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Chapter 165

The reward for clearing the 13th floor was an XP elixir and a trait called Quick Reflexes.

- Quick Reflexes [C]

You won’t be tripping over your own feet anymore. Your reflexes improve proportionally to your stats.

Since the 13th floor was set in a desert wasteland, it made sense that a gunslinger-style skill would be the reward. After a few simple tests with Choi Ji-won, I could tell—my reflexes had definitely sharpened.

More specifically, my reaction time to attacks had improved. It felt like my thoughts condensed in high-pressure situations, becoming sharper.

“Ji-won, did you get this trait too?”

“Yeah. Looks like everyone who cleared the floor got it.”

“Hmm...”

To be honest, Ji-won and I had always relied on predicting enemy behavior to fight. Our raw reflexes weren’t anything special, so we learned to read body movements, gaze direction, and strike zones to move in advance.

It’s fair to say we fought by preempting attacks, not reacting to them. In battles where milliseconds decide the outcome, mismatched predictions were what made or broke the fight.

That’s one of the hidden reasons I was able to take down high-ranking players on the 11th floor—not just regression, but this tactical edge.

But now that my reflexes have caught up?

The whole mind game just got a lot more complicated. An enemy could now react just before my attack lands, or I could catch them off-guard mid-ambush and counter before they even land a hit.

In my case, where every injury forces a regression... this trait might actually be a disadvantage.

“But if you ask me,” Ji-won said, tapping her rocket launcher against her shoulder, “the real winners here are the lower- and mid-tier players.”

“It raises the floor of skill. If your stats are decent enough, you can fight purely on physical instinct, even without good technique.”

“That’s... actually true.”

“I’m guessing the gap between those who cleared floor 13 and those who haven’t is going to widen. And the gap between them and regular people? Even more so.”

If all our battles so far were sword-to-sword, this feels like everyone just got handed a shield. And if that shield keeps getting bigger and thicker...

There might come a day when even bullets won’t faze a player.

“Well, that’s a problem for future me…”

It’s out of my control. No matter how many times I regress, I can’t stop every player from climbing the Tower and growing stronger.

That’s just the way things are.

“But there’s something on the 13th floor we haven’t found yet.”

Now, my focus shifted to the 13th floor itself. Unlike the 11th floor, where everyone shared a single world, the 13th was structured more like the 4th—generating a new world for each entry.

And I was sure... There was still a secret hidden in there.

“But didn’t the Association say there’s no hidden route or anything like that?”

“You can’t trust the Association’s data blindly. I’ve told you this before.”

“Hmm... Actually, the Association did mention that players aren’t exactly forthcoming with information. You might be right.”

To be fair, maybe there isn’t a literal “hidden route” like I said.

But one thing’s for sure: there’s still something undiscovered.

Because the 13th floor—was different.

On the 11th and 12th floors, if even one person got greedy, everyone else paid the price.

To put it bluntly, those levels were designed to encourage betrayal.

But the 13th floor?

The 13th floor doesn’t seem to have that kind of trap.

Sure, you could argue that “failing to protect the carriage” is the punishment mechanic this time…

But isn’t that too simplistic?

Escort missions are never that straightforward.

They’re built on twists, hidden threats, and traps waiting to be sprung.

Monsters charging in with bloodshot eyes.

The mustached man who showed up once and never again.

A nun appearing out of nowhere.

The invisible barrier cloaking the village…

Too many pieces don’t add up. There’s a secret we haven’t uncovered yet.

“If we can’t get answers in the real world… then there’s only one thing to do.”

Time to go in and test it myself.

***

If I had to name the most suspicious element of the 13th floor, it’d be the carriage.

The horses don’t eat. Don’t drink. Yet they pull it forward like machines.

And inside? It’s packed with strange wooden crates.

My guess?

Opening those crates is the trigger.

That’s where the real events begin—maybe not monsters, but something else entirely.

Something more dangerous.

“So… you’re saying you want to open the crates inside the carriage?”

“Exactly.”

“Hmm…”

Honestly, the cleanest method would be throwing someone else in as bait.

They’ll give in to curiosity eventually and try to poke around.

All I’d need to do is sit back and watch.

But knowing that something’s about to go wrong and still doing nothing?

Yeah, that doesn’t sit right with me.

I’ll try it myself first.

If things go south, then I’ll let someone else handle it.

“I can always regress, right?”

“…Fine.”

After finally convincing Choi Ji-won—

“You must never, ever let the carriage be damaged! Escort it with everything you’ve got!”

The same mustached man gave his usual briefing, and the carriage began to move.

So far, everything was unfolding exactly like last time.

If I’m going to make a move…

Now’s the perfect moment.

While everyone’s still too stunned to react.

“Uh—Uh-uhh!”

“What are you doing?!”

Ssshkk!

Without hesitation, I drew my sword and slashed the tarp covering the lead carriage clean in half. The fabric fluttered to the ground, revealing dozens of wooden crates tightly packed inside.

Crack!

The moment I slammed my fist down on one of them, thick black smoke began to pour out in heavy tendrils, quickly flooding the area.

…!

Instinctively, I held my breath and leapt backward.

But I’d already been exposed—just for a moment.

That smoke… What was it?

Should I… regress?

“Cough, cough… What the hell was that?”

“Hey, are you out of your damn mind?!”

And yet—regression never triggered.

My body felt fine. No signs of sickness or damage.

So what changed?

There had to be a reason for that ominous black smoke…

“Seriously, are you insane? Do you have a death wish?”

“S-Sorry. I thought I heard something inside the crate… Guess I was wrong.”

“Oh, so ‘sorry’ makes it all okay now? You almost got us all killed!”

“Come on, can’t we just let it go? He said he’s sorry.”

“Oh sure—should we just ditch the law and disband the police while we’re at it—Wait. Choi Ji-won?”

“I’ll take full responsibility. Let’s move on. The carriage is still moving.”

“…Fine.”

Thanks to Ji-won stepping in, I avoided getting beaten to a pulp right then and there.

But my head was still a mess.

That black smoke… it had to mean something.

That couldn’t be the end of it.

“…What’s with that guy?”

“No clue. Probably one of Choi Ji-won’s people.”

Under the suspicious stares of the other players, I frantically searched for any signs of change. I circled the carriages again and again until—

“There it is… the horse changed.”

The horse pulling the very carriage I broke into—its eyes had turned red.

Its breathing had become erratic, and it kept baring its teeth and snorting aggressively.

It was slowly turning into a monster, just like the ones that attacked the convoy earlier.

None of the other horses were affected.

Which meant it had to be tied to me breaking the crate.

“…So if a certain number of crates are destroyed, the horses… transform into monsters?”

That would make sense.

We don’t know the path to the destination. We’re simply following wherever the horses lead.

But if all the horses pulling the carriages turn into monsters?

Game over.

No way to clear the floor.

Just a slow death by starvation in the middle of the wasteland.

But still—something didn’t sit right.

Unlike the 11th and 12th floors, I hadn’t seen that clear cause-and-effect punishment mechanic.

The kind where one player’s greed or mistake ruins everything for the group.

“Maybe… we’re supposed to intentionally turn the horse into a monster and follow it wherever it goes? No… that doesn’t feel right either.”

“Let’s wait and see. Something’s bound to happen,” Ji-won advised.

“…Alright.”

Taking her advice, I backed off and simply observed.

Then, a full day later—finally, something changed.

“My body… feels weird.”

One of the players began complaining of noticeable physical weakness.

“I swear, I was fine yesterday. But now I feel… dizzy? Like I’ve got no strength. It’s seriously messed up…”

This guy had been totally fine when Ji-won and I cleared the 13th floor.

So why now?

There was only one answer.

“If even one crate is broken… someone gets debuffed.”

And just like that, the floor’s true mechanic became clear:

A single player’s mistake or greed causes suffering for everyone else.

Just like the previous floors.

If someone breaks a crate out of curiosity in the middle of the night, the horses mutate… and another player’s body starts to shut down.

It’s not about rewarding selfish players.

It’s about making sure everyone pays the price for someone else’s actions.

“Jun-ho, isn’t this… enough?”

“…”

“We just got lucky. We’re strong, we cleared the 13th floor perfectly on the first try. No damage to the carriage, no debuffs. That’s probably why it felt so easy.”

A perfect clear on the first attempt?

It made sense. Even my rational mind was nodding along, saying that was the right answer.

And yet…

Something still gnawed at me.

A vague unease I couldn’t shake.

And then it hit me.

“There’s still something we haven’t seen.”

“…What do you mean?”

“We haven’t found the real mastermind yet.”

Who ordered this bizarre, dangerous cargo to be escorted?

Who hid behind that transparent barrier, cloaked in false holiness?

There was one person who acted suspicious the entire time—a certain nun.

If there’s still a secret left, it’s hidden in that village.

“I need to go inside.”

I had to check the village for myself.

---The End Of The Chapter---

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