As the day brightened, the area in front of Modras's Tower started to get crowded with students who didn't have morning lectures.
"Hey, can you give me some room upfront? Caroline has a morning lecture, and I promised to record it for her."
"I'm recording it too. I'll send it to you as well."
"Sounds good."
Since there were no morning lectures, the majority of students had come, creating an overwhelming crowd. In Dian
ne's case, the atmosphere was such that climbing higher floors was expected of her, so she wasn't mobbed by students like this. However, with consecutive challengers reaching the 20th floor from the same grade, it had become quite an issue.
"Did you cough, Your Highness?"
"Oh, yeah. Good morning."
A slightly sluggish Mynus Mohaim appeared in casual clothing as he greeted with a yawn.
Since Adrias cleared the 10th floor two days ago, he had remained at the academy without leaving.
Mynus' slightly disheveled hair seemed to bother him, so he kept running his hand through it. As he did so, Denard approached him.
"Your Highness, Lord Yunor Hufak will be visiting today."
"Yunor Hufak? What's this about the martial prodigy showing up?"
He said so, but a smile played on Mynus's lips.
He might have spoken that way, but there was a twinkle in his eyes, resembling that of a mischievous child anticipating something fun. Seeing him like this, Denard rubbed his temples.
"Lord Yunor Hufak isn't the only one. the Third Princess Mikaela, the Fourth Prince Odell, and even Lady of the Agnes Magic tower are also coming."
"Wow, what are they hoping to gain that they're all rushing here?"
It was different from Dianne, who was a part of the Duchy of Arkadien.
Currently, Adrias Cromwell held the title of Count, which was a relatively unremarkable position in the nobility.
Because of that, he was a low-profile individual without much burden or pressure.
From the perspective of recruiting talents, there wasn't anyone else who possessed better conditions and prospects than him.
"Lord Yunor Hufak seems to be visiting just out of curiosity."
"That makes sense. He's a simpleton who doesn't care about worldly matters."
The problem was the other individuals.
Moreover, this might not be the end.
If he managed to conquer up to the 20th floor here, it was certain that a different kind of disturbance would stir within the Empire, different from Dianne.
'I need to make a decision soon.'
Mynus rubbed his chin and looked at the screen.
On the screen, Adrias was preparing to ascend to the 20th floor, tidying up his area where he had stayed.
Even Denard, who had been momentarily here to see him, wasn't able to keep Adrias within the academy. Adrias's actions and movements were so forceful that even Mynus, who had returned to the academy to watch for fun, felt his heart waver.
'He might hate the Emperor for it, but it's not like he's been caring about that from the start. Should I poke him a little?'
He had a younger sister too.
She was quite lively, or rather, excessively lively, but she was almost the same age as Adrias.
Even if it was a princess or a prince who had their eyes on her, there was no bond as strong as the blood ties they shared.
"Denard."
"Did you call, Your Highness?"
"Bring Greita here."
Denard hesitated at Mynus's words.
To think he had called her. From that action alone, Denard could guess what Mynus was thinking, and he lowered his head.
"I will fetch her immediately."
"As soon as possible, if you can. It'd be nice if she could come quickly. Good things are meant to be shared. It'd be a waste to see it alone."
Seeing his master twisting his words like a fox, and Denard promptly left the scene.
A while later, Denard returned. He stood by Mynus' side.
"She said she would come right away."
"Good job, Dainard. She probably didn't agree to come at once."
"No, She didn't."
His sister, who shared a similar personality with him, was quite the troublemaker.
She would often cause trouble within the territory, and her strong-willed nature made it difficult for Mynus to manage her properly.
"Good thing. I was worried about how it would turn out. What do you think?"
"If I may express my personal opinion, I also think Adrias Cromwell is quite promising."
"Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. Now that Adrias is about to be eliminated soon, let's wait leisurely. By the way, Denard, you also reached the 20th floor, right?"
"Due to my insufficient skills, the 20th floor was my limit."
As Mynus and Denard chatted lightly, outsiders arrived at the scene in perfect timing.
The students who were watching, fascinated by the splendid and glamorous appearance of the outsiders, started to murmur.
"Lord Yunor Hufak!"
"Princess Mikaela is here with Prince Odell."
"Lady of Agnes Magic Tower! The Burning Flame, Lexi Mahomes!"
While Rodren Magic Tower was the most influential Magic Tower within the Empire, Agnes Magic Tower, which was like a company spreading its influence throughout the continent, was also considered one of the strongest. Establishing Magic Tower branches in various places, the Agnes school prioritized skills over everything else, and even the position of Magic Tower Lord was based on skill alone.
Lexi Mahomes was the current Lord of Agnes Magic Tower, bearing the title of Burning Flame. Shee had been famous even before becoming the Magic Tower Lord.
The four individuals seemed to have greeted each other in advance, and they naturally approached the scene.
Mynus stood up from his seat and greeted them lightly.
"Lord Yunor Hufak, it's been a while."
Seeing him attend to the Marquis so openly, the expressions of the princess and prince weren't particularly pleased.
However, considering the situation, they could somewhat understand, so they didn't show any overt reactions.
Jaden Yunor Hufak was a prodigy worthy of such treatment.
"Shouldn't you greet the prince and princess before me?"
Fortunately, Lord Yunor Hufak took care of the Emperor's children.
As they were still children by the age of laws, they sent their thanks through their eyes, then confidently raised their heads.
"Oh, I made a mistake. I often mess up because I sold my manners somewhere when I was young. It's been a while. Princess Mikaela, Prince Odell."
"Not at all. It's a pleasure to meet you, Lord Mohaim."
After exchanging greetings, the voices of the students echoed.
"He's going up!"
"The 20th floor! Really?"
"Why 'really'? There's no way he can make it."
With the news that Adrias Cromwell had reached the 20th floor, the greetings were postponed as everyone took their seats. Deos, the academy's principal, and the two department heads who had arrived belatedly greeted each other again and observed Adrias's activities.
"What do you think he's planning?"
"Exactly. Is he going to use some trick like he did when he cleared the 10th floor?"
When the boss of the 20th floor had eight legs and was as large as a giant, it was a colossal creature that looked like giants would ride it. Without being detected by the 20th-floor boss, Adrias moved around the room, which was filled with columns resembling temples, as if preparing for something.
And after about ten minutes, those watching the screen expressed their astonishment all at once.
"Is that even possible?"
"What on earth did he do?"
Adrias was restraining the boss's legs and relentlessly striking it unilaterally.
As the boss with the most powerful mobility, just immobilizing it was already a significant accomplishment. Even so, the boss's attacks were extremely threatening.
However, Adrias seemed to predict and preemptively counter the boss's attacks as if he had clairvoyant abilities.
Though it seemed like he was following a memorized pattern and acting accordingly, for those observing from the outside, it was the appropriate response as if Adrias could foresee the future.
Using traps within the room, exploiting the boss's characteristics, and leveraging gimmicks, Adrias cleared the 20th floor with ease.
The spectators, who were witnessing this spectacle, couldn't grasp that it had been cleared and missed the timing to cheer, leaving them in a state of confusion.
"He cleared it?"
"What's going on?"
As the crowd was bewildered, Adrias continued to ascend the floors without hesitation.
There was no time for rest.
21st floor.
Only after the number became visible did people slowly become astonished.
"So, that means he..."
"He cleared the 20th floor?"
Adrias Cromwell didn't stop.
.
.
.
.
"Uwoaaah!"
Thud!
After defeating the last remaining Minotaur, he sheathed his sword.
Today, he decided to take a break here and retraced his steps through the labyrinthine passages.
'I might have overexerted myself.'
Even with plenty of potions, the difficulty had risen to the point where a slight misstep could lead to immediate expulsion. His muscles were tense from head to toe due to the accumulated fatigue, and he was acutely aware of it.
The fatigue had accumulated to the point where he could feel it throughout his body.
Still, he had climbed from the 20th floor to the 25th in just a day.
He decided to stop here today; tomorrow, he would face the 26th floor.
He returned to the hidden device he had discovered in advance.
The location of the device was within a blind spot in the shared screen, so it couldn't be seen by those outside.
'Maximen probably didn't discover this device. Even if he had, he wouldn't have been able to climb anyway.'
When he touched the device hidden in the labyrinth, the labyrinth began to shift.
Without changing the labyrinth using this device, it would have been impossible to find the stairs leading to the next floor.
'Left three times, right twice, left three times again, up once.'
As if entering a command, he moved the device.
The labyrinth transformed as he manipulated the device. Though it wasn't visible from here, there was probably a path leading to the stairs to the next floor.
'I worked so hard to figure this out, and now I get to use it.'
Life is full of surprises.
Back then, he was just doing it to enjoy the game, but now it was coming in handy.
In truth, it wasn't enjoyable at all. It was pure grinding.
After manipulating the device and checking if it was connected to the stairs, he continued to touch the device repeatedly. It must have taken a long time to figure out the correct command.
'By the way, chaos must have erupted outside by now.'
Perhaps more people gathered around than for Dianne's case.
I had broken a record that nobody expected.
And it wasn't just a minor record – it was the first and highest title since the establishment of the academy.
'I should have thought about it beforehand.'
Even in the game, whenever I conquered the Tower of Modras, people were always curious and bombarded me with questions.
Characters with prestigious backgrounds tended to experience this less, but when I played as Lucia or Louis, I made sure to keep a low profile.
But I am a Count.
Because I didn't belong to a prominent faction, I attracted attention from all directions as an easy target.
'The Emperor is an enemy, so I should probably make use of one of the other nobles.'
My current title meant nothing.
Being a Count with no territory, what kind of Count was I? Just a nominal one.
However, this ability would draw various forces to approach me.
"Fortunately, I'm not a Marrquis, right?"
If the Cromwell family was a Margrave, just the thought would make my head spin.
Obligations and responsibilities were immense, but all that came back was the title of honor.
Of course, honor was a powerful force in this era, but personally, as someone who pursued practical results, it was more of a nuisance.
Among the Marquis, Patrick Bagras, the Marquis of the North, was born a soldier. He probably felt content with his position. However if, other nobles, including myself, had been bestowed the title of Marquis, we wouldn't willingly accept.
"Shall I start laying the bed?"
I spread my bed.
Although I felt uneasy sleeping alone, I had set up alarm magic circles around to alleviate my worries.
'I won the bet with Dianne, so I should think about what to ask for.'
What might Dianne be thinking at this moment?
It was regrettable that I couldn't see her expression.
With this pace, I would likely reach the 30th floor tomorrow and ascend to the 31st floor.
The 31th floor was undoubtedly breakable, and the key was the 30st floor.
'It's hard to gauge...'
Even if I managed to break through, I wondered if there would be rewards.
Still, I felt there might be something, but the mystery would be unveiled tomorrow.
'By the way, does the 31st floor show on the screen?'
I had been cautious since it seemed to be subtly visible before.
But come to think of it, the 31st floor was a floor that wasn't shared on the screen.
If that was the case...
Could I use black magic?