Chapter 56: Branch Tower (2)
The scenery shifted.
I looked around. A Wide Plains stretched endlessly in all directions. Checking my GPS Device, I saw my current location was a Grassland Zone east of Ulaanbaatar.
“Ah… I missed the mark more than I thought.”
It looked like I’d have to travel about 100km further west to get within range of the Branch Tower. I recharged the Warp Device while using Time Stop and warped again toward Ulaanbaatar.
A message finally popped up, signaling I was within range. Well then, shall I?
“Enter.”
Without wasting any time, I stepped inside. The scenery shifted once more.
Out of habit, I used Time Stop to scan my surroundings first. It was a fairly large, moderately dark space. On the floor in front of me lay weapons like a Sword, a Spear, and a Mace. And standing opposite me was… a single Goblin. It held a sword and a shield in its hands.
?
That was it. No other Monsters were in sight.
‘Is it a Trap?’
For now, I released the time.
Kieee!
Upon spotting me, the Goblin approached with a repulsive cry. It had been quite a while since I’d visited a 1st floor… how long has it been since I last saw a Goblin? But is this really the end of it?
I couldn’t afford to be careless, so I fired a single Magic Bullet from a distance. I thought it might be a trap that explodes when touched, like the Suicide Undead on the 3rd floor.
Pung!
The Magic Bullet, trailing a tail of light, shattered the Goblin’s Head. With its head gone, the Goblin collapsed. I tilted my head in confusion.
“…Hmm.”
Maybe I’m overthinking this? Then again, it’s not like I’m attempting a Nightmare Difficulty Strategy Guide right now. I know that logically, but I keep doubting out of habit. Well, it’s only the 1st floor.
The message appeared as soon as I thought about moving up. I continued the conquest immediately.
The scenery was identical to the previous floor. A large, dim space with weapons on the floor. The only difference was that the enemy had changed from a Goblin to a different Monster.
‘…An Orc?’
It was a monster I’d never seen before, but it definitely looked like an Orc. It had Green Skin like a Goblin but was much larger—about the size of the Knight Goblin from the 1st floor. It carried a Mace as a weapon.
Chwiiiiik!
Exhaling a rough breath, the Orc strode toward me. I fired my Magic Bullets again. Three Magic Bullets struck, blowing the Orc’s head apart.
I really was overthinking things. There were no Gimmicks or traps—just a simple format where you win by defeating the enemy in front of you. Of course, the enemies would get stronger as the floors went up, but for now…
“This is easy.”
It felt a bit awkward doing a normal clear after only dealing with Nightmare stuff. I moved straight to the 3rd floor.
The enemy on the 3rd floor was a Lizardman. A human-sized Bipedal lizard holding a spear.
Pung!
I fired a Magic Bullet and popped its head. End of story.
The enemy on the 4th floor was a Werewolf. It was slightly larger than the Lizardman.
Kehum!
As soon as I entered, the Werewolf lunged. I struck its head with my Fist. Its head burst. Done.
By the 5th floor, a familiar monster appeared: a Minotaur, the boss of our Nightmare Floor 2.
Mmooooo!
As it charged with a thunderous roar, I greeted it with my fist.
Kwang!
The Minotaur’s head shattered, and it was sent flying into the wall.
‘If the 5th floor is at the level of a Minotaur… let’s say a Minotaur is around Level 20. Then the final 10th-floor boss will probably be around Level 40 or 50?’
Making small predictions, I moved to the 6th floor.
The monster had green skin and was much bulkier than a Goblin or Orc.
Gruuuuu.
I started with a Magic Bullet. I aimed for the head, but when it hit, the Troll let out a pained cry instead of dying. Its head didn’t shatter. Instead, the wound began to bubble and show signs of Regeneration. Ah, it was a Troll, not an Ogre.
I followed up with a Flame Strike.
Kwaaaaang!
Five fireballs flew out and caused the Troll to Incinerate. Its body, turned to Ash beyond recognition, could no longer regenerate.
The enemy on the 7th floor wasn’t just a single monster.
Pababababa!
Dozens… hundreds of large bats with Red Glowing Eyes swarmed toward me. Looking at their protruding fangs, they seemed to be Vampire Bats. I deployed Burning Zone.
Hwarururuk!
The bats entering the Burning Zone burned up like Moths jumping into a campfire. Hundreds of them were incinerated in an instant.
“Whoa.”
Experiencing the true satisfaction of the Burning Zone for the first time, I let out a small exclamation. There was no better skill for dealing with large numbers of enemies.
Next was the 8th floor.
‘Huh?’
The field had changed. The space was the same, but it was filled with water up to chest height. A disgusting Fish-faced Snake Monster was Submerging beneath the Water Surface.
Saaaa.
The creature suddenly poked its head out and opened its mouth toward me. A Flash began to gather at its maw. Since it looked like it was preparing a technique, I fired my magic first. Sorry to interrupt your hard work, but mine is Instantaneous.
Kwaaaaang!
The Flame Strike tore the Fish-faced Snake Monster’s body to shreds.
Next was the 9th floor. The layout had changed again. I was in the center, surrounded on three sides by Grotesque Persons wearing black robes. They held objects like a Crystal Ball in their hands.
‘Humans?’
They looked too pale for that, and their fingernails were long like a Witch. Well, whether they were monsters or humans, they were still enemies.
Hwaaaa—
As the grotesque figures muttered something, the crystal balls began to glow. It was a clear Attack Signal, so I cast Flame Strike immediately without giving them an opening. I split the five fireballs—one, one, and three—and fired them at each target.
Kwaaaaang!
The one hit by three fireballs was incinerated. However, the ones hit by a single fireball were fine. A Shield had formed around the two figures.
‘They survived?’
I had no intention of giving them time to act. As soon as my attack was blocked, I went all out. I poured a Destruction Line into one and used all my Remaining Magic Skills as instantaneous attacks on the other, then summoned Fliya.
‘Crush them.’
Now, only the final 10th floor remained. After refilling my Willpower and letting my skill cooldowns reset, I entered the final floor.
I stared at the enemy standing before me. A Black Knight in jet-black armor, roughly my size. For a moment, I thought of the Black Knight I met in the 4th Floor Hidden… but this obviously wasn’t on that level. My Sixth Sense was telling me: “He’s not stronger than you, but he’s quite tough.”
I immediately launched a Flame Strike. Five fireballs flew toward the Black Knight, but…
Kwaaaaang!
The Black Knight dodged all the fireballs with agile movements and rushed toward me. Fliya stepped forward first, parrying the charging knight with her body.
Kioooo!
I watched the Black Knight as it began to fight Fliya. It was roughly equivalent to a Level 5 Fallen Ones. It seemed to have the strength of someone in the mid-50s. After fighting evenly for a while, the Black Knight managed to stab its sword into Fliya’s neck.
At that moment, I intervened with a surprise attack. I sent the Black Knight flying with a punch and reached out toward the airborne foe.
‘End.’
A full-charge Destruction Line struck the Black Knight directly. It vanished without a trace.
A message popped up. A fair and square fight against an honest enemy without any petty tricks. Ah, I wish all my climbs were like this.
Another message followed. Ownership of the Tower? What’s this?
I tilted my head. So… the person who clears the Branch Tower can turn the Magic Vein on and off at will?
‘I’d rather they just gave me a Skill Stone.’
Regardless, there was a Reward for the first clearer, even if it didn’t seem very useful. But this was absurd. This meant China was hiding this fact while trying to squeeze more out of Mongolia. It’s essentially the same as the clearer owning the Magic Vein, and yet they wanted more.
“Okay.”
You guys don’t get to do anything. I’m going to clear the rest of the Branch Towers myself.
—
“…This is the final, non-negotiable demand from our Government.”
As the translator spoke, Mongolia’s Prime Minister Orgill could not hide his expression. The Chinese ambassador’s attitude—fiddling with his fingernails as if the translator’s words were merely an announcement to be endured—was arrogant beyond belief.
A Branch Tower had appeared in the capital, Ulaanbaatar. With Chinese assistance being an absolute necessity to resolve the crisis, China had come forward with completely preposterous demands.
The sale of stakes and guaranteed exclusive mining rights for several of Mongolia’s major mines, including Tavan Tolgoi; infrastructure operating rights and export priority; a share of the Magic Vein after the tower’s clear; and even the sensitive issue of Inner Mongolia… they were seriously pushing conditions that would never even make it to the table under normal circumstances.
“Please make a decision, Prime Minister.”
“Shouldn’t you be doing that by now?”
“…”
“Our Climber is risking his life to clear the Branch Tower, Your Excellency. The world’s best Climber. I hope you realize that China is taking a significant risk as well. Furthermore, wouldn’t it be a great benefit to Mongolia if the tower is cleared and a Magic Vein is formed? Please don’t view these as unreasonable demands; calculate carefully,” the Chinese ambassador said.
“There isn’t much Time left. Surely you cannot allow Ulaanbaatar to become a land of death?”
Mongolia was the one in a hurry. With less than a week remaining for the Branch Tower, time was critically short, making the negotiation entirely one-sided. If they refused the demands and China really stepped back, Ulaanbaatar would truly become a land of death. This was no metaphor.
The land would become uninhabitable. All infrastructure concentrated in the capital—servers, communications, energy, and administrative networks—would be destroyed. Moreover, what would happen to the countless refugees fleeing the capital? Those who failed to escape the range would all become Fallen Ones, dying from the Tower’s curse.
It was a shock that would paralyze the entire Country. At the very least, Mongolia’s national power would regress by a century. While China faced international condemnation, other nations remained mere bystanders. Who else was going to step up to solve the Branch Tower?
Orgill suppressed his anger and tried to think rationally. That was the duty of a Prime Minister.
“…Give me one more day. I will decide by—”
Just then, the Prime Minister’s secretary burst into the meeting room. He leaned in and whispered into Orgill’s ear.
“What is…”
The Chinese ambassador frowned at the rude intrusion. But Orgill, listening to the whisper, suddenly shouted in shock.
“…Is that true!”
“Yes, the message just appeared.”
Immediately after, a Chinese aide rushed in and whispered to the ambassador.
“What…!”
Both the Prime Minister and the Ambassador stared at each other, stunned. Seeing the ambassador’s composed face turn into one of utter bewilderment was so satisfying that Prime Minister Orgill burst out laughing.
“Pu… Hahaha!”
As he roared with laughter, slapping his knees, the ambassador could only stare back with a face that looked like it was rotting away.