Whizzing.
The chilly wind bites at my face.
"What the hell! Damn it!"
"...Sir, can you please quiet down?"
"Oh, another one's entered."
The shock from the cold was brief; as soon as I opened my eyes, I saw people. Not just one or two, but a bustling crowd of them.
Looking down, I realized I was clad in thick winter clothing. The clothes were bulky, and with so many people, the space felt crowded.
"Man, how many people are there..."
"98 in total."
I hadn't realized I'd spoken aloud, so I wasn't expecting a response.
Turning towards the voice, I spotted a middle-aged Caucasian man with a friendly smile looking at me.
"It's not a big deal. It's displayed above."
Following the man's gesture upwards, sure enough, there were floating numbers in the air.
\[ 98/100 \]
"...Thank you."
I quickly turned away. It might seem rude, but I'm not keen on getting too close to others unless they seem trustworthy like Kang Chan or An Gyeong-jun.
More importantly, where am I?
I push through the crowd, struggling to see ahead due to the wall of people.
After about 30 seconds, I finally break free from the throng.
Thud.
"Ouch..."
I bumped my nose on something invisible. Thankfully, I was moving slowly due to the crowd.
Reaching out, I felt a transparent, dome-like barrier. The crowd wasn't huddled because of the cold; they were trapped inside this barrier.
"This seems to disappear when 100 people gather..."
Drawing my hand away from the barrier, I looked up.
Above was a chillingly blue sky and heavy falling snowflakes. Lowering my gaze slightly, jagged mountain peaks pierced the sky. And at ground level, I saw walls forming a barrier, the ground covered in a layer of snow.
Right. I'm inside some sort of fortress, surrounded by stone walls.
"Hmm..."
Turning around, I saw a rather rudimentary-looking fortress. Not a fancy castle you'd find in fantasy tales, but more of a functional, fortified design. Bulky, old, and robust.
So, this seems to be the courtyard of the fortress...
"Hey, another one just entered, making it 99."
"It's not too cold thanks to the clothes..."
"My legs hurt from standing..."
The chattering about the player count was evident. Everyone seemed keenly interested in the numbers.
"...Excuse me."
"...Yes?"
I approached a man who was constantly looking up, his eyes squinted. I had no particular reason, but he looked like he'd been here for a while, judging by the snow on his clothes.
"Um... what's that over there?"
Across the courtyard from our barrier, about 100 meters away, there was a dark, dome-like structure. Completely out of place amidst the historical walls, it was a shiny, jet-black entity. It was at least three times bigger than our barrier and made me uneasy just looking at it.
"Oh, that? I'm not sure. It's been there since I arrived. Probably nothing to worry about."
But the nonchalant man genuinely seemed to believe it was benign.
"...But what if something jumps out of it?"
"Well, then we'd fight, I guess. Usually, at the start of a level, they give you weapons, right? Since there aren't any weapons inside this barrier, I assume it's probably harmless."
"...I see."
I initially thought he was being overly optimistic, but he had a valid point. Yeah, they should provide weapons at the start. It's not like they'd expect players without any items to just die.
"By the way, you look like you can handle yourself... If there's a competition among the players, maybe we could form an alliance..."
"I'm sorry."
I declined the man's offer and took a walk around the perimeter of the barrier. The snow was heavy, the fortress was old, and the mountains were tall. I wondered if I should have waited for Cho Ji-won. I felt a bit uneasy. "...It's quite impressive."
Amidst the falling snowflakes, the majestic mountain range stood tall, exuding beauty. I felt an urge to climb to the top. It reminded me of an old Windows desktop wallpaper - a peculiar sensation of being drawn into it.
"Hey, hey! We're at 100!"
"Has the mission appeared? I can't see it."
What pulled me out of my reverie was the loud exclamations of others.
Unconsciously, I looked up and saw the count updated to [100/100].
"...Is it starting?"
As I muttered to myself, a message window appeared before my eyes.
\[ All participants have gathered. \]
\[ The 4th floor begins. \]
< 4th Floor >
- Clear condition: Survive for 5 days. Once the timer ends, you'll automatically clear and move to the 1st floor. -120:00:00
As the message appeared, the protective barrier that held the 100 players vanished.
"Wait... survival?"
"This seems a bit messed up..."
Yet, no one moved. Everyone was frozen, rereading the message in front of them.
The 1st floor was essentially not a level but a resting area, almost like a base camp.
The 2nd floor, albeit I struggled through it, was a mild level without any casualties. Due to my influence, beginners now use the 2nd floor to familiarize themselves with combat.
The 3rd floor was incredibly challenging for me because I had chosen the hardest difficulty. But for others, it seemed moderate, assuming they chose a difficulty suited to their skills.
Based on what I read online, the clear rate was over 70%. Since one death meant failure for all, there weren't any trolls.
Thus, everyone was in a relaxed state. The emphasis on 'cooperation' in the 3rd floor fostered camaraderie among players.
But suddenly, the 4th floor's mission was 'survival.'
Simply put, survival meant clearing the level. It's a straightforward condition, but at the same time...
"...What's going to happen?"
Whatever was coming seemed to threaten our survival.
Everyone was reminded of the tutorial where, unless you killed the hidden boss, only 25% survived. The despair, the blood, the chaos, the fury from then...
Whizzing.
Although 100 people stood there, only the wind was audible in the courtyard.
"Hey, run!"
"Let's go!"
Breaking the silence, a group of 5 charged towards the fortress.
"Look for food first!"
The group, consisting of three men and two women, each held a weapon. Judging by their glow, they seemed like items, likely purchased with gold rewards from the 2nd floor.
"Oh, oh!"
"Hey, let's follow them!"
It seemed people finally realized they could be competing against each other, and the majority began running towards the fortress.
It was smart for the initial group to start looking for food. If supplies were limited, food would become power. The intensifying snowfall also made seeking shelter inside the fortress appealing.
After a while, only a few remained in the courtyard, including the friendly smiling middle-aged Caucasian man and the squint-eyed man who had approached me earlier. Around ten people in total.
After a brief exchange of glances, I was certain of two things:
First, those who remained here were confident, likely believing they could resort to force if necessary to secure food.
Secondly, these people had sharp instincts.
"You all are quite keen, aren't you?"
The squint-eyed man said with a grin. His gaze was fixed on the black dome on the other side of the courtyard.
Amidst the chaos of messages and the rush towards the fortress,
Crack.
A crack began to form on the black dome.
Ordinary folks, caught up in their panic, didn't notice, but those here did.
Crack. Crack.
Initially, it was just a hairline fracture, but the crack started to expand... Crash!
With a burst of black smoke, it was completely destroyed.
So, what's going to emerge?
A monster? Weapons? Food? Or perhaps an angel?
Thanks to the strong gusts, the smoke was quickly blown away, revealing the interior.
The ten players cautiously approached the hemisphere, exchanging glances.
Inside the revealed hemisphere...
"Cough, cough..."
"Heave, heave..."
"Oooo..."
There were people. Lots of them.
Their numbers far exceeded the count of players, easily surpassing 300.
"Wha..."
"What is this..."
While the players knew something was bound to emerge, they hadn't expected such a massive group of people. The players stood bewildered, not knowing how to react, when...
"Cough, is anyone there?"
From within the smoke, a man emerged, coughing continuously.
"I am Count Jorge! I need help!"
A long beard, traditional attire, and although his words were translated to Korean, there was a distinct and unfamiliar accent to his speech.
He was very, very likely not from Earth.
Towering mountains, fierce snowstorms, an old castle, and the sudden appearance of hundreds of beings from another realm.
The 4th floor... began just like that.