The glowing UI screen hovered in front of Joon-ho's face.
"Enter your Gamer Tag."
Without hesitation, he typed: Titan.
A name he had carried through tournaments, leaderboards, and endless streams — it felt natural.
The blank avatar photo blinked at him. Curious, he tapped it.
Suddenly, a miniature drone-like robot, round and gleaming, floated in front of him. It whirred softly and scanned his entire body with a thin line of light. In seconds, the photo frame on the screen filled with his likeness — sharp features, determined eyes, and his natural build.
He exhaled lightly, then tapped Continue.
The screen dissolved into fragments of light and vanished.
For the first time, Joon-ho turned his focus to the world around him.
The plaza — a vast, digital replica of Seoul's center — was overflowing with people. Some screamed in panic, some fiddled with their own holograms, while a surprising few stood still, unnervingly calm.
Joon-ho's gaze lingered on one man leaning casually against a holographic pillar, arms crossed, completely relaxed.
He walked over, his voice edged with suspicion.
"Do you… know something about this game?"
The man opened his eyes slowly and gave a faint smile.
"Yes."
Joon-ho frowned. "Then why are you so calm? Everyone else is losing it."
The man straightened and answered in a low, steady tone.
"Because I've been here for the past three days."
Joon-ho's eyes widened.
"…What? How? We all just got here."
The man shook his head. "No. We didn't. People arrive at different times. Not all at once."
Joon-ho froze at his words, his mind scrambling to process them.
He turned slowly, scanning the plaza again with fresh eyes — thousands of players, but perhaps… not all from the same moment in time.
A shiver ran down his spine.
A deep, resonant voice suddenly echoed through the plaza, vibrating in the air like it came from the sky itself.
"Greetings, players."
The noise of the crowd hushed instantly. Everyone turned their eyes upward, searching for the source.
"I am your Announcer. And to the last batch of arrivals… welcome to this world."
The words rippled across the hub, calm yet heavy. Joon-ho felt his chest tighten, the weight of it sinking in.
"Here, you will play games. Not for entertainment… but for survival."
The silence broke with nervous murmurs, fear leaking into the atmosphere.
"You have already been given three life points upon arrival — three days. Win games, and you will gain more. Fail… or refuse to play… and you will be erased."
The crowd erupted into gasps and shouts.
The voice continued, unwavering.
"After every game, you will be rewarded with Units, which can be exchanged for items and upgrades here in the hub. You will also receive trophies, kills, and more — all recorded on the leaderboards above. Your rank will determine your privileges. Including…"
The voice deepened, and the words carried a strange finality.
"Your place to live. Keys will be assigned according to rank."
Joon-ho squinted upward. At first there was only darkness… then the plaza trembled with a deep, thunderous boom.
Everyone froze. Slowly, their eyes followed the sound.
On the skyline, above the tall buildings, enormous glowing symbols ignited one by one — crosshairs, puzzle pieces, crowns, hourglasses, stars, skulls. Each symbol burned like neon fire, hanging high above the towers. Inside them, glowing numbers pulsed — 0 to 10.
A collective gasp ran through the plaza.
"What… what is that?" someone whispered.
"Games… each building is a game…" another muttered in dread.
The sky over Seoul wasn't Seoul anymore. It was alive with symbols of death and challenge, watching over them like gods.
The Announcer's voice thundered again:
"Choose wisely. Every step is a wager. Every victory, a key to life."
The plaza was filled with awe, terror, and silence.
The plaza quickly fractured into chaos.
Some players shouted to form guilds.
Others rushed blindly toward the nearest glowing symbols.
Veterans moved with calm precision, pulling followers into groups.
Joon-ho stood still for a moment, watching the panic unfold. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, but his eyes locked onto the skyline.
"...Games."
He exhaled sharply and began walking.
Passing through the bustling crowd, he studied the towers. Each one bore a glowing emblem and number.
A crosshair at 3, a crown at 5, a skull at 9.
Then his eyes froze on a massive tower where a Puzzle piece gleamed in crimson light. The number inside: 7.
"Puzzle… Difficulty seven."
Drawn without fully understanding why, he approached the tower. The crowd thinned near its entrance. He placed his hand forward—
—and was instantly pushed back by an invisible force field.
A UI appeared, glowing faintly before his eyes:
Puzzle Tower – Difficulty 7
Game Type: Logic / Deduction
Players Required: 12
Status: Slots Open
[ Register ]
Joon-ho hesitated only a second before tapping the glowing button.
The barrier dissolved, and the building's doors opened. He stepped inside.
A rush of sound greeted him — footsteps, voices, the clatter of boots on steel floors. Players were gathering in a sleek lobby lit by blue neon.
Above, a floating sign displayed:
11/12
The moment Joon-ho crossed the threshold, the counter ticked.
12/12
Room Full.
The air grew heavier. Some players wore fierce eyes, the practiced calm of veterans. Others, like him, twitched nervously, still in shock.
Before anyone could speak, an elevator door slid open with a hiss. The group exchanged glances, then one by one, stepped in.
The lift carried them upward in silence. The tension was suffocating.
When the doors opened again, they were no longer in a lobby.
They stood in a massive hall stretching endlessly forward, lined with fifty identical doors on either side. The ceiling seemed too high, the walls echoing every small sound.
A voice rang out, sharp and booming — the Announcer.
"Game Start!"
Everyone froze.
"Welcome to Puzzle Tower – Difficulty 7."
A ripple of dread went through the group.
"Your challenge is simple. Choose the right door. Only one door leads to survival. The others… will erase you."
Joon-ho's blood went cold.
"Time limit: Seven minutes. Begin."
The countdown timer appeared in glowing red above the doors.
7:00.
6:59.
6:58…
The players stared at the endless corridor, fifty doors, and their fate waiting silently behind them.