Before me was a field of luscious green grass. Off to my right, was a small village, one that looked as if it came from the medieval era, though it did look a little more sophisticed. On my left, far in the distance, was a mountain range of which looked far too fantasy to be real. The peaks rose high into the sky, passing the clouds and seemingly piercing space. Jagged spikes rose high and some poked themselves out along the faces of the mountains.

The entire scene looked far too picturesque to seem real to me, and I simply stood in awe at the view. Many others did something similar, we were all too interested in the surreal view in front of us to even think about moving.

The more proactive of us began to move right away, some running off towards the mountain range, while others ran towards the village.

It took me a moment, but I managed to pry my eyes away from the view and look around me, before heading towards the village.

I'm not sure what I'm looking for as of yet, but I noticed that the sword I had in the white space was now gone, and I don't think I have anything like an inventory, so I'll have to find a new weapon.

That's why I ran towards the village instead of the mountains. There's no point in trying to fight something if you don't have a weapon. Unless it's those green things, you could kill those easily.

When I reached the village, I noticed something about the number of people that were with us. In the white space, there were a little under a hundred thousand of us, according to Administrator, so why is it that there is barely even a thousand of us around here?

They probably got put into a different area of the floor to us, but I can't stop my thoughts from wandering.

I try to distract myself from them by looking around the village, before stumbling across a marketplace, where I'm quickly surrounded by merchants trying to sell me their wares.

The Tower has granted you knowledge of the language of this world.

"Young man! Look at this fine knife!--"

"You need a quick firestarter, right? You can get one right here fo--"

"Son, this shield here'll protect you like nothing else--"

The moment I see the panel, my ears are bombarded with loud shouting from the merchants, and I attempt to push through them, managing to stumble across a small hut by moving between two stalls.

From where I was, I could hear a quiet clanging sound, and as I got closer, it only got louder, and I could feel the temperature seem to change around me.

When I was in reach, I knock on the wooden door and hear the clanging stop immediately.

Footsteps permeate through the ground before the door swings open, revealing a large, muscular man covered in soot and dirt, wearing light clothes with large gloves on his hands.

"What ya want?"

His voice was rough, and he spoke loudly.

"Is this a... Smithy?"

His face contort for a moment.

"Well, what'd'ya think it is, a fucken outhouse?"

"Oh, no, it's just... I haven't seen a smithy before so..."

"You haven't seen a smithy befor-- ah, you're one of those... I see. Come in."

He spoke in bewilderment at first, before coming to some conclusion in his mind and inviting me in.

Inside was even hotter than outside. On the far side was an open fire forge, and in front of it was an anvil with a hammer resting on it, alongside a still-hot strip of metal. Along the wall was a hanger filled with different sets of tools.

"So, you're one of those Explorers, huh?"

"Yeah... Wait, how did you know?"

"Well, you've never seen a smithy, you're wearing clothes I ain't seen before, and you look like you just came from a bath in some noble's estate, minus the blood."

"Ah... Then, I'm guessing you already know why I'm here?"

"Why else would you come to a smithy? You need a weapon."

"How much would it cost for a sword?"

"Depends. You want a short, stubby sword, it'll be cheaper than a long one."

"And how much is a long one?"

"Hm, I'd take maybe... Hmm... Gimme 150 coins and I'll make ya a trusty one."

"That's fine by me."

It's only after I say that, that I realize I don't know how to take my coins out of my status.

If it's anything like the status, then...
"Withdraw... 150...?"

It takes a moment, but soon enough, a bag materializes in front of me with the same pattern as the portals, before dropping into my hand.

"Uh... Here."

I quickly hand him the coins, and he opens the bag to check the amount, before closing it quickly and hanging it on his belt.

"Four days. Come back in four days and you'll have yourself a good sword."

"Alright, that works! Thanks!"

"Anytime you want to give me money!"

Laughing at his last remark, I walk away from the shack, now wondering what I'll do for the next four days.

I could try and get more coins, but I'm not sure if odd jobs around the village will give me any. Well, it doesn't hurt to try.

I spend the few hours or so walking around the village, trying to ask about any odd jobs that I could help around with, and I managed to earn 42 coins from doing so, but I ended up extremely tired after it.

Chopping wood for an hour is one thing, but to have to wheel entire logs from a nearby forest all the way back to the village right after is too much.

I can feel my legs and arms trembling after working much harder than they have done in their entire life.

The sky begins to turn a bright orange as the sun starts setting, casting a brilliant glow on an already beautiful view. Laying down, a cloak of serenity seems to pass over me as the breeze flows over.

A few minutes of tranquility pass, before I feel myself start to fall asleep, but I stop myself, not wanting to do so in the middle of a random field.

Instead, I opt to go back to Earth to get some sleep, which causes me to encounter another problem. I don't know the way to open the portal.

At this point, most of the others from Earth have already figured out the way to return, so finding another person to ask will be a little difficult.

Maybe if I think really hard about a specific location on Earth, a portal will open there!

So I close my eyes and begin thinking about my bedroom at home for a minute or so before stopping and opening my eyes expectantly, before being disappointed at the lack of a portal.

Maybe there's a skill?

Skills:
[Coldheart]

Nope.

After racking my brain for a few minutes and trying out a few of the dumb ideas that came to my head, I over heard another person shout "Open" and see a portal appear.

I quickly copy them and find a portal I front of me, and I step through, happy I finally figured it out.

What greets me when I walk all the way through was the same hospital room that I was in when I got the invitation from the Tower.

As I get my bearings, I hear a small clattering off to my side, near the door and I look over to see a nurse and a small tray shaking on the ground.

"Ah, um, hi? I'm, uh, the one that was put in this room?"

"Right... What, uh... what? I'm... Am I dreaming?"

"No, you're not dreaming..."

"What? I mean... You did just... You walked out of a..."

"A portal, yeah..."

"Where... Did you come from? I was, uh, cleaning the room so another person could take it, but..."

"Ah, right... Well, I don't need the room anymore... I'm healthy enough to go home, so..."

"Right... Do you, um, want me to call the doctor?"

"Well, I mean, you don't have to..."

"I'll go and, um, I'll go and get him. "

"Right."

She scurries out of the room quickly, leaving behind the tray on the floor and me writhing over the awkwardness of the conversation.

Only a few minutes pass before the nurse returns with Doctor Liften, my therapist.

"Ah, Doctor..."

"... Itsuki... Where did you go?"

"That's... A little hard to explain..."

"Hard to explain? We've had people from the Government hanging around the entire hospital everyday since you disappeared, and now you're suddenly back?"

"Ah... Yeah... Wait. Everyday? How long have I been gone for?"

"You don't even know that? It's been 3 days since we found the room empty!"

"3 days?! I couldn't have been gone for more than a day! I mean, I spent a couple hours at that village, but I could have only spent at most an hour in that white place..."

"Itsuki, what are you on about?"

"Ah..."

Right, they wouldn't understand what I'm on about. There's basically no one that will, the people that were in that white space are going to be so few and far between on Earth that I may not even meet another one at this point.

"Itsuki... Itsuki."

"What?"

"You have to come with me. You need to talk to those people from the Government. They've been all over these disappearance cases, and now suddenly one has come back."

"There'll be a lot more than just one..."

Mumbling under my breath, I follow Doctor Liften through the hospital, before we find ourselves outside, with two men in black suits standing close by.

"Sirs, here's the boy."

"Ah, thank you Doctor, we'll be going now. Come with us, Itsuki Affen."

"Eh? Wait, what? I thought we were just going to talk?"

"We are, it's just that this place... Isn't suitable for it."

He looks around while speaking, as if anticipating someone watching us.

"Can I atleast be sure you're from the Government?"

He doesn't answer, but instead holds up and ID card that looks real enough to me, so I follow him hesitantly, before getting in a black SUV.

"Um... Where are we going?"

"Just a place where we can talk. We've gathered other missing people like you there as well."

"Eh? There were others so close by?"

"Well, the disappearances only happened around the Tower. It's only natural for them to be so close."

"Ah, right..."

Yeah, I hadn't thought of that.

"Anyway, you said 'others close by' as if there were some that didn't seem to be so close by. What does that mean?"

"Huh? Ah, well, there were quite a few of us... 99828 to be exact."

"How do you know the exact number?"

"Ah, that's a little... Difficult to explain without everything else."

"I see... Well, you'll have time to explain it when we get there."

After that, the entire car trip was silent. It was a little difficult, sitting in the back of a car, especially since it brought back some horrid memories, but I tried to push them back and keep my mind preoccupied by thinking of the Tower.

Before long, we arrived, and I was escorted out of the car towards a large, gray building.

A pair of shutter doors opened as we got close, and inside, there were a few hundred people sitting down on the floor, looking at their phones or just waiting.

Unlike them, however, I was taken off to the side, towards a small room with a single table in it, similar to an interrogation room, but without the intimidating look to it.

There, another man was waiting, this one wearing much more casual clothes and sandals.

He gestures towards the other end of the table, where there was a seat facing another.

I sit down quickly and he follows suit, before asking his questions.

"Let's get started then. What's your name?"

"I-Itsuki Affen."

"How old are you?"

"17."

"What were you doing near the tower at the time of its appearance?"

"I was, uh, with my family on the road in the car. My parents said they were going to surprise me with something, but then the, uh, the shockwave hit."

"Right. And your family, where are they now?"

My chest stings as he asks the question, and I can feel my eyes begin to water.

"They... They're, um, they're..."

"... I see. Alright, Itsuki. My name is Jack Stermen, I'm the one that's been put at the top of the department for figuring out whatever the fuck that thing is. So, I need you to tell me what happened when you disappeared. Got that?"

I don't answer, but merely nod as I can still feel my throat choking up from the question before.

"... I'll give you a few minutes."

"No... No, I'm... I'm fine. I'll tell you."

"... Alright."

He stops himself from getting up and instead makes himself a little more comfortable on the chair.

As he does, I start recounting the events that happened, starting from the therapy session I had with Doctor Liften, all the way to the awkward conversation I had with the nurse.

"So... This 'Administrator' you spoke about, were you able to see them?"

"No... It was just a voice coming from nowhere."

"And these, uh, green creatures you had to kill... Were they human?"

"No, no. They were nowhere near human. They were small, maybe two or three foot tall, and their heads were too big for their size. They didn't even seem to have the intelligence of an animal."

"Hm, alright. And these things, the ones you called Quests, how many of these did you complete?"

"Ah, it would have been... Six of them."

"Six? Hm... And on the sixth quest, was there anything different?"

"Yeah... It wasn't the same creature. It was bigger, better clothes, and it had this necklace made from teeth. It was also smarter than the other ones, stronger too."

"Right. So, the other... Missing people have called the smaller ones goblins."

"Ah... Yeah, I can see the resemblance."

"As for this larger one, we only have one other person that even saw it."

"... Eh? Wait, there's another one of the successful ones here?"

"Yeah, we've put her somewhere else, since we may need to ask her more questions."

"Can I meet them?"

"When we're done. I have a few more questions. First, are you one of the 42?"

"Ah, um, yeah, I am."

"Right, and this village you went to... Did it seem... Earthly?"

"Hm... The village seemed like it was from the Medieval Period, but it wasn't from Earth. There's no way that entire floor is somewhere on Earth."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I haven't seen anything like the mountains I saw. I haven't seen flat platforms of rock extending from mountains, nor one that's peak seemed to reach space."

"I see. Okay, last question. Will you let the Government support you in exchange for this information?"

"... How so?"

"Well, there's only one condition. You must respond to any request we have of you. In exchange for that, we will provide you with a house and any necessity you will need, as well as a monthly income. You will not have any obligation to enter the Tower unless one of the requests calls for it."

"Oh! That's... Much better than I was expecting..."

"Can I take that as a yes?"

A house, a monthly income, basic necessities cared for... It's a dream come true. All I have to do is fulfill requests they have of me. I won't even have to enter the Tower... Wait...

Obligation to the Tower? Isn't that similar to what Administrator said? It said we were... What was it? Tied to the Tower?

Right! Administrator said that we couldn't leave the Tower for too long. No matter what, we would have to enter the Tower. I'm not exactly sure how it would work, but it seemed like a threat when it spoke, so I don't exactly want to push my luck.

So, even if I take the offer, I'll still have to enter the Tower, which would make one of those rewards obselete.

And, now that I think about it, from the way Administrator spoke about it, it doesn't seem like the Tower is going to go away anytime soon, especially with it saying that Floor 5 will help our world.

Doesn't that then mean that the Tower is going to be used on Earth? Soon enough, I'm sure there'll be ways to earn money through the Tower, and since there isn't even a hundred thousand people that can enter, items from the Tower are going to be exceedingly rare, meaning they'd sell for a lot of money.

If I use the Tower correctly, I could be earning more than what the Government is offering me now... And I wouldn't have to fulfill any of their requests. There really isn't a downside to me refusing... Aside from if my thinking is entirely wrong, but I don't think it is, so...

"I... I'm going to say no."

"... What?"

"I don't want any obligation to the Government. It's a nice offer, I almost took it, but I'm not going to."

"... Are you going to tell me why?"

"... I think that the Tower is going to have more worth than what you are offering me."

"... Ha... Haha... Hahahahaha!"

His sudden laughter startled me slightly, but it quietened down quickly.

"Huh, you are one gutsy kid. Refusing guaranteed rewards in preference to an investment. Alright, let's pretend this never happened then. I'll take you to the other one. Follow me."

He stands up quickly, scraping the chair across the ground, and I hurriedly get up from my chair to follow him.

We take a few turns down a few corridors before we end up at what I could only describe as a waiting room.

Several small coffee tables were placed in the center of the room, while the edges were lined with cushioned chairs and benches.

In the far corner of the room, one of the chairs was occupied by a blonde haired girl who looked up from her phone when we entered.

"He's another one of the 42 you said you were apart of. His name's Itsuki. Itsuki, meet Amy. Oh, and she's older than you, so be polite."

With that, he leaves the room, his footsteps quieting down as he strides down the hallway.

"... So, uh, hi?"

"... How many did you kill?"

"Huh?"

"Those goblins. How many did you kill?"

"Oh, um, five quests, and it increased by one each time, so... Fifteen?"

"Fifteen? So you saw the hobgoblin too?"

"Yeah...?"

"Did you kill it?"

"Yeah."

"Hm. Alright then."

She seems satisfied as she turns back to her phone.

After a few seconds of silence, I decided to sit down, but I end up bored quickly, since my phone broke when I was thrown out the car.

I end up moving my gaze across the room multiple times in my boredom, and after a few times, my eyes stay on Amy.

She seemed familiar. Not what she looked like, but... Her way of talking...

Wait... Was she the one who asked about the boxes before we went to the first floor?

"Hey, uh, Amy? Did you get a skill from the test?"

"... Yeah, why?"

"Does yours also have boxes covering up something before 'stat'?"

"Yeah... It does."

"So we're you the one who asked  Administrator about it?"

"I did ask it, yeah. How'd you know?"

"Oh, I just overheard it when we were there, and your way of talking reminded me of it..."

"My way of talking? It's that distinct?"

"No, not really, it was just a strange feeling..."

"Right..."

And once again silence intrudes into the room, leaving me feeling awkward.

"Say, uh, Amy? What weapon did you take from the rack?"

"Huh? Oh... I chose the chakram."

"Chakram? I didn't see anyone take that... Can you use them?"

"Well, I managed to reach the hobgoblin, didn't I?"

"Ah, well, I suppose so... Did you... Kill it?"

"I managed. The stick it had was annoying."

"Ah, yeah... Do you know what we're waiting for? Why we're sitting here?"

"I think that hunky guy... Jack? I think he wants to get all of the people that disappeared into this building."

"... But we can just leave?"

"Huh? We can?"

"Y-yeah. We can just go into the Tower."

"Oh right. We can just leave... Are you going to?"

"Huh? Me? Hmm, probably not? I mean, I don't have anything to do there yet, so..."

"Yet? Have you already planned?"

"Not really a plan... I just put an order for a sword in to a blacksmith, so I have to wait four days... Ah, no, it'd be barely two days, right?"

"What? Why? Wouldn't you have to wait four days like he said?"

"Eh? You don't know?"

"Know what?"

"You haven't seen the date?"

"Date? What do you mean..."

She quickly swipes on her phone a few times before her face contorts.

"Eh?! What is this?! Why have three days passed?!"

"I think time passes differently in the Tower. About a day to three days. Maybe less."

"Ahh... No wonder... I thought everyone was a bit surprised..."

"Yeah, I was suddenly pushed out of the hospital and was taken here, so I haven't been back for long... Say, where did you end up?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know, after that whole Administrator thing, where were you put?"

"Oh... I'm not sure where, but there was a forest nearby and a huge wall opposite it."

"A wall?"

"Yeah, a little like the one in China, thought it didn't stretch nearly as far--"

The end of Amy's sentence was cut short by the door to the room swinging open, and Jack walking into the room.

Behind him were several other men, all wearing, what seemed to me, like military uniforms.

The one immediately behind Jack held two clipboards, and when Jack stopped moving, he walked towards me, holding one out.

I take it from his hands and he retreats back to his original position before moving over to Amy, also handing her a clipboard.

"Alright. You two, fill that in. I need it for the sake of a report and all. The Government is being tight on me since we don't know what that Tower is."

"... Do we have to?"

I speak up, hesitation bubbling in my throat. Jack's presence seemed to have a strange pressure to it, but it may have just been down to his build.

"Well, let me answer you with a question. Do you have to pay taxes?"

His reply surprises me, and I can't think of an answer to his question before he answers it for me.

"No, no you don't. But, if you don't, you'll lose everything you own until you've paid your due amount. That's a little hard for you two since you aren't earning money, but you'll get unwanted attention from powerful sources."

The way he spoke made it seem a little like a threat, but it was also spoken in an almost sarcastic manner, as if he himself didn't believe what the punishment was.

His words made me think a little, and I look down at the sheet. It was a concise sheet of paper with a layout similar to that of a fact file. There was a space for a picture, space for a name, age and nationality, and spaces for any extra details.

Looking at it now, none of it seems particularly intrusive, and it isn't as if the Government doesn't have this information already, so...

"I'll do it."

"Good choice. And you, Amy?"

"... I don't really have a choice, do I?"

"Not really."

She sighs and picks a pen up from one of the coffee tables, as do I, and we both begin filling it in.

It barely takes a minute and the same soldier who gave us the clipboards also takes them away.

"Well, that's it from me. We're all done here, so you two can go now."

"There weren't any others?"

"I guess you two are special!"

He gives a hearty laugh before turning around and leaving the room. As the door shuts, I feel a strange tension lift from my shoulders.

"I guess I'm going then."

Amy is the first one to speak, and it quickly pulls me back to reality.

"Ah, yeah. I'll, uh, I'll see you in the Tower... Maybe."

"Haha, yeah, maybe... If you do, let's talk a bit more, yeah?"

"Just don't ignore me."

She turns her head and gives me a quick grin before she swings the door open, leaving the room.

I wait a few more minutes before doing the same, and walking down the corridor, trying to retrace the steps Jack trailed me through, I can only see a few of the people that were previously sitting on the floor.

Leaving through the shutter doors that we previously entered through, I cover my eyes as the sun blinds me momentarily.

My eyes adjust quickly, and the sight of the Tower rising into the sky next to the sun is almost fiction like, if not for the clear path of destruction it left.

"Ah... What do I do now?"