The Swordsman Genius Returnee Even Swallows Immortality

6

Before the horde of human-sized rats swarmed in.

Havel drew his sword to test it out.

‘Let’s see.’

Then the aura wrapped around his sword shone brightly.

Whoong!

Immediately after, he swung the sword technique used to divert the opponent.

Clang!

“Squeak!”

At that moment, the rats running in the forefront were blown to pieces.

Havel blinked.

It was clearly an attack intended as a diversion, but they were all dead.

‘Is there an additional attack after death?’

He was prepared, but there was nothing.

“Did you have that?”

Only Dante, who couldn’t follow Havel’s sword with his eyes, was astonished.

Havel opened his eyes lazily.

‘The Devil’s Palace had countless people die on the first floor at that time.’

Is the 1st floor of the Tower different from the 1st floor of the Devil’s Palace?

Or.

‘Have I gotten so much stronger compared to that time?’

Honestly, I can’t deny it.

Even though I look like this, I was called the Black Star back then and my name was always mentioned whenever the strongest was discussed.

On top of that, I’ve been fighting endlessly in the Devil’s Palace just for battles.

‘It would be weird if I didn’t get stronger.’

Since I’ve even overcome the Devil’s Palace by force.

‘How strong would I be at this level in the present day?’

I’m a little curious.

‘But even considering that, the 1st floor of the Tower seems too weak.’

Well, the time when I went through the 1st floor of the Devil’s Palace was a long time ago.

I might have overestimated the 1st floor because of the difficult memories I had back then.

If that’s the case, then I should compare it to the 6th floor where my memory is certain.

I should go up to the 6th floor of the Tower quickly.

“Dante.”

Habell stepped forward.

“We’re going to go up quickly.”

After hearing Habell’s words, Dante straightened his back.

“Yes!”

He also wanted to climb the Tower faster than anyone else.

However, Dante soon regretted that answer.

Creak!

“Kieeek?!”

Creak!

“Kyaak!”

After Habell declared it, he became a storm.

The path he took,

The Evil Species were all shattered.

He didn’t slow down at all while doing so.

If you looked from afar, it would have seemed like he was walking leisurely while carrying luggage.

However, Dante couldn’t close the distance with Habell.

No matter how much Dante ran, he was slower than Habell who was carrying the luggage while walking.

His strange gait was destroying his vision and reality.

“Huff, huff!”

Dante ran desperately while gasping for breath.

He never expected that even following him would be difficult.

‘The floor is definitely going up.’

The surrounding corridors kept changing.

The evil spirits were also changed accordingly.

However, only Habell’s speed remained the same.

The problem was the evil spirits that often appeared right where Habell passed.

Dante found his footing restricted because of the fight with them.

“Ugh!”

Every time that happened, the distance between him and Habell grew.

At this rate, he’d end up holding Habell back.

‘Might as well.’

Dante sheathed his sword.

Instead, he focused solely on running.

He absolutely could not lose sight of Habell.

If he did, there was no way he’d ever be able to follow him again.

‘I can’t fall behind, no matter what!’

Dante began to run, following right behind Habell.

Dante’s desperate sprint continued for a long time.

“Huff, huff, huff!”

Just when Dante was about to reach his limit.

“Hmm, this seems to be the spot.”

Finally, Habell’s steps came to an abrupt stop.

He hadn’t stopped because he was tired, though.

[The achievement ‘Breaker of the 1st Floor’ has been registered.]

[Your rank as the Lord of the 10th Floor of the Demon’s Castle has increased.]

[The Tower senses your presence even more strongly.]

[The Evil of ‘Tower Floor 1’ seesps into your body.]

– Strength has increased by 9.

– Agility has increased by 11.

– Endurance has increased by 10.

– Aptitude has increased by 9.

-Skill has increased by 9.

– Evil has increased by 7.

It was none other than the lines of text that appeared before his eyes.

As soon as he absorbed the energy flowing out of nowhere, the window popped up.

It seemed that his body was now absorbing the Tower’s Evil as well.

“Where is it.”

Habell clenched and unclenched his fist.

Then, he lightly thrust his fist forward.

An attack so fast it was almost invisible cut through the air.

BOOM!

A shockwave resounded through the air, slightly later than his fist.

It was such a powerful impact that the air itself briefly distorted.

‘As expected.’

His power seemed to have grown slightly stronger, just as it had when he’d absorbed the Penril.

It seemed that this was the result of absorbing the baleful aura.

“Me, becoming this strong, is that even reasonable?”

As an immortal, he wondered why he would grow stronger here.

‘Well, becoming stronger has been my lifelong goal, so I’m not complaining.’

However, the fact that he was doing so as the master of the Devil’s 10th Floor bothered him.

‘And the baleful aura.’

Unlike before, his baleful aura was now in the double digits.

The moment that number changed, Havel felt a new sensation within his body.

‘…As expected, it’s showing the absorbed baleful aura as a numerical value.’

The energy felt exactly like the jet-black energy the tower had just emitted.

Havel surreptitiously channeled the power into his arm.

The moment he did, his arm turned jet-black.

It was a small amount of energy, but the energy flowing out was extraordinary.

‘It’s similar to the Owrang, yet different. Is this the baleful aura?’

Havel opened his eyes with a start.

“Ugh, cough!”

Thud!

At that moment, the sound of someone collapsing echoed from behind him.

Havel quickly turned around, dispelling the baleful aura.

There, Dante was lying collapsed on the floor.

“Oh, Dante.”

Havel was taken aback.

As he had ascended the 1st Stage, he had been so preoccupied with other thoughts that he had completely neglected Dante.

‘I forgot because I kept comparing it to the Devil’s 1st Floor.’

He had spent almost his entire life climbing the Devil’s Tower alone.

As such, he had unconsciously forgotten the idea of having someone beside him.

He hadn’t even given him time to catch his breath in between.

‘If I had just told him to take a break, he would have stopped.’

He hadn’t expected him to follow him all the way without question.

Havel scratched the back of his head.

‘It seems he kept chasing me because he didn’t want to be left behind.’

Should he call it recklessness?

‘No, rather, I should praise him for enduring this much.’

He felt sorry for Dante.

So Havel wrapped his arms around him.

He couldn’t just leave him like this.

It seemed like he needed to find a place to rest.

“But this place…”

Habel looked around.

He had definitely just climbed up the 10th floor, the last floor of the 1st stage.

But strangely enough, a town was in sight.

As Habel trudged forward, a sign appeared at the entrance to the town.

[1st Stage Terminal Safe Zone Deia]

“Wow, there’s something called a safe zone.”

Unlike the Labyrinth, he heard that you could go outside in the Tower, but there was really all sorts of stuff.

‘This works out well.’

Since Dante had fainted.

Habel searched for a suitable inn.

Then he laid him down in a room.

‘I’ll have to wait.’

He originally wanted to go straight to the next floor.

He decided to just wait for Dante to wake up.

He needed him to rebuild Banpellion.

Habel ordered food from the restaurant on the 1st floor and became lost in thought.

‘How should I go about rebuilding Banpellion?’

A house isn’t something he could build on his own.

He needed various things to make a house.

From those who would take care of the finances to the knights who would protect the House.

There was none of that left in Banpellion.

‘I’d love to beat the crap out of those Glysys bastards and take their stuff.’

But he would only be betrayed again later.

Banpellion needed people who would come to Banpellion of their own accord.

People who would pledge true loyalty.

“Ha, will there ever come a day when I conquer the Tower?”

“Pfft, I don’t know about others, but I know it won’t be you.”

At that moment, he heard the sound of a conversation.

“Brat, neither will you.”

“Well, someone has to conquer it. It has to be one of the Five Great Houses, right?”

“Then we should support the knights of the Five Great Houses even now. To secure our place in advance.”

“Kekeke, you’re quite the schemer.”

Overhearing their conversation, Habel realized something for sure.

‘As you climb the Tower, the reputation of your House goes up as well, huh.’

If he were to place Banpellion at the top of the Tower, vassals would naturally gather.

‘Then it’s simple.’

All he had to do was conquer the Tower.

‘But this seems like something the Five Great Houses definitely cooked up.’

The reason why the Tower was so popular with people was because of public opinion.

And the ones who created that public opinion were definitely the Five Great Houses.

‘They probably decorated it as if it were a great honor to conquer the Tower firsthand.’

A hero who has defeated one of the Three Evils of the Beginning.

The best way to absorb that fame is for the Five Great Families themselves.

So they must have worked hard to sway public opinion.

‘But.’

Havel’s eyes glimmered eagerly.

‘Banpelion will absorb it.’

Banpelion is the one who conquered the Tower.

“If you conquer the Tower, is the next stop the Labyrinth Island?”

“Yes, and after that is the Dark Palace.”

At that moment, the two people in front of them spoke again.

Someone has conquered the Dark Palace already here.

It’s something that no one in the world knows.

“How pathetic.”

Havel only let out a short, bitter laugh.

* * *

“I’m sorry!”

Havel made a trembling expression.

It was because Dante apologized as soon as he got up.

“I’m lacking, so I held Havel-ssi back.”

Do people who usually collapse worry about this kind of thing?

Anyway, he was a tough guy.

“No, I’m the one who should apologize. I moved without giving you enough consideration.”

Havel heard several stories as he ate.

Then he also heard that it usually takes a week to break through the 1st hierarchy.

‘And he broke through it in 2 hours.’

Rather, Dante, who followed him, should be the one receiving the praise.

“No. It’s my fault for being lacking.”

Was he that bothered by the fact that he had a hard time keeping up?

I don’t think he needs to be that concerned about it.

“That’s why I’m saying it. Havel-ssi, can I earnestly ask you for just one thing?”

Dante was now treating Havel like a superior.

He bows his head to the strong.

Havel had already noticed what that meant.

“Are you asking me to teach you the Dharma and swordsmanship?”

Dante flinched.

That was the correct answer.

“I’m sorry. I know it’s a shameless request.”

Dante had always practiced swordsmanship alone.

There was no one in Banpelion to teach him swordsmanship.

So, he only practiced swordsmanship, which was what he had learned from his father and at the knight academy.

That was why he knew his own shortcomings well.

If he continued like this, he wouldn’t be able to climb the tower.

He was just holding Havel back.

“Yes, okay.”

At that moment, a surprisingly cheerful reply came back.

‘That’s what I wanted in the first place.’

Dante is a knight of Banpellion.

Should a knight of Banpellion live being ignored?

“Really?”

“Yes. I’m not the only one climbing the tower.”

Moreover, Havel valued Dante’s mindset.

Dante’s desire to become stronger wasn’t for personal reasons.

One of the reasons was none other than his feelings for Banpellion.

‘Besides, I’m just a mercenary due to my status, but this guy is a knight of Banpellion.’

He was nothing more than a ghost from a hundred years ago.

Although he was with them with the intention of correcting the mistakes his family made long ago.

In the end, those who would lead Banpellion were those living in the present.

‘This is purely Arthur’s role.’

It wasn’t Havel’s path.

‘Besides, Dante is pretty good as a commander.’

In Havel’s eyes, Dante’s abilities were worthy of a commander.

Then, he would be able to properly lead the Dawn Knights, who would rise again.

“Havel.”

Realizing Havel’s sincerity, Dante clenched his fists.

He knew how disrespectful it was to ask such a favor of a superior.

And he also knew how great it was to have that favor accepted.

“I will live up to your expectations.”

“You can repay that to Banpellion.”

Havel said that and got up from his seat.

Dante felt Havel’s sincerity for Banpellion.

He didn’t know why he cherished Banpellion so much.

Dante was convinced that this was an opportunity that he wouldn’t get back in his life.

Because being taught by a superior was an opportunity that could not be experienced even with a sudden stroke of luck.

“I’ll say it in advance, but it’s going to be hard. I won’t go easy on you when I teach you.”

“Yes, I will definitely grow and will not hold you back.”

That mindset was enough.

“Let’s go to the training ground.”

“Yes.”

And that day.

On the second floor of the Tower, a record was set that was on a different level from any record that had been set before.