“Oh.” Cheslov was anticipating fighting new types of monsters. If the next theme had been no fighting at all, that would have been his worst nightmare.
“Come on.” Jason led the way. The forty-first floor was reminiscent of Scotland’s highlands. The hilly landscape was covered in grass and flowers. Insects such as butterflies, bees, and ladybugs were a common sight.
Ten minutes later, as they climbed to the top of a small hill, Roy’s eyes lit up when he spotted something. “Look, a town!”
At the base of the hill was a large town. Hundreds of wooden buildings sat in rows. More buildings were under construction, and the sound of clanging and hammering could be heard from below. Surrounding the town were crops and farms. One common thing among all of the buildings was the banner of a guild. Cheslov recognized it. “Isn’t that the Skyfall guild’s symbol?”
“Indeed.” Jason nodded.
Roy’s heart thumped loudly as he thought. The Skyfall Guild…
Olivia commented in her usual serious way. “The Skyfall guild is a top-tier guild, and recently they’ve grown much stronger. Some speculate that they’re on par with Zui Gao, the strongest guild in the world.”
Jason sighed inwardly as old memories rose from hearing the familiar name. The majority of Zui Gao’s fame came from one man. Shenlong. A monster in human flesh. Shenlong spent his entire life pursuing martial arts. The towers arrived when he was already ninety-one. Wielding a single spear, he entered China’s tower and began a slaughter. As his stats grew, his body’s strength returned. Normally he should have returned to a youthful appearance like Jason had, but Shenlong preferred his elderly appearance. The tower seemed to know this, so his appearance was that of a seventy-year-old.
Roy’s voice broke Jason from his thoughts. “So why is Skyfall building a town here?”
Olivia recalled the reports she’d read from her family and began to explain. “Community. That’s the name of this floor’s theme. Around fifty percent of this floor is a safe zone. Outside of it, monsters roam. They have a chance to drop an item called a ‘plot flag’. With it you can own a portion of the floor, with higher grades allowing larger sizes. Only with the rights granted by a plot flag can you start to build.”
Roy’s eyes twinkled like stars. “So what benefits are there to building on a plot flag?”
“Too many to count.” Jason shrugged and began to trek down the hill towards the town. “Discover it as you go, otherwise you’ll ruin all the fun.”
“Right, right. Don’t spoil it all, Olivia!” Roy laughed as he sprinted after Jason. Olivia and Cheslov followed.
As they got closer to the town, Jason could make out thousands of people. Some constructed buildings, while others transported wood, stone, and other materials. Roy gasped at Jason’s side. “Wow, how many members does Skyfall have?”
Jason glanced at Roy. “They aren’t members of Skyfall. They chose to live here. Can’t you sense it? They’re all weak.”
Roy narrowed his eyes as he carefully inspected the ascenders. After a moment, he exclaimed. “Ah, you’re right! But why would they live here instead of on the thirtieth floor?”
“There are many reasons.” Jason explained as they walked. “Besides the most obvious one, that this is the safest part of the tower, some people like to be a part of something new. Think back to when Europeans first traveled to America. Many people chose to be colonists, right?”
“I get it! I totally get that feeling. That sense of adventure!” Roy’s heart thumped excitedly as he imagined exploring new lands and building a new home.
Jason glanced at the ascenders in the town. “They are basically all below level 10. All of the guilds, not just Skyfall, recruited laborers skilled in construction and carpentry from outside the tower.”
Behind Jason, Cheslov rubbed his rugged beard. “How’d they get all the way to the forty-first floor?”
Olivia responded first. “Same as the way to get to the thirtieth floor, just a different teleportation scroll.”
Jason added. “Also different is that anybody who takes the shortcut to get here can travel between all of the Community-themed floors. They aren’t restricted to just the one they teleport too.”
At this point in the conversation, they stepped onto a dirt road leading into the town. On each side of them were crops and fences for animals. Roy ran up to the side of a fence and leaned over. “Come here, cutie!”
A baby brown horse with a blond mane walked up to Roy and rubbed its head against his hand. Roy chuckled. “Aren’t you a pretty one?”
Olivia walked over and copied Roy by extending her hand. The baby horse stepped backwards warily. Something about Olivia caused it to be cautious. Olivia sighed and began to turn away. Just before she could, Roy wrapped his arm around her and clasped her hand gently. “Look, she’s all right, see? Come here.”
As if calmed by Roy’s words, the baby horse stepped forward and rubbed against Olivia’s hand. Seeing this, she gave a rare smile.
“Hello. You must be newcomers. Welcome to Skyfall’s town.” A voice called out to them. Their group turned and found a middle-aged man wearing casual clothes walking up to them. Unlike the other floors, this was probably the only place where one didn’t need to wear armor. Everyone was completely safe here.
Jason shook the man’s hand cordially. “We just arrived.”
“Great!” The middle-aged man smiled warmly. “I’m from Skyfall and am responsible for greeting newcomers. My name’s Joe. Would you like an introduction to the floor?”
Jason shook his head. “No thanks. We did some research.”
“Ah, no problem.” Joe’s eyebrows rose. “Are you from a guild, or are you a solo ascender?”
“A guild. It’s just a small one, though. Just us four.” Jason pointed behind him.
The man relaxed after hearing that. “If you want, I can show you around town? We have plenty of services. Maybe you want to buy a plot of land?”
Jason once again shook his head. “Actually, I was sent by Index. I’m here to meet Walter.”
Joe seemed briefly shocked before growing solemn. The man before him was big news, and Walter, his guild master, had already informed him to treat Index’s group with utmost respect. Calmly, he motioned Jason to follow. “You’re in luck. Walter is working on his house at the moment.”
A few days ago, Index had informed Walter that he was sending a group to take over the plot of land Skyfall had been temporarily holding. Many months ago, one of the conditions of Index selling maps of the forty-first to forty-fifth to Skyfall were that they give him a specific plot of land. Only after many months had Jason finally arrived at the forty-first floor to take it.
As Jason’s group followed their guide from a distance, Roy, Olivia, and Cheslov surrounded Jason and bombarded him with questions. “Did you just say Index?”
“You were sent by Index?”
“Do you know Index?”
Everybody in the world knew who Index was. Index was practically the most knowledgeable ascender in the world, and yet nobody had ever seen Index in person. Index was a person of speculation and controversy.
Jason gave them a look. “This is a secret.”
Roy, Olivia, and Cheslov fell silent and pondered quietly.
Chapter 23
Meeting Walter by identifying as someone sent by Index posed a bit of a risk. Part of the reason why Jason exposed himself was because he knew the personality of Skyfall’s members as a whole. They were adventure-loving ascenders who didn’t embroil themselves in politics. As for the other reason, it was because Jason held confidence in his strength. He wasn’t strong enough to face Skyfall as a whole, far from it, but provoking him would come at a cost.
Joe led Jason’s group through Skyfall’s town. Not long after, they arrived before a large marble white mansion. It was surrou
nded by a beautiful garden and protected by a metal fence. The gate at the entrance was wide open. Joe passed through while glancing at Jason with a hint of pride. “What do you think?”
Jason peered around casually before focusing on the mansion. “As expected of Skyfall. You guys have a guild hall so soon.”
Joe smiled brightly at being praised. “Come, the guild master is waiting.”
As they continued, Roy appeared at Jason’s side with an inquiring gaze. “What’s a guild hall?”
Jason sighed inwardly at how much explaining he’d have to do on this floor. Still, he explained nonetheless. “Besides being a symbol of glory, the main benefit a guild hall offers are guild buffs to all members, regardless of their location.”
“Ooh.” Roy’s eyes lit up. He immediately decided that he wanted a guild hall too.
When they entered the mansion, an elderly man wearing a butler’s uniform blocked their way. Surprisingly, he had a level, name, and health bar above his head. He was a resident of the tower.
“Welcome back, my lord.” The butler bowed with his hand across his chest.
“Ah, Bernard.” Joe pointed behind him. “I’m bringing guests to Walter.”
“Greetings.” The butler turned to Jason and nodded respectfully.
Joe led Jason’s group to the second floor before stopping in front of a door made out of brown smoked wood. After several knocks, a voice came from inside the room. “Come in.”
Joe opened the door and gestured for Jason’s group to enter. Jason made his way inside and glanced around. The room was filled with furniture and statues equipped in armor. In front of a square window was a desk. Walter sat there, discussing things with another man. Walter was a middle-aged man wearing light plated armor. He had dark brown hair and blue eyes, a sharp jaw, and large eyebrows. When Jason’s group entered, he stood up with a grin. “Jason, right? I must admit I’ve been anxiously waiting for you! After all, you’re sent by that Index.”
Jason’s gaze paused on the calm youth who had been talking with Walter just a moment earlier. Jason recognized him as his best friend from the alternate timeline, Peter. With a heavy sigh, Jason pushed down a wave of emotions. The Peter before him was a stranger. The one he had known was dead. Still, to see his best friend alive and kicking wasn’t a bad feeling at all. All of these thoughts passed by in but a second. Jason focused on Walter as he walked up and extended his hand. “The feeling is mutual. To personally meet the spellsword himself is humbling.”
“Hah, please don’t use that lame title.” Walter chuckled as he shook Jason’s hand. Walter was an expert swordsman who used magic in close quarters. It was a deadly combination.
Jason turned to Peter with a smile. “I’m Jason, offensive tank.”
Peter smiled as well. “Peter, spellsword number two.”
Walter introduced Peter further. “He’s my second in command, the vice-guild master of Skyfall.”
Walter spotted a flash of blond hair behind Jason. His expression froze as he stepped around Jason, discovering something which shocked him greatly. “Roy! What are you doing here?!”
Walter’s shout caused Jason to grow confused. Walter knows Roy? Jason grew tense and prepared for combat, wondering whether Walter was an enemy of Roy’s.
Roy stepped out from behind Jason as he scratched his cheek sheepishly. “Uh, hello Uncle Walter.”
Walter grabbed Roy and embraced him tightly. “You idiot! You went missing months ago. After what happened to your parents, I feared for the worst.”
Tears started to form in Roy’s eyes. “Sorry, Walter. I broke my parent’s wish and entered the tower.”
Walter stepped back and looked Roy up and down. With a smile, he nodded. “I never did agree with their decision back then. Now that I see you, I was right. You look handsome in that armor.”
Jason thought he knew everything about Roy, but yet again, here was another mystery. How did Roy know Walter? Jason gave Roy a quizzical glance. “Is he your uncle? Why didn’t you say anything?”
“He’s not my blood uncle, but I’ve known him my entire life. He was close friends with my parents before they died.” Roy froze and clenched his hands. He looked at Olivia, Cheslov, and then Jason before continuing. “Actually… I’ve been keeping a secret from you guys. My parents were Sam Kraus and Emilia Kraus.”
Cheslov’s eyes widened. “The Golden Couple?”
Olivia was silent, though her face grew pale.
Jason playfully slapped Roy across the side of his head. “You think I didn’t know? How else would you explain those flashy skills back on the undead floor?”
During the first twenty years of the tower, the golden couple were regarded not as the strongest ascenders, but the most selfless. They constantly helped other ascenders with their problems and even fought against the monster waves outside the tower every week. Sam Kraus was the champion of light, while Emilia Kraus was a priest.
Cheslov muttered aloud. “I heard they disappeared over a year ago, but no one knows what happened to them. To think that you’re their son.”
Roy’s voice was tinged with pain as he said. “They were assassinated.”
The atmosphere in the room grew heavy. Walter sighed. “I’ve looked into this matter. Their killer is Wolf, the leader of Yama.”
Roy asked quietly. “How strong is he?”
Walter glanced out the window. “Just last week, Wolf made an appearance. He tried to assassinate Shenlong, but failed!”
“Wolf failed?” Olivia muttered in shock. Her father had actually failed? That had never happened before. Now she thought she understood why her father went mad. His pride had been shattered. If her family hadn’t been murdered, she would have been laughing with joy.
Walter turned to look at Roy. “Do you know who Shenlong is?”
Roy tilted his head slightly. “My dad said Shenlong was a human monster.”
Walter closed his eyes as a subtle battle intent swept the room. Only Cheslov, Peter, and Jason were able to sense it. Walter agreed. “Your dad was right. Shenlong… can’t be beaten!”
Peter stepped forward and reprimanded Walter with a frown. “I better not hear you say that around the guild members.”
Thankfully, Joe had long since left. Otherwise, he would have been truly shocked. Rumors had spread in the past few months that Skyfall had caught up to Zui Gao in strength. If Skyfall’s members heard that Walter couldn’t beat Shenlong, morale would plummet.
Jason narrowed his eyes. “Did he reach the third realm?”
Walter’s eyes lit up. “You know about the third realm? No, of course you do. Index should know about them.” Walter frowned as he recalled. “We dueled each other privately not long ago. I was unable to tell if he entered the third realm or not.”
Peter glanced at Jason. “Please don’t tell anybody what my foolish guild master just said.”
Walter rubbed his head as he laughed. “Oops.”
“I understand.” Jason gave a nod.
“Enough of this depressing talk.” Roy said with a smile. “I heard that you have a flag plot for us?”
“Right.” Walter smacked his lips. “I’ve held up my end of the agreement with Index and kept this hotspot of a flag plot under my guild’s protection. Man, I’ll be honest, I really regret giving it away!”
Peter coughed. “Walter, are you going to tell them?”
Jason raised an eyebrow. “Is there a problem?”
“Well.” Walter looked away guiltily. “There is a small problem. There was one person I couldn’t turn away.”
Chapter 24
The owner of the plot flag needed to be at its location in order to transfer ownership. As Walter was the current owner, he led Jason’s group to the forty-third floor. Along the way, they passed by numerous towns and villages, as well
as lone buildings. Peter stayed behind to watch over the construction of Skyfall’s town, much to Jason’s disappointment.
The forty-second floor consisted of a giant mountain range filled with lakes and rivers. There were plenty of spots on the mountains with stunning views. As less than six months had passed since the community floors were discovered, building development was in its infancy. Jason had never seen the wild untamed lands on these floors. Back when he first arrived, entire cities had covered the floors.
After a few hours of Walter leading the way, they finally arrived on the forty-third floor. Upon exiting the portal, Roy stepped forward as his jaw dropped. “Wow!”
Multiple pillars rose in the distance. Each one was over a hundred feet in diameter and towered more than fifty stories high. Waterfalls fell over the edge. Wind dispersed the water before it hit the ground, creating beautiful rainbows. Green vines formed intricate patterns on the sides of the pillars, and birds sang as they flew through the sky. The refreshing smell of dew filled the air. The call of nature was overwhelming.
This was without a doubt the most beautiful floor that Roy had ever seen. Even Olivia and Cheslov’s eyes lit up. It wouldn’t be wrong to call this place a paradise. Walter stepped forward and pointed at a pillar in the middle of the floor. “That one is yours.”
“No way! The plot flag is on top of that pillar?!” Roy was in disbelief.
When Walter nodded, Olivia was confused. “How do we get up?”
“I’ll show you.” Walter led the way and they soon stood at the base of a pillar. In front of them was a small, eastern-looking pagoda. Strangely, it floated a foot off the ground. Walter stepped on it without hesitation and beckoned them over.
When Jason’s group got on, Walter pulled a lever that was attached to the inside of the pagoda. By what could only be magic, the pagoda leisurely flew up in a straight line. As they passed the halfway mark, an empty pagoda passed by their side, on its way down. That way, there would always be a pagoda on the bottom and one on top.
Jason leaned against the railing of the pagoda and looked at Walter. “I wonder who it was that you couldn’t force away. Were they that strong?”
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