Choi Junseok’s eyes trembled as he stared at his phone in shock.
Lee Nayeon noticed his expression but didn’t let it show.
She was mindful of the two women dining with them.
Has the world’s timeline changed?
With you already shattering so many records, did you think things would flow the same as the past?
Yoo Junhyuk’s words resonated within Choi Junseok.
Come to think of it, he was right.
His actions had already changed so much.
It was overly naive to think the future would unfold the same as his past experiences.
Feeling something was off, Choi Junseok immediately sent a message to Team Leader Kang.
Something’s strange.
Please look into it further.
Understood.
But how do you know this person when you’ve never met them?
That’s not important right now.
I’ll start the investigation immediately.
If it comes to it, I can just mention Song Hana to dodge the question.
Choi Junseok lightly bit his lip, gripped by an uneasy premonition.
Team Leader Kang also sensed something odd from Choi Junseok’s call.
It was the first time Choi Junseok had requested an investigation instead of support.
Something’s happening.
At the Player Management Office, an emergency task was assigned in the middle of the night.
“Pull up a list of all players who died in the past few days.”
Under Kang’s command, three staff members were mobilized.
Within two hours,
The temporary investigation team’s faces were filled with horror as they reviewed the death toll.
“Is this for real?”
“Something… something’s here.”
It was an absurd situation. Compared to the previous week, the player death rate…
“254.54% increase… Last week, the total number of Magic Tower deaths was 22. This week alone… 78.”
The problem was that there were still days left in the week’s tally.
Wasn’t this practically a massacre?
A death rate increase of over 250% compared to last week.
This was no ordinary matter.
“Check the upper-floor records and foreign mercenary records.”
“There are no records of foreign mercenary deaths. I’d know, since I handle related tasks.”
“That’s true.”
Elite Magic Tower mercenaries from abroad wouldn’t die in these low floors.
“The top players are currently exploring the 60th-floor boss level, so there’s no damage there.”
“There are records of upper-floor by the top five guilds and other players, but no notable deaths.”
“What about underground players?”
“I’ll follow up with related data.”
One staff member, frantically scanning the monitor, spoke up.
“Of the 78 deaths this week, 74 were registered players.”
“Damn. Contact the Director immediately… and keep this under wraps.”
To think the Player Management Office hadn’t caught such a variable.
In raw numbers, the death toll had increased by 56 compared to last week.
Kang Jinsu forced his expression to remain calm, touching his lips.
A player hunt is happening.
Entering a soundproofed room optimized for calls, he dialed the Director directly.
“Yes… Director. No, sir. It’s something else… It’s tough, but you’ll need to come in again. Yes, Director. It’s serious. Yes, I’ll send the relevant data for you to review on your way. Yes, well…”
Taking a moment to catch his breath, Kang Jinsu murmured quietly.
“A player hunt is happening.”
***
Even if my climbing caused a butterfly effect leading to the death of a mid-tier guild team leader, that means… something’s happening.
Sensing her son’s grave expression,
Choi Junseok carefully rose from the dining table.
“Junseok, what’s wrong? No appetite?”
“It’s nothing. I ate well. I’m full. I’ve got somewhere to be, so I’ll head out first.”
Back in his room, Choi Junseok immediately entered Hephaestus’s Forge.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The sound wasn’t just metal being hammered—it was closer to an explosive BOOM shaking the heavens.
The heat was more intense than before.
Hephaestus’s seriousness was palpable in the tension of his back muscles.
His bulging, furious muscles pulled the chains to work the bellows, striking a relatively ordinary hammer onto the anvil.
CLANG!
“What’s the matter?”
He asked without turning his head.
“Something big is happening outside.”
“What’s that got to do with me?”
“You said crafting would take two weeks. I came to ask if you could speed it up.”
“Hmph.”
He continued hammering the material rhythmically, unfazed.
“That’s impossible.”
“A player hunt is happening outside.”
The hammering paused for a strange beat before resuming.
CLANG!
The sound rippled, sending waves through the surrounding lava.
“Maybe… they’re gathering in Korea to hunt players, but their ultimate target is…”
“You, huh?”
CLANG!
“I’ll do my best. But the bigger issue is that there’s no sword suitable for Lee Nayeon right now.”
“That’s right.”
Song Hana could create arrows of light in the air and make talismans for protection.
Two weeks was enough time for Choi Junseok to reach the 30th floor.
But until then, there was no weapon suitable for Lee Nayeon.
“The floor you’re climbing—bring me the head of the 15th-floor boss monster. That’ll significantly cut down the time.”
Back in reality, Song Hana greeted him anxiously, while Lee Nayeon remained calm.
“Hoe… Are you okay? Did something happen?”
“Something… something’s up.”
Choi Junseok’s phone received a message from Team Leader Kang.
It seems external forces are hunting players in Korea.
Please avoid going out if possible.
At that moment, Lee Nayeon approached the window with a surprised step.
“Team Leader Kang’s vehicle is here.”
Her senses, heightened by her SS-rank upgrade, must have sharpened.
She memorized the license plate as Kang’s vehicle entered the underground parking lot.
Choi Junseok felt a slight unease.
Normally, Kang would notify him whether he was coming or not.
Player hunt?
Yes. I’m busy with work, so I’ll explain later.
Later? Aren’t you here right now?
Then Lee Nayeon spoke.
“Someone’s at the door.”
What? I’m at the Player Management Office’s Gangnam branch right now.
You just drove a Player Management Office black vehicle into the underground parking lot.
What? That’s impossible…
Shocked, Kang hurriedly called Choi Junseok.
As Choi Junseok answered,
A KNOCK sounded at his door.
“Is anyone there? We’re from the Player Management Office.”
No one was supposed to visit. That meant…
Junseok, do not open the door!
But it was already too late.
CRACKLE!
Song Hana’s protective barrier had already activated.
“Don’t worry… It looks like they’re neatly frozen.”
“We’ve got someone to interrogate.”
Kang let out a sigh, wiping cold sweat.
I’m heading to your place immediately.
I’ll arrange a temporary safehouse, so please inform your family.
After the call, Kang rushed outside.
It was true.
His armored work vehicle was gone.
The vehicle he used for official duties, traveling between the Player Management Office headquarters, the Gangnam branch, and Choi Junseok’s home.
Even pressing his electronic key yielded no response from any vehicle.
“Team Leader Kang? Why do you look like that? Where are you going?”
“It’s not about leaving work, so don’t worry. Report to the Director for me when he arrives.”
The words “It’s about the Key Figure” rose to Kang’s throat but stopped.
There’s a spy inside.
Not only had they tracked Choi Junseok’s specific floor and unit,
That means they’ve been tracking him for a long time.
Kang clenched his fist in anger.
A complete failure of security management.
He’d never been this incompetent.
As he walked toward the elevator in the hallway,
He saw a column of smoke rising outside his window.
“My God…”
***
Choi Junseok mouthed to Lee Nayeon.
‘Anyone else outside?’
Lee Nayeon closed her eyes, extending her senses, then shook her head.
“None.”
“They came alone to do what, exactly?”
But Choi Junseok soon realized.
“No… they didn’t just come for me.”
Choi Junseok, Lee Nayeon, and Song Hana’s gazes turned to the living room window.
THUD… BOOM… THUD…
As faint explosions, like distant fireworks, shook the window,
A column of smoke rose in the distance.
“Lee Nayeon, Song Hana… stay on high alert. Something’s…”
At the same time.
“It’s started.”
It wasn’t just Choi Junseok’s home where someone posing as the Player Management Office visited.
Similar knocks echoed at the homes of players whose locations had been tracked.
“Is anyone there? We’re from the Player Management Office. Could you open the door for a moment?”
Naturally, players didn’t respond to such suspicious behavior.
But the visitors outside confirmed they’d found the right player’s home.
At the same time, they pulled submachine guns from their briefcases and fired steel-piercing rounds.
RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
The bullets easily pierced the front door, and they attached adhesive bombs to it, storming into the homes.
They mercilessly gunned down the players and their families.
That wasn’t all.
“Detonate.”
“3… 2… 1… Detonate.”
BOOM! BOOM! THUD! BOOM!
RUMBLE…
An unidentified group breached the security of player residential complexes, blowing up entire buildings by their pillars.
The North Korean players who demolished the buildings had no intention of surviving.
Saluting the great leader while watching the collapsing structures, they entered the Magic Tower and vanished.
Their actions inside the Magic Tower were singular.
“Glory to the great leader!”
After confirming everyone had taken the drug,
The leader took the final dose, melting into a puddle of slime in the Magic Tower, disappearing completely.
A perfect crime, leaving no bodies or even the firearms used in the attack.
Except for the one frozen at Choi Junseok’s home, that is.
Society was in shock at the large-scale terrorist attack in the heart of Seoul.
Pillars of fire suddenly rose in Seoul.
Buildings collapsed, and air raid sirens blared loudly, signaling an emergency.
Martial law was declared along with the deployment of emergency forces,
But no terrorist bodies or tools were found at the horrific scenes.
The one thing left was the frozen figure before Kang and Choi Junseok’s eyes.
A North Korean player and operative who failed to self-destruct after completing their mission.
As Choi Junseok and Lee Nayeon stared in shock at the smoke columns outside,
Kang murmured quietly.
“Junseok… can you destroy the Kaesong Magic Tower?”
“Destroy the Magic Tower…”
It no longer felt impossible.
No.
Even if it was impossible, he’d make it happen. Choi Junseok nodded.