WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability

Chapter 67

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Floor 5 (5)

Hyeon stepped forward and blocked Wang Kai.

Alex had no idea where he had come from so suddenly.

No... more than that, hadn’t he just blocked Wang Kai’s attack? How?

“Stop. Are you really going to kill all these people?”

Hyeon said.

Alex stood there in confusion, then suddenly realized something.

‘No way?’

Wang Kai seemed to realize it too and shouted.

“Y-you... is it you? No way?”

“...”

“Person123! It’s you, right? Right?!”

A powerhouse strong enough to block Wang Kai’s attack, yet not part of the Peacekeeping Corps or Black Star Society.

Who else could it be but Person123?

Hyeon did not deny Wang Kai’s words.

...No one could have imagined this. That young man he had only brushed past at the diner was Person123.

Climbers from both the Peacekeeping Corps and Black Star Society began to murmur, as if they had forgotten the situation for a moment.

The savior of humanity, the mysterious figure wrapped in secrecy until now, had shown himself in public.

Then, without warning, Wang Kai attacked Person123.

“...!”

Person123 dodged and blocked Wang Kai’s attacks, getting pushed back.

A brief exchange followed, then both men stopped again.

“...Why are you attacking me?”

“Hey.”

Wang Kai grinned like a lunatic and said,

“I really, really wanted to meet you, you cute little bastard. My wish finally came true today. Wow.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but stop.”

“Stop? Stop what?”

“Trying to kill Alex-ssi and the Peacekeeping Corps. I don’t know why you’re fighting, but you already won.”

Person123 was trying to protect the Peacekeeping Corps.

Alex and the other peacekeepers held their breath and watched his back.

“Oh yeah? You want me to stop?”

“...”

“Then kneel and bow your head. Do that, and I’ll stop.”

At Person123’s attempt to mediate, Wang Kai started spewing madness again.

“Huh? If humanity’s savior bows his head to me, then of course I should stop. Right?!”

Wang Kai and the Black Star Society climbers burst out laughing.

Alex couldn’t understand what those lunatics were doing.

This was Person123, humanity’s savior who had saved the world several times.

Forget everything else... how could they threaten and mock him like this?

“Stop joking.”

“I’m not joking. Bow your head and ask politely.”

“...What if I refuse?”

“Then I kill every last one of them. Ah, don’t worry, I’ll only rough you up enough that you don’t die.”

Person123 let out a sigh and said,

“This is the last time I’ll say it, Wang Kai. Stop here. This is your final warning.”

“A warning? Scary, scary. What happens if I ignore it?”

“You’ll die.”

“...”

“I don’t have the confidence to subdue you cleanly.”

At Person123’s words, Wang Kai’s face hardened viciously.

Alex’s heart started racing.

He was grateful Person123 was blocking Wang Kai to save the Peacekeeping Corps, but the man was completely insane. Provoking him like that...

From that brief clash just now, Wang Kai still seemed to have the level advantage. If they fought seriously, Person123 would be in danger.

“...I listened quietly and now you’re running your mouth. Fine, don’t kneel. I’ll...”

Killing intent burst out of Wang Kai.

...This was bad!

Was that madman really about to kill humanity’s savior?

Alex spat out the blood in his throat and struggled to shout.

“No...!”

Darkness swallowed Wang Kai.

Without any warning, without any sound.

Wang Kai vanished.

“...”

Huh?

No one could understand what had just happened. The watching Peacekeeping Corps and Black Star Society were the same.

Person123 only frowned and let out a sigh.

‘...A skill?’

It didn’t look like he had used an item.

Then that was a skill? Just now?

It definitely wasn’t Physical-Type. It was magic.

But Person123 hadn’t concentrated just now...

No, more than that, how could a skill that absurd even exist...

No one understood anything.

The only reality before their eyes was that Wang Kai had been erased without even a speck left behind.

“Anyone else want to keep fighting?”

Person123 spoke.

He looked from the Peacekeeping Corps to Black Star Society and back.

One of the Peacekeeping officers, still standing there open-mouthed in shock, stepped forward and answered.

“U-uh, no.”

The Black Star Society side looked even more dazed than the Peacekeeping Corps.

Their leader, Wang Kai, had disappeared without a trace.

If at least a corpse had been left behind, they could have accepted that he was dead, but he had vanished in the blink of an eye.

“W-what... what did you do to Wang Kai-nim...?”

Person123 answered firmly.

“He’s dead.”

“...”

“I had no choice. I told him to stop and warned him over and over.”

The Black Star Society climbers wanted to deny reality.

Wang Kai, the best climber in the world and the pride of a continent, Wang Kai who had easily beaten even Alex of the U.S., the one considered his rival...

He had just died like this?

Person123 had not even lifted a finger. He had simply erased Wang Kai like crushing a bug.

That impossible gap hit them with incomprehensible shock.

“Everyone, go back now.”

With those words, Person123 disappeared.

Just as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished.

“...”

That was how it ended.

Person123 seemed to have left.

The Peacekeeping Corps climbers recovered first and started moving in a hurry.

They collected the bodies of their dead and prepared to return to Zone 0.

“Let’s go, Captain.”

One officer stepped in and supported the heavily injured Alex.

Alex stared blankly at the place where Person123 had vanished, then staggered and accepted support.

“J... cough! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Better than you, Captain.”

It was the officer who had blocked one of Wang Kai’s attacks earlier and been blown away. Thankfully, his life was not in danger.

All the peacekeepers were still in a daze.

Person123 had appeared. Wang Kai had died.

Just like that.

“...How is this all going to turn out now?”

The officer muttered. Alex had no answer either.

Wang Kai had died at Person123’s hands... what happened next?

This was unprecedented. The world would be shaken.

“Person... urk, cough!”

“D-don’t talk. Are you all right?”

Alex nodded with difficulty.

Whatever happened next, Alex was sincerely grateful to Person123.

He had practically saved every peacekeeper there.

Meanwhile, the Black Star Society climbers stayed frozen as they watched the Peacekeeping Corps leave.

“...We’re going back.”

A Black Star Society officer barely managed to issue the order.

In a gloomy mood, like defeated soldiers who had lost their general, the Black Star Society climbers also moved out.

* * *

While in Stealth, I watched the climbers split up and leave.

‘Ha...’

I had done it.

Was this the first time I had killed someone in reality? Thinking about it, yeah, it was.

I didn’t regret what I did.

He was physically stronger than me, and I had no idea what other skills he had.

There was no reason for me to risk myself by holding back and trying to fight without killing him. He wasn’t someone worth that kind of consideration anyway.

More than that, I had ended up revealing myself in front of people.

If I hadn’t stepped in, Wang Kai might really have killed every peacekeeper, so it couldn’t be helped...

If I had known this would happen, I should have at least carried a mask around.

‘...It’ll be fine.’

At most, only a few dozen people saw me.

Just because they briefly saw my face, there was no way they could pinpoint exactly who I was. It wasn’t like anyone got photos or video.

At worst, people would know I was East Asian, maybe Korean.

That much was manageable. I let the worry go.

Still, I had no idea what kind of backlash killing Wang Kai would cause.

‘Will China curse me out?’

Let them.

I didn’t think I had gone too far.

One Wang Kai died, no one else died, and things were resolved pretty well.

No matter what China said, I could ignore it, so I wasn’t worried about that either.

Still, I felt a little guilty.

Not because I had committed murder...

But Wang Kai, like me, had been climbing the Tower on the front lines to extend the Time Limit.

I had killed him. For humanity as a whole, that was a loss.

...Should I post a short statement in the Communication Window? This was something I had done, after all.

First, I needed to watch how things unfolded.

I didn’t feel like hunting more today, so I decided to head back too.

For a while, the news would probably be full of me again.

* * *

Some time after Wang Kai died in Zone 3.

Strange stories slowly started spreading through the Communication Window.

[Shrew: Wang Kai got killed by Person123? What are you talking about?]

[Dieter: No idea. Where did this story even come from?]

[Starfish: What nonsense are people spreading now]

A rumor that Wang Kai, the top Hard-difficulty record holder and highest-level climber in the world, had died to Person123 on Floor 5.

At first, people treated it as just another rumor.

The Communication Window was always flooded with nonsense, rumors, and bait every day, especially now that climbers from all over the world had gathered.

Come on, at least make it believable.

Person123, who had hidden his identity this whole time, suddenly appeared on Floor 5?

And what connection did those two even have for him to suddenly kill Wang Kai?

But the rumor quickly spread with specific details attached.

[Mine: Heard the Peacekeeping Corps and Black Star Society were really fighting on Floor 5, then Person123 showed up to stop it...?]

[Feral: Wang Kai tried to kill Person123 and got killed instead]

[Aesthetic: What is all this supposed to mean, seriously?]

[MarkerPen: The Peacekeeping Corps and Black Star Society part seems true though...? I saw peacekeepers come back to Zone 0 carrying corpses.]

[PotatoChipsCola: I just heard directly from a peacekeeper friend, it’s true. Person123 really showed up.]

[Ruiva: Heard it wasn’t even a fight. Said he killed him without moving a finger.]

[Griffin: What... does that even make sense? Wang Kai is level 60.]

[SwordMaster: I’m hearing he used a Magic-Type skill instantly...]

[Lightning: China still hasn’t made a statement?]

The rumor spread out of control.

[Pasta: Person123 is Korean?]

[Arctic: Is the Korean thing real? Someone fact-check this fast.]

[Cyborg: Seems at least confirmed he’s East Asian and a young man?]

[Siren: People are saying his face looked Northeast Asian.]

[Vaccine: If he killed Wang Kai, he’s not Chinese, and with Japan’s mana vein blocked, he’s probably not Japanese either.]

[Lucifer: Then Korea is the strongest possibility.]

[Rrrrroll: Wow... are we finally getting real info? Can’t believe this day came.]

[Arrow: I’m just shocked Person123 is a real person.]

[Radiation: But what’s this about Wang Kai trying to kill Person123? Did he really pull that kind of crap?]

[Music: People always said he was nuts.]

[PeanutToast: Crazy bastard, the world was almost screwed, wasn’t it.]

[Latin: If this is true, shouldn’t China get flipped upside down once?]

[Last: China already got flipped upside down. Wang Kai’s dead.]

As information about Person123, who had remained completely unknown until now, started coming out little by little.

The whole world buzzed and shook.

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