It had been centuries since an ominous tower emerged from the depths of the Southern Ocean. The pitch-black tower had no entrance, no windows—nothing to peer into. Its top vanished beyond the clouds, as if it had no end. People debated its existence and tried to study it; their efforts, however, were laughable. Back then, humanity had almost no information about the tower, aside from one strange fact.
[Do you want to turn your wish into reality?]
A voice called out to them in their heads once they were in the tower's vicinity. Only those who hesitated, stayed silent, or rejected the voice were spared. The rest disappeared without a trace and were never seen again.
Those who had a wish they wanted to fulfill were apparently consumed by the tower. Were they taken somewhere else? Were their wishes truly granted? No one knew the answers. Many advised to stay away from the tower, whereas others began to worship the tower's existence as it gifted them the opportunity to fulfill their wishes.
Even to this day, humanity had a split opinion on the now so-called Whispering Tower. Still, it did not stop people from across the world from seeking out the tower, hoping to change their mundane lives. And just like that, the world faced mass disappearances, which would only rise more as time passed.
October 2025.
"Where am I…?" a young woman muttered, visibly confused. The South Korean's long black hair fluttered slightly when she quickly turned her head from one side to the other, checking out the unfamiliar surroundings.
Just a few moments ago, she was on a ship located in the Southern Ocean, taking in the sight of the Whispering Tower, until a voice echoed inside her head and led her to the current place.
"Am I inside the tower…?"
Her round blue eyes widened in shock as she realized that she suddenly found herself in another place. She thought that she would stick out with her baggy tracksuit and her skin that was paler than the average; however, one look at the people in front of her was enough to prove her wrong.
The place was nothing out of the ordinary. It resembled a typical modern city, which she was familiar with in South Korea, but instead of regular people, the woman witnessed people who casually walked around with armor and weapons like those from video games. There were students in their school uniforms with long swords on their backs, office workers in suits with helmets or chest armor on them, and even elderly citizens equipped with items that made them appear like wizards.
"Excuse me, are you perhaps Luna Park?"
She flinched when a young girl suddenly talked to her. The girl looked like she was roughly 15 years old. Her shoulder-length blonde hair framed her small face, and the round brown eyes of hers were filled with innocence. In addition, the petite girl was clutching a wooden wand while wearing a frilly dress, showing off a resemblance to a magical girl.
"H-how did you know?" she replied vigilantly. Luna just arrived there, so nobody should know about her, and yet, a perfect stranger called her out by name.
"I'm Jay! I was assigned as your guide to help you start your journey inside the tower!" Jay replied with a beaming smile as she extended her hand for a handshake.
Again, she was a stranger, but the longer Luna stared into Jay's innocent-looking eyes, the less she could doubt her.
"Nice to meet you…" Luna said, shaking her small hand hesitatingly, which brightened Jay's expression even more.
"Then, let's not waste more time standing around and get right into it!" Jay declared energetically. Startling Luna again, Jay dragged her along as she was leading her to their next destination.
"W-where are we going, Jay?!"
"First, we're going to buy some essentials for you!"
Not having a clue what kind of essentials she had in mind, Luna just let herself get dragged by Jay. Passing various stores and buildings, Luna noticed that the place she was at was really not that different from where she came from. Even the text and names displayed in the stores and signs were in Korean, making her wonder if everyone else was Korean, too, or if they were just fluent in it. After all, the Whispering Tower was sought out by people all over the world, and Korean was clearly not a language everyone could speak or read.
Luna thought about it a little bit until Jay came to a halt.
"Here we are."
"?"
Initially, Luna already had the impression that the city had a high population; however, the current street, filled with shops she could not recognize at first, was exceeding her expectations. It was so crowded with people that she had to hold Jay's hand tightly in order not to get separated from her.
While strangers kept bumping shoulders with her, Luna slowly managed to walk forward.
"Before you can start your adventure, you obviously need armor and weapons." Jay said, before entering the store, which was as huge as a city hall. Luna followed her only to be instantly taken aback by the store's display and atmosphere.
Armor so clean that one could even see their own reflections on it. Weapons so intimidating that one would even be scared to touch them. And books so mythical that they could change one's world view after flipping one page.
Luna still did not know what awaited her or why exactly she needed these items for her so-called journey; however, she could not stop fantasizing about herself wearing all those cool things. Maybe she could go for the mysterious-and-beautiful wizard look? The cool-and-noble knight look? Or even the dangerous-and-sexy assassin look?
"Hehehe…"
"Luna…?"
Jay worriedly snapped the drooling Luna back to reality after she did not move or respond for a moment.
"Since you're new here, let me help you find the right equipment for you!" Jay suggested kindly.
"H-huh? Sure…"
"Alright! Then, follow me, Luna!" she declared. Thus, Jay—once again—pulled Luna's hand as she went through the store's section.
"Hmm… Based on her build, an ax may be too much… A sword, maybe…? No, something that's more suited for beginners…"
Jay was careful about picking out the right weapons and armor for Luna. As if being in her own world, she did not pay attention to Luna or her surroundings and proceeded to only look at the items, comparing them to the information she had about Luna.
Even among other guides, Jay put in far more effort for the sake of her clients. Some of her colleagues already started calling her a saint due to that kindness. While others only did the bare minimum, Jay made sure that new people could truly be integrated into society despite sacrificing more time and energy than others.
She did all that because she wanted to help people. Because she was kind. Because kindness was everything she had.
"Sorry, it took longer than I thought…" Jay said, smiling apologetically.
"No need to be sorry, Jay! In fact, I'm really grateful to you!"
Luna left the store with an already used dagger and simple armor for the chest, knees, and forearms. It was not what she had in mind back then, but she was still content because Jay had handpicked them personally for her.
"By the way, how much did it cost?"
"Don't worry about money. As guides, we're given extra money for such occasions!" Jay stated proudly.
The items were not the best compared to the others displayed in the store, but it may have been better that way. A weapon that looked like a demon king's weapon would have definitely been too much for a beginner.
"Now, we have everything we need, so let's go hunting, shall we?"
"What?"
Dumbfounded, Luna stared at Jay, who took out a necklace with an eye-sized blue crystal from her bag. It suddenly began to shine brightly, forcing Luna to shut her eyes.
"…"
The light was gone, and Luna carefully opened her eyes.
"What the…"
Just a few seconds ago, the two girls were in the middle of a crowded street; however, it was strangely quiet now. A fresh breeze caressed her and the grass beneath her. They were surrounded by nature while gazing at a metropolis from afar.
"Pretty handy, isn't it?" Jay commented, showing off the necklace.
"Thanks to this item, I can teleport myself to the hunting fields." she added.
Luna pointed at the metropolis.
"So you're saying that we were just there…?"
"That's right!"
For Luna, it really felt like she was in a video game.
"Welcome to the Tutorial Section, new Challenger!"
"W-what do you mean, Jay…?"
However, before another word could be spoken, the bushes behind them rustled.
"Wha-"
Jumping out of those bushes was a strange gray slime blob the size of a basketball. Its body wobbled like pudding as it moved like a snail towards them.
"It's a slime. It does not pose a danger, but once it touches you, it will instantly engulf your body and hinder your movements."
Luna was not scared, but instead, she stared at it intensely. Something like that did not exist in her world. It was an otherworldly existence.
She could not help but look at it like a curious child.
"The tower is split into ten different sections, with the Tutorial Section being the first one. If you want to move to the next section and ascend the tower, you have to clear all ten quests in a section first."
Jay spun her wooden wand around her as she walked towards the slime.
"Those quests can contain monster hunting, escorting someone, finding a specific item, or something beyond your imagination. But…"
Swiftly, Jay hit the slime with her wand as if she were playing golf and turned it into shreds, destroying her image of a frail and petite magical girl.
"If you, the one who challenges the tower, successfully clear all 100 quests, your wish will be granted." Jay stated with a confident smile.
Hearing that, Luna also smiled. Not because of the chance of getting one's wish granted, but because of the new world she was in.
"This is exactly what I wanted…!" she murmured in excitement.
"Let's continue, Jay!" she added, taking the lead this time.
The two girls explored the nearby forest, where they also spotted a few other Challengers. Some of those Challengers appeared strong enough to take on a bear alone, whereas others had to give it their all against slimes.
"Maybe we should stop for today." Jay suggested. The sun started to set, turning the forest into a dangerous place to be in for beginners.
Luna nodded. Today, she may not have fought a monster yet, but there was still tomorrow.
"Tomorrow, I will teach you about skills and stats, so-"
Suddenly, Luna and Jay turned around after sensing the presence of people approaching them.
"Sorry, we didn't mean to scare you like that…"
The voice belonged to a young man; however, he hid behind a tree, hiding his identity.
"Can we help you?" Jay asked. She acted concerned, but in reality, she had a bad feeling.
"The thing is…"
As the man spoke, Jay grabbed Luna's hand tightly, signaling her that it could become dangerous.
"We're after you." he said calmly.
"Are you... Are you perhaps one of the criminals who're currently on the run?"
Jay's tone was stern.
"C-criminals…?"
"Apparently, two young men committed murders in this section, but the police still haven't caught them." Jay explained to the frightened Luna.
"It's all that idiot's fault for doing it in public…" the man sighed, sounding anything but remorseful for their crimes.
"Why are you after me?" Jay asked, searching for the necklace in her bag.
"Because you're Jay."
"?!"
Jay's hand stopped moving in her bag when she noticed another person right behind her.
"Luna."
None of them turned around.
"Run aw-"
She was cut off mid-sentence—with a sword. Blood sprayed from her neck as her headless body collapsed to the ground. The head would separately bounce on the ground and roll to Luna's feet with dead and wide eyes staring right into her soul.
"J-Jay…?"
Her legs gave out, and Luna fell on her butt.
"Luna, right?"
Unable to close her trembling mouth, she tearfully turned around and looked at her friend's killer.
It was a young man with skin as pale as hers. His slightly parted hair was white—so white that it seemed unnatural—coupled with a few black strands. And his gray eyes were sharp but kind—so kind it reminded her of someone.
He extended his hand in an attempt to help her up, but in no timeline would Luna take the hand of someone who was smiling gently at her with blood stains on his face.
"It's me. Jay."