I Became the 1st Floor Boss of the Tower

After hearing about the missing challengers in the tower, people started to think if there would be another change in the tower in the future. In the earlier days, there had been a change in the tower; people were forced to adapt to it and survive in that new condition.

Those people who were inside the tower had a different reaction compared to the ones outside. The challengers were suspecting a problem in Korea, but they were glad that it was not the case.

The problem now was that they had to make a decision to enter the tower before the Dimension Gate closed or remain on Earth. There could potentially be a problem on the upper floor. Therefore, the ones who came out of the tower were at a crossroads. They had to wrap their heads around this problem and make the best decisions for themselves.

They had expected that if there were a change, it would happen all over the world. However, this time was unique in that it only happened in Korea. Therefore, the Koreans were even more confused.

“What a headache!”

“Ha… what should we do now?”

“Let’s think for a bit. We still have some time.”

“I’m going to see my family first.”

“Sure.”

After having a rough idea about the current situation on Earth, the challengers dispersed. Hiding away from the reporters was not a problem for them.

“Mom, I’m here!” Baek Kang-Woo shouted.

“Hey, son! You must be so tired. I missed you so much. Come in and have a seat,” his mom greeted.

“Okay, and umm… This time—” Baek Kang-Woo tried to explain his situation but did not manage to finish his sentence.

“Son, do you have to go back to the tower?” his mom asked in a worried voice.

“Huh? Why…?” Baek Kang-Woo asked.

His mom seemed very anxious. “I recently saw an article that said all the people who entered last year went missing. What if that happens to you? I’m really worried this time.”

To his mother who was very worried, Baek Kang-Woo could not easily give an answer. He had already become inseparable from the tower. He had defeated countless enemies, trained consistently to become stronger, and defeated enemies who were stronger still. He could not abandon the tower in which he could run around and enjoy the vast land.

Having spent a lot of time inside, the tower was like his second home. He had comrades, friends and loved ones living there. However, what was his reason for entering the tower? It was to rebuild his poor household. He wanted to repay his mother who had raised him alone after his father passed away when he was a child. He wanted to live a happy life with his mother. As a result, he fought desperately on the tower and was able to reach the 50th floor.

Now, he had enough ability to support his mother so that she could do everything she wanted and not have to do any hard work. He did not need to re-enter the tower.

He knew he should not be doing this.

He knew it was wrong.

.

.

.

“I’m… really… sorry…” Tears rolled down his cheeks.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Baek Kang-Woo’s tears fell one after another onto the back of his hand that was clutching at his pants tightly. He could not bear to look at his mother. He could not raise his head.

Baek Kang-Woo thought that his mother would feel betrayed. He was basically abandoning his mother, who had lived her entire life for him, and choosing the tower instead. He felt his mother’s warm touch on his shaking shoulders. Without a word, she hugged and comforted him.

Baek Kang-Woo was sobbing.

“I’m sorry, son. I think I have put too much burden on you.”

Baek Kang-Woo had wanted to tell his mom that she was asking too much of him. He had wanted to tell her that he understood her, to tell her not to feel bad for him. However, his voice did not come out as he was swept away by the flood of emotions.

“Heuk—” Baek Kang-Woo shed tears.

“It’s alright, so let it all out.” His mom comforted him.

Baek Kang-Woo could not do anything that day.

***

On the other hand, among those who did not enter the tower, the story about Cha Yu-Min was something interesting.

“Hey, did you hear that?”

“Hear what? The one about Cha Yu-Min? But did he even clear the 80th floor? I heard that he was a mess.”

“No, it’s not that. He said he went to the first floor.”

“Seriously? How did he go to the first floor?”

“Obviously I don’t know. I heard that Cha Yu-Min will be holding a press conference soon. People from all over the world are lobbying to go see it.”

“That’s crazy! When is it? I’m so ready for it!”

Even on the internet, everyone talked about Cha Yu-Min, all day long.

└ Yu-Min! You look so handsome!

└ LET’S GO, CHA YU-MIN! I LOVE YOU CHA YU-MIN!

└ Stop it, you idiots. That’s not what’s important right now.

└ Wow, he definitely is the No. 1 ranker… How did he get to the first floor?”

└ Didn’t he clear up to the 71st floor last year? Since the reward increases every 10th floor, he probably received it after clearing the 80th floor.

└ He probably could have gone to the first floor, because beyond the 50th floor, challengers can move between floors.

└ That’s awesome! Jonathan was only able to go to the 76th floor. I wonder how high our hope, Cha Yu-Min, went!

***

The press conference was held two days after Cha Yu-Min had returned. The press conference was filled with reporters, dignitaries and rankers from all over the world, even before Cha Yu-Min showed up. This was because the disappearance of Korean challengers on the first floor was a great concern all over the world. Everyone was worried, since they could be the next person missing.

“Please welcome our ranker Cha Yu-Min.”

Cha Yu-Min opened the door and entered the room. He looked calm today. He was dressed neatly and appeared very different from how he had looked two days ago.

“Hello everyone, this is Cha Yu-Min.”

As soon as he started speaking, the shutters of the cameras clicked from all corners of the room.

Reporters raised their hands here and there to express their interest in asking him questions, but Jun Jae-Yong, the president of the Korean Challengers Association, stopped them.

“We will have a separate time for you to ask questions. Please listen to Cha Yu-Min for now.” The chaos settled down a bit with Jun Jae-Yong’s words.

Everyone at the press conference was just like baby birds waiting for their mothers to feed them. They were all waiting for Cha Yu-Min to speak and give valuable information.

“First of all, I am not a hundred percent sure, but it’s been almost a year since any challenger came up from the first floor. Most of the people in the tower already knew about this and I climbed the tower to get to the bottom of it.” Cha Yu-Min took his time to explain things to the crowd.

“As you all know, there’s a maxim regarding the tower: if you have the desire to get something, climb the tower—it will make your wish come true. I originally thought that the answer was on the 80th floor and I reached there a week ago.”

At Cha Yu-Min’s last words, the sound of the camera shutters filled the room.

Besides the issue of the disappearance of the first-floor challengers, Cha Yu-Min’s raid on the 80th floor was another big topic that everyone was interested in. However, people were eager to know about that after hearing Yu-Min had been successful.

Now, rankers from all over the world would do anything to get this strategy from him. And Korea’s national power and pride increased, thanks to Cha Yu-Min.

“The higher you climb, the more power and authority you get. The tower also provides you with greater rewards, along with wealth. And I gained the ability to go to the first floor as my reward for reaching the 80th floor,” Cha Yu-Min explained.

Click! Click! Click! Click!

The sounds of the camera shutters from the reporters did not seem to fade out from the conference room. Every word that came out of Yu-Min was a scoop.

***

“Whoa… Even I’m getting nervous…”

“I can’t believe I’m at such a historic moment. I’m so glad that I didn’t advance to the next floor!”

“What are you saying… Don’t make it sound like we chose not to go up.”

“Be quiet, what are you saying in front of Cha Yu-Min?” Kim Kang-Chun stopped Baek Hyun and Kang Ji-Hoon from fooling around.

“That’s alright. By the way… I can sense an unusual mana power in front of the boss’s room. Do you happen to know what it is?” Cha Yu-Min asked.

“Oh, um… You’ll see when you get there. Haha…” Kim Kang-Chun replied.

Cha Yu-Min went closer to the boss’s room with a look of suspicion. And May was standing there with a high-handed attitude. The Skeleton was blocking the entrance. He was wearing a dark black robe and held a staff that seemed to create an eerie atmosphere.

“Is he the boss that you were talking about?” Cha Yu-Min asked.

“No… He’s not it,” the challengers replied.

Cha Yu-Min knew it already, because the Skeleton looked so different from what other challengers had told him earlier. However, the Skeleton’s aura was sufficient to say he was a boss.

“He’s a doorkeeper as well as a secretary made by Mr. Necromancer here,” Kim Kang-Chun explained with an awkward look.

“What do you mean by his secretary? A doorkeeper is just a doorkeeper…” Cha Yu-Min asked with an incredulous look.

“Umm…” As Kim Kang-Chun was scratching his head at Cha Yu-Min’s questions, May had noticed them.

“Who are you? I’ve never seen you before!” asked May.

“I have something to settle with the boss here, so get out of my way if you don’t want to die,” Cha Yu-Min replied in a firm voice.

“Gasp!” Baek Hyun, who was standing behind Cha Yu-Min, quickly covered Kang Ji-Hoon’s mouth when he got startled and was about to scream.

Cha Yu-Min did not care what was going on at the back. He only focused on May who was in front of him. He could not let his guard down even if it were only a Skeleton.

‘No way… Can the first-floor boss have made this? Really…?’ Cha Yu-Min could not believe what he was seeing.

May stopped Cha Yu-Min from going through. “Haha! What a funny guy. Well… If you want to go see the master, you will have to go through me first.”

Cha Yu-Min was ready to defeat the Skeleton. “I have no time to waste on a doorkeeper. But I’ll do it as you wish.”

“Keugh—!” Baek Hyun screamed at Cha Yu-Min’s words.

“Hey, be quiet!” Kang Ji-Hoon quickly stopped Baek Hyun.

For the challengers who were aware of May’s power, Cha Yu-Min’s remarks had been unimaginable. However, at the same time, Yu-Min was the No. 1 ranker. Surely there was no way he would be defeated on the first floor. But they also had a strong feeling that Cha Yu-Min would not be able to defeat their master, Lee Shin. May was not the problem.

In fact, the other challengers were more afraid that May would get injured and cause Lee Shin to be angry. However, Cha Yu-Min pulled out his sword immediately and ran up to May.

Tang!

The Mana Shield created in the air had blocked the sword. However, Yu-Min continued with his attack which eventually led to a battle between May and Cha Yu-Min. The Mana attack and sword fight made the battle fierce.

“Keugh!”

“Hahaha! Is that all you can do? You don’t deserve to see the master with that kind of skill!” May laughed at Cha Yu-Min.

The Skeleton Mage was able to use all four elements, fire, water, earth and wind. He exceeded Cha Yu-Min’s expectations.

With the ice elemental magic, May froze the floor to reduce Yu-Min’s mobility. By combining wind and fire, the Skeleton attacked Cha Yu-Min’s weak points to keep him at bay and find a window of opportunity. If Cha Yu-Min forced his way into the Skeleton’s range, the Skeleton would counter with earth-based magic. The Skeleton was indeed tricky to deal with.

It was not possible to simply explain this entire fight away with the superior ability the Skeleton seemed to have in both combat experience and mana power. How could a Skeleton Mage be so skilled and powerful?

“I agree! You are amazing,” Cha Yu-Min admitted that this place was a long way out of his common sense.

“Now, I’ll show you what I can do.” Cha Yu-Min’s sword was dyed black.

Shadow Splitting

Cha Yu-Min’s sword split May’s stone wall.

“Keugh—” Instead, he could hear May’s painful voice behind the stone wall.

In the place where the stone wall had collapsed, May was there, in a robe that was torn apart. And his arm that was holding the staff was on the floor.

“It’s been a long time since I lost to someone other than my master…” May was on his knees.

The three men standing behind Cha Yu-Min watched the scene with their mouths open. They could not believe that May was on his knees, without an arm. They realized that the No. 1 ranker was indeed outstanding as they watched the battle in awe.

“Go in, the master is waiting for you.” May let them enter the room.

“Good. I’m not killing you because of their request,” said Cha Yu-Min.

“Keugh… Thanks a lot,” May answered.

The three men had desperately asked Cha Yu-Min not to kill May, and their request was successful. Since May was the boss’s pet, they could not imagine what would happen if the boss got angry. Potentially Cha Yu-Min could kill Lee Shin and release everyone from the first floor, but they also had to consider the possibility of his failure. If Cha Yu-Min failed, then there could only be despair.

The three were worried that Lee Shin would be irritated to see May’s injuries. However, the indifferent look they saw on Lee Shin’s face upon entering the boss’ room made them heave an inward sigh of relief. Cha Yu-Min looked at Lee Shin calmly.

Everyone all over the world, other than the challengers in the first-floor waiting area, had thought the first-floor boss was weak, lethargic and insane. However, the one before Cha Yu-Min clearly was not a tutorial-level boss. He could sense that the boss was far beyond all the descriptions he had heard before.

Lee Shin sneered at the sight of Cha Yu-Min.