39. The Tower's Trial: 11th Floor

"Please leave."

"Huh?"

*

- Thud...

When I came to my senses, I was outside the cathedral.

"Ah, this can't be..."

I dreamed of contracting with the highest-ranked constellation, but it didn't happen.

"What is this?"

- Yeah what is it?

- How would we know if you don't?

- When the hell did you contract with a constellation?

[DohuiChamchiJolmaettaeng-nim has donated 100,000 won]

So you secretly made a contract behind our backs. Open your Status Window, Dohui-ya.

"No, I really didn't!! Status Window!!!"

I open the Status Window and thoroughly scan it for anything unusual.

"Well, first of all, my stats haven't changed. Other traits seem fine too... Huh?"

<???> : Unlock progress 14%

<???> : Locked

- Ah, that thing?

- Right, what is that?

- Is that trait unique to Lee Do-hee?

- Nah others have those too

The so-called locked trait.

It's not as unusual as you'd think.

Most Awakened live with traits like that, and when so-called secondary awakenings occur, those locked traits usually get unlocked through certain events.

What are the unlock conditions?

They differ for each person.

That's why most Awakened live thinking, 'If I get a good locked trait, I can turn my life around!'

"Is this related..."

'No, maybe it's because of my past life's contract?'

I'm not sure.

The contract I made with a constellation in the past is still unusable, and now I can't contract with other constellations... Isn't this too sad?

"Uh... Since I don't know either, shall we move on?"

- LOLOLOL

- FR nobody knows

- Fuck how can you not know your own trait!!

"But only question marks appear for me, how should I know!!!"

- True that fuck LOL

- Ah...

- Lee Do-hee's constellation contract was a bust~~

- She's probably saving it for some OP trait later

- FR judging by this buildup, 100% chance of some broken skill appearing

"Phew... Well, that's a problem for later... So then..."

- Straight to 11th floor?

- You can just go to 11th floor anyway

"No. Let's go get some weapons first."

- Get weapons?

- ?? Where'd you stash weapons?

The Tower's rules.

Every 5 floors, you gain one equipment slot.

10th floor gives 2 slots, 20th floor gives 4 slots, etc.

When you equip a weapon in the item slot, you can summon and dismiss it freely like in subspace, and the weapon's stats and special skills get added to your Status Window.

You can use weapons without equipping them in slots, but you won't get stat bonuses or special skills.

Of course, just putting it in the slot isn't enough - you need to be holding or wearing it for stats to apply, and armor won't provide defense for uncovered areas.

Naturally, tutorials are impossible.

You might think rich people have an unfair advantage, but there are many trials where you can't use equipped weapons, and some even restrict stats, so while the wealthy live wealthy lives, few risk climbing the Tower.

Also, once equipped, you can't change until the trial ends, and you can't modify already unlocked slots.

Normally you get weapons as 11th floor rewards and equip them, but going back and forth is annoying.

"Yes. Exactly? I left weapons stored."

And probably my weapons are better. The 11th floor gives armor.

- ??

- When did you do that?

- Who paid for it??

- When?

"The Tall Uncle left them."

Tall Uncle.

That's me.

- Ah

- Oho?

- Finally being useful!

- Sigh... Who is it really?

Since I mentioned it during the Choi Tae-soo incident before, viewers understand without further explanation.

"Hmm, where was that secret underground base..."

- But is this safe?

- FR won't Large Guild bastards come running?

- Could be dangerous if there's valuable stuff inside

"Nothing much. Probably just a few weapons."

Actually, the 10th floor warehouse is just a mediocre weapon storage.

It's a space where I collected weapons that weren't worth selling but weren't being used, to later give free to promising climbers.

The items here are either used when climbing lower floors alone or abandoned immediately after obtaining, so there's no risk of my Tall Uncle identity being exposed.

I walk outside the village, slowly enjoying the scenery.

Perfectly warm sunlight.

Cool breeze.

There's a reason so many Awakened live here.

Best of all, I love that there's not a single insect.

Feeling the cool breeze, I walk straight south for about 10 minutes.

"Here it is."

- ???

- This is it?

A small grave.

No tombstone, no name.

'Since it's a virtual character inside the Tower who died...'

A friend I met while too immersed in climbing the Tower once.

No, she was my lover.

'Diana...'

As a Tower resident, she'll forget me and revive inside trials, but...

Somehow even that thought felt too lonely, so I made this grave.

And if I dig a bit here with my hands...

- Clunk!!

A wooden door leading underground appears.

- Why's the grave empty?

- Feels lonely

- No corpse? Just piled dirt?

"Nothing special. I'll go down."

The crudely made basement has stone walls.

Recalling the memory, I reach for the wall switch. As magic powers the Glowing Stone on the ceiling, light fills the room.

And seven types of weapons on display.

Sword, spear, hammer, axe, greatsword, shield, glaive.

"I'll take one spear and store the rest."

I grip the spear I haven't seen in ages.

The sturdy spear that carried my early-game strategy.

Though I ultimately couldn't protect Diana with it, it was a good spear.

"This spear's name is... Diana."

<Dozester's Long Spear>

A spear painstakingly crafted by Dozester, master blacksmith of Embana City.

STR +20

AGI +10

DEF +5

Special Skill: <Full Charge Overspear> unlocked.

- It's Dozester's spear you bitch LOLOLOL

- ?

- ????

- Wait this is OP!!!

- Tall Uncle......

- Wow;;

- What's the skill???

- Wait are the other weapons this tier too??

Correct.

If the weapons were mediocre, I wouldn't have bothered coming.

Since average 10th floor Awakened stats are around 20-30, this is extremely over-speced for current use. As I made this storage past floor 60, it's naturally inferior to weapons from that time, but didn't I say they're too good to sell?

"Ahem... Anyway, this spear's name is Diana. I'll use it to climb quickly."

Not like I can use weapons on 11th floor anyway.

Since weapons or armor are given as 11th floor rewards, the Tower probably considers using weapons there cheating - the 11th floor trial prohibits equipment.

After slowly walking back, I leave the remaining weapons with an Awakened Association employee in the village.

And...

"Starting timer now!!"

It's finally beginning.

168 hours.

I must reach the 20th floor within a week.

'It's possible if I clear 11th floor quickly. Please let it be easy difficulty...'

Many floors can be forcibly cleared through combat.

[Will you enter the 11th floor? Recommended party size: 4]

And parties become possible from 11th floor onward.

Soloing doesn't lower difficulty. Rather, since you have to do the work of four people, it becomes harder.

But rewards increase.

That's why I must do it alone.

Since I won't be teaming up with Large Guilds at 79th floor, I need to show myself clearing everything solo.

Plus I can raise reward grades - this is exactly what I wanted.

"I'll challenge alone."

[Beginning the Tower's Trial]

'Let's go...'

***

[Tower Climbing Support Gallery]

---

[Title] : Yo, it's me. Came to explain 11th floor.

[Content] : 11th floor trial theme is prison break.

Official strategy is prisoners rioting together to destroy the prison book.

But just escape without getting caught for true ending. Easy right?

[Comments] :

- So easy

- Nothing special this time?

- Doesn't seem hard even solo?

- What are you guys talking about... It's similar to 1st floor.

ㄴ Similar?

ㄴ 30% death rate, fucking brutal difficulty. You'll see LOL

- Sounds fucking easy LOLOLOL

- So--easy~

- Don't come here anymore

- Ah, got spoiled because of this bastard

└ Author: Fuck you asked me to explain

***

My consciousness briefly fades then returns.

[You are a death row inmate. Escape prison before execution]

"Ah..."

Opening my eyes, I see a bus interior.

The rumbling engine sound is audible.

Likely a prisoner transport bus - windows blocked by iron bars and curtains, seats divided.

Handcuffs on my wrists, something tied around my neck.

"Wait... a bus?"

- Wow... You're fucked Dohui!!!

- S-grade congrats x6

- Fuck LOLOLOL

- Why of all floors the 11th...

As technology advances, escaping becomes harder.

Medieval wooden prisons are B-grade, modern prisons A-grade, contemporary prisons with CCTV are S-grade difficulty.

"Sigh... Damn it, let me check my status first."

My body feels strange too.

<Final Stats>

[Some stats reduced by special force]

STR: 10

AGI: 15

DEF: 32

Divine Power: 0

Lewd Power: 18.3

Regeneration: 1

"This is messed up..."

STR is fixed at 10, Divine Power reduced to 0.

Probably because of this suspicious collar.

'This isn't just regular modern times.'

Never assume "modern" means identical to Earth's modern era.

It just means similar civilization level - could be a modern world with superhumans, mages, heroes, hunters, etc.

No, statistically it's much more likely to be a weird setting.

"Sigh... I'm fucked..."

- Bang!!!

"Hey!!! Shut up inmate 69748!"

'Ugh, startled me...'

Someone violently hits my seat from behind.

Turning around, a man in blue uniform glares at me with a terrifying expression.

'A prison guard...?'

Getting noticed won't help.

My goal is to escape this place ASAP.

Keeping quiet, we soon arrive at the prison.

"Everyone out!!"

- Weeeeeeeng...

The partition opens, prisoners filing out.

'Huh? Thought they were all women... There are men too?'

"Yo~ These bitches all have such nice figures~!"

"Right? Hey hey, look at that pink bitch's boobs. Hehehe..."

"Gonna fuck her hard later."

'This feels like some messed up setting...'

Seems I got a trashy world setting.

The guards feel more like gangsters than police.

Exiting the bus, I enter the building guided by guards.

'Need to observe carefully.'

Starting outside the prison is an advantage.

'Large watchtowers on both sides, thick iron main gate impossible to open manually. Regular walls have high-voltage currents making escape impossible... I'm fucked.'

Nothing's easy.

Even the walls look super sturdy, made of some alloy instead of concrete.

"Hey, walk straight!"

As I look around while walking slowly, the woman behind me yells.

"Huh?"

"What you looking at, fucking bitch?"

A golden short-haired woman with a delinquent vibe that suggests she smoked in her youth glares while cursing.

Her face and body look like an Instagram model, but her personality is trash.

'Sigh... Is this some dominance thing?'

I want to keep quiet so I let it slide.

"Moving slow as a pig with that fat ass..."

'Just you wait...'

I really hope we get the same cell.