Flap, flap, flap!
"Granny Cybil! How's the fan strength?"
Squish, squish, squish!
"Grandma! How's Momo's signature massage!?"
Camilla, sitting in a rocking chair, alternated glances between Cancho and Momo.
It was hard to believe such short, stubby friends could produce something so refreshing.
Both the wind and the massage.
"Excellent. But that aside, I'm perfectly fine. Why are you fanning me and giving me a massage?"
"We have to beat you up every day, so it'd be a problem if you got hurt!"
Camilla swallowed dryly.
It was terrifying because she seemed serious.
She looked at Momo, thinking her chubby one would be different.
When their eyes met, Momo cheerfully drew a question mark in the air.
Momo had no thoughts.
She was just copying what Cancho was doing because it looked fun.
Jinhyuk, walking over from the other side, stood between Momo and Cancho.
He placed his left hand on the pointed ear and his right hand on the fluffy mochi ball, completing the left-Cancho, right-Momo formation.
Jinhyuk let out a deep sigh and spoke.
"Camilla's right. It's the same place, but a different time."
Camilla had told him everything she saw as soon as she woke up.
She had added one last remark.
That this was both a future vision and a past that had already happened.
And right after she said that, a message had appeared.
-Goddess Camilla Silyn has realized the truth of the floor! Mythical Tower Floor 28 changes from 'The Church in a Remote Place' to 'A Certain Knight's Childhood'!
-This floor is constructed from a specific time period! Re-entry is impossible!
-Exiting Mythical Tower Floor 28!
-Remaining Mythical Tower tickets exist! Would you like to continue?
That was how they entered Mythical Tower Floor 29, 'The Unfinished Church.'
He had just checked it out, and quite some time had passed since Floor 28.
As the floor's name suggested, the church was still unfinished.
It had progressed quite a bit compared to what he saw on Floor 28, but for some reason, construction had stopped.
His Moco, Leon Mortem, was nowhere to be seen either.
"Hmm."
He let out a hum and stared in the direction of the church.
A future vision and a past that had already happened.
This unhelpful system had even started changing floor names now.
Thanks to that, based on what Camilla saw, it was hard to tell whether this was the past or the present.
"Good work, little ones. Have one each."
"Hey, Grandma! Is this a nurungji-flavored candy or a soup candy?!"
"What's with Grandma giving us the same candy Momo gave her a month ago?!"
Even as they complained, they munched away skillfully.
Camilla, standing beside him, exhaled smoke.
She let out a low sigh and parted her lips.
"It was a future vision from the perspective of Floor 28, but at some point, it became an event that had already happened. And the fact that it's already happened means..."
"That we can't change it, right? We're not omniscient time travelers."
Camilla nodded, and I smiled back.
If we could change it, that would be ideal.
From what I'd heard, the situation was incredibly grim and dark.
But even if changing it was impossible, what we had to do didn't change.
This is the Tower.
We just keep climbing, doing our best.
Hoping that a path will reveal itself along the way.
"Let's head in the direction Leon went. There might still be a village."
I turned around and met Camilla's eyes.
"You said it before, Camilla. Everything has meaning. There must be a reason we're here this time too."
I gave a thumbs up and started walking toward the village.
A faint smile.
Camilla watched Jinhyuk's retreating back with a pleased expression.
'As expected of my master.'
To be honest, she had been a little worried.
Her master, Yoo Jinhyuk, had grown quite fond of Leon in the short time they'd met.
She had to tell him that Leon would fall, and that he couldn't change that moment.
It was a situation where an ordinary person might be frustrated and depressed, but Jinhyuk wasn't.
'Calm yet deep, gentle yet firm. So much so that even a decent stone throw wouldn't cause a ripple.'
Who would believe it?
That Jinhyuk was a young man barely past his twenties.
The longer she spent with him, the more there was to learn from him... Pointed ear!
She looked down at an unpleasant movement.
"Hey, Cybil Grandma! How dare you make that smug face while looking at the Commander-in-Chief! Just because you fanned me a bit doesn't mean discipline can slack! Got it or not! Answer me!"
The little Satan crushed her warm feelings completely.
Smack!!
Unable to hold back, she slapped his face with the fan.
Roll, roll, roll!
Because it was a sloped hill, he rolled a very long distance.
"No! Cancho rolled away!"
Momo furrowed her chubby brow.
"Grandma! Cancho got up! We need to run!"
"No, Chubby."
Camilla held a pipe in one hand and a fan in the other, a solemn expression on her face.
"I need to end this today."
She stared at the little Satan, Cancho, who was charging toward her while shouting something.
A smile formed at the corner of Camilla's mouth.
Perhaps because she had just seen her master's admirable side, her mood wasn't bad despite having witnessed something so grim.
'Is this blind faith?'
The belief that her master would somehow find the best path.
That was probably the reason.
"Grandma, just you wait!!!"
"Come, foolish Satan."
Let's give him a good beating.
So that any lingering negativity would fly away.
---
* * *
---
The village they arrived at after walking a long way from the church was called Maierd.
The system called this place the Village of Heroes.
As they entered, Jinhyuk looked around.
He thought it was deserted because it was late at night, but that wasn't the case.
He walked toward the central building he had detected with his sense of presence.
When he cautiously opened the door, people stared at him with terrified eyes.
"Hello. I'm Yoo Jinhyuk, a friend of Leon's."
As soon as they heard the name Leon, the fear subsided.
"You're a friend of Leon's hyung!?"
A child who looked about fifteen stood up from among the seated people.
The child wore a familiar emblem around their neck.
The child came over quickly and grabbed Jinhyuk's hand.
"Please help Leon hyung! I know it's a rude request since we've just met! But this time, it might really be dangerous! He's been fighting without rest for a whole week!"
Ding!
[The clear condition for Mythical Tower Floor 29 has been updated!]
[You must help the hero Leon Mortar protect the village of Maierd!]
[If Maierd is attacked, your tower climb will fail!]
[When you reach the end of $*$#%, you will be able to exit!]
The broken text was something he couldn't figure out right now, so he set it aside.
'He's fighting?'
He looked back.
Seira, Dark, and Renya slowly shook their heads.
He wasn't the only one who hadn't noticed.
Even those three couldn't sense anything.
"Where is Leon fighting? I can't hear anything."
"Ah...! It's because of the crystal ball! I'll guide you!"
They followed the child, who introduced himself as Luke.
He stopped in front of a fountain and pointed at the crystal ball placed there.
"It's a crystal ball Leon hyung brought. It creates a powerful barrier that completely cuts off the village from the outside."
Luke lowered his head.
"We said we wanted to help too, but Leon hyung activated the crystal ball... He said to wait because he'd be done quickly."
Luke clenched his fist.
He couldn't blame Leon for not trusting him.
Because he knew very well.
That he couldn't last even a single second against the monster army that had appeared this time.
-Luke, you're the alley boss of Maierd. Stay inside and protect the villagers. Leave the outside to me.
After saying that, Leon activated the crystal ball and headed to the battlefield alone.
As always, once again.
"Hmm. This won't do."
Elia, who was examining the crystal ball, shrugged.
"It won't open unless someone with the key does it. Either the friend outside opens it, or..."
Elia smiled.
"There's only one way: break it. But if we do that, the village will be exposed to danger."
"I don't care! If it weren't for Leon hyung, we'd all be dead from the invasion years ago!"
Just as Luke was about to say more, villagers walked in from the path they had come from.
There was no need to wait for an answer.
It seemed everyone felt the same as Luke.
"Can we break it...? Leon hyung said it was made by someone incredibly powerful, so it would never break."
Luke rubbed his forehead and shook his head.
"I'm sorry. I asked for help, but I can't even do anything about this crystal ball. I'm really useless..."
Jinhyuk lightly patted Luke on the shoulder.
"You decided to take a risk to help Leon. That's enough. And don't worry about that. I'll break it myself."
"What...?"
Whoosh.
Smoke billowed into Luke's field of vision.
Through it, Goddess Camilla arrived at the edge of the village.
Camilla pulled the Fang of Erosion from her bosom.
"Nothing remains intact where the fang has passed. So, whatever blocks my path, split apart."
To the naked eye, there was nothing visible in the air.
Camilla thrust the Fang of Erosion into that spot.
Crack!
The wait wasn't long.
The barrier cracked and then shattered into pieces, falling away.
As soon as the barrier disappeared, sounds began to reach them.
The noise of the battlefield, mixed with monster roars and various explosions.
Camilla, with her back to the battlefield, put her pipe in her mouth and wore a peculiar smile.
"There. I broke it. As my master wished."
She gave a thumbs up and spoke.
"Camilla and Elia, take care of the village. Got it?"
Crack.
She stretched and started walking.
"Let's go. To help my Moco."
"...!"
At the word 'Moco,' Luke looked down at the emblem around his neck.
Years ago, when Leon had recovered his father's emblem, he had said this.
That a new Moco he had made had found it for him.
That he was a warm and righteous person, incredibly strong, and the most fitting friend for the title of hero.
"I'll join the battle."
A knight in black armor followed Jinhyuk.
"Hey, goblin. Do it right this time. Don't just swing wildly like a flying squirrel earlier."
"You seem to have forgotten being thrown into the river."
A man covered in peculiar patterns and another man radiating an inexplicable chill also moved.
He couldn't sense anyone's energy like Leon could.
But instinctively, he could tell that those guys were absurdly strong.
"Don't worry?"
Elia approached and placed a hand on Luke's shoulder.
"Those guys are monsters that even I, the Star Sage, can't handle."
Luke nodded and swallowed dryly.
Then he clasped his hands together and prayed.
That the village's hero, Leon, would be safe until they arrived.
----------
T/N:
Just for being a free member, you'll get 5 advanced chapters every week!
Access 35 chapters in advance on my Patreon:[email protected]//towerup