Chapter 3 : Blood Armor, The First Encounter

Sho and the nurse walked down the hallway, walking past nurses and doctors, some dealing with patients, and Sho said, "Hurry up and talk."

"Okay, well, like I said earlier, the Tower of Valhalla consists of one trillion floors. And you need enough points to reach the next floor above you."

"Explain these points."

"They are called Fighter points. These points can be used for a lot of things. The more points you earn, the more you can use them to upgrade your default weapon and abilities, and you can unlock new abilities. Fighters are people like us, who entered the tower for the same thing, for the rewards the tower has to offer for the ones who reach the top."

"Go in depth with the points, woman."

"…Your power level increases slightly once you use your Fighter points to increase your weapon attributes or by unlocking new abilities. You can gain points by defeating other Fighters, defeating monsters, defeating humanoid beings, training, or going out and hunting mythic beasts or mining for magic crystals. Magic crystals are like perfect diamonds of all colors, and they are super hard to get, because they are guarded by mythical beasts. If you're a passive person like me, you can earn points by getting a job here, helping the community of people that are gaining points passively."

"Fuck that passiveness. Does the number of points vary on how tough the fight is or how intense the training is?"

"Yes. The longer and harder you train, the more points you gain. The tougher the Fighter or the tougher the mythical beast, the more points you gain from defeating them. And with the points you earn, you can spend them on upgrading your talents and default weapon, but you'll be spending the number of points you need to ascend to the next floor, so you have to make sacrifices and wise choices on spending. Your main goal is to gather enough Fighter points to ascend to the next floor, but you want to get stronger as well."

"Alright.."

"What's the matter?"

"Wrap this up pretty fast."

"Rude! Anyway, you can also join Fighter guilds, guilds are groups or teams you can join to make a raid more effective."

"Raid?"

The nurse stopped in the middle of the hallway, and Sho stopped as well.

The nurse said, "Look at your wrist."

Sho looked at his wrist, and it was a thin black watch on it.

"What the hell is this?" Sho asked.

"Tap the middle of it."

Sho tapped the middle of the screen, and a blue hologram appeared over it, and it showed Sho all of his stats, his picture, Fighter points, abilities, weapons, power level, and class.

It even showed his strength points, speed points, agility points, and toughness points.

His stats so far:

Strength: 80/300

Speed : 77/300

Agility : 100/300

Toughness: 180/300

Sho said to the nurse, "This is a good time to explain instead of staring into space."

"The watch keeps up with everything you see up there. It's even showing your class and power level. With the strength, speed, agility, and toughness points, they are the only things that can be leveled up without having to spend points on them. They naturally rise the more you train or fight."

Sho asked, "It says I'm a class Z with a 59 power level. Is that bad or not?"

"That's super bad. Means without leveling up, you're as good as dead. Tap the area where it shows your class."

"Tch."

"Geez, man, why are you so..angry? And edgy?"

Sho tapped the hologram, and it showed this:

Classes Z through SSSS power levels and ranks.

Class Z Fighters : 0 - 100 power level

Class D Fighters : 100 -1,000 power level

Class C Fighters : 1,000 - 10,000 power level

Class B Fighters : 10, 000 - 100,000 power level

Class A Fighters: - 100,000 - 1,000,000 power level

Class S Fighters : 1,000,000 - 5,000,000 power level

Class SS Fighters : 5,000,000 - 7,000,000 power level

Class SSS Fighters : 7,000,000 - 10,000,000 power level

Class SSSS Fighters : 10,000,000 - 10,000,001 or higher power level.

Sho said, "I get it now. I just need to get all the way to the SSSS class. Easy."

The nurse replied, "I'm sorry to say, but it won't be that easy. A week since we've all been in the tower, a ton of people have already died."

"Do I look like them? They're just weak and unlucky. Tch, you underestimate me. No wonder you're taking this shitty passive route."

"That's because I don't like fighting! I'll do whatever it takes to-."

"What are raids?"

"…You can navigate through your watch and find the 'Raids' section, and it will show all possible locations to raid mythical beast and humanoid creature locations for points. Each raid has jobs classified in different classes. So your watch is going to show raids meant for certain classes. As you are now, a class Z Fighter, it's best not to go into a class C between SSSS raid."

"You tellin' me what to do?"

"Take a chill pill!"

"I'm hungry. Give me food."

"…Ugh, follow me."

Sho followed the nurse into the break room, where she fed Sho 5 sandwiches, 4 bags of chips, and 2 bottles of water.

Sho was scarfing the food down, with the nurse looking at him.

The nurse asked, "Man, you really weren't kidding when you said you were hungry. Did you eat much before getting into the tower?"

Sho answered, "Stop prying all into my business. What's it to you if I've eaten or not?"

"Just asking, just asking..I didn't eat much. Maybe because I was too depressed to eat."

"…"

"Sho.."

"What?"

"Whatever is..going on with you..I hope it gets better. Okay?"

Sho looked away, "I don't need your sympathy. The only way I can be helped is if I climb the top of this tower-."

Suddenly, the room was blown up, and Sho and the nurse went flying through the walls and into the hallways.

There were screams all over the hospital, with bodies lying around, along in pools of blood.

Dust and blocks crumbled everywhere, with the nurse crawling backwards in the hallway, coughing, "What the..what was that?"

She saw bodies of other nurses and doctors on the floor down the hallway, and she screamed loudly, saying, "No!!"

Appearing down the hallway, was a 6 foot man wearing shiny red armor, and he was holding a red sword, wearing a red helmet with glowing white eyes coming out of it, and a high red ponytail coming out of the top of the helmet, and he and his sword had red energy flowing around him. And he was wearing a red, black, and white cape. His name was Persian. Class D, power level: 300.

Persian said, "Ahh.. that's more like it.."

The blood on the floor was automatically being sucked in by Persian's red armor.

The nurse screamed at Persian, "Why are you doing this?! What have we done?!"

Persian chuckled, "Haha, shut up will ya? My head kinda hurts, I kinda feel like a vampire right now, with all this blood I'm digesting. Fee Fi Fo Fum! Oh shit, that's a giant, nevermind."

Persian walked forward, and continued, "My blood armor and sword gets deadlier with the more blood I consume. It's a pretty broken ability, right? And I'm only a class D Fighter. If I consume as much blood as I can, my class and power level will surely rise! Since you know, you also gain points from killing other Fighters, in which my ability allows me to exchange points in blood to increase my armor and swords deadliness. I've been killing monsters and Fighters all week, struggling to level up, until finally I unlocked this armor ability, and it goes well with my default sword! Now then, will you do me the honors, and give me your blood?"

"No! Please!"

Persian raised his sword up, and all of sudden, he was hit in the face with bread.

Persian stopped, and said, "Ah?"

He looked to the right, and Sho was walking towards him.

Persian said, "Hoh? Who's this?"

Sho replied, "You can kill everyone including that damn nurse lady for all I care. But one thing I won't accept, is you ruining my breakfast. No one distracts me while I'm eating, bitch."

"HAHA! I haven't laughed all day, good one. I'll kill you after I'm done with this cute broad-!"

Sho rushed in and tackled Persian straight through a wall, and Sho exclaimed, "Stop fucking with me!"

Persian replied, "Fool! This is obviously one-sided! You're a class Z!"

Persian headbutted Sho hard, knocking Sho through a few more walls.

The nurse yelled to Sho, "Sho! Use your weapon!"

Sho stood up, and here came Persian.

Persian was swinging his sword wildly at Sho, with red smoke trailing after each swing.

Persian's sword was ripping pieces of the hospital apart, and it was falling apart. Sho was jumping from falling block to falling block, dodging Persians attacks.

Persian yelled, "Stop running!"

Sho responded, "Fuck you! Rent-a-knight! I'll kill you!"

Sho started falling down to the next floor, and he started running towards Persian. Persian jumped and slammed his sword beside Sho, making red smoke blast everywhere.

Sho was knocked away by the blast, and he blasted into another room, crashing into the next room.

Sho sat up, thinking, 'That annoying nurse told me to use my weapon, she didn't even tell me how I can even get it out!'

Sho shouted out, "Oi! Annoying nurse lady! How do I get my weapon out?!"

There was no answer, leaving Sho to think, 'Guess I gotta go get her.'

Sho started running ahead again, but Persian came from under the floor, and he sliced Sho on his back. Sho grunted in pain, and he turned around and punched Persian in the helmet, jumped, spun, and kicked him in the chest.

Persian staggered back, thinking, 'This brat's punching and kicking me with his bare hands, hitting my armored head. Is he crazy?! And how is he not reacting to it?! Does he even feel pain at all? I know his fist and foot hurts?! I definitely..want his blood now!'

Sho was running up some walls, climbing fast, yelling, "Dumb nurse! You better not be dead! I need answers!"

Sho jumped up to the next floor, and he saw the nurse laying under a pile of rubble, struggling to get out.

Sho rushed to her, and he yanked her out from under it, but he saw her legs were broken.

Sho said, "You're not dying until you tell me how to use my weapons and stuff!"

The nurse said, "You..came back for me.."

"I came back for answers. Now tell me!"

Persian came bursting from the floor again, and he started running towards Sho and the nurse, screaming, "Hahaha! Got you now! Two for the price of one! Can you make this any easier?!"

Sho picked up the nurse, put her around his shoulder, and he leaped out of the way of Persian's sword attack, which made the entire floor collapse.

Sho was still holding the nurse over his shoulders in a fireman's carry style, and he was avoiding falling to his death. He was jumping from each falling piece, and he looked up, and saw Persian floating in the air.

Sho asked the nurse, "Tell me how to use my weapon! How do I take it out?! Or I'll drop you here!"

The nurse replied, "You have to.."

Persian raised his sword up, and it started to glow bright red.

Rubble from inside the hospital was spinning all around them like a tornado due to the swords' red smoke, and red lightning was blasting all over the place.

Persian said, "I didn't wanna have to use this, because I need energy to kill at least 20 more Fighters today, but you're getting cocky."

Sho asked the nurse as he ran around, dodging the lightning that was crashing near him, blasting pieces in the air, "Talk to me! That's the only reason I haven't dropped your ass off yet!"

Sho thought, 'No way to exit even if I wanted to. This guys abilities are creating a barrier of rubble, and his lightning is hitting all in the right areas.'

The nurse said to Sho, It's..easy. Feel the energy within you, manifest it within your soul, and say or think…'Awaken'!"

Sho exclaimed, "Awaken!"

The nurse thought, 'Huh? He did that so easily..usually it takes a few seconds for a newbie to properly pull out their weapon! And he did it this fast on his first try?!'

Sho had a weapon in his hand, and it was butter knife.

Sho scoffed, "A fucking butterknife?! A butterknife?!"

He started to remember the fight between him and his dad, and how he killed him with it.

Sho gritted his teeth, saying to himself, "Why..? Why the hell would I have this?!"

The nurse responded, "No time to stop! That guy is still attacking! You have to do something!"

"Don't yell in my ear! I got this!"

Persian said, "Foolish human beings. You'll never win. I'll get stronger and ascend to the tower, and I'll live forever! Seriously, who wants to die, when they could live happily ever after?!"

Sho started running forward, and he leaped up high, jumping from floating rubble to floating rubble.

The nurse thought, 'Sho'a weapon is at a very low level, he won't win this. But it's nothing else we can do, since the exits are blocked.'

Sho's butter knife stats :

Attack - 200/100,000

Defense - 200/100,000

Red lightning still blew up everything around them, and Sho was dodging them in mid air, leaving the nurse to think again, 'His movements are good too..he's definitely used to this.'

Sho leaped up to Persian, and Persian dashed down to Sho, yelling, "Awww! How cute!"

Sho scoffed, "Shut up! I'll kill you for attacking me!"

"You're mad at me for wanting to get stronger?! Pathetic!"

"You make no sense, dumbass!"

Sho swung his butterknife, and Persian swung his sword, laughing, "Haha! A butterknife! Were your ancestors chefs?! HAHAH! Pathetic!!!"

The butterknife and the sword collided, and there was a loud clunk coming from it.

Sho and Persian jumped all over the place, with their blades clunking over and over, both of them swinging at each other fast, both of them dodging each other's attacks.

Sho jumped down off of a spinning wall, and landed on a floating rubble piece, and then came Persian right above him, slashing his sword down, and red slash shout out, destroying half the building.

Sho thought, 'That packed a heavy ass blow. And this nurse…she's clinging to me tight..she's scared. Tch. Like I care about someone else's feelings. I lost mine the day I rearranged my fathers insides. That asshole.'

Sho slammed his butterknife down on Persian's back, and it didn't even put a dent in it.

'What?!'

Persian laughed, "Uh oh? Is your knife letting you down? This is what happens when the arrogant think they're too HIGH up for everyone else!"

"Damn you!"

Persian swished around Sho, and sliced him across his chest. Sho coughed up blood, and he started darting backwards in the air.

Persian started to slash giant red slashes all over the place, causing more explosions.

Sho stabbed his butterknife into a piece of rubble, and put the rubble in front of him and the nurse.

The nurse thought, 'He already got enough information out of me, why isn't he dropping me? Why isn't he letting me go? Even though he's an edgy asshole..he still has somewhat of an urge to protect inside of him..? He must've been through a lot.'

Sho thought, 'Shit! If this keeps up, we'll be done in. I gotta turn the tables somehow, but my current power level and class are no match for that bastard!'

Persian made a giant red lightning bolt shoot down the middle of the hospital, and it blew up, knocking Sho and the nurse out of the building, and red smoke and black smoke rushed everywhere with rubble.

As Sho and the nurse were flying out to the outside with red and black smoke around them, Sho saw that they were in a very populated city, with cars and everything.

As they fell, the nurse got Sho's attention, saying, "Sho.."

Sho replied, "Agh! What?!"

The nurse passionately kissed Sho on the cheek, and Sho froze up in shock.

The nurse said, "I hope you win, Sho. I too had a rough life. I hope you see your true potential one day, and to appreciate the life you've been given. My name is Ari, by the way. See you on the other side."

"Ah?"

There was another red and black lightning bolt explosion, and it knocked them to the ground, with smoke rushing everywhere again.

Cars blew up, and small buildings crumbled, as more smoke rose into the air.

Persian was walking in the middle of the parking lot, still holding his sword.

"Oh? You're still up? I'm impressed. I'm guessing your mad now, since you're little girlfriend is dead."

Sho was slowly standing up, covered in blood, and holding his butterknife, with Ari the nurse laying on the ground dead.

Sho said, "She was not my fucking girlfriend, I don't even like her. I didn't care what happened to her. But you'll die for killing my informant. I was gonna ask her about more stuff, but I can't now, and I can't bring myself to ask other people for anything, asshole."

"We'll-."

"Shut up! You still interrupted my breakfast, that's where you really crossed the line. I'll kill you."

"Angry little snot aren't you? All that blood on you, cloaked in red, I love to see it..I want it."

"You want it?"

"Yeah.."

"Come get it.."

Persian ran forward, and as soon as Sho walked forward, he fell on his knees in pain, thinking, 'No! Get up!'

Persian was getting close, "Giving up so fast?! Someone with an angry and arrogant attitude like yours, I would've thought you'd hang in there longer!"

'Is this it?'

Suddenly, jumping over Sho, was a man wearing a black and white trench coat, holding a blue sword with blue electricity around it, white and black hair, and purple eyes. His name was Bain. Class D, power level - 500.

Persian exclaimed, "!…Bain!"

Bain didn't say a word, and attacked.