Baam woke up feeling relaxed and well rested. There was a huge blanket covering his body and keeping it warm.
[Comfortable King-Sized bed (+1)
A comfortable bed which improves resting efficiency. +55% to HP and SP recovery while lying in bed. +55% to satisfaction rating.]
The bubble of information appeared in front of Baam. He still did not know what HP and SP were, though!
There was also a [Bedside Table] with a [Glass of fresh fruit juice (+2)] on it. The room he was in was a 30 square meter one with baby blue walls and a window through which a pastoral landscape could be seen. There was a [Douglas Fir Door (+2)] which, besides augmenting the house's Security by five points, brought him some intimacy. Also, there was a [Bookshelf] filled with books of all kinds, colors, and sizes against the wall opposite the window.
Other than that, the room lacked all the trinkets and personal touches a normal habitation might have.
The doors handle turned and the kind of rabbit creature he had seen before he lost consciousness stepped inside, carrying a tray filled with [Tasty Biscuits].
He got a notification that his [Observe] skill upgraded to Level 2, which was good, he guessed.
"Oh, you're awake?" the rabbit asked with interest.
"Ah, yes, I feel better now," Baam said.
The rabbit smirked, its eyes (which were located inside its mouth) narrowing as it did.
"You can understand me?"
"Yes?" Baam did not know why that was surprising.
The rabbit said nothing. It simply laid the tray on the bedside table beside the glass of juice.
"Eat up. You must be hungry. By the way, it is customary to thank your host for taking such great care of you."
Baam who had a biscuit halfway toward his mouth froze. Then, he blushed while he said timidly. "I did not know. Do you have a book on manners?" he asked bluntly.
The rabbit scratched its jaw. "I do have a book titled 'Tower Customs'. Would that be alright?"
Baam nodded with a beaming smile. When the rabbit brought the book which it removed from the bookshelf, [Tower Customs – Vol. 1], Baam was offered the opportunity to instantly learn its contents. A simple message of "Would you like to learn?" and Baam thinking yes was enough. Knowledge rushed into his head, filling it with complicated ideas like what kind of gifts one should give for a birthday.
"Ah, thank you very much Rabbit-nim. I am sorry for my behavior," Baam said, bowing his head in apology.
The rabbit was watching him with bubbling excitement. "You know the contents of the book without reading it? If so, allow me to test you. What is the customary way to greet the administrator of the 54th Floor?"
And Baam answered perfectly.
"You are an irregular who just entered the tower for the first time. I cannot see how you can know this information. Either you had some help from other irregulars, which I doubt, or you possess a very mysterious skill."
The rabbit took out a rod from who knows where and twirled it in the air.
[? ? ?] Baam tried to read the item description but all he got was question marks. It seemed his [Observation - Lv.2] was not enough to gather information about the artifact.
"My name is Headon. I am a free agent and facilitator between the great families. I am also in charge of recruiting Regulars in the residential areas."
"Regulars? Irregular? What does it mean, Headon-nim?" Baam was puzzled.
"Ah, instead of explaining, just wait a second." Headon fetched another book, this one called [All you need to know about the Tower – Vol. 1], which Baam consumed.
Once he was done, Baam looked at Headon with wonder.
"Why is there such a prejudice against irregulars?"
Headon grinned. "Because power frightens the masses. Irregulars have always brought great changes to the tower. Many of the persons following the old ways are scared of change. Also, people have always feared what they don't understand, and their monstrous strength is incomprehensible. Now, I believe I should do my job and administer the test to climb to the next floor, Mr. Irregular."
"A test?"
Headon nodded as he walked toward the room's exit, fully expecting Baam to follow, which he did.
"As you certainly know from the last book you assimilated, the Tower is divided into floors, each of which is ruled by a Guardian, or Administrator. The great families have appointed high rankers - people of tremendous power - to administer the test on the Guardians behalf."
"Ah, I meant to ask, Headon-nim. I saw no mention of Emperor Jahad in the book."
"Emperor who?" Headon cocked his head.
Baam bit his lip, before releasing it and speaking without confidence. "I-Is there no-one who rules the Tower?"
Now they had reached a grassy plain enclosed by tall fences. A gate led to the entrance of this closed off area, which they stepped through. When they stopped, somewhere near the center of the pen, Headon spoke.
"There is no one who rules over the 12 Monarchs. The mere thought of someone ruling over them is preposterous. Now, are you ready for your test?"
Baam nodded quickly. This bore further watching, but there was not much he could do as of right now.
Grinning sinisterly, Headon waved his staff and a construct of Shinsoo materialized. It took the shape of a hare which bounced around excitedly. Baam observed it with wonder and astonishment. Was this some kind of magic power?
Headon twirled his staff once more. "The only way to leave this place is to catch this Shinsoo Hare."
Baam's eyes widened. That seemed… deceptively simple. Surely the test was not that easy?
Headon retreated and closed the gate behind him with a wave of his hand. Baam jumped when it closed with an ominous booming sound.
Baam walked toward the hare but when he bended over to pick it up, it leapt away, wagging its tail. After it happened three more times, Baam became slightly frustrated. The fifth time, he leapt forward and made a big circle with his hands, but still the hare managed to escape at the last moment by jumping out of his embrace.
Seemingly bored with just escaping at the last moment, the hare decided to simply run when Baam approached. After ten minutes of running in a circle trying to catch it, Baam had to catch his breath. He was about to lose his heart when a blue box appeared.
[Through repetition of a specific action (running), a stat has been created. Agility +1 ]
[Through repetition of a specific action (working out), a stat has been improved. Constitution +1]
Baam beamed.
Meanwhile, Headon observed Baam with a chilling grin. This was the right test for this boy. While normally, he would have simply given the boy an almost impossible task and called it a day, he was led to change his mind upon revelation of the boy's strange power.
"Quite a cruel test you have administered, Mr. First floor Guardian," a new voice called out.
Headon's eyes narrowed as his mouth formed a grim line. "And? What can I do to help you, Young Miss Ha?"
Yuri Ha scoffed but ignored the slight, focusing on the main subject. "I felt a disturbance so I asked Evan to lead me to its source. What do you hope to accomplish by using such a test?"
Headon glared at her.
"While I appreciate you reviewing the test material I administer Irregulars with, I would also appreciate you trusting in my fair judgment."
Yuri's eyes narrowed. "Fair judgment? There is a reason this kind of test is not administered until at least the third floor. Without any knowledge of Shinsoo manipulation, it is impossible. The Shinsoo Hare doesn't get tired, while the candidate does. If you can't catch it at the start you're only going to get more and more exhausted and sloppy and never catch it."
Headon chuckled mirthfully.
Yuri clucked her tongue. "Did I say something funny?"
But Headon had already his attention back on Baam, who was currently sprinting after the bouncing hare.
"Just watch," the rabbit said.
Yuri frowned, not seeing the cause for such a reaction from the Guardian. Then, after ten minutes of boring scrutinizing, her eyes widened.
"He's getting faster?"
Headon simply grinned with satisfaction.
Baam huffed and puffed. His oversized robe/shirt was grimy and stuck to his body by sweat. With his eyes narrowed in determination, he put every single muscle and nerve in his body into the task of catching the Shinsoo hare. The construct bounced away as fast as its short legs could carry it, and seemed to be gaining some terrain on him when he activated his skill.
"[Sprint]!" Baam shouted.
This level 4 skill was enough to close in on the hare. He leapt forward, hands outstretched which was similar to his other failed attempts. The hare jumped at the last moment narrowly escaping his grasp. It simply jumped vertically to avoid him. Baam put one hand on the grassy ground using it as a pivot, rotated his body midair, and like lightning his other hand reached out. Finally! He managed to grab it by the back of its neck.
As he held it by the scruff triumphantly, a notification which made him smile with satisfaction appeared.
[Through the utilization of a combination of actions, a resulting skill has been created. Obtained Viper Strike Lv.1]
So, even this seemingly random hand movement became recognized by the system as a skill?
"Well done, Mr. Irregular!" Headon praised. He clapped his hands and the surroundings morphed into a huge torch-lit cavern which was the original appearance of the first floor.
"Thank you very much, Headon-nim! I learned a lot!" Baam waved enthusiastically.
Then, Baam noticed Headon and him were not the sole occupants of the room. He looked at the tall girl quizzically. Before he could question her presence here, a portal appeared in midair and a white-haired short man fell from it.
"Princess Yuri! Wait for me!" Evan Edrok, her assigned guide rushed while doing his best to hold onto his heavy backpack.
"You're too slow, Evan! The party's already over!" she berated him with a heavy frown.
Yuri combed a hand through her hair. Now, that sucked. She intended to make a good appearance in front of the little cutie pie but he had already managed to pass the test without her aid. Trying to keep the appearances up, she coughed in her hand.
"That was not so bad, rookie – wait, what are you doing?" she said while covering her eyes with one hand. Through her spread fingers, though, she ogled the body of Baam who had just removed his grimy and wet with sweat robe.
The naked Baam looked at her in wonder. The book on tower customs he had read said it was impolite to wear dirty clothes in front of people. What it did not mention, because it was simply common sense and courtesy, was that standing naked in front of said people was even more discourteous.
"Here. Wear these," Evan said, handing him some perfectly fitting clothes.
"Now we must get going, Yuri," dragging her bodily when she tried to get a better view of Baam who had just started to put on the socks Evan handed him.
"Aaah, wait a second. Damn it Evan! What's your name?" Yuri called out to the boy.
Headon, who had just watched the spectacle unfold silently, was also intrigued.
"I'm the 25th Baam. At least that's what my status said my name is."
"Chestnut? Sounds tasty," Headon commented offhandedly.
"Damn right he is tasty. I mean look at that body! Ah, what are you doing, Evan?!"
"We're going, princess," Evan gritted out.
Evan dragged Yuri through the portal and they disappeared with a zip.
Headon chuckled. "What a colorful duo," he admitted.
Once he was fully clothed, Baam bowed. "Thank you very much once again."
"You don't need to thank me. I intended to fail you at first. But you might be the key…"
"Yes?" Baam asked, not understanding the last part the rabbit mumbled.
Headon waved his hand. "No, don't mind it. It's still a far off shot. Now, you're going to be transported to the next floor. I wish you plenty of luck. Some of the administrators are not as kind as I am."
Watching him ascend Headon grinned darkly.
He might be the key to unlocking the higher floors.
He had mentioned Irregulars are the catalysts to great changes in the Tower.
Now, he looked forward to seeing the heights the boy would reach.
[Name: 25th Baam
Race: Human
Class: Axis – Game designer
HP: 210/200
SP: 5000/5000
Baangs: Locked
Strength (STR): 5
Constitution (CON): 11
Dexterity (DEX): 9
Intellect (INT): 12
Wisdom (WIS): 3
Charisma (CHA): 10
Agility (AGI): 8
Skills:
Shinsoo Manipulation (Locked)
Shinsoo Resistance (Irregular X/X)
Sprint Lv. 4
Traits:
Consumerist (Grade I): Can absorb any skill if hit once with them
]