MTLNOVEL chapter 408 - Hope Protocol
Seeing all his friends disappear into the portals, Taufik exhaled slowly, not from exhaustion, but from the weight of responsibility.
He now stood alone at the heart of a battlefield.
"…System," he said quietly, "how do you determine the level of each floor in the Infinite Tower? Based on what?"
[It is based on the number of inhabitants in that world, Master. This one ranks the lowest among all active Realm Gates]
"Heh~ So it was like that, I see…" Taufik sighed, dragging a hand across his face. "It's my fault. I didn't set a specific order"
Then, more decisively: "System, open the Rewrite Authority"
[DING]
[Opening Rewrite Authority]
[...]
[DING]
[Welcome, Architect]
[Reality Script: Earth Worldline - Infinite Tower]
[Current Editor: Taufik]
The forest dissolved around him, not violently, but with a graceful unraveling.
Trees became strings of glowing glyphs.
The soil faded into floating lines of code.
The body of the Sprite Swarm Matron, the 'supposed' mini boss of the first floor, glitched, broke into shimmering blocks, then rebuilt itself frame by frame in front of him.
Everything was data. Editable. Mutable.
Taufik watched, nodding as the system processed the terrain and battle history.
"... Good. At least this one is working"
He raised his hand. Light surrounded his fingers like a digital pen made of authority.
"... Let's begin the Rewrite"
[Understood]
[Awaiting your command, Architect]
"Subject: The Infinite Tower. Show me the subject setting"
[Loading Tower Parameters...]
[Current Gate Linked: 547]
[Floor Scaling: Automatic - Based on World Population]
[Access Limiter: Only Players Level 50+ May Ascend]
[How would you like to proceed, Architect?]
Taufik narrowed his eyes. "…Change Floor Scaling. From population-based to monster-level range"
"Set Floor 1 difficulty to scale between Level 1 – 50"
[Processing Override Request...]
[Searching for compatible Realm Gates across current active timelines...]
[...]
[MATCH FOUND]
Taufik smirked. "…Good. Show me the Realm Gate's information"
The data condensed and shifted, forming a massive window before him, displaying a full breakdown of a new Realm Gate suited for the revised first floor.
---
[Realm Gate ID: #117 "Aetherion"]
Realm Type: Forest Ruins
Climate: Humid, Warm
Mana Density: Low to Stable
Danger Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Designation: Entry-Level Combat Zone
Inhabiting Monster Pool (Level 1–50):
---
Taufik narrowed his eyes as the monster list unfolded, displaying basic data, behaviors, and population density.
[MONSTER LIST – AETHERION]
• Goblin Grunts (Lv. 2–5)
Small, green humanoids, weak but agile. Often found in noisy packs. Armed with rusted blades and bone clubs.
• Goblin Shamans (Lv. 6–12)
Weaker physically but capable of low-tier elemental magic. Can buff allies and curse targets.
• Moss Wolves (Lv. 8–14)
Lean forest predators with fur laced with mana-charged moss. Hunt in coordinated packs. Quick, silent, deadly.
• Vine Serpents (Lv. 10–18)
Camouflaged snakes that hang from trees. They constrict with living vines and secrete paralyzing venom.
• Treant Sprouts (Lv. 12–20)
Young tree-spirits that animate fallen branches and roots. Defend ancient ruins. Weak to fire.
• Hobgoblin Raiders (Lv. 20–30)
Larger, more intelligent goblins that serve as warband leaders. Use tactics and better equipment.
• Forest Banshee (Mini-Boss) (Lv. 35)
A wandering spirit of a slain dryad, cursed with grief. Her wails can damage minds and attract predators.
• Goblin Chieftain (Boss) (Lv. 50)
A cunning, brutal warlord who rules a fortified ruin. Commands all goblin tribes within the Hollow. Uses poison weapons and stolen relics.
---
Taufik reviewed the display in silence, then nodded.
"…Yeah. This is more like it"
He extended his hand, and glowing runes began shifting across the screen.
[Do you wish to apply changes to this floor as the new default template?]
"Make it so. Lock this Realm Gate to First Floor designation. Set it as the tutorial-level environment for all future entries"
[Confirmed]
[Modifying Floor 1 Template…]
[Replacing Verdant Hollow -> Aetherion]
Taufik smiled faintly as the data reshaped around him, layers of light folding in on themselves as if reality were nothing but code under his fingertips.
Taufik let out a slow breath. "...That's better"
The Tower groaned above him, quietly, distantly, like it felt the change.
[Rewrite Authority still active]
[Awaiting further commands, Architect]
Taufik looked up, hands still glowing with control.
"…Next," His voice echoed with layered tone, his own, and something greater behind it.
He stepped toward the restructured monster, frozen in time, data strings wrapped around its limbs.
"Let's fix the rest of the floors," he continued, calm and deliberate. "Second floor monsters, set to level 50–60. Boss level… 70 or so. Third floor? 60–70. Boss, 80. Then keep scaling accordingly. No spikes"
[Understood, Architect]
[Adjusting floor progression model…]
[Recalibrating monster scaling parameters…]
Light pulsed outward through the floor beneath his feet, traveling like a wave through the Tower's code.
The environment flickered, and for a brief moment, he could see through the walls of the floors above, silhouettes of titanic creatures, shadowed ruins, abyssal realms... And all of them shifted, responding to his will.
[Scaling has been set: Linear Progressive Model (LPM) Activated]
[Each floor will increase in difficulty based on player survivability thresholds and core synchronization growth]
[Error Tolerance: ±2 Levels per Encounter]
[Boss Floor Tiers Locked to: +10 Relative to Entry Floor]
Taufik nodded. "Good. I want humans to have a chance, not a miracle but a chance"
The system responded in kind, lines of data solidifying around his hands like gauntlets of glowing script.
[Changes Applied to Worldline: Earth - Realm Gate 001]
[The Rewrite will be reflected in all Gates with matching entry thresholds]
He exhaled slowly, dropping his hands as the framework began fading back into physical form, the forest reforming, no longer corrupted, but not entirely clean either. Just… real.
"…Next," He said again. "Lock access to Floor 4 and above for now. Don't let anyone pass until I finish analyzing them personally"
[Confirmed. Floors 4 and beyond are now sealed]
Taufik took one last look at the newly balanced first floor, his friends were gone now, and he had bought humanity a foothold.
But this was only the beginning.
"…Now," he muttered, a faint grin tugging at the edge of his lips, "let's go meet this First Floor Boss"
The ground beneath him solidified, and the Divine Rewrite faded, code transforming once again into moss, stone, and soil.
[Would you like to store this worldline configuration as Template: "Earth-Human-Compatible"?]
Taufik grinned.
"Yeah. Save it. Name it 'Hope Protocol'"
[Understand, Architect]
[Subject: The Infinite Tower - Hope Protocol]
[Current Gate Linked: 549]
[Floor Scaling: Linear Progressive Model (LPM) Activated]
[Access Limiter: Only Players Level 50+ May Ascend]
Seeing that, Taufik nods in satisfaction, "... Close the Rewrite Authority"
[DING]
[Rewrite Authority is shut down]
[...]
The air shimmered softly as the Rewrite Authority vanished, dissolving the cascading data streams and returning Taufik to the forest, no longer corrupted, but the new one in the new world.
The trees whispered with new life, and the ground pulsed faintly with rebalanced mana. The oppressive miasma that once hung like a curtain was gone, replaced with stillness.
Not peace.
Preparation.
Taufik stood still, letting the wind rustle his coat, his fingers twitching slightly as new information fed into his mind like a divine pulse.
[Master, what will we do now?]
The voice of the System was no longer cold and robotic. It now carried a respectful tone, like a servant speaking to a monarch.
Taufik closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.
"Back to the first plan," he said. "We're investigating every floor"
His eyes opened, glowing faintly with Concept power and divinity interwoven.
"Let's go until Floor 50 today"
[DING]
[Objective set: Clearing Floors 1–50]
[Hope Protocol active]
[You are now the highest Authority in this Worldline]
[Warning: The "Others" may become aware of your action]
Taufik's expression didn't shift.
He expected it.
He welcomed it.
"...If they came, let them come. Nothing will change"
His voice echoed calmly into the air... not a boast, not a threat, just a truth spoken aloud.
Around him, the world pulsed with faint, living data, glowing lines and ethereal scripts woven through trees, stones, and sky.
This place wasn't just a battlefield anymore.
It was a draft.
And he was its editor.
Taufik could feel it, the eyes.
Not human.
The gaze of this world's monsters, creeping from the shadows. Hungry. Wary. Testing.
Wariness. Curiosity. Hostility.
They were watching him not as a threat…but as something unfamiliar.
Something they didn't yet understand.
Something that bled power but stood still.
But Taufik didn't flinch.
He didn't radiate bloodlust.
He didn't raise his hand.
Because he could end all of them in an instant.
He just chose not to.
Then... They came.
From the treeline, brush parted with guttural growls and clicking tongues.
A horde of goblins emerged, dozens of them, short, sinewy, their green-gray skin wrapped in crude armor.
Their eyes were wide and sharp, glittering with greed.
And behind them, Goblin Shamans, cloaked in bones and talismans, wielding crooked staffs that pulsed with rudimentary mana.
In their eyes… Taufik wasn't a god.
He was just something new.
Something that looked like meat, but didn't smell right.
A prey.
One of the goblins hissed and charged, screeching as it raised a chipped blade.
Taufik didn't move.
Didn't blink.
The moment the goblin entered five feet within his aura...
*CRACK*
A wave of unseen pressure snapped the goblin's weapon in half midair. The creature froze, as if its body suddenly realized it wasn't supposed to move anymore.
Its eyes bulged.
Then it fell, unmoving, not dead, but stripped of the will to attack.
The others hesitated. The shamans began to murmur, trying to read him like prey, like spellbait trying to cast identification or gather insight.
Taufik finally spoke.
"You can see me,"he said quietly. "Good. Then remember this form"
His eyes shimmered with threads of reality code.
Not mana.
Not aura.
Authority... Authority as the creator.
"…Because this world is about to change"
A single wave of his hand sent a shock through the earth, data rippling beneath the soil like roots of lightning.
Grass shifted.
The air hummed.
The goblins… ran.
Not because they understood what he was.
But because something deep in their primal blood screamed that they should.
And for now, that was enough.
....
...
..
.