Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Translator: Penny
Chapter 47
I cleared the 6th Floor in just two days.
The theme was a simple dungeon.
The opponents were orcs that relied on overwhelming numbers, making them relatively easy to handle.
Even so, fighting the boss monster wasn't easy.
The Orc King was quite a challenge.
As befitting a king of its species, it was slightly stronger than the Fifth-Tier Kailas I had faced on the 5th Floor.
Nevertheless, I succeeded in defeating it.
My body was slightly battered, but leveling up after the kill restored me to full health.
Without pausing, I chose to continue ascending.
After drawing as much attention from the Constellations on the 6th Floor as I had on the 5th,
I stormed into the 7th Floor Stage and kept walking until I cleared it and the Constellation Block ended.
The 7th Floor.
It took me four days to break through the 7th Floor. The theme was defense.
The task was to stop Murgan, a crow-headed monster. Fortunately, thanks to the Hard Difficulty veterans who knew Murgan's weakness, we managed to defeat it relatively easily. It was a relief that there were plenty of javelins scattered across the stage.
I hesitated about tackling the 8th Floor. There were only four days left until the Exchange Meeting. Continuing training until then wouldn't be a problem, but I decided to push through to the 8th Floor. I was just shy of level 36, with 94% experience.
Now, having cleared the 8th Floor and reached the 9th Floor Waiting Room, my current level is 37.
And then...
Beeep... Beeep...
March 25th
11:46:21
Only 14 minutes remained until the Exchange Meeting.
The 8th Floor was tasked with aiding citizens in evacuating from the earthquake, a natural disaster.
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Thus, I had to keep moving for four days straight.
Still, on the final day, with the earthquake completely stopped, I was able to rest safely, leaving my vitality fully replenished.
Since I still hadn't reached the 11th Floor, according to the Tower's rules, the Exchange Meeting would once again bring together players from the 1st to 10th Floors.
I opened my inventory.
I equipped the Mask of the Crimson Night, which I had received as a reward from the 4th Floor Stage.
Mask of the Crimson Night
Category: Mask
Effects:
1. Opponents facing the wearer of the mask cannot see the wearer's 'eyes'. Therefore, the wearer is immune to a large number of skills that rely on eye contact.
2. Allows clear vision in darkness.
Rating: B+
The Mask of the Crimson Night, which I had never used before.
I had been planning to use it during the Exchange Meeting.
Swish...
I put on the mask.
On my left hip, I sheathed the Mundum Extinguite.
On my right, I concealed the Crimson Dagger so it wouldn't be visible.
After finishing my preparations, I meditated briefly.
Soon, light flooded my vision.
The Tower Exchange Meeting begins.
Tower Exchange Meeting Server #1401
Tower Exchange Meeting Theme: Missions
Number of Participants: 10
You have entered the server.
My vision fully returned to normal.
Several more notifications popped up.
Language auto-translation system activated.
Communicate with the recruited participants and clear the dungeon.
Ten participants.
The number itself was higher than the previous Exchange Meeting, but unlike last time, no one was immediately visible before me.
Instead of standing on the ground, I found myself on the wall of a castle.
I gazed briefly at the clouds spreading across the sky.
The Exchange Meeting was said to be a stage invisible to the Constellations.
Indeed, if they could see it, they would have been receiving notifications from the very first Exchange Meeting.
I faintly activated my Qi Perception. Six human presences emanated from below.
Even with Qi Perception, my clairvoyance couldn't pinpoint their exact locations. However, I was certain of their numbers. When I first activated my perception on the 5th Floor, I'd been uncertain about even that, but now I was confident in the count.
If someone of a higher Tier deliberately concealed their presence, I'd be in for a rough time.
"Just toss down anything useful. If you have any rare items, those too."
A menacing voice.
The castle wall wasn't particularly high.
That was my current position.
"U-Understood..."
A defeated voice reached my ears.
"Why would we kill you? We're supposed to cooperate since this is a mission-type scenario. It's literally all about listing out usable weapons and items, then making sure they're used properly by the people who can actually wield them."
What utterly absurd nonsense they were spouting.
Four of them were intimidating two others.
Two of the four had the number <10> floating above their heads, and the other two had <9>.
After clearing the 8th Floor Stage, the number <9> had also floated above my head in the 9th Floor Waiting Room.
The two being pressured had <7> and <8> written above their heads.
Including me, there were a total of seven people nearby.
The remaining three seemed to be a bit further away.
Even when I extended my Qi Perception, I couldn't sense their presence.
Or perhaps it was directly related to the theme of this Exchange Meeting: "Mission."
Clunk.
Thud.
I heard the sound of two figures, surrounded by four others, placing down an item.
Those four were likely pre-formed party members, just like Baek Jinyeong and Sun Haoran, whom I had killed in the first Exchange Meeting.
The wall-like structure I was standing on had perfectly intact stairs leading down.
Thud, thud.
I began descending the stairs.
Finally, the figures at the base of the wall started looking up at me.
The four who were pinning down the two wore hair dyed in various colors.
The gender ratio was exactly half and half.
"...What's that mask?"
A mask.
Perfect.
This time, there was no need for an alias. I should just tell them to call it "Mask."
Thud.
As I stepped off the stairs and planted both feet on the ground, the four figures who had been surrounding 7 and 8 approached me. The man leading the group wore a <10> floating above his head. He had bright brown hair and piercing eyes.
"Hand over all your usable weapons and rare items from your inventory," he demanded, his tone curt. He swept his gaze over me from head to toe, a smirk curling his lips. "Just give me what's at your waist. You've got quite a haul. Start with that red mask."
I understood why he was acting so imperiously. He would never even consider the possibility that I was the Pandemonium Climber.
The number floating above my head was 9, but they probably assumed that two 10th Floor Residents and two 9th Floor Residents, regardless of the Tower's difficulty level, could easily take me down.
The man continued speaking.
"There's no need to freeze in fear. I have no intention of killing you. The mission theme is about combining strength, and I know that well. Who knows what would happen if I lowered your number without knowing the details of the mission? Hm? Right?"
He had no intention of killing me.
"Let's check everyone's items. I just want to properly become the leader of this Exchange Meeting. You understand what that means, right?"
"Name."
"Hm?"
"What's your name?"
The man answered my question readily.
"Matthew Bennett."
"From the USA?"
"Yeah, I'm American."
I put the sword and the Mundum Extinguite into my inventory.
I had already strapped the sword to my waist earlier, not because I was worried about other climbers, but because I wanted to be prepared for monsters.
Swish.
I checked to make sure my battle gloves, which resembled military gloves, were properly fitted.
Before entering the 8th Floor Stage, I had a conversation with some senior members of the Transcendent Gallery about the second Exchange Meeting currently in progress.
Title: My level is probably pretty high, right? Compared to the Floor Waiting Room, that is?
Author: ᄋᄋ*
- I'll probably enter the Exchange Meeting at level 36 or 37.
Of course, it's not high.
Remember Baek Jinyeong, the guy you killed? He was level 15 on the 8th Floor of Hard Difficulty. He was exactly the average for that difficulty level. Even if we're talking about someone from the 10th Floor who broke through the 9th Floor... their level probably wouldn't exceed 20, even under unusually high circumstances.
The people you'll meet now aren't from Murim or the Otherworld, at least not yet.
You probably won't encounter such beings until Climbers reach the 30th Floor or higher.
Archmage: Among the 21st-century Terrans you'll meet at the Exchange Meeting, none can pose a significant variable for you.
Sword of Light: Control your strength wisely.
Heavenly Demon: If you accidentally provoke the wrong entity, your head might explode.
"You possess a significant gap in power right now," the Scum Sword Saint said.
He didn't intend to kill me.
That much was clear.
The two beside him had robbed us of our items but hadn't killed us either.
To put it kindly, he was the leader.
These four were simply bullies who wanted to act like kings.
In the center of the ground where we stood, a blue pillar had taken root.
This meant this area served as a "Floor Waiting Room," a staging ground before proceeding further.
Beyond this point, the waiting room would end.
I made up my mind.
"Attention."
Matthew frowned and tilted his head at my command.
"What?"
"I won't kill you either. But I'll have to teach you a lesson instead."
"What the hell are you doing, you madman? Do you think this is the time to act like this in a Recovery Zone?"
Swish!
I evaded the wild swing of Matthew's axe and punched him in the right shoulder.
Crack!
The sound of bone shattering echoed, and Matthew's mouth gaped wide.
"W-wait."
Seeing Matthew stagger as if he had lost his balance, I kicked his abdomen, sending him crashing to the ground.
Thud!
I stomped my right foot on his chest.
Crunch!
The distinct sound of ribs breaking rang out.
"Aaargh!"
Next, I aimed for his left clavicle and brought my heel down.
Crack!
The sickening sound of bone splintering reverberated.
How arrogant.
Crunch!
I even gave his face a gentle stomp for good measure.
The area dominated by the blue pillar was a Recovery Zone, similar to a Floor Waiting Room, where healing abilities were restored.
However, like the Floor Waiting Room, there was a delay before the recovery began.
The Gallery had been buzzing with comments about this delay, right before entering the 8th Floor Stage.
- Archmage: The recovery time in both the Exchange Meeting's waiting room and this place is about 10 seconds.
- Scum Sword Saint: That's different from the almost 3-second delay in the Floor Waiting Room.
- Heavenly Demon: It's more than enough time to kill him and still have time left over.
10 seconds.
More than enough time to feel the pain.
"Guh... Ugh."
Matthew remained on the floor, clutching his face and curled up like a shrimp.
Above him hovered a platinum-haired woman with the number [ 10 ] floating above her head, and two other figures—one male and one female—each with the number [ 9 ]. The three of them stood awkwardly, weapons in hand.
"What are you waiting for? Kneel."
The clatter of three weapons falling to the ground echoed through the air.