The next day, the actual ascent of Everest began.
Ordinarily, one would take a domestic flight from Kathmandu to Lukla Airport, but they did not use it, since it was dangerous and flights were frequently delayed or canceled depending on the weather.
Instead of boarding some unreliable light aircraft, Suho led the group up to one of the hotel rooftops that had a helipad. And then,
Fwaaaah—
An octocopter suddenly appeared on the empty helipad.
Chiiiik—
As the door opened, they climbed into the octocopter without anyone needing to go first.
The expressions on the hotel staff watching the scene were quite a sight.
Seeing their eyes, noses, and mouths all gone wide as they stood there dumbfounded, Suho smiled faintly and waved at them.
Tatatatatatatata—
The propellers of the enormous octocopter, which barely seemed to notice the weight of only six people, beat fiercely against the air, and the tents and such around the helipad flapped wildly in the strong wind.
With its eight rotors, Suho’s octocopter had greater stability than a quadcopter or hexacopter and could withstand a much heavier load. It balanced itself and rose smoothly into the sky.
Normally, flying an aircraft of this size would require at least two pilots, but since the octocopter flew autonomously on a fully automated flight system, setting the destination was as simple as touching the desired location.
After flying for a while, the octocopter, with Lukla Village beneath its feet, climbed even higher.
Everyone clung to the windows, busy sightseeing like country bumpkins visiting Seoul for the first time.
“Wow, look over there! Is that a runway?”
“Huh? What kind of tiny runway is that?”
“That’s Lukla Airport. They say it’s the most dangerous airport in the world. You’ll find it if you search.”
“Whoa, seriously... That was an airport? If a plane fails to land, it’s straight to the afterlife. Talk about a thrill ride.”
The higher they climbed, the more overwhelmingly majestic the scenery surrounding them became, enough to make their jaws drop.
At some point, they even forgot to chatter in excitement, all of them too busy pressing themselves against the octocopter’s windows and staring outside.
The higher one went, the thinner the air became and the lower the oxygen concentration dropped, but that had nothing to do with the passengers of the octocopter, which provided an optimal environment.
When an aircraft climbs above a certain altitude, the air density decreases and the oxygen concentration drops. For aircraft that use propellers, the rotors can no longer push enough air to generate sufficient lift, and a lack of thrust and increasing instability are inevitable.
That was why it was common sense not to even think about reaching the summit of Everest in an ordinary helicopter.
But Suho’s octocopter was not an aircraft that relied solely on rotary-wing lift. It was a model equipped on all sides with high-altitude plasma jet engines based on ether generation, making additional performance optimization possible.
There were strong winds, irregular turbulence, and sudden changes in temperature, but the plasma jet engines blasting in every direction dealt smoothly with the wind and turbulence, maintaining balance. Without much difficulty, they reached the summit and brought everyone to the narrow, unstable snow-and-ice zone.
Whoooooong—
At last, the moment they passed over the summit and had the highest land in the world beneath their feet, the entire group fell silent.
The endless vista of snowy mountains spread beneath the clouds was surreal, and the clouds laid out like a carpet under the clear blue sky gave off a mystical feeling.
“Wooooow...”
“Amazing...”
“I don’t even know what to say... It’s breathtaking. Seriously...”
As the group unconsciously let out exclamations, Suho grinned and asked,
“Good thing we came here instead of Switzerland, right?”
“Wow... Seriously, I admit it... We wouldn’t have been able to come here if not for you, Oppa...”
There were hardly any safe places on the summit where the octocopter could land, so he moved it slightly lower, to a place where Suho had once stayed for a short while.
“Hmm, this place is a little iffy too...”
Since there were more people with him now, he had prepared to install a larger modular house than before, but the place where he had previously set up a mobile base was definitely too narrow.
After wandering around the area near the summit for quite some time, he finally settled on a spot.
Shoooooooo—
Beneath the hovering octocopter, Suho measured the distances with a laser rangefinder, then took the modular house out of his subspace and materialized it, installing it.
Among the various lodging models he had made to use for Tower raids, he selected one with extremely high terrain adaptability and specified its location.
That house had a design in which a transparent dome, like the cap of a jellyfish, covered most of the building’s upper section and all sides. With a clear view in every direction, it was the perfect kind of modular house for enjoying the scenery.
The moment the building was placed on the ground, sensors in the frame rapidly scanned the surrounding terrain, and the automatic leveling frame installed underneath moved in perfect order.
Chiiiik— Whiiiiing—
Almost simultaneously, beam cylinders connected to the frame extended one after another. Carefully and precisely, they instantly detected the slope and unevenness of the ground, and each cylinder adjusted to the required length and angle. The jack cylinders at the bottom gripped the rough terrain firmly and slowly lifted the body of the building.
The automatic leveling device detected even the slightest incline through precision tilt sensors built inside, and the way it made tiny real-time adjustments to the cylinder positions with soft chiik, chiik sounds almost made it seem like a living creature.
Once the balancing process, which showed the essence of sophisticated mechanical technology, was complete,
Tushut—! Thunk! Tushushut—! Thunk-thunk-thunk!
Anchors attached to ultra-high-strength carbon-fiber wires fired from frames on all sides, their sharp tips driving precisely into the rock.
The anchors were not made of ordinary metal either, but blacksteel. They pierced the frozen rock like tofu, and after embedding themselves, an internal mechanism activated, spreading out underground and gripping the earth.
In the end, the transparent-dome modular house looked as if it had been firmly fixed to the ground by a giant spiderweb.
At an altitude approaching nine kilometers, strong winds constantly howled and battered the building, but the perfectly balanced structure did not so much as budge.
“Wooooow...”
“Killer...”
“Heeh... Do the Admittees stay in places like that inside the Tower?”
Suho chuckled and manipulated a few things on the octocopter’s screen. The hovering aircraft then moved smoothly to the top of the transparent-dome modular house and began hovering directly above the dome.
Whiiiiing— Swaaaak—
Then, from the underside of the octocopter, a foldable capsule-shaped passage slowly unfolded downward.
Soon, the passage capsule was pressed perfectly against the outer wall of the dome modular house. The moment the end of the passage touched the surface of the dome, the mechanical arms of the automatic locking device moved and held it firmly in place.
Sensors quickly completed a check to confirm the seal, and soft green LED lights turned on inside the passage, guiding the route.
[Safe passage connection complete.]
An announcement sounded from the octocopter’s screen and speakers, and from inside the passage came the faint sound of airflow.
This was also proof that the system for perfectly isolating the interior from the exterior and regulating the oxygen supply, air pressure, and temperature was operating normally.
“All done now. Let’s head down, everyone.”
“H-how...”
“Everyone, follow me.”
With Suho in the lead, one by one, they began descending from the octocopter into the modular house by ladder. Once everyone had finished moving, the aircraft began folding the passage back in with the announcement, [Retrieving safe passage.]
After confirming that the passage had fully detached, Suho sent the hovering octocopter straight into his subspace storage.
The roar from the propellers and plasma jets vanished in an instant, and the surroundings suddenly became quiet. Only the sound of the strong wind could be heard outside.
Inside the modular house, not only was a steady temperature maintained, but the air purification system also perfectly regulated the oxygen concentration.
In the spacious transparent-dome modular house, the group, still not fully adjusted, stood gathered together with dazed expressions, looking around.
“W-what... is all this...”
“What else? A palace above the sky.”
With a shrug, Suho extended a hand and gestured to the facilities inside the dome.
“Take a look around.”
The exterior of the round dome-shaped modular house was designed so that, together with the transparent dome, the entire 360 degrees functioned as an observatory, while the inner, central section was made up of living space.
As soon as they stepped into the central area at Suho’s suggestion, everyone was shocked. The fierce winds and cold air outside were nowhere to be found; inside, the space was cozy, quiet, and warm.
There were lavish bedrooms, a luxurious dining table, spacious shower rooms and bathrooms, and even warm tea and snacks already placed on the table in the inner living room. It was as if it had been fully prepared to receive distinguished guests at any moment.
It felt as though the inside and outside were in separate dimensions.
“Haha... This is the summit of Everest?”
Seongsik let out a hollow laugh.
“Now, what should we do first? As expected, even Everest is best appreciated after a meal, right?”
Since mealtime had long since passed, Suho immediately took ingredients out of storage.
“If you’ve come to the mountains, you have to eat meat. This wagyu is a top-grade limited production. We might be the first people to grill steak on the summit of Everest.”
“...Normally, yeah... Who could light a fire in that wind...”
When Suho took out wine and all sorts of other drinks as well, along with various vegetables and rice, everyone finally rolled up their sleeves and began preparing the meal.
“I’m gonna burst...”
“Buurp...”
After the storm-like meal ended, they lay draped over the sofas with cups of coffee in hand, looking outside beyond the transparent dome as the sun began to set over the summit of Everest.
As the sun lost its brilliance, it painted the entire world in deep gold and red.
The light spreading through the thin atmosphere felt even more vivid and sharp, and the sun, wrapped in a delicate red band, was slowly preparing to disappear below the horizon.
Rustle, rustle—
“Huh? Why are you bringing all the blankets? Are you sleeping out here?”
There were cozy bedrooms in the center of the modular house, but Suji and Narae had gathered up all the blankets from the beds and come out toward the outer wall where the transparent dome windows were.
At Suho’s puzzled expression, Suji spoke as if it were obvious.
“Of course. We came here to see the view, so how could we sleep inside where we can’t see anything? I’m going to sleep here while looking outside. The ceiling’s transparent too, so I bet we’ll be able to see the stars really well.”
“Oh, right. The stars you can see from here are killer too.”
“Really?”
At that, the men also went in and came out carrying blankets on their heads and backs, as if not wanting to be left out.
“I’m sleeping here.”
“I already called dibs on the sofa.”
“Well, I wasn’t planning to sleep anyway...”
Just then, as Jiho crumpled a blanket and pillow into a comfortable shape around his body and buried himself in them, he muttered,
“Yeah, this is the true summit flex.”
“Haha, summit flex... I like that.”
Suho agreed with a smile.
“I-I... I don’t think I’ll ever forget any of this for the rest of my life...”
Seonwoo, Suji’s boyfriend, who had been too astonished countless times since leaving Incheon to say much, finally opened his mouth.
The six of them spent three days and two nights there, eating, drinking, sleeping, and enjoying the scenery to their hearts’ content.
At last, on the day they were to return, Suji seemed especially reluctant as she wriggled under her blanket.
“Ah, we have to leave... We have to go back to that stifling house...”
“Hey, if you say that somewhere else, people are going to curse you out. Anyone listening would think you live in a gosiwon. The view from Elysium Heights is pretty amazing too.”
“Ah... Oppa, don’t you know there’s no end to human satisfaction? I don’t think I’ll be able to be satisfied with that bleak city scenery anymore...”
At Suji’s words, Narae also nodded with a smile.
Just then, Seongsik, who had been lying stretched out on the sofa, sat up and said,
“But, I looked into it a bit, and apparently it doesn’t necessarily have to be here.”
“What do you mean?”
“Mm, so, of course the view from the summit of Everest is a unique result of the topographical environment combined with the atmospheric characteristics that come with the altitude, but what’s just as important is this altitude of 8,848 meters. In other words, at about this altitude, anywhere on Earth—even in Seoul—could provide similar visual characteristics based on elevation. You know, the sky looking deep blue, the things you see when the atmosphere gets thinner.”
“Pfft, no way. In Seoul, where the air’s rotting?”
Seongsik shrugged at Suji’s disbelief.
“Who knows what it’s actually like. Anyway, that’s what the AI said.”
It was just idle chatter among themselves, but to Suho, those words struck like lightning.
“Uh... Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Think of what?”
“That a view like this would be possible above Seoul, too... Of course, over Seoul you wouldn’t see mountain ranges like this, but instead you’d see a vast city and plains. It’d be absolutely incredible.”
“Heh, sure, but hey, Suho, calm down. Even you probably can’t build a building almost nine kilometers tall.”
“A building...? Right, a building that tall would be difficult...”
“That’s why I’m saying it’s only theory.”
As Suho fell deep into thought with a complicated expression, Narae noticed and gave a soft laugh.
“Our boss seems to be coming up with some grand plan again. He always makes that face when he does.”
* * *
After returning to Korea, the place Suho went to look around was the new city construction site.
The site he visited after quite some time, together with General Director Kim Sanghun and the key personnel in charge, had changed to an astonishing degree.
The time-consuming land clearing and leveling, road construction, power supply system and communications infrastructure, water pipe network, sewage and drainage systems had all been put in place, and he had seen the buildings begin to rise in earnest before he had last visited. Now, the outline of the entire city slowly taking shape was visible.
On both sides of the roads, sidewalks, bicycle lanes, and newly planted trees stood in orderly rows, and even the neatly installed streetlights alone made it feel as if the city had taken form.
In the new city, where buildings were rising simultaneously here and there, completed districts and districts still under construction contrasted with one another all over the place, and in some areas, EVTOLs were even moving about.
“How much longer do you think the remaining construction will take?”
At Suho’s question, architect Choe Yeongmin showed him the screen of his tablet.
“First, we estimated about three years for site preparation, and about five years for infrastructure such as roads and transportation networks, power and communications networks, and environmental facilities like water and sewage. In other words, that eight years’ worth of construction was actually finished in a year and a half. It was thanks to your active assistance, Suho-nim. It’s an absurd reduction in time.”
“Oh...”
“What remains now is the construction of the major buildings related to residential, commercial, and public facilities. Altogether, we’re looking at another four to five years.”
“Four to five years?”
Four or five years... It truly felt distant.
But the architect’s expression was firm.
“Yes. In fact, even that is on the shorter side. If we include all the details like city landscaping, road signs, and signal system installation, we’d have to estimate much longer. Four to five years is the shortened estimate.”
“I see... Well, that much... Still, it definitely feels like the outline of the city is visible now.”
“Haha, that’s right. The days when it just looked like mountains and fields are completely over now.”
It was hard to believe that all of this was a city Suho himself was creating with his own money.
So this was what real-life SimCity was like, not SimCity on a monitor—so grand.
Of course, he had built a city on an artificial island like Bigyeongdo as well, but that was truly a mini-city. Comparing that city to this one in terms of scale felt almost unfair.
Imagining what the new city would look like once completed, Suho let out an exclamation of admiration without realizing it.
Afterward, he encouraged all the site personnel, handed out bonuses, and left the site.
* * *
“Floating stones that resist gravity?”
Rabi tilted his head.
“Yeah, you know. Among the minerals in space. There are quite a few that have anti-gravity properties.”
“Of course there are. Would you like to receive those?”
“Yeah. Give me 100 resources’ worth—no, make it 1,000 resources’ worth.”
“Understood. As an item worth 1,000 resources, ten quintillion tons of Floating Stone (浮遊石) have been granted. Would you like to confirm?”
“Ooh... No, no need to confirm.”
“What are you going to do with that many floating stones? Are you planning to make a sky island now?”
What the hell? This dragon definitely had a mind-reading skill.
“That’s right. A sky island. After an artificial island, I’m going to try making a sky island.”
“Hmm, now that you mention it, I haven’t seen a single sky island on Earth yet. In fact, sky islands are extremely common throughout the universe. Almost every decent planet has sky islands floating around as a matter of course, and on some planets, there are even more sky islands than land. Anyway, that’s why they’re cheap.”
“Of course... Earth doesn’t have any. Not in the past, not now. Things like that only existed in stories. Anyway, hehehe...!”
Suho was barely managing to contain an excitement far more thrilling than when he had made the artificial island in the East Sea.
A sky island—a floating island in the sky. Wasn’t it an astonishing idea, thrilling just to think about?
But Rabi, who had no way of knowing how Suho felt, struck him head-on in his usual indifferent expression.
“However, though I’m sure you’ve considered it sufficiently, a sky island isn’t something you can create just by floating a chunk of floating stone in the air.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I mean that, considering the laws of physics that apply to this Earth, there are many things that must be taken into account.”
Rabi shrugged his small shoulders and fluttered his wings.
“First of all, if a massive object with anti-gravity properties floats in the sky, various problems will arise in gravitational and physical interactions. To begin with, there will be gravitational imbalance caused by distortion of the gravitational field, and because of the altered gravitational imbalance, it may negatively affect people’s health, especially the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems. Also, as gravitational concentration phenomena occur in specific areas, increased pressure may be exerted on buildings or the ground surface beneath the sky island, and in the long term, this could cause problems such as land subsidence or building collapse. In addition, even setting aside radio and communications interference or aviation hazards, it will affect atmospheric circulation and weather. And because Earth rotates and revolves, if the mass of floating stone cannot maintain a fixed orbit, it will easily drift away from its designated position... And...”
“Whoa... Why, why is it so complicated... No, in all the media I’ve seen until now...”
“They were cartoons, weren’t they?”
Along with Suho’s face sinking into despair, Rabi’s expression, which had seemed indifferent, gradually changed by the moment into one of disbelief and exasperation.