Chapter 131 Challenger (1)

Elle said, if he didn’t ascend the Tower quickly, a precious opportunity would disappear. That was why Yoon-seok wouldn’t go close to Moorim and only focused on ascending. But he couldn’t help it this time.

‘Just one day is probably fine.’

What was the use of taking that opportunity in exchange for the destruction of Earth, and above all, his parents? As long as that device was ringing, he should at least go check.

「Ticket (Rank F) has been used.」

「Returning to Earth.」

When the ticket was torn, Yoon-seok was immediately transferred. However, he wasn’t in the hotel room during his last return, but dozens of meters above the dimly lit blue sky. He wondered for a second if the point of return had changed.

“…”

As Yoon-seok descended and had the opportunity to look around, he clenched his fists. The place where he returned was the last place he last stayed. But, all the surrounding buildings were reduced to rubble as if they had been bombed. What happened?

Tak.

They would have the answer. Several men approached Yoon-seok as he lightly landed. The man at the forefront relaxed as he realized who he was.

“Ashton.”

“Thank you for coming.”

Although he had a sword strapped to his waist, he wore a modern suit, granting him an unfamiliar appearance. Come to think of it, he always met him in the square, so this was his first time meeting Ashton on Earth. Well, that wasn’t important now.

“What happened?”

“Let’s get in first. I’ll explain it to you on the way.”

Yoon-seok remained quiet as he boarded the helicopter, standing by along with Ashton.

Dudududududu!

The helicopter whirred to life and was off, and as it went higher and higher, Yoon-seok felt at an increasing loss for words. He realized the exact meaning of a ruined Seoul. To be honest, it didn’t feel real. Even though he witnessed it with his own eyes, it felt like he was watching a movie.

“…What happened?”

“Unfortunately, a crack opened in the middle of Seoul. It was of a scale incomparable to those anywhere else in the world.”

Tens of thousands of invaders flooded out, and an army of challengers arrived to stop them. Fortunately, only one city was destroyed, and there weren’t many civilian casualties, thanks to a timely evacuation.

“Then, where did all those invaders go?”

“After three days of battle, every single one of them was killed. The crack was also successfully closed. That was a week ago.”

“…?”

Yoon-seok tilted his head. If the situation had happened a week ago, why was he called? No, why didn’t he tell him this during their last meeting? Yoon-seok’s eyes sharpened. However, as if he’d already seen this coming, Ashton calmly continued.

“When the crack first opened, governments around the world had a lot to say. Since it was an emergency, they said to call you right away to reduce the damage. But the U.S. government, to be precise, strongly refused to do so.”

“How come?”

“Because you were climbing the Tower. They thought it was more important.”

“…”

Yoon-seok was speechless. He appreciated their consideration, but no matter how few victims there were, Seoul was torn apart, so how could it be more important to climb the Tower? Before properly understanding the situation, there was something he needed to know first.

“How many people died?”

“About 3,000 people died during the battle.”

“What about civilians?”

“There are many missing, so we don’t have an accurate count.”

“It’s alright if it’s an estimate. Can you tell me?”

“…180,000 people. It’s the number that our intelligence team has concluded.”

One hundred eighty thousand people died, and the capital of Korea was destroyed. Saying the resulting economic damage was astronomical would be insufficient. His heart ached as if something heavy was compressing his chest.

“Why did you hide it? It’s embarrassing to say this, but I’m strong. If I had taken just one day to come back, it wouldn’t have gotten to this point.”

“I’m aware. I don’t know what it’s like for those higher-ups who just read the documents, but how could I not know?”

It became even more confusing. Why did he make such a choice when he knew? Because it wasn’t his country or were there some tangled political reasons? If it were lame reasons like these, he would never talk to Ashton ever again. He could never trust and work with someone like that.

“Then why?”

“Because it doesn’t end at that.”

Does he know that fate could change with his answer? He had no clue, but there was no hesitation in his reply.

“As days have gone by, the crack has grown bigger and bigger. After Yoon-seok’s visit, the level of challengers has improved significantly, but… in the future, these things will continue to happen. And every time it happens, we can’t hold you back. There’s something more important.”

“More important?”

“Climbing the Tower and becoming stronger.”

Yoon-seok felt overwhelmed for a moment. Was he always this kind of person? A madness he had never seen before reflected in his eyes.

“You are our hope.”

“…Do you think the bereaved families of those who died during this incident will think the same?”

“They won’t, not right away. But they’ll find out soon. Humanity is living at the end of an era.”

“…”

Was Ashton’s belief accurate? Yoon-seok couldn’t come up with an easy conclusion. Therefore, he decided to put the decision on hold and ask questions that could be solved immediately.

“Ashton, I understand what you think. That’s why I’m even more curious. If you think every day is precious, why did you call me?”

At first, he thought he called due to the invader problem, but that had already been resolved. So why did he call him now? Ashton’s voice grew heavy.

“It’s because there’s something I have to tell you.”

“…?”

“Three hours ago, your parents became challengers.”

The Tower was a harsh place. Even now, countless people were dying there, yet now his parents were taken to such a place. His hands, which remained steady even when he heard of the deaths of 180,000 people, trembled. Black Skywrath Energy, which he’d been suppressing as much as possible, began to leak out of his body.

Feeling fear for a reason he didn’t understand, Ashton quickly shouted.

“Calm down, please. They’re safe.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because our agents have confirmed it!”

“…?”

Yoon-seok’s energy plummeted, but Ashton knew better than anyone else that it was not suppressed but hidden.

“F-fortunately! Your parents are well aware of the manual.”

“Manual?”

“You probably don’t know, but these days, it is mandatory to educate civilians all around the world about the Tower. The basic point is to choose adventure unconditionally and find the agents for help.”

“…I see.”

Yoon-seok was a little surprised, too. He didn’t know they prepared a systematic countermeasure for the random summons of the Tower.

“With the help of the agents, they can buy tickets to come back anytime, but we decided that it would be better to stay there. Ironically, recently, that place is safer than here. Of course, it’s up to you to decide where they go.”

Ashton met Yoon-seok’s gaze rather than appealing to his emotions and asking him to believe him. He knew about Yoon-seok’s Eye of the Executor.

“I think my parents should stay there… thank you.”

Yoon-seok expressed his sincere gratitude.

“Of course, I just did what I ha-had to do….”

Ashton’s reply was a little strange. His shoulders flinched, and he faltered slightly as he spoke. Yoon-seok immediately checked his eyes. He looked ahead blankly with no focus in his gaze.

“Your butt…”

“…”

“Will you let me touch your butt?”

Was he speaking politely even in the mental confusion state? He didn’t have a clue as to why, so that was why it was even more spine-chilling.

Unlike in the arena, he thought it would be okay because he didn’t have to use magic in maintaining Lady’s Commandment. But was it because of the magic that leaked earlier? Looking at Ashton drooling, Yoon-seok immediately used Light of Purification. Since magic consumption wasn’t a problem, he thought it best to keep it active.

“I’m sorry, but I couldn’t control my newly obtained skill.”

Yoon-seok apologized to him as he came to his senses.

“…Ah, did I lose my mind just now? I thought I’d put up quite a bit of resistance, but that’s a great skill.”

“Do you not remember?”

“Yes. I don’t remember.”

Ashton immediately replied, perhaps more firmly than when he revealed his beliefs to Yoon-seok earlier. It was a little strange. In the case of the Sword Demon, who had gone through several months of enduring the confusion state, he remembered everything when he woke up. Did it differ for everyone? He didn’t know, but he decided to ignore it for those involved.

“…”

“…”

Inside the helicopter, facing each other. An awkward silence that couldn’t be hidden covered them. Yoon-seok, who had resorted to gazing out the window, suddenly spoke as if he had only remembered now midway through their journey.

“By the way, where are we going?”

“Oh, so I haven’t told you. The primary reason for calling you was to deliver the news related to your parents, but there’s another reason.”

“Another reason?”

“Yes. Of course, that’s not enough to waste your day…”

“Since you called me, are you going to make me work?”

Yoon-seok jokingly asked. Ashton smiled and answered lightly.

“Yes, that’s not wrong. There was a request from the top to ask you if you could give a lecture.”

“A lecture?”

“Do you remember the challenger academy I mentioned last time?”

Come to think of it; there was something like that. It was like a database where all the information about the Tower found by mankind was recorded, used to educate new challengers who were willing to ascend.

“Most of the people who listen to the lectures are low-level challengers… but if you say you’ll give a lecture, it’ll cause a ruckus.”

“Ruckus?”

“Yes. All the lazy prospects from each country will try to attend. Even if they need to get on a plane and cross oceans to make it on time.”

Ashton said it as if it were natural, but Yoon-seok felt somewhat embarrassed. Although he hadn’t realized it because he was always in the Tower, he could now feel the changes in his surroundings.

He only climbed the Tower. At first for survival, but now for his ideals. But it was awkward when Ashton said he was their only hope and treated him like some great person.

“Anyway, this is just a request from my superiors, so it’s okay to refuse. Other than that, I have something to show you.”

“…?”

“I think it’ll be faster to show it to you.”

So the reason they were riding in a helicopter was to show him something. After about five more minutes of flight, they arrived at their destination.

“There’s a lot of fog, so I can only see it now. There.”

Ashton pointed his finger out the window.

“Yoon-seok, what does it look like?”

He was also a challenger, so he couldn’t help but know. He didn’t know why it was here, but that thing rising above the sea was definitely…

The Tower.