Chapter 29
Chapter 29
The rescue party seemed to be coming later than I expected.
Night passed. They didn't come even by dawn.
Only after killing four Demonic Beasts, equivalent to the one-eyed beast I first encountered during the passage of time, did figures that appeared to be a rescue party become visible in the distance with the sunrise.
Large Catfolk approached me.
Their fierce gazes told me exactly what kind of misunderstanding they were having.
Me, standing alone with ten Catfolk children.
This is a picture that could easily be misunderstood.
The voices of the Catfolk warriors approaching from afar could be heard.
"That's him, the one who kidnapped our children!"
"We must kill him!"
[NPC - Catfolk Beastman Rank 2 Warrior Kentra]
[NPC - Catfolk Beastman Rank 3 Warrior Jete]
[NPC - Catfolk Beastman Rank 4 Warrior Vitus]
…They've already misunderstood me completely.
Aura began to surge from the swords and spears held by the three large Catfolk.
Thirteen Catfolk warriors, male and female, surrounded me and began to close in.
"Are you a member of the slave caravan?"
With them misunderstanding me like that, there was no way I could lower my guard.
Holding the Great Enemy Sword Karnavalt, I racked my brain.
How could I escape this situation without conflict?
Just as I was about to speak, the ten Catfolk boys and girls rushed in front of me and spoke in unison.
"Yuseong-nim saved us from the slave caravan humans!"
The first to step forward was Mike, whom I had just met.
"Those corpses over there. Those are the slave merchants…."
One by one, the children stepped forward and testified to my innocence.
Those testimonies were, naturally, more effective than any explanation I could have given myself.
The Catfolk warriors put aside all suspicion upon hearing the Catfolk children's testimony and believed in my innocence.
"I am sorry."
Vitus, the Rank 4 Catfolk warrior, bowed his head to me.
"I almost committed a grave offense against our benefactor."
Then, the other Catfolk warriors who had positioned themselves around us also bowed their heads.
Mike, who had retreated slightly, trotted over to Vitus and whispered something.
Mike took an item out of the bag Vitus was holding and handed it to me.
It was a crimson bracelet. Intricate patterns were engraved on it.
What stood out the most was, of course, the yellow fur naturally fluttering from the end of the bracelet.
"It's a token of friendship from the Catfolk, the Uyet Tribe."
I accepted the bracelet Mike offered.
[Bond of Trust]
Category - Accessory
Effect: Spirit gradually increases in the 'Forest' background.
Description: A bracelet that proves one is a friend of the Catfolk tribe 'Uyet'.
Rank: C
Although its rank and effect were inferior to the Anti-Evil Bracelet I was currently wearing, this was not a bracelet where such effects seemed important.
"Not only the Uyet Tribe, but other Catfolk tribes will recognize you by this bracelet. They will be less wary of the wearer of the Bond than they would be of other humans."
Gifts are always welcome.
"Thank you."
Notification windows began to cover my vision one after another.
『Quest - 'Catfolk Rescue' successfully completed.』
[You have cleared the 3rd Floor Stage.]
['Player - Han Yoo-seong' will have their 3rd Floor Stage score tallied.]
[You have succeeded by choosing the more difficult of the two available options. Bonus points applied.]
[Bonus points applied for successfully rescuing more people than the minimum requirement of 8.]
[Bonus points applied for meeting the 'Eliminate Powerful Foe' condition.]
[Eliminate Powerful Foe: Fulfilled when a being with a rank difference of 1 or higher is eliminated during stage progression]
[Eliminate Powerful Foe - 'Slave Caravan Rank 4 Combatant Rainer']
Before my score was reflected, the 3rd floor scores of those currently climbing came into view.
1st Place - Union Leader: 674 points
2nd Place - Sinclair: 412 points
3rd Place - Black Hand: 383 points
4th Place - Chasing: 378 points
5th Place - Argul: 374 points
⋮
⋮
[Score tally complete.]
[Han Yoo-seong: 1,682 points]
I've surpassed four digits again.
[You will be automatically moved to the '4th Floor Waiting Room' in 3 minutes.]
The 3 minutes passed quickly.
By the time it was time to leave, I patted the heads of the Catfolk children who were happily clinging to me.
The children gradually dispersed.
Mike trotted up to me.
I handed the remaining sandwich, still in its container, to Mike.
"Eat it alone later. It won't spoil if you eat it today."
Mike accepted the sandwich with both hands and grinned.
"Thank you."
Mike looked up at me with his green eyes.
"Now, where are you planning to go?"
Well.
I don't know what will appear on the 4th Floor Stage either.
I patted Mike's head.
His yellow cat tail swished.
"See you next time."
I uttered the same words I had said when bidding farewell to Riselinn and Yunes on the 2nd Floor Stage.
"Yuseong…?"
I saw Mike's eyes widen.
Immediately after, I felt a sensation as if my body was floating for a moment.
My vision was bathed in light.
When I returned to normal, the scenery had changed.
From the vast and expansive Forest of Bewitching Beasts, the scenery had changed back to the appearance of a high school gymnasium.
Hmm.
Is the size of the waiting room expanding?
Notification windows began to appear before my eyes again.
[Welcome to the 4th Floor.]
[800 coins awarded as a reward for clearing the 3rd Floor.]
[3rd Floor ranking score registered.]
< Climber Gallery >.
Title: Wow, it's first place again, but it's private.
Author: ㅇㅇ
-
And again, four digits alone, a monster is climbing, for real. What do you even do to get this score??
Attachment: 6523183.jpg
(Photo of the 3rd Floor ranking screen taken with a climber's terminal)
《 3rd Floor - Score Ranking 》
1st Place - Private: 1,682 points NEW!
2nd Place - Union Leader: 674 points
3rd Place - Sinclair: 412 points
4th Place - Black Hand: 383 points
5th Place - Chasing: 378 points
6th Place - Argul: 374 points
⋮
-
It's just luck.
-
Are you an idiot? How can that be luck? Two consecutive times means it's not luck. A real one is climbing.
-
I'm starting to get really excited. I wonder what their first post on the Climber Gallery will be when they get their climber's terminal at floor 30.
-
Sharp Spear) You guys, who are just normal Normal-tier players, are making such a fuss. Don't waste time on floor 3 and just train.
-
Hahahaha. Didn't your great Hard Difficulty 1st place just get beaten by a new player? They must be paying close attention. Hahaha
-
LetMeGoHome) Well, the Union Leader isn't scared or anything, but they'd be paying attention. A new player is over 1000 points higher than them. They must be someone special.
-
Hurry up and climb ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ At this rate, we'll see them soon. Considering the exchange period, it seems they cleared floor 3 in less than 3 days??
-
That's what a supernova is.
-
These guys have nothing to project themselves onto, so they're talking about a floor 3 newbie…
-
No, it's about a floor 3 newbie who took first place twice in a row with a four-digit score. Other than the poorly set nickname, I like them. Please climb quickly.
-
Life Analyst) If they do that on floor 4 too, I'll acknowledge it.
-
At this rate, they will. Can't they?
-
Ahhhh!!! It feels so refreshing to see all the show-offs pushed down one rank! Private, hello.
"I didn't expect to clear the 3rd floor faster than the 2nd."
The black-haired woman, looking at the gallery screen on her terminal, muttered and gazed at a talisman hanging in the room.
"It's obvious I can't trade multiple of these, so I poured all my essence into this one talisman, yet I still haven't been able to give it to them, tsk tsk."
The woman, Soyohwa, was waiting for Han Yoo-seong's interdimensional trade cooldown to end. He was the only climber in the Transcendent Gallery.
A life that was both extremely boring and extremely tiring.
Han Yoo-seong was the only thing that made her feel the emotion of enjoyment.
Flicker-!
Soyohwa tied her long hair tightly as she saw the talismans hanging on the string suddenly flutter in unison.
She then rose from her chair and walked towards the window of the Grand Void Palace.
The Central Plains Martial Arts World.
Monsters that began to appear forty years ago.
Muyeon and Heukmok, the most notorious great monsters in martial arts history, after tearing through the atmosphere and descending.
Immediately upon landing on the ground, they wiped out 590,000 martial artists.
The martial arts world was pushed to the brink of collapse by the appearance of monsters against whom the power of martial arts was not easily effective.
And the ones who resolved that situation were those who had returned after concluding the 'Tower', including herself.
Muyeon perished together with Soyohwa's master.
Heukmok was killed by Soyohwa, risking her life.
Since then, no great monsters have descended, but mid-to-high-level monsters are still targeting the Central Plains.
Like the monster before Soyohwa's eyes now.
A white snake monster with a thousand heads.
Soyohwa lightly tossed a talisman into the air.
Soyohwa said in a low voice.
"Die."
Screeeech!
The talisman tore apart in the air in all directions.
And.
Kieeeeeeek!
The snake monster's body was also torn apart in all directions.
Blood and flesh rained down like a downpour.
Soyohwa stood on the window ledge and took out her terminal.
This time, she entered the <Transcendent Gallery>, not the <Climber Gallery> where she could only lurk.
Title: 4th Floor waiting room
Author: ㅇㅇ*
-
I plan to go to the 4th Floor Stage after training my Sword Qi. After all, real combat is the most helpful.
I almost died to a Rank 4 warrior, but thanks to that, I think my senses have awakened a bit.
-
??? Why did you meet a Rank 4 on floor 3?
-
Hahahaha. Wow, shit, that's why the score is like that.
-
Absolute Monarch) You must have achieved Eliminate Powerful Foe.
-
Yes, that's right.
-
Sword of Light) What was the technique that almost killed you?
-
When I struck the ground with my sword, some kind of wave covered me. I had an instinct that if it touched me, I would die. It only grazed me, but my right arm twisted.
-
Sword of Light) That's Sword Explosion. If you had been hit more, you would have died.
-
Thanks to your footwork, I was able to penetrate through the gaps in the wave.
-
Sword of Light) Judging and executing that at that moment was entirely your ability.
-
Shit, a talent cheater ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-
Pioneer) It's surprising to meet someone using Sword Explosion on floor 3.
Tok- Tock.
Soyohwa left a comment.
-
Shrine Maiden) Hawaawa, you worked hard. Climber-nim.