“…” Seo Jun-Ho had to stay awake for ten days.
At first, he didn’t feel much pressure from the ticking clock on the wall, and the first twelve hours or so passed by uneventfully. If he was bored, he’d talk to the Frost Queen. Other than that, he spent time researching his ability.
Of course, he didn’t allow himself to move too much. Burning calories would make him tired, and sleep would start to threaten him.
“Looks good.” Seo Jun-Ho suddenly stood up. The Frost Queen looked up at him. He had created a pillar of ice in the middle of the cavern.
“What is that for?”
“I’m gonna sit on it.” He took a couple of steps and easily ran up the side of the ice, hoisting himself onto the pillar. “Hup.”
There was some space left after he took a seat, but it was too small to lean or lay down. It was around 22 meters high.
‘Humans start to get scared of heights after around 11 meters.’
The reason for that was simple.
‘That height would start to provoke their imaginations.’
Eleven meters was a height where most people could see what was below them in detail. They could estimate how much it would hurt, and where it would hurt the most if they were to fall. 𝙚𝙤𝙫𝙚𝒍.𝒐𝙧𝙜
‘But my sight is better than most people’s.’
Even without enhancement, he could see clearly within 50 meters. But there was a reason why he had made his pillar 22 meters high.
“If I fall while dozing off…Any higher than 22 meters is dangerous.”
In other words, he could survive a fall from below that height.
“This place is quite high, though the view from here is dreary.” The Frost Queen had followed him up to the pillar, but she started to feel dizzy as she looked down to the ground. “Yes, this is quite effective in keeping you awake,” she muttered. If he fell, he would be gravely injured. The idea would whip him awake.
“Are you not hungry?”
“I’m fine for now.” His stomach growled as he said this, but he refused to eat.
‘Hunger is a good way to keep yourself awake.’
When 20 hours passed, his stomach started to grumble even louder as it seemed to be begging for food, but the pain only helped Seo Jun-Ho concentrate even better. The Frost Queen couldn’t take it any longer.
“Would it not be better if you ate?” She asked carefully.
“Just a bit, then…” Seo Jun-Ho reached into his inventory and ate one Shaolin pill, along with a single sip of water.
“Is that enough to fill your stomach?”
“I can’t fill my stomach.”
Being full would lead to him being comfortable, and being comfortable would make him tired. For now, Seo Jun-Ho had to stick to all the strict rules he set for himself.
***
“…”
It had been 72 hours since he last slept, and Seo Jun-Ho barely even talked by now. Before, he would occasionally chat with the Frost Queen, but even that had stopped on the fourth day. She didn’t try to talk to him much either because she understood the uphill battle he was fighting.
“…If you’re tired, you can sleep,” Seo Jun-Ho rasped quietly.
The Frost Queen shook her head. “I am a spirit. I do not have the same desires or needs as humans.”
“Must be nice.” He smiled as he said this, but his voice was envious.
Tick, tick, tick.
The hologram clock on the wall counted down by the second. Seo Jun-Ho shut his eyes tightly when he saw that there were still 188 hours remaining.
‘This is harder than the last time.’
After all, the human body slowly deteriorated as it aged. Players could maintain their bodies in all sorts of ways, but not even them could stop the ruthless passing of time. Things were different for the Seo Jun-Ho who had gone through the Cave of Trials when he was 22 to the present him who was 25.
Seo Jun-Ho yawned. “Wake me up.”
“Look over here.” The Frost Queen pointed her finger.
Woosh!
A soft, cold snowball hit Seo Jun-Ho square in the face, and the sting woke him right up. He gave her a thumbs up.
***
Seo Jun-Ho’s shoulders were hunched as he sat on the pillar. His stomach kept grumbling, and his complexion was sickly. His eyes were sunken, and dark circles were painted underneath them. It might be slightly exaggerating, but he almost looked like a corpse.
‘Dizzy…’
Seo Jun-Ho rubbed his eyes hard. If he got distracted even a little bit, he would collapse. 125 hours had passed and there were still 115 hours left, but this was the most crucial part.
‘Heavy…’
He felt like a boulder was filling his head.
‘I just want to sleep for 10 minutes. No more, no less, just 10 minutes.’
He felt like he’d fall asleep if he closed his eyes for just three seconds.
“We can’t have that.” He stood up from his seat with great effort and jumped off the pillar. He landed on the ground and stumbled over to the break room.
“…”
The plush bed and full refrigerator tempted him greatly, but he gulped and headed to the bathroom instead. He took care of his business and looked up at the shower booth.
‘If I take a hot shower and lay down on the bed…’
He would dream the sweetest dreams ever.
Just as he raised his hand toward the shower faucet…
Bang bang bang!
The Frost Queen banged on the bathroom door.
“Contractor! You’re not sleeping in there, are you?”
“…Of course not.” He suddenly realized what he was doing. He washed his hands and splashed his face with cold water. It was just a little bit, but he felt more awake now.
***
215:59:59
Seo Jun-Ho stared at the clock, his eyes unfocused.
“Hold on for a little longer. There are only 24 hours left.”
He nodded because he didn’t have the energy to reply, but as time passed, he was starting to become more awake.
‘I experienced it last time.’
It was often called a state of nirvana. Besides his heavy body and dim vision, he didn’t feel very tired. His stomach had also become quiet at some point, and it felt like the whole world had fallen asleep. In the absolute silence that seemed as if the entire world was asleep, Seo Jun-Ho continued his battle alone.
‘It’s actually motivating.’
He smiled. While Korean men pledged to live a different life after coming back from their military service, Players pledged to live a different life after they came back from the Cave of Trials. Those who cleared the Cave of Trials, especially those that cleared the Insomnia Trial, returned with a different mindset.
‘Nothing is impossible… Is what we say.’
The same had happened to Seo Jun-Ho. He thought about the first time he cleared the Cave of Trials up to the 9th level.
‘I had nothing to be afraid of after that.’
He felt unstoppable, and not just because he was arrogant. He had always been diligent even before he entered the Cave of Trials, but he became even more tenacious after he returned from it.
‘It’s the same this time as well.’
The Cave of Trials pressured the Players to quit every step of the way, but it rewarded those who persevered.
‘What were the rewards I got for clearing the 9th level…?’
Because he hadn’t slept, his mind had slowed down. He kept forgetting what he wanted to remember.
‘Oh, right. I got the ‘Hero’s Mind’ Skill…‘
It was an A-grade Skill, but that wasn’t all. His stats had all increased by 10.
‘I’ll reach at least the 9th level again.’
An increase of 10 and an A-grade Skill were invaluable rewards for Seo Jun-Ho who wanted to save his friends as fast as possible.
“I’ll definitely…Save you…It won’t be long…” He sounded like he was possessed. A faint voice kept filling his ears.
“…tor, Contra…Contractor!”
Jolt!
His eyes shot open as if he was hit with lightning. Seo Jun-Ho quickly looked around with a worried look. “D-did I fall asleep?”
The Frost Queen let out a heavy sigh. “No. Look over there.”
He looked to where she was pointing.
0:0:0
He hadn’t slept in ten days, but he dreamed about those numbers countless times. Only then did he realize that he had already passed the trial.
“…Oh.” His husky voice sounded unfamiliar and unpleasant, but he laughed. “I won.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Staying up like that was no big deal.”
“Yes, yes, you are right.” The Frost Queen spoke to him like she was humoring a child. “Come down now.”
“Right.” Seo Jun-Ho leaped off the ice pillar. Normally, he should be able to do this easily, but he was too tired. By the time he landed, he was huffing and puffing. “Phew…”
A System message appeared.
[You have cleared the Insomnia Trial.]
[If you wish to continue, please say ‘Go’. If you wish to stop, please say ‘Stop’.]
[The next level is the Taste Trial.]
It was hardship after hardship. Seo Jun-Ho squeezed his eyes shut when he read it. Things would only get harder from here on out.
“Even if I can’t eat, go.”
***
After the Insomnia Trial, Seo Jun-Ho slept for four days like a hibernating bear. By the end of it, he finally recovered.
“I’ve decided. Even if I regress or reincarnate, I’m never coming to the Cave of Trials again.”
The Frost Queen clicked her tongue at his resolute words. “It must have been considerably difficult.”
“It drives people crazy. You try staying up for… Well, I guess you wouldn’t understand since you’re a spirit.” He shrugged as he spread strawberry jam and butter onto warm bread.
“So, what is the next Trial?”
“…Dammit, why did you bring that up while I’m eating?” Seo Jun-Ho’s face darkened as he chewed on his bread. He grabbed a memo pad on the table and wrote something down. The Frost Queen walked over to it and tilted her head.
“…Taste, scent, sound, silence, darkness, void?”
“The sense trials are waiting for me. That’s what I call them.”
The five human senses were sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.
‘But the Cave of Trials doesn’t have a trial for the sense of touch.’
If something like that existed here, then it wouldn’t be a trial. It would be closer to torture.
“The sense trials stack too. That’s the hardest part.”
“They stack? Then, will you have to experience all these trials together in the final one?”
“Yes. I’ll be deaf, blind, and unable to smell or taste…It’s enough to ruin a person.”
“Hm…” She held her chin in her hands. “But are you allowed to tell me about these things?”
“It doesn’t matter. You can talk about the trials inside the Cave, but not outside of it.” They were still in the middle of the trials. Of course, unless they were like Seo Jun-Ho and had a spirit, they would have no one to talk to.
“It must be hard. But what is the Taste Trial? Does it simply prevent you from tasting?”
“…If it were that simple, I wouldn’t be this worried.” Seo Jun-Ho looked teary-eyed as he took a final bite of his toast as if it were his last meal. “Phew,?that was good.”
Seo Jun-Ho finished his meal and pressed his hands together over his empty plate. He prayed that the fullness in his stomach would last for a long time.
“Once the Taste Trial begins, you can’t eat anything. If you do, it tastes like shit.”
Shit?was putting it lightly. You would taste all the disgusting things of the universe at once, things that would hurt your dignity as a human.
“Then can you not simply starve?”
“…I told you. All the trials from now on will stack.” He wrinkled his nose and suddenly looked up as if he had realized something. “Oh, I looked disgusted just now, didn’t I?”
“And what of it?”
“You’ll see the real thing soon.”
The Frost Queen pitied him once again.