Above Your Head

One point could be gained from clearing the easy difficulty of level 1. Clearing the intermediate difficulty gave out five times that, and the hard difficulty gave out ten times the amount. Five points could be gained from clearing the easy difficulty of level 2, which was five times the previous level. Likewise, the intermediate difficulty provided 25 points, and the hard difficulty provided 50.

In order to raise your level, you needed to buy an experience point equivalent to the sum of points gained from clearing the three difficulties of a level. In other words, 16 points were needed to go from level 1 to 2, and 80 points were needed to go from level 2 to 3. This 5x ratio was maintained for every single level, so the points gained from each level increased exponentially, as well as the experience required to level up.

‘It’s similar to those old online games. At higher levels, you needed to earn more experience to go up a single level compared to the cumulative experience required to earn your current level from level 1.’

It sounded a little confusing, but I could sum it up in a few words. If you succeeded in clearing the intermediate difficulty of level 13 using my guide, you could reach level 13 in one go, even if you were originally level 1.

“I remember all the digits. 1,220,703,125 points. I learned all the skills that my grandson told me about, awakened some powers, and even bought some of those medicines, but I still got level 10.”

“Wow. You cleared it as well, grandma?”

“Are you looking down on me just because I’m an old lady? It’s not that difficult, just a little memorization. I used to study quite a lot back in my day.”

The old lady retorted as she placed some mung bean pancakes on a plate for Jae-seok. He shook his hand while stuffing himself with the delicious food.

“Not at all! I’m just simply amazed! There are a lot of prosecutors or journalists who haven’t even gotten past level eight yet.”

“Tsk, tsk. That’s because they lived like trash. Anyone with access to the Cradle of Justice could clear the stage by following the guide. That man named Iron Mask is truly amazing.”

In all honesty, my guides weren’t overly convenient. First of all, there were so many things to memorize. Memorizing the farming locations was just the beginning. One had to memorize the order in which all of the monsters moved. Was that all? One needed to be able to draw the terrain of the map in their head with their eyes closed.

The most difficult aspect was that you had to memorize the language of an unknown world. The golden mirror, which was considered the main weapon, could be obtained by solving a type of a puzzle. However, the “ammo” of the weapon, the jewels, could only be obtained from lockers, desk drawers, vaults, and other places by opening locks which required knowledge of the language.

Even though I had created a list of possible questions and answers, it was definitely not a small amount of knowledge to commit to one’s memory.

“It was hard for me to memorize everything.”

“Of course it is. I thought my head was going to crack open.”

If this were a normal game, people wouldn’t have even given a second look at my guide. They had to study the guide as if taking an exam, and the playstyle was boring and uneventful.

‘But it’s different for the stage.’

It was bound to be different. Boring? Not fun? That was a load of bullshit.

You had to clear the stage if you didn’t want to die.

Moreover, the remaining players had watched over 2 billion people die because they couldn’t clear the stage.

“By the way, how many points of justice have you accumulated?”

“Needlessly a lot.”

“Of course. I know you told people not to give you any, but I just couldn’t help myself even though I knew you didn’t really need it.”

“Even you as well, Bae Jae-seok…”

Jae-seok and I were eating at a small food wagon located in Gwanghwamun Square. The scene at Gwanghwamun Square was completely different from just a few months ago. The roads were closed to any vehicles, and tables and chairs lined the roads to provide shelter for people. Street vendors were spread out throughout the square as well.

“Could I have some more pancakes?”

“Oh, you young people eat so well! Now, now, I’ll add in some fried food as a bonus as well!”

“Ah! Thank you very much!”

It was when Jae-seok accepted the food graciously.

Ti-ring! Ti-ring!

Along with the sound of bells, a group of people could be seen approaching Gwanghwamun Square in a long procession. Quite a few people were gathered, but they calmly walked in line without causing any disturbances. The old lady sighed quietly as she poured cooking oil on an iron plate.

“I was relieved because we had a complete clear today, but the funerals are still ongoing.”

“There’s no helping it. There must be people who died yesterday, and some bodies wouldn’t have been disposed of yet.”

“I’m just glad that there are a lot of volunteers. If something like this had occurred at any other time, there would have been mountains of rotting corpses around the country.”

“We have the greatest number of volunteers in human history.”

Among the somber, heavy atmosphere, countless coffins and people entered Gyeongbokgung Palace. Soon, a group funeral would be held for the deceased. Among the dead, some bodies would be utilized as magical materials for necromancy, with prior permission, while the other bodies would be cremated.

“The atmosphere is really befitting an apocalypse.”

“But Korea is considered relatively well-off. We even have bank robberies, right?”

“I guess.”

Robbing a bank.

On the surface, it seemed to reflect the grim reality of players losing their reason in the apocalypse, but it also contained an underlying truth as well. It also meant that Korea was doing rather well.

Why would anyone rob a bank?

That was because money had value, and bank robberies ultimately affirmed the value of money.

“The issues aren’t as simple as bank robberies in other countries. Indiscriminate rape, slaughter, and drug abuse is rampant as well. People are going insane, breaking buildings and setting fire for no reason at all.”

Jae-seok’s expression was serious. Currently, he was considered a top power in Korea, or rather, the entire world. He possessed enough status to acquire information unavailable to the general public.

“That’s not all. In places like Mexico or some states of America, some of the unrighteous people are arming themselves with firearms and hunting those who possess Justice Weapons.”

“Why? What do they stand to gain?”

“It’s just retaliation. They’ve been abandoned already, and they can’t escape their status no matter what they do, so they decided to get wild.”

It made absolutely no sense to hunt possessors of Justice Weapons – it was an act of madness. It could be understandable if Justice Weapons could be forcibly taken away, but that wasn’t the case at all. Rather, killing the righteous only served to accumulate evil deeds.

“Are the countries not planning to take any action?”

Jae-seok smirked at my words.

“There’s no need for the nations to step up. The Americans launched the Justice League. The famous demon hunter, Alex, has also entered the organization.”

“Justice League?”

I could tell what they were simply from their name.

“A group of people possessing Justice Weapons?”

“It’s an international armed group. Similar groups are popping up in countries outside of the Justice League’s influence. No matter how strong or crazy the assailants are, they are destined to meet their end sooner or later.”

Such a thing would have never happened in the past. No matter how evil the targets were, private sanctions were not tolerated in a normal country. Besides, killing people to strengthen their weapons? Considering that numerous people and groups would foam at their mouths even if it was Buddha killing a serial killer, you could see how unimaginable the current situation was.

‘But.. the world has changed.’

It was no exaggeration to change that the humans had undergone a complete transformation from a few months ago, especially after suffering more than 2 billion casualties in the End Project. During these few months, human perception and the concept of justice had undergone a massive shift, overturned from the very roots.

“Well, that’s all thanks to you.”

I frowned at Jae-seok’s sudden remark.

“Why is that thanks to me?”

“Because you provided strength to the righteous.

“…..”

It was an unexpected answer, but definitely had its merits. Due to the new guide, billions of people with justice points had gained incomparable power. I didn’t have to look far to see the results. Even the old pancake lady in front of us was level 10. If one lived a just life, they were given the chance to obtain superhuman strength, whether they were old or disabled.

- Honor Rank is rising!

- Grandmaster -> Challenger

- The current number of challengers is 1.

“Hmm?”

“Why?”

“No. Nothing.”

I casually brushed aside Jae-seok’s question.

‘Grandmaster wasn’t the highest rank. But why does Challenger come after Grandmaster? What am I challenging?’

I tilted my head out of confusion as I stood up. Jae-seok took out his wallet.

“Thank you for the meal! How much is it?”

“It’s 25,000 won.”[1]

Jae-seok’s eyes widened at the old lady’s words.

“Wow. I think we ate enough for 30 people though.”

“Do you think I’m here to become a millionaire? Think of it as a price for the ingredients.”

“Thank you for the meal!”

We said our goodbyes before leaving. Gwanghwamun Square was full of people as we crossed.

“Now, now! Have you all become accustomed to levitating? Since you could all still be considered beginners, it’s much too late to learn combat skills! If you want to keep up with the guide, you need to master these three skills – levitation, teleportation, and stealth!”

“E, excuse me. Then how do we attack?”

“Good question! Go all-in on Soul Strike. It deals damage to the target, whether they are a physical or a spiritual being!”

A group of people were huddled around, listening to an ability’s lecture on the grass.

“I know! There aren’t a huge number of the Spector Ghost Raffley. I’m sure many of you felt it while watching the different streams. Raflley runs through the stages of several different people!”

“Wow! That’s amazing! But is there any use for this?”

“Well, I don’t know. Wouldn’t Iron Mask find something for us?”

Some people were talking about the stage’s guide.

“Iron Mask! Iron Mask! Iron Mask!”

“Why are you calling his name?”

“What? Oh, no, it’s just a chant.”

“When I call his name three times, everything goes well. I feel better, I grow taller, my skin becomes fairer…”

Others were spending their time talking nonsense.

“I can see people tensing up as evening approaches.”

“Yeah. Even with you around, it’s definitely a scary time.”

With the time restrictions on Hidden Points, the concept of a second test disappeared. No matter how well you hid, the enemies would unconditionally find you after a certain amount of time had passed. As such… 7 P.M. Sunset was a time of tension and fear for everyone. Life and death was decided by a single opportunity.

“The End Project. They must have patched it, right?”

“I’ll have to go in and see.”

- Stage will be opened!

- Level 13. Difficulty is set at hard.

- Destroy the Demonic Tree in 800 hours.

- The stage will start in 10 seconds.

- 10. 9. 8. 7…..

Kwaaaaang!!!

The ground trembled with a large roar. I exited the hidden point and observed Raffley disappear into the distance. The buildings were destroyed, but the walls were completely intact.

“Why don’t you update the items instead, you fucking failure of game. This is the only type of update that you keep on top of.”

I couldn’t hold back my swears, but this was within my expectations. I started updating my guide. I knocked on every wall I could find. There was no hidden space. I collected furniture and climbed to a height of more than eight stories. It was an attempt to illuminate the Demonic Tree with the golden mirror from a long distance, but it failed.

When I tried climbing to higher heights than the wall, an intangible membrane blocked the shot. Then, I pointed the mirror towards a reward box.

- It hurts…

Crack!

I stabbed the blessed dagger into the reward box before the scream started. After I stabbed with two daggers, the evil spirit, estimated to be level 13, perished. However, the golden mirror’s shot count didn’t decrease, since I had landed the final blow with the dagger rather than the mirror.

“Oh…?”

A sudden hypothesis came to mind. After a few more experiments, my hypothesis was slowly being proven true.

“…Is this going to work?”

It appeared to be the case.

‘Damage Amplification.’

I immediately logged on to the bulletin board and created a post.

- I’m planning to post a guide for the hard difficulty of level 13. Even a level 5 will be able to clear (Iron Mask)

I added in the contents.

- Take a look.

After writing the post, I returned to the starting point of the stage, the north gate. The stage was much wider compared to the intermediate difficulty. It was bigger than a regular city, so it took half a day to run along the central road to reach the south gate.

It was natural, but it would take a considerable amount of time to clear even with the assistance of a guide.

“Looking at what I’ve seen until now, the End Project can’t single out individuals and penalize them.”

The End Project could implement bug fixes, hotfixes, and utilize targeted patches, but it couldn’t block or issue permanent bans.

Then there were no problems.

“Let’s see who wins.”

Were you salty? Then you should have made a better game.

1. ~25 dollars