The Player that Can’t Level Up

“You sealed Lee Sun-Ho away?” Gi-Gyu couldn’t believe it. It was true that no one had seen much of Lee Sun-Ho recently, but he hadn’t expected to find out his whereabouts like this.

‘And to be sealed away? By his own guild members?’ It was unbelievable, so Gi-Gyu studied Kang Ji-Hee.

“Could you get rid of that lizardman…?” Kang Ji-Hee requested cautiously. When Gi-Gyu looked back, he noticed the lizardman giving the stink eye to her guild members.

“Kirrrk! Kirkuk!”

Gi-Gyu's attack had already left the members injured enough, so it looked like they were just marinating in their suffering now.

“That’s enough,” Gi-Gyu ordered.

“Kirrk…” The lizardman looked saddened by Gi-Gyu’s order but quickly backed away.

Kang Ji-Hee requested, “If it’s okay with you, may I heal my guild members before we continue our conversation?”

“I’ll do it.” Gi-Gyu had no time to waste. Even talking to her like this seemed like a waste of time to him. He splashed some white light on them by waving his hand.

“...!” The wounded Angela Guild members on the ground looked at each other in shock. Their injuries had healed instantly.

“And our stamina too…!” Being in the Tower exhausted one physically and mentally, and Gi-Gyu had mended both. Even the support category high-rankers couldn’t heal this many players all at once.

“How…?!” The Angela Guild members were in disbelief, while Kang Ji-Hee stared at Gi-Gyu with an odd look.

She stammered, “H-how… do you have that p-power?”

“Pardon?” Gi-Gyu frowned.

“You’re the Trumpet of Apocalypse, so how did you use the power of Life?” asked Kang Ji-Hee.

It was now Gi-Gyu’s turn to be shocked. “Do you know about Life?”

That question made him sound like a cult member; it was wholly unintentional.

***

To Gi-Gyu’s surprise, Kang Ji-Hee was aware of Life. Most high-rankers Gi-Gyu had met so far were ignorant of this power. Even Lou didn’t know much about it in the past.

“Life is…” Kang Ji-Hee seemed hesitant and still in disbelief, but she explained, “It’s the power our guild master used to use… Only a few most important members of our guild are aware of it.”

“Lee Sun-Ho can use Life?” Gi-Gyu was just as confused, as he had no idea Lee Sun-Ho could also use Life.

Kang Ji-Hee quickly recovered from her shock and apologized, “First, I’m very sorry for attacking you without listening to you.”

“May I ask why you did that?” Gi-Gyu wasn’t upset about the Angela Guild attacking him because he hadn’t treated them like a threat. After all, no human would get angry at an ant for attacking them.

“That was because… our guild master’s condition worsened after he met you,” explained Kang Ji-Hee.

“...?” Gi-Gyu had many questions, but he listened patiently. Kang Ji-Hee tried her best to explain quickly and efficiently what “sealing Lee Sun-Ho away” meant, why they had attacked him, and why they were outside the 79th-floor entrance.

Kang Ji-Hee seemed relieved to have Gi-Gyu here. Her anxiety slowly decreased as she talked to him.

‘Is it because she wants to rely on someone?’ Gi-Gyu wondered.

“Anyway, so that’s what happened…” When Kang Ji-Hee finished, Gi-Gyu realized why she had felt relief.

“So the other two deputy guild masters and the White Warriors are sealing Lee Sun-Ho away, and you and your men were on your way to deliver necessary supplies?” asked Gi-Gyu to summarize what he had heard.

“Yes, that’s correct.” Kang Ji-Hee had been leading and protecting this group alone, and she was clearly tired. She had called Gi-Gyu the Trumpet of Apocalypse and was hostile toward him at first, but she was beginning to rely on him. She needed someone to rely on, and Gi-Gyu was shocked that she had chosen him.

“You lost contact with the two deputy guild masters and the White Warriors long ago… And now, the entrance to the 79th floor is blocked?” asked Gi-Gyu.

“That’s right…” Kang Ji-Hee looked down as if in shame. Gi-Gyu felt the other Angela Guild members glaring at him. She was their idol, and it seemed they blamed him for making her feel embarrassed.

‘What an absurd bunch,’ Gi-Gyu thought in annoyance. Perhaps they deserved praise for being so loyal and caring deeply for her. Gi-Gyu had trounced her, yet they were still very much devoted to her.

But these Angela Guild players were being stupid. Gi-Gyu had the power to kill them whenever he wished, so how ignorant did they have to be to show hostility toward him?

He ignored them and muttered, “The 79th-floor entrance is blocked…”

Was there another problem he didn’t know about? He knew Kang Ji-Hee wasn’t lying because when he glanced at the door, it seemed firmly closed, strange.

“...” Gi-Gyu turned toward Kang Ji-Hee again in frustration. The reason she had attacked him had something to do with why she had called him the Trumpet of Apocalypse.

‘She said that Lee Sun-Ho called me by that same name.’ Gi-Gyu still couldn’t forget the meeting with Lee Sun-Ho. He was a powerful player who had given Gi-Gyu a year to live. Lee Sun-Ho hadn’t seemed hostile toward Gi-Gyu, but he was certainly wary of him.

Kang Ji-Hee had explained that the Angela Guild had created a separate department that solely focused on Gi-Gyu. And they all called him the Trumpet of Apocalypse.

Kang Ji-Hee was one of the deputy guild masters of the Angela Guild, but she was a little different from the other two. She didn’t have as much power or authority as the other two. Her title was seemingly a nominal one.

‘That must be why she was left behind like this.’ Kang Ji-Hee had been excluded from sealing away Lee Sun-Ho, but this also meant that Lee Sun-Ho trusted her.

“Haa…” Gi-Gyu rubbed his forehead. Kang Ji-Hee’s story was concise but complicated.

“So Lee Sun-Ho is being sealed away because after meeting with me, his condition began worsening. But after the battle with Ha Song-Su, he totally lost it. Am I getting this right?”

“‘Lost it?!” When Gi-Gyu asked, Kang Ji-Hee and the other players frowned in displeasure.

“Well, he did kill his guild members. What else can you call that?” Gi-Gyu replied. Based on what he had heard, it sounded like Lee Sun-Ho had gone crazy. He hadn’t witnessed anything personally, but given what the rumors and the news said about Lee Sun-Ho’s personality, he didn’t seem like the guy who would kill his fellow guild members. The only explanation was that Lee Sun-Ho had gone mad, and his guild had no choice but to seal him away.

“It’s true that the last time I saw him, he wasn’t looking good,” Gi-Gyu muttered. He didn’t believe Kang Ji-Hee was lying. Lee Sun-Ho’s shell was polluted and getting worse at the time. Gi-Gyu hadn’t known this pollutant's identity when he had met Lee Sun-Ho, but now he could make a reasonable guess.

‘It’s probably Chaos. Lee Sun-Ho is being eaten away by Chaos,’ Gi-Gyu thought. This was why Lee Sun-Ho had demanded the elixir from Soo-Jung.

“All right.” Gi-Gyu shook his head once he knew what he needed to do. “Let’s get to the 79th floor first. I don’t have much time, so I gotta get moving.”

Gi-Gyu looked back and forth between the 79th-floor door and Kang Ji-Hee. He added, “I’ll hear the rest of the story after we reach the 79th floor.”

Kang Ji-Hee still hadn’t told Gi-Gyu everything yet, so they had much to talk about. Forbye, Kang Ji-Hee also needed to climb to where Lee Sun-Ho was being sealed away. So, it was best that they continued their conversation on the 79th floor.

“But how? The door isn’t opening at all. It feels like the knob has been twisted completely,” Kang Ji-Hee replied in a depressed voice.

“The knob is twisted?” Gi-Gyu walked to the 79th-floor entrance door. He grabbed the knob and continued, “If it’s twisted…”

Crunch.

An odd noise rang as Gi-Gyu tried to force open the door. It didn’t open yet, but Gi-Gyu added, “Then why don’t we just take the door off?”

Crackkkk!

The noise continued as giant dark energy from Gi-Gyu slowly swallowed the huge metallic door.

“...!” Kang Ji-Hee and the other players gasped.

***

“Fuck! Fuck!” Go Hyung-Chul shrieked. Lately, he had been swearing a lot more than usual. “Dammit!”

But that couldn’t be helped. Their situation was so desperate that he had to let out some of his frustration one way or the other.

“Get ready!” Go Hyung-Chul yelled. “The barrier will disappear soon.”

Yesterday, something changed in the fight between Ironshield and the unknown player. Go Hyung-Chul couldn’t tell what exactly, but it didn’t matter.

Haures offered, “I’ll give you more of my sorcerous energy!”

Go Hyung-Chul screamed at the Red Players, “I still need more magic!”

The Red Players, who had been resting to recover, replied, “W-we’ll help!”

“You just need our power, right?”

The Red Players sent their magic to Go Hyung-Chul, who used everything he had to maintain the barrier. He didn’t know what was happening outside, but he could at least tell one thing.

‘The fight outside is about to end.’ Go Hyung-Chul could feel that the vicious battle was nearing its end. The entire floor shook as if it was going to crumble down. There was no way Go Hyung-Chul could keep up his barrier in this condition.

“I can’t last much longer!” he screamed. Gi-Gyu still hadn't arrived, and they couldn’t run either.

“I can’t leave Hal and the other knights here!” Go Hyung-Chul yelled. He thought Hal’s evolution was almost over, but Hal and his knights were still immobile like statues. To protect them, Go Hyung-Chul needed to be near them.

“Fuck!” Go Hyung-Chul screamed again when he heard a clear, unmistakable sound.

Crack.

“It’s cracking! You’re all on your own. I will keep the barrier only around the Drake-Knight Order!” Go Hyung-Chul yelled.

Whoooosh!

A giant force swept the entire floor, and the Red Players and Haures just tried their best not to be swept away.

“Ackkkk!” the weakest Red Player screamed. He was the first victim as his body melted; the wave held some kind of acidic energy. “S-save me!”

It was hard to believe that this player had made it this far.

‘This acid is like gastric juice,’ Go Hyung-Chul thought as he concentrated on keeping the barrier around Hal.

“Ughhh…” he groaned as the acid covered the barrier. ‘Is this the end?’

The last of his barrier finally disappeared. The acidic energy would now reach them and corrode them.

Fwoosh!

Just then, a giant black barrier formed around them.

“Huhhh…?” Go Hyung-Chul became confused, but he was an experienced player. He quickly enabled his skill, “Shadow Barrier!”

Realizing he had regained his power, Go Hyung-Chul exclaimed, “Finally! You’re here, you bastard!”