CHAPTER 2
The world that had been flowing backward suddenly came to a stop.
“Gasp…!”
Sang-hyuk opened his eyes with a sharp intake of breath.
The moment he hurriedly tried to sit up, he lost his balance and rolled off the bed.
Thud!
His left shoulder slammed against the floor.
Empty liquor bottles rolled noisily in every direction.
Still sprawled on the floor, Sang-hyuk looked around.
There was no Gigant Orc, nor was there any trace of the workplace covered in black stone dust.
All he could see was a shabby bed and a room littered with liquor bottles.
Sang-hyuk grabbed his left shoulder.
Instead of the wound torn open by the whip, his fingers felt smooth skin.
Even when he pressed his chest, there was no pain from the ribs that had been broken.
Sang-hyuk slowly lowered his gaze to both of his hands.
The dried blood and calluses were gone, revealing long, clean fingers.
There were no marks left from the shackles that had once constricted his wrists.
Only then did the scenery inside the room gradually come into focus.
Empty liquor bottles rolling across the floor.
Clothes crumpled over a chair.
A broken dumbbell shoved into the corner of the wall.
On the desk lay a partially opened diagnostic report from the Awakening Research Institute.
[Awakening conditions have not been met.]
The sentence stamped in the middle of the report caught his eye.
Sang-hyuk remembered this room.
It was from the period when he had become exhausted from searching for his awakening conditions and eventually abandoned everything.
He used to sleep during the day and empty liquor bottles at night.
At that moment, a new notification appeared in the center of his vision.
「Time has been reversed.」
Sang-hyuk’s gaze stopped on the notification.
It meant that the time reversal that had begun immediately before his death had ended.
Sang-hyuk placed a hand on the floor and stood up.
His younger self was reflected in the full-length mirror.
The hollowed cheeks had regained their flesh, and his previously skeletal shoulders were perfectly healthy.
The whip marks that had covered his back and chest were nowhere to be seen.
Sang-hyuk stared at his own eyes in the mirror for a moment.
‘I really… came back.’
It was not something he could easily believe.
And yet, his mind was surprisingly calm.
Perhaps because he had already experienced death once, the things he needed to confirm came to mind before the confusion could.
Sang-hyuk immediately moved his will.
‘Status Window.’
[Name] Kim Sang-hyuk
[Level] 0
[Trait Name] <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon>
[Unlocked Authority] None
For the first time, a name had been engraved where question marks had covered his trait for his entire life.
The <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon>, which had awakened right before his death, had not disappeared either.
Not only Sang-hyuk himself, but that power had returned to the past with him.
Whirr.
Just then, the cellphone lying on the desk rang.
Sang-hyuk checked the date displayed on the screen first.
XXXX. XX. XX.
The fourth year since the Infinite Tower appeared.
It was before Korea fell.
Below the lock screen, missed calls and messages had piled up.
[3 Missed Calls / Kim Seo-yoon]
Sang-hyuk’s finger stopped.
He opened the most recent messages.
[Kim Seo-yoon: Contact me when you wake up.]
[Kim Seo-yoon: I’ll bring the examination records.]
[Kim Seo-yoon: And don’t drink today.]
Sang-hyuk slowly read the three lines again.
Her voice, broken apart by explosions and static, echoed in his ears.
—So don’t give up.
—No matter what happens, survive.
Sang-hyuk checked the date on the screen once more.
Kim Do-hyun.
Kim Sang-joon.
Kim Seo-yoon.
On this day, all three of them were still alive.
Sang-hyuk placed his thumb over the call button.
After hesitating for a moment, his finger moved down to the message box.
[Kim Sang-hyuk: Yeah. I’m awake.]
The sent notification appeared.
Only after sending that short reply did the pressure in his chest ease slightly.
Then, a notification near the top of the screen caught his eye.
[Ilseong Group to Fully Enter the Player Equipment Business]
Ilseong headquarters stood perfectly intact in the article’s photograph.
The Ilseong insignia atop the building was shining brightly as well.
It was the light that had ultimately gone out amid the flames before his regression.
Sang-hyuk looked away from the photograph and approached the window.
When he opened the curtains, vehicles moved in lines along the road below.
Commuters gathered at the crosswalk, and the windows of the high-rise buildings reflected the morning sunlight.
There were no cracks in the sky.
No blood-red lightning.
Seoul was alive.
Sang-hyuk looked down at his phone again.
His finger moved through the calendar until it stopped on a date one year in the future.
The quarterly settlement date when the national shortage points would exceed 1,000,000.
It was the day when the sky over Seoul had split apart before his regression.
Sang-hyuk had approximately one year left.
‘That isn’t much time.’
Sang-hyuk closed the calendar and opened Korea’s National Achievement status.
[Republic of Korea Overall Ranking] 64th
[Estimated Shortage Points This Quarter] 150,000
[Expected Risk] Large-Scale Rift Occurrence Zone
Sang-hyuk’s gaze remained fixed on the number 150,000.
The 1,020,000-point shortage one year later had not appeared out of nowhere.
Every time a rift opened, players and soldiers died.
As fewer people remained capable of climbing the Tower, the number of National Achievement Points earned in the following quarter decreased as well.
Then even larger rifts opened, killing even more people.
Korea had already fallen into that vicious cycle.
If they failed to reduce the shortage starting this quarter, the 150,000 points would become even greater at the next settlement.
That cycle had ultimately led to the Catastrophe-Class Rift that destroyed Korea in his previous life.
‘We have to start reducing it this quarter.’
National Achievement Points could be obtained through Tower climbing records and achievements.
Greater points were awarded for first-time clears and accomplishments that surpassed existing records.
The more points they earned, the more they could reduce the rifts that would open in reality.
But 150,000 points was an amount even Korea’s high-level players could not accumulate despite dedicating an entire quarter to it.
Sang-hyuk was still only Level 0.
His gaze shifted to an article near the top of the screen.
[First Throne <Changcheon> Becomes Humanity’s First to Break Through Level 80]
The man in the article’s photograph wore combat gear engraved with blue patterns.
Although he was surrounded by countless reporters, Changcheon neither smiled nor looked away from the front.
Changcheon stood at the pinnacle of the Sixteen Thrones and was the world’s No. 1-ranked player at the time.
Four years later, Changcheon had reached Level 102.
He led the Sixteen Thrones and the elite players of every country as Earth’s representative in the Dimension League.
But with a single swing of the enemy commander’s sword, the blue light covering the arena was split apart, along with Changcheon’s sword and body.
Korea had one year left.
Humanity had four years left.
Sang-hyuk put down his phone and opened his status window again.
[Level] 0
[Trait Name] <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon>
[Unlocked Authority] None
The Apocalypse Demon Dragon.
Before his regression, Sang-hyuk knew of one existence whose name could be compared to it.
The Red Dragon that had descended upon Africa.
That creature had burned vast territories with a single breath attack.
Even the other-dimensional races that occupied Earth avoided the Red Dragon’s territory.
The <Gigant Orc> occupation forces had also gone around the distant sea rather than crossing Africa.
A single entity stronger than an entire legion.
Such beings truly existed in other dimensions.
Sang-hyuk placed a hand over his chest.
If the <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon> contained power worthy of its name, he could change the ending of his previous life.
But the only thing he had confirmed so far was its name.
His level was 0, and he had no unlocked authorities.
Sang-hyuk had not even fought inside the Tower before.
Nor had the knowledge he possessed from his previous life been knowledge he had gained through clearing the Tower himself.
They were rumors he had heard in refugee camps.
Records from countries that had fallen.
War stories he had picked up in slave labor camps.
He knew when certain events would occur.
But he had never once fought a monster directly.
‘Then I just have to find out.’
Sang-hyuk picked up one of the liquor bottles rolling across the floor.
There was still about half a bottle of liquor inside.
He went into the bathroom and poured the remaining liquor down the sink.
Glug, glug, glug.
The sharp smell disappeared down the drain.
Sang-hyuk washed his face with cold water and changed into a shirt and pants that were comfortable to move in.
Returning to the center of the room, Sang-hyuk looked around.
His family was alive.
Ilseong and Korea had not fallen yet either.
This time, he had a chance to protect them.
But first, he had to confirm the power he possessed.
‘Infinite Tower.’
When Sang-hyuk sent out his will, a notification appeared before his eyes.
「Would you like to enter the Infinite Tower?」
Sang-hyuk did not hesitate.
‘Enter.’
Flash!
White light surged up from beneath his feet and swallowed Sang-hyuk’s body.
The messy room disappeared beyond the light.
—
The light receded.
Sang-hyuk stood in the middle of a pure white space.
There was no visible boundary between the walls and the ceiling.
A gigantic circular magic formation was drawn beneath his feet, while a pitch-black stone gate stood directly ahead.
「You have entered the Initial Tutorial.」
「Player registration will begin.」
「Your level will increase as a registration reward.」
[Level] 0 → 1
The light rising from the magic formation swept over Sang-hyuk’s body.
Heat that began at the soles of his feet traveled up through his calves and waist.
His body became lighter, and his previously blurry vision grew clear.
Sang-hyuk clenched and unclenched his hand.
An unfamiliar power moved between his fingers.
A warm yet heavy energy slowly circulated through his veins.
‘Is this mana?’
It was a power he had never experienced before his regression.
Players often compared mana to a second blood or a second heart.
After feeling it directly, he realized it was not an exaggeration.
His body was distinctly different from how it had been moments ago.
But this was a change every player experienced upon reaching Level 1.
At least so far, there was nothing different between him and other players.
Now it was time to unlock his first authority and learn how to use it against a training creature.
It was during that process that the true value of the <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon> would be revealed.
Just then, a notification appeared, signaling the next stage.
「Checking the player’s trait.」
「Proceeding with authority awakening according to the trait.」
Thump.
Sang-hyuk’s heart gave a heavy beat.
Black energy flowed down to his feet and stained the white floor.
Thump.
Thump.
Every time his heart beat, the black energy spread farther.
The once-pure white floor soon became completely black.
Yet the next notification did not appear.
「Checking trait…」
「Checking…」
「Unregistered trait.」
Sang-hyuk narrowed his eyes.
「Measuring trait hierarchy…」
「Error. The target’s hierarchy exceeds the measurement range.」
「Attempting remeasurement…」
「Error. Measurement range exceeded.」
「Failed to determine trait hierarchy.」
「This trait will be recorded as [Unmeasurable].」
[Trait Name] <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon>
[Trait Hierarchy] Unmeasurable
Even the highest-hierarchy traits Sang-hyuk knew of had displayed numerical values.
There had never been a case where the measurement itself had failed.
‘A trait even the Infinite Tower can’t measure?’
As Sang-hyuk looked down at the floor that had been dyed black, another notification appeared.
「Although hierarchy measurement failed, authority recognition has been completed.」
「The unlocking conditions have been met.」
「The first authority of the trait <Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon> will be unlocked.」
Thump──!
This time, his heart pounded violently.
The heat erupting from his chest rushed into his right arm, and black energy rose above his palm.
[Authority Unlocked]
[Authority Name] <Devour>
[Authority Stage] Stage 1
Sang-hyuk raised the hand covered in black energy.
His gaze shifted toward the stone gate in front of him.
It was a structure of the Tower that divided the Initial Tutorial area.
Players who obtained their first authority would often test it at least once to see if they could break down that gate.
But there had never been a report of anyone even managing to leave a scratch on it.
‘What about an authority born from a trait whose hierarchy even the Tower couldn’t measure?’
Sang-hyuk walked toward the stone gate and placed his palm against it.
Sizzle.
Starting from the spot where his palm touched, the solid stone gate transformed into black sand.
Fsssss.
As the black sand flowed down, a deep groove was carved beneath his palm.
Only then did the system notification appear.
「Warning. Tutorial structure has been damaged.」
