The Guild Alliance and the rankers responded enthusiastically to Crevon’s call for help. They insisted that they had received a lot from Crevon and shared deep bonds, but most only wanted the money. All of them gathered at World’s End in the East.

“This is no joke.”

The calamities far exceeded their expectations. Four calamities occupied a vast area the size of Jeju Island.

Players stared at the legendary creatures from myths: Medusa, minotaur, chimera, and cyclops. Their overwhelming presence shook the earth and players didn’t dare to venture any further. They could only watch from afar.

“Huh? What’s that?”

A child-like voice broke the silence filled with tension. It belonged to Yi Jiyoon. Everybody turned towards her, who simply stared in one direction. Before long, everyone turned to where she looked.

An archer stood atop a steep mountain and a black lotus engraved on his robe fluttered in the wind. He aimed his bow at the field below.

“Black Lotus.”

A series of murmurs and laments broke out. Everyone here knew him all too well. Black Lotus had come back. A wave of panic swept the entire crowd. Everyone watched as he pulled his bowstring. Some tried to put up a barrier and others ran away. However, he fired his arrows before anyone could react. Players screamed and got down on the ground.

No matter how long they waited… the attack never came. Black Lotus didn’t aim at them. A series of doubtful murmurs could be heard upon this realization. He actually fired in the opposite direction towards the chimera and a group of monsters near it. Chwaaa… The arrows flew in different paths and tore up the monsters.

“Wow.”

“Is this… real?”

“What…”

His archery skills surpassed the human domain. The arrows moved in different directions as if they had intelligence and pierced one monster after the other. One move killed at least 10 monsters.

Gruooooo!

The monsters roared at the surprise attack. Arrows came flying once again, but the monsters showed no fear. That's when the players realized Black Lotus came to help them. They didn’t know why, but they had no reason to be fear him now. The most simple-minded guilds acted first. Members of the Chinese guild, Empire of Glory, and the Indian guild, Mumbai Crew, ran to where Black Lotus’ arrows landed. They finished off the already half-dead monsters to earn TP. Seeing this, other guilds also rushed in and high rankers had no choice but to participate.

The war finally began.

***

Boss joined us soon after the fight broke out, which looked too disorganized to be called a war. We rushed towards the python, a giant serpent with a head that slightly resembled a human. She scattered her bodily fluids and eggs all over the canyon to mark her territory.

“Can I go in and fight now?”

Cheok Jungyeong asked as he stretched. He acknowledged her as a challenging opponent by putting more effort into stretching. Arms as big as my thighs and legs as wide as my body moved about. I wondered what his stats looked like from the size of his biceps, so I took out the directory to satisfy my curiosity.

▷Stats: Variable Stats [Strength ???] [Stamina ???] [Speed ???] [Perception 10.7] [Magic Power ???] [Vitality ???]

“…”

I became speechless. Everything except for his perception stat contained question marks, which meant they all went above 11. He seemed more like a monster than the python.

“What are you looking at?”

Of course, it made sense since Cheok Jungyeong acquired Secret March, a special skill that boosted physical stats. He already possessed high base stats to begin with thanks to his gift.

“Ah, I see.”

Cheok Jungyeong grinned. His gift, Inheritance, allowed him to connect with his former life as the strongest warrior of Goryeo.

“Our bodies are built differently, so you can never be like me.”

Cheok Jungyeong mistook my gaze for envy.

“It’s not like I want to.”

“Heh, don’t lie.”

“Whatever.”

“Oh?”

“You’re too noisy, Gyeong.”

Boss stopped him as he mumbled in dissatisfaction and retreated. Now, I briefed them on the mission and gathered all my dark ore arrows.

“She’s pretty tough, so we can’t just do whatever we want. Each of us will play a specific role.”

Like an MMORPG, a raid required cooperation and strategy. Cheok Jungyeong liked to play solo and seemed annoyed, but Jin Yohan smiled and nodded.

“I know, I know. We only have four of us though.”

“No, we have seven.”

Sannuri and Spartan appeared next to me like the wind. They also brought Jain, who had been sleeping.

“Haa… I wanted to rest for a bit.”

Jain got off and tidied her disheveled hair. Finally, we all gathered.

“Well, then…”

I began assigning roles. It would be better to divide a snake that big into different parts to attack. I placed Cheok Jungyeong in charge of the tail, which was the python’s vital point. Jin Yohan would take the right side while Boss took the left. I assigned myself the head.

“We can leave the nearby monsters to Sannuri and Spartan.”

“What about me?” Jain tilted her head.

“You’re quick on your feet, so please assist anyone who needs help.”

“Yaaaawn. Okay.”

We prepared for action as Cheok Jungyeong stepped forward. “So you’re saying I have to get rid of its tail first?”

“Yes, be careful. She’ll probably shoot poison with her tail. It’ll be hard to block even with my armor.”

Item levels and monster levels worked slightly differently. Simply put, item levels held more value. For example, a Lv.3 sword could kill Lv.6-8 monsters. However, Cheok Jungyeong only had the Lv.6 Infighter’s Leather Armor against the Lv.30 python’s venom.

“No worries. My body is even tougher than this armor.”

The blood vessels in his eyes already started to burst. As a warrior, he only grew more excited before a fierce battle.

“Okay then. Let’s go.”

Cheok Jungyeong charged. Koong, koong, koong, koong! His footsteps shook the earth and cracked the ground, sending dirt into the air.

“——!”

He roared and jumped. For a second, he simply flew from the strength in his legs. I shot my arrows before he landed on the python’s tail. The other members, including Spartan and Sannuri, quickly chased after him at a speed that almost rivaled my arrows.

***

[Party, Chameleon Troupe, is the first to defeat a calamity. This news will be shortly announced.] [You have acquired a calamity core.] [You may now proceed to the 10th floor at any time.] [Entering 10F.] [Warning! Party play is recommended from the 10F and above.]

We reached the 10th floor without difficulty and couldn’t see a thing as though our sight had been blocked. The system also went silent.

“What the heck is this place?” Cheok Jungyeong’s voice filled the air.

“I can’t see anything.” Boss’ voice also echoed out.

However, I could see just fine with my gift, one of the privileges as the original author. First, I walked up to Boss and grabbed her hand.

“Who are you!” Boss snatched my arm and bent it the other way as I touched her.

“Everyone be careful! Somebody tried to grab me! I caught him, but—“

“It’s me, Boss.”

“Eh?”

“It hurts.”

“Oh, sorry.”

Boss coughed and let me go. I grabbed everyone’s hands one by one and gathered them. Soon, we formed a line with me leading the way.

“Everyone, don’t let go.”

I said as I tightly held Boss’ hand. A positive answer came from behind. Then…

— Welcome to the 10th floor, the Maze of Insensibility.

A strange voice descended from the sky and shook the atmosphere. We immediately focused on the administrator’s voice.

— I am the administrator of this floor. I assume you are here to find your way to the 11th floor.

The voice sounded cold and its unpleasant tone gave me goosebumps.

— The way to the 11th floor is simple. You must find your way out of the Maze of Insensibility.

“Phew…”

I sighed in relief. I had described the 10th floor with less than 100 words in the original story and worried if things might’ve changed, but thankfully they hadn’t.

— However, numerous traps and monsters will be waiting for you in this maze. You will lose your senses one by one as you grow closer to the exit. Just like how you lost your sight.

The administrator briefly paused before continuing. His tone suddenly turned much friendlier.

— However, I am also aware you are the first to conquer a calamity. I highly respect individuals like you. Therefore, I have made a difficult decision to allow you to keep all your senses in exchange for your calamity core.

I sneered in silence. He dared to scheme as the administrator of an insignificant floor.

“No, we’ll just do it.”

— You will regret it. I’ve come to this conclusion after much deliberation. Under normal circumstances…

“That’s okay. We’ll play fair.”

— Fool. Good luck, then.

The voice abruptly stopped and everything became silent again. The darkness remained since we didn’t give up our calamity core.

“Hey, I’ve got a question.” Cheok Jungyeong broke the silence.

“Why are these administrators or whatever helping us climb the tower?”

My heart skipped a beat since his thoughtless question pierced the root of my settings.

“I don’t know, maybe because they’re already dead?”

The answer to his question required further explanation. Take Crevon on floor 8-3 for example. The Atalos Royal Family controlled Lü Bu, Lancelot, and other heroes from history. However, they didn’t subjugate the demons. This wasn’t because they pursued coexistence or preferred peace. They simply had no other choice.

A dead man was a dead man. Souls like Lü Bu and Lancelot, who once lived on Earth, couldn’t move outside their designated areas. Even Lü Bu, who possessed the broadest sphere of activity, could only move around [8F Crevon Mainland] and some parts of [3F Prestige].

However, this restraint didn’t apply to administrators. They knew they lived in a mere tower. Therefore, they wanted to re-establish themselves in the real world on Earth or simply wished for their soul’s complete extinction. That’s why they helped or hindered players. We played the most important role in their revival or extinction.

“The hell does that mean?”

“I mean I’m not sure either. Let’s get moving for now.”

We took a step into the dark maze.

“Hold on to the person behind you and don’t let go. I’m pretty lucky, so I’ll make sure we reach the exit. Just focus on not letting go. Please, Cheok Jungyeong!”

“Ha, you out of your mind? Why are you pointing me out?”

I didn’t answer and began walking. Tap, tap. I could still hear as Boss held my hand. I proceeded down the path according to my luck.

However, my senses grew more restricted as we progressed. Soon, my sense of hearing disappeared. Followed by my sense of touch. I could no longer tell whether I was walking or sinking in a swamp.

Now, I couldn’t help but doubt my sight, the only sense I had left.