The Swordsman Genius Returnee Even Swallows Immortality

9

The place where the dawn of the 3rd layer shone.

Habell put away his sword, leaving Dante absent-minded.

At that moment, letters were lined up before him.

[The Tower feels inspired by your presence.]

[You have passed the trial given in the Lightning Zone.]

[The achievement of ‘One who Threatened the Tower’ has been recorded.]

[The demerit of ‘Trial of the Tower’s 3rd Layer’ seeps into the body.]

–Strength has increased by 18.

– Agility has increased by 19.

— Tenacity has increased by 21.

― Aptitude has increased by 29.

― Skill has increased by 18.

— Demerit has increased by 19.

More letters were listed.

Habell felt the demerit flowing in.

Furthermore, the amount of increase this time was considerably greater than before.

The increase, which had only been faintly felt, was now strong enough to be felt to some extent.

Of course, Habell’s level was so high that he didn’t feel much excitement.

He simply thought that he had reached this level and was continuing to grow stronger.

‘My numbers are definitely all three digits.’

How many do the other guys have?

He was a little curious, but there was no way to know.

‘What will change once I reach four digits?’

He was looking forward to that.

Even now, the stronger he got, the stronger he got.

It felt like the range of things he could do was expanding.

‘That’s more like the Tower’s trial.’

Havel was taken aback by the words, the Tower’s trial.

Because that was unheard of in the Demon Realm.

“Dante.”

Havel, who had been about to ask Dante, soon stopped speaking.

Instead, a faint smile spread across his lips.

The light painted by the dawn.

Dante was staring blankly at it.

I know that feeling best of all.

‘I, too, have seen the dawn and fallen for its charm.’

The dawn captivates people.

That’s why, seeing this dawn, countless people have sought Pandemonium.

They all became Dawn Knights.

‘Even though the Dawn Knights have disappeared and the dawn has ended.’

The dawn still possessed the power to captivate people.

And Dante’s dawn will also lead countless people in the future.

‘It’s okay to indulge in sentimentality for a while.’

Havel thought so and looked up at the dawn he had created.

The sky was so clear, even though he had made it himself.

* * *

Swish!

As the dawn disappeared and the dark clouds returned to their place.

The rain began to pour down again.

“Mr. Havel, I’m sorry.”

Only then did Dante come to his senses and hurriedly apologized.

Havel chuckled.

‘Brat, I like the look of relief on your face.’

“Did you see it well?”

Dante’s eyes widened, and he answered vigorously.

“Yes!”

The dawn swordsmanship that he had only heard the name of from his father. Now that it was a real swordsmanship, he didn’t know how he could use that dawn swordsmanship.

Many questions are well up in one corner of Dante’s mind.

However, Havel showed him on purpose, knowing that he would have doubts for his sake.

So Dante suppressed his doubts.

“Then that’s good. Let’s go quickly. The 4th floor is waiting for us.”

Looking into his eyes, Havel was satisfied.

He had done well to show his dawn swordsmanship.

Dante would grow up as he chased the dawn in the future.

His growth was something he had been looking forward to.

“Mr. Havel, wait a minute.”

At that moment, Dante stopped him.

Dante hurriedly searched for the place where the water snake had died.

And at the end, he picked up a stone engraved with a lightning bolt.

“What’s that?”

“It’s a byproduct of a Baleful Beast. From the 3rd stage onwards, there are many byproducts that can be sold for a high price.”

Is that so?

I didn’t know because I didn’t pay much attention to it in the 1st or 2nd stage.

“If we sell the byproducts, it will also help Van Pelléon’s growth.”

Certainly, capital was also important for raising a family.

‘Ah, if I had known, I should have brought the Demon King’s byproduct with me. It’s a shame when I think about it again.’

I felt belated regret.

Even to Havel, an outsider, the Demon King’s byproduct seemed valuable.

If I had brought it with me, it would have been a great help.

‘At that time, it was nothing but a hindrance.’

I didn’t have the presence of mind to carry such things around in the Demon King’s Palace.

Havel slowly smacked his lips.

‘If I get the chance.’

It might not be bad to visit the Demon King’s Palace again.

I’m also curious about the phenomenon that appeared to me.

“Dante, from now on, collect everything you can get.”

Havel’s eyes flashed.

From now on, I have to keep my eyes peeled and collect everything.

“Yes, I will collect as much as possible.”

Havel and Dante began to climb the tower again.

The 3rd stage was just the beginning.

* * *

Kwagwang!

Amidst the thunder and lightning that grew stronger as they climbed the 3rd stage.

Havel and Dante were on the move.

At first, the lightning zone was close to a plain.

But now, the terrain had changed.

The plains had disappeared due to mountain ranges that soared here and there toward the sky.

Instead, an endless mountainous area continued.

But something remained the same.

The downpour continued unabated.

Shwaa! Kugugugugu!

Another landslide occurred along with the downpour.

There were quite a few climbers who died after being caught in such landslides.

However, Havel merely jumped over the landslide.

He didn’t feel any particular sense of crisis.

To the point where he wondered if he would feel a sense of crisis in the future.

BOOM!

At that moment, a thunderbolt fell and set a tree ablaze.

Then, as if it had a will of its own, the flames rose up.

It was a Thunderbolt Wraith, an ominous beast.

It then immediately lunged at Havel, who had just gotten over the landslide.

“Oh, you’re fast.”

Havel raised his sword, as if it were perfect timing.

At that moment, a beam of light extended from his sword and bisected the Thunderbolt Wraith.

His light could cut through even the formless flames.

“Dante, the light of dawn varies depending on how purely you can refine the aura.”

As he said this, Havel was teaching Dante about the Dawnbreaker.

The Dawnbreaker was essential for Dante, who would lead the Knights of the Dawn.

So Dante had to master the Dawnbreaker as soon as possible.

“The first thing you need to master is freely wielding the light of dawn. Can you do it?”

“Yes, I will.”

Dante concentrated on bringing forth the dawn of the sword.

Havel watched Dante with satisfaction and raised his head.

The rain and thunder grew increasingly violent.

‘It must mean that I’m getting close to the top of the 3rd stratum.’

The peak of the mountain entered Havel’s view.

There, lightning was striking more frequently than anywhere else.

I can sense it.

The first master of the tower is finally there.

This enormous presence was unmistakable.

‘The reason the 3rd stratum is different from the lower stratums.’

It was the presence or absence of a master.

Havel had felt thirsty ever since he entered the tower.

The ominous beasts were too weak compared to what he had experienced in the Demon Realm.

It was an unnerving feeling of apathy, where he felt no tension or threat.

Havel found this boredom unbearable.

He felt more at ease when he was in the middle of a battle.

‘My, my. It seems like my mind has become somewhat damaged.’

After all, he had spent 100 years in the Demon Realm.

It wouldn’t be strange for his mind to become damaged.

‘In that case.’

Havel gripped the sword in his hand tightly.

If he had become strange, then he would simply live as a strange person.

‘I will simply do what I do best.’

And that was fighting.

BOOM!

The sound of thunder reverberated once more.

The third-tier evil spirits continued to block their path.

However, this did not slow down their steps.

“Mr. Habell.”

Dante called out.

Habell’s head lifted.

At the peak of the Thunderclap Mountain Range.

There, an altar stood tall.

“Originally, dozens of climbers gather to break through the third tier.”

Dante spoke as he slowly looked up at the altar.

A bolt of lightning struck down below the altar.

“But Mr. Habell, your power is stronger than dozens of those climbers.”

Dante raised his sword.

A halo of light then bloomed on his sword.

It was the result of countless attempts to ignite the dawn as he surpassed the third tier.

It was only a small light.

However, it was proof that he had stepped into the threshold of the Dawn Breaking Sword.

“May I add a little to that power?”

A dawn arose on Habell’s sword.

It was a light of a different dimension from Dante’s.

“That’s why I brought you on the expedition in the first place.”

The moment he heard Habell’s answer, Dante gripped his sword tightly with both hands.

CRACKLE!

At that moment, a torrent of lightning poured down from the dark clouds.

Habell deflected the lightning, while Dante rolled on the ground.

Soon after, a single snow-white head emerged from the dark clouds.

It had no face.

It was merely a human form.

It spread its wings made of lightning behind its back.

“That’s…”

A gasp escaped Dante’s lips.

‘I heard it was big, but I didn’t think it would be this big?’

Amidst the dark clouds that filled the mountain range.

What emerged was a giant.

The giant, made entirely of lightning, raised its six arms.

“…Mr. Habell, something’s wrong.”

Dante’s body is tingled.

His fingertips trembled.

Cold sweat ran down his face, mixing with the rainwater.

The survival instinct rang a bell, telling him to run.

His lips were shut tight.

The master of the 3rd hierarchy, the lightning giant.

He had definitely said it was about the size of a house.

But the giant that was currently in sight was way too big, even for that.

A giant that could fill up a mountain range.

This was on a whole other level.

Dante almost lost the will to fight.

“I see now.”

However, Habell held his sword diagonally.

“Why were the trials so hard, and the tower so easy?”

Dante looked back at him with a face full of questions.

“Habell-nim?”

But Habell didn’t have time to answer his question.

His senses for battle were starting to come back one by one.

Just like when he had faced the master in the trials.

That creepy sensation flowing through his entire body.

In the middle of that sensation.

Habell’s lips drew an arc.

Dante’s body stiffened up at the sight.

The Habell reflected in his eyes didn’t feel human.

The aura flowing out of Habell was enough to make Dante’s throat tighten.

Dante gulped.

His appearance reminded him of a demon.

At that moment, the giant spread its hands open.

Kwagwang!

Following that, lightning bolts fell between the altars.

There were small lightning humans there, about the size of two people put together.

It seemed like they were the giant’s underlings.

“Dante.”

Habell groaned and gathered strength in his legs.

“Fight and survive.”

The moment he said those words.

Kwaang!

Along with a loud noise, Habell shot up into the sky.

In an instant, the giant’s head appeared in front of Habell, who had flown up.

Habell flashed the light of dawn.

Kwaaang!

Soon after, the giant, who had been hit by Habell’s sword, staggered greatly.

That was the price for not being able to track Habell’s location.

Clack-clack-clack!

However, the giant did not die.

Indeed, it was different from before.

“You are the true master.”

The master of the third hierarchy.

Lord of the Lightning Tower.

The true master of the third hierarchy was there.

‘I see.’

Habell realized.

Misfortunes like the Devil’s Palace and the Tower bring trials to people.

Trials exist to overcome.

‘So misfortunes adjust the difficulty of such trials.’

Accordingly, the difficulty becomes extreme.

‘Those who came to the Devil’s Palace were all the strongest in the world.’

They were called heroes who entered to save the emperor.

The Devil’s Palace gave them the strongest trials.

And the heroes died in the Devil’s Palace.

Now that such heroes are gone.

Those who climb the Tower are only those who are content with the current era.

So the Tower presented trials to match.

The heads of the Five Great Clans also knew this fact.

So they made an unwritten rule not to climb the Tower.

A world without the truly strong.

That was the current Tower.

“What do you want?”

Instead of answering Habell’s question, the Lord of the Lightning Tower spreads its six arms.

“Is the purpose to make humans stronger?”

Countless lightning bolts poured down on Habell.

Habell passed through them at incredible speed.

He moved freely even in the sky.

Kwaang!

Once again, the Lord of the Lightning Tower staggered.

Because Habell’s sword had cut the Lord of the Lightning Tower in an instant.

“If so.”

The Lord of the Lightning Tower stretched its six arms towards Habell as if in anger.

But dawn was already breaking on Habell’s sword.

“Why do you keep making me stronger?”

The master of the 10th floor of the Devil’s Palace.

What does it mean?

The answer to the question did not return.

The words of the Demon King that appeared before his eyes.

The Lord of the Thunderbolt, and the Tower.

No one gave him an answer.

Because it was a question that only he could find the answer to.

When the sixth fist of the Lord of the Thunderbolt reached right before his nose.

Habell’s sword once again poured out at dawn.

Kwaa!

A storm struck, shaking the entire mountain range.

The six arms of the Lord of the Thunderbolt were helplessly torn apart before the storm.

Between the broken arms.

Habell’s body reached the Lord of the Thunderbolt in an instant.

“If you can’t answer, grow again.”

Habell’s sword swung out once more.

Soon, the body of the Lord of the Thunderbolt on the mountain range collapsed.

That was the day when the true owner of the Tower was brought down for the first time.