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Nightmare, 3rd Floor (2)TL: DDTL

I fell as if sucked into the dark passage.

Pitch-black darkness, so thick I couldn't see an inch ahead.

But thanks to Diul's ability, my eyes could see just fine.

I checked the ground, landed steadily, then looked up.

I'd worried the Undead might follow me down into the passage, but that didn't happen.

…Did they stop moving once I disappeared from sight?

I could only hope so.

"Phew…"

I caught my breath and surveyed the area.

A straight corridor stretching forward.

So I picked the right answer, at least?

I stopped time and recovered my Willpower. Then I released it and let my stamina recover too.

I started walking slowly down the passage.

There was no telling what might jump out ahead, so I kept my senses razor-sharp.

The corridor continued straight for a long stretch.

Nothing came at me while I walked, no traps, no monsters.

Somehow, that made it worse.

If something was going to show up, I'd rather it just get it over with… Hm?

Light was starting to appear ahead.

I raised my guard even higher and approached.

The source of the light was torches.

A wide cavern with torches hanging here and there.

In the center of the cavern sat a single boulder, conspicuously alone.

I crept closer to examine it.

'What's this?'

Something was carved on top of the boulder.

A circular design ringed with radiating spikes.

It was clearly meant to represent the sun.

Surrounding the sun emblem in a circle were unknown characters arranged like a magic circle.

And along three lines extending from the sun to the east, west, and north, small grooves had been carved into the stone.

As if something was meant to be slotted in.

"Hmm…"

I looked around.

Apart from the passage I'd entered through, the cavern branched into three paths: left, right, and straight ahead.

Three grooves, three paths.

I was starting to get a vague sense of what I was supposed to do.

Each path probably led to something I could bring back and slot into these grooves… right?

The sun emblem definitely seemed like a signal related to clearing this floor.

"Which way first, Diul?"

I spoke to Diul out of habit.

Diul, bobbing above my head, radiated indifference, as if to say figure it out yourself.

Mm… alright, let's try the left path first.

I heightened my tension and pressed forward down the left corridor.

The path was short, and it quickly opened into another cavern-like space.

In the center of this cavern, smaller than the main one, an amber gemstone sat on the ground.

'Is that it?'

So I just slot that into the groove, I suppose.

But I didn't rush in.

…Just walking up and grabbing it would be way too easy, right?

This was so fucking obviously a trap.

I took one step closer, and the inexplicable sense of dread sharpened noticeably.

Sixth Sense was sending warnings too.

I picked up a loose stone from nearby.

Then I tossed it toward the gemstone.

The instant the stone touched the ground, spikes erupted from every direction.

KRAKRAKRAKRAK!

Massive iron spikes shot out at terrifying speed, rhythmically shredding the space as they extended and retracted.

Only after several seconds did they withdraw back into the walls as though nothing had happened.

"…"

Pretty obvious, right?

I threw another stone to test it.

KRAKRAKRAK!

The spike trap triggered without fail.

So it wasn't a one-time mechanism; it kept activating.

And it seemed to detect contact with the floor.

The method to retrieve the gemstone came to me easily enough.

"One, two…"

I jumped from where I stood toward the gemstone.

The instant my feet touched the ground, I snatched the gemstone with my hand.

I stopped time, performed Mental Concentration, and Teleported back to where I'd been standing.

KRAKRAKRAKRAK!

The spikes stabbed empty air.

And the gemstone was in my hand. Easy.

Having plucked the gemstone out without a hitch, I returned to the central cavern.

Click.

I slotted the gemstone into the western groove.

An orange glow traveled up the line and filled roughly a third of the sun emblem.

"So this is how it works?"

Two left.

I headed for the right path next.

Alright, what kind of trap is waiting for me this time?

Not that I was enjoying any of this, but I forced a cheerful attitude as I walked. After a short while…

Just like the left path, a small cavern appeared.

There was a gemstone in the center of this one too, but…

This time, chains were wrapped tightly around it.

I threw a stone first, as before.

No trap triggered.

Sixth Sense wasn't picking up anything either, so I cautiously approached.

Was I supposed to undo the chains and take it?

Clank.

The blue chains binding the gemstone were connected to the cavern walls on all sides like a spiderweb, anchoring it in place.

I reached toward the gemstone.

I tried pulling with some force to loosen the chains.

"Ngh."

It didn't budge an inch.

Even putting everything I had into prying the gemstone free, it wouldn't come loose.

Okay, fine.

So brute force wasn't going to cut it?

I stepped back from the gemstone and loaded up a spell.

Then I fired Flame Strike at the chains.

BOOOOM!

When the flames cleared, the chains were completely intact.

…Seriously tough, aren't they?

Any ordinary iron chain would've been blown to pieces.

I tried Light Bullet and Blade Storm too, attempting to destroy the chains. Sharp winds slashed against them.

SKREEEEECH!

But no luck.

No matter how many spells I unleashed, the chains remained without a single scratch.

What the fuck is this?

What, adamantium? Vibranium? Something like that?

After mulling it over, I decided to target the walls where the chains were anchored instead.

BOOM!

I blasted through the cavern wall.

But no matter how deep I dug, the chains seemed to go on forever with no end in sight.

Any more blasting might collapse the entire cavern, so I had no choice but to abandon that approach too.

After struggling for a good while, I finally sank to the ground with my arms crossed.

"What am I even supposed to do…"

Was it a puzzle? Was there some other solution?

I looked around the cavern.

"Ah."

And then I spotted something.

On the wall just above the entrance I'd come through.

An identical amber gemstone was embedded there. What the hell?

I walked over, pried it out, and stared at it in disbelief.

"…I just take this one?"

So the gemstone wrapped in chains was a fake?

Just like on the second floor, this Nightmare bastard really loved making people feel stupid.

I returned to the central cavern and slotted the gemstone into the eastern groove.

The orange glow traveled up the line, filling the sun emblem to two-thirds.

"Hah."

Good.

Just one groove left.

I steeled myself and headed down the path straight ahead.

"…"

What is that?

An hourglass?

At the end of the front path, what awaited me in the center of the cavern was a massive hourglass.

The enormous hourglass was fixed in midair, connected to some kind of structural framework.

And there was something beneath it too.

A tall, cylindrical rock.

Slotted into grooves on the rock were an amber gemstone and, of all things, a cube.

A 3x3x3 Rubik's Cube, the kind where you twist the faces to match colors.

I tilted my head and reached for the gemstone first.

Of course, it wouldn't come free.

I looked back at the cube.

…So I have to solve the cube to get the gemstone?

'Shit.'

What now.

I'd completely forgotten the formulas.

There'd been a time when I used to play with cubes obsessively, but that was back in elementary school.

Naturally, it was all hazy now.

Instead of painted colors, each square of the metal cube had a picture drawn on it.

I lifted the cube out of the groove where it sat snugly fitted into the rock.

CLUNK!

The moment I did, the massive hourglass flipped over with a thunderous noise.

I looked back and forth between the hourglass and the cube in alarm.

The meaning was painfully obvious.

Solve it before time runs out.

I stopped time immediately and began fumbling through my memories.

How did it work again? I needed to recall the method.

Come on, long-term memory. I used to do this all the time!

Okay, so first you make the cross… then what… right, was that how it went?

Now that I was actually trying to remember, bits and pieces seemed to be coming back.

It felt like I could manage if I just worked through it.

I released time and started clumsily turning the cube.

After a few twists, I looked up to check the hourglass. And then.

"Huh?"

Half the sand had already fallen.

Wait, it's only been like ten seconds…

Now I noticed the hourglass was draining at an absurdly fast rate.

I stopped time again.

The cube was less than five percent done.

What kind of bullshit is this.

It wants me to solve a cube in a matter of seconds?

Sure, a world champion could probably do it in five seconds flat, but that was obviously beyond me.

On top of that, all I knew was the basic method, and basic formulas were nowhere near fast enough for that.

…What happens when the hourglass runs out?

No way to know. But it definitely wouldn't be anything good.

And solving the cube in the roughly ten seconds left before the hourglass emptied was equally impossible.

In other words, checkmate.

'God damn it.'

What do I do?

Maybe try smashing the hourglass?

…That obviously wasn't going to end well either. Rejected.

What if I put the cube back? Would the timer stop too?

With that thought, I released time and slotted the cube back into the rock.

But the hourglass kept draining, indifferent, as if to say no take-backs.

I stopped time again.

Only one option remained.

Get out of here for now.

I released time and scrambled out of the cavern.

I was afraid that once the hourglass ran out, spikes might come shooting out like in the left path.

I stared at the hourglass from the cavern entrance, every sense on high alert.

And soon, the last grains of sand fell.

The change was… nothing. Not immediately.

But a moment later, vibrations rippled through the ground.

"…?"

I turned around, expression hardening.

The sound was getting closer.

Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble.

What unfolded before me was a flood of Undead, packing the straight corridor wall to wall, surging forward like a tidal wave.

"You've gotta be…!"

I panicked and fired Flame Strike.

The front ranks of Undead exploded outward.

But the momentum only faltered for a moment before the horde surged forward again.

In desperation, I fired Light Bullets and unleashed Blade Storm.

That bought me seconds at best. There was no end to them.

I retreated back into the cavern, pulled out Shelburn's Ice Shard Dagger, and activated it.

KRAAAAAASH!

A blast of freezing cold swept through, encasing the suffocating tide of Undead in ice.

The ice formed a barricade of sorts, halting the Undead's relentless advance, but…

Crack, crack…

It didn't look like it would hold for long.

I stared blankly at the Undead for a moment, then stopped time.

Did the Undead from above find their way underground…?

Was this the penalty for running out of time?

'…There's no way out of this.'

The Undead procession had completely filled the only corridor.

There was no escape other than punching straight through them, and there was no way I could pull that off.

Even Teleportation would just drop me right in the middle of the horde.

I searched desperately for a way out.

But no matter how hard I racked my brain, this time there truly was no answer.

Am I… going to die? For real?

Feeling death closing in, right at my throat, I laughed bitterly to myself.

Dying because I couldn't solve a Rubik's Cube. What a joke.

I never imagined my end would be this garbage of a death.

'You win, Nightmare, you son of a bitch.'

Must feel great, winning by rigging the game this hard. Motherfucker.

But I had no intention of dying quietly.

Might as well thrash until the very end.

Resolve set, I released time and gripped my mace tight.

The ice shattered and the Undead were about to pour into the cavern.

"RAAAAGH…! Huh?"

I'd been about to charge out with a battle cry, but I froze.

A dark energy suddenly coiled around my body.

At the same time, the Undead that had been rushing toward me all stopped at once, as if they'd lost sight of their target.

What just happened?

I looked down at myself.

A hazy dark aura shimmered around me like heat haze, and my body had turned semi-transparent.

I looked up at Diul, hovering above my head.

The little spirit was radiating annoyance, grumbling as if this was a huge bother.

'Is this your ability, Diul…?'

The Undead stood right in front of me, staring vacantly into empty space like idiots.

I took a cautious step forward.

As if my very presence had been erased, not even the sound of my footsteps could be heard.

So this was the dark spirit's second ability?

Concealment, following Dark Vision.

Ha… Diul, you little rascal!

So you only help when I'm actually about to die!

Wait, this isn't the time for that.

While still concealed, I quickly picked up the cube again.

I needed to finish solving it and get the gemstone. Only then could I actually do something about this mess.

With a horde of Undead right in front of me, I squeezed my brain dry as I worked the cube for several minutes.

'…Got it!'

I managed to solve the cube.

I slotted the completed cube back into the groove on the rock.

Click.

The gemstone popped free from its slot.

I grabbed the gemstone and looked around at the Undead.

Wait a second…

But how do I get past all of them now?

I gingerly poked one of the Undead with my finger.

It showed no reaction whatsoever.

…So touching them doesn't set them off?

I carefully made my way through the gaps between the Undead.

Squeezing through the horde shoulder to shoulder, like Sindorim Station at six in the evening. [TL: Sindorim Station is one of the busiest subway transfer stations in Seoul, notorious for extreme rush-hour crowding.]

Why did a scene from World W*r Z suddenly pop into my head?

I felt like the protagonist who'd gotten the vaccine and was walking right through the zombies.

'Hang on, just a little longer!'

I could feel that Diul's ability was reaching its limit, so I hurried.

At last, I reached the central cavern.

The central cavern was packed with Undead too.

I barely managed to make it to where the boulder stood.

And I slotted the gemstone into the last remaining groove.

The moment all three gemstones were in place and the sun emblem filled completely with light,

FWOOOOOSH!

A brilliant blaze of light erupted from the emblem and engulfed the cavern.

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Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability - Chapter 31

Home Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability Chapter 31 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (3)

Chapter 31: Nightmare, 3rd Floor (3)

TL: DDTL

"…!"

The sudden blast of light forced me to squeeze my eyes shut.

Grwooooo…

When I opened them a moment later, the Undead around me were thrashing and melting away.

At the same time, my Concealment wore off.

A few of them, finally able to perceive me, lunged in my direction.

But they were already half-dead, so they weren't much of a threat. I caved their heads in with my mace.

"Haa."

Before long, every last Undead that had surrounded me dissolved into nothing.

The intense light pouring from the Sun Emblem soon faded as well.

…Is that it?

But no clear message appeared.

Yeah, figured as much.

Both the first and second floors had ended with a boss monster showing up.

The odds were high that the third floor wouldn't be any different.

I stood still and thought.

"Do I need to go back up?"

There was nothing left underground beyond the central cavern and the three branching paths.

Going back to the surface was the only option, wasn't it?

But what if the Undead up there were still intact…

With no other path available, I walked toward the passage leading to the surface.

The entrance pit I'd first come through.

"Huh?"

When I arrived, bright sunlight was streaming down from above.

Wait, did the sun actually rise?

It seemed like activating the emblem made the sun come up on the surface too.

I clamped the mace between my teeth and scaled the wall.

Then I poked my head cautiously out of the pit.

Beneath a sky where a brilliant sun hung high, a spectacular scene unfolded: countless Undead across the surface were thrashing and melting away.

"Wow…"

I sat there watching for a moment before snapping back to my senses.

It felt like everything was over, yet the floor still hadn't been cleared… so what was left?

It had to be a boss.

I climbed the rest of the way out and scanned my surroundings like a meerkat.

Nothing stood out in particular, but then…

Grwooooo…

The Undead that had been melting under the sun suddenly began stampeding in one direction.

Plenty of them were already dead, but there had been an absurd number to begin with, so the ones still remaining were a staggering mass.

"Ugh…!"

I dove back into the pit to avoid getting swept up.

The ground shook. A few of them tumbled into the pit, so I smashed their heads in.

After a while, the trembling subsided.

I climbed back up and surveyed the outside.

And…

"…Huh."

The sight before me left me speechless.

The countless Undead that had gathered to one side.

They were squirming and compressing, merging together into the shape of an enormous sphere.

In other words, a massive lump of flesh.

Hands jutting out from every angle twitched and writhed like antennae.

Its sheer, stupid size overwhelmed me more than any feeling of grotesqueness could.

Aaaaaa…

A low sound, like infrasound, leaked from the thing.

An eerie vibration that rattled my eardrums in all the wrong ways.

I grimaced and reflexively clapped my hands over my ears.

That thing… is the boss? That?

Fuck, it looks way too strong.

"…!"

The mass shuddered.

I barely had time to think it looked like an engine revving up.

Then it accelerated at a terrifying speed and rolled straight toward me.

It was insanely fast. Fast enough to send a chill down my spine.

I used Leap and hurled myself sideways.

KRAKOOOOM!

"Guh…!"

The shockwave that followed knocked me off balance.

I tumbled across the ground, landed, and stopped time to begin Mental Concentration.

Flame Strike. Fairy Light Bullet.

I cast the spells back to back and launched them.

Three balls of flame and five Light Bullets streaked toward the mass.

KABOOOOM!

Direct hits, all of them.

But against something that size, even Flame Strike's explosion looked small, and the Light Bullets were little more than pellets.

Graaaah!

Still, it seemed to do some damage; the thing shrieked as if in pain.

'Did it swallow a goddamn locomotive or something…!'

Another wave of that sickening infrasound.

I was still scowling when I looked at the mass and my eyes went wide.

The craters my spells had carved were already squirming shut, filling in and smoothing over. It regenerated in an instant.

Oh, come on… that's cheating.

Before I even had time to feel cheated, another change was already happening.

This time, holes opened up all across its body and it sprayed something in every direction at once.

FWSHHHHH!

A torrent of purple liquid rained down from above.

I scrambled out of the way.

The ground where the acid landed hissed and dissolved.

"Sh…"

What the hell is this now…!

I barely escaped the biochemical bombardment and whipped around to look at the mass.

It was already rolling toward me again, not giving me a second to breathe.

I burned another Leap to throw myself clear!

KRAKOOOOM!

Everything in its path was obliterated.

I was scrambling to my feet after rolling across the ground when,

It was gone? Where?

'Where'd it go?'

A shadow fell over the ground. I looked up.

The thing was plummeting from the sky like a meteor, directly onto my head.

"…!"

Son of a…

I was too late to dodge. I stopped time.

THUUUUD!

I Teleported to maximum range and rolled away desperately.

"Haa, haa…"

Despite its massive size, the thing bounced like a basketball and launched itself skyward again. Falling toward me once more.

The instant Leap came off cooldown, I used it and threw myself aside.

Flame Strike's cooldown happened to be up too, so I fired another one at the mass.

KABOOOOM!

But just like before, the mass only screamed a little and regenerated in no time.

Wait a second…

Something was wrong here.

Because this thing was clearly not an enemy I could take down.

The sunlight didn't even seem to faze it, and just surviving wasn't going to cut it either…

"Ha."

Here it comes again, already rolling.

I dodged with Leap.

The pit.

I need to get back into the pit.

Crushed by the overwhelming gap in power, I lost all will to fight and just tried to run.

But there was no opening for even that.

The mass rolled past, then slammed on the brakes, pulled a sharp turn, and came rolling right back, like some kind of circus trick.

Fuck.

With both Leap and Teleportation on cooldown, I had to dodge with my bare body.

But the thing was so massive that without Leap, I couldn't fully clear its path.

WHAM!

For a split second, I saw death.

I'd only been grazed by the edge of it, yet my body was launched like I'd been hit by a hundred-ton truck.

I flew through the air, slammed into the ground.

I tumbled for what felt like forever before crashing into a boulder and finally stopping.

"Hrrgh…"

Through the unbelievable agony, I looked down at myself.

My right arm was twisted at a wrong angle, and my right ribs had caved inward.

The pain was so bad I stopped time.

The dizzying agony vanished as if washed away.

'…I'm fucked.'

That was the first thought that came to mind.

Why did a monster this absurdly powerful show up as the boss?

And now I thought I understood.

That mass was born from all the remaining Undead on the field merging together.

In other words, there should never have been that many Undead on the field in the first place.

When I'd dug in and held out until full nightfall, that insane swarm had come pouring out.

That was where it had already gone wrong.

Before the Undead could pile up on the surface like that, I should have gone underground early and activated the Sun Emblem.

Then far fewer Undead would have merged, and whatever boss formed would have been something manageable. Not this monstrosity.

It was absurd.

How was anyone supposed to find the underground passage and head down there immediately with zero information?

But then again, this insane difficulty had never once failed to demand exactly that kind of unreasonable play.

I'd gotten the very first step wrong.

That was the sole reason I was in this situation now.

'Is this the end?'

The moment I released time, the mass would come rolling again.

In this condition, I couldn't dodge.

Teleportation was still on cooldown, and even if I dodged one more time, it wouldn't matter.

…I was as good as dead already.

Facing my second death after the one underground, I felt calmer than before.

But was there really no way to survive? Was this truly it?

'There isn't.'

Attacks don't work. Can't dodge. What am I supposed to do?

…Ah.

There was one thing left.

[Item: Plligas's Blood Necklace]

A necklace infused with the blood of Plligas, a predator of the demon realm. Defeat the summoned Plligas to form a Master-Servant Contract. The necklace is destroyed upon failure. (Level 50+ recommended)

A necklace that summoned a Familiar.

But using it was basically suicide.

I hadn't tamed it yet, so this thing wasn't on my side.

Whatever. I was about to die anyway.

This was no time to weigh the pros and cons.

I steeled myself and released time.

"…Gkh!"

The staggering pain crashed over my entire body again.

Blood surged up my throat and burst from my mouth.

It hurt… it hurt so much it was almost pitiful.

Why was I here, broken like this?

[Use 'Item: Plligas's Blood Necklace'?]

A message floated before my eyes.

Fuck it. Come out.

I played my last gamble.

Hissssss.

Dark crimson smoke rose from the necklace around my neck.

It coalesced right in front of me and began taking shape.

A massive four-legged beast.

Blazing red energy rippled around its black body, and the bristling fur that jutted from it looked like blades.

"Diul… ah…"

Before it had fully materialized, I called out desperately for Diul.

Diul let out something like a sigh and squeezed out the little strength it had left to cast Concealment on me.

KAOOOOO!

A roar that threatened to burst my eardrums. My whole body tingled.

Fully materialized, Plligas looked around, searching for whoever had summoned it.

But I was already concealed.

Luckily, the trick seemed to work; even with me right in front of it, the creature couldn't find me.

KRRRUMBLE…

That was when the mass came rolling this way.

Plligas turned toward it and let out another roar.

The moment Plligas kicked off the ground, a shockwave erupted.

It shot forward like a cannonball at a terrifying speed, vaulted over the mass just before impact, and tore off a massive chunk in its jaws.

The mass screamed and wobbled past me, rolling off course.

"…!"

Plligas charged at the mass again without a moment's pause.

I used Teleportation to put as much distance as I could between myself and the two monsters.

'It actually worked…'

This was exactly the scenario I'd been banking on.

Getting the two of them to fight each other seemed to have worked.

The battle between Plligas and the mass was a kaiju war in every sense.

Plligas was enormous in its own right, but only about a third the size of the mass.

Yet it clung to the mass without giving it room to roll, tearing into it like a rabid animal, like a tiger hunting an elephant.

With a recommended level of 50 and above, Plligas was every bit as powerful as advertised.

WOOOOO!

The mass, bitten and torn and howling in agony, spewed acid again.

Drenched in the stuff, Plligas's body began to dissolve and it staggered.

The mass seized the moment and tried to roll with Plligas still latched on.

Plligas was crushed against the ground several times before it finally tore free.

GRAAAAH!

Even so, Plligas's ferocity hadn't dimmed.

It charged in and tore at the mass, got thrown off, charged in and tore again, got thrown off again. That cycle repeated several times.

The two monsters fought on and on until, at last, the battle seemed to reach its conclusion.

Both the mass and Plligas were in ruins, but it was Plligas that ran out of strength first.

I watched as the staggering Plligas scattered like dust.

[Kill Contribution insufficient. The Master-Servant Contract is voided.]

A message appeared before my eyes.

Voided… so if I didn't take it down myself, this is what happened?

But it didn't seem to count as a failure either, since the necklace wasn't destroyed.

None of that mattered right now, though.

WOOOOO…!

The mass looked like a half-eaten apple, chewed down to a sorry state.

Deep inside its exposed innards, at the very center, there was a section where the Undead were packed especially tight, like a wick.

It looked like the thing's core. At least, that's what it looked like to me.

The mass began squirming from the inside, trying to regenerate again.

"GRAAAAAAGH…!"

I screamed and forced my trembling body upright.

This was the last chance. The only chance.

After fully recovering my Willpower, I launched Flame Strike and Light Bullets all at once, aimed straight at the mass's core.

KABOOOOM!

My upper body was completely fucked, but my legs still worked.

I broke into a run toward the mass.

Every movement was so excruciating I felt like I could collapse at any second.

But stopping meant death, so I clung to consciousness by a thread.

The flames cleared, and I could see the core, still wailing, with roughly half of it blown away, but it still held its shape.

This was it. The final blow.

I activated Leap and launched myself at the mass, then Teleported inside its body.

With the mangled core right in front of me, I unleashed Blade Storm.

KRAKOOOM!

The core was shredded to pieces.

Chunks of dead flesh rained down around me, and my body plummeted along with them.

[Successfully cleared Nightmare difficulty, Floor 3.]

[Absorbing the Power of the Floor.]

[Level has increased.]

As the messages scrolled before my eyes one after another, I smiled and closed my eyes.

That was rough. Really, truly rough.

MANGA DISCUSSION

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Chapter 55 - Sub-Tower (1) Chapter 54 - 4F Hidden (5) Chapter 53 - 4F Hidden (4) Chapter 52 - 4F Hidden (3) Chapter 51 - 4F Hidden (2) Chapter 50 - 4F Hidden (1) Chapter 49 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (5) Chapter 48 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (4) Chapter 47 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (3) Chapter 46 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (2) Chapter 45 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (1) Chapter 44 - The First Proposal (2) Chapter 43 - The First Proposal (1) Chapter 42 - Normalization (2) Chapter 41 - Normalization (1) Chapter 40 - The Fallen (3) Chapter 39 - The Fallen (2) Chapter 38 - The Fallen (1) Chapter 37 - Overcompensation (2) Chapter 36 - Overcompensation (1) Chapter 35 - 3F Hidden (3) Chapter 34 - 3F Hidden (2) Chapter 33 - 3F Hidden (1) Chapter 32 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (4) Chapter 31 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (3) Chapter 30 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (2) Chapter 29 - Nightmare Floor 3 (1) Chapter 28 - Before Floor 3 (2) Chapter 27 - Before the 3rd Floor (1) Chapter 26 - The Escapee (3) Chapter 25 - The Escapee (2) Chapter 24 - The Escapee (1) Chapter 23 - Decision (2) Chapter 22 - Decision (1) Chapter 21 - The Gap Chapter 20 - 2F Hidden (4) Chapter 19 - 2F Hidden (3) Chapter 18 - 2F Hidden (2) Chapter 17 - 2F Hidden (1) Chapter 16 - Nightmare Floor 2 (4) Chapter 15 - Nightmare Floor 2 (3) Chapter 14 - Nightmare Floor 2 (2) Chapter 13 - Nightmare Floor 2 (1) Chapter 12 - The Benefactor Chapter 11 - The Latecomers (2) Chapter 10 - The Latecomers (1) Chapter 9 - 1F Hidden (2) Chapter 8 - 1F Hidden (1) Chapter 7 - Sharing Information (2) Chapter 6 - Sharing Information (1) Chapter 5 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (4) Chapter 4 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (3) Chapter 3 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (2) Chapter 2 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (1) Chapter 1 - Entry MANGA DISCUSSIONLeave a ReplyYou must Register or Login to post a comment.

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Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability - Chapter 32

Home Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability Chapter 32 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (4)

Chapter 32: Nightmare, 3rd Floor (4)

TL: DDTL

[Level up.]

[First ever clear of Nightmare difficulty Floor 3.]

[Floor 3 Hidden Route unlocked.]

[Transferring to the Reward Room.]

The sensation of falling vanished, and my body was transported to the Reward Room.

My injuries began healing in an instant.

My twisted ribs realigned on their own, flesh knitting shut and bloodstains vanishing without a trace.

I'd been unconscious during Floor 1, so I'd missed this, but so this was how it worked.

The agony that had felt like my entire body was being crushed evaporated as if it had never existed.

"Haaaaah…"

Finally, I could breathe again.

Once I confirmed my body was fully healed, instead of getting up, I flopped onto the floor and sprawled out on my back.

"…Mission complete."

I mumbled the words to no one and let out a weak laugh.

I survived.

Somehow, once again, I'd managed to survive.

[All difficulties for Floor 3 have been cleared.]

[The Tower calls for new Climbers.]

More messages appeared in succession.

When Floor 2 was cleared, new rules had popped up, so I'd half-expected the same this time.

But aside from the announcement about new Climbers being added, there were no additional messages.

So not every floor adds new rules… maybe it's every other floor?

I mulled it over for a moment, gave up, and pushed myself upright.

"Seriously thought I was gonna die this time…"

Floors 1 and 2 had been bad enough, but Floor 3 was an absolute nightmare in the truest sense.

Seriously, what the hell kind of boss was that supposed to be?

A house-sized undead ball of corpses that moved more nimbly than I did.

If my theory was right, going underground early to activate the Sun Emblem would probably spawn a much weaker boss, but still.

Clearing this with zero intel on the first attempt was essentially impossible.

How the hell did I even pull that off?

It was all thanks to Diul. Every last bit of it.

I looked up at Diul hovering above my head.

"You're the best, Diul."

Hiding me from the undead, hiding me from Plligas.

Over seventy percent of this clear belonged to Diul.

God, it was so cute I could die. I reached up to pet the little thing, but Diul dodged my hand with cool indifference and bobbed around in lazy circles.

What a little tsundere. Acted all aloof, but still ended up unlocking a new ability when things got dangerous.

"But hey… didn't you get a bit bigger?"

I tilted my head and studied Diul more closely.

Originally about the size of a baseball, but now it seemed slightly larger.

Its shape had been a perfect sphere before, too, but now I could see the edges rippling faintly.

'Is it evolving or something?'

Maybe the change came hand in hand with the new ability unlocking.

More than anything, the mental connection between us felt a step stronger.

"Alright, get some rest. You earned it."

I could feel Diul's exhaustion, so I sent it back into the bracelet.

I glanced down at the necklace.

'And then there's this…'

The system had said the attempt was nullified.

The necklace hadn't been destroyed, either, which meant I'd gotten a free use out of it with zero penalty. A real bargain.

Plligas… if I won, I could bind a monster like that as a Familiar?

I'd seen firsthand just how powerful it was, so I decided to save that challenge for another day.

I rose to my feet.

It felt like a lie that I'd been on the verge of death just moments ago; energy surged through every inch of my body.

Another ten levels gained, my body a whole tier stronger.

Pow! Bam!

I threw a few one-two jabs at the air, then turned to check the rewards.

There was one Skill Stone and one Skill Enhancement Stone.

[Skill Stone: Rapid Regeneration (Rare+)]

Upon use, grants 'Skill: Rapid Regeneration (Rare+).'

[Skill: Rapid Regeneration (Rare+)]

Consumes all remaining Willpower and instantaneously amplifies the body's regenerative ability beyond its limits, proportional to the amount consumed.

Type: Physical

Willpower Cost: All remaining Willpower

Cooldown: 24 hours

Rare+ grade. Not bad.

Floors 1 and 2 had only given Rare-grade rewards outside of Hidden Route clears.

So the grade went up once you hit Floor 3.

"A healing skill?"

Reading the description, it seemed like a recovery ability.

Consume all current Willpower to amplify regeneration.

This was the first skill I'd seen with a mechanic that burned through all Willpower at once.

I didn't have any healing skills, so of course it would be nice to have one, but… a twenty-four-hour cooldown?

'Is the effect that good to justify it?'

Considering it drained all Willpower on top of that.

It was probably the kind of skill designed to save your life once when you're critically wounded.

Not bad at all.

Besides, I could refill my Willpower right away even after burning it all.

I wanted to test how effective it was, but it wasn't like I was going to hurt myself on purpose.

Well, next time I'm on the brink of death, I'll give it a try then.

[Skill: Rapid Regeneration (Rare+) acquired.]

Next, the Skill Enhancement Stone.

This one was Rare grade.

Part of me wanted to dump it into Flame Strike and take it all the way to +3, but I decided to hold off for now.

And lastly, the Supreme Magic Stone… tossed into the corner.

[Difficulty: Nightmare]

[Floor: 4]

[Level: 40]

[Willpower: 1,000]

[Skills: Teleportation (Rare+), Sixth Sense (Rare+), Rapid Regeneration (Rare+), Flame Strike (Rare)(+2), Blade Storm (Rare), Exaltation (Rare), Fairy Light Bullet (Normal+)(+1), Minor Poison Resistance (Normal+), Leap (Normal)(+1), Swing (Normal), Thrust (Normal)]

Checking the Status Window, my Willpower had gone up from 600 to 1,000.

For reference, Willpower scaling increased by ten per level for every ten-level bracket.

Levels 1 through 10 gained 10 per level, levels 11 through 20 gained 20 per level, and so on.

[Nightmare]

Climbers: 250,152

Time Limit: 1 year, 20 days, 9 minutes, 57 seconds

Current Floor: 4

With the rewards sorted, I checked the Nightmare Time Limit.

"Another year earned, just like that."

If there was one silver lining to the Tower's Time Limit, it was that it made you live each day with gratitude.

The downside was everything else.

I'd scraped through again, somehow, but the thought of what Floor 4 might hold, of how much longer I could keep this up… it was overwhelming.

A thought suddenly crossed my mind.

'What happens if you climb to the very top of the Tower?'

Does the Time Limit just disappear?

Or is it still inevitable destruction, even if you reach the summit?

No one had yet discovered how many floors the Tower had, so there was no way to know.

[Would you like to exit the Tower?]

I shoved aside the bleak thoughts about the future and exited the Tower.

I'd been through enough… time to rest.

Since the Day of Upheaval in 2025, Earth had what could only be called one massive annual event.

Would humanity meet its end this year, or wouldn't it?

The year 2028 had something the previous two hadn't.

The Climber who had achieved the world-first clears of both Nightmare Floors 1 and 2, Person123, had publicly declared his intention to climb Nightmare difficulty. He'd even specified the exact timing of his attempt.

True to his announcement, on October 23rd, the precise moment the Nightmare Time Limit hit exactly twenty days remaining:

[Firetung: Think he went in just now?]

[QuickFlame: He hasn't yet, has he? There's still 30 minutes left]

[FlatBread: Didn't he mean he'd enter when only the 20-day number was left, with no other time units? Anyone know for sure?]

[Yeokcheon: Just sit tight and wait, damn;]

[Hohohu: Ugh, honestly would've been less nerve-wracking if he'd said nothing at all]

[Phillop: Instead you'd be drowning in despair. Knowing the result is coming soon, I actually feel relieved]

Some anxious, some desperate, some paralyzed with fear.

Civilians, Climbers, people across the entire globe, all waiting for the one result that would decide the fate of the world.

"I'm curious whether your opinion has changed since last year, Arlo."

The podcast show The Jude Noise.

A guest who had appeared around this time last year was invited back on the air. He was Arlo, influencer and self-proclaimed doomsayer.

Just before Nightmare Floor 2 was cleared last year, Arlo had gone on a caustic tirade on the show insisting there would be no more miracles, only for the Nightmare clear to happen live in real time. The moment had become a viral sensation, equal parts spectacle and mockery, all over social media.

This time, the broadcast was a special live production staged like a talk show on a wider set. Host Jude and guest Arlo sat facing each other, while a massive screen behind the stage displayed the Nightmare difficulty's remaining Time Limit, ticking down: [20 days, 15 minutes, 56 seconds].

"Do you think Person123 can clear Nightmare Floor 3? What's your take?"

"Heh, it seems like you're just dying to make a fool of me again, Jude."

"Ha ha, not at all. I simply want to hear your honest opinion, Arlo. As do the viewers."

In response to Jude's question, Arlo appeared unchanged in his stance.

"Of course I pray more fervently than anyone that Floor 3 is cleared. But I believe it's only right to separate that kind of vague hope from reality."

"I see. And what does that reality look like?"

"As I've always said, the odds of it not being cleared are far higher than the odds that it will."

Arlo crossed his legs and rested his hands on his knee.

"Let's say you roll a die twice and get a six both times. Jude, how much of your personal fortune would you wager that the next roll is also a six?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure I'd want to bet even a dollar."

"And that's perfectly rational. Nightmare difficulty isn't even a standard die. It's no different from a die with sixty sides. Just because the number sixty came up once, and then miraculously a second time, I have no desire to expect it will come up a third."

Jude nodded with a smile.

"So your position remains the same. But Arlo, Person123 is an extraordinary individual, someone who solo-cleared both Floors 1 and 2 as world firsts. Couldn't the expectation that he has the ability to keep climbing Nightmare be more than just vague hope?"

"Two times can easily be coincidence. But more importantly, the real problem lies elsewhere. Every other Nightmare Climber besides Person123 is still struggling just to follow in his footsteps. And that's with every last piece of strategy information being made public!"

Arlo shook his head.

"I don't mean that as any slight against those heroes who sacrifice so much for humanity. Nightmare difficulty is horrific. It's so absurd you have to wonder if it was even designed to be cleared. It feels outright malicious.

How on earth is Person123 managing to clear something like that? At the end of the day, he's only human, just like the rest of us. Perhaps we've already placed far too heavy a burden on the shoulders of a single person who may well be at his limit.

That's what it comes down to. Earth has long since become a sandcastle that could collapse at any moment. What's the point of holding on, hoping the next wave will be just a little weaker? One big wave, and humanity is finished. All I want is for everyone to accept that the end could come in the very near future, perhaps even today, and to live without regrets…"

Just then, a staff member came rushing over.

Arlo, mid-sentence, flinched at the sight and muttered.

"…Why does this feel like déjà vu."

"Floor 3 was just cleared!"

YEAAAAAH!

Nightmare difficulty Floor 3 had been cleared.

News outlets across the globe blasted the story as breaking news.

[ReaperScythe: It's done, it's done… We're alive!]

[Toyo: Earth's subscription renewed for one more yeaaaar! Never doubted it for a second!]

[BaekDohyeon: Is Person123 actually a god???]

[IceWall: Has to be. If this isn't a messiah, then what is!]

[WokDirigShon: But seriously, it's awe-inspiring… how is he this far above everyone else?]

Cheers erupted in the streets, and some cities broke into outright celebration.

People clinking glasses and toasting in bars, families quietly pulling each other into embraces, commuters checking the result on the way home and sighing in relief.

And some people…

"He has delivered salvation unto us once again."

A cathedral-like space. A solemn gathering of the faithful.

"Behold! After declaring resolutely that He would stand against that wicked Tower and protect our world, He has kept His promise without fail!"

"Ahhh…"

"Dare not doubt any longer. Simply believe. And He shall grant us another year. For it is unmistakably clear that He is the angel sent to redeem humanity, the messenger of God."

"Person123! Person123!"

At the man's words from the pulpit, the crowd erupted in cheers or bowed their heads in prayer. Some wept openly.

In any case, everyone celebrated and felt relief in their own way.

The world had been granted another year's reprieve.

"I'm home."

"Oh, Seo-hyeon! Welcome back. Did you have fun?"

I smiled as I swapped my shoes at the front door.

"Yeah… I had a blast."

Have that much fun twice and I'd actually die.

MANGA DISCUSSION

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Sign in Sign upHomeNovel ListClimbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability - Chapter 33Home Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability Chapter 33 - 3F Hidden (1) Chapter 55 - Sub-Tower (1) Chapter 54 - 4F Hidden (5) Chapter 53 - 4F Hidden (4) Chapter 52 - 4F Hidden (3) Chapter 51 - 4F Hidden (2) Chapter 50 - 4F Hidden (1) Chapter 49 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (5) Chapter 48 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (4) Chapter 47 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (3) Chapter 46 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (2) Chapter 45 - Nightmare, 4th Floor (1) Chapter 44 - The First Proposal (2) Chapter 43 - The First Proposal (1) Chapter 42 - Normalization (2) Chapter 41 - Normalization (1) Chapter 40 - The Fallen (3) Chapter 39 - The Fallen (2) Chapter 38 - The Fallen (1) Chapter 37 - Overcompensation (2) Chapter 36 - Overcompensation (1) Chapter 35 - 3F Hidden (3) Chapter 34 - 3F Hidden (2) Chapter 33 - 3F Hidden (1) Chapter 32 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (4) Chapter 31 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (3) Chapter 30 - Nightmare, 3rd Floor (2) Chapter 29 - Nightmare Floor 3 (1) Chapter 28 - Before Floor 3 (2) Chapter 27 - Before the 3rd Floor (1) Chapter 26 - The Escapee (3) Chapter 25 - The Escapee (2) Chapter 24 - The Escapee (1) Chapter 23 - Decision (2) Chapter 22 - Decision (1) Chapter 21 - The Gap Chapter 20 - 2F Hidden (4) Chapter 19 - 2F Hidden (3) Chapter 18 - 2F Hidden (2) Chapter 17 - 2F Hidden (1) Chapter 16 - Nightmare Floor 2 (4) Chapter 15 - Nightmare Floor 2 (3) Chapter 14 - Nightmare Floor 2 (2) Chapter 13 - Nightmare Floor 2 (1) Chapter 12 - The Benefactor Chapter 11 - The Latecomers (2) Chapter 10 - The Latecomers (1) Chapter 9 - 1F Hidden (2) Chapter 8 - 1F Hidden (1) Chapter 7 - Sharing Information (2) Chapter 6 - Sharing Information (1) Chapter 5 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (4) Chapter 4 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (3) Chapter 3 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (2) Chapter 2 - Nightmare, 1st Floor (1) Chapter 1 - Entry Chapter 33: 3F Hidden (1)TL: DDTL

─ Once again, we extend our boundless gratitude and respect to Person123, the top Climber on Nightmare difficulty, who has secured another year of survival for all of humanity. Taking his noble spirit of challenge as our example, the United States will continue to spare no effort in pursuing Nightmare-difficulty climbs going forward…

I ate breakfast while watching the U.S. President's address on the morning news.

Two days had passed since I cleared the third floor.

I'd slept at a hotel the day of the attempt, come home the next day and rested, so that made two days.

Another major hurdle cleared, and coming back home afterward really drove it in: nothing beat home. It actually felt like a proper rest for once.

─ …With the clearing of Nightmare Floor 3 bringing joy to many, the Tower's 3-Year Rule is now right around the corner. The First-wave Climbers, the very first to receive the Tower's call, have only a little over ten days remaining, and the number of First-wave Climbers who have yet to attempt the Nightmare difficulty is estimated at a minimum of 50,000…

When the next segment came on, I checked the current Nightmare climbing status.

[Nightmare]

Personnel: 250,036

Time Limit: 1 year, 20 days, 9 minutes, 57 seconds

Highest Floor Reached: 4F

"…What the hell are these people supposed to do?"

The First-wave Climbers, the very first group to become Climbers, myself included.

How many had been left by the time the first floor was cleared? Something like 75,000?

Either way, tens of thousands of people were weeks away from death.

I'd catch bits of news here and there about expanding training facilities, pledging active support, that kind of thing, but…

The other difficulties were one thing; Nightmare was genuinely hopeless.

─ I've decided not to attempt it and just accept what comes. I'd rather die peacefully than enter the Tower and die horribly. I don't think I'm the only one who feels that way, either.

Next came an interview clip with one of the Nightmare First-wave Climbers.

A man with a composed expression said those words, smiling calmly.

I felt a twinge of sympathy and turned off the TV.

'A peaceful death, huh.'

Why did those words feel so unsettling?

The death the Tower had promised… how exactly would it happen?

Would people just suddenly collapse as if from a heart attack out of nowhere?

Or instant death, too fast to even feel pain?

If it were something that mundane, then maybe that man was right. Maybe not attempting it at all was the better choice.

Better than being torn apart by Goblins somewhere with no one around to help.

On top of that, entering the Tower meant not even leaving a body behind.

"Thanks for the meal."

I soaked the dishes in the sink, went back to my room, and lay down on the bed.

Out of habit, I opened the Communication Channel.

A mountain of Whispers had piled up.

Since I'd announced this attempt in advance, the Whispers had actually been pouring in nonstop even before the third-floor challenge. Most of them were messages of encouragement.

[Chicken Sandwich: You've worked hard, Mr. Kim. You truly are the only one who can save humanity. If there's anything you need from me, please don't hesitate to say the word.]

I'd also had a brief exchange with Bilon after the clear.

Bilon was practically the only person I could talk to openly about my runs.

Part of me wanted to tell him just how much hell I'd been through, but…

It would've just sounded like me whining, "Oh, you have no idea how rough I had it, seriously," so I dropped it. No point making the guy anxious for nothing.

[Lotus: Thank you. I'm cheering for you.]

I'd also gotten a message from the Section Chief at the Tower Climbing Special Agency.

Long conversations still felt like too much, so I just sent a short reply.

[Pringles: But y'know, Person123 only needs one more floor to hit 5F.]

[Yatmon: Think they'd actually go around the Common Zone? They're still hiding their identity and all]

[Bamboo: Could walk right past you and you'd never know lol for real]

[Hobby: They'll probably just move around quietly on their own. Still, they'll grab everything worth grabbing on 5F before going for 6F]

[Lubrublubru: I just wanna know what country they're from at least, seriously]

[Iron Armor: Why are you guys talking like 4F is already cleared]

[Wheat Field: Because we believe they'll clear it~]

[Blue Marlin: You don't trust Person123? I do]

Browsing the Communication Channel and reading people's conversations, my thoughts drifted to the fifth floor.

'The Common Zone…'

The Tower's fifth floor was called the Common Zone.

Because it was, quite literally, a communal area.

The fifth floor wasn't something that needed to be cleared. It was a space where Climbers of all difficulties gathered together. Sort of like a rest-stop checkpoint.

Of course, no Climber on Nightmare difficulty had reached the fifth floor yet.

If I managed to clear the fourth floor, I'd be the first Nightmare Climber to ever set foot in the Common Zone.

Not that it held any particular significance. Just another floor to pass through.

I browsed the Communication Channel a bit longer, then closed it.

"Guess I should get started today."

I still needed to put together an info post for the third floor, so there was no point dragging things out. I'd go for the Hidden route today.

[Would you like to enter Nightmare Difficulty Floor 3?]

I let my food digest a bit, then entered the Tower right away.

I'd struggled like hell because I hadn't known, but the key to the third floor was speed.

Get underground and activate the Sun Emblem as fast as possible, before even more Undead could flood out onto the field.

Groooooo…

The moment I entered, I located the underground passage hatch in the floor.

'Let's see.'

One o'clock direction from the entry point. Noted.

I grabbed my mace and charged straight ahead, caving in the skulls of every Undead that swarmed toward me.

My body, now at Level 40 after gaining ten Levels, was obviously much stronger and faster.

KABOOOM!

I fired off a Flame Strike to blast open the floor and dropped right in.

That whole sequence took about thirty seconds?

On other difficulties, sunrise took ten minutes. Nightmare seemed to work in reverse, with ten minutes until sunset, so I needed to finish within ten minutes at minimum. Otherwise they'd come pouring in like a swarm of locusts again.

I sprinted through the passage and arrived at the central chamber.

I went left first.

Picked up the gem on the floor, Teleported back. Clear.

Came out, socketed the gem, and headed right.

Ignored the cheap chain-fishing trap and grabbed the gem from the wall above the entrance. Clear.

About one minute had elapsed by the time I entered the path straight ahead.

I picked up the cube, eyes wide, and started solving it.

Click. Click-click.

Is it even possible to solve a cube in under twenty seconds?

With enough dedicated practice, pure effort could get you there.

The catch was that you needed to learn advanced algorithms, not just the basic ones…

And I obviously hadn't practiced beforehand.

I couldn't exactly put off the Hidden run just to grind cube-solving until I hit a twenty-second clear.

The hourglass emptied quickly, and vibrations signaling approaching Undead rumbled through the ground.

"Diul."

Still focused on the cube, I called for Diul.

Diul activated Concealment, and my body turned semi-transparent.

I left the Undead, who'd charged all the way here only to mill around stupidly with nothing to find, and finished the cube.

Still, it was obviously faster than my first attempt.

I completed the cube, removed the gem, and moved to the central chamber.

Total time so far… about three minutes!

FWOOOOOSH!

Light erupted from the Sun Emblem, melting the surrounding Undead.

Now I needed to head up top and see what the boss was like.

It had to be far weaker than that monster from before. That was only normal.

Groooooo…

Climbing back to the surface, I saw Undead dissolving in the sunlight.

Soon the surviving Undead began massing together on one side.

But their numbers were incomparably fewer than last time. A hundred at most?

The clump they formed was only slightly larger than the Minotaur had been.

Grooooooooo…

The infrasonic hum was barely enough to make my ears itch.

I flicked my ears a couple of times, then immediately fired off Flame Strike and Light Bullet simultaneously.

KABOOOOM!

Three fireballs and five Light Bullets concentrated their bombardment on the mass, and it simply exploded on the spot.

"…"

Are you kidding me?

It was this weak originally?

What in the world kind of fight had I been through before…?

It wasn't completely dead yet.

I walked up to the thing, its body blown apart and core fully exposed, and smashed it with my mace.

"Just die already."

Part of it was that I'd grown stronger at Level 40, sure, but this was a level of easy I could've handled even back at Level 30.

At this difficulty, other Nightmare Climbers could probably manage it too, couldn't they?

If they minimized the time as much as possible, it might actually be easier than the second floor.

Granted, other people would be facing the boss at Level 20, but still.

Well, whatever.

The boss was dealt with easily enough, so now it was time to find the Hidden route.

I looked around at the endless plains stretching in every direction.

"Where the hell am I supposed to go?"

There were way too many options.

I could head in any direction: north, south, east, or west.

Just as I was thinking about going back down into the underground passage to look around first…

"…?"

I narrowed my eyes.

Way, way off in the distance… if I looked closely, there was something out there.

'A pyramid?'

Some kind of pointy structure that vaguely resembled a pyramid.

It shimmered like a mirage.

Leveling up and gaining physical enhancements naturally improved eyesight too.

So my eyes could see extraordinarily far. I might even beat a bird of prey in a contest.

Judging by the sense of depth I was getting, that structure was an enormous distance from here.

But… there was no way it was visible for no reason, right?

It wasn't just background scenery, like decorative graphics beyond the edge of a game map.

"Let's check it out."

I broke into a light sprint.

Every time my feet struck the ground, the earth cracked beneath me as my body rocketed forward.

It was far, but I was no slouch in the speed department either.

It didn't take long to reach my destination.

"Yep, that's definitely a pyramid."

As I got close, it turned out to be a truly massive structure that did look remarkably like a pyramid.

Surrounding it were numerous pillars and smaller structures as well.

It gave off a vibe that was sort of like… a temple?

Rumble…

The blazing sun overhead suddenly vanished, and for some reason, dark clouds began rolling in.

Night, then suddenly morning, and now overcast.

The weather really was putting on quite the show.

The fact that something was changing probably meant I'd come to the right place.

I entered the temple grounds, staying on guard.

As I walked along, scanning my surroundings, I heard a sound coming from somewhere.

It sounded like fighting, so I ran straight toward it.

There were people.

Three of them. They wore armor and looked like knights.

"Sir Delrunt! Watch out!"

The knights were surrounding and fighting a large Undead, and the creature looked reasonably strong.

'Should I help?'

As I'd learned on the second floor, the Hidden route didn't exclusively feature enemies that had to be killed.

Given that they were fighting an Undead, weren't they likely allies?

I decided to help the knights for now.

"I'll help youuuu!"

I shouted at the top of my lungs as I charged in, just in case they mistook me for an enemy.

The knights spotted me and turned to look.

The Undead was humanoid but towered well over three meters tall, gripping what looked like a massive rusted greatsword.

It was clearly much stronger than the ones that had swarmed during the main clear.

The knights were too close to the Undead for me to use Flame Strike.

Instead, I fired Light Bullets as I charged toward the Undead alongside them.

Pow-pow-pow!

I landed hits on the arm holding the sword to prevent it from counterattacking, then launched myself at the Undead's head.

I swung my mace into its skull, and half its head burst apart with a heavy crack.

GRAAAHHH…!

The knights swiftly slashed at the staggering Undead's legs with their swords, pressing the joint attack.

As it toppled, I swung my mace one more time and shattered its head completely. Done.

Nothing special.

I looked to the side and found the knights staring at me with wide, startled eyes.

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Chapter 1738 - bbh