Chapter 207 The Tower

In the position he was in, it was the worst case scenario as he was directly in front of the Defect which bore an endless amount of barrels from its body.

The humming of those weapons charging filled his ears in that minuscule passage of time that slowed to a crawl as his heightened perception attempted to find any avenue of escape in the face of insurmountable death.

All of those guns…! I'm right in front of them! What do I do?! Think! Think–! He urged himself.

With no shielding around him, he did the only thing he could think of: release the innate realm.

Just as it crumbled away, returning them to the desecrated street–BOOM.

All of the guns fired off, though he had no way of defending himself but holding his arms up and praying his daggers took the brunt of the attack.

He saw it.

In his slowed perception, gunfire filled his vision like fireworks, lighting the dreadful street around him with its radiance.

…It's pretty, he thought.

For some reason, at that moment, he wasn't scared. In the face of the inevitable volley of bullets, his mind went at ease, seeing as there was nothing he could do.

It came.

It showered down on his flesh like steel rain, piercing the fabric of his clothes and biting past his skin. All he could hope to do was defend his own head, but the rest of his body was subject to the brutal gunfire.

Through his hands, his feet; his arms, his legs; into his stomach, his chest—it rained down. He had made sure to disable Sage Period before, but it didn't seem to matter in the end.

This was death; he was certain of that much.

…I'm…not scared. I don't regret it! I did what I had to do! Is that what you want to hear?! Do you want to hear me lamenting my own choices in the end?! Not happening…! He thought.

It felt like an eternity that the bullets ate away at his flesh, filling him with holes as all he could do was stand his ground and hold his daggers in front of his head, flinching each time their steel miraculously deflected in an incoming bullet that sought his head.

–Finally, by some other stray miracle, the gunfire stopped.

[Health -1000 | 100/3500]

The streets had been carved up and filled with holes, cars annihilated, and windows obliterated. It wasn't much different for himself as he stood there with steam pouring off of him.

The gunfire had stopped for one simple reason:

["The Exterminator" defeated | +5000 EXP | 19700/20000]

As the assault came to an end, he couldn't help but laugh to himself as blood seeped out of every orifice of his body.

"...Just shy of a level, huh? There really is some God out there out to get me…"

He was quivering just standing. There were holes drilled into his body numbering in the dozens; he was drenched in his own blood while simply standing there with heavy breaths.

[Prioritizing the minimization of blood loss–]

"...Don't bother…" He smiled slightly.

…I'm done here. I can't move, he thought.

After standing for another few moments, he fell over backwards onto the asphalt. There was hardly a beautiful sky to greet his eyes as he stared upward, finding only that hellish horizon staring back down at him.

I did what I could. That's enough, right? This time…I didn't let anybody die. That's good, right?...So, I can rest, then? He thought.

His breathing was uneven and shallow as he gasped for air through his throat that had been nicked by one of the bullets previously. Each breath came in and out like a wheeze as his lungs and ribs both had been pierced.

A hum filled his ears as he witnessed strands of light flowing through the crimson clouds above.

What's…? He thought.

There were many of these trails of light, all seemingly coalescing at one spot. All he could do was lift his head just slightly as he looked to where they gathered.

The Tower.

It was now glowing with such shining divinity like a beacon of hope; vibrating with a warm energy that propelled outward.

[Attention all players.]

[The Tower is now open. Those that have reached the required minimum level of [20] may now enter. There is a Tower available in each city around the world. They will all meet in the same place.]

[Please arrive with haste. The entrance will close in thirty minutes.]

[Congratulations. Jeong-Hui. You've passed the requirement to enter the Tower. Please make your way to your city's Tower.]

"..."

It felt like a cruel joke to him, almost prompting him to laugh again if he had the vigor to spare for such an act.

"So close, yet so far," was the sentiment in his mind as he watched the trails of light that pulsated within the hellish clouds.

Still, he wasn't bitter for very long as he realized what this meant.

They'll make it…They'll get out of here. Yeong-Un, Sol, Korain, Ma-Ri, Eunji, and Xiaodan…You'll all make it, he thought.

"...Thank goodness…"

It was acceptable to him.

The wounds he suffered; he knew there was no right way he would live on. Blood loss continued, though minimized by his System, it was an inevitable death that was approaching.

It's fine. You can't make stupid choices like I did and expect to go on living scot free, right…? I carved my path with my own decisions…and if this is where it led me, so be it…He told himself.

As he laid there with a puddle of blood forming beneath him with a warmness that gathered under his back, he stared up at the clouded sky with his emerald irises that were hollow of light.

But, for just a brief moment, he remembered.

That silver hair; it was always popping up in the corner of his eye.

"...Kamou…"

The name left his lips weakly. Just saying it invoked a painful twist of his heart and a lump in his throat. That silver hair of hers was as seraphic as the Tower itself; it provided a nostalgic warmth to him even as a fragmented memory.

It was that warmth that filled his emerald irises with a shine again as he began to twitch his fingers.

…What am I doing…? He questioned.

Though all he wanted to do was lay still on the desolated street and await his end, he began to force himself up.

Why did I come all this way…? Why did I go through all of that pain…? Did they die…just so I could lay down and die right before the end…? No…that's not it at all…! He thought.

"Ghh…!"

He winced as blood seeped from his lips, using the meager strength left in his dying body as he sat up, feeling the pellets still burrowed in his body, cutting into his flesh from within at the slightest movement.

By some miracle of its own, he picked himself up to his feet, though nearly fell back over as he stumbled and coughed out a heaping amount of crimson fluid.

"...Huff…"

As he looked up, he found the world already beginning to change once more with the opening of the Tower having happened: fire rained from the skies, bringing desolation to the world below.

The ground vibrated beneath his feet with the constant rumbling of the falling world, but he dragged his boots forward, leaving a trail of blood as he did so.

"--"

Move forward. Just keep…moving forward! He urged himself.

The Tower wasn't very far, but it was just distant enough to feel like a faraway dream just out of reach of his fingertips. It was a mile away–a straight shot down the street.

FWOOM.

Loud noises filled his ears, but he kept his eyes forward despite the apocalyptic forces raining down on the world now in its final hours.

Massive creatures of dark flesh descended on the world, bearing curved horns and auras of utter dread.

[Enemy Identified: ??? | Level 300]

He didn't pay them any mind; there was only enough willpower and strength in his body to focus simply on moving forward.

Move it…Just keep…moving it! He thought.

The pale-white pellets that were shot at him had either bore holes right through him or remained in his flesh still; those that remained continued to twist and stab into his interior bio with each step he took forward.

Each step was a massive declaration of his will to live; they were slow and hardly of much progress, but he continued dragging his boots along.

The gunfire had fractured many of his bones–especially those in his legs as his femur had a pellet drilled right into it still, creating an unbearable agony with each step taken.

Fuck…! It hurts! Just…clench your teeth, dammit! He thought.

He wanted to give in. It was a torturous act just to continue walking forward. What made it worse was the idea that he did have the capabilities of disabling his own sense of pain, but that would only be possible within Sage Period. But, activating Sage Period at such proximity to death was simply unacceptable.

If a demon or Defect came his way, it'd be game over. At this point, even the smallest scratch would bury him in the decaying Earth.

Don't think about the pain…! Don't! Don't!...Don't! He repeated.

He'd continued to hope that eventually the pain would be too much and that his body would simply abandon the concept of pain entirely, but no such respite was found in his egregious, desperate march.

"...Huff…"

Exhaling sharply, his own breaths felt like flames exuding from his nostrils and between his clenched teeth.

Blood trickled down from his forehead as deflected bullets had still scraped his head beforehand, leaving his own blood running across his eyes in an attempt to blind him.

–

It was in clear sight now. In full view, but just two blocks away now, he saw the opened entrance of the Tower. In every way, it was immaculate–shining brightly like a star in the night sky; the lone beauty left in the decaying world.

"Just a bit further," he had to repeat to himself continuously just to supplement his body with embers of motivation to continue.

The world was in complete shambles; around him buildings decayed to the falling flames, the atmosphere was thin of oxygen and bountiful of smoke; cracks began to stretch along the asphalt as the gargantuan entities in the distance continued laying desolation across the Earth's crust.

Giants of abyssal complexion carved up the streets, striking down the creations of mankind and stamping out any remnants of its existence.

"This is the end," he realized when looking upon this dreadful scenery.

It was all over. The world he was born on, that served as the catalyst for a flourishing history, was now being unraveled by the will of its creator.

But, there was no time to say goodbye, and no time to lament its end–all there was inside of his body was the will to keep marching forward with his broken body.

The temperature was nothing short of scorching; it was already an unlivable environment for humans by this point as flames seemed to interlace the air itself. It infiltrated his lungs, making it even harder to breath on top of them being pierced and bruised from his sustained injuries.

"--"

As he huffed out with the smell of fire and blood filling his nose, he continued dragging himself forward–BOOM.

One of the nearby buildings exploded, releasing into flames as the shock wave emitted outward, knocking him down as any passing breeze might have.

"Ghh…!"

Even just falling like that was agony. His flesh was tender and his bones brittle, but he began to pick himself up once more.

…I want it…I want to live, too! He thought.

He dug his fingernails into the asphalt as he managed to weakly raise himself to his feet again, marching forward.

The vision he was equipped with was hazy at best; the blurry world around him was orange, illuminated by flames and clouded by ash.

Inside of his lungs, ash and smoke billowed as he coughed out a mixture of saliva and blood, pushing on as he drew closer to the Tower's opening now.

It was so close; he could see it clearly now: an entrance forged of light, opened in the body of the radiant structure. Such a door seemed like the gates of Heaven itself.

…Don't do this to me now, body. Not when we're this close. Not after all of this. Just a bit further! He thought.

There were only but a dozen steps between him and the seraphic opening; a breeze of golden light emitted from the Tower's entrance, brushing past him with a warmth unlike any he had felt before.

"--"

Each breath came as a laborious task; his bruised and shattered ribs felt as if they were prodding his lungs with each inhale.

…Please…He thought.

Around him, the world continued to be on the receiving end of utter destruction; buildings crumbled and streets were carved up, and all he could do was drag his feet little by little.

"Gah-!"

As he reached out towards the entrance, the strength in his body finally gave out, resulting in him falling over just short of the light-forged door.

"--"

There was nothing more painful than this situation. Nothing in his life felt quite so bitter and spiteful than falling now of all times–just mere inches short of reaching the heavenly entrance to the Tower.

I can't feel my legs…! My body…is giving out! He thought.

All he could do was hardly move his fingertips, attempting to drag himself forward, though that was a complete longshot.

"--"

As he laid there on the ground with his ears ringing from the desolation thundering throughout the world in its last hours, he looked up.

He saw a sight that he didn't know whether he welcomed or wished stayed in the back of his mind. But, it was there.

"...Kamou…? Myung-Hee? Hyun? Ara?" He said quietly through a weak voice.

It was hazy at best, but there was no mistaking the figures he saw in front of him, standing over him.

What he expected were expressions of scorn; words of belittlement and a true outlet of their spite towards his failures. Part of him wanted that–he needed to hear it; there needed to be a tangible explanation for his lamentation.

But, they were simply smiling. There were no words given to him.

It's so warm, he thought.

For that moment, all of the pain inside of his body subsided, if only for that moment, but it was enough.

There was only numbness throughout his limbs, but he gritted his teeth and summoned what meager strength he had left anyway, pressing his palms against the burning asphalt as he began to slowly lift himself.

My story won't end here…There's still so much I have to do–so much I have to know, he thought.

[Undying Proficiency: +1 | 4/20]

[Zombie Self-Sustain: +1 | 3/10]

[New Skill(s) Acquired: System Evolution]

With a quivering body and lungs filled with ash, he returned to his feet. Though just a slightly stronger gust of wind would be enough to knock him down, he pushed forward one last time, stepping past the threshold of light.

Everything was put into that final stride forward; only one foot was left standing on Earth as the other stepped past the boundary of Heaven–with the next movement, the world behind him would be gone forever.

He looked back once more, seeing the crimson horizon, lit ablaze by the destruction set into it by forces of unknown scale.

"--"

There wasn't a word that came to mind before he finally looked forward once more, stepping into the entrance of the unknown, ever-enigmatic Tower.