Chapter 17: The Penalty of Trauma (2)

[Initiating your Skill penalty.]

[Recreating Monster: Hellfire Maiden’s trauma.]

I found myself in an elegant mansion. Perhaps that wasn’t the right description. Although I was aware of my existence, I wasn’t technically here. Like a ghost, I watched everything in the third person.

What? I was perplexed. What is going on...?

“S-save me.”

I heard the voice of a boy who was shackled by his foot in a corner of the mansion’s lobby. At first, I thought the boy was seeking help from me, but he wasn’t. He was begging a man who dressed like a noble.

“Save me, please... I’m so hungry... Food... Please give me food... Anything...”

“Hmph. Orphans like you are a plague on this kingdom.”

“Food...”

“You orphans don’t work and just wander from village to village, spreading diseases. Your existence will eat away at society unless something is done about it. That is why I stand as a warden and guard, quarantining you from the kingdom.”

A flood of memories rushed into my head. This generation had many homeless people due to a lack of food. The nobleman had gathered many orphans and trapped them in his mansion, disguising it as an orphanage. Outside the mansion, the nobleman was a rich gentleman, a great businessman, and a conscientious academic.

“Other people may think you orphans are from a breed that is rotten to its core, but not me. I’m going to educate you.”

Within his huge mansion, however, the nobleman was just a tyrant.

“Only animals would devour food in front of them because they’re hungry. Yes, you were born in the streets like animals. That doesn’t mean you should grow up as animals.”

“I’m hungry. I’m...”

“Endure it. Endure it even if you’re hungry. Endure it to become a human,” the nobleman said with a gentle smile.

The boy’s rib cage was visible through the holes in his clothes, but the nobleman’s smile didn’t falter for a moment. It looked like there had been or was a world in which a constant smile was a virtue; however, the mad smile only attracted another madman.

“Repent!”

“Ahhhh!”

“Oh, children of the witch! You may be Zrakua’s poison and an illness besetting our kingdom, but fear not. As my god never abandons his followers, neither will I abandon you, young sheep!” The priest raised his hammer.

“It h-hurts... Hurts... I-it hurts...”

“Pray!”

This was a generation where madness was dressed as a virtue.

The screams never stopped in the mansion.

“I’m...hungry...”

Neither did the hunger.

“No... Please forgive me... Why...? No, I’m sorry. Please forgive me...”

The torture and brainwashing went on.

“Ah, thank you. You’re good and kind... This is your reward for enduring the pain. You kept your promise, thank you. Thank you. You’re kind, Mister...”

Dozens, hundreds, and thousands of children arrived at this mansion, and so did death. Although they were already close to death anyway, they never imagined that the interim would be nightmarishly painful.

The lives flashing before my eyes left me reeling.

What in the world...

—What the fuck is this?

Thanks to a certain dude, I was able to pull myself together.

You’ve been watching too? I thought you weren’t here.

—I should be asking you the same question. I’ve been watching from the beginning, but I didn’t see you until now.

Hmm, it looks like only our consciousnesses are here...

—I don’t give a damn about that right now. What in the goddamn are these people? Ha! Educate children into humans? How can those assholes teach other people to be human when they aren’t human? the Guardian spat.

...This is probably what the tenth floor’s boss monster stage is made from.

Right before my consciousness ended up here, I had heard a voice saying [Recreating your killer’s trauma.] My killer this time...was the real doll hidden in the Infernal Mansion, which meant that everything the Guardian and I were watching was the doll’s trauma.

I never knew this, I whispered. Monsters used to be humans...?

—Not all monsters were humans. The Guardian clicked his tongue. It’s mostly true only for boss monsters because their stages are created based on true incidents from other worlds. Many boss monsters used to be creatures or heroes from other worlds; it becomes more common after the Tower’s eleventh floor.

What? Why are you only telling me this now?

—You didn’t ask.

The Guardian answered so shamelessly that I couldn’t argue.

—But it’s my first time seeing this kind of stuff.

What kind of stuff?

—I’m talking about what we’re watching right now.—their past. I know that boss monsters were based off of real things in different worlds, but how was I supposed to know what they went through? It’s not like I have a mind-reading Skill... Watching it makes me feel like shit, though, the Guardian mumbled.

...It really does, I agreed.

Incidents like this would always occur somewhere in the world. In fact, they could be worse than the one unfolding in front of me; however, knowing that was different from watching it with my own eyes. Although I wasn’t sure if it was a good or bad thing, the recreation of the doll’s trauma didn’t last for a long time.

“F-fire!”

A servant accidentally knocked over a candle without noticing. It happened late in the night when everyone was in their bed, so by the time someone noticed the fire, it was already too late.

“Cough cough!”

“We should run...”

The first-floor lobby burned up first, taking its fancy chandelier with it. Next was the bedroom of the mansion’s owner; the fire found its way to his luxurious bed, the elegant curtains, and crept down the stairway to the deep basement.

The blazing fire reached the ropes and chains in the basement. They were used to hang up the orphans, so all the brainwashed, tortured, and starved children were also caught in the fire. The fire seemed to erase whatever spell they were under.

“Ah...”

The children gasped. Because of the heated shackles around their wrists and ankles, they dangled helplessly like puppets on strings. The only thing they were able to do was scream, but I could still hear them voice their grudges and resentment in my head.

—I don’t want to die.

—I’m hungry.

—I want to live...

—Mister, you were kind...

—I didn’t do anything wrong. I had no family. But it was okay. I still wanted to play a little longer... It was...

—It’s not my fault. It’s unfair. It isn’t me.

—I’m hungry.

—I don’t want to die.

Sparks flew in the air. From afar, the only thing I could see was the burning mansion.

[The trauma recreation has been completed.]

[Ending the Skill penalty.]

And I went back a day.

***

Even after we opened our eyes, the Guardian and I were quiet. Both of us sat on the bed in silence. I was shocked... I wasn’t sure how I should deal with this.

—Mmmm...

After a long time, the Guardian scratched the back of his head.

—It’s really tragic. Someone should remember them, but there isn’t much else we can do.

“Is that seriously the first thing you say? What’s wrong—”

—Yeah, fine. I’m fucked up. The Guardian frowned, making him look like an angry gorilla. Maybe he was part gorilla. But truth always sucks! The tenth floor’s boss monster is just a monster now. Those children already died somewhere in their world. The dolls are just copies of them! It happened long, long ago, so what can you do about it, Zombie!

—If it’d happened in this Tower, then yes! Kill yourself five thousand times to go back to the past and fix it! But it happened in another world and a different time. This tragedy can’t be solved even if I were alive or I were the Sword God! Impossible is impossible for a reason.

He was right.

—Hunt down and kill the real doll. Then get to the eleventh, twentieth, thirtieth, fortieth, fiftieth floor and so on. Clear them all. If you’ve decided to become the strongest Hunter, then find a way to take care of your conscience on your own!

He was right again, but I had to disagree this time.

“That’s what the Fire Emperor would have thought.”

—Huh?

“The Fire Emperor. The Fucker. I’m talking about Yoo Soo-Ha, the first person I ever hunted.” I stood up from the bed. I tied my sleeping bag to the top of my backpack and secured my dagger to my belt. Although I looked clumsy, I equipped myself like the Hunter I was, ready to head outside my hotel room and climb the Tower. “You know what? Even if he saw the boss monster’s trauma, Yoo Soo-Ha would have found the real doll and immediately smashed its head. I’m sure of it.”

—So what?

“I don’t want to be like him.”

I got to the tenth floor and fooled the guard like my last try. And once again, I stood in front of the mansion’s gate. The estate looked exactly the same as the one I had seen in the Hellfire Maiden’s trauma.

—Hey! Are you a child? What are you going to do now? Not kill the boss monster because you want to be different? You have to kill the boss monster to clear the stage, Zombie!

“Who said that?”

—What?

I put my hands on the gate.

“Damn,” I mumbled. “I’m an idiot.”

—What are you talking about?

“You and I are both idiots. Goddamn it! The truth was right there, and we never noticed it.”

—Are you nuts? The Guardian frowned. It’s totally true that you’re an idiot, but don’t drag me into this. People called me a child prodigy.

“The Skill Card.” I said, holding back my annoyance. “The Infernal Barrier. The Class S Skill we haven’t picked. Do you remember? You went all wild about how I had to pick that one.”

—Hmm? Of course I remember.

“Say it.” I gestured at the Guardian.

—I can’t believe it. Who do you take me for, Zombie? ...Fine, listen up. The Guardian recited the Skill description with a frown.

It looked like he wasn’t lying when he said he used to be a child prodigy. He didn’t miss a single detail of the Skill description.

Infernal Barrier

Class: S-

Effects: Your unresolved grudges, your unheard voice, and your unfulfilled hope. Burn them all. “It’s hot.” Is that so? Turn the world into a ball of fire. “I feel like I’m going to die.” Kill everyone instead. As long as you desire, your Hellfire will manifest within a two-kilometer radius. No one can escape this hell without your permission. No one.

※However, you must be within the barrier too.

When he was done, I posed a question.

“You don’t see the issue, Mr. Sword Emperor?”

—Gosh, you’re frustrating the hell out of me. What in the world is supposed to be wrong!

“I’m talking about the last part. No one can escape the Infernal Barrier without the boss monster’s permission. No one. So how in the world did the Hunters who challenged the boss monster survive and escape?”

—Ah? The Guardian blinked. ...Huh? Fuck. You're right.

Ever since the Tower had appeared in this world, the Black Dragon Guild had been the best guild. The Black Witch, the leader of the guild and the Rank 2 Hunter, had attempted to clear the tenth floor’s boss monster stage dozens of times already, but had failed every time. Still, she had managed to bring back all of her Tower Raid Team members alive.

“It doesn’t make sense.” I slowly pushed the gates open. “It’s impossible to escape without the boss monster’s permission. That’s how the Skill is designed... It doesn’t make sense that an entire team of Hunters managed to escape unscathed without killing the boss monster.”

—Then...what the heck happened?

“There’s only one damn possible conclusion!”

The gates swung open like arms spread wide for an embrace.

“The boss monster allowed them to escape!”

The Infernal Mansion—the indomitable boss monster stage of the Tower’s tenth floor—was laid open.

[One challenger has entered the boss monster stage.]

[The challenger’s name is Hunter Kim Gong-Ja.]

[May luck be with you.]

“It should have been obvious from how Hunters were able to escape if they wanted to. The boss monster and dolls never considered Hunters their enemies.”

[Initiating the boss monster stage.]

“They just wanted to play with the visitors.”

The candles all over the mansion fell over, starting a fire. Amid the fire, the dolls stood. They couldn’t move,as if they were tied to something. The only thing they could do was to turn their heads and look at me. They opened their mouths and let out peals of laughter.

—Are you here to play?

—Are you going to play with us?

—Freeze tag? Red light, green light? Hide and seek?

—The ice melted. The street light is gone. Hide and seek it is!

—Yeah! Let’s play! Play hide and seek with us!

—Hehehehehe!

The first-floor lobby burned up first, taking its fancy chandelier with it. Next was the bedroom of the mansion’s owner; the fire found its way to his luxurious bed, elegant curtains, and crept down the stairway to the deep basement... Everything burned except for the children—the dolls.

I clenched my teeth for a moment.

“Alright. I’ll play with you.”

[The Skill Always Be Careful of Fire has been activated.]

I used the fire immunity Skill I had gotten from my last death. The moment the Skill was activated, the heat around me vanished. I could breathe much more easily and observe the mansion’s surroundings a little more clearly.

—Huh?

—You aren’t burning, Mister.

I looked carefully at the dolls. All of the dolls looked different but were equally expressionless—yet I could tell what they felt.

—Isn’t it hot?

—Mister, you’re strange.

—Can you play with us?

—Are you going to play with us?

I nodded. “Yeah, I’m here to play hide-and-seek. You guys better brace yourselves. I never lost hide and seek when I was young.”

—Hahahaha! You’re really weird, Mister!

—Hide! Everyone, hide!

The dozens, hundreds, thousands of dolls—no, children laughed. Although I told them to hide, no one moved because they couldn’t free themselves from their locations.

—Don’t come out, don’t come out, wherever you are.

“I got you.” I began to walk around the mansion, starting our game of hide-and-seek.

Whenever I stroked one of their heads, the child would slowly turn its head to look at me.

—Wrong! It isn’t me!

The children disappeared with a smile.

—It isn’t me!

—It isn’t me!

The mansion was filled with children, so I stroked their heads one by one as I walked by, making sure I got to every one of them.

—Hey, you’re... You’re giving them a requiem... the Guardian mumbled.

A requiem was made to console the deceased.

Without answering the Guardian, I continued to walk around the mansion. Along the way, I found the chains and shackles that had been used to bind them. Whenever I encountered those bindings, I also saw children amid the fire.

—It isn’t me! It isn’t me! It isn’t me!

—No, it isn’t me! I’m not... It’s...not me... I’m not...

—It’s...not me...

After some time, I arrived at the foot of the long stone stairway that led to the basement. Children were collapsed on the stairs as if they had tried to crawl to freedom. After tagging every child on the stairs, I stood in the basement in front of the last child.

—Are you going to play with us? The last child was sitting in the innermost depths of the mansion. Hammers, icepicks, and saws were scattered around the child.

I slowly walked toward him and stroked his hairless head. “I got you.”

The creator of the hellish inferno had a surprisingly small head, small enough for the whole thing to fit into my hand.

“...You’re it now, kid.”

After a moment of silence, the child slowly turned his head. Just like the other children, he was perfectly expressionless.

—You’re kind, Mister, he said.

The doll let out a laugh—along with its lips, skin, eyes... The entire child melted away like candle wax. Even as the fire devoured it, the child kept mumbling like a broken record.

—Thank you.

And it kept melting. Just like how the candle flame would disappear into the wax when it reached the end of the wick, everything disappeared. The chain and shackles liquefied, along with hammers, icepicks, and saws.

—Thank you.

The fire embraced the child, erasing its hunger and all other traces of its existence. Death left no traces.

I stood in the center of the ruins, surrounded by the empty space that once held the mansion.

[Congratulations.]

[The normal stage has been cleared.]

[The hidden stage has been cleared.]

[The boss monster stage has been cleared.]

The Tower’s tenth floor, which no human had ever cleared for years, was cleared today.