Proof of Value (1)
·Rafusli - Got interested and kept watching, then spotted this. Looks like something happened?
A user had posted a short message to the gallery along with a single video clip. Reina froze the moment she watched it.
The footage clearly showed Shadis, whom she'd parted with that afternoon, surrounded by five strangers—men and women she'd never seen before.
The comments poured in, sparking quite the heated reaction.
It was commonplace for vigilante crime-hunters and Federation resident police to team up and instead bully criminals—extorting money and abusing them for personal gain. The group picking on Shadis was no different. They were vigilantes and Federation cops who'd caught her pickpocketing last time, given her a taste of the prison to instill fear, then demanded regular "tribute" payments in exchange for looking the other way on her other crimes.
The overall vibe in the comments leaned toward mocking them. To the gallery users, their brand of crime looked like child's play—laughably petty. Of course, a minority sneered at Shadis's past misdeeds, while others pitied her.
"Hm? What's this?"
"N-no! That's... ahh!"
"Hiding something like this, huh? Don't know who you stole it from, but it looks valuable. Guess we'll let it slide this time in exchange."
But the moment they discovered the dagger Reina had given her—tucked in her bosom—
"Not that! Never! She gave it to me!"
"This bitch is crazy... stomp her!"
And as Shadis lunged desperately to protect it, getting beaten by the group—
The gallery users—all former climbers who'd conquered towers in their worlds and ascended to constellations—couldn't intervene in Tower 3445 from their distant realms. Even powerhouses who could wipe them out with a flick couldn't act without a contractor to channel through. Writing posts and comments was their only outlet.
The system enforced it that way.
'Bet you're pissed. I know I am.'
But this moment was different. Unlike them, someone who could act directly was watching alongside them in the gallery.
Reina—the challenger they cheered and sponsored—could vent their frustrations and deliver the catharsis they craved. She sensed she needed to soothe the inflamed users. And release her own boiling rage.
"..."
Her face hardened as she slipped out of bed. She threw on just an outer layer over her silk robe clinging to her bare skin and strode out of the hotel in one breath.
"L-Reina? May I ask where you're headed at this hour?"
The hotel staffer, spotting her in the lobby dressed so scantily in the dead of night, asked with a flustered face.
"Felt like a night stroll."
She brushed it off casually. What could they say to someone just wanting a walk? The staffer gave an awkward smile, bowed, and shut up.
And that reply was for the gallery users watching her, too.
···
The users cheered her move. Sure, it was random as hell, but the thrill of this unfolding drama trumped everything—the rising excitement needed an outlet.
"Ugh..."
"Spill it. Who'd you steal this from? How'd you even snag it without getting caught? No way someone with gear like this gets pickpocketed by trash like you."
Amid the sharp pain spreading through her, Shadis—face pressed to the cold ground, tasting blood trickling from her mouth—had her hair yanked back by steel-strong fingers, forcing her head up.
Through her blurry vision, she saw the smirking man holding her black dagger.
"She... gave it to me. Fair and square."
She forced the words out, wincing as her scalp felt like it was ripping off.
They burst into mocking laughter at her answer.
"Who? Who'd give you something like this? Even if you whored out that scrawny body of yours, no one's handing this over!"
No one believed her, as if it went without saying. Especially that "you" stabbed at her heart.
Yeah, right. How? Why her?'
Looking back, getting tangled with Reina felt like a dream to Shadis. Teaming up solo with a distant top-layer ranker to clear a dungeon, earning her approval and a gift? The her from days ago would've scoffed just like them.
"If it's real, whoever it was—guy or girl—must've been out of their mind."
"Maybe some shady ulterior motive. Curse embedded in the item or whatever. Whoa, isn't that dangerous then?"
They didn't stop there, cackling as they badmouthed Reina freely.
Of course, they couldn't even imagine her existence, but hearing them insult Reina made Shadis grit her teeth.
She didn't drop Reina's name. No need to drag her into the mud.
'If only... I had power.'
Her clenched fists trembled instead. Since that incident a year ago, she'd never craved strength like this.
"I gave it to her."
But then—a voice from behind made their eyes bulge in shock.
Curiously, clouds hiding the massive full moon drifted past, flooding the alley with light once more.
"M-Moonlight Sword Radiance..."
Reina wore no sunglasses or hat, and they naturally recognized her face. Beneath her sparkling silver hair under the moonlight, her red eyes gleamed fiercely.
"I lent her that item temporarily. Coveting it means coveting my possession. You know the price for that."
"W-wait! We didn't hear a thing! And you lent it to her? To this, this petty thief bitch!?"
Panicking at the sight of her drawing the sword from her inventory, they frantically shook their heads, denying everything.
To them, it hit harder than a bolt from a clear sky.
"This can't happen! Not even you can just—without reason!"
"I-I'm Federation police, 30th-layer branch! Killing me means war with the Federation!"
They desperately scrambled excuses to survive, invoking their affiliations. But none dared think they could face her head-on and live. They just hoped leaning on their groups' power might buy an out.
"If some biters show up demanding blood, I'll just donate like last time. Your lives aren't worth shit anyway."
But Reina channeled an explosive burst of light into her blade and swung once from her spot—severing all their necks in a single stroke.
No matter how they aped the outside world, the tower's core value was raw power. A ranker's worth—standing at the forefront to prevent linked worlds' annihilation—outweighed tens or hundreds of thousands of residents or low-layers. Who could slap cuffs on her for executing a few thieves eyeing her stuff?
This is power. This is the tower.
Shadis slumped amid the collapsing, blood-spraying meat puppets, shuddering under Reina's gazing red eyes.