First floor - complated!

"This... is unbelievable," he muttered.

He gripped his dagger tightly. His arms no longer trembled.

His gaze locked onto the Goblin Chief.

Min-ho was drenched in blood. Hana whispered her final prayers, while Dae-jung still lay unconscious.

The Goblin Chief raised his spiked club, preparing the final blow...

---

Min-ho, with sheer desperation, lifted his massive sword to brace for the strike.

The Goblin Chief brought the club down with all his might—but something changed. The blow veered off target at the last moment. This wasn't a lucky mistake. The heavy weapon smashed into the ground, sending up a storm of dust and debris.

Min-ho had shut his eyes tightly, his body tense, bracing for death. But... the pain never came.

One second passed. Then two. Still no agony. He took a shaky breath and cracked open an eye. His legs trembled, but he was still standing.

"I'm... still alive?" he whispered.

As the dust began to settle, the sight before him stole his breath.

The Goblin Chief staggered back, roaring in pain. A dagger was buried deep in its right eye. Its black hilt trembled faintly, rooted as if it belonged there.

Through the thinning haze, Min-ho saw a silhouette.

The Goblin Chief, now half-blind and furious, turned away from the others. In its eyes, Min-ho and his companions were no longer threats—just bugs waiting to be crushed. The true threat... was the one who had thrown that dagger.

As the enraged Goblin Chief charged, Ha-jin thought to himself, I threw that to save the kid, but now what the hell am I supposed to do?

He glanced around, looking for anything he could use as a weapon... but there was nothing.

A sharp tsk escaped his lips. "What a joke..." he muttered.

Just as he grumbled, a voice called out.

"H-Hey! Watch out!" Min-ho shouted.

Ha-jin looked up—just in time to see the Goblin Chief lifting its club and glaring straight at him.

BAM!

He barely managed to leap aside, narrowly avoiding the blow.

"I spent so long thinking about what kind of weapon I could use... I forgot why I needed one in the first place."

"If that kid hadn't warned me..."

Ha-jin shot a quick glance of gratitude toward Min-ho—and noticed the sword in his hand.

The Goblin Chief roared again, grabbing its club from the ground. Its single eye blazed with fury as it charged once more.

Ha-jin dodged again with a nimble step to the side. The club slammed into the earth, shaking the ground. Cracks spread across the dirt, dust erupted into the air. Ha-jin frowned. This was dragging on.

He sprinted toward Min-ho, the Goblin's pounding footsteps echoing behind him.

"Hey, you!" Ha-jin shouted. "Throw me your sword!"

Min-ho stared, looking at his bloodied sword, then at the approaching figure. His heart pounded.

Even if I had this sword... I couldn't do anything. But maybe... he can.

"Catch!" he yelled, throwing the weapon with all his strength.

The sword spun through the air. Ha-jin leapt—right behind him, the Goblin Chief raised its club to strike.

In midair, Ha-jin reached out and caught the sword by its hilt.

His feet hit the ground, knees bending from the force, but he stayed upright. The Goblin Chief reached him in the same moment.

Without hesitation, Ha-jin gripped the sword with both hands—one on the hilt, the other on the back of the blade. He pulled it up like a shield.

BAM!

The club crashed into the blade.

The sword quivered. Metal groaned. The ground beneath Ha-jin crumbled. Dirt and rock flew into the air. The impact crushed down on his feet. Pain surged through his arms. Bones ached. Muscles screamed.

But... he didn't fall.

He slowly raised his head, spat blood, and smiled—just a little, just enough.

"Sturdy thing..." he muttered between ragged breaths.

The Goblin Chief took a step back. It hadn't expected a human to hold out this long.

"Hey. Don't you think it's about time we end this?" Ha-jin called out to it.

The Goblin Chief let out another furious roar—and swung again.

BAM!

But this time, something felt off. The club had a weight it shouldn't.

Ha-jin had stepped on it.

Using the club like a stepping stone, he launched himself straight at the Goblin Chief's face.

With all his strength, he swung the sword. His target—the Goblin's throat.

The blade carved a silver arc through the air.

SHRAAK!

Steel cleaved through thick hide and dense muscle. A jet of dark green blood exploded into the air, splattering Ha-jin's face and clothes.

The Goblin's eyes went wide with a gurgled snarl.

It stumbled back... once... then again...

Ha-jin landed with trembling knees, but didn't collapse. His eyes never left the collapsing monster.

The towering body shuddered, then hit the ground with a thunderous crash. Its chest rose once... then stilled.

[FLOOR BOSS DEFEATED!]

[LEVEL UP!]

[LEVEL UP!]

[LEVEL UP!]

A translucent panel popped up before his eyes. But he had no energy left to read it.

His chest heaved. His arms trembled. He drove the sword into the ground and leaned on it to stay upright.

Min-ho stared in disbelief. Hana's eyes filled with tears. Her lips trembled.

"We... we survived," she whispered, sinking to her knees, head bowed, praying between shallow breaths.

Min-ho still struggled to comprehend what had happened. His eyes flicked between the dust settling behind Ha-jin and the massive corpse beyond.

"He... he did it. Alone..." he murmured, almost to himself. His voice echoed in the darkness.

A few seconds passed in silence.

Then Ha-jin slowly turned toward them. He was covered in blood, leaning on the sword, but his eyes still burned with life.

"What? You gonna stare all day?" he said with a small smirk. "Do I have Goblin blood on my face or something?"

Min-ho jolted. "A-Ah, no, I was just... you're incredible," he stammered. "I mean... really... uh..."

Ha-jin rolled his eyes and let out a breath.

Min-ho scratched his head. Hana gave a soft smile.

Ha-jin wiped his face with his arm, cleaning off some of the blood. He glanced at the system notifications, then looked back to Min-ho.

"Nice sword, by the way. I owe you."

"Mine?" Min-ho blinked. "But... if it weren't for you, we'd all be—"

"If I hadn't been here, you wouldn't be either. Yeah." Ha-jin nodded, face serious. "But that's how the Tower works. You either save someone, or you die. There's rarely a choice."

Hana had gathered herself a bit. "Who... are you? Which guild are you with? Why did you save us?"

Ha-jin paused. He looked up toward the ceiling—or what the Tower pretended was a sky. Then replied quietly:

"I'm just someone... who happened to be in the right place at the right time."

He turned, scanning the area for loot.

Something caught his eye—a glimmer among the rubble.

He walked closer and found a red mana stone. A medium-grade one. It was at least ten times more valuable than the blue stone the girl had given him the day before.

He picked it up. The red crystal shimmered softly in his palm.

"Medium-grade..." he murmured.

Just then, footsteps approached behind him.

Min-ho came closer, still shaken and exhausted. His gaze lingered on the crystal, but he didn't speak for a moment. Then he looked up.

"That... belongs to you."

Ha-jin tilted his head. "What?"

"You saved us," Min-ho said seriously. "If it weren't for you... we'd be dead. And you're the one who fought that thing. We can't claim anything."

Ha-jin looked back at the stone. Just hours ago, he'd risked his life for a low-grade blue crystal. But this... wasn't just valuable because of its rarity. It was soaked in blood, sweat, and death.

"You're right," he said quietly. "You wouldn't."

Min-ho lowered his head. "That's why... it should be yours. No one needs to say it. You earned it."

Ha-jin nodded. "Thanks."

He dragged the crystal into his system's inventory. The panel vanished.

Meanwhile, Hana knelt beside Dae-jung, pressing her hands to his chest. A soft healing glow pulsed from her palms, steadying his breath. Finally, he inhaled—shakily, but alive. Hana sighed in relief, tears in her eyes.

Ha-jin looked at them one last time. Exhausted. Drained. But somewhere deep inside... content.

He turned and walked toward the exit gate.

He felt Min-ho's gaze following him—but didn't stop.

The ground rumbled faintly. Then a flash of light—

And he stepped into the world above.

---

3:00 AM – Seoul

The chill of a summer night wind struck his face.

He had returned to the real world.

The city was silent. Streetlamps flickered, casting dim light on empty roads.

Ha-jin walked home with heavy steps. When he reached his apartment, he slid the key into the lock quietly. Removed his shoes. Noticed the ache in his back.

He headed straight to the bathroom.

Under the hot shower, he lowered his head. Warm water washed away the blood, the sweat, and the fatigue. His eyes closed. The images replayed like a film.

The Goblin's scream.

Min-ho's terrified face.

Hana's praying hands.

That final slash.

He took a long breath.

Minutes later, he stepped out, dried off, and put on a plain T-shirt and sweats. When he glanced at the mirror, dried blood still clung to his cheek. He wiped it with his sleeve, but some stains remained.

He entered the bedroom. Checked his phone: 3:27 AM.

Silently, he sank onto the bed. His whole body ached. His eyelids grew heavy.

The system panel still hovered faintly at the edge of his vision—those level-up notifications still blinking.

But he couldn't bring himself to care anymore.

He let out a breath. Closed his eyes.

And slowly, in the darkness, drifted into peaceful sleep.