One would think that with my newfound ambition, I'd head straight for the Tower, but my body had different plans. So far, I'd been running on pure willpower, and now my engine was starting to sputter.
'Sta..y...awa...ke..'
Every muscle felt heavy, my eyelids kept lowering like they were being pulled by gravity itself, and the need for sleep crept over me with the kind of persistence you couldn't argue with.
'Just a little rest wouldn't hurt.'
Surely not, right? Sleep was necessary for the best of warriors, and while I wasn't quite there yet. I deserved it a little. I approached my bed like a dehydrated person who had just caught a glimpse of an oasis.
"Biri, set an alarm for four hours from now."
With the alarm set, I could be rest assured that I'd wake up. Well… hopefully. My soft, small hands clutched the bedsheet as I finally let my body sink into it—the first real rest I'd had since the dungeon. The mattress took me like I belonged there, and my thoughts dissolved almost instantly. Slowly, sleep pulled me under. For the next several hours I drifted, peaceful and still, and for how hard I had worked, every moment of it was deserved.
However, peace could not last forever.
In the depths of my sleep, a distant ringing crept in—soft at first, but gradually increasing in intensity. It weaved itself into my dreams, growing louder and louder, pulling me closer and closer to the surface until it tore me free entirely. I shot up, heart pounding, reaching for my phone to silence the alarm. My fingers fumbled for it, and when I finally slapped the screen, the ringing cut off with an offended little beep.
Something felt… wrong. The morning light drawing from my curtains had disappeared. I grabbed my phone and squinted at it. Six hours. It seemed I'd overshot my four hours by two. Not ideal, but for what it was worth? Good enough.
"Great," I muttered, rubbing my eyes.
I swung my legs off the bed and stood, immediately swaying slightly as my body tried to remember how balancing worked. The room was dim now, late afternoon light leaking through the curtains in lazy stripes. It was time to go to the New Tokyo Tower and challenge the tutorial floor. My stomach growled, loud and offended, like it was trying to file a formal complaint about my priorities.
"…Later," I told it. "You can suffer a little longer. We're doing character development."
I pulled out another oversized white tee and hoodie. These would be my loyal companion in this new era of I don't own clothes that fit. Unfortunately, I only had one pair of shorts. Glancing down at the shorts I'd been living in since the transformation, you could see mud and slime stains from my last conquest.
"Everyone is going to think I'm homeless, and that I don't shower!"
My grand entrance at the tower was going to be ruined. I could already imagine what passer-by's would think. Does she not have any clothes that fit? Poor girl and all the sorts.
I frowned.
"I really need new clothes," I muttered. "At this point these shorts are a cry for help."
Then I looked at my wallet. Or more specifically the empty space inside.
"…After I become not broke," I amended.
I checked that the silver chain was still inside, and made sure the Oracle Ball was tucked away safely in my room. I wasn't planning to use it today, but having it placed somewhere safe was reassuring. Then, with a deep breath that tasted like stale apartment air and impending responsibility, I stepped out of the flat.
***
The New Tokyo Tower District looked nothing like the rest of the city. It was cleaner wider and brighter than the rest of the city. The buildings around it felt deliberately designed to guide your eyes upward, as if the whole district existed purely to frame the Tower like it was an attraction in a theme park.
And in the middle of everything was the Tower. Something that I had seen from the outside many times, but that still captured my attention every single time. Even from a distance, it didn't feel like architecture, but something that had been planted into the world and forgotten there.
A colossal pillar of stone and light piercing up into the sky. It was too straight to be natural, yet too old to be modern. And big to ignore, to boot as well.
I slowed without meaning to, head tilted back, my throat going dry.
"…Wow."
No wonder it was a tourist spot. If you weren't overwhelmed by its sense of grandeur you could almost admire it.
Almost.
The closer I got, the busier it became. There were hunters gathered near the entrance—some in full gear, sleek armour plates and reinforced boots, others in casual streetwear but with expensive weapons strapped to their hips like fashion accessories. I saw a woman with a spear taller than she was, a guy with a shield that looked like it could stop a bus, and someone who I could only assume was a support mage. They were carrying more potions than needed, their pockets overflowing with flasks.
Mixed between them were awakened civilians, and office workers. They had a sharp air about them. People that had been in the tower zone countless times. The very act embedded into their everyday lives. And hovering near the entrance were Association staff.
'Just like taxes, you can never escape them.'
But it seemed here though they acted more like… lifeguards at a beach rather than a regulatory body. Just there to ensure no trouble occurs outside the tower. They wore black suited uniforms with black glasses.
The kind that secret agents wore, when about to go on a top secret mission in the movies. Furthermore, as if only to reinforce this image were the tablets they carried. Most just stood around looking bored, occasionally pointing someone in the right direction or stopping an argument before it escalated into something worse.
I approached the main entrance, then hesitated, suddenly aware that I had no idea where I was actually meant to go. The Tower entrance area was huge—wide steps leading to a massive archway, beyond which I could see light and movement.
I didn't want to walk in and immediately look like a lost child. Which was funny, because Mr. B would say I always looked like a lost child. I scanned for someone who looked harmless, then picked a random bystander—an awakened guy in casual clothes, holding a paper cup like he'd just come here for vibes.
"Hey," I said, trying to sound casual. "Quick question."
He glanced at me, eyes flicking to my hoodie, my shorts then back to my face then my shorts. A small vein popped around my head. What was he looking so intently for? Had he never seen people coming back bloody from a tower before.
"…Yeah?"
"I'm here for the tutorial," I said. "Where do I actually go?"
He blinked, pausing for a moment before pointing at the archway.
"You just go in," he said. "Main plaza's inside. There's staff and attendants who explain stuff. You can't really miss it."
"Just… walk in," I repeated.
"Yep," he said, sipping his drink. "Must be rough coming from a dungeon right to the tower."
"Urgh... yeah."
I nodded once, then said my goodbyes.
Just as I was about to walk inside, I heard something from behind me.
"Mom," a small voice whispered, not nearly as quietly as it thought it was. "Is she homeless?"
I froze. A woman quickly shushed her child. "Don't stare and point, it's not nice," she muttered, gently steering the kid away.
'HOMELESS?!'
I was not homeless… okay. I might have looked like a lost, disheveled person, but homeless? Seriously? I was just economically challenged. Embarrassed to the core, I beelined toward the entrance.
***
Crossing the threshold didn't feel like entering a building but more akin to stepping into a different space. The air changed instantly upon entering. It was cooler and cleaner, with that faint smell of seasoned hunters that you could feel under your skin. The light inside was bright without being harsh. The ceiling impossibly high, arching into shadows. It was hard to describe. The Tower had taken the concept of the plaza and then asked, what if we made it divine? Grand would be the best word, yet even that felt utterly shallow to the scene in front of me.
A massive open hall stretched out in front of me. There were balconies, staircases, elevated walkways, and a central area filled with people moving in every direction like ants in a cathedral. It felt like a place that wasn't built for humans but participants of a crazy challenge. As I walked forward, I caught fragments of conversations drifting past.
"…Floor fourteen's been insane lately—"
"…No, I'm telling you, there was a rabbit man that stole my gear!—"
"…my guildmate got wiped because someone triggered the wrong condition—"
"…never trust a chest that's too clean—"
Hunter talk, real hunter talk.
Not forum arguments or the highlight reels that I was used too, but the real stuff. The kind of conversations you'd only hear when people had actually been there. My pace slowed slightly. My earlier confidence wavering under the feeling of excitement… and a little bit of fear. Then I spotted an attendant near an information desk. He was well dressed in what looked to be a cabin crew uniform. It was dark blue matching his rigid and calm, posture perfect customer service appearance.
I approached and cleared my throat.
"Excuse me."
The attendant turned, smiling. His uniform was neat, hair perfectly combed, and his expression had the practiced warmth of someone who'd explained the same thing a thousand times without losing patience.
"Welcome to New Tokyo Tower," he said smoothly. "How may I assist you?"
"I'm here to… do the tutorial," I said, then hesitated. Saying it out loud made it feel a lot more real.