Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Section 1 - 1 (2)
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Right now, thousands were staking their lives in fierce competition.
Oh Heon waited in the pristine white room, with just three hours remaining until he could ascend the tower.
The scoreboard on the wall was constantly shifting with numbers,
and I stood in the center of the waiting room, staring at the system window, analyzing it for any clues about the tower.
Even the top rankers who had cleared the 1st floor were forfeiting one after another at the threshold of the 2nd floor.
Forfeiting?
Oh Heon began speculating why they had chosen to quit after clearing just the 1st floor.
Was the 1st floor really that difficult?
But even so, would the 7th place really hit forfeit right away?
Isn't the 2nd floor worth a shot?
I hadn't entered the tower myself yet, so I couldn't speculate recklessly.
They had chosen to bide their time for the next opportunity rather than risk death.
In a way, it was a wise decision. But at the same time, it was clear proof of their limits.
Still, I had a rough idea of the reason.
'Were the gimmicks really that tricky?'
The monsters might have been manageable.
But if the gimmicks were tough, even skilled players might fear moving to the next floor.
Strange gimmicks or ones that didn't match their style could lead to an unfair death.
No one knew what gimmicks would appear in advance.
Even if those who forfeited posted on the community, those in the waiting rooms couldn't see them. Comments were the same.
I'd prepared extensively for gimmicks myself, but a sliver of unease lingered.
If the gimmicks were hard, I'd have no choice but to brute-force them with overwhelming stats.
This event was ultimately designed by the system, so high stats should suffice to break any gimmick.
That had been the case so far. It was all the info from just 10 days in.
Then I spotted a fresh update on the Stage 5 status and was surprised.
12th place challenging the 2nd floor?
After going through the 1st floor that made even 7th place forfeit voluntarily?
Did they have some special unique ability?
I knew nothing about 12th place. Rankings outside the top 10 shifted frequently anyway.
Seeing 12th's sudden challenge convinced me everyone had indeed forfeited because of the gimmicks.
The scoreboard announced news of countless deaths, forfeits, and finally, the first clear.
Clears started with the first one, followed by a flurry from many others.
Most clears were Stage 1, but a few had cleared Stage 2 by now.
No one had reached Stage 3's 8th floor yet, and Stage 4's peak was the 5th floor.
Those who picked Stages 1 and 2 were probably under level 10.
Most were pathetically weak compared to me.
Using all the info I'd gathered so far, I started plugging in people's levels against the tower's difficulty.
From what I'd gauged on the community up to now:
1,000th: Around levels 7-8.
100th: Around levels 10-11.
10th: Level 13 or higher.
Anything beyond that, even I couldn't guess.
To me, the rankers seemed underwhelming.
But level 10 was enough to solo a Star-Eyed Wolf, an elite from Zone 2. In dimensions without Zone 3 unlocked, that was top-tier.
There were just 99 such dimensions, that's all.
Strength was relative, and I was viewing them from the 1st place perspective.
Unlike the quiet waiting room, time kept ticking away.
While checking other info, I glanced back at the challenger list.
5th place... that'd be the Sword King.
Why did he choose Stage 4?
Before that question could deepen, I spotted others.
6th...
4th...
8th...
All top rankers except the Sword King and 9th had picked Stage 5.
But the two most crucial ones were missing—the ones closest to me.
The moment that thought crossed my mind.
3rd.
I saw him pop up on the list.
The last time I'd checked, 3rd place's nickname was Lord.
He'd posted a message to me and 2nd place after setting a ranking restriction.
He'd seemed cautious back then, but he'd picked Stage 5.
Still, 3rd place, huh?
My benchmark for true rivals—not half-baked scrubs—was the top 10.
The rest weren't worth remembering.
The fate of someone who overestimated their power.
I analyzed 12th's elimination.
Should I see the 2nd floor as difficult enough to take out 12th?
If 12th—who I'd guessed had an edge on gimmicks—died, maybe the monsters were just too strong.
My entry time into the tower was drawing near.
Oh Heon was starting to prepare to unleash his power in the tower.
He kept his eyes glued to the wall's updates without looking away.
Oh.
A chance to gauge the 2nd floor's difficulty at last.
6th place was Invincible, right?
I vaguely remembered him as confident.
As I steadied myself with expectations for him,
...Dead?
6th place? On the 2nd floor?
I was genuinely shocked.
6th was practically on par with the Sword King.
A powerhouse on the same level as the Sword King, who had been the community's star from the start.
And even he couldn't clear Stage 5's 2nd floor.
My tension about the Stage 5 tower thickened.
I'd wondered if I could clear it before, but now forfeiting midway seemed plausible.
Just as the system's description said, it felt like near-impossible difficulty.
And I hadn't even entered yet.
After 6th's death, Oh Heon stared at the scoreboard, steeling his mind.
To maintain sharp focus for combat.
About an hour until his turn.
As he sifted through the challenger list steadily, his hand paused.
'He's here.'
The one closest to him now.
...
4398th (Stage 1)
2nd (Stage 5)
1529th (Stage 1)
...
2nd place.
Nickname: Eok.
His rank hadn't budged.
I'd known his caliber long ago.
At 2nd's appearance, before entering the tower, Oh Heon made final speculations.
Since I'd been slotted near the end, I figured most rankers would enter ahead of me.
Eok was the exception—I had no idea how far he'd go.
What if he snagged all the achievements first?
But I didn't think the system favored pure luck.
First tower clear, first floor clear—such achievements probably didn't exist.
Would it tie major rewards to random waiting room order?
Even if so, I was confident I could surpass him far higher.
The time gap between his entry and mine was about an hour.
Enough to overtake midway.
Given Stage 5's difficulty, 2nd would likely forfeit partway too.
While Oh Heon speculated on 2nd,
2nd began his entry.
The community exploded with reactions to 2nd's entry.
I checked the latest post.
Most opinions aligned: 2nd would pass the 2nd floor. I agreed.
Some mourned the rankers' deaths like their own.
Oh Heon found it odd.
Weaklings pitying the strong? Normally, you'd be thrilled at fewer rivals.
Short time passed.
In between, 3rd, 4th, and others forfeited on the 2nd floor.
3rd forfeiting was a real surprise.
But that made them even less worth my attention.
I just waited for 2nd's updates.
An expected result.
The real test was the 2nd floor.
2nd's prowess piqued my curiosity intensely.
And he challenged the 2nd floor without a second's hesitation.
His confidence pierced right through the monitor.
Unlike those who agonized before choosing.
And...
Time dragged slowly.
Just 30 minutes until Oh Heon's entry.
2nd floor cleared.
A first. Passing the floor that made even 3rd forfeit.
As expected of 2nd? He was clearly different.
Proving power on another level from the other rankers, 2nd immediately...
...chose to forfeit.
Seconds after succeeding.
Not even worth judging.
The 3rd floor challenge.
Oh Heon closed his eyes quietly at the result.
He wasn't shocked. It was within expectations.
After 2nd's challenge ended,
he immersed himself completely in his own mindset.
'No matter how strong I am, this body has limits. If even 2nd forfeits the 3rd floor...'
I no longer aimed to clear the tower.
At least the 3rd floor.
Oh Heon drastically lowered his targets.
As he repeatedly reviewed all his plans, he realized time was nearly up.
After 2nd forfeited, the community ground to a halt.
Due to 2nd's shocking choice... and 1st place.
1st place.
The absolute being shrouded in mystery, never once revealed.
Oh Heon's debut.
On the scoreboard, where personal info was hidden, of course.
Still, posts flooded in with speculation, hype, and suspicion.
I ignored the chaos and quietly awaited the system's next prompt.
For those few minutes, he focused utterly on the tower and himself, preparing to move.
The system signaled time was up.
A flash of light enveloped Oh Heon's body.
Just like when he'd arrived in the waiting room, he vanished from it in an instant.
When he opened his eyes, he was in a long passage carved from cold stone.
Pitch-black darkness cloaked every direction, with only faint light leaking from the far end serving as the sole illumination.
It felt like the entrance to ancient ruins or the start of a dungeon.
I strode toward the end without hesitation.
Each step echoed hollowly off the stone floor.
Finally, he reached the source of the light.
A massive stone door loomed there.
Ancient, unreadable script was etched into it, exuding overwhelming pressure.
I placed my hand on the huge stone door and pushed with force.
Rumble─
With a heavy grinding sound, the door slowly creaked open.
Squinting against the influx of light, I stepped inside.
It was a vast circular chamber.
The moment my foot crossed the threshold,
summoning circles flared across the floor, and with creaking noises, white bones erupted from the ground.
The bones swiftly assembled into humanoid forms.
Skeletons.
Skeletons armed with rusty iron swords and shields, ones wielding longbows, and even ones bearing massive tower shields.
Warrior, archer, shieldbearer. A textbook combo.
With my high agility stat, I took a closer look.
They emitted no vital energy of the living.
Only the unmistakable aura of death.
I carefully counted them.
Twenty in total.
And at the very back, atop a small altar, stood one skeleton distinctly different from the rest.
Draped in tattered robes, clutching a gnarled staff topped with a small gem. Clearly a mage.
'No separate gimmick?'
I'd heard there were gimmicks per floor, so I scanned thoroughly, but found nothing unusual.
A true monster dungeon, then.
Deal with the ones in front first, think later.
To gauge their strength, I approached the nearest skeleton warrior.
Devoid of emotion or reason, they charged as one, empty eye sockets flashing the moment I neared.
The skeleton warrior's sword whistled through the air toward my head.
I dodged lightly and slashed its spine.
A controlled strike for probing.
Crack!
Bones shattered, severing upper and lower body.
But it didn't fall.
The torso writhed, still flailing its sword at me.
I crushed its skull with a kick.
Only then did it stop completely.
From that brief clash, I assessed their level.
'At least level 10. Stronger than Star-Eyed Wolves, the top monsters in other dimensions right now.'
Still mob-tier for me.
But twenty of them from the 1st floor?
Definitely insane difficulty. Hell for anyone else.
I pushed forward, piercing arrow barrages, smashing tower shields.
Shattering bones and pulverizing skulls was tedious busywork.
One odd thing caught my notice.
Even fully destroyed, no system messages for EXP or gold appeared.
'Why?'
Is this the 1st floor gimmick? Or a tower monster trait?
I exploded the last regular skeleton's head and locked eyes on the skeleton mage.
It had to be the floor's core.
Strangely, the skeleton mage hadn't attacked once during the fight.
Just standing still, hands clasped forward on its bone staff, focused on something.
I approached slowly.
A faint red glow flickered in its empty sockets.
Around it, indecipherable ancient runes floated in a circle, slowly rotating.
As if performing some grand ritual.