Chapter 132
Chapter 132
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 132
Chapter Title: Tower of Trials 0th Floor_LOG
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I had made the following announcement regarding the Tower of Trials.
To any students who clear the 10th floor before I return to the academy, I will grant one Wish Voucher!
And the results were as follows.
1. Alexon / Cleared 10th floor / Clear time: 1 day, 15 hours, 2 minutes
Professor Alexon, who dove headfirst into the playground the kids made in astonishment and smashed through everything while having a blast, took first place. But since he wasn't a student, his clear reward doesn't count.
"Record deleted."
From here on, it's the students' records.
1. Bennett Party (Bennett, Tara, Niore, Selvier) / Reached 9th floor / Clear time: 21 hours 37 minutes
The Bennett group was an incredibly well-rounded party. Looking at their combat logs, they showed consistently solid clear times overall.
Back when it was just the trio of Bennett-Tara-Niore, they were strong in PvP but weak against mob swarms, which caused their clear times to drag in certain sections or even fail to break through.
Like the 7th floor's "Sleeping Beauty in the Forest." She has a pattern where she summons plant monsters every time her cooldown is up, and those plants apply percentage-based binds.
So if you ignore the trash mobs and just push, eventually the piled-up swarm binds you tight and sends you straight to the defeat ending.
After recruiting Selvier, their weakness to mob fights was resolved, and their clear times improved dramatically. Their strategy went like this.
In mob swarm floors, Selvier expends all her mana to unleash firepower.
In PvP floors, the trio handles it. While they beat down the boss, Selvier recovers her mana. Once it's fully charged, she unleashes firepower on the next mob swarm floor— and so on.
This tactic had the drawback of stalling time while Selvier recharged her mana.
Detailed clear records are as follows. (Seconds omitted)
1st floor Orcs // 1 minute (MVP: Bennett)
2nd floor Ogres // 3 minutes (MVP: Tara)
3rd floor Jenny of the Chain Sickle // 3 minutes (MVP: Bennett)
4th floor Whip Witch // 1 hour 40 minutes (MVP: Selvier)
5th floor Jay of the Draw // 7 minutes (MVP: Bennett)
6th floor Gunslinger James of the Wasteland // 11 minutes (MVP: Tara)
7th floor Sleeping Beauty in the Forest // 3 hours 20 minutes (MVP: Selvier)
8th floor Open Sect Leader // 4 hours 40 minutes (MVP: Bennett)
9th floor Combat City De1-ETe // 11 hours 32 minutes (Clear failed)
What kind of place is the 9th floor that even they couldn't break through?
Basically, it's a gimmick-filled hostile futuristic city. You find the keycard, board the orbital elevator, head to the space station, and destroy the AI ruling the city to clear it.
I felt it during the Cthulhu floor too, but they're not great at picking up subtle hints. Like the lights flashing from space every time a city gimmick activates, or the blatantly obvious orbital elevator stretching to the end of the sky.
If you had any street smarts, you'd think, "Oh, gotta go there for sure," about that landmark, but they didn't even glance at it.
The boss mob was up there floating around, while they rampaged through the vast futuristic city, just leveling buildings.
You could argue it's unreasonable to expect that from fantasy world folks. But then again, Alexon spotted it the moment he entered and bolted straight to the center!
I should've known from when Abraham, who was supposed to defend, ditched and took a side path.
Still, with their raw specs being so high and them butchering the lower floors, they took first among students. If only they'd hopped on that orbital elevator quick...
Below them was a showdown between the Golden Faction and the Rose Emblem Faction.
2. Golden Party (Gordius and 23 others) / Cleared 8th floor / Clear time: 2 days 3 hours 37 minutes
3. Rose Emblem Party (White-Lotus Princess and 17 others) / Reached 8th floor / Clear time: 1 day 12 hours 11 minutes
The Golden Party broke through the 8th with much longer clear times, while the Rose Emblem Party had shorter times but couldn't pierce the 8th.
The difference between the two forces was their leaders' temperaments.
"Set up barricades and buy time! Use explosives for suicide attacks to stall! In a space where death isn't permanent, even death is just chips on the table!"
"Uwaaaaaah—!!"
"He's straight-up ordering suicides since it's not his life on the line, oh man!"
The side determined to bulldoze through the 8th somehow.
And the other side.
"Let's call it quits on challenging here. Any more fighting seems pointless... Our bonds are already strong enough."
"Ughhh, as expected of the Princess...!!"
"Our incompetence in not escorting you to the 10th... We must atone naked...!!"
The side saying there's no need to push that hard.
Groups with similar combat power, yet such different results. Digging deeper into the clear times reveals even more interesting differences.
The Rose Emblem Party had better mob swarm clear times, while the Golden Party excelled in PvP clears.
The nobility-led Rose Emblem Party maintained solid formations centered on the White-Lotus Princess without breaking. When mobs swarmed, they calmly held formation and pushed steadily. But they had a tendency to overprotect the Princess.
With a balanced mix of knights and mages, their stability was top-notch. They fought straight out of the textbook: tanks hold the front, DPS unleashes firepower.
On the flip side, the commoner-heavy Golden Party turned into chaos in mob fights, but when facing a single enemy, they ganged up masterfully. While aggro shifted elsewhere, they'd pile on damage ruthlessly.
A mishmash of archers, swordsmen, all sorts of jobs, wrapped in artifacts from the Gold Tower's prized disciple to boost specs, prioritizing individual survival over formation.
Dodge if aggro's on you, smash if not, everyone else fend for themselves.
Otherwise...
There was one standout student.
7. Luna Steri / Cleared 4th floor / Clear time: 36 minutes
What made a 4th-floor solo special? The challenge count and overwhelming time reductions. Even after I returned to the academy, she poured every free moment into the Tower of Trials nonstop.
She even repeated cleared floors, shaving tactics to the limit. No rewards or anything!
She discovered the bug where half-sitting during Jenny's second pattern, then waddling backward three steps, skips it.
1st floor Orcs // 0 minutes (MVP: Luna)
2nd floor Ogres // 2 minutes (MVP: Luna)
3rd floor Jenny of the Chain Sickle // 2 minutes (MVP: Luna)
4th floor Whip Witch // 32 minutes (MVP: Luna)
Far shorter than Bennett Party's times.
Of course, Bennett Party paced themselves for higher floors. They took it easy when soloable, preserving condition.
Even so, shaving times this far solo deserves applause.
With time regression, she'd be a total pro.
"......"
I'm drooling. Something terrifying stirs in my heart, gnawing at my soul. A four-letter evil word circles my mind.
Grad... student...
If I could use her as my... assistant...?
Pre-testing session gimmicks meticulously...?
No, too soon. I know nothing about her.
I'll bait her with Tower hidden ending teaser. If she bites... tempts me like this...
I'll invite her to my lab.
Even after the mad wizard returned to the academy, he didn't seal the Tower of Trials entrance, so Envers could thankfully continue his studies.
With the deadline for the promised 'Wish Vouchers' passed, most students stopped heading there. Even those using it occasionally for combat practice lacked the prior enthusiasm.
So now, months later, the number of oddballs climbing the Tower could be counted on one hand.
For instance, this girl in front of Envers, lips pressed thin, staring intently: Luna Steri. When alone, she dumps the whole day into the Tower—a terrifying human.
Envers responded to her gaze.
"Your stare means come out early? Got it. I'll wrap it up quick this time."
"......"
Luna pointed to her throat with her index finger, then her lips, then circled her temple. Weird speech? You crazy?
Envers chuckled awkwardly.
"It stuck to my tongue..."
Luna stated flatly.
"Idiot."
"Ahem, ahem..."
Envers Redburn had studied under the beggar for a long time.
Perhaps from deep immersion in martial arts, his speech had long turned wuxia-corrupted.
But with swordsmen and gunslingers among students, it didn't stand out much.
"I'll head in now."
Luna tapped her wrist with her index finger and mimed slitting her throat. Late out, you're dead.
Envers smiled and entered the Tower.
Via back door straight to the 8th floor: a small cabin atop a mountain appeared. Following the path up, the beggar was chopping wood.
"Master."
"Perfect timing, disciple. Chop some wood for me."
"Yes, understood."
Envers nodded without question, took the axe from the beggar, and started making firewood.
Proper stance, swing. Even with little force, it splits the log cleanly.
Thwack-!
The log halves and topples. Envers gathered the split pieces, restacked, swung again. Repeat.
Not boring. Envers brimmed with anticipation.
After chores, the beggar calls him inside. Brief tales of the martial world, then serious training.
Envers loved every bit, even the wait.
Thud-!
Logs split with time.
Sitting cross-legged, learning of the martial world, Envers suddenly asked the beggar.
"Master, if you crossed dimensional rifts chasing the Heavenly Demon, is he here?"
"......Yes."
"The professor said you reached the top but the 10th had a demon—a wicked witch with flowing white hair. Is she the Heavenly Demon?"
"No. The Heavenly Demon I chased is male, a muscled brute with thick beard and hair. He's hidden in the Tower's crevices. All exiles here pooled power to isolate him."
Isolate.
Curiosity piqued, Envers pressed.
"May I see him?"
"I advise against. Why crave it?"
"I wish to witness his martial arts. You said seeing a master's move is great gain—surely the Heavenly Demon's would be unparalleled?"
The beggar was a true great warrior. Envers struggled to keep up. Natural to wonder.
The one countless righteous sects risked lives to chase beyond dimensions: Heavenly Demon. How strong?
How beautiful his techniques' arcs?
The beggar eyed Envers' eager gaze, then spoke laden with worry.
"This endless hell revives the dead, so no mortal threat. But facing the Heavenly Demon crushes all human martial might."
"......Crushes?"
The beggar nodded gravely—no jest. He continued.
"Thus, to glimpse him afar, you need basics. I'll give tasks. Achieve all... and I'll grant the chance."
"What tasks...? This disciple will prove himself!"
"They are—"
[Moonlit Orc: Clear 1st floor with clear time exceeding 12 hours]
[Blood for Blood, Eye for Eye: Encounter the hidden dwarf in the forest, then clear 2nd floor using only ballista]
[Walking in Rain Without Wetting Hem: Survive Jenny's Phase 2 opener for 10+ minutes, clear 3rd floor]
[The Whip Returns: Defeat Whip Witch using her own whip attacks, clear 4th floor]
[Sealed Sword of Light: Clear 5th floor without letting Jay draw his sword]