Chapter 1: Prologue

Life on Easy Mode.

That’s how I would describe my life. It was because I possessed a superpower—not a metaphor, but an actual superpower.

“Dad, Dad.”

“Hmm? Just a second, Seohyun. Daddy’s busy.”

“Dad, why don’t you stop time and think? Then time won’t pass.”

“…? Now, now. I’ll play with you as soon as I finish this round, so go over there for a bit.”

“No! Dad, you don’t have much time left! I’m telling you to stop it and think!”

When I was little, I remember getting into big trouble once for pestering my father while he was playing online Go on the computer. Until about kindergarten, I didn’t realize it. I thought everyone else could naturally do what I could do. I was young, after all. My parents just brushed it off as the strange ramblings of an imaginative child.

As I grew older, however, I realized I was different from others. Whenever I willed it in my mind, the world stopped. The people and objects before me all froze; time came to a Stop.

The Time Stop Ability.

But then again, it wasn’t all that incredible. It wasn’t the kind of broken, “cheat-like” ability people often imagine; it was a half-measure. I couldn’t move within stopped time either. I could only stay still and think.

Of course, even that was enough to make life easy.

“Seohyun, are you home? Did your midterm scores come out?”

“Yes. Unfortunately, I missed one question in Science.”

“Really? What about the other subjects?”

“I got them all right.”

“Ho-ho, as expected of my son! I’m so proud of you~.”

Studying was the easiest thing in the world. For me, it truly was. A part I didn’t understand while studying? I’d just stop time and think until I understood it. A lot to memorize? Again, I’d stop time until I had it all down. If I spent the day lounging around and the exam was right around the corner? I’d just study intensely the night before while repeatedly stopping and starting time.

I could utilize every single second of others as if it were an hour of my own. Naturally, during exams, I was the only one without a time limit. Whenever I hit a difficult problem, I could just stop time and deliberate. In that manner, from elementary school onwards, my grades were always at the top of the entire school.

Beyond that, the minor applications of the ability in daily life were endless. You could call it a Pause function in a game. In a game, when you pause, the character cannot move, but the player in reality can keep thinking—so, technically, that was a more accurate comparison.

Perhaps it would be a useful ability in a fight too? Though I had never been in a fight in my life. I had no interest in physical activity, so I never really used my ability for sports. I simply grew up as a typical model student.

And today was the day of the CSAT.

“Don’t be nervous. Okay? Just keep a relaxed mind.”

“Yes. I’ll be going now.”

I arrived at the testing site in my parents’ car. I waved to them—they seemed more nervous than I was—and entered through the main gate. As always, I took the exam with a light heart and returned home.

“I’m back.”

After dinner, I downloaded the answer key and graded my paper. The results were as expected: a perfect score. Of course, I did work hard. Even without time pressure, you still need the capability to solve the problems to get a perfect score. I stretched, humming to myself.

“Seoul National University Medical School, you’re nothing.”

Ah, easy, so easy.

Does my conscience prick me for using a cheat alone while everyone else worked hard? Well, what can you do? Life is inherently unfair. Besides, there’s no reason not to use such a great ability when you’re born with it. Anyway, now I just have to have fun and prepare for the med school interview. My life had been smooth sailing until now, and it would continue to be so.

Just as I was about to open my door to share the good news with my family, a sudden vibration rang out.

Rumble, rumble.

I hurriedly grabbed the edge of the desk to regain my balance. I could hear the urgent voices of my family from outside. What’s happening all of a sudden? An earthquake? An earthquake this strong in our country?

I didn’t even have time to continue that thought. Something appeared in the air before my eyes.

I just stared at the messages popping up one after another with eyes trembling uncontrollably.

***

November 13, 2025.

The world changed drastically. A powerful earthquake occurred across the globe for a short time. Along with it, a massive tower-shaped structure rose in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. A small number of people received the call of the Tower. Or so it was expressed in the messages that appeared before their eyes.

Easy, Normal, Hard, Nightmare.

100,000 people were chosen for each of the four difficulties. Those who received the call of the Tower were called ‘Climbers.’ The Climbers could enter the difficulty they were assigned at any time.

While a black Tower had appeared in the middle of the Pacific, it was said to be merely a structure with no entrance and was impossible to access physically. Climbers, however, could enter the Tower from anywhere at any time if they wished.

Adventurous people were the first to climb the Tower. It was soon discovered that clearing a floor extended the time limit by one year. The Tower warned humanity that a curse would fall if the time limit expired.

Easy was 10% of humanity. Normal was 20%. Hard was 50%. And Nightmare, which I was assigned to, would result in the death of 99% of humanity.

Since a year hadn’t passed since the day of the upheaval, it was a warning that had yet to be realized. The governments of each country moved busily. They had no choice, as they were suddenly facing the end of humanity. Even just watching the news, every day was spectacular.

The US government and others urged Climbers to voluntarily report to the state as soon as possible. They promised to enact laws, establish facilities and organizations, and provide full support for climbing the Tower.

I did not report that I had become a Climber. I just watched the daily progress through the characters floating before my eyes.

They say Climbers get stronger as they climb the Tower. Like a game, their level rises, they use skills, and they gain power beyond Human limits.

Progress was fastest in the Easy difficulty. The enemy encountered on the Easy difficulty 1st Floor was said to be a single Goblin. Having already reached the 10th floor, the Easy time limit had accumulated to over 9 years. Normal and Hard had reached the 6th and 3rd floors, respectively.

Only the Nightmare difficulty had yet to clear even the 1st floor. It was a story that had nothing to do with me. I had absolutely no intention of climbing the Tower. Why would I be so crazy?

Once you enter the Tower, you cannot leave unless you conquer that floor. In other words, if you fail to conquer it, you die. Just look at the progress of the Nightmare difficulty. Out of the 2,000 people who had entered so far, not a single person succeeded—they all died. Since no one returned alive, no information had been revealed either. It was simply throwing one’s life away.

Since it’s only natural for a person to value their life, the number of people who had entered the Nightmare difficulty was significantly lower compared to other difficulties. Still, someone will succeed eventually, right? There are still over 200 days left on the time limit, after all.

With that thought, I focused only on my daily life. I entered medical school and continued my college life. While the world was changing very rapidly on one side, the majority of people still led normal lives. This wasn’t turning a blind eye. I was just someone who got unluckily picked. Someone will do it. Someone…

.
.
.

Time passed. Before I knew it, the collapse deadline was right in front of us. Surprisingly, no one had succeeded.

– The time limit for Nightmare difficulty is less than a week away. The USA government, which stated it is considering a direct nuclear strike on the Tower in the Pacific…
– The number of Unclimbed personnel in Nightmare difficulty is still over 80,000…

Every day, the news talked about whether the world was going to end like this. Governments offered all sorts of benefits, urging Nightmare Climbers to challenge the 1st Floor, but it didn’t seem to have much effect. While our country was relatively okay, riots and violence were surging daily overseas.

Looking through the comments on the internet, it was all stories like that.

“The end is coming! Those without faith will fall into hell…!”

Yesterday, while walking down the street, I saw strange people shouting through megaphones. It was the end of the world. Not just a figure of speech—the end of the world was truly approaching.

The time limit reached the final day. The number of surviving personnel decreased rapidly. Even now, it was decreasing in real-time. I understood how they felt. They must feel like there’s nothing else they can do now.

Despite that, there was still no change in the floor reached. Even though more than 20,000 people challenged it, no one succeeded? Are you kidding me? Is it even possible to conquer it? I kept letting out hollow laughs while looking at the numbers before my eyes.

“Sigh…”

99% of humanity perishing. Approximately 8 billion humans dying. It’s not everyone. Still, it was a staggering figure that would surely end the world. If I hadn’t been chosen, at least I wouldn’t have had to agonize like this. Others would just accept death as it is. But for me, I had at least one option to grasp at straws.

“I don’t want to die either, fck…”

I don’t want to die. And it’s not just dying. I don’t know what kind of horrific and painful death awaits if I enter the Tower. I just want to wait and pray that someone succeeds within the remaining 3 hours. I want to pin my hopes on that 1% chance of survival.

But then what happens? In that slim probability, can my family and I all survive? …Such a miracle will not happen. When the time limit is up, will 99% of humanity really die? Does that even make sense?

I try to deny reality. But I knew. Making sense or not didn’t matter anymore. Common sense in this world had long been twisted since the day the Tower rose.

I sat at my desk and closed my eyes for a long time. Finally, I opened my eyes and stood up. I put the suicide note I had written in advance into the desk drawer and set an alarm on my phone.

After changing my clothes and leaving the room, my father, mother, and younger sibling were all gathered in the living room.

“…Where are you going?”

“I just want to get some fresh air for a bit.”

“Okay. Come back before it’s too late.”

My mother smiled weakly. My younger sibling had been sobbing for a while now. On the TV screen, the time was displayed in large letters, ticking away while the news anchor talked busily. My father spoke as if to remind me.

“You must come back soon. Let’s at least have a final dinner as a family.”

“Yes. I’ll be back soon.”

But I probably won’t be able to come back. They were quick-witted, so they didn’t say anything unnecessary. I had already written it all in the letter. If I don’t return, the alarm will go off at the right time, and they will find and read it. What meaning does it have in this situation, but still, shouldn’t they at least know why their son couldn’t return at the end?

Leaving the house, I walked through the deserted streets. I went into an alley and stared straight ahead.

It had been a year since that day. The message appeared once I made up my mind to enter. From now on, I am going to my death. Still, I have no choice.

“…Enter. You son of a bitch.”

With that mutter, the scenery before my eyes transformed.

—