Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Part 29

Mincheol and Hwarin leaned against one another.

Both looked half-dead.

Three hours earlier...

Yugeon had taken them into Sector 3.

He had warned them it would be a forced march.

Neither had worried much.

They were already used to moving quickly.

But today was different.

Only three hours.

Exactly three hours.

They cleared every floor from Floor 21 to Floor 30.

Neither had ever experienced training this brutal.

“A little while ago you were begging to enter the Tower. Already complaining?”

Yugeon smiled.

Mincheol looked at him in betrayal.

How was he supposed to know the training would be this insane?

“You both know this isn't even that difficult yet. Mincheol, you've been to Sector 5. You know it's much worse than this.”

“...That's true.”

Mincheol nodded.

Sector 5 really was far worse.

Right now...

Only their bodies were tired.

Sector 5 exhausted the body.

The mind.

The spirit.

Everything.

“Nunim, you hadn't reached Sector 4 before, right?”

“No. Floor 26 was the highest I'd ever reached.”

Then she met Yugeon and Mincheol.

Now...

She had reached Floor 30.

Of course, by this point...

She had cleared Floor 29 several times during their training.

“What is Sector 4 like?”

“Sector 4... Hmm... Fighting there is difficult.”

After rubbing his chin...

Mincheol settled on that description.

Difficult to fight in.

Most Awakeners would probably say the same.

Sector 4 was an extremely difficult combat environment.

“Why? What kind of place is it?”

“Wait, you haven't heard?”

“No. Every party I joined spent most of the time criticizing me. I never really had time to ask questions. Whenever I left the Tower, I was too busy suppressing Death Energy.”

“Ah... S-Sorry, nunim! I wasn't trying to bring up painful memories!”

“Hey, it's fine.”

Hwarin laughed and slapped his shoulder lightly.

Thanks to meeting Yugeon and Mincheol...

Those memories now felt distant.

Life had been enjoyable lately.

Thinking about her past no longer hurt as much.

“You know the overall name for Sector 3, right?”

“The Red Wasteland Sector?”

“Right. Sector 4 is called the Sunken City.”

Floors 31 through 40.

The Sunken City.

Most of the area existed underwater.

Some places were still dry...

But even those could become submerged if something went wrong.

More importantly...

Starting from Sector 4, most monsters possessed intelligence.

That made them far more difficult to fight.

“Intelligent monsters and water... That does sound terrible.”

“It is.”

“What monsters appear?”

“Mostly Lizardmen. Some floors have other creatures, but Lizardmen are the main enemies.”

“Ah...”

Hwarin finally understood.

Lizardmen could move freely underwater.

Humans could not.

And because the entire sector contained water...

Combat difficulty increased enormously.

“Hyung, are we entering Sector 4 today?”

“No. Going directly into Sector 4 now would be dangerous. We're done for today. Let's leave.”

Yugeon, Mincheol, and Hwarin collected all the monster materials.

Then they exited the Tower.

“Wow! Today nearly killed me, but a shower feels amazing.”

“Mom, it's me. Yeah, I'm eating properly. Don't worry. Hyung? He's doing well. Yeah.”

At their base...

Hwarin lay across the sofa and stretched.

Mincheol stood by the balcony window, smiling while talking to his mother.

They had rushed through Sector 3.

They had even defeated the Floor 30 boss, the Orc Lord.

This peaceful morning was their reward.

But Han Yugeon did not join them.

He quietly opened the front door.

I'm going into Sector 4 immediately.

There was no rest for him.

More accurately...

He did not want rest.

Whenever he considered taking a break...

The destroyed world appeared in his mind.

A charred corpse holding a baby.

Monsters devouring people.

The god laughing while mocking him.

Yugeon alone remembered those things.

You two rest.

Wearing light clothing...

Yugeon headed toward the Tower alone.

Floor 31.

[Moss-Covered City]

The beginning of Sector 4.

The moment Yugeon passed through the portal...

The smell of water and overwhelming humidity hit him.

The sight ahead shocked almost every Awakener who entered Sector 4 for the first time.

“W-What is this...?”

“Why is the water so deep?”

Hundreds of Awakeners crowded onto the small patch of dry land at the starting point.

Their expressions went beyond confusion.

There was fear.

Because the city ahead was not merely flooded.

An entire forest of skyscrapers had been submerged.

It looked as though the whole world had drowned.

They must be first-timers in Sector 4.

Yugeon smiled faintly.

Their expressions were familiar.

He had reacted the same way.

Before arriving...

He had imagined something like an ordinary flooded city.

He had not expected the water to be terrifyingly deep.

“H-Hey! Look down there!”

At someone's scream...

People crowded toward the railing.

The water was incredibly clear.

But because light could not reach the depths...

It looked dark blue.

Far below...

The outline of an entire city could be seen.

Roads.

Traffic lights.

Store signs swaying with the current.

Black building windows opened like the eyes of the abyss.

Only the rooftops of some skyscrapers rose above the surface like stepping stones.

“My god... All of that is underwater?”

“Hey, look! That shadow moving down there... Isn't that a monster?”

A gigantic shadow swam between the submerged buildings.

People swallowed dryly.

The creature was the size of a house.

Thalassophobia.

The primal fear of falling into water with no visible bottom.

It crushed the Awakeners' confidence.

“What do we do? Swim?”

“Are you insane? Who knows what's down there!”

“A boat... Does anyone have a boat skill?!”

“Didn't the shop sell boats? Damn it! If I knew, I would've bought one!”

“I thought it was weird that the shop was selling boats! Damn merchant! When I asked why I'd need one, he just smiled!”

The area became chaotic.

They had somehow survived through Sector 3.

But Sector 4 itself was a completely different environment.

Without prepared equipment or transportation...

The Awakeners were trapped on the narrow starting land.

Exactly the same as before.

Yugeon clicked his tongue and pushed through the crowd.

People murmured as they moved aside.

“What? Is that guy going into the water?”

“He doesn't have equipment. He's going in like that?”

“Wait... Isn't that the man who stopped the Wave in Mongolia?”

“What?! Yeah! The guy who killed Baruoden!”

“Is he really a Great Star?”

“Who knows? But how else could someone have that kind of power?”

“I saw the video. He cut down thirty thousand monsters at once.”

“Is he Korean? Japanese? It's hard to tell with Asian faces...”

Yugeon ignored them.

He noticed there were no Otherworlders here.

They had probably entered from a different starting point.

The depth really is frightening.

Yugeon stopped at the edge of the dry land.

Water gently moved before him.

Without hesitation...

He stepped forward.

Tap.

His foot touched the surface.

Not even a small splash appeared.

Not even a ripple.

It looked as though he were standing on solid ground.

Water Surface Step.

A movement technique derived from Water Surface Flight.

Instead of burning Inner Energy to sprint over the surface...

It spread energy thinly beneath the feet.

The user read the water's flow and stood upon it.

Interesting. When I activate something registered as a skill, the System displays a message. But techniques I've embodied directly don't trigger skill notifications.

Step.

Step.

Step.

Yugeon calmly walked over the bottomless water.

The Awakeners watching from behind stared with their mouths open.

“W-What?!”

“He's walking on water!”

“Magic? A skill?”

“That's impossible... He's not sinking at all!”

To them...

This terrifying ocean had trapped everyone.

Yet Yugeon treated it like a casual walking path.

He paid no attention to them.

His eyes were focused elsewhere.

Between the distant rooftops...

Monsters were patrolling.

Found them.

A narrow boat slid through the ruined buildings.

Three Lizardmen stood on it holding spears.

Lizardman Spearmen with blue-green scales.

They patrolled the flooded city.

They hunted humans and animals that fell into the water.

“Human!”

“He's standing on the water! Kill him!”

The Lizardmen spotted Yugeon.

They pointed their spears.

The boat accelerated.

It seemed to move through mana rather than oars.

Like a motorboat...

It cut rapidly through the water.

“Perfect. I was looking for you anyway.”

Yugeon stopped.

One Lizardman thrust its spear toward his neck.

Yugeon did not dodge backward.

He simply twisted his upper body.

The spearhead passed harmlessly beside him.

Then he reached forward...

And jumped onto the boat.

“Get off. This boat has a new owner.”

Yugeon's sword moved smoothly.

Slash.

Slash.

There were no screams.

All three Lizardmen lost their heads at the same time.

Thud.

Yugeon kicked their bodies into the water.

Splash!

The smell of blood spread.

A massive school of piranhas rushed from below.

RUMBLE.

The water churned violently.

The surface turned red as the corpses were torn apart.