Fortunately, the recovery potion was a somewhat viscous liquid. When applied to the wound, it seeped in as if melting into the skin.
"Huuu..."
It didn't heal completely, but the bleeding had stopped.
I carefully stripped the leather clothes off the dead citizen. It definitely felt gross, but wearing this was better than only having my half-tattered clothes on.
Phone again. I held the Gallery terminal in my hand.
The moment I was about to tap the Transcender Gallery app.
The app beneath it caught my eye.
"...Camera?"
A lens-shaped icon just like the camera app from my time in the modern world.
I clicked it.
It was an actual camera function.
"There's no front lens, though."
It seems its operating method isn't exactly the same as a smartphone.
I had an immediate subject to photograph.
I needed to let them know I almost died.
I took a picture of the giant ant with human heads attached to it.
Fortunately, it didn't make a clicking sound or anything. It seems the default is muted.
In an emergency, if something appears, I can take a picture from afar and ask the people in Cho-Gal.
I entered the Transcender Gallery.
Before pressing the 'Write' button, I couldn't help but look at the posts in the gallery.
Title: Did this '*' bastard die?
Author: OO
- Suddenly not writing posts or comments, and it's already been 10 minutes. Don't tell me...
ㄴ Surely, he just lost consciousness from hunger.
ㄴ In the tower, that means you die.
ㄴ Straight up becomes a monster's meal.
ㄴ Sword of Light) Seeing him suddenly stop posting and commenting, it seems something happened.
ㄴ Heavenly Demon) ...Usually, one who arrives like a fortuitous encounter doesn't die so easily...? That would go against the way of the world. Surely he isn't truly dead....
ㄴ He's got 'Demon' in his name and is seriously trembling lol. Are you worried?
ㄴ Ice Queen) Freeze!
ㄴ Secret Room Theorist) Maybe we're all just under mass hypnosis for a moment. Common sense says a Climber couldn't possibly enter Cho-Gal -This world is made of a giant secret room.
ㄴ It's an Elf) A demon managing a labyrinth talking about hypnosis gives it some credibility. But did something really happen?
ㄴ Gutter Sword Saint) Climber, write a post as soon as you check in.
ㄴ Yeah~ if he's dead he can't write, right?
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) Hawawa, the Climber's lifeline didn't look that short.
ㄴ Pioneer) Sir, the Hard 40th-floor Climber you pointed out in the Climber Gallery as having a long lifeline died right on the 41st floor.
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) .,!;
ㄴ Pioneer) Very flustered, huh.
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) Anyways... Climber, if you're gone, Cho-Gal is ruined....
ㄴ Real fact. The high-nics that exceptionally crawled out will all crawl back in lololol
I could tell all the posts' attention was directed at me.
ㄴ Grand Mage) Tsk, I thought we finally got a fun toy to play with after a long time... is he dead?
...Hmm, a toy.
Well, most of them probably think the same as the Grand Mage. I'm still alive, you bastards.
I closed the post and pressed the Write button.
I attached the photo I just took.
And posted it.
Title: Almost Died
Author: OO*
- I almost died to this bastard.
Attachment: 348593408.jpg
[Photo of a giant ant with three human heads on its head area, fallen on its side]
ㄴ Oh lol it's been a while since I saw that ant bastard.
ㄴ Gutter Sword Saint) That monster's name was Ansranthrop.
ㄴ Correct. But you caught it without dying, surprisingly. For a 21st-century Earthling. Did that thing usually pop out on the 1st floor?
ㄴ No no, on Easy difficulty this guy never appears on the 1st floor. Only rats come out.
ㄴ This guy definitely isn't on Easy mode lol. I see a high chance of Normal. If his luck is complete trash, Hard.
ㄴ Real, Easy has lots of people so there's always guys from the same batch on the 1st floor. Even excluding NPCs, you can't be alone.
ㄴ Even on Easy, those who are meant to die will die, failing to get a grip.
So the tower I was summoned to is definitely not Easy difficulty. Tsk.
ㄴ I'm from Normal, and that guy did appear on the 1st floor, but I'm not sure. The one I killed seemed a bit smaller.
ㄴ Yeah, I'm Normal too and I think the same.
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) It appeared on the 1st floor exactly at that size, and I crushed it to death with a spell. The thumb that exterminates evil!
...Phew.
Normal hyung-nims, why are you saying such creepy things?
Even if my luck is trash, I'm thinking it's Normal mode. Saying such ambiguous things.
Why does the Shaman Maiden keep saying things that increase the likelihood of me being on Hard mode? Annoying.
ㄴ Sword of Light) Seeing how it has three human heads, it must have eaten at least three people, whether NPCs or Climbers. Good job killing it.
ㄴ Grand Mage) Phew, you're not dead. Don't die.
ㄴ Heavenly Demon) You were alive. Did you achieve a stage breakthrough or acquire a skill?
ㄴ Translation: Did you level up or acquire a skill?
Ah, right.
T1NrUTkreFYvQUZ1VEE0bGdJSWROeEN6cW9UWTRMSDQ0a3FnRDNLOUIreGVNTWFaZmh2UG5wZDltZzA4Yy9zQg
ㄴ OO*) Level hasn't gone up yet. Got three skills. Pain Suppression, Composure, Cover.
ㄴ Grand Mage) Ordinary.
ㄴ Or?dinary. The times I've gotten more than two skills in one battle can be counted on one hand?
ㄴ As expected of a commoner's Easy mode~~
ㄴ I'm from Normal. You insect trash.
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) Hawawa, it happens often on Hard difficulty, but it rarely happens on the 1st floor. It's amazing.
She keeps stacking the possibility of Hard mode.
ㄴ Gutter Sword Saint) Check your status window once. Then, for now, you need to reach the 2nd floor entrance.
ㄴ Sword of Light) When you go up to the 2nd floor, I'll at least teach you spear arts in the floor waiting room.
ㄴ Heavenly Demon) ??? You wear a sword as a high-nic, yet you speak of spear arts?
ㄴ Sword of Light) Looking at the shape of the penetrating wound on Ansranthrop's head, it's a spear. I should teach him what he's holding. It's uncertain whether you'll even be able to get a sword.
ㄴ Sword of Light) First, clearing the 1st floor and confirming the difficulty is the top priority.
ㄴ ddd The Climber's majesty of constantly making the sword maniac act normal.
ㄴ Gallery posting was dog-shit boring so I was just going sword-sword lolololol
ㄴ Sword of Light) Of course, if the Climber gets a sword, it's immediately swordsmanship.
ㄴ Heavenly Demon) Kuhum... I shall also teach you fist arts. In a way you can comprehend.
ㄴ Grand Mage) You need to accumulate at least a little mana before I can teach you anything from then on. Hmm.
Two people volunteered to teach me. I'm thankful they want to teach, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to comprehend it.
ㄴ OO*) thx thx
For now, I replied very passively.
I wrote what I was curious about before Ansranthrop popped out.
ㄴ OO*) But why are all the people using high-nics from Hard mode?
ㄴ For Easy and Normal bastards like us, the Transcender Gallery system itself doesn't let us attach high-nics yeah
Then why isn't there a Pandemonium one? It's a higher difficulty than Hard.
ㄴ OO*) But there's a Pandemonium difficulty too. It's higher than Hard?
ㄴ Judak) Pandemonium doesn't have a Clearer yet.
ㄴ They all die while climbing. So there can't be a high-nic from it.
ㄴ Grand Mage) The clear rate there is 0%.
Ah. I see. They all died.
Another fundamental question crossed my mind.
ㄴ OO*) But what's the standard for dividing it into Easy, Normal, Hard, and Pandemonium?
ㄴ Judak) The Tower System hasn't officially revealed anything. We just speculate.
ㄴ Grand Mage) Beings that have at least a speck of possibility of clearing the corresponding difficulty are summoned to the tower. That's the speculation.
But if that's the case, one thing contradicted that speculation.
ㄴ Grand Mage) But you're thinking Pandemonium doesn't seem to fit that reasoning, right? Well, I can't say for sure... but even if they all ended up dying, I'm on the side that thinks the people summoned there did have the possibility itself to clear Pandemonium.
A tower with a survival rate of 0% even though people with potential were summoned.
Just thinking about it gave me a sense of revulsion.
For now, I should clear the 1st floor and check the difficulty first, just as Judak and Sword of Light said.
First, I need to squeeze out every bit of information I can learn before departing.
My hands moved busily.
Title: Are all tower floors just fighting monsters?
Author: OO*
- At least the 1st floor seems like that.
ㄴ Judak) The 1st floor is like that because it's a warm-up, a tutorial perspective. From the 2nd floor onwards, it proceeds alternately. There are battle types like the 1st floor, or story... quest types with a narrative. There are also defense types with time attacks. The types are diverse. Though fighting is the basic premise for most of them.
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) Hawawa, you mustn't get too immersed in the stories of the quest-type NPCs. I've seen people die several times because they got too swept up in their emotions and lost their judgment.
ㄴ It's an Elf) My friend died like that too....
ㄴ Especially, you must never believe what the ear-freak NPCs say, betrayal is their racial trait.
ㄴ It's an Elf) I sincerely curse you in the name of nature.
ㄴ Yeah~ ear-freaks aren't scary~~
Ear-freak seemed to be a derogatory term for Elves.
What's up with that.
Seeing how no one is taking the Elf's side, there must really be something about the Elves.
Anyway, quest types, huh.
I feel like I'll only get a sense of what those words mean if I experience it myself.
If I survive and go up to the 2nd floor, I'll experience it anyway.
Title: Are there people who had Ansranthrop appear on the 1st floor?
Author: OO*
- Since I still can't predict which difficulty tower I'm in, everyone just list all the monsters that appeared on your 1st floors.
Their characteristics too.
Ah, and give me other information besides monsters too.
All sorts of information poured in.
Summarizing the information, it was like this.
Floors where only monsters appear without a narrative inevitably have a boss monster.
If you reach it and kill it, the probability of clearing the 1st floor is high.
Climbers of difficulties excluding Easy mode have mostly experienced 'traps'.
Watch out for the iron chain that strikes vertically down if you step on the input plate on the floor.
Watch out for the iron arrows shooting out from the walls.
The direction the iron arrows pour down from is the direction where a faint breeze suddenly blows.
...But will I be able to notice that?
There are about two monsters with a probability of appearing. Watch out for Goblins and Demonic Mad Dogs.
Since two Ansranthropes appeared, they said there's also a probability of a boss monster of a related lineage appearing.
The most impressive were the comments from 'Sword of Light'.
ㄴ Sword of Light) You need to keep your guard up, but there's no need to be too afraid. Anyway, it's a fact that you killed two Ansranthropes, so I think you have the senses to survive the 1st floor.
Actually, killing the first one was way too close to pure luck.
But I definitely needed to think positively.
ㄴ Sword of Light) How much potion is left?
ㄴ OO*) Half?
ㄴ Sword of Light) When iron arrows pour in, hide your body behind cover and avoid what you can. Strike away what you can strike.
Up to here, it sounded like a perfectly reasonable statement.
The words attached after were the problem.
ㄴ Sword of Light) For the ones you can't avoid, endure them and take the hit. Your Pain Suppression skill level might go up too. You must adapt to pain to be prepared.
ㄴ Guys who've been hit do endure better.
ㄴ Sword of Light) When your level goes up, your body's injured areas regenerate. Even if you clear it, it's restored to its original state. So there's no need to spare your body.
ㄴ Pioneer) You're speaking too positively. Recovery or whatever, if you die without clearing it, you're just dead for real lolololol
ㄴ Shaman Maiden) Hawawa, if you spin the positive circuit too much, you'll die in a blink.
For a moment, the thought that it might be doable vanished in a flash with Pioneer's short comment.
Right. That's reality.
A blink and you die.
But it was also true that the comments Sword of Light wrote were all high-quality advice.
I drilled them firmly into my head.
"Status Window."
Name: Han Yooseong
Race: Human
Lv.1
Strength: 12
Agility: 13
Endurance: 11
Skills: Pain Suppression Lv.1, Composure Lv.1, Cover Lv.1
When I pressed on a skill with my index finger, a description popped up.
Pain Suppression was a skill that suppressed 'pain' when received from physical damage.
Composure was literally a skill that maintained composure as much as possible in any situation.
Cover was a skill that partially hid your presence when you hid behind cover.
I opened the gallery again and placed my hand on the keyboard.
Title: Will return after clearing the 1st floor.
Author: OO*
- Let's see each other alive.
I'll check the replies to this post after I come back.
I closed the Transcender Gallery and put the terminal into the pocket firmly tied to my waist at the back.
Crunch-
The rations that were in the citizen's pocket.
I moved my steps while chewing on nuts like walnuts and peanuts, and a small amount of beef jerky.
Let's go.
Me, Han Yooseong.
I have absolutely no intention of dying in such a bizarre place.