Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Layered Rock Cliff's Master
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The master of the Layered Rock Cliff.
To meet it, Havel headed to a cave at the center of the island.
Naturally, Brekchino was the one guiding him there.
He had essentially become their guide.
Yet he followed Havel's orders without a word.
Brekchino had witnessed Havel's power firsthand.
He had no intention of defying his commands.
On the other hand, he was grateful, too.
It felt empty in a way, but looking back, Valtua had gained the island thanks to Havel.
The Layered Rock Cliff Island would become a vital resource for the Valtua Union moving forward.
If that was a favor, then it was a favor.
And for him, it might even be an opportunity.
"Uncle, wasn't there a magic family called Selentia on this island? I've always wanted to spar with them!"
"No idea."
Havel, who had been chatting with the pyromaniac Azaris Ignor, locked eyes with him just then.
"Lord Havel, what kind of family is Banpellyon?"
It was a chance for the Valtua Union to grow even larger.
Havel's gaze turned to Brekchino.
He caught the emotion reflected in the man's eyes.
Havel had been through this situation countless times before.
Long ago.
Those who sought to join Banpellyon all had that same look in their eyes.
'Even if the fools below betrayed us and brought the family to ruin.'
Havel had seen Arthur with his own eyes.
He could lead the family even better than Havel ever could.
And Dante would lend his strength to that effort.
'In that case, my job is simple.'
It was a family he had ruined with his own hands.
So all he had to do was restore it to the form it was meant to inherit.
"Right now, it's a small family."
With that, Havel told Brekchino about Banpellyon.
"But before long, it will become the greatest family of all."
There was sincerity in Havel's words.
Brekchino read that sincerity clearly.
"In that case, our Valtua Union..."
"If Banpellyon is your goal, then go meet the family head, Arthur Banpellyon, and make your plea directly."
Havel cut him off.
It wasn't his place to accept Valtua.
That decision belonged solely to the current head, Arthur.
Brekchino fell silent at those words.
Instead, his eyes gleamed with sharp resolve.
"I'll pay a visit to Banpellyon someday."
The Banpellyon that Havel belonged to would surely shake the world.
He wasn't foolish enough to let the rope dangling before him slip away.
And Penbola August watched the whole exchange.
'Havel... this guy's not just scary because of his power.'
He had a force that bent people to his will.
His overwhelming might naturally inspired admiration.
But beyond that, there was something called charisma that drew people in.
Just following beside Havel made you believe you'd reach the pinnacle without fail.
He was the kind of man who instilled that faith.
So those who saw him instinctively wanted to stand by his side.
Like moths drawn to a flame.
The one difference from a campfire?
Havel always rewarded that faith in full.
'Dangerous. But running from the eye of the storm would be foolish.'
As Penbola's mind raced with thoughts, the group came to a halt.
"We've arrived."
Brekchino soon announced their arrival.
At the end of the cave.
Before a massive wall.
Three keyholes sat plainly there, waiting.
Havel rummaged in his pocket and pulled out the keys.
He slotted them into the holes.
Click—
The rusty keys ground into place with a echoing sound.
Rumble!
In that instant, the ceiling came crashing down without warning.
"Whoa! The ceiling's collapsing!"
"Get back!"
The followers scrambled backward in a panic.
In the meantime, Havel had already drawn his sword.
And in the blink of an eye, he swung it at speeds no one could follow.
Crack, shraaaash!
The falling ceiling shattered into powder and vanished.
Everyone stared at him in shock.
But Havel paid them no mind.
Instead, he looked up at the ceiling.
"Hmm."
With a short hum, Havel's figure vanished.
"...He's gone up."
Realizing Havel had ascended to the surface, Penbola dashed to the collapsed ceiling.
"Azaris! We're going up too!"
"Damn it, he's gonna snag it all!"
In that moment, as Azaris extended his hand, everyone's bodies floated into the air.
They pierced through the ceiling in an instant.
Rumble!
Suddenly, thunder rumbled from the dark clouds overhead.
"Lightning?"
Penbola frowned.
The master of Layered Rock Cliff Island had never been conquered before.
His gaze snapped toward something.
There, atop the sky, Havel stood with his sword lowered.
No one knew what he had done, but he stood motionless in the air.
"Penbola."
Baria Graiza called out to him.
He was pointing somewhere.
Penbola followed his finger and turned his head.
Something was pouring down from the base of the Layered Rock Cliff Island.
It was a horde of sea calamity beasts.
The Golden Generation members, including those from Valtua, hurriedly grabbed their weapons.
To block the calamity beasts from climbing the cliffs.
But there were so many that it looked overwhelming.
"We should help out."
At Baria's suggestion, Penbola glanced at Havel.
He was still staring silently at the dark clouds.
Penbola bit his lip.
Then he turned away.
"Azaris, Baria, let's each take a direction and split up."
"Aw, I wanna go to the boss!"
"Sure."
"Brekchino, you handle the north where your union is?"
"Yes, we'll hold that side."
A narrow island swarmed by that many calamity beasts would be done for.
So the four scattered quickly.
In the meantime, Havel glanced downward.
'Good judgment. No wonder he's the Golden Generation leader.'
Of course, he seemed pretty miffed about losing the main role.
"Main role or not, this is beyond what the Golden Generation can handle."
Havel gripped his sword tighter.
Dawn light began gathering on his blade.
The Tower's difficulty scaled to the climber's level.
Now that Havel was here, it was at maximum difficulty.
This was no longer something Penbola could touch.
"You lot sure love your gloom."
With a curt remark, Havel swung his sword straight at the sky.
Flash!
In that instant, a blaze of light engulfed the dark clouds.
The clouds shattered into pieces before the intense glow.
Through the scattered remnants of the clouds.
Ding!
A bell on a necklace chimed.
Amid the ringing, spiraling horns came into view.
Beneath those horns hung a serpent's head.
And attached to its long, humanoid torso were three tails.
A calamity beast with four feathered wings.
The master of the Tower's 6th hierarchy, Layered Rock Cliff Island.
Guardian Deity Nacheol.
That was its name.
Nacheol tilted its head a full 180 degrees to look at Havel.
Its serpentine face evoked an owl.
"Shriiik—"
At the same time, its tongue flicked out and retracted from its mouth.
Boom!
Suddenly, something exploded right beside Havel's head.
It was a shock that would have blown a normal person's head clean off.
Yet Havel stood there utterly unharmed.
"They said it was a 6th hierarchy master, and sure enough... it's starting to surpass what humans can touch."
If anything, Havel looked intrigued.
The attack just now was clearly beyond human limits.
The beast had whipped one of its tails at Havel's head at speeds invisible to the eye.
It had no effect on Havel.
But if that tail had swung down below, it would have caused a massacre.
"Shiiik?"
The problem was that its opponent was Havel.
Conventional attacks didn't work on one who had transcended diamond indestructibility.
"What, looking for this?"
On the contrary, the moment the enemy attacked was the perfect opening to strike back.
As proof, what Havel held in his hand was none other than Nacheol's tail.
"Shiiiirrrk!"
Nacheol raged as one of its tails was torn clean off in an instant.
'Its intelligence feels lower than the 5th hierarchy ones.'
Havel tossed the severed tail aside while gauging its reaction.
Then he noticed something.
This thing had only appeared after he inserted the keys.
It had been hiding its presence in its hierarchy all along.
Unlike the previous hierarchy masters, which had always existed and revealed themselves because of Havel.
This one had emerged only after the keys were used.
'So it was just born, then?'
That explained the earlier curiosity and the reckless attack.
It made sense if it was still naive to the world, mind growing amid its birth.
'In that case, maybe.'
All the hierarchy masters appearing in the 6th were brand new.
Havel's eyes narrowed in thought.
If someone other than him was climbing the Tower and awakening these masters.
'They'd all die horribly.'
It could cause quite the uproar.
But Havel had no intention of taking responsibility.
This was the Tower, one of the Primordial Three Calamities.
From the moment you entered, you staked your life.
People said all over the world.
That Tower climbers would eventually clear even the Demonic Palace.
'Frogs in a well can't stay cooped up forever.'
Havel's eyes gleamed with clear resolve.
Havel was no saint.
He had shed such sentiments during the unification wars long ago.
And in the Demonic Palace, most of his ordinary emotions had worn away.
Even as an immortal, his body had been torn apart countless times there.
Regrettably, he felt no pity.
The greatest drive moving him now was rebuilding Banpellyon.
'So I'll turn this into an opportunity instead.'
When these masters rampaged wildly.
If he, cloaked in Banpellyon's mantle, took them down, the name would spread.
Havel looked up.
And this one would be the first to learn that name.
"Sorry to say, but right after you're born..."
"Shiiik!"
In that instant, Nacheol spread its wings and charged at Havel like lightning.
With a flash, it closed in right before his face in a heartbeat.
But Havel's curved sword had already pierced its head.
Splat!
In that moment, Nacheol's two arms clamped down on the blade.
Meanwhile, its tail, infused with aura, shot toward Havel like a spear.
"Oh?"
Havel's eyes shifted to a purple hue, appraising it.
Nacheol's head was undeniably impaled on his sword.
Yet even impaled, its head was regenerating.
A regenerative power that rivaled his own as an immortal.
Worthy of being one of the 6th hierarchy masters.
"Kee-gik!"
It laughed as if claiming victory.
But that was all.
Whether it blocked the sword or not meant nothing to Havel.
Slash!
In that instant, Nacheol's tail was severed once more.
Not just the regenerated one, but the remaining two as well, all at once.
Nacheol's four eyes bulged wide.
Havel's sword was still fixed in its head.
So what had—?
As Nacheol wondered, it spotted Havel's hand.
Havel's hand was raised like a blade.
After transcending to diamond indestructibility.
Havel's body itself had become a weapon.
Thus, even his hand blade had sliced through the tails tougher than steel.
"Giiiik!"
In fury, Nacheol pushed its regeneration to the extreme.
Hundreds of tendrils erupted from its severed tails.
All bent on killing Havel.
"That's enough."
Havel spoke as he regarded Nacheol.
"I've got a good read on your level."
In that instant, light gathered on Havel's sword embedded in Nacheol's head.
Before the rising dawn, the heart of the freshly born Nacheol sank.
Forgetting to swing its tails, it yanked its head free from the blade.
The urge to flee spread through it instantly.
Thud!
"You can come whenever you want..."
Havel's outstretched arm clamped around Nacheol's neck.
"...but leaving? Not so easy."
And high in the sky, the dawn bloomed.