To the Tower
After clearing Stage 1 and claiming every last reward, the first thing I did upon returning to reality was sprint to the bathroom and vomit up everything inside me.
“Ugh—urk—bleeeeaaargh!”
“Oh dear, what’s gotten into him? Did he eat something bad? Hyunseong! Want some digestive medicine?”
“No, it’s not—urp—bleeeeaaargh!”
The reason was simple. Everything I had done in Stage 1 suddenly slammed into me wrapped in cold, hard reality.
A person had died. Right before my eyes. I had taken a life.
My sense of morality was working perfectly. It was just that, at the time, none of it had felt real. Like a dream.
And now that I had woken up, the dream came crashing down on me. Guilt, regret, a faint thrill, and even a twisted sense of pleasure.
On top of that, there was Jax. In a situation where I might never see her again, the only impression I’d been left with was Wow, what a rack.
This is my thanks for respecting my opinion. It will prove useful to you one day.
At least I’d received something meaningful. It felt like a summoning resource of some kind. Of course, that didn’t necessarily mean the person called Jace Silia was definitely Jax… but still.
It was pathetic. Truly pathetic.
But—
Knock knock.
“Son, are you all right?”
“Haa… Yeah, Mom.”
Right now I didn’t even have the strength to dwell on how pathetic I was. I just needed to rest. Just a little while.
A few days later.
“Well, it’s not like I knew. If you think about it, it was inevitable. I’m a victim too.”
After rationalizing things to a reasonable degree, I finally started running the numbers. The trait selection ticket from the initial rewards? I’d already used it. The Affinity Stone had come back into my possession. In the end, the only thing I had lost was ten Mana Stones.
Ten Mana Stones. That was all.
“I traded a brand-new apartment near Gangnam Station for one trait…”
It didn’t feel like “just” ten. The more I thought about it, the more my eyes started to sting. Still, by the math, I had essentially bought a trait with ten Mana Stones.
The question now was whether the trait I bought was actually worth that price.
After several days of careful thought, I could at least confirm one thing: life had definitely become more comfortable.
Until now my ability had manifested as goosebumps or a rush of blood to the head. I was experienced enough that I rarely misread the signals, but if I caught the flu or felt under the weather, confusion was inevitable. The same thing happened when I lifted weights at the gym or stepped outside on a cold day.
But the new skill I had received—Revelation?
The activation method was similar to before, yet the feedback was completely different. It felt like something sharp and clear stabbing directly into my brain.
Danger.
It had become a precise, unmistakable signal instead of something reliant on vague senses.
Of course, that alone still felt a little ambiguous… but the important part was that possibility had been born.
Since it was now a trait, maybe grades or levels would appear later. Items like a “Trait Evolution Ticket” could show up just like the selection ticket had. When that time came, I was sure this choice would prove to be an excellent one.
Would I keep entering Free Earth until then?
Obviously. Only then would the five days I spent inside hold any real value.
That was the decision I made.
Once my mind and emotions had settled, only one thing remained.
The root cause of my momentary insanity. Perhaps the very beginning of everything that had happened.
After looking into every possible avenue, I still only had two realistic choices.
The first was selling the Mana Stones to the government. It was the most standard route, but it came with a mountain of annoying procedures. For example, after clearing the Tower’s first floor I would need to obtain a Status Window, get certified, and register before I could even sell them. The first hurdle would be convincing my parents. The second would be figuring out how to sell the stones in believable increments. No one would believe a guy who had just cleared the first floor yesterday suddenly showing up with ten stones to sell.
The second option was moving the stones through underground channels to corporations and private buyers. I had no idea whether I would get a better price thanks to the volume or get ripped off, but it would almost certainly pay far more than the official government rate. The problem here was simple: finding a reliable contact and actually trusting them.
…So two problems, really.
In truth, I had been looking into a third route as well. All it amounted to was clicking on shady internet ads and using Revelation to test them, but every single one turned out to be a dud. Most were either scams or voice phishing attempts.
In the end, after weighing every factor, only one path remained.
I had to become a Hunter.
The next day.
“Son. What did you just say?”
“I’m going to become a Hunter.”
“Excuse me?”
“I said I’m becoming a Hunter.”
“You do not joke about things like that at the breakfast table.”
“Actually, I already am one. I just need to complete the registration.”
Strike while the iron is hot. I dropped the bombshell right there at the breakfast table. I hadn’t even entered the Tower yet and obviously hadn’t registered, but everyone knows it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.
“I also have a Mana Stone. One of them.”
“…When exactly did you go in there?”
“The Tower lets you enter anytime you want just by thinking about it. I went in about a week ago.”
“Without telling us a single word?”
“I just… suddenly got the feeling that day…”
“You— haa.”
Mom was so shocked she could only stare at me with her mouth open. Dad, clearly just as stunned, still managed to grill me with detailed questions.
“Hyunseong-ah.”
“Yes.”
“You know Mom and Dad trust you, right?”
“I do. I know better than anyone.”
“Then why do you think our Hyunseong made this choice?”
It was exactly the reaction I had expected. Even when their son went off the rails, they always responded with reason rather than emotion. They tried to understand the why behind the action. Because they showed me this side of them, I had been able to grow into a decent person.
EXTREMELY DANGEROUS
Honestly, when I had tested Revelation before speaking, the result had been pretty bad… but this wasn’t something I could keep putting off. The fact that I had secretly packed an emergency bag just in case was something I would take to my grave.
Still—
“I’ll sell this Mana Stone and contribute it to the family. I know you two have been struggling with your unpaid leave and everything.”
“Yes… that’s true. You even thought that far, Hyunseong?”
“Of course. I’m an adult now too.”
“But still… why did you do it?”
“Sorry?”
“Get out.”
Revelation had been perfectly accurate.
Ring ring—
“Mom? Dad? You’re joking, right?”
“…”
I was kicked out of the house along with the emergency bag I had packed.
“At least take the Mana Stone…”
…They must have been really angry. Everyone said it was easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. They all swore this approach would work one hundred percent of the time… Strange.
A clever rabbit digs many burrows.
“Hey there, my beloved friend—Jin-ho, the pride of the Choi family. Long time no see!”
“What do you want, punk?”
“Mind if I crash here for a bit?”
“No.”
“Thanks, man.”
I wasn’t exactly a rabbit, but I had still dug one emergency burrow just in case. I had been friends with this guy since kindergarten; we had been through everything together.
“So that’s why you came?”
“Yeah. It’s a two-room apartment, right?”
“You crazy bastard. How many times do I have to tell you my little sister is staying here?”
“We can sleep together. I don’t mind at all.”
“You do realize my sister is a girl, right?”
That was how I ended up fleeing to my childhood friend’s house.
“…When did that happen?”
“When? Are you serious? Ha…”
Such an unexpected variable. I had only prepared one burrow. If this one was blocked, I was screwed.
Wait a second. Something felt off.
The last time I saw Jin-ho’s sister she had short hair and used to follow him around calling him “Oppa, oppa” all the time.
“That was when she was little and didn’t know any better, so she just copied me… Haa. Never mind. One day is enough, right?”
“Yeah. Probably.”
“Probably my ass.”
I could just check for myself when she came home.
“Anyway, I’m heading straight into the first floor today. If things go well I’ll cash in the Mana Stones and find my own place.”
“…You’re seriously going through with becoming a Hunter?”
“Yeah.”
The sunk cost had grown far too large to give up just because my parents opposed it. The ability that had let me live comfortably my whole life had been converted into a trait, and I had already thrown away the equivalent of a brand-new apartment in the Gangnam Station area. Besides, becoming a Hunter was mandatory if I wanted to legally dispose of the Mana Stones I had obtained from Free Earth. Even money laundering requires opening an actual laundromat first.
There were also skills and stats that still hadn’t unlocked because I hadn’t entered the Tower yet. I was curious about those too.
“Sigh… Fine. That’s your decision to make. At least go apologize and beg for forgiveness.”
“I will. If I buy them a house they’ll probably forgive me.”
“…Yeah. Sure.”
All right. Temporary shelter secured.
“What are you doing?”
“What does it look like? Getting ready.”
“You’re really going in right now? Just like that?”
“Yeah. No reason to hesitate.”
The moment I received Jin-ho’s reluctant permission, I unpacked my things and began preparing to enter the Tower. There wasn’t much to do. I had heard you couldn’t bring anything inside except the clothes on your back, so I simply changed into the toughest, sturdiest clothes I owned.
“What about your reserve forces uniform?”
“I’ll borrow one there.”
A combat uniform.
“Ah. PTSD is kicking in.”
“I hate wearing it too.”
I hated this version of myself, but what choice did I have? These clothes were disposable, could get as dirty as necessary, and were the cheapest sturdy option available.
“I’m going.”
“Take care.”
“Ah, wait a second.”
“Why are you going to the bathroom?”
“I’m taking care of business here.”
“I can see that. Why?”
“Just in case. If I come back and the floor is dirty you’ll kick me out, won’t you?”
“Smart little bastard.”
“I’m really going now.”
“Yeah. Come back safe. If it feels dangerous, grab anything and run. Don’t do anything reckless.”
“Got it. [Enter]”
And with that, I headed for the Tower’s first floor.
To awaken.
You have entered the 1st Floor.
The Tower’s first floor was straightforward. It was an ambiguous forest—too sparse to be called a jungle, yet too thick to be called a neighborhood park. The task was to hunt a single monster. The hardest part, people said, was having to track and locate the prey yourself. Modern people weren’t exactly skilled at reading traces, and even if you managed to find something, if the monsters moved in packs you could easily waste time or, worse, get killed.
They also said that the deeper you went, the more classic giant monsters like ogres and trolls appeared. But seriously, how did people even know that? Someone must have gone in and seen them. Humans and their damn curiosity. Terrifying.
Anyway.
For someone who had already massacred dozens of orcs, this was an easy stage. That was why I had shouted [Enter] without much worry.
Yes. It should have been easy.
“What the hell is this?”
Prove Yourself
📍 Objective: Defeat living creatures (0)
Why was I not standing in a forest?
“Ugh, shit—I’m sinking!”
I was standing in the middle of a damn swamp.