Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Strengthening the Resonance
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Ha, who the hell is that?
"The ability you possess is, in its current state, nothing but poison."
Poison?
Do-yoon stared at the black entity, his mouth still sealed shut.
"It must be incredibly frustrating not being able to speak, but there's no helping it. If we communicate any further, 'that thing' will notice us."
The entity, still spouting cryptic words, turned toward Eira, who was growling with her head tilted.
"And the reason you feel that sense of dissonance in battle? Obviously, it's because of that foolish creature."
'Eira?'
"Eek...!"
"Even if you glare at me with such a resentful face, there's nothing to be done. Foolish one. Your very existence is poison to that man right now."
A garment that didn't fit.
And that made sense, because Do-yoon was a living being from outside the tower—a hunter.
In contrast, Eira was an entity from within the tower. Something unknown.
"On the 7th floor, you experienced great danger once."
One permitted attack.
Do-yoon had thought the cause was simply his own carelessness.
"Can that truly be considered solely your own failing?"
"Don't say bad things, tasty one!"
Eira lunged at the black entity in an instant, but she was no match.
Just a single gesture of the hand.
That minor action alone halted Eira in her tracks, and she collapsed to the floor like a rag doll with loosened strings.
"Ahhh..."
Their levels were worlds apart.
It was a situation that perfectly fit those words.
"Your power and that thing's are polar opposites. They simply don't match from the start."
Do-yoon had long known that his own power was of an extraordinary kind.
The reactions of senior hunters to his abilities every time, and comparisons to all the other hunters he'd met so far.
There wasn't a single person like him.
As a hunter, he possessed a very special difference, but it wasn't something he could guarantee would always be an advantage.
"That's why the foolish thing that only rampages excitedly on its own needs to be controlled."
"...."
"Of course, that's your job. Even if I can suppress it easily right now, once we enter real combat, you'll be at its mercy again."
At its mercy.
He could understand that to some extent.
Up until now, in his battles, Eira's power had been an indispensable key element.
The power of the object.
Chains made of powerful mana were a formidable attack that couldn't be easily blocked even by this floor's standards.
It was almost cheat-level.
"However, you don't intend to let a few chains define your limits, do you? As you know, a hunter's mana is not infinite."
-Nod.
Do-yoon nodded heavily in agreement.
It was frustrating, but that was reality.
Using Eira's chains required mana consumption, and since that skill dominated most of his battles...
If he encountered an even stronger opponent, he would inevitably face danger from this someday.
"So, I'll help you."
"Eek...! Don't need it."
"Be quiet."
"Hic."
The entity looked down at Eira coldly.
He couldn't see her eyes, but chills seeped from her tone.
In truth, the entity didn't covet Eira's existence at all.
She only charged ahead with her childish whims, completely ignoring the burden on her wielder, Do-yoon.
In the end, all the risks stemmed from Eira herself.
"I failed to instill discipline from the start, but she must have at least the minimal capacity to learn."
-Whoosh..!
Mana surged forth.
Centered on the black entity, an ominous red formation began to spread across the surrounding floor.
Extending toward Do-yoon and the subdued Eira—
Creating the phenomenon.
'...This is.'
Do-yoon noticed the red strands now coiling around his body.
When he touched them with his hand, he felt a sensation affecting even his internal mana circuits.
On the opposite end of the red threads was Eira, with her resentful expression.
Seeing that, he instantly understood.
The connection point of the mana circuits between him and Eira.
The red threads revealed by the entity clearly held that meaning.
"As expected, you're quick on the uptake. Then, do you know what you need to do now?"
As Do-yoon looked at her with a puzzled expression, the black entity turned away as if burdened.
"Untie the threads bound to you and re—"
"Nooo!"
Suddenly, Eira, who had been listening to the entity, cried out like she was wailing.
As if she'd understood the words beforehand, her face looked ready to burst into tears at any moment.
"Don't overreact..."
"No!"
"Anyway, you'll re—"
"I said no!"
"...Can't even remove you from the spot because of mana resonance. How annoying."
The black entity sighed deeply and looked back at Do-yoon.
"Ignore her and untie the threads."
'And then?'
"Wrap them back around your body as you see fit. However, this time, you must do it with firm intent. Otherwise, the mana will tangle again."
It was hard to grasp precisely.
What meaning was there in untying and rewrapping threads?
But before his mind could comprehend, his body seemed to awaken to the sensation first.
-Thump! Thump!
Like a part of his life force, the threads began pulsing as soon as he touched them.
Do-yoon carefully peeled away one strand and gazed down at the red thread in his palm.
This was a part of Eira.
"Oppa...!"
He glanced once at Eira, who was staring at him like she'd lost her country.
Then, he guided the thread to where it should go.
Only then did he realize how chaotically entangled Eira's power and his own body had been all this time.
One strand, two strands.
He untied the knotted mana threads and reattached them to more comfortable positions.
A simple yet repetitive process of reassembly.
"...Ah."
Eira's expression, which had anticipated a severance in their resonance, gradually calmed.
The unstable connection points were reassembled into something more secure.
Eira felt her resonance with Do-yoon drawing even closer.
'Still crude, but you've grasped the direction.'
The direction that had so confounded his senior hunters.
With a thread of it now in hand, even the black entity quietly watched Do-yoon's work.
"...Hoo."
Before he knew it, his body was drenched in cold sweat.
If someone asked if it was just mindlessly peeling them off with his hands and sticking them wherever comfortable...
It required far more mental focus and complexity than that.
Nevertheless, he succeeded.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Resonance with target, 'Eira', has been strengthened! "It's not entirely satisfactory... but you did well."
The black entity praised Do-yoon's achievement.
'Praise from the Tower Lord.'
Quite a rare experience.
She might try to hide it, but at this point, she was blatantly the Tower Lord.
He had no intention of ruining the mood by pointing it out, so he simply felt pure joy in his spot.
"Oppa!"
With her restraints lifted, Eira toddled over and hugged Do-yoon.
A rare moment of leisure.
Thanks to the strengthened resonance, her presence felt even more special than before.
'Alright then.'
He recalled the hunters lurking on the 8th floor, as mentioned at the very start.
"Hm. This should be enough that you won't be helplessly pushed back. You can at least put up a fight."
"...?"
A fight? Just managing resistance?
That wouldn't do.
Noticing Do-yoon's reaction, the black entity let out a low chuckle.
"Heh heh, no need to worry too much. If upper-floor hunters were causing chaos on every floor, disaster would have struck long ago. However."
Penalty.
There was an absolute force maintaining balance within the tower.
A system devised to prevent hunters from excessively interfering with one another and stifling growth potential.
"Those guys are under penalties too, and their stats have likely degraded to around your level."
'Then a power struggle is feasible.'
The issue was how far they'd prepared to face Do-yoon.
"I'd like to do more, but... it seems our time is almost up."
With those words, the entity approached Do-yoon.
"Eek."
Eira, nestled in his arms for no reason, felt uncomfortable and glared at the entity.
"...Hoo. When will you ever wise up?"
"Tasty!"
"Entering the 8th floor means heading straight to the non-combat zone. They won't be able to harm you much there anyway. The problem is... running into them in the combat zone."
The zone where weapons could be turned on each other.
Crimes between hunters all occurred in combat stages.
"Still, meeting them once and talking it out wouldn't be a bad experience."
'Lady, after all that buildup?'
Don't trust hunters. Betrayal is their trade. Kill them before they kill you.
The knowledge learned from the gallery lingered deeply in Do-yoon's mind.
It had proven useful in theme stages, and Do-yoon was just starting to apply such teachings in real combat.
And now, talk?
"I don't know who they are, but it's hard to know the intentions of every hunter in the tower, no matter how confident one is. That's why."
The entity, still clinging to her concept, said to Do-yoon.
"Meeting them face-to-face and gauging their intentions isn't a bad idea... That's what I've heard, anyway."
As Do-yoon stared blankly without a word, the entity cleared her throat awkwardly.
The Wine Lord waved her hand, seeing Do-yoon off.
"So, do your best."
"Eek."
The world crumbled away, then began reconstructing itself.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Entering the 8th floor. And so, the true trial awaited Do-yoon.