Chapter 60
\[Successfully Cleared the 1st Floor.\]
\[Please move to the 2nd Floor when you are ready.\]
Based on the 1st Floor, anticipating the enemies that would appear from now on...
I figured they would all have some kind of Special Ability one by one.
"Alright."
Let's see what we have here.
I moved to the next floor with my senses sharpened a bit more.
\[You have entered the 2nd Floor.\]
In the other Branch Towers, even if the Monsters changed as you went to the Upper Floors, the Early Floors were all the same.
Goblin, Orc, Lizardman, Werewolf...
The 2nd Floor of the Fifth Branch Tower was the same.
The enemy on the 2nd Floor was an Orc.
However, this guy's skin was also grayish instead of green.
Its size also felt slightly larger than the Orcs in the other Branch Towers.
It was holding an axe as a weapon and even wearing armor all over its body.
Guwooooh-!
The Orc let out a Roar as soon as I entered.
In an instant, a wave spread through the air like touching the surface of water.
"...?!"
What is this.
My body stiffened and wouldn't move.
The Orc charged toward me while I was unable to move.
I used Time Stop.
I see. Is this Orc's ability to paralyze its opponent with a Roar?
It wasn't a dangerous situation.
Because feeling it with my Sixth Sense, it was just a mob.
Just like the Stealth Goblin, this guy was only slightly stronger than a normal Orc.
Even if I just took the attack in this state, I wouldn't take a Hit.
\[Mental Concentration works, though.\]
And I just couldn't move my body; I could still use a Skill.
After finishing my Mental Concentration, I used Time Release and cast Flame Strike.
KWA-BOOM!
The fireballs that rose in mid-air flew over and blew the Orc to death.
\[Successfully Cleared the 2nd Floor.\]
A simple clear success.
After a little more time passed, the paralysis wore off.
I clenched and unclenched my hands, confirming there were no issues with my body.
\[Will it keep going like this?\]
Just as expected, it seemed Monsters with a Special Ability would continue to appear.
It was a relief that the Monsters were weak since it was still the lower floors, but it could get truly dangerous as I went to the Upper Floors.
Next, the 3rd Floor.
Let's keep going.
\[You have entered the 3rd Floor.\]
I used Time Stop as soon as I entered.
The enemy before my eyes was a Lizardman.
I started my Mental Concentration.
Since I didn't know what weird ability the opponent might use, I was now unconditionally going all out from the start.
I cast a fully charged Line of Destruction toward the Lizardman.
The Lizardman, which probably had some kind of ability, was obliterated without a chance to do anything.
\[Successfully Cleared the 3rd Floor.\]
Next, the 4th Floor.
I just waited for the Line of Destruction cooldown to reset and entered immediately.
\[You have entered the 4th Floor.\]
The Monster was a Werewolf.
As expected, I used Stop Time first, did my Mental Concentration, and then fired the Line of Destruction.
\[Successfully Cleared the 4th Floor.\]
Like that, it was a breeze up to the 4th Floor.
Now, starting from the 5th Floor, the Monsters would probably change.
After resetting the Line of Destruction cooldown and recovering my willpower, I moved to the 5th Floor.
\[You have entered the 5th Floor.\]
I used Time Stop.
What I saw was... darkness.
It was Total Darkness all around.
Hmm, what's this.
Surely there isn't something wrong with my eyes, right?
Screeeech...
When I used Time Release, sounds like metal scraping echoed from multiple directions.
\[Diul.\]
I summoned Diul and used Suggestion.
Fortunately, there was nothing wrong with my eyes.
Piercing through the darkness, I saw three Monsters approaching me.
How should I put it... an eight-foot-tall ghost?
Monsters with lanky, elongated limbs were holding scythes in their hands.
The metallic sound was the noise of the scythes scraping the floor.
Fwoosh!
I immediately cast Flame Strike.
The fireballs split and flew in three directions, blowing the monsters to death.
\[Successfully Cleared the 5th Floor.\]
Was the Total Darkness environment itself the gimmick for the 5th Floor, rather than the Monsters' abilities?
It wasn't a problem at all for me since I had Diul, though.
\[You have entered the 6th Floor.\]
Before I knew it, the 6th Floor.
What I saw upon entering were mirrors.
"...?"
Five mirrors were hung on the walls, surrounding me on all sides.
What is this... Are the mirrors the Monsters?
I finished my Mental Concentration and used Time Release.
First, I tried firing a Flame Strike at the mirror in front of me. And then.
Clang!
The fireball hit the mirror, bounced off, and came right back at me.
What the?
KWA-BOOM!
The fireball directly hit the spot where I had just been standing.
Having thrown my body to the side to dodge, I stared at the mirror with dumbfounded eyes.
\[Attack Reflection?\]
Just then, the borders of the mirrors suddenly turned red.
And something reflected in one of the mirrors.
KYAAGH-!
A Demon Figure like a devil's face.
As it let out a shriek, a haze-like Shockwave shot out from the mirror.
I threw my body to dodge again.
The Shockwave struck the floor and exploded.
KYAAGH! KYAAGH! KYAAGH! KYAAGH! KYAAGH!
Demon Figures with devil faces consecutively appeared in the other mirrors as well and shrieked.
After that, Shockwaves came flying in the same way.
I moved this way and that, leisurely dodging them all. Evading wasn't difficult.
The borders of the five mirrors returned to normal.
Then, the Demon Figures no longer appeared, and the attacks stopped.
I tried launching an attack at the mirrors again.
This time, with a Mana Bullet instead of Flame Strike.
With a clear sound, the Mana Bullet bounced off without fail and came back toward me.
I swiftly dodged to the side and furrowed my brow.
"Hmm..."
An Attack Reflection ability. It was an ability exactly like a mirror.
Wow, but thank goodness.
If I had just fired the Line of Destruction as soon as I entered, I would've been screwed.
I used Stop Time and calmly pondered the Clear Method.
Wouldn't it break if I hit it directly instead of firing magic?
I used Time Release again, dashed toward one of the mirrors, and struck it with my fist.
Clang!
Along with the repulsive force felt in my fist, my body bounced right back.
It reflects Physical Attacks too. This isn't it.
Just then, the mirror borders turned red again.
KYAAGH-!
The Demon Figures appeared once more and fired Shockwaves.
I used Time Stop.
\[Do I perhaps need to attack that guy?\]
Maybe attacking when that guy appears is the right answer?
It surfaces on the mirror for a brief moment and disappears, but it's enough time to attack.
I finished my Mental Concentration and fired a Mana Bullet at the Demon Figure.
Pow!
Then, this time, the attack wasn't reflected.
The Demon Figure scattered like black smoke.
It seemed that was the right answer after all.
KYAAGH-!
Following that, a Demon Figure appeared in another mirror.
Pow, pow, pow, pow!
I fired Mana Bullets at the remaining four mirrors like playing whack-a-mole, taking care of all the Demon Figures.
\[Successfully Cleared the 6th Floor.\]
Success.
I thought for a moment before moving on to the 7th Floor.
\[It feels like gimmicks are slowly getting mixed in...\]
In other words, the Clear Method was getting increasingly messy.
Still, it felt so-so up to this point? It was manageable.
Because in the end, the Clear Structure of clearing it by defeating the enemy was still being maintained.
Compared to Nightmare, which didn't even have that, well.
Now then... let's keep going.
I moved to the next, the 7th Floor.
\[You have entered the 7th Floor.\]
The enemy on the 7th Floor was... just a Monster.
The reason I say “just a Monster” is because it was a creature with an appearance that didn't bring any particular word to mind.
With a size similar to an Orc, its bumpy body reminded me of soboro bread, and it was holding a mace in its hand.
I did my Mental Concentration while keeping time stopped.
Since something like a reflection ability had popped up on the very last floor, I tried firing a Flame Strike first instead of the Line of Destruction.
KWA-BOOM!
A massive explosion.
The monster's appearance revealed after the flames subsided was completely fine.
Just like when activating the Skin Hardening Skill, but with a different color, Red Scales were covering the monster's entire body.
I was slightly surprised seeing that.
...It didn't take a Hit at all?
Guuuuh-
The monster charged at me with a low growl.
I used Time Stop again and did my Mental Concentration.
Since it didn't seem to be an ability like Attack Reflection, I used the Line of Destruction this time.
The Jet-black Ray engulfed the monster.
However...
"...!"
This time, I couldn't help but be truly surprised.
Because the monster wasn't obliterated even after taking a direct hit from the Line of Destruction. Far from being obliterated, it was perfectly fine.
The monster, which had been pushed back and sent flying to the wall, picked itself up and charged at me again.
I dodged the mace the monster swung and counterattacked.
WHAM!
The monster, struck by my fist, flew right back and smashed into the wall.
As expected, there was no Hit. It got up perfectly fine.
It felt like the Red Scales covering the monster's body absorbed the impact.
\[Invincibility...\]
Could it be something like an invincibility ability? Where no matter what attack I use, it doesn't work?
However, the monster's Physical Abilities themselves were far inferior to mine. At best, around Level 40.
KAAARGH-!
I even summoned Flee, and the two of us started beating the monster up.
Beating it, endlessly beating it again, the monster bounced around and smashed into things like a ball, and even got crunched and chewed on by Flee.
It was a one-sided yet not one-sided fight.
Because no matter how much Flee and I hit it, the monster took absolutely no damage.
The monster wasn't a threat to me either, but I couldn't kill the monster as well.
"Phew."
I rolled my wrists around.
How am I supposed to kill that thing?
Flee was trampling on the monster's body, pinning it down so it couldn't move.
Those Red Scales are definitely absorbing all the damage, you see.
Seeing how it's perfectly fine even after continuous beatings, it doesn't seem to be consumable.
We beat its entire body thoroughly. It wasn't like there was a part not covered by scales.
...No, wait a minute.
Is there one place I haven't checked?
I approached the monster.
"Keep holding it down tight, Flee."
I stepped on the struggling monster's forehead, grabbed its maw with both hands, and pried it open.
Looking closely inside...
"...There aren't any?"
The inside of its mouth wasn't covered in scales. Bingo.
Thrust!
I shoved my hand into the monster's mouth and used Time Stop.
After doing my Mental Concentration, I fired the Line of Destruction just like that.
This time, the monster's head was obliterated.
\[Successfully Cleared the 7th Floor.\]
Success.
Reset the Line of Destruction cooldown and refill my willpower.
I immediately moved to the next floor.
\[You have entered the 8th Floor.\]
"...!"
I used Time Stop.
What is it this time...
It was Underwater as soon as I entered.
I used Time Release and looked around while holding my breath.
There were no Monsters in sight.
The location was exactly the same as the previous floors, but the space was filled with water.
First, I tried swimming upward.
The water was filled all the way to the Ceiling, so there wasn't even the slightest pocket of air.
Conversely, toward the bottom, sand was laid out as if it had replicated the sea.
I used Time Stop again.
Hmm... This is a bit baffling, isn't it?
It's suddenly Underwater, and there are no Monsters.
It's not like I have gills attached to me, so I'm even in a state with a Time Limit.
Breaking the wall and escaping is also impossible.
I already knew from the previous battles that the walls of this clear Stage were made of an Indestructible Material.
Since I had to save my breath-holding time, I used Time Stop again.
...Let's think about this.
The Clear Structure itself wouldn't have changed. It ends when I defeat the enemy.
That meant there was an enemy somewhere in here right now... and that it was hiding very well.
I couldn't feel any hostility or killing intent through my Sixth Sense.
It means it has no intention of attacking me right now. Why is that?
Because it knows I won't be able to hold out just by waiting?
...I didn't know if it would work, but I thought of a method worth trying once.
I used Time Release.
I relaxed my body and slowly sank toward the bottom.
Having reached the Sandy Bottom, I lay there without a single movement.
"..."
A moment later.
At the faintly felt killing intent, I opened my eyes to a slit.
The sand in front of me slowly rose and was changing color.
It was a giant lobster.
\[Wow...\]
I didn't notice that huge guy?
It was an insane camouflage. Even an octopus wouldn't be able to do it to that extent.
The lobster approached me, who was playing dead, gradually increasing its killing intent.
I casually raised my body and reached my hand out toward the lobster.
You should have been more careful, you stupid crustacean.
I fired a fully charged Line of Destruction.
Just because it was Underwater didn't mean the destructive power of the Line of Destruction was reduced in the slightest.
The lobster had a hole blown right through its insides just like that.
\[Successfully Cleared the 8th Floor.\]
I was sli-ghtly scared I might drown, but anyway, the 8th Floor was a success too.
\[Would you like to move to the 9th Floor?\]
Now, there were only two floors left.
I immediately moved to the 9th Floor.