I hadn’t even entered Floor 1 yet, and those [Easy] difficulty bastards had already cleared Floor 3 and purchased a Return Ticket. I had assumed I was keeping up with the curve, but I couldn’t have been more wrong.
I actually believed I could take my sweet time.
There was no longer any time to waste. I was moving exponentially faster than in my past life, but it clearly wasn’t enough.
"Time to focus."
I took a deep breath and stepped onto Floor 1.
[Entities currently spectating your channel: 11,023]
I wasn’t sure if Albert was personally handling my stream, but if he was, he had to be grinning from ear to ear. He had struck absolute gold with me.
I’ll leverage that to my advantage later.
Smirking, I immediately burst into a full sprint.
My strategy this time around was entirely different. I wasn’t going to waste time systematically clearing every standard mob on the floor. Instead, I planned to speed-run straight through to the boss, carving through only the enemies directly blocking my path.
"Albert, if you dare swap out the boss again this time, I’m filing a formal grievance against you with the Management Board," I called out to the empty air above.
He probably found it unsettling that a low-floor human knew about the Board, but I couldn’t care less. I needed Floor 1 and Floor 2 to remain standard and predictable for now.
[Elf_Queen has sent you a private message.]
[Elf_Queen: Try to maintain a decent rapport with the Dokkaebi. They may seem minor, but their influence is vast.]
I smirked at the notification. It seemed Azalea was still actively tuning into my feed.
Keeping a strong relationship with her was paramount. In my previous life, a [Hard] difficulty challenger had managed to secure her favor. He eventually became the strongest player in his difficulty tier, though he still couldn’t hold a candle to my peak, obviously. Even so, he was formidable, and that was with only a few minor blessings from her without ever attaining Apostle status.
I pushed those thoughts aside, focusing on the dark forest terrain as I dashed forward, spinning my [Blood Sword] in fluid arcs and slicing through anything that crossed my path.
[You have slain a Level 16 Dark Wolf.]
[You have slain a Level 17 Dark Wolf.]
Since I had already catapulted to Level 22 on Floor 0, these low-tier mobs offered negligible experience points. Usually, Floor 1 beasts provided decent gains, but my tutorial run had been entirely unprecedented.
Within minutes, the towering archway of the Floor 1 Boss Room appeared in sight.
The chat feed must be losing its mind right now...
Just as I prepared to cross the threshold into the boss arena, a system prompt flashed in bright red before me.
[War_Jester has issued a System Challenge for 5,000 Points.]
[Condition: Defeat the Floor 1 Boss without equipping weapons or using active skills.]
[Accept / Decline]
My knee-jerk reaction was to decline immediately. However, 5,000 Points this early in the climb was an immense sum, especially with the Tower Shop unlocking on Floor 3.
Still, the payout felt insultingly low for the restriction. I tapped [Decline].
"Sorry," I murmured aloud for the audience. "I’m on a schedule."
[War_Jester has raised the challenge reward to 10,000 Points.]
[Condition: Defeat the Floor 1 Boss without equipping weapons or using active skills.]
[Accept / Decline]
My eyes widened slightly.
That bastard simply wanted to see me die. In fact, he was so convinced I would fail that he doubled the bounty on the spot. His nickname, War_Jester, fit him well. He loved treating low-floor challengers like personal playthings.
I hesitated for a few seconds, letting the silence stretch to make it look like I was turning it down. Predictably, the crowd panicked and began stacking the pot.
[Iron_Monarch has added 1,000 Points to the bounty.]
[Stream_Rat has added 3,000 Points to the bounty.]
[Bargain_God has added 7,000 Points to the bounty.]
20,000 Points for a single restriction challenge?
It was almost surreal. Multiple high-tier entities were tuning in simultaneously. In my past life at my absolute peak, the Dokkaebi streaming my climb had barely broken 20,000 live viewers. I was already hitting half that number within my first week in the Tower.
If I kept capitalizing on this momentum, the wealth and influence I could accumulate would be staggering. Performing well on floor trials was essential, but entertaining these fickle high-tier spectators was where the true power lay.
Just as I reached out to accept the wager, reality shattered around me.
[Dokkaebi ’Albert’ has cast Timestop.]
The falling leaves, the floating system windows, and the ambient noise of the dungeon instantly froze in midair.
It appeared Albert wanted a private word.
[POV - Earth / Outside World]
On Earth, society remained fractured in a state of rolling panic. Supply chains were crumbling, offices stood empty, and the global populace braced for an impending apocalypse.
Overnight, however, a faint glimmer of hope emerged: the first wave of Tower challengers had begun returning to Earth.
Front pages across every major news network featured the photograph of a single woman, blessed with cascading silver-white hair, piercing sapphire eyes, and striking, aristocratic features.
To the general public, she remained an enigmatic figure. But within days, she would become the most famous challenger on the planet, adored by millions.
The Ice Queen had officially returned to Earth, immediately swamped by international media, televised interviews, and press briefings.
More importantly, her convoy was currently en route to a classified, top-secret summit with the United States government and many other international governments, all of them wondering what the hell was inside those towers.