Chapter 225: Eternal Spire[R-18] (50)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 225: Eternal Spire[R-18] (50)
The sword force tore through Ares's breastplate. The red armor shattered and scattered, and from the gash, golden blood gushed out.
“Kuaaaargh!”
Ares’s scream echoed through the room. He staggered backward before finally collapsing to his knees.
“Th-This can’t be… Impossible… I… I…”
He trembled with rage and humiliation, seemingly unable to accept that a god was kneeling before a human.
I stomped on his head, grinding it into the floor.
“Is this all a god amounts to?”
“Guh…”
I pressed down harder, looking down at Ares pinned beneath my foot.
“No wonder Aphrodite spreads her legs for other men when you’re this pathetic.”
At my words, Ares’s body began to shake violently.
“You… you will regret this… human.”
Ares’s suppressed voice was barely audible. His body began to disintegrate like dust.
“Yeah, yeah. Go run home and suck on your mommy’s tits. Oh, and next time you come, bring Aphrodite with you. I’m curious what the goddess of beauty’s pussy tastes like, you see?”
Ares’s eyes flared with extreme fury and shame.
“Remember this… Jin Seo-yun… This humiliation…”
His final words faded, and a deep silence fell over the room.
[Congratulations. You have defeated the God of War, Ares.]
[You are the first to open the entrance to the 7th Floor.]
[Calculating contribution.]
System messages rang in my ear. I swiped them away and looked around. The boss room was now empty; not a trace of the Frost Ogre Lord or Ares’s incarnation remained.
“Seo-yun!”
Tia rushed over to me. She touched my body here and there, shouting.
“Healer! Get over here and heal Seo-yun, now!”
“I’m fine. It’s nothing.”
I gently took Tia’s hand to stop her. Her eyes were filled with worry, but I hadn’t actually sustained any serious injuries.
“But, your shoulder…”
I placed a finger lightly on her lips.
“Don’t worry about it. For now, take care of the injured.”
“Yes… okay.”
Tia looked at me for a moment longer before nodding reluctantly. She immediately went to check on the wounded, calling over the healers to begin treatment.
I let out a soft breath and checked my rewards.
[A special reward will be distributed.]
‘A special reward, huh?’
I reached out and opened the reward window.
[Reward List]
-Spear of War
-Fragment of Authority
-Unique Ability Gacha Ticket x2
-Love Message
-1,000,000 Gold
As I scanned the list, one reward in particular caught my eye.
‘I can’t believe I got a Fragment of Authority already.’
Collecting Fragments of Authority allowed one to evolve a Unique Ability into an Authority.
There were extremely few ways to obtain an Authority directly in the Tower. It was a reward you could only get by clearing a special dungeon that appeared exclusively on the 80th floor or higher. I never imagined I’d get a reward like this for killing a god.
I checked the other rewards.
[Spear of War - Relic of Ares]
-A replica of the spear used by Ares himself. Though it contains only a fraction of the original’s power, its might is incomparable to any other weapon.
-Special Ability
-Blessing of Ares: All stats increased by 10%.
‘Hmm, I’ll store this in my inventory for now.’
I put the gold and the Unique Ability Gacha Tickets into my inventory, then checked the remaining item: a small letter labeled ‘Love Message.’
After reading its contents, I smiled and put the letter away.
‘He’s no different from a Golden Goblin.’
Just then, I sensed someone approaching from behind.
“Sir Seo-yun, the entrance to the 7th floor is open.”
It was Lauren. She stood before me, her face slick with sweat.
I slowly turned and walked toward the center of the boss room.
A massive gate of light had formed in the middle of the room.
The entrance to the 7th floor.
I turned to face my guild members and the subordinate guilds.
“Let’s go.”
The guild members all nodded in unison.
Their eyes held a resolve that hadn't been there before. It was a mixture of pride in advancing to a new floor with a guild leader who had defeated the incarnation of a god, and a blend of anticipation and tension for the unknown challenges that lay ahead.
I took the first step forward.
The moment I passed through the massive gate of light, a strange sensation swept over my entire body. The next instant, I was standing on rough, arid land.
The temperature was bizarre—neither hot nor cold. But a dry wind scraped across the land, brushing against my skin with a chilling touch.
The sky was dark and overcast. There was light, but no sun to be seen. A faint wail, like the wind in a desolate desert, drifted from somewhere in the distance.
This was the 7th floor, the Black Wasteland.
One by one, the members of Night Bloom began to arrive behind me.
Tia was the first. After a quick scan of our surroundings, she came to my side.
“The 7th floor… It’s more desolate than I expected.”
She was right.
The previous floors had their own distinct environments and features, but this place looked like a thoroughly ravaged land of death. There was no sign of life.
Lauren arrived soon after. Gripping her weapon tightly, she surveyed the area and spoke.
“I don’t sense any hostile energy nearby… but it feels like this place itself is rejecting us.”
Just then, the gate of light flared once more as additional people came through.
The guild leader of Shadow Hand, Rachel.
The guild leader of Crimson Shield, Oren.
And then the remaining 17 guilds all arrived.
One by one, the guild members appeared in the middle of the bleak wasteland.
Rachel approached me and spoke in a cautious voice.
“Um… congratulations on successfully completing the raid.”
Oren also looked at me and added quietly.
“To think you defeated the 6th-floor boss… no, the incarnation of a god. It’s truly incredible…”
I glanced lightly at the two of them.
Their faces showed they had a lot they wanted to say.
I spoke nonchalantly.
“If you have something to say, say it.”
Rachel and Oren exchanged glances, hesitating for a moment.
Then Rachel spoke first.
“I don’t see any major cities nearby… just an endless wasteland…”
A note of anxiety crept into her voice.
“That’s right… Usually, there’s a city in sight, but here…” Oren added with an awkward expression.
“So?”
My single, firm word made them both flinch.
“Ah, no, it’s nothing. I misspoke.”
“Right… I’ll just shut up.”
I let out a small smirk at their reactions.
“Don’t worry. I plan on rewarding you for all your hard work.”
But even after hearing my words, Rachel and Oren couldn’t hide the anxious looks on their faces.
“You don’t believe me?”
Their faces instantly turned pale.
“No, sir!”
“Yes! Of course, we believe you!”
“Then get ready. We’re moving out immediately.”
I paid them no more mind and called Tia and Lauren over separately.
“Lauren.”
“Yes.”
“If you head west, you’ll find a ruined castle. Take half of the subordinate guilds and secure it.”
“Understood.”
Lauren quickly began to relay the orders. The other guild leaders shed their hesitant expressions and started moving swiftly.
I turned my gaze to Tia.
“Tia, you head north. There should be a large ruin there. Take all the remaining forces and occupy it. Don’t forget to stay on guard.”
“Got it. What about you, Seo-yun?”
I glanced toward the northwest for a moment.
“I’m taking Mila and a few others to the northwest.”
“The northwest?”
“Yeah. I’ll be there soon. Make sure you secure the area well.”
Tia and Lauren began moving in their assigned directions. Soon, all the guild members had split into three groups and dispersed.
“Mila.”
Mila came over at my call.
“Master, where are we going?”
“We’re heading northwest.”
With Mila and a few others in tow, I moved northwest. Following the directions from the Love Message, I soon spotted a ruined temple in the distance.
“There it is.”
The temple, half-buried in the wasteland sand, jutted out like a rotten tooth, its former glory lost. Its massive pillars were half-crumbled, and the roof had collapsed long ago.
Mila asked with a puzzled look.
“What is that?”
“The Hall of Gods.”
We approached the temple. There was no trace of life in the vicinity, only an aura of death and desolation.
A deep silence enveloped us as we stepped inside.
Once inside, I saw the broken statues of gods. I walked over to one that was missing its head.
I immediately checked the base of the statue. Below the headless figure, a small recess was carved out. I reached my hand inside and felt around. My fingertips brushed against a small box.
“Found it.”
As I pulled out the box to examine it, Mila sidled up to me, her face full of curiosity.
“Master, what is that?”
“A reward.”
“A reward?”
“Yes. The reward that was supposed to go to Austin, Baek I-jun, Yoon Jae-ho, and Kang Hyun-woo.”
I carefully opened the box.
Inside was a small crystal. It emitted a yellow glow, radiating a mystical energy.
I carefully took the crystal in my hand.
Vmmmm…
I felt a subtle vibration spreading from my fingertips. I cautiously lifted the crystal and checked the system window.
[Unique Ability Enhancement Crystal]
-When used, it can enhance an existing Unique Ability by one level.
‘A Unique Ability Enhancement Crystal…’
This was the reward that should have gone to Austin, Baek I-jun, Yoon Jae-ho, and Kang Hyun-woo. But now, it was in my hands.
I slowly turned the crystal over. Mila watched my hand with interest and asked.
“Care to explain?”
“It’s a crystal that enhances a Unique Ability.”
Mila’s eyes widened.
“Holy shit! Something like that exists?”
“You’ll see them occasionally once you get to the higher floors.”
It was a step down from a Fragment of Authority, but there was no telling when I’d be able to collect enough of those.
“So you’re going to get even stronger with that, Master?”
“I’m not really planning on using it right away.”
Mila snuggled into my arms, acting cute.
“Master~ Can’t you give this to me?”
She clasped her hands together and waved them in front of my eyes with a pleading expression.
I chuckled and tossed the crystal up and down in my palm.
“You want to use it?”
“Yes! I want to get stronger too!”
Mila’s eyes sparkled as she clung to my arm.
“With this, I could be even more helpful to you, Master! I’ll give your cock a good suck later♡”
I looked at the crystal again.
‘Should I give this to Mila?’
The Unique Ability Enhancement Crystal was a rarer item than I’d let on. It was one of the few opportunities for the strong to become even stronger.
‘If I give it to Mila, how much stronger will she get?’
Mila’s unique ability, Berserker.
Her ability enhanced her physical capabilities each time she took a certain amount of damage in battle—a sort of rage-based power-up. The downside was that the more her emotions flared, the more her reason clouded, and she would be hit with extreme fatigue after the battle ended.
‘If she uses this crystal… her unique ability will likely evolve into a more advanced form.’
I tossed the crystal once more, thinking.
‘It might not just be a simple power-up. It could even improve the weaknesses of Berserker.’
I placed the crystal in Mila’s hand.
“Use it.”
Mila’s eyes went wide as she looked at me.
“Really? You don’t need it, Master?”
“Yeah. You getting stronger helps me too.”
Mila looked touched as she carefully cupped the crystal in both hands.
“I love you!”
She held the crystal to her chest, hesitated for a moment, and then squeezed it tightly.
CRACK!
The crystal shattered, dissolving into particles of light that seeped into Mila’s body.