Chapter 4: CHAPTER 4: TOWER OF DESTINY

5:10 PM SEPTEMBER 21ST 2022

THE BLUE HOUSE

*RUMBLE!!*

"So… general Kim Ah-Hyun. you said you have important information regarding the earthquake. so… what is it?"

The president asked in a serious tone. While staring at general Kim with the expectation that it was just an ordinary earthquake, unlike the ones that happen in China and Japan.

"..."

General Kim's face turned pale after listening to the president's question. There were no words she could use to describe the current situation. She glanced around the conference table and saw the gaze of the government officials and the president expecting answers.

"Is… there a problem, general Kim?"

Prime minister Ma Hyun-Seok asked.

The president noticed that the general was hesitant to speak, which made him more nervous. He sat up in his seat, placed his elbow on the conference table, and clasped his hand. By the expression on the general's face, the president could tell that the situation was a lot worse than he hoped.

General Kim stood up from her seat, and walks past the president, going towards the smart board on the wall. She brought a remote out of her pocket, clicked a button and the image of Han bridge appeared.

"Ha–General Kim, why are you showing us a picture of the Han River? Are you trying to give us a history lesson? Hahaha." general Lee spoke with a mocking tone.

"KYHAHAHA…."

"Pfft… what does the Han River have to do with the earthquake?"

"What is there to be surprised about? It's the seventh army."

"Hahaha… sometimes I forget there is an army like that. What a waste of funds."

The officials laughed along with general lee, while they loudly whispered snide remarks

"Hmph…"

Knowing that the president would not step in, general Kim ignored their remarks as she turned back toward the smart board and continued to speak. "This is the image of the Han river taken today at [4:30 PM] and at [5:00 PM]..."

*CLICK*

"Another image was taken, and this is what the Han River looks like now."

The image on the smart board changed into another image of the Han River, but in this image, there was a humongous hole in the middle of the Han River.

After speaking, General Kim turned around and noticed the shocked expression of everyone in the room, while they stared at the smart board. She smirked when she noticed the people that laughed at her 'HISTORY LESSON' scared out of their minds.

"Ge–General Kim… is this real?" The president asked with a quavering voice.

Even though he was staring at the image with his own eyes, he could not believe it.

"Yes, Mr. President. From the reports I gathered, this is real, and this sinkhole is also the source of the earthquakes."

"How… is it possible for such a thing to happen?" the president asked.

"Your excellency, I think this is not something science can explain. This is supernatural–"

*BANG*

General Lee interrupted general Kim's words by slamming his hands on the conference table. He turned his gaze towards general Kim.

"As the president of the Republic of Korea, you would not listen to this woman's delusions, right? Because a sinkhole appeared in the Han River, that means it's a supernatural occurrence. What nonsense. If we call everything strange that happens supernatural, do you think we would be able to fly airplanes or explore space? We achieved those with science, not magic."

General Kim noticed the fear on everyone's face disappear after General Lee spoke. She never liked the old man Lee ever since her seventh army was created. She knew that the old coot was looking for every way to dissolve her army. But she had no time to argue with the old man now. Because she must convince the president to give her the right to explore the hole with her team. But when she turned her gaze towards the president, he avoided her. She could see from his expression that general Lee's words also convinced him.

"Since we know the source of the earthquake… general Lee, gather the top scientist we have in the country to research this sinkhole. Well… since there is nothing else to discuss, this meeting will e—"

*BUZZ* *BUZZ* phone vibrating

???? [I don't know what you've been told… But time is running out, no need to take it slow… I'm stepping to you toe–to–toe]????

Everyone in the room turned their gaze to the source of the sound immediately. They noticed a flashing light emitting from general Kim's pocket.

General Kim felt flustered by everyone gazing at her when her phone rang. She could not believe that she forgot to place her phone on airplane mode before attending the meeting. But there was no use thinking about that now. Though ashamed, she did not let her emotions show as she brought out the phone from her pocket, turned away from their gazes, and picked it up.

"Hello… huh?… hmm… WHAT!!??... are you sure about this… ok–ok… stay on the site for further instruction on how to proceed."

*BEEP*

After ending the call, she could feel an intense gaze behind her. She turned around to see the president staring at her with an annoyed gaze that said, you better have a reasonable explanation for this.

"Your excellency… Before arriving at the conference, I sent out a unit in my army to Han River to monitor the situation and report any unexpected changes, which is why I had my phone on."

General Kim lied through her teeth, though she did send a team to observe the site. That part was true, but she totally forgot to turn her phone off before coming to the conference room.

"So… what happened?" the president asked with a less annoyed expression.

"It's hard for me to explain, so you better see it yourself."

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She picked up the smart board remote, pressed a button, and the image on the smart board changed into a news channel.

[BREAKING NEWS]

[AFTER THE SINKHOLE APPEARED AN HOUR AGO, THERE HAS BEEN AN UNEXPECTED CHANGE… AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE FOOTAGE A TOWER APPEARED MAGICALLY OUT OF THE SINKHOLE. IS THIS THE SIGN OF THE END OF HUMANITY? AND WHAT ACTION IS THE GOVERNMENT GOING TO TAKE? THIS IS…]

The president walked closer to the smart board with fear on his face. Instinctively, he could tell how dangerous the unknown tower was. If the tower only appeared in South Korea, he could not help but imagine the problem he would have to deal with in the future. Will his presidential seat still be intact? He thought. "I hope it just disappears." he thought in his mind.

"Huh…? what is this?"

The president heard murmurs behind him, so he turned around immediately to see what was going on. He saw some of the officials looking at something, but he could not see what it was. He turned his gaze toward general Kim and noticed that she was also looking at something. "What are you looking at, general Kim?"

"I–I don't know how to explain it… but it looks like a gam–"

Before she could finish her words, she disappeared alongside some of the other officials.

"Whaaaat…?"

The president fell to the ground from the shock. He could not believe that people just vanished right before his eyes.

—-----------------------------

Thirty minutes ago, outside the restaurant.

"Whew…"

Jeong breathed a sigh of relief after narrowly escaping from the collapsed restaurant. He never could have imagined that the restaurant would collapse from the earthquake. He turns around and noticed a large crowd of people standing outside. Though the tremors had stopped, he was surprised to see so many people. but after deliberating, he realized that they stood outside because of the fear of the buildings collapsing.

he glanced around to see if he could find Sung Iseul, whom he had lost while running out of the collapsing restaurant. But she was nowhere to be found. He was sure he saw her exiting the restaurant before him. Maybe she got lost in the crowd of people. He thought as he went searching for her in the crowd.

"Excuse me…"

Jeong felt a tug from behind. He turns around and sees a little boy in a blue polo shirt staring at him. The boy looked no older than eight. "Why is a little kid all alone?" he said in his thoughts.

Jeong saw that the little boy was scared and lost. Did he get separated from his parents when the building collapse? He thought. After deliberating for a while, he decided to talk to the boy. So, he squats with a friendly expression before asking. "Hey, kid, where are your parents?"

"Umm… I can't find them as the house fell. Uncle… do you know where I can find my mommy and daddy?" The boy stared at Jeong with a sad expression while asking.

"…"

Jeong stared at the boy for a while in silence, as he deliberated in his mind whether to help or continue looking for Iseul. But after staring at the little boy for so long, he began to feel pity for the boy.

"Well… It seems both of us are looking for someone. I'll bring you along until we find your parents. Here… climb up."

Jeong turned his back to the boy so he could climb onto his shoulder. He thought this way the boy would have a better view of everyone. "This way, you should be able to find your parents. Oh… If you see a girl with long black hair and shiny blue eyes, tell me."

"Ok, uncle."

"Huh…? Uncle? Do I look that old?" Jeong whispered to himself as they continued to search for Iseul and the boy's parents.

**********fifteen minutes later********

"Ji-Hoon…!"

"Huh? Uncle, I heard my mommy calling me."

Jeong also heard someone call out a name, but as he glanced around, he could not see who it was. It was hard to see the person through the large crowd. So, he decided to stay in the same spot, so they didn't miss each other.

"Ji-Hoon… mommy is coming."

Hearing the voice again, Jeong was able to locate the person calling. He saw a short-haired woman wearing a blue shirt pushing her way through the crowd, trying to get to her son. Jeong could feel the boy's excitement on his shoulder, happy to see his mother. So, he dropped Ji–Hoon off his shoulder.

"Mommy…!!"

The boy shouted in a cheerful tone as he rushed towards his mother. As soon as they got close, Ji-Hoon's mother hugged him tightly, and they both cried happily.

Jeong felt a sharp pain in his heart when he saw how happy they were. It reminded him of a time when he would also rush into the arms of someone happily. But those times were gone and can never be recovered, he thought while turning his gaze away.

"Oh? Jeong Op-pa!!"

Jeong recognized the voice that called out his name. It was Sung Iseul. He turns his gaze toward where she was standing. And saw the bright, innocent smile on her face. He could tell she was happy to see him just from her expression.

"Hey, where—"

Before he could finish his words, a blue screen appeared in front of him.

[Congratulation you have been chosen, to climb the TOWER OF DESTINY]

[Transporting the player immediately]

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"

*Woosh*

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