Chapter 11: vs Zahard's Princess (1)
After a long while, all of us—Vicente, Anna, Albelda, and I—ate dinner together and, as always, went to the sanctuary altar.
Man… no matter what anyone says, this is the most beautiful place in the entire floating fortress.
A few people still complained, saying things like "Do you think the holy altar dedicated to the Family Head is a playground for kids?"
But what could they say? The Family Head himself gave me permission to come here whenever I wanted.
Besides, the fortress administrator's on my side too.
They might talk behind my back, but none of them can criticize me to my face.
That's how high my standing in this fortress is now.
"Wow—it's so pretty!"
"Right? Anna was here yesterday too!"
"Oh wow, Anna! Then why don't you show me the best viewing spot, huh?"
"Okay…!"
Anna looked especially cheerful, probably because it had been months since she'd last seen her big sister Albelda.
She and Vicente had been here yesterday, but for Albelda, it had been half a year—so Anna must've wanted to show her everything.
I decided to leave the girls to their fun and walked over to Vicente, who was once again quietly gazing at the altar.
"What, you hiding snacks under there or something, Vicente?"
"...Hoaquin, once you leave this place again in a week—when will you be back?"
"They said the training's for a month. But I always finish ahead of schedule. If I push myself hard, I'll probably be back in three weeks."
At that, Vicente tossed the book he'd been holding straight at me.
"Take it."
"Huh? You're giving this to me? Weren't you still reading it?"
"I finished it. The 77th floor is practically empty—so barren it's said to echo with your own footsteps.
That book should help you pass the time."
Ha, that's why I like this guy. Kind-hearted, but with a touch of tsundere charm—really good character overall.
Anyway, he was right. The 77th floor was infamous for being the dullest, emptiest floor in the entire Tower—so vast it could swallow Baekryun's great forest whole.
"Thanks. I'll read it there and see what kept you glued to it all this time."
"...Good."
When I followed his gaze, I saw Anna and Albelda off in the distance, running and laughing together.
"Hoaquin, do you have something you want to achieve as an Arie?"
"Hmm… not really? Just to become a Ranker soon and travel around with you guys, I guess? Ah, but if you become the Family Head, we probably won't get to travel much, huh? Hahaha."
At my joke, Vicente gave a faint smile.
"Hoaquin, among everyone our age—even among the instructors teaching us—only you and Albelda didn't laugh or look down on me when I said I wanted to surpass my father. She empathized with my dream, and you… you took it seriously and believed in me."
"So even if I never said it out loud, I've always been grateful to you both. Maybe, out of everyone in this entire Arie family, you two are the only ones who truly support my goal."
"Hey, why'd you leave Anna out of that?"
At my comment, Vicente chuckled softly and corrected himself, adding Anna to the list.
Then he lay down, staring up at the ceiling, and continued speaking.
"But lately… I've started to doubt myself. The son who surpasses the father, and then his son surpasses him in turn—that's the natural order of things. But the Family Heads—they rejected that cycle. I wanted to shatter that twisted ambition, and I swore I'd do it righteously, honorably— with this sword my father entrusted me to guard the family's pride: Silver Moray."
His tone gradually shifted, sounding more self-critical, tinged with quiet frustration.
"But now, I don't know anymore. For the sake of victory, to become a stronger sword, I've been discarding everything that used to define me—my defensive fighting style, my old ways of thinking—
replacing them with new ones. Yet, compared to the talent ladder I've climbed, the ceiling that is my father still feels impossibly high. All I have left of the old me are this sword… and my conviction. Am I still too weak? Or was it arrogance to even dream of reaching that high—"
"Vicente."
My serious tone made him stop mid-sentence.
This guy's been gloomy lately—I had a feeling something was bothering him. But it was bound to happen eventually. To be a son of a Ten Great Family, dreaming of surpassing a Family Head—the weight and the limits of that goal are crushing by nature.
"Even if you ever come close to giving up on your dream, I'll still believe in you and stand by you. But about this—about how you're throwing away parts of yourself to gain something new— there's one thing I have to say to you."
"You can't give up everything just for power, Vicente."
"Oppa! Oppa!"
From a distance, Anna came running toward me, shouting excitedly.
She was holding something carefully in both hands, as if it were a treasure.
I decided to go see what it was.
"Anyway, Vicente, if your head starts to hurt again, come see me. I've got plenty of that traditional Arie wine stashed away — I'll pour you a cup and we'll talk it over."
"What wine? We're still minors. Stop acting like an adult."
"Ahem."
Vicente just lay back, eyes closed, lost in thought.
And to think he's the one who used to tease me for being too sentimental—guess he's not much different.
"Oppa, look!"
"Hmm? What did you bring that's got you so happy?"
"This! Isn't it so pretty?"
Oh—this was a scale from a White Irrawaddy.
It was small, but still shimmered faintly with white light. If I'd known she'd love it this much,
I would've caught one and collected a bunch of scales for her.
"Do you know what this is, Oppa?"
"Haha… well…"
No way could I tell her, "Last night, thousands of those divine sea creatures covered in these scales were gliding across the ceiling, glowing white—it was spectacular." If she realized she'd missed that, she'd sulk for days.
Soon enough, Albelda came running after Anna—
sweating and clearly exhausted from keeping up.
"Hah… hah… Anna's got way too much energy…"
"Hey, aren't you overdoing it again?"
"N-no… I'm fine… huff… I wouldn't be outside if I hadn't recovered, right…?"
No matter how I looked at it, she was definitely overexerting herself. I'd have to make her rest, even if by force. She was so happy to finally be outside again, but if she pushed herself too hard, she'd end up bedridden for a year.
Fwoooosh—
From afar, I could feel the cold flow of shinsu-infused night wind approaching.
She was drenched in sweat—if that cold air hit her, she'd definitely catch a cold.
I waved my hand lightly, forming a thin shinsu barrier to block the wind.
The chill was deflected away, unable to reach us.
"Go back inside with Anna. And take this."
I took off my outer coat and draped it over Albelda's shoulders.
Honestly, were Anna and I the only sane ones in this
group of four?
One goes around in shorts in this weather, and the other's wearing a sleeveless dress despite her fragile health.
"Especially you—you're the frail one!"
Thwack.
"Ow! Why'd you hit me!?"
I couldn't help myself—gave her a light flick on the forehead out of exasperation.
Patients should be careful, not reckless!
"Quiet, just come with me. I can't let you and Anna go alone—you'd wander off for sure. I'll walk you back."
I escorted the two of them to their room and returned earlier than usual.
I called out to Vicente to head back too, but he said he wanted to stay a bit longer.
Well, technically, he shouldn't be allowed at the altar without me—he never got permission.
Still, the altar guard's a Ranker friend of mine, so it'll probably be fine.
"You can't give up everything for power… huh. So that's what it comes down to…"
....
After that, I trained Anna as hard as I could—teaching her Arie-style swordsmanship and basic shinsu manipulation.
Even though she complained and glared at me half the time, I pushed through with a crash course, and by the end, we covered everything I'd planned.
Satisfied, I finally departed for the 77th Floor.
"Wow… there really is nothing here."
Looking out from the airship window, I realized Vicente hadn't been exaggerating.
I thought "empty" was just a figure of speech—
but no, it was literal.
There was no ground—just an endless expanse of sky and sea-like shinsoo currents mimicking an ocean.
"Lord Hoaquin, we'll be landing shortly. Please prepare."
As the pilot said that, a floating fortress came into view.
Wait—were there multiple airships docked there?
What the hell is all this?
As we broke through the clouds, the mist cleared—revealing what had been hidden all along.
The 77th Floor, the Arie Clan's floating fortress—surrounded by countless airships and sky cruisers flying toward it.
Not just one fortress either—there were many.
Each bore a different family crest.
Every fortress belonged to a different Great Family.
What was said to be an empty, silent floor was now filled with ten massive floating fortresses, each representing one of the Ten Great Families, looming in the skies of the 77th Floor.
Sorry, Vicente.
You gave me that book to pass the time—but somehow, I don't think I'll get the chance to read it.
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