(XXXVIII) The Solo Route

"You shouldn't throw away your life so quickly, boy. It would be a shame if someone with your talent wasn't helping clear the upper floors. Flaming Dawn will get you there in record speed." Ramus gruffly said, crossing his arms and grunting as he sternly stared at Jackson.

The Solo Route has been a rumor about God's Tower since its first appearance thousands of years ago. The Floor Guardians will supposedly provide an alternate series of challenges if a player has never used the Group Feature of the system through the first half of the tower.

Countless Climbers had attempted it but were presumed dead since they disappeared after leaving Ilasa Port and were never seen again.

"Let him run off and get himself killed! See what good that SSS Ranking you got is after you're dead!" Viktoria snorted, turning her head.

"I'll be fine. If that's all you wanted, I'll take my leave now!" Jackson said, bowing and turning to leave.

Gabriel walked over and blocked his path with one of his arms. He raised the other one high into the air for emphasis as he continued, "Now, please wait!!"

He turned to Viktoria with an irritated expression but didn't say anything; she rolled her eyes, huffing silently as she walked past them, flipping her long blonde hair. After closing the doors behind her, he pointed toward Ramus' office and gestured with both hands like a traffic cop signaling people forward.

Jackson sighed, turning around and entering the office with Ramus as Gabriel closed the doors behind them, and he took a seat in a leather armchair in front of the large desk.

Ramus sat back down, picking up a clipboard while rubbing his goatee with his hand and staring at it in silence for a moment before looking up at Jackson, finally speaking up, "So... What happened with Viktoria?"

The man was wearing white plate armor from top-to-bottom and dark orange leggings beneath tall boots covered by thick socks with bright orange laces wrapped around them tightly several times. His chest plates were made of steel and decorated with red lines crossing each other above a gold ring in between each one.

"We both took our assessments around the same time, and mine was higher. She's had it out for me ever since..." Jackson replied coolly.

Ramus chuckled nervously, tapping on the clipboard again. "You're right! It does sound very silly!" He said while scratching his cheek with the back of his finger. He asked a dozen more questions, and Jackson replied as honestly as possible and was able to leave.

Gabriel escorted him out of the recruitment office where Viktoria waited, surrounded by a large crowd, smiling and fielding dozens of questions.

She stared at Jackson with cold anger radiating off her body when she noticed him standing next to Gabriel; she raised her hands at the crowd as they all fell silent before walking over toward Jackson slowly, turning toward Gabriel and bowing politely.

"Gabriel, please escort Jackson and me to your Training Grounds. We have some unfinished business!" She announced, smiling at him before returning the glare to Jackson.

"Ah, but I don't have any equipment! It was all destroyed, and my commission for new gear won't be done for the next few days, so I won't be able to fight you!" Jackson raised his arms, shaking his head with a slight smile.

"Sheesh! How pathetic are you? You want to take the Solo Route?" She asked incredulously, staring at him in disbelief.

"It's not like I want to fight with you. Can I just apologize for whatever I did, and we both go our separate ways..?" Jackson asked, shrugging nonchalantly.

"As if! You ruined my coronation!" Viktoria argued, throwing her fist down as she stomped the ground, "Fine! When you've received your equipment, you and I will battle!"

"I'd rather not..." Jackson sighed, shaking his head. Gabriel's mouth twitched as he forced a smile, stepping between the two.

"I shall speak with Ramus and make the necessary preparations! In fact, we can market it as an exhibition match and sell tickets and offer bets for the public; everyone would receive a piece of the proceeds!" The man said with a smile.

"That's fine with me! Now I'll have an audience when I defeat you!" Viktoria smirked, laughing haughtily as she covered her mouth with her hand.

"..." Jackson was stunned; he covered his eyes and shook his head, looking at the ground and sighing heavily, "Fine! You win! I accept!"

"Excellent! I'll let Ramus know, and we'll handle everything! See you two in three days!" Gabriel proclaimed, clapping his hands and hastily retreating back into Flaming Dawn's recruitment office.

"Don't chicken out!" Viktoria smirked, turning around and walking away as the crowd chased after her.

"What the hell did I do..?" Jackson muttered to himself, dumbstruck over the situation he found himself in, sighing heavily before he turned, exiting the plaza as he walked through the Castle District.

He pulled out one of the small pieces of paper that Kain had given him and read it:

"Reject Flaming Dawn. If you want more answers regarding The Solo Route, come to The Drunken Mule after sunset. Order a 'Barcrawl' from the bartender."

Jackson was lost in thought as he casually strolled through the city. Whoever this mysterious group was, they knew far too much about him, 'No one should know about The Solo Route... I just declared it! How do they..?'

The sun began setting behind the horizon, bathing Ilasa Port with vibrant orange light along with golden streaks running down across the sky; Jackson stopped in front of a tavern near the outskirts of the Castle District, close to the Port District called "The Drunken Mule". It wasn't very big or impressive, but it served its purpose. He pushed open the wooden door and stepped inside, feeling a blast of cool air rushing up towards his face as he entered a dim room with tables lining both sides.

A tall bar sat in the middle of the right wall where several different drinks were being prepared by four bartenders. There weren't many people occupying the dimly lit space; only three patrons were sitting alone around the table closest to the entrance as Jackson passed by them and approached the bar.

"What'll it be, darlin'?" A seductively dressed, long-haired redhead asked, leaning against the bar, revealing even more cleavage.

"I'll take a barcrawl." Jackson asked, sitting down and looking around the pub.