In the end, the Sword Saint was still the Sword Saint. So even though he was shocked, he still swung his sword. If I hadnât shaken him beforehand, he probably wouldâve been able to block my attack.
However, this time I was one step ahead of him.
ââŠâŠ!â
My Holy Sword was pointed at the old manâs neck. I stopped. The old man glanced at the sword that was only 5 centimeters away from his neck and stopped as well. As a last ditch effort, the Sword Saint had lifted his sword to my neck, but it was over 15 centimeters away.
âHoo.â
I chuckled.
âI won. Old man.â
ââŠâŠâ
The Sword Saintâs expression crumpled rapidly.
âTh-, this doesnât count! Invalid! Itâs invalid!â
âHa. I donât know what youâre talking about. A win is a win. Are you going to cry out that itâs invalid after losing on the battlefield? Huh? I didnât know you were like that, old man.â
âBut there should still be a limit! This⊠ThisâŠ.â
ââThisâ what?â
âThis was shameless!â
What? Shameless?
Wasnât that a compliment?
âPuhaha! Thanks a lot, old man. I never thought Iâd hear the Sword Saint call me shameless! I finally feel that this life is worth living. I hope you live a long, healthy life.â
âYouâŠâ
The Sword Saintâs face trembled slightly. If looks could kill, I probably wouldâve died already. But the more he glared at me like that, the happier I felt.
âI was holding myself back from talking about our âMasterâ! I was waiting out of consideration for you. How could you trample on an old manâs heart so carelessly!â
âSure, loser.â
âLo-, loser?! Hmph. We fought 53 times so far, and I won 52 times! If I have 52 wins and 1 loss out of 53 fights then Iâm naturally the winner!â
âThe last fight is always the most important. Donât you know the tale of the Hegemon-King, Xiang Yu(1)? Even if you fight 100 battles and win 99 of them, if you lose 1 time, youâre a loser. If you are Xiang Yu, then I am Liu Bang. Iâm the master of the world.â
âThen we should fight another round!â
âHmph. I donât want to fight. I donât want to fight for the next six months. Instead, Iâm going to spread the news that I beat the Sword Saint to everyone I know for six months. Then Iâll think about fighting you again.â
âHu-⊠Kuh, hukâŠ!!â
At that moment, the Sword Saint looked like he was about to pass out. It was as if his heart and blood vessels were obstructed and his blood flow was restricted. I said a silent prayer for the old man.
Then, a voice came from not so far away.
ââŠit seems you two are very close.â
Paht!
Someone appeared in the air before landing lightly on the ground. It was the Black Dragon Master. The spectators around the field immediately went into an uproar as the Black Dragon Master appeared with a teleport skill. The top 3 hunters were all gathered in one place.
âHuh.â
The Black Dragon Master finally realized there were other people there. She smiled and waved her hand.
Click! Click!
The hunters hurriedly took out their phones and began taking pictures of the three of us. Only then did the Black Dragon Master turn to look at us with a strange expression on her face.
âThe Death King has always been childish, so thatâs nothing strange, but⊠Sword Saint, what happened to you? Did you hang out with the Death King too much? Did that end up lowering your mental age? Except for your aloof image, you are utterly rotten.â
âI donât want to hear that from a witch who pretends to act coy!â
âAh. Right. Now that I think about it, you were a bit passionate when you first entered the Tower. I can just barely remember⊠but I donât really miss it.â
The Black Dragon Masterâs eyes narrowed slightly as she remembered the past. But it was only for a brief moment. The Black Dragon Master immediately schooled her expression and told us why she was there.
âI donât care if you act like children another time, but for today, please show an image befitting the first- and second-ranked. Except for you two, all of the other rankers have gathered in the Great Library.â
âHuh?â
Tilting my head slightly, I sheathed my Holy Sword.
âDid something happen?â
âSomehow, youâre able to do it every day without getting tired of it, but⊠Hmph. Today is important.â
The Black Dragon Master muttered softly.
âWeâre going to open the 31st floor.â
3.
It had already been 56 days since we cleared the Great Library.
For the past two months, the days had been hectic.
What? We had a hard time clearing the 21st to 30th floors, so we could take a rest? That was only true for ordinary hunters. Top hunters, like the Black Dragon Master and me, were rather busy. To put it bluntly, I was so busy, I felt like I was dying.
About a month ago, one of the most powerful warlords in Africa had successfully been taken down, and about 1,300 defeated soldiers had fled to the Tower. It was pretty crazy, but stuff like that happened relatively often. Nevertheless, we still had our hands full splitting up the new entrants.
âWelcome! Iâve been waiting for you!â
When we got to the Great Library, the Heretic Questioner greeted us with a smile.
His appearance was as cute as an angelâs, but when one thought about the fact that heâd interrogated 33 of the soldiers during the separation process with the same smile, the level of cuteness dropped significantly.
âI heard that you intend to open the 31st floor.â
âYeah! Weâve completed the most important tasks to an extent. There is still a lot of work to be done, but Iâm sure the executive level will be able to handle it. Right. Everyone has to play their part!â
âMm.â
I nodded my head.
The role of the top-ranked hunters was to continuously attack the Tower. We moved upward, planted our flags, and showed those who followed us that we still had âfurther to go.â We showed them the direction. And when they saw this direction, it gave them hope.
In return, we had authority.
A responsibility that we risked our lives for.
âDeath King. What happened in the spar this morning? The Sword Saint looks like he ate a pile of shit!â
âHe might have to use the bathroom. Letâs wrap this meeting up as soon as possible in consideration for our elders.â
âOh, no! Sword Saint, itâs okay to go use the bathroom. We can wait a few more minutes. Itâs not like the 31st floor is gonna run away. Oh. Are you constipated? That would be a bit of a problem.â
âYou guysâŠâ
âHmm.â
Crusader coughed slightly.
âNow that everyoneâs here, letâs begin.â
Crusader then turned her head to look at Hamustra.
Hamustra stood beside the table in silence, still dressed as a cafe employee. Hamustra was no longer the bookkeeper for the Great Library. Now, he was just a part-time employee of the Library Cafe Planetarium.
âThen call [The Librarian].â
âMm. Understood.â
Hamustra smiled before walking out of the Library Cafe. Not from the front door but the back. A place with a sign which said âOnly employees allowed past this pointâ.
A little later.
A child in fluffy pajamas followed Hamustra back into the room.
âYou calledâŠ?â
The child yawned loudly.
âAh, Death King. Long time no see.â
The child was hugging a pillow in their arms, as if they had just woken up. The pillow was large and had colorful peaches on it.
No matter how you looked at them, you would think they were a little kid.
[The Lady Who Walks Through the Mirage greets you.]
This was the being who had taken over as the Librarian on the 30th floor for Hamustra. This wasnât any ordinary constellation but was instead one of the so-called âpillars.â
I bowed slightly.
âYeah. Long time no see, milady.â
There would be a chance to talk about that Constellation later.
For now, the important fact was that [The Lady Who Walks Through The Mirage] was in charge of the Great Library and the Apocalypses. It was also a fact that she would act as a guide and helper as we attacked the Tower.
âHmm.â
The Lady looked around the table with a drowsy expression.
âAll of the top rankers are gathered here⊠Do you plan to start today?â
âThatâs right.â
It was the Black Dragon Master who answered on our behalf.
âYou told us two months ago that the next stage would be opened whenever we wanted. Weâve finished arranging everything, so weâd like to start today.â
âHeh. Youâre pretty fastâŠ.â
The Lady rubbed her eyes with her little hands.
âIâm only saying this in case you misunderstood something. There is no time limit when attacking the Tower. It doesnât matter if you take 600 days or 1200 years. Itâs fine even if you donât clear it. Are you really sure you want to open the 31st floor today?â
âRight. WeâŠâ
âAh. Sorry, little Black. But I wasnât speaking to you.â
The Lady interrupted the Black Dragon Master.
âThis is something that can only be decided by the number one. Thatâs the rule. Itâs the same in any Tower. You are currently ranked third, so you have no right to make the decision.â
ââŠâŠâ
The Black Dragon Master shut her mouth.
âIâm sorry. You must think Iâm being too stuck up, right? Unfortunately, rules are rules, especially in the Tower. Everything depends on the person in the number one spot. In truth, youâre pretty lucky. In the pastâŠâ
âLady.â
Hamustra spoke up quietly from the side.
âI donât want to point it out, but youâre talking too much.â
âAh. Sorry. Iâve been sleepy ever since I came here⊠Anyway, Swordy. Are you sure you want to unlock the 31st floor?â
The Lady was looking at the number one hunter in the Tower. The Sword Saint.
ââŠâŠâ
The Sword Saint slowly looked around. Every hunter who met the old manâs gaze nodded in turn. When the Crusader, to whom his eyes turned last, also nodded, the Sword Saint finally opened his mouth.
âIâd like to unlock it.â
âHmm. Understood.â
The Lady spread her arms.
The pillow she was holding fell to the floor.
âI, [The Lady Who Walks Through The Mirage], as the temporary guide of this Tower, acknowledge your journey to heaven.â
Suddenly, a voice rang out.
[Announcing to everyone.]
[Today, the next stage has been unlocked]
It was the Towerâs voice.
âMm. Since everyone is here, Iâll just skip the formalitiesâŠ.â
The Lady waved her hand.
Then, a list appeared in front of our eyes.
+
1. Pure Race
2. Demon Race
3. Snail Race
4. Angel Race
5. Ancient Race
ă
ă
ă
ă
ă
ă
ă
+
No matter how much I scrolled, the list didnât seem to have an end. Tens and hundreds of names followed one after the other.
âItâs finally here.â
I tried my best to maintain my composure as my heart pounded in my chest.
However, my companions seemed to be more curious than excited. They all looked at the list with furrowed eyebrows.
In this situation, the first person to ask a question was, naturally, the Heretic Questioner.
âWhat is this?â
âGood question.â
The Lady laughed.
Maybe she was happy to answer our question.
âTry tapping on them. Youâll find out.â
When he heard the Ladyâs words, the Heretic Question tapped on the âPure Raceâ.
Paht.
Immediately after, a hologram appeared in our minds.
+
[Pure Race]
Extinction Grade: F (No Danger)
Proverb: âWe decide the World.â
Description: A race with average abilities. Depending on the world, the Pure could either be the slaves of other races or reign as the masters of that world. âWe are the representatives of intelligent beings.â The Pure claim to be the purest beingsâin other words, pure human beings. According to them, average is normal, and they set it as their standard.
Talents: [Rapid Attitude Shift], [Legacy of Records], [Square Enthusiast]
Evolutions: None
Aliases: Human, Hume, Homo Sapiens, etc.
+
An image floated beside the information.
No matter how we looked at it, the being shown was exactly like us.
ââŠâŠâ
My heart began to pound even faster.
If I remember correctly, the stage that we were entering wasâŠ.
âItâs a race war!â
Race War.
âEach of you will have to pick a race! That race will worship you as their god and develop their civilizations according to your wishes and orders.â
Choose one race from hundreds.
In the past, the Flame Emperor, who was number one in the rankings, chose the Fairy Race. He chose a race that was often called âElfâ. And he manipulated those Fairies just like everything else. The process was so horrific that Iâd rather not mention it.
However, what I could say was that Iâd never thought Elves could become such a violent and brutal race.
âFor the God of Fire!â
While shouting these words, Elves charged forward, slaughtering other races to their heartsâ content.
This was an example of the kind of disaster that could occur when the number one hunter was mentally unstable.
âHmm.â
The Heretic Questioner tilted his head to the side.
âWhat do you mean by âdevelop their civilization??â
âExactly that. Develop their civilization in any way you desire. You can create a civilization of warlike bandits, or you can create a civilization of scholars who worship knowledge. Itâs all up to you. Ah, right. Would it be easier to understand if I said it this way?â
The Lady sighed softly before bending and picking up her pillow.
âThis time, you allâŠâ
Then, with the peach pillow in her hands, the Lady smiled.
ââŠwill experience what itâs like to be a Constellation!â
A buzz rippled through the room.
In the meantime, my eyes remained glued to the list, trying to decide which race would be the best choice.
âDragon Sub Race. These guys all looked fierce and powerful like Dragons, but were they actually closer to Wyverns? The Fairies⊠I might have chosen them before my return. But now, the thought of using the Fairies that the Flame Emperor once used inflicted deep wounds on my tender heartâŠâ
-Crazy.
Bae Huryeong clicked his tongue.
-Just pick the plain Pure Race. You are a Pure too. As a member of the race, you will know how to raise it best.
âNo.â
It was obvious which race I had to choose.
+
103. Dokkaebi Race
+
I silently touched the name of that race.
+
[Dokkaebi Race]
Extinction Grade: A (Very Dangerous)
Aliases: Goblin, etc.
+
Goblin.
It felt like an electric current went through my body as I looked at this two syllable word.
How could I express what this current felt like?
Love?
Destiny?
No.
âIâm a regressor who returned 11 years in the past.â
So this-
âI have to get it.â
I took a card out of my pocket.
It was a trump card that I had cherished for a very long time.
A secret that no one could ever imagine.
âThe time has come.â
On this card, which had a color that was infinitely similar to poop, intricate letters were inlaid.
+
[Goblin High Society]
Rank: F
Effects: The king goblin was lost in thought. âThe level of culture for us goblins is too low. All languages end in kerrk, kerk. I cannot show my dignity with this!â Then, the king goblinâs genius mind flashed. âThatâs right! From now on, I will speak gork and not kerk. Gork! Itâs a pronunciation that perfectly fits the precious king.â
â»However, the fights within the tribe become worse.
â»This is a skill copied from the Great King Goblin monster.
+
-Hey? Hey. Wait a minute.
I could practically feel the expression of the ghost behind me change.
-You wouldnât, would you? Gongja. Even if you are one of the worst bastards in the world, youâre not that bad. Right?
My expression was solemn.
âGoblin.â
I declared in a steady tone.
âI choose Goblin.â
Bae Huryeong fell silent for a moment.
Then he exploded.
-Hey! You crazy bastard!!
Now.
It was time to soar.
(Note:
1. Xiang Yu is one of the greatest generals in Chinese history, and he gave himself the title âHegemon King of Western Chuâ. It is said that he had won every single battle except for one, his last.)