The Banquet of the Gods

"Hyung, did you see the event that just popped up?"

Woo Jumin, who had been excited since early morning, asked the moment he saw me.

"What event?"

"This! Look at this!"

Jumin shoved his phone right in front of my face without warning.

A video from some NewTube channel was playing on the screen.

"Stop watching so much NewTube," I muttered, clicking my tongue as I sat down at the table.

"No, seriously, Hyung. Just watch it once."

"It's fake news."

I replied like a grumpy middle-aged uncle, gulping down a glass of cold barley tea.

Undeterred, Jumin slid into the seat right next to me and held the screen closer.

"They say it's an event where you get a random item just for entering!"

"Since when is the tower a charity? Why would it just hand out random items?"

"It's true! Inseok-hyung said he already went!"

"Hmm."

"Even the news is talking about it! They said it's a special event where you can't earn Contribution Points, but you can get items!" Jumin pleaded at the top of his lungs.

Hmm.

An 'event' in the Babel Tower?

I had never heard of such a thing.

"Let me ask Ms. Kang Mina first."

"Ah, but it's real..."

"Just eat your breakfast."

Slurp.

I took a spoonful of the dried pollack soup Do Sangjin had prepared for me and scrolled through my phone.

Just as Jumin said, the internet was buzzing with talk about the event.

Articles were pouring out in floods.

It wasn't just in Korea; the event was active in Babel Towers all over the world. Apparently, you could enter without facing much danger, complete a simple mission, and walk away with a random item.

Hmm...

Since no monsters were spawning, it didn't seem dangerous at all.

If it really just gave out random items, it didn't sound like a bad deal.

I'd ask Kang Mina, and if it was legitimate, maybe I'd go in...

Slurp.

I quickly finished the piping hot pollack soup and called Kang Mina.

Did I ask that a bit too enthusiastically?

I heard Kang Mina clear her throat on the other end of the line.

"Understood. Then it's better to get it over with quickly."

I hung up the phone and grinned at Jumin, who was staring at me with an anxious expression.

"Alright, let's go."

"Yes!!!"

"They said the normal floors only open up after we clear the event once."

"...Pardon?"

"You're weak against Blood Bears. We need to run the 45th floor at least four or five more times."

Jumin's face gradually turned pale.

Regardless, I hummed a tune and stood up.

Time to go slaughter—

No, wait, that's not it.

"Let's hurry up, Jumin!"

Massive letters greeted us the moment we entered the Babel Tower.

The words Banquet of the Gods glowed in a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠brilliant golden light, with the countdown ticking away beneath them.

"This is a first," I said.

My teammates nodded in agreement.

"There really aren't any monsters..." Cha Yerin muttered, looking around in astonishment.

The map was vast and peaceful.

True to the name Banquet of the Gods, there were lush green meadows, wheat ripening into a golden hue, and grapes hanging in heavy, luscious clusters from the vines.

The sun was warm, and the breeze was cool.

It felt almost like we had come on a picnic.

Ding!

With a cheerful chime, a shiny silver coin dropped in front of each of us.

"They say you exchange this for an item!" Jumin shouted excitedly, clutching his coin.

"Is that so?"

The coin was about twice the size of a five-hundred-won coin and quite thick.

A detailed engraving of the tower was etched onto the front, while the back bore an infinity symbol, resembling the number 8.

"Keep it safe," I warned Jumin, who was happily fidgeting with his coin, as I stored mine securely in my inventory.

It would be a pain to lose it after coming all this way.

Chatting about this and that, we walked toward a flag fluttering in the distance.

The flag bore the exact same infinity symbol engraved on the coin.

As we reached it, we saw a quietly flowing river.

Unlike any river we knew, it sparkled as if starlight itself were flowing through it.

And floating upon it was a single wooden ferryboat.

Standing aboard the boat was a ferryman with a skeletal head.

Creak...

Spotting us, the ferryman extended a skeletal hand.

"I guess he wants the coins," Baek Harim said, and everyone began rummaging through ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠their inventories.

"Huh?"

Right then, Jumin's face turned pale, and cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.

"What's wrong?"

"M-My coin is gone."

"What?"

Jumin's coin had vanished.

No matter how many times he searched his inventory, the Coin of Blessing was nowhere to be found.

"..."

Jumin hung his head, looking like he was about to cry.

"I'm sure I put it away safely..."

It was indeed strange. I had clearly seen him put it in his inventory.

Jumin let out a heavy sigh, his shoulders slumping.

"Nothing I can do, I guess... I'll just head back."

Ah. He looked really disappointed.

Without hesitation, I pulled my Coin of Blessing out of my inventory.

"Here, take this."

"Hyung, but that's yours!" Jumin protested, shaking his head and refusing to take it.

I forced the coin into his hand anyway.

"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't even have come here."

"But..."

"I wasn't interested in the random items anyway."

"S-Still!"

"I'm serious. Even if it's free, it's not like they're giving out anything special."

It was the truth. The items obtained here were mostly ordinary things that would only benefit beginners.

Usually, they were items you'd get from a Bronze Chest, or at best, a Silver Chest.

So there was no reason for me to covet them.

After all, this was just an 'event.'

And a beginner-oriented one at that.

"Go open your chest."

"R-Really?"

"Yeah. And we're heading straight to the 45th floor right after, got it?"

"...Yes!!"

Jumin beamed. I guess since he was still young, he couldn't help but get excited over things like this.

"Taepyeong-nim, would you like to take my coin instead?" Cha Yerin offered, holding her coin out to me.

I shook my head.

"I'm really fine."

Honestly, opening random boxes and all that was just a hassle. The only reason I had entered in the first place was to quickly clear this and get back to the normal floors.

"Go ahead."

As I nodded with a smile, my teammates handed their coins to the skeletal ferryman.

Clink.

Clink.

Clink.

Three coins dropped into the bony hand.

The skeletal ferryman nodded as if satisfied with the payment, then gestured for them to board.

"We'll be back, Hyung!"

"Alright, kid. Don't lose whatever item you get!"

"Yes sir!!"

His reply was energetic as always.

Once the three of them boarded, the skeletal ferryman began to row.

The boat slowly drifted away across the river. It didn't look fast at all, yet in the blink of an eye, it vanished from sight.

What the? Did it have a motor hidden somewhere?

I guess I just wait here...

I lay down on the soft grass. Since things turned out this way, maybe I'd take a nap.

"Yaaawn..."

Was I going through a late growth spurt? I felt sleepy all the time lately.

"Mmm..."

Just as I found the perfect position and closed my eyes—

Splash...

Splash...

I heard the sound of something cutting through the water. But the boat had already left, hadn't it?

I peeked open one eye.

Sitting up, I blinked. "...Huh?"

From the opposite direction, another ferryboat was cutting through the water toward me.

At first glance, it looked similar to the one the others had taken, but looking closer, it was far more decrepit. It looked like it could sink at any moment.

The person standing on it wasn't a skeletal ferryman either.

It was an old man with a thick, white beard.

What is this now...?

As I watched in bewilderment, the old man docked the boat and extended his hand toward me.

"I don't have a Coin of Blessing..."

I showed him my empty hands, but the old man kept his hand outstretched.

It was as if he knew exactly what I had.

Could it be...?

Just in case, I opened my inventory.

The Tower's Coin popped up as if it had been waiting for this moment.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Unlike the silver Coin of Blessing, this coin shimmered with a brilliant golden light.

When did I get this again...?

Anyway, it was a gambling item. If you flipped it before clearing a floor and got heads, the rewards were doubled. If you got tails, all loot was destroyed.

Since the quality of my reward chests was always good, losing all the loot would be a disaster, so I had never used it and just kept it as a souvenir.

Well, a coin is a coin...

I fell into thought for a moment.

It was too risky to use in normal clears anyway.

Maybe exchanging the Tower's Coin for a random item wouldn't be a bad trade.

I handed the Tower's Coin to the old man.

Clink.

The old man gestured for me to board the boat.

Without hesitation, I stepped onto the deck.

If I knew this would happen, I should've just given Jumin my coin earlier and gone with the team...

Tsk. What a shame.

Splash...

The decrepit boat, which looked ready to sink at any second, cut through the water much faster than expected.

However, unlike my teammates' boat, which had vanished in the blink of an eye...

We sailed for a long, long time, yet the opposite shore was nowhere in sight.

Man. Was it because the boat was too old?

Splash...

To make matters worse, a thick fog had rolled in around us.

It had clearly been perfect picnic weather just moments ago.

Did something go wrong...?

Just as I began to feel a sense of unease and looked around—

Grrrrrr...

A sound that should never be heard in a giveaway event floor echoed through the mist.