Chapter 92
Chapter 92
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 92
Chapter Title: The Fall of the Leader
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3:10 AM.
Yoo Ara was walking alone around the 'Spirit Lake' on the 12th floor.
She too had been searching for Lily Rose the moment the event started, aiming for the point lead.
But no matter where she had vanished to, not even a glimpse of Lily Rose was to be seen.
……She had definitely said she was on the 12th floor.
That was when the will of the tower echoed in her ear.
['Red Player Leader' has been defeated!]
[A new 'Red Player Leader' has been born!]
“......Huh?”
The Red Player Leader had been defeated.
That meant Lily Rose had lost to someone.
……Who on earth?
This was a disaster. Lily Rose had held a whopping 8,450 points.
Some unknown person had now claimed half of that—4,225 points.
At this rate, the point lead would be snatched by some stranger.
“……This is bad.”
With only three hours left until the event ended.
There was no other way.
She had no choice but to quickly ambush someone else and rack up points.
Having steeled her resolve, she was about to head elsewhere.
That was when she spotted a figure approaching from not too far away. The build looked familiar. She recognized who it was at a glance.
“Kim Sunwoo?”
Why was he here?
Was he after Lily Rose too?
Yoo Ara pondered alone, debating whether to ambush Kim Sunwoo.
“……Hmm.”
But for some reason, she hesitated.
She had a feeling that even if she struck first, Kim Sunwoo would pull some trick to block it.
Of course, she wasn't scared.
Objectively speaking, attacking Kim Sunwoo without any intel on his abilities was as much of a gamble as anything.
It would be safer to target weaker students and steadily build points.
“……Better to go after someone else, right?”
Yeah, that made sense. There was plenty of time.
Having sorted her thoughts, Yoo Ara turned and headed toward the tower portal.
That was when a sudden thought flashed through her mind.
Lily Rose's defeat just moments ago.
Come to think of it, there were almost no one in this tower capable of beating the UK's number one, Yoo Ara herself excluded.
The only other person who came to mind was Lee Seojun.
But Lee Seojun hadn't appeared on the event rankings at all, as if he was challenging the 30th floor.
Which meant the one who beat Lily Rose wasn't Lee Seojun.
And she knew of another hidden genius with talent rivaling Lee Seojun's.
Kim Sunwoo.
Yoo Ara's expression turned grave.
The Kim Sunwoo she'd just seen looked unscathed, without a single injury.
If he was truly the one who beat Lily Rose, that meant he'd overwhelmed her without taking a scratch.
……No matter how much of a genius Kim Sunwoo was, was that even possible?
“Phew……”
I let out a sigh of relief as I watched Yoo Ara's back recede into the distance.
I'd been walking alone when my killing intent detection trait suddenly triggered, startling me. And of all people, it was Yoo Ara—I'd been terrified.
I had just fought Lily Rose and used the Heart of Great Nature, leaving my mana severely depleted.
In my current state, if I'd had to face Yoo Ara, I would've lost a hundred out of a hundred times.
“Still, that was lucky.”
I didn't know what had changed her mind, but she'd given up on attacking me, saving my life. I could call it good fortune.
“Now, where to hide.”
Ever since the 'Final Night' event began, all the students were fired up, ready to fight with blood in their eyes.
About three hours remained until the event ended.
Having beaten Lily Rose and gained a ton of points, it should be fine to sit out the fights for a bit.
Getting defeated by someone while low on mana would be far more troublesome.
I headed to the tower portal.
My destination was the 'Intermediate Safe Zone' on the 10th floor.
[300 points required to enter the 'Intermediate Safe Zone.']
[Will you pay?]
300 points.
Thanks to the 4,225 points from beating Lily Rose, I now had 7,025 points total. It wasn't a big deal at all.
'Pay.'
[300 points paid.]
[Entering 'Intermediate Safe Zone.']
A bright light flashed, and my vision shifted.
“Oh……”
Upon arriving in the Intermediate Safe Zone, I saw various buildings.
Restaurants, inns, and more. It felt just like the bustling street of a small rural village. I looked around for any other students, but there were none.
They must all be busy earning points.
“Well, yeah.”
Who would spend 300 points to use a place like this?
Before entering the inn, I checked if there were any other useful facilities.
All facilities in the Intermediate Safe Zone were free once you paid the 300-point entry fee.
As I walked, I stopped at one particular sign.
“There's even a hot spring?”
Not just any hot spring—it was called the 'Mana Hot Spring,' with 'mana' right in the name.
The very name suggested it wasn't ordinary, and I felt a surge of anticipation for faster recovery.
“Heh heh.”
Time for some healing.
About three hours remained until the exam ended.
The final event, 'Final Night,' had concluded. In its aftermath, those who'd lost points went berserk, attempting plunder left and right, turning everything into chaos.
I fully rested in the Intermediate Safe Zone before moving to the 19th floor.
Thanks to the 'Mana Hot Spring' I'd enjoyed at dawn, my condition was at its peak. On top of that, there was an unexpected stat boost.
[Your Magic Power has increased by 0.5 due to the Mana Hot Spring.]
My Magic Power stat had risen by 0.5.
It wasn't a huge gain, but as unexpected growth, it put me in a great mood.
“Whew.”
Alright, time to hunt with the remaining time.
I moved to the monster hunting zone thick with forest.
As soon as I arrived at my destination, I sensed movement from a nearby bush.
It could be a Red Player gone mad from losing points, so I gathered my magic power and braced for an ambush.
“Huh? Sunwoo!”
“Yoon Hayoung?”
The one who emerged from the bush was none other than Yoon Hayoung.
Whatever had happened overnight, her cheeks were smudged black, and she looked a mess.
Well, after three days surviving in the wild, that was to be expected.
“Wow! So glad to see you. Haven't run into a single familiar face since coming here.”
Yoon Hayoung flashed a bright smile but then scanned me up and down before continuing.
“What? Did you wash up? You look super clean.”
Oh. She noticed.
As expected of Yoon Hayoung—sharp eyes.
I chuckled and said,
“I went to the Intermediate Safe Zone on the 10th floor. There's a hot spring there.”
“Really? That's the one with the 300-point entry fee? You actually went? Must've made a killing on points.”
“Eh, decently so.”
At my response, Yoon Hayoung shot me an envious look.
“Hearing you say it so confidently... are you in first place, Sunwoo?”
I shook my head.
“No way first.”
“Hmm. Really? Then who's first? Ara? She had the highest average in the event earlier. Heard Lily Rose got robbed at the end.”
Yoon Hayoung tapped her chin, lost in thought. I tossed out casually to her,
“First is Lee Seojun.”
“Seojun? Oh right, Seojun was here. Forgot since he never showed on the rankings. But why isn't Seojun on the leaderboard?”
Instead of answering, I just smiled quietly.
Meanwhile, Lee Seojun kept climbing the tower.
His current floor: 29.
Just one floor left to the top.
It had been grueling. Various traps, powerful monsters, brain-teasing complex patterns.
Lee Seojun instantly understood why only one person had reached the summit in 50 years.
Even he, who had never known defeat until now, felt like giving up midway.
But he didn't. If he'd had the mentality to quit at this point, he never would've challenged the 30th floor to begin with.
Lee Seojun had the spirit to challenge, and the ability and talent to match.
Of course, abandoning all the tower's events and points to challenge the 30th floor meant failure would be disastrous.
In the worst case, he might not even crack the top 100.
“Whew. Tough.”
After three straight days alone, he was starting to feel a bit lonely.
He even wished he could see another person's shadow.
Shaking off the weak thought, he opened the door to the next stage.
[Entering hidden stage 'Administrator's Domain.']
“Hidden stage?”
Did the tower even have hidden stages?
At that moment, the space around Lee Seojun changed.
Complete darkness.
It felt like floating alone in the cosmos.
Lee Seojun walked aimlessly. Then, a stone tablet appeared before him.
［Administrator's Record］
［You may leave a message. What you write here will remain forever.］
“……A record?”
He had an idea what it was.
A kind of commemorative message left only by those who reached the tower's summit.
He hadn't expected such a system in this exam tower.
Lee Seojun used his magic power to input a message.
I, Lee Seojun, have reached the tower's summit.
“……Too casual?”
Lee Seojun looked sheepishly at the tablet. His magic dispersed, and the written words vanished.
[Message saved.]
[You may view others' records.]
[View?]
Others' records? Lee Seojun pondered briefly before selecting yes.
Where is the limit of humanity?
I dedicate this glory to my master and my precious ones.
2004-7-3
“What the.”
It seemed this was the message from the one person said to have reached the 30th floor.
The limit of humanity. My master and precious ones.
Surprisingly romantic person.
Who could it have been?
To achieve such a feat and remain unknown... there had to be a reason.
[To think a human has come here. 28 years, is it?]
That was when a voice echoed from somewhere. Not a physical voice. It was quite similar to the tower's will he'd heard earlier.
Lee Seojun looked around and said,
“Who's there?”
[I am the tower's ego. In human terms, you may call me the 'Will of the Tower.']
At those words, Lee Seojun was slightly startled.
He'd suspected, but it really was the Will of the Tower?
[How intriguing. You bear a striking resemblance to someone I know. Enough to make me think he has returned.]
The tower suddenly spouted something incomprehensible.
Resembling someone it knew?
“Ah.”
It seemed to be referring to the one who had uniquely reached the summit before.
[Even now, it's astonishing. How can your aura be so similar?]
The tower kept repeating how fascinating it was.
Lee Seojun felt doubt.
Who could it be, that he resembled so much?
“Could you tell me who that person is?”
[Who... surely his name was...]
The Will of the Tower trailed off as if pondering, then spoke as if recalling.
[Jin Cheonwoo. Yes. It was definitely Jin Cheonwoo.]
“...!”
Lee Seojun jolted in shock.
Jin Cheonwoo.
A name he knew. No, there wasn't a soul in this world who didn't know Jin Cheonwoo's name.
The worst mage in history, who once plunged the world into terror.
Leader of Jaun and a god.
[Such a startled reaction. You know of him?]
“I've heard the name.”
［I see. Well, a human with that level of power couldn't stay unknown.］
Lee Seojun fell silent for a moment.
He needed to collect his thoughts. Then he asked the tower what puzzled him.
“I'd like to hear the detailed reason why you say I resemble Jin Cheonwoo.”
［The reason for the resemblance... I sense and remember the aura and magic emanating from humans to distinguish them.］
“Aura and magic?”
[Indeed. That's why I find you similar to Jin Cheonwoo. The aura and magic I sense from you are remarkably akin to his.]
At the tower's words, Lee Seojun sank into deep thought.
My aura and magic resemble Jin Cheonwoo's. It was something he never imagined hearing.
“Then, what do you think is the reason my aura and magic feel so similar to Jin Cheonwoo's?”
[……A reason?]
The tower trailed off, as if pondering.