Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability - Chapter 74

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

◈ Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability

Chapter 74

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Second Proposal (2)

This time, I didn’t go on a trip a few days before the 20-day limit.

My little sister kept making a huge fuss and telling me not to go, and I was also starting to feel self-conscious around my family.

There was no reason to force myself to travel while feeling uneasy, so I just stayed home.

Instead, I planned to challenge Floor 6 a little earlier.

I had to avoid getting caught by my family.

Tomorrow, I’d go out during the day, grab a motel room, and challenge it there.

[Nightmare]

Population: 378,822

Time Limit: 21 days 5 minutes 39 seconds

Reached Floor: Floor 5

- There are now 5 minutes left. Alejandro will soon enter Floor 6...

Before going to sleep, I watched the live news on my phone.

Alejandro, the Nightmare clearer who had declared he would challenge Floor 6 before me.

Honestly, I spent a long time wondering whether I should stop him, or just go in before he did.

Having someone else challenge Nightmare with no information at all...

That was seriously reckless. I knew that better than anyone.

...But did I really have the right to stop someone else’s challenge?

Wouldn’t that be too arrogant?

I watched Alejandro’s interview too.

He said he wouldn’t leave the burden on me alone anymore, and I could feel his firm resolve to save humanity.

I had to respect his choice.

So I decided to challenge at the 20-day limit, just like I’d planned.

Looking at what Alejandro had accomplished so far, he was clearly someone with exceptional ability.

So I couldn’t deny that I had a small hope. A what if.

I was only human too.

If someone really succeeded and helped carry this burden with me... I still hadn’t completely thrown that hope away.

- 10 seconds left! 10, 9, 8...

Alejandro was about to enter.

Praying for his success, I stared at the news screen.

And at the exact moment the countdown hit 0.

[The Tower proposes to 'Person123'.]

A message appeared before my eyes.

"..."

I frowned.

What was this now...?

The same thing from a year ago happened again.

Back on Floor 4, too, one day before I challenged it, at the exact moment 21 days remained on the limit, the Tower had made me a proposal.

Maybe because I’d already gone through it once, I wasn’t that shocked.

But the one trying now wasn’t me, it was Alejandro.

So why the hell was it making a proposal to me again?

That was my first thought.

And with the 3-year rule already gone, what kind of proposal was it trying to make now?

I calmly checked the messages that kept appearing one after another.

And then...

[If 'Person123' accepts the penalty, a special reward will be granted in return.]

[Penalty: 'Person123' is prohibited from entering Nightmare difficulty Floor 6 for 21 days.]

[Reward: 'Person123' acquires 'Skill: Ark(?)'.]

[Skill: Ark(?)]

Sets a 3-kilometer radius as the Ark domain. The Ark completely blocks external threats, including Fallen, and humans within the Ark domain are immune to the Tower's Curse. Only humans permitted by the skill caster may enter the Ark domain. The skill can be used in activated/deactivated form, and once activated, the Ark lasts forever.

Classification: special-type

Willpower Cost: None

Cooldown: None

[If you enter Floor 6 before accepting the proposal, the proposal is nullified.]

['Person123', if you accept the proposal, please indicate your acceptance.]

After reading the proposal, I frowned even harder and let out a sigh.

"Hah..."

...What was this?

What the hell was this supposed to be?

* * *

At the moment Nightmare’s time limit became 21 days.

Just like exactly one year earlier, a message appeared before all humanity.

[The Tower proposes to 'Person123'.]

The Tower had made another proposal.

But this one was different from last time.

The penalty it presented to Person123 wasn’t reduced physical ability or skill bans.

It was a 21-day ban on entering Nightmare Floor 6.

In other words, don’t challenge Floor 6 at all until the limit runs out.

People were stunned.

[Grim Reaper: If it’s banned for 21 days, isn’t that basically saying don’t challenge Floor 6?]

[Retriever: What kind of dirty trick is it pulling now...]

[Honeybee: This isn’t even a penalty. It’s just blatantly obvious. It’s really going this far?]

[Ricky: Look at the reward. Ark.]

[Heavy Weapon: Wait, so right now...]

What the Tower offered in return for the penalty was a skill called Ark.

A 3-kilometer radius would be set as the Ark domain.

Its effects were immunity to the Tower’s Curse and complete blocking of external threats, including Fallen.

People soon realized what kind of proposal the Tower was making to Person123.

[Festival: ...Is it saying that even if the world ends, it’ll at least leave a small path for humanity to survive?]

[Monster Hunt: As long as Person123 doesn’t challenge Floor 6.]

In a world where 99% had turned into monsters, there was no way the remaining 1% of humanity could survive, so that was no different from the end anyway.

But if Person123 chose Ark?

At least the humans inside the Ark would be able to live safely.

It was only a safe zone with a 3-kilometer radius, but at minimum, humanity’s continuation became possible.

[Bomb: This proposal is insane. In the end, most people die and only a tiny minority survives. It’s the same thing.]

[Shepig: Would Person123 accept this...?]

[Grape: No way. If he picks that, most of humanity dies.]

[Howard: But with a 3-kilometer radius, how many people could even survive?]

[Solar System: No clue. Maybe a million?]

While the chat window was in chaos, the real world was just as chaotic.

The site live-broadcasting Alejandro’s Floor 6 entry also broke into confusion because of the Tower’s sudden notice.

"...What."

Alejandro paused his entry for a moment, read the entire proposal, and twisted his face.

He was the one challenging Floor 6 right now.

Then why the hell was it making another proposal to Person123?

Even the proposal itself was absurd.

Ark? What the fuck was this?

Reading the description, this was basically a skill that could make you king of the world after collapse.

...It would give this if he only gave up challenging Floor 6?

It tried this hard to block Person123’s challenge, but me?

Alejandro couldn’t help feeling like the Tower was treating him like nothing.

His pride took a hard hit, his insides boiling, and after looking around at the commotion, he shouted.

"Person123!"

The noise stopped, and attention turned back to him.

Alejandro looked straight into the front camera and said,

"...You can accept the Tower’s proposal. I’ll clear Floor 6 anyway."

His most important moment had been ruined, but if he ultimately succeeded in clearing Floor 6, the spotlight would return.

'You bastard Tower.'

You don’t even care about me, is that it?

Let’s see if you can still act like this after I clear Floor 6.

[Would you like to enter Nightmare difficulty Floor 6?]

So Alejandro entered Floor 6 without changing plans, charging in almost impulsively...

And not long after, the number in the Nightmare Communication Window dropped by one.

Alejandro failed his Floor 6 clear.

But nobody cared anymore. The world wasn’t in a situation to worry about something that small.

News media all over the world rushed to report.

"The Tower has once again made a proposal to Person123."

Panels seated at the news desk exchanged serious words.

"Now the Tower is trying to block Person123’s challenge itself. It’s offering a reward just for not challenging."

"But that reward, Ark. If Person123 gives up clearing floors and chooses Ark, then even if the world ends, a minority of humanity can continue."

"A 3-kilometer radius is about half the area of Manhattan, New York. Manhattan’s population is around 1.6 million."

"If Person123 chooses Ark, the death of the vast majority of humanity will be unavoidable."

"Is there a chance he gives up the clear and chooses Ark?"

"Looking at Person123’s actions so far, I think that possibility is very low, but..."

In the end, what people focused on was what Person123 would choose.

Naturally, the overwhelming majority didn’t want him to choose Ark.

The number of people Ark could save would be extremely small, and nobody believed they themselves would be included.

Would Person123, who had done so much for humanity, really choose a path where most of humanity died?

People still believed he wouldn’t give up the challenge...

[Heightening: ...Could he choose Ark, though? At least that opens a path where humanity can continue.]

[Greatsword: Are you serious? The other billions all die!]

[Geupanba: If it were me, I might choose Ark. How long do you think we can keep holding on like this?]

Person123 is for humanity.

That was now a fact people no longer doubted even a little.

But... nobody knew what shape that desire to protect humanity might take.

If Person123 tried to secure even a slightly more certain continuation of humanity over an uncertain future, then giving up the clear and choosing Ark wasn’t impossible.

While waiting for Person123’s choice, people trembled with anxiety. Some immediately took action.

Person123 was Korean, so they judged that if he chose Ark, the Ark would be formed in Korea.

Flights to Korea from all over the world sold out instantly. Tycoons and high-ranking government officials tried to enter Korea by private jet.

People started flooding into Korea to grab even the faintest hope, and the Korean government was thrown into emergency chaos as well.

Less than a day after the Tower’s notice, the world had become more chaotic than ever.

* * *

[Nightmare]

Population: 378,821

Time Limit: 20 days 6 hours 54 minutes 16 seconds

Reached Floor: Floor 5

The time was getting close.

I left home saying I was going for a walk, and sat in a motel room lost in thought.

"..."

The skill can be used in activated/deactivated form, and once activated, the Ark lasts forever.

Classification: special-type

Willpower Cost: None

Cooldown: None

Looking at the description of this skill, Ark.

The Tower’s intent was painfully clear.

If I didn’t challenge and accepted collapse, it would at least let some people survive.

In a way, it felt like the Tower was trying to negotiate, like it was telling me to be satisfied with this much.

It hadn’t even been long since I boldly said I would keep struggling.

But honestly... how much longer could I hold out?

Wouldn’t I eventually fail, and wasn’t the world’s destruction already inevitable?

And even if I held on somehow, what would be waiting then?

But if I chose Ark.

My family and I could definitely survive. The Fallen problem would be solved too.

Humanity would end up trapped in a much smaller world than before, but it could continue at least.

I looked it up, and a 3-kilometer radius was roughly the size of one district in Seoul.

They said if people stood with barely enough room to place their feet, even hundreds of millions could fit.

Of course that wasn’t realistic... still, maybe a few hundred thousand could live somewhat like human beings.

Food and other issues too, Fallen weren’t much of a threat to me, so if I worked hard going in and out of the Ark, maybe I could make it work somehow.

And if the Tower’s Curse only activated once after the limit, and if I kept consistently taking care of the Fallen.

Then maybe, in the very distant future, more humans than expected might survive...

I really thought about everything for an entire day.

If I chose Ark, where I should form it, how I should accept people during the remaining 20 days, how order should be maintained afterward.

But even as those thoughts continued.

They always ended at one question.

Could I trust the Tower?

The Ark description said it completely blocked outside threats and lasted forever, but that was still only the Tower’s power.

If I chose Ark, humanity would basically end up living in the Tower’s grip from then on.

Honestly, my heart had already leaned one way.

Let over 8 billion humans die and save at most tens or hundreds of millions?

No matter how I thought about it, the numbers just didn’t add up.

Even so, one last trace of hesitation remained...

If I chose Ark, I could at least save my family for sure.

And maybe this was the final proposal the Tower would give me. Maybe I was about to kick away, with my own feet, the last chance for humanity to survive even a little.

"...At least be a little more generous."

I muttered to empty air.

I didn’t know if the Tower was listening, but I spoke to it anyway.

Even ThaXos let half of humanity live, so can’t you at least do that? Just a 3-kilometer radius?

Of course, no answer came back from the Tower.

Yeah...

No, this won’t do.

Fine, then I’ll flip the table.

After firming up my resolve one last time, I stood up.

"I’ll clear Floor 6 too."

Until I finally climb, or until you make a proposal that satisfies you, I will not stop.

No, I cannot stop.