Arin and Kael walked slowly down the dusty road.
People passed them from both directions, carrying baskets, weapons, and strange tools Arin couldn't recognize. The town buzzed with activity. Merchants shouted prices across market stalls, metal clanged somewhere in the distance, and the smell of roasted meat drifted through the air.
Kael looked around like an excited tourist.
"Okay," he said. "This is officially the weirdest afterlife ever."
Arin ignored him. His eyes moved carefully across the surroundings.
Stone buildings. Wooden rooftops. Guards standing at certain corners.
The people looked human… but many carried swords, staffs, or strange glowing objects.
Then Kael suddenly pointed.
"Hey."
Arin followed his finger.
A man in metal armor walked along the road, holding a long spear. The armor gleamed beneath the sunlight, and a blue cloak hung from his shoulders.
"A guard," Arin said.
Kael grinned.
"Perfect."
Before Arin could stop him, Kael marched straight toward the armored man.
"Hello, sir!" Kael said. "Um… quick question."
The guard stopped.
Slowly, he turned and looked at the two boys standing in front of him.
For a moment, he simply studied them.
Then he sighed.
"Oh," the man muttered. "New ones."
Arin raised an eyebrow.
"New ones?"
The guard nodded.
"Yes. You both are."
Kael blinked.
"Wait—both of us?"
The man adjusted the spear resting on his shoulder.
"My name is Nikolas," he said calmly. "Captain of the western gate guards."
He gestured around the town.
"This place is the World of the Dead."
Kael frowned.
"…That sounds very dramatic."
Nikolas chuckled quietly.
"It is dramatic."
He raised his spear and pointed toward the gigantic tower rising far above the clouds.
"That tower is the reason this world exists."
Arin's eyes narrowed slightly.
"World?" he repeated.
Nikolas nodded.
"People who die in different places… different eras… different worlds… sometimes arrive here."
Kael slowly turned to Arin.
"…So we're not the only dead people?"
"Correct," Nikolas said.
He tapped the ground lightly with the butt of his spear.
"This place gathers the dead. Those who arrive are given a chance."
"A chance for what?" Arin asked.
Nikolas looked up at the massive tower.
"To climb the Tower Beyond Death."
Both boys followed his gaze.
The tower stretched endlessly upward, its peak swallowed by the clouds.
Nikolas continued.
"Each floor of that tower is a different dimension. Different worlds. Different trials."
Kael whistled.
"So it's like a giant video game dungeon?"
Nikolas ignored the comparison.
"At the top of the tower… a wish is granted."
Kael's eyes widened instantly.
"A wish?"
"Any wish," Nikolas replied.
Silence fell.
Kael grabbed Arin's shoulder.
"Bro."
Arin pushed his hand away.
"I heard him."
Kael leaned closer to Nikolas.
"Wait, wait—like any wish?"
Nikolas nodded.
"Anything."
Arin spoke calmly.
"Has anyone reached the top?"
Nikolas' expression became more serious.
"No."
Both boys stared at him.
"The highest floor conquered so far," Nikolas continued, "is the eighth floor."
Kael blinked.
"…Only the eighth?"
Nikolas nodded slowly.
"Those floors are not simple."
He pointed toward the tower again.
"There are many types of floors."
"Types?" Arin asked.
Nikolas began counting on his fingers.
"Battle floors."
"Puzzle floors."
"Survival floors."
"Labyrinth floors."
"Kingdom floors."
Kael's eyes widened more with each one.
"And sometimes," Nikolas added quietly, "floors that no one fully understands."
Arin folded his arms.
"And people just climb it?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Nikolas looked at him as if the answer were obvious.
"For the wish."
Kael grinned.
"Honestly, that's a pretty good reason."
Nikolas continued explaining.
"When newcomers arrive, they usually stay in towns like this first."
"Why?" Arin asked.
"To learn."
Nikolas gestured toward the market streets.
"Climbers share information. Strategies. Equipment. Magic."
"Magic?" Kael repeated, suddenly excited.
Nikolas smirked slightly.
"You'll see soon enough."
He turned and began walking again.
"Wait!" Kael called.
Nikolas stopped and looked back.
"What happens if you die in the tower?"
For the first time, the captain's expression darkened.
"If you die inside the tower…"
He paused.
"You disappear completely."
Kael swallowed.
"Like… permanently?"
Nikolas nodded once.
"No second chances."
Silence returned.
Arin stared at the massive tower again.
Eight floors cleared.
Ten total floors.
And if you failed… you were gone forever.
Kael, however, suddenly grinned.
"Sounds fun."
Arin sighed.
Nikolas shook his head slightly.
"You two really are new."
He pointed down the road toward the center of town.
"There's a Beginner's Guild there. Go learn the basics before you do something stupid."
Kael suddenly giggled and raised his hand in a dramatic salute.
"Sir! I'd like to file a complaint about dying."
Arin smacked him on the back of the head.
"You caused the accident."
"…Allegedly," Kael muttered.
Nikolas decided he had heard enough and continued walking.
Arin remained where he stood, staring at the massive tower in the distance.
A tower filled with worlds.
Trials.
And a wish waiting at the top.
Kael nudged him.
"So… we climbing it?"
Arin stared at the clouds swirling around the upper floors.
Then he said quietly,
"…Eventually."
Kael grinned.
"Good."
Because for the first time since waking up—
the afterlife was starting to look interesting.