A pedestal slowly rose from the glowing opening in the floor, stone grinding against stone as if something ancient had been awakened.
Dust and fragments of crystal slid off its sides, scattering across the jagged cave ground. At the very top of the pedestal stood a strange structure—a long metallic barrel fixed in place, angled slightly upward, its surface covered in faint glowing lines that pulsed like veins of light.
Seung-hoo and the others stared at it in silence.
No monsters appeared.
No attack came.
Only the quiet hum of energy vibrating through the chamber.
For a moment, none of them moved.
Seo-yeon shifted her stance, tightening her grip on her daggers. Hyun-wu raised his shield slightly, positioning himself in front of Kim out of instinct.
Seung-hoo narrowed his eyes, scanning the pedestal and the walls around it, trying to sense any hidden traps or sudden movements.
Then, without warning, a set of glowing numbers appeared above the pedestal, floating in the air as if projected from an invisible screen.
They flickered violently.
Billions.
Millions.
Thousands.
Hundreds.
The digits changed so fast that they blurred together, forming chaotic patterns of light. The room was filled with the faint ticking sound of rapid calculation, like a massive machine processing impossible equations.
Finally, the numbers slowed.
They settled into place.
0 / 534
The glow stabilized, casting pale green light across the cracked stone floor.
Seung-hoo frowned. He had seen system windows, quest counters, and enemy levels before—but this number felt different. It didn't resemble a timer or a health bar. It looked like… a score.
Before anyone could speak, a mechanical voice echoed through the chamber.
It was female, calm and emotionless, yet unnervingly clear.
"Welcome, players. Since you have accessed the hidden objective, you are now required to participate in a game."
The words reverberated off the jagged cave walls, multiplying into layers of sound.
Seo-yeon jerked her head upward. "A game?!"
The voice continued without reacting to her tone.
"This game requires participants to shoot projectiles into a designated target. The more successful shots an individual achieves, the more points they will accumulate."
As if responding to the explanation, the long barrel on the pedestal shifted slightly. A faint glow formed inside it, condensing into small, perfectly round spheres of light. One after another, dozens of glowing balls materialized and hovered in the air beside the pedestal, waiting in neat rows.
Across the chamber, a structure emerged from the darkness. A small basket-like target unfolded from the wall, its rim glowing the same green color as the numbers above them. It was positioned far from the pedestal, at an awkward angle, forcing anyone who tried to aim to account for distance and height.
Kim took a step back, his boots scraping against loose stone. "This doesn't feel like a reward…"
The mechanical voice resumed.
"If one individual achieves a higher score than all others, they will be granted a prize."
The numbers above the pedestal pulsed once.
"However, the losing individuals will have one of their skills sealed."
Hyun-wu stiffened. "Sealed…?"
"There exists a specific condition required to 解除 the sealed skill."
The unfamiliar word made the air feel heavier, as if the game carried rules far more dangerous than it first appeared.
The glowing balls drifted closer to the pedestal, slowly rotating in place. The barrel adjusted its angle again, locking into position with a sharp metallic sound. A faint line of light extended from the barrel toward the basket, marking the trajectory of a shot that had yet to be fired.
Seung-hoo's eyes followed the line carefully. This wasn't random. Everything—the numbers, the pedestal, the basket—had been designed with precision. It wasn't meant to kill them outright, but it was clearly meant to test them.
And punish them.
The number 0 / 534 flickered again, as if waiting for the first attempt.
Around them, the cave seemed to grow quieter. The distant echoes of dripping water faded, replaced by the steady hum of the pedestal's energy. The glowing circle on the floor slowly dimmed, sealing off their exit and leaving only the strange game apparatus between them and whatever came next.
Seo-yeon glanced at Seung-hoo. "This… isn't optional, is it?"
Seung-hoo didn't answer immediately. His gaze remained fixed on the floating numbers and the glowing projectiles, his mind racing through possibilities, calculating risks, remembering how the System never offered anything without a cost.
The pedestal emitted another low chime.
The mechanical voice spoke once more.
"Participants may begin when ready."
A faint vibration spread across the floor beneath their feet.
Before anyone could react, a glowing circle suddenly appeared beneath each of them, etched into the stone like a magical seal. The symbols inside the circles pulsed with pale green light, identical to the numbers floating above the pedestal.
"W–What is this now?" Kim exclaimed, looking down at his boots as the light wrapped around them.
A second later, transparent glass barriers rose straight up from the edges of the circles, forming four separate cylindrical enclosures. The sound of crystallizing air echoed through the chamber as the barriers locked into place with a sharp clang.
They were separated.
Each of them stood inside their own glowing prison.
Seung-hoo lifted his hand and pressed his palm against the barrier in front of him. It was warm, smooth, and impossibly solid, like reinforced crystal. His reflection stared back at him, distorted slightly by the glow.
Then glowing letters appeared in the air above his barrier.
[ Player 1 ]
He turned his head quickly.
Above Kim's barrier, another label formed.
[ Player 2 – Kim Bak-un ]
Hyun-wu's barrier followed.
[ Player 3 – Hyun-wu ]
And finally, Seo-yeon's.
[ Player 4 – Seo-yeon ]
Seo-yeon crossed her arms, eyes narrowing. "So now we're assigned numbers too?"
Hyun-wu stepped closer to his barrier wall and examined it from top to bottom. "This thing doesn't look that tough…"
Without warning, he drew back his fist and slammed it into the glass.
BANG!
A deep metallic echo rang through the chamber, but the barrier didn't even crack. Not a single ripple appeared on its surface.
Instead, the glowing numbers above the pedestal flickered violently.
The mechanical voice spoke again, cold and immediate.
"Player 3 has attempted to interfere with the game environment. Penalty applied. Increasing target count."
The floating numbers changed instantly.
0 / 534 → 0 / 564
The room fell silent.
For a split second, nobody spoke.
Then Kim whipped around toward Hyun-wu. "Dude, why'd you punch the barrier?!"
Hyun-wu stared at the updated numbers in disbelief. "I was just testing it—how was I supposed to know it would do that?!"
Seung-hoo groaned and rubbed his forehead. "There was no reason to touch it at all. Now the total went up."
Seo-yeon pointed at the glowing numbers angrily. "Yeah, because of you, it just added thirty more targets. Do you know what that means?"
Hyun-wu clenched his fists. "I didn't think it would count as cheating!"
The mechanical voice interrupted them again.
"All actions are monitored. Any attempt to damage game structures will result in difficulty adjustment."
Around the chamber, new basket-shaped targets slowly emerged from the cave walls. They unfolded one by one, glowing the same green as the pedestal, spreading farther and farther away from the barrel.
Some were positioned high near the ceiling.
Some were hidden behind jagged rock edges.
Some rotated slowly, making their openings harder to aim at.
Kim swallowed. "This is starting to look less like a game… and more like a trap."
Inside his barrier, Seung-hoo carefully observed the setup. Each player had a clear line of sight to the pedestal's barrel, but the distance and angles differed slightly. It wasn't fair or symmetrical—it was designed to test precision, timing, and probably luck.
The glowing balls inside the barrel shifted, lining up as if waiting for a command.
The number 0 / 564 pulsed again.
Seo-yeon looked at Seung-hoo through the glass. "So… Player 1. Any ideas?"
Seung-hoo kept his eyes on the floating targets. His mind raced, thinking about the punishment the voice had mentioned earlier—skills being blocked. One mistake here could permanently weaken them.
He raised his hand slowly, signaling for calm.
"Don't touch the barriers again," he said firmly. "Every action counts as part of the game. That includes panic."
Hyun-wu exhaled sharply. "So what… we just shoot balls into baskets until one of us wins and the rest get punished?"
The mechanical voice spoke again, almost as if answering him.
"Rules are simple. Score determines outcome. Game will begin when first projectile is launched."
The barrel on the pedestal glowed brighter.
One glowing ball floated forward and stopped in midair, directly in front of Seung-hoo's barrier, as if waiting for him to make the first move.
The cave seemed to hold its breath.
The numbers hovered above them, unchanging.
0 / 564
And all four players stood inside their glass circles, realizing that from this moment on, every throw could decide who would be rewarded—and who would lose a part of themselves.
Then, a ball was thrown into the basket, it rolled on the rims before finally going in.