Floor 3 - Archive (1)

**

As soon as I entered Floor 3 of the Tower, the Administrator appeared. He got straight to the point and proposed a game.

“So this is Floor 3 of the Tower… you’re the Administrator, and I have to clear a game?”
“Correct. I assume you became familiar with the Tower’s basic rules on the previous floor.”

The Librarian answered with a lifeless expression. His personality was completely different from the girl I’d met on Floor 2.

‘He’s a little different from how I imagined an Administrator…’

He was mechanical, yet cooperative. It almost felt like he was deliberately providing me with information.

‘Wait. Come to think of it…’

Could the second paragraph of the system message have been referring to this guy?

“Hey… let me ask you something.”
“Of course. Please feel free to ask. If there is anything you wish to know, I will answer to the best of my ability.”
“Why do you keep answering my questions like this?”
“A Librarian provides assistance to users. I am simply giving you information about what you wish to know.”
“Anything?”
“Not everything. I will tell you what I know, so long as doing so does not violate the Tower’s rules.”
“And what if you’re lying?”
“Do not worry. I speak only the truth. It is one of the Tower’s rules.”

He answered without the slightest hesitation.
The more we talked, the more confused I became. I didn’t know what his deal was, but one thing was certain. He was insane.
Still, he did seem genuinely honest. So far, he’d answered every question without embellishment.
Just how much would he tell me?
Since I had the chance, I started asking the things I’d been wondering about one by one.

“This is the Tower, right?”
“Yes. This is the Tower.”
“What’s the purpose of the Tower?”
“My apologies. I cannot answer that question.”
“Why were we abducted?”
“My apologies. I cannot answer that question.”
“Who’s the mastermind behind all this?”
“My apologies. I cannot answer that question.”
“…”

This was going nowhere.
What the hell was wrong with this guy?

“Is it because of those Tower rules or whatever that you can’t tell me?”
“…No.”

The Librarian shook his head and gave me a somewhat unexpected answer.

“It is because I do not possess that information.”
“You don’t know either?”
“Correct.”
“But you’re the Floor 3 Administrator.”
“An Administrator is merely a game’s facilitator. The role has nothing to do with the true nature of the Tower.”

I remembered what had happened in the Mansion. The Floor 2 Administrator had said something similar.
Had this guy been dragged into the Tower against his will too?

“How did you end up working as an Administrator in a place like this?”
“That…”

The Librarian hesitated briefly, then answered as though it were nothing important.

“It happened so long ago that I no longer remember.”

So basically… he didn’t know.
I gave up questioning him.
There didn’t seem to be any point in continuing if I couldn’t get anything useful out of him.
Questions were only useful if the guy actually knew something.
Whatever.
This wasn’t the time to stand around bickering. My goal was to clear Floor 3.

“Forget it… I’m ready, so let’s just hurry up and start the game.”
“Understood. However, there is something I am curious about as well.”

He glanced around me as though searching for something.

“Did you come to Floor 3 alone?”
“…It just worked out that way.”
“Did everyone else die on Floor 2?”

He asked in a perfectly calm voice.
The meaning behind his words was chilling. Was it really that strange that I’d come to Floor 3 by myself?

“They’re all alive… I came alone because of certain circumstances.”
“I see. I apologize for jumping to conclusions.”

He bowed his head, then offered a rather pointless piece of advice.

“Attempting a game alone carries considerable risk. I recommend accompanying other participants when proceeding to higher floors.”

Like I didn’t know that…
He’d been giving me information this whole time, but most of it was useless stuff like this.
Meanwhile, he knew nothing about the important things, like the Tower or its mastermind.
I was too tired to even complain anymore. I half ignored him and told him to explain the game already.

“Then I will now explain the rules of the game.”

The Librarian reached inside his clothes and pulled out a small bell.
He gave it a light shake, and a clear, crystalline chime rang out.

Chime-!

At the same time, the entire Archive began to tremble. The tightly packed bookshelves started moving in perfect order.

“W-What the hell…?!”
“Do not be alarmed. They will not harm you.”

Rrrumble-!

The bookshelves rearranged themselves as though each knew exactly where it belonged.
The Archive, which had been cluttered and disorderly moments ago, became as pristine as a newly opened library.
It happened in an instant.
It resembled the magical phenomenon the girl in the Mansion had shown us.
Was this an Administrator’s ability…?
The stage for Floor 3’s game had taken shape. Now perfectly organized, the Archive stretched farther than I could see.
There were so many bookshelves that I couldn’t take them all in at once.
With only a little exaggeration, it felt as though every book in the world had been gathered here.

“As you can see, there are a great many books here.”

He spoke with the densely packed shelves behind him.

“Among them is exactly one book that has been designated as the answer.”

He raised one finger for emphasis.

“Find that book and present it to me. That is the game for Floor 3.”

The moment he finished explaining, a message appeared before my eyes.

Flash-!

++

The system announced the start of the game. Since it had activated normally, the Librarian had been telling the truth.

‘So this is Floor 3’s game.’

I carefully read the message before me so I wouldn’t make the same kind of mistake as last time.
The game was simple.
Find the one correct book among the countless books here.
But I couldn’t let my guard down. I’d already learned that lesson.
The question was what kind of trap was hiding in this one…
The Tower was never merciful. It was cruel and deliberately unhelpful.
There was no way this was a game I could clear casually.
Even the rules in front of me made that obvious.
At first glance, they looked clear and simple. But once I looked closer, they were full of holes.
Only the core condition was written down, while all the details had been conveniently omitted.

“That’s the whole explanation?”
“Yes. You may now proceed with the game.”

The game had already begun.
But there were still plenty of things I didn’t understand.

“…I still don’t get it.”
“What do you mean?”

The Librarian shamelessly asked back.

“If there is anything you wish to know, please ask.”

Apparently, I had to ask instead of expecting him to explain things on his own.
Would it kill him to explain the basics properly?

“What’s the time limit?”
“Twenty-four hours. The Floor 3 game will end when the hourglass in the center empties.”

Hourglass?
I turned around and saw a huge hourglass standing in the center.
Sand was slowly trickling down as time passed.
Twenty-four hours…
So the game ended when all of that sand ran out.

“I’m supposed to present the answer to you, right? How many chances do I get?”
“Exactly one. The moment you present a book, the game will end regardless of how much time remains.”

What?
Only one chance…?

“If the book you select is correct, you win. The game will end, and Floor 3 of the Tower will be cleared.”
“And if it’s wrong?”
“If the book you select is not the answer, then…”

The Librarian glanced at me.
Then he spoke as casually as if he were telling me the forecast called for rain.

“You die.”
“…”
“So I advise you to choose carefully. Exceeding the time limit will also be considered a loss.”

Failure meant death.
It was the kind of answer I’d expected, yet a chill still pierced straight through me.

‘Let’s organize this one piece at a time…’

Including everything he’d told me, I organized the rules of this game in my head.

[Floor 3 Game Rules]
【1. The Archive contains countless books.
Among them, exactly one book designated as the answer is hidden somewhere.

2. I must find the answer and present it to the Librarian.
   However, I only get one chance, and the time limit is twenty-four hours.

3. If the book I present is correct, I win. If not, I lose.

4. The Librarian will answer my questions truthfully, subject to certain conditions.】

That was about it.
I repeated the rules to myself while looking around Floor 3.
Books packed the shelves like mountains, while endless rows of bookcases stretched across the vast space.
Only one book among all of these was the answer…

‘There’s no way I can just guess and get lucky.’

That would take divine intervention.
Not even the Ultimate Lucky Student could pull that off.
It was no different from finding a needle in a haystack. There was no way the game was meant to be decided by pure luck.

Then maybe…
I realized what Floor 3’s game was really about. The key was the Administrator himself.
He would obediently answer my questions with nothing but the truth.
As long as he knew the answer and it didn’t violate the Tower’s rules.
If this was a game where I had to find the answer by asking questions, then it was obvious.

‘It’s Twenty Questions.’

Floor 3’s game was basically Twenty Questions with a slight twist.
The difference was that there was no limit on the number of questions I could ask.

“One more thing. There’s no limit on how many questions I can ask, right?”
“Correct. There is no limit. I will answer as many times as necessary.”

The time limit was twenty-four hours, and I could ask as many questions as I wanted.
But I only got one chance to choose.
Failure meant death, but even accounting for that, the conditions seemed unusually generous.

…And that was suspicious.

The more I thought about the rules, the more something bothered me, like a fish bone stuck in my throat.

It was way too easy.
The time limit wasn’t especially short, and there wasn’t even a cap on questions.
I could just bombard him with questions all day until I happened to stumble across something useful.
Wouldn’t that be the end of the game?

“Hmm…”

There had to be a catch. But no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t see one yet.
Meanwhile, time continued to pass.
Sand trickled through the hourglass, gradually collecting at the bottom.
Silence hung in the air until the Librarian quietly spoke.

“There is no need to overthink it. If you identify the key point, the game can be cleared.”

The Administrator himself was giving me advice. The sight was almost absurd.

“…Whose side are you on?”
“Administrators generally maintain a neutral stance. However, some may be cooperative toward participants, while others may be hostile.”

He answered mechanically.

“Naturally, I am neutral. I merely conduct the game fairly in accordance with the Tower’s rules.”
“Well, that’s reassuring… At least it means you won’t interfere while I’m playing.”

Enough small talk.
I cleared my head. There were still things that bothered me, but…
who cared?
I only had one goal.
Clear Floor 3 quickly and earn everyone’s recognition.
That was why I’d come to Floor 3 alone. This was the stage where I’d prove my worth.

‘I’ve got to live up to their expectations.’

I couldn’t afford to struggle helplessly after coming this far. If I started regretting my choice now, I wouldn’t be able to face Gyeong-ah.

Slap-!

I slapped both of my cheeks.
I focused.

“Okay. I’ll finish this fast. I don’t need twenty-four hours. I’ll be out of here within one.”
“An admirable attitude. As you said, Floor 3’s game is structurally simple enough that, in theory, it can be completed within two minutes.”

I faced the Librarian.
He looked back at me.
A kind of Twenty Questions where I had to find the answer through an exchange with him.
I was more than ready. The curtain rose on Floor 3’s game.
Well, technically it had started ten minutes ago…
Once I’d finished thinking, I organized my questions one by one.
Maybe I’d start with something basic, just to feel things out.
I asked my long-awaited first question.

“Tell me what the answer is.”