I watched Section Chief Shin Su-jin slip out through the exit.
I never expected to run into the Section Chief from the Tower Monitoring Division here of all places.
It looked like she’d be better off getting out and receiving treatnt.
I turned my gaze back to the monster on the stage.
A scene of carnage too horrific for words.
The monster was crouched among the corpses, wailing as if mourning the dead, and the sight was as grotesque as it was chilling. It could have been pulled straight from a horror movie.
Why is it crying like that… after killing them all itself.
That monster had been human until just monts ago.
Climbers who died from the Tower’s Curse had beco monsters.
The Fallen, as the Tower had nad them.
And it seed no trace of human reason remained in them.
Then there was no choice. They had to be killed.
Plli had already bitten one of them to death just monts ago.
But the one Plli killed had three horns, while the one on the stage now had five.
The Tower had clearly said The Fallen were generated in stages from one through five.
Reasoning from that, the number of horns probably corresponded to the stage.
A Stage 5 Fallen, supposedly generated with a 0.01% probability.
0.01% of 40,000 people… that’s about four, isn’t it? And one just happened to appear in Korea?
Regardless, I could feel it. This thing was strong.
Sixth Sense was quietly confirming as much. Considerably dangerous.
I didn’t want to pick a dangerous fight either… but leaving sothing like that alone wasn’t an option.
It wasn’t doing anything now, but if left unchecked, there was no telling how much devastation it would cause.
But could it even survive my new finisher?
No way. Not a chance.
I extended my hand.
I was about to cast Destruction Ray at the Fallen, still crouching motionless and crying, when…
‘…Hmm.’
I pulled my hand back.
The angle was a bit tricky.
Inside the Tower it wouldn’t have mattered, but this was the real world.
The problem was that Destruction Ray was simply too powerful.
If I fired it, I had no way of knowing how far the beam would punch through and keep going.
If it tore through the walls and shot out past the building, catching bystanders in its path, that would be a disaster.
And if I aid at the floor… wasn’t there underground space below? What if soone was down there?
I looked up. A do-shaped ceiling.
Upward should be safe enough.
All I had to do was launch the Fallen high into the air toward the ceiling, then fire Destruction Ray.
‘Knock it upward.’
At my command, Plli imdiately charged at the Fallen.
Only then did the motionless creature react.
SKREEEEEE-!
The Fallen shrieked, a piercing scream like feedback from a badly handled karaoke mic, and erupted into a frenzy.
“…!”
Fast.
The Fallen dodged Plli’s charging bite with lightning speed, then kicked Plli square in the torso.
Easily ten tis the creature’s size, Plli went sailing through the air and crashed into the wall. The wall crumbled and sparks burst from the lighting fixtures.
GRAAAAAAH-!
No serious damage, apparently. Plli charged right back in.
It slamd its body into the Fallen, and this ti it was the Fallen that went flying.
The two of them tore into each other in earnest, and the Fallen showed no sign of being overpowered.
That said, Plli didn’t seem to be losing either. They were equally matched.
I watched the engagent from under Concealnt.
‘Around level 50, maybe.’
A cut above even with Exaltation maxed out?
But beyond its raw physical power, it didn’t seem to have any other abilities.
One clean hit would do it. I was sure of that.
The two monsters rampaged across the spacious theater, laying waste to everything.
The Fallen’s counterattacks were so fierce that Plli couldn’t manage to launch it up to the ceiling as I’d ordered.
If I dragged this out too long, other people might co in. And Concealnt’s duration was running low…
I’d have to wait for an opening.
GRRRAAAAGH…!
They traded blows, and before long the right mont ca.
The Fallen had grabbed Plli’s jaws with both hands, locked in a contest of raw strength.
‘Hold still.’
I gave Plli the command and, still concealed, closed the distance.
Then I Teleported right beside the Fallen.
Before it could react, I activated Swing and drove a full-force kick upward into the thing’s gut.
KIAAA-
The Fallen soared upward, nearly touching the ceiling.
A perfect angle.
I extended my hand toward the Fallen and stopped ti.
Three hundred seconds of ntal Concentration, and then a fully charged beam of pitch-black light fired skyward.
Fssshhh…
The place where the darkness subsided.
Only a gaping hole in the ceiling remained. Dust drifted down and sunlight poured through.
I’d been ready to follow up imdiately with Fla Strike just in case, but there was no need.
The Fallen, struck dead-on by Destruction Ray, had vanished without a trace.
It can’t survive it after all.
The fight ended just like that, simple and clean.
‘Good work.’
I Reverse Summoned Plli after its hard effort.
I surveyed the wreckage, then glanced at the corpse of the Stage 3 Fallen that had died earlier.
If every one of those 40,000-plus people had turned into a monster like this, the world was about to go to complete hell all over again.
‘What the hell is all this madness now…’
My head swimming with the weight of it, I slipped out of the building while still under Concealnt.
*
“Oh, h-hey…! Are you alright?!”
“I’m fine.”
When Shin Su-jin erged from the building, police tactical units had already surrounded the entrance in a tight periter.
“You’re Section Chief Shin Su-jin, correct?!”
“Yes. What happened to the people who ca out?”
“Don’t worry, ma’am. They’ve all been evacuated to safety, and the injured have been transported by ambulance!”
Shin Su-jin nodded and spoke.
“Don’t go inside yet. There’s a monster in there.”
“Yes, ma’am! We’ll breach now and neutralize…”
“No! You’ll all die! Ugh…”
Shin Su-jin couldn’t even tend to her injuries. She held the officers back.
“Rifles won’t even scratch it… If you engage, every last one of you will die. Stand by for now.”
She was a Level 30 climber, and she’d co out wounded saying this. The police had no choice but to listen.
Shin Su-jin reached for her radio.
“This is Section Chief Shin Su-jin. Confird monster presence inside Seoul Arts Center, one entity…”
BOOM!
A massive tremor shook from inside the building.
The officers flinched and swung their weapons back toward the entrance.
“Is, is the monster going berserk?”
The police had no way of knowing what was happening inside.
The entire building shuddered as booms of varying intensity echoed out one after another. Sothing like a beast’s roar could be heard as well.
Shin Su-jin stared at the building with trembling eyes, then finished her radio transmission.
“…An extrely powerful monster is inside the Seoul Arts Center. I believe it to be the Stage 5 Fallen ntioned in the ssage. Its combat capability should be estimated at… a minimum of Level 50.”
Shin Su-jin believed in Person123.
Back when he had only cleared up to the second floor of Nightmare difficulty, he was already an extraordinarily powerful climber.
Now that he’d cleared the third floor, he would obviously be far stronger. On top of that, he had the ability to command a monster like that.
But what if, despite all of that, he died to the Fallen?
If the only person climbing Nightmare difficulty died right here.
That would be an irreversible catastrophe.
‘…No.’
The thought sent a chill through her. Had the pain from her injuries clouded her judgnt for a mont?
Shin Su-jin regretted simply walking out as he’d told her to.
She shouldn’t have left him to handle the fight alone. She should have told him not to engage the Fallen at all.
A monster like that wasn’t sothing a person should face head-on. It was the kind of thing that needed to be killed with a barrage of missiles.
It was just as Shin Su-jin resolved to go back inside and check on the situation.
“…!”
From the center of the building, a black pillar suddenly erupted through the roof, shooting skyward.
Everyone who saw it stood frozen, staring at the incomprehensible phenonon.
What in the world is that…?
The black pillar vanished monts later.
With it, the tremors that had been shaking the building as if it might collapse fell dead silent.
Shin Su-jin stood dazed for a mont, then opened the Communication Channel.
She was about to send a Whisper to Person123 when a Whisper from him arrived first.
[Person123: It’s done.]
The instant she read that ssage, every ounce of tension drained from her body.
He’d won.
Thankfully, Person123 was an even bigger monster than that terrifying creature.
‘That black pillar just now…’
What on earth was it? So ability of the Fallen?
Or maybe it was one of Person123’s skills. He did have plenty of mysterious abilities.
[Person123: The monsters are all taken care of, so it’s safe to go in now.]
[Person123: I’d appreciate it if you kept my involvent a secret again this ti.]
Shin Su-jin sent her reply.
[Lotus: I will.]
[Lotus: Were you hurt at all?]
[Person123: No. Not a scratch.]
[Lotus: I’m glad to hear that.]
[Lotus: Thank you. I’m always on the receiving end of so much help.]
Gratitude didn’t begin to cover it. She owed him her life yet again.
If he hadn’t stepped in to fight the Fallen, the casualties could have been far, far worse.
After closing the Communication Channel and steadying her breathing, Shin Su-jin addressed the officers.
“…I’ll go back in and assess the situation.”
*
Shanghai, China.
CRASH! BANG!
A man was locked in combat with a five-horned Fallen in the middle of downtown.
They clashed ferociously with neither yielding an inch, until the man seized the Fallen by its horns and hurled it far into the distance.
WHOOOOSH-
Fighter jets circling overhead unleashed a volley of missiles at the Fallen. Massive explosions erupted in rapid succession.
The Fallen let out an agonized scream as it staggered out through the flas and debris.
That was when the man activated Leap and launched himself back at the Fallen.
– Hold fire! Stand down!
The pilots, who had been about to bombard it into oblivion, banked away.
The man resud his battle with the Fallen. His body was now wreathed in crimson energy.
Even in its battered state, the Fallen held on for a long ti.
The man ripped off one of its mangled arms first, then crushed its entire chest, and finally stood on the back of the collapsed Fallen, pinning it down.
WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM WHAM!
He hamred its head with his fists over and over.
Cracks split the ground as the Fallen’s body was driven deeper and deeper, and only when its head finally burst did it stop moving.
The effects of Frenzy faded, and the red glow in the man’s eyes returned to normal. He spat out a mouthful of blood.
Monts later, a convoy of vehicles pulled up beside him.
From among the military vehicles, aides poured out of a black sedan and rushed over.
“Excellent work, Wang Kai ssi!”
The man tore off what remained of his shredded shirt and took a fresh set of clothes, draping it over himself.
Wang Kai, a Level 52 climber on Hard difficulty, floor 14.
The highest record holder on Hard difficulty and the highest-level climber in the world. That was him.
“Are you hurt any…”
“Do I look hurt? I’m fine.”
In truth, Wang Kai didn’t exactly look fine either, but no one dared talk back.
Wang Kai looked up at the fighter jets overhead and clicked his tongue.
“I could’ve taken it down by myself without those gnats. Why bother scrambling them? Should’ve saved the fuel.”
“Yes, sir! You truly are remarkable!”
“Still, it was pretty tough, I’ll give it that. So this thing was a Stage 5 Fallen? No other climber could’ve handled it.”
Wang Kai looked down at the Fallen’s corpse and grinned.
“Man~ this world just keeps getting more interesting.”
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