Chapter 153 - Skyrocketing (2)

“Hup?”

The Sword Star was still the Sword Star. Even flustered, he kept swinging his sword to the very end. Had I not shaken him, he would have blocked even this form I was revealing for the first time.

But this time, my gambit worked—just barely.

“...!”

My holy sword pointed at the old man’s neck. He froze. Glancing sideways at the blade a mere five centimeters from his throat, he stopped moving. The sword he had swung in a final desperate effort was still more than fifteen centimeters from my neck.

“Whew.”

I gave him a nasty grin.

“I win, sir.”

“...”

The Sword Star’s expression rapidly soured.

“H-how is that fair! It doesn’t count! It doesn’t count!”

“Ohoho, I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean. A match is a match. Do you intend to lose on the battlefield and then shout that it doesn’t count? Hmm? I never imagined you were that sort of man, sir.”

“Even so, there are limits! This... this...”

“This? What?”

“Isn’t this far too underhanded!”

What? Underhanded?

That was a fucking awesome compliment!

“Pwahaha! Thank you, sir. To think I’d hear the Sword Star call me underhanded! How should I put it? It makes life feel worth living. May you live a long and healthy life.”

“You...”

The Sword Star trembled. His expression said he couldn’t stand me. That only made it sweeter.

“I held myself back even though I wanted to discuss our shared master’s lineage! I waited all this time out of consideration for you. Must you trample an old man’s feelings in such a petty fashion!”

“Sure. Next loser, please.”

“L-loser? Hah. We’ve fought fifty-three times, and I won all fifty-two matches before this! With fifty-two wins and one loss in fifty-three matches, I’m obviously the winner!”

“The last match is always the most important. Don’t you know Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu? Xiang Yu? Winning ninety-nine out of a hundred battles means nothing if you lose that last one. If you’re Xiang Yu, then I’m Liu Bang. The world belongs to me.”

“That’s precisely why I’m telling you to fight me again!”

“Nope. Not fighting. I won’t fight you for another six months. For six months, I’m going to tell absolutely everyone that I beat the Sword Star. After that, well, I’ll consider fighting you.”

“Hah... kh, hah...!”

The Sword Star was now on the verge of fainting. Alas, what a tragedy. His heart’s blood was blocked and his energy channels twisted: the very picture of qi deviation. I ought to pray for his departed soul.

Just then, a voice came from nearby.

“... You two look close.”

POP!

Someone appeared in midair and landed lightly. It was the Black Dragon leader. As she arrived using her Transfer skill, the spectators watching from the sidelines murmured in awe. The top three hunters in the rankings had gathered in one place.

“Hmm.”

She noticed their attention too, offering them a gentle smile and a wave.

CLICK! CLICK!

Hunters busily worked their smartphones to capture the three of us together. Only then did the Black Dragon leader turn toward us, wearing an utterly incredulous expression.

“The Death King being childish is nothing new... but Sword Star, what’s gotten into you lately? Has hanging around him lowered your mental age too? Without your lofty image, you’ve got nothing.”

“I don’t want to hear that from a Witch who puts on an act as naturally as breathing!”

“Oh, right. Come to think of it, you were rather hotheaded when you first entered the Tower. I vaguely remember... Not that I miss it.”

Her eyes narrowed, perhaps as she recalled the past. But only for a moment; she quickly composed her expression and told us why she had come.

“Playing like children is all well and good, but today, act like the number-one and number-two hunters you are. All the other rankers have gathered at the Great Library.”

“Huh?”

I sheathed my holy sword and asked,

“Did something happen?”

“Something happens every day without fail... but yes, today’s a little bigger.”

The Black Dragon leader spoke quietly.

“Let’s open the thirty-first floor.”

It was already the fifty-sixth day since we had cleared the Great Library.

The past two months had been a whirlwind.

What? We’d worked hard clearing floors twenty-one through thirty, so we deserved a break? That applied to ordinary hunters. Top rankers like the Black Dragon leader and me had only gotten busier. To exaggerate a little, we’d nearly died.

A month ago, a once-powerful warlord in Africa had been utterly defeated, and roughly thirteen hundred remnants of his army had fled into the Tower. Maddening as it was, this happened fairly often. We were already overflowing with new arrivals, and dismantling a warlord’s forces on top of that kept us incredibly busy.

“Welcome! I’ve been waiting for you all!”

When we arrived at the Great Library, the Inquisitor greeted us with a bright smile.

Cute as an angel, but remembering that he’d worn that exact same smile while personally interrogating thirty-three people during the dismantling of those forces lowered his cuteness level a little.

“I heard. We’re opening the thirty-first floor?”

“Yes! The urgent work is more or less finished. There’s still plenty to resolve, but our officers can handle it. Aha! We must fulfill our own duties!”

“Mm.”

I nodded.

The purpose of the top rankers was to conquer the Tower. We advanced upward, raised our flags, and showed those following behind that there was still somewhere we had to go. We showed them a direction. Once a direction was visible, hope came naturally.

In return, we held power.

As our responsibility, we staked our lives.

“Death King, did something happen during this morning’s spar? The Sword Star behind you looks as though he’s chewing shit!”

“He probably needs to take a shit. Let’s be considerate of our elder and finish the meeting quickly.”

“Oh dear! Sword Star, you’re welcome to visit the restroom. The thirty-first floor won’t run away if we wait a few more minutes! Oh, are you constipated? That would be a bit of a problem.”

“You little...”

“Ahem.”

The Paladin cleared her throat.

“Now that everyone’s here, let’s proceed.”

She turned to look at Hamustra.

Dressed in a café employee’s uniform, Hamustra stood silently beside the table. He was no longer the Great Library’s keeper of books. He was a part-timer here at the library café, Planetarium.

“Please fetch the [Librarian], then.”

“Mm. Very well.”

Smiling, Hamustra walked out of the library café—not through the front entrance, but through the back door bearing an “Authorized Personnel Only” sign.

A little later, a child wearing loose pajamas followed Hamustra inside.

“You called me...?”

The child yawned widely.

“Oh, it’s the Death King. Long time no see.”

Had she just been sleeping? She was even hugging a pillow patterned with colorful peaches.

She looked unmistakably like a little kid, but...

[The Princess Who Walks Through Mirages greets you.]

She was the new Librarian appointed to the thirtieth floor in Hamustra’s place. And she was no ordinary constellation, but a being known as a “pillar.”

I bowed my head.

“Yes. It’s been a while, Princess.”

There would be an opportunity to discuss that constellation later.

What mattered now was that [The Princess Who Walks Through Mirages] oversaw the library and its apocalypses. She served as our guide and helper in conquering the Tower.

“Hmm.”

The Princess looked around the café table with sleepy eyes.

“All the top rankers are here... Oh, are you starting today?”

“That’s right.”

The Black Dragon leader answered on our behalf.

“Two months ago, you said you’d open the next stage whenever we wanted. We’ve more or less put our house in order, so we’ll resume our climb today.”

“Wow, you’re really quick...”

The Princess rubbed her eyes.

“In case you’ve misunderstood, there’s no particular time limit for conquering the Tower. It doesn’t matter whether you clear it in six hundred years or twelve hundred. It’s fine if you don’t clear it at all. Are you really unlocking the thirty-first floor today?”

“Yes, we...”

“Oh, sorry, Blackie. I wasn’t asking you.”

The Princess shook her head at the Black Dragon leader.

“The person ranked first has to decide things like this. That’s the rule. It’s the same in every Tower. You’re ranked third, so you don’t have the authority to decide.”

“...”

The Black Dragon leader fell silent.

“Sorry. Pretty dictatorial, isn’t it? The Tower has its reasons. It can be quite a gamble depending on who takes first place, but you’re lucky, at least ‘right now.’ Before...”

“Princess.”

Hamustra spoke quietly beside her.

“I’m hardly qualified to point it out, but you’re saying too much.”

“Oh, sorry. I’ve been sleepy ever since descending here... Anyway, you old sword geezer, are you really unlocking the thirty-first floor?”

She looked at our Tower’s number-one hunter: the Sword Star.

“...”

The Sword Star slowly looked around. Each hunter who met the old man’s eyes nodded in turn. Only after the Paladin, the last person he looked at, nodded as well did he speak.

“Unlock it, please.”

“Okay. Got it.”

The Princess spread her arms.

The pillow she had been hugging dropped softly to the floor.

“I, [The Princess Who Walks Through Mirages], as the temporary guide of this Tower, acknowledge your ascent to the heavens.”

At that moment, a voice rang out.

[Attention, everyone.]

[As of today, the next stage has been unlocked.]

It was the Tower’s voice.

“Okay. Since I’m here, we’ll skip the welcome message...”

The Princess waved a hand.

A long list appeared before our eyes.

1. Conforming Humans

2. Demonfolk

3. Mountain Snailfolk

4. Gillfin Folk

5. Ancient Orchidfolk

No matter how far we scrolled, there was no end in sight. The list continued on and on, with dozens—perhaps hundreds—of entries.

‘It’s finally here.’

I steadied myself, my heart pounding.

My companions, however, seemed more curious than excited. They studied the list with furrowed brows.

Naturally, the first to ask a question at a time like this was the Inquisitor.

“What is this?”

“I’m glad you asked.”

The Princess chuckled.

Was she the type who enjoyed answering questions?

“Try pressing any of them. Then you’ll see.”

Following her instructions, the Inquisitor pressed the words “Conforming Humans.”

A hologram flashed into view.

[Conforming Humans]

Extinction Grade: F (No Danger)

Maxim: ‘We determine the world.’

Description: A race whose abilities are all average. Depending on the world, Conforming Humans may be enslaved by other races or reign as masters of the world. ‘We alone represent all intelligent beings.’ Conforming Humans claim to be Pure Humans—that is, pure human beings. They declare the average to be ordinary, then go further and establish it as the standard.

Traits: [Quick Change of Stance], [Legacy of Records], [Square Enthusiasts]

Evolved Forms: None

Other Names: Human, Hume, the human race, etc.

Helpfully, an image appeared beside the description.

It depicted a human who looked just like us in every way.

“...”

My heart pounded harder.

If my memory was correct, the stages ahead were...

“The War of Races!”

The War of Races.

“From now on, you have to choose a single race! That race will worship you as gods and build a ‘civilization’ according to your commands, prophecies, and oracles.”

Choose one race from among hundreds.

The Flame Emperor, who had held first place in the past, chose the fairy race—commonly called “elves.” He manipulated them the way he did everything else, and the process was so horrific that I’d leave out the details.

Suffice it to say, that was the first time I learned elves could become such a violent, savage race.

Elves running around massacring other races to their hearts’ content while shouting, [“For the God of Fire!”]

It was a demonstration of the catastrophe that could unfold when the wrong person held first place.

“Hmm.”

The Inquisitor tilted his head.

“What do you mean by building a civilization?”

“Exactly what it sounds like. Develop a civilization however you want. You could make a civilization of plunderers obsessed with war, or one of scholars who revere knowledge. It’s up to you. Oh, would this make it easier to understand?”

With a little grunt, the Princess bent down and picked up her pillow again.

“This time, you’ll—”

Hugging the peach pillow, she smiled.

“Experience being constellations!”

My companions murmured among themselves.

Meanwhile, I kept scrolling through the list, calculating which race would produce the best results.

‘Lesser Dragonfolk. The word “dragon” makes them sound terrifying, but weren’t they really just creatures that looked like wyverns? The fairy race... I liked them before my regression, but no. Now that I think about it, the image of the elves the Flame Emperor fucked up left a deep wound in my tender heart...’

-You lunatic.

My attendant spirit clicked his tongue.

-Just pick Conforming Humans like a normal person. You’re one. I’m one. Just as someone who’s eaten meat knows its taste, someone who’s lived as a race knows it best.

‘No.’

It was obvious which race I should choose.

103. Earth Spiritfolk

Without a word, I touched that race’s hologram.

[Earth Spiritfolk]

Extinction Grade: A (High Danger)

Other Names: Goblin, etc.

Goblin.

Seeing that three-syllable word sent an electric shiver through me.

How could I describe this lightning-struck sensation?

Love?

Destiny?

No. I was a regressor who had returned from eleven years in the future.

Therefore, this was—

‘Inevitability.’

I took a card from inside my clothes.

The trump card I had saved so carefully.

A secret technique no one could possibly anticipate.

‘The time has come.’

Tiny letters crowded the shit-colored card.

[Goblin High Society]

Rank: F

Effect: The Great Goblin pondered deeply. ‘Our goblin culture is far too crude. Every utterance ends in kerrrk or kerk. How can my majesty shine like this!’ Then, the Great Goblin’s genius flashed. ‘Yes! From now on, I shall say gork instead of kerk. Gork! A pronunciation befitting my refined sensibilities.’

※However, conflict within the tribe intensifies.

※This skill was copied from the monster Great Goblin.

-Huh? Hey. Wait a second.

Sensing something was wrong, my attendant spirit’s expression changed.

-No, right? Surely you’re not doing that, right? Gongja. Even if you’re the biggest fucking lunatic under the sun, you wouldn’t do that. Right?

I put on a solemn expression.

‘Goblins.’

In a voice that allowed no backing down, I declared,

‘I’m choosing goblins.’

My attendant spirit fell silent for a moment.

Then he exploded.

-You fucking insane bastard!