The day before the Tower occupation proclamation.

Commissioner Park Kyungsoo had gone to the Blue House and back after an emergency summons from the President.

Park Kyungsoo’s face looked distinctly worn out.

Jeon Gwangil cautiously read the room and asked,

“Commissioner, did it go all right?”

“Hoo... I thought I was going to die from having to control my expression.”

“Why did you have to control your expression?”

“A request came in from the North through the hotline.”

“...Pardon?”

“Chairman Kim Injung called our President directly.”

No way.

“What did they say?”

“They said they don’t have the ability to clear the tower, so they asked us to relay a message to South Korea’s S+++ clearer.”

“Uh...”

“They said they wanted us to change the tower’s nationality to the Republic of Korea and take it.”

“...”

What had been waiting to happen had finally come.

Well, he had expected it to turn out like this.

“How did the Blue House react?”

“Of course they were dumbfounded. They didn’t even understand what it meant.”

“There’s no way they would.”

Did that even make sense?

Take North Korea’s Black Tower?

It wasn’t as if the tower were some Lego tower made of blocks.

How were you supposed to take that?

When they first heard it, they had probably suspected Chairman Kim had gone insane.

Especially with all those rumors going around lately that Chairman Kim Injung was bedridden.

Jeon Gwangil and Park Kyungsoo had heard about it in advance, so it hadn’t rattled either of them.

“What did you tell them, Commissioner?”

“It’s not like I could say I knew. I told them I didn’t.”

“And then?”

“They told me to ask Player Bong. I said I understood that much.”

“Did they say anything else?”

“What else would they say? The Blue House is running around in confusion as it is.”

In truth, there was nothing to ask.

It was already decided.

“So I’m thinking I’ll call in a little while.”

Park Kyungsoo wore the face of a man who had already transcended worldly concerns.

“So I just have to tell them our S+++ clearer, our top Player, gladly agreed, right?”

Even then, they probably still would not understand.

How exactly do you take a tower?

Of course, once it happened, only then would they realize, Ah! So that’s how this works!

And then the next day,

the Tower occupation proclamation rang out as a Global Notice.

*****

Tower occupation.

Forced seizure, or occupation,

and proclamation, or a declaration of war.

<Tower Occupation Proclamation Loudspeaker>

Effect: Use the loudspeaker to “proclaim” a tower “occupation” in the form of a [Global Notice]. Ten days after the proclamation, you will forcibly seize a specific country’s tower and incorporate it into the user’s nationality. Midway cancellation is possible. There is no limit to the number of uses.

Limit: It can only be proclaimed against countries whose tower-clearing progress is below the average. In addition, “defense rights” are granted to the target country of occupation.

Take over another country’s Black Tower.

Was that the end of it?

Not even close.

Just like temporary naturalization for Players, only the tower’s nationality changes.

Therefore, even if the nationality changes, the physical Black Tower itself remains where it is, inside the original country’s territory.

And if that tower is not cleared?

Then the tower will collapse inside that country’s territory.

Was that all?

For the Players of that nationality, the tower would effectively vanish, so the Magic Stone rewards would vanish too.

A Tower occupation proclamation was no different from an invasion.

That was right.

It was an item for war.

If used recklessly without prior agreement, that was.

Well, there were excuses that could be made.

By fabricating some suitable justification.

‘Your country doesn’t have the ability to clear the tower anyway.’

‘We’ll take it over and clear it for you instead.’

‘We’re making a sacrifice for the sake of a country at risk of Tower Collapse.’

Hadn’t people heard that kind of thing somewhere before?

The logic imperialist nations used when occupying colonies.

That was why groundwork had been necessary.

“I’ve finished the prep, sir. Looks like we can use it now, sir.”

“There won’t be any problems, right?”

“I already talked it all over in advance, sir. Notice has also gone to the Korean government, sir.”

Good.

Let’s bring the tower over.

Juhyeok took the Tower Occupation Proclamation Loudspeaker out of Inventory.

The moment he flipped the switch up,

[Please designate the tower of the country you wish to occupy.]

“Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Black Tower.”

[The climbing progress of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Black Tower is completion of Floor 62, a below-average country. Proclamation is possible.]

These days, even Floor 62 was below average.

Well, most countries had already reached the mid-to-high 60s.

Europe, and even African countries, were climbing like mad.

To get to Floor 71.

They had to get there and receive the four-piece gift set and the high-grade Magic Stones too.

It was possible because everything had become easier overall.

On top of that, Player Shop tower-reward equipment, and the holy-power item holy water, were both coming out quite well too.

[Would you like to proclaim occupation?]

“I proclaim it.”

At that instant—

[Global Notice: A Player affiliated with the Republic of Korea Black Tower declares Tower occupation against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.]

He had really gone through with it.

And then another Global Notice followed.

[Global Notice: In 10 days, the nationality of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Black Tower will change to the Republic of Korea.]

A grace period of ten days.

[Global Notice: Defense rights are granted to Players with the nationality of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.]

Defense rights granted.

[Global Notice: To defend against occupation, climb at least 5 uncleared upper floors of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Black Tower within 10 days.]

Five floors in ten days.

Which meant that if they climbed one floor every two days, defense was possible.

[Global Notice: We support the tower climbing of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Players.]

Support, my ass.

And one floor every two days?

That had to be considered impossible.

It wasn’t as if North Korea had any Level 60-plus Players, and even if it did, North Korea’s Black Tower was still at the pre-Kabalan level of difficulty.

Even with holy water and a holy sword, it would be hard.

There was no way they could defend it.

Maybe if it were some country other than North Korea.

The Global Notices ended there.

[Tower occupation proclamation has ended.]

But the system messages did not end.

[When the tower is acquired in 10 days, determine the treatment of Players affiliated with the occupied Black Tower.]

‘Huh?’

What was that supposed to mean?

Treatment of Players?

[The types of treatment determination are inheritance of Status Window nationality, or erasure of nationality.]

“Ah!”

The inhabitants of the occupied tower.

In other words, the determination of how to treat colonial Players.

Inheritance meant taking them in, and erasure meant removing it.

Only within the Status Window, of course.

‘What happens if I erase it?’

That would mean the nationality in the Player’s Status Window disappeared...

‘They won’t be able to enter a tower.’

Of course, they could acquire a new nationality.

But what if they couldn’t?

If a Player cannot enter a tower for three months, the qualification is revoked.

‘On the other hand, if I let them inherit the tower nationality...’

Then the colonial Players would be able to enter the tower with Republic of Korea nationality.

It would become the same as before.

Living in North Korea, while climbing the Republic of Korea Black Tower.

What should he do?

Inheritance? Erasure?

That was something he would have to think about.

In fact, the true purpose of using the Tower Occupation Proclamation Loudspeaker was not merely to steal the tower.

It was the first step in a long-term unification plan.

Would inheritance benefit unification, or would erasure benefit unification?

That needed to be weighed carefully.

There was still a long way to go.

But there was time to think.

Let’s think it over properly during these ten days.

“To be honest, sir, I’m also thinking about whether I should tie a ribbon on Chairman Kim’s head, sir.”

“...Really?”

“Better than expected at listening, sir. Admirable, sir.”

Mad Demon, listening from the side, also said,

“Then it would be best to make use of that. If it goes well, this might pass without anyone dying.”

“No, sir. There are a few that need to be dealt with, sir.”

“Who?”

“The hardliners in North Korea’s military, sir. After this Global Notice, their asses will be wriggling all over the place, sir.”

“Then what are you doing standing here? Go and wreck them.”

“I’ll clean them all out before long, sir.”

A bleak light shone in Cossack’s eyes.

Mad Demon gave a crooked grin.

“Don’t even think about tying ribbons on them.”

“...Yes, sir?”

“Why advertise it? It could become a burden on our summoner.”

“Yes, yes, yessir!”

Hoo.

Just how many were going to die?

There was no helping it.

They had already set things in motion.

North Korea’s hardliners were more than enough of a threat to Juhyeok.

That fully met the activation conditions of Summoned Principles, Article Three.

Juhyeok also had no desire to see North Korean hardliners rise to power.

Was it only he himself who was in danger?

What about his family?

All he could do was hope the loss of life stayed to a minimum.

*****

The Global Notice that suddenly rang out.

It was enough to make anyone faint dead away.

The whole world was shocked.

Occupy a tower?

No, was that even possible in the first place?

It was one thing for towers to have nationality attached to them.

In a way, this was even more absurd than Kabalan’s Curse of the Average.

The aftershocks were enormous.

The first reactions exploded out of Korea itself, the country directly involved.

<Tower occupation proclamation, another astonishing event has occurred.>

<Who is the Player who proclaimed it? There’s no need to wonder. There’s only one person.>

<How exactly does Tower occupation work? A skill? An item?>

<It’s highly likely to be an item. It may be a reward for an S+++ clear.>

<North Korea’s response? Rising risk of war.>

<Ministry of National Defense orders all forces to remain on emergency standby.>

<The presidential office refrains from comment, saying this is not a situation they can comment on at present.>

ㄴWow! Is this the age of tower imperialism?

ㄴIf you can’t handle it, hand over the tower, bastard!

ㄴI usually don’t get surprised, but this one is seriously insane.

ㄴWhat’s there to be surprised about? Players’ nationalities can change, so there’s no rule saying a tower’s nationality can’t change too.

ㄴAt this point, shouldn’t North Korea be happy? It’s being saved.

ㄴWell, yeah, but they live off pride, so.

ㄴThey won’t sit still. A few missiles are coming for this.

ㄴI’m already at Soongsil University Station. Deepest station in Seoul.

ㄴThen what happens to North Korean Players? Do they get kicked out?

ㄴWho knows. Nothing like this has ever happened before.

ㄴI know a temporarily naturalized Player whose nationality got tied to North Korea, and deep down that person was actually hoping for this.

ㄴHoping for what?

ㄴThat if the tower gets taken this time, maybe that person will become a Republic of Korea-affiliated Player.

ㄴFuck that, no way! Who does that help!

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Minister MacMillan and Director Antonio were in conversation.

“I contacted the Korean Awakening Administration, and it seems certain that the one who proclaimed it was Player Bong.”

MacMillan nodded.

Who else could it be?

“An item?”

“Most likely. Just look at the Tower Floor Intrusion Ticket.”

Even so, this was still something else.

You could change a tower’s nationality?

And by stealing it, no less.

“Will North Korea really just sit still? Shouldn’t we send an aircraft carrier or something?”

“Well, I don’t think you need to worry about that.”

“Pardon?”

“Chairman Kim Injung secretly made the request first.”

“Ah!”

Which meant it was something agreed upon in advance.

Well, who was Player Bong?

There was no way he would use something like this without thinking.

“And it’s not as if the defense is impossible, either.”

“In North Korea’s case, it is.”

“Yes. Out of the world’s 146 towers, only North Korea.”

Because it was a pre-Kabalan tower.

“This might be an item that changes the whole way people think about it.”

“Pardon?”

“If a country reaches floors that are too difficult to clear anymore, could there not come a day when countries deliberately ask someone to take their towers?”

“Ah!”

That was right.

No one knew how the tower difficulty might change in the future.

So if they judged it impossible to keep clearing them anymore?

“Well, that does depend on what happens to the Players affiliated with the occupied tower.”

In truth, that was the most important part.

What would happen to them?

“We’ll know when the Tower occupation is over.”

“Yes. It’s the result, not the beginning, that has become important.”

MacMillan was curious too.

Just how would Tower occupation end?

*****

North Korea’s political climate shifted rapidly as well.

Chairman Kim Injung, who had been rumored to be bedridden, appeared in public.

Showing off his continued vigor, inspecting various industrial facilities, and even meeting Players climbing the Republic’s Black Tower to praise them.

Around then, the Tower occupation proclamation burst forth as a Global Notice.

Pyongyang exploded into chaos.

That South Korean Player bastard dared steal the Republic’s tower?

The bastard had lost all sense of fear.

This was a matter of pride.

How was this any different from a declaration of war?

They said it could be defended by clearing five floors, but how easy was that?

As everyone knew, the Republic’s Black Tower was still a pre-Kabalan tower.

Denunciation rallies were held all across Pyongyang.

Kill the South Korean Player.

Let them taste Juche nuclear fire.

Turn Seoul into a sea of flames.

We will not shrink from war.

If the Chairman orders it, we will act.

North Korea’s military in particular was in no ordinary mood.

It looked ready to begin war preparations at once.

In response, Chairman Kim Injung convened an emergency Supreme People’s Assembly.

North Korea’s military leadership and Workers’ Party officials gathered in Pyongyang one after another.

And then, two days before the Supreme People’s Assembly,

a series of massive incidents erupted in North Korea. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

The Tower occupation proclamation was nothing by comparison.

Enough to shove talk of war completely to the background.

The Minister of the People’s Armed Forces died in a traffic accident on the way to work.

The Director of the General Political Bureau died of a heart attack in the office.

The Director of the Reconnaissance General Bureau was found dead by the Taedong River.

A Marshal of the Korean People’s Army was found hanged at home.

A security chief jumped to death from a luxury apartment in Pyongyang.

The Commander of the Korean People’s Army Strategic Force died of a cerebral infarction in the bathroom of a missile base...

.

.

.

One after another, the major figures among the military hardliners died off.

And all within a day or two.

It was bewildering.

What in the world was this?

There was no evidence of assassination or sniping.

Most were accidents or suicides.

Of course, everyone knew it was not natural.

But there was no way to do anything about it.

The high-ranking officials of North Korea began to fall silent.

Because every last one of the dead had been powerful figures who had spoken openly of war with South Korea.

The atmosphere in North Korea grew grim.

So it seemed, for a moment, as though the Supreme People’s Assembly might be postponed, but it was forced through at Chairman Kim Injung’s insistence.

At the Mansudae Assembly Hall in Pyongyang,

Chairman Kim Injung and the major party, government, and military officials of North Korea’s top leadership all attended.

There were quite a few empty seats scattered here and there.

Everyone knew why.

And yet beside Chairman Kim Injung sat one unfamiliar man.

Judging from the look between them, they seemed very close.

Chairman Kim Injung rose from his seat.

And then—

“Before the Representatives’ Assembly begins, I wish to appoint a new revolutionary comrade to the vacant post of Minister of the People’s Armed Forces.”

A new Minister of the People’s Armed Forces?

The previous one had died only the other day.

The Minister of the People’s Armed Forces was equivalent to a Minister of Defense.

A very important post.

But this was someone no one had ever seen before?

“Comrades, please welcome Comrade Go Sageuk with your applause.”

CLAP-CLAP-CLAP-CLAP!

A thunderous roar of applause.

This was someone the Chairman had personally brought in.

Even if there were suspicious aspects, better to clap first.

The new Minister of the People’s Armed Forces, Go Sageuk, stepped onto the podium.

“Comrades, glad to meet you. I am Go Sageuk.”

After giving that greeting,

“First, I offer my utmost heartfelt gratitude to the great Chairman, who appointed me as Minister of the People’s Armed Forces.”

CLAP-CLAP-CLAP-CLAP!

“As Minister of the People’s Armed Forces, I will devote all my heart and strength to spreading the spirit of Juche revolution throughout the world—abbreviated as the Juhyeok spirit.”

CLAP-CLAP-CLAP-CLAP!

“And with that, I will conclude my remarks with a chant of hurrah.”

Go Sageuk—or rather, Cossack—threw both hands high into the air in the middle of the Supreme People’s Assembly hall and shouted,

“Long live the Chairman!”

“LONG «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» LIVE!!!”

“Long live the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea!”

“LONG LIVE!!!”

“Long live the spirit of Juche revolution!”

“LONG LIVE!!!”

“Long live the Juhyeok spirit!”

“LONG LIVE!!!”

Cossack’s face was dyed in madness.

“Long live Juhyeok!”

“LONG LIVE!!!”

“Long live Juhyeok!”

“LONG LIVE!!!”

“Long live Juhyeok!”

“LONG LIVE!!!”

Juhyeok’s name rang throughout the hall, but no one suspected a thing.

The spirit of Juche revolution.

Juhyeok.

Just a simple abbreviation.

The meeting ended anticlimactically.

Not a single word was discussed about how to respond to the tower theft.

Because all the people who could have spoken were dead.

Chairman Kim Injung also spoke only of other pending issues.

And so North Korea did nothing.

Until the tower was occupied.

────────────────────────────────────

────────────────────────────────────