The Sage's Robe (1)

Hah.

The admiration slipped out of me the moment I laid eyes on it.

My chronic condition. My single greatest weakness.

Mana leakage.

This was a skill that could patch that exact flaw.

And it's a Mythic-tier growth skill on top of that.

Two-Star now, but it could climb all the way to Nine-Star — meaning that even on the tower's highest floors someday, I could keep using it as a core, mainstay skill.

- You've drawn ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one of the very best skills among even Mythic-grade skills.

That Ellaon himself was burst out in admiration said everything.

- At this rate, this skill might one day become a Transcendent Skill.

A concept I'd never heard before.

"Transcendent Skill?"

- Indeed. A Transcendent Skill. Among skills that reach Nine-Star, there are those for which a path of transcendence opens once their wielder achieves complete enlightenment of the ultimate principle. Who knows — this one may be such a skill.

Something like that had existed all along?

This was a concept that hadn't yet become known to the outside world.

Had the Seven Ascenders known about it?

I had no way of knowing. But for some reason, I suspected that even they had no idea Transcendent Skills existed.

"Interesting. This tower, really."

Right — the Sky Tower really was like an onion. Peel back one layer, and there was always another.

At this rate, it might not end at the 10th floor the way everyone assumed. There might be floors above that, too.

- In any case, I'd say the odds of obtaining the Sage's Robe on the 2nd floor have just risen considerably.

Yeah. That was exactly how I saw it too.

"Forest of the Labyrinth? Just you wait."

And with steps brimming with confidence, I set off in the direction of the Forest of the Labyrinth.

The executive meeting room of Tiamut.

"We've located the Hahoetal. He's on the 2nd floor, they say."

"Tch. No wonder our guys have been busting their backs down on the 1st floor."

"There's also word circulating that the boy is Unknown. The timing is suspiciously convenient."

"I, too, believe that rumor carries considerable weight."

"Whatever the case, we must capture him first. Guldin's Necklace must be reclaimed at all costs."

"Agreed. In that case, let us spread the net of heaven."

"Hmm. But wouldn't revealing our full 2nd-floor strength risk exposure to the Seven Ascenders?"

"Was there ever an investment without risk? We should consider that much of a gamble acceptable."

"I agree."

"Same here."

"Then by majority vote, we shall spread the net of heaven."

Tiamut.

They had begun to move — all to catch Hajun.

Around the time Tiamut stirred into motion, another group was also making its way to the 2nd floor.

"Hey, James. You're seriously going down there yourself?"

"That's the plan."

"Hmph. You do realize how brutal the power restriction will be on us if we head to the 2nd floor, right?"

Ivan's brow furrowed deep.

Their levels were in the 80s — the highest tier in existence. The floor they were currently tackling was the 9th. Descending to the 2nd floor would place a crushing restraint on their power.

To put it in animal terms: tigers like them could, if careless, end up bitten by mice.

"Don't worry. No matter how much our power gets restricted, there's no real danger involved."

"Hmmmm."

When James put it that way, Ivan finally shut his mouth. If James said it, then it was so.

There was a reason the man was called the world's strongest.

"You worry far too much."

"Ugh."

With even Sophie chiming in beside them, Ivan's lips pursed into a sulky pout.

In truth, he'd sensed it all along. That unless they ran into one of their fellow Seven Ascenders as an enemy, descending to the 2nd floor posed little real risk.

And while he himself was a lone wolf, James and Sophie were not.

Ascension — the organization led by James, one in which Sophie also held a place — was one of the most formidable powers in the Sky Tower. Its members were surely stationed in considerable numbers on the 2nd floor as well.

Which made the odds of anything dangerous happening all the slimmer.

Still, something about it rubs me the wrong way….

But what could he do? James had said they were going, so they were going.

How on earth did I end up owing that man a debt like this….

Sighing, Ivan grumbled at his own hard-luck fate and trailed after James, shoulders slumped.

Then again, should I count it a blessing that we finally have a lead — a real chance that Unknown and the Hahoetal are the same person?

Hunting a man down from that single clue would still be brutally difficult, but without even that, it would have been a needle in a haystack.

At this point, I'll admit I'm curious.

Unknown.

Just how extraordinary was this person, that he'd even driven James to come out personally?

The Forest of the Labyrinth — the colossal, signature dungeon of the 2nd floor. Because of that, the area was riddled with countless smaller dungeons of every description: some oriented purely toward leveling, some for harvesting the forest's resources, some for obtaining treasure, and so on.

The dungeon Hajun was headed for was the most special of all the treasure dungeons — the Ruined Forest's Maze.

When people said "Forest of the Labyrinth," this was the first dungeon that came to mind!

What made it so special was the time-attack scoring system and the fact that its Clear Rankings were made public.

What did you get for ranking high? The very unit of the reward granted for conquering the maze changed.

Right — and ranking registration is only possible on the first clear.

Unlike all the other trials, the very top of this dungeon's Clear Rankings wasn't held by any of the Seven Ascenders — it was occupied by wielders of the Pathfinder trait.

Because this wasn't a trial you could simply bulldoze through with raw force. You had to navigate your way through a maze.

"Let's see…."

I gazed up at the Clear Ranking floating above the portal of the Ruined Forest's Maze dungeon.

The name carved at the very top.

Kang Shin-hyuk.

The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠gap between him and 2nd place was overwhelming. He was the only climber ever to break the 9,000-point mark.

Kang Shin-hyuk was an Ascender I knew well, too.

Word is he possesses the trait called 'Pioneer.'

An 8-Star (★★★★★★★★) Pathfinder-class trait. He was, in fact, the greatest Pathfinder in the world today.

The only person ever to clear the Ruined Forest's Maze in under six hours.

The time limit for the Ruined Forest's Maze was 12 hours. Kang Shin-hyuk was the man who alone had posted a record of 05'57"21, stacking the golden milestone in that field.

If I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wanted the Sage's Robe here, I had no choice but to surpass that record. Only then could I claim this dungeon's hidden piece….

Right as that thought crossed my mind, a voice reached my ears.

"Oh! The Hahoetal!"

"What? The Hahoetal?"

Someone had recognized me.

"Whoa! The Hahoetal showed up!"

"Why'd he come here? Don't tell me he's here to clear the Ruined Forest's Maze."

"Isn't he still Level 11? And he came to run the Ruined Maze?"

Huh.

I realized I'd become even more famous than I'd thought.

This wouldn't do. The moment I actually got my hands on the Sage's Robe, I'd have to apply that alchemy Ellaon had mentioned to the Hahoetal.

Well then.

Let's give it a shot.

Paat!

My vision flipped — and I was inside the Ruined Forest's Maze.

The Ascenders' Community.

A new post appeared there.

Word that Hajun had entered the Ruined Forest's Maze spread fast, and everyone's attention converged on a single point.

Could the Hahoetal really overturn the established common sense — the long-standing rule that reaching a top tower rank was impossible without the Pathfinder trait?

And on top of that — the burning question of whether he truly was the same person as Unknown.

While Hajun took on the Ruined Forest's Maze, outside the tower, expectation and curiosity alike began to swell.

Fwaaash!

The bright light faded, and a maze unfolded before my eyes — walls blanketed in massive tree roots and creeping vines stretching on and on.

The messages bloomed before my eyes one after another. Brushing them aside, I looked ahead.

From the very start, three paths branched out before me.

I simply strode straight down the middle.

"Grwooooar."

"Gruuuhhh."

Before long I ran into tree-shaped monsters. Walking trees that towered well over two meters tall.

[Lv 18]

[Tregros]

Their true identity was a tree-type monster called the Tregros. Slow-moving, sure — but get inside their radius and they became a serious nuisance. Exactly like right now.

Shreaaak—!!

A storm of branches and roots came hurtling my way. Branches erupted from thin air, lunging to ensnare me, while thick roots from the ground surged like anacondas, charging straight for me.

If I'd stood there frozen, the Bracelet of Forest Protection — limited to three uses a day — would have triggered on its own.

No way I'm wasting one of those charges.

I immediately cast Shadow Binding at the branches and roots flying straight at me.

Chaaaaash!

Countless shadow hands erupted from the earth and seized them all.

- Impressive!

The reason Ellaon broke out in praise: catching every single moving branch and root with shadow hands wasn't nearly as easy as it sounded.

This was only possible because my innate Mana Control was exceptionally refined. And thanks to that, the turn was immediately mine.

"Fireball."

BOOOOOM!!

Emerald flame whirled through the air, and the Tregroses went up in flames, all of them at once.

Crackle, crackle-crackle!

They burned to ash without leaving even cinders behind. Fireball was flat-out their elemental bane, which made them all the easier to deal with.

I pushed on for several minutes like that, running into Tregroses a few more times, but just as before, I swatted them down and advanced without trouble.

Fwoosh, glug-glug.

Downing mana potions along the way, I made easy progress — until I hit a dead-end wall.

"Dud, huh."

Apparently I shouldn't have gone down the middle from the start. Normally, at this point you'd retrace your steps and take a different path.

Yeah. That's the textbook way.

But.

That way, I'd never come close to a tower rank — and the Sage's Robe would remain nothing but a dream.

So what to do?

The answer's simple.

A grin spread across my face as I stared down the wall. Time to prepare, exactly as I'd discussed with Ellaon.

First — Sage's Sight.

Ziiiing!

Red dots began to appear across the wall of massive tree roots. Confirming them, I smiled even deeper.

Sage's Aura.

FWOOOOM!!

A golden aura rose softly from every inch of my body.

Preparation complete.

"If there's no road, you just make one."

- Now you're talking.

Bolstered by Ellaon's cheer, I hurled a Fireball straight at a red dot on the wall — and then:

KWAAAAAANG!!

A violent explosion — and the messages burst across my vision.