Chapter 43
Chapter 43
Translator: Penny
Chapter 43
Ophelia knew she was dreaming.
For a mage of Sixth-Tier or higher, recognizing a dream was hardly difficult.
She also knew exactly when this dream was taking place.
Elena de Brinier, the Sword of Light, rarely showed such genuine fury.
Elena opened her mouth, blood and flesh clinging to her face and body.
Ophelia had rarely seen Elena's eyes sink into such dark depths.
She was certain this dream captured the moment immediately after completing the 66th Floor on Hard Difficulty.
"Was I wrong, Ophelia?"
Archmage.
Ophelia shook her head.
Even back then, and in any circumstance, her answer would have remained the same.
"You did your best, Elena."
And Ophelia could predict Elena's response would be the same as well.
"...It's not about whether you did your best, Ophelia."
Ophelia thought, as she always had, that few people were as cold and terrifying as Elena in this era.
"We lost. This means we lost to the Tower."
Ophelia felt a surge of intense anger at Elena's words.
"From now on, we need to make sure this never happens again. We'll turn the Gallery into a rigid manual. We'll write everything down like it's a setting the administrator configured, so players beyond the 30th Floor won't have any questions."
Ophelia saw Elena's meticulous planning for the first time that day.
"We need to create an atmosphere where players clear relatively easy floors solo, instead of in parties."
Elena was racking her brain, determined to be thorough.
"And we need to train the survivors from the 66th Floor. So they won't be swept up in pointless deaths again."
As soon as Elena finished speaking, Ophelia felt her consciousness drifting away.
She knew better than anyone that this sensation meant she was waking from a dream within reality.
When Ophelia opened her eyes, she was greeted by something pure white.
"...Ugh."
Carefully arranging the white papers stacked above her head, Ophelia placed them on the desk.
She had been researching magic to give to Han Yoo-seong, the sole Climber of the Transcendent Gallery.
It seemed she had dozed off.
"Hmm, I haven't slept properly in too long. Has it been five days straight?"
Ophelia wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth.
Sometimes, when she focused too intently, she stayed awake for far longer than she realized.
"I even dreamed about climbing the Tower again after all this time."
During her Tower ascent, she had habitually dreamed of climbing the Tower.
After completing the Tower at the 100th Floor and returning to her original world, Ophelia hadn't dreamed of her past adventures for a long time. It was only now, after a long hiatus, that she was confronting those memories again.
She didn't think the reason for this sudden dream was far-fetched.
Yesterday, she had seen a post declaring a Hard Difficulty climb of the 66th Floor.
Ophelia believed this was the cause of her long-dormant dream.
There will be climbers who succeed, she thought.
After all, Hard Difficulty was designed to summon individuals with a high probability of clearing it.
But... they'll die in greater numbers than our cohort.
The writings of Sword of Light, which Han Yoo-seong had posted just before joining the Transcendent Gallery, had been correct.
The Hard Difficulty climbers of this generation lacked individual combat prowess.
Ophelia sighed softly, settled back into her seat, and resumed her research into methods of casting magic solely through Aura Circuits.
Gurgle-
I poured a Lesser Healing Potion onto the fallen man's abdomen.
"Coming to your senses?"
The man glared at me.
"Ugh... what do you plan to do with me?"
"Hmm, I haven't decided yet."
Now that I've stabilized his breathing, I need to extract information.
"Do you know how many enemies there are?"
The man shook his head.
"I'm just a scout."
He probably knows more than he's letting on.
"Give me a rough estimate. Tell me, and I'll spare your life."
"I told you! I don't know!"
I glanced at Rengel, the mercenary who had approached my side.
"Hey, if I pull this out, is he gonna die?"
I pointed with my right index finger at the short spear lodged in the man's left abdomen.
Rengel narrowed his eyes, studying the wound carefully before slowly shaking his head.
"He'll bleed a lot, but if we pour a Lesser Potion on it and bandage him up, he should be fine. We'll need to get him to the Clinic by tonight, though."
According to Carmin Everhart, Rengel was a mercenary who had survived in the mercenary world for quite some time. He must have some knowledge of injuries like this.
"Got it. So, if I yank this out and treat him properly, he'll live, suffer a bit, and I'll get my short spear back in good condition?"
At my words, Rengel's lips twitched as if he were staring at a madman.
"...Yes, he probably won't die."
Without hesitation, I moved my hand and drew the short spear.
"Aaaaaaaah!"
A thunderous scream erupted from the man lying prone on the ground.
I had been wondering if I should start pulling out his fingernails to get him to talk when the quickest way to inflict pain suddenly occurred to me.
I poured a Lesser Potion over his wounds and bandaged them.
The man continued to groan, glaring at me.
From beside me, Rengel's voice spoke again.
He had apparently retrieved a piece of paper from a small pouch the man wore.
"Take a look."
Rengel offered the paper to me with both hands.
It was a map.
The map depicted the forest we were currently in, the city beyond it, and the roads leading from the city to the Academy.
"How can I not doubt your words when a map like this appears?"
I turned to look at Rengel again.
"Have you ever tried pulling out fingernails?"
"Yes."
"Yes?"
Huh? You've actually pulled out fingernails before?
Rengel's expression remained impassive as he alternated his gaze between me and the man collapsed on the floor.
"But fingernails and toenails don't regenerate with Healing Potions, as you know."
I didn't know that.
"It would be more efficient to torture the flesh between the fingernails and toenails. Once you pull out all the nails, that's the end. But the flesh between the nails can be easily healed with even a Lesser Healing Potion."
Swish, swish—
Rengel suddenly began putting on his gloves.
"Shall we begin the operation now?"
Uh... this bastard.
Is he a true expert? Or just a good actor?
I could see the man's body trembling on the ground.
Without hesitation, Rengel lifted the man's right arm and pulled a thick needle from the pouch he was carrying.
"Aaaaargh!"
He seemed to stab the man without a moment's hesitation.
Ah, I don't want to watch this.
Rengel, you're a scary guy.
"I-I'll tell you everything I know," the man blurted out, succumbing to the violence more easily than I'd expected.
"Here... after you leave the forest completely, at the entrance to the city of Intenes, Raphael Count Family knights and mercenaries are stationed."
The man added, his lips trembling, "They already know you killed a Fifth-Tier Swordsman. I confirmed it from afar and reported it. Yet they still intend to kill you. And of course, the Everhart Family's young lady too. At least the Raphael Count Family has no intention of letting any of you leave alive."
To kill one Fifth-Tier Swordsman, then slaughter the rest, and still send more troops?
I glanced at the man sprawled on the ground.
"Rengel, keep a close eye on this one. Oh, what's your name?"
The man stared at me as if I were insane.
"...Bern."
"Right, Bern. Just lie still."
I shifted my gaze to Rengel.
"Yes, sir."
Rengel nodded, meeting my eyes.
Of course, I couldn't fully trust Rengel, so I didn't completely look away.
"Carmin, let's talk."
"Yes...!"
With a nod, I gestured for her to follow me away from Rengel and Bern.
At this point, suspicion was inevitable.
Carmin Everhart was hiding something from me.
The level of force deployed was far too excessive for mere retaliation over a divorce request.
"There's more to it, isn't there? The real reason the Raphael Count Family is hunting you down. Not just because of the divorce."
Carmin lowered her head.
I pressed on. "You killed a Fifth-Tier Swordsman. Someone like that would be a key figure in the Count Family's military might. Yet they're still relentlessly trying to capture and kill us. That's strange. What do you know about the Raphael Count Family... or Witor Raphael?"
If only killing were enough to solve everything.
It seemed we needed to use our brains to survive in this damned Tower.
Just as I was about to press her again, Carmin spoke.
"I discovered that whenever Witor was sure I was asleep at night, or when he went on long trips, he would always head to the cellar beneath his private villa. I couldn't help but wonder what was down there, what he was doing in that place."
Cellar.
The stench was already wafting up.
"What was in the cellar?"
"They were conducting chimera research using living humans. I think... it might be connected to the Black Mage. I'm not sure if it was Witor's personal deviation or something the Raphael Count Family was involved in."
I fired off a few more questions.
"Did Witor know you found out?"
"I don't know... But since the cellar was used for chimera research, I imagine there were measures in place to detect intruders."
That made sense.
"Why didn't you tell me this from the beginning?"
"...I didn't think you'd believe me. And I couldn't fully trust you either, Yuseong-nim. I'm sorry."
I watched Carmin bow her head deeply, my mind racing.
The stakes had definitely gotten higher.
This information could even be used as a weapon.
If only I could send it to Ventura Academy, where the Raphael Count Family's influence doesn't reach.
I retrieved the Binding Talisman and reactivated the Veil of Secrets.
Then I pulled out my terminal and accessed the Transcendent Gallery.
Title: Is there a place in Intenes where I can send a letter to Ventura Academy?
Author: ㅇㅇ*
- Witor, the eldest son of the Raphael family, reportedly used humans for chimera research. If I reveal this, the Academy might send an active welcoming party.
Oh, and are all mercenaries here skilled in torture? When I asked the mercenary with me if he'd ever pulled out someone's fingernails or toenails, he said it was inefficient and that you have to dig under the nails instead, then proceeded to demonstrate his expertise in torture. ㄷㄷ
N: That level of torture is basic knowledge. You should learn it too.
N: The problem is knowing when to use it.
N: Our Climber is still such an innocent newbie ㅠㅠㅠㅠ So cute ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Sword of Light: Just focus your energy into a needle-like point and stab their thigh a few times.
Scum Sword Saint: Um... it works, I guess. But if you're not careful, you might kill them.
Ice Queen: Freeze them solid! They'll obey instantly! Just freeze their head for a moment and then release it!
Elena de Brinier: Wow, that really forces them to obey!
N: LOLOLOLOL Confessions will just spill out automatically! LOLOLOL
N: That's terrifying as hell ㄷㄷ
[ Archmage Intenes ]: If the timeline matches our era, go to Belpetor General Store in the corner of town and say, "I've come to seek a connection with the strange night." It might work, since Belpetor General Store is an Information Guild branch.
[ Archmage Intenes ]: Of course, Belpetor General Store might not even exist anymore. It could have severed ties with the Information Guild, or the passphrase might have changed.
[ Ban ]: I guess we should check it out first. Or should we ask Carmin? Do you think she'd know?
[ Ban ]: Probably not.
[ Ban ]: This kind of information wouldn't be accessible to someone of a count's daughter's status.
[ Ban ]: It's likely still there, though. Information Guilds don't disappear easily. It's probably been about a generation since we were climbing the tower.
[ Ban ]: We should still try.
[ Ban ]: As expected, the Archmage seniors have the most useful information.
[ Ban ]: We have a destination now. Temporary, but it's a start.