Chapter 1
The Master of the Tower (1)
December 25, 1999.
Christmas.
A day to celebrate the birth of the Great One.
Ding—dang—
Christmas bells rang throughout the streets.
“Heehee, hoo!”
“Ma’am! Almost there! Just a little more, just a little more strength!”
“Aaagh!!”
On that day, in a countryside delivery room, a new life was about to be born.
“It’s snowing!”
“Oh, a White Christmas.”
“But honey… is it just me, or does the sky look cracked…?”
“Huh?”
As countless people looked up at the heavens, a rift formed.
From beyond it, hideous monsters poured out in swarms.
“Aaaagh!”
“Save me!!”
At the very moment when the whole world screamed in terror—
“Waaah!!”
—I, Seong Shin-woo, let out my first cry of life.
They say nothing remains unchanged in the face of time.
[The A-rank Gate ‘Forest of the Black Night’ that appeared at Hwaseong Haenggung has been successfully cleared under the cooperation of the Hunter Association and guilds. This is a highly encouraging—]
Beep!
[According to the Bureau of Statistics, the number of Awakened continues to rise. The government emphasizes that now more than ever, we must focus on discovering talent and ushering in the era of K-Hunters—]
Beep!
[The Ohsung Group has announced an astronomical-scale investment into developing a new semiconductor using mana stones, sparking great interest—]
Beep!
“Nothing interesting.”
Shin-woo yawned widely as he muttered.
No matter where he looked, all he heard about was Hunters.
Well, that was natural.
Gates, the System, and Hunters—
Three words that perfectly summed up the upheaval of the world.
It had been 25 years since the first Gate appeared, and without question, Hunters were the protagonists of the age.
“But what’s that got to do with me?”
Even when his seatmate Ji-hoon awakened, or when his friend’s little sister Mi-young awakened, Shin-woo did not.
He even tried leaving water offerings on plates and praying to all the renowned gods, but awakening seemed to be none of their business.
At this point, I must’ve been marked by the System at birth, back when the First Gate appeared.
Though, it was more likely he simply had bad luck and never awakened…
Still, isn’t it more comforting to think the System just hates me?
So he chose to live with that belief: awakening just wasn’t in his fate.
And really, what’s so special about becoming a Hunter and saving the world anyway?
“I’ve saved the world hundreds of times.”
…in games.
“Tch.” Feeling a bit self-deprecating, Shin-woo scratched his head.
No, no. Thinking like that was the real defeat.
“That’s it. Time to go save another world.”
Straightening his posture, Shin-woo fiddled with his smartphone.
His last console game had ended with saving the world, so now he was thinking of trying a mobile game—something longer-lasting.
In these games, saving one world and moving on to save another is just part of daily life.
So as he scrolled through the ads—
[What?! You get stronger just by standing still? Monsters melt away instantly!]
[After obtaining a Dragon Heart at the Final Gate, I regressed. Now, with an ability that grows stronger just by breathing, I’ll save the world!]
[Build your own cozy farm and relax with adorable animal friends~]
“What the heck, is this all there is?”
From #1 to #10 in free game rankings, it was all idle games.
Like they were stamped out of the same mold.
And yet, the funny thing was…
“Why do they all look fun?”
In every one of them, the protagonist’s bleak reality transformed completely after one pivotal moment.
Just like Shin-woo had long wished for.
Ah, he was jealous.
“I want to awaken too.”
He chuckled awkwardly as the words slipped out from his heart.
And then—
[Individual ‘Seong Shin-woo’ has been granted the qualification to Awaken.]
[Access to the System is authorized.]
[Awakening begins.]
“…Huh?”
A message floated in the air. He even slapped his cheeks, but it wouldn’t go away.
Shin-woo was dumbfounded.
“What, is this a joke? When I was praying with water on plates and everything, the System ignored me, and now suddenly it lets me awaken?”
Of course, this was a prank he would gladly accept. Raising his hands high, Shin-woo cheered.
It was like winning the lottery. Who cared if it was sudden?
“Glory to the System!”
But only for a moment—he calmed himself down.
Just because you awaken doesn’t mean you can become a Hunter.
Awakened were assigned “classes” by the System, and with them came “class skills.”
Only those whose classes gave them combat power could be Hunters.
Among Awakened, there was even a saying:
Just as there are tiers of lotteries, there are tiers of awakenings.
Your potential as a Hunter depended entirely on your class type and rank.
Shin-woo swallowed hard as he awaited the result—
Ding!
[The Awakened Seong Shin-woo has been granted a class.]
[Class rank: EX (Transcendent)!]
“?!”
His eyes widened. Class ranks ranged from F up to S. Getting S was like winning the jackpot lottery.
But Transcendent?
What kind of class is that?
「Seong Shin-woo」
Class: Master of the Mage Tower (EX)
Class Skill: 「Master of the Tower Lv.1」
“…Master of the Mage Tower?”
He half-expected something unusual from such an unknown rank, but this was beyond imagination.
“Isn’t the Tower Master basically the leader of mages?”
In novels, the Tower Master was usually a single great mage, master of the Mage Tower—a holy land for magic.
But hearing it didn’t really make it feel real.
At the very least—
“That means it’s stronger than Archmage.”
An S-rank class, Archmage.
Depending on their magic, they were called living natural disasters.
Yet the System deemed Tower Master superior even to them.
Wow. His heart pounded at the thought.
Now all that remained was to check his class skill.
「Master of the Tower (Lv.1)」
: O Lord of radiant wisdom, build your tower with knowledge and seize the glory of the world.
The knowledge you accumulate shall become armor to protect you, and loyal mages shall become blades to strike your enemies.
Great glory lies in your hands.
Would you like to explore your tower? [Y/N]
“Of course.”
Seeing once was worth a hundred words.
When he pressed Yes, the System window crackled like a TV, showing a blue tower standing in the middle of a desolate plain.
「Nameless Mage Tower」
Basement:
「Arcane Engine Room Lv.1」 – Produces mana.
1st Floor:
「Summoning Room Lv.1」 – Summons lowest-rank mages.
「Research Lab Lv.1」 – Researches and develops magic.
2nd Floor:
「Meditation Room Lv.1 (Damaged)」 – Mages recover health and mana through meditation.
3rd Floor:
「Locked」
“Huh… this?”
The engine room produced mana, which was then consumed by other facilities to summon mages or research spells.
It was the familiar structure of an idle game.
And—
[Tip! By summoning mages in the Summoning Room, you can activate the dormant Mage Tower.]
“Well, how kind.”
Snorting at the System’s friendly guidance, Shin-woo tapped the Summoning Room.
The view shifted to a chamber with a complex magic circle carved into the floor.
「Summoning Room Lv.1」 – Summons lowest-rank mages.
Required mana: Free (first-time only)
Required staff: Tower Master 1/1, Lowest-rank Mage 0/0
[Tip! To summon, please place your hand on the summoning circle.]
Curiosity at its peak, Shin-woo immediately tried summoning.
The magic circle glowed, spinning slowly until—
Flash!
When the light faded, a red-haired man stood there.
Clad in a thick robe and holding a wooden staff, he looked like the archetypal mage.
「Mage A」
Rank: Lowest
Magic: 「Mana Bolt Lv.1」, 「Ignite Lv.2」, 「Flight Lv.1」
“Oh.”
Seeing the spells, Shin-woo let out a gasp.
Three spells right from the start.
“If he were an Awakened, he’d be born with a silver spoon.”
Newly awakened mages usually got only one or two skills.
And one of these was Flight, a rare skill.
Even with a low class rank, anyone with Flight was sought after by major guilds.
Feels like I summoned someone impressive.
But instead of standing tall, the mage just bowed to the floor, unmoving.
As Shin-woo wondered if he needed to give direct orders—
[Mage A’s spells are stored in the Research Lab.]
[These are spells not possessed by Tower Master Seong Shin-woo.]
[「Master of the Tower」 activates. – He who stands at the tower’s peak shall rightfully claim all that belongs to the tower.]
[Downloading all spells.]
“…Huh?”
Immediately, knowledge flooded his mind.
He became aware of the mana within his body, and the mana permeating the world.
He understood how to move it, how to twist the rules of reality with it—
[You have acquired 「Mana Bolt Lv.1」.]
[You have acquired 「Ignite Lv.2」.]
[You have acquired 「Flight Lv.1」.]
Opening his eyes, Shin-woo cautiously stretched out his hand.
Mana from the air gathered at his will, forming a small blue star in his palm.
A Mana Bolt.
The so-called “Magic Missile.”
The tiny star of mana lit up the darkness of his shabby room.
“…Heh.”
At last, Shin-woo understood why the System ranked Tower Master above Archmage.
If Archmages gathered mana just by breathing—
Tower Masters gained magic simply by summoning mages.
…Perhaps even more than that.
「Research Lab Lv.1」 – Researches and develops magic.
The dream of becoming a Hunter—once abandoned—
…suddenly felt within reach.
