I had won a lottery with a one-in-seven-hundred-billion chance.
Anyone entering the Tower for the first time is allowed a ‘talent draw,’ and from it, I pulled something extraordinary.
A one-in-seven-hundred-billion chance means you’d need a hundred Earths to find even one winner.
However, achieving a one-in-seven-hundred-billion win doesn’t necessarily require seven hundred billion attempts.
That’s precisely why probability drives people to madness.
Someone always gets lucky.
Yet, somehow, it always feels like it could be me, that I might be special, and that this time, things will be different.
‘If I go for it now, I’ll hit the jackpot!’
This phenomenon is known as optimistic bias.
[Martial God’s Talent: Probability 0.000000000142857%]
[Would you like to select it?]
[Select / Redraw (Attempts remaining: 2)]
But what could I do?
It had actually appeared before me.
Drawing the Martial God’s Talent irrevocably changed my life.
Though I hadn’t yet experienced it, a dramatic shift felt inevitable.
I even had two redraw attempts remaining, yet I’d pulled this on my very first try.
About to instinctively press ‘Select,’ I hesitated for a moment.
‘Such luck couldn’t possibly befall me.’
‘Could this be a trap?’
“‘Martial God’—it’s ‘martial’ as in martial arts, and ‘god’ as in deity, right? Not ‘martial’ as in a military commander, like the one from the Imjin War?”
Perhaps the moment I pressed ‘Select,’ I would be flung into the past, possessing Won Gyun during the Imjin War.
Having always dozed off during Korean history classes, I would be utterly useless, and the nation would inevitably fall.
To avert such a dreadful future, I slowly glared at the Martial God’s Talent.
Then, a helpful additional explanation appeared.
─────────────
■[Martial God’s Talent]
·Type: Talent
·Grade: Divine
·The talent possessed by the God of Martial Arts, who is said to be capable of wielding every weapon in existence. All weapon proficiencies increase 256 times faster. Two additional sub-talents are acquired.
‘It grants additional sub-talents?’
‘What could they be?’
‘Perhaps some terrible penalty is attached to them.’
‘Always be suspicious.’
─────────────
■[Martial God’s Physique]
·Type: Talent
·Grade: Mythical
·A body perfectly suited for martial arts.
─────────────
■[Myriad Paths Converge]
·Type: Talent
·Grade: Legendary
·When training with any weapon, additional proficiency is gained for all weapons.
Upon carefully reading the terms—no, the descriptions—it confirmed that it was indeed the God of Martial Arts.
There was no conceivable reason to pass up such an incredible talent.
[Select]
The moment I pressed ‘Select,’ a warning suddenly flashed before my eyes.
[Your physical body will be reconstructed into the Martial God’s Physique and cannot be reverted. Do you wish to proceed?]
[Yes / No]
I meticulously searched for any hidden fine print, but found none.
‘This must truly be a win, not some elaborate trick.’
I chose ‘Yes’.
Immediately, I collapsed to the floor.
“Guek! Grrrk!”
My bones and muscles twisted throughout my entire body, reshaping themselves.
The problem was that I hadn’t been given an anesthetic, forcing me to endure every agonizing sensation of my bones grinding and muscles contorting.
‘How much could a single anesthetic injection cost?’
‘Are they really that stingy (TL Note: A Korean slang term, ‘ssal-meok,’ meaning to be extremely stingy or to cut corners to save money, often implying a cheap or exploitative attitude.)?’
“People! This Tower is trying to kill me!”
Collapsed on the floor, I writhed like a worm.
It wasn’t that I was twisting my body; rather, my muscles were contracting and expanding, causing my body to undulate automatically.
What felt like several days passed.
After the transformation concluded, I opened my smartphone and saw that only three minutes had actually elapsed.
‘As expected, cosmetic surgery in the Tower is truly the best.’
‘A complete metamorphosis in just three minutes!’
‘You won’t find a hospital like this anywhere else.’
To ascertain just how incredible my Martial God’s Physique had become, I switched my phone camera to selfie mode and examined my reflection.
“If the God of Martial Arts was a goddess, they should have included a warning in the terms and conditions.”
‘Had feminism surged through the Tower, leading to a movement to simply refer to goddesses as ‘gods’?’
‘A sexist who naturally assumed the Martial God would be male? Cut!’
‘But that sexist is me.’
Hmm.
‘Still, as expected of a goddess, she’s beautiful.’
‘Well, if she’s beautiful, that’s good enough.’
Rather than regretting what had already happened, I decided to embrace a positive outlook.
‘Could a female body truly be more advantageous for martial arts? Isn’t it always men who have the upper hand?’
The sexist mindset ingrained in me from Earth began to surface.
‘But it’s not sexism; it’s a s*x difference.’
‘Men are much stronger than women, aren’t they?’
‘Though I’ve heard it’s different in the Tower.’
I’d heard that once stats like mana, internal energy (TL Note: ‘Naegong,’ a concept in martial arts novels referring to an internal energy cultivated within the body.), or spiritual power (TL Note: ‘Yeongnyeok,’ a term often used in fantasy to denote spiritual energy or power.) were unlocked, the raw physical strength of human muscles became less significant.
‘Perhaps in those realms, women hold an advantage over men?’
‘Is it easier to dodge attacks than men because of a smaller hitbox?’
‘When it comes to women’s strengths, flexibility comes to mind.’
I bent my body.
“Oh, my body is completely like rubber.”
Touching my palms to the ground with my knees perfectly straight was a basic feat.
When I split my legs into an ‘I’ shape, they easily exceeded 180 degrees, even going behind my neck.
Emboldened, I leaned my upper body backward from a standing position, forming a backflip stance.
It wasn’t a typical backflip where the body is launched and rotated; rather, it was a display of agility where the upper body rotated while the lower body remained firmly planted.
With astonishing ease, both palms, extended behind my back, touched the ground.
‘Can a human body even be this flexible?’
‘At this level, if a space war broke out, I could hide among the Dragon Troopers, and no one would even notice anything amiss.’
“Ah.”
But I had gotten too carried away.
A strange sensation prompted me to look down, only to find my now-lengthened hair sweeping the floor like a broom.
Fortunately, at first glance, the floor didn’t appear too dirty.
After all, the Tower’s tutorial area, where the talent draw occurred, was just an ordinary, empty gray room.
‘I should avoid doing backflips carelessly in the future.’
‘If I must, I should rotate quickly to avoid the catastrophe of my hair cleaning the floor.’
Having roughly completed my flexibility check, I stood upright and stretched.
My entire body felt light and supple.
‘With this, I should be able to fight well.’
‘But the chest on my chest—that sounds strange.’
‘No matter how I think about it, these fatty lumps on my chest don’t seem to suit the Martial God’s Physique, do they?’
‘They’d just get in the way of wielding weapons.’
‘So, perhaps missiles shoot out from here?’
‘Ah! Could it be the subtle trick of illusion, used to distract an opponent before launching a surprise attack?’
‘I’ve heard of such a technique.’
‘It wouldn’t be easy for men to avoid, so it could be quite useful.’
“Status Window!”
Having thoroughly checked my body, it was now time to examine my abilities.
─────────────
■[Basic Information]
·Name: Chae Hyeon-jin
·Race: Human
·Gender: Female
·Age: 18
·Occupation: None
·Combat Power: 25
─────────────
■[Detailed Stats]
·Health: 10/10
·Stamina: 10/10
·Strength: 10
·Senses: 10
·Perception: 10
·Willpower: 10
─────────────
■[Talents]
·Martial God’s Talent
·Myriad Paths Converge
·Martial God’s Physique
─────────────
■[Skills]
·None
My initial abilities were neatly aligned at 10.
Since these were influenced by my core abilities, they held meaning only for me and couldn’t be compared to others.
However, combat power, I was told, could be compared with others.
I’d heard that the average adult male’s combat power was 10.
That meant I was already as strong as 2.5 adult men!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
I threw punches, imagining an enemy before me.
The thought that I no longer needed to flee if someone picked a fight suddenly filled me with confidence.
Of course, no one had ever really tried to pick a fight with me before.
‘The country I lived in was usually a safe place, after all.’
“Shall we go then?”
In truth, acquiring a talent didn’t obligate one to ascend the Tower.
Many who drew unfortunate talents abandoned the idea of ascending, simply returning home, dismissing it as bad luck, and resuming their daily lives.
‘But I’d won the jackpot, so I had to climb the Tower.’
[Please select an entry difficulty.]
As I approached the portal to the first floor, another message appeared.
[Easy – Normal – Hard – Extreme – Madness – Hell – Ascension]
I selected the Ascension difficulty.
[This difficulty is locked.]
[It will be unlocked upon clearing the previous difficulty.]
‘Seriously?’
‘If I can’t enter it anyway, why even show it?’
“Then Hell.”
[This difficulty is locked.]
[It will be unlocked upon clearing the previous difficulty.]
“Madness.”
[This difficulty is locked.]
[It can be unlocked with the Martial God’s Talent.]
[Do you wish to unlock it?]
[Yes / No]
Apparently, I could only enter the third difficulty level.
Without hesitation, I pressed ‘Yes’.
‘Choosing a higher difficulty grants better equipment.’
‘And the growth rate is faster too.’
Before coming to the Tower, I’d read a tip post on a place called Hunter Gallery (TL Note: ‘Hunter Gallery’ is a popular Korean online forum for hunters, often abbreviated as ‘Hunter-gal’ or ‘Hunt-gal’.).
‘It advised choosing the highest difficulty available.’
‘Apparently, you only gain something if you take a risk.’
****
[HunterExpert) Tips for Newbies Heading to the Talent Draw]
:First off, if you got a ‘Normal’ grade talent, just leave.
Climbing the Tower with a bottom 50% ‘fodder’ talent is sheer madness.
The fact that you only managed a ‘Normal’ grade despite being given two rerolls means you’ve got terribly bad luck.
It’s better for your well-being not to enter this ‘luck-based bullshit Tower’ (TL Note: A Korean slang term, ‘unbbal jommang tap,’ referring to a ‘luck-based, ruined tower,’ implying that success is solely determined by luck and the system is flawed or unfair.).
This is the Tower’s consideration, cutting off those incredibly unlucky bastards at the entrance.
The most dangerous moment is when you’ve drawn a ‘Normal’ talent but start thinking that ‘if I just work hard, something might happen.’
A common person overturning their fate through effort only happens in comics.
Actually, it doesn’t even happen in comics.
Those who bragged about being ‘hard-working protagonists’ turn out to be all about their bloodline when you dig deeper.
You’re screwed. Not climbing the Tower is your only way to survive.
If you still want to climb, then leave first, write your will, say goodbye to your acquaintances, and then go back.
If you drew a ‘Rare’ or higher talent, congratulations.
You’ve at least earned the right to enter the Tower.
At this point, unless you’re born with a silver spoon (TL Note: ‘Geumsujeo,’ literally ‘gold spoon,’ a Korean idiom referring to someone born into a wealthy family.) or an elite profession, entering the Tower is highly likely to be the path to a better life.
But remember: entering the Tower is staking your life.
The greater the risk, the greater the reward. High risk, high return. No pain, no gain.
In the Tower, more dangerous choices usually have a higher chance of better rewards.
Yes, the probability is high.
Whoever created this ‘luck-based bullshit Tower’ keeps throwing probabilities at you, which is infuriating… *sigh*…
Still, at least it kicks out all the unlucky idiots from the start with the talent draw, so I guess it has some conscience?
After the talent draw, when you go to the first floor, three difficulties will appear.
Easy – Normal – Hard
Here, I recommend the highest difficulty, ‘Hard’.
‘Oh my, I’ve never fought before? Is it okay to jump straight into ‘Hard’ from the start?’
If you’re having such a girlish thought, then quit and go home.
Again, the Tower is a place where you can die.
If you’re such a coward that you’re scared of ‘Hard,’ it’s better to just go back and live your normal life.
Choosing a higher difficulty gives you better starting equipment and allows you to grow faster because of the challenge.
So, if possible, stick with ‘Hard’.
Honestly, ‘Normal’ difficulty seems to be for those ‘fodder’ talents, but as I said before, if you have a ‘fodder’ talent, just go home, wash your feet, and sleep.
Forget the Tower ever existed and live a normal life.
Finally, to those bastards who drew a ‘Legendary’ or higher talent with less than a 0.1% chance:
Why didn’t I get one?
What a shitty world, what an unfair Tower.
I just wish it would disappear, damn it.
