1 The Invitation
Ethan stood atop a cliff. Down below, he saw a dozen people staring at him, hate evident in their eyes and faces.
Ethan sighed. 'How did everything come to this? I just wanted to get a cure for my dad.'
Who would have thought that his decision to enter the Black Tower a few months ago would lead him to this moment, where he had to become a public enemy number one hunted by hundreds of people invited into the Tower?
'Well, whatever. Since it has come to this, I have to play along, right?'
He summoned his minions. Hundreds of creatures emerged from a dimension he possessed. Those minions came from various types of creatures ranging from chimeras, cave wyrms, golems, wyverns, to dragons. All of them were his own.
"Go."
Ethan issued his order, and his army charged toward the people hunting him, like a deadly tidal wave.
---
The sun is particularly bright today. Ethan squinted as he looked up after placing his water bottle next to him. Today, he is seventeen years old.
An age that he should spend with beautiful memories because it is the prime age of a teenager. He wants to go out with his friends and celebrate today together.
Instead, he spent his time lifting sacks of cement and other heavy items at the construction site. Ethan sighed, then he stood up and continued his task.
The shadow of the Black Tower looming above him provided him with a little shade to shelter under. At least, he should be grateful for the presence of the Tower for this little thing.
He had just finished his job when the day had entered dusk. He received his wages for the day, bought food and medicine, and then went home to his house.
Fortunately, he and his sick father are not homeless. Or it would only worsen his father's condition.
His father suffers from a mysterious illness caused by the Tower. Ethan glanced back, staring at the Tower that had been standing in the middle of the city for hundreds of years. He felt as if that Tower is looking back at him.
The Tower is black. It stands fifty meters above the ground. Its surface is a deep obsidian black, seeming to absorb the light around it. Giving the impression of an impenetrable void reaching towards the heavens.
At its base, the Tower is surrounded by an aura of palpable unease. As if the very air is charged with an eerie energy that sends shivers down the spines of those who look within a distance closer than 100 meters from it. Hence, a fence is installed to block them.
Strange symbols and sigils adorn its surface, their meaning lost to time, adding to the sense of mystique and foreboding that surrounds the Tower.
Ethan shivered. 'They said that the tower only makes people shiver who stand closer than 100 meters from it. But I can feel its sinister aura from here.;
As night falls, the Tower takes on an even more sinister aspect, its black form standing out starkly against the darkened sky. Ethan quickened his walk. Trying to get away from the Tower even though he knew it was impossible.
He arrived at his house – it was a small apartment building in the poor neighborhood of the city – then walked in.
But someone called him before he entered his unit that he lived in with his father.
"Ethan!" Old lady Mary, my foster mother, called out.
Ethan turned and found her face looking uneasy. In her hand was a black envelope.
Ethan frowned. He was familiar with the description of that envelope. That is not a good envelope.
"This is..."
"An agent came here this morning. She gave this to you." Mary handed the letter to Ethan with trembling hands. "You have been invited."
---
*COUGH!*
*COUGH!*
*COUGH!*
...
His father's coughing could be heard from the room next to his. Ethan was now in his own room, staring at the black envelope with trembling hands.
There was nothing on the envelope. Its surface was smooth and dark. But everyone who received it knew what it was.
'This is a fucking Tower Invitation. Argh... What am I supposed to do with this?'
Ethan rubbed his face roughly. He had always been afraid of the Tower, not just from all the stories he heard about it but also from a feeling deep in his heart. He always knew that the Tower was a nightmare.
But he also knew what people who had successfully reached a certain floor of that Tower gained. They would get wealth, fame, and extraordinary power.
Some of them also got potions that could cure the mysterious illness that came from it. Just like what his father suffered right now.
His father had been taking care of him single-handedly for three years until suddenly the illness came and weakened his body so much.
He was a big man, with trained muscles capable of heavy labor. He was healthy, never once admitted to the hospital. But that illness was so powerful and snatched away his strong physique in the blink of an eye.
Once he was strong enough, Ethan decided to work for their livelihood and provide him with some medicine that could alleviate his suffering.
*COUGH!*
*COUGH!*
*COUGH!*
...
Another series of coughing came from him. Ethan felt his heart ache because of it. He pressed the dark surface of the envelope with his fingers, then opened it.
He read the contents with a pounding heart.
Dear Ethan Holmes,
We are pleased to extend to you an invitation to participate in the trials of the Tower, a place of great mystery and opportunity. We have been watching you closely, Ethan, and we believe that you possess the qualities necessary to succeed where others have failed.
We are aware of the challenges you face in caring for your ailing father and understand the burden that weighs heavily upon your shoulders.
As a gesture of goodwill, we have included within this letter a small supply of potions, carefully crafted by our most skilled alchemists, that may alleviate some of his suffering. Consider it a token of our appreciation for your willingness to undertake this journey.
The potion will not heal your father entirely. But the illness will be gone for one year. You will receive the full healing potion after reaching the 10th floor.
The Tower awaits, Ethan, and with it, the promise of wealth, knowledge, and power beyond your wildest dreams. But be warned: the path ahead will not be easy, and the trials you will face will test your strength, resolve, and determination in ways you cannot yet imagine.
Should you choose to accept this invitation, make your way to the Tower's location at the appointed time. Trust in yourself, Ethan, and know that you do not face this challenge alone. We will be watching, guiding, and supporting you every step of the way.
With anticipation,
[Signature]
Somehow, Ethan didn't believe the sentence he read at the end.
'Guiding and supporting? Then why haven't so many people returned from that damn Tower?'
He pondered for a long time. Weighing the dangers against the results he would obtain. But he couldn't find any other options.
The illness came from the Tower, so the medicine would only be found inside it. It was a sick scheme that left the invited with no other choice. He was sure that was what made a lot of people accept the invitation despite knowing the risk. They wanted to heal the ones they loved.
And so, Ethan thought he had no choice but to accept it.
---
It was a Sunday when he decided to come to the location of the Tower. He grimaced, his heart beating with anxiety. But he kept walking, knowing that he had to get the potion for his father.
He wouldn't enter the Tower right now. There was another batch that would enter the Tower with him a week later. No one knew how they determined the time for entering it; it seemed random.
Right now, he would only meet with a staff who worked to provide guidance about the Tower and explain everything he needed to know. They called them the Agents. And their task was also to deliver the Invitation.
He still hadn't told his father about this. For now, he just had to accept the explanation and postpone telling him.
When he arrived at a building that looked like a checkpoint, Ethan met an Agent wearing a black suit, the uniform they always wore.
"You're one of the Invited?" the male Agent asked.
Ethan simply nodded.
"Jane!" the Agent called someone from inside.
A moment later, a blonde woman with a petite figure appeared in front of him. She smiled brightly.
"Follow me, please. I will explain the important things before you enter the Tower."
Ethan followed him into the post.
---
