The Monarch's Cold Calculation
The Cold Blood skill has been activated.
Cold Blood has been activated.
It had been a long time since Cold Blood triggered. A skill that didn’t even react to most mental debuffs was now blaring a warning at Ellen’s casually tossed remark.
Yeah. Without Cold Blood, I probably wouldn’t have been able to keep a straight face.
The body blow that came right after downing a drink was enough to knock the wind out of me, but I barely held it together.
“Third erosion?”
“I ran into a player on the 69th floor. He said some weird stuff.”
“Weird stuff, huh.”
“Something about his world being on the verge of ending.”
Glug glug glug!
Ellen chugged her beer like her throat was on fire, then let out a bitter laugh. “Saying ‘doom’ doesn’t really hit the same. Was there anything else?”
“He said the third Great Erosion had begun.”
“Doom… and the third Great Erosion.”
I already knew all of this, but I repeated the words over and over as if hearing them for the first time.
“Mister Yu. Why do you think the Tower even exists in the first place?”
“The scientists announced it was a symbol connecting us to a higher dimension.”
“Oh come on. You know perfectly well the Tower can’t be explained by science.”
She wasn’t wrong. The scientists’ findings were only half right. They hadn’t figured out the purpose behind connecting to the higher dimension.
“Did you hear anything else?”
“His voice kept cutting out, so I couldn’t catch much.”
Since he was trying to reveal the truth about the Tower of Babel, they must have slapped him with a conversation ban penalty. No way the ones in charge would just sit back and let someone spill corporate secrets.
What an idiot.
The fact that the third erosion had begun meant the synchronization rate had passed fifty percent. The residents of that dimension must have crossed the 60th floor at least ten years ago. Saving a single 60th-floor player wasn’t going to stop the world from ending.
Did he really think begging for a rematch would change anything? The Tower wasn’t that sloppy.
I was sneering inwardly when Ellen continued with a surprisingly serious expression.
“The reason Gates are appearing all over the world is because of the Tower, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I just couldn’t let it go. I kept wondering what kind of secret the Tower was hiding.”
“Did you talk to the Rockefeller Guild Master about it?”
“No. I already know exactly what Master would say.”
“He’d tell you to stop talking nonsense and climb the Tower.”
“Exactly. Our Master really is a money-obsessed demon.”
The higher you climb the Tower, the faster the world’s destruction accelerates?
It could have just been a competitor trying to stir up sympathy. There was no evidence anywhere. I could have easily brushed it off as nonsense.
“But I can’t.”
“Is it your gut feeling?”
“Yeah. I keep trying to ignore it, but it won’t leave my head.”
As always, her instincts were frighteningly sharp.
I cracked open a second can. I had no desire to savor the aroma or the crisp bite of the beer, but I pretended to enjoy it and took a sip.
It was a sensitive topic.
Both before my regression and briefly after I turned back time, I had wrestled with the same question.
How should I phrase this so Ellen could shake off the doubt planted in her heart?
After organizing my thoughts, I opened my mouth.
“Let’s assume that guy was right.”
“That climbing the Tower any further will destroy the world?”
“Exactly. Let’s start from that premise.”
Ugh. My throat was dry.
I took another swig from the can in my right hand.
“If we announced that we shouldn’t enter the Tower anymore because further climbing might destroy the world, what do you think would happen?”
“No one would listen. Obviously.”
“Right. The Gates are already threatening people’s daily lives. We need more players.”
During the first Great Erosion—back when only the Tower existed—players weren’t absolutely necessary. The countless resources and magitech items that came out of the Tower had sparked the Fourth Industrial Revolution, but society wouldn’t have collapsed if people stopped climbing.
The real problem was the Gates.
It was also why the Old Gods opened the Gates during the first Great Erosion.
“No matter what excuse you give, you can’t stop people from climbing the Tower.”
“So you’re saying my worries are pointless and I should stop agonizing over them?”
“It’s similar, but not quite.”
I downed the rest of my beer in one go, then crushed the empty can with a loud crunch, just like Ellen had.
“The world won’t be destroyed without any conditions.”
“Well… I suppose that’s true.”
“That guy on the 69th floor said it himself. He said he had to win.”
“The conditions for the Tower to destroy the world.”
“It’s just a guess, but I think it’s tied to the players’ performance.”
Ellen picked up a third can but didn’t open it. She just spun it slowly between her fingers, lost in deep thought.
This was the same contradiction I had pondered while preparing for my regression. The fact that, in order to prevent destruction, we had to climb the very Tower that would swallow the world. It must have been difficult for her to reconcile.
But this was the correct answer.
The Tower system could be accessed from anywhere in the country as long as you had a cell phone.
Even if the truth were revealed and controls were put in place, it wouldn’t stop everyone. The rate of erosion could be slowed, but avoiding the inevitable destruction was impossible.
If you can’t stop it, then you have to charge straight through.
Even the ear-piercing ones who know the true nature of the Tower of Babel are climbing diligently. Why do you think that is?
Because if they maintain a high enough performance, the Tower has no room to erode the world.
Of course, there are dimensions like Angelus that don’t fear the Tower’s erosion at all. They even send angels like Ariel to climb it.
“Fuck! This is seriously messed up.”
“Don’t think about it too deeply. This is all just based on the story you heard.”
“Mister Yu, how can you come up with such horrible theories so easily?”
Because I’ve experienced it firsthand.
If I told her I regressed, she’d just call me crazy, wouldn’t she?
“It’s a reasonable inference based on all the data we have so far.”
“It’s fucked up, but it makes too much sense, which makes it even more fucked up.”
Ellen kept spitting curses and ruffling her hair.
“Don’t overthink it. Nothing’s going to change anyway.”
“Nothing’s going to change?”
“Keep climbing the Tower and getting stronger. Then there’s nothing to fear.”
I meant every word. The only way to resolve the doubt that had taken root in Ellen’s heart was this.
I had gone through the same worries. Just like how I had set my goal on taking revenge against the Old Gods.
Ellen downed several cans in rapid succession, then let out a long sigh.
“The conclusion’s pretty shitty, but… I get it now.”
“Feeling a bit more motivated now?”
“Motivated? After feeding me all that garbage, what kind of dogshit are you saying now?”
Hey, why are you blaming me?
If you’re going to blame someone, blame the competitor who planted that doubt in the first place.
“Still… talking with you made me feel a lot better, Mister Yu.”
“Call me Jinho from now on.”
“Huh?”
“We’re friends, aren’t we? It feels weird that I call you by name but you keep calling me by my last name.”
“Ah, ahahaha. You were bothered by that?”
Ellen walked over, wrapped her arm around my head, and pulled me into a headlock.
“Gack! Gack!”
“If it bothered you, you should’ve said something sooner, Jinho.”
“Are you trying to kill me?”
“Let’s drink more today. Gotta wash away this dirty feeling.”
“You’re the one who said alcohol doesn’t even work on you.”
“That’s not true. If I don’t resist, I can get plenty drunk, you know?”
I wondered why I was suddenly seeing two Ping Leis.
In response to Ellen’s bold declaration, I silently answered by cracking open the next can.
Ugh…
My throat was burning.
Just how much did I drink?
I hadn’t used internal energy and had lowered my poison resistance as much as possible.
—There’s brandy too. Let’s drink this.
It felt like I had shoved every single bottle of alcohol in the room into my stomach.
After that…
“Ha.”
Ellen passed out first, so I gave her my room and slept in the one next door. When I explained the situation to William, he got us another room without a word.
“So you almost got yourself into quite the predicament.”
“Sorry, sorry.”
After finishing her tour with Jiyoung, Nyx naturally walked into my room, only to find Ellen sprawled out drunk. She had apparently been horrified.
“Are you certain you only drank alcohol?”
“Of course. Obviously.”
Why are you looking at me with such contempt?
I swear nothing happened.
And besides.
Even if something had happened, so what?
“You didn’t harbor any indecent thoughts, did you?”
“You burst in the moment I woke up and you’re scolding me way too much.”
“Think about it! I entered thinking you were there, only to find another woman in your bed. How awkward do you think that was?!”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t think it through.”
Sigh.
I’m so tired.
I first activated my poison resistance, then circulated my internal energy with a small heavenly circuit to completely purge the alcohol from my body.
“The smell is terrible.”
Nyx fanned the air with her right hand.
I couldn’t help it. It wasn’t like a healing spell that simply removed the intoxication. I had to force the alcohol out through my pores.
After I finished showering and got ready to head out—
Knock knock—
“Mister— I mean, is Jinho there?”
“Yeah. I’ll be right out.”
When I opened the door, Ellen stood there with messy bed hair, grinning brightly.
“At least wash up a bit.”
“I didn’t bring anything to change into. I didn’t expect to end up sleeping over.”
Please stop saying things that could be so easily misunderstood.
My back was burning. Thanks to the goddess’s warm gaze, it felt like my spine had been promoted to a meat grill.
Returner Skewer Grill.
Not exactly an attractive brand name.
“Thanks to my friend, my worries are gone.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“If nothing’s going to change anyway, I just have to work even harder.”
That’s right.
Nothing will change.
The Tower’s erosion rate was rising by the second. Soon, the world would stand on the brink of existence or annihilation.
But.
In the less than two years since my regression, so many things had already changed.
I had prevented the Break incident that would have been called the tragedy of the Spice Islands. I had crushed Rene Davis before he could unleash his twisted ambitions and decimate Earth’s player forces. I had created countless other changes as well.
If Ellen’s spirit didn’t break, the future would surely turn out better than in my previous life.
After sending Ellen off, I went down to the first-floor lobby and greeted the group that was waiting.
“How was the sightseeing, everyone?”
“Master. Is sightseeing really what matters right now?”
“Then what does?”
“The fact that Master has finally shed his lifelong single status… Kyaaah!”
“Your head is truly filled with nothing but demons.”
Whether in my previous life or this one, Ellen and I have only ever been friends and comrades. We are not in that kind of relationship, okay?
And besides.
“I’m not a lifelong single.”
“Ehh? Was that the part that bothered you?”
“Misunderstandings should be corrected immediately.”
“But no matter how you look at it, lifelong sing….”
I shot her a killing intent sharp enough to decide life or death.
Jiyoung let out a small yelp and quickly covered her mouth with both hands.
“Master. What is our schedule for today?”
“Free time.”
“What wind has blown today? Are you perhaps going on a date….”
“That’s it. Both of you are doing sparring drills.”
“I was only saying that because I want Master to be happy!”
Ah.
I’m suddenly craving the Mind Sword.
“Nyx! Let’s play together again today!”
“Ah. That won’t be possible.”
The others could do whatever, but the goddess had to help me with something.
“Boo. Dictatorship is bad.”
“Take Enrique with you and go sightseeing together.”
“W-why me?”
“Okay. Enrique, Noona will take care of you today.”
“This isn’t right. This is wrong.”
With a look of utter despair, Enrique was dragged out of the hotel by Jiyoung.
Nyx pouted.
“It doesn’t seem like the two of you are planning to enjoy a cozy little date.”
“Today, I’m going to perform body modification.”