Chapter 159: Treasure Hunt (1)

I entered Floor 9 and tested Decisive Strike, the new skill I had obtained.

Swoooooosh!

When I swung the Sword of Heaven’s Gatekeeper while using the maximum amount of Willpower, an enormous five-colored Aura Blade shot out in the shape of a crescent moon.

The Aura Blade stretched forward, slicing through every rock in its path and all the monkeys inside them.

Without being stopped by anything along the way, it flew far into the distance before gradually dispersing and disappearing.

“Wow.”

This is good.

Just as I expected, it was incredibly powerful.

In terms of both power and attack range, it was practically a Magic-type skill. The cooldown was even short.

If a skill like this counted as Physical-type, it almost made me question why Magic-type skills even existed when they came saddled with penalties like Mental Concentration.

Of course, normally it probably wouldn’t be anywhere near this powerful.

It was only producing such ridiculous output because I was using Heavenly Aura Blade.

After finishing the skill test, I exited Floor 9 and entered Floor 12 this time.

“Hmm...”

I really did need to write a Floor 12 strategy guide...

I looked at the fountain with an uneasy expression.

Would the other Nightmare Climbers even be able to clear Floor 12?

The influence of the Seven Deadly Sins probably differed from person to person.

In my case, Wrath and Sloth had been terrifyingly powerful, but maybe they wouldn’t be quite that bad for other people.

But was it really possible for a human being to endure after absorbing all seven sins?

And while in that state, they still had to find the Holy Water of Purification and defeat the boss.

I definitely would have died too if luck hadn’t been on my side.

Unless someone was practically Buddha, it seemed close to impossible.

Then what if they absorbed only one and escaped through the Exit?

I hadn’t checked, but the sin would obviously remain.

No matter which of the seven sins they absorbed, there was a very, very high chance it would completely ruin them.

I did want to try drinking the water from the basins again while testing different methods to see whether there was some other solution...

But I absolutely couldn’t bring myself to drink that stuff again.

Even during a repeat clear, if I drank it and simply exited, wouldn’t the sin remain?

Then I’d be fucked.

Deciding it really wasn’t worth it, I exited again.

For now, I would just organize the Floor 12 information based on what I already knew and post that.

[Person123: Nightmare Floor 12 strategy information.]

I posted it in the Communication Channel.

Then, to improve Diul’s mood, I entered Floor 2.

“I won’t do it again. I said I’m sorry.”

Apparently, Diul was still sulking because I had tried to kill myself.

‘Hmph.’

Still, it didn’t refuse the walk.

We walked together through the Floor 2 forest, enjoying the night breeze.

Come to think of it, it had been quite a while since Diul last awakened a new ability.

I had no idea when its next ability would awaken.

Maybe Pitch-Black Fog was the last ability Diul had.

[Time Remaining: 1 hour 3 minutes 26 seconds]

I took care of the things I needed to do, soothed Diul, and even got a good night’s sleep.

One hour remained.

Treasure Hunt would begin soon.

- Nightmare Floor 12 has been cleared, and the Tower is once again extending its wicked claws toward us. Humanity’s only hope is all of you Climbers. We ask that you please make decisions for the sake of the many...

The news was in an uproar too.

Governments around the world, including the United States and China, issued statements.

They encouraged the Climbers who might be selected for Treasure Hunt, while also warning that if any Climber attempted to cause casualties again like during the Joint Battle, they would never be forgiven.

[WhiteRice: I wonder what Treasure Hunt is gonna be]

[Ludis: I’ve got a bad feeling... No way the Tower just gives us something good for free, right?]

[DarkMage: Nobody’s gonna get blinded by rewards and do something stupid again, are they?]

[Music: No way. Person123 warned that he’d personally find and kill them. You’d have to be insaneㅋㅋ]

[BlueStar: If anonymity is guaranteed like during the Masked Auction, you never know]

[Oxygen: Isn’t this Tower bastard gonna use some excuse to target Person123 again?]

I browsed the Communication Channel while waiting for the remaining time to pass.

I had already warned the Climbers...

But there was no telling what would happen this time.

All I could do was hope everyone had engraved my warning firmly into their heads.

[When the time comes, 300 Climbers will be randomly invited to the ‘Treasure Hunt’.]

More importantly, there was one difference from the Masked Auction and the Joint Battle.

The number of Climbers being dragged in wasn’t 100 but 300, far more than before. There wasn’t even a condition like needing to have reached a certain floor.

For some reason, that difference made me strangely uneasy.

Naturally, I hoped I would be chosen.

But out of several million Climbers, only 300.

The odds were roughly one in 10,000.

I shouldn’t expect anything.

I’d probably just have to pray again.

“Please, just let this go smoothly...”

I hoped that this time it would end safely without a single person dying.

[Time Remaining: 9 seconds]

Time passed until there was almost none left.

I took out my mask and put it on, just in case I happened to get selected.

And the moment the remaining time reached 0 seconds—

The scenery changed.

“...!”

I was standing in the middle of a forest.

There were many people around me.

...What?

I actually got picked?

[‘Treasure Hunt’ has begun.]

[Many treasures are hidden throughout this Treasure Island.]

[Explore the island freely, discover treasures, and claim them.]

[After 10 minutes, the portal at your current location will activate.]

[You may exit while within the portal’s range. Once you exit, you cannot re-enter Treasure Island.]

[Treasure Hunt will end when there are no surviving Climbers remaining on Treasure Island.]

Messages appeared one after another before my eyes.

I stopped time and quickly read through the explanation.

‘Find treasures and claim them...’

It was exactly what the name Treasure Hunt implied.

What kind of treasures were they talking about?

High-grade Skill Enhancement Stones or items?

Whatever they were, there was no way the Tower had suddenly gone insane enough to hand out free rewards to Climbers.

There was obviously some kind of scheme hidden behind this.

Maybe, like during the Masked Auction, it would demand human lives as payment for obtaining the treasure.

The condition for Treasure Hunt to end was that there be no surviving Climbers remaining on Treasure Island.

In other words, it would end as long as every Climber exited.

[After 10 minutes, the portal at your current location will activate.]

I released Time Stop and looked around.

Like the portal in Floor 5 Zone 0, a line of light formed a huge circle on the ground.

Everyone, including me, was standing inside that circle.

‘This must be the portal.’

We could exit after 10 minutes.

Then what I needed to do was simple.

I just had to prevent anyone from leaving this spot until the 10 minutes passed, then make every single person exit.

I’d stop the Treasure Hunt before it even really began.

That was the safest method.

“Everyone, please pay attention.”

I immediately spoke up.

The gazes of the confused people focused on me.

A few of them seemed startled after noticing my mask and realizing who I was.

“I’m Person123.”

“...”

“You’ve all read the rules. The circle we’re standing in right now is probably the portal.”

I spoke as though making a declaration.

“If all of us simply exit, nothing will happen, and Treasure Hunt will end just like that. Once 10 minutes have passed, everyone is to leave.”

The people glanced at one another in silence.

A few nodded.

Then someone cautiously raised a hand.

“U-Um... shouldn’t we at least check what the treasures are...?”

“There’s no need. It’s obvious the Tower has some kind of scheme prepared.”

I looked around at everyone.

“And what I’m telling you right now is not a request. When the time comes, every single one of you will exit. I will not accept any further objections.”

I had absolutely no intention of repeating the tragedy of the Joint Battle.

No one opened their mouth again.

Even the man who had asked the question avoided my gaze with a frightened expression.

Thump, thump, thump...

At that moment, the ground began to shake.

I turned my head.

The forest was surrounded on all sides by enormous trees.

The sound drew closer and closer until a gigantic shape emerged from between the bushes.

A monster that looked like an ostrich.

What the hell, there are monsters too?

“Kyaaak...!”

Several people screamed.

I stretched out my hand toward the monster charging at us.

Fwoooooosh!

A pillar of fire burned the ostrich away without leaving even a trace.

I spoke again to the stunned people.

“As long as you stay here, you’ll be safe. Just wait 10 minutes, then exit.”

“...”

Everyone obediently remained exactly where they were without taking a single step.

I stood with my arms crossed and waited for the time to pass.

Come to think of it, maybe it was because there was no floor requirement this time.

More than half of the Climbers looked like ordinary people who hadn’t even climbed Floor 1.

That made sense, since they made up the largest portion of Climbers.

“...?”

Wait a second.

As I looked around at the people, I suddenly noticed something.

There seemed to be... too few of them.

I counted the number of people.

There were exactly 100.

But the message said 300 people had been brought here.

‘No way...’

Had the participants been split up and summoned to different locations?

Since there were only 100 people here, maybe they had been divided into three groups of 100.

If that was the case, making only these people exit wouldn’t end anything.

...Looks like I’d have to hurry and find all the other Climbers too.

***

Meanwhile, somewhere else on Treasure Island.

“W-Where is this...?”

“Did we get selected for Treasure Hunt?”

Messages appeared before the confused Climbers.

After reading them, everyone looked around.

Someone spoke first.

“...What should we do? This circle we’re standing in looks like the portal.”

Someone else spoke.

“It says we can leave after waiting 10 minutes. Can’t we just leave?”

“What about the treasure? Wouldn’t it be a waste to leave without even looking?”

“I-I’m leaving immediately.”

While a brief commotion broke out—

Clap, clap-

The sound of someone clapping drew everyone’s attention.

“Alright, everyone. Please pay attention.”

A man with his hair slicked completely back smiled as he spoke.

“When the time comes, let’s all leave immediately. You haven’t forgotten what Person123 said, have you? Don’t give in to the Tower’s temptations.”

The people flinched and exchanged glances.

Then someone cut in.

“...Why do you get to decide that?”

It was a huge man with a rough-looking face.

Ye Cheon-wi shook his head.

“I’m not the one deciding anything. I’m only reminding you of Person123’s wishes.”

“No, shouldn’t we at least go look for the treasure and see what it is? It’s not like anyone has to die. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“No.”

“What?”

“The Tower’s intentions are obvious, are they not? It will try to test your consciences again in one way or another. We simply need to refuse to participate from the very beginning.”

“...For fuck’s sake, who the hell are you to order people around? Are you Person123?”

The man sneered.

“Hey, I’m a Hard Difficulty Floor 11 Climber. What level are you?”

“Who I am is not important, but...”

“Yeah? Then shut the fuck up and stay in your place. Some worthless nobody acting like a big shot.”

Ye Cheon-wi smiled brightly.

“So you’re saying you intend to go search for treasure?”

“And what the hell are you gonna do if I—”

That was the moment.

The man’s head dropped to the ground.

Blood sprayed through the air.

People screamed.

“G-Gah...!”

Standing beside the man’s corpse, Ye Cheon-wi wiped the blood from his face and looked around.

The smile still remained on his lips.

“I will kill anyone who takes even a single step outside the portal.”

“...”

“Let’s wait 10 minutes and then leave. It really is very simple, isn’t it?”

No one spoke.

Silence descended.

Ye Cheon-wi counted the people and tilted his head.

“100 people... It seems the people here aren’t everyone.”

I’ll be busy if I have to find all the other Climbers too.

Muttering that, Ye Cheon-wi waited impatiently for the 10 minutes to pass.