[Tower of Fate]
- First-Run Floor 10 Guide: Analysis in progress. Numerous variables present.
‘Wiki, did you trick me?’
I let out a hollow laugh at the guide displayed on the wiki.
It said the analysis was still in progress, so an answer might come eventually, but at least not anytime soon.
Thump! Thump!
"Hnnngh…."
The sound of my ragged breathing through my nose filled the table.
My heart pounded at the knowledge that the black hole facing me could blow my head off at any moment.
‘...There’s no way he’ll listen to anything I say, right?’
Even if I tried to persuade him like before, saying the guy on the right had more bullets, he wouldn’t listen.
He had almost died because of me just now. If this hologram really was ‘me,’ then he would shoot no matter what I did.
‘Staying still is the right call.’
There was nothing to gain from provoking him further for no reason.
Even if I succeeded in persuading him, I would only break even. If I tried and failed, it would just turn into an event where I had twice as many enemies.
‘Please... seriously, please...!!’
So here, I had to trust myself.
I prayed and prayed that the me on the left would have garbage luck too—that he would be a pathetic loser who couldn’t even beat fifty percent.
Grin.
The me on the left watched me tremble, smiled broadly, and slowly pulled the trigger—
Click.
"..."
When nothing happened and his face crumpled up, I squeezed my eyes shut.
‘H-Holy fuck, seriously....’
I raised my head and let out a ragged breath.
I lived. Somehow, I had survived once.
‘You really are both Han Seol, huh?’
Seeing how abysmal their luck was, it seemed that even as holograms, they really were both me.
It was lucky from my perspective, but from theirs, they had godawful luck.
[Remaining Bullets: 2]
[Remaining Bullets: 3]
[Remaining Bullets: 3]
I was the only one with fewer bullets, so if possible, I wanted the two of them to go at each other, but that did not seem likely.
‘...Quit glaring at me like that.’
I forced myself to ignore the left me’s gaze, which looked like he wanted to unload every bullet into my head, rules be damned.
[Round 2]
As new words appeared in the center of the table, the arrow began spinning rapidly.
Please, let the right one go first.
The best outcome was for the right one to kill the left one. It had to be that way.
I watched the spinning arrow and swallowed hard for a moment.
Clunk!
Grin.
The left me smiled the instant he saw the result, and I smiled right back at him.
‘Yep, I really am Han Seol too. My luck is fucking awful.’
Of all people, it had landed on the left one.
The left me who had targeted me earlier, whose gun had failed to fire, was pointing his revolver at me again.
Wasn’t twice in a row a little much?
I had fired first in the first round, but if I had known this would happen, I would not have wanted to go first.
[Remaining Bullets: 3]
The odds were sixty percent.
High if you called it high, ambiguous if you called it ambiguous.
I desperately consoled myself that it was not much different from a fifty-fifty chance, practically speaking.
Otherwise, I felt like I might piss myself. No, maybe I already had a little.
My mouth went dry. Maybe he was really that pissed about the little political maneuvering I had done; there was not a shred of hesitation in the hand gripping the revolver.
Tremble, tremble, tremble, tremble, tremble.
Though the revolver in my own hand was shaking like crazy.
‘Should I try to persuade him, even now...?’
The others had to be able to see the number of bullets remaining too.
Even if they could not, they would know how many bullets each person had left. Unless they were idiots, it was obvious who was the wisest target in terms of probability.
‘No. Let’s just stay still.’
[Only One]
It had not ended even after one person had already been taken out. That meant only one person would survive in here.
‘I need to survive here, then target the left guy together with the guy on the right.’
It was wiser to target one guy together than to pointlessly increase my enemies to two.
So this was prayer meta—
Click.
‘F-Fuck... who shoots that suddenly...!!’
I let out a ragged breath at the sound from the revolver.
I lived. I lived again. Somehow, I survived.
"..."
‘Haha! Idiot!’
After taking a long moment to catch my breath, I raised my middle finger at him as his face twisted with anger at missing twice in a row.
That bastard was going to target only me for the rest of his life anyway. There would be no negotiation until one of us died.
Bang!
He slammed the table with his revolver, perhaps furious, but what did I care?
Thanks to ‘Han Seol,’ who could not even beat sixty percent, I had thankfully survived one more time.
Now the best outcome was for the me on the right to get the next turn.
If the right guy took care of the left guy, then I, going last, took care of the right guy, I could end this damn game of Russian roulette.
‘Please, please, please.’
I stared desperately at the arrow that had appeared on the table again—
"..."
It pointed directly at me. I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them.
‘It was never going to be that easy....’
Who should I shoot?
Common sense said the left guy. Next round, his gun was almost certain to fire. He still had three bullets left.
And there was no need to think about whom he would target next round.
‘My chance of hitting is forty percent.’
If I succeeded somehow, the right one would inevitably target me.
Of course, even if I failed, the right one would target the left one. As long as I was drawing the left guy’s aggro, there was no reason for him to shoot me.
[Remaining Bullets: 3]
The ‘me’ on the right also had three bullets, so he had a higher chance of hitting than I did.
"...Nngh!"
The left me struggled, apparently assuming I would naturally shoot him.
I had forty percent and the right guy had sixty. Together, that made a whole hundred percent. You’re already dead, you son of a bitch.
‘Targeting the right one would just be stupid.’
So the left one was my only option, but the problem was that if I succeeded, the future would look bleak.
I would have just one bullet left, while the right one would have three in a one-on-one.
[Tower of Fate]
- First-Run Floor 10 Guide: Analysis in progress. Numerous variables present.
Swish.
I looked at the wiki, which was still analyzing, then slowly raised my revolver.
"..."
Not at the left one or the right one.
At the empty space across from me, flickering as a hologram.
‘Looking only at this round, targeting the left one would be right.’
But to survive this tenth floor, this was the wiser choice.
Whether my gun fired when I shot the air or not, the right guy would target the left guy.
Well, if the right guy had another! misfire, then the next round started with the left guy again! I might as well be dead....
‘At those odds, I’m basically dead whether I shoot now or not.’
If I got screwed over that hard by chance, it was basically being told to just die.
As long as the right guy did not take offense to me shooting the air, this was the best choice.
Click.
‘Thank god.’
A misfire. Thankfully, I had not wasted one of my bullets.
Now, if only the right guy succeeded, we could reach the final round with equal bullets.
"...!"
"...!"
Apparently shocked that I had shot the air, the versions of me on both sides stared at me blankly.
As though they did not care where any of us looked, I watched the meaninglessly spinning arrow before turning my gaze to the right.
"Nngh!!"
Come on. You have to hit this time.
[Remaining Bullets: 3]
You had to hit the left guy here for the two of us to have a fair fifty-fifty fight.
I did not even want to think about another misfire, so I stared at the right me with the most desperate look I could manage.
Snort.
I breathed a small sigh of relief when the me on the right gave a hollow laugh and slowly raised his revolver.
I had worried he might target me here, but thankfully, it seemed he had some sense.
A moment later, the arrow stopped. He placed his finger on the trigger and swallowed hard—
Bang!!
‘Yes, fuck, this is it—!!’
Bang!
I cheered and slammed the table as the me on the left turned into a blue hologram.
I could not help smiling at the right me as he put his revolver on the table and tightly shut his eyes.
[Round 3]
"Hngh, haa."
A cliff’s edge. A narrow bridge.
One-on-one, the same number of bullets remaining, fifty-fifty odds.
‘I’m the one who survives.’
I silently swallowed as I watched the arrow spin rapidly.
Now, whoever fired first had an absolute advantage.
I had to seize the first opportunity here for my chances of winning to rise overwhelmingly.
‘Pleasepleaseplease....’
Clunk!
‘Okay...!!’
I clenched my fist as I watched the arrow stop in front of me.
This was favorable. If I just hit him now, Floor 10 was cleared.
‘Sorry, Han Seol.’
Feeling firsthand why the gallery users had cursed this place, I slowly raised my revolver.
As the me on the right tensed up and swallowed, I took a small breath and put my finger on the trigger.
I steadied my breathing, prayed desperately for success, and was just about to pull the trigger—
Ding!
"..."
The familiar notification sound forcibly stopped the finger that had been about to pull the trigger.
The fact that a notification had gone off at precisely this moment bothered me immensely.
Swish.
[Tower of Fate]
- First-Run Floor 10 Guide: Analysis complete. Displaying results.
‘...Now?’
The dangerous part was already over, so what was the point of it appearing now?
I slowly raised my head at the wiki guide saying it was displaying the results.
[Hologram B]
A name-like label appeared over the right ‘me,’ who frowned as if asking what the hell I was suddenly doing.
And beneath that—
More precisely, directly above the revolver he was holding.
[ O / X / X / O ]
There were O and X marks whose meaning I could not understand.
‘The next sequence... maybe?’
I could not be sure, but was that not probably what it meant?
Fire next turn, then two misfires, then fire on the last... At a glance, that was what it seemed to mean.
[Remaining Bullets: 2]
Of course, it might not mean that, but honestly, I could not think of anything else.
Gulp.
I looked at the [ O ] mark indicating a shot on his next turn, then swallowed and looked at my own revolver—
[ X / O / X / O ]
My mouth fell open at the [ X ] mark, which said that mine would misfire instead.
"..."
If this was real, then going first meant nothing.
Only the two of us remained, and the only people we could shoot were each other.
I only shot the air because there had been three of us. With just two left, there was no way I would shoot the air. There could not possibly be any variables.
‘Fuck....’
At the very end of it all, wondering whether I was really going to die like this, I slowly looked at Hologram B... the guy who looked exactly like me.
Tremble, tremble, tremble, tremble.
"..."
The hand gripping his revolver was shaking violently.
His eyes, staring at my gun barrel, were clearly wavering.
Come to think of it, this was the first time that guy had been targeted. Everyone else had been the one in the sights until now.
It was understandable that he was scared. When I first faced a gun barrel, my heart had pounded like crazy too.
[ O / X / X / O ]
[ X / O / X / O ]
I alternated my gaze between his revolver and mine once more.
If I just shot him, it was over for me anyway.
So whether it worked or not, I had to struggle.
Swish.
"...?!"
His eyes widened as though they were about to pop out.
At his puzzled gaze, like he was looking at a lunatic, I pressed the barrel more firmly against my own temple.
Grin.
With the gag still in my mouth, I smiled as broadly as I could.
Let’s play real Russian roulette. Let’s test our real luck.
[Remaining Bullets: 2]
[Remaining Bullets: 2]
After all, you and I were in the same situation.
It would be fucking unfair to die at someone else’s hands.
If you really were Han Seol—if you really were gallery-addict, game-addict Han Seol, starving for stimulation and always chasing dopamine.
"Nngh! Ngh!"
Then come at me.
I opened my eyes wide, smiled as broadly as I could like a madman, and placed my finger on the trigger.
Ignoring my pounding heart, I put strength into my trembling finger and jerked my chin at his revolver. Let’s go crazy together.
‘Take the bait, take the bait, take the bait, take the bait.’
Follow me.
I know Han Seol. In the end, you are me.
Neither of us knew who would die, and now even the order had been handed over? If I were in his position, I would want to decide the final moment myself.
"Kh, khhphph."
"Hngh... khkh...."
I smiled at the sight of ‘me’ shaking his head as though this was absurd.
A laugh came from behind the gag in his mouth, and a laugh escaped me too without my realizing it.
Swish.
"Khh."
"..."
Watching Han Seol aim at his own head, I gave a small nod.
As the [ O ] mark glimmered above his revolver, I tightly clenched the phone under the table.
Wiki, I’m really trusting only you.
If this turns into a suicide ending after all this, I’ll curse you for the rest of my life.
I trusted you and survived in the Tower of Mindscape, so I would trust the wiki this time too.
"Khh! Ngh... ngh... ngh!"
Nod.
I roughly gestured with my chin and made noises to tell him that we should time it together.
If I did not shoot here and got betrayed, I would die, but even if I shot normally, I was fated to die anyway.
Fuck, I’m so scared. I can really trust this, right, Wiki...?
Swish.
After briefly catching my breath, I put my finger on the trigger.
"Khh...."
One.
I was scared. Terrified.
"Nngh...!"
Two.
The fear that the wiki might have made this shit up began welling up in me at the last second.
"Khhnngh!!"
Even so, I squeezed my eyes shut, screamed around the gag, and pulled the trigger.
Click.
Just as the wiki guide said, my gun misfired.
I lived. Thankfully, the wiki’s analysis was accurate.
But—
‘Ah, no way... right? I’m misunderstanding this, right...?’
The right ‘me’s finger, resting on the trigger, did not move.
We had agreed to shoot at the same time, yet he simply stayed still and looked at me. A hollow laugh escaped me.
‘What a cheap bastard.’
I thought, So I’m dying like this, and watched his hand for a moment.
Bang!!
"..."
I blinked as the ‘me’ who had been grinning like crazy turned into a hologram one beat later.
Whirr.
The cloth wrapped around my mouth and waist unraveled.
As [Round Over] appeared, seeming to announce my victory, I slumped in my chair.
‘...Hot.’
The revolver that had frozen my heart the moment I touched it was now radiating enough heat to burn me.
"Ha.... Hahaha...."
I lived.
I survived.
It had not been particularly cool, but somehow, I cleared it.
"Ahahahahaha!!"
A mad festival of dopamine filled my mind, and I covered my face and laughed out loud.
Beneath the dazzling spotlight shining down on me, I gripped the revolver tightly.
I sat there for a long while until the flickering holograms vanished and the door opened.
*
『Tower of Fate』
-10-
Click!
"Haa...."
I photographed the words floating in the air, as though they were congratulating me on clearing it.
It was over. At first, I had seriously wondered what would happen, but somehow, I survived.
‘Wiki, you nearly drove me insane.’
What was I supposed to do when you suddenly showed me nothing but a blank screen?
I came here trusting only you. You’re the only one I love.
Step.
Laughing hollowly, I left the dark passage and found myself in the cavern I had returned to again and again.
-1-
[Apocalypse 363:17:03:02]
[Section 5:17:03:02]
[ 40 / 7 ]
It had taken roughly twenty minutes to get from Floor 1 to Floor 10 of the Tower of Fate.
In terms of time alone, it had hilariously ended sooner than any other tower.
‘Twenty minutes, sure, but it was the scariest one so far—’
...Actually, I was not so sure.
Being chased by a wild boar, the moment the timer hit zero in the maze, trembling while taking a selfie with a ghost.
They had all been fucking terrifying. Each one had been horrifying in a different way. My life had surely never been this spectacular before.
Of course, I was also overflowing with dopamine and pride in myself after getting through them, but still.
‘Forty floors cleared within twenty-four hours.’
When I first opened my eyes here, I remembered there being about 364 days and 17 hours left.
Before even one full day had passed, I had successfully cleared ten floors of every tower.
"You worked your fucking ass off, Han Seol.... I’m proud of you...!"
I roughly took a picture of the timer, hugged and patted myself, and smiled.
They had said I only needed to clear one floor a day, but I had really sprinted like a madman.
I smiled, thinking I would spend at least a few days completely resting without leaving my blankets—
Ding!
‘Here it comes.’
At the pleasant notification sound, I looked down to see a red (1) displayed on the internet.
[Conditions have been met]
[Unlocking the Starpang function]
When I tapped the icon that still had a question mark on it, a window I had never seen before appeared.
‘Starpang?’
I blinked at the incomprehensible name, and the screen I was viewing began to change.
Like an internet page loading, the screen gradually appeared from the top down, and I could not help smiling.
[Starpang]
[___________]🔍
A search bar at the top of the screen that looked somehow familiar.
It had copied StarWiki’s UI exactly, but this time, it was a little different.
[Categories]
A list of categories on the left side.
Thankful that it had become a little more user-friendly this time, I clicked on the categories.
[Fashion Clothing/Accessories]
[Weapons/Armor]
[Beauty]
[Food]
[Household Goods]
[Books/Albums/DVDs]
.
.
.
I did not need to click through every single category to know what this was.
The moment I saw these categories and the name ‘Starpang,’ there was no need to wonder anymore.
"...Seriously?"
That site where you could get every kind of item in the world.
It was a shopping site with rocket delivery that arrived the day after you placed an order.
Game? Novel? Who gave a damn?
If the wiki was an ark of knowledge, then Coupa... Starpang was an ark of material goods.
I spent a moment browsing the site in disbelief, laughing hollowly.
[You are receiving accumulated rewards]
‘Right, there was definitely a message like that—’
[Tower of Trials Floor 10 Clear - TP + 1,000]
[Tower of Wisdom Floor 10 Clear - TP + 1,000]
[Tower of Mindscape Floor 10 Clear - TP + 1,000]
[Tower of Fate Floor 10 Clear - TP + 1,000]
[Fastest Ever Time for Clearing All Floor 10s Bonus - TP + 1,000]
Behind the consecutively appearing notification windows, the number of coins in the upper-right corner began rapidly rising.
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