Ascending

"Who do you think would have won if we fought?" asked Ignis, reaching back to our camping spot.

"It's hard to say," replied Elizabeth.

"Well, we have sir with us; I don't think there is any doubt who would win," replied Liam, exaggeratedly gesturing towards me.

What did this kid even gain by buttering me up?

"So, where to today, sir?" asked Liam.

"Let's explore the forest below the hill," I replied, walking down the hill.

"Sure," Liam replied back.

We explored the forest for an hour, encountering nothing except trees and bushes.

"What is even the point of aimlessly wandering around?" asked Ignis, her voice full of irritation.

"It's better than laying on our backs the entire day. Isn't it?" asked Elizabeth.

With a heavy sigh, Ignis replied, "I guess so."

After walking for an hour more, Elizabeth said, "I guess we should rest now."

Liam and Ignis were visibly tired. It would be best to rest for a few minutes.

"Sure. You guys stay here, I will go look for something to eat," I said, walking deeper into the forest.

"Stay safe!" shouted Elizabeth, waving her hand.

There were no fruits or berries here. I also didn't see them anywhere I passed through. It looks like the area below the hill isn't rich in fruit.

Walking around five hundred metres more, I encountered a small hill with a cave on its top. The cave had a huge opening and giant rocks scattered outside of it.

On examining the cave closely from a safe distance, I discovered that wolves were moving in and out of the cave. Was this a wolf den?

Now that I even have the 'Wolf Slayer' title, wouldn't defeating wolves be best for levelling up? I should go back and come back with my team to nullify any risk.

Movement? The sound of grass crushing could be heard from behind me.

Soon after, three wolves emerged from the forest. One of them was the black wolf I had faced before fighting the Great Wolf. The other two were grey-furred wolves.

I readied the dagger made from the Great Wolf's claws. Guess I will have to kill some wolves before reaching my team.

Dash!

I felt the muscles in my legs strengthen and tighten. I only have ten seconds until the skill ends!

Anatomical Liberation!

My body felt free, and I felt speed coursing through my veins. Using both skills together increased my agility by one hundred and fifty percent.

I sprinted towards the grey wolf. Shit! Unintentionally, I overshot twenty metres behind the wolf.

Getting used to this speed will take time.

Eight seconds left! This time I focused on the black wolf and pushed off the ground, aiming for it. I aimed for its neck, and in an instant, its head wasn't a part of its body anymore.

Not wasting any more time, I lunged toward the other grey wolf. Slicing its throat, I sprinted to the black wolf.

Five seconds left! I concentrated the arcane on my knee. Getting close to it, I feigned stabbing it with my dagger from above and attacked its abdomen with my knee.

It got slightly off balance. Using this to my advantage, I launched myself towards its neck and spun my entire body around.

My dagger cleanly separated its head from its body. The claws of the Great wolf were abnormally sharp. Although I dislike killing, it's better than being killed.

Wolves had now come running from the cave after hearing the commotion. It looks like I won't be able to go call my teammates.

I left the forest, standing at the edge of the large clearing.

'Dash' had already worn off by now. Speed was the most critical factor while fighting wolves.

Allot three stat points to agility!

[Agility has increased by 3!]

A wolf lunged at me; getting under it, I drove my dagger into its heart. Another wolf sprinted towards me; I spun my body and kicked its side, which sent it flying. Before it could touch the ground, I slit its throat and launched myself at another wolf.

'Anatomical Liberation' will only work for around three more minutes. I need to wrap everything up by then.

One of the wolves started running away. It may go and bring more wolves from someplace else. Not giving it the chance to do so, I threw the fang of the Great wolf at it. As soon as the fang pierced its neck, it fell to the ground.

The white wolf, which my team was fighting before fighting the Great wolf, emerged from the cave. It sprinted towards me and launched itself from around ten metres away.

It tried slashing at me, but I managed to move out of the way and kicked its belly. It still managed to land on all fours and rushed towards me again. When it closed in on me, I concentrated arcane onto my fist and punched it on its snout. It slightly lost its sense of balance.

Not giving it a chance to recover, I kicked it sideways and, rotating my body, sliced its neck.

[You have levelled up!]

Allot three stat points to arcane!

[Arcane has increased by 3]

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[You have levelled up!]

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[You have levelled up!]

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[You have levelled up!]

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It took me more time than planned to take out the wolves. Almost five minutes! Fortunately, there were around thirty wolves, and I levelled up four times! Taking them out became easier every time I levelled up.

Picking up the corpse of a wolf, I headed back to where my teammates were resting.

"You disappeared for twenty minutes. I was going to come to look for you," said Elizabeth.

"I didn't find any fruit. Meat is the only option," I replied, putting the wolf's corpse on the ground.

"Well, it's afternoon already. We might as well cook that right now and eat it as lunch," suggested Ignis.

"Sure! Liam and Ignis, you both go and find burnable stuff to light a fire," ordered Elizabeth.

"Oka-" Before Liam could finish his reply, a screen popped up in front of us.

**********

[Congratulations!]

[The [The Tutorial's Main Challenge] has been completed!]

**********

Instantaneously, my head became fuzzy, and the things around me turned dark. My throat dried up, and my lungs were deprived of any air.

After what seemed like hours, my eyes could finally see the light. I looked around myself and found myself in a vast white room.

People surrounded me on all sides. My team was nowhere to be seen. Most probably, they were teleported further away from me.

Suddenly, Haldon appeared in the air, seemingly out of nowhere.

"Congratulations on passing the tutorial!" His voice boomed across the room.

Confusion was clearly visible on everyone's faces.

"Well, you all were suddenly teleported here, so your confusion is understandable. But, you don't have anything to worry about now. You all are the ones who survived the tutorial's challenge, either by luck or skill," said Haldon.

"Hey," whispered a voice from behind me. I turned around and discovered that Elizabeth was standing behind me. How did she always manage to get behind me undetected?

"Where are the children?" I asked in a whisper.

Without saying anything, she pointed towards the back of the crowd.

"You all will now be sent to the Tower. As the challenge's overseer, it is my duty to inform you of the basics before you head there," Haldon shouted.

He continued, " As I have already explained, the one who reaches the top of the Tower will become a God, so try your hardest to get there. You will all be teleported to Floor Zero. It is the lowest floor of the Tower, and the people of the Tower have created an enormous city there.

Before climbing the Tower, I suggest you all rest up and gear up in that city.

Some of you might have already met them, but for those who didn't, many species coexist in the Tower. Like elves, dwarves, harpies, humans, and some others too."

More species coexisted in the Tower? That's interesting.

Now for the most important thing, I need to tell you. Guilds! There are numerous groups in the Tower. I personally am a part of 'Burning flame,' the guild of the greatest ranker, Lord Mark.

You need to choose your own guild wisely. Guilds provide you with a lot of support when you head out to battle or climb the Tower." said Haldon.

It looks like joining a guild was the most crucial part initially.

"Well I told you pretty much everything already," said Haldon as he took a piece of paper from his pocket.

"Ah! Some of our participants performed exceptionally well in the tutorial. There will be a special reward for those people. Other than that, nothing more is to be said," the ranker said as he snapped his fingers.

All the people around me teleported away, leaving me and the ranker alone in the room.

"Nox Mill," said Haldon as he landed on the ground and approached me.

"Yes," I replied. Even though it wasn't as much as Luke's, the pressure I felt standing in front of him was phenomenal.

"I don't know what you did, but the floor administrator would like to meet you," the man said.

The floor administrator?