Chapter 51
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: Ailment in Prosperity - 4
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After returning from meeting Mariel, the magic she had bestowed on the sword vanished as if nothing had happened.
It reverted to its original name, without any modifiers.
The very day I had met Mariel seemed to have vanished entirely.
My brief trip to the 11th floor had been solely to confirm whether the Mariel that Harman mentioned was the same as the enchanter Mariel.
And the moment I saw her green eyes, there was no longer any room for doubt.
In Mariel's story, the blacksmith's son was Harman's childhood self.
The weapon imbued with magic was the sword that Harman had gifted her.
The home she should have returned to...
"Senior? Why are you spacing out like that all of a sudden?"
I wasn't the only one who had met Mariel and returned.
Rien had met her too.
I'd given her advance notice about the magic stones to collect on the 8th floor and the enchanter to seek out on the 11th, so unless something unexpected happened, she would have followed my advice to the letter.
"Mariel recognized that sword, right?"
"Yes? Oh, right. Since it's an exact replica of the sword Master Craftsman Harman gave her, of course..."
It was a sword so identical that it even revived Harman's memories, which had been sealed away by the tower's restrictions.
If even the maker could recognize it, then the recipient had no choice but to as well.
"She asked me if I came from Luden. Does this village have a name like that?"
"Luden? Never heard of the place."
We just called it the 1st floor, or the tutorial village.
Did it actually have a name?
We couldn't keep standing around chatting, so we moved to somewhere we could sit.
Hearing about Rien's journey all the way to the 11th floor would take quite some time anyway.
Floor 2
Rien entered the 2nd floor later than most other adventurers.
She hadn't caught the guild's eye, and there was no group she traveled with from the 1st floor.
She had headed to the 2nd floor with an energetic front in front of her senior, but once she actually left the 1st floor behind, a sense of emptiness washed over her.
Getting good information from her senior was one thing, but clearing the floors right in front of her was entirely up to her now.
"No way... do I really have to clear everything by myself?"
She wondered if it might be better to join even a small guild as soon as possible.
"What is this place?"
Such worries did cross her mind, but they cooled instantly the moment she passed through the gate.
There weren't any machines in sight, but it felt like stepping into a massive factory.
"Wave end! Next wave in 10 minutes!"
"Rest squad, switch out!"
Far more people were lingering on the 2nd floor than she had expected.
According to the guide, the goal on the 2nd floor was to defeat the goblin captain.
She had wondered if it was such a tough condition that everyone was stalled, but the reality was all about experience efficiency.
Defeating the goblin captain allowed one to proceed to the 3rd floor.
When adventurers arrived on the 2nd floor, goblin packs would approach from the direction of the 3rd floor gate, taking 10 minutes to arrive.
Clear them all, including the captain, and the pack would respawn.
Each extermination granted a 10-minute breather.
And once those 10 minutes passed?
More experience came rolling in, so the next batch of waiting adventurers would handle the extermination.
Due to level differences, congestion, and other factors, hunting 2nd floor monsters was more efficient than the 3rd floor, so most adventurers who had already defeated the captain stuck around on the 2nd.
Some guild members who had set up base on the 2nd floor were managing rotations for those adventurers in an orderly fashion.
"Huh?"
"Huh!"
She ran into a familiar adventurer.
The other side reacted as if recognizing her too.
It was the woman whose leg had been injured after being attacked by another adventurer in the forest.
The one who had made that bizarre request for Rien to quickly end her life.
Word was, she had been hauled off by the guards after exacting brutal revenge on the adventurer who attacked her in the village.
That revenge involved repeatedly killing him the moment he respawned in front of the clinic—a truly insane act.
She had even heard that her senior had personally stepped in to resolve the incident, but there was no news after that.
"You're that kid from the forest back then, right?"
"Yes, that's me."
"Thanks. I got to die comfortably because of you."
It was a strangely dissonant sentiment to pack into a single sentence.
Even with the 1st floor's special effect dulling the pain, the terror of death didn't just vanish, yet this woman was remarkably positive.
"And thanks to you, I got to kill that bastard comfortably too. You should've seen his face trembling in fear."
Hm, maybe not so positive after all?
Still, just running into someone she knew brought a huge sense of relief.
They exchanged brief introductions and checked on each other's well-being.
Just like Rien was using her new name in the tower, the female adventurer was going by the alias Fria.
"You're doing okay now?"
"Eh, there's always a way to survive. Who'd have thought I'd run into a guild master there?"
"Guild master? Of which guild?"
"Don't freak out when you hear this."
Fria had met none other than the Crimson Flame Guild's guild master, Amelia.
It wasn't a formal scout, but she had been told she could join as a new member the moment she reached the 6th floor.
The guild master held the highest authority in the guild, so it was only natural for a new adventurer handpicked by her to breeze through the membership process without a hitch.
"I was worried about what would happen after causing all that trouble, but then the number one ranked guild comes knocking. You really can't predict a damn thing about people, huh?"
"Glad things worked out for you."
How?
─The word filled her head.
Was her violent streak not a deducting factor in the eyes of a group leader?
Maybe it was an essential trait for climbing the tower.
Or perhaps Fria's trait was just that overpowered or high-ranked.
Either way, it wasn't the time to worry about others.
No need to, really—Fria was already walking a far sturdier path than most.
"You helped me out too, so if a spot opens up later, I'll put in a good word. Not sure if a newbie like me has any pull, though."
"I'd appreciate that."
Was she offering to parachute her in?
Fria was still a beginner climber herself, so it was probably just a feel-good joke.
"Already 10 minutes? Our turn's coming up."
"We just... join in from the side?"
"Normally, newbies have to wait at the very back, but who gives a shit? Who's gonna notice one extra person?"
Still, it was a relief to have someone she could rely on for help.
Her senior wasn't climbing the tower, so while she could get advice, he couldn't fight alongside her.
"One, two, three─."
"Hey, you gonna count every single one? Just eyeball it and send 'em when it looks good."
"But earlier you said to do it properly..."
Thankfully, no one noticed her slipping in.
"Wave starting! Get ready!"
The goblins were stronger than expected.
They charged far more aggressively than slimes, perhaps.
But it wasn't difficult.
There were plenty of adventurers, and if anything got risky, the guild members stepped in to resolve it before anyone got hurt.
For any contingencies, they had personnel on hand who could heal injuries immediately.
No payment required, either.
A few coins mattered less to them than leaving a good impression on newbie adventurers.
There were those like Fria, already marked by a guild, and plenty like Rien who hadn't decided on affiliation yet.
Of course, they wouldn't accept every applicant, but from the guilds' perspective, a flood of applicants made it easier to cherry-pick promising newbies.
"Rien, you just started, so your level's still pretty low, right?"
"Do you need to head up? What's your level?"
"I've been here a while, so it's not the optimal level for the 2nd floor anymore... but a little exp loss is fine. Let's go together once you catch up."
Waiting for her level to rise, even at the cost of her own experience.
For a tower adventurer, she was incredibly considerate.
...Don't forget that.
Sure, the guy had started it, but this was the terrifying woman who had respawn-killed him endlessly in the name of revenge.
Infinitely warm to her allies, but endlessly cold to her enemies.
Rien vowed never to get on Fria's bad side.
"Oh, and fighting for too long can make my personality go weird. Don't take it personally?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"It's this damn trait..."
Rien understood Fria's words right around the time she graduated from goblin hunting on the 2nd floor.
The arcs of her sword swings grew increasingly savage, and with every goblin head she lopped off, curses and sharp barbs began spilling from Fria's lips.
"Ah, shit."
"What? That was the one I was gonna get."
Fria reached the brink of explosion right after the guy next to her snatched the goblin in front of her.
"You bastard. Come here."
"...Fria? What's wrong all of a sudden?"
"Rien, don't stop me. You dog─!"
"Cr-crazy. Did you just swing at me?"
Fria was strong.
Judging by her sword speed, she had solid strength, but it was more than that.
Not just superior muscle—it felt like she knew exactly where to stab to kill a goblin in one go.
And she seemed to know the vital spots on a person too.
"You can't fight there!"
"Hey, hey! Stop her!"
Fria was strong enough for Rien to understand why the Crimson Flame Guild's guild master had taken notice of her.
At the same time, she became terrifying enough that Rien couldn't fathom why the guild master had.
Thankfully, the guild members intervened before it was too late.
Floor 6
There were various mishaps along the way, but she managed to climb to the 5th floor without issue.
No one died, so was it really an issue?
Rumors about Fria had spread too, so no one dared mess with her casually anymore.
She had caused an incident starting from the 1st floor, yet slipped out without punishment because she caught Amelia's eye, or so the talk went.
Fria was building up an image as a backed-up troublemaker.
Upon arriving on the 6th floor, there was a new village.
Apparently, you could learn magic starting from here, so it was worth checking out.
Swordsmen were cool, but magic swordsmen were twice as cool.
"We're at the 6th floor now, so maybe it's time to officially join the Crimson Flame Guild?"
Fria's eyes were elsewhere.
Amelia had mentioned the official recruitment happening on the 6th floor, and she'd arrived right on schedule.
The guild master herself, Amelia, was probably staying on the 6th floor to handle new member recruitment, so all she had to do was find the branch and walk right in.
"Sorry. The Crimson Flame Guild's new member recruitment has been indefinitely postponed."
"What? You're not recruiting this time?"
"That's correct."
"No, wait. Guild master! Please call the guild master! She scouted me personally!"
"Th-that won't be possible. The problem that's blown up is on your end..."
Something wasn't going according to plan.
The Crimson Flame Guild members just kept apologizing profusely, refusing to divulge internal affairs or even explain.
"Amelia said she'd do it as soon as I reached the 6th floor... She definitely said that..."
"F-Fria. You okay?"
"I'm screwed..."
Rien couldn't help but think it was karma.
Fria seemed deeply aggrieved, but thankfully didn't voice it out loud.