WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability

Chapter 118

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Qualification Trial (1)

I sat down with my family and told them everything.

Being chosen for Nightmare difficulty, climbing the Tower, the things I had done as Person123, what I had been thinking and feeling through all of it...

Anything they would have wondered about, I told them myself, in detail.

Including why this Floor 8 clear had taken so much longer than the rest.

"...So it took a long time because I had to physically reach the oasis. Nothing about it was actually dangerous."

My father, who had been listening in silence, gave a slow nod.

"I see. That must have been exhausting. Really."

A secret I had wanted so badly to keep...

Now that it was all out, the feeling was strange to describe.

My family's reaction was unexpected, in its own way.

Everyone seemed calmer than I had braced for.

I looked around at them and kept going.

"I'm going to have to keep climbing the Tower."
"..."
"I hope you can understand it's not something I can just stop. No one else can do it."

Now that everything was in the open, there was no getting around it.

From here on, my family would have to watch me risk my life clearing Nightmare floors, again and again.

It was a terrible thing to put them through. Part of why I had never wanted to tell them. But there was no other way.

A short silence followed.

"I know."

My father spoke first.

"What kind of parent gets in the way of their child's path? Especially when that child is trying to save the world."
"..."
"Seo-hyeon. Don't worry about us. Your father is nothing but proud of you. So... go do what you have to do."

He said it quietly, matter-of-fact.

My mother nodded beside him.

"Same goes for me. How could I not be proud? Your father and I are fine."

But watching their faces, I realized it pretty quickly.

There was no way they were fine.

While I had been grinding through Floor 8, they must have already worked through what to think and feel. Made their peace with it, somehow, among themselves.

"...Thank you. For understanding."

That was all I could say.

My mother turned her head slightly and wiped at the corner of her eye.

I shifted the mood, putting some lightness into my voice.

"Don't worry too much. Honestly, I haven't been in any real danger while clearing, not once. I mean it. Not since Floor 4."

Thinking of the Floor 4 walkthrough post I had written back then, I added:

"And I know it sounds like something I'd just say, but... I'm genuinely pretty strong. You know how first-clear rewards are in a completely different league from regular ones, right? Nightmare first-clear rewards even boost your level, so I'm already past level 100.

I've got great skills and items loaded up too. This time, clearing Floor 8, I even got a Legendary-grade skill. A rarity grade that hasn't even appeared in the world yet."
"R-really?"
"Yeah. So please don't stress about it. I'm not just saying this to make you feel better — it's the truth. Nightmare difficulty is brutal, sure, but I'm in a completely different league from other climbers."

I said it with a grin, as confidently as I could manage.

"And honestly... if I ever felt like I truly couldn't do it, I would have quit a long time ago. You know what I'm like. I hate putting myself in danger. I'm doing this because it's survivable, and because I want to keep living. If the world ends, I die too."

Both of them nodded at that.

My mother pushed herself to her feet.

"Are you hungry? You haven't eaten yet, have you?"

We had dinner after that.

As if by unspoken agreement, no one brought up the Nightmare climb again.

We would need to talk more about it eventually, but for now I could feel them making the effort not to weigh on me.

"Huu..."

I got back to my room and dropped onto the bed.

My chest felt heavy.

Because I still hadn't told them everything.

...The lifespan situation. That I couldn't bring myself to say.

They already had more than enough to carry right now.

How could I tell them I had become someone with less than a year left to live?

"This is a problem."

They would go on assuming I'd climb the Tower once a year, the same as always.

The fact that I couldn't afford that pace anymore was its own separate issue.

I could frame it as a lesson from Floor 8, tell them I'd have to tackle Nightmare on a tighter schedule going forward, leave out the worst of it...

But even that wouldn't cover how fast I actually needed to move.

Three hundred days left. That was all I had.

Realistically, I had to be challenging at least one floor a week.

If I even knew how many floors the Tower had in total, at least I'd have something to work toward.

I didn't know that either, so the destination stayed murky, like trying to see through fog.

"Demon King-nim, is there any way to get lifespan back?"

I asked the Demon King.

The response came with an energy that clearly said what the hell are you on about, so I added:

"I mean, keep climbing and eventually an item that extends lifespan might show up, right? There are already items that reduce it."
- How would I know that.
"You said you climbed past Floor 20. Never seen anything like that? An item or skill?"

The Demon King answered with something like a sneer.

- You burned through your lifespan so boldly, so keep going on that same boldness. Fretting over family and other petty things is no way to climb Nightmare.

That was a no, then.

- If you're going to stand against the Tower, you'll need to become a monster yourself. Keep that in mind.
"Hmm... so does that mean you failed because you weren't a monster?"
- You little shit.

Stand against the Tower — that's a bit much. All I want is for the world to be okay.

Well, I suppose it amounts to the same thing.

There's no way to keep the world safe except to climb the Tower all the way to the top.

And even then, whether things actually work out at the top is anyone's guess.

"Ugh."

I pressed a hand to my forehead and groaned.

Lifespan, the climb, 300 days...

And now this Qualification Trial business was about to kick off on top of everything. Whatever that was going to put me through.

Head full of noise, chest full of dread.

Click.

The door opened.

My sister poked her head in.

"Asleep?"
"...No."

I sat up.

She came in, shut the door, and hovered awkwardly near the entrance.

Like she had something to say.

"What is it?"
"...Nothing, just."

She dropped into the desk chair.

"Is there anything else you wanted to say?"
"...Like what?"
"I know how you are, oppa. I thought maybe there was something you held back so Mom and Dad wouldn't worry."

...What? Since when was she this sharp?

Reading her expression, she seemed to be taking a casual guess more than anything.

"If there is, just say it. It's not like I worry about you the way they do. You can be straight with me."

I laughed a little.

"Then why were you crying earlier?"
"...I wasn't."
"There's nothing. What would I be hiding at this point?"

Something about what she had done felt genuinely thoughtful.

She studied me for a moment, then nodded.

"Okay, fine... but can I ask you one thing?"
"Go ahead."
"I kind of suspected you might be Person123 before, you know? It made sense. Every time a Nightmare floor got cleared you were off traveling. And Person123 is Korean."

So she had been suspicious after all.

"That's why I followed you that time when you went to sell magic stones. But if you're a Nightmare climber, where were the lowest-grade magic stones even coming from? Those only drop on Easy difficulty, right?"

Fair question.

"There are ways. I have someone helping me."
"...Really? I thought you were keeping your identity hidden."
"There's someone who knows and still helps me."
"Who is it?"
"Billon Must."

Nothing to hide there, so I told her.

She looked absolutely stunned.

"Anyway, some incredible people are supporting me. I get backing on top of the Nightmare clear rewards, so I'm basically invincible out there. Don't waste your energy worrying. One and only under heaven, that's me."
"What are you even saying..."

I waved a hand.

"I'm tired, so go. I need to rest."
"T-tired? Okay."

She got up from the chair.

Then I remembered something worth teasing her about.

"Oh, right. That thing from before."
"Hm? What?"
"You said you had something you wanted to tell Person123. I heard every word of it..."
"LALALALA. NOT LISTENING. NOT LISTENING!"

She clapped both hands over her ears and bolted out the door.

I laughed and lay back down.

Right. Got to keep going.

Even when there's no clear path ahead, I keep moving forward.

That was all I could do.

[Would you like to enter Floor 5?]

I pulled myself together and stepped into Floor 5 immediately.

Not a moment to waste.

Before the Qualification Trial or whatever it was got started, at least I could be hunting.

The Floor 8 walkthrough write-up could wait until after.

* * *

In the wake of Person123's miraculous Floor 8 clear, the entire world was celebrating.

The despair had been so deep that the joy rising to replace it was just as enormous. Action and equal reaction.

"Come on, drink up!"

A bar in Seoul was no different, loud and bright with it.

"Person123 is Person123, what did I tell you. A god doesn't fail!"
"Exactly. A god! A toast to our savior!"

People drank themselves happy over the fact that humanity had bought another year.

"Hey, speaking of which... isn't it almost time? The Qualification Trial thing?"
"But that's supposed to be for top-floor climbers, right?"

The new rule that had appeared after Floor 8 cleared. Something targeting the highest-floor climbers, apparently, which meant most people figured nothing world-threatening was about to happen.

It wasn't like worrying about it would give anyone anything to do anyway.

"Person123 is a top-floor climber too, though."
"Person123 will obviously handle it fine! Shouldn't we be more worried about the other difficulty climbers?"
"Come on, just drink."

Time passed.

[Time Remaining: 1 second]

A man mid-sip looked up and his eyes went wide.

"...Hey."
"Yeah?"
"What is that... am I drunk?"

The people around him started murmuring too.

Something bluish was spreading across the sky, covering everything.

['Qualification Trial' has begun.]

[The highest-floor climbers on each difficulty have been selected.]

[A total of nine isolation zones with a radius of 50 kilometers each have been set.]

[The isolation zones will completely block all movement between the interior and exterior.]

South Korea, China, Russia, Canada, Turkey, Brazil, Poland, Uzbekistan, Somalia.

Nine enormous semi-transparent dome barriers materialized, one over the heart of each country.

[The highest-floor climbers must move to the Chamber of Proof and engage in combat against a boss monster of equivalent level.]

[The order begins with the highest-floor climber on Easy difficulty.]

[Before moving to the Chamber of Proof, the highest-floor climbers may select from the isolation zones.]

[Penalties will be applied based on the number of isolation zones selected.]

[Penalties are active for the duration of time spent inside the Chamber of Proof.]

[The penalties are as follows.]

[0 selected]
- No penalty

[1 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 30%

[2 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 30%
- 3 random skills prohibited

[3 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 30%
- 3 random skills prohibited
- 3 random items prohibited

[4 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 60%
- 3 random skills prohibited
- 3 random items prohibited

[5 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 60%
- 6 random skills prohibited
- 3 random items prohibited

[6 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 60%
- 6 random skills prohibited
- 6 random items prohibited

[7 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 90%
- 6 random skills prohibited
- 6 random items prohibited

[8 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 90%
- All skills prohibited
- 6 random items prohibited

[9 selected]
- Physical abilities and Willpower reduced by 90%
- All skills prohibited
- All items prohibited

[You may not exit the Chamber of Proof until the boss monster has been defeated.]

[Upon successfully defeating the boss monster, the selected isolation zones will be deactivated and the next turn will begin.]

[Upon failure to defeat the boss monster, a new highest-floor climber from the same difficulty will be drawn by lot, and the process will repeat until success is achieved.]

[After all difficulty tiers have concluded their battles, the Tower's Curse will fall upon any remaining active isolation zones, and every human inside will die.]

[Deactivating all isolation zones will grant a special reward.]

[Climbers who have reached the highest floor on each difficulty are asked to prove their qualifications as humanity's vanguard.]

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