“Let me get straight to the point. You don’t have to come to the training center starting tomorrow.“

I stared vacantly at the manager before I could regain my composure. 

“…Why am I being kicked out?

“Han Sungyeun-nim, I think you know exactly why we’re kicking you out.”

“…”

“Keeping you here is becoming too much of a burden for our training center.”

“I’ve never missed a single payment and I’m fulfilling all the prerequisites.”

“Well, of course. Because you’re preparing for the hunter exam. The problem is that it’s already been 7 years since you’ve started preparing.”

The manager narrowed his eyes and scoured my body.

“Even after 7 years of physical training, you weren’t able to learn a single skill or unlock your innate ability. You weren’t even able to raise a single stat point.”

His harsh response felt like a dagger in my heart.

Like he said, I had achieved nothing in the last 7 years of training.

I couldn’t unlock a single skill, let alone even raise a stat point. 

‘Damn it.’

And this happened in a center for professional player training. 

Everyone who awakens as a player must train in one of these centers for a couple of months before they are able to debut as a hunter.

But…

‘I couldn’t get anything done in the years that I’ve been training here.’

Realistically, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that I would never be able to become a hunter. 

I didn’t have a hint of the fundamental qualifications that even the most basic hunters have.

But I stayed calm and asked in a monotone voice—

“…Is that the reason I’m being kicked out?”

“To be a little more specific, you give us a bad name. A pretty infamous one at that.”

I could finally understand what the manager was trying to say.

“You’re worried about what people would think of a training center that couldn’t get a trainee to debut after 7 years of training.”

The manager stayed quiet but nodded with a smirk. 

Yeah, I knew this would happen one day.

God damn it.

“Let’s be honest, you’re nothing special.”

“…“

“You have no aptitude for this. Do you think you’ll ever pass the hunter exam?”

“…”

“Do you think something will change just from working hard? That’s not how things work. You’re wasting your time.”

“…”

His words filled with contempt pierced my soul.

But I couldn’t dispute his points or even throw a punch.

After all, a slightly athletic average person stood no chance against a former hunter. 

As he said, it wasn’t an exaggeration to call me completely talentless. 

I didn’t want to repress these feelings, but I had to.

Why? 

‘Because I’m weak and I have nothing.’

I’d been enduring this for so long, but it seemed as though there was no need for that anymore. 

Yeah, it was time to end it. I was exhausted.

“Of course, we’re not just going to banish you without compensation. We’ll refund you about 50% of the fees that you’ve…”

Why was he still talking?

All he was doing was trying to convince me to leave. 

“Yeah, I got it. Just give me my 50% refund. Goodbye.”

As his sentence finished, I walked past him toward the exit.

“…!”

I thought he wanted to say something, but he ended up not stopping me.

Well, there was nothing left to say, and I wasn’t the one who had something to lose by getting angry.

Then…

“Woah, he’s been here since way before I was, but now he’s getting kicked out like that.”

Starting with a comment from an onlooker, I was bombarded with stares from all over the room.

“But he came in every morning to train non-stop… It’s too bad, huh?” 

“Fuck feeling bad. He’s an idiot for not knowing his place and stopping sooner.”

“You think so? I guess he is pretty stupid for not giving up.”

“I didn’t know he couldn’t increase a single stat point after training for 7 years.”

Sympathy, scorn, and even ridicule… 

I didn’t know what I did so wrong to have them look down on me for all 7 years of my training.

Whether I heard them or not.

They always jeered at the fact that I was essentially powerless as a player. 

And just like that, my 7 years of training became proof of my foolishness.

But…

“I guess that’s that. Damn it.”

I muttered to myself as I stepped out of the center and stared into the sky.

7 years of non-stop training… 

“Sigh…”

It ended in an absurdly simple way. 

***

I didn’t always want to be a hunter.

It happened during the Great Calamity, when my parents were eaten alive by the hoards of monsters from a dungeon break.

And I wasn’t alone in that experience.

But even from those people, only a few select people were able to awaken as a player.

Even then, I prayed to God to awaken me as a player. 

Is that why?

“I did awaken as a player. Just awakened.”

The problem came afterward.

No matter what I did, my stats wouldn’t increase and my ‘innate ability’ never unlocked. 

But I didn’t lose hope and continued to train. 

Because skills are given to those who are ready…

I trained my heart out for 7 years after that.

I didn’t even hope to unlock my innate ability.

I just wanted to be slightly more capable than an average person.

My only hope was that one day, I would be able to avenge my parents.

But the world didn’t allow me such privilege.

And here is where I ended up.

I sat on a snow-covered bench in a park taking a sip from a can of beer.

“...I guess I was stupid. 7 years…”

Not even the others who lost their families to a dungeon break went this far. 

More accurately, they weren’t able to.

After about 2 years, most people come face-to-face with reality and give up.

Either that… or they realize their potential and climb up to the top.

I wasn’t able to do either of those.

‘I didn’t know nothing would change, even after 7 years....’

Heh.

I couldn’t help but smile at such an obvious result.

“At least I tried.”

No, I did more than just try. 

Most people face reality and find a different path for themselves. But not me.

I didn’t know what to do with my life anymore.

But after 7 years of not giving up, I wasn’t going to start now.

‘I’m not so weak that I would consider giving up on my life.’

Tap…!

I placed the empty beer can down on the bench and looked to the sky.

To commemorate the end of an era, I decided to ramble to my parents.

“…I tried so hard. I wanted to avenge you and kill those monsters but… It’s just not going the way I want it to. I’m so sorry. I’m sorry that someone like me is your child.”

I felt slightly somber but not enough to cry.

7 years was enough to dull my sorrow.

As the years went on, the intense pain was subdued, and now I was completely numb to it.

‘There was a time when I had to train all through the night because the pain and sadness kept me up.’

At age 27, I didn’t even want to train anymore.

Maybe it was obvious now that I knew I would never become a hunter.

That’s one of the reasons I didn’t put up a fight at the training center.

I’d rather end it quickly than hang on pathetically…

At least I was able to end it on my own terms before anyone else could force me to.

After the end of my rambling, I leaned back on the bench and just stared at the drab sky. 

I decided to give up on being a hunter, but I couldn't help feeling a lingering attachment. 

‘If I had even a sliver of talent… or even just an innate ability…”

If…

If I had even a glimmer of hope, I wouldn't give up.

My eyes slowly closed, as did my wishful thinking. 

***

Still dazed, I see something like a holographic message in front of my eyes. 

「 The ‘Tower of Trials’ praises your unbreaking will. 」

The first thing I saw in this dream was someone’s praise.

‘Who is this?’

I had questions, but there wasn’t any time to continue with that train of thought.

「 'Tower of Trials' has selected all suitable candidates from Earth. 」 

「 Please select your difficulty. 」 

「 The chosen difficulty will be directly proportional to your rewards. 」 

Three choices appeared in front of me at the end of the message.

「 Easy 」 「 Medium 」 「 Hard 」 

I didn’t find anything out of place even though I was looking at a holographic message.

A strange feeling of being on a border of consciousness and unconsciousness. 

Rather than questioning the circumstance, I could only think to make a decision.

To make a choice. 

A choice that I wouldn’t regret if I reached my hand out.

Enticed, I reached out as if there was no other choice.

Then… 

「 You have selected the difficulty ‘Hard.’ 」 

「 We wish the challenger a satisfactory ending to their choice. 」 

Woosh…! 

The message blew away like a tiny candlelight, and my consciousness grew clearer. 

I was completely awake.

「 Now entering Tower of Trials floor 1. 」 

“…?”

「 Challengers should now prepare themselves for the incoming trial. 」

I only just realized that something strange was happening, but there was nothing I could do at this point.

「 Entering Tower of Trials floor 1. 」 

My surroundings shifted from a park bench to a desert.

「 The 1st-floor trial is starting now. 」 

「 The following trial is a special trial given as a tutorial. 」

「 The objective of the following trial is ‘survival.’ 」 

「 We wish the challenger a satisfactory ending to their choice. 」 

At this moment I knew…

「 Trial success reward - Unlocking innate ability 」 

「 Trial fail penalty - Death 」 

“…Fuck.”

If my life had a turning point, this would be it.

「 All stats, skills, and innate ability have been reset to initial values. 」

「 The following challenger’s stats are already equal to the initial values. 」

「 Halting the reset process. 」

At first, I just stared blankly at the holographic message.

But…

「 Starting the tutorial trial. 」

A message about a ‘tutorial trial’ came out of nowhere.

As soon as I saw that message, I felt a wave of heat escape my body.

‘What’s going on? What is this?’

Starting with the most basic questions about my current state of affairs.

‘Tower of Trials? Is this the second coming of the Great Calamity?’

I even stipulated what the current situation could be about.

The influx of thoughts ricocheted around my throbbing head.

But even that was temporary.

「 Providing a weapon. 」

Clack.

Following the message about a weapon, a sword fell before me.

One with a sharpened edge, unlike the wooden ones I used to use at the training center.

The knife spanned about 30 inches.

“What is…?”

There’s no way a single can of beer could get me this drunk.

Although it’s almost nonexistent, my alcohol tolerance was heightened when I awakened as a player.

But...

‘There’s no way that’s making me dream like this.’

I quickly looked around and analyzed my surroundings.

The place I was standing was no longer a bench in a winter park, but rather a random desert.

No, could you even call this a desert?

The place was covered in sand and an occasional row of cacti.

Although it seemed normal at first glance, the boundary where the sky met the horizon said otherwise.

It was vast and spacious, but clearly synthetic.

If this was a dungeon, I would have needed to pass through a gate, so that isn’t a possibility.

As I was about to fall into a state of confusion—

「 Sand golem is appearing. 」

Kooom…!

“What the……!”

The sandy floors quaked, and pillars of sand rose from the ground.

Then the pillars started to come together to form a humanoid shape.

“…”

The towering golem must have been at least 20 feet tall.

My heart stopped when the golem laid its sand-dripping scarlet eyes upon me.

At the same time, another holographic message appeared.

「 Survive the sand golem. 」

「 Time left - 9min 59sec 」

“Grrrr…”

A trial telling me to survive.

And all the unanswered questions in my head.

Everything seemed to connect as soon as I came face to face with the sand golem.

I couldn’t feign ignorance even if I tried.

“Damn it!”

I quickly picked up the sword from the floor and ran as fast as I could.

A battle?

Impossible considering our size difference.

Even a graze from a sand golem is enough to kill a grown man in an instant.

A low-tier player like me wouldn’t fare much better.

That’s reality.

Stomp! Stomp! Stomp!

“Kraaaaa…!”

Every hair on my back stood on end as its roar vibrated through my body.

I wanted to run faster but I couldn't.

Stomp! Stomp!

My feet got buried under a pile of sand every time I took a step forward.

“Fuck **** ****!”

The desert was holding me captive.

At the same time, the stomping sound was approaching faster than my legs could move.

Even if I did manage to run, the only thing waiting for me was a wall that reached up to the sky.

I’d either be killed by being caught up to or by reaching the end of this field.

There might not even be an escape from this place.

My only hope was the time limit that I could glance at from the corner of my eyes—

「 Time left - 9min 12sec 」

It’s not possible to keep running for 9 more minutes with my stamina.

I may have stood a chance if I had slightly higher stats but…

‘I can’t keep running until the timer runs out either…!’

I should have known what they wanted as soon as they provided a sword.

Die running or turn around and fight.

I kept peeking back to the golem as I ran.

‘Fuck, how am I supposed to beat that?’

But I didn’t have another choice.

There’s no way this sword would do anything to the golem.

But…

‘I have to fight.’

If running away wasn't the answer, there had to be another breakthrough.

I drew on all possible knowledge I had on sand golems.

One thing I gained from the last 7 years of training is an abundance of theory matched by even the most experienced of hunters.

There had to be at least one method that would apply to this situation.

Monsters like golems stop moving when you break their cores.

And low-tier monsters like sand golems don’t even hide their cores within their bodies.

They are evaluated to be E-rank monsters because they keep their core on the outer layer of their body.

I could see a scarlet core bulging from its body.

But I didn’t have the confidence to be able to get that close to it.

Even if I was able to get close, it was obvious what level of damage this sword would do to that core.

No, I didn’t know if this sword would be able to leave even a crack on it.

Even so.

‘I have to go…!’

Looking back, it seemed that the golem was about 50ft away from me.

Would I be able to run at the golem and dodge its attacks?

No, I couldn’t think like that.

Contemplating more wouldn’t alleviate this situation.

‘I have to dodge it!’

Whoosh!

I ran toward the golem after I made my decision.

50 feet… 40 feet… 30 feet… 20 feet…

The closer I got, the more strongly I could feel the physical difference between us.

The gigantic E-rank beast made my heart shrink with a glance.

I felt like throwing up, but I kept running.

The only other monster I had ever faced was a small goblin in the hunter exam.

I had no choice but to succeed now.

I kept my eyes on the golem as I approached the base of its foot.

Voom……!

The rough sediment arm ripped through the air and accelerated towards me.

An attack strong enough to immediately rip me to shreds.

I stared straight at it and jumped in its way.

When the colossal arm reached the front of my face, I slid right below it and just barely managed to dodge it.

Bang!

Sand blasted everywhere as it followed the thundering boom of the impact.

Due to its massive size, there were huge delays between each of its moves.

By the time I realized this, I was already running.

My body knew even before my head.

I had to ****** this sword into the golem’s core if I wanted to live.

I nimbly approached the core as the golem still struggled to recover its stance from the last attack.

Clang~!

The tip of the sword rang as it made contact with the golem’s core.

Of course.

A golem’s core wouldn’t be broken with an impact like that.

Crack…!

The core was left with a slight fracture…

Whoosh!

“Graaaaaaa~!”

And the golem was on its way to throw a second attack.

When my eyes caught that, I threw my body with no time to react.

Shaaaa!

Then—

Whoosh……!

The follow-up blow just barely missed the top of my head.

Pure luck.

There was nothing else that could describe this.

I didn’t stop despite the sand scraping all of the skin off my leg.

Please… Please break this time!

At the moment when the sword hit the core—

CRACK!

「 Sand golem’s core has been destroyed. 」

The system message blocked my view as the light in the golem’s scarlet eyes dimmed.

As they dimmed, the golem’s body crumbled back into a pile of sand.

Shwaa….!

「 Time left - 7min 8sec 」

「 Tutorial trial over. 」

I collapsed as soon as I saw the message.

“Gasp, gasp….!”

My legs burned as the sand crawled into my scraped skin and my hands couldn't stop shaking.

My lungs felt like they were about to rip open and my leg continued to bleed.

But for some reason, I felt a rush of adrenaline I had never felt before.

The feeling of victory that I hadn’t experienced in 7 years.

I was only able to figure out what really happened after I caught my breath.

“……I killed a sand golem? Me?”

Someone who couldn’t even hope to kill an F rank monster…

Managed to kill an E-rank monster when his life was at risk.

But I became depressed again after looking back at what had happened.

‘…I barely managed to survive.’

If this was a different E-rank monster, I would have died within 3 minutes.

Sand golems are slow and have a clear weakness.

If this was a slightly stronger player, this would have been an easy tutorial.

It didn’t matter.

“I survived.”

That was reality.

When I was finally about to feel a wave of relief—

「 Congratulations. You have overcome the Tower of Trials floor 1. 」

“…?”

The message continued after the congratulations.

「 As a reward, you have received ‘Unlock innate ability.’ 」

「 As a reward, you have received ‘1000 points.’ 」

「 As a bonus reward, you have received the skill ‘Accelerated Regeneration(E+)’ 」

「 As a bonus reward, you have received ‘500 points.’ 」

“…”

I finally remembered the message I saw when I first entered this field.

‘It did say that…’

「 Trial success reward - Unlocking innate ability 」

I wasn’t able to process it properly at the time, but there was definitely a reward.

And…

“An innate ability…”

It was something I couldn't even imagine unlocking over the last 7 years, let alone an additional reward of a skill.

‘I couldn't even increase my stat after training for 7 years…’

I was more dumbfounded now than when I first entered the tower.

The next couple of messages seemed to confirm what had just happened.

「 Innate ability unlocked. 」

「 Innate ability ‘Necromancy(F)’ has been imprinted on the player. 」

I won against a monster for the first time in my life and was able to see progress that had been halted for 7 years.

There were feelings I couldn't even begin to describe with words, but that didn’t last long.

Almost as if it didn’t want to give me time to wonder—

「 Please move to the waiting area. 」

Voom!

A blue portal appeared where the body of the golem once stood.

I guess I was supposed to go to the ‘waiting room’ using that.

That alone explained a lot.

“This is really a tutorial…?”

Dungeons resolve after it has been completed but that didn’t seem to be the case for the ‘Tower of Trials.’

I couldn’t deny my reality any longer.

What I had just experienced was a tutorial. Preparation for what’s to come in this tower.

Meaning, I will need to go through trials like this again and again with no end in sight.

“……”

I had no idea what to think of this, but that also didn’t last too long.

Gasping for air, I got up with a groan.

‘Damnit, it hurts like hell.’

There was not a single unscathed part on my body.

I must have rolled in the sand too much trying to dodge the sand golem.

Well, I shouldn’t complain considering that I was still alive.

As I was about to pass by the sand pile that used to be the golem—

What…?

“What is this?”

A scene overwhelming enough to make me forget my pain for a moment.

The pile of sand that used to be the golem emitted a black fog.

I was hesitant at this unreal phenomenon, but for some reason, I reached out my hand.

Then…

「 Activating innate ability ‘Necromancy(F)’ 」

「 Would you like to absorb the spirit of the sand golem? 」

「 Y/N 」

“…?”

Yet again, a message I’d never seen before appeared in front of me.

「 Activating innate ability ‘Necromancy(F)’ 」

「 Would you like to absorb the spirit of the sand golem? 」

「 Y/N 」

“…?”

I was initially stumped by the series of messages, but I started to get the gist of it.

An ability I never had but others used naturally, as if it was an extension of their body.

The realization of my innate ability.

I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed with emotion when I realized that my innate ability was unlocked after 7 years.

Calm down… Calm down…

I shouldn’t lose my composure just because I unlocked the ability.

‘It’s too early for celebrations.’

I needed to stay level-headed.

More than the excruciating pain all over my body, I was mentally exhausted.

I just needed to comprehend the basics and move on to the waiting area.

‘So is this black fog my innate ability?’

Swoosh swoosh.

I tried waving my hands over it but nothing happened.

Makes sense.

If this really was from my innate ability, it wouldn’t disappear with just a wave of a hand.

I had to make sure then.

「 Han Sungyeun 」

「 Strength - 9 」 「 Stamina - 9 」

「 Agility - 8 」 「 Mana - 8 」

「 Innate ability - ‘Necromancy(F) 」

「 Skill - Accelerated Regeneration(E+) 」

The status window that I hadn’t opened in a while looked almost unrecognizable.

A brand new section appeared to display my innate ability.

The skill list also displayed ‘Accelerated Regeneration(E+)’ instead of being empty.

Of course, the stats hadn’t changed yet, but the most important part was unlocking the ‘innate ability.’

I clicked on the ability to display further details.

「 Innate ability - ‘Necromancy(F) 」

「 Proficiency - 0% 」

「 Basic effect - Able to absorb the souls of the dead and control them at will. 」

「 Extra effect(1) - Able to permanently increase stats depending on the nature and rank of the soul. 」

「 Extra effect(2) - Able to store souls for later use. Soul storage capacity depends on the ability’s rank. 」

“Holy shit……!”

The reward I risked my life for had proved to be worth it.

And the effect that mentioned a ‘permanent increase’ in my stats…

I couldn’t help but curse when I saw that.

My stats were something that wouldn’t go up no matter how much I trained.

But…

‘I can finally increase my stats.’

This must be what it feels like to win a lottery.

I moved on and clicked into ‘Accelerated Regeneration.’

「 Skill - Accelerated Regeneration(E+) 」

「 Proficiency - 0% 」

「 Effect - Able to recover quickly from non-life-threatening injuries. 」

My first skill ever was also not a regular skill.

All regeneration-type skills were very rare.

Skills that could heal mid-battle tended to have impossible acquisition conditions.

I heard only hunters who’d been in countless life-or-death battles could acquire it.

But I got it in one fight.

If this is the level of reward from the first floor, how much better is it going to get on the higher floors?

And…

‘How dangerous is this going to get?’

I have no way of proving this but… the tower probably isn’t providing these skills out of the kindness of its heart.

The only reason I got these to begin with was that I won my fight against the sand golem.

The risk I carried for earning these skills was simple.

Death.

This was stated clearly from the very start in the holographic messages.

My innate ability was the reward for passing this trial. The alternative was death.

High risk, high reward.

This was the system perpetrated by the Tower of Trials.

The higher I get…

The riskier these trials would get.

“Damn it…”

No matter how good the reward was, failing could result in instant death.

And unlike a dungeon, you couldn't escape after clearing a floor.

“Pretty inhospitable for a host.”

It was a crazy risk that no sane person would take.

I wanted to become a hunter because I was sick of being powerless and wanted to avenge my parents.

‘But all that becomes useless if I die.’

I didn’t want to continue fighting carrying this risk.

Because I also unlocked my innate ability, there was even less reason for me to carry on with this risk.

I could become a hunter if I got back with this skill.

But…

“I’ll only get to make that choice if I survive.”

That means I’ll need to learn how to use all the resources I’ve been given.

I stood up and agreed to the message about absorbing the soul.

「 You have absorbed the soul of the sand golem. 」

「 Number of souls in possession - 1/5 」

「 Proficiency increased by 7% 」

At the same time, the black fog flew into my body.

Shhhhhh…!

It was a strange sensation.

‘I somehow know exactly how to use my innate ability.’

I knew that I could enhance my stats just by wishing for it at any time.

This is probably how all the other hunters felt when they unlocked their innate abilities.

I was just a little behind.

「 Permanently increasing your stats using the souls in captivity. 」

「 Strength increased by 3. 」

「 Stamina increased by 2. 」

「 Number of souls in possession - 0/5 」

A weight lifted from my shoulders and my entire body felt more energized.

An unknown sense of enhancement overtook my body but…

‘No need to try it out now.’

I was still covered in injuries, so I didn’t want to test it right away.

Then I continued to the portal where the golem once used to stand.

The moment I reached the portal.

「 Moving to the waiting room. 」

My surroundings changed again.

***

Voom!

The first thing I saw was a rectangular, stone room.

「 You have entered the 2nd-floor waiting room. 」

「 Healing all injuries and status ailments. 」

「 The healing effect is constantly applied in the waiting room. 」

The messages appeared in the air, and my injuries started disappearing.

‘It’s not even that surprising anymore.’

I guess I was starting to get used to this.

When my pain faded completely, I checked up on my body.

As the message said, all of my injuries were gone.

It was almost as if my battle with the sand golem was nothing but a dream.

‘No way it was though.’

Just one look at my clothes could show that it wasn't.

As if the tower wanted to do the bare minimum, it left my clothes in tatters while healing me.

I shook off the sand stuck to my clothes.

I guess some sand got in my mouth because my throat felt scratchy.

‘At least they heal your body after a trial ends.’

One less problem to worry about.

When I calmed down enough, I started noticing more things in my surroundings.

‘This is really spacious, but it feels so empty.’

Even if this was supposed to be a waiting area, the only word to describe this place was desolate.

They did have a bed in the corner though.

‘It doesn't even seem like a good one.’

I should be thankful that they even had a bed.

Plop.

My head filled with thoughts as I stared into the ceiling.

‘What should I do now? Can I even escape from here?’

My future seemed bleak.

Hm…

‘For what purpose was I called here?’

But…

‘I don’t get it.’

All my questions were answered by ‘I don’t know.’ or ‘nothing I can do about it.’

I didn’t even know what was going to happen on this floor, let alone if I could return to Earth…

Anything was possible.

While I was laying down and letting my thoughts wander—

「 All tutorial trials of every difficulty have been completed. 」

「 Activating the ‘Tower of Trials’ system. 」

A row of text emerged as the message appeared.

「 You are now able to use these commands. 」

「 Information, marketplace, community, inventory, trial. 」

「 Commands will execute as you say them orally. 」

The messages stopped after that.

That finally broke my train of thought.

“…Yeah, I have to get a hold of myself now.”

There wasn’t anything I could change about my situation right now.

I just needed to find out more about this tower and how I could keep on surviving.

I pondered my next steps in bed when I finally opened my mouth.

“Trial.”

「 Floor 2 trial starting in - 23hrs 21min 」

「 Trial cannot be selected at this time. Please wait. 」

As I thought, the trials would continue.

I moved on to test the more intuitive commands.

“Inventory.”

As the name suggested, it seemed like a storage unit.

A game-like inventory window appeared where items could be stored.

‘I can’t store a large number of items but it’s pretty useful,’

I had no idea how it worked but it was another useful tool in my arsenal.

“Marketplace.”

This was also an intuitive command that triggered an Amazon-like website shopping window to appear.

I couldn’t sell anything, but it looked like I could buy something at any time.

From small, useless items to weapons and even furniture.

Thousands of items were being sold in the marketplace tab.

I didn’t want to use the marketplace before trying out the other commands, so I decided to move on.

Only 2 more left.

Information and community.

“Information.”

Something I needed the most right now.

When I said the command an unexpected window came up.

「 Please ask a question. 」

「 The administrator will answer the submitted question. 」

「 Currently available questions - 1 」

It was just a window to submit questions to the administrator.

An administrator.

So even if this Tower of Trials is a natural phenomenon, it still has an administrator?

I wasn’t sure, but there was nothing I could do about that now.

I was wondering what to ask when I saw the fine print.

「 You are able to ask 1 question when entering a new floor. 」

「 Questions can be accumulated. 」

‘Hm, I’ll hold off for now.’

I’d have to be cautious with my question since I only have one.

It said it could be accumulated, so there was no rush to ask one right now.

I could decide after taking a look at the community.

「 You have entered the community. 」

「 Difficulty - Hard 」

「 Floor 2 Community (3971/4321) 」

Lee Seungjin: Can anyone explain what’s going on?

Park Jinwoo: ****, is this the second Great Calamity?

Lee Heejin: All my stats and skills reset. What should I do?

Park Chansuk: What the ****. Give me my stats back.

Kim Seunghoon: Stfu. You think you’re the only one this happened to?

Hyuk Sukjin: I’m not even a hunter. Why did I get sucked into this?

Park Chansuk: You’re not even a player? How did you get here then?

Hyuk Sukjin: Why the **** are you asking me? And they just awakened me at the start of the tutorial.

I stared at the onslaught of messages and blinked.

‘Community is like an actual communication network?’

Most people were posting messages stemming from pure confusion.

Chaos.

The only word fit to describe what was happening.

But there were still things to be learned from them.

“I wasn’t the only one who got dragged in here.”

More than an insignificant portion of the people were also dragged in here without context.

There were also some hunters.

They were busy crying about the loss of their stats and skills.

My hope that they would be able to save us quickly died.

They wouldn't be able to help anyone being in the same boat.

“Wait a minute…”

A lot of people mentioned not having their skills and stats anymore.

‘I guess it didn’t apply to me because my stats never changed.’

But to hunters, it was the end of their world.

A couple of people claimed that they weren’t even hunters when they got dragged here.

It couldn’t be a lie because dozens of people were claiming the same thing.

‘Maybe this really is the second Great Calamity.’

Otherwise, how would this all make sense?

‘Not like I could do anything even if it was the second coming.’

There was a variety of information to be found from the chat.

But that didn’t last long.

Even after some time had passed, the chatting room was still in a state of chaos.

‘There’s still a lot of people who don’t understand what’s going on.’

The chatting room is just filled with random messages about the Great Calamity and curses.

Or it was just hunters complaining about the loss of their abilities.

Although understandable, it was unrelated to me.

I had nothing to lose anyway.

It helped me keep my composure compared to the others.

“There’s not much to gain from this anymore.”

As I was about to test the other commands—

「 Administrator 囗囗囗 has entered the chat. 」

A huge notification arose on top of the community tab.

The stream of messages broke and the chatting stopped.

「 Chatting is forbidden now. 」

‘The administrator entering and the chat closing……’

You never get a lot of time to react to an anomaly.

囗囗囗: There is an announcement for all the challengers who passed the tutorial.

Messages started to show up on the frozen chatroom.