Transformed into Cosmic Horror in a Sci-Fi Universe

Lee Hyunsoo’s tower climb progressed smoothly.

He cleared floors quickly with exceptional skill, barely needing my support.

Wow, I guess I have a good eye for people.

I picked a character that’s just like a protagonist.

He joined the advance team in no time, clearing up to the 50th floor.

From that point on, the name Lee Hyunsoo was already widely known throughout the tower.

Hyunsoo the Sword Demon.

A nickname given to him for his outstanding swordsmanship and his merciless slashing of anyone or anything he considered an enemy, be it human or monster.

Hmm, Sword Demon, huh.

It’s a bit chuunibyou-esque, but it’s definitely cool.

Of course, it’s not like my help was completely unnecessary.

As he climbed the tower, there were several times he nearly died, and he faced various crises, both mental and otherwise.

Each time, I helped him by appropriately granting skills or providing a bit of assistance to keep him from breaking.

Without such help, he might have remained an ordinary person, settling for the 20th floor or dying midway.

Well, given Hyunsoo’s personality, as long as he didn’t die, he might have overcome the crises and moved forward again even if he had faltered.

[ At this rate, he’ll reach the 100th floor in no time. ]

It’s going more smoothly than expected.

With my help on top of that, it’s so smooth it’s almost boring.

No, it is fun, you know?

I like tower climbing stories too.

I enjoy content where the protagonist faces trials floor by floor and overcomes them.

But how should I put it… I wish there was something more dramatic.

[ When he reaches it, we’ll have to grant his wish. What kind of wish do you think he’ll make? ]

[ Well… ]

Idra is watching with interest from the side.

This woman, despite all her talk about precious life forms, seems to be starting to enjoy this too.

I guess the fundamental nature of an outer god, driven only by interest and curiosity, doesn’t really change.

Speaking of wishes, though.

That part is certainly interesting.

What kind of wish will Hyunsoo make?

If I looked into his heart, I could quickly find out what kind of wish he wants to make right now.

But there’s no reason to do that.

I don’t want to spoil the ending for myself, and anyway, his current wish might not be the same as the one he’ll make when he reaches the 100th floor.

For now, I’ll just watch him desperately climb floor by floor.

#

99th floor.

Finally, just one step left.

How many things have happened until now.

He met countless people, and all those people either died or had to be killed by his own hands.

They were those who climbed the tower to fulfill their wishes and return to their original world, those who settled in their places out of fear of death, friends, lovers… they were ‘people’ alive just like him.

After facing countless trials and witnessing their deaths, he thought.

‘Why am I climbing the tower?’

Why?

To return to the original world?

Because there’s a wish I desperately want to make?

At first, it was just a proof of himself.

A reenactment of his life living by the sword, and its proof.

And he proved it.

That his sword is strong.

That walking the path of the sword wasn’t wrong.

In other words, for him, the concept of a wish was meaningless.

Because reaching the top floor of the tower by himself was as good as fulfilling his wish.

In front of the portal leading to the 100th floor.

Based on the information obtained on the 84th floor, he knows that the top of this tower is the 100th floor.

In other words, the end.

Standing before the end, Hyunsoo thought.

‘Why am I climbing the tower? When I reach the 100th floor, what should I do?’

If I return to the original world, what’s waiting for me there?

Is it just a rock-bottom life where everything is over again?

What wish should I make?

To become rich?

I’m not sure if money would have such meaning.

To let me wield a sword again?

He has already seen the end of the sword.

It’s meaningless to wish for something that has already been fulfilled.

‘Why am I climbing the tower? What is the tower? Why does it draw us in and make us like this?’

As he pondered, Hyunsoo arrived at a fundamental question.

What exactly is the tower?

Why does it exist, and why does it gather people?

It was a truth he didn’t necessarily need to know, but nothing else came to mind.

“…I’ve decided.”

As if he had made some decision, he nodded and stepped onto the portal leading to the 100th floor.

Whoosh─

His figure disappeared, and when he reappeared, it was on the long-awaited 100th floor.

The top of the tower.

The 100th floor looked just like the 0th floor, the tutorial floor that existed right before entering the 1st floor.

A wide space surrounded by stone walls on all sides.

Inside, there was nothing but a bright light shining.

‘A nostalgic sight.’

He recalled the time when he first entered the 1st floor.

Was that already 10 years ago?

He was surprised that it took 10 years to climb up to the 100th floor.

Perhaps because he had lived so intensely, it felt like not much time had passed.

[ Finally, someone has reached this place. ]

As he was slightly lost in reminiscence, a voice was heard.

A voice that seemed to resonate directly in his head.

It wasn’t hard to guess.

That this voice belonged to the owner of the tower, the one who created it.

[ O first one to reach here, speak your wish. As promised, I shall grant any wish of yours. ]

Hearing those words, Hyunsoo paused for a moment, then nodded and spoke.

“Right, you said you’d grant any wish. Then…”

He took a deep breath and spoke to the owner of the tower.

“I want to know everything about the tower. Why it was created, why it draws us in. What is the identity of the tower and you. Everything.”

[ ……. ]

Perhaps it was an unexpected wish, as the owner of the tower didn’t answer immediately.

But soon, with a voice full of amusement as if very interested, he asked.

[ Kukuku, won’t you regret it? Even if you learn everything? ]

A tone as if he would definitely regret it.

At those words, Hyunsoo felt a bit uneasy.

What could it be?

What truth could be hidden in this tower to make him speak like that?

It made him even more curious.

“I might regret it. I don’t know what I’ll learn, and my mental state might break. But…”

Still, he wanted to know.

He couldn’t think of any other wish.Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn

[ Huhu, good. Very interesting. I’ll show you the ‘truth’. ]

Swoosh─

As he said that, the space turned black.

No, should I say black?

The expression ‘colorless’ might be more appropriate.

A space that seemed to lack the concept of color.

In that empty space, Hyunsoo’s body floated up.

‘What is this place?’

It’s confusing.

Could this be the ‘outside of the tower’ he had only heard about?

That place where no concepts exist, just a gap between dimensions?

As he was feeling confused, someone appeared before his eyes.

Boom─

“?!”

It was enormous.

No other words came to mind to describe it.

There were no words to describe it other than that.

Bizarre? Horrific? Evil? Awe-inspiring? Terror?

How could one explain that with any of these?

The moment he saw it, a new kind of emotion he had never felt before began to surge.

Of course, it was certain that this emotion was not a good one.

Ah, just one thing.

There was one more thing to express.

Red eyes.

Enormous and red eyes.

The moment he faced them, he felt his head growing hot.

‘Kuhek…! Kheuk!’

He’s suffocating.

He wants to scream, but no sound comes out.

What could it be?

Is this the truth of the tower?

Is this the owner of the tower?

His thoughts aren’t connecting.

It felt bizarre and unfamiliar, as if his consciousness was being jumbled up at random.

[ I will show you. The truth. ]

The enormous red eyes conveyed the words.

And along with the words, it conveyed a certain ‘fact’.

It was.

‘This can’t be. Why? Why on earth… such a thing…’

The truth of this world.

The truth of the tower.

The owner of the tower, in other words, the creator who made this world.

That it was a game-like world created just to fulfill his pleasure.

That he was merely a chess piece for his interest, living in this trivial and small world that was created like that.

Even the fact that he was arbitrarily designated as the protagonist of this world, and arbitrarily helped to climb up to the 100th floor.

“Ah, uah…”

His voice, which had been blocked by the utterly futile and incredible fact, flowed out.

Futility, emptiness, despondency.

At that emotion settling deep in his heart, tears streamed down his face.

The fact that he was such a trivial and small existence.

The fact that his life until now was just created and controlled.

The fact that all of this was consumed just for a moment of pleasure for that being.

It was a truth too horrific and hard to accept.

[ How is it? I told you you’d regret it, didn’t I? This is the truth of your world and yourself. ]

He couldn’t say anything.

Except for glaring at it with resentful eyes.

But even that had no meaning.

Because to it, this was nothing more than an interesting moment.

[ Thanks to you, it was fun at the end. As a special reward for entertaining me, I’ve prevented your mind from collapsing, so be grateful. Ah, and I’ll grant you one more special wish. What wish do you want to make? ]

Asking for a wish at this timing?

How ironic, Hyunsoo thought.

And he answered without any hesitation or delay.

“…Erase the memories I saw here.”

[ Alright. I’ll do that. ]

As if even that wish pleased him, the owner of the tower seemed to smile slightly.