Chapter 20: Acting

The sky above the Golden City distorted.

Booom!

The clouds were torn apart.

A gigantic typhoon rose into the sky, devouring even the light of the artificial sun.

It was the very embodiment of destruction, capable of tearing space itself apart.

The Tearing-and-Killing Typhoon Staff.

It was the staff’s roar of jubilation upon finding its true master.

“……!”

Heimdal’s shoulders trembled.

He felt a chill run through his body.

Even he had needed ten years to completely master that staff.

It had required countless failed attempts and long years of mutual connection.

But this guy?

A single movement.

In that fleeting instant, he had completely subdued the staff.

‘An overwhelming talent.’

Even those words weren’t enough.

This was a difference in category.

Heimdal was convinced.

A catastrophe affinity of 0 points?

What nonsense.

It wasn’t that this guy’s vessel was empty.

It was that it was so immense that a simple measuring tool couldn’t encompass it.

‘An irresistible force.’

Suddenly, he remembered the name of the Absolute God that this guy had mentioned.

Perhaps he truly possessed potential worthy of that name.

A power that could not be challenged.

An absolute talent capable of crushing anything.

‘He is more than worthy of becoming my first God Apostle.’

Desire shone in Heimdal’s eyes.

It was him.

If it was him, there would be no better candidate to become the apostle who would inherit his legacy.

A position he had never allowed anyone to occupy.

Rag possessed more than enough merit.

He looked toward Rag.

The young man was completely motionless.

The veins on the hand holding the staff were bulging.

His expression was rigid.

He wasn’t even blinking.

‘Is he overwhelmed?’

Heimdal smiled.

It was understandable.

After all, a mere low-ranking god had just obtained one of a Supreme God’s favorite weapons.

He surely couldn’t contain his excitement.

Or perhaps using the typhoon had temporarily stiffened his body.

Tap.

Heimdal placed a hand on Rag’s shoulder.

It was a display of familiarity that normally would have been unthinkable.

“Congratulations.”

He meant it sincerely.

It wasn’t hypocrisy or courtesy.

It was genuine praise from a veteran god.

“You have exceeded my expectations.”

If other gods witnessed this scene, they would be horrified.

The arrogant and eccentric Heimdal was warmly praising a newcomer who had only just reached Floor 2.

But Heimdal didn’t care.

He simply liked this guy too much.

‘This guy can shake the entire tower.’

Stagnant water eventually rots.

The current Asgard was too quiet and boring.

The gods had become complacent.

They rejected all change.

But this guy was different.

He would become a true typhoon.

He would sweep through this boring tower and awaken the sleeping gods by shaking them by the collar.

Rag didn’t respond.

He continued staring into space with an expressionless face.

Even that silence seemed admirable to Heimdal.

A solid fellow.

He even liked his prudence in not speaking unnecessarily.

“The method of use is simple.”

Heimdal continued explaining kindly.

“This staff allows for ‘remote projection.’ You don’t need to personally travel to the location.”

He pointed toward the crystal located at the center of the floor.

“Project a map onto the crystal and mark the coordinates you desire. Then swing the staff, and the typhoon will fall exactly there. As long as it’s within your territory, you can do it anywhere.”

Strategic bombardment.

The power to unleash calamities upon the enemy’s head without rising from one’s seat.

That was the true power of a ruler.

“You must have exhausted a lot of energy. Get some rest.”

Heimdal patted him on the shoulder.

Then he turned around with a satisfied smile.

“Oh, right.”

As if he had just remembered something, he turned his head and added,

“It seems that recently there’s been an unknown entity hunting low-ranking gods inside the tower. The investigators are trying to figure it out, but they’re not making much progress. You’d better take some precautions.”

His final piece of advice.

He had nothing else left to say.

Rag had already proven enough.

Whoooooosh!

Heimdal disappeared along with the wind.

The overwhelming divinity faded away, and peace returned to the Golden City.

The blue birds resumed their songs.

Steam rose once more from the hot springs.

But.

“……”

Rag didn’t move.

Even after Heimdal disappeared, he remained motionless like a statue.

***

Heimdal had left.

But I couldn’t move.

The staff I held in my hand.

That Divine Artifact called the Tearing-and-Killing Typhoon Staff was vibrating as if trying to pierce through my palm.

The gamble had been simple.

Ridiculously simple.

‘Shattered Fragments of the Golden Law.’

I sold only one.

I obtained a million Nectar and invested all of it into Floor 2.

[Your floor’s rank has risen to Rank A!]

[The amount of Nectar received every 30 days increases by 300%.]

[The quality of items available in the crystal has improved.]

The result was reaching Rank A.

Thanks to that, the amount of Nectar received every 30 days increased by 300%.

Though in reality, it had only gone from 100 to 300, so it was still an insignificant amount.

However, as I climbed the tower, that increase would grow exponentially.

And most importantly.

The shop had been unlocked.

Now, a huge variety of high-ranking magical beasts, special terrain, and exceptional resources that could only be purchased on Rank A floors or higher had become available.

A normal god would have used that to build a fortress.

They would have installed traps.

They would have released monsters to stop invaders.

But I was different.

I turned this place into a resort.

Defense? Attack?

I don’t need any of that.

Right now, I am under the protection of Heimdal, the God of the Typhoon.

He personally descended and even granted me a Divine Artifact.

The moment this rumor spreads, no god will have the courage to set their sights on my floor.

At least for a while, this will be an absolutely safe sanctuary.

That was why I focused this place on “development.”

A refuge for the recovery of my companions and myself.

And a training ground intended exclusively for raising an elite force.

I hate wars based on numbers.

The only thing that matters is quality.

I will break through the tower with a small elite force.

That was my plan.

“……”

My thoughts stopped there.

I lowered my gaze to the staff.

Heimdal had kept his promise.

Without hesitation, he handed over an item that, by his own admission, had taken him ten years to tame.

The moment I grasped it, I understood how to use it.

All I had to do was inject mana into it and swing it.

Then the gem embedded at the tip would calculate the coordinates and project the typhoon onto that location.

I swung it as a test.

The sky tore apart and the typhoon descended with a roar.

Heimdal was impressed.

He did not hold back his praise.

But I couldn’t smile.

I didn’t even hear the final advice he left before departing.

My gaze remained fixed solely on the typhoon spinning in the sky.

‘This wind.’

It felt familiar.

Far too familiar.

It wasn’t an ordinary natural typhoon.

That distinctive rotation.

Those blade-like winds capable of tearing space apart.

I’m certain I’ve seen them before.

In breaking news reports.

On the front pages of digital newspapers.

And in the nightmares that repeated thousands of times in my dreams.

— Ring.

The sound of a phone echoed in my ears like a hallucination.

That day.

My parents’ wedding anniversary trip.

The last image of them, smiling happily before leaving.

— Hello? Is this Kim Jeongseok?

The voice on the other end of the line was dry.

Professional.

That was what made it even crueler.

— I regret to inform you that the plane has crashed.

— What?

— It encountered unexpected turbulence over the Pacific Ocean. No, to be precise, it was a typhoon.

A typhoon.

A monstrous one that appeared suddenly without being listed in any weather forecast.

A phantom wind that didn’t even appear on radar.

— We are still verifying whether there are any survivors, but I think you should prepare for the worst.

There was no way to prepare for something like that.

The news talked about that accident for days.

It was horrific.

The plane hadn’t crashed.

It had been disintegrated in midair.

As if it had passed through a gigantic blender.

Recover the bodies?

Impossible.

The only things the rescue teams found were unrecognizable fragments of flesh and pieces of torn clothing.

No one could identify anyone.

The remains were so mixed together and destroyed that even DNA testing was useless.

At the funeral, they placed empty coffins.

I stood motionless in front of the memorial photographs.

I couldn’t even cry.

I only stared at those empty coffins while asking myself one thing.

What kind of wind could have done that?

How could it tear apart human beings and an entire airplane like that?

The sole survivor, Park Hayan.

Her survival was a miracle.

No.

The word miracle wasn’t even enough to describe it.

For everything to end with nothing more than the destruction of her spine amidst that hell of wind blades was something that could only be explained as divine intervention.

But…

‘That happened before the Great Cataclysm.’

I bit my lip.

I tasted blood.

The accident occurred on March 14, 2026, long before the Tower appeared in the world.

Before the invasion of the gods.

Before the Disaster Gods created their avatars.

That was why I believed it had been a natural disaster.

That they had simply been unlucky.

That it was an unavoidable tragedy, no matter how much I hated the heavens.

That was how I convinced myself for years.

But now.

“……”

I tightened my grip on the staff.

Heimdal’s words returned to my mind.

— This staff allows remote projection.

— Project a map onto the crystal and mark the coordinates you desire.

— The typhoon will fall exactly there.

Coordinates.

Remote projection.

And the Tearing-and-Killing Typhoon Staff.

The pieces fit together.

With chilling perfection.

What if the gods didn’t suddenly appear on the day of the Great Cataclysm?

What if they had been watching Earth long before that?

What if they had been observing us from their thrones in Asgard?

For amusement.

Or to test their powers.

Wouldn’t they have been able to cast their Authorities onto specific coordinates on Earth?

Just like someone casts skills in a video game.

‘Was it you?’

Were you the one who launched this damned typhoon at the plane my parents were traveling on?

Heimdal.

God of the Typhoon.

Ruler of All Things.

…Was he the culprit?

A Divine Artifact that couldn’t even be used easily.

I couldn’t imagine anyone else being capable of wielding it.

“…Ha.”

A laugh escaped my lips.

It wasn’t resignation.

My killing intent was so intense that it ended up transforming into laughter.

I raised my head.

I stared fixedly at the place where Heimdal had disappeared.

He likes me.

‘…It’s not time to show my claws yet.’

I erased all expression from my face.

I stored the staff in my inventory.

He’s strong.

If I confront him now, I’ll only achieve a meaningless death.

I need to become stronger.

I must prevent him from suspecting me.

On the contrary.

I need to make him trust me.

I need to approach his side of my own accord.

I have to perform perfectly.

Like a loyal subordinate.

Like a promising young talent full of ambition.

And when the decisive moment comes.

I will push him from the highest place.

‘Nothing has changed.’

After all, from the very beginning, I intended to exterminate the gods of this tower.

All of them.

Without leaving a single one alive.