Chapter 91
That familiar blond appearance.
I hadn't been mistaken.
It really was Hugo.
But something was wrong.
The body and the aura surrounding it were definitely Hugo's.
And yet, something else was filling that body.
Something that couldn't even be compared to Kang Rahee.
[Warning! An existence of vastly superior Rank has descended to a lower floor.]
[Current Floor: 40th Floor.]
[The target's original stats are reduced by 90%.]
"...Hmm."
The being flexed his fingers, opening and closing his hand as if testing the body.
"Even with a sacrifice, this is all I can bring out?"
"I went through the trouble of finding an optimal vessel too."
He looked himself over, as though he needed time to adjust.
"Still, this much should be enough."
Even though he was clearly off guard, I couldn't bring myself to move carelessly.
...This is absurd.
Only ten percent of his power feels like this?
Is that even possible?
[Status]
Name: Lee Suhyeok
Age: 28
Level: 59
Health: 127
Strength: 170
Agility: 87
Internal Energy: 88 (Transcendent Realm)
Mana: 116
Remaining Points: 85
Traits:
Trait Plunder (EX)
Apostle (EX)
One with the Divine Sword (S)
Ruler of Madness (S)
Agnes-Style Swordsmanship (S)
Death Energy (S)
Barbarian's Blessing (S)
Sword Dance of Valhalla (S)
Will of the World Tree (S)
Divine Protection (S)
Body Reforging (S)
Hellfire (S)
Battle Eye (S)
Divine Artifact Enhancement (S)
Endure Mount Tai (S)
Supernova (S)
Disaster (S)
Formation Disruption (S)
Hardening (S)
Beating (A)
Synthesis (S)
Clown (A)
Poison Resistance (A)
Memory Manipulation (A)
Crude Dagger Technique (D)
Skills:
Lie Detection (A)
Intimidation (A)
These were my current abilities.
Even considering both before and after my regression, this was the best condition I'd ever been in.
Add my Titles and Rank on top of that, and even on the 60th floor, finding someone who could truly rival me would be difficult.
And yet...
I was being overwhelmed by nothing more than the faint aura naturally leaking from him.
How many beings like this even existed inside the Tower?
At minimum, he belonged around the 70th floor.
No.
Possibly even higher.
...So this is the choice the System was talking about.
Either I kill him...
Or he kills me.
I replayed his words in my mind.
He had clearly mentioned a ‘sacrifice’ and an ‘optimal vessel.’
That told me enough.
Kang Rahee was probably the sacrifice.
And Hugo's body was the optimal vessel.
"Looks like I've almost finished adjusting."
He finally turned his attention toward me.
"Ah."
"So you're Lee Suhyeok."
"I've heard quite a bit about you inside the Tower."
He smiled faintly.
"They say you're currently the strongest Player."
It felt as though he was looking down at me from some impossibly distant height.
There was no room to relax.
I immediately activated the Ring of Mental Immunity.
[Mythic ‘Ring of Mental Immunity’ activates.]
[There is an enormous gap between the user's Rank and the target's.]
[You partially resist the overwhelming killing intent.]
That wasn't enough.
Seong-a, who had been hiding her identity until now, came rushing toward me.
She transformed into sword form and settled into my hand.
[Ego Sword ‘Seong-a's’ Rank resists the overwhelming killing intent.]
[The stat reduction effect is nullified.]
The man rested his chin on one hand and watched me with interest.
"Impressive."
"You're the first human to resist my ‘Fear.’"
He paused.
"No."
"I should correct that."
"You're the first living creature to resist it."
Then his attention shifted toward Seong-a in my right hand.
[The target activates Trait ‘Dragon Eye (S)’.]
[All true forms are seen through.]
[Resistance impossible.]
"Oh?"
"An Ego Sword."
"That's not something that should exist in a place like this...."
His smile widened.
"And it even possesses Rank."
"Interesting in more ways than one."
"...Who are you?"
He grinned.
"I am Arthur."
"The last leader of the great Black Dragons."
"An existence standing at the end of this Tower..."
"And the pinnacle of all living beings."
The moment he finished speaking, the chat exploded with question marks.
??????
Excuse me????
Isn't this way too much, even by our standards??
This is on a completely different level from the Death Knight.... This difficulty seems kind of insane.
If the aura is really that strong, I guess there aren't many other candidates ;;
[Many Constellations raise ‘strong objections’ regarding the current difficulty!]
[The System judges the situation to be ‘normal.’]
[Difficulty objections are rejected.]
"Black Dragon...."
A memory suddenly surfaced.
Right.
I remembered.
How had I forgotten about him?
Three different energies had been intertwined, making it impossible to identify him properly.
It was him.
The dragon who had died alongside Taesu in my place before I met the Highest-Level Administrator.
If it hadn't been for Taesu...
Even the version of me before regression couldn't have defeated him alone.
Leon.
Where are Taesu and the other two?
Leon appeared in a flash.
His face was pale with fear.
[ Th-That's... ]
[ They're fighting the villains outside right now, nya. ]
[ That president woman made things difficult for them, nya. ]
I spread my senses.
Several dangerous presences had gathered outside.
Not villains.
Monsters.
They were probably going berserk under the influence of the Black Dragon.
The chief instructor and all the other Heroes were likely too busy holding them back.
Fortunately, Taesu and the others seemed to be managing.
"Interesting."
Arthur tilted his head.
"You're not the only one."
"There are three more beings with fairly powerful auras."
"Not as strong as you, of course."
He nodded to himself.
"Two thousand years really changes things."
Then he looked back at me and spoke in an almost reassuring tone.
"Do forgive me for not descending in my true body."
"The Tower's rules prevent me from doing so."
"But don't worry."
His smile widened.
"I'll erase every living thing here equally."
A chill ran down my spine again.
There wasn't a single lie in his words.
Then an enormous message appeared in the air.
[By the authority of the System, the entire floor has been converted into a ‘Hidden Dungeon’.]
[Dungeon Clear Condition established.]
[Condition: Kill the Black Dragon summoned to the 40th floor.]
[Failure: Collapse of the 40th floor world and death of every Player currently on this floor.]
[Reward: Hidden ability of Apostle (???), additional rewards currently being calculated...]
So that was it.
If I couldn't kill him...
I would die here.
Everyone would.
There was no other option.
I had to kill him somehow.
Then I noticed something else.
The president's presence was gone.
Completely.
Even the Brand of Domination that had been engraved on me had vanished.
"You seem to be looking for that human woman."
Arthur smiled.
"I'll save you the trouble."
