Chapter 15 - Third Floor (9)

Headon was tapping the ground with his staff in annoyance. In front of him was a floating mirror-like object that was showing Lumen. The Irregular was recruiting one of the best talents the Tower has seen in quite a while.

Usually, it would be good if someone with the potential to become a Ranker appears from the Regulars that he had selected, but this time there was more than one that could do it. They could even become High Rankers unless they died prematurely.

Headon had plans for some of those Regulars, and Lumen's actions didn't sit well with him. He already dealt with Baam and delivered the boy to FUG by faking his death. Now he had to plan how to deal with the other Irregular as well.

"How should I take care of this unknown variable?"

Headon questioned himself, but the moment he uttered those words, and invisible pressure descended on him. His whole body froze, and he couldn't move a muscle. Even his ability to teleport anywhere in the Tower was suppressed.

The Guardian of the 1st Floor heard the footsteps of someone walking towards him. Whoever it was soon reached him and started petting him on the head.

"Oh, I see the cute rabbit is also interested in the little fledgling. The little bird is just about ready to soar in the sky, don't you think so?" A voice chuckled next to him while continuing to pet his head.

Headon bȧrėly managed to turn his head just a little bit to catch a glimpse of the being that intruded in his home. Long black hair, only a mocking smile visible on his face, and wearing a black suit. Headon couldn't believe his eyes.

The Guardian of the 1st Floor has existed since the creation of the Tower. The Tower's full name is The Tower of God, not because a God owns it, but because you have to go through the trials of the Tower, in order to become one.

Long ago, divine beings didn't exist in the Universe, but one day, the Tower appeared out of nowhere in the center of the Universe. Since then, Gods and Immortals have emerged after passing through the trials of the Tower. Those that managed to do so are not allowed to return back to the Tower. That has been a rule that no one had ever bypassed.

With the Tower's appearance, another very special race appeared, Guides. They are born with divine-like abilities that have something to do with divination, be it seeing a small part of the future, or instinctively knowing what the correct path to take is. They are a race loved by the Tower, and as long as they know the path to take, they are allowed to traverse it freely.

Every few million years, a special kind of Guide will get born, an Axis. Not only are their divination skills are leagues apart from a normal Guide, but they also have another special ability.

They could link themselves and establish a connection with a chosen being. The stronger the being that they are connected to becomes, the stronger the Axis becomes in return. But ones they select their chosen being, they could never select another one. An Axis is like an author of a story with their chosen being the main character of that story.

Headon knew Loki since he was someone that became a God after going through the Tower. So him being here, should not have been possible. The only option left is that Loki somehow had managed to artificially make himself an Axis. Seeing how he appeared when he was considering how to deal with Lumen, Headon realized who his chosen being is as well.

The Guardian of the 1st Floor finally understood why he wasn't able to see Lumen's future. It's not that he didn't have one, it was simply hidden by Loki.

"Why aren't you saying anything little rabbit?" Loki chuckled.

Headon felt like crying, hearing his question. 'You are suppressing me with your power, and you ask me this?'

With the suppression gone, Headon could finally speak again.

"I don't know how you managed to become an Axis, but I understand your message. I won't make trouble for Lumen, you can have my word." No matter how arrogant you are, when the other party could squash you like a bug, you will lower yourself if you value your life.

"No, no, no. You misunderstand me, little rabbit. I don't mind you sending trouble his way. In fact, I encourage you to do so. The more, the better." Loki answered with his trademark chuckle.

Headon was surprised by his response. He thought Loki came here to threaten him for thinking of how to remove Lumen, not to encourage him to do it. Loki was either extremely confident in Lumen's power, or he already knew the outcome.

"What about the agreement? By breaking it, both of you would become their enemies. Aren't you scared of facing their wraith?"

The divine beings from the outside had made an agreement to not allow any more Gods or Immortals to emerge from the Tower. They sent 13 people to set base inside the Tower and stop anyone from leaving it.

Headon wasn't happy with that decision since it went against the meaning of the Tower, but he couldn't force them out. He had been planning for quite some time on how to deal with them, but it seems he wasn't the only one thinking the same.

"Hah, those old fogies can come at me for all I care. You don't have to worry about me." Chuckling he continued petting Headon. Although humiliated, the Guardian of the 1st Floor stayed there like an obedient little rabbit.

"I won't take any more of your important time little rabbit, so just remember to send as much trouble as possible his way." Loki gave out another chuckle and disappeared from his spot.

Hatsu a dark-haired, dual-wielding swordsman, who although was weaker than the two Princesses, was almost as strong as them. His main role is a Scout, but he could also do the job of a Fisherman.

Phonsekal Laure a green-haired, highly-skilled Wave Controller. He has the best Shinsoo control from that group of Regulars. He is also from a branch of the Eurasia Family.

Aleksai Amigochaz a large, muscular, red-haired Regular. He is a good Spear Bearer with a very sturdy body. His accuracy with the spear was the best from the group.

And finally, Ship Leesoo. A dark-haired Scout that has the weakest physical capabilities amongst those that joined his team. Despite that, they all praised his thinking capabilities. Androssi called him a very intelligent slave.

With their addition, he now had more than seven members, so Lumen decided to go and register them as a team. Before they could go to the small tower, he was interrupted by a blonde girl with freckles. She was sitting in a floating chair and smiling at him.

"Hey, Mister. Could I also join your team? I promise you won't regret it."

"You? No, you look useless. But I wouldn't mind if that blue-haired Regular behind you wants to join me." Lumen instantly shot her down, making her frown.

"Me? I'm sorry, but I already promised myself that I would help this poor girl climb the Tower. I would have to refuse your offer since Rachel here can't walk on her own you see." Lumen was a bit disappointed by his refusal, but he didn't mind it too much. He could always find strong Regulars on the later Floors.

Since Lumen finished his business here, he brought them to the small tower. Entering inside, they were greeted by a brown-haired man with glasses.

"We are here to register as a team."

"No problem. It would cost you 500 Points for each Regular."

"Points are not an issue." He currently had 12 645 Points. With the help of Diana's ship, he could easily find Elder Red Scythes and farm them for Points.

She even informed him of an even stronger insect called the Queen Red Scythe. Only three of them existed in the Hunting Area and Lumen planned to use them to test his new teammates.

"Great, then I would need the names of the Regulars and the name of the team."

After each member gave their name, Lumen named the team Light and paid 4 000 Points. When they heard his full name, they all had various looks of confusion on their faces. They were more than certain that he is from one of the Great Families, but it seemed that wasn't the case.

"All done. Now you are free to challenge the small tower. Please let us know when you plan to challenge the small tower and we will request the Guardian teams to be present for the Test."

With that out of the way, they left the building. Lumen told the group that they would stay here for a week or two at most before taking the Test. He instructed the group and told them they would go to the Hunting Area once a day as a team. If he wasn't happy with their performance, he wouldn't hesitate to cut someone out from the team.

Each went their own way for the day, and Lumen sent a message to Diana telling her he is done. In a moment, he was teleported to her ship. She was standing in front of him with a smile.

"That was certainly a surprise, but it wasn't the reason for my interest in them. There should have been another Irregular in that group, but he seems to have died on the 2nd Floor."

"Another Irregular? And he died on the 2nd Floor? That doesn't seem right. Are you sure he died?" Irregulars are those who entered the Tower on their own, she couldn't believe that such an existence would die on the 2nd Floor.

All Irregulars have unnatural powers, and they are the reason why the Tests in the Tower are made in such a way that you would need a team to pass them. Before the appearance of Phantaminum, Enryu, and Urek, very few Tests required teammates.

But their existence scared those at the top of the Tower. They were forced to change the rules of the Tests, in order to try and suppress Irregulars from climbing to the top.

"At least they said so, and he didn't come with them. I could only presume he is dead." Lumen shrugged his shoulders. Since Baam died, he would have to find one of the other three and ask them where they came from.

"Maybe there are exceptions even among Irregulars." Diana found the situation suspicious but didn't have a way to confirm her doubts.

"It doesn't matter. Let's start our training since I plan on leaving in a couple of weeks." That saddened Diana, even though she knew Lumen would climb higher at some point.

Ever since she was banished to the 3rd Floor, she has been mostly alone for hundreds of years. Lumen was the first person to spend so much time with her, and it hurt her knowing that he would be leaving soon. She vowed to train him even harder in the next couple of weeks, to prepare him for the upper Floors.

"Let's go," Diana said, and they entered the training room.