Chapter 183 (2/2)

“…!” Su-hyeun’s eyes widened.

<<He climbed the tower?>>

Su-hyeun was sure that meant only one thing. The tower he mentioned must be the Tower of Trials that Su-hyeun had also been climbing.

“Well,” Luslec said, “It looks like you and I are the only ones in here though. I don’t know…where the other people came from.”

“Who are you?” Su-hyeun asked.

“What do you mean? I’m a human like you, of course. You don’t have to think too much or too long about it. Just knowing I’m human will be enough,” Luslec said and tapped Su-hyeun’s shoulder. “I’m leaving. See you later.”

Luslec passed by Su-hyeun. Su-hyeun narrowed his eyes and looked at the back of Luslec’s head.

<<He’s human? Like me?>> That was nonsense. <<Is he thinking I’m stupid or something?>>

Su-hyeun could see something clearly from Luslec’s back.

Rumble—

He was hiding enormous spirits. It looked like there were thousands, tens of thousands of spirits, maybe more than that. A tremendous number of souls were wriggling in his body and becoming one giant soul.

<<Is he a Necroelementist? Well. The fighting style isn’t a problem though…>> Su-hyeun turned his body again and headed to his room. <<I guess this trial won’t be too easy.>>

Su-hyeun knew now why the trial only had asked for him to be in quarterfinals. There were people like Luslec here. Winning wouldn’t be an easy thing. If the condition to pass the trial was winning the competition, it would have felt like the difficulty of the 50th floor, not the 42nd.

Act4

Half of the day passed after Su-hyeun’s fight. The preliminaries were all over, and it was the time for the real game to begin. The 128 surviving players were supposed to play in the tournament for the finals. They played the game in front of a large crowd this time. Su-hyeun’s trial was to get into the quarterfinals. To pass the trial, he had to win four games.

<<Quarterfinals, my ass.>>

Su-hyeun didn’t plan to just do the bare minimum to pass the trial. Since he was already participating, he aimed to win.

<<And for that…>>

Su-hyeun’s eyes became serious. He was in an empty room. But he felt like Luslec was standing in the middle of the room, watching him.

<

> The host called Su-hyeun from outside.

Su-hyeun knew that there wasn’t just one or two hosts of the gam. There were several, all with the same face and voice.

“Please be ready. Your turn will come in 2 matches.”

“Okay.” Su-hyeun rose from his seat.

Miru came out too, following Su-hyeun. According to the rules of the competition, it was possible to participate with the help of divine beasts, but Su-hyeun wasn’t planning to play Miru. If a player had a divine beast, it was common to get rid of that first in the fighting. Su-hyeun knew that, so he didn’t want to make Miru fight with him.

<<Also, it will be hard for Miru to get a comfortable position, in this small field.>>

Miru was able to protect himself when he could use a wide range. To avoid an attack, Miru needed to fly quickly in a large area.

Thump, thump—

He walked down a long hallway. At the end of it, the bright light from the stadium was coming in.

“Waaah!”

“Wow!”

Loud cheers drifted into the hall with the bright light. Su-hyeun walked a little faster. When he got out of the hallway, he could see the waiting seats for players and the stadium at once.

“Go! Go! Macsman!”

“I’ve bet it all on you! Don’t even come back if you lose the game!”

“Fight hard! Why are you guys just watching each other! Cowards!”

“Shame on you! On both of you!”

The loud cheering and cries of criticism were mixed. Su-hyeun went blank a little at the scene. There were hundreds of thousands of spectators, and they all seemed familiar.

<<They’re inhabitants.>>

They were inhabitants of each floor of the tower. They all looked different and they all had their own cultures. Su-hyeun was sure that the spectators were them.

<<But why are they here?>>

This place wasn’t the world of the 42nd floor. Su-hyeun was in the trial.

“Please, get ready,” the host, who had been following Su-hyeun, said in a dry voice.

Su-hyeun got a grip, but he still couldn’t take his eyes off the stands as he was walking. It was the first time for Su-hyeun to feel so strange like this in the trials.

The boring game on the stage ended sooner than he expected. The two players, who had been reading each other’s faces for about five minutes, brought the fight to an end in a single hit.

<<I guess they were looking for the perfect timing.>>

It wasn’t like they were scared or felt diffident. They tried to grasp their opponent’s weakness and take a moment to plan. And the one who showed his weakness to the opponent first was defeated. That was the result.

<<Who are the next players?>> Su-hyeun thought.

He looked at the two players who went onto the stage next. Su-hyeun didn’t recognize one of them. He didn’t see that player the day before. It seemed like that player had had a game after Su-hyeun had left. The other one was a short player, but he was stronger than he looked. Among the players on the finals, he would be about upper-mid tier.

<<I guess this match will be something to watch.>>

Su-hyeun thought this match would be a fun one unless the other player was overwhelmingly strong. It was at that moment…

“What a pity, man,” Luslec walked up to Su-hyeun, looked up the stadium, and said.

“What do you mean, a pity?”

“The dark dude over there.” It seemed like Luslec knew the opponent, that Su-hyeun didn’t know. “He is, maybe, the most dangerous guy in this stadium.”