The night over Seoul felt strangely alive.
Even after the chaos that unfolded around the Korean Tower, most people had been evacuated, leaving the streets eerily quiet. Only distant sirens and the hum of helicopters crossed the sky. Every few minutes, the tower released a low pulse—like a heartbeat echoing across the city.
Seo Joon felt its vibration travel through the soles of his feet. His body, still weak from the Simulated First Trial, threatened to crumble with every step, but he forced himself forward. He had been moved to a temporary shelter near the plaza, yet sleep didn't come. His mind was too loud.
What was the system trying to turn him into?
The question lingered as he walked across the dimly lit hospital corridor. He stopped near a window overlooking the tower. The obsidian structure stood tall, its surface shifting as if engraved with living shadows.
He pressed a hand against the glass to steady himself. His reflection looked unfamiliar—eyes sharp, faint blue marks at the edge of his neck from the energy surge, jaw clenched as if bracing for something he couldn't name.
He hadn't changed on the outside. But something inside him had been rewritten.
A quiet knock pulled him from his thoughts.
When he turned, Waqar stood by the doorway. The Pakistani ranker still looked like a wall—broad shouldered, posture steady, an aura calm enough to smother anxiety. But his expression tonight wasn't composed. It carried concern.
"You didn't rest," Waqar said.
"I couldn't." Joon's voice was lower than usual. "My body feels normal but my mind… it's like something is waking up."
Waqar stepped closer. "It should. You saw something the rest of us didn't."
Joon didn't answer immediately. The image of the Tower Fragment—the humanoid shadow whispering through static—stuck to him like a stain.
"It wasn't just an illusion," he said quietly. "I felt like that thing was… aware. Watching me. Testing me."
"And it will again," Waqar said. "Trials don't end. This tower isn't built to kill us. It's built to see what we become."
"That doesn't make me feel any better."
"It shouldn't."
Silence filled the corridor, thick and heavy.
Waqar finally added, "Rest. Tomorrow we meet all Korean candidates. We need a united front."
Joon exhaled slowly. "I'll try."
But Waqar didn't leave yet. Instead, he stood beside him and looked out the window.
"This power you have," Waqar said, "Summon Gate… It will become the most feared and most depended-on ability in the world. People will worship you or try to end you. Both will happen. What matters is if you stay you."
Joon swallowed. "That's what I'm scared of."
Waqar gave a low laugh. "Then you're already stronger than you think."
Before Joon could respond, distant tremors shook the building—small, almost harmless, but enough to make light fixtures flicker.
Both men looked out.
At the base of the tower, the ground was glowing faintly. Patterns—spiral-like runes—were spreading outward like roots.
"That wasn't happening before," Waqar muttered.
Joon's heart tightened. His Summon Gate pulsed lightly on his hand as if reacting.
"It's calling us," he whispered.
But neither moved. They only watched as the roots expanded, weaving a massive circle around the tower—like a gate preparing to awaken.
A nurse hurried down the corridor, panic on her face. "Please return to your rooms! A sudden energy spike has been detected!"
Waqar straightened. "It's starting again…"
"No," Joon said. "It's warning us."
He didn't know how he knew. The message wasn't spoken, but felt—like a pressure behind his ribs, urging him to prepare.
Before Waqar could question him, Joon staggered slightly. His Summon Gate mark glowed brighter, lines branching across his skin like tiny veins of light.
"Joon—"
"I'm fine," he forced out. "It's just… reacting."
But he wasn't fine. Something was rewriting him from the inside.
The mark pulsed harder.
A whisper passed through his mind—cold, mechanical, deeper than before.
[Summon Gate: Resonating with Tower Awakening.]
[New Condition Unlocked.]
[Next Summon: Unknown.]
The air thickened. His breath hitched. He felt something tugging at the edges of space behind him—as if a portal wanted to rip open right here in this corridor.
Waqar stepped forward instantly, steadying him by the shoulder. "Stay with me."
Joon gritted his teeth. "I… I don't want to summon anything here."
"You won't," Waqar said firmly. "Control it."
Joon forced himself to breathe. In, out. In, out. Slowly, painfully, the glow dulled.
The voice faded.
The pull stopped.
But not fully.
Something had awakened inside the gate.
Something new.
He met Waqar's eyes. "Tomorrow… something will enter this world. I can feel it."
"And we'll be ready," Waqar said.
Joon wasn't sure anyone could be ready.
But he nodded.
Because fear wasn't an option anymore.
Because the tower wasn't waiting.
And because whatever climbed out of his Summon Gate next… would not be a mistake.
It would be destiny.