Twenty-four hours passed in a blur.
Ethan spent every second preparing. He withdrew all his savings, bought survival supplies, and positioned himself near the location where he knew the first Tower would appear.
Downtown Manhattan. Times Square.
At exactly 12:00 AM on April 2nd, it happened.
CRACK!
The sky above Times Square split open.
A massive structure descended from the rift—a towering black obelisk that stretched hundreds of feet into the air. Its surface was covered in glowing red runes that pulsed with malevolent energy.
Around the world, 999 other Towers appeared simultaneously.
Panic erupted instantly. People screamed and ran in every direction.
And then—
ROAR!
Monsters began pouring out of the Tower's base.
[Fanged Rats], [Lesser Goblins], [Shadow Hounds].
Dozens of them flooded the streets, attacking everything in sight.
Ethan stood calmly in the middle of the chaos, watching as people fled.
DING!
[Tower #237 has activated]
[All Climbers in the vicinity will now receive their initial Class Assignment]
[Preparing evaluation...]
This was the moment.
In his past life, this was when Malachar had first contacted him.
Ethan waited, his heart pounding.
DING!
[Evaluating combat potential...]
[Evaluating magical affinity...]
[Evaluating survival instinct...]
[...]
[Class Assignment Complete]
[You have been assigned the Class: Novice Mage]
[Starting Skills: Fireball (Rank F), Mana Shield (Rank F)]
Ethan blinked in surprise.
Novice Mage? That was... completely different from last time.
In his previous life, he hadn't received a class at all. Instead, Malachar had appeared immediately and offered the contract.
But now...
DING!
[Warning: Demonic Presence Detected]
[A contract offer is being extended to you]
There it was.
A dark window appeared, overlaying his system panel. The text was written in blood-red letters.
[DEMON GOD MALACHAR OFFERS YOU A CONTRACT]
[Accept his power and become the Shadow King]
[In exchange, you will complete missions assigned by Malachar]
[Do you accept?]
[YES] / [NO]
Ethan stared at the window for a long moment.
In his past life, he had clicked "YES" without hesitation.
This time...
He raised his hand and pressed [NO].
DING!
[Contract Rejected]
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then—
[IMPOSSIBLE.]
A booming voice echoed through his mind, filled with shock and fury.
[HOW DARE YOU REFUSE MY OFFER, MORTAL?!]
Ethan smiled coldly, speaking out loud.
"Because I know what you really are, Malachar. You're not offering salvation. You're offering slavery. And I know exactly how this ends."
Silence.
Then the voice returned, quieter this time. Calculating. Dangerous.
[You... you REMEMBER.]
[The flow of time has reversed for you, hasn't it? You've REGRESSED.]
Ethan didn't respond, but his silence was answer enough.
[Fascinating,] Malachar's voice took on an amused tone. [You reject my contract, knowing full well what happened last time. Tell me, Ethan Cross... do you truly believe you can reach the 100th floor without my power? Do you think you can save humanity ALONE?]
"I'll find a way," Ethan said firmly. "Without selling my soul to you."
[Bold words. But you forget something important.]
The air grew heavy with malevolent energy.
[I don't NEED your consent to interfere in your life. You rejected the contract, yes. But I can still influence this world. I can still empower OTHERS. Your precious friends, perhaps?]
Ethan's blood ran cold.
'He's going to target them. Try to turn them against me again.'
[We shall see how long you last, little regressor,] Malachar's voice faded like smoke. [I will watch your struggle with GREAT interest. And when you finally break... when you BEG for my power to save those you love... I will be waiting.]
[This time, the contract terms will be FAR less generous.]
The dark presence vanished completely.
Ethan exhaled slowly, his hands shaking slightly.
He had made an enemy of the Demon God. Again.
But this time, he knew what was coming.
DING!
[Warning: Demon God Malachar has marked you as an enemy]
[He will attempt to sabotage your progress through indirect means]
[Beware of his influence]
'Great,' Ethan thought bitterly. 'So he can't force a contract on me, but he can still mess with my life.'
That meant his friends were in danger. Malachar would try to turn them again, use them as pawns.
'I need to get stronger faster. Strong enough to protect them from his manipulation. Strong enough to reach the top of the Tower without needing demonic power.'
Another monster approached—a [Lesser Goblin] wielding a crude knife.
Ethan raised his hand.
"Fireball."
FWOOSH!
A small orb of flame shot forward, slamming into the hound's face.
The creature yelped and collapsed, smoke rising from its scorched fur.
DING!
[You have slain "Shadow Hound (Level 2)"]
[+30 Experience Points]
Ethan checked his status.
[Name: Ethan Cross]
[Level: 1 (30/100)]
[Class: Novice Mage]
[HP: 80/80]
[MP: 50/50]
[Strength: 5]
[Agility: 6]
[Intelligence: 8]
[Vitality: 6]
[Skills: Fireball (Rank F), Mana Shield (Rank F)]
His stats were... pathetic compared to what he had in his past life.
Back then, with Malachar's contract, he had started at Level 5 with multiple Rank C skills.
But Ethan didn't care.
He would grow stronger the right way this time.
Another monster approached—a [Lesser Goblin] wielding a crude knife.
Ethan cast Fireball again.
FWOOSH!
The goblin died instantly.
DING!
[You have slain "Lesser Goblin (Level 1)"]
[+20 Experience Points]
[You have reached Level 2!]
[All stats increased by 2. You have gained 2 free attribute points.]
Ethan allocated both points into Intelligence.
He would focus entirely on magic this time. No dark powers. No contracts. Just pure skill.
As he fought, more and more Climbers began to appear around him, awakening to their own classes and powers.
Some panicked. Others fought bravely.
Ethan ignored them all and kept hunting monsters.
By the time the first wave ended, he had reached Level 4.
DING!
[First Wave Complete]
[Tower #237 entrance is now accessible]
[Climbers may enter to challenge the floors and grow stronger]
A glowing portal appeared at the base of the Tower.
Ethan stared at it.
In his past life, he had waited three days before entering, too afraid to go in alone.
This time, he wouldn't hesitate.
He stepped through the portal immediately.