NOVEL NEXT chapter 11
11 – 1st Floor, Forming a Team.
Hatchling.
So I was worried.
‘The range seems narrow?’
It was a needless worry.
Puhwaaah-!
Even if it’s a hatchling, a dragon is a dragon.
The breath exhaled by a dragon defied human common sense.
The pitch-black darkness sprayed forward.
I was surprised at how wide the range was.
Not only the Red Dragon right in front of me, but also the other players watching from behind were swept away by the breath.
“aaah! aaah!”
The breath I knew was one that spewed flames.
The Blue Dragon spits water, and the White Dragon breathes ice.
But the Black Dragon’s breath was different.
Could it be described as smoke?
A darkness close to gas spread out.
The players touched by the darkness screamed.
“Aah, aaah! S-save me!”
“It hurts. It huuurts!”
Even though I wasn’t the one hit by the breath.
I felt as if the pain the players were feeling was being transmitted to me.
A horrifying scream erupted.
Kyaaa!
The red dragon, who had taken the form of a red-haired girl, reverted to its original form.
Even dragons seemed to be equal before the breath, screaming in pain.
“Krk!”
A player outside the range of the hatchling’s breath collapsed, foaming at the mouth.
‘Conqueror’s Haki?’
Does this Tower of Struggle also have Haki!?
No, it wasn’t.
“To think it would use Dragon Fear as its last desperate act.”
A middle-aged white man, dressed in a shirt and pants, like something out of a fantasy animation.
He muttered as he looked up at the flying red dragon.
“Still such an ugly race.”
The roar of the dragon race, shaking the souls of lower species.
Dragon Fear.
It’s hard to withstand with ordinary mental strength.
“…But how are you standing?”
A middle-aged white man from Middle-earth.
He is not an ordinary human.
My instincts sounded the alarm.
“Even though I look like this, I have quite a decent skill set.”
The man said with a slight smile.
“Are you from the Abysspell clan?”
“……”
“The breath is still at a hatchling level. A hatchling using polymorph. Interesting.”
Abysspell.
The red dragon from earlier too.
Why do they think I’m from Abysspell?
‘What the hell is that, damn it.’
I have a rough idea.
In that dimension, they probably call the Black Dragon an Abyss Spell.
Or maybe a clan.
‘Kim, Park, Oh. Is it that kind of feeling?’
I can’t be sure.
I kept my mouth shut.
‘Silence is golden.’
The white man drew his sword.
It was the same one-handed sword as my longsword, but it felt different in momentum.
His stance was honed.
“Why aren’t you answering? Are you scared?”
“…….”
“Well, it doesn’t matter. It’s not the first time I’ve seen a rude Abyss Spell.”
The man said that and stomped his foot.
Boom-!
He leaped powerfully, chasing the fleeing Red Dragon.
In the blink of an eye, he was far away.
I didn’t dare to chase after him.
Only after the white man disappeared could I breathe a sigh of relief.
Now I felt like I was alive.
‘He’ll take care of it.’
He must have been confident because he could kill the Red Dragon.
‘It’s a pity I can’t absorb the dragon’s soul, but….’
You almost died and survived, didn’t you?
Have a drink.
Instead, the extra income was sweet.
[Absorbing the soul of Kurak (Orc).]
[Strength increases by 0.01.]
[Absorbing the soul of Elna (Elf).]
[Agility increases by 0.01.]
[Absorbing the soul of Jace (Human).]
[Intelligence increases by 0.01.]
[…….]
Dozens of people died from a single breath.
Not that it increased by a lot.
‘Less than the tutorial clear bonus.’
I was glad I collected all the clear bonuses.
And another thing.
About the illusion effect, one of the options of the Illusionary Codex.
‘Is this the proper way to use it?’
Or is it a bug caused by my tooltip error?
The truth is unknown.
But it was a great help.
That was the most important thing.
‘If you change the race notation in the status window with an illusion, you get the corresponding race specialization.’
I swallowed hard.
I realized that the performance of the Illusionary Codex varies greatly depending on how you apply it.
“Ugh, ugh….”
Players who had fallen under Dragon Fear began to regain consciousness one by one.
Most of them held their heads, showing similar reactions.
“A dragon all of a sudden.”
“Wasn’t that guy an Earthling? How can he use breath?”
“Run! Damn it!”
The quick-witted ones had already fled.
Those who stayed nearby and muttered were slow-witted and slow to act.
‘What should I do?’
Should I run over and smash them?
I could probably kill them if I wanted to.
I shook my head.
‘They think I’m a Black Dragon right now.’
I had demonstrated overwhelming force through the hatchling breath.
At least on the first floor, there would be no player who could withstand this breath.
‘Except for unusual cases like the Red Dragon earlier.’
In a situation where it has been proven that just opening my mouth can massacre dozens, there is no need to show a flustered, flailing appearance.
In crude terms, it’s about maintaining dignity.
The feeling I had when I saw that middle-aged white man earlier, I need to instill that in the minds of the small-time players here.
‘…It’s strange to be doing PK in the first place.’
The reason I killed other players was because they recklessly attacked me.
If you don’t fight, you die.
To argue about the moral and ethical values of modern society is honestly too stupid.
But not now.
There is no need to kill anymore.
‘To massacre just to gain 0.01 points, honestly, that’s a bit much.’
I passed by the players who were trembling.
“Hmm.”
A completely different atmosphere from before.
I liked it completely.
‘No one likes being ignored.’
But a problem arose.
“Hey….”
The players who witnessed my true value would run away when I approached.
“Ah, ahhh!”
“Save me!”
Considering the mission on the first floor, this was a bad sign.
“Team up with me….”
“We, we are a team!”
“Right! We’d rather be a team!”
The martial artists who were clashing swords suddenly joined hands and declared the formation of a team.
Tzuzut-.
Then they turned into particles and disappeared.
They were transported somewhere.
“…….”
Everyone started to avoid me.
「Just so you know, the number of people on the field is limited. Players who fail to form a team will be eliminated. What does elimination mean in the Tower of Struggle? It means extinction!」
The administrator provided crucial information just in time.
It sent chills down my spine, as if warning me.
“Damn it.”
There was no time to dawdle.
I had to find teammates somehow.
“R-run away!”
“A crazy dragon is coming!”
I inadvertently became the tagger in a game of tag.
* * *
Three players declared team formation to escape the Black Dragon.
They were transported to the waiting room for successful candidates, where they sighed in relief upon realizing the Black Dragon was nowhere to be seen.
“This place….”
“We survived. We really did.”
“Survived? What do you mean survived?”
And then they drew their swords again.
“That b*stard stabbed me in the back?”
“Shut up.”
The bad blood that sprouted from the tutorial was not something that could be easily severed.
They growled, ready to clash swords at any moment.
“Please be quiet.”
However, there were beings more dangerous than the Black Dragon present.
“Because the test is in progress.”
The chief administrator of the first floor, Blinky Ryu Creamscale, glanced at the martial artists.
At first glance, he looked like a kid.
But the being lurking inside was not something that could be simply called a kid.
“…….”
The martial artists, sensitive to rumors, realized what kind of being Blinky was.
This is an ability separate from martial arts.
‘That is…’
‘More dangerous than that guy earlier.’
Children, women, the elderly.
Three beings to be cautious of in the martial world.
But that cute-acting administrator falls into all three categories.
Is that even possible?
‘An old monster who has succeeded in reversing aging occasionally appears in the central plains.’
The Tower of Struggle is a place where absurd sorceries run rampant.
It was entirely possible.
‘…Still, there has never been an old monster who acts like a brat.’
He briefly felt doubt, but his actions were swift.
The three martial artists quickly sheathed their swords.
The most important thing to survive in the central plains is awareness.
They were quick-witted.
“Alrighty.”
Seeing their compliant behavior, Blinky smiled contentedly.
She then turned her gaze to the screen reflecting the examination hall.
“Oh…”
“While we were struggling, everyone else was leisurely watching from here.”
The players who had passed early were gathered in the waiting room, watching the examination.
Thanks to forming a trio in the tutorial, players who skipped team formation were also gathered here, waiting for the next test.
“In the end, they died.”
“It seems they didn’t earn the title of Dragon Slayer for nothing.”
“If it were the era when I was in the middle line, it would have been impossible for a human to go around calling themselves a Dragon Slayer.”
Blinky was not the only administrator on the first floor.
There were about a dozen administrators.
They gathered in groups, whispering evaluations of the players.
Though they called it evaluations, it was closer to leaving impressions of the scene.
‘…There are no ordinary humans.’
Each one of them was a transcendent being.
They appeared to be more than just the legendary figures heard of in the Central Plains.
The three martial artists glanced at each other and then bowed their heads.
Even to eliminate future troubles, it was right to deal with the enemy.
But.
‘Enemy or whatever.’
If I tried to deal with the enemy right now, my head would be on the line, so what.
They opened their eyes, which they usually kept sharp for intimidation, gently.
They put on kind expressions and focused their gaze on the mysterious thing called a screen.
The field that was there until a moment ago.
There, the Black Dragon was chasing the players.
─ Don’t, don’t come to me!
─ Come with me. Don’t abandon me!
The players who saw the dragon’s breath with their own eyes ran away from the Black Dragon.
‘Why aren’t they rescuing their teammates? With that much power, they should be able to catch it easily.’
‘Could it be, they are enjoying the hunt?’
‘…If I had been a little later. I would have died without even resisting.’
The three martial artists who didn’t know the truth sighed in relief simultaneously.
“…….”
Their sighs were so loud that they noticed each other.
Their eyes met.
They seemed to feel fear similar to their own.
‘The administrator said that everyone is equal in the Tower of Struggle.’
Born with different talents, but no one knows how they will die.
Whether they will reach the top.
Or be eliminated.
It is up to the player to decide.
‘Even if we fight among ourselves….’
‘Would it be meaningful…?’
‘With the breath that dragon exhales, we all have the skill to melt together?’
In this place where such monsters breathe, stabbing each other in the back might be nothing at all for those of similar ilk.
Such grudges don’t even count.
The resentment accumulated during the tutorial melts away.
“……”
The three martial artists focused on the screen again.
“That young fellow. His immersion seems quite impressive. Even in this situation, he didn’t bring out his wings and changed into martial artist clothes. I think I need to learn a thing or two from him.”
“……”
The young fellow the white-haired girl mentioned, the Black Dragon who was exuding darkness, had taken the clothes of a dead martial artist and put them on.
“They suit you!”
Changing clothes gives a different feeling.
He now looks like a young man who has just entered the world of martial arts.
‘Oh, it’s a relief that I saw his face.’
Once again, the martial artists sighed in relief.
The Black Dragon met the player.
It seemed like the Black Dragon was joining the group that was fighting each other.
“Which sect’s emblem was that?”
“The Mount Hua Sect and the Wudang Sect. I don’t know the rest. Judging by their confrontation with the righteous sect, they must be from the dark sect.”
The one who answered Blanky’s question was a young man standing on the administrator’s side.
He was wearing pitch-black martial arts clothes.
“Do you know the player?”
“No. My era ended a long time ago.”
“You know the Tower’s invitation isn’t straightforward. He could be Gowoon’s senior.”
“Not Gowoon, but Woon. The surname is Dokgo.”
“Martial artists’ names are too difficult.”
“……”
Dokgo Woon glanced at Blinky and kept his mouth shut.
He barely held back what he wanted to say.
“Oh! The dark sect is attacking our junior!”
Sure enough.
As soon as he stole the martial artist’s clothes, trouble began.
The fearless Sapa warriors brandished their swords first.
“Ahhh!”
The three martial artists who had decided to team up to avoid the Black Dragon.
They sighed in regret.
But then.
“……?”
“Why, dodging the sword….”
“It doesn’t seem like they’ve learned any martial arts.”
Questions popped up from all around.
Only Blinky expressed admiration.
“As expected of our junior! Their immersion is quite impressive.”
“……”
“The determination to stick to RP even in such a situation! Amazing! I need to learn from them!”
Have they gone mad from climbing the tower for so long?
Dokgo Un sighed quietly, glancing at the insane White Dragon.
“Wow! Our junior killed them all! What are they planning to do?”
“……”
“Are they planning to form a team while pretending to be martial artists?”
Soon, the Error Man arrived at the waiting room with two martial artists.
The players who misunderstood his identity slowly distanced themselves from the Error Man.
“Please wait a moment! The crew making is still in progress!”
Blinky calmed the chaotic atmosphere and looked at the Error Man.
[‘Dragon’s Eye (SS)’ is activated.]
When she first entered the tower, her Dragon’s Eye was A-rank.
The Tower of Struggle made its judgment.
After continuous growth while climbing the tower, the Dragon’s Eye reached SS-rank.
‘Nothing much has changed though!’
The golden eyes of the Elder Dragon could now see through everything.
‘Oh!’
The information of the Error Man surfaced.
Amidst the utterly pathetic stats, one thing caught Blinky’s eye.
【Species – Black Dragon】
‘It’s a real dragon, isn’t it?’
Not an ordinary dragon.
A dragon, like himself, who immerses fully in the identity created for the sake of amusement.
‘…Is he pretending not to know me?’
When a young red dragon picked a fight, the black dragon reacted particularly sensitively.
To the point of unleashing his breath without hiding his identity.
‘No, he didn’t reveal his identity.’
Only later did his skill catch my eye.
[Hatchling Breath][C]
The breath of a newborn red dragon. Exhales forward, dealing 『5,000%』 fire attribute damage.
Hatchling Breath.
‘He just used the skill he had!’
Blinky couldn’t take his eyes off, admiring his level of immersion.
* * *
[The Illusory Tome detects the activation of ‘Dragon’s Eye (SS)’.]
[‘Block Lv.1’ is broken by ‘Dragon’s Eye (SS)’.]
‘Damn.’
The administrator, who ends every sentence with ‘dragon’, is looking at me.
I averted my gaze, thinking I might be in big trouble for helping kill the red dragon.
It’s hard to breathe.