Cold, strong winds blew across the sea, pushing blocks of ice to the sides of the ship as it cut its way through the freezing waters.
Louis sat inside a small cabin that rocked up and down with every wave.
He looked down at the Exploration Permit in his hand, stamped with the royal seal, and showed a bitter smile.
Three months ago, a large truck had hit him directly — and that was how he died.
When he opened his eyes again, he was in another world, inside the body of Louis Maclaine, the son of Duke Maclaine.
But after being reborn, he didn't even get a single day of rest.
He was immediately given the title of Baron of Exploration and ordered to travel to a distant island across the sea to develop his new territory and continue exploring unknown waters.
It sounded like an honor, but in truth, it was a curse.
The sea was always violent, full of storms, and the islands already discovered were under threat from sea monsters.
They were simply not places fit for human life.
Although the Empire claimed ownership of these islands, many were still ruled by the remaining native tribes.
Only two years ago, a massive rebellion almost caused an entire archipelago to break away from the Empire — and it was stopped only with great loss.
That was when the Empire realized that relying only on the military was not enough to maintain long-term control.
So the Emperor ordered the noble families to send their children to the sea, giving them exploration titles and lands to strengthen imperial influence.
At the same time, this plan would also weaken the nobles' power.
One move, two goals.
Of course, the nobles were not fools.
They easily saw through the Emperor's plan and sent their less important family members to handle the dangerous task.
Louis was one of those unfortunate ones.
As the youngest and weakest of Duke Maclaine's nine sons, he was the obvious choice.
When he received the exploration permit, his family gave him one thousand gold coins, a few tons of food and grain, six elite knights, and three hundred beginner soldiers — and then told him to leave quickly.
No mages. No formation masters. Not even a single high-ranked knight to protect him.
It was clear that Duke Maclaine had no hope of Louis building a future on the sea.
As long as he didn't die on the way, that would be enough.
And if he did die on the island, well — the mission would still count as "completed."
No one believed Louis could survive in such a place.
Even he didn't believe it at first.
How could a young man who had just graduated survive in a dangerous, chaotic world cut off from civilization?
Louis pulled his cloak tighter around his body, but it couldn't stop the bone-chilling cold.
He muttered under his breath : "Damn it… Didn't they say I'd gain access to the Multiverse Tower when I turn sixteen?
Just wait — I'll make sure to prepare a big surprise for all of you."
As soon as he finished speaking, a mechanical voice echoed inside his mind:
[ Character detected: Louis Maclaine.
Age: 16.
Qualification confirmed — Player access to the Multiverse Tower granted. ]
Louis froze in shock.
Before he could react, streams of information and countless rules began flooding into his mind.
[ Multiverse Tower
1. The tower has 100 stages. From Stage 1 to 49, the test worlds are random.
The test you face in Stage 1 could be the same as another player's Stage 49.
2. From Stage 50 to 99, all players face the same worlds in the same order.
3. Collect World Points and become stronger by buying skills and treasures from the World Shop.
4. World Points are given based on your final mission rating:
SSS: 30,000
SS: 20,000
S: 10,000
A: 5,000
B: 2,500
C: 1,000
D: 500
E: 100
You can also earn extra points from hidden missions or open worlds.
5. Every player starts with three lives.
If you die, you lose one life.
If all three are gone, you die in the real world too.
You can buy extra lives from the system shop.
6. You cannot use your real-world powers or weapons inside the Tower.
Abilities learned in one world cannot be used in another,
but you can use any of them freely in the real world.
7. You may attempt one stage every week.]
This was Louis's golden finger — his secret advantage.
Almost all of the Tower's first 49 stages were based on fictional worlds from novels, movies, and manga from his previous life.
That meant he had knowledge others didn't.
It was his chance to rise and become a legend in this world.
After understanding everything, Louis couldn't hold back his excitement.
A quiet laugh escaped his lips.
[ Loading of Tower rules complete.
You may enter the Tower space daily between midnight and 5 a.m.]
Filled with excitement, Louis reread the list again and again.
There were more than twenty rules in total — strict, detailed, and absolute.
Breaking them would lead to severe punishment, even complete soul erasure.
And yes, there were already examples of that happening.
He then looked at the leaderboard of the top Tower players.
As expected, in over a hundred years since the Tower appeared,
no human had passed Stage 79.
Other races — elves, giants, and others — had reached Stage 90.
Louis counted nine people who reached that level,
but strangely, none of them tried to go further.
It was mysterious… but for now, far beyond what he could understand.