Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: 18th Floor
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“Ugh… I’m tired.”
I’d spent the whole day glued to the gallery, reveling in the reactions on the ladder, and now exhaustion had hit me hard.
It was like the aftermath of wringing every last drop of dopamine from my body—a crashing wave of fatigue.
Today, I wanted to sleep in.
I glanced down at the little sand golem wriggling at my feet.
“This guy waking me up again would be a problem…”
If it jabbed me awake with a toothpick again, I might just turn it into sand in a fit of rage.
Even if it wasn’t human, that would be going too far.
“How can I keep this thing tied down quietly…”
I pondered for a moment, then headed to the small flowerpot in the corner of the room.
“Dirt to dirt, dust to dust.”
The flowerpot was covered in a layer of white dust.
Inside, only the long-dead remnants of some plant remained.
“Perfect. This should work for him too.”
I carefully picked it up and half-buried it in the soil of the flowerpot.
The little sand golem squirmed for a bit but soon seemed surprisingly content.
Maybe because it shared the same earth attribute.
Next time, a sand bed might make it happy.
It was starting to feel more and more like a pet.
I stopped those pointless thoughts and lay down in bed for some sweet sleep.
How long had I slept?
A soft tickling on my cheek made me crack my eyes open.
The little sand golem—had it escaped? Persistent little…
No.
Something felt off.
The air was fresher and damper than usual.
It almost felt like I was deep in a forest.
“Mm…”
I slowly opened my eyes.
The sight before me left me stunned.
“…Did I fall asleep inside the tower?”
My room looked like the heart of the Amazon rainforest.
The ornamental plant that had withered away had grown massive, piercing toward the ceiling.
Vines sprouted from the grape stem I’d left half-eaten yesterday.
The walls and ceiling were blanketed in thick vines and moss.
And that wasn’t all.
The sand clone in the flowerpot, and even I myself, felt brimming with more energy than usual.
The little sand golem was wriggling in the pot, puffing up its body like it was stretching.
“What the hell is going on?”
With a confused mind, I searched for the cause.
And soon, I found the center of all this chaos.
The World Tree seed I’d tossed in the corner.
It was pulsing faintly like a living heart, infusing life into every plant around it.
A soft blue glow emanated from the seed, filling the room with mystery.
This was insane.
I calmly pulled out my phone.
“First things first, proof shot…”
No matter what happens, always document it first.
Moments like this don’t come back.
But with the room choked by vines, I couldn’t even get to my computer for the gallery.
I decided to clear the plants.
“Just turn them to sand, easy.”
Plants were living things too. Erosion would take a lot of mana.
But they wouldn’t resist as fiercely as monsters, so it wasn’t impossible.
I reached out toward the vines.
The moment I activated Erosion to revert them to sand—
*Smack—!*
“Ow!”
A vine whipped like a lash, striking my cheek.
I tumbled to the floor.
“W-what…”
Clutching my stinging cheek, I stared at the vine.
A vine that moved like it was alive?
Insight Eye showed the power flowing from the seed.
The World Tree seed pulsed violently, as if defending the little lives it had created.
Every plant in the room writhed toward me in unison.
“No way, this is crazy…”
I dropped everything and resolved to climb the tower right now.
My small, precious room was about to burst.
I had to hurl this unknown thing onto the 20th floor as soon as possible.
***
I entered the 18th floor.
I checked the weight of the bag slung over my shoulder once more.
Today’s goal: the World Tree seed.
Figure out what it really was.
I scanned my surroundings and muttered softly.
“Desertification.”
This time, I controlled the power.
I minimized the skill’s range.
Only about a one-meter radius around me turned into dry sand.
Enough sand to create clones and maintain a protective sand barrier around my body.
That was plenty.
I made the little sand golem and one clone to escort it, sent them ahead, then settled into position.
I pulled the World Tree seed from my bag.
It had grown too big to carry comfortably now.
Using sand, I levitated it into the air.
It still pulsed like a heart, drawing in the surrounding air.
A blue light spread softly, purifying the poison.
I used Insight Eye to examine the process closely.
Then, a new sight appeared—one I hadn’t seen before.
It wasn’t just purifying the air.
“Even the poison in the plants…”
Threads of blue mana extended from the seed, reaching the roots of nearby plants.
That’s when I realized.
The entire swamp and jungle were infested with poison.
Not just floating in the air.
The ground, the plants—everything making up this space was diseased.
“I never noticed because I just bulldozed everything with Desertification…”
The world through Insight Eye was horrifying.
Plants that should brim with life were tainted by poison.
The swamp and underbrush reeked of death.
But where the seed’s purification touched, it was different.
The black aura faded visibly.
Wilted leaves regained vitality, drooping stems straightened.
I watched the miraculous scene, entranced for a moment.
That’s when it happened.
The scouting little sand golem and its escort clone returned to me.
They dropped a lizardman corpse at my feet and stood there blankly, like eager puppies.
As if waiting for praise.
“What, you want a pat on the head or something?”
The little sand golem nodded.
Unbelievable.
I lightly stroked its head.
“Good job, good job.”
But something was off.
The lizardman corpse.
A slender arrow was embedded deep in the center of its skull.
Not shot by my clone.
My clones used crude sand spears.
“…Hey, you guys didn’t catch this one, did you?”
The little sand golem averted its eyes under my scrutiny.
Okay, positive thinking.
Lying means its intelligence went up.
I turned back to the lizardman corpse.
“This is a dark elf arrow, right?”
The exact same one that ambushed me on the lower floor.
Impossible to forget.
I furrowed my brow.
Friendly fire?
No way.
The arrow had pierced dead-center in the back of the skull.
Too clean for a mistake.
Clear evidence of a hunt.
“Monsters fighting each other?”
Was that even possible?
I eyed the corpse suspiciously.
A situation I’d never encountered while climbing the tower.
Monsters always charged at me, their common enemy.
I’d never considered disputes or alliances among them.
A chill ran down my spine.
If I’d Desertified the area like usual?
This peculiar lizardman corpse would have vanished into sand without a trace.
I’d have passed by this bizarre phenomenon forever ignorant.
“Yeah… can’t just bulldoze this one.”
I stood up.
This floor needed a different approach.
I shrank the little sand golem back to small size, placed it on my head, and advanced slowly.
Desertification stayed minimized.
To avoid missing any other clues.
It didn’t take long for my suspicion to turn to certainty.
Similar corpses littered the underbrush.
Lizardmen killed by dark elf arrows.
Dark elves with chests pierced by lizardman spears.
They were killing each other.
This jungle was a battlefield between two races.
“Why though…”
No idea.
Then, a chilling presence from behind.
I didn’t turn.
No need.
*Clang!*
A dull sound rang out as the dagger aimed at my back bounced off the transparent sand barrier.
The sand barrier performed perfectly.
“Not a chance.”
I turned around.
The dark elf, stealth broken, hurriedly retreated.
I fired a few casual sand bullets at it.
It collapsed with a thud.
“Guess fighting each other doesn’t mean they’re on my side.”
I was still the common enemy.
I turned my gaze to the fallen dark elf.
“Hm?”
Unlike the others, this one felt different.
Flashy armor and dagger, obvious at a glance.
Especially eye-catching was the small pouch around its neck.
Silver thread embroidery I’d never seen before.
You never know.
Might be a clue.
I rummaged through its belongings.
“Oh?”
The pouch screaming “treasure” around its neck.
I reached for it.
My hand grasped something cold and smooth.
Inside was a small pendant.
A dried leaf sealed in a glass vial.
It looked crude.
But the item info said otherwise.
[World Tree’s Dried Leaf]
[Grade: Rare]
[Growth Item]
[Slightly increases stamina and mana recovery.]
[Mana stat +1]
[Guide: Resonates with traces of forgotten kin.]
“Growth item?”
A new type I’d never seen.
I rubbed my chin.
“Hm… stats are kinda meh right now.”
But hey, something’s better than nothing.
It’ll get better with use.
Plus, my only item was that ill-fitting robe.
I hung the pendant around my neck without hesitation.
A cool sensation spread, followed by faint mana flowing through my body.
How much stronger could this get?
I fiddled with the pendant as I moved forward.
Right then, a lizardman burst out in front of me.
A sand bullet fired without hesitation.
*Whoosh—!*
As the lizardman crumpled, a faint vibration came from the pendant in my hand.
[World Tree’s Dried Leaf: Mana stat +1]
“Oh?”
I immediately checked the item info again.
[World Tree’s Dried Leaf]
[Grade: Rare]
[Growth Item]
[Slightly increases stamina and mana recovery.]
[Mana stat +2]
[Guide: Resonates with traces of forgotten kin.]
The mana stat had really increased by 1.
Not bad if it’s +1 per kill.
“Someday it might hit legendary…”
I grinned in satisfaction.
The last option, Guide, I dismissed as flavor text.