Chapter 199
Chapter 199
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 199
Chapter Title: Dragon Dreams and Demon Souls
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"[Open your eyes, heir of the dragons...]"
"Hah, Ice Wheel Ring."
"[What is that?]"
"...It's too vivid to be just a dream."
Unable to sleep, she remembered watching a movie before dozing off on the sofa. She slowly looked around.
There was something—a lot of somethings.
No, there were an insane number of 【Dragons】. Dragons of every kind were staring at her.
—And from them emanated a familiar power.
It was the same energy flowing through Olga's body ever since she had changed classes to 【Zemoo】.
"[You have drawn near to 【Qualification】. Soon, you will awaken to our next 【Authority】 as our successor.]"
"...Me? Really?"
She had no idea what they were talking about. She could feel herself growing stronger the higher she climbed the tower.
After conquering floor 60, she had reached her peak. There had been no reward, but she figured it would come later and moved on.
The dragons exchanged troubled glances at Olga Romanova, who looked up at them with a completely clueless expression, then continued speaking.
"[—You are the one who bears the seed of authority, carrying on our power, having fulfilled the conditions to become a dragon as an Ascender—surely you know that much?]"
"[Or perhaps you are simply a pure-blooded heir of dragons.]"
"Uh, um—"
Olga couldn't answer their question—it was too vague.
If they asked whether dragon blood flowed in her veins, she would say yes.
Her body had been modified through the harsh experiments of the [Scientist], and dragon factors had surely been among them.
There were so many she honestly didn't know.
And she had simply used a [Class Change Item] to change classes.
A 【Legendary Class】 was one that could only be obtained by fulfilling certain 【Conditions】.
Olga had fulfilled them in a somewhat vague and roundabout way, but the result was clear: she was unequivocally a dragon.
"[It's also concerning that you take human form...]"
"Yes...? Why?"
Olga couldn't say "I'm human," so she asked cautiously.
The dragon slowly blinked, then opened its mouth languidly.
"[Even Ascenders are crushed and overwhelmed by the 【Presence of Dragons】. Ordinary humans would die just from seeing one.]"
"[We have seen your memories. You suppress your power to live among humans?]"
"[We are dragons. No matter the form, we never lose our pride—it matters not.]"
"[It wouldn't matter. Neither humans nor Ascenders can bear the existence or presence of dragons, so they remain unaware.]"
"Wait, hold on. So the stronger I get as a dragon, the harder it is for people to remember me?"
The dragons nodded in agreement, and Olga was left speechless.
【Dragons】 were the strongest beings among all creatures.
In human myths, they appeared as all sorts of terrifying entities, and now they were all embodied in Olga's Legendary Class 【Authority】.
She could even be called the representative of dragons, and if she became a god, she would be the next 【Dragon God】!!!
Come to think of it, before changing classes, people remembered her just fine.
But the higher she climbed after the class change, the less people could remember her properly—even her fans couldn't distinguish her clearly!!
And hadn't her comrades, including Wakamo, been the same?
"[It is your own desire to be recognized that suppresses you.]"
"[Spread your wings and take flight, dragon!! Bound to humans, bearing that weight, you are but a lowly imugi!]"
"[Awaken as a proud dragon! The time has come—bring humanity to ruin and usher in the age of dragons!!]"
"—By any chance, is the thing people perceive as my main identity my 【Glasses】?"
"""[Indeed!]"""
Fucking shitty!!
That was it.
Olga Romanova, who had obtained an EX-rank 【Legendary Class】, was no longer human—she was a dragon incarnate.
In myths, dragons were called gods, and beings who were not climbers couldn't even endure their presence.
Just gazing upon one induced submission; they stood at the pinnacle of species, burdensome even for Ascenders.
Thus, the higher Olga climbed the tower, the stronger the 【Dragon Blood】 flowing in her body became, drawing her closer to a true dragon.
And from the moment she changed classes, her latent 【Authority】 began to bloom and awaken.
The moment it became perceptible, no one could bear the scorching, savage, violent dragon aura—save that most of the world recognized her as the glasses(?) equipped on her face.
The dragons even complained that those glasses were acting as a seal, forcing her to remain human.
Olga desperately ignored their demands to shatter the glasses and end the long vacancy on the heavenly throne.
Her true form was actually the glasses!!!
As Olga sat there in shock, the dragons began a heated debate about the existence of the FFF-rank trash class [Idol].
Feeling mentally exhausted by talk of a "non-existent Legendary Class," Olga asked why [Idol] was treated as a hollow, trash-tier class.
"[Because it lacks authority.]"
"......"
In simple terms, the President's class was a Legendary Class without the greatest advantage and strength of Legendary Classes: 【Authority】.
Then what the hell was its advantage...?
It performed worse than normal classes yet couldn't even be treated as a proper Legendary Class—a third-rate class...?
'No, more importantly, the stronger I get, the less even the President can distinguish me from my glasses.'
Overwhelmed by the shock, Olga felt dizzy and rose from the sofa.
She had no idea what had happened—evil spirits and corpses were swarming everywhere.
Was she still half-asleep? She groped her face, sighed at the absence of her glasses, and stood up.
Chills—!
[The Great Demon's Soulstone casts [Thought Induction] on you!]
[Your resilient dragon mentality nullifies the mental attack!]
"[—Speak your wish, desperate one.]"
She couldn't grasp the situation, but the mood light inside her chest—the one she had hidden away to tell the manager tomorrow—spoke to her.
Unclear if it had revealed itself now or before, the power emanating from the mood light in the shape of a soulstone was unmistakably a 【Babel Fragment】.
However, it felt somewhat degraded? It couldn't be that an item even President Wakamo had controlled was this weak.
"[Indeed, I am a degraded Babel Fragment. A great demon descended to this world after countless offerings. Soon, I shall be summoned forth. Holder of the soulstone, protect it, and I shall reward you—even make a pact with you, a great demon.]"
"—Then, could you make me popular? At least stop treating my glasses like my true form."
"[That is no wish I can grant. I can only kill the strongest [Idol] in your mind.]"
"How would you kill her?"
"[With the violence of a great demon like me!]"
—This reeks of a con artist.
More surprising was its bold claim of victory over President Wakamo, even after reading her memories.
No, killing the President VS making Olga Romanova popular VS stopping people from treating Olga like a glasses stand.
Of these three, the easiest was the first?
The other two were practically impossible?
After sleeping and dreaming of dragons, she woke to a great demon telling her to guard the [Soulstone] until its summoning.
Unable to distinguish dream from reality, Olga—as a religious person—shook her head, refusing a demon.
"Evil demon! Begone in the name of the Lord's authority!"
"[Protect my soulstone!]"
The great demon repeated only that its summoning was imminent.
Annoyed, Olga smacked the soulstone, but it didn't even crack.
The spirit mocked her, saying it would have destroyed it itself if possible.
"Mocking me? A demon?"
"[I shall corrupt you and make you my minion, sole dragon!!]"
The soulstone in Olga's hand glowed, beginning to absorb the surrounding mana.
Devouring the millions of units of mana Wakamo had released during battle, the soulstone emitted a menacing red light and started summoning [Demons] en masse.
Surrounded by a horde of demons in an instant, Olga clutched the soulstone, smashed through the cabin wall, and bolted out.
She had to find Sadako!!
Her [Form Transformation] could destroy it!
"No, why is my room's mood light a soulstone summoning a great demon?!"
"[The cabin's proxy is already my minion! Run if you like! I shall pursue you endlessly!!]"
"Really?"
Casting her newly acquired skill [Dragon's Lair] to create a [Domain] like Wakamo's, Olga gripped the soulstone and asked.
As she began fading into transparency via Wakamo's skill, the great demon shouted desperately, but it was too late.
The cabin proxy—who had become the great demon's minion by accident while filling in for the Three Musketeers—burst into the lair along with the summoning ritual.
The closer to the soulstone, the stronger the great demon's power grew, and the faster the summons.
The great demon inhaled the damp, cold air of the [Dragon's Lair]. It seemed to grow stronger just from that.
Until it saw the additional seven lairs nested inside.
※※※
BOOM—!!
"The one who wins in a fight gets to be the male!! Penis fencing!!"
Among flatworms in the ocean, there's a worm called Pseudobiceros harem GDQ hinds.
They're hermaphrodites that mate by stabbing their penis into the opponent and pulling out at full speed.
Like fencing, they desperately try to stab first without getting hit.
"I'll turn that idol body into a female's!!"
And like those creatures, the Satyros thrashed wildly, swinging its dual organs and howling madly.
It had been consumed by its own authority 【Rut】, roaring like a beast.
The typical type devoured by power, losing its ego. As an otaku, Wakamo was familiar with such things.
In the first place, authority was the power of gods.
If someone obtained an authority, no one else could obtain the same one. That was her guess from fighting the [Idol] on floor 60.
Thus, she had no choice but to kill the opponent.
And after obtaining 【Authority】? How much presence did the power of a god hold?
By inference, to become a 【God】, one's human ego or personality didn't matter.
The being called [Satyros] had been completely devoured by its rut-inducing authority, thinking and moving like a beast.
If others obtained authority but couldn't control it, the authority would become the master.
And in that case, they could never become gods.
'【Legendary Classes】 are the 【Authorities】 themselves!'
Including the constraint of fulfilling minimal conditions, they granted only one authority, which naturally bloomed as one climbed the tower.
That explained why there couldn't be two Legendary Classes, and why the [Idol] on floor 60 had a completely different form from Wakamo's.
The two association heads had told her that 【Classes】 allowed one to choose 【Authority】 based on how they had lived.
However, achieving the inhuman 【Conditions】 required to obtain it had stalled both of them.
And no matter how high Wakamo climbed, no authority emerged.
Because it was a 【Legendary Class (without authority)】.
'Basically, a confirmed has-been.'
If someone obtained 【Authority】, the balance among climbers would shift from that moment.
Despite unleashing every fierce attack so far, the authority-wielding Satyros had taken almost no damage.
It was killable, so Wakamo was fighting with all she had.
In contrast, Satyros moved with simple thrusting motions, as if just landing one would mean victory.
Harshly put, even a dog would use its brain more than this.
Yet the [Satyros], constantly using 【Ether】, seemed unbeatable for Wakamo.
'Does our company have anyone like that? A climber with authority from the start, like Satyros?'
Satyros couldn't properly wield its authority, couldn't control its power, was drunk on its own authority, rutting and barking like a rabid dog.
It was less the climber wielding the authority and more the authority wielding the climber.
Even Wakamo using 【Idol's True Form】 couldn't land a hit.
'Then why didn't the Vatican Tower Lord use authority? Did he only obtain the [Idol]'s body?'
It had spammed authority-like things, but perhaps it was just a monster mimicking the [Idol] from floor 60?
Unable to grasp how Idols acquired authority, Wakamo couldn't speculate further.
Dodging the wildly flailing thing between its legs without even grazing it was challenge enough!!
The idol body was holding up, but instinct told her getting pierced meant the end.
【Authority】 wielded divine power utterly beyond common sense.
It could stop time, so turning her female the instant it stabbed was possible!!
"Die already!!!"
Wakamo grabbed the extending arm, twisted and snapped it, then leaped.
She hooked her toe into Satyros's nose, yanked it down, and slammed it into the opposite floor with a thud.
Despite its shoulder joint, elbow, and palm all shattered, Satyros still moved.
Driven by the singular desire to pounce!!
※※※
Wakamo's guesses were all essentially correct.
【Legendary Classes】 existed to awaken 【Authority】.
As Olga Romanova grew and completed herself as a 【Dragon】, her 【Fighting Spirit】 intensified.
The old her would have cheered and screamed in joy at Super★Asuka's stage.
But now she felt "This is it?"—influenced by her own power.
【Authority】 contained the essences of all who had wielded it before.
Fail to make it your own, and it would devour you, turning you into someone else entirely.
—Eventually, to the point where someone had to kick away the ladder.
The degree of 【Authority】 varied by the class's rank.
For 【Dragons】, worshipped even now and renowned in myths, it distorted the world's very perception.
After conquering [floor 60], even Wakamo Corporation members didn't question Olga's true form being glasses.
Bearing such immense rank, they could only perceive fragments, which became shackles on her own power—.
From Olga's perspective, her feelings must be complicated.
Conversely, [Satyros] was a class that could wield fragments of 【Authority】 just by classing into it.
Good? At low floors, influenced by the power, one's ego couldn't stay intact.
Yes, this was the true nature of so-called 【Legendary Classes】.
Then what about regular 【Classes】?
.....
...
....
"Trouble."
While Adelheid had turned the [Demon] visiting her home into a masochist slave(?).
While Iosif, dreaming of dragons and accidentally forced into battle with a great demon, was bustling about.
The group that fled underground confronted the altar where the [Great Demon]'s body was being summoned.
Frankly, it was ridiculously massive, reminiscent of the dragon Wakamo fought in the Japanese tower.
Could they even win if they fought?
Even Sadako broke into cold sweat, saying it felt similar to a 【Babel Fragment】.
At the moment of summoning, it might be an absolute existence no one could stop.
Asuka said her fuel efficiency sucked, so it wouldn't last long.
Of course, not before flipping Switzerland upside down.
"For now, let's split up and search for the exit."
Accepting Wanda Hye's suggestion, the group divided.
Wakamo, fighting [Satyros] above, messaged that the battle was dragging on longer than expected and left Mei with the great demon as backup.
Asuka, Aiba, and Yu Ying went left; Wanda Hye, Sadako, and Kang Yeoul went right.
The visibly accelerating great demon summoning suddenly halted, so they decided to scout slowly.
Demons and ghost-type monsters appeared along the way, but regrettably, they weren't threats.
Too weak.
'Mana's a bit tight, but it'll be fine.'
After conquering [floor 60], Sadako had suddenly gained 【Qualification】, leaving her unable to recover mana.
But she had tattoo items storing mana, so she wasn't too worried.
What concerned her more was the choices displayed until she selected one—choices that wouldn't vanish.
【Violence】
-Kill 10,000 people. (Unachieved)
【Martial Arts】
-Kill 10,000 people with martial arts. (Unachieved)
Every option was like that.
She wanted to consult the leader Wakamo, but her mouth wouldn't open when she tried.
The ingenious info-leak prevention left Sadako with only one choice: ignore it.
'Why is it all about killing?'
Some seemed similar or identical.
At least there were somewhat humane ones.
【Martial Arts】
-Create a martial art nonexistent in this world.
-Gather 10,000 disciples.
【Magic】
-Create a spell nonexistent in this world.
-Master 10,000 spells.
Yeah, that sort of thing.
What changes would 【Authority】 and 【Ether】 bring to the world?
And how many innocents would die for one's desires and strength?
'Some are achieved, though—'
【Drinking】
-Drink 100 million L of alcohol. (Achieved)
No thanks.
She didn't want to climb the tower aiming for 【God of Alcohol】.
Hobbies should stay fun; make them work, and they sour!!
How far had they walked when presences ahead halted everyone? Three figures emerged confidently, cloaked in guardian-marked capes.
"Our seeds have sprouted, so we came to harvest—only for another unexpected guest."
"[Guardians]?!"
One was human, but another was [Human]!! And there was a short child with elf ears.
The last felt close to [Monster], but not like tower monsters.
Ambiguous?
"You meddlers!! Even if riffraff lost to you, we're different!!"
Truthfully, they were scared shitless.
The guardian executives wanted to run.
They had no desire to fight these lunatics, battle or not.
They had only been observing suspicious movements by [Six Freaks] in Switzerland.
Upon learning they planned to summon a [Great Demon], the guardians naturally herded criminals and mafia into the cabin.
The cabin proxy was actually a guardian spy, so his mental domination by the [Great Demon] instead of climbers was an unexpected accident.
Anyway, the guardians planned to harvest the [Great Demon], a degraded 【Babel Fragment】 emitting that level of energy.
After two years of waiting, they executed the plan—only to run into Kang Yeoul's party.
Could they win? Probably?
Wanda Hye transformed into a bear to block the [Human]'s attack of pure white starlight.
The passage wasn't wide enough for full size, and without a black tower nearby, the [Human] took almost no damage.
Watching, Kang Yeoul recalled that [Humans] might have included past Ascenders—who obtained 【Authority】.
The [Human] before them might have 【Authority】!!
Then the elf?
Sadako charged and kicked, but roots erupted from the ground, shoving her back.
"—【Legendary Classes】 become threats if left alone!! We'll exterminate you here! Go, Ascender!"
Called an Ascender by the guardian executive, the elf mechanically raised its head and lunged at Sadako.
Her [Form Transformation] barely worked; clicking her tongue, Sadako fought—but it mirrored Wakamo's struggle with Satyros.
Against [Humans], without [Divinity] climbers needed to destroy black towers.
Against 【Authority】 holders, without 【Ether】, fights didn't even start.
How many climbers in the world could? Ten?
Even qualified ones couldn't communicate properly.
"Kang Yeoul-nim!! Any ideas?!"
"—Not none."
[Maneater] was probably a class gaining 【Authority】 early.
[Satyros] too, and both had died before.
They weren't invincible, even if unbeatable.
Surprisingly, Wakamo had a miracle skill counted as [Skill] yet not judged as one.
But even she didn't know what it would do!!
Already overwhelmed fighting Satyros, Wakamo had Kang Yeoul stuff an instrument in her mouth.
"Recorder VTuber fairy—lend your power to us!!"
[Skill 【Idol's Dance Ban】 activated!!]
The melody echoed, a lively, rhythmic dance-song step bursting forth.
Moving almost on autopilot like half-asleep, Kang Yeoul replayed the song and dance.
[Something very very special may happen! A random special blessing occurs!]
[Consume 【Broadcast Points】 to increase luck!]
And then the alert popped up.
"GM, rolling the dice."
But since it's using broadcast points, all sides are 20.
[【Idol】 consumes 【Ether】 to bestow the wide-area blessing 【No Authority Use Allowed Fairly】]
"Die, you bitches."
Authority? Fights? Lame!!
Hear my song with the scam dice rolling 200k!!
The miraculous bug character born from the Korean tower.
Lacking 【Authority】, it filled the blank with whatever.
The fox god's eyes, holding a blank check in the Legendary Class industry, flashed gold.
"Consuming Ether for [Minor Magic: Cutting Mockery]."
Jealous? Then fight without authority too.
If you don't have it, fight without!