/
The 19th floor, exactly ten floors below the 29th floor where Iceline and Theta currently were, was called the Black Monsters’ Stage.
A weird sound, like something being chopped, was followed by the yelp of a hurt animal.
After swiftly defeating a monster that was significantly taller than five meters—a black ogre like the one he had faced in the Duchy of Agnus—Joshua flicked his spear. In one graceful motion, the monster's blood was cleared from the spear, brocading the air with an embroidery of gently curving red afterimages.
Joshua stood there silently, spear in hand, as he looked at the view in front of him—black ogres laying motionlessly with their heads neatly severed.
On that day in his childhood, the ogre had felt like the leader of the monsters, but from where Joshua was standing now, he estimated at least fifty dead ogres at his feet.
[Doesn’t this feel like a trip down memory lane?]
“....”
[It's conveniently located next to the 20th floor. You ought to feel some apprehension now—the next floor will be a little different than the previous levels that the Tower of Truth has challenged you with.]
Joshua had been reaching down, but he paused at Lugia’s voice before continuing.
“Reward’s not bad this time.”
[Are you going to give that to me again, right?]
Lugia’s voice sounded like a child with a toy dangled in front of him. The lower-grade mana stone that Joshua had picked up off the ground had Lugia in a frenzy.
At the end of each trial of the Tower's ascent, the climbers were rewarded, but lowest to low-grade mana stones were all that was given. If Joshua had collected and kept them for himself, he would have a pouch full of them by now.
“I had a change of heart.”
[Seriously?]
“I figure I should set them aside for now. Mages’ eyes sparkle when you show them these kinds of stones, so selling this to them is a good idea.”
[BUT WHY?]
Lugia let out a strangled cry.
[Won’t you continue feeding them to me like you have been doing?]
“No.”
[I’m telling you, that’ll be much more useful to you.]
“All low-quality mana stones can sell for 10 gold. The lesser mana stones, on the other hand, can sell for ten times as much. Once we’re done scaling the whole Tower, we can buy a sizable territory.”
[Are you seriously going to be that cheap and stingy and not give them to me?]
“... Cheap and stingy?”
Their conversation continued for a while, but then, Joshua's demeanor hardened.
“You know
 You never told me the truth.”
[....]
“Even now, you’re withholding information. As far as I know, this tower is called the Tower of Trials, not the Tower of Truth.”
Lugia quickly fell silent. In other words, Joshua was correct.
He didn’t have the slightest knowledge of these things—or rather, it was just that the demonic artifact knew things that a human being would never know.
But the spear kept quiet regarding the most important particulars. After such a profound betrayal, Joshua felt that he could no longer remain quiet.
“I know I've been somewhat silent recently, but—”
[And if you don't keep holding your tongue, what happens?]
“Huh?” Joshua was momentarily startled by Lugia’s sudden interruption.
[So, what, now that you’re a little wiser, you don't even need my assistance? Is that it?]
“....”
[Well, you’ve got serious power, so I guess you can be proud of it—so long as you keep it firmly inside the bounds of humanity.]
Lugia's spear sways ever so slightly as it watched Joshua shut his mouth.
[You can’t lose sight of your original goal.]
“Goal?”
[That’s right, your original goal. What was it that you wanted to do once you returned? Didn’t you want to stab the bastards who were responsible for your sufferings and drink their blood? Didn’t you want to show the world that you were alive?]
“....”
[Or have the changing circumstances made you change your mind?]
Lugia's spear suddenly bobbed upward.
[But I know better than anyone else that isn’t the case. Afterall, we share the same mind. I know that a raging fire burns at the core of your being.]
The spear’s entire body gave off an aura of omniscience.
[So, always keep this in mind. While I have given you an opportunity for revenge, you have yet to give me anything in return.]
“You—”
***
Joshua froze.
Although they were on a different floor from Joshua, Theta and Iceline did too.
As soon as they got to the top of the stairs of the next floor, a dark and foreboding atmosphere spread out to greet them. It was a completely different feeling from the previous floors.
Iceline’s facial expression visibly tightened as she adjusted to the new surroundings.
“I thought this was the 29th floor.”
“I think it is.”
“Following the order, we should be meeting a mid-boss on the 30th floor.”
“That’s right.”
“But what is this atmosphere
?” Iceline mumbled.
She quickly trailed off into total silence.
Iceline felt like something was crawling on her face.
She gulped nervously and asked in a quivering voice, “What's behind this door?”
“Well, I'm at a loss for words.” Theta cast his eye upwards toward the top of the iron gate. “I am certain about one thing.”
“Yeah?”
“Someone got here before us.”
“...!”
Iceline's eyes widened as she processed what Theta had just said.
He was right. Each floor's lobby featured a crystal ball about the size of a fist. The other balls had emitted a green light, but the 29th-floor crystal ball appeared to be stained crimson.
“What is this—?”
“When the floor is clear, it's green, but when a challenger is in it, it turns red, exactly like now.”
“So you're saying there are other individuals in this Tower besides us? Besides those people that are chasing us?”
“I assume so.”
“Who is it?” Iceline demanded impatiently.
Theta's visage hardened even more.
“It’s an unexpected variable
 Normally, the 29th level is used as a resting area.”
“You said that there were specific landmarks to keep an eye out for.”
“Because I already know where everything is, but
 The challenge level increased dramatically. Maybe even more than any other floor in this Tower.”
Theft is never good, try looking at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.
“...!”
“There is someone in there who is at my level or higher, and I’m speaking of when I’m at my peak condition.”
Iceline's little jaw dropped. She was fully aware of Theta's proficiency.
“The Storm seat, Theta,” Iceline mumbled her breath with gritted teeth.
His Master, Ian, was the only other wizard in the Magic Tower to be called a Master. The young wizard gained his confidence by using his tremendous skill to vanquish countless powerful opponents. Thetapirion Whitesocks was a Class Seven Mage, making him one of the most powerful mages in the continent.
However, Theta was saying that the person inside was, at the very least, the same level as himself. .
“Should
 Should we go back?” Iceline blurted in a whisper.
Theta shook his head.
“What happens if we go down? You want to just let them capture us?”
“You said that the one in front of us is at least Class Seven!”
“It's not certain that he'll be hostile to us.”
“Are you serious right now?”
Theta responded to Iceline’s mumble with a little shrug of his shoulders.
“Well, what do we have to lose here? Let’s move forward and see what happens.”
“You— I anticipated this in the past, but—” Iceline went expressionless for a moment before continuing. “Are you the type of person that doesn't have any inhibitions at all?”
“My philosophy is to ‘live comfortably and then go comfortably,’ but the world clearly won't let me get away with that.”
“Really, what sort of a human being are you?”
Iceline sighed heavily, trying to vent her growing frustration.
Theta was a man who truly embodied the wind. He doesn't want to be pinned down or boxed in by any norms or expectations. For those types of people, it was best not to talk about it. It will only frustrate Iceline.
And surely she'd dealt with someone very much like that before?
“It would be well worth it to spend time with him.”
“Him?” Theta cocked his head.
“I’m talking about Joshua,” Iceline responded.
“Aha
” Theta beamed. “I'm not sure whether we'll be able to get together again, but I'd love to reunite with the insanely talented Joshua Sanders.”
“....”
“Well then, I’ll assume you agree with me and
”
Theta finished his sentence by extending a hand toward the gate.
Perhaps it was a premonition of their impending fate? Both of them felt air pressing down on their shoulders like a huge weight.
“Open the gate.”
The steel door flew open with a jarring thud at Theta’s mutter.
“What the— Oh my god!”
A world that they had never experienced before.
Iceline’s eyes widened even further as she gazed upon the vastness of hell.
***
After a series of events, Joshua finally got to the 20th floor of the Tower of Trials.
Nothing except empty space existed. Except for the gate through which he had entered, everything in the room was white, including the ceiling, the floor, and the walls to the left and right.
One person stood alone in the center of it. He looked expectant as if he had been waiting for someone for a very long time.
“That’s
”
Unmistakable astonishment rapidly took over Joshua's face as he stepped confidently into the room.
What did this mean? Was what he saw in front of him real?
[Oh dear. So that comes out on the 20th floor?]
“....”
[I suggest you use extreme caution. If I recall properly, it actively reflects your body’s capabilities.]
Joshua gazed at the figure blankly, filing Lugia's words away in a corner of his mind.
He came face to face with the figure with barely ten meters between them. The figure’s appearance triggered

Reminiscence.
The figure suddenly broke from his stillness and lifted his hands in a subdued gesture. A blood-red spear, dancing at his fingertips, spewed a loud screech.
Two emotionless eyes surrounded by a tranquil mane of deep blue hair. Who was the figure with a spear who mirrored Joshua?
“Me?”
It was Joshua talking to himself.