Tower Break
A tower break. The great catastrophe that occurred when climbers failed to conquer a tower—a disaster that hardly ever happened anymore in the modern world.
The Climber Association managed the towers, and guilds handled the conquests. The system was so well-structured that accidents were rare.
Especially for towers showing signs of an impending tower break, the Association stepped in directly to resolve them, so the notion of such catastrophes was gradually fading from people's memories.
Choi Mi-na quickly opened the Tower Gallery and scanned the titles.
The gallery was business as usual.
"It's not."
If a tower break happened, the first place to erupt in chaos would be the gallery. All sorts of doomsayers would pop up, proclaiming the world would end because of the tower. Where to evacuate, stocking up on essentials, and so on.
But right now, the gallery was so peaceful it was almost boring.
"I never said it was Korea, though?"
"This punk?"
A vein bulged on Choi Mi-na's forehead.
"Haa... So where did the tower break happen?"
"Above us."
Choi Kang-hyuk pointed upward with his finger.
"Above? Oh, the north."
"Yeah. Looks like that crazy bitch up north got greedy and caused trouble."
"... It won't affect us much, right?"
"It might, or it might not."
Choi Kang-hyuk murmured quietly.
"... Please, no. If the aftermath reaches here, I really can't handle it."
"One thing to say: even if the tower break's aftermath comes this way, we absolutely cannot leave the tower."
"Why?"
"Foreign organizations aren't targeting this tower right now because of you and me."
Choi Mi-na rubbed her face.
Dry-washing her face didn't make the situation any less complicated.
"We're the deterrent right now?"
"To deal with S-ranks, you need S-ranks. Few countries have the resources to mobilize two at once and lure them out. They'd have to face us."
"Doesn't add up. Better to just take a few potions and call it even."
No matter how precious potions were, they could be supplied somehow. But an S-rank climber? Good luck sourcing that anywhere.
One per generation was generous, and it wasn't just about good skills or stats. You had to climb the tower, accumulate rewards, and gain experience to become S-rank.
Even if they sacrificed their own defenses to shove an S-rank into this tower, losing one was inevitable. Worst case, they'd lose the S-rank and potion supply.
Better to accept the Association's negotiations and take a few potions.
"So no matter what happens outside, we can't go out."
"... Haa."
Choi Mi-na shook her head.
"If climbers could just climb without all this, how nice it'd be."
"Agreed."
Choi Kang-hyuk and Choi Mi-na both fell silent at the same time.
A comfortable quiet settled in. The report on the situation was over.
Time to go their separate ways, but somehow, neither could move.
"Kang-hyuk. How long's it been since we talked like this, just us?"
"About a year ago?"
"... We used to talk every day back then."
"That's going too far."
The "back then" Choi Mi-na meant was their Tutorial Tower days.
The hellish Tutorial Tower.
"Kang-hyuk, remember that person?"
"I remember everyone from the Tutorial Tower."
"No, not later. The one who led everyone on the first floor."
Choi Mi-na gazed at the moon in the sky as she spoke.
"I remember."
"Without him, we would've been in deep shit."
"Yeah. Even though he died pointlessly... splitting into front and rear lines was the optimal choice."
The biggest problem on the first floor of the Tutorial Tower was one thing: the climbers' inexperience.
People from a life far from death, a gentle world where survival came easy, suddenly thrown into struggling for life—it was a huge leap.
But one person was different.
He snapped everyone to attention and got them to pick up weapons.
The clear condition for the first floor: pick up a weapon and prepare to fight.
That one man made it possible.
"If we'd just flailed around clueless back then, it'd have been a wipe."
Choi Kang-hyuk recalled that time.
The desperate battle dividing front and rear lines against goblin hordes.
A chaotic mess of screams and blood that even "sloppy" was generous for.
Still, that crude division of lines had been a huge help.
"What if that person hadn't died? What if he'd survived?"
"Useless what-if..."
Choi Kang-hyuk didn't like this kind of idle talk.
Hypotheticals about dead people were pointless for survival.
But lately, the Tower Gallery and outside atmosphere had a rare warm breeze blowing.
All thanks to potion supplies flipping the mood.
Even Choi Kang-hyuk's sharpened mind had dulled a bit.
Tension eased, especially with Choi Mi-na beside him.
Choi Kang-hyuk spoke seriously.
"If he'd lived, he'd be an S-rank climber."
Survivors were the strong ones.
Just surviving five years as a climber guaranteed A-rank.
Tower rewards were crumbs, but crumbs piled into mountains.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
Choi Kang-hyuk was certain.
If that man had lived, the hellish first-gen climbs might've been far easier.
...
Old man Rohan picked up the sword beside him and threatened me.
He might look like that, but Rohan was a knight.
Just cursed into that form.
"... Uncle Rohan."
"What are you, exactly? A tower cheater?"
"No, no. I'm just an NPC."
I waved my hands frantically.
"NPCs can't level up."
"I don't know either. Why that is."
I really didn't.
Or maybe I had a guess.
"Speak no lies before this knight, Rohan."
Hunchbacked, but his presence was pure knight.
"W-Wait. I'll tell you. I have a guess."
I raised both hands, and Rohan softened a tad, still glaring.
"Curse the tower first."
"The tower is trash that even dogs can fuck."
"Ambiguous."
"The tower is trash whose mom is even number or zero."
"Plausible in the medieval era."
Amazing medieval logic.
Well, people swapped dads three times, so two moms? Possible.
"Then... the tower is trash that can fuck dogs too."
"Hmmm. That'll do."
Rohan sheathed his sword.
"I'll hear you out."
"Truth is, I was a climber, died in the tower? Woke up reborn as an NPC."
I calmly explained my situation.
"... A climber?"
"Yes."
"You were a climber?"
"Yes."
Rohan stared at me intently.
"... Insane. Completely lost your mind."
"Not as much as you, uncle?"
A normal NPC rebelling against the tower, escaping to this limbo space? I was sane compared to that.
I was sure.
"The tower calls us irregulars. NPCs freed from its chains, with free will."
Rohan fully lowered his sword now.
No longer seeing me as an enemy.
Instead, something new gleamed in Rohan's eyes.
"... If. Just if."
Rohan hesitated.
The emotion there—joy? Expectation?
Hope, maybe?
A new feeling laced his words.
"If the tower still recognizes you as a climber."
"... Pardon?"
"You could use these items freely."
"Well, yeah..."
Was that true?
I hadn't touched items myself, so unsure.
Weapons like that weren't easy to come by anyway.
And I couldn't touch them.
"And one more."
"What?"
"You might be able to leave the tower."
"... Huh."
My mouth fell open.
A hypothesis I'd never considered.
Me, leaving the tower?
My brain couldn't keep up.
"... We've talked too long."
Rohan checked his pocket watch and clicked his tongue.
"Go home quick. Come back early tomorrow morning. I'll gather info. And maybe fix that bow."
"Okay."
I jumped up fast.
No time for rebuttals.
If Rohan said so, time was really short.
Time flowed weird here—fast sometimes, slow others.
Unpredictable.
"See you tomorrow."
I bolted out.
Rohan, usually seeing me off, was rummaging and didn't properly farewell me.
I didn't even greet properly, just dashed outside.
The moon shone brightly outside.
Time check: just before midnight.
Really close call.
I rushed home, stuffed the doll into my inventory.
Midnight hit simultaneously.
"Phew."
Safe.
The tower checked NPCs once per midnight.
Hard to fool with a doll; had to be here personally.
Good thing I made it.
"... Wait, midnight passed?"
Anxiety made me miss something.
"Tower Gallery access!"
NPCs performing tasks cannot access the Tower Gallery. Finish your work first and then enjoy? Or... are you trying to slack off?
Cute Girl Receiving Affection! Reina gives something to a climber!
"Ah... Aaaah!!!"
I missed the whole day on the gallery!!
My overdue concept post!!
Missed bait!!!
Missed fun threads!!
"Aaaah!"
I despaired on the bed... but forced myself to sleep quick.
Sleep, wake up, toss potions, then... see Uncle Rohan.
And gallery time.
I shut my eyes forcibly and fell asleep right away.