Chapter 45 - Twenty-Fifth Floor (1)

At an unknown Floor, the three FUG Elders and Karaka were watching the footage of Lumen fighting the three FUG Rankers.

The Slayer was staring in disbelief, witnessing the fight. That was his armor, and those were his own personal Shinsoo techniques. How is someone else able to use them?

Karaka could've understood if it's just the Shinsoo techniques. Someone could have the same Shinsoo quality as him and have been inspired by the Slayer. However, the armor was a whole different case. No one but him should own it. It was one of a kind.

The helmet part of it gives him Observer-like abilities. It gives him a massive visual range and allows him to process information extremely fast. That's something that could be replicated, but the main body of the armor was a lot more unique than that.

Not only does it grant him both physical and Shinsoo resistance, but it also has a very unique ability. It's the reason why he has a form of immortality. The armor has the ability to create a special dimension, where Karaka stores his heart. A dimension in which very few could enter inside.

In Karaka's eyes, it was simply preposterous that someone else has the same armor as him. Had he not seen the spear made of darkness and the domain of darkness, the Slayer would have ȧssumed that what he is watching, is footage of him from his younger days.

Obviously, the masked Regular is an impostor, but who is he? Who was able to not only replicate his techniques but his armor as well? The more he thought about it, the more impossible it seemed.

After an hour-long discussion between the four of them, they couldn't discern the identity of the impostor. However, they all agreed that the masked Regular is most likely another Irregular, considering Khel wasn't able to read his fate. That would mean that four Irregulars have entered the Tower within a short time of five years. How many more will soon follow if this continues?

They didn't even consider that Lumen is the masked Regular since Karaka had ȧssured them that he had killed him on the 10th Floor.

Having been unable to confirm the identity of the impostor, they switched on to another subject, their Irregular in training.

"I believe that it's time to send him up the Tower. He has the fake Thorn and has made great progress as of late." One of the Elders stated.

"Really? Does he stand a chance fighting me then?" Karaka questioned the Elders. He knew that Bam was being trained by his master, Ha Jinsung, but the Slayer had fought with Lumen. That Irregular didn't seem to have full control over his abilities, but in a suicidal move, he was able to destroy Karaka's body. He didn't believe Bam was capable of the same feat.

"Of course not. He is still a Regular while you are a High Ranker. What kind of question is that?" One of the Elders asked him.

"What a weakling," Karaka answered. "Do you remember the one you sent me to kill? He was able to put up a fight against me and even managed to destroy my body!"

"..." The Elders stayed quite to Karaka's statement.

"Are you even sure that he is an Irregular? Because he doesn't seem like one to me." Karaka hissed out, displeased that the Elders were putting so much faith into Bam.

"He is! Bam had requested a Test directly from the Guardian of the 2nd Floor. Only Irregulars are given that right!" An Elder confirmed that Bam is indeed one.

"Tsch. Pathetic. You are wasting your time with him. Just merge him with the real Thorn and give it to me! With the Thorn's power, I will bring Zahard and the 10 Great Families to their knees!" Karaka stood up and left, not willing to discuss that weakling anymore.

His words, however, left an impact on the Elders. They all contemplated what Karaka said, and considered whether that would be the better option.

Enryu's Thorn was a mysterious object that was found at the location where Enryu had killed the Guardian of the 43rd Floor. The Thorn was divided into four parts, and FUG had three of them. They were still searching for the last one, and they believed that it's still on the 43rd Floor, also known as the Floor of Death.

FUG believed that if the four parts of the Thorn are combined, it will grant the user the power to kill Zahard and the family heads of the 10 Great Families.

"We really go the short stick, didn't we?" Releasing a sigh, one of the Elders asked rhetorically.

A few minutes after Karaka left, a cloaked individual entered the room and bowed to the Elders.

"Elders, we have received a report that the masked Regular and his team have arrived on the 25th Floor. Two of Yama's Mad Dogs are currently on that Floor." Reported the cloaked individual.

"Get in touch with Yama, and tell him to control his dogs. They are forbidden from making any contact with the masked Regular and his team." Commanded one of the Elders, they didn't want to lose any more chess pieces to him.

The cloaked individual hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Pinto's team have already signed for the Test, and their opponents are the masked Regular's team."

"Tell him to forfeit the match immediately! Pinto has the most potential out of the three Mad Dogs. We can't lose him." Hissed out one of the Elders. They were planning to make Bam join Pinto's team since it had one of the strongest FUG Regulars. Most of them were already over 500 years old and have delayed their climb under the orders of the Elders. They would be a suitable team for their Slayer candidate.

"We can't get in touch with him, sir." The cloaked individual meekly responded.

"Then, get in contact with Yama, and tell him to stop Pinto!" An Elder replied with fury. If you can't contact the dog, then get in touch with its master. It's that simple.

"This... We did contact Yama, but he said his rugrats could do whatever they want to." Replied the cloaked individual after a moment of hesitation.

"Who does he think he is?! Yama is getting over his head. Ever since he captured Bayroad, he hasn't even shown his face. We will have to teach him a valuable lesson in the future." An Elder yelled out in rage.

"Get out of here!" The Elder shouted at the cloaked person, not willing to talk about this. Ever since they had killed Lumen, things have been spiraling out of their control. Disaster after disaster plagued them since then.

"Yes, sir." The cloaked individual replied and left as fast as he could.

Meanwhile, Lumen was sitting on a flying dolphin with wings, as he was traveling on the 25th Floor. In front of him was a man with black hair that was steering the Divine Sea Fish.

The 25th Floor is a place where all the buildings are in the sky above the clouds. The Floor has gigantic structures in the air, and the people there use Divine Sea Fish, like the flying dolphin, to travel from one building to the next.

While traveling, he was communicating with Diana on his Pocket. When the pink-haired girl first heard that Lumen had died, she fell into despair.

Diana mourned as she regretted how little time they had spent together. She should have forced him to stay with her, why did she have to ask him to kill Zahard?

Lumen was her one and only love, she regretted that she couldn't go up with him. She didn't have the guts to kill herself before, but she was on the verge of doing so after his death.

Thankfully, he had contacted her before she did something stupid. Diana cried tears of happiness, knowing that her lover is, in fact, alive. Since then, she would make sure to contact him at least once a day to make sure that he is safe and sound.

[I'm still having trouble controlling that technique.] Lumen told her.

[Yeah, if I'm not careful, it could backfire on me.] He responded.

[Just make sure you are safe, okay?] As long as he was safe, she would be happy. That's all that mattered to her.

[Don't worry, I have to come back for in the future, right?] They had a rough start, but since he left the 3rd Floor, he realized how much he cared for the pink-haired girl.

Lumen's words made her giggle and blush like a school-girl.

[A group of new Regulars is arriving, so I have to go and greet them. I'll message you tomorrow.] Diana told him.

[I will be waiting.] Lumen replied back as he arrived at his destination and descended the flying dolphin.

"Thank you for using our services!" Called out the black-haired man, but after a black flash, he and his dolphin disappeared. A burp was heard under Lumen's clothes afterward as something wiggled underneath them.

Lumen continued moving towards his residence as if nothing had happened. He was peacefully walking when a woman with short blonde hair, eyes narrowed to slits, and white angelic wings on her back stopped him. She was wearing a yellow dress that reached to her knees and had a cheery smile on her face.

"Hiya, there. You're a member of Androssi's team, right?" She cheerfully asked him.

"You need something?" Lumen bluntly replied and felt she was displeased at his response. Despite that, there was no change in her facial expression.

"My name is Ron Mei, and I was wondering if you would like to have lunch with me." She had seen his performance on the 23rd Floor, so she wanted to poach him from Androssi. Mei had just visited the Princess of Zahard and had wanted to make a wager with her. Sadly, Andorssi had refused her since she doesn't make bets with weaklings.

"Not interested." Lumen replied and was about to move past her when he sensed her anger at him. Her facial expression hadn't changed at all, but he could feel the fury inside her.

Mei was inwardly cursing him for refusing her. A beauty like her was asking him out, and he dared refuse? Who does he think he is?

Using Reverse-Flow Control and increasing the gravity on her, Lumen froze her in place. Mei's narrowed eyes opened up in fear and revealed her yellow irises. She hadn't seen him make a move, and yet, he froze her in place in an instant.

Lumen walked up to her and cupped her chin with his thumb on her mouth. He ċȧrėssed her lips with his finger and leaned closer to her.

"It's okay to be angry, blondie, but should you end up angering me, I will end your life before you even know it." Lumen's words caused an immediate reaction in her, as a yellow liquid trailed down her legs.

"So make sure you don't do anything stupid, okay?" Even if she wanted to, Mei couldn't answer due to the pressure on her. At this point, she just wanted to get as far away as she could from the monster in front of her.

"Good." He lightly slapped her on the cheek and continued moving towards his team's residence.

Lumen entered the building and was greeted by Tiana. She gave him a hug and asked him with a smile. "Are you hungry? I could make you something to eat."

"Yes. The eel soup you made last time was delicious. I won't mind eating it again." He answered her.

"I will make it even better this time." Tiana kissed him on the cheek and entered the kitchen while he entered the living room and sat on the couch next to Androssi.

"Damn, blonde bitch." She cursed out, causing Lumen to look at her. "What happened?"

"An ugly blonde came earlier, asking me to forfeit the Test so that our team could fight hers. She wanted to make a bet with me. Whoever wins the match, they would get to pick any member of the loser's team to join the winners." Androssi explained.

"Oh, I think I met her outside." Lumen replied.

"Really? Did you kill her?" Androssi asked in eagerness, hoping that he obliterated the ugly blonde.

"I didn't kill her." He shook his head.

"Ah, what a shame." Androssi lamented before he could even finish what he was saying.

"But, I did make her pee herself." Lumen said, and Androssi brightly smiled at that and gave him a thumbs up. "Nice one, you humiliated that bitch! That's even better!"