Chapter 218: Fifty-Eighth Floor, Celestial Train (1)

“

Ughhh

.”

“Su-Yeok! Are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah.”

An involuntary groan escaped my lips while I tossed and turned in bed. Pain emanated from every part of me, and I wondered if I had ever been this bruised before.

That wasn’t an exaggeration, either. During my combat training against the standard-ranked Kalain and demon remnant, I had received my fair share of hits. Despite soaking in the hot springs, I was still covered in bruises.

That was quite intense.

Both opponents were formidable, but the battle against Kalain has been especially intense. In fact, he had come close to killing me on multiple occasions, for instance, when I almost lost an arm or when he nearly stabbed me in the heart.

Although I had become used to minor cuts and bruises, I would have ended up with a crippled arm if not for Doppy's healing spells. Thankfully, we managed to do just enough first aid to keep me functioning.

And to think that was only Kalain from the fifty-second floor...

The thought of facing an upgraded Kalain daunted me too much. I planned to put that challenge off for later.

Facing the high-tier version of the high-ranking demon had been no easier, though. After complaining about how easy the remnant had been to defeat, I had upped the challenge, only for the demon to emerge in its pre-sealed state.

During the fight, it had laid a curse upon me, nearly causing my left leg to start decaying. Thanks to Doppy’s purification spell, I had avoided a crisis, though my leg still tingled uncomfortably.

In any case, I had also pushed my endurance to the limit by allowing myself to take more hits than I normally would.

Despite how much I had suffered, I still considered the additional resistance training to be necessary. Kalain had put me in my place, allowing me to understand that I wasn’t as strong as I had thought. Also, we didn’t have any information about the fifty-ninth floor, and I wanted to be overprepared.

My leg felt uncomfortable, and as I adjusted, pain shot through my side.

“

Ack

—”

Doppy sighed lightly and stood up. “Su-Yeok. I think you may need a few more healing spells!”

“No, it's fine.”

Doppy looked at me with concern-filled eyes. “You're in too much pain! It doesn't look good!”

I appreciated his concern, but firmly shook my head. I wasn't doing this because I enjoyed it. This process was simply necessary to strengthen my physique.

“It's okay, just lie down.”

“Alright, if it hurts too much, just tell me!” Doppy gave me one last look of pity before lying back down on the bed.

Should I avoid groaning just to ease Doppy's worries?

No, I didn’t need to endure the pain silently. Regardless, I turned to the hovering notification window.

[The fifty-eighth floor of the Tower of Ordeal requires all climbers to participate simultaneously. Please adjust your party accordingly.]

[8 hours 43 minutes until the rest period ends. Please take a rest.]

Almost four days had passed since the end of my fifty-seventh floor. At some point, the last climber had either finished their fifty-seventh floor or died trying, allowing the rest of us to finally prepare for the fifty-eighth floor.

I felt relieved that the indefinite wait was over, but I couldn't shake my slight unease—many climbers had fallen over the last seven floors.

Eighty-three thousand people left.

Nearly one hundred thirty thousand human climbers had traveled to the fiftieth floor rest area, meaning nearly fifty thousand had died since then.

From my experience, that high of a fatality rate past the thirtieth floor was unprecedented.

Though the majority of climbers had openly shared information about the trials, that hadn’t been enough to completely prevent deaths.

The trials, especially the personal and party floors, weren't just about having information. Additionally, thanks to my efforts, people who wouldn’t have made it this far had managed to survive.

Thus, the Community’s mood was at an all-time low.

Posts recruiting party members were the most common, and climbers who didn't care much for others' opinions didn't hesitate to speak their minds.

[Wow, another fifty thousand people died so suddenly.]

[Our party needs a mage and a priest. Our average rank is about 23,000.]

[To be honest, the trials were tough even with a plan. Especially the party floor.]

[What do you mean, tough? It was totally manageable.]

[That's because you are a top-ranked climber.]

[Looking for top-ranked warriors. Average party rank: 583.]

[What are you talking about? I wrote down all the boss patterns. If someone can’t beat it, that’s on them.]

[Looking for a mid-rank priest and mage at least rank 43,000.]

[I think the climbers who died should have died earlier. Honestly, they only got this far because they sucked up to Kwon Su-Hyeok.]

There wasn’t much more I could have done. By keeping them alive during the all-climber floors, I had done my part. I couldn’t conquer other people’s individual trials for them.

Plus, I didn’t want to either.

I exhaled softly and closed the window displaying the Community.

With about eight hours left, I planned to get some sleep as I needed to recover before entering the fifty-eighth floor. Physical exhaustion had caught up with me, and Doppy had just fallen asleep as well.

I closed my eyes. Only a few seconds later, my turbulent mind began to settle, and the darkness of sleep encroached upon me.

Just as I was about to finally rest—

Ding—

Someone had sent me a message, causing me to instantly frown. That noise meant it was someone I knew.

Who the fuck is trying to message me right as I am about to fall asleep?

I squinted and checked—it was Ha Hee-Jeong.

Well, if it is Ha Hee-Jeong, I guess it can’t be helped.

Fully opening my eyes, I checked the message.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): What are you up to?

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): Just finished training, was about to sleep.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): Eh? Sorry, go ahead and sleep. I'll contact you later.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): No, it's fine. Talk now.

My sleepiness had almost completely evaporated.

Of course, I still felt exhausted. Still, my curiosity about Ha Hee-Jeong’s message was stronger.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): Just checking in on you. You remember everything we discussed for the fifty-eighth floor.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): The fifty-eighth floor? Yeah, it’s nothing complicated, right?

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): This time, make sure you don’t just have the leather armor. Wear everything, even the new cloak.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): Eh, why all of a sudden?

While we didn’t know anything about the fifty-ninth floor, it was technically an all-climber floor. It didn’t seem like it would be as difficult as an individual challenge floor.

After all, the most recent ones hadn’t presented much of a challenge. Ha Hee-Jeong’s worries seemed a bit excessive.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): None of the climbers who left the fifty-eighth early in my previous life survived. Please. Just in case.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): Hmm, really? Well, then I'll make sure to wear everything.

It did feel a bit ridiculous to take something from Doppy only a short while after giving it to him, but it wouldn’t be too awkward. After all, we had agreed that I could take it when needed.

Following Ha Hee-Jeong’s advice had never led me astray. If it seemed unnecessary once we got there, I could just unequip my overpowered gear.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): I just wanted to talk about this since it occurred to me right as I was trying to sleep.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): Yeah. It’s good to be prepared in advance.

- Ha Hee-Jeong (Fifty-eighth Floor): Right. Sorry to disturb your rest. Let’s talk again when you wake up.

- Kwon Su-Hyeok (Fifty-eighth Floor): Okay.

After hearing Ha Hee-Jeong’s words, I felt slightly worried about the upcoming floors.

Both of us were about to enter the fifty-eighth floor, but it was practically just a doorway to the fifty-ninth floor, which was shrouded in mystery. We didn’t have much to offer other climbers except confidence.

Hoping things would go smoothly, I closed my eyes again.

***

[Welcome to the fifty-eighth floor of the Tower of Ordeal: The Celestial Train.]

[The Celestial Train will stop at various waypoints. Climbers may disembark at these waypoints to enter the fifty-ninth floor. Only a designated number of passengers are allowed to disembark at each stop.]

[If the number of climbers wishing to disembark exceeds the quota, climbers toward the top of the Leaderboard will be given priority.]

[As the Celestial Train progresses, the trials will become more challenging. Additionally, better rewards will be awarded.]

The trial was as Ha Hee-Jeong had described, so I didn’t feel a need to check the message.

I looked around, taking in the compartment. It seemed styled like a standard private compartment, although it didn’t have an exit door. The window appeared to be made of some sort of panoramic glass, through which I could see the cosmos, something I had only seen in pictures before.

Funnily enough, perhaps because of Doppy, there were two chairs—Ha Hee-Jeong had shared that there would only be one.

While I pondered the implications, the notification window updated again.

[Please discuss with other climbers to decide who will disembark at the next waypoint.]

[Due to the large number of climbers—83,271—communication will be facilitated through a chat system.]

[Next waypoints quota: 1.]

As the notification finished updating, a semi-transparent message window appeared before me. With about eighty thousand climbers using it, messages quickly scrolled by.

- Rank 3,891 Calypso Sagnix: What is this?

- Rank 81,248 Fen Anax: How do we decide who disembarks?

- Rank 18,382 Tangri Pasha: This is amazing. Space is beautiful. Riding a spaceship was my dream.

- Rank 48 Kelly Jon: What's going on?

- Rank 28,397 Kim Ho-Jeong: If it gets tougher as we go, should the lower-ranked climbers disembark first?

- Rank 12,839 Li Dairin: Wow, the size of messages changes depending on rank, too? The top rankers’ messages look so big!

Most were fascinated by the new trial and the chat system.

What I found most amusing, however, was the difference in font size and style. Higher-ranked climbers had larger, bolder messages, while the lower-ranked climbers had smaller, fainter ones.

I waited for the excitement to subside and the climbers to start acting more rationally. The consensus in the chat was that lower-ranked climbers should disembark first.

It made sense in a way.

As the train progressed, so did the rewards, and the higher-ranked climbers would naturally have the first bid. Lower-ranked climbers trying to take risks for better rewards at later waypoints would likely fail.

Of course, this could be the perfect opportunity to ensure lower-ranked climbers’ safety.

Reality isn’t that simple, unfortunately.

If you read the tower’s message correctly, it stated that the trials would get harder as the train progressed.

There was a twist, however. The train wasn’t considered to be progressing—it was moving backward. Meaning, the first stop would be the toughest challenge.

Ha Hee-Jeong had only realized this upon reaching the fifty-ninth floor.

They had come to the same conclusion in her previous life, and the higher-ranked climbers ended up facing the easier trials.

She had mentioned that almost every low-ranked climber had died; therefore, almost no one knew what the earlier waypoints entailed.

It made sense.

Who would think the train is moving backward?

Though it was a trial arranged by the tower, after all.

From within my personal compartment, the views and sensations made it nearly impossible to tell whether the train was moving forward or backward.

So, no one had realized this during Ha Hee-Jeong’s previous life.

Ha Hee-Jeong and I planned to inform other climbers about this, although not yet.

We need to find evidence to support this.

It wasn’t possible to discuss it outright without any proof. After all, a common conspiracy was that we knew the future.

As Ha Hee-Jeong had only realized it on the fifty-ninth floor, she didn’t have a basis for it other than the fatality rate in her previous life. If we couldn’t find evidence, we would have to say that we relied on intuition.

Once the train reaches the first destination, it will be too late.

Regardless, I planned to disembark first.

However, I wasn’t overly concerned. I had the all-purpose guide, Doppy, and the treasure detector, Yoonie.

“Doppy, Yoonie.”

“Why do you call?”

“Yes, Su-Yeok.”

“Do you feel anything unusual in this room?”

After my question, Doppy and Yoonie pondered for a moment. About ten seconds later, both shook their heads decisively.

“Nothing!”

“Sorry. I don’t sense anything.”

Uh?

It was an unexpected turn of events. I scratched my neck with a perplexed expression.

Hmm. What should I do now?