I was just the typical product-of-society office worker, living off minimum wage, with a 9-to-5 job. The repetition of daily beat downs by my boss or constantly being the target of workplace gossip was getting tiring. At some point, the monotony became unbearable to the point that I could barely get out of my bed in the morning. The stress that I endured daily was only let off after I came home.
All young boys and girls fantasize about a pure romance with the person of their dreams. This was something that I had hoped for and remained the center of my life even as I grew older. Yet, overtime, I began to realize that this dream was unachievable, so I began to absorb myself into novels. It served not only as an escape from my job, but I had felt that it turned me into something that I was not, something better. Despite me reading many, the only novels I read spoke of a beautiful woman who was naive and was unable to protect herself so she let handsome men take care of her instead.
It was that very night, after I had finished rereading my favorite novel for the third time before the final chapter came out, that I had died.
I was walking from my apartment to the convenience store across the street to pick up my favorite instant ramen for dinner. I donned a dark grey jumper, yet still I could feel my hands as they seemed to turn into small icicles. I passed the same small restaurant adjacent to my broken down complex to reach the crosswalk. I waited, as cars passed by, for the light to switch to that white silhouette of a man that told me that the road was safe for me to enter. Finally it switched, and I started walking looking down at the ground as to not meet others eyes, like I had done something shameful. Then I was blessed with extreme luck, there, on the ground, lay a $100 bill laying on the street. I bent my stiff knees and eagerly grabbed that dark green piece of paper that, for some reason, meant so much to me. I thought that it was my lucky day. The universe was finally paying me back for all the trials and tribulations that it put me through, but I was wrong.
Suddenly, I could see bright white lights creeping quickly towards me, so quick that I could only see what it was right before the impact. My weak body was no match for the large transportation bus that would not let anything slow down its path. My body shot away from where I had previously knelt and it felt as if my soul had been left behind, but I knew very well that it hadn't. I wished it had left, at least then I would not have felt every bone in my body fracturing into tiny pieces. In that cold weather, I began to warm up from the blood that seeped out from unknown parts of my body like it had to get somewhere.
That situation seemed ironic in a way. I was the woman who needed saving, but still no handsome man, or person at all, had pulled me out of the agony that I was in. It was nothing like the novels I had read, or maybe it was because I wasn't pretty that no one saved me.
In that moment of sorrow, still I was angry. Not angry at myself, but upset that I could not read the final chapter of that novel. As I took in my last breath, I murmured my final words, "Now who is going to tell me what happens in the final floor?"
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My consciousness seemed to idle in a world of complete darkness for what seemed like ages. Even as I tried to scream, there would be no answer and even as I tried to peel my eyes open, no light could be seen. I thought that I was dead, finally. I was constantly overwhelmed with feelings of loneliness, even though I never had any friends or family when I was living, still the people in the streets made me feel that I was not alone. Yet, it was not sad. It was the one place where nothing I did matter, it was like I was sleeping, yet I did not dream. It was the only moment that I had truly felt at peace.
All of a sudden, the darkness shifted to a blood red color and I felt the same sensation of warmness that I had felt as I had died engulf my body. Once again I felt that I had arms, legs, feet fingers, what a beautiful sensation often taken for-granted. I slowly tried to wiggle my fingers as if I was Mozart composing music on a piano. Then came my toes which moved as well, but they did not move with the same grace as my fingers did. I was hesitant for a moment to open my eyes after so long. I was worried that I would be disappointed that I was still living. I decided to sit up first and then open my eyes, but when I used my strength, I still was unable to move. I was being held in something or by someone. I quickly peeled open my eyes to see what situation I ws in.
I could see smoke emanating from a warm fire. The light painted beautiful shades of yellow and red on the seemingly cold stone walls. The room was the size of any classroom that I had grown up in, yet the stone walls indicated that it was part of a large cave. From the position that I was in, there was no indication of an opening in the room that could be used to get in or get out. Slowly, I harnessed my maximum strength to shift my body around to see what was holding my limbs. As I saw what was behind me I quickly used all my might and pushed it away, and scurried to the opposite side of the room.
I was being held by some creature, not a human, but something else. The creature resembled a dragon or a dinosaur with a long body and a distinctive face, but that would be impossible because neither of those things resided in Tokyo especially in the 21st century. It was clearly still breathing, but it was muffled and I could see blood dripping down its body flowing out of a large incision along its spine. The blood that was dripping was different from the typical red, it instead was a dark blue like the depths of an ocean or the sky as it shifts from night to day.
I assumed that I must have been in a dream. I had heard that some people have odd dreams after they experience extreme trauma, maybe that was it. I must have been so badly hurt that my body fell into a coma.
This new thought seemed to momentarily turn off the switch for all the fear that had piled up within the previous minutes.
I looked around the room once again and noticed that behind the creature was a small opening in the cavern that was partially obstructed by the body. I realized that I would have to pass the creature once again to get out of this place I was stuck in.
I took only a few minutes to think of my plan, when I felt that familiar warm sensation again. And something trickled into my eye, stinging it. I wiped my forehead, then held my hand in front of my face only to see a stain of crimson blood covering it. I was frantic, but ,glancing back at the creature, I could see dried blood on its claws. Fuck, it got me. I began to feel light headed, and I knew that the only way to survival would be out that tiny passage.
I went back to staring at the fire in contemplation of my next move. That is when I saw a long sharp metal rod laying in the ashes under the fire. The metal had turned a bright white indicating the extreme temperature that the fire had put into it. That same moment, I saw the creature's reptilian foot begin to move. I quickly turned my face to that mysterious "thing," and I watched it as its eyes peeled open like I had just previously done. It stared directly into my eyes and I could feel an extreme pressure exuded by it. In the moment, I felt possessed by something, then I rushed to the fire and firmly grasped the metal rod. I screamed as the metal burned my hands turning my skin into ashes in an instant, but I continued to endure. I gathered all my strength then threw my arms behind my head and struck the creature in the spine where its previous cut was. I could smell the burning of the flesh and hear the cries of the monster. The dragon roared in undeniable anger and it curried enough strength to begin to try and shake me off. The head of it turned around widening its mouth as if to bite me once again. I threw my hands up again, yet this time I dug deeper into the dragon's body cavity. I could feel the push back as I tore through the layers of its body. The final struggles of the monster began to subside and its breathing had stopped. Immediately after I could hear it take its last breath, a blue screen appeared in front of my face.
Congratulations on defeating the Great Dragon, Ruler of the Eight Worlds. What was going on? What was this notification? It was just like a scene in a novel, where the male lead had finally defeated a monster and was gaining the skills. Then more screens began to pop up...
Title gained: Dragon Slayer
This title is given as a result of defeating the Great Dragon, Ruler of the Eight Worlds who was able to complete all floors until Floor 98. Grants an additional boost of 100% to all stats. Associated with "Control" skill which exudes a great pressure on enemies that makes stats 10% lowered for 10 minutes (Proficiency 0%). Associated with "Eternal Beast Body" skill which grants the user a reinforced body with heightened senses along with greater defense (Proficiency 0%). This skills associated benefits are temporarily locked and will be revealed as proficiency level increases.
Title gained: 1st Tower Ascender
This title is given to the human who was accidentally relocated to Floor 13 of the tower before the opening of the tower on their home planet. Associated quest: Complete floors 14 through 60 of the Tower before other humans are able to climb to Floor 13. Associated with "Trailblazer" skill which gains additionally rewards and has a 100% likelihood of gaining a rare artifact from completing a level or finding hidden chests. As new accomplishments are achieved skill will produce better rewards and generate higher rankings (Proficiency 0%).
Artifact gained: Dragon's Eyes
The eyes of the dragon, Ruler of Eight Worlds, grants the user the ability to see the mana flow of the world. Additional skill granted for the 1st Tower Ascender: the user is able to use the memories of the Dragon at their will to navigate through the tower.
Artifact gained: Dragon's Mana
All the mana that had been circulating through the Great Dragon has been greatly condensed and is turned into a consumable item to be used only by those with the "Eternal Beast Body" and gives an unlimited supply of mana from the immortal. This consumable is slowly used as proficiency increases and level increases so the body does not explode as a result.
Artifact gained: Dragon's Treasury
An artifact that was passed down from generations within the Dragon family that has held the belongings of the Great Dragon for the entirety of its life. The space inside the Treasury can be accessed by teleportation runes engrained within and contains 100 hectares of land. Space inside artifact increases as user's level increases.
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Chapter 2: Isn't This Just a Dream
The "skills" and "titles" that the blue screens promised me had enamored my brain for a few minutes while I was scrolling through them. This scene reminded me of the novel that I had read before I was hit by the car.
"The Princess is Escorted to Heaven" was a novel that was centered around a beautiful woman with flowing white hair, fair skin, and beautiful red eyes. She was thrown into the slave trade from her birth as her own mother was a slave. Once her mother died, the slave traders kept her within a cage and took her everywhere they went. When they were going traveling through the mountains, they were attacked by a pack of buffalo-sized wolves and the cage was knocked over and it broke. It allowed the girl who was only 14 at that time escape and she climbed into a cave. That cave was the same as the one that I was in, but instead of her killing the dragon that laid within, she was saved by the male leads who were residents of the 13th floor who made money by climbing the floors of the tower. The trauma she endured made her dumb, but the group of male leads kept her along with them because of her dazzling looks.
The men seemed like they were saving her by taking her to the 50th floor where people claimed it to be heaven to cure her of dumbness. The men endured many trials and tribulations that occurred in order to achieve their fantasy, but when they reached the 50th floor and she was able to gain back some sense she swiftly killed herself. The story did not end this way, as the men realized that the 50th floor was not the final floor so they continued to climb and eventually used their prizes to revive her. Instead of reviving the girl that they had saved from slave labor, they had revived a young girl from another world who fell in love with all of them. The story continued with more death and destruction which allowed the men to get stronger and once they finally climbed to the 70th tower which was a true city, or safe haven to other Challengers, the men left her for other women as they had gotten tired.
The whole story was glorified by the writer and many of the readers saw this story so destructive to the idea of relationships and love that they ended up forgetting it or stopping it, but not me. I was so involved with the story of the Challengers and I thought the strength of both woman enduring these trials for love was such a deep story that truly reflected society, so I continued on.
The cave, the dragon, the notifications. I looked around for more similarities to the story that I had obsessed over. When walking around the small cave, I looked into a pool of blood that had spilled from the corpse of the dragon. Looking back at me was a young girl who had skin like snow and enchanting red eyes. As I leaned over further to get a better look, thick white hair swayed in front of my face dragging its tips through the puddle. These characteristics where like a mouse that had been kept in the dark for too long, a symbol that reflected that the person was a slave. And that person was me.
I was almost too elated at realizing that I got to dream of this story, while getting paid-leave by the company I worked for who stated that it was provided if an employee ever endured an extreme injury. What I failed to realize until a long time after was that this world was not just the world that was written in the book, but it was real.
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Chapter 3: My Eyes!
I had spent what seemed to be ages in the cave, contemplating my situation and what could possibly lie outside the cave.
When looking at the artifacts that I had obtained from "slaying" the dragon I gravitated to the "Dragon's Eyes." The artifact generated something similar to a passive skill that could be used all the time, but the problem was that I had no idea how to use it.
Are you confused? Another screen popped up.
"I mean, I guess I am a little confused," I said aimlessly.
I can help you.
"Could you tell me how to use the 'Dragon's Eyes' skill?"
First, take out the artifact from the storage.
"Okay," Another blue window appeared again, that resembled a "Status Page." Players often used the Status Page to track their progress and strength while climbing the tower. A normal player starts off with very low stats and the number progressively increases as they gain experience or complete challenges. Stats can also be increased by equipping artifacts.
Name: Jung Ji-ah
Level: 23
Title: Dragon Slayer, 1st Tower Ascender
HP: 3700/3700
MP: ∞/∞
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Strength: 61
Intelligence: 34
Agility: 52
Sense: 41
Magic Power: XX
Having such large stat points already was already unexpected. Typically a ranker that had been climbing for 10-15 years was only at level 20, but for this character to have such a large level and additional points was unheard of. I was even more confused to see that the magic power was unable to measured that it was so great, most likely because of the skill gained from the dragon. In the world of the story this would have been on par with Sunwoo's—the male lead— stats at this point, but, assuming that I was in a dream, it did not seem that odd.
"I have it open," I then said.
Good, now look to the right. There is a tab that says PLAYER. Click on the tab.
When I opened the tab, there was a full body image of the character from the story I read. I could see what I was wearing. There were arrows pointing to various places on my body indicating what equipment I could use.
Now click on your eyes.
I clicked on my eyes ready to see a slot where I could put the dragon eyes, but it said that eyes were already in use and I would have to unequip them before putting new ones in.
"How do I unequip my eyes?"
You have to take them out.
"You expect me to rip them out with my own hands?! Are you insane?" I knew this was a dream, but I still felt pain from when the dragon had hit me earlier and I was not willing to endure that sort of pain again.
As soon as you put the new eyes in it won't hurt. The Dragon Eyes give you the ability to adjust your senses, so you can just numb that sense and use the magic to heal yourself. Just do it fast and then you will be fine.
This dream was too real, but it still was a dream. I had a weird feeling that I would be in this dream for a long time, so I felt an obligation to follow the advice of the blue screen.
I took the dragon eyes out of my storage and placed it in my lap. I then slowly raised both of my hands to my eyes and hesitated for a moment.
Did you plan on getting out of here anytime soon? This is hilarious.
"Shut up! I am going to do it." The blue screen was getting so annoying that I dug my fingers deep into my eyes and pulled them out. I could feel the tendons behind my eye stretching, but they would not break and I had to pull faster to rip the muscles holding them in. I threw the eyes across the room and I swiftly grabbed the dragon eyes on my lap and held them close to my eyes. My consciousness was fading as the blood continued to poor out. That was when I realized that I did not know what to do after taking out my eyes.
"Wait, what do I do now!" I yelled desperately, but there was no response. Thats when I remembered that the advice only came in text boxes, that I could not see right now because I did not even have eyes.
"Shit." I felt stupid and useless. I tugged at the bottom of my dress ripping off a large strip long enough to tie around my gushing wound. I knew that the fabric was dirty, but I had to do something to slow it down.
Well, this dream was going to end soon then, but it didn't. I still felt the pain and it was getting worse by the moment. I remembered what the text said. That I could heal the wound with my magic, but I didn't know how to use it either.
"How did they do it in the story?" I asked myself. If only I could think back to the story and how they could control mana. That was it... think. Many used spells from books or artifacts, but Necroma told Sunwoo on the 65th floor was that, if you focused your thoughts enough, you could control the flow of mana. It was the principle of spells, but the specific words used had power within them that controlled the mana into what the caster wanted to do, defeating the problem that many mages had of not being able to keep their spell casting rate up to the speed of play making it an undesirable class.
So I focused. I sat there for months on months trying to sense the flow of mana around me to lead it into my eyes. The blood leaking out of my eyes had already stopped flowing and had scabbed around the fabric around my head. By now, I had almost finished eating the dragon which was my only source of food. The fire had stayed lit throughout the duration of my stay within the cave, which dumbfounded me, but it was a dream so it seemed reasonable. Every now and again, when I was hungry, I would roast chunks of dragon meat to satisfy my hunger.
One day, when I was roasting my final chunk of meat, I began to feel something. I was almost like a river that when through the cave and felt as if it moved through the walls. As I reached out to touch it, I saw a blue ripple that was that river, but still I had no eyes. I had finally found it. Mana.
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Chapter 4: Mana
I began to study everything in the cave. How mana had reflected or entered the object, and what color the mana was. That is when I realized that every item had its own unique mana signature.
All of a sudden, the world began to light up, I could see again. It seemed brighter and I knew it was different, I was not seeing through my eyes. The PLAYER tab was still up, so I clicked on my eyes.
Equip Dragon Eyes: YES or NO
"Yes!" I screamed.
I felt something growing on my face. I cried out because the pain was excruciating, more so than when I had ripped my own eyes out. I fell onto my hands and knees, not knowing what was going on I grabbed the mana path and pored it onto my eyes, like spraying water from a hose. The pain subsided in my head and I began to relax.
I had slept for a while and then I finally woke up. My eyes instinctively opened up, but I was not prepared to look out again after such a long time being in the dark. It was the first time that I had actually been able to see the fire that had been with me for my journey. I almost felt an attachment to the fire now and did not want to leave it to die alone in the cave.
"I just want to take you with me!" I screamed to it, through the first tears I had since I lost my eyes, as if I thought it would answer me back.
Eternal Flame would like to form a bond with you. Do you accept? YES or NO
I stood astonished. What the fuck was going on? Was the fire actually alive this entire time? This entire dream seems to just spiral on forever, so they only thing I could do was press "YES."
Bond with Eternal Flame has been established. Associated with "Flame Master" title giving additional 50 points for fire affinity. Associated with "Manipulator" skill which allows user to control properties of the fire and allows it to control any type of flame that exist within all worlds.
Would you like to read the 154 unread notifications? YES or NO
I assumed that the notifications were useless and just telling me the weather or time, so I pressed "YES." All of a sudden I was flooded with countless screens.
Eternal Beast Body Proficiency Increased (Proficiency 64%)
The body is beginning to emit an ancient power that allows for the user to gain strength faster and gives a boost to all stats.
Trailblazer Proficiency Increased (Proficiency 12.4%)
Amount of Leava given increases by 110%. Currently at 13,200,000 Leava for Floor 13.
New Skill: Pain Tolerance
You will be able to tolerate large amounts of pain better and will be less effected by attacks. This skill also gives a boost to strength stats and increases weight by 15%. As user continues to experience more pain the proficiency will increase (Proficiency 13.6%)
New Skill....
New Artifact...
The list continued on and I could feel my body change quickly. I knew that this strength right now was enough and I could finally leave the room, so I opened Dragon's Treasury and stored the remains of the body.
I crawled through the passage in the cave. The passage was filled with sharp rocks that would pierce my skin as I crawled, but I felt my skin quickly closing after they were cut open. I felt almost invincible at that moment. I had changed so much from when I would just bath in the sorrow because of my 9 to 5 job. I did not want to leave this place, I was strong and I did not need someone to save me.
Finally, I could fell cold snow bite at my finger tips as I pulled myself out. A breeze brushed my face like it was trying to help me out of the hole I was stuck in. I dragged myself through a thick set of trees painted with white snow towards a sparkling lake that looked like it had been frozen over for a thousand years. Hesitantly, I peered into the ice, looking for my reflection like the thick ice had became my mirror.
It was almost shocking to see my new and improved appearance. Despite the raggedy clothes that draped over me, barely covering my arms and legs, my features imitated a princess from stories that we're told. My skin was as white as the snow that blanketed the earth around me. The blue clouded sky reflected of the shine from my blue-white hair like the hair of a new born snow fox, who has yet to run through the mud of the spring. I reached up slowly, wrapping my hands around each part of my body as if to check if it was real or just an illusion. My once bone-y hands have become slightly plumper and my chest had become fuller.
"I have never had this before," I chuckled slightly as I stared down. I had become something so different from before; so beautiful, but untouched. My eyes traced back towards my face and I was caught by my eyes. It was clear that I was the woman from the novel as my eyes were as red as a ruby, but they seemed to have lost their shine. The windows to my soul had become representative of me, although I was trapped in this dream of mine, still I was scarred from the real world. I think so was Jung Ji-ah, or, I guess, me now.
I turned around quickly after breaking the trance with myself and a notification popped up again.
Boss Defeated. Would you like to proceed to Floor 14 Waiting Room? YES or NO
When you proceed you will receive the rewards for completion, along with World First Clear rewards and Leava Record rewards. World First Clear is given to the first person to clear a floor from their home world. Leava Record is given to a person who collects the greatest amount of Leava in the floor across all Worlds.
The "Trailblazer" skill boosts all rewards given.
"Yes" I said.
The world seemed to blur and I was transported into a pure white room. This was the famous "Waiting Room." This area was the safe haven between each floor that people would be able to stay in to recover after defeating each floor. Staying in the room had many benefits, one of them being the fast recovery rates that allowed a person to recover from almost any fatal wound or disease that they might have encountered on previous floors. Many people would even try to defeat a floor so that they could cure their own diseases, it became famous when people began to cure their cancer by staying in this room for extended periods of time. The problem that resulted from this though was that they eventually lost their sanity as the nothingness in the room messed with their minds.
Also within the room, there was a store. The store connected to all the floors in each of the towers around the entire universe. People could trade items or information with each other and it became a very appealing interface using the Leava accumulated as currency. The rewards from the levels would also be placed into the system and you could pull them out easily. It was a good advertising technique on the gods' part.
I opened the screen, this time a large green screen was plastered in front of me.
[Claim All Rewards]
Rewards are being transferred to your inventory right now. To access and equip select your PLAYER tab to use.
I went back to scroll through the items that I had earned, searching for suitable artifacts. The items that I found looked like something out of a Vogue magazine, not something from a video game. The story was a romance story though, so what would I have expected. The artifacts suited the gentle aura of the main character Jung Ji-ah.
Artifact equipped: Aphrodite's Dress [??]
A dress that was handed down by Aphrodite to her favorite disciple. The dress increases favorability with other characters and NPC's by 50%. The outfit can be changed in shape depending on occasion relying purely on mana shifts from users mind. The greater amount of mana the larger affect it has on the users stats.
Artifact equipped: Elven Vines (Shoes) [RARE] --> [HOLY GRADE]
Ancient vines that were used to protect the most precious artifacts in the Elven territory. When the Elves forgot about their origins they vines were lost along with them. These vines act as footwear protecting the feet to the upper leg from outside attacks or smaller scale scratches. When walking through nature, the footwear also protects the surrounding wildlife from getting injured unexpectedly. This artifact is a set with the "Elven Vines (Gloves)" and are light weight while increasing the strength of the user by 10 points. When used full set is completed, the artifact is becomes a HOLY GRADE artifact.
Artifact equipped: Elven Vines (Gloves) [RARE] --> [HOLY GRADE]
Ancient vines that were used to protect the most precious artifacts in the Elven territory. When the Elves forgot about their origins they vines were lost along with them. The gloves also increase the ability to control mana as the Elves have a high affinity with all things living along with the mana that controls them—increases magic power by 10 points. These vines are a set with the "Elven Vines (Footwear)" and are light weight while increasing the strength of the user by 10 points.
Artifact equipped: Maura's Chameleon Cape [HOLY GRADE]
Maura was a Challenger that spent most of her time on the 56th floor researching the animals there. She created this cape so that she could blend in easily with her surroundings so she could easily traverse throughout each floor without being noticed. This artifact allows the user to become invisible for short amounts of time and the artifact can also change appearance based off of users preferences. The durability of this item can be changed as it absorbs the souls of beasts collected.
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Chapter 5: Monopolizing Mana Snakes
As I selected "EQUIP" I was swept up in a whirlwind, then briefly let back down. I could feel a soft fabric drip over my entire body and the vines grew up my limbs quickly, tickling me. The system displayed a mirror directly in front of me, so that I could see my appearance. The dress was two pieces, left open to expose my thin stomach. The top draped slightly off my shoulders and hung on loosely with my collarbone sticking out clearly. Out of the two pieces, the skirt was the most modest covering from my pelvic bone and dragging on the ground, but still it had two slits on either side going down the entire garment.
As for the vines, they were reminiscent of ivy, yet they had thorns like roses that dug into my skin to let the blood slowly drain out of me and fused together with me as one. These vines had turned a gold shade instead of the typical green, imitating jewelry more rather than plants. These reached towards my neck were the cape had hid itself as a golden necklace with a red pendant hung down.
It all seemed too perfect, like they were meant to be used together, but that was probably the way of my dreams anyway. I quickly closed the mirror and went back to shopping for materials using the system.
I remembered that there was a famous item that many people just looked past until the official opening of the tower which was 10 years from the current moment in time. It was the "Mana Snakes." These creatures were very small snakes that could only be seen by using mana sense, but they would follow the flow of mana eventually eating all the mana in an area up. This would be potentially harmful for any surrounding users because it could easily devour up all the mana within a person, killing them. The one thing that was not understood was that these snakes had limits to how much they could absorb, so if they absorbed too much they would explode and the mana would return to the user, if they were not dead. A common use for them among the high rankers would be to use them to open the acupoints throughout the body.
This method was uncommon because many did not want to risk them not having enough mana and others were unable to afford the price of these snakes, so they were left untouched for a long time. Despite this, their current price was quite cheap going for only 10 Leava, so I decided to buy a lot to monopolize for a larger profit. The seller was the only one on the market who sold these snakes and there profile did not have any reviews from others making it clear that no one had ordered from them, so I sent an email to them.
Ji-ah: Hello! I see that you are selling Mana Snakes! How many do you have?
Mana Snake Seller: Oh! Yes... I have about 2,000 snakes right now. Why are you interested?
Ji-ah: My brother has been enamored with the mana snakes recently and would like to keep them as pets.
Mana Snake Seller: Haha! I haven't heard a story like that for ages, how laughable.
Ji-ah: Uh... Are you willing to sell or not?
Mana Snake Seller: Of course, I am willing. How many do you want?
Ji-ah: I want to buy your entire business and their enclosures, but I need assurance that they are the only ones you have.
Mana Snake Seller: Why would you need to have all of them? That is an absurd request.
Ji-ah: My brother likes to be the only one with something, something that other people also have is worthless to him.
Mana Snake Seller: So he is a collector... Now I understand. You can buy them from me, but it will be around 40,000 Leava for all of it.
Ji-ah: You got to be joking! Your original price was 10 Leava for one, but now you are charging me double the price, how is that fair? I know that you have not been able to sell even one since you started your enterprise. Are you trying to scam me? Should I report you to the g...
Mana Snake Seller: No, no! Don't report me! I was just trying to make some extra money, I did not know that you were one of them.
He probably thought that I was one of the Market's Mediators since I mentioned that he had never sold anything. These Mediators were often Gods or other worldly beings that would watch over the activities within the tower through the market place. These people were often less powerful than other Gods and did not have an official seat to watch the Challengers, but they were still very powerful and would severely punish the Challengers if they witnessed something unjust going on in the Marketplace. The records of sales within the marketplace was something that only these Mediators could find, but I did not know that he was dumb enough to not think about the reviews.
Mana Snake Seller: Here! I'll give them to you for only 10,000 Leava and I'll sign a contract ensuring that I do not have any more. How does that sound?
Ji-ah: Looks like we are talking now. Transfer them to my system right now and sign the Death God contract that I am sending now, then we will be even. And don't contact me again after this date
Mana Snake Seller: Yes, I understand. I will follow your guidelines and finish the task as quickly as I can.
I quickly went back into my storage and sent over the Death God Contract to the seller. The Death God Contract was a contract in which the person who agreed to the conditions would have to follow all of them or they would immediately die and their soul along with all their belongings would be sent to the Contract Holder.
The items were swiftly transferred into my account, so I quickly got to using the snakes. The current environment was the best, it was quiet and mana did not flow in or out of this environment, so the snakes would only follow the natural flow of mana within my body.
I pulled 2 of the snakes from my inventory and took them up in my hand. They had long silver bodies that emanated a subtle light from them. Each one of them slightly varied in tints, one with a red tint and the other with a slightly blue tint. Their faces were small and reminded me of the hognose snake that my neighbor had growing up with a stout nose and slim body. I threw them swiftly inside of my mouth. From then on I had to focus on the snakes, and use mana to lead them through my body and to the acupoints. If I failed then it would also lead to my death, but this consequence I was not afraid of. If I died, wouldn't that just mean that I would wake up?
I could feel the snakes move through every inch of my body swiftly and as they passed through each of my acupoints I could feel a stronger mana flow within. They eventually reached my mana core after opening each one where they began to feast on my mana core. They continued to drain my core, but I did not feel at all fatigued like the book had stated, instead it just tickled. Apparently, my infinite magic was true, or the dreamworld thought the mana snakes were too cute to cause any harm.
Despite their cuteness, they ended up exploding in a jiffy after they had consumed a large amount of my mana. I was disappointed for a while, but then I another blue screen appeared.
Title gained: Training Guru
Given to a user who constantly trains and undergoes multiple tribulations to achieve their power. The first person to earn this title also gains associated skill "Training Area" which allows them to allocate a safe space similar to the Waiting Area once every floor where they are held in for a time equivalent to a month to train. This can be a blessing or a curse when used, but it will always force the user to achieve better levels.
Skill learned: Master Actor
This skill was originally created by Shakespeare's reincarnation who was able to easily create an environment to fool others around them. The user who is able to successfully trick another Challenger into thinking of them as a God will be able to use this skill to fool other Challengers easier as well as other Gods as skill's proficiency increases (Proficiency 0%).
Chapter 6: Floor 14
A large yellow screen quickly shot in front of my face after I had left the waiting room. Behind the screen I could see large brick buildings painted a pure white with dark wood window sills and framed by pots of flowers hanging. The city emanated an aura that was remanicant of a small European city that I remembered traveling to once when I was just out of college. The only thing that set this place apart from the town in my memory were that the streets were completely empty. There were no traces of humans ever living in the surrounding area and I could not even see a bee buzzing around the flowering plants.
I looked back to the screen and read:
Floor Quest: Unlock Time Gate
The city of Florencia that resides on the 14th floor was once a hustling and bustling society until it was attacked by "Shijian"(时间)—a famous demon who was able to control time. Shijian was once in love with a young boy who resided in one of these very houses, and he waited for the little boy to grow up. Once the boy had turned 16, Shijian came from the underworld in hopes of dragging him back to live with him forever. After waiting hopefully for many years, Shijian was greatly angered when he saw that that cute boy had been left to die on the streets after his parents were killed and none of the villagers had helped. Shijian then used his powers to trap the city in an endless time loop to torture the villagers who would have to relive their worst nightmares over and over again.
Find Shijian and make him unlock the spell that keeps Florencia in a time loop for eternity.
Time Limit: 3 months
Rewards (Vary based on completion and accomplishments): Teleportation to Floor 15 and ???
Penalty for Failing: Revert 2 Levels and Lose 1 Skill
When reading the novel, this floor had shocked many readers along with the players. The requirement to move on in the previous floors was solely based off a player's kill count and the difficulty of those kills. Floor 14 was instead a "Quest Floor", meaning that players had to complete the given quest in order to move on, otherwise they would suffer extreme punishments.
This new challenge did not seem tedious to many players as the demons on the previous floor had all been low level or low enough that a high level team could easily take them down if they worked together, so many quickly decided to proceed on. What they failed to realize until later on was that only high level demons could climb up from the underworld freely, meaning that Shijian had to be at least level 112. After learning this fact, it still took the top rankers around a year of earth time to complete and this floor ended up causing around 10,000 deaths which discouraged many Challengers from across the world. Many of the leading guilds spent a fortune on weapons and other gear, eventually ending in the level clear, but all of that was later found out to be unnecessary.
I closed the notification window and began to walk around. It took me 30 minutes to reach the very edge of the town. Looking around in the forest I could see a small dilapidated wooden hut. The roof was slightly caved in and was covered in a thick wet moss. The door of the house was partially opened, and only hung from one rusted hinge that seemed close to breaking at any moment. As I approached I saw another notification pop up.
You have reached the house of the abandoned villager.
!WARNING! A creature of significantly higher level is lurking inside, proceed with caution.
After all this time Shijian had been waiting for the boy within his house. I took another step up.
What are you doing? Do you think that you can defeat a monster with that high of level?
It was that person talking to me again through the system.
"What does it mean to you? You didn't seem worried even when I was dying on the floor of that cave."
Ouch! That really hurt my feelings, I have been so nice to you so far.
The sarcastic tone of his words reached me even though I could only read the text and not hear him. I ignored him and continued to walk along the stone path leading to the house.
Okay, fine. Don't blame me when you die though.
I could feel my hands trembling and my body seemed to tense up uncontrollably. My fears were basic as I knew the world was that of a dream purely, but I could still feel pain and my hand was still bleeding from a tree branch that pricked me as I was wandering around. I took a deep breath and opened mana sense to try and understand the situation within the hut to sooth my anxiousness. I could not sense any hostility towards me, only a thick feeling of sadness and grief which seemed worrying.
My hand reached out to grab the decaying metal door handle that was pasted on the door. The coldness was slightly shocking, but I yanked the door twice to open it enough to enter.
The hut was very small and very dark, only illuminated by rays of light that were let in through the cracks within the wall. In the corner I saw the outline of a small boy, maybe 9 years younger than me, his limbs were very frail who looked like only skin and bones. It was the first human or non human being that I had seen. I took another step forward and I heard the boards under my feet screech causing the boy in the corner to flip his head quickly. His deep yellow eyes resembled a cats staring at me and examining me almost as if he was seeing if he could approach or attack me. I knelt down to my knees and I took out a half eaten apple that I had picked up from one of the trees and stored for later use. I held out the apple like an offering. They boy crept slowly on his hands and knees toward me then pounced to grab the apple almost as if he thought I would have stolen it from him. He quickly gobbled the entire apple down and I once again took out more food from my bag. I could see his eyes sparkling as he ate. He reminded me of a stray cat that used to live in front of my house when I was younger and how he would wait by my window until I fed him daily.
I quickly snapped out of it and realized that I had not found that demon that they had mentioned so heavily in the book. I remembered that the author described the demon as a muscular man who would lure both men and women with his looks and then kill them, only to reveal his true self later which was a giant dog like creature who would proceed to eat his victims.
I scanned the area, but I could only see the boy. The boy continued to creep closer and closer to me and sat himself directly beside me. I instinctually placed my hand on top of his head petting him like an animal as he drifted to sleep on my shoulder. I could feel his cold breath tickling the skin on my shoulder and I watched as he slept, until another window popped up.
SIDE QUEST:
The kid has been starving for many years alone and has lost his memory. Nurse the kid to health with the help of MANA SNAKES to unlock his full potential and help him escape his hell by offering companionship.
Reward: Demon's Blanket and Golden Key.
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Chapter 7:
How was I supposed to heal him using mana snakes? I had only heard of it briefly in the story I wrote, but it was only talked about as a theory because of how dangerous it could possibly be. The overall idea was for it to be either done by a very powerful challenger, like myself, who could easily control and maintain my mana despite the snakes eating a majority of it, but the person had to be conscious and focused as well. The other possibility was for someone to inject mana into someone else to lead the mana snakes to the acupoints in the body to open them up. When the body became stronger, the person would inadvertently also be healed.
I sat in contemplation for a few moments staring at the boy sitting next to me, wondering if I could help him or if I would only harm him. His hair was a dark black color and it traced down his entire body like a blanket. His face was covered in a thick soot, yet his pale skin still peeked through like the remnants of snow after a long winter had finally ended. He was wearing a long cloth shirt that was filled with holes and had turned from white to a dark brown by the soil. He seemed helpless and alone, like he was calling for my help. Wasn't that ironic? I had finally found someone who needed as much saving as I did, but was it my place to help? I mean it was a quest, so I guess it was alright.
I turned to place both of my hands against his back then began to inject my mana into him. His body jerked slightly, but his face still remained calm as he slept. I exhaled deeply and began to focus as I weaved my mana with the boy's leading it through the entirety of his body. My mana was a cold blue, like the water that laid in the lake of the 13th floor and I could feel the pressure being drawn out of his body as I placed my hands on his back. I then took 3 mana snakes out of my inventory and slowly forced them into his body. The snakes moved quicker than they had for me, sucking out more and more mana. My body became drained and I began to feel faint, but I continued to hold on.
The mana snakes finally exploded after 3 hours, yet my mana continued to drain away. I anxiously tried to pull away from the boy, but I couldn't. I opened my stat window, expecting to see that my mana was still at infinity, but it was not. It was only 10 and my health stat was decreasing rapidly as well. I knew that I was only in a dream and it wouldn't mean that I would actually die, but it felt that way. I began to cry out loudly. I pleaded to the boy to help me, but no response. It seemed hopeless until he finally woke up and quickly turned towards me. His face was filled up with color, showing a shocked and caring face. My hands slowly released and I was finally free to collapse.
I tried to get up, but my body wouldn't allow me. My body crashed to the ground and I could not move a single limb, yet my eyes stayed open. My mouth began to fill up with something causing me to let out a large cough. I could see the blood splatter all the way down my shirt and it glazed the floor. The boy ran to me and stared at me with eyes full of, what seemed to be, urgency. I could see his lips moving frantically, but I could not hear a single word. As I drifted off slowly, I noticed that he seemed larger now. I could see that his bony body had become more muscular and the once-loose t-shirt looked like it might split. In a haze, I lifted my hand to his face and pulled him closer to me. Now he looked straight in my eyes, not looking away for a single moment. That was when I slowly whispered to him with a smirk: "You owe me one now." I then kissed him deeply. I could feel the saltiness of the blood being taken away. He put his hands gently by my waist and lifted me up slightly to embrace me. The urgency of him previously was transferred to me by the eagerness of his hands. I was completely drawn in and we laid together on that floor together for hours in a not-so-empty embrace.
Looking back at that situation, I do not know why I had kissed him, or why I had only kissed him. I had been a virgin for my entire life, always afraid of boys who would make fun of me or chase me around. Even during my peak in high school, I was always afraid of boys and men because they would take any chance to bully me to make me feel weak. It was always so annoying and just became troublesome, so I separated myself from it completely, but this man seemed different...and hot.
Quest Completed:
You are the first to complete the 14th floor. You have figured out that Shijian was really the boy who went back in time to save himself again. By offering yourself to the demon, he has felt companionship and care that he was looking for from the villagers. Shijian has released the town from the endless slumber as a result.
Rewards: Teleportation to Floor 15 and Companion- Shijian
Side Quest Completed:
You have nursed the unknown boy back to health and you have gained his trust and loyalty.
Rewards: Demon's Blanket and Golden Key.
YOU HAVE LEVELED UP!
Title Gained: Peace Keeper
You have successfully passed a floor without harming or killing any object. You have become favored by many unknown onlookers and they have become anxious to see how you battle in the coming challenges. This title soothes other players as well as other objects within the levels by giving off a kind aura.
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Chapter 8: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOXAyWQ3rqU
When I finally woke up, I was back in that white room, yet this time it was for Floor 15. The previous moments before I fainted had all been a blur, but the notifications that popped up in front of me were still clear in my mind. It had turned out that that small little boy was actually the demon, shockingly. I looked around the room to find the mysterious man, but he was no where to be seen. I remembered my sudden flash of boldness when I kissed him. I quickly turned away with shamefulness, and my face became flushed.
I began to scroll through the Waiting Room's store to get my mind off the situation at hand. I ended up buying a few skills along with some soap, but they all were very menial things as the system did not end up giving me any Leava even as I completed the floor. I was puzzled as to why, but I didn't think much of it as I was in no urgent need for money.
I stayed only briefly inside the room to heal my injured lip and begin to get all my mana back, but it only raised to 1000 MP which was significantly less than before.
Finally, I left the room and began to start my climb through the tower. I continued to plow through many different floors, embanking large amounts of Leava and gaining plenty of experience. Whenever I played, I did not feel lonely. It was something that took my mind off the complete emptiness that was inside my dream, occasionally I would try and summon that demon who was my companion, but it was no use. A notification would continuously remind me that my level was not high enough to summon him, or I did not have enough mana.
I endured many trials over the entire period until I reached floor 50. My hands were now covered with scratches, my hair had become knotted greatly, and my face was deformed. My current image was not even slightly resemblant of the girl from the novel, nor was it from who I was in real life. Still, I paid little attention and continued to climb as if it was all fine.
Well, it was all fine until the day I reached floor 99.
Initially, I felt ecstatic to finally defeat the levels the lead to the holy land that the characters had mentioned, but it did not last long. While I was waiting for my body to heal in the room before level 99, all of a sudden the world started to rumble, like a large earthquake. It seemed like 100 or more red screens began to flash in front of my face, all with the same sign, "WARNING." Then the room seemed to tear apart with images flying around the room. The spinning lights made me dizzy and I fell to the ground, blacking out. Is it time for me to return to the real world?
In all that black, I could see a large blue hole begin to open up. I could feel my self lose control of my body as I walked closer to entity. I could not see anything on the other side, but still I felt a strange connection to what was outside.
I stuck my hands in first and I could feel a light breeze touch them, then I stuck my feet out, and finally my head.
As I peeled my eyes open, the scenery seemed vaguely familiar. It was night, but there were large lamps that kept the ground lit. I noticed a familiar sidewalk full of stains and blackened gum outlining the dark asphalt street. I was now standing in the crosswalk that connected the sidewalks between my old apartment complex and the convenience store. Only now, this scenery was not exactly the same, only reminiscent, as I could see that the stores around me had changed ownership and my old apartment complex seemed a large amount greater and more modern than I had remembered.
It was not the same, but I knew it was earth, I knew I was back, but why was I still in the main characters body?
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Chapter 9: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSPcxSNKvVz
I was still wearing the long torn up dress that was once pristine. I never switched it out because it still completed the functions that I needed it to do while I was fighting. I must have looked like the typical town crazy on the street as I was wearing vines as shoes and gloves as well. I did not mind a couple of odd stares from across the street, though. I hurriedly walked over to the convenience store and went up to the front desk.
"Umm, Hello?" I mumbled awkwardly.
The clerks-man ignored me.
"Hello! Do you mind telling me the date?" I said one more time, but this time it was louder.
The man turned around then looked me up and down as if he was judging me. I hated his stares, they reminded me of my life before I had gotten hit by the car and all the suggestive stares of random men.
I used my hands and covered up my chest as much as I could, but still he continued to grin disgustingly.
"Haha," he giggled at me, "It's the 2nd of July."
"What year?"
"What year?! It's 2034."
What did he say? How could that be? I got hit by the bus in April of 2029, but now it was 2034?!
I walked out of the store frightened and confused, then ran to the apartment complex that I used to live in. The door to the lobby was open, so I slowly walked up to the front desk.
"Hello! I was wondering if Jung Ji-ah lives here?" I said. The worker looked up at me with those same eyes that the man from the convenience store did.
"Sorry, we don't give out the names of people who live in this building," she said definitively.
"Could you just check for me?" I handed over one of the gems that I had earned from my travels. Now the woman looked at me happily.
"Of course," she then replied. I waited for a second and then she said, "It looks like no Jung Ji-ah's live here, but the system says that there was one who lived here around 5 years ago."
"Yes! Do you know where she is now?"
"I am sorry, but it looks like she was hit by a truck in front of the building and passed away."
I stood there in disbelief. So it really was not just in a dream, but instead it was real life. That was why it felt so real: all the pain, sorrow and loneliness. Yet, for some reason, it was as if I had known it all along or wanted it to be real. My life was never good: my family had all abandoned me, my first love got married and had kids, and the men in my life only ever wanted my body. It was like some fairytale inside the tower in which I was the strongest person out of everybody. It was the feeling of doing a long run in a video game after it had just released, like I was accomplishing new things which was a feeling that I never had while working before.
I quickly snapped out of my thoughts as I began to hear screaming. I ran outside quickly to see what was going on. I could feel the earth shake and I saw the ground in the distance begin to disappear. As the road was being destroyed along with many of the buildings, I could see a structure emerging up. It was made out of a substance that looked similar to stone and the architecture was reminiscent of medieval or gothic buildings I had seen before.
Thousands of people were frantically running away from that place. I could see women carrying their children and people riding bikes as fast as they could. The scene looked almost humorous. I, once afraid of everything and looked down upon, had become the one who was looking down on others.
The building stopped growing eventually and now stood at the height of a giant skyscraper that was watching over the city. When it stopped moving, a familiar blue screen popped up.
Welcome to The Tower, Challengers!
You must be feeling confused after watching this building come out of the ground, but don't be surprised! All of you have been signed up to become Challengers who will climb the tower and try to defeat all floors. If you don't then your world will slowly collapse and everyone will die, so you must try your best! And if you run into trouble in the tower and die, then don't worry too much. If you are lucky enough to have a constellation favor you, then you can be revived.
Well, now the first round of Challengers must prepare to leave!
Countdown to departure: 3 hrs 10 min 30 s
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Chapter 10: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIdEUI1o3Xz
I watched the clock slowly count down with disbelief of my current situation.
Living away from the world for over 10 years made me feel numb, but I much preferred the isolation to the hateful stares of the people surrounding me.
Now it was time for me to once again endure the trials of the tower, but this time I would start from floor 1.
Defeating each floor and proceeding all depended on the "Kill Count." All monsters had an associated Leava value that you could pick up after you killed them; the more difficult to kill, the more Leava was given. The catch with this, is that you could only see the difficulty of each monster after it had been defeated, so many newcomers immediately ran into a series of problems.
This enormous amount of possible loss was combatted by the system by giving out certain classes to each of the participants. When Challengers were first transported to the tower, a notification would pop up in front of them asking whether they would like to choose their class. When this popped up though, many people were confused because only a "YES" button was put onto the screen, therefore many assumed it was their only option. Instead of being on the notification tab, though, the "NO" was instead hidden under the players foot, so they had to lift their foot to be able to see it and choose that option.
The type of class allotted to an individual was the basis of all their possible skills, suitable equipment, and roles as a Challenger had to be. Initially, the classes like swordsman proved to be advantageous as they had higher attack power early on, but as Challengers proceeded to climb, the swordsmen were unable to raise MP and HP levels, so they lost early. Others who chose the magician classes were unable to survive earlier levels because they did not have enough magic to defeat the level of monsters and their attack points were too little.
Lucky for me, I spawned on the 13th Floor. Since the tower only gave out classes on the first floor, I never even had to chose what I wanted to be, and that gave me the advantage of not having to conform to these rules and I never really thought about the classes until now.
I was suddenly jerked out of my daydreaming when a passerby ran into me and knocked me off balance. My hands scrapped the ground and my knees began to bleed rapidly. Still, I got up and limped towards the nearest bus stop with a small bench to catch my breath and prepare for the first stage of transformation.
The first stage of transformation was the work of the tower trying to make Earth's geography suitable for it. Many things occurred in the first stage, technology became controlled by the tower, non-human things became changed to fit the tower, and many of the buildings warped. For many of the Challengers who were transported early missed out on the benefits of this change, but I was eager not to.
As I looked off towards the area of the tower, I could see what looked like a large wave hurl to me. Nothing was getting swept up into it and there was no actual water, but it was oddly reminiscent, which gave me the chills. It continued to approach me increasingly fast, and I gripped onto the sides of the bench bracing for the impact. It swept past me and I lost consciousness for a brief moment, only to be met with a large odd looking bus sitting in front of me when I opened my eyes.
This bus was different from what I had seen before. It was round like a train, but it did not have wheels that touched the ground; it instead floated slightly above the ground. Along the long side of the bus I could see the words "Korea Tower's Pet Shop" written on a neon sign. Just what I was waiting for. I stood up and walked toward the doors that had been opened. When crossing the door, I was transported to the base of the tower.
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Chapter 11: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE7PrdI3MT8
In front of me stood a large, victorian style door with intricate designs engraved into the stone. The designs were not just for the eye, but it was also a depiction of a famous myth inside the tower, the Myth of the White Dragon.
During the Ancient times, the gods were the only ones who occupied the plane of existence. For eternities they resided in a realm of darkness that was void of all life. Although the nothingness may seem scary and lonely to many, the Gods had gotten used to this monotony, so they never complained. That was until a new god was born out of the nothingness.
This god was different from the others. Previously, all the gods looked similar to the modern day humans and were decorated in elaborate outfits, but that was not the case for this new being. Instead of clothing, it was covered in pure white scales and its body was nothing like a human. It had a long body with four legs. This existence would become the first dragon of the universe and the creator of the human world, Jingjie. Jingjie was a peculiar being, and she was immediately ostracized from the other gods. Its beautiful scales were regarded as something plain when compared with its predecessors, so many thought of it as a monster. The evil thoughts aimed to Jingjie never bothered her though, she was too preoccupied with her fantasies of a different world, a world that was not so void, but instead plentiful. She dreamed of other beings similar to her that could live in harmony and she would have others to share her thoughts with.
1000 years after her birth she decided to turn her dreams into reality. She spent many years creating each creature and landform in the world that she called Peng Lai. After the creation, she resided peacefully in harmony with the other occupants, but the other gods quickly became curious.
The first god that decided to interfere was Zeus. He created tremendous weather to fright the inhabitants of Peng Lai. The other gods quickly followed and interfered more and more as time passed. Jingjie became upset, but she was not able to overpower these people who she considered to be her family, so instead she created a different plane for them to have. This land was far more vast and she spent another 4000 years creating everything.
When this land was finally finished, she handed it over to her brothers in sisters, but still they were unhappy. The animals that Jingjie created were intricate, but they looked too much like their sister, so they forced Jingjie to create a new species, humans.
When the first humans were created they had recollection of their creator, The White Dragon. Although many humans initially worshipped Jingjie, they quickly forgot Jingjie as the other Gods began to promise wealth, power, and looks to the humans in exchange for their worship. This was the start of the first world, but the other worlds were later created by the other Gods who became obsessed with watching the competition of their worshippers to see who was the strongest.
The story was forgotten, but this door was carved by one of the Demons of the world who had idolized the dragon from its creation. The demon was eventually murdered during the slaughter of the demon race during one of the expeditions in the novel, but the story was passed on.
All of a sudden, I could feel a tear fall down my face. Why am I crying? I have not cried for years, but why I am I crying now? I decided to move on from that trivial moment and I pushed the heavy doors open.
Inside the doors was a vast forest. The ground was covered in a rich green grass, trees were tall, but still let light peek through. If you listened closely you could hear the sounds of birds talking or the hustling of animals in the bushes. It seemed like a utopia, so much different from the city that I had lived in and far different from the other floors at the very top.
CONGRATULATIONS ON BEING THE FIRST CHALLENGER TO ENTER THE TOWER!
You have successfully entered the tower and have given yourself a head start on the race to get to the top and attain all the power and riches you could imagine. Don't be hasty though, you have 1.03 hours until the first round of challengers are sent to this floor, so hurry up and conquer.
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Chapter 12: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8z9MDOYhy
The blue message box was nostalgic, but I knew that I could not dwell upon this moment.
The first floor was one of the most important floors of them all. Although the criteria for passing was easy, each players performance would have a significant affect on each of the players for the rest of the game. This floor was where the base level stats and affinities were established, meaning that these stats effected growth and how you could wield mana later on.
Name: Jung Ji-ah
Level: [LOCKED] + 00
Title: [HIDDEN]
HP: 108/110
MP: [LOCKED]
----------------------------------------------------
Strength: [LOCKED] + 09
Intelligence: [LOCKED] + 12
Agility: [LOCKED] + 08
Sense: [LOCKED] + 01
Magic Power: [LOCKED] +00
My stats are locked? I remember a scene similar in the novel, but that only happened to the male lead as a penalty for not completing a challenge, so why is it happening to me?
The additional stats that sit next to the [LOCKED] notification indicate the usable points I have currently. If I were to compare these stats to a typical level 1 starting player, they might even be worse though, so why is my starting level so bad.
Despite my poor level, I knew that I had to continue on if I hoped to raise these stats.
My focus returned to reality as I saw a small white rabbit zoom past my peripheral. I quickly scuffled over to the deep green bushes that the rabbit had tunneled through, to see if I could catch it. The greenery had large spikes on every branch and leaf that seemed intimidating, but I was used to these situations, so I assumed that it would not harm me. I was wrong. As I dug around in the bushes my hands began to sting, like someone was dragging my hands through a bucket of needles. My fingers and forearms became painted with my red blood that I had forgotten as I had became stronger and stronger which brought me back to earth.
I decided to ignore the pain and continue on. Another sound came from the bushes and I saw the rabbit rush by once again. This time my quick movements were no match for the innocent rabbits that challenged me. For a moment I felt pity for this small animal that I was about to kill, but that was when it began to transform.
Its jaw dislocated slightly as its skin began to rip apart. As each of its bones contorted, the body of the animal continued to get taller reaching a height double of myself. I could my stomach drop as the pressure exerted by this being became too great for me to handle, a foreign feeling. My instincts were telling me to run away as quickly as I could, but I was unable to. As it got bigger, it began to lean over me, jaws wide open and hot drool dripping over me. My body did not respond to my instincts and I stood frozen in my tracks as if I was just waiting for the creature to execute me. The animal pulled back its arm as if it was preparing to throw a baseball, and it lunged towards me. I covered my face quickly in a hopeless attempt to protect myself.
I braced myself and contemplated my death in silence. It wasn't such an obtuse concept anymore as I had already died before, so it wasn't like I was scared or anything. I almost was waiting for my time of loneliness and suffering to be gone, but nothing happened. It had been 30 seconds since I put my arms up, but still nothing occurred.
Hesitantly, I uncovered my face and peeled open my eyes and was shocked when I saw another blue window pop up.
Congratulations on defeating the first floor! You have successfully killed the hidden boss winning the maximum amount of points!
Would you like to stay on this floor or continue on?
The hidden boss?! A hidden boss on the first floor was unheard of as they had insane amounts of power that could typically only be killed by groups of high leveled rankers. This astonished me, but I was more baffled by how it got killed in the first place.
All of a sudden, I felt a pull on the back of my dress and a voice calling out to me, "Why didn't you call me?"
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Chapter 13: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazGxTGq9Ip
I remembered his voice from before, the desperateness seemed to fill his breath. I turned around with excitement as he was my only companion in this hellhole even if our time spent together was not long. His hair was still as long as ever and I could see his built stature almost tower over me. His body was draped with a large white cloth, similar to my dress when I first got it, that just barely hid his sparkling skin. I examined his body eagerly from the toes up, but when I looked at his face, his expression was full of shock.
"Wh-What happened t-to you?" he said. His tone of voice was no longer the same. It was not filled with the eagerness or joy, and even the lust that he once expressed deeply for me seemed to disappear as a breeze went by.
My head drooped in shame as I knew he was disgusted with my worn-down body that was full of scars. The beautiful girl that was written on the pages of a fantasy novel was no longer to be found. My situation almost seemed laughable. The formidable warrior that defeated the tower in record time was now standing powerless in front of the man she yearned to see one more time with tears in her eyes.
I could see him slowly stagger as he took a few steps back and I lifted my head slightly to read his expression. His thick eyebrows angled downwards, his eyes squinted slightly, and his smile seemed to flip into a frown, almost making me think that he felt pity towards my new appearance.
Countdown: 00:00:00
Welcome to the tower! The challenge will start now. Points on this floor are earned based on the level and amount of monsters that they player slayed. Participants will strive to get enough points to travel to the next floor and win prizes. Depending on the rank of the players the prizes will vary and the most successful players will win extreme advantages in the next rounds, so get to killing!
Suddenly, hundreds of people materialized out of the air into the first floor. As more Rankers began to spawn, he began to get further and further from me. Maybe it was for the best. I had no more strength to protect my heart from the disgust of another man, especially one who I longed for for all these years.
My thoughts became clouded as the terrified screams from these new participants got louder. Already the floors were coated with blood of participants who lost against monsters. Many of them were the mages who could barely cast a spell or did not know they could, but still I ignored them.
I continued on through the thick forest killing any monster that came close to me with ease. I had many things to ponder, like why "he" showed up so suddenly after all these years and why I got the kill instead of him.
"Get the **** off me!" I heard a voice yell with impatience.
I instinctively flipped my head towards the noise and I saw a tall woman with piercing blue eyes and hair through the leaves of a large bush. She wore a white and blue victorian ball gown that slightly exposed her shoulders which made her seem like something out of a novel. I would have stared in awe of her looks for hours if not for her crawling through a thick mud as she was trying to kick off a large snake that was wrapped around her leg. The snake was at least 12 feet long and it was as wide around as a large grapefruit making it a formidable opponent to any of these starting rankers.
I began to run through the bushes towards her. I ripped off a large branch from one of the trees I passed and threw my arms above my head as I leaped towards the woman and wacked the snake straight between its eyes piercing cleanly through its skin. The snake released slightly from the woman's leg as it squirmed in pain then died within the minute.
"I didn't need help," the woman said.
"Oh, sorry. I just assumed--never mind."
"Assumed what?" she said.
"I just assumed that a woman screaming meant she was in danger, especially in such a large dress. I did not mean to be rude, I just wanted to help," I responded, knowing of the irony as I had hated when others assumed that I was weak based on my appearance.
"Wait-- did you think I was a girl?" she responded with a confused and slightly angry face.
"Sorry--huh?"
"Oh s**t! I forgot I was still wearing this."
A white light flashed from her hand as she waved it in front of her face. In a second her make up vanished and her hair shortened. She then pulled the end of a string behind her which loosened her dress, so she could take it off. I could tell she was definitely not a starting ranker just from the transformation magic alone.
I could feel my face begin to heat up as my cheeks were painted pink. She looked me straight in my face and pulled down her dress. To my surprise I did not see any breasts, I just saw two silicon implants fall to the ground as a muscular body was exposed.
"You will burn a hole through me with those stairs" he chucked.
"S-So you are not a woman?" I said hesitantly.
"Do you want to check?"
His voice was now deeper and I almost lost my train of thought. His crystal body seemed to reflect all light that seeped through the large trees in the forest.
"Hey!?" he yelled at me.
"Oh, did you say something?" I asked him.
"I asked why don't you just fix 'that'?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"Why don't you just get rid of your scars?"
I looked at him for a moment full of confusion. Isn't that a silly question? Does he think that I like to keep these scars all over me. My body has been tattered so many times from all the battles that I endured
"I cant just 'get rid' of my scars," I replied angrily.
"Well didn't you create them... I mean I can tell you have climbed the floors and that your scars are just magic, right?"
What is he talking about? I have never learned magic, wait, I thought I did. But I didn't use a sword on any of the floors either, did I? Why is everything so hazy now? Wasn't it only a few days ago I was climbing the tower, but why can't I remember anything?
"I don't know... I can't remember anything."
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Chapter 14: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1cVL7M6oNM
How could I not remember anything? Is this just a joke? My hands begun to shake uncontrollably like a sapling after an earthquake. I spent countless days, months, even years fighting alone just to keep living, but what had happened now. But, moreover, why did I care about these two men so much and their opinions of me? My situation was almost laughable. I could climb a tower by myself not thinking about men, but for some reason I almost collapsed after two minuscule men seemed deterred by my appearance. The most annoying thing out of them all is that I ended up being saved by a man.
I burst out in laughter at the irony of my situation that I was in. My hatred towards the novel I was living in had become a reality for me. If only I could get my memories and strength back, then I would not have to reside in this nightmare any longer.
Notification:
Nine Night Player agrees with your sentiment and shares your disgust for these men. Nine Night Player sent you water from the Mnemosyne.
Note: This medicine works over time to detoxify the water of Lethe.
A notification from the gods. My first. The Gods would sponsor Rankers in the tower that had promise in order to persuade the Ranker to worship them, so many people became ecstatic as they saw Gods become interested in them. Although a relationship with a god promised a faster leveling time, many people were soon left in the dust when gods would find better Rankers to devote time and materials to instead. Still receiving gifts from any God was fine until you accepted a contract with a specific god or gods.
The Nine Night Player god was actually the greek god Mnemosyne or the God of Memories. Mnemosyne slept with Zeus, posed as a mortal shepherd, for nine consecutive nights and created nine muses hence her name. It is said that when people die, they drink water from a river called the Lethe that washes away all memories from their previous life so they can go on to the next, but if people drank from the Mnemosyne, they would be able to retain their memories.
The item was sent to my inventory, so I rushed to find the medicine. Behind the blue screen I could see the blue haired man still as if the whole world was put on pause as I used the system. I continued on and ignored this fact finding my way to the inventory. When I looked in the inventory all I could see was one small vial filled with an iridescent liquid. I reached my hand out to grab it and pulled it quickly out.
As the blue screen closed the world unfroze. Without any mind for my surroundings, I hastily opened the crystal screw top and placed the small opening on my lips. The liquid pierced my throat like it was full of small needles scratching out my insides. I grasped my neck urgently and collapsed to the ground. My body began to shake intensely, so I tried to prop myself up slightly to look at myself, but when I looked towards my hands they began to shine. A bright white light was emitted from my body like mana was surrounding me. When I focused closer on my body I could see mana flowing from all around me. The trees, plants, sky and small animals all were all connected to me through mana like I was now a part of this tower.
My vision began to fade slowly and the world went dark. The blue haired man was now by my side, trying to shake me awake, yet I no longer felt helpless, instead I just chuckled at his futile efforts. Who shakes a dying person, I thought.
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Chapter 15: 298Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv6EI7J4Jan
I woke up in a large room that was the size of my apartment back home. The walls were painted a light blue and were covered in intricate designs engraved into the walls. High ceilings were home to a large painting full of angels and clouds that was separated apart by a grand chandelier that sparkled like a lake during a full moon. Light shone through a group of windows on my right piercing into the sheer white fabric canopy that covered the bed hiding me from the world.
I sat myself up and rested my back on a pile of fluffy pillows already on the bed then looked around the room. The wooden floors were a deep brown varnish like the trees in the forest where I had entered earlier. A large sitting area with a small coffee table with two small cups and a few plates filled with desserts was situated a few steps away from the foot of my bed. There were a couple of white doors that were scattered around the room that led to who-knows-where that were plain and simple but still looked so elegant.
As I admired the room, all of a sudden I begun to have another headache. Memories started to flow through my head: the tower, battles, swordsmanship, relationships, death. It was definitely not the entirety of my memories, but it was at least some. The only thing that truly shocked me, though, was that some of the memories were not mine.
I could see a childhood, a happy one, filled with smiles and hugs by families. A young girl would run around in the fields and played, but then I saw a group of men who would restrain the girl, keep her away from the world and the sunlight. Her days outside were numbered, so she would sit in a cage staring out at the world and wondering what her freedom could be.
The memories of hers were not complete but I knew they were the body's memories. I became sad, but then understood why I was feeling this way. We had become one, finally. My body had no longer been limited by the rules that applied to the Rankers or the occupants of the tower because I had become both.
ERROR: You have both Player and Resident Status, system is recalibrating and checking for errors.
Huh? It's a mistake?
Notification: You have already reached the land of the gods, therefore you will now receive a new status according.
Status Awarded: The Lost Seraphim [Legendary]
This status is given to those who have almost fully ascended to the level of the Gods, but have been banished, hence released from the shackles of the gods. You shall be given the ability to move freely between floors you have already conquered while still being able to form parties and take quests like typical players.
I have never heard of this status before, even within the pages of the novel. I remember, very vaguely, one of the characters in the novel accepting the sponsorship of a god and eventually reaching the level of Seraphim, but they were tied down by that god's orders and will. The status eventually became more of a curse than a blessing and the character was eventually killed off by one of the other god's apostles, but my memory was still just pieces.
New Quest: Find Jung Ji-ah's Dragon Treasury
The treasury holds Jung Ji-ah's most precious items and secrets. This special item can only be used by Ranker's with the Dragon Slayer title. The last Ranker who had it in possession had needed to sacrifice this treasure when climbing the tower, but it has since been found by other players and it has since traveled between owners multiple times. When you complete the quest, you will be returned your belongings and the full functionality of the treasury will be unlocked.
Just then I remembered losing the treasury in the 79th floor in a battle against an ancient devil. The floor had been invaded by the demon realm who had been ordered to find some angelic lady that had met their master previously and he had since been searching for her. I had stumbled upon their camp after almost completing the floor. You see, for this specific floor, there was a special trick to winning the floor which would award you with a [Legendary] item that was told in the novel often, but the catch was that there could only be one player left on the floor. So, I did what any normal person would do and I began to plan how to sneak up to and kill all of them.
I remember the confidence I had initially when I approached them. From the time I traveled here till that point, defeat and fear were words that were foreign to me. As I crept up to the camp it was as if there was a voice inside my head telling me not to move further, as if it was dangerous, but I did not heed to that feeling and continued on.
As soon as a rounded a large rock that separated me from the devils, I could see they were already staring at me as if they knew I was there from the beginning. These devils were not human-like, they had large humanoid bodies with skin that looked like it was falling off. I sprinted towards them with a large sword in hand and I began to attack them. The details are blurry still, but I defeated all of them except for one. The last one was stronger than the rest of them combined and I was already exhausted from the previous fights. My vision was blurry, but still I carried on. The battle went on for days and nights with massive amounts of bloodshed, but it seemed like an even fight. After approximately 6 days, I knew I had to end it quickly or else my mana would be completely depleted and I would die. I examined my surroundings carefully and noticed that one of the large rocks seemed to shake as we battled like it was about to fall over.
My heart seemed to stop and I knew what I had to do, so I began to set it up. Although my mana was low, I had enough to just pull the rock down so it would trap and kill the devil. It was another 5 hours until I got the devil into positioning and I pulled the rock down with all my might, but the devil caught on. It quickly stepped forward and grabbed onto my side where my bag laid to try and pry itself away from the slowly collapsing rock.
It was clear that the demon was trapped, but still he refused to let go of the bag and begun to scratch my leg as he tried to break free. His long pointy nails dug deeply into my side and blood poured quickly as if it was running away. I knew that, despite my strength, I could not have lived much longer unless I sacrificed my bag.
The decision was hard as I could not even take out my precious items and I was hesitant to lose it for some reason, but I ended up slicing my belt that held it and sacrificing it in order to protect my life.
Despite the bag being precious, I was still unsure why the tower would want me to retrieve the prize and why someone else had found it. I was also curious to what "additional function" the bag could possibly have, so I set off.
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