The Goblin Chief stood in front of them like a walking apocalypse, its glowing red eyes reflecting the mushroom light. Its roar shook the entire Tower dimension.
Anos cracked his knuckles, smirked, and snapped his fingers.
[Skill Activated: Time Cancel]
The air froze. The world went still. The Goblin Chief froze mid-roar, mouth wide open like a badly paused video frame.
"Perfect," Anos said, spinning the goblin bone club he'd been using like a baseball bat. "Alright, big guy. Time to—"
[ALERT: Skill Time Cancel Duration Reached. Cooldown: 60 Minutes.]
The entire world resumed in an instant.
The Chief roared in his face, so loud Anos' hair practically blew backward.
"…Oh, come on," Anos said flatly. "Right now? You couldn't wait until AFTER I killed him?!"
The Chief swung its massive tree trunk club, and Anos barely rolled out of the way.
BOOM!
The ground exploded where he'd just been standing.
"Okay, okay, calm down!" Anos yelled, running in circles as the Chief swung again and again, each strike leaving massive craters in the ground.
[ALERT: Suggestion – You still have unused Stat Points.]
Anos stopped mid-run. "…WAIT. I still have stat points?!"
[Correct.]
"WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY THIS EARLIER?!"
[You did not ask.]
"ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!"
He jumped behind a tree as the Chief smashed the ground again.
"Fine! Put ALL of it into my level!"
[Processing… Level Increased +4]
[Current Level: 11]
Anos' body immediately felt stronger — faster, sharper.
"Oh yeah, this is better," he muttered, grinning.
[Recommendation: Open Shop. Purchase Weapon.]
"Yes! Finally, some good advice."
A glowing menu appeared before him.
[Shop Opened]
Common Weapons – 10 Points
Rare Weapons – 50 Points
Epic Weapons – 200 Points
Sun-Grade Weapons – 1000 Points
Anos slammed his finger on Sun-Grade Weapons without hesitation.
[Confirm Purchase: Sun-Grade Weapon?]
[Cost: All Points]
"Yes!"
A blinding golden light appeared — and when it faded…
Anos was holding a stick.
"…What."
He turned it over. It was literally just a wooden stick.
"What the hell is THIS?!"
[Congratulations! You have received: Sun-Grade Weapon – "Heavenly Bonk Stick."]
Anos stared at it in disbelief.
"…This is a stick."
[Correct.]
"I BOUGHT A GOD-TIER SWORD AND GOT A STICK?!"
[Correction: You bought a Sun-Grade Weapon. Its form is determined by the Master Above the Fourth Wall.]
"…Master above the what now?"
[The Master Above the Fourth Wall.]
Anos blinked. "…You mean… like an author?!"
[Details Classified.]
Anos facepalmed. "Great. Not only am I fighting a boss with a stick, I apparently have a stalker watching my life like a Netflix series."
[You may proceed.]
"Yeah, yeah," Anos muttered. "Fine. Whatever."
He twirled the stick in his hands, sighing. "Guess it's bonk o'clock."
---
BONK VS. BOSS
The Goblin Chief roared and charged.
Anos grinned. "Alright, big guy. Let's see if this thing actually works."
He leapt into the air, spinning mid-jump.
"NUCLEAR—"
The stick began glowing like it was about to explode.
"—PUNISH!"
He slammed the stick down with all his strength.
BOOOOOOOOM!
The entire ground lit up. A massive shockwave erupted, blowing everyone backward and flattening half the forest.
When the dust cleared, there was a smoking crater where the Chief had been standing.
And in the center of it — the Goblin Chief, twitching, eyes rolled back.
One hit.
KO.
The entire crowd stared at Anos.
"…He just… one-shot a Level 10 boss."
"With a STICK."
Anos landed in the crater, blowing on the stick like it was a gun barrel.
"Yeah," he said casually, "don't mess with the stick."
---
AFTERMATH
[Trial Complete.]
[Reward Distribution in Progress.]
Everyone began cheering — some crying in relief.
"WE'RE ALIVE!"
"LEVEL UP!"
Anos' system window appeared again.
[Reward Acquired: EXP + 300]
[Reward Acquired: Stat Points +5]
[Reward Acquired: New Skill – Nuclear Punish (Permanent)]
Anos grinned. "Oh, I get to keep that? Nice."
[Warning: Nuclear Punish has 12-hour cooldown.]
"…Less nice."
---
As the Tower glowed and reset for the next trial, people began approaching Anos.
"Hey, man," one of them said, "thanks for saving us. Seriously. We'd all be dead without you."
Anos smirked. "Yeah, you're welcome. But next time, try to contribute, okay? I'm not running a charity service here."
Someone else pointed at the stick. "Uh… are you gonna keep that?"
Anos looked at it. The stick was glowing faintly, almost humming in his hands.
"Oh yeah," he said, smiling. "This? This is my Excalibur now."
---
ENDING HOOK
The Tower system spoke again.
[SECOND TRIAL UNLOCKED: BEGINNING IN 24 HOURS.]
Anos cracked his neck, looking up at the sky.
"Another trial, huh?"
He grinned.
"Good. I was just getting warmed up."
The moment the Goblin Chief hit the ground and the Tower announced the trial was complete, Anos expected to be teleported straight to the next floor.
Instead, the Tower flashed a bright light — and everyone was thrown out like trash through a magical vortex.
WHOOOOSH—THUD!
Anos landed face-first on the pavement outside the Tower.
"…Ow," he groaned, spitting dirt. "Really? No smooth transition? Just—yeet?"
All around him, people were celebrating their survival. Some were crying, some hugging, and a few just lying on the ground staring at the sky like they had PTSD.
Anos dusted himself off, glaring up at the Tower.
"Really killed my mood, Maggie," he muttered. "I was ready for Round Two!"
[Reminder: Next Trial Unlocks in 24 Hours.]
"Ughhh," Anos groaned, dragging his feet away from the Tower. "Fine. Guess I'll go find something to eat before then."
He had barely taken ten steps when the System pinged again.
[Warning: High-Level Entity Detected.]
Anos froze. "…Uh-oh."
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone standing near the edge of the plaza.
Unlike the other survivors, this guy wasn't cheering or crying. He just… stood there, arms crossed, staring straight at Anos with the kind of intensity you'd expect from someone about to collect your soul.
The System pinged again.
[Analysis Complete. Target: ???. Origin: Tower Entity.]
Anos blinked. "…Wait wait wait. Did you just say TOWER ENTITY?!"
[Correct.]
"People from the Tower can COME OUT?!"
[Clarification: Not 'people.' Tower Chosen. Unique Rank. Very Rare.]
"Greeeaaat," Anos muttered. "So I just killed a boss, got yeeted out, and now the Tower sent a mini-boss after me?"
The man started walking toward him. His presence was so overwhelming that even the ground seemed to hum under his steps.
Everyone else started backing away, whispering.
"Who… who is that guy?"
"He wasn't in the trial with us…"
"Why does he look like he eats Level 10 bosses for breakfast?"
Anos sighed dramatically.
"Welp. Guess my mood's back."
The man stopped a few feet away from him. He was tall, silver-haired, wearing a black coat lined with glowing runes. His eyes glowed faintly golden.
"You," the man said, his voice deep and calm. "You're the one who cleared the first trial."
Anos raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, what about it? You here to congratulate me or murder me?"
The man smirked faintly. "Depends."
Anos groaned. "Oh great, a cryptic badass. Lemme guess — you're here to 'test my worthiness,' right?"
The man tilted his head. "…You're not afraid?"
Anos shrugged. "Eh. I just beat up a giant goblin with a stick. I'm kind of riding the high right now."
The System pinged again.
[ALERT: Power Level – Danger Class: S]
Anos' smile faltered. "…Wait. S-Class?"
[Correct.]
"…Like… stronger than the Chief Goblin?"
[Correct.]
"…Stronger than ME right now?"
[Correct.]
Anos turned to walk away. "Yeah, nope. Not doing this today."
"Where are you going?" the man asked.
"Uh, literally anywhere else!" Anos shouted over his shoulder. "I have exactly zero interest in becoming Tower Entity Sushi!"
The man chuckled. "Relax. I didn't come here to kill you."
Anos stopped and turned back slowly. "…You didn't?"
"No. I came to see why the Tower raised the difficulty because of you."
Anos smirked. "Oh, that? Yeah, that's just me being awesome."
The man narrowed his eyes. "You're cocky."
Anos crossed his arms. "You're creepy."
They stared at each other for a long moment before the man smiled slightly.
"…I like you."
Anos blinked. "Uh. Thanks? I think?"
The System pinged again.
[ALERT: New Quest Available – Mysterious Challenger.]
[Objective: Survive Encounter.]
Anos groaned. "You know what? Forget food. This day just got interesting."
---
ENDING HOOK
The man turned and started walking away.
"Tomorrow," he said. "When the next trial opens. I'll be watching."
Anos grinned, gripping his glowing stick.
"Yeah?" he said. "Then you'd better watch closely. I'm gonna put on a show."