The Infinite Prison.
Also known as the Bottomless Abyss.
It was an unimaginably vast place, but when something happened, rumors spread surprisingly fast.
Because of how they communicated.
Resonance between soul and soul.
In other words, telepathy.
『Did you hear the rumor? That crazy elf bitch went outside.』
『No way—Swearmouth Aliamari?』
『Yeah, her. The one who spews curses everywhere.』
『That's bad. Isn't she going to start cussing out the summoner the moment she gets out?』
『No matter how crazy she is, she wouldn't go that far.』
『Or maybe this summoner is some kind of trash collector? Why do they only summon freaks like that?』
『Now I finally get it. Why I never got to go out.』
『Why?』
『Because I lived too normally.』
『Same here. Is there anyone here more normal than me?』
『Haah… the normal ones can't get out, but the ones missing a screw get out just fine.』
『Kekekeke, you lunatics—where do you get off pretending to be normal? You're all trash.』
『Shut up, you wicked bitch!』
『Mm, yeah, but if this summoner really is a trash collector, there's nothing to worry about. Someday, you'll all be summoned too.』
『…Really? Then I've got hope too. I'm confident I can be even crazier than the Mad Demon.』
『Originally, I was the craziest bitch around here. Aliamari was beneath my feet.』
『Honestly, I was better at swearing than that elf bitch too.』
『What is this, a crazy bitch–crazy bastard competition all of a sudden?』
『I wish there really were a competition. At least that way I might get to go outside.』
『Me too.』
『Me too.』
Aliamari, an LSSR-rank alchemist.
The background description of her that he had checked yesterday.
The life of the elf alchemist Aliamari was extremely unfortunate. As a child, she was offered as a sacrifice to the ancient dragon Black Dragon Casiurus by members of her own race. She lived her entire life as a slave in Casiurus's lair.The Black Dragon taught her alchemy. And alchemy became an escape that let her forget her loneliness. She thought she would live alone forever—until a change occurred. The ancient dragon Casiurus returned to the embrace of mana before she did.Now free, Aliamari still did not leave the lair. A thousand years of solitude had already become a part of her life, and even in death, she was alone.
Severe social anxiety—and the reason she became a shut-in alchemist.
She didn't speak to anyone except her summoner, Juhyeok.
Not even through written notes on paper.
She ignored even the words of the other women, Gyeon Dallae and Veronica, and Rajiks's cuteness didn't work either.
Kosak loitered in front of her only to be completely ignored, and even the Mad Demon was no exception.
This was a problem.
He needed to find a solution.
To cure her social anxiety?
No way.
He had no intention of doing that.
She had lived that way her entire life,
It had become a kind of identity,
There was no way it could be fixed easily.
All he wanted was to make communication possible.
Not that inconvenient method of writing on paper.
This was 21st-century Korea.
There were plenty of ways to talk without facing each other.
So Juhyeok contacted Deputy Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il.
They met in the underground parking lot.
"Are the items selling well?"
"Yes, the player shop is so packed there's barely room to stand. You probably won't even need a loan when you buy a building."
"That's a relief. If it's not enough, then—"
"No, not at all. We're overflowing with stock. Oh, right! And here…"
Jeon Gwang-il handed Juhyeok a file folder and a paper bag containing three Apple Pads.
"I processed all of them as players who permanently naturalized in Korea. Their identities are flawless, so there's nothing to worry about."
"Thank you."
"Oh, it's nothing."
Juhyeok decided to give the summoned individuals South Korean nationality.
On paper, at least.
He made up the names roughly.
All that mattered was that the resident registration numbers came out properly.
Originally, he hadn't liked the idea.
Why bother registering summoned beings in the national database?
But now, there was a need.
If only because of Aliamari.
"Then I'll contact you again if anything comes up."
"Yes."
After parting with Jeon Gwang-il,
Juhyeok took the documents and went back up to the penthouse.
Then he summoned the summoned ones.
"Alright, gather around."
Juhyeok took out the Apple Pads.
Six pads he had bought earlier, plus three more he had asked Jeon Gwang-il to get this time—nine in total.
Large 13-inch screens with cellular support.
Deputy Commissioner Jeon had even taken care of carrier subscriptions all at once.
"Sign up for K-Talk. I'll hand out your resident ID numbers."
Following Juhyeok's instructions, they signed up, set their nicknames, and added friends.
Then Juhyeok went into the small room and summoned Aliamari.
As usual, she appeared with her head buried in the corner of the room.
Juhyeok registered her account for her.
He explained how to use it by writing on paper,
Then invited everyone to the group chat at once.
Ding ding—message notification sounds rang out.
Everyone entered the chat room under their chosen nicknames.
: I'm here lol.
Kosak, who insisted he was an insider.
Princess Gyeon Dallae's was—
Where did she even learn that?
Kids these days don't talk like that.
Then again, is Gyeon Dallae really a "kid" these days?
: Hoeh!
A nickname that perfectly revealed Rajiks's identity.
: Certain victory!
Sergeant Verobe as well.
: I'm not sure if this is how you do it.
Sergeant Verobe, the Mad Demon, and Bardin all joined.
What about the alchemist Aliamari?
She definitely pressed accept on the invite.
: Lady Mari?
Then—
: Yes.
She's here.
Shall we start communicating in earnest now?
Kosak was the first to kick things off.
: Nice to meet you, Lady Mari. You must've been lonely all this time. Don't worry from now on. I'll sincerely—
At that very moment!
: Shut up! You @#%!
: Huh?
: "Lol." "Must've." Is that how you type too? There's a limit to attention-seeking, you &%@ bastard!
The chat room fell silent.
Even Juhyeok couldn't believe his eyes.
"Did she just snap out of nowhere?"
: Princess my ass. What the % are you? Your blood's not even dry yet—want me to #&% you?
This is getting worse and worse.
: Lady Mari. Please refrain from profanity. You're an educated person.
: %#@ off. Just because your tits are big, you think you can $*@$? Want me to &@% you for real?
: Wow! Guess I'll live a long life.
No one could've imagined this.
: So she really is a lunatic. Wait—crazy elf… now that I think about it, I've heard of her.
: Yeah, you $%# bastard. Want me to $@& your dentures?
: Hohoho, this is amusing.
In reality, she couldn't even make eye contact with people due to her social anxiety, yet—
: Repent? You &@$ bastard—wanna shove % right into your mouth hole and @%# you?
In the chat room, she was a ferocious keyboard warrior.
: Hoeh?
: Don't try to act cute! You're not cute at all! I mean it!
: Hoeeeeh—
: I said stop it!
She seemed slightly shaken, but even Rajiks didn't get through.
: Um, Lady Mari.
: Please speak, Summoner♡♡♡♡♡♡.
Everyone except Juhyeok.
And what's with all the hearts?
Eventually, the Mad Demon stood in front of the door where Aliamari was.
He pounded on it loudly.
"Open the door. Let's talk face to face. Let's see if you can keep spewing curses then."
But the tightly shut door never opened.
Gerald's house, true to his American roots, was a grand mansion on the outskirts of Washington, D.C.
Dozens of armed guards were stationed there, protecting him at close range.
The dignity of America's top player.
But that was only on the surface.
In truth, it was little more than surveillance disguised as protection.
Because of that, Gerald spent most of his free time in the bunker installed beneath his house.
An underground bunker built so he could take shelter in the event of nuclear war.
Nothing special.
Every mansion in Washington had something like this.
And there were no CCTV cameras here.
Locking the door from the inside,
Gerald took out the Necklace of the Rune of Liberation from his inventory and hung it around his neck.
He pressed down on the rune engraved on the necklace.
Click!
The player's power was released.
This was the second time.
In an instant—
Wooooong!
A surging tide of magic energy churned inside his body.
"…Aaaah!"
Magic power overflowed.
Every skill he had learned flashed through his mind.
"Fireball."
Whoosh!
A blazing sphere appeared above Gerald's hand.
The same went for close-range skills.
He took out a sword from his inventory and infused it with magic power.
Ziiiiiing!
A vivid blade aura wrapped around it.
Slash!
A thick steel beam he had brought for testing was cut cleanly in an instant.
'Unbelievable.'
Now he understood why the government wanted to regulate this item.
It was dangerous.
If all players possessed items like this, the world would collapse in no time—
By the hands of players.
Gerald had no intention of ever using it outside.
He was content to indulge his desires quietly,
In a place no one knew about.
The one-hour duration passed quickly.
It was a shame, but nothing could be done.
Now there was only one use left.
Effect: Allows the player's abilities to manifest outside the tower for 1 hour.
Limit: Can be used a total of 1 more time. Once all uses are expended, the rune is destroyed.
'Is there no way to get another one?'
He was already satisfied just secretly playing around like this.
'I've played enough.'
Gerald left the bunker.
It was time to prepare for his next run.
Climb from West Tower Floor 68, enter Floor 71, and receive the four-type gift set.
But why were East Tower Floors 72 and 73 restricted to only the basic mission?
Just what was there?
He'd heard some information, but he couldn't help feeling dissatisfied.
Floor 71 had been very easy.
Even the additional optional mission and the high-difficulty optional mission.
Of course, the final ultra-high-difficulty one had been hard.
Defeating the fleeing necromancer, Kate.
Even after repeated attempts, he couldn't catch her.
The moment she appeared, he bombarded her with magic and unleashed his finishing move, but she escaped with Blink or blocked it with a barrier.
Why wasn't it working?
How did the Korean player defeat Kate?
And with an S+++ rank clear, no less.
It hurt his pride.
He wasn't even greedy for an S+++ clear.
Gerald knew his own limits.
He had no desire whatsoever to compete with that player.
He just wanted to clear the additional, high-difficulty, and ultra-high-difficulty optional missions normally on each floor.
But he couldn't even do that?
No matter how you looked at it, he was America's top player.
And before the Korean S+++ player appeared, he'd been the world's best.
'There's nothing I can't do.'
What should he do?
He'd been thinking about it for a long time.
About clearing East Tower Floor 72.
And finally, Gerald made a decision.
'I'll go up to Floor 72.'
He couldn't stand it anymore.
He'd complete only the additional optional mission and the high-difficulty mission.
He'd skip the ultra-high-difficulty one.
'I'll probably get an earful from Director Antonio later…'
So what?
Clearing it would extend the collapse timer anyway—if anything, it was better.
He could just apologize after causing trouble.
'When should I go?'
Today.
He hadn't entered the tower yet.
Just in case, Gerald sent Director Antonio a message on his smartphone.
I'm going to clear East Tower Floor 72 before doing the West Tower.
Spot!
Gerald vanished.
And he didn't come back.
Not even after an entire day had passed.
Juhyeok's penthouse.
Yesterday had been intense.
Aliamari, the socially anxious alchemist.
A textbook keyboard warrior.
According to the Mad Demon, she'd been famous in that world too.
A foul-mouthed elf.
Known for openly spewing curses.
That's why he'd never dreamed that this elf was that elf.
To think the crazy elf was actually socially anxious.
How had they not known?
It was because of how people communicated in that world.
From a conversation Juhyeok had with the Mad Demon yesterday—
'Souls don't speak with their mouths.'
'Then how?'
'Within a certain area, souls resonate with one another and convey intent in a telepathic form. It's quite similar to this chat window.'
It made sense.
An elf who had lived alone for a thousand years.
Of course meeting people was terrifying.
Social anxiety.
Her swearing was closer to self-defense.
Or maybe she deliberately made people hate her—
So no one would try to talk to her.
'If possible, I should only talk to her one-on-one from now on.'
At that moment—
Ziiing!
A phone call came in.
Checking the screen, it was Deputy Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il.
It had only been yesterday since they last met.
"Hello?"
Ah, Player Bong, are you perhaps busy right now…?
"No, I'm fine. What's going on?"
I just spoke with Director Antonio. But…
Director Antonio and Deputy Commissioner Jeon Gwang-il were close acquaintances even in daily life.
Juhyeok didn't know exactly what they'd discussed, but after a brief silence—
It seems something has happened to Player Gerald.
"What?"
Juhyeok was startled.
And for good reason.
'Player Gerald, you say…'
Wasn't he basically his big brother?
America's top player.
The first customer to rent the Holy Sword.
The benefactor who rented the Holy Sword twice a day and essentially paid for his penthouse.
"H-how? Did something happen while climbing the tower?"
Yes. According to Director Antonio, Gerald sent a smartphone message saying he was going to clear East Tower Floor 72, then entered the tower…
"…And he hasn't come back."
That's correct.
Floor 72.
Most likely, he had run into trouble while attempting the ultra-high-difficulty Eight-Circle Necromancer, Norma.
No—he had specifically urged him, again and again through Deputy Commissioner Jeon, to stop at the basic mission.
And yet…
Because of this, the United States was now in a state of emergency.
The atmosphere was practically that of a funeral.
Was there a solution?
No.
If a player didn't come out, that was the end of it.
Otherwise, why would they have gone so far as to contact Deputy Commissioner Jeon?
Please be careful as well, Player Bong. One moment of carelessness can be fatal. I ask this of you.
Deputy Commissioner Jeon sounded anxious—anxiety enough to call him personally.
'Hoo…'
Juhyeok felt heavyhearted too.
Even if they'd never met face to face, they were fellow players.
And he was someone who had helped him immensely with the Holy Sword rental.
It was regrettable.
Was there really no way to save him?
'If only I'd known earlier…'
Though even then, he probably would've been helpless.
The tower was that terrifying.
Everything could be going well, and a single accident could make it irreversible.
He needed to stay tense too.
Danger could strike at any moment.
What if one of his summoned companions met such a fate?
He wouldn't see them for a hundred days.
It already hurt just not seeing Gobang for two weeks.
'Still… I have the Rune of Resurrection.'
The start pack he'd received as a special reward.
He could save someone at least once.
Thinking of it, Juhyeok took the start-pack items out of his inventory.
The Summoned Resurrection Rune, the Tower Floor Intrusion Ticket, and the Tower Mission Reset Ticket.
He hadn't used a single one since receiving them.
The mission reset ticket might eventually see use.
But among these, which was the strangest item?
The Tower Floor Intrusion Ticket.
Effect: Allows intrusion into a tower floor currently being cleared by another player. Entry level must match. Usable from Floor 71 onward.
Entering a floor another player was on?
Honestly, did that make any sense?
Tower runs were always strictly solo.
'How do you even use this?'
Do you tear it?
Just then—
[Do you wish to use the Tower Floor Intrusion Ticket?]
[Displaying a list of Black Towers currently available for intrusion.]
[Sorted by ascending player level.]
"Ah!"
Scroll—
Endless entries appeared.
[Russia Black Tower Floor 8, current player level 8LV]
[United Kingdom Black Tower Floor 9, current player level 9LV]
[Vietnam Black Tower Floor 10, current player level 10LV]
[Republic of Korea Black Tower Floor 10, current player level 10LV]
.
.
.
And finally—
[After selecting the desired Black Tower floor, tear the ticket to move instantly.]
'So that's how it works?'
This was insane.
It even picked the destination for you.
Including the level of the player on that floor.
Normally, when players entered the tower, even if it was the same floor, their instances were separated.
In other words, even if two players of the same level entered the same country's tower, on the same floor, they'd end up in entirely different spaces.
But if the ticket designated the target—
You could go exactly where you wanted.
Which meant you could interfere with—or even kill—another player during their tower run.
'This is something I should never use.'
And he wouldn't.
Why would you enter someone else's tower run?
But then—
"Huh?"
An entry at the very bottom of the list caught Juhyeok's eye.
[America Black Tower (NO.1) Floor 72, current player level 72LV]
"…What?"
America's Tower, Floor 72?
The East Tower, no less.
The exact floor Gerald had entered.
'Was there another level-72 player besides Gerald?'
As far as Juhyeok knew—
No.
Gerald had also cleared America's Black Tower Floor 71.
'…Could this be?'
If it really was Gerald, then the time limit should have expired. So why did it still say "currently clearing"?
'Don't tell me he's still alive?'
Or perhaps another level-72 player had entered.
He couldn't just sit still.
He needed to confirm it.
'I'll summon the companions after entering the tower.'
Juhyeok selected the tower and tore the intrusion ticket.
Riiip!
[Intruding into America Black Tower (NO.1) Floor 72.]