Chapter 6: Information Sharing (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 6: Information Sharing (1)
The 1st floor of Nightmare difficulty was cleared with only three hours left until the end of the world! Humanity saved at the last second!
After sleeping like the dead since yesterday afternoon, I woke up in the early hours of the morning and habitually reached for my phone.
Whether it was X-Tube news or portal site articles, every single one was plastered with that one headline.
I tossed my phone onto the pillow and stretched.
"Uuuugh..."
I felt surprisingly refreshed. It made sense, considering I had just overcome a massive hurdle.
Even if it only meant prolonging our lives by a single year...
Still, I didn't die yesterday and got to live for another year, so isn't that a good thing? Hahaha.
It was truly a day that made me realize the preciousness of life.
"Sigh..."
Right. One year.
Don't tell me I have to challenge the 2nd floor, too.
To be honest, I realized something yesterday. This... probably no one else can clear it. Nightmare difficulty wasn't something designed for a human to beat. Frankly, I only barely managed to clear it because my ability was backed by a massive stroke of luck.
No, wait. Maybe the 1st floor is different now.
Since I cleared it, the 1st floor is no longer an uncharted demonic realm with zero information. If I share the information, won't people who can successfully clear it start appearing one by one?
Once the information is out, they’ll naturally prepare thoroughly based on it, and the number of challengers will increase. And if more people climb Nightmare difficulty? Some other exceptional person might clear the 2nd floor, the 3rd floor, and so on!
If they can just clear the 1st floor, their level will rise and they’ll be able to use skills. Then I won't have to enter the Tower risking my life anymore. I could reclaim my previous peaceful daily life.
I opened a function I hadn't checked yesterday.
"Communication Window."
The Communication Window was a place where Climbers could talk to each other and write posts. In short, it was a community exclusive to Climbers. Since it was a reward obtained only after clearing the 1st floor, I assumed it was exclusive to those on the 2nd floor or higher.
[You have entered the Communication Window for the first time.]
[Please choose a nickname to use in the Communication Window.]
[Once set, nicknames cannot be changed.]
A nickname, huh.
I fell into thought for a moment. Even when playing games, I was the type to spend ages just setting a character's name.
Ah, I'm taking too long again for no reason. Let's just pick something.
['Saram' is a nickname already in use.]
['Saram123' is an available nickname.]
[Would you like to set your nickname to 'Saram123'?]
[Your nickname has been set to 'Saram123'.]
As soon as I finished setting the nickname, a window popped up before my eyes.
[Easy (30,562)]
[Normal (21,193)]
[Hard (3,934)]
[Nightmare (1)]
Four windows divided by difficulty. The numbers next to them likely represented the number of Climbers who could access that specific Communication Window.
As expected, I was the only one in Nightmare.
[You can only write posts in the Communication Window of the difficulty you belong to.]
I tried entering the Easy Communication Window first. It seemed that while writing was restricted to one's own difficulty, there were no limits on entering and viewing others.
[997/1,000]
[1,000/1,000]
[652/1,000]
Upon entering, the Easy Communication Window was further divided into several channels. The maximum capacity per channel was a thousand, and these were the people currently connected.
I joined the channel with the most people. As I expected, everyone was talking about the Nightmare 1st floor clear.
[Leaf: Still no word on the identity of the Nightmare Clearer?]
[Macaron: Must be an unregistered climber with zero info. Otherwise, wouldn't an announcement have been made by now?]
[Clestin: It hasn't even been a day yet.]
[EggRice: The government might be hiding it to protect their identity.]
[Peter3: True, things would go crazy if they were revealed.]
[TowerWarrior: Still, shouldn't they release info on the 1st floor? Honestly, for the sake of the world.]
[RollingTwist: You've got some nerve talking about 'honesty' to the Savior who just gave Earth a one-year service extension. Honesty?]
[Mr. Kim: FR, I'm curious what the hell popped out that 40,000 people couldn't clear it to save their lives.]
[FixQuatour: What I'm most curious about is what nationality they are.]
[MountainRiverSea: Obviously Chinese.]
[BlackTea: Oh, stop dreaming.]
So this was the format. It was a forum where Climbers from all over the world could gather and converse. The fact that everything appeared in Korean was likely due to the Tower's real-time translation ability, which wasn't particularly surprising. The Tower's messages probably appeared in everyone's respective languages anyway.
Regardless, everyone seemed intensely interested in me.
An unregistered climber...
Actually, in our country, it's illegal for a Climber not to report themselves. What would happen if I came forward now, reported myself, and told the state that I was the Nightmare Clearer?
There would be benefits. A Climber who clears the 1st floor and awakens their Status Window can learn skills and enter the Tower with items. Since all rewards from the Tower can be brought outside, not only Mana Stones but also Skill Stones and items are being traded.
If I informed the government, I could receive investment—whether it be Skill Stones, items, or whatever. But would that ever be free? In the end, it would mean I'd have to keep challenging the Tower. Specifically, the Nightmare difficulty.
"That's not it."
I shook my head. Once revealed, there would be no turning back. Moreover, the responsibility was too heavy. It wasn't like I had some grand sense of mission. I only challenged it because everyone was about to die and I was grasping at straws.
If possible, I didn't want to keep climbing the Tower. But if I revealed myself as the Nightmare Clearer, regardless of my will, I would never be able to return to a normal life.
Considering everything, it was better to remain unregistered.
[Tulip: Hey, a '1' just appeared in the Nightmare Communication Window.]
[Frigg: ?]
[Cheesecake: Oh my god, for real?]
[BlueWolf: Looks like our Nightmare Clearer has finally logged into the Communication Window?]
[Leaf: Nothing's been posted yet.]
The chat suddenly sped up. I promptly closed the Communication Window.
While I was browsing, day had broken. When I stepped out of my room, my father was watching TV in the living room, and my mother was in the kitchen preparing breakfast.
"Good morning."
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yes. I guess I was a bit tired yesterday."
My father seemed to be in a good mood. The morning news was playing on the TV. The content was, of course, about the Nightmare clear.
"Phew, I wonder what's going to happen to this world..." My father clicked his tongue.
A world where humanity's lifespan is extended by one year with each floor cleared. It truly had become a ridiculous world.
— It is reported that as soon as the 1st floors of all difficulties were cleared, a new group of people received the Tower's call. Just like on the Day of Cataclysm a year ago, a total of 400,000 people were called this time...
My father watched the TV and asked, "Seohyun, you didn't get called, did you?"
"Huh? Of course not."
"Good. Even if by some miracle you become a Climber, don't you ever think about climbing that Tower."
"Oh, come on, Dad. Why would I? What's the point of making lots of money if you die? One wrong move and it's over," I replied nonchalantly.
"Right. I'm glad to hear that. Nothing in this world is more precious than a human life."
I feel exactly the same way, Father. But the thing is, this is how it turned out.
This was exactly why I could never tell my family. It was obvious how much they would worry.
"Are you going to work today?"
"Of course. I'm the boss, I have to go."
After breakfast, my father left for work and my younger sibling headed to school, as classes weren't canceled. The world almost ended just yesterday, yet it was as if nothing had happened. This country really is something else.
"Seohyun, aren't you going to school today?"
"I'm heading out at 1:00."
I also had an afternoon lecture. I sat at the desk in my room and accessed the Communication Window again.
[Nightmare (1)]
The Nightmare Communication Window, where I was the only one, was a desolate void. I planned to post information about the Nightmare 1st floor before leaving. I hoped that by reading this, Nightmare Clearers would start appearing in droves.
...Is it a bit much to hope for that?
To be honest, the things I went through yesterday weren't fit for a human. But even if I don't hope for it, there will be people who challenge it. The number of people has increased this time, too.
I was just lucky. How could I shoulder this massive burden alone? For the sake of the world not ending, more Nightmare difficulty clearers were absolutely necessary.
This information was for them. I began to write, organizing the details in my head.
* * *
Following the clear of the Nightmare 1st floor, the entire world was busy managing the chaos.
The world hadn't ended, but the fear of extinction people felt until the 1st floor was cleared was nothing short of a pandemic. Financial markets were a total mess, and many people had gone on rampages claiming it was the end of the world, leaving society in total chaos. South Korea was actually in quite good shape compared to others.
But that was that; they had to prepare for what came next. The crisis of the apocalypse hadn't vanished; it had merely been postponed by a single year.
"We stood at a critical crossroads. Before the unknown threat of the Tower, the fate of humanity was like a candle in the wind, and everyone prayed for a miracle. And a miracle truly happened. As the President of the United States, I express my inexpressible gratitude and respect to the hero who successfully cleared the 1st floor of Nightmare difficulty. We now see hope. One year is a long time. To ensure such a situation never occurs again, our government will do its absolute best, more actively and desperately than ever before, to conquer the Nightmare difficulty."
Meanwhile, everyone was keeping their eyes peeled to find out who the Climber that cleared Nightmare 1st floor was.
"Still no announcement?"
"What about China or India?"
"Everyone's quiet. Is it really an unregistered climber?"
"I heard they logged into the Climber Communication Window. Is there anything posted?"
This was the sole individual who had cleared the Nightmare 1st floor, which had been shrouded in mystery. That person was the front line of humanity's hope. Furthermore, the information about the Nightmare 1st floor that they held was of a value that could not be measured.
What if a specific country intended to keep the Nightmare Clearer's identity a secret? Or what if it was an unregistered climber with no intention of revealing themselves? What if, whatever the case, they intended to monopolize the information?
It had only been a day, but it was natural for everyone to be anxious.
And around noon.
"It—it's up!"
"They just released the Nightmare 1st floor info? For real?"
A post suddenly appeared in the empty Nightmare Communication Window.
[Saram123: This is the strategy guide for the Nightmare 1st Floor.]
A post that began with that brief sentence, without a single word of filler.