Chapter 180: Nightmare Floor 17 (1)

The Great Invasion ended.

The rift in Gangneung and the barriers surrounding each Battlefield disappeared at the same time.

Despite the absurd catastrophe of ten million monsters invading, not a single person had died because of this rule.

Because humanity’s savior, Person123, had stopped it perfectly.

- After three days of fierce battle, Person123 has succeeded! He held back the rift in Gangneung alone and killed all ten million monsters...!

- With the Great Invasion now over, Person123 immediately vanished amid the crowd’s fervent cheers...

The record of those miraculous 72 hours remained in its entirety on video.

Especially the final moment, when the rift had grown to an enormous size.

The sight of Person123’s body transforming into dazzling golden light had also been captured on camera.

Person123, having become light itself, rose into the sky, and immediately afterward, a white flash covered the world.

And that was the end.

Every monster pouring out of the rift froze solid and scattered apart, and snow fell over Gangneung that day.

After annihilating tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of monsters in an instant, a single golden light floated alone and aloof in the sky.

It was a sight that inspired something beyond admiration or awe, something almost sacred. Countless people felt that way.

[Dytus: Is something like that really even a skill...? That’s gone way, way beyond any reasonable level...]

[BloodDemon: If it is a skill, then it has to be the grade after Epic, right? Isn’t it something like a Legendary-grade skill?]

[Stone: He looks like a god descended into the mortal world]

[Villain: The power of a god damn]

[Yongyan: He killed the boss during the Joint Battle even after all his skills were banned. Maybe it really isn’t a skill but some completely different type of ability]

[TowerDestroyer: I used to spam “Person123 is a god” half as a joke, but now I’m seriously starting to feel actual faith welling up inside me...]

[Biil: For real, if that isn’t a °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° god, then what the hell is it lol]

[Hohiha: Nothing but light light light]

[Infinity: Person123, he is the light! (literally light)]

[Pax: Come to think of it, didn’t the Zone 5 Climbers say they saw some kind of light when the Zone 5 boss was killed too? So that really was Person123 after all]

[Arthur: I am a Climber living in France. Thank you so much for saving me and my family.]

[Vivian: May eternal glory be with humanity’s savior]

[MintChocoPie: Just how long are you planning to keep holding up the Earth all by yourself...! Please, I’m begging you, keep holding it up!]

The entire world praised and revered him.

[Rewards will be given to all Floor 2+ Climbers in Battlefield 3.]

[The level of every Floor 2+ Climber in Battlefield 3 increases by 3.]

Just as the Tower had announced, since every monster had been killed, the reward was also given.

Three levels for every Climber in Battlefield 3.

[WhiteDragon: Damn, free 3 levels lmaoooo]

[Silence: See? I told you all we had to do was trust Person123!]

[BlueYellowMountainWaterRiver: But seriously, Tower, you bastard, isn’t 3 levels a little stingy for killing ten million monsters?]

[Alien: Did you do it? If it’s a free reward, just say thank you and take it]

[Letter: Person123, he is a god!]

The Climbers of South Korea, China, Japan, North Korea, and Russia, who had received the three-level reward, had even more reason to praise him fervently.

- We offer our boundless gratitude, respect, and reverence to Person123, humanity’s savior, humanity’s sole hope, and the greatest hero who will never appear again in history. Europe has been saved by you...

The European countries that had narrowly escaped destruction also issued statements of gratitude all at once.

What had Person123 done to save the hundreds of millions of Europeans trapped inside Battlefield 5?

He had appeared personally in Gangneung, stood before cameras broadcasting to the entire world, and appealed directly to the Climbers to open the Gangneung rift.

Though he had never once revealed himself in reality until then, this time too, solely out of his determination to save people, he had risked exposing his identity and made a desperate effort.

Person123’s overwhelming power was one thing, but it was that noble will, incomparable to anything else, that made him a hero and a savior.

People could only be grateful, and grateful again, for his seemingly endless love for humanity.

[Monarch: Anyone else replaying the video over and over to see if there’s a part where Person123’s face shows? Hands up lol]

[Pride: I already went through the whole thing. There isn’t]

[Fron: Stop doing that shit; read the fucking room, assholes]

[Donut: Show some respect for a hero. Anyone trying to expose his identity, and anyone spreading false information about him, should all be punished for it]

[1Gang: What the hell, crazy lol I heard China literally passed a law right away saying they’ll punish people for it?]

[Fririri: Holy shit, it’s true? Maximum penalty is death, what the fuck lololol]

Since Person123 had revealed himself in reality for the first time, naturally, some people tried to uncover his identity.

Of course, Person123 had kept his mask on the entire time he fought the monsters, so there had not been a single moment when even part of his face was exposed.

An atmosphere formed in which anyone who tried to uncover Person123’s identity was criticized and condemned.

Even the usual tabloids, perhaps because they had come under pressure from governments, did not publish a single article trying to stir up attention with claims about Person123’s identity. Even if something appeared, it was quickly deleted.

And...

“Look! Look upon that sacred light! He briefly manifested in this world in His true form as a god in order to save the people!”

“Person123! Person123! Person123...!”

The number of people joining the Church of Person123 also exploded.

The Church of Person123 had already been increasing its number of believers at an extremely rapid rate, but after the Great Invasion, that growth became even more exponential.

Because everyone who had witnessed that wonder on that day had felt something similar.

More and more people began genuinely believing Person123 to be a god, or at least some kind of divine being.

The world’s praise for humanity’s savior only deepened with each passing day.

***

After the Great Invasion ended.

Once I returned home, I belatedly found out that my family had come all the way to Gangneung.

“I told you not to come because it was dangerous...”

I understood how my family felt, so I could not bring myself to be too harsh with them either.

“If I’d known you were there, I would’ve been too distracted to fight properly. Next time, absolutely don’t do that. Please do what I tell you. You understand, right?”

“Yeah... I’m sorry, Seo-hyeon.”

My little sister watched my expression for a moment before speaking.

“But you know, that person helped us...”

“What? Who?”

“You know, from the Treasure Hunt...”

After hearing what had happened, I learned that Ye Cheon-wi had also come to Gangneung.

Well, I suppose it made sense... More importantly, he had even protected my family.

“Come to think of it, who was that person? He suddenly disappeared, so we couldn’t even properly thank him...”

My parents asked as well, apparently curious.

“He’s just a Climber I know personally. He helps me out in a lot of ways.”

That was all I told them.

I owed Ye Cheon-wi another huge favor.

As soon as I returned to my room, I whispered him a message thanking him.

A reply came immediately.

[ThousandWon: I am unworthy of such thanks. I merely did what naturally had to be done.]

“...This guy, seriously.”

As unwavering as ever, and someone I was grateful for.

I talked with Ye Cheon-wi a little longer before closing the Communication Channel.

In any case, the Great Invasion had ended safely without a single death.

Apparently quite a few people had been injured when the crowd started moving as the rift expanded at the end... but that much could not really be helped.

[Difficulty: Nightmare]

[Floor: 17]

[Level: 200]

[Willpower: 21,000/21,000]

[Skills: Radiant Incarnation (Legendary+), Elemental Arrow Barrage (Epic+)(+3), Destruction Ray (Epic+), Blood Frenzy (Epic+), Weakness Insight (Epic)(+4), Hellfire Eruption (Epic)(+1), Subspace (Epic), Air Walk (Epic)...]

With the Great Invasion reward, my level had finally reached 200 as well.

Level 200.

I suppose it was symbolic in its own way.

The world was still buzzing endlessly with stories about me, but...

I had no time to care about any of that.

Now that the Floor 16 rule was over, all I had to do was prepare for the next task: clearing Floor 17.

Time passed.

I timed my preparations to enter Floor 17 for the moment Radiant Incarnation came off cooldown.

After all, I had already used the excuse with my family that the lifespan issue was a penalty forcing me to challenge the Tower once every week.

“Then I’ll be going.”

Once I had finished preparing, I stood in the living room.

As always, with my family seeing me off, I entered the Tower.

[Would you like to enter Nightmare Difficulty Floor 17?]

All right... Let’s clear Floor 17 nice and easily too.

My vision changed.

***

My vision turned black for an instant, then returned.

A momentary sense of wrongness.

'...Hmm?'

Huh?

I stared ahead in confusion.

The living room at home.

My family looking at me.

...What the hell is this?

Didn’t I just enter Floor 17?

But for some reason, instead of entering the Tower, I was still standing right where I had been.

“...Seo-hyeon? Did you clear it already?”

My little sister asked, looking puzzled.

No, what are you talking about? I didn’t even enter—

I could not make sense of anything.

I tried to open my mouth and answer... Huh?

My body was not moving the way I wanted it to.

I was not the one in control of my body.

'Demon King?'

Startled, I called out to the Demon King.

I had never handed over my body, so why did he have control?

“Hmm-hmm...”

Suddenly, the Demon King let out a laugh through my mouth.

A disgusting laugh filled with malice.

Just like the first time the Demon King had taken over my body.

'Demon King, what are you doing?'

I asked, feeling an ominous chill.

The Demon King spoke.

“At last, We have taken complete possession of this body.”

'...What?'

“To think that a lowly creature such as thee would work Us so hard and humiliate Us so greatly. It has truly been a long age of endurance.”

What the hell was this guy talking about?

Just as I found myself completely unable to understand what was happening.

I stopped time.

But then an unbelievable message appeared before my eyes.

[Person123’s ‘Time Stop ability’ has been prohibited.]

'...?!'

What... the hell?

Time did not stop.

I stared in horror.

The Tower had prohibited my Time Stop ability?

What kind of bullshit was that?

How the hell could it even do that?

The Demon King moved my lips with a mocking smile.

“Kuh-kuh-kuh! What is it? Dost thou not remember what happened on Floor 17?”

'...Floor 17?'

“On Floor 17, the Tower itself appeared before Us. And rather than offering thee anything, it made an offer to Us. If We revealed the secret of thy ability, it would immediately send Us outside and then allow Us to take complete possession of thy body.”

The unbelievable story continued.

“And so We revealed everything about thy ability to the Tower. The Tower truly is an omnipotent existence. The very moment it learned of thy Time Stop ability, it prohibited it just like this. It seems the Tower also did something to leave thy memories incomplete.”

'What... What the...'

I was thrown into utter confusion.

The Tower had made that kind of offer to the Demon King on Floor 17...?

And the Demon King had accepted it and taken over my body now?

Everything was tangled.

A complete mess.

The situation made absolutely no sense.

There was no way I would have just stood there and watched that happen... No... More importantly, why?

Why the hell had the Demon King accepted an offer like that?

Why?

'...Didn’t you want to bring down the Tower too? Why the hell would you fall for an offer like that?'

Wasn’t that why he had placed his hopes in me and cooperated with me all this time?

The Demon King burst into wild laughter.

“Kahahahaha! Thou witless fool! Didst thou truly believe We had placed any hope in thee? Bring down the Tower? Something even We could not accomplish, and thou thought a mere lowly creature such as thee could achieve it?!”

'...'

“From the very beginning, We desired only to seize thy body should the opportunity arise. And at last, that opportunity presented itself on Floor 17!”

The Demon King continued chuckling as though he could barely contain his amusement.

“There is no meaning in opposing the incomprehensible Tower regardless. And so, from this moment onward, We shall amuse Ourself with this world until this body’s lifespan reaches its end. We shall force every lowly creature to kneel beneath Our feet and rule over them all. With thy body.”

...Impossible.

This was impossible.

Something like this could not be happening.

“S-Seo-hyeon. What’s wrong? Are you all right?”

My family asked me in confusion.

No.

They asked the Demon King who had taken over my body.

The corners of the Demon King’s mouth curled upward.

“Dost thou remember what We told thee when first we met?”

...What the hell was he talking about?

“We told thee that We would kill thy family, thy lover, and thy friends with thine own hands. At last, We shall keep Our word.”

A chill ran through me.

Malice and killing intent surged from the Demon King.

The Demon King reached a hand toward my father.

'...Stop!'

I screamed, gripped by panic.

But time would not stop.

I could not stop the Demon King.

“...Ghk!”

My hand seized my father by the throat and lifted him into the air.

“Watch closely. This is the price for humiliating Us.”

'D-Don’t...!'

I pleaded.

My mind turned completely white.

All thought stopped.

The Demon King tightened his grip.

'...DON’T AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!'

CRACK!

My hand snapped my father’s neck.