Motivation (1)

Though I wasn't particularly impressed with his intelligence - the guy wouldn't be able to reach me for at least a couple of seconds; why waste energy activating his blade?

I was intrigued by the novelty: he covered his entire sword in flames, so could I also coat my dagger in arcane? Was it possible?

After concentrating a most significant portion of my arcane into my fingertips, I attempted to direct the arcane, to channel it into the blade of my dagger—it fizzled, then leaked, exiting the blade in very-wasteful amounts; something was going wrong... wait.

Despite most of the energy leaving, I noticed that some managed to stay behind. Was there some type of factor or reaction that facilitated this absorbance?

Concentrating hard, I tried directing my arcane into the dagger again, but this time I succeeded! Though arcane was still exiting, it was at an assuredly limited pace compared to before, and my dagger was indeed strengthened.

A sword that big should have a weak point somewhere. The man spun his sword around, making circles of fire in the air around him.

Weakness sight!

Activating my skill, I concentrated on the man's sword. There it was! The integrity of his blade was weak around a centimetre to the left of the blade's center.

Picking up a small pebble from the ground, I coated it with arcane as I lunged toward the man.

"Weakling!" shouted the man as he gripped his sword with both his hands and raised it.

As I neared the man, he swung the sword down at me with full force. Sidestepping, I managed to evade the sword and flicked the pebble in my hand at the man's face.

The pebble hit the man squarely in the middle of his forehead, making him lose his balance for a moment.

Given the almost-exorbitant size of his sword, it was unsurprising that its weight was similarly immense; as a result, upon successfully interrupting him, he was immediately unable to control it—the silvery blade pounded into the floor before piercing it with a resounding CLANG, a little too far: the sword was stuck.

Using this opportunity, I thrust my dagger into the weak spot of the sword. Although even holding my hand close to the burning sword burned my fingers a little, my thrust was able to shatter the sword.

"Wh-who are you!" asked the man as he fell to his knees and tried crawling behind.

Now that I think about it, this guy could be useful in providing me with information.

"Tell me about the city," I ordered.

"Ye-yes. It is called The Kingdom of Midland. It provides support to anybody and everybody who wishes to climb the tower," answered the man.

The Kingdom of Midland? I see.

"Who all are you guys?" I inquired.

"W-we are part of the bl-blood fang, the largest crime organization in the kingdom of Midland. Those in the lower echelon like us mainly hunt down newbies and sell them as slaves," he replied.

Blood Fang? Although I have just set foot in the tower and don't know how it works; the idea of buying and selling slaves is disgusting.

"Is that all?" I asked, staring at him coldly.

"Wa-wait! I heard that the people who lead blood fangs are figures who have the backing of major guilds. You will pay heavily if you mess with us," he replied, stuttering and sweating.

It was very convenient for him to be this obedient. Well, I broke his weapon, so it does make sense for him to be shocked.

"I guess that's all you know. If I ever see you again, I WILL kill you," I informed the goon as I hit his face with my knee, knocking him out.

Although killing them would be the better option, I didn't want to dirty my hands the moment I entered the tower.

[You have levelled up!]

[Due to your title 'Librarian,' you have gained the skill "Librarian's Eyes"]

[Due to your master-guide contract, You have gained the skill "Communication"]

What! How? Was it because I reached level 10? Not only did I level up, but I also got two new skills.

<Hey hey Noxie>

What? I just heard a sound inside my head!

<Yes, you did! kekekeke>

Caligo?

<Indeed!>

Is this because of the skill 'Communication'?

<Yes, it is! On reaching level ten we both got the ability to converse with each other! How amazing is that! kekekeke>

I don't find it comforting that someone out there is always reading my thoughts.

<Well, I could always do that. The only difference this time is that you can hear me too! kekekeke Anyway, you will experience a little pain right now, so try not to scream.>

Wh-

Without a second of warning, my head was assaulted by a wave of unending, ferocious pain. My vision blurred as the wave of nausea hit me. A splitting headache unlike anything terrorized my mind.

My body burned from the tip of my toes to my fingertips, everything burned; it did not stop. There was no end to it. I begged for the reaper...to ease this suffering.

ARGHH!! It felt as if a million white-hot burning knives were piercing every inch of my skin.

I wanted my arms to fall off. I wished my legs would break off. The pain overwhelmed my consciousness so fiercely that I felt suicide was, the only thing that could relieve me of my suffering.

"Aahh" I managed to moan before everything became dark and I lost sense of everything around me.

.

.

.

"We meet again!" exclaimed Caligo, standing in front of me.

I was still in the dark room where there was water on the floor. The only light source was the object in the sky, but I could see clearer than the last time I was here. Maybe because of my night vision skill.

The pain lingered in my body, although it was much more bearable than before.

"Was the pain your doing!?" I asked in a voice that may have been a little too loud.

"Calm down, Noxie boy! Although I knew that the pain was coming, it wasn't anything done by me," he answered.

"Then why?" I inquired.

"Well you see, your body is still quite weak. But, you have three A-grade skills, an SSS-grade skill, and even a Mythic-grade skill. Even all your titles are, A-grade and above. Don't you think that your skills are a little too much for your current body?" The snake answered.

What he said did make sense.

"Is there a way to fix it?" I asked.

"Well, get stronger, raise your stats, and stuff. Stats and skills go hand in hand. Without the right number of stats, your body cannot handle skills. With time, the pain your body experiences will only increase. Although, with time, you will also gain some resilience to it," Caligo informed me. He spoke in a pitiful tone as if pitying my lack of common knowledge.

After all that I had experienced, one question irked me the most.

"I have no reason to climb the tower and go through needless pain. Why should I even climb the tower?" I asked. According to my understanding, killing is necessary to climb the tower. Killing people should only be done when necessary. I don't gain any pleasure in killing anyone.

"I think you forgot the fact that I have been with you since the beginning. Don't act all innocent and pure in front of me. I know very well what you are really capable of... kekekeke… Well anyways, about your question; climbing to the top of the tower is the only chance you will get to return to Earth," Caligo replied.

"I don't have anyone important on Earth," I replied. Well, at least not anymore.

"What about your friends?" he asked.

My friends? I held them all dearly and close to my heart, maybe because I had a negligible amount. But because most of my friends were related to work, none of them were actually close to me.

Caligo stared at me, maybe examining even the smallest of my expressions.

"What about... Lloyd?" he asked, a smirk appearing on his face.

Lloyd? Why did the snake have to bring his name out?

"It's been years since we met. I don't even know if he is dead or alive!" I replied.

"Noxie boy! He is the only family you have left. I know you still love him," the snake said.

"SHUT UP! You don't know anything!" I screamed.

WHO WAS HE TO TALK ABOUT LLOYD!?

Drip!

I heard the sound of a drop of water falling in the water before suddenly being teleported to some other room.

Where was I? Only darkness surrounded me.

"Looks like having no motivation is something bothering you!" said a voice from in front of me. It was Luke! He was seated on a huge throne, cross-legged. He rested one of his arms on the armrest and rested his head on the other hand.

"I have no reason to climb the tower! Why should I willingly go through pain and suffering?" I asked.

"I understand where you are coming from. But, you climbing the tower is very important for me to get out," Luke said in an ordering tone.

Should I go through suffering just so that he can be free? That's absurd!

Call it cowardice or foolishness; I don't care! But risking my life for something and someone I don't even know about is preposterous.

"Stubborn. Just like him," Luke said, examining me.

'Him'?

"Thomas and Melissa," he continued.

WHAT! My parents?

"They are alive!" he exclaimed as a slight smile appeared on his usually expressionless face.

"Wh-What?"