Chapter 50
Chapter 50
Translator: Penny
Chapter 50
Beside me stood an unexpected guest.
"I will do my utmost."
Jerado, a Third-Tier Knight.
Despite my repeated insistence that I didn't need assistance, he had stubbornly insisted on helping me, even bringing twenty of his subordinates along.
True to Jerado's boast, the subordinates he had selected appeared competent.
There was even another Third-Tier Knight among them, on par with Jerado himself.
They would undoubtedly be more helpful than the six Players beside me, none of whom had yet reached Level 20 and were likely unable to use Aura or magic.
Even with the most generous assessment, perhaps one of them might possess such abilities.
Since the previous battle, I had been keenly aware of a subtle shift in the way the Players looked at me.
Unless their eyes were merely decorative, they must have recognized the Sword Aura I wielded, giving them ample reason to be wary.
We had arrived at Elbram Forest, the forest Jerado had named.
I surveyed the Players.
"Don't scatter. We need to stick together. I don't know how strong this Insectomancer is, but we can't afford to be picked off one by one."
"Understood," Okada Yuuji, the Japanese man with the deep voice, replied, his tone now sharper.
"Let's advance through the forest in a wide, circular formation. This way, we can maintain awareness of our neighbors' safety while simultaneously covering a broad area of the forest."
I finished speaking and turned to Jerado, the Third-Tier Knight standing beside me.
"Any better ideas?"
"No, it seems like a good plan."
I had looked to the Swordsman, hoping he might have a better strategy, but he seemed to have no particular ideas.
The reaction to the search came sooner than expected.
A blood-soaked man stumbled frantically out of the forest, missing an arm. Judging by the makeshift bandage, he had performed the emergency treatment himself.
Once again observing the situation from the rear, I quickly stepped forward to confront the man.
"Uwaaaah!"
I gripped the man's left shoulder, his eyes wide with terror.
"Stop. Get a grip on yourself."
The man's mouth gaped open.
"He's dead! He's definitely dead! That Russian!"
I gently slapped the man's cheek as he spat out his words.
His eyes were filled with a chilling, profound fear.
"Right, we need to kill the one who killed him. Tell me who did it, and while you're at it, give me your name and country of origin."
Only after I grabbed him by the collar did the man's eyes seem to regain some semblance of reason.
"P-Player...?"
"Yes, a Player. Just like you. I'm asking why the number of participants in the Exchange Meeting dropped from 10 to 9."
"The guy who controls insects and the monster beside him were too strong."
Now that I was finally getting through to him, I extracted a few more details.
The man was from the UK. His name was Henry Thompson. Normal Difficulty, 7th Floor.
Judging by the lingering fear in his eyes, Henry definitely knew the Insectomancer's location.
"Alright, let's head back."
"Huh?"
"Let's go back to where the Insectomancer is."
The dark-haired British man, Henry, exploded at my suggestion.
"Are you crazy?! A human living on the tenth floor of Hard Difficulty died without even putting up a fight! I'm not going!"
Henry seemed utterly convinced of his judgment.
"Second-Tier won't cut it! Rushing in will just get us slaughtered like dogs. We need Third-Tier, at least Third-Tier. But there's no way someone like that would be at this Exchange Meeting!"
I didn't need to explain further.
The Players beside me stepped forward and grabbed Henry by the shoulders.
Matthew was the first to act.
"Speak quickly. Whatever enemy emerges, there's someone here who can handle it."
Okada stepped forward next.
"You can save your life. You know this is a race against time. We need to end this quickly and clean up to safely conclude the Exchange Meeting. Tell us, where is he?"
The German woman, Lena Vogel, approached Henry Thompson.
Then she pointed at me with her index finger.
"That man over there will take care of everything."
I chuckled dryly.
"You're talking like you've left everything to me."
Lena shrugged.
"You're going to kill them all, aren't you? You."
"I'll assess the situation first. And you should at least try to pull your weight."
Lena nodded at my words.
"I'll do my best in my own way. But I'm not confident my best will be better than you snapping your fingers."
"Your self-esteem seems awfully low."
Lena clicked her tongue at my words.
"Even just clicking my heels boosted my self-esteem and was a good example, you know?"
Fortunately, the players' near-hysterical enthusiasm, including Lena's, seemed to have played a significant role in convincing Henry.
"...Alright, if we can kill them, we should do it quickly."
I approached Henry again.
"Not you. Do you know where the other one is?"
Henry sighed deeply.
"No idea. I risked my life fleeing left, and I saw that American woman running for her life to the right..."
I scanned the players watching me.
"Keep an eye out for survivors along the way."
"Got it."
After regrouping and rearming, we resumed our advance through Elbram Forest.
Our first day in Elbram Forest.
Day 1.
We had to face the night without any clear gains.
In the end, we couldn't find the American female Player who had desperately fled.
Since the number of participants in the Exchange Meeting remained at [9], we could only assume she was hiding well from the Insectomancer.
Okada muttered beside me, "This guy seems to be hiding somewhere now, unlike when the three of them were roaming around. Why isn't he coming out?"
Henry shook his head. "He's not the type to hide. You didn't see the madness he showed when he killed the Russian man. There was no one more insane..."
The Elbram Forest darkened into deep twilight.
The Players and Swordsmen settled into their positions.
A bonfire crackled at the center of the eight Players, including myself.
Once again, no one dared to speak first.
I looked at Henry and asked, "Do you know the name and Tower difficulty of the American woman who fled to the right?"
"Of course. I asked right away when we were first summoned in front of the forest. Her name is Nora Brooks... Easy Mode, 6th Floor."
"She's lucky to have escaped alive, too."
"That bug bastard... Ah, Insectomancer, right? From the moment we encountered him, he was subtly backing away. It was like he instinctively knew when to flee."
After that, there wasn't much else to say.
The others seemed to feel the same way, their lips pressed tightly shut.
It wasn't so much that they had nothing to say, but rather that they were reluctant to speak.
I stood up and slowly walked through the surrounding forest.
Crunch, crunch
Someone followed behind me, making no attempt to conceal their approach. The footsteps grew louder as they drew closer. It was Lena Vogel, the German woman.
"I have a question for you," Lena said abruptly, standing beside me.
"What is it?"
"Are you Anonymous, by any chance? The one who keeps dominating the Ranking Board and always takes first place?"
Lena stared at the number above my head:
9
This meant I had cleared the 8th Floor and was residing on the 9th Floor.
Coincidentally, Anonymous's most recently cleared floor was also the 8th Floor.
Lena Vogel must have thought the pieces fit together rather neatly in her mind.
"No, I'm not."
Even if I denied it, she wouldn't believe me.
Leaving aside the number of the floor I was currently on,
she likely became suspicious after seeing me freely use Sword Aura during this Exchange Meeting, where Players from the 1st to 10th Floors were gathered.
A suspicion bordering on certainty, to be precise.
But I had no intention of admitting it.
"Hmm, I see."
Lena nodded at my response.
After all, I was wearing a mask. Even if she knew my name and Tower of origin, all she'd learn was that the masked figure at this Exchange Meeting was "Anonymous."
There was no risk of my information being leaked.
Realizing I wouldn't reveal the truth, Lena naturally stepped back.
"Hmm."
Leaning against the massive tree, I gazed up at the sky, my eyes capturing the stars shining against the black canvas.
Despite the urgent situation, the beautiful scenery calmed my mind.
I retrieved the Binding Talisman, infused its back with mana, and deployed the Veil of Secrets.
I pulled out my Transcendent Gallery terminal.
Title: My Player friends from the Exchange Meeting seem to have noticed I'm Anonymous ᄋᄋ
Author: ᄋᄋ*
- Well, after blatantly spamming Sword Aura like that, it would be scarier if they didn't notice.
Ah, and I found one of the two Players who started on the Insectomancer side.
It's getting dark, so I'm camping for the night.
I'll finish everything tomorrow.
ㄴ Yeah, it would be weirder if they didn't notice with a brain in their head, lololol
ㄴ ...Are all the Players from the Exchange Meeting just dumbasses?
ㄴ Well, back in our Cycle, even early Normal Mode players were spamming Sword Aura, since the Lower Floors were full of 21st-century Earthlings, not our generation.
ㄴ I only learned about the existence of 21st-century Earth from this cycle's recruits, lolololol. It's such a bizarre world. The things those Climber Gallery guys say are hilarious.
ㄴ The most common story is that being dragged into the Tower forced them to quit stocks or whatever, lololololol. They even claim their mental health improved. As if that makes any sense.
Hmm, actually, it does make sense.
ㄴ Exactly. There were plenty of guys who started strong even in Normal Mode. But their growth potential was absolute garbage, so they capped out at Fifth-Tier, like Lena Vogel.
ㄴ Are you introducing yourself?
ㄴ Damn right, it's me.
ㄴ ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
ㄴ Heh, I thought I'd become a Sword Saint since Third-Tier was so easy. Turns out I was just a commoner whose limit was the very edge of Fifth-Tier.
[ Spear King ]: Even some of my subordinates have been acting strange since they started browsing Climber Gallery. They're suddenly going off to scrim with the Murim Alliance kids... And Senior Brother's eldest son defeated the Alliance Leader's son and humiliated him? They used some Climber Gallery term called "teabagging," which made Senior Brother faint. [ Spear King ]: Ahem, the foundations of the Great Sects are crumbling. [ Spear King ]: Usually, the guys who get boosted up the Tower become the pillars of their sects, lolololol. [ Spear King ]: They're corrupting the language like crazy. [ Absolute Monarch ]: ? If someone disrupts the order of the state, regardless of their motives, just imprison them. Most of them will straighten up afterward. [ Scum Sword Saint ]: Whoa, risky statement. [ Ice Queen ]: Brrr! I used to only browse Climber Gallery, but now that I've discovered Climber, I'm only looking at Transcendent Gallery! Hehe. [ Elf ]: Same here... Climber Gallery just makes me frustrated.
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Archmage: Just clear it by gradually reducing the variables.
Jjuhdak: You're wearing a mask... so even if you learn something, it'll only apply to this Exchange Meeting, right? Grovel more to make things easier and more enjoyable. Have fun.
Sword of Light: If you see a lot of insects, activate your Defensive Aura immediately. Unless it's a secret familiar the Insectomancer has poured their heart and soul into raising, they won't be able to harm you much.
N.Y.*) said the Player who escaped had a powerful familiar. We should be careful about that.
As morning broke, we resumed our march.
Fortunately, our efforts soon bore fruit.
Henry Thompson stumbled backward, his voice trembling.
"...Uh, why is that dead guy standing right in front of me? And why is he walking this way?"
A massive, blond-haired man with a grotesquely twisted body limped toward us, favoring his left leg.
"Is that the dead Russian guy?"
Henry nodded blankly.
"...Uh."
It seemed the Insectomancer had desecrated the corpse.
The Tower truly is malevolent.