The First Hell-Difficulty Climber

I donned my 1st-floor armor and gripped my warhammer tightly. "Enter the 1st floor of the Tower."

Whoosh! With a blinding flash of light, I was transported into the Tower.

I opened my eyes and looked around. Just as the strategy guides and every piece of media had described, the theme of the 1st floor was a forest. The wind blew, causing the bushes and tree branches to sway, and the humid, fishy air brushed against my skin. Chirp, chirp. Even the birdsong echoing from afar made the forest seem peaceful, but—

'I wonder what difficulty I've been placed in.'

If you have no talent for fighting, it’s Easy. If you have some talent, it’s Normal. If you have significant talent, it’s Hard. It is known that Easy difficulty, which makes up the majority of climbers, accounts for a whopping 90%. Normal is next at 9%, and Hard is said to be around 1%. While there are differences from country to country, it doesn't deviate much from that.

I’d worked hard at exercise since I was young, but I was never outstanding, so I figured I’d be in Easy or Normal. The difference in Tower difficulty has a huge impact on survival, and the gap in experience and item drops is massive. Because the difficulty of killing monsters varies so much, Hard-difficulty climbers find significantly more items and special materials. Their stats and skill proficiency rise faster, and they get more points for hunting. It’s said that if they don't die, a Hard-difficulty climber is over ten times stronger than an Easy-difficulty climber on the same floor.

Easy difficulty is basically dead weight that doesn't contribute to the Tower Break even when clearing the top floor, and there’s a limit to how strong you can get. Still, it shouldn't be devalued, as a significant portion of point acquisition and general material supply comes from Easy-difficulty floors. However, to Normal and Hard climbers, they are treated the same as those who give up on climbing.

I saw a pitch-black slime outside the safe zone barrier. In Easy difficulty, you just get regular slimes, but this one was clearly much larger and looked quite sturdy.

"Hell? I've never even heard of Hell difficulty."

That black slime was a Metal Slime, which appears on the 1st floor of Hard difficulty. In any case, I had been assigned to Hell difficulty, not even the Hard difficulty known for being the most difficult and having the rarest probability. Did I have a talent for fighting? I’d lived for 20 years without ever having a real fight, and I had no particular athletic experience.

Squirm, squirm. Moreover, while only one Metal Slime appears on Hard, there were ten of them squirming outside the safe zone barrier. They didn't seem to see me inside the barrier, as they weren't showing any unusual behavior.

'Let's see. Don't panic, I need to find information.'

Fortunately, I could access the Gallery even after entering the Tower, so I searched for information on Metal Slimes.

'Okay, information confirmed.'

The weapons provided by the Tower are low-grade items, so there was no ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠need to pick one, and since the weapon I brought was a warhammer, I didn't have to worry. It was a relief that their attack method was just a simple body slam and that they were non-aggressive monsters.

Still, "How is it that Hard difficulty has one per floor, but Hell starts with ten?"

I had a sinking feeling that the number would increase by ten per floor. If I go to the middle floors later, won't I have to give up on climbing?

As I gripped the warhammer tightly, I felt the cool texture of the metal. Holding the warhammer, which I’d made by hammering a solid block of Black Iron ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Stone, calmed my troubled heart. What should I call this? 'Confidence?' Because the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠armor and weapons I made were high-quality items that could be used even up to the 30th floor of Hard? I had information on the monsters. My equipment was excellent. I didn't feel nervous at all. In fact... I felt a slight sense of exhilaration. I used to feel this when crafting, too. Am I... 'getting excited?'

Watching the Metal Slimes crawling peacefully in the forest, I gripped my 'Skull Harvester' tightly once more.

The translucent barrier vanished, and the weapons that had been messily piled up behind me disappeared in an instant. I ran to the nearest Metal Slime and brought my weapon down hard.

THUD! With a loud sound, the Metal Slime crumpled, and black liquid burst out.

Whack! Whack! Whack! I struck it repeatedly. I knew they were quite sturdy, but it crumpled and oozed slime exactly where I hit it. I glanced at the quivering Metal Slime and examined my weapon, which was covered in black liquid; there was no reaction, and it didn't smell bad either. I thought it would be acidic, but like the strategy info said, it didn't seem to be a problem.

Fzzzz. The body of the Metal Slime, which I had beaten repeatedly, went limp and lost its elasticity.

I acquired a skill right away? "Check skill."

CLANG.

"Ugh!" I staggered from the sudden impact, but fortunately, I didn't fall. I regained my senses and turned around to see nine ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Metal Slimes squirming toward me. It seemed the closest one had attacked me.

"I thought they were non-aggressive monsters."

I almost got into big trouble by thinking according to the common sense of the existing difficulty in Hell difficulty. I was almost seriously injured due to my complacent thoughts and actions, but thanks to the protection of my armor, I was fine. Fortunately, they weren't fast, so I took them down one by one, starting with the closest Metal Slime. I wasn't hurt or tired, but it was unpleasant because the Metal Slime's black liquid got on my face and armor while I was beating them to death with a blunt weapon.

As I killed the last Metal Slime, I heard a clear notification sound amidst the death throes of the creature.

"Return."

Whoosh. A bright light enveloped me.

I opened my eyes again to find myself in a familiar space. A blazing furnace and ingots piled up in one corner. It was my workshop. I had been assigned to Hell difficulty and cleared the Metal Slimes more easily than I thought. It felt like a dream, but the black liquid soaking my armor and warhammer told me it was reality. The material items were... parts of the Metal Slimes' carcasses.

Anyway, "It was easier than I thought."

I wasn't very tired, and I had plenty of stamina left. Metal Slimes don't have high attack power, but they are tricky monsters because they have excellent resistance to physical and magic attacks. I think I caught them easily because the weapon I made was excellent. Since they were just monsters that appear in Hard difficulty, just in larger numbers, I think I can climb to the 10th floor today as originally planned. If it doesn't seem right, I can just run away in the middle.

"Let's go! Enter the 2nd floor."

People were shouting everywhere in South Korea. Hell difficulty! Point acquisition permanently increased by 1%! Waaaaah!

It was true that it was relatively safe, but humanity was walking the path of destruction. Massive amounts of points were incinerated every month, and climbers above the middle floors were changing their affiliated countries in search of better conditions. Underdeveloped countries were collapsing because they couldn't withstand the Tower Breaks. It was a bleak world where failed countries became dens of monsters, making their resources unusable. But a climber who had climbed the first Hell difficulty had obtained a permanent buff that benefited the entire affiliated country. That was enough for people to rejoice.

"Find out who it is! Protect them at all costs!"

Lee Jaedo, the director of the South Korean Climber Management Department, shouted with veins bulging in his neck. Thinking of the pressure from powerful nations that would soon arrive, he gave detailed instructions. Climbers from all over the world would come to South Korea to recruit the Hell-difficulty climber who gave a permanent buff to the country. They could never be taken away. He had to protect this treasure no matter what.

A country without resources, so it's impossible if powerful nations pressure them? You can buy anything with points. If you have enough points, it's the same as having no restrictions for a resource-poor country. They had to secure and protect the Hell-difficulty climber. Climbers have excellent anonymity if they don't reveal their identity, so they might not be found. That’s fine. They just had to interfere so other countries couldn't find them either. This is South Korea. Other countries wouldn't be able to secure a Hell-difficulty climber. What if they look like they might be discovered? Eliminate the intelligence agents. No matter what sacrifices are made. He couldn't give that person up.

Whether it was X-Tube news or portal site articles, the world was plastered with a single piece of news.