Tutorial's Greatest Secret

The system faded.

But Seo-Jun did not move.

Not immediately.

The weight of his choices settled quietly into place.

Then he exhaled once.

The thoughts did not linger.

There was no need to reflect.

There was only the next decision.

Now he shifted his attention.

Assassin skills.

And fist techniques.

Not for himself.

For his parents.

He didn't stop to justify it.

There was no need.

Strength was not something meant to stay alone.

Seo-Jun activated the Eye of Insight again.

Information unfolded in layers.

Most assassin skills were shallow.

Fast execution.

Low stability.

High dependence on physical stats.

Fist techniques were no different.

Brute force wrapped in simple forms.

Useful for beginners.

Irrelevant for what he needed.

He kept scanning.

Slowly.

Filtering.

Not power.

Not rarity.

But potential.

Something that could grow beyond its current frame.

Then he paused.

Two items stood out.

Not because they were loud.

But because they were controlled.

As if they had already been refined beyond their era.

✦ ✦ ✦

[Heavenly Void Severing Fist]

Type: Fist Technique

Rank: Ancient

Description:

A fist technique that does not rely on brute force alone. It condenses intent into impact and releases it at the moment of contact. Each strike carries internal pressure that does not disperse outward but collapses inward before release, creating a destructive internal rupture effect on targets. The technique emphasizes precision over strength. Control over emotion. Control over breath. Control over timing.

At higher mastery, even a restrained fist can distort internal structure without visible motion. It is said that those who mastered it did not need to swing harder. Only cleaner.

Original Price: 5,000,000 Survival Points

✦ ✦ ✦

[Abyssal Execution Art]

Type: Assassin Skill

Rank: Ancient

Description:

A supreme assassination art that turns the user into an existence rejected by perception itself. Every trace of intent, presence, mana, sound, breath, and killing instinct is erased, allowing the assassin to exist only as the moment of death.

The technique also refines every strike into a perfect killing blow. Attacks launched while the user's presence remains concealed gain overwhelming precision, greatly increasing critical damage and exploiting the target's vital points with supernatural accuracy.

The less the target perceives the user, the deadlier the attack becomes.

At higher mastery, even sensory skills, danger perception, and precognitive abilities struggle to detect the assassin. Every successful unseen strike accumulates Death Marks, causing subsequent attacks against the same target to inflict exponentially greater damage.

At its pinnacle, the first strike is treated as an Absolute Ambush, capable of ignoring a portion of physical, magical, and defensive abilities, as though the world itself failed to acknowledge the attack before it had already landed. Detection becomes increasingly difficult as mastery rises.

This art does not reward prolonged combat.

Its purpose is singular:

One strike. One death.

Price: 5,000,000 Survival Points

✦ ✦ ✦

Seo-Jun read both once.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Then again.

One for impact.

One for disappearance.

Strength.

And silence.

Then he made his decision.

"…Purchase both at 10% of final price."

[Total 1,000,000 Survival Points Deducted]

Remaining points: 1,000,000

One million Survival Points remained.

And a single-use ticket.

A privilege that allowed one item to be purchased at one percent of its original price.

Seo-Jun stayed silent for a moment.

He did not rush the decision.

Not anymore.

He had already taken what he needed.

Now it was about what remained beyond logic.

He shifted his gaze slightly.

"…What should I take next?"

Krix tilted his head.

He thought for a moment.

Then he spoke.

"Pet."

Seo-Jun frowned immediately.

"I can't babysit anything right now."

His voice was flat.

"I don't have time for that."

Krix didn't answer right away.

Instead, he looked at him as if the answer was obvious, but difficult to explain in words.

"That's not what a pet is."

A short pause.

Then he continued.

"A pet is not something you manage."

"It's something that stays."

"No matter what happens."

"Good days or bad days."

"Strength or weakness."

"Even when you forget the world for a moment… it's still there."

His tone softened slightly.

"Just a little attention is enough."

"A little warmth."

"That's all they need."

Krix's gaze sharpened again.

"And in return… they stay beside you as if they were always meant to be there."

A faint smile appeared.

"Sometimes, that kind of presence matters more than power."

Seo-Jun didn't respond.

But he was listening now.

Krix added one last line.

"It doesn't have to be trained every moment."

"It just has to exist with you."

Seo-Jun exhaled quietly.

Then turned toward the pet list.

The interface expanded.

Countless eggs appeared.

Flame Serpent Egg.

Frost Wyvern Egg.

Thunder Drake Egg.

Shadow Beast Cocoon.

Crystal Hydra Egg.

Nightmare Wolf Core.

Each one carried power.

Each one demanded attention.

Yet none of them stayed in his focus for long.

He kept scrolling.

Slowly.

Until he stopped.

A single item.

No glow.

No visual effect.

No attempt to draw attention.

Even the Eye of Insight struggled to interpret it.

As if it refused to be read properly.

Information broke apart the moment it tried to form.

Not blocked.

Not hidden.

Simply unreadable.

A contradiction that did not allow understanding.

Seo-Jun's gaze stayed fixed.

Slowly, the visual details became clearer.

A black and white egg.

Two colors.

Perfectly divided.

Yet not separated.

They did not mix.

They coexisted without balance, as if balance itself was irrelevant.

The boundary between them felt unnatural.

Not drawn.

But enforced by something beyond perception.

Seo-Jun stared at it for a long time.

Silence settled in his mind.

Even the Eye of Insight remained quiet.

As if it had decided there was nothing useful to extract.

Only something to acknowledge.

And fear, if it could.

✦ ✦ ✦

[Unknown Egg(Tutorial Exclusive)]

Type: Pet Egg

Rank: ??? (Unknown)

Description:

An egg of unknown origin. No lineage exists within Tower records. No classification can properly contain its existence. Even system analysis returns fragmented results.

Danger Level: Abyss Tier

A classification reserved for entities that exceed measurable threat standards. Instability detected in its existence pattern. Its future form cannot be predicted.

Original Price: 100,000,000 Survival Points

✦ ✦ ✦

Seo-Jun stared at it for a long time.

A hundred million Survival Points.

And a Tutorial-exclusive designation.

If not for the conditions he had met… and the single-use ticket he held… it would have remained forever out of reach.

The kind of item that was never meant to be bought.

Only observed.

Locked inside the Shop like a sealed truth.

An absurd existence hidden among structured choices.

The most expensive items he had seen so far peaked at twenty million.

And even those felt like exceptions.

This egg stood above them all.

By more than double.

Almost five times the highest price he had seen.

The difference was no longer about value.

It was about classification failure.

Seo-Jun slowly exhaled.

For a moment, even his thoughts didn't form properly.

He had no words for it.

Only silence.

A rare kind of silence.

The kind that came when even judgment stopped working.

Then he thought about what Krix had said.

Not control.

Not utility.

Just presence and warmth.

Something that stays.

Something that exists beside you through every state of the world.

He exhaled slowly.

Then made his decision.

"…Use the 1% ticket."

[1,000,000 Survival Points Deducted]

Remaining points: 0

[ITEM ACQUIRED]

The remaining points reached zero.

The egg did not shine.

It did not announce itself.

It simply became his.

Krix watched quietly.

Then he let out a low breath.

"…So you chose that."

His eyes lingered on the egg for a moment.

Even he couldn't read it properly.

After a pause, he spoke again.

"The tutorial ends here."

"Your real journey begins now."

A faint smile returned, but it was different this time.

Not relaxed.

More serious.

"You bought something extraordinary."

"And something dangerous."

His gaze settled on Seo-Jun.

Krix's voice faded.

"…Even I don't know what it is."

Silence followed.

Seo-Jun stood still.

Not stronger.

Not faster.

But aligned.

Stable under structure.

As if something inside him had quietly accepted its place in the world.

Krix stepped closer, studying him without hiding it now.

Then he spoke.

"…You didn't pick anything emotional."

A short pause.

"Everything you chose was future-based."

Seo-Jun answered immediately.

"I don't invest in the present."

Another pause.

"I invest in survival continuity."

Krix stared at him for a moment longer than necessary.

Then he exhaled, almost amused.

"…You're no longer just a climber."

Seo-Jun turned slightly.

"Then what am I?"

Krix's gaze sharpened.

"A system-recognized anomaly."

He tilted his head.

A faint smile formed.

"And that means the Tower will start responding to you directly sooner or later."

Seo-Jun nodded once.

"That's fine."

Silence stretched.

Then Krix raised a hand slightly, as if formally declaring something important.

"…As your senior administrator," he said lightly, "I expect good results from my Junior."

A pause.

"My reputation is at stake, after all."

His smile widened just a little.

"Looking forward to working with you."

He leaned in slightly.

"J.U.N.I.O.R."

Seo-Jun frowned immediately.

"…Don't say it like that."

Krix chuckled.

"Too late."

Seo-Jun looked away once.

Then back at him.

"…You're enjoying this."

"Of course," Krix replied calmly. "It's not every day the Tower gives me something interesting to watch grow."

A brief silence followed.

Then Krix's tone shifted slightly.

"The Tutorial is fully stabilized."

"No further irreversible corruption events will occur in the Tutorial now."

He paused.

"From here on, the outcome depends entirely on how you climb."

Seo-Jun nodded once.

"Good."

Krix looked at him for a moment longer.

"…You're leaving now."

Seo-Jun turned forward.

Not up.

Not down.

Forward.

"I am continuing."

Krix smiled faintly.

"…Then I will observe."

Seo-Jun took a step.

The space around him began to thin.

Like reality itself was preparing to let him go.

Before he disappeared completely, he spoke once.

Calm.

Certain.

"I have plans for the Tower."

A pause.

"So keep watching."

Then...

he vanished.

✦ ✦ ✦

[2nd TOWER QUEST IS PROVIDED]

✦ ✦ ✦

Krix remained alone in the fading light.

For a moment, he said nothing.

Then he looked upward.

The sky above the Tutorial was calm.

Too calm.

A strange wind passed through it.

Not destructive.

Not visible.

But heavy.

Krix narrowed his eyes slightly.

"…That kind of wind."

A faint smile returned.

"It's going to change something."

He placed a hand in his pocket, watching the empty space where Seo-Jun had vanished.

"Maybe the Tower itself."

His smile deepened.

"Or maybe something even bigger."

The wind moved once more.

And Krix, still looking at the sky, quietly laughed.

"…Looking forward to it."