Vol. 1 - Ch. 3 - The Five Towers

"First, let me take you to the central plaza that functions as the challengers' base of action."Milma said and began to walk away.

Ash followed her into the jungle, where they found a paved road.

The trees surrounding it had been strategically pruned to allow moderate sunlight to filter through, revealing that the island was better maintained than it appeared from the outside.

Ash's attention shifted to Milma, who walked a little ahead.

Wrapped in a soft green maid outfit, the Milma had a petite body, yet she wasn't lacking in the breast department.

Her long hair, which was shaped into twin-tails swung gracefully, giving her a womanly appeal.

Aside from her cat-like ears and tail, she appeared entirely human.

Ash had encountered Beastmen during his travels around the world, and Milma appeared to be just that.

"Um, it was Milma, right?"

"That's right. But that name is the name of the Tribe. It's not my individual name. You are free to call me Uru." she replied with a smile.

Ash found Uru to be quite friendly.

"I'm Ash. I look forward to working with you from now on, Uru."

"Likewise!"

Uru responded, twitching her ears and wiggling her tail.

After a brief moment of enjoyment, her eyes began to wander.

She slowed her pace and lined up next to Ash, gazing up at him as if peering into his thoughts.

"I'm sorry you had to see that thing on the beach..." Uru said.

(She's probably talking about her tripping.) Ash thought.

"That was painful to watch," He said.

"P-Please forget it..."

"It was a pretty good spectacle to mark my arrival on the island," Ash mused.

"Urgh..."

Uru let out a big sigh, causing Ash to realize that he might have pushed the joke a bit too far. 

After sighing Uru continued, "From being late to welcome you, to everything else, today is just the worst..."

"It couldn't have been helped if you had something else going on." Ash reassured her.

"No, it's mostly because Uru's inept."

Uru added, looking uncomfortable as she proceeded with her story. sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ɴ0velFɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

"Actually, today's lunch was so good that Uru had four helpings. The walnut jelly was especially excellent. Uru will have to ask Miss Iris to treat me again some time."

Uru said, unable to stop the drool at the edge of her mouth.

There was no more remorse in her eyes.

"I see. Well I can't blame you for being hungry."

"Uru's glad you're an understanding rookie." Uru remarked with enthusiasm

Despite her chatty demeanor, Ash didn't find her unpleasant at all. It was probably due to her adorable ears and tail.

"Well, thanks to you, I've already made an acquaintance."

"Now that you mentioned it, you did talk to Miss Lapis."

"I did. I went to ask her for directions. Do you know who she is?"

"Of course. Uru's a Milma after all."

Uru proudly replied, puffing out her chest.

Ash glanced at Uru, noticing that her breasts were even larger than he had initially thought.

He wondered if this was another characteristic of the Milma, though he kept those thoughts to himself.

Uru continued with her story, unaware of Ash's musings.

"However, Uru thinks that there isn't a person on Dural Island that doesn't know Miss Lapis."

"Is she famous?"

"Far more than you can imagine. It's mainly because of her achievements, thought before I talk about that--"

Uru coughed deliberately,

"How much do you know about the Five Towers?"

"Almost nothing."

"Haha. Well not many people return from Dural Island, so Uru's not surprised. Understood. Well then, let Uru briefly explain it to you,"

Uru said, raising her index finger and striking a poised stance.

"The God of Desires, Aitiel, created both Dural Island and the Five Towers, in an effort to know the limits of man and to satisfy man's desires."

This much was common knowledge throughout the world.

"The five towers are divided into 'red,' 'blue,' 'green,' 'white,' and 'black,' respectively. Everyone refers to them as the Red Tower, the Blue Tower and so on."

Uru explained. The towers were visible even before landing on the island.

The Red Tower appeared as a burning flame.

The Blue Tower appeared as thick ice.

The Green Tower appeared as a hale and hearty, great tree.

The White Tower appeared as a clean light.

The Black Tower appeared as jet-black darkness.

Each one of them stretched infinitely into the heavens.

"And if you conquer all five towers, you gain the right to challenge God. In the end, if you manage to defeat God, you--"

"Will have your wish granted."

"That's right."

This was a major reason why countless individuals aspired to visit Dural Island.

Some sought wealth, while others aimed for honor.

Few dreamed of eternal youth.

With various desires in their hearts, they all set their sights on the heavens.

"However, the path to reach that point is naturally arduous. The five towers, each comprising 100 floors, are teeming with numerous monsters, with a Lord guarding every tenth floor." Uru explained.

Compared to the Towers of Trials scattered throughout various parts of the world, which consisted of a mere 30 floors, Ash was certain that the Towers of Dural Island were far more challenging.

"Various folktales, ancient and modern, surround these towers. The world beyond is a realm of the unknown, probably based on a different world, and even the mightiest individuals will struggle to conquer it all. It's a daunting task for anyone," Uru continued.

As an unspoken tension began to permeate the conversation, Uru offered a smile to lighten the mood.

"But don't worry. By defeating the monsters inside the towers here on Dural Island, you can acquire amazing weapons, armor, and tools. There are many other means to aid you on this journey... Uru recommends you learn more about them through firsthand experience." She said, finishing her explanation on a high note.

"You wrapped it up quite roughly at the end there." Ash mused.

"U-Uru was trying not to be a nuisance!" Uru replied, trying to get her feelings across.

Ash understood that he needed to follow Uru's lead in this situation, as even if she explained everything in detail, he would most likely struggle to remember everything.

"And that concludes my brief explanation of the Five Towers."

"In short, I just need to kill monsters and climb the towers." Ash remarked.

"Yes, but aren't you the one wrapping up way too roughly now?!"

Uru said a bit teasingly, with a slight chuckle.

(In the end I just need to kill monsters and push through. The same as I did to conquer every single of the other Towers of Trials spread throughout the world.)

"Now that you know about the towers, let's go back to our original topic." Uru suggested.

"The thing about how amazing Lapis is, right?"

"Yes," Uru nodded. "It has been almost 200 years since the God's Challenge began. No tower has yet been fully ascended... Now, a sudden question! What is currently the highest floor that the survivors have ascended?" she asked

"That was really sudden."

"Fufufu."

Uru chuckled, while turning around to look at Ash and continuing to walk with a backward stride.

She was all smiles and her tail flicked playfully.

Ash couldn't help but join in the fun.

"How many challengers are there on Dural Island right now?"

"Asking for hints from the get-go. You're a clever one."

"It's more fun if I come up with a good prediction, no?"

"You've got a point. There are 318, including you Sir Ash."

(That's more than I expected, but still not that much considering they come from all over the world.)

"The 92nd floor."

Ash guessed, saying the first number that popped into his head, completely disregarding the hint, that didn't prove to be of much use after all.

"Boo. Wrong answer! The answer is the 79th floor."

"What? They're still in the 70s?"

"That's where things really start to get tough," Uru explained.

(It's been 200 years already. I thought we'd be nearing the top by now, but apparently the road to the summit is steeper than I expected. I'm getting excited.)

"And there are only 10 people that have made it past the 70th floor."

"I'm guessing Lapis is one of them."

"That's right. You're quick to catch on."

Given that Uru had been singing her praises, Ash assumed that Lapis would be a strong individual, but he'd never imagined that she'd be one of the top ten out of over 300 challengers. She was way more impressive than what he'd imagined.

"Plus, you already know how she looks. It's no wonder people are curious about her." Uru added.

Ash couldn't deny it. Even he had been entranced for a moment by her.

If this had been anywhere else, she would've already been married into the royal or some other noble family.

Her beauty was just that captivating.

Suddenly, Uru threw an unexpected statement at Ash, "Despite this though, she is a loner."

Ash was taken aback, but could believe it given he'd experienced Lapis' sharp attitude firsthand.

"The higher you climb, the stronger the monsters become. Naturally, your life is in constant danger. Most people ascend with a team, but for some reason, Miss Lapis continues to ascend all alone, and lonely."

(Was the word lonely really needed there?)

"Still, given she's amongst the top ranked individuals must mean she's strong, right?"

"That's right. It's also why she stands out even more." Uru replied.

Ash tried to picture Lapis in his mind, but he still couldn't imagine her as that strong.

He wondered how someone with such a thin body could fight.

(I'd love to see her fight at least once.)

"Whoa, we've gotten quite far while talking."

Uru said suddenly, rushing ahead with eager steps.

Her ears and tail wagged happily excited to reach the place up ahead.

"The central plaza should appear any time now."