Chapter 41: Normalization (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 41: Normalization (1)
“So, you’re telling me you have no idea what happened either, Manager Shin?”
“That is correct.”
The Director of the Climbing Agency narrowed his eyes as he reviewed the report from Shin Su-jin. She had only recently returned to duty after recovering from her injuries.
“But was it truly a Stage 5 Fallen? Is it possible you misidentified it?”
“Now that I think about it, that might be the case. Everything was so chaotic at the time.”
“...Regardless, it means there was another monster there that vanished without a trace.”
The Seoul Arts Center Disaster was currently the largest tragedy South Korea had faced since the appearance of the Fallen.
During the subsequent investigation, all they found was the corpse of a Stage 3 Fallen and a massive, conspicuous hole torn through the theater ceiling. Because the theater’s fiber-optic backbone had been severed while the Stage 3 Fallen was rampaging, there were no CCTV records from the moment the audience members began to die.
Consequently, the only way to piece together the situation was through the testimony of Shin Su-jin, the only one who had directly engaged the monsters.
Since she had already reported witnessing a Stage 5 Fallen in the heat of the moment, Shin Su-jin had no choice but to feign ignorance regarding its disappearance. The appearance of the Fallen was an unprecedented disaster, so it wasn't particularly strange for her to claim she didn't know what had happened in the aftermath.
Besides, the Climbing Agency didn't have the luxury of focusing solely on follow-up investigations right now.
“Since there’s a possibility the Fallen is hiding somewhere... I’ll instruct the police to expand their search radius. Are you fully recovered, Manager Shin?”
“Yes. I’m heading back to the field immediately.”
“That’s good to hear. Carry on, then.”
Leaving the Director’s office, Shin Su-jin prepared to move out. The operation to subjugate the Fallen was still very much ongoing.
* * *
After the dead Climbers turned into the Fallen, a state of national emergency was declared, and the military was deployed in full force.
— These Fallen vary in aggression, but they are fundamentally identified as hostile toward humans.
— It is speculated that each individual has different habits, and some even exhibit peculiar behaviors. However, it is a clear fact that they have lost the intellect they possessed as humans. They are no longer human...
— The weakness of the Fallen has been identified as the head. Their trait of not dying unless the brain is destroyed is similar to the Undead found on the 3rd Floor...
Stage 1 to Stage 5 Fallen—according to the probabilities stated by the Tower, Stage 1 and Stage 2 Fallen made up an overwhelming 99% of the population. Across the country, hundreds of Stage 1 and 2 Fallen were eliminated by the military or active Climbers. Since these were at a level where soldiers armed with rifles could neutralize them, the subjugation proceeded quickly.
However, from Stage 3 onward, standard small-arms fire was no longer enough.
0.9% of 40,000 people—proportionally, that meant about 400 individuals worldwide. Excluding the one I killed at the Seoul Arts Center, a total of two Stage 3 Fallen had appeared in South Korea. One was found in Ulsan and another in Gyeongju; there had been no news of any others since. Those two were reportedly handled by the Air Force.
South Korea was relatively lucky. They said not a single Stage 4 or Stage 5 Fallen had appeared—excluding the one I killed, of course.
In a way, it was fortunate that a Stage 3 and a Stage 5 Fallen had appeared together at the Seoul Arts Center that day, and that I happened to be nearby to take care of them both at once. Well, I don't know if "fortunate" is the right word, considering how many people died...
For a while, the entire world was in chaos. Every nation poured its total strength into resolving the disaster of the Fallen, which had arrived without warning.
For the record, Stage 5 Fallen were said to have appeared in China and Canada as well—one in each. I saw news reports saying both countries had successfully and quickly suppressed them. In China, Wang Kai, the record holder for Hard Difficulty, reportedly handled it alongside the military. In Canada, the subjugation was carried out through a joint military operation with the US.
Regardless, a staggering number of people died. For a while, the news was filled with nothing but reports of Fallen being suppressed, death tolls rising, and certain African nations falling into a state of total paralysis.
South Korea managed to bring the chaos under control relatively quickly, but the total casualties were said to be in the tens of thousands. As time passed, the Fallen crisis eventually began to settle down.
However, once the situation calmed slightly, a new problem rose to the surface.
— We need more thorough management and supervision of non-climbing Climbers! We must ensure such a horrific disaster never happens again...
The issue was the treatment of 1st Floor Climbers who hadn't entered the Tower. In the eyes of the public, these people were now no different from ticking time bombs that would turn into monsters in another year. The Nightmare Climbers were a particular concern.
The government, now desperate for a solution, proposed several alternatives: greater compensation packages for non-climbing Climbers, more active support for climbing, and even pushing for the legalization of euthanasia for Climbers who chose not to enter the Tower.
It was mostly things like that. After all, they now had to either enter the Tower before their time was up or die beforehand. To ensure this, the government had to make it so that no one could hide their status as a Climber; registration with the state had to be mandatory.
Other countries were in similar situations. Governments had to become more thorough, and a mix of coercive and persuasive measures for Climbers were being tossed around. Naturally, conflict was bound to arise.
“It’s a total mess,” I muttered to myself while watching a news clip of a protest happening abroad.
If the Tower’s goal was to turn the world into a disaster zone by any means necessary... then the Tower was succeeding brilliantly.
* * *
Following the Fallen crisis, a single task emerged that every nation had to solve: the thorough identification of all non-climbing Climbers.
Until now, there were many countries where registering as a Climber was not mandatory. A prime example was the United States, a country where, due to issues regarding individual rights, there were no national ID cards, and obtaining identification wasn't even a requirement. By the same logic, registering as a Climber wasn't mandatory either. It had been briefly made mandatory when the day of destruction approached during the 1st Floor era, but even that was quickly reverted due to public backlash once the Nightmare 1st Floor was cleared.
However, even those countries now needed to take action. Otherwise, the disaster of rampaging Fallen would repeat itself. Of course, even if registration was made mandatory, people could just hide it, so the key was practical measures like compensation rather than just coercion.
Regardless, there was no reason for governments not to enact the laws. They always wanted to tighten the leash on Climbers as much as possible anyway. The growing power of Climbers, who were developing at a terrifying pace every year, was a significant threat to them. They now had the perfect excuse.
“We need to take this opportunity to suppress the Climbers.”
“Agreed. If we miss this chance, it will become even harder to control them in the future.”
It started in the United States. The US government intended to use this opportunity to cement various bills, including the mandatory registration of Climbers. Since the citizens who had experienced the Fallen crisis were fervently supporting the government this time, they had the full weight of public opinion behind them.
“These lunatics... the Social Safety Contribution Act? What is this? It says they can even mobilize Climbers for war if things get bad!”
“We can’t just sit back. They’re trying to grab us by the throat.”
However, the Climbers felt differently.
“This is a violation of the right to freedom! Guarantee the human rights of Climbers!”
The International Climber Association—a private international organization with its headquarters in the US and branches in many other countries—led the charge. Led by a chairman who was a 17th-floor Climber of Normal Difficulty, the association’s goal was to protect and promote the rights of Climbers.
To put it bluntly, it was a coalition whose sole purpose was to expand the vested interests of Climbers. They fiercely opposed various bills that restricted their freedom, including mandatory registration. If they gave the government even an inch, their rights would be nibbled away bit by bit from then on.
It wasn't just the US; other countries were the same.
“Does it make sense that you won't accept mandatory registration? Your selfishness is driving the world toward disaster!”
“Who knows what you’ll do once you have all the Climbers’ identities! Are you saying you’ll track us down and kill us if we don’t die on our own?!”
The confrontation between the governments and the Association escalated into discord and conflict between Climbers and ordinary citizens. The situation was spiraling out of control.
* * *
The world had been a total mess lately. I could tell just by looking at the Communication Window.
[Skull: People are seriously unbelievable. By what right are they insulting us?]
[Lexa: Who do they think is keeping the world from ending right now? lol]
[AppleJuice: Shouldn't we all band together for real this time?]
The conflict between Climbers and civilians was peaking. I knew why the atmosphere was like this; the news was constantly reporting on the clashes between national governments and the Association. I thought it would be resolved quickly, but it seemed to be getting worse.
— The only reason the world is still standing is that we Climbers are climbing the Tower at the risk of our lives! The Nightmare Climber Saram123 is saving humanity every single year! How can you persecute Climbers like this!
— Saram123 climbing the Tower is a noble act of sacrifice for the sake of humanity. How dare you try to put yourselves on the same level as him when you’re only busy protecting your own interests? You should follow Saram123’s example.
I even saw people from both the Association and the government using my name. Lately, I’d been getting a lot of Whispers through the Communication Window. They asked if I wasn't on the side of the Climbers, or begged me to step up and take their side.
Seriously, what "side"?
It wasn't for me to judge which side was absolutely right. It was true that the government needed to take measures, and it was also true that the rights of Climbers shouldn't be excessively infringed upon. It was already a difficult time, and seeing everyone doing nothing but fighting was just frustrating.
[Chicken Sandwich: It’s because the governments are inciting the public to suppress Climbers, and the Association is inciting Climbers to avoid losing the initiative. Since neither side intends to back down, well, for now...]
According to Villon, there was still no sign of a resolution. The governments had public opinion on their side, but the Association held many cards as well. In the end, it was the Climbers who climbed the Tower to extend the deadline, and it was the Climbers who supplied Mana Stones to the world. In fact, the Association Chairman had even threatened that Climbers would stop entering the Tower altogether.
I had never cared about political issues before. But I started to worry that if things reached an extreme, something terrible might happen. The Whispers coming in every day were getting really annoying...
I already have to extend the Nightmare deadline; do I really have to worry about this shit too?
I opened the Communication Window.
[Saram123: I am on no one’s side, so please stop mentioning me. My role is to climb the Nightmare Difficulty, and I will focus only on that. I hope the Association and the governments reach an amicable agreement as soon as possible.]
I paused before posting. It was cliché, boring, and pedantic. Would anyone even listen if I said it like that?
...If I’m going to intervene, I might as well do it properly. I deleted the text and wrote again.
[Saram123: I am neither on the side of the Climbers nor the government. I hope you reach an agreement by compromising with each other.]
[Saram123: If an agreement is not reached in the near future, I will not challenge the 4th Floor.]
I didn't climb the Tower just to watch this shit-show. If you guys keep this up, I’m out.
We can all just die together.
* * *
The world was turned upside down by the post Saram123 had made.