“Aaaaaagh!”
“Guh! G-guh, ugh?!”
“Aaaaaagh!”
The wanted criminals screamed in sudden pain. Looking down at them, Yorgan declared.
“Silence.”
[Law Article 2, Clause 2 - Speech Restriction.]
The fugitives' mouths were forced shut.
Their gazes were forcibly fixed on Yorgan, and their tongues didn't move as if paralyzed.
As if this world itself had stripped them of the right to speak.
“From now on, you will live as slaves.”
He pointed to one of the slaves dragging beasts with chains. He was from the Rajesta Continent and had no legs, so he moved on his arms and held the chain in his teeth.
“Learning from that man how to live without legs would probably be the best way for you to live longer.”
Tears streamed from the fugitives' eyes. The terrifying future awaiting them was like a nightmare, but...
As long as they remained on this 7th Floor.
They would never be able to cry out again.
Law.
Because this world would not allow it.
The story continues off the page
Floaties for Everyone
Swim lesson at the water park, and she's demonstrating on you