Chapter 42: The Second Floor is Too Suspicious (3)

Chapter 42: The Second Floor is Too Suspicious (3)

Five candles were arranged in a straight line.

“Hup!”

With a vigorous swing of my sword, all the candles were extinguished at once.

For someone like me, who has reached a somewhat superhuman level, such a task is literally as easy as swimming with the help of the ground.

“Good job.”

The resident, who introduced himself as a blacksmith, handed me a silver mark with a satisfied look.

As I pocketed the mark, a silver pattern appeared above my head.

Indeed, achieving a silver rank is too easy.

There was a reason why the thugs guarding the square just let the silver ranks through. They were giving out tasks so simple that literally anyone could do them.

“Here are the sword and scabbard.”

“Ah, you can just keep those. We have plenty.”

“...”

It was a sword given to me to complete the task... But the blacksmith just told me to keep it. Since I’m the type not to refuse what is given, I simply nodded.

“By the way, if I collect a bunch of silver marks, can I get duplicate rewards?”

“Probably not. I heard that reward calculations are based on the highest-ranking mark you have.”

“Aha. Thank you.”

So, it seems, that relentlessly grinding to collect 1,000 silver marks won’t work.

It did make sense – receiving duplicate rewards for such easy tasks was unreasonable.

‘Hmm...’

So, to get a proper reward, I would need to achieve a gold rank or higher...

But I can’t just move on, especially since, as mentioned before, the existence of a hidden reward lingers in my mind.

What I find most suspicious is precisely the bronze mark.

From the start, acquiring a silver mark is incredibly easy. With a decent amount of knowledge and skill, the silver mark is something you can obtain effortlessly.

So why on earth do bronze marks exist? Well, they can exist.

But why on earth is there a beggar inside the tower?

My imagination keeps getting stimulated.

I have a feeling that the person who appears like a mere beggar might, upon closer inspection, be a master concealing tremendous power.

Also, the commoner, passing by and scratching his buttocks with dirty hands, might actually be a great wizard.

“...Guess I’ll have to try, huh?”

Closely observing those with bronze marks, I strongly felt that something would come up if I looked hard enough.

As I lifted my head after finishing my thoughts, the players busily walking around the street looked slightly different.

Obtaining a silver mark is way too easy.

But no pattern appears above their heads.

Yet, they’re bustling about this street busily... is it to find some sort of clue?

“Is there, perhaps, a legend in this city? Maybe a sad backstory...?”

“Not that I know of?”

“Oh, don’t be like that... here, take this.”

“Hey! I told you, there’s really nothing!”

From a person offering to share his food while looking for useful rumors—

“I wish to take you as my master!”

This man, I thought, might entertain my questions.

“...Why did you guys end up entering the tower? The people here, I mean.”

“...That’s a simple question.”

Baron Licht answered without turning his head.

“Faith. They entered because of faith.”

“...Faith?”

“Yes, faith. The God asked who would enter the tower... and the ruler of the city nodded...”

“The ruler being...?”

“A promising knight from nearby. Now, she has become a guardian protecting this city. She watches from above to see if anyone breaks the rules.”

“...”

“Ah, don’t even think about trying something foolish because you want to see her. She has received the grace of God and transcended humanity.”

Guardian who sees if anyone breaks the rules...

Perhaps if violence is committed... the ‘ruler of the city’ appears. That seems to be the structure.

If I amass an incredible ‘hero’ stack, could I measure up to the city ruler? I’m not sure. But given that she has transcended humanity, it probably won’t happen.

“Well, it’s ready.”

Baron Licht, having finished brewing the tea, returns to his seat and hands me a cup.

Upon sipping the tea, a slightly electrifying, piercing aroma was noticeable. This was my first time tasting such tea.

“...It has... a unique flavor...?”

“That’s its charm.”

Baron Licht smiles slightly. I offered a reciprocal smile.

“So... How can I acquire the gold mark?”

“Prove yourself.”

Baron Licht once again retrieves the golden mark from his pocket.

“You may not know... but we’ve been here quite a long time since we entered this place. While you all can’t leave this city... outside is, quite literally, paradise. Fruits, animals, fish, vegetables... there’s an endless abundance of resources. No one worries about starving.”

“...”

“Thus, life inside the tower is stable but... excruciatingly boring. Repetition, repetition, and more repetition. There’s no crisis. A new stimulus is desperately needed. I’m not sure what kind of tasks the other old ones assign... but I enjoy a slightly thrilling task. Like this tea you just drank.”

“...What are you getting at?”

“Kidnap someone for me. A girl who sells fish on the street. Her name is Emily. It’s permissible to harm her body, but her face must remain untouched.”

“...”

“Ah, don’t worry about the tower’s rules. Violence between climbers is forbidden, as is violence between citizens... but violence between climbers and citizens isn’t. Preventing that is my role but... naturally, I have no intention of stopping it.”

Baron Licht sardonically stroked his mustache.

Is this man, who just invoked the dignity of nobility, really the same person?

“...”

The resident who had guided me was right.

This man... while bearing the appearance of nobility, did not behave nobly at all.

‘...Suspicious.’

And I found that too suspicious to ignore.

Because it felt like this tower was guiding my thought processes.

– – – End of Chapter – – -

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