BZZZ─
An hour after I'd sent the video, my phone vibrated again.
-Okay.
A one-word reply.
Literally just ‘Okay.’ That single word was all that was on the screen.
‘Sulking, huh.’
Originally, I'd meant to edit out the scene where the shirt tore before sending it.
But I'd never edited a video in my life, and I figured that even agonizing over it would be a waste of time.
“I can just treat them to a meal later, right?”
After all, I'd torn up the clothes they'd painstakingly picked out for me before even a single day had passed. I did feel sorry, but what was done was done.
‘For now, I need to focus on what I've got to do.’
The 10th floor had a village where NPCs gathered. And a Trial existed there.
A Trial was different from a Mission.
A Mission was the test by which the Tower judged whether one was qualified to climb each floor.
It was a gate that had to be passed through to go up to the next floor, and its Difficulty was set to match that floor.
Originally, the 10th floor had no separate Mission; it was nothing more than a place to prepare for the true start of the Tower.
‘Of course, oddballs like me are another story.’
Unlike Missions, Trials weren't something you had to do.
Maybe that was why? The existence of Trials wouldn't come to light until about three years from now.
‘Ah, would Ilya already know about them?’
Ilya Dragonov.
Ranked first in Russia.
The guy who'd served as the team's Main Tank with a massive build like a brown bear and a shield as mighty as Mount Tai.
Even when a Trial was cleared for the first time, no Notice appeared.
In the end, whether to reveal the existence of Trials was left to the judgment of the player who cleared one.
‘Now that he knows the rewards and risks of the Trials, he'll never make them public.’
[Status Window]
Seo Kang-yul. Lv.33
Unique Ability : Curse of Repose
Skills : Mana, Intermediate Regeneration, Pulverize, Hex of Rage, Emotium(Hatred)
Strength : 25
Agility : 23
Vitality : 30(+20)
Mana : 90
Free Stats : 10
“I've finally met the bare minimum requirement to awaken Aura.”
[Mana : 90 → 100]
Thanks to the Golem's Bracelet, my Vitality was at 50.
And my Mana had finally reached 100.
“Ugh…!”
A hot power surged up from deep within my bones.
It wasn't simply that my mana was increasing.
It was a change that felt as though it were being engraved into every drop of blood, every single cell.
“Haah─ Haah─”
The nature of the mana flowing through my whole body changed.
‘Once it hits three digits, the energy really does feel completely different.’
Rather than something burned and spent like oil, it had turned into an intrinsic power residing in blood, flesh, and bone.
[E-rank Active Skill Mana has met the conditions and ranks up.]
[Learned D-rank Active Skill ‘Mana.’]
‘The name's the same, but it's on a whole different level from before.’
WHOOOOM─
When I spread my mana out around me, the surrounding air hummed as if being compressed.
As I breathed in, even the currents in the air felt as though they'd become part of my nerves.
The mana wasn't simply ‘flowing’; it resonated, trembled, and sang along with my will.
“With this, my stats are at around Level 50. Taking everything into account, I should be able to handle players at least up to the Level 70 range.”
But I couldn't be relieved.
Whether I could clear the Trial even with my current specs was still unknown.
I couldn't be certain.
“At least thanks to the 9th floor's hidden piece, I've got one form of insurance.”
Swish─
When I lowered my gaze, the heavy bracelet wrapped around my left wrist came into view.
It was crude, as if carved from a lump of stone, but the patterns faintly engraved within it held a soft glow.
[Golem's Bracelet]
-Grade : Heroic
-Effect : Vitality +20
-Unique Skill : Golem's Protection
-Upon activation, the bracelet separates into six stone fragments that protect the user for 1 hour.
(Cooldown : 1 day)
“As expected of a Heroic Grade Artifact. Though whether it'll hold up during the Trial, I don't know.”
Using its Unique Skill would save my life once.
On top of that, its cooldown was only a day, which was very short.
‘I've finished every preparation I can make.’
Without any need to delay, I headed straight to the Tower.
[Currently accessible floor: 10th floor.]
“10th floor.”
[Transferring to the 10th floor of the Tower.]
Shaaa─
As my vision slowly brightened, a scene so homely it was hard to believe it was inside the Tower unfolded before me.
A village with houses lined up in rows.
Chimneys trailing smoke, children running around at play, and the soft ringing of a bell spreading through the air.
‘…Same as ever.’
For a moment, my chest ached strangely.
Memories of staying here in past runs came back to me.
Days when, amid a warm scene hard to believe was inside the Tower, I could smile like a human being, if only briefly.
That memory flashed through my mind, but.
“Kuh!”
At the same time, my head throbbed.
Along with the warm memories, the things that had happened in the past crawled up one by one, as though gripping my brain.
‘Damn it.’
Step─ Step─
I cut across the village and headed straight east.
A familiar road.
I passed a small field and brushed past a scarecrow swaying in the wind.
In the distance, I could see a forest fluttering in the wind.
Shaaaa─
The eastern forest.
The trees stood around it like a folding screen, and within them sat an enormous boulder.
“Finally here.”
Just as the first button always matters, so did the Trial.
There was only one chance.
Fail the first Trial, and you couldn't challenge the 20th floor's Trial.
Step─
I stood before the boulder.
Its surface had been worn smooth by long years of wind and rain, but a strange energy was leaking out from within.
It looked like an impossible wall at first glance, but I already knew the answer.
“Kaedes.”
Shk─
A blackish-red blade revealed itself at my side.
I planted my lower body firmly and loaded mana into the tip of the blade as if spewing it out.
CRASH─!
“Hup─!”
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
The boulder shook as if howling.
Sword strikes laced with sharp mana poured out one after another.
Broken fragments flew everywhere, and dust filled the air.
“Haa….”
About thirty swings in.
With the final blow, the deeply split crack collapsed.
Inside the collapsed boulder,
a staircase leading down into black darkness revealed itself.
Shaaaa─
The moment I set foot inside, the torches hung on the walls swallowed flame one by one.
FWOOSH─
Flames mixing blue and orange light caught one after another along the path.
The deep darkness vanished in an instant, and the path that had been secretly hidden was splendidly revealed.
Step─ Step─
I quietly made my way down the stairs.
The air was cold and damp.
The echoing footsteps came back as unfamiliar reverberations.
“Needlessly huge, no matter when I come.”
When the stairs finally ended, the space before me opened wide.
A gigantic cave.
The ceiling was so high it was buried in shadows too dark to reach from the floor, and sharply hewn rock walls surrounded it on all sides like a folding screen.
‘And that bastard is the Administrator of the first Trial.’
In the middle of the wall opposite the entrance, a single stone statue stood silently.
It was of an intimidating size, easily three times as tall.
It sat cross-legged, both hands resting on its knees.
But more threatening than that,
were the spears embedded all over the bastard's body.
Step─ Step─
I slowly approached it.
And when I stood at the exact center of the place, “Hm? A challenger?”
A voice came from the direction of the statue.
“Yeah. I've come to take the Trial.”
“Hmm…, very well.”
RUMBLE─
The stone statue's eyes slowly opened.
A voice that resonated like heavy breathing filled the entire cave.
“This is the Trial of Endurance. It is the place where your endurance is tested.”
[Trial of Endurance]
[Endure for 1 hour.]
“If you wish to give up, you may turn back at any time. But if you cannot endure, there is only death.”
As soon as those words ended, the torches on the walls flared all at once and a cold wind swept through the cave.
[The Trial of Endurance begins.]
The Trial of Endurance was about dodging or taking dozens of kinds of attacks and holding out.
But I had no intention of passing it the ordinary way.
[Time remaining : 59:59]
The moment the timer started moving,
“Weapon Swap.”
[Kaedes→Transix]
Shaaaa─
I put away Kaedes and switched my weapon to Transix.
Black-iron smoke slowly stretched out and took shape in my right hand.
“Haa!”
I drew up the mana throughout my body.
Extending out from my heart, it spun rapidly through my whole body and soon began to gather at the spearhead.
“Hm? What are you doing─”
Tak─
I put my left foot forward and drew my right foot far back.
Then I twisted my waist clockwise.
“Raaaaah!”
Rotating my ankle, rotating my waist, and transferring the force to my right shoulder, I hurled Transix at the statue with a shout.
WHOOOOOSH─
“What─”
The statue quickly raised its hand to block it, but.
“Think that'll work?”
KABOOM─!
It pierced straight through the statue's palm and struck the bastard's chest dead-on.
CRRRACK─
Cracks spread in all directions and stone chips flew up.
The entire cave shook, and a deafening roar pounded against my ears.
“You insolent wretch!! How dare a mere challenger!!!”
The statue's eyes glowed red.
The light pouring from its eye sockets dyed the cave walls red.
Pressure crushed down on my whole body. My breath caught.
[Warning : The Trial of Endurance has been altered.]
[Condition : Endure the Administrator's wrath.]
[You cannot leave this place until the Trial ends.]
RUMBLE─!
The statue slowly rose from its seat.
Its stone arms moved as if howling and seized Transix, still lodged in its chest.
CRASH─!
As the spear was forcibly wrenched out, red mana spread in all directions.
“Are you planning to stay in there forever?”
Twitch─
In that instant, pressure crashed in as though the air itself were collapsing.
“Ugh…!”
Gravity enough to buckle my knees in an instant.
A force squeezing bone and muscle seemed intent on wringing out every last drop of my blood.
CRACKLE─
Only by drawing out the mana throughout my body to its limit could I barely escape the pressure's influence.
‘This much pressure from its presence alone….’
From the cracked chest of the statue, KABOOOOM─!!
A hand burst out.
Then the broken gap widened more and more, and the bastard's true body revealed itself.
Tap─
The bastard broke free of the statue and landed on the ground.
His whole body was covered in sharply honed muscle, dyed red as though his veins were about to burst out.
Huge horns jutted from both sides of his head, and his eyes glowed red like burning lava.
“Pretty angry, huh?”
THUD! THUD!
The bastard slowly approached.
Killing intent in every single step.
My whole body was going numb.
“A lowly mortal like you dares to defy the Tower? You do not know your place!”
“Whatever I do, it's none of your business, is it? If you don't like it, why don't you become a player yourself?”
“You wretch!!!”
KRAKOOM─!
Just a single step.
In an instant, the bastard was right in front of my nose.
“Kaedes!”
“Die!!!”
SWOOSH─
The bastard's right hand came at me as if to smash everything in front of it.
I couldn't dodge.
There was no time to raise the summoned Kaedes to my face.
SWOOSH─
Just before his fist reached me, the blade of the hastily summoned Kaedes pierced through the air and dug into his abdomen.
STAB─!
“As if this is enough!!”
The bastard's fist faltered but didn't stop.
It drove straight into the left side of my face.
WHAM─!
“Ugh!”
An impact like being struck by lightning slammed into my left cheek.
My molars felt like they'd shatter.
My vision flashed white, but losing consciousness would mean instant death.
GRIT─!
I clenched my teeth and held on.
Quickly yanking out the sword lodged in his abdomen, I simultaneously kicked his abdomen as hard as I could with my left front foot.
CRASH!
A huge boom shook the cave, but the impact didn't transfer at all.
The bastard didn't even budge.
Because there wasn't enough distance.
“Fine, I will break your legs first─”
The moment the bastard reached for my left ankle,
“Hah!”
I loaded mana explosively into the sole of my foot and violently shoved off his abdomen in an instant.
KABOOM!
The reaction force sent my body flying backward.
Whirl─
I spun once in midair and landed steadily on the ground.
I'd managed to open up distance from the bastard safely.
Pfft─
For a moment, a laugh escaped me unintentionally.
An Administrator managed their floor while also possessing overwhelming martial might.
A being that could erase players with a single gesture.
Though it was constrained by the System.
From that exchange just now, I realized it for certain.
“You're weaker than I thought, huh?”
I could win.