Chapter 37
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Bet
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As time froze, the illusory clothes scattered into sparkling dust and reverted to their original forms. The next moment, a voice filled the entire space.
"The game is over."
Snap. A person with the exact same face appeared beside the frozen princess. Naturally, that person was the Tower Lord.
I'd only seen him floating earlier, so I hadn't realized, but standing next to the princess, the size difference was immense. He was twice our size.
At the Tower Lord's appearance, not only us but the people with the green ribbons around us unleashed our killing intent in an instant.
"Wow. This is impressive? I didn't think you'd end it this quickly!"
As he spoke, the Tower Lord glanced briefly at the princess beside him before looking back at us. Then, whoosh! His figure seemed to vanish for a moment—
"Who among you was the most active?"
—he closed in on us in an instant. As the owner of the tower approached, everyone glared at him with eyes full of murderous intent.
"Hmm. No need to be like that. Even if all of you here rushed me, you couldn't win anyway."
His condescending gaze met ours, but no one dared step forward. It was the truth. Even just standing there, even just speaking, his presence crushed us entirely.
"The most active ones... you, you, you, and you two, plus you! Right here."
The Tower Lord pointed at me, my brother, Ji Hwa-yeon, Hae-na, Gel-tan, and Ethan.
"Oh, wait. Not you."
The Tower Lord grinned and pointed at Gel-tan again.
"Why'd you even join? You made the game end too blandly."
"Haha."
"His toy, so I couldn't even touch you. Geez."
"......"
I glanced at Gel-tan, who still had his lips curled up, but his usual playful vibe was gone. "His toy"—did that mean the King?
"Anyway, congrats! The game's over. You're the winners. And the prizes go to you all!"
He pointed at us as he said it, but no one reacted. The Tower Lord tilted his head curiously.
"Huh? I'm personally telling you who shone the brightest, so why isn't anyone happy?"
The Tower Lord stepped even closer to us abruptly.
"Hmm. Whatever."
He looked at us with eyes that seemed to have lost interest.
I hesitated for a moment before speaking up.
"Hey."
"Yeah? What—"
For a brief instant, the Tower Lord clearly looked surprised. Before I could even question it.
"Wha—"
Cyan hair brushed my cheek. The massive Tower Lord had closed in instantly and was looking down at me. His expanded cyan pupils fixed on me before he suddenly grabbed both my cheeks.
"What the... "
"Oh my, oh my."
"Let go—"
Boom! A deafening roar shook the frozen space. Thick black smoke billowed up right in front of my eyes. I blinked, and the Tower Lord was already far away.
"This is fun!"
"......"
"So, you had something to say to me?"
All eyes snapped to me instantly. Ignoring the stares, I opened my mouth to speak when suddenly, my wrist was grabbed and yanked back.
The one who pulled me was my brother, who'd attacked the Tower Lord moments ago. I shot him a questioning look, but he shook his head firmly as if to say no. Still, I ignored it and spoke.
"If there are winners, there must be losers too, right?"
"Of course~"
"Then what happens to the losers?"
"You already know, don't you? Obviously... Wait, no. If you're curious, I recommend watching it yourself."
The moment the Tower Lord finished speaking, he clapped once. Whoosh—our view shifted, and we were back where we started. The damn ribbons were still there.
I sighed at the sight of the ribbons and checked on the others.
"......"
"W-what are we going to... "
Our side's people, filled with fear, came into view. Unfortunately, two of them had been on my team. The first two who'd been eliminated in the showdown.
'...Black ribbons.'
Yeah. I'd expected it ever since Ji Hwa-yeon told me about the black ribbon people. But now that it was happening, a sigh escaped me anyway. Since everyone else looked grave, I swallowed it silently.
"Alright, bye! As you all know, the game's losers are the black ones! So, losers get penalties, right? Aren't you excited?"
Screams mixed with wails erupted from all around as soon as he said it. But that wasn't the end.
"The penalty is immediate! Death! Pretty sweet deal, huh? Be grateful. I'm going easy on you."
The black ribbon people made up half the total. "Going easy," he says, while eliminating half from the start.
"Hah."
A hollow laugh escaped me. Of course. What had I been hoping for?
Cries, curses, and sobs assaulted my ears from every direction.
"Shall we countdown together? You know, 3, 2, 1? Got it?"
Should we start over from the beginning? Half was too many when we didn't know what was coming next. Plus, there were plenty of S-Rank black ribbons, making it even worse.
"Here we go? 3!"
But since this was the first time, maybe watch till the end, see the downfall, then go back. It'd probably be the same anyway. Whatever...
I glanced at my brother beside me.
Not midway, but back to the start.
"2!"
If things went well till the end? If they went too well and we could've prevented the downfall but lacked numbers? No, if this kept happening, we'd be halved every time we looped anyway.
Yeah. Watch it all, go back, then bring fewer people next time... No, my influence at this point is low. Even if I go back, I can't change much, so just let it—
Boom!
Before the Tower Lord could call the final "1," a massive roar dominated the space. My body jolted at the sudden explosion. The area fell silent instantly.
"Whoa?"
'What the...'
My brother lowered his outstretched hand. At the same time, the faint smoke trailing from his fingertips dissipated.
"What is it. You again? You did this earlier too."
He was probably referring to when he'd approached me before.
"Why ruin the exciting flow?"
"Because I have something to say."
"Hmm?"
Whoosh. The Tower Lord crossed his legs as if sitting, looking down at my brother arrogantly.
"Fine, whatever. I'm pissed the mood's ruined, but I'll hear you out. Hope it's interesting. Otherwise, I'll pop your head first."
I looked at my brother. What the hell was he thinking, pulling this stunt?
Actually, good thing. If he dies here and time rewinds, next time we can bring fewer people. At least save our side.
I held my breath and watched my brother.
"I want a bet."
"A bet?"
"Yeah."
The Tower Lord looked intrigued.
"What kind?"
"A bet where, instead of killing the eliminated, you eject them from the tower."
"Hmm, hmm. I see. But."
Thud. His expression darkened instantly, as if the interest had vanished.
"Why should I?"
Killing intent flooded the space. Chills ran through my entire body. Despite the crushing pressure, my brother looked unfazed, gazing up at the sky.
"I hear you like games."
"Yeah, I do. But why bother with a boring bet like that~"
"Why."
My brother smirked.
"Scared?"
"......"
The Tower Lord's eyes widened in surprise for a moment, then.
"Huh?"
His face darkened, and the sky warped. Just as I sensed something was wrong.
"Guess I've been too lenient. I thought I was going easy."
Thud! The Tower Lord descended to the ground without hesitation. He pushed through the parting crowd toward my brother. Someone in between attacked, but bounced off pathetically.
He stopped right where my brother could reach out and touch him.
"Fine, I accept your bet."
Looking up at the much larger Tower Lord, my brother met his gaze steadily, without a hint of fear.
I hadn't expected him to accept. Stunned by the turn of events, an even more shocking response came from my brother's mouth.
"...How can I trust you'll keep it?"
"What?"
The Tower Lord glared at him incredulously.
"Then what do I need to do for you to believe me?"
"A pact."
Boom! The sky seemed to crumble with the sound, and the atmosphere shifted instantly.
"...Huh?"
Vortex-like confusion swirled on the Tower Lord's face, leaving me puzzled. What was a "pact" that got him so worked up?
"I don't know how you know about that... Fine, I accept. It's amusing."
Snap. The Tower Lord snapped his fingers, and a small white formation spread near his heart.
"But if I win."
He stared at my brother as he continued.
"I'll kill everyone except you. Especially those close to you—I'll dismantle their limbs, tear off every bit of flesh, and stuff it into your mouth. I'll prevent you from killing yourself, force you to clear this tower to the end. And I'll show everything that happened here to the outside world. Then, the moment you emerge, they'll condemn you. For your reckless words that caused all these sacrifices."
"Sure."
Even as the Tower Lord rapid-fired his words, my brother's expression remained unchanged.
The Tower Lord turned away with a dissatisfied scowl, then hopped back up to the sky. As he distanced himself, a barrage of blame poured down on my brother from around us.
"Why'd you spout that nonsense on your own!"
"Yeah! Even without you, half die, but now we're all doomed because of you! What now? You're just trying to save yourself, you selfish bastard!"
"Apologize! What are you gonna do? We're screwed! Screwed!"
"What? You were gonna let us die and thrive yourselves? You trash!"
"What choice do we have! Survivors gotta survive!"
"So we just shut up and die? You heartless pricks!"
The situation escalated from verbal sparring to physical brawls in an instant. Several tried to intervene, but soon got dragged in too.
"Haha!"
The Tower Lord watched amusedly, then glanced at my brother—as if to say, these trash, you really wanna save them?
As the fights threatened to explode further, someone finally snapped and bellowed.
"Hey, you disgusting bastards!"
The shout came from nearby; I turned to see Hae-na, looking furious.
"What the hell are you doing? Huh? Why save them? Is this the time for that crap? Did your parents teach you that?"
After that... an unimaginable torrent of curses flew from Hae-na's mouth. They were impressively creative.
Ji Hwa-yeon clutched her head, looking like she'd finally lost it. Hae-na tried storming toward those rebutting her, murderous intent blazing, until Ji Hwa-yeon held her back.
"No, let me go. That damn bastard started it... Hey! You splitting hairs? What hairs!"
"Please calm down. Please."
"Ahaha!"
The Tower Lord clutched his belly, laughing for a good while. He finally stopped and spoke.
"This is fun too, but we have a game to play..."
Whoosh! A sharp sound accompanied a scream. I tried to turn to identify it, but I already knew what happened.
"First, let's separate the eliminated."
Countless people dangled from strings descending from the sky. The black ribbons were gone.
"I wasn't gonna keep pairs, but I've changed my mind. Pairs stay the same."
Wait, hold on. What?
"And it was floor 2, so I planned easy mode, but that's changed too. You can guess why."
Some glares shot toward my brother. Hae-na yelled "What're you gonna do about it!" while unleashing more curses.
...How does she do modeling? No, her heart's kind... probably.
"Game rules are simple. Defend the village by slaying incoming enemies—win, and the bet's off? So I changed it."
Pop. Boom. Three glass orbs appeared beside the Tower Lord. The same ones that explained the previous rules.
"My kids will lead the village attackers. And they'll attack too. To win the bet, simple: kill all enemies, including these kids. That's the rules."
The Tower Lord pointed at my brother accusingly.
"Go on, squirm."
At that moment, my brother looked at me. Wondering what was up, our eyes met—he wore a subtle expression. No, slightly surprised.
Before I could ask, whoosh—we moved to the next game.