Dragon's Egg
Chapter 5.
Dragon's Egg.
Fifteen shards of the shattered Golden Rule.
An enormous reward.
One shard per hour meant he could wield Rag's full power for a total of fifteen hours.
This was more than enough as startup capital.
But what truly captured his attention was something else.
Low-tier Earthquake God, Kartal.
He remembered that name clearly.
Back in the days climbing the tower.
The horrific monster he'd faced on the 34th floor.
The one that had trampled and devoured countless comrades.
"……It's confirmed."
Doubt had turned to certainty.
The tower's monsters.
Those damn gods had created 'characters' on Earth's game board.
And disguised as humans, they were ravaging humanity for their amusement.
His lips twisted into a smirk.
They pretended to be hunters, but the truth was different.
The real hunter was him.
He had become the 'predator' that devoured them.
He'd just proven it.
Killing an avatar on Earth erased the main body in Asgard as well.
He could even claim their unique authorities for himself.
Disaster Devourer.
This power existed to exterminate them.
Thoughts chained together.
Memories of the past.
Those called 'heroes' in a dying world.
Something felt off.
They had appeared out of nowhere one day, flaunting overwhelming might.
Posing as humanity's saviors, leading people, only to drag everyone into ruin at the critical moment—those scum.
What if many of them had been avatars of those 'gods'?
Inciting disasters to spread fear.
Pretending to resolve them to bask in worship.
Ultimately delivering despair while cackling like devils.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.
What if.
The final desperate squad that had climbed to the tower's end with him.
Sword Emperor Aritolt.
Great Sage Plunium.
Fighting Emperor Yamamoto.
And Spirit Lord Park Haya.
What if one of them had been a god's avatar?
No way to know.
But he couldn't rule out the possibility.
If so, how much had they mocked him as he struggled?
"……Doesn't matter."
He clenched his fist tight.
No time to waste trembling with betrayal.
What counted was from now on.
Hummm.
He spread his right palm.
A golden rune pulsed faintly.
This hand never lied.
The source of disasters.
It sniffed out the gods' rotten stench flawlessly.
Whether they played heroes or hid in silence.
Find them one by one and chew them up.
He resolved to become the true hunter.
The tower's gods in Asgard.
Their avatars on Earth!
Finding avatars was simple.
He remembered the times and places of major disasters.
Their avatars would surely be there.
The two worlds complemented each other perfectly for him.
Not just hunting—he could reap maximum gains from both sides for infinite growth.
So.
……Conquer the tower.
This time for sure.
No matter what, he would conquer the tower perfectly.
March 14, 2026.
The world named this day the 'Great Cataclysm'.
No omens.
No warnings.
It began with a fragment of ordinary life crumbling away.
Broadcast announcers' voices trembled.
The scenes beyond the screens were hell itself.
Collapsed skyscrapers.
Rent earth.
And otherworldly beings crawling from the cracks.
"Kraaaah!"
"H-Help! It's a monster!"
"Mom! Mom!"
Screams and wails engulfed the globe.
Armies mobilized, missiles rained down—but nothing worked.
Modern weapons couldn't even pierce their hides.
Humanity was powerless.
Despair spread like a plague.
That was when it happened.
Ding!
A clear notification tone rang in the ears of humanity worldwide.
'System' has been activated.
Mana has been unlocked.
Humans with latent 'talents' are awakening.
Blue message windows floated in the air.
Flames erupted from someone's hand.
Someone's body hardened like steel.
Others rode the wind through the skies.
Awakeners.
The moment superhumans were born.
Kwaaaang!
In a Seoul shelter.
As a house-sized wolf beast lunged at a child.
A young man smashed its head with a fist wreathed in flames.
"……He killed it?"
"A human killed a monster barehanded?"
Cameras broadcast the scene live.
The world witnessed the miracle.
Terror turned to awe.
People cheered.
Praised them.
"Heroes!"
"The gods haven't abandoned us!"
"Heroes have appeared!"
The media spotlighted awakeners relentlessly.
Hailing the dawn of a new era.
The age of superhumans who would save humanity.
But no one knew.
The truth lurking behind those dazzling heroes.
Some were pure human awakeners.
But among the most brilliant, powerful, and swiftly rising to fame.
Many were 'seeds of disaster' that would drive humanity to extinction.
They laughed.
Amid the cheers.
Hiding behind the sweet title of savior.
Looking down on the toys dancing on the game board they'd set up.
And so, the world changed.
The winds of change didn't blow only on Earth.
The gods' realm, Asgard.
And at its center, 'God's Tower'.
Even that absolute space, seemingly eternal, cracked.
Hummm!
The entire tower vibrated lowly.
Ripples stirred the gods' serene gardens.
Gods chatting or spectating the lower world's doom turned their gazes skyward.
A red message, one that should never appear, floated before their eyes.
Ding!
Delivering dire news.
The master of the 34th floor, 'Low-tier Earthquake God Kartal', has been slain.
His existence has been completely erased from Asgard.
Silence.
The gods doubted their own eyes.
"……Kartal is dead."
"Who the hell killed Kartal?"
Murmurs spread like waves.
Gods don't die.
They might erode over eons, but murder was exceedingly rare.
Especially a mid-tier god holding the 34th floor!
But the system offered no time for sentiment.
Hierarchies are adjusting to fill the vacancy on the 34th floor.
The master of the 33rd floor is promoted to the 34th.
The master of the 32nd floor is promoted to the 33rd.
……
The master of the 1st floor is promoted to the 2nd.
Domino-like chain promotions occurred.
Gods lingering on lower floors were forcibly pushed up one step.
And finally.
The 1st floor is now vacant.
Preparations are complete to accept a new god.
A vacancy opened at the very bottom, the 1st floor.
This meant a chance for a new 'seed' to ascend as a god.
Normally, it would be a festival atmosphere.
But the gods' faces were grim.
Doubt bred fear.
"Incomprehensible."
Someone broke the silence.
"Didn't Kartal participate in this 'Earth Amusement'?"
"Right. He definitely created an avatar and went down."
"Then why did his main body vanish?"
A piercing question.
Avatars were mere shells.
Terminals to log into Earth's game board.
Even if destroyed on Earth, the main body in Asgard should suffer only minor mana loss and remain intact.
That was the rule of their 'safe amusement' design.
Yet a god vanished mid-amusement.
Slain without warning.
"We need an investigation."
"Find the cause."
The council formed an investigation team.
While some grew wary and debated the mystery.
Others shouted in ecstatic joy.
The tower's basement.
That damp, humid place called the 'waiting room'.
In truth, no different from a prison camp.
Where thousands, tens of thousands of 'seeds' swarmed.
They called themselves children of gods, but reality was harsh.
They were mere hyenas waiting for a vacancy.
"Waaaaaaah!"
"Finally! A spot's open at last!"
Cheers erupted unexpectedly in the waiting room.
Some embraced and danced, others wept and pounded the floor in rapture.
One reason.
The system message had been shared with them too.
The 1st floor is now vacant.
Preparations are complete to accept a new god.
These lines held absolute weight.
The tower's structure was a pyramid.
Narrower at the top, completely blocked at the bottom.
Only if the 1st floor's master ascended or vanished could one of the basement seeds claim it.
"How long has it been?"
"Can't even remember. 300 years? No, probably 500."
Gods were near-immortal.
A vacancy was near-miraculous.
And that miracle happened today.
Flames sparked in the seeds' eyes.
"It's my turn this time."
"Don't make me laugh. By waiting order, I'm first!"
"Just prove it with strength, right?"
Killing intent thickened the air.
The competition had already begun.
Then, someone piped up.
"By the way…… heard that rumor?"
"Rumor?"
"About the guy Heimdall personally brought in."
All eyes turned to him.
The hot gossip heating up the basement lately.
Typhoon God Heimdall.
The notoriously eccentric one had fetched a seed from outside Asgard himself.
"Oh, that 'parachute'?"
"Yeah. They say he brought him, but he hasn't entered the tower yet."
"He ran away? Scared shitless."
The seeds snickered.
"Thought he was something since Heimdall brought him personally."
"Obviously a coward. Tsk tsk."
They felt relieved.
One powerful rival eliminated.
Mixed with jealousy and envy over privileges they lacked—mockery.
"Ignore it. If he doesn't show, it's better for us, right?"
"Yeah. The new god will be one of us!"
The mood was surging again.
Then.
Kugugugung!
A massive rumble shook the entire basement.
Seeds' gazes snapped to one spot.
The tower's entrance.
The massive bronze doors, seemingly eternally sealed, were slowly creaking open.
Kiiiiik!
The chilling scrape of ancient metal.
Cheering seeds fell silent.
Silence descended.
Dazzling light poured through the widening gap.
And.
Step. Step.
Bearing that light on his back, a man strode in.
Golden hair.
Arrogantly confident gait.
As if the surrounding stares meant nothing.
He halted, raised his head, and slowly surveyed the gathered seeds.
Cold eyes, like viewing insects.
"……Who are you?"
Someone asked in a trembling voice.
The man didn't answer.
Instead, he waved casually.
Instinct told them.
The rumor incarnate.
The 'parachute' Heimdall brought!
Sneer.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Rag."
……That guy's the one.