Chapter 90
A lot had happened since the last Tower climbing.
On a smaller scale, this includes trading with 24-Hour Inquiries Illusion, acquiring the Dimensional Gate Skill, and obtaining the Mosquito Legion.
On a larger scale, getting the Luminous Dragon Dark, helping the saintess, finding out that Game Friend’s identity was the Ice Empress, and taking in the mother and daughter, Ha-eun and Su-yeon, as retainers occurred.
“Wow, that was really fruitful.”
Of course, there were things like getting a ton of attention because of the photo I uploaded to the Community while drunk.
And it created a dark history like the incident where I caused mass mental contamination among people while showing off a drawing.
“…Ahem. When a monarch is trying to achieve a great cause, various trivial problems are bound to arise!”
A lame excuse slipped from my lips before I knew it.
“Sigh. What a great cause! It was all just a mistake made while browsing the forums.”
Naturally, I reflected on it properly on the inside.
Anyway.
Even though so many things had happened.
In terms of pure time, not that much had actually passed.
About a week or so.
This meant that today was the day the highly anticipated Infinite Difficulty would finally open.
A chance to explore the World of the 5th Floor like an open world, without being restricted by quests.
Since I could only enter for exactly one day a week, I had to extract as much value from it as possible.
Lately, Gates hadn’t been opening much, and I hadn’t seen any other Vampires, so I hadn’t had a chance to Level Up, right?
It was a really good hunting ground to use at times exactly like this.
'Today, I’m going for a proper level-up.'
And it was also time to test out something I was curious about.
[Time remaining until entry: 00 hours 01 minute 23 seconds]
I stared intently at the entry cooldown timer on the system window.
I was already dressed in my outing dress.
I was sitting on the edge of the bed, swinging my legs back and forth.
“Hurry up and go down!”
Korean trait) Waiting to take it out of the microwave exactly when it hits 0 seconds.
Wait faster!!!
Finally, the time hit 0 seconds and the entry button was activated.
'It’s ready!'
I immediately jumped up and sent a telepathic message to gather the retainers, saying there was something important.
“Liege Lord, I shall undertake whatever task it may be.”
“Master. Please just give the order.”
“Mas-ter! What’s this important thing?”
“Master… I-I am still lacking, but I will try my best…”
“Ah! Has the opportunity to work finally come?!”
“True Ancestor-nim. Please tell us anytime.”
Katarina, Si-yeon, Riri, Sera, Ha-eun, Su-yeon.
“Kreung!”
And even Dark, quietly held in my arms.
A total of seven retainers gathered in the living room.
The experiment I intended to do today was precisely this.
'Can a retainer’s retainer like Ha-eun or Su-yeon also enter the Tower with me?'
It happened when I attempted to enter the Tower like that.
[Caution: Only direct retainers can enter the Tower!]
Heartlessly, the system popped up this warning window.
'Tsk. I guess it’s a balance patch after all.'
It seemed taking everyone in wasn’t allowed.
This was a bit of a shame.
“Well, since the mother and daughter have reunited in good health after a long time, should I tell them to spend some quality time together?”
I cleared my throat and opened my mouth.
“This body shall be Tower climbing for the day, so the two of you retainers, Ha-eun and Su-yeon, are to remain in the territory and rest.”
However, contrary to my consideration, the two of them expressed their disappointment and stepped up to do something of their own.
“I’ll stay in the territory today and practice the vampire’s swordsmanship really hard!”
Ha-eun, who had joined Sera’s retainers, had recently been learning the Blood Fiend Sword Art from Sera.
Although she couldn’t reproduce its full power like Sera.
Still, since her physical abilities themselves had improved so much, her posture was somewhat decent.
“Then I will draw a picture for our True Ancestor-nim, and I’ll also have delicious food prepared for you to eat when you return.”
Su-yeon added with a soft smile.
“Without garlic, of course.”
Auntie Su-yeon had originally liked cooking, but she said that after becoming a Vampire, she had gained new inspiration not only in art but also in cooking.
'Oh.'
What kind of dish would come out.
I’m really looking forward to it.
My mouth was already watering.
“Then I shall be off.”
“I’ll be working hard and doing well!”
“Have a safe trip, True Ancestor-nim~!”
Leaving the mother and daughter, Ha-eun and Su-yeon, behind in the territory like that, the remaining five retainers and I proceeded to enter the Tower.
* * *
Paat-!
My vision shifted, and the World of the Tower 5th Floor unfolded.
Looking around, I was inside a spacious room adorned with splendid decorations.
'This is… the Lord’s Office, isn’t it?'
It seemed the spawn point was set here.
At that moment, Lord Reuben Arden, who had been processing a mountain of paperwork at his desk, looked this way with surprised eyes.
Blink, blink.
He blinked his eyes about three times.
As if checking whether this was a dream or reality.
“…!”
And then.
He soon jumped up from his seat in disbelief.
“D-Distinguished One…! Have you returned to Arden once more!”
“Yes. This True Ancestor has come again.”
“Ah…! You disappeared without a word, so I thought you had left forever. It is truly a relief!”
The Lord’s face looked extremely tired, perhaps due to the heavy workload from also serving as the de facto ruler of the Valil Domain.
However, the expression he wore upon facing me looked so bright and joyful that he seemed to forget even that exhaustion.
“Has the Distinguished One been well during this time?”
The Lord’s gaze, as he offered his greetings, turned toward Dark, who was held in my arms.
“But this auspicious animal is…? Could it be the Distinguished One’s divine beast?”
“Divine beast?”
A divine beast?
I looked down at Dark, whom I was holding.
A dragon the size of a puppy, with pitch-black scales and small wings.
“Kreung?”
Dark tilted his head.
“Ah, is he talking about this guy by any chance?”
Being called a divine beast of all things made me feel inwardly proud.
I wanted to take this opportunity to show off our Dark’s abilities as well.
“Lord. Try drawing all the curtains in the room.”
“Pardon? Did you say the curtains?”
“Only in darkness can the power of a divine beast be properly seen.”
The Lord wore an expression of not understanding the reason, but he obediently drew the curtains.
The room grew dark.
Though there was still some light left since it was daytime.
Tch. It needs to be darker to be seen properly.
It was a bit of a shame, but still, this much was fine.
I sent a telepathy to Dark.
“Dark, Holy Light!”
“Keuang!”
Hwaaa-!
Dark’s body began to twinkle and shine with a soft white light.
“Ooooh…!”
The Lord was startled.
“A great divine beast that emits a mystery light in the darkness…! As expected, the Distinguished One’s authority is endless!”
“Fufu. It is nothing to be so surprised about.”
It wasn’t really all that amazing, but having the Lord passionately praise it made me feel quite good.
“I shall ensure this miracle is also recorded without omission in the Family’s history books!”
The Lord bowed deeply and swore.
“Ehh? This too?”
I keep getting recorded in the history books…
I became deeply worried about what kind of image the successors of the Arden Family would have of me in the future.
Anyway.
“Has nothing special happened in the meantime?”
I stopped the useless antics here and got to the main point.
I had to find if there was anything that could provide an angle for leveling up.
“There are two matters to report.”
The Lord said.
“First Familiar, we are currently using the prisoners of war for the territory’s repair work… but since they were from the enemy army, their productivity is lower than expected. The recent status of the Holy Imperial Church’s spy that the Distinguished One personally caught is second Familiar: he is still keeping his mouth firmly shut in the prison and not saying a word.”
'Hmm.'
Well, managing prisoners and interrogating the spy were definitely issues I needed to pay attention to considering the future.
But they were matters that had absolutely nothing to do with my immediate level-up.
In the end, it meant they are not important matters to me right now.
I waved my hand with a bored face.
“I’m not interested in these trivial matters. Is there nothing like monsters appearing?”
At my attitude, the Lord thought deeply, then soon opened his mouth cautiously.
“Ah. Recently, there have been rumors circulating that a monster has appeared in the forest on the outskirts of the Arden Domain.”
“A monster?”
“Yes. However, it is a relatively minor issue to mention to the Distinguished One…”
The Lord was reluctant.
To me, on the contrary, that story sounded the most interesting.
“Speak of it in detail.”
“Although that forest is outside the castle, it is a place that belongs to the territory. It is a place where commoners often go to gather wood or pick herbs, but it is said that disappearance incidents have been occurring frequently as of late. Therefore, I am planning to send a subjugation squad in the near future.”
'Oh.'
If a monster appeared and needed to be subjugated, that meant the place was exactly a hunting ground.
The level-up angle I had been waiting for had finally appeared.
I suppressed the urge to tell him to guide me there right away and spoke in an arrogant tone.
“Hmph. It should serve well as a light amusement. This True Ancestor shall personally catch that monster.”
At that, the Lord’s eyes widened.
“M-Monster hunting as an amusement… You are amazing as expected. If the Distinguished One personally steps forward, there will be no greater blessing for the people of the territory!”
Right then and there, the Lord immediately procured a guide who was well-versed in the geography of the forest.
“Lord-nim, did you call?”
The one called to the office was a young commoner woman.
A girl brimming with healthy beauty, her skin slightly tanned and dark.
“Offer your greetings. This is the Distinguished One who will personally help subdue it. You must take charge of guiding the way.”
“Ah! Hello! If it’s the path to the forest, I know it like the back of my hand even with my eyes closed, so don’t worry!”
She seemed a bit nervous at first, but when the talk of guiding the way came up, she spoke quite confidently.
She was the guide who was originally supposed to go with the subjugation squad, and it was said she knew the structure of the forest better than anyone.
“All right. Lead the way.”
But there was one problem.
'If I walk all the way to the forest taking her along, won’t it take too long?'
Since it was the outskirts of the territory, the distance was quite far.
Since I could only stay here for one day, it was a situation where every minute and second was urgent.
“I should do this.”
I looked at Si-yeon and gave an appropriate instruction via telepathy.
- Mission, confirmed. Master.
Si-yeon nodded her head.
As soon as the instruction was given, Si-yeon approached the guide girl.
Then, supporting the girl’s back with one hand and the back of her knees with the other, she lifted her up in a flash.
“Uh…?”
The girl who ended up being held in Si-yeon’s arms in a princess carry was in her bewilderment.
Si-yeon was holding her in her arms like that.
He jumped out the window without even giving her a chance to react.
Taaat - !
“E-Eeeek?! Uwaaaaaaah-!!”
The girl’s scream faded into the distance.
I let out a small sigh.
'Si-yeon… Shouldn’t you at least say something before holding her…?'