Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Mad Black Mage's Tower Strategy
Chapter 2
Seo-jin, having successfully regressed, instinctively reached into his pocket for a cigarette.
Nothing.
After rummaging pointlessly for a few seconds, he stopped and let out a quiet sigh.
‘Ah… I didn’t smoke at this point in time.’
Staring out the window, his expression remained composed, but inwardly, Seo-jin knew—this was a life-or-death gamble.
‘The Regression Stone only activates upon the owner’s death.’
There was no way to test it beforehand. Not even someone as obsessed with experimentation as Seo-jin would risk his life just to check a stone's function.
So he waited. Time passed. He never knew for certain if it would work.
Eventually, the Hero Party resolved the Tower Collapse incident. The world returned to a peace that was little more than scar tissue.
Still, even in peace, Seo-jin kept the Regression Stone close.
He had always suspected that the real threat wouldn’t come from monsters or beasts—but from other humans.
Just weeks after the Tower was saved, the Regression Stone activated—at the most fitting time, in the most fitting way.
“……”
Seo-jin clenched his fist as a face came to mind—the one who had cut his throat.
‘Sword Star Ju Won-jae.’
The Hero Party’s symbolic leader, a man who led countless victories with natural swordsmanship and commanding charisma.
A genius in both war and people.
‘He’s undeniably brilliant.’
But Seo-jin had seen it in him—ambition to match his talent.
Back during the Tower incident, Won-jae had kept that ambition hidden beneath duty. But Seo-jin feared that once the crisis was over, Won-jae would swing his sword without hesitation—this time for power.
Still, he never expected Won-jae to turn on the other party members... or the people.
‘Grand Mage Gu-ren. Fist King Choi Gang-hyeon. Divine Archer Yelena. Divine Spear Lee Seo-mun…’
He remembered them all—each face that had silently consented to his death.
‘If just one of them had opposed Won-jae… would it have changed anything?’
Seo-jin shook his head.
‘That’s something I’ll never know.’
Won-jae was the type who’d do whatever it took to get what he wanted.
And Seo-jin doubted whether all the party members truly agreed with the execution.
There had been hostility, yes. But some had stayed indifferent. Others were... ambiguous.
Even the ring Seo-jin wore didn’t explain everything.
‘I’ll figure it out eventually.’
But for now—he had to move.
He calmed his breath and closed his eyes.
‘Whew…’
As he inhaled deeply, plans, timelines, and names streamed through his mind—memories from a timeline lost to time.
All crystal clear.
This was before the black magic had begun its slow invasion into his mind.
While he could still think freely.
He focused his thoughts into one conclusion:
‘First, I need power.’
Power in all its forms—combat ability, knowledge, wealth, reputation. He would take all of it.
Only then could he prevent disaster.
Only then could he get revenge.
And to begin, there was only one place he needed to go.
‘The Tower.’
With his thoughts organized, Seo-jin opened his eyes.
SWOOSH—
He stood up, shook out the worn jacket from the chair, and slipped it on.
Without hesitation, he opened the door of his shabby one-room apartment and stepped into the world.
Toward the birthplace of magic.
Toward the origin of collapse.
Toward humanity’s impossible challenge—
The Tower.
***
The Tower had appeared suddenly.
In the year 2030, a giant spire rose overnight in South Korea.
Its origin remains unknown to this day.
All the world knows is this:
The Tower is another realm—one that bestows trials on those who enter, and grants powers and rewards to those who survive.
Eventually, it also became the wedge of destruction that shattered the world.
The Tower’s internal world follows no laws of Earth—offering mana, strange physics, and supernatural abilities to those who qualify.
But the Tower does not grant such miracles to just anyone.
***
“So, you’ve come for the tutorial exam?”
“Yes.”
Seo-jin stood before the Tower Entry Management Office, also known as the Climber Association.
e handed over his ID to the receptionist.
Despite his disheveled clothes, his face was sharp—handsome even.
Receptionist Min-young gave him a quick once-over, then asked professionally:
“You’re not Awakened. Do you have a tower-entry qualification certificate—issued by the government or a private sponsor?”
“No.”
Min-young frowned.
‘Not Awakened… and no certificate?’
That meant he was hoping to awaken inside the tutorial—just like desperate amateurs from the Tower’s early days.
‘Still? Seriously?’
She let out a silent sigh.
‘Let’s just get this over with.’
Min-young recited the usual warning with robotic rhythm:
“If you don’t have a certificate, any injury or death during the tutorial is not covered by insurance, and you cannot claim damages from the association. Please sign the consent form.”
“Wait.”
Seo-jin paused, scanning the form carefully. Then he unchecked one of the boxes.
It was the option for emergency sacred magic healing.
Unchecking it meant a much cheaper entry fee.
But it also meant no healing. No second chances.
Min-young stared, stunned.
‘He unchecked it?’
Was he crazy?
‘If he dies in there, I’ll have to clean up the mess…’
She glared at him sideways.
Then he spoke calmly, eyes still on the form.
“I’m not a crazy bastard.”
“Eh? What?”
Her heart jumped. Had he read her thoughts?
Seo-jin just shrugged.
“Forget it.”
He finished signing and handed her the paper.
“Here.”
“……Confirmed,” she muttered, suppressing a groan.
She guided him silently.
“Room 21. This way.”
The tutorial room was sealed off, surrounded by white walls.
“Hm.”
The moment Seo-jin entered, he began flailing around—sniffing the air, stretching his limbs, snapping his fingers.
“Still can’t sense the mana concentration,” he muttered.
Min-young watched, exasperated.
‘Just great.’
“I’m starting the tower qualification tutorial. Please prepare.”
She stepped out and hit the start button.
PAT—
The room dimmed. A single spotlight illuminated Seo-jin.
And then—
A green monster appeared before him.
[Stage 1 – 1 Goblin]
KIEEEK—!
It screamed, brandishing a rusty iron sword.
A weak monster, waist-high.
But countless rookies underestimated it—and ended up in the hospital.
KIYAAK—!
The goblin charged.
SWOOSH—
Seo-jin narrowly dodged, his movements clumsy and awkward—like someone who had never fought in his life.
Min-young tensed.
‘I knew it. He’s gonna die!’
She hovered over the pause button.
But slowly… Seo-jin began to adapt.
SWOOSH— SWISH—
His dodges became fluid, precise—almost as if he was remembering how to move.
He murmured, shaking his limbs.
“…Right. A normal human body feels like this.”
Then he counterattacked.
Just as the goblin swung wildly, Seo-jin twisted sideways and brought his fingers to its temple like a mock gun.
PAT—
“Bang.”
A small spark of black mana gathered at his fingertip.
The goblin hesitated—its instincts screamed danger.
But—
PFFT—
The mana fizzled out in a puff of black smoke.
“...Huh.”
“Kruk?”
Both of them tilted their heads.
The goblin, now furious, shrieked.
KISHAAK—!
WHOOSH—!
It swung again. Seo-jin barely dodged, leaning back.
Min-young was about to scream.
‘You damned lunatic!’
But then—
Tsk.
Seo-jin clicked his tongue and shifted his stance.
He lowered his right hand and supported it with his left.
Circuit-shaped lights glowed from his arm.
‘...Mana circuit?’
FLASH—
Black lightning began to surge at his fingertip.
BZZZZT—!
The entire room flickered between black and white.
Min-young’s eyes widened.
Then came the chant:
[Black Lightning]
KWAAA—!
A thunderous blast of dark lightning devoured the goblin—leaving nothing behind.
The blast didn’t stop there. It surged outward, slamming into the tutorial walls.
KWAGWANG—!
Smoke filled the room. Everything shook.
Min-young stared, frozen.
“…What… was that?”
As the smoke cleared…
STEP—
Seo-jin walked out—completely unharmed.
He tapped on the glass wall, expression flat.
“Next.”