Twenty years had passed since the jet-black towers first rose.
Smooth cylindrical shapes, painted black on the exterior. They were tall, yes, but their scale was on another level entirely from ordinary high-rise buildings—truly colossal structures.
One to three of them stood in every nation of the world.
South Korea had one.
Its location: a remote hillside in Hwacheon, Gangwon Province.
When the towers first appeared out of nowhere overnight, the armies of every nation mobilized to identify what they were, while scientists and the media swarmed in.
But no one could get close to a tower.
They were visible, yet physically inaccessible.
It was as if the towers refused human entry.
The same held true from the sky.
What on earth were those things?
Why had they appeared?
No one knew—not until the Players appeared.
The facts that became known once they appeared:
The towers existed to be climbed.
By whom?
The Players, naturally.
Those who had earned the qualification to enter the towers.
The number of Players relative to the total population was estimated at 0.01% to 0.02%.
Out of 7 billion people worldwide, roughly 700,000 to 1.5 million.
In South Korea, roughly 5,000 to 10,000 out of a population of 50 million.
Only Players could defy the constraints of time and space, entering and exiting the towers whenever and wherever they pleased.
And when they entered the towers?
They carried out the missions assigned on each floor.
Climbing the tower was like a game.
Inside, Players climbed the tower by completing perilous missions using their powerful abilities and skills.
By default, Players were independent.
Parties or cooperative climbs were impossible.
The towers were designed to prevent them entirely.
Even if two Players performed the same mission on the same floor, they existed in separate phases.
Players never encountered one another inside.
Alone, without anyone's help.
A single Player held the fate of a nation in their hands.
Succeed in a mission, and you received a reward.
In the real world, no less.
The magic stones they brought back had become an indispensable resource in modern industry.
The rewards grew larger the higher you climbed.
But no one knew how many floors the towers actually had.
The highest-climbing nation was the United States, which possessed two towers, had reached floor 66, and had successfully cleared floor 66 in both.
Korea's climbing pace was also quite respectable. They had reached floor 65.
A difference of one floor from the US.
Then why climb at all?
Was there really a need to keep going up?
It wasn't just about the rewards.
If the uncleared upper floors weren't climbed, the tower would collapse.
The time limit was roughly six months.
Within that window, some Player had to ascend to the uncleared upper floors.
And if the upper floors weren't renewed?
[Notice: The Black Tower climb of Nation △△ is falling behind.]
[Notice: The tower collapse countdown has been activated.]
[Notice: The countdown will stop upon successful clearance of the uncleared upper floor.]
And finally:
[Notice: The Black Tower of Nation △△ is collapsing.]
The collapse of a tower.
An enormous catastrophe.
It wasn't just the tower that fell.
The ground of the entire city where the tower stood would split open, magma would erupt, massive sinkholes would form everywhere, and an entire city would vanish. Three years ago, that was what happened to India.
India had three towers.
New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai.
Among them, the Mumbai Black Tower climb stalled at floor 43, and after about 180 days, the disaster struck.
Over ten million people died, and Mumbai became a vanished city.
And it didn't end with one city disappearing.
A new tower rose in Chennai, India.
So India's Black Towers still numbered three.
Collapse, then creation anew.
Thus, tower climbing became a matter that national governments handled directly.
Nations established and managed dedicated 'Elite Tower Climbing Teams.'
There wasn't much a nation could do about tower climbing—supplying items that could be brought inside the tower, looking after the Players' mental well-being, or gathering and providing strategy information.
After all, only Players could enter the tower.
Outside, they were ordinary citizens, so they needed personal protection as well.
Players also had a clearance deadline. If they didn't enter the tower for more than three months, their qualification was revoked.
That was why nations were desperate to secure and manage talented Players. ※ ※ ※ Bong Juhyeok returned home after finishing his shift at the meat restaurant.
He had told them in advance that he'd be taking the next day off.
He'd also called the convenience store owner.
'Let's try entering the tower.'
Just dipping a toe in.
If it got too much, I can just spit it out.
And if I do nothing for three months, it'll simply pass by as nothing.
[Universal Skill]: Tower Entry (once per day) / Tower-exclusive Inventory
He'd already made up his mind, so he'd get it done now.
He had researched in advance what the first floor was like.
The mission was monster subjugation.
Their defense was quite high, but they had next to no attack power.
Just beat them down and done.
They were tough and hard to kill, but still.
"Alright, then—"
Wait!
A thought suddenly occurred to him.
Should he summon the insane assassin, John Kosak?
Wasn't there a slightly better option?
Summoning someone other than Kosak—someone with their head screwed on straight.
Who knows?
Maybe he'd land a Legend Special Super Rare grade.
Good.
Let's try it, then worry about it.
One more random summon.
But—
[Random Summon is unavailable.]
[Random Summon cooldown remaining: 28 days, 11 hours, 8 minutes, 37 seconds.]
'...There was a cooldown?'
Presumably about a month.
Designated summon for Kosak was only 3 hours.
That made sense.
It didn't cost any resources, after all. Without a cooldown, you could keep pulling over and over until you got a good grade.
Fine, let's just call Kosak.
SR, Super Rare, was a pretty excellent grade, wasn't it?
He wouldn't know I tried to summon someone else, right?
I hope he doesn't find out.
In that case—
"Designated Summon: John Kosak!"
Whoosh! Pop!
Once again, a message appeared asking him to rate satisfaction.
[Please rate John Kosak's satisfaction before the designated summon.]
Out of guilt, a perfect 5 out of 5.
[John Kosak has been designated-summoned.]
"Summoner Bong, thank you for the 5 points, sir! At your service! Just give the word."
Ahhhh!
So this guy could be this respectful.
"I've decided. Let's enter the tower."
"Ooooh! Already? So brave, sir! ...Ah, no, cancel what I just said. You mustn't be brave, sir."
"Don't worry. I'm just planning to get a taste and get out."
"As wise as ever, sir. Once you're inside the tower, don't lift a single finger. I'll drive you comfortably and safely."
John Kosak rubbed his palms together, groveling shamelessly.
Juhyeok nodded, satisfied.
He won't find out, right?
That just moments ago, I tried to summon someone else.
Sorry if you do.
"In that case—"
"Designated Summon: John Kosak!"
Whoosh! Pop!
This time, a message prompting a satisfaction rating appeared again.
[Please rate John Kosak's satisfaction before the designated summon.]
Feeling guilty, he gave it a 5 out of 5.
[John Kosak has been designated-summoned.]
"Summoner Bong, thank you for the 5 stars, sir! At your service! Just give the order."
Ahhhh!
To think he could be this deferential.
"I've decided. Let's enter the tower."
"Ooooh! Already? How brave of you, sir! ...Ah, no, retracting that. You mustn't be brave, sir."
"Don't worry. I'm just going to have a taste and pull out."
"As expected of a brilliant mind, sir. Once you're inside the tower, don't lift a single finger. I'll chauffeur you in comfort and safety."
John Kosak rubbed his palms together, fawning.
Juhyeok nodded, satisfied.
He won't find out, right?
That just a moment ago, he'd tried to summon someone else.
It would be a shame if he did.
"Shall we go? Oh, right! You can enter together with me here, yes?"
"Heavens, I'm coming with you no matter what. I am Summoner Bong's tool and hunting dog. Hehe."
Is that so?
Well then—
Tower entry.
The current time was 11 PM.
The entry cooldown was based on a daily cycle.
In other words, even if he entered now, once an hour passed and it hit midnight, he could enter again.
But was there any need to be that diligent?
[Do you wish to enter the South Korean Black Tower?]
[The current floor available for entry is Floor 1.]
Naturally—
"Floor 1."
Flash!
From Bong Juhyeok's studio apartment—
he and John Kosak vanished simultaneously. ※ ※ ※ [Entering the South Korean Black Tower, Floor 1.]
He was finally inside.
At the same time, system messages streamed up one after another.
[Physical abilities have been enhanced according to your level.]
[Traits and combat skills are now available.]
Automatic physical enhancement—he did feel slightly, subtly stronger.
Even if he was only Level 1.
"We're moving. Please follow me, sir."
The entrance was a safe zone.
To receive a mission, they had to go deeper inside.
Then, once a mission appeared, the climb would begin.
Ding!
[Floor 1 Mission: Defeat 5 Tough-Hide Chubby Grubs.]
[Time Limit: Within 2 hours.]
[Completion Condition: Tough-Hide Chubby Grubs 0/5]
[Failure Condition: Death or mission abandonment.]
The mission was a simple monster subjugation.
But for Juhyeok, nothing about it was simple.
'Haaah,'
his worries weighed like a mountain.
Catch grubs?
A barren wasteland without a single blade of grass.
Grubs crawling sluggishly here and there.
Each one was the size of a dog kept indoors.
He couldn't even tell which end was the front.
No limbs, no eyes, nose, or mouth.
Which meant they had zero means of attack.
In exchange, though—
'their hides are tough, apparently.'
Meaning they weren't easy to kill.
And that was true.
According to other Players' experiences, one grub per thirty minutes at best.
Some Players even fumbled around and failed the mission entirely.
Well, failing didn't kill you, at least.
Floor 1 was a place to test your skills.
The Tough-Hide Chubby Grubs crawling over there were essentially scarecrows.
Could Mr. Kosak handle it?
Generally, Players with summoner traits shared levels with their summons (?)
If Juhyeok was Level 1, John Kosak would be Level 1 too.
But since Kosak was marked with a grade instead of a level, maybe it worked differently.
"You know the Floor 1 mission, yes?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Then let's go."
"At your service! Awaiting your orders, sir."
Zip!
Kosak vanished from the spot.
"Huh?"
Where did he go?
In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of a grub.
"Blade Burst."
He hurled a dagger glowing red-hot.
Shing!
Thwuck!
BOOM!
The Tough-Hide Chubby Grub burst apart.
"...Wow."
That easily?
One down, for starters.
"I'll finish this quickly, sir."
The skill John Kosak wielded.
Once it lodged in a grub's body, it detonated on the spot.
Shing! Thwuck! BOOM! Shing! Thwuck! BOOM! Shing! Thwuck! BOOM...
Two, three, four... and the fifth and final one.
[Tough-Hide Chubby Grubs slain 5/5]
[You have successfully cleared the Floor 1 mission.]
[You have leveled up.]
[Reward: Magic Stone 100g]
And then—
[Notice: You have achieved a clearance grade of S++ for Floor 1 of the Black Tower (South Korea).]
[S++ Clearance Reward: A Platinum Badge has been awarded.]
'...What is this,'
that was a speedrun.
He was definitely not Level 1 material.
And an S++ clearance grade.
They even graded clearances?
'Must be a good thing.'
Whatever it was, it was surely something impressive.
Hence two rewards.
Usually you only got the magic stone.
'A Platinum Badge, huh...'
What was it used for?
Seemed to be given for achieving an S++ clearance grade.
[You may now challenge Floor 2.]
[Exiting the South Korean Black Tower.]
Zip!
The environment changed in an instant.
It was Juhyeok's studio apartment.
'I'm home?'
He'd already completed the mission and returned?
'How long was I in there?'
He'd entered at 11.
But it was now 11:03.
Only 3 minutes had passed.
Reading the messages on Floor 1 had taken about 1 minute.
Moving to the mission area had taken about 1 minute.
And the actual time spent killing the grubs was... 1 minute, or probably not even that.
"Thank you for your hard work, sir. Hehe."
John Kosak beamed brightly.
"I didn't do anything, just stood there."
"That's exactly what you did well, sir."
"...".
Is this a dream?
Shing! Thwuck! BOOM!—and then, zip!—and he was back.
'This really is easy, isn't it?'
His status window showed [Level]: 2LV.
He'd heard that by the time others finished, they were beating grubs half to death and utterly exhausted.
Let's check whether the rewards came in.
The tower-exclusive inventory.
It worked outside the tower too.
However, only rewards received from the tower could be stored in and taken out of it; nothing else could go in.
'...It's here.'
Magic Stone 100g.
And the Platinum Badge as well.
It was a real, physical badge.
'Am I supposed to wear this on my chest?'
How embarrassing would that be.
He took the magic stone out.
A gleaming stone fragment about the size of a fingernail.
100g was worth about 50,000 won at current market prices.
That was because the price of magic stones kept dropping by the day.
In the early days, they'd been quite expensive.
That is, when humanity first got its hands on the things called magic stones.
Now the market was flooded with them.
'The first clearers must have made a fortune.'
He'd heard each tower had a first-clearance system.
Players who completed a floor's mission first received rewards multiplied by 10, or as much as 50 times.
And the rewards weren't just magic stones, either.
Clear missions on floors 30 and above, and otherworldly items came pouring out one after another.
'Still, I made 50,000 won.'
In just 3 minutes, no less.
Grinning dumbly, light glinted off Kosak's face beside him.
"Shall we grab a late-night snack? What do you like?"
"I'll eat anything happily, sir."
"How about jokbal?"
"...S-spicy jokbal, perhaps?"
"No, garlic jokbal."
"Garlic is... s-spicy too."
He was a hopelessly spice-intolerant wimp.
"Then I'll order regular front-leg jokbal."
"Ehehehe, I'll eat well, sir. I am deeply grateful for your kindness."
Gratitude over jokbal? Really.
"By the way, Kosak."
"Yes, sir!"
"Is that how you normally talk?"
"Which part do you mean, sir?"
"Well, the ~simda, ~imda endings. You cut them off too much."
"Th-that's because I spent so long with my previous Summoner..."
Aha.
So it was like an ex-boyfriend's influence, in a way?
In this case, an ex-Summoner's, I suppose.
"If it displeases your ears, I shall correct it, sir."
"No, it's actually growing on me. Hahahaha!"
"Heheheheh!"
In any case, one thing was certain.
'This is doable.'
Not the least bit dangerous.
Even if it was only Floor 1. ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────