Karnickel's Zeroth Floor

Daniel put his guard up as soon as he noticed the Rabbit's presence. The Rabbit, who had been there for a while, chuckled and shook his head. If he wanted to do anything to the human who had just entered Heaven's Tower, he would have and that would happen quite easily.

"My name is Karnickel, a representative of the God of this Tower."

Karnickel the Rabbit had only made his presence known because he wanted to speak with Daniel directly. He proceeded to set two wine glasses atop the tabletop before him and half-filled the two of them with sparkling, exotic wine. 

The way the liquid glinted inside the glass cup was beautiful, giving Danny a sense of the quality of this wine.

"Do not fret, human. I am a representative of God and also the Administrator of this Floor and with that…" Karnickel completed his introduction before taking up one of the glasses and twirling it slowly, with an air of elegance.

"Welcome to my Zeroth Floor, Mister…"

It was at this moment that it hit Daniel that he had not picked a name for himself before making his climb and therefore, he was forced to think of one on the spot.

The first name that came to his mind was his military codename — Crow. While that was easy for him to do, Daniel was not sure if he really wished to use his military codename as his name inside Heaven's Tower.

After a brief thought, he decided upon a name to use. A name that was a representation of his purpose inside the tower.

"Thanatos," Daniel responded.

"Hmm. The god of death," Karnickel commented while slowly rubbing his jaw. "What an ominous name."

Seeing Karnickel with his own two eyes, he stared in amazement although he succeeded in not letting his face fail him. Daniel had never seen a rabbit talk before, much less this fluently. Well, except in cartoons, anime and whatnots of fiction. Now, before his very eyes was a rabbit that could do just that and more.

This rabbit was five feet, and maybe about one or two inches tall and dressed himself quite stylish, having more fashion sense than Daniel even. Not only that, he had some quality mixing skills as Daniel observed how he blended the drink which was poured into the glass cup.

Having already known about the Zeroth Floor Administrator's existence, it was much easier for Daniel to keep his calm and composure as he stared at the Rabbit Administrator. 

"Well then, welcome to my Zeroth Floor, Mister Thanatos."

Karnickel extended his hand, with the second glass in his grasp, towards the newcomer. 

"What is it that you desire from the tower, my friend?" Karnickel asked. "Wealth? Power? Fame? Immortality? Influence? To become god… and have a planet, or maybe a universe, of your own?"

Karnickel was ready to go on and on but Daniel was not as he cut the Floor Administrator short to get to the point.

"I'm here for something else, administrator. A panacea known as Heaven's Tear," the young man firmly stated his purpose. "I'd appreciate it if you could point me in its direction."

"Ahh, Heaven's Tear, huh? The Supreme Elixir of Life. Behehehe! I'll point you in its direction but it's not that easy. Only those at the top of the food chain can grasp the Supreme Elixir of Life."

The rabbit went ahead to down the content of his glass in one quick gulp before addressing Daniel again.

"Are you willing to do what it takes to get to the top of the food chain, Thanatos?"

*********

[David's voice playing in his final message…]

'The Floor Administrators are the ones responsible for the challenges, quests or whatever form of tests that you would encounter on any floor. They decide the rules and what the challenges would look like. Trust me, it can go from the silliest of things to the riskiest of things anyone has ever done in their lives.

'Nonetheless, to get full access into the tower, you must pass whatever test Karnickel the Rabbit puts forth for you to undertake. Failing the Zeroth Floor Test can translate into many things: ejection from the tower or…

'...death.

As David's voice finished playing inside his head, Daniel breathed a laboured sigh and looked at the rabbit.

"Yes. I'm ready to do whatever it takes," he answered with resolution, causing the rabbit to smile halfheartedly.

"Appraisal," Karnickel voiced.

The rabbit clapped his paws and Daniel felt the effect of whatever he had done.

—––-

Name: Thanatos

Race: Human / Dragonborn

Rank: None 

Mana: 45/45

Health: 45/45

—––-

Stamina: 20

Agility: 20

Intelligence: 20

Dexterity: 20

—––-

Constitution: Divine Dragon Body

< Draconic Sight / Aura of the Beast / Warrior's Instinct / Body of the Divine Dragon >

—––-

'Oho? A dragonborn, huh? His draconic traits have already put him about four steps ahead of his fellow new arrivals. Behehe! I hope you are as interesting as your appraisal report,' Karnickel thought excitedly while adjusting the monocle over his eyes.

Using his appraisal, Karnickel was able to assess and instantly gauge Daniel's current level of strength and surprisingly, Daniel had a spectacular remark with dual races and better statistics than the rabbit expected. This was something that only a handful had achieved.

Karnickel smirked, recalling a few faces. 'Looks like another anomaly will raise its head soon…'

The greater number of people who entered the tower barely made a cumulative total of 40 stat points. Only a few persons who had trained their bodies and minds to a certain extent before deciding to climb the tower, or people who had some cheats or unique abilities, were able to cross that average of 40. Naturally, such people would be above the average new climber.

"Can we begin already?" Daniel curtly asked the administrator, hasty to leave the Zeroth Floor.

"Most certainly, young man," Karnickel replied and as he did that the environment underwent a swift change that left Daniel's mouth parted.

The two of them appeared in what seemed to be a small hall with Karnickel standing in front of a small stage with a door right behind him.

The rabbit smiled as he looked at Daniel before going ahead to release a condensed amount of mana that weighed down on the atmosphere of the hall, making it nearly devoid of air and choking that one would pass out after a few minutes of exposure if they were not strong.

"If that is your answer, then come forward… Thanatos."

Daniel heeded the instruction of the rabbit and began to walk forward until he hit something that he couldn't see with his two eyes.

Daniel looked around with confusion in his eyes. He looked around him and there was really nothing there but him, the rabbit and the air. However, Daniel was yet to understand that Karnickel's test for the Zeroth Floor had started with such an obstacle.

The Floor Administrator peeked at the black watch on his wrist and then looked at Daniel who seemed to be struggling against an invisible wall that was resisting as well as delaying him from progressing.

"You have three minutes to break through this obstacle and make it to the top. Otherwise, your little dream ends here to become wishful thoughts." 

After frantically trying for some seconds, Daniel understood that his mortal powers could not compare with Karnickel's.

Heaving a sigh, Daniel shut his eyes for a short while and called up one of the gifts from his brother.

His red eyes gradually turned golden as he muttered something under his breath…

*********

///grindnote///

Do support the book, if you are enjoying it, through your power stones, reviews and comments. Trust me, it helps me a lot.