WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 173: Nightmare, Floor 15 (5)
──────
Hey guys, quick announcement before the chapter! We're hosting an original webnovel contest with a $1000 prize pool, a chance to publish your novel on WeTried, and lifetime free reading access for the top two winners!
There's also a participation prize of 500 coins for everyone participating.
If you've got a story sitting in a folder somewhere, or have been wanting to try writing one, we'd love to read it. You only need your first 10 chapters, and you have until 1st January 2027 to submit. New writers are welcome too!
Full details, rules, and how to enter here! https://wetriedtls.com/announcements/webnovel-contest
Feel free to send this to anyone you know who writes. Enjoy the chapter!
If you have any questions, please join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
──────
Kanyuk turned around.
“We may run out of time, so moving together is too risky. I trust you too, Hyun. Let’s each get ten points quickly.”
Kanyuk made a great leap, stepping across the platforms and rapidly disappearing into the distance.
I couldn’t bring myself to stop them.
My head felt like it would burst. I stopped time.
‘A tie...’
...Would Kanyuk really keep their word?
Would they gather ten points, then betray me at the last moment?
Trusting Kanyuk was separate from whether they were a good person.
Kanyuk would do anything to protect their world. They could deceive me without hesitation.
More importantly, what did Kanyuk even trust to make a proposal like this?
What guarantee did they have that I wouldn’t betray them?
Could someone really stake their world’s safety on nothing but blind trust?
- Why else would they do it? Because they intend to betray you.
The Demon King spoke.
- They are a Climber who reached Floor 15 of Nightmare difficulty. Do you think that would be possible if they were only innocent and honest? Get a grip.
I couldn’t deny it.
Knowing another person’s true feelings was more difficult than facing any powerful monster.
Trust was this difficult.
- More than that, do you really believe a tie will let you both pass?
...I knew.
Even if Kanyuk truly kept their promise, then what?
There was no way the Tower would allow such a trick. Certainly not.
- If you know that, use Radiant Incarnation immediately. How long will you keep hesitating?
The Demon King urged me impatiently.
After agonizing over it, I resumed time.
[9:32]
...For now, I would gather ten points.
I would decide what to do afterward.
Even if Kanyuk betrayed me or things went wrong, I could still use Radiant Incarnation later and manage somehow.
As the Demon King said, I didn’t want to kill Kanyuk right away. I couldn’t do that.
‘Please stay quiet for a bit. I’ll handle this myself.’
Kanyuk had said we should place our hopes on this.
I couldn’t deny that a faint hope lingered somewhere in my heart too.
I truly didn’t want either of us to fail.
- You damned bastard. Fine, do whatever you want. When have you ever listened to me?
The Demon King grumbled, then fell silent.
I started moving.
Platforms stretched endlessly in every direction.
Using Air Step, I crossed the platforms toward the place where I had seen a light flickering in the distance.
[0:1]
My score changed while I was moving.
It seemed Kanyuk had destroyed a Golden Orb.
Feeling needlessly anxious, I hurriedly scanned my surroundings.
‘...There.’
Soon, I found one too.
A golden sphere the size of a baseball floated slightly above a platform.
Shk!
I sliced the Golden Orb with the Sword of Heaven's Gatekeeper, its blade cloaked in aura.
The sphere split in half, then scattered away like smoke.
[You have earned 1 point.]
[1:1]
My score increased by one along with the message.
Without wasting any time, I immediately moved to search for another Golden Orb.
A faint light flickered in the distance again.
Finding and destroying Golden Orbs was not difficult.
The flashes of light revealed where new Golden Orbs would appear, and nothing blocked my view.
The only problem was that the distance between the summoned orbs was so great that traveling took time.
Still, at this pace, earning ten points before time ran out would not be a problem.
[2:3]
[5:4]
[7:7]
Kanyuk’s score and mine rose at nearly the same pace, overtaking each other again and again.
Perhaps because we had initially moved in opposite directions, we had not encountered each other yet.
Then...
[9:9]
Having just destroyed another Golden Orb, I checked the score.
We were both one point away from ten.
Three minutes remained.
[9:10]
Then the score changed immediately.
...Kanyuk had reached ten points first.
With a tense expression, I looked around.
No flickering light was visible.
For now, I moved in another direction.
Whoosh!
As I moved, a figure approaching from far ahead came into view.
It was Kanyuk.
My thoughts became complicated again as I watched them draw closer.
That was when it happened.
Flash!
A brilliant burst of light erupted right nearby.
A Golden Orb had appeared directly above the platform along Kanyuk’s path.
Kanyuk and I stopped at the same time.
I was still far away, while the Golden Orb was right in front of Kanyuk.
Naturally, our eyes met.
“...”
What was Kanyuk thinking right now?
Did they truly intend to keep their promise?
Ridiculously, that was what crossed my mind at that moment.
Even if Kanyuk suddenly changed their mind and destroyed the Golden Orb, I thought I could understand.
I would not feel particularly betrayed.
I resented not Kanyuk, but this situation itself.
I prepared myself.
If Kanyuk tried to destroy the Golden Orb, I would use Radiant Incarnation immediately.
Kanyuk smiled faintly.
They raised the crescent-bladed polearm in their hand...
Clang!
Then dropped it onto the ground.
Kanyuk plopped down directly in front of the Golden Orb.
“What are you doing, Hyun? Hurry over and destroy it.”
...I let out a sigh.
It was not quite a sigh of relief. Too many complicated feelings were mixed into it.
I climbed onto the platform where Kanyuk stood.
Then I struck the Golden Orb with the Sword of Heaven's Gatekeeper.
[You have earned 1 point.]
[10:10]
We had both reached ten points.
Kanyuk looked up at me while sitting on the ground.
I looked back at them...
Then set down my sword and sat across from them.
Kanyuk spoke.
“Thank you, Hyun. For listening to me.”
I shook my head.
I had not made up my mind yet.
“...Are we really doing this?”
Was this really right?
I had no idea what would happen if we tied.
Considering the Tower’s malice, the odds of us both passing were slim.
If the third round simply repeated until there was a winner, that would at least be bearable.
In the worst case, we could both be judged to have failed.
I really didn’t know.
Rationally speaking, this was insane.
If my life were mine alone, I would have done it willingly. I didn’t want to finish Kanyuk off.
But if I failed, Earth would be finished.
There would be no one left to clear Nightmare difficulty.
Did it make any sense to risk my world’s safety on such a dangerous gamble?
“We might both fail the round. We could both fail to clear Floor 15.”
“I know. That could happen.”
“And you still want to do this? If you fail, your world will be in danger too, Kanyuk. You said there are no other Nightmare Climbers as exceptional as you.”
I was practically trying to persuade Kanyuk.
The desire to place my hopes on this gamble and the feeling that I could not bear such an absurd risk tangled chaotically inside me.
“What else can we do?”
Kanyuk spoke.
“I don’t want to extend my world’s lifespan by trampling another world.”
“...”
“My tribe would not want that either. So even if things go wrong, I intend to accept the result.”
Kanyuk stared at me.
“But, Hyun, I cannot force that on you too.”
“...”
“If you think differently, do as you wish. I would not resent my friend for it in the slightest.”
The word friend struck deeply.
I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them.
[0:29]
Less than thirty seconds remained.
“...Someone’s going to regret this.”
“I won’t regret it.”
“No. I’ll be the one who regrets it.”
Kanyuk gave a sharp laugh.
“Thank you, my friend.”
I said nothing more and stared at the timer in the air.
...In the end, I too lacked the courage to trample the hope of another world.
The numbers fell one by one.
My heart pounded heavily.
Now, all I could do was hope that somehow, things would work out.
[0:01]
Time ran out.
[Both challengers have earned at least 10 points.]
[Both challengers have earned the same score.]
Messages appeared.
But the next message did not say that we had both passed, both failed, or that the round would be repeated.
It was something I had never expected.
[As the result of the third round cannot be determined, the Hidden Round, “Annihilation Battle,” will begin.]
[The two challengers will be sent to each other’s worlds.]
Kanyuk vanished from before my eyes.
The space around me changed.
A dense forest beneath blazing sunlight.
“...!”
Startled, I rose to my feet.
Messages continued to appear.
[Kill all Intelligent Lifeforms in that world.]
[The side that destroys the other world first will win the Annihilation Battle.]
[You cannot enter the Tower until the Annihilation Battle ends.]
[The side that wins the Annihilation Battle will immediately clear Floor 15 and return to its original world.]
I stared blankly at the messages before me.
Wait...
What... was this...
Rustle.
The brush nearby shook, and something emerged.
Members of an other race with teal skin like Kanyuk’s.
Young-looking Tunebalk, far smaller than Kanyuk, tilted their heads as they looked at me.
For a moment, it felt as though I had stopped breathing.
A chill ran up my spine.
I stopped time.
‘...Ah...’
I realized what was happening.
This was Kanyuk’s world.
When the third round had failed to produce a result, the Tower had forcibly created a new contest.
[Kill all Intelligent Lifeforms in that world.]
[The side that destroys the other world first will win the Annihilation Battle.]
We had to destroy each other’s worlds ourselves.
This insane... insane fucking Tower.
Why did it have to go this far?
The gamble had resulted in the worst possible outcome.
Amid my panic, I heard the Demon King’s voice.
- This is entirely the result of your choice. Get a grip.
...I tried to pull myself together.
My mind felt sluggish, but I still thought.
‘How...’
What was I supposed to do?
I had to destroy Kanyuk’s world myself?
Kanyuk would have been sent to Earth and received the same messages.
The situation had spiraled into something irreversibly terrible.
...I should have settled things in the third round after all.
I should not have placed any hope in this fucking Tower.
I screamed inwardly.
The Demon King spoke.
- Use Radiant Incarnation and hand over your body.
‘...’
- There is no other way. I will erase every life in this world as quickly as possible.
Even with time stopped, I felt like I was going to vomit.
How could I do something like that?
I could sense the Demon King’s contempt. I knew I was pathetic too.
- Yes, are you going to fail to make a decision again? Then you will face an even worse outcome here.
...There was only one worst outcome the Demon King meant.
Humanity on Earth would not be able to withstand Kanyuk’s power.
Even if they somehow managed to stop Kanyuk, they would suffer devastating damage little different from destruction.
Before that happened.
I had to act first.
No, even if I acted as quickly as possible, it was already too late.
I could not even imagine how much damage Earth would suffer before I destroyed this world.
...This had happened because of my wrong choice.
The Demon King was right.
If I could not decide, only an even worse outcome awaited.
I had no choice but to struggle for the lesser evil.
I had to protect my world, even if it meant destroying another.
I resumed time.
The young Tunebalk, who had looked at me with curious eyes, spoke to me in a language I could not understand.
My breathing quickened. Cold sweat ran down my entire body.
I had to... I had to do it.
There was not even a second to hesitate.
Before my family was endangered, before Earth was destroyed, I had to do it.
Just as I was about to stop time again to use Radiant Incarnation, a message appeared.
[One challenger has died.]
[You have successfully cleared Floor 15 of Nightmare difficulty.]
“...”
For a moment, I could not understand the message.
But soon, I realized what had happened.
If one of the two challengers died...
The remaining challenger immediately cleared Floor 15.
“...Ha...”
All strength left my body.
I collapsed onto the ground.
Feeling worse than I ever had in my life, I closed my eyes.
[You absorb the power of the Floor.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
.
.
.
[Your level has increased.]
[You are the first to successfully clear Floor 15 of Nightmare difficulty.]
[You will be moved to the Reward Room.]
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
