Chapter 29
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: To the Tower
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No one opened their mouth, likely because there were too many eyes watching. Far too much had happened in an instant to announce to the public right away. Spreading the word would only amplify the citizens' anxiety.
Catching on to the reason, Ji Hwa-yeon spoke up again soon after.
"Let's head inside the tent first. We've got soundproofing items too."
Everyone nodded in agreement and filed into the tent.
Once she confirmed the last person had entered, Ji Hwa-yeon began her explanation.
"I'll start with the current situation."
"What happened?"
It was Seung-hyeon who asked. Ji Hwa-yeon continued with a gravely serious expression.
"...It's more like a massive disaster unfolded."
She placed the tablet computer she'd been holding on the desk and showed it to us. The screen came into my view.
"A pillar?"
"More precisely, it's probably a tower."
Ji Hwa-yeon kindly answered my absentminded mutter.
My mind was all over the place. I already had plenty to think about from what happened in the dungeon, and now all this piling up at once—really.
Ji Hwa-yeon paused the video playing on the tablet and spoke directly.
"First off: a multicolored tower in Washington, USA; a tower made of water in the Mariana Trench in the Pacific; and a white tower that's upside down, continuously moving clouds toward the ground. A total of three have been observed. Sizes vary."
"You're saying towers just appeared in reality like that?"
At Seung-hyeon's question, Ji Hwa-yeon went on.
"Yes. Completely out of nowhere, all of a sudden. But the timing is what's suspicious."
As she spoke, her gaze swept over each of us.
"The Spread Gate phenomenon had just quieted down not long ago when this happened. That's why I asked about the dungeon. So, what went down? You all came out and stayed silent, so something definitely happened."
"It did. On a grand scale."
Ryu Cheon-hwa then gave Ji Hwa-yeon a short, clear rundown of what had occurred in the dungeon. The moment she heard it, her expression crumpled bit by bit. She clutched her head, let out a deep sigh, and muttered.
"Why do all the weird stuff happen around me?"
I agreed silently but didn't show it outwardly. After all, nothing major had happened to me yet. Not yet.
Ji Hwa-yeon spoke again.
"Up until now, dungeons haven't harmed the world except when management lagged and monsters broke out. But something manifesting directly like this..."
"The good news is no tower appeared in our country."
Ryu Cheon-hwa said. Just as he stated, we were in decent shape for now with no tower here, but they seemed to spawn randomly, so who knew when one might hit us.
In short: fine for the moment, but the future was uncertain. Especially since something hinting at this had happened in the dungeon we'd cleared.
As everyone racked their brains, Seung-hyeon offered an opinion.
"We should probably wrap up for now. Nothing happened in Korea, and how to handle towers elsewhere will be decided by the World Hunter Alliance."
"That's true."
Ji Hwa-yeon sighed in response to Seung-hyeon. No matter what we discussed here, it was a global incident, so it wasn't ours to decide anyway.
Ryu Cheon-hwa proposed.
"Let's disband for now and reconvene when orders come from the World Hunter Alliance."
"Right—"
Flutter. Someone lifted the tent flap and stepped in. We all turned to look. The stranger spoke the moment they entered.
"Sorry to barge in! There's new developments..."
They set a tablet on the desk. The screen showed a live broadcast from a popular platform.
'What the hell.'
I stared blankly at the tablet screen. I had to.
Comments in various languages flooded in rapidly, pushing others up. But the live feed itself was eerily silent.
As everyone watched the tablet in silence without a word, Yoo A-han finally spoke.
"What does this mean?"
The broadcast was filming the multicolored tower that had appeared in America. More precisely, it was capturing a number at the tower's peak from above, motionless. The number was steadily counting down.
"When did the countdown start?"
"It's unclear exactly when, but it seems to be displaying time. No one's filming from that position, and the account that started the stream can't be traced."
The person who brought the tablet answered Ryu Cheon-hwa's question. The current number on the live feed read 00:47:21. It looked like a timer to anyone.
Ji Hwa-yeon asked for everyone's input.
"We've got 47—no, 46 minutes until something happens. Should we wait it out like this? Or head back quick and check individually?"
"Plenty of time left, so let's each head back for—"
Before Seung-hyeon could finish.
—You all gathered fast!
A voice came from the live broadcast. Everyone held their breath and watched intently.
The number on the screen fizzled out with static. Then a gate appeared, and something with a woman's form emerged from it.
Turquoise hair, a blue orb and golden ornaments, eyes the same color as her hair, and an air of aloof nobility.
As we all stared at the broadcast, Ryu Cheon-hwa remarked.
"Never seen a monster like that before."
Monster. We could tell at a glance from its form. It looked human-like up to the neck, sure.
But above that, it draped layers of fabric in beautiful patterns, while below was a transparent surface crammed with wires of varying thickness and mechanical devices.
The humanoid monster spoke again.
—Thought it'd take about an hour here for you all to gather! Love how quick you are!
The monster spun around, surveying the surroundings. Then continued.
—Annoying, but I'm first. I prefer second or third, but oh well—the king's will.
King. A new clue from the unidentified hunters in the dungeon. Now broadcast to the world.
—Hello, everyone. Finally saying hi. Don't really need to, but... anyway! Quick intro: I'm the owner of the tower below. There are others, but sadly, I'm first. So, what I have to say is—
Suddenly—boom! A massive stream of fire slammed into the turquoise head. Someone had attacked it.
The broadcast glitched briefly, then stabilized, switching views. A stranger stood on screen. Before we could identify them—boom! Their head exploded.
"Whoa."
Screams cut off as the screen flipped back to the turquoise head.
—This is my power. Can't interfere much outside since this body's not the real me. But it's plenty threatening to you, right? So quit the nonsense and come in.
The turquoise head's voice turned ice-cold. The killing intent carried even here, sending chills down my spine.
—Simple explanation: those gates you cleared so well? Do the same. To what? This tower. You can't destroy it with your power. Absolutely! But you try anyway? Then I'll unleash hordes of the monsters you hate so much!
It scattered colorful paper confetti around itself.
—The way to clear the tower is like I said: enter and clear the floors. Each floor you clear weakens me as you climb. Reach the top and kill me! The tower vanishes. Easy, right?
Just like the dungeons we'd cleared. Clear stages, defeat the final boss, erase the gate—identical.
—The moment I vanish, the tower door opens. Only the qualified can enter, FYI. Oh, right. Killing me opens another tower's entrance. That... should cover it?
The monster, floating midair, descended to the tower top. It smiled at the camera and spoke again.
—The king thinks highly of you.
The turquoise head spun around. Then tilted back slightly toward the camera.
—So, do your best?
The monster waved, then—fizz—sparked like a shorted machine, collapsed, and scattered into the air. Just like a dungeon monster dissolving. The broadcast ended.
No one spoke. No one frowned. Then—
Crash!
Ryu Cheon-hwa's fist smashed the tablet—and the desk beneath it to splinters.
"Thinks highly of us..."
Yoo A-han muttered.
That's exactly what it said. The king thinks highly of us.
I glanced around at everyone's faces. All expressionless, but gravely so. Especially Ryu Cheon-hwa, radiating murderous aura at the wreckage.
I shifted my gaze to my brother beside me. Slightly furrowed brows, lower lip curled inward and bitten. A face full of unease and bewilderment. It was clear.
'Bro showing that kind of confusion...'
This was new territory for me. The first time a structure—not a gate—manifested in reality.
And it wasn't just new for me.
Thud. I collapsed to the floor.
"Ji-eon?"
"Han Ji-eon Hunter?"
All this time, looping through this damn world, I'd experienced, solved, failed at everything. Naturally, I'd gathered new info along the way.
Unlike me, who'd barely scraped that new info together, bro had similar knowledge without the loops. Sometimes even stuff I didn't know.
'But even bro doesn't know this.'
I hung my head. My body trembled. My arms could barely hold me up. They shook precariously. Voices called my name, but they scattered without sinking in.
"Ah."
I swept a hand over my face. It slid down and clamped over my mouth.
'Perfect.'
I couldn't stop laughing.