Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Memento Mori
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News of Baria's disappearance.
Hearing this from a member of the Graiza family, Havel furrowed his brow.
There might have been a sense that Baria was underrated because he was next to Havel.
But he possessed considerable skill, befitting a direct descendant of one of the Five Great Families.
On top of that, he had the Graiza family backing him.
No matter how bold the culprit was, kidnapping a direct heir of one of the Five Great Families?
Honestly, Havel found it hard to believe right away.
"I can't trust the word of some guy I just met."
For starters, the man might not even be from the Graiza family.
That's why Havel had demanded proof.
"Here, proof that I'm from the Graiza family."
The man quickly showed him a badge he was carrying.
The badge bore the Graiza family crest.
And it was faintly linked to him.
"If my life ends, this badge shatters immediately."
"Were you with those guys to search the 7th Hierarchy?"
"Yes, we needed to sneak in secretly. They couldn't be allowed to notice us."
"Those guys."
A group with the power to kidnap a direct heir of one of the Five Great Families.
Even Havel's eyes lit up with interest.
It seemed a new force had emerged in the Tower.
"Tell me the details."
At those words, the giant's subordinates all collapsed to the floor at once.
They had all rolled their eyes back and passed out.
The man who was seeing this for the first time wore a shocked expression behind his mask.
He had heard of Havel's prowess, but not to this extent.
And at the same time, hope dawned.
The hope that they could rescue Baria.
"Spill everything you can."
Chaeng!
This was while the giant and Pyod were still fighting.
A search party member from the Graiza family.
The man who introduced himself as Owen.
According to him, Baria's communication had been cut off.
Not long after Havel had left the Tower.
Baria had clearly followed Havel up to the 7th Hierarchy.
And the ones with him were none other than Moebius and his group.
Moebius, a candidate for the Serpent of the Whisperer.
Even with him along, Baria's reports had suddenly stopped.
By the time the Graiza family hurriedly investigated.
They belatedly realized one fact.
That Baria had been abducted by a certain group.
And the Graiza family knew exactly who that group was.
"They're called Memento Mori."
"Memento Mori?"
Havel tilted his head at the unfamiliar name.
He had never heard it before.
"Yes. They're not known to the world, but they've formed over a long time from overlapping individuals—a dangerous organization."
Monsters whose individual power rivaled entire families.
If the Five Great Families were the beacons illuminating the world.
Then they were the shadows cast behind those beacons.
And beacons could not ignore the shadows.
Because facing them meant feeling firsthand just how strong they were.
"They had some kind of deal with our Five Great Families. And it seems they kidnapped Lord Baria as payback for breaking that deal."
"What kind of deal?"
Owen hesitated, fidgeting.
"W-Well, honestly, I don't know the details myself."
Those who know too much are the most endangered.
So it was only natural that a mere search party member like Owen wouldn't know.
He had just followed orders from above.
Havel slowly stroked his chin.
Memento Mori, huh.
There hadn't been anything like that in his era.
So they must have formed within the past century.
'If even the Five Great Families are wary of them, these guys probably wield Calamities too.'
Havel had thought up to now that the Five Great Families were deliberately hiding Calamities.
They wanted a monopoly on power.
But just as human hands can't block the sun.
No matter how great the families, they couldn't hide everything.
So some people must have obtained Calamities one by one somehow.
And those scattered individuals must have thought.
Rather than tiptoeing around the Five Great Families, let's form a group that makes them tiptoe.
'And the result is probably this Memento Mori group.'
He wondered if the Whisperer was connected to Memento Mori.
Or perhaps the Whisperer was part of Memento Mori.
'No, that can't be. The Five Great Families made a deal with Memento Mori.'
Memento Mori had started moving after the 7th Hierarchy opened.
So their deal with the Five Great Families might have been about monopolizing the Tower.
'None of the group's members climb the Tower. That's probably the terms they agreed on.'
As expected from a former family head.
Havel grasped the situation with remarkable speed and reached that conclusion.
'The Whisperer and Memento Mori are unrelated.'
They had to be treated as separate groups.
On top of that, there was God's Poison and God's Duality.
The Whisperer had planted Edler with God's Poison as well.
So this had to be separate too.
'Maybe Memento Mori is a subordinate group under God's Duality.'
Not enough info to conclude on that front.
Having thought that far, Havel turned to Owen.
"Alright, I've got the gist."
He needed to meet these Memento Mori guys.
With that decision, Havel rose from his seat.
"Where did the contact cut off?"
"Floor 73."
"Right above us. A look around should turn up some clues."
There had been a Tower-related deal between the Five Great Families and Memento Mori.
In a way, Havel breaking that deal was the cause.
Spreading his name might draw them out first.
So he needed to make his name known far and wide.
"Urk, ughhh!"
Right on cue, the giant collapsed.
Covered in wounds all over, he rolled his eyes back in exhaustion.
In front of him, Pyod was breathing heavily.
Pyod had defeated the giant.
The giant had been quite skilled, so Pyod heaved ragged breaths.
Seeing this, Havel clicked his tongue.
"Can't even beat a guy like that easily? You've got a long way to go if you want to get stronger."
"D-Do you even remember how many battles this is for me?!"
Pyod cried out in protest.
And rightly so—he had fought five battles back-to-back.
Facing a famed giant after reaching his physical limits.
Even as a Freya clansman of Gaiod's bloodline.
He couldn't avoid depleting his stamina after all that.
But Havel showed no mercy.
"The fact you can talk back means you've still got stamina to spare."
Pyod hurriedly clamped his mouth shut.
He realized too late that Havel had baited him.
'Dante followed orders diligently without complaint. This one's a lost cause.'
Dante had been unusually compliant.
Having already dealt with Dante, Havel was dissatisfied with Pyod's resolve.
"On to the next. Things are getting busy, so we'll move faster."
"F-Faster from here?!"
Pyod's face twisted.
He had been full of determination when starting out with Havel.
But now, he suddenly wanted to run away.
Yet meeting Havel's eyes made him drop the thought.
That man would do worse than this the moment he fled.
So he had only one option.
To grit his teeth and endure while getting stronger.
"What a cursed fate."
Pyod lamented his life.
Whether he did or not, Havel leisurely stepped forward.
"Situation's urgent, so I'll move too. Balop, Owen, you three stick together for now."
Baria was a pretty decent guy.
It'd be a shame for someone that sharp to die caught up in some mess.
He was perfect for gathering intel on the side.
So within these next three days.
He'd collect every last piece.
Havel began moving in earnest.
And for Floor 72, that was practically a calamity.
Natural disasters can't be stopped by human power.
Even Havel, treated as a walking disaster, was no exception.
Leaving Pyod behind, Havel sought out every holder of pieces one by one.
With light-speed added to his legs, he could go anywhere now.
Spatial limits were practically nonexistent for him.
All he needed was the locations of groups holding pieces.
Which he had gotten in advance from Owen, who had been staying with the giant on Floor 72.
The giant sold pieces whenever he got them.
So he knew the locations of all the buyers.
'Useful guy.'
All that intel had passed straight to Havel.
The groups with the most pieces numbered four in total.
Morseus Alliance.
Rakladius Sword Clan.
Zerma Magic Tower.
Baugen Guild.
All unfamiliar names to Havel.
But according to Owen, they were formidable groups.
And the power dynamics included several upstart factions.
The Five Great Families had long subtly blocked anyone from reaching the top of the Tower.
And the climbers weren't entirely oblivious to it.
The families interfered whenever anyone tried to clear the 6th Hierarchy.
So those crushed under the families gave up on climbing.
Thinking the Tower was the Five Great Families' world anyway.
But now, even the Five Great Families were scrambling.
So all the old factions once suppressed by them were climbing again.
The Tower had entered an era of pure chaos.
New families and groups swarmed up like bamboo shoots after rain.
The established powers in the Tower were bewildered.
Wondering if there were this many experts outside all along.
Of course, the Five Great Families still led the pack in the end.
And Havel was moving to reclaim that forefront.
Kwang!
"Wh-What the—bombing run?!"
The moment Havel arrived with light-speed, the surrounding forest shook violently.
The Baugen Guild master, startled from his lodging, burst out.
Thinking a Calamity seed had dropped or something.
But no—standing there was a man with near-silver white hair.
His hair whipping in the wind, he lightly smiled through the dust.
"Yeah, spot on."
Agreeing with the bombing assessment, he vanished.
By the time the guild master widened his eyes, it was too late.
Havel's fist was already buried in his jaw.
Crack!
With a resounding thud, the man tumbled across the ground.
Broken teeth scattered around him.
Havel glanced at the panicked guild members.
"Remember well who took your keys today."
To spread the word of his return, he added.
"Banpellyon affiliate, Havel, is back."
At the name Havel, the dazed guild members' eyes bulged.
Few didn't know Havel's name by now.
The first to clear the 6th Hierarchy of the Tower.
He had become famous under that title.
'Not on the Sword Saint level, but.'
His name was properly known now.
As Havel collected the pieces, thinking the effect had worked.
An unexpected figure arrived, chasing the rumor of his return.
"Are you Havel?"
Havel eyed the man with blue hair.
A face similar to someone he'd seen before.
And at the same time, the emblem on his clothes looked familiar.
Of course it did.
"Glasis?"
One of the Five Great Families, a member of Glasis.
And Havel's eyes narrowed.
Because Calamity aura was leaking from the man's body.
"I've been looking for you. Havel, the one who shamed our family."
Havel slowly smiled at the man pointing at him.
He was none other than Glasis's second direct heir.
Artein Glasis.
"Not Memento Mori, but something else showed up."
Time to see the real power of the Five Great Families' forces.