Chapter 37
And so I opened the door…
The door opened…
Opened…
“Hmph!”
…
…?
The door didn't open.
It felt like I was pushing against a wall.
This had never happened before.
I froze for a moment.
‘Is it locked?’
I didn't want to jump to such a grim conclusion.
It was hard to accept that the promotion match was blocked for such a ridiculous reason.
If that were the case, shouldn't a rejection message have appeared first when I pressed the [Apply for promotion match] button in the holographic menu…
…
But there was no one to argue with.
For now, I decided to try pushing harder.
I wondered if there was some kind of Strength stat restriction.
“Blood Knight, Barang. Help me push.”
<...As you command...!>
The Blood Knight came beside me and grabbed the door with both hands.
Barang also placed its front paws against the door and leaned its weight into it.
“Nnngh...!”
All three of us pressed against the door.
Creak…
“Huh?”
It was incredibly slight, but the door definitely shifted and moved.
Fortunately, it didn't seem to be locked.
That was promising.
But it was hard to believe that even the three of us together lacked the strength to push it.
There were two superhumans who could crater a marble wall with their bare fists, after all.
“Just a little more! Push!”
Crack!
We all let out battle cries and desperately shoved the door open.
Then light began to leak through the gap.
“What is that?”
Something came pouring down through the gap.
Clatter-clang!
“What... is this?”
Bright yellow gold coins rolled down to our feet.
I peered inside and couldn't help being stunned.
“Holy shit...”
This vast chamber was piled with gold coins, a heap that filled about half the doorway.
Naturally, pushing away that immense mass required an absurd amount of strength.
Bracing against the door as it tried to close, I put my strength into it once more.
“Push harder. Three, two, one!”
Kwoooong-!
I shoved with every ounce of strength left in me.
Ruuumble-!!!
The moment the door opened a little farther, the blocked-up heap of gold coins cascaded out like a burst dam.
“Aaaah!”
Flailing, I hurriedly opened my inventory.
[Gold acquired.]
[Gold acquired.]
[Gold acquired.]
...
Holographic system windows filled my vision, nearly obscuring it completely.
Once my inventory had sucked up enough of the coins, the interior of Floor 100 finally came fully into view.
A hill of gold coins.
At its center stood the master of Floor 100.
Before I could even confirm its name.
“Death Mark.”
Flash-! [ - ]
As soon as I saw it, I applied the first stack.
[Defender: Treasure Keeper (100F)]
Treasure Keeper.
It had the strangest appearance of any monster I'd seen so far.
Gray skin, starkly contrasting with the golden backdrop of this place.
It was twice my size, but compared to the monsters I'd encountered so far, it couldn't exactly be called huge.
Twisted horns sprouted from its head, and unruly hair covered its entire face, leaving none of its features visible.
Six arms extended from the sides of its torso, each hand holding a golden fragment.
Looking closely, they were keys.
They were enormous keys, large enough to fill its hands, and it gripped them tightly.
And behind it.
Flash-!
There was a source from which golden light poured forth.
An enormous golden chest.
It was abnormally huge, large enough to fill the entire rear wall of the chamber.
It was the first time I'd ever seen a structure like that exist on a floor.
And then, the next moment.
Another unprecedented event occurred.
<Why has a soldier from the lower floors set foot here?>
*
*
*
*
*
The endless Great Karvas Desert.
In this distant wilderness, so vast that one could grow weary simply watching the sandstorms blow, countless tribes and nations, faiths and heresies, overlords and kingpins had existed throughout history.
But a nation emerged that united them all through bloodshed.
It was the Great Sahad Empire.
The emperor of Sahad proclaimed the empire, declaring himself the incarnation of the Sun God.
Its authority was absolute.
The imperial family's power, which controlled the entire desert, grew without limit, and the members of the royal family became feudal lords over each region, seizing immense power.
No group this prosperous had ever existed in Karvas's history.
Yet not one of Sahad's descendants was satisfied with what they possessed.
They began coveting what belonged to others and murdering their own kin.
Their conflicts intensified, and incidents too frequent to be called mere palace intrigue became commonplace.
It had reached the point where even civil war was an everyday occurrence.
Yet even within that chaotic imperial family, there was one who was especially infamous…
The Third Prince of Sahad, Marwan ibn Shams al-Sahad.
Even before becoming a feudal lord, Marwan was a wastrel who was constantly the subject of gossip.
His speech was frivolous beyond belief for a prince, and his innate nature was utterly cruel.
He was notorious for being terribly capricious and constantly engaging in bizarre behavior.
Thus, Sahad sending Third Prince Marwan to the Supreme Council for Continental Unification could actually be called a far greater insult than the Eastern Continent's empire sending a mere foreign minister.
But on that very day.
At the council, the signal flare for the Second Tower Rush was fired.
News had arrived that the ominous magic power that had raged within the Tower's first 100 floors for 400 years had vanished.
It was an uncanny coincidence.
For the Sahad Empire, it was a profoundly unfortunate one.
Because the news reached Third Prince Marwan's ears first, making him harbor ambitions of his own.
That was how it began.
But to historians who placed excessive faith in the law that all who rise must fall, it may not have seemed like such an exquisitely timed opening.
The tragedy that would unfold at this detached palace today would likewise be recorded in the same dry fashion.
*
The underground conference hall of the detached palace.
Three of Marwan's subordinates stood in formation before the Third Prince, who sat with his legs crossed in an ornate chair.
The War Chief, the Captain of the Royal Guard, and the Administrator who led Marwan's elite forces.
Those were the three.
Marwan, needless to say, was a warmonger, and since he was still alive, he had maintained an undefeated record. Whatever his reputation within the imperial family, there was no room to doubt the abilities of these three.
“Your Highness. The main force is fully prepared to sortie. Securing supply routes to bypass the Eastern Continent empire's surveillance network, as well as diversionary operations along the border, are proceeding without a hitch.”
The War Chief continued his report while studying Third Prince Marwan's expression.
But as always, it was impossible to read his thoughts.
As he was about to finish his report, the War Chief cleared his throat and cautiously began.
“However, Your Highness. About that necromancer called Alcamus whom Your Highness summoned...”
“Why? Don't you like him?”
Third Prince Marwan immediately asked with an innocent expression.
He seemed to have already guessed what the War Chief would say.
“I am certain he is a powerful sorcerer, but... he is an exceedingly unsettling eccentric to conduct operations alongside our warriors.”
Marwan widened his eyes and nodded at the end of every sentence, as though listening intently.
The War Chief continued without letting down his guard.
“I obeyed Your Highness's order to grant him whatever he requested, but... I would suggest that you separate our forces from his.”
“What did the old man request?”
The War Chief answered uneasily.
“He asked for dozens of boys under the age of thirteen…”
Third Prince Marwan gave a quiet laugh at those words.
Then he uncrossed his legs and leaned his upper body forward.
“You granted that request, but you don't want to travel with him? Is that it?”
The War Chief hurriedly dropped to his knees and bowed his head.
“I only asked you to reconsider for the sake of operational efficiency. If that is Your Highness's command, I shall do as you wish!”
Marwan clicked his tongue and leaned back.
“War Chief, you're saying my elite troops are afraid of that Alcamus?”
“Afraid? That is preposterous…!”
The War Chief poured out excuses, sweating coldly.
He explained how strong and perfectly prepared his forces were.
And how absolutely loyal they were to the Third Prince.
He passionately expounded on all of it.
“Then let's see.”
Third Prince Marwan rested his chin on his hand and smiled slyly.
“Just how loyal are you to me?”
The quick-witted Captain of the Royal Guard stepped forward.
“At a single word from Your Highness, the warriors of our unit would burn down the villages where they were born and raised without hesitation!”
“Hmm.”
Marwan made a nasal sound.
“Is that so?”
The War Chief's expression stiffened for an instant.
Prince Marwan's gaze shifted to the young scribe recording the minutes of the meeting.
“Oh? Isn't that scribe over there your daughter, War Chief? You are related by blood, aren't you?”
“I-I, Your Highness...!”
“Prove it.”
The Third Prince smiled crookedly as he looked at the War Chief.
“Can't you...?”
“...”
The scribe's hand trembled around her quill, her face white with terror, while the War Chief's face turned deathly pale.
A heavy silence pressed down on the conference hall.
Then, the Third Prince suddenly burst into boisterous laughter.
“Bwahahaha! I'm joking, I'm joking.”
The Third Prince waved his hands casually.
“How could I make my subordinate kill his own daughter with his own hands?”
“Ah... Ahh... Thank you, Your Highness! I shall devote this life to serving you!”
The War Chief slammed his forehead against the floor, tears of relief streaming down his face.
The Third Prince rose and approached the scribe.
She repeatedly bowed her head, her face drenched in tears.
“Th-thank you, Your Highness... Your grace is beyond measure...”
“Yeah! You almost got killed by your own father, didn't you?”
The prince gently patted the scribe on the shoulder.
“I cherish my people dearly. So I'll take care of what my subordinate ought to bear!”
Shiiing-! Shhk!
The silver scimitar Marwan drew flashed up into the air.
A fountain of blood burst from the scribe's neck.
The scribe's head, unable even to scream, dropped to the floor and rolled away.
It rolled to a stop directly in front of the War Chief's bowed head.
That was how he found himself staring into his daughter's face.
Marwan said.
“Are you still more afraid of that necromancer than you are of me?”
……
The War Chief's expression turned unhinged.
Then he abruptly sprang to his feet.
Swish-
He drew the curved sword at his side.
And lunged at the prince at tremendous speed.