Chapter 3

003. Tower of Trials (3)

"Activating unique ability 'Necromancy (F)'"

"Do you wish to absorb the command of the Sand Golem?"

"Y/N"

"......"

For a moment, I was speechless at the series of messages that appeared, but I had a pretty good idea of what was happening.

It was a capability that I had never possessed, but other players used as naturally as breathing.

A unique ability had been manifested.

I was overwhelmed with emotion at finally acquiring a unique ability after seven long years, but I quickly composed myself.

Come on, let's think calmly, calmly.

Having a unique ability is something to be happy about, but I shouldn't get too excited.

"It's too early to celebrate."

I need to calm down, now.

The pain that felt like my whole body was about to shatter was bad enough, but I was also extremely exhausted.

I needed to quickly grasp what I could and move on to the waiting room.

'So, this black mist is my unique ability?'

I tried touching the black mist again, puzzled, but there was no particular reaction.

Of course not.

If this is my unique ability, it wouldn't just disappear by waving my hand.

Then I need to properly confirm it.

『Han Sungyun』

『Strength – 9』 『Stamina – 9』

『Agility – 8』 『Magic – 7』

『Unique Ability – Necromancy (F)』

『Skill – Rapid Regeneration (E+)』

The status window, which I hadn't opened in a long time, had changed a lot.

A unique ability that didn't exist before had appeared.

A skill slot that was previously empty now had 'Rapid Regeneration (E+)'.

Of course, my stats hadn't changed, but the important part was the 'Unique Ability'.

I clicked on the text 'Unique Ability' to bring up the detailed description.

『Unique Ability – Necromancy (F)』

『Proficiency – 0%』

『Basic Effect - Can absorb and freely use the souls of the dead.』

『Detailed Effect (1) – Can permanently increase stats, with the amount proportional to the rank of the ability and the quality of the soul.』

『Detailed Effect (2) - Can store and use souls, with the storage capacity proportional to the rank.』

"What the hell...!"

The reward I obtained after fighting with the resolve to die was truly sweet.

The phrase 'permanent stat increase' stood out.

Seeing that, I couldn't help but swear.

My stats, which hadn't increased no matter how many years I trained, were exactly that.

But now...

'To be able to increase those stats...'

It felt like winning the lottery.

Next, I clicked on 'Rapid Regeneration' in the skill section of the status window.

『Skill – Rapid Regeneration (E+)』

『Proficiency – 0%』

『Effect – Quickly regenerates wounds except for fatal injuries.』

The first skill I ever obtained was not ordinary.

Regeneration skills are rare.

Skills that heal wounds during battles are hard to obtain.

I heard that usually, hunters acquire them after repeatedly engaging in life-or-death battles.

But I obtained it in one go.

If the additional breakthrough reward is this good, what kind of reward will the next floor offer?

And...

'How much more dangerous will it get?'

I don't think the Tower of Trials would just hand out unique abilities and skills like this.

I was able to obtain these rewards because I defeated the Sand Golem.

The risk the Tower of Trials made me take for these rewards was simple.

Death.

From the beginning, the Tower of Trials showed the risk and reward through a holographic message.

If I win, I would unlock a 'unique ability,' and if I lose, I would die.

High risk, high return.

The Tower of Trials has been advocating this system from the tutorial.

The higher I go, the more dangerous it becomes, and my life might be on the edge.

"Damn..."

No matter how great the reward, if I fail, I will die.

Unlike a dungeon, I can't just escape once I clear it.

So, of course, rough words would come out of my mouth.

"Damn, it's so inconsiderate."

The risk is absurd, something that can't be justified.

I didn't want a powerless life and wanted to kill all the monsters, which is why I aspired to be a hunter.

'But if I die, it will all be in vain.'

I didn't want to take such a risk yet.

It was natural to feel this way, having obtained the unique ability and skill I had longed for.

If I go back, I can become the hunter I've always wanted to be with just this.

However,

"To decide that, I need to survive first."

To do that, I needed to use what I had.

I stood up and agreed to the message asking if I wanted to absorb the Sand Golem's command.

"You have absorbed the command of the Sand Golem."

"Current number of commands held – 1/5"

"Proficiency increased by 7%."

At the same time, the black mist flowing out of the Sand Golem's body surged into mine.

Swoosh...

A strange sensation arose as the black mist seeped into my body.

'I get it, the usage of the unique ability is clear.'

I realized that I could increase my stats at any time just by focusing.

Players who have used unique abilities must have gone through this process.

I just went through it a bit later.

"Using the command to permanently increase stats."

"Strength increased by 3."

"Stamina increased by 2."

"Current number of commands held – 0/5"

My body felt much lighter, and vitality surged throughout.

An indescribable sense of excitement dominated my body, but...

'There's no need to check it now.'

My body was covered in wounds, so I didn't test the increased stats.

I moved to the portal that appeared behind where the Sand Golem died.

The moment I stepped into the portal,

"You are moving to the waiting room."

The scenery around me changed completely.

***

Whoosh!

After passing through the portal, I saw a square-shaped stone room.

"You have entered the waiting room for the 2nd floor."

"All abnormalities and injuries are perfectly healed."

"The healing effect is constantly applied in the waiting room."

The message floated in the air, and the wounds on my sandy skin quickly disappeared.

Not only that, but all the minor injuries I had also healed.

'Not really that surprising.'

I was gradually getting used to this phenomenon.

With the pain completely gone, I carefully examined my body.

As the message indicated, all injuries were fully healed.

It felt like the battle with the Sand Golem was a dream.

'But that's not possible.'

The fact that the torn clothes I was wearing were not restored by the tower was evident.

The tower only healed the wounds, leaving the torn clothes as they were.

I shook off the sand that had stuck to my body from rolling on the sandy ground.

Ugh, some of it even got into my mouth, making my throat dry.

'At least my body is healed after the trial?'

Thanks to this, I no longer had to worry about how to treat my injuries.

Only then did my mind calm down, and I noticed my surroundings.

'The space is quite large, but the inside is empty.'

The waiting room, being just a place to wait, was a desolate scene.

There was a bed in the corner of the stone room, perhaps for resting.

'It's not a particularly good bed, but...'

I should be grateful just for having a bed.

Plop.

Lying on the bed and looking up at the ceiling, my mind wandered.

'What should I do from now on? Can I leave the tower?'

Just thinking about the uncertainty ahead.

Or,

'Why did it bring me here?'

Why did the tower bring me here?

However,

"I don't know."

Most of it ultimately led to the conclusion that I don't know or can't do anything about it.

This applies to both reality and the tower.

Not to mention whether I can return, I don't even know what will happen next...

I couldn't know any of it.

While staring at the ceiling and thinking about these things,

"All tutorial trials of all difficulties have ended."

"Activating the Tower of Trials dedicated system."

Suddenly, such a message appeared, followed by more text.

"From now on, you can use the following commands."

"Information, Shop, Community, Inventory, Trials."

"Speaking the command will automatically execute it."

That was all, and no further messages appeared.

I snapped out of my thoughts.

"...Yeah, I need to pull myself together now."

There's nothing I can do about what I don't know or can't control.

What's important now is to survive and understand this tower.

I lay there, pondering what to do, and then spoke.

"Trials."

As soon as I finished speaking, a holographic message appeared.

"2nd floor trial starts in – 23 hours 21 minutes"

"You cannot select a trial yet, please wait."

As expected, there are more trials.

Since the trials themselves were as expected, I immediately tried most of the intuitive commands.

Inventory.

It seemed to be a storage space that I could use at any time, just like in a game.

A window similar to a game inventory appeared, and I could put items in it.

After a brief shock, I was able to fully understand the capabilities of the inventory.

'Certainly, it's not a large storage, but it's useful.'

I don't know how it works, but it's a useful tool.

Shop.

This was also in a quite intuitive form, like an online shopping mall.

It seemed that buying was possible at any time, though selling was not.

It appeared that various items, from small objects to weapons and furniture, were for sale.

However, I felt a bit awkward using the shop without trying all the commands, so I decided to move on to the other commands.

There were now only two commands left.

Information, and Community.

"Information..."

What I needed now was information about the current situation.

Considering the intuitive commands of the Tower of Trials, information seemed useful.

However, when I actually said the command, the result was different from what I expected.

"Please write down your question."

"Once the question is sent, the administrator will provide an answer."

"Current number of questions available – 1."

Information was just a way to ask the administrator questions.

Administrator, administrator...

Is the Tower of Trials, a supernatural phenomenon, managed by someone?

I don't know, but it's not something I can solve by thinking about it now.

Putting aside the existence of the administrator, the question system could be useful if used wisely.

After pondering what to ask, I noticed a small note at the bottom and decided to wait.

"New questions are added each time you enter a new floor."

"Questions can be accumulated."

"Hmm, I should wait for now."

I only had one question available, so I needed to use it carefully.

The note said that questions could be accumulated.

So, it won't disappear if I don't use it immediately.

I could decide on the last remaining command, Community, later.

"You have entered the Community."

"Difficulty – Hard"

"2nd floor Community (3971/4321)"

- Lee Seungjin: Can someone explain what's happening here?

- Park Jinwoo: Damn, is this the Second Cataclysm?

- Lee Heejin: Guys, my stats and skills have reset to the awakening point, what should I do?

- Park Chanseok: What the hell, give me back my status window.

- Kim Seunghoon: D*mn, you're not the only one. My status window also reset to the awakening point.

- Hyun Seokjin: Reset, damn. I'm not even a hunter, why am I here? I thought only players could enter dungeons.

- Park Chanseok: Not a player? But how did you get here?

- Hyun Seokjin: If I knew, would I be here, damn? And they awakened us at the start of the tutorial.

I blinked as I read the rapidly updating chat.

'Is the Community really a community?'

Most people were still in a state of confusion, typing whatever came to mind.

It was a chaotic scene, fitting the phrase 'a living hell.'

However, I did gain some information from the continuous chat.

"I'm not the only one who was brought here."

More people than I expected were brought here, and there were hunters as well.

But they were crying out in despair, saying their stats and skills had disappeared.

I briefly thought they might help, but we were in the same boat.

I stopped relying on the hunters.

With everyone in the same situation, who could help whom?

'Come to think of it...'

There was a message about resetting stats and skills to the awakening point.

'Of course, since I didn't change from the awakening point, it was the same for me.'

If a professional hunter experienced this, they must have felt like they lost everything.

And some non-players were also brought here.

It couldn't be a lie, as dozens of people claimed it.

'It might really be the Second Cataclysm.'

Otherwise, it would be impossible to break the existing common sense.

'Of course, even if I know it's the Second Cataclysm, I can't do anything about it.'

Still, the information I could get from the chat room was quite rich.

But it was only for a moment.

Despite the time that had passed, the confusion in the chat room didn't decrease.

'Many people still haven't grasped the situation.'

The chat room was filled with curses and questions about whether this was the Second Cataclysm.

Or, players and hunters repeatedly demanded to have their abilities returned.

Of course, it was a situation where they could go crazy, but not for me.

I didn't have any abilities to begin with, so I didn't lose anything.

Thanks to this, I could maintain my composure better than others.

"There's nothing more to gain from this."

Thinking this, I was about to turn off the Community and try another command when...

"Administrator ■■■ has entered."

A large message appeared on the Community hologram.

At the same time, the Community froze, and the chat stopped.

"Chat has been disabled."

'Chat disabled with the administrator's entry...'

I was momentarily confused by this absurd situation.

-■■■: I have an announcement for those who have cleared the tutorial trial.

Chat started appearing on the frozen Community.