The Path to the Tower (2)

The unfamiliar environment and the first experience of a situation like this cloud judgment and stiffen the body. That’s why people usually harbor a vague fear of the unknown. A situation where you don’t know what you can do or what you should do. In other words, because the future is completely unpredictable, people don’t welcome it.

But this… was a problem precisely because I knew it too well.

“Z-zombies?”

“Holy shit… Did you see that? The guy convulsed the second he got bitten?”

At the word zombies, people began poking their heads up like meerkats on alert, observing what was happening in the plaza. Every time someone collapsed, faces turned deathly pale. And the sight of those who had fallen suddenly leaping up and chasing after other survivors was straight out of a horror movie.

On top of that—

“There’s a disgusting number of them…”

At Han Gamin’s muttered comment, I looked beyond the plaza. An uncountable swarm of zombies. Even though a considerable number of people must have died in the first tutorial, an enormous crowd was still moving through the square.

Still…

When I turned my gaze toward Gwanghwamun beyond it, a hazy blue light, just as the rabbit had said, enveloped the entire Gyeongbokgung Palace. A literal entrance. Did that mean all we had to do was pass through there?

I roughly estimated the remaining distance with my eyes and checked the time we had been given once more.

It wasn’t exactly what I’d call plenty of time. To reach Gwanghwamun safely, we needed to prepare countermeasures as quickly as possible.

“…What should we do?”

A small murmur came from behind. It was Namgung Cheonho’s single sentence, speaking for the hearts of all the survivors.

“Honestly, breaking through that is impossible. Well, it might be possible, but almost no one would survive.”

At those words, people’s eyes slowly sank. Their expressions showed they had no idea what they could possibly do. Time was still passing, and more survivors were turning into zombies. Overwhelmed by helplessness at the sight, the only thing they could do was… look toward someone more capable than themselves.

“……Why me?”

Their gazes naturally turned to me. In their eyes, desperately searching for a final escape route, there was a deeper earnestness than ever before.

“…Do you have any clever ideas?”

“Just tell us anything. If there’s something I can do, I’ll give it my all.”

I want to live.

Everyone was saying that as they looked at me. The person who had slain the monster that was terror itself and brought the first tutorial to a close. The strongest person in this place, acknowledged by the Helper. And the only one here who wasn’t trembling in fear.

“Huu…”

I shifted my gaze toward Gwanghwamun Square. The distance from here to that blue zone was roughly eight hundred meters. The number of zombies blocking the way between us kept increasing. To make matters worse, other survivors were spreading the zombies in every direction, constantly widening the creatures’ range of activity.

But a wider range of activity might also mean more gaps for us to slip through.

“Wait a moment.”

I climbed over the concrete embankment and began scouting the surroundings as stealthily as possible. Thanks to Quick Acceptance—or perhaps my awakening—my mind felt clear and my field of vision widened.

……Huh?

And then one possibility caught my eye. The entrance to Gwanghwamun Station, half-hidden by the debris of a collapsed building, seized my attention. I quickly ran toward Exit 5 of Gwanghwamun ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Station. I lightly cleared away the collapsed wall and barrier blocking the entrance and discovered stairs leading down into the underground passage.

The moment I entered the underground tunnel—

Along with an unfamiliar warning tone, the interior of the underground passage came into view.

“……”

A dark corridor. It was silent. As if nothing had ever happened. Broken walls here and there and a ceiling flickering with faint emergency power caught my eye. But the most important thing was—

No zombies?

It was far too quiet. The zombies on the surface were screaming and causing absolute chaos, so this level of silence didn’t make sense. But then—

—Sob.

The sound of someone crying reached my ears.

“Is someone there?”

I moved toward the source of the sound, making my presence known as carefully as I could while descending the stairs.

“Hic. Hic.”

A voice that sounded like it was trying to hold back tears but kept leaking out. I followed the sound, and the moment I rounded the corner at the entrance, I found several people crouched down, having lost all will to fight.

This underground passage had already undergone Tutorial #1. According to the survivors here, zombies could not enter this place. I didn’t know what kind of mechanism prevented it. But the fact that a small number of people who had realized this had hidden here to escape the zombies was far more important.

It’s possible…

I left them as they were and walked back to where my companions waited.

“Siin!”

When I returned, Seo Seyeong approached me with a worried expression, and the others cautiously followed behind her.

“Can you all see Exit 5 of Gwanghwamun Station over there?”

I immediately raised my hand and pointed toward the exit. People craned their necks at my question, then nodded.

“We’re going to cross to the other side through there.”

A ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ray of hope at last. But Han Gamin, who had spotted the biggest flaw in the plan I’d thrown out, spoke up cautiously.

“……What if there are zombies underground?”

“Don’t worry about that.”

There were no zombies underground. The real problem would be the horde of zombies swarming like a pack of wild dogs right after we left the tunnel.

“There weren’t any zombies down there. It looks like some kind of error occurred because it’s a section where the tutorial has already been conducted.”

At my words, relief spread across people’s faces. But that was only the first problem. What remained was the swarm of zombies waiting on the other side where we had to escape to.

“……There’s still a problem even after we cross.”

At Han Gamin’s remark, people’s expressions sank again. A horrific image passed through everyone’s minds, but no other method to reach the tower’s area in time came to mind.

Still, even if the sky falls, there’s always a hole to crawl out of.

“……Let’s use bait.”

From the midst of the silent group, Park Jocheol carefully spoke up.

“If we create a decoy team to lure the zombies away from the exit, the people who pass through the underground tunnel should be able to enter Gwanghwamun safely.”

People looked at him, unable to hide their bewildered expressions. Lure the zombies on the other side of the tunnel and draw them to the rear. It wouldn’t be easy, but it was a definite method, so a few people quietly nodded at Park Jocheol’s suggestion.

But Namgung Cheonho, who had been listening, quietly raised his hand and voiced a question.

“……If we do that, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the people in the decoy team will be in unconditional danger. Who could possibly volunteer for such a sacrifice?”

A realistic problem. At Namgung Cheonho’s words, people fell silent. There wasn’t a single flaw in what he said. The people who would lure the zombies would definitely be in danger, and if they got scared and failed to fulfill their role as bait, they might simply die meaningless deaths.

But there was no other solution. And with time running out, Park Jocheol, who had been deep in thought, lifted his head and continued with firm resolve.

“Then let’s start by taking volunteers. Since lives are on the line, I can’t dare to point fingers at anyone.”

No one objected or raised questions about his words. It was the most reasonable method and the most democratic process.

But of course, in a crisis like this, no one boldly stepped forward to say they would risk their own life.

A short silence followed.

But that heavy quiet didn’t last long.

A personal mission? What the…

“Ha… haha…”

After reading the mission to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the end, I burst into hollow laughter at the word Death written at the bottom.

“Siin, are you okay?”

“……”

Namgung Cheonho looked at me with concern. Just like in the lobby, this was once again a sponsorship mission given only to me by the Constellations. I was at a loss for words. Why did these trials keep coming to me… The content of the mission was truly absurd.

Failure Penalty: Death.

An extremely difficult mission that required at least twenty-seven of the people standing before me right now—no, the entire group—to pass through Gwanghwamun.

“Cheonho…”

“Yes, go ahead.”

I’ve found a volunteer. A very unwilling one.

I swallowed dryly for a moment and looked up at the sky. Anger surged up and I wanted to hurl every curse word I knew. But… I couldn’t see the one who deserved to be cursed at.

I’ll do it. I wanted to say that, but the injustice made my mouth refuse to open. Still, even if that’s how I felt, my hand was already raised above my head.

“……Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

“…Y-yes.”

Along with worried gazes, I saw the relief on people’s faces now that I had stepped forward. My pronunciation had come out a little pathetic without me realizing it, but let’s just move on.

“Huu… Then I’ll explain the operation first, so everyone gather over here.”

I called the people over to where I stood. They quickly huddled together at my words. I hadn’t expected anyone to bravely say they would sacrifice themselves with me, but the fact that no one stepped up still felt a bit unfair.

Well, maybe it’s better that there isn’t.

I had to save at least twenty-seven people. I had no intention of throwing away one precious life just to vent my frustration… Ah, of course I was talking about my own life.

But at that moment.

Surprisingly, a single slender hand rose cautiously from among the crowd.

“……I’ll do it.”

Seo Seyeong, quietly raising her hand from within the group. The faces of those looking at her filled with doubt and shock.

“I’ll take the bait role instead of Siin.”

The person who had first suggested crossing Gwanghwamun, Park Jocheol who had proposed the decoy team, and everyone here stared at her with expressions of utter incomprehension.

“U-unnie? All of a sudden?”

Han Gamin, who had grown close to Seo Seyeong in just a single day, stammered in confusion, which was very unlike her.

“……”

She remained silent in the face of everyone’s questions. A strong resolve floated across her face. Seeing how calm she looked despite dropping such a bombshell, a thought flashed through my mind like lightning.

“……Is this because of a sense of debt?”

To anyone listening, the words would have been hard to understand. But Park Jocheol seemed to immediately grasp the meaning behind what I had said.

The fact that I had saved her in the Sky Games lobby. The way I had charged at the monster during that moment of crisis. It seemed she had kept all of it in her heart.

“Seo Seyeong, if this is because of what happened in the lobby, you really don’t have to step forward.”

As if my guess had been correct, her eyes trembled faintly at my words. In the two days I had observed her, Seo Seyeong was someone who was quite timid. But at the same time, she was a person with an almost foolishly kind heart. Who else but her would risk their life to repay a single act of goodwill?

“B-but…!”

“You don’t have to feel sorry.”

She looked like she might cry at any moment, but I smiled gently as I looked at her.

“You don’t need to force yourself to look brave. If you’re scared, it’s fine to stay quiet like the others. You can just feel relieved that I was chosen for the decoy team instead of you. That’s normal.”

Ever since escaping the lobby, she had been pushing herself nonstop. When the difficulty of the tutorial rose and the monster burst into the break room, she had been trembling all over yet still lifted a chair and smashed the creature with a face that looked half-ready to faint. When we reached the lobby, she organized supplies because she wanted to be helpful, and even on the way here she had stayed right by my side.

“Trust me. I’m confident I won’t die.”

After saying that to the grateful person, I immediately began briefing them on the operation. There really wasn’t much time left.