[ Before you read: Here we are at the beginning of the tower; Yeong Yeon's great adventure is about to begin! But before we dive into the chapter, even though I don't like to ask and remind insistently, please feel free to leave comments (which I always read with pleasure, as none have been insulting so far) or give power stones if you enjoy the story and want it to gain more visibility in the future. From now on, after going through Arc 1: 'The Young Flame of the Yeon Family,' let's dive into the heart of the action with Arc 2: 'F-Rank - Little Warriors.']
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The heir of the Yeon family teleported immediately to the first floor of the inner tower, where he was welcomed into a large hall shrouded in deep darkness. The only light came from a large aquarium on his left, filled with Shinsu and home to many massive aquatic Shinheuh. But before he could further observe the grand murals to his right, which seemed very important, the administrator of this place, Headon, appeared before him to greet him with a bow and his staff.
"I admit, I was eagerly awaiting the moment when we could see each other again, anomaly. I can't wait to see everything you will bring to this tower. But let's not rush things; first, you must pass the administrator's test, my test, to ascend to the next floor. Unlike the regulars I choose personally, irregulars must show me that they are also worthy of climbing the tower and obtaining everything they desire at the top!" he spoke in a lofty tone.
Yeong couldn't help but feel impatient in the face of his first challenge in the tower. "Of course, I will show you that I am worthy of the tower. I accept your test, Headon.'"
"I don't know if you're reckless or just foolish for accepting a test prepared by an administrator without asking more questions," Headon said to him. "But it's people like you who progress the fastest. However, you should know that the tests proposed by the administrators are much more difficult than any test that an examiner from the Zahard Empire could give you, even on the highest floors. Moreover, failure in such trials often means death. Hearing this, do you want to take my test?"
Yeong had determined eyes, and even upon hearing the administrator of the first floor's words filled with danger, his courage did not waver. "I have trained my whole life for this day, Headon. I cannot give up now that I am close to my goal. My mother will not allow me to return to the mothership until I achieve my dream."
"Mmm, yes, your mother, Yirang Yeon. I remember her; when she entered the tower, she had the same look as you. Thinking back, she had a lot of trouble passing my test, but she ultimately succeeded, and today, as you can see, she is part of the high nobility of this tower," he said in a distant voice, stroking his chin.
Of course, upon hearing about his mother, Yeong wanted to know more about the trial she had struggled to pass. However, he held back, wanting to ascend the tower as quickly as possible without wasting time. Looking at the large eels in the basin, he assumed that the test would take place there. "Headon, I suppose my test will be to kill those eels or to retrieve an object from the basin, right?"
But to his great dismay, Headon shook his head horizontally before striking his staff on the ground to indicate that he was mistaken. "No, each trial created by us administrators is based on the value you place on the things that are most important to you. Fighting eels to retrieve a specific object would make no more sense to you than a test of strength. I have no interest in creating such a test for you because I already know your strengths. Plus, I don't want you destroying my floor by causing a chain reaction of Shinsu explosions in the basin. My colleagues have already had a lot of trouble during the ascent of Blossom, and I don't want to go through a similar experience and waste my time rebuilding my floor when I can avoid it."
Yeong could only laugh, imagining Blossom causing so much destruction across the floors that the administrators themselves had to intervene to prevent further damage. "So this trial must be for a future irregular. I can only wish him good luck in facing such a challenge, especially for someone who likely won't master Shinsu. Now, Headon, enough about other things, tell me what the test you've prepared for me, based on my desires, consists of."
"Very well, if that's what you want, young anomaly, let's begin without delay the test of the first floor," exclaimed Headon, making the blue sphere on his staff glow. He pointed it toward a dark corner of the room, causing a cage draped in black fabric to appear. "Now, look intently at this cage, young Yeon. This is your first test within this tower."
"You can't be serious, Headon!?" yelled Yeong as the cloth was removed, revealing several terrified beings of the tower—humans, cyclopes, muscular red beings with multiple arms, and many other species. Faced with this horrifying spectacle, the once-confident young man was frozen in place, as it reminded him of one of his childhood traumas that had left a deep mark on him.
Headon revealed his true personality, sneering and showing his teeth across his entire face. "There's nothing more serious than what you see before your eyes! To pass my test and ascend the tower, there's just one simple rule, you must eliminate them all."
"Never in my life will I do that! I won't be like those who climbed before me!" Yeong exclaimed vehemently, looking at the hope in the eyes of the young children in the cage.
"Ha, ha, ha, it's been a long time since I've had such an amusing test! So, anomaly, your dream of eliminating the corruption of all the families is less important than the lives of a few inhabitants of the tower. I knew you were naive, but not to the point of refusing sacrifices for a greater good," the administrator mocked derisively.
The young man's face was crossed by a myriad of emotions, but he clenched his fist and replied to Headon, "I climbed precisely to avoid making the same mistakes as the family heads and Zahard. My fight would become hypocritical if I dared to kill innocents for my goals, just as they did."
"But what good is your high morality when failing this trial would condemn the dream of your life?" Headon said to him, before laughing sinisterly. "To help you, know that all these individuals have been sentenced to death by their respective communities, so consider my test as a way to deliver justice and ascend the tower."
But in response to the administrator's words, the irregular was unresponsive and preferred to believe the opposite in his heart. "I was already told that I shouldn't trust you, and I see by your behaviour that my mother was right about you. If those people in the cage were death row inmates, you would never have proposed this trial, right, Headon?"
"Maybe you are right, or maybe you are wrong. You are free to believe my words or not. However, one thing is certain: whether these people are innocent or not does not change the rules for passing my test,' said Headon in an irrevocable manner."
The person facing Headon could only growl in frustration. "I know that I am right. This test wasn't designed to see if I could kill criminals, which would be pointless since I feel ready to do so to protect others. Instead, its insidious purpose is to force me to break my moral principles so that I continue my objective. Therefore, to avoid playing your game, Headon, I will personally abandon your test to find another way to access the second floor. As an irregular, even if it takes me centuries or even millennia, I am the one who creates my own story, and it certainly won't be you."
When Headon received this biting response, he laughed loudly, which was unusual for him, and then smiled in an extremely terrifying way that chilled Yeong's blood. "I should have suspected that as a candidate "Axis," you would be a complicated case, like Enryu or Phantaminum because only they have dared in all the history of this tower to try to circumvent my test. However, know this, young anomaly: I will not make a third mistake. So be aware that if you abandon this test, I will have no choice but to take the life of the person who is dearest to you, namely Yirang Yeon, your mother."
This made Yeong explode with anger, unleashing his hottest pink and red flames throughout the room, although Headon immediately dissipated them with his administrator power. "You wouldn't dare do that, Headon!"
Of course, I would dare, and I can do it, young irregular! As you know, the administrators are much stronger than the head of a family, so by cancelling the immortality contract with the administrator of the 100th floor, I would take his life afterwards. If you abandon my test, that will be your punishment. But if you succeed in this simple test, you can pursue your dream and protect your mother's life as well. You have nothing to lose, so what choice will you make, young anomaly!" Headon spoke seriously.
But Yeong still refused the forced choice of the administrator of the first floor, responding in a serious and sinister manner, "Then I will have no other choice but to replicate Enryu's feat on the 43rd floor, to eliminate an administrator through you, to protect all that I hold dear."
"You dare to speak the name of this heretic, for whom I seek revenge, before my very eyes!" growled Headon for the first time "You're just a naive little insect, who thinks that dreams can be applied to reality, but I'm going to learn the distance that separates you from an administrator, by killing you right here."
But the anger of the heir of Yirang surpassed his fear and motivated him to engage in a battle he had already lost. "I know full well that I must have the ability to defeat an administrator to ascend to the 135th floor, so I might as well start training on you!"
"Then, Yirang even told you that the trial awaiting anyone who wishes to ascend beyond the 134 floors conquered by Zahard is a fierce battle with a particularly furious administrator," said Headon, preparing a sphere of pure Shinsu of unparalleled density. "I can at least commend your courage, young Yeon, but this attack marks the end of our encounter, for as long as I am the administrator of this floor, I can block any use of Shinsu on your part. If you truly want to defeat an administrator, then find a way to have greater authority over Shinsu than I do."
Then the titanic sphere of Shinsu was launched at full speed toward Yeong, who could do nothing, neither to attack nor to defend himself. He felt so weak, and even though he could do nothing more and everyone would have given up, he still tried, in a last hope to counter Headon's attack.
This would have had no effect, but before being crushed by the attack, Yeong vanished in a flash of black light, which meant he had succeeded in the trial against all odds. Headon looked up at the ceiling with a slight smile, one that was honest this time.
"Young anomaly, or rather Yeong Yeon, you have completely surpassed my expectations and passed the test brilliantly. You were right; I am a huge liar, but far beyond what you thought. I wanted to see all your limits, and you showed me your determination in everything you believe. For an administrator, such a result is the best there is. An individual capable of valuing things without sacrificing them, despite the danger, is the true mark of a real Axis, not an irregular. So rise to the top by breaking this corrupt empire and become the Axis that this tower desires so much. I would have thought that Arlen's son would be the one to shatter Zahard's empire, paving the way for irregulars to become Axis, but this unknown variable could be just as promising, if not more, depending on his choices." Murmured secretly
Shortly after his discreet monologue, Headon turned to a dark corner of the room to speak to a figure of such blonde beauty that it rivalled her strength, who had witnessed the entire trial of the irregular with the help of her guide.
"So you have all seen, Princess Adori Zahard. I suppose, as requested by your father, you will report everything you observed, true to your title as Commander-in-Chief of Zahard's army. However, I would strongly advise you to omit any mention of what he may have said about the administrator of the 135th floor in your report, for if you do, he could become an enemy of the empire, and your chances of realizing your deepest dream would be reduced to zero. In my opinion, if anyone can help you, it wouldn't be just any irregular, no matter how powerful, like Urek Mazino, but it would be him."
But as they continued to discuss in great secrecy, Yeong Yeon had managed to arrive at the second floor, Evankhell's Hell.