Chapter 78: Nightmare 6th Floor (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 78: Nightmare 6th Floor (4)
[The 6th Floor has been cleared on all difficulties.]
[The Tower is summoning new personnel.]
[A new rule has been added.]
[The Mask Auction will be held in 24 hours.]
[When the time comes, 100 Climbers who have cleared the 6th Floor will be randomly invited to the Mask Auction.]
[Remaining Time: 23 hours, 59 minutes, 51 seconds]
I was transported to the Reward Room.
I scanned the messages that followed in quick succession.
What is it this time?
Since the 5th Floor hadn't been a traditional clear, I’d wondered if the Tower would skip the new rules for the 6th Floor, but I guess I was wrong.
Do new rules always crop up on even-numbered floors?
'Mask Auction?'
Climbers who have cleared the 6th Floor... that meant 100 Climbers currently on the 7th Floor or higher would be randomly selected for this "Mask Auction" thing.
By "invitation," did it mean we’d be forcibly moved somewhere? And why an auction all of a sudden?
What kind of stunt was the Tower trying to pull now?
I pushed the thought aside—I’d find out in twenty-four hours anyway—and checked my rewards.
A Rare-grade Skill Stone... and an item.
Huh, is this the first time an item has dropped as a reward without it being a Hidden Route clear?
It was an earring adorned with an emerald-colored jewel. I checked the item's information.
[Item: Rosalia's Earring]
A cherished earring belonging to Rosalia, the eldest daughter of a prestigious noble family.
Effect: Willpower increases by 20%.
It was a simple item with a straightforward boost to Willpower.
"...It's a dud."
At least, it was useless to me. A 20% boost was significant for most, but for someone like me, whose Willpower was practically infinite, it meant absolutely nothing.
I immediately tossed it into my Subspace.
Next was the Skill Stone. Since the item was a bust, I hoped this would at least roll a decent Magic-Type skill.
[Skill: Sword of Light (Rare+)]
Compresses the power of light within a 1-meter radius to summon a sword. Requires 50 seconds of Mental Focus to cast. You can consume additional Willpower to detonate the Sword of Light. Requires 100 seconds of Mental Focus to cast the explosion.
Category: Magic-Type
Willpower Consumption: 20 per second / 300 for explosion
Cooldown: 5 minutes after explosion
"Nice."
At least it was Magic-Type!
Reading the description... the skill was quite unique. It was a magic skill, yet it summoned a physical sword.
[You have acquired 'Skill: Sword of Light (Rare+)'.]
I learned it immediately and tested it out.
Fwoosh.
Upon activating the skill, golden light gathered and condensed into the shape of a blade in my hand. Just as the name implied, it was truly a sword made of pure light.
I gripped the hilt and gave it a test swing. It was far lighter than a standard steel blade; in fact, I could barely feel its weight at all.
"Oh."
I tried slashing the floor. Without any resistance, the blade smoothly sliced through the solid stone.
This is actually pretty strong.
It felt similar to using Sword Aura. From now on, I could simply summon the Sword of Light whenever I needed a weapon. Since it consumed Willpower per second, it was a skill I could maintain indefinitely.
'Plus, it even has a self-destruct function.'
Looking at the description, the cooldown wasn't a flat five minutes; it was five minutes after an explosion. This meant that as long as I didn't detonate the sword, I could summon and dismiss it at will without any cooldown.
I wondered how powerful the explosion was. I’d have to test it later; blowing things up in the Reward Room was probably a bad idea.
[Difficulty: Nightmare]
[Floor: 7th Floor]
[Level: 80]
[Willpower: 3,600]
[Skills: Destruction Ray (Epic+), Subspace (Epic), Sixth Sense (Rare+) (+2), Teleportation (Rare+), Rapid Regeneration (Rare+), Scorching Zone (Rare+), Sword of Light (Rare+), Flame Strike (Rare) (+5), Fierce Lightning (Rare) (+1), Blade Storm (Rare), Exhilaration (Rare), Skin Hardening (Rare), Fairy Light Bullet (Common+) (+1), Lesser Poison Resistance (Common+), Lesser Burn Resistance (Common+), Lesser Ice Resistance (Common+), Leap (Common) (+2)...]
Before I knew it, I had reached level 80. My Willpower had also surpassed the 3,000 mark. Including the level-up rewards from the 5th Floor, it had jumped by 20 points compared to before I entered the 6th Floor.
I’d hit level 100 in no time.
[Nightmare]
Participants: 378,822
Time Limit: 1 Year, 20 Days, 5 Hours, 8 Minutes, 15 Seconds
Floors Reached: 7th Floor
Anyway, I’d earned another year.
Now that I was past the 6th Floor, I felt somewhat numb to the achievement. Rather than a sense of relief, my first thought was whether I’d be able to clear the 7th Floor just as successfully.
"Diul."
I summoned Diul. No matter what anyone said, the MVP of the 6th Floor clear was Diul. Of course, Phli had worked hard defending the lanes, but if Diul hadn't stepped up at the very end, I definitely would have failed.
I wondered what would have happened if I’d been forced to use the Scales of Life...
"Diul?"
Diul wriggled out of the bracelet. I blinked in surprise.
Diul, who had originally been nothing more than a round lump... had changed into a human-like form. It wasn't a complete human, but rather a silhouette. It looked like a small fairy.
"...Diul? What happened to you?"
Its form had shifted slightly when it unlocked the Stealth ability on the 3rd Floor, but this was different. Had it undergone another evolution after unlocking its new ability?
Looking exhausted, Diul fluttered and hovered around my head.
'Idiot!'
A voice echoed clearly in my mind.
"...!"
I froze. We had always shared an emotional connection, but Diul had never expressed its thoughts this clearly before. No, come to think of it, during the last Branch Tower clear... hadn't Diul spoken to me then? Though, since that was inside a dream, the memory was hazy.
'Idiot! Dummy!'
Grumbling, Diul retreated back into the bracelet.
How fascinating. Were we able to communicate properly now? Diul seemed to have quite a few complaints. Was it because it had overexerted itself for my sake?
'...Idiot!'
Regardless, I could feel that it was extremely drained, so I let it rest. I needed some rest myself.
Before exiting, I spoke aloud to the empty air.
"It's a success, you bastard."
Bring a better offer next time. That is, if you really want to stop my climb.
I chuckled and stepped out.
*
[ParallelUniverse: There's no way he'd choose the Ark, right? Right?]
[Sandor: How would we know? You never know with these things.]
[Sunlight: Should I seriously look into flying to Korea even now...?]
[Monster: I'm Korean lol. Jealous?]
[Cinnamon: The Ark's radius is only 3 kilometers, you idiot. Did Saram123 say he'd let you in just because you're Korean?]
[Krzysztof: I'm telling you, there's no way he'll choose the Ark. Do you guys still not know Saram123?]
After the Tower made its second offer to Saram123, the world was in a state of chaotic unrest.
While most believed he wouldn't accept, the mere possibility of Saram123 choosing the Ark left people anxious. Some acted quickly, attempting to flee to South Korea immediately.
Of course, those in power moved much faster.
"How about we relocate to South Korea for now? All preparations are complete."
Xiao Lin spoke. Ye Chenwei, who was calmly practicing calligraphy, did not answer. Xiao Lin pressed further.
"If Saram123 wishes to guarantee the survival of humanity, he might choose the Ark, Lord Chenwei. Therefore..."
Ye Chenwei laughed, as if he had just heard something incredibly amusing.
"He will not choose the Ark."
"...How can you be so certain?"
"Only the common fools who do not understand him would be uncertain. That is why the world is in such an uproar over a matter of no consequence."
"..."
"Saram123 will challenge the 6th Floor, just as he always does. Because..."
It was at that moment.
[The Tower's offer has been nullified.]
A message popped up simultaneously before their eyes. Xiao Lin gasped. The offer being nullified meant only one thing: Saram123 had ignored the offer and entered the 6th Floor.
Ye Chenwei wasn't even surprised. He simply widened his eyes slightly, then looked away from the message and resumed his brushwork.
"Because he is a true savior. And he will succeed this time as well."
Transcending the mortal realm to attain sagehood and save the world (超凡入聖濟世).
Having finished his calligraphy, Ye Chenwei smiled in satisfaction.
Meanwhile, there was someone else who was certain Saram123 wouldn't choose the Ark. As soon as he saw the message that the offer had been nullified, Villon let out a small sigh.
"Mr. Kim has entered..."
Ellen, standing beside him, nodded with a stiff expression. They had met Saram123—Kim Seo-hyun—several times in person. Since they had shared a meal and an honest conversation not too long ago, they knew the truth now.
In the end, he was just an ordinary person.
If he chose the Ark, he would no longer have to risk his life climbing. Even though most of humanity would perish, he could have saved his loved ones, his family, and simply chosen peace. He could have lived as the king of a new world.
Yet he had cast that aside to choose the challenge once again.
He was a savior. If they had previously thought so because of his abilities, they now knew it was because of his heart.
Villon simply prayed. He prayed for the safe return of humanity's savior. He prayed that the man would pull off a miracle once again.
[Hydra: Saram123 has entered!]
[Sprint: Are we sure he entered? Could it be he just hasn't decided yet?]
[Ruiba: It said the offer would be nullified once he entered... so he must be in, right?]
[Rox: I knew it! I believed in him!]
[SolarExplosion: This isn't the time to be celebrating. Everyone, hurry up and pray.]
With Saram123 rejecting the Tower's offer, the world, which had been in a frenzy, suddenly went quiet.
— It appears Saram123 has rejected the Tower's offer and entered the 6th Floor. This is several hours earlier than his challenge of the 4th Floor...
People were relieved. With bated breath, they waited and prayed.
[Darkness: Alejandro failed, but he'll succeed, right...? Please.]
[Kkadtika: Is Saram123 the same as Alejandro? Just believe and wait.]
[Boomerang: As expected, Saram123 is the only one capable of getting First Clears.]
The tension was even higher because Alejandro, the so-called "Super Rookie," had failed just the day before.
A long time passed. Even longer than it had taken to clear the 4th Floor. Just as people's nerves were reaching their breaking point, a message appeared.
[The 6th Floor has been cleared on all difficulties.]
The announcement of his success. The Communication Window erupted instantly.
[Rainbow: He cleared it!]
[ChocoChipCookie: Humanity's clock has been extended by another year...!]
[Bonda: Thank you so fucking muuuuuuuch! Saram123!]
[Splendor: How hard was it this time...? It's taking longer and longer.]
[Pigeon: Ahh, his grace is endless. Everyone, you should join the Church of Saram123.]
— Saram123 has rejected the Tower's offer and saved all of humanity once again. We offer our deepest respect and gratitude for his noble choice...
[The Tower is summoning new personnel.]
[A new rule has been added.]
[The Mask Auction will be held in 24 hours.]
[When the time comes, 100 Climbers who have cleared the 6th Floor will be randomly invited to the Mask Auction.]
[Remaining Time: 23 hours, 56 minutes, 1 second]
Meanwhile, the Tower's new rule appeared without fail. It was different from anything they had seen so far. Talk of auctions and invitations made people curious—and anxious.
[Dokkaebi: Mask Auction? What is it trying to do now?]
[Topur: Is it saying it'll start in exactly 24 hours?]
[Crown: Whatever it is, I don't think it'll be good.]
[Alien: Damn it, I'm a 7th Floor Climber, I won't get picked, will I?]
In any case, the world had gained another year of time. On the streets, in homes, and at workplaces—everywhere, the cheers of a rejoicing humanity poured out.