Tower

The temperature was rising, rising fast, too fast. Vell wiped the sweat off his brow, feeling the heat bite into his skin, but there was no time to stop. He wandered through the crumbling town, his steps deliberate, killing any monsters that crossed his path with cold efficiency. His hands were slick with sweat, and the air felt like it was made of molten lead, but he pressed on. He had to. The tower was his goal. But when he finally reached it, it was closed.

No matter how hard he punched the massive stone doors, they didn't budge, not even a crack. 

"Looks like this planet is nearing its end, guess we are all going to die… screw that, I will survive, no matter what." 

He'd absorbed more cores in the past few hours than he had in days, each one giving him a fleeting edge, a temporary shield against the unbearable heat that was choking the air. Compared to the regular humans who were probably melting alive by now, he was holding up better—but even he wasn't immune to the relentless inferno closing in. His skin felt like it was boiling beneath his clothes.

He glanced up. The earth—no, it wasn't the earth anymore. The sky above him was something alien, something unnatural, with layers of flame and smoke curling down toward the surface. It felt like the ground itself was being pulled into the sky. The planet was collapsing, literally, folding in on itself like some grotesque origami. And the clock was ticking.

Time left before Earth's destruction: 1 hour.

The heat clawed at him like a living thing. Metal around him began to warp and melt; buildings sagged like they were made of wax. His breath came in ragged bursts, his vision blurring from the heatwaves. Every breath he took felt like inhaling fire. He wasn't just fighting the monsters anymore—he was fighting the planet itself. 

But he didn't stop. He couldn't afford to. His body was screaming for him to lie down, to give in, but he shoved those thoughts away. He reached the tower again and leaned against the doors, his forehead pressing against the cold stone, trying to steady himself.

"Fucking hell." The words escaped his lips, barely a whisper now. 

His legs buckled beneath him, sending him crashing to his knees. He had no strength left, his energy drained. He felt like he was disintegrating, piece by piece. In his hand, he clutched a potion bottle, holding it as if it could anchor him to reality. The glass was almost as hot as the air, but its weight gave him something to focus on.

He grit his teeth and forced himself to stand. His muscles screamed in protest, but he ignored the pain. His fists came up, and he began pounding the door again. Relentlessly. Bruises blossomed on his knuckles, but he didn't stop. Punch after punch, his hands a blur of movement. His skin split, blood mixing with sweat, but still, he kept going. The stone was unyielding, but finally—a small crack.

[Unknown error detected… analyzing...]

He didn't have time to wonder about the voice. He barely registered it. All he could focus on was punching. His fists slammed into the door again, harder this time, adrenaline surging through him like wildfire. Every punch came faster than the last. His vision started to swim, the world around him warping and blurring as his mind began to disconnect from the agony wracking his body.

Time left before Earth's destruction: 5…4…3…

One last punch. One final burst of strength. And the door shattered. He fell inside, crashing to the ground just as the planet's death clock hit zero.

…1…

BOOM!

Behind him, the doors instantly reformed, sealing themselves like nothing had happened. He lay there for a moment, feeling the coolness of the tower's interior wash over him. The oppressive heat was gone, replaced by a silence that felt almost suffocating. Slowly, his senses began to return, the fog lifting from his mind. He sat up, his muscles trembling, his breath still coming in ragged gasps. 

The space around him was pitch black. No light, no sound. Nothing. Before he could gather his thoughts, his head spun violently, like someone had reached inside his skull and yanked him into another reality. 

Suddenly, he was in a forest. 

"What the hell…?"

His voice sounded distant, even to his own ears. His mind still reeled from the shift, disoriented and dizzy. As he blinked and forced himself to focus, he realized he wasn't alone. There were people—lots of them. 

"Is he deaf?" one of them muttered.

"So, he's a chosen one too, huh?" another said.

"What a dumb question. Only the chosen can enter the towers, so if he's here, that means he's been chosen," someone else chimed in.

'People? Chosen? What the hell is going on here?' he thought, scanning the crowd.

There were all kinds of people. Some were lying on the grass like it was a picnic, some were watching others, some were laughing like they didn't have a care in the world. Meanwhile, he had just barely escaped with his life, and the planet had literally exploded behind him.

"What the hell is going on?" he growled aloud.

Someone nearby overheard him and turned. 

"Huh? Did you hit your head or something? The tower teleported us here. Earth was toast, so we got chosen to survive and live here, in the real tower. You can either climb it like a player or just live your life, take it easy, you know?"

'Wtf is he blabbering about? They just accepted it? Just like that?' he thought, his jaw clenching. 'They're acting like it's some goddamn vacation. The world just ended, and they're all… chilling?'

He wanted to scream at them, shake them out of their bizarre calmness. Beat their asses but maybe it wasn't so crazy after all. Fear of death could cloud judgement, and he guessed there was some truth to it, considering what he'd just survived.

The guy looked at him with mild curiosity. "It's kinda weird though. Most of us arrived here about a week ago. So why are you only showing up now?"

"Delays," he grunted.

"Hmm. Well, at least you made it before Earth died. That's what matters, right?"

"Yeah." 

He replied, his voice flat.

The guy couldn't have been more than 19, with a face that looked too naive for the situation. Vell didn't have the energy or patience to entertain him further. He wandered away, scanning the crowd. He could feel it—power. It was subtle, but a few people had an aura of strength, something more than what the average survivor should have. But none of them felt like him.

Before he could contemplate further, a voice boomed from the sky. 

He looked up as a kid appeared in the air, floating lazily. He wore a hat pulled low over his face, blue pants, and a red hoodie. A lollipop hung from his mouth, bobbing as he spoke.

"Alright, listen up! We've talked plenty throughout the week, and I'm sure you've all learned the basics. Today's the last day before we start the tutorial." 

The crowd stirred. Vell stood still, the only one still struggling to piece it all together.

"So, first a rabbit, now a kid?" he muttered to himself. "Another admin, huh?"

He clenched his fists, but forced himself to stay calm. He knew the rules of the tower were different, and even if he wanted to tear this kid apart, he couldn't—not here. Not now.

The admin floated around, his tone bored, like he was about to fall asleep mid-sentence. 

"Alright, today's lesson: ranks. There are a bunch of ranks—twenty-something, I dunno, too many to list. But for the tutorial, you only need to know F through S. You'll all compete in groups of 100 to clear the tutorial floors. Highest group score wins, and you get some exclusive gifts before entering the main tower. Your groups will be ranked but there are also rankings for individuals, so work hard."

Finally, something clicked for Vell. 

The admin continued, "These ranks are just for the tutorial. Once you're out and in the main tower, the ranking system changes. Also, you don't have to climb the tower if you don't want to. You can live there, like normal people."

'No catch, huh? Bullshit,' Vell thought. There was always a catch. Always.

The admin scanned the crowd, his gaze lazy until it landed on Vell. The admin's expression changed instantly. 

"You—what are you?"

Heads turned, following the admin's stare. Vell stood still, feeling the weight of the attention. The admin floated down, inches from his face, eyes narrowing as he tried to read him.

"Mortal," the admin hissed, "I asked you a question."

Vell didn't flinch. He didn't speak. He just stared back, his gaze unwavering.

"Tsk. Very well," the admin snarled, snapping his fingers. "You'll serve as an example to everyone—"

But before the admin could finish, he flinched, his face paling. He jumped back into the air, a look of shock crossing his face. 

"Wh-what?" he stammered. For a moment, the admin's confidence was gone, replaced by fear. Fear of Vell.

The crowd watched, confused, unsure what had just happened. Vell himself barely kept his composure. The admin in front of him was undoubtedly stronger, but something had caused him to retreat. 

It didn't make sense. Why was the admin—someone who could easily kill Vell—afraid?

The answer was simple. Even though the admin was powerful, in the entire history of the tower, no one, no matter how far they climbed, had ever caused an admin to feel fear. This is because of the rules, one of these rules is that violence is not allowed against admins, break this rule…well…i am sure you can guess.

 This kid might only be a tutorial admin, but he wasn't weak. And yet, here he was, terrified of Vell.

"Foolish bastard," the admin growled, snapping his fingers again, trying to kill him. But once again, nothing happened. 

"Come on, come on, come on! Work!" The admin's voice cracked with panic. 

[Error error error error error.]

The admin's face twisted in frustration, his attempts failing again and again. The crowd murmured, confused by the spectacle.

Realizing he was losing control of the situation, the admin cleared his throat and forced a smile. "Ahem. Apologies, everyone. I need to step out for a moment. You, come with me."

With a snap of his fingers, Vell and the admin were teleported to a plush, pillow-strewn room. The admin dropped onto one of the beds, glaring at Vell with wide, frantic eyes.

"Alright, who the hell are you? And how did you get into the tower?"

Vell's fingers twitched, his urge to kill barely restrained.