The Path to the Tower (1)
Ahem! Anyway!
The rabbit, who had been beaming at me, suddenly put on a solemn expression as if nothing had happened at all and snapped its fingers. Snap!
“Since everyone’s gathered in one place, it’s time to begin the new mission, don’t you think?”
Assigning a new mission to all players.
Tutorial #2-1 - To the Tower
Theme: Survival
Difficulty: Tutorial
Description: This world will be destroyed. Death is not far away. Find the nearest tower and reach it.
Nearest Tower: ??? (3.0 km)
Mission: Move into the area of the nearest tower within the time limit.
Reward: Right to Challenge the Tower
Failure Penalty: Death
The system message hovered above the rabbit’s head like a digital billboard. Our new tutorial mission. Unlike when they had faced the first tutorial, the people reacted calmly. The rabbit seemed impressed by their composure and let out an admiring whistle.
“Ooh, no one’s surprised anymore? The first time everyone was so amazed and chattering away—it was fun to watch!”
The rabbit flashed its signature grin and playfully raised a hand.
“Any players have questions?”
As expected, the crowd fell silent. It was only natural to keep your mouth shut when the most dangerous-looking facilitator of this deadly game asked if you had questions.
“You said to move to the tower’s area. What exactly does that mean?”
But I had no reason to hold back. I raised my hand and spoke up.
“Hup!” “W-what…”
Several people gasped and stared at me. A few even turned pale because I had used casual speech.
“It means exactly what it says. You just need to go to the tower.”
There was one piece of information I knew that the others didn’t. This so-called Helper couldn’t directly interfere with us players.
“Didn’t something just pop into everyone’s heads?”
The rabbit clasped its hands behind its back and began hopping through the air. Just as it said, an image of a single “tower” had appeared in everyone’s minds.
“Is it talking about the one at Gyeongbokgung?”
“Yeah… I think so?”
The rabbit smiled and nodded at the murmuring crowd, confirming their guess. Still, we needed more precise and detailed information.
“What exactly is the tower’s area? Does the mission clear once we get close?”
The mission description was too vague. If the “tower” referred to the monstrous structure that had risen above Gyeongbokgung a year ago, how far did this “area” extend? Did the mission complete once you reached a certain radius? Or was there an entrance we didn’t know about? Whatever the case, we clearly needed a clearer explanation.
But the rabbit’s answer was…
“You’ll know when you get there.”
“That’s it?”
“What more do you want, you balance-breaking freak?”
The tone was thick with displeasure. But I wasn’t the only one suspicious of that half-hearted reply.
“Helper, sir—once we’re close enough, will we be able to see the area with the naked eye?”
Han Gamin raised her hand from among the crowd and asked the rabbit. The rabbit simply stared at her in silence. The atmosphere suggested it had no intention of answering.
I was about to piece together what little information we had and make an educated guess when—
“Oh! That’s right! If you get near it, the area appears in blue, you know?”
Huh?
“Just make sure you enter it before the time runs out and you’ll clear it! Any other questions, dear player?”
Why was it being so kind?
“Thank you. I have one more question.”
“Ask me anything!”
The rabbit answered every one of Han Gamin’s questions and even volunteered information she hadn’t asked for.
“Ah, about the time limit? I can’t tell you that! It wouldn’t be fair to give information that players from other coordinates don’t have!”
“Will monsters appear this time too? Hmm… Oh, I really shouldn’t say this, ahem! But yes, they will! What kind? That’s a secret! Heehee!”
“Oh! And the Tutorial #2 shop should have opened! How to use it… Well, that guy over there already knows, so just ask him.”
The rabbit pointed at me and chattered away. Its attitude was completely different from moments ago. Watching it grow more cooperative, I raised my hand once again.
“Then to get to the tower—”
“Uh, figure it out yourself. Yeah.”
“You’re already so far ahead of everyone else, yet your greed is still overflowing! Really!”
I understood perfectly now.
“Hmph. How ridiculous.”
It seemed sulky. I wasn’t sure if it was actually upset, but it clearly didn’t like me very much. Still, I didn’t bother arguing. Or rather, I couldn’t. Because the rabbit had timed its next announcement perfectly, as if it had been waiting for this moment.
Players from the other coordinates appear to have finished their preparations! Are you all excited?
The rabbit threw both arms into the air as if about to clap.
Then, with a wide grin, it announced the start of the new mission.
“All right! I’ll open the gate for you!”
The rabbit clapped.
BOOM—! BOOM—!
At the same time, the glass walls began to shatter one after another with deafening noise. The barriers that had refused to budge no matter how hard we pushed were completely destroyed by a single clap.
“Kyaaah!” “Uwaah!”
Startled by the sudden roar, people instinctively crouched and covered their heads. Shards of glass flew in every direction. Fortunately, since everyone had gathered in the center to listen to the rabbit’s announcement, no one was injured by the fragments.
“Then, dear players! Good luck!”
The rabbit vanished leisurely into the blue flames.
My ears rang briefly from the noise of the shattering glass, but I looked at the others and immediately began the most urgent task.
“Can everyone check the newly opened Tutorial #2 shop?”
The Tutorial #2 shop.
“Let’s start by opening those.”
It was time to introduce the “Tutorial Item Box” I had purchased during the last tutorial.
The time we had been given was barely an hour. The moment we stepped out of the building, we were hit by an overwhelming despair unlike anything we had ever experienced.
“What the hell is this…”
“This is insane…”
Park Jocheol lowered the ordinary sword he had obtained from the tutorial box and spat out a curse as he stared at the scenery outside the building.
Destruction. Was there any sight that suited those two words better? The sky that should have been blue was nothing but red. Not the bright glow of flames, but a dark, blood-like crimson. Countless buildings that had once filled our commutes were now collapsed, and the ground itself had been overturned, forming hills of concrete both large and small.
“T-this can’t be! It wasn’t like this inside!”
The middle-aged man beside me kept shouting that this was impossible. It was a sight beyond imagination. The view outside the Sky Games building had looked exactly like the usual scenery on our way home from work. That was why we could convince ourselves that the lack of people on the streets was normal. Once this situation is resolved, we can return to that peaceful city. If we can just escape this hell, we can go back to our daily lives.
But that had been a vain hope, and the people who clung to it could only pay for it with despair as vast as the hope they had held.
Goooooo…
The environment had changed completely in the time it took to blink.
Quick Understanding (D+)
“What are you all doing?”
But standing around dumbly admiring the scenery wasn’t what we needed to do right now.
“Let’s move. We don’t have time to stand here dazed.”
At my words, the people began to regain their senses one by one. First Park Jocheol, then Namgung Cheonho and Han Gamin. When my gaze reached Seo Seyeong, she flinched and opened her mouth.
“…Siin, aren’t you…”
Her voice trembled. But she quietly continued.
“…scared?”
Everyone’s eyes turned to me. I could see the tension and anxiety swirling in her gaze. I answered her with the first honest thought that came to mind.
“That’s a stupid question.”
“…Pardon?”
“How could I not be scared? We could die at any moment.”
There was no reason to hide it, and I didn’t have time to deliver some elegant speech to encourage them.
“Right now I’m feeling the exact same thing as you, Seyeong. I’m only human, after all.”
I saw the survivors’ expressions as they looked at me. The same emotion. Anyone who hadn’t already fought monsters would find it hard to shake off that look of pure fear. But at the time, I didn’t realize that my words had planted a small, inexplicable seed of courage deep in the hearts of several of them.
“I know you all have a lot on your minds. But for now, let’s move. There will be plenty of time to think once we reach the tower.”
The remaining distance to the tower was three kilometers. We had roughly fifty-six minutes left. In a situation where we had no idea what might happen next, we couldn’t afford to waste any more time.
The distance we needed to cover was awkwardly far. Under normal circumstances it wouldn’t have been much, but with the roads collapsed, it was inevitable that everyone’s pace would slow.
With every minute and second that ticked down, my throat burned. Everyone’s bodies had been strengthened by the “Spring Water of Awakening” from the Tutorial Item Box, but they were still essentially just people with slightly better stamina.
The stats I had heard for Park Jocheol averaged around Level 8. And even his were quite high compared to the others, so it was only natural that the rest kept falling behind.
“A little faster, please!”
Even though I was running at the front and shouting encouragement, the others could barely lift their heads as they trudged along.
“Huff… huff…” “Hng… gulp.”
The unfamiliar terrain and near-mountain-climbing concrete hills quickly drained their stamina. But thanks to our relentless pace, once we crossed the final concrete ridge, a familiar green sign greeted us.
Sejong-daero Intersection. Gwanghwamun.
“Ah!”
In the distance we could see Gyeongbokgung and the tower rising above it, along with the statues of great figures standing in front. Natural gasps of relief escaped the group.
“Huff… Ahjussi… huff. Aren’t you tired?”
“I’m still fine.”
I gave a short reply to Han Gamin, who had followed while panting heavily, while scanning our surroundings. The wind was fierce. But that was all. Everyone’s stamina was hitting rock bottom, yet at this pace we would reach our destination with plenty of time to spare.
But what is this feeling…?
It felt far too easy compared to what I had expected. All we had done was walk. Over ninety percent of the survivors had died in the first tutorial—there was no way the next mission would be this simple. Just as suspicion about the tutorial’s difficulty began to outweigh the joy of arriving early, Namgung Cheonho, who had been looking straight ahead, called out to me.
“Siin, it looks like there are people up ahead…”
A huge crowd had gathered in Gwanghwamun Square. When I climbed onto some building debris to get a better view, I saw something completely unexpected happening there.
“Aaaagh!” “Someone help me—kyaaah!”
Why did my bad premonitions never miss?
Another group of survivors—not us. The moment I saw what they were doing, chills ran down my spine.
“Everyone stay quiet and keep low.”
“Huh?”
At my words and gesture, the group grew tense and began watching their surroundings warily. I could see people in Gwanghwamun Square attacking one another. Then someone’s scream drew everyone’s eyes to a single point.
“Uwaaaah!”
And another person biting into the first. Park Jocheol’s assessment after seeing it was short and clear.
“Fuck… Are those zombies?”
The monster the rabbit had mentioned for this mission was none other than zombies.