Moon Soul Pill (2)
That dawn.
The others had each spent their free time and drifted off to sleep, but Baek Yeon-ho could not rest. He quietly rose and slipped free of the tangled bedding.
“Hah.”
He drew in the cold morning air and let out a long breath. An unshakable question still filled his head.
Just what the hell is he, really?
The moments he had shared with Hyun Si-woon flickered past like a panorama. The second floor—the unreal motion of planting a foot on a Phantom Horse’s skull and vaulting skyward to pierce its vital point. The dazzling sword dance that had toyed with two Rank-7 Burst Demons as though they were mere playthings. And the third floor—the unimaginable strategy that saw through the mirage in a way no one else had even considered, then flipped the Moonlight Tribe against itself to tear open a hidden route.
Baek Yeon-ho himself had been a hardcore veteran of the Tower of Despair. There had been a time when he lived obsessed with the game more than anyone, drawing maps of the third floor by hand and producing clear videos. Yet what Hyun Si-woon had shown him soared far beyond the domain of any ordinary veteran.
This isn’t just “being good at the game.”
That was the conclusion he reached. Si-woon’s knowledge was not the kind that came from memorizing maps and monster patterns.
He’s simply on another level.
Honestly, Yeon-ho had narrowed it down to one of two possibilities. Either a game developer… or EndSeeker—the unknown existence who alone, in the entire history of the Tower of Despair, had broken past the wall of the thirtieth floor. Nothing less could explain Si-woon’s play.
But still…
He couldn’t just ask outright. Yeon-ho gave a bitter smile. When the party leader chose not to reveal something, prying into his identity first would be rude. More than that, he did not want to crack the trust they had now. Unless Si-woon told them himself, Yeon-ho would simply follow in silence. Instinct told him that was the surest path to survival in this ruined world.
The others have probably figured out the rough idea already.
Kang Si-a, quietly running her fingers over her bow. Hwang Dae-un and Jang Cha-yul whispering together in the distance. None of them had spoken the words aloud, yet Yeon-ho could feel it in their gazes—respect for Si-woon that had already crossed into awe, mixed with lingering questions. Everyone understood the unspoken pact: do not rashly dig into the true nature of their leader’s extraordinary gifts. That silence was what kept this miraculous party intact.
The next morning, when the appointed training hour arrived, everyone gathered in the open clearing. A far more serious atmosphere than before wrapped tightly around them.
Before they began, Hyun Si-woon looked over his teammates and spoke.
“Looks like you all rested well.”
He had noticed the subtle emotions in their eyes. So he decided to settle the matter once and for all.
“You worked hard getting us this far to the third floor. But the real start is from here on. So I want to ask.”
His gaze swept across them one by one.
“What is each of your goals?”
It was no simple question. He was asking what they intended to climb this hellish tower for.
Silence hung for a moment.
Hwang Dae-un was the first to answer.
“At first it was just survival. Same as everyone, I guess. But now… I just want to get stronger. So no one can look down on me, so I never end up in the same mess again…”
Jang Cha-yul nodded at that.
“Same for me. I learned it bone-deep back then—if you don’t have power, you can get crushed anytime. I want to become stronger than anyone. So nobody can ever lay a hand on me.”
The humiliation and helplessness they had tasted on the second floor still lived in both of them as raw wounds.
Next was Baek Yeon-ho.
“Can I be honest?”
“Of course.”
“Obviously survival came first, like Dae-un said. I had to protect my sister too. But something just as important was… curiosity.”
“Curiosity?”
“Yeah. What’s waiting at the end of all this? What’s at the top of the tower?”
Si-woon regarded him without a word. There was something kindred between them after all. He had been the same. At sixteen, when he first faced the Tower of Despair, the murderous difficulty had crushed him—yet the thing that pulled him all the way through had been…
“Anyway, the game I dug into like a madman became reality, right? Once I confirmed that knowledge actually worked, I figured I had way better odds than most people. I just couldn’t stand not seeing the end of this phenomenon with my own eyes.”
At his core, Yeon-ho was still a pure pro gamer. Mere curiosity could never carry someone up a hell like this tower. The vicious drive to conquer the unknown no matter what. The competitive fire to be the first to reach the end. Those were part of what moved Baek Yeon-ho now.
“For me… it’s the promise I made with my parents.”
Every gaze turned to Kang Si-a. She gently stroked the Moonlight Bow cradled against her and continued in a calm voice.
“They were killed by monsters. Even at the end, they told me to survive. That’s why I climbed the tower—to gain the power to survive no matter what happens. And…”
She paused, lifting her head. Her eyes moved across the members one after another.
“I never want to lose someone precious again… powerless to stop it.”
Her tone remained even, yet the grief and resolve within it reached everyone clearly. Beside her, Baek Do-hee wordlessly patted her shoulder.
Last of all, Baek Do-hee spoke. Her voice was as warm and gentle as always.
“I just want everyone to make it through safely. Yeon-ho, Si-a, the new comrades who joined us, and our leader Si-woon too. I want us to lean on each other and stay together until the end in this harsh world. And… as far as my strength reaches, if there’s someone I can help, I want to help them. Even in this ruined world, I want saving people to still mean something.”
It was a wish that carried the selfless nature of a former military nursing officer.
When everyone had finished, Si-woon quietly nodded.
“All right. Power, truth, protection, helping others… every one of those is a fine goal. But all of them are only possible if you’re still alive.”
His voice dropped low.
“You’ve probably noticed to some degree already—I’m a little different from other Climbers.”
At the sudden confession, every gaze locked onto him. Tension thickened the air.
Si-woon opened his inventory and drew out weapons.
Shring! Thud! Whirr! Thunk! Hiss! Clack!
In an instant, six weapons lay in a neat row at his feet: the Formless Sword, a shield, a spear, a blunt weapon, a bow, and a staff.
Baek Yeon-ho’s mouth fell open. As a veteran, he understood the meaning at once.
“H-How…?”
On the first floor you could choose only a single weapon. Once chosen, no method in existence could change it. That was an absolute rule of the tower. Yet here Si-woon stood, laughing at that rule, able to wield every weapon?
Kang Si-a’s eyes widened as well.
I knew he used a bow, but…
She had never imagined he handled all of them. The other teammates could only blink blankly, unable to believe the sight before them.
“I know a lot more about this tower than you might think. Far more than what’s posted on those boards.”
“You—don’t tell me…”
“Yeon-ho.”
Si-woon looked straight at him. He already knew what the other was about to say.
“Anything about my identity stays no-comment from here on. It’s not important right now anyway.”
His voice was firm.
“What matters is that the power and information I have will be a huge help in reaching each of your goals. My own goal is simple.”
His gaze passed over the six weapons on the ground and fixed on the Tower of Despair rising in the distance as if to pierce the sky. In those eyes burned an unshakable will that allowed not even a flicker of doubt.
“To reach the top of this tower. That’s my goal.”
Simple—yet a goal no one could dare claim was possible. Everyone held their breath at the declaration.
“And I recently obtained more information.”
He went on to share what Ha-wol had told him about Rankers and immortality.
“If we reach the top of the tower, we can become like them—immortal beings who neither die nor age. Of course that world has its own order and power struggles, but at least we won’t have to worry about our lives every single moment the way we do now. Survival, at the very least, will be guaranteed.”
The words set fire in his teammates’ chests. Hwang Dae-un and Jang Cha-yul who craved strength, Baek Yeon-ho who wanted to see the tower’s end, Kang Si-a who wished to protect those dear to her, and Baek Do-hee who wanted to help everyone—each of their separate hopes ultimately branched from the same root of overwhelming power. The Ranker goal Si-woon offered stood like a massive pillar that could support every one of those branches. Climb the tower and grow stronger; grow stronger and the range of choices expands.
“I’m going to keep climbing. What about the rest of you? The choice is yours.”
He had no desire to force them down this brutal path. But if they chose to walk it together, he intended to share every scrap of information and raise them with everything he had.
The moment he finished speaking, Kang Si-a answered first. Without a single hesitation, as if she had been waiting for the question, she said firmly:
“Of course. Wherever Oppa goes, I go.”
“What kind of question is that, Hyeong-nim! Of course we’re following! Immortality? That shit’s completely insane!”
Hwang Dae-un flipped the mood with his usual boisterous energy. Jang Cha-yul simply nodded in quiet agreement.
“Seeing the end was my goal from the start, so…”
Baek Yeon-ho had no reason to refuse. And finally Baek Do-hee as well.
“If we’re all together, there’s nothing to fear. Let’s do this right.”
Unanimous. Not a single person looked toward a different destination.
Si-woon smiled with satisfaction.
“Good.”
He said no more. It was time to show them through action.
“Then we’d better take the first proper step toward becoming Rankers.”
From his robes he drew six softly glowing pills.
“Everyone sit down. Let’s start by absorbing the Moon Soul Pills. Just these alone will make you far stronger than you are now.”
The six Moon Shadow Ginsengs can wait until their stamina hits nineteen. The Sacred Spirit Stone stays on hold for now too.
The teammates sat in a swift, orderly circle of cross-legged meditation and waited for Si-woon’s next instruction. Expectation and tension crossed in their eyes.
Si-woon distributed the Moon Soul Pills one by one, then settled into his own place and laid the Formless Sword across his knees. Unnoticed by anyone, he gave the hilt a few light taps with a fingertip.
Ha-wol. Ready.
A semi-transparent spirit only Si-woon could see rose smoothly above the blade.
“Hmm. You’ve managed to put together a decent-looking lot. Good. This lady shall guide these fledglings on their first steps—so follow my lead carefully.”