1- Invitation

Chapter 1- Invitation

Written By Ss_FirstMaster

Baek Sung-Hoo sat slumped on his bed, his room enveloped in an oppressive darkness that mirrored the desolation within him. The weight of grief hung heavy in the air, suffocating his spirit. It had been months since the tragic car accident that claimed the lives of his parents, leaving him shattered and alone in the world.

Time had lost its meaning for Sung-Hoo. He had retreated into the confines of his room, unable to face the outside world or its reminders of what he had lost. His once vibrant spirit was now a mere flicker, reduced to a hollow existence devoid of joy or purpose. His unkempt appearance and malnourished state were a stark reflection of the neglect he had subjected himself to.

Days blended into nights as Sung-Hoo mourned, his tears soaking into the fabric of his worn-out shirt. The room, once a sanctuary of solace, had become a prison of sorrow. The walls seemed to close in on him, suffocating him further, while the outside world remained oblivious to his anguish.

It was in this desolate state that a faint sound stirred Sung-Hoo from his reverie. His eyes, heavy with sorrow, shifted toward the source of the noise. It was his phone, a lifeline to the outside world that he had long abandoned. As he reached for it, the device illuminated, casting a pale glow across his pale face.

His heart skipped a beat as he saw the screen, now displaying an unexpected invitation. "You have been chosen as a participant for the Tower, In the Tower anything is possible if you reach the top" the ad read. The words seemed to pierce through Ethan's despair, momentarily igniting a spark of curiosity within him.

His fingers trembled as he tapped on the invitation, At that moment, a small screen popped up behind his retina. It was an interface system—he had managed to connect to the Tower. His body began to change.

Swoosh! Something was wriggling inside his lower abdomen. He felt as though a snake had curled up in his stomach and was raising its head. It was a refreshing feeling, but at the same time, it felt as if a weird seed were sprouting inside him. It was mana, the basic element that made up the foundation of the world. It was also the power that people from other worlds and the Tower dealt with.

Bang! A cluster of mana exploded inside him. It spread unpredictably in all directions inside his body. He felt something changing inside, and then—crackle, crunch. His body started to twist and convulse, followed by a fierce pain that made him feel like he was being torn apart and pierced by millions of needles.

He had trained martial arts when he was younger, but this was completely different. Even so, Sung-Hoo held tightly onto his sanity. Not a single groan slipped out of his mouth. He sat in his bed as he remembering he's parents.

His skeleton was changing, the joints in his body readjusting, and his muscles softening and firming up. A putrid black substance oozed from his torn skin. All the impurities in his body had been eliminated, and his muscles and skeleton had been refined.

Krak! Krak! He was in terrible pain, but it was nothing compared to what his parents had gone through. After what seemed like an infinity, the process finally came to an end.

[Awakening finished.]

[Your awakening process is incomplete. Current progress: 5%.]

[Your current body is inadequate to complete the succession process. Refine your body to complete the succession process. As your body improves, the succession progress will also advance.]

[Your current status is 'Incomplete Strong Body'.]

[Your physical abilities have partially improved.]

[Your traits have been confirmed.]

[Your skills have been registered.]

[You have acquired the qualifications of a player. You can only register once inside Obelisk.]

Sung-Hoo was in no condition to concentrate on what the strange voice was saying. Strong feelings were still lingering in his mind after the intense pain.

After the torturous pain he felt and everything was complete, the strange voice spoke once more.

[Player: Baek Sung-Hoo]

[Trait: Martial Artist]

[Strength: 10]

[Dexterity: 12]

[Health: 6]

[Magic Power: 10]

[Skills: Sense Strengthening, Combat Will, Breathing ]

Sung-Hoo woke from the overflowing thoughts. As he opened his eyes, a transparent panel popped up in front of his eyes. "It was true. All of it."

Sung-Hoo silently stared at the transparent panel in front of his eyes. "So, this is the status window." The status window had three tabs labeled "Traits", "Attributes", and "Skills".

Traits showed the player's personality or talents. A perfect example is "Perfect Adaptability"—the ability to communicate with his surroundings. You able to overcome almost everything using Perfect Adaptability to communicate with objects or skills.

The Attributes tab showed an assessment of a player's capabilities, and Skills showed the standardized skills that players could use inside the Tower. 'It's just like a game.'

When talking about Obelisk, his brother had said that it might look like a game but it was real. Now, he understood why. 'Currently, I have "Martial Artist" as my trait.'

[Trait: Martial Artist]

[An ability to maintain rational thought in a battle. Able to learn and create martial arts, Able to learn secret technique and read tablets or scriptures.]

This was a talent Sung-Hoo already possessed because of his training as a martial artist when he was at 14 years old, which meant he could make cool-headed decisions in chaotic situations. 'Not bad.'

Actually, it wasn't just "not bad", it was perfect. It was important to have an ace in his hand that would help protect him in a world full of bizarre magic and skills. 'It's just that my attributes are too weak.' Even though he had gone through an awakening as a player and his body had also improved, he was still just a normal human.

On average, his attributes were all below twenty, and he was too weak to climb the Tower, where all sorts of monsters lurked. However, it was no surprise. He had no idea how to handle mana, and he wasn't particularly skilled at anything. His knowledge of skills was also insufficient. The only thing he could rely on was his instincts that had been honed by training but was greatly reduce because of lack of any training and nutrition.

Under the Skills tab, he saw a list.

[Name: Sense Strengthening]

[The 5 senses are greatly improved.]

[Name: Combat Will]

[Through perseverance and an indomitable will, you burn with fighting spirit no matter what the circumstances are. While focusing on combat, Thought Acceleration allows quick decision making.]

[Name: Breathing]

[An innate ability that allowed the wielder to breath properly.]

'It seems that [Sense Strengthening] was generated according to my trait.' It was a skill that allowed him increased control over his five senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. Sung-Hoo liked this skill the most. Battlefields were unpredictable. He might have to locate enemies that were out of sight or track down the faint smell of oil. He might have to listen for an enemy's footsteps in the distance. Having the ability to control his senses would be helpful once he began climbing the Tower.

[Combat Will] was something he gained while maintaining his consciousness while having the awakening process and [Breathing] was pretty much explanatory.

Skills were assigned according to players' traits, but sometimes the player's environment or their most precious possession had an influence, especially if the skill was marked "special".

* * *

After the awakening process Sung-Hoo collect his thoughts about what to do next as a surge of conflicting emotions coursed through his veins. The fear of stepping out of his comfort zone and the yearning for relief warred within him. What if this was just another illusion, another source of disappointment? But what if, buried beneath his pain, there lay a flicker of hope that could guide him toward the light?

As the minutes turned into hours, Sung-Hoo thoughts oscillated between despair and possibility. Eventually, his grief-weary soul yearned for something more than the oppressive solitude that had become his existence. With a mixture of apprehension and determination, he made a decision that would change the course of his life.

Resolute, Sung-Hoo rose from his bed, his legs shaky from disuse. The journey ahead felt arduous, but he knew deep within that he had to take that first step, no matter how uncertain it seemed. As he left his room, rays of sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow upon his face. For the first time in months, a faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Little did Sung-Hoo know that the invitation he had accepted would lead him down a path of self-discovery, healing, and unexpected encounters. In the face of unimaginable loss, he would find the strength to rebuild his shattered world and, perhaps, discover that there was still hope, love, and joy waiting for him beyond the confines of his grief-stricken room.