Chapter 36 - Earth Is Changing Fast (1)

"..."

A bed. A computer. The mini fridge in the kitchen. Even the wardrobe.

This way, that way—no matter where I looked, it was identical to my apartment.

But I’d definitely seen a message saying I’d entered Floor 1.

Was that it, then? Was Earth the tower’s first floor? Just as all these thoughts were starting to make my head spin...

<Announcement. Announcing the rules for Floor 1.>

A familiar message window appeared before my eyes.

"... Hmm."

I tensed my muscles and raised my guard. Anything could happen now, and it wouldn’t surprise me.

But the message that appeared... was quite unexpected.

<Floor 1>

-There are no clear conditions. Please enjoy a comfortable rest. Refer to the guidebook for further details.

"... What?"

I’d just come from a brutal, life-or-death struggle with goblins...

And now they suddenly wanted me to sit back and relax? There were no clear conditions? And a guidebook? Was I here on vacation?

The abrupt shift in atmosphere left me utterly bewildered.

I kept my guard up, wondering if this was a trap, when a small box appeared before me with a pop!

Its design resembled the boxes that held the golden orbs on Floor 0.

"... There really is one."

I took the gently floating box and opened it... and sure enough, there was a guidebook inside.

I pulled it out and checked the title first.

<A Guidebook for Climbers Chosen by God>

On the cover, an angel wore a bright smile and held a placard that read, "Welcome."

"..."

My face instinctively twisted into a scowl at the sight of the relentlessly cheerful booklet.

They’d dumped people on an island with absurd conditions that left them no choice but to kill each other.

And now what? Welcome?

It felt like a sick joke. Irritation welled up inside me.

Still, I could more or less see what they were going for.

From these bastards’ perspective, everything up to now had merely been a "test." Now that we’d passed, perhaps they intended to give us some proper treatment. They probably thought they were doing us a kindness.

But to me, after regressing over and over and desperately struggling to save everyone, it was an utterly revolting kindness.

What kind of joke was this? Was I supposed to be happy they were treating me well?

Still, my feelings were one thing, and the guidebook was another.

Gritting my teeth, I opened it to see what it said.

<Contents>

1. Why Was This Tower Created?

2. Shall We Learn How to Make the Most of Floor 1?

3. I Want to Know the Tower’s Basic Rules!

4. Why Should We Climb the Tower?

The contents were written in a gentle tone, as though explaining things to a little child.

Turning the first page, I found what the fairy had told us during the tutorial, with a few extra details.

Something about God being disappointed in humanity’s behavior, the time of judgment finally arriving, and a merciful God deciding to give humanity a chance to survive—which was the tower...

Sure, I agreed that humanity was a fucking mess. These days, there really did seem to be more and more bastards who barely qualified as human.

But why was this God guy disappointed? He’d made us this way. What right did he have to be disappointed?

If he wanted to be disappointed in someone, it should be himself for making humans like this.

I skimmed it, but it was all pointless drivel, so I flipped through the pages to the next section.

<How to Make the Most of Floor 1.>

God hopes that you climbers will demonstrate the full extent of humanity’s potential. After all, you are effectively the representatives of humanity today. To that end, keeping yourselves in good condition is not optional—it’s essential!

Floor 1 offers a variety of features to ensure that you climbers can get all the rest you need.

First, you can change the form of Floor 1 whenever you like, as much as you like. Try decorating your very own Floor 1!

Second, Floor 1 can provide you with anything you want, in any quantity! However, you cannot take these items outside Floor 1!

Third, do you miss your family? We’ll open a portal home whenever you like! Likewise, we’ll open a portal to Floor 2 whenever you wish.

Once you’ve rested your body and mind and finished your preparations, why not give Floor 2 a try?

"..."

I looked up from the guidebook and surveyed my ordinary little apartment.

To be honest, I’d always wanted to live somewhere spacious and clean rather than in a tiny place like this.

"... Oh."

The instant I had that thought, my surroundings transformed into the interior of an ordinary apartment.

Outside the window, the Han River flowed past, and people walked along.

RATTLE.

I opened the window, and cool air blew in.

"... Can’t do that, though."

I tried reaching outside, but my hand wouldn’t go any farther, as though blocked by an invisible barrier.

In that case, this time I imagined a lavish mansion.

My surroundings rippled once more, becoming the interior of an opulent mansion fit for Dubai royalty.

I climbed the stairs and entered the room in the middle of the second floor, where an ornate chandelier and a bed big enough for ten people greeted me.

When I imagined a delicious pizza, one from my favorite chain appeared on the table beside me. When I imagined a cold drink, I found myself holding a bottle with a straw in it.

I took a sip and flung myself onto the soft bed.

A quick check of my phone revealed that I even had reception.

"... I want to go back to Earth."

At those words, a blue portal immediately appeared beside the bed.

I rolled into it... and found myself standing in my familiar little apartment again.

"... Cola."

I imagined an ice-cold cola, but nothing happened.

When I opened the window and reached outside, my hand passed through without any resistance.

"... Ha."

I gave a hollow laugh and threw myself onto my sour-smelling bed.

It was uncomfortable. I missed the softness of that other bed already.

"... I want to go back to Floor 1."

A blue portal appeared the moment I finished speaking.

But instead of stepping through, I waved my hand and closed it.

"..."

If everyone else had been given the same Floor 1 I had...

"I think we’re fucked."

Humanity was on the brink of extinction.

Let me make this clear: the tutorial I’d experienced felt very different from the one everyone else had gone through.

For starters, thanks to repeated regressions, I’d spent most of the tutorial already quite familiar with the situation.

The swordsmanship I’d learned from Choi Jiwon and my achievement levels had made me a formidable fighter. Apart from the Minotaur, nothing had ever made me fear for my life.

Yet even I felt sleep creeping over me as soon as I lay down.

After spending all that time sleeping curled up on the bare ground, it was impossible to resist sleep once I sank into a soft bed.

But what about the others—not the people who’d gone through the tutorial with me?

Their tutorial would have been one long ordeal of constant stress.

With food in short supply, they would have been hungry all the time.

Even when they slept, they would barely have managed a light doze, fearing for their lives.

As the angel had said, they might even have stabbed someone they loved to death for an orb.

Just when they thought they’d barely survived the tutorial, an angel would suddenly appear and browbeat them into paying the proper price to enter the tower.

Stress. More stress. Most of them had probably been driven to the brink of insanity.

If people like that... encountered the Floor 1 I’d just experienced?

They would probably think:

‘Do I really have to go up to Floor 2?’

On Floor 1, they could have every material thing they wanted.

Humanity would supposedly perish unless we reached Floor 66... but rather than suffer through it themselves, they would likely hope someone else would take care of it.

Besides, the Tutorial fairy had only said humanity would be wiped out. She hadn’t given us a deadline for climbing the tower.

There was no motivation.

No motivation to risk your life climbing this tower.

If God had intended this... maybe he wanted to test human willpower? Our spirit of self-sacrifice? Some bullshit like that.

As a way to wipe out humanity without killing a single person, I thought it was remarkably sophisticated.

"First things first... what’s the date today?"

Fortunately, when I checked my phone, the date hadn’t changed.

That was probably because I’d cleared the tutorial so quickly.

The moment I unlocked my phone, a flood of KaeTalk messages poured in.

The vast majority told me to go to a web portal right now and check the news.

"... What the hell is this?"

Following my friends’ advice, I opened a portal site and checked the news section... which was an absolute spectacle.

『 Video of Superpowered Individual Deleted Immediately After Upload to YouTube Proven Genuine! 』

『 [Breaking] US Acknowledges Existence of Tower! Returnees Officially Designated “Players”! 』

『 Korean Government Officially Admits Withholding Information: “It Was Concealed to Avoid Potential Social Unrest.” 』

『 Players Keeping Quiet About the “Tutorial”... Selfishness, or Something Supernatural? 』

"..."

Every tower-climbing story I’d read had been set after the tower appeared, in a society that had already finished changing.

Perhaps that was why I’d never seen anything like this before.

The tower... was changing the world.

A Word from the Author (Author’s Note)

Thank you for reading!

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