Chapter 313

Chapter 313

[Translator – Clara]

[Proofreader – Lucky]

Chapter 313: Abyss Tree (7)

...Groan!

The last head of Cerberus burst apart.

Thud-

As it’s giant body collapsed onto the ruined ground, a faint earthquake ensued.

The sulfur and blood spewing from Cerberus’s ruptured belly swept away the scent of perfume mixed with the smell of the Savik berries from the floor of the shop.

– Ding!

[“Level 1 Warrior” Vikir has successfully hunted the ‘A+ Rank Demon Cerberus’ for the first time!]

[Reward for the “Awesome” achievement will be given!]

Loud notification sounds showered down.

“...Phew.”

Vikir sank down wearily with an exhausted expression.

Taking down Cerberus with a body that had been weakened a hundredfold was undoubtedly difficult.

Then Granola, who was standing beside him, spoke with an irritated expression.

“You often hear that you’re persistent, don’t you?”

“No. I’ve never heard that.”

Vikir turned his head towards Granola and replied.

“I usually kill them all before they can call me anything.”

Granola felt a chill run down his spine.

Just then.

[Huh? You killed it?]

The fairy appeared out of nowhere and started chattering.

[Oh my, was this your first time fighting with such a big monster?]

Vikir’s attitude showed that he truly hadn’t expected to clear the mission.

So the fairy seemed quite flustered.UppTodated from nô/v/e/l/b(i)n.c(o)/m

[What should I do? The rewards in the earlier stage are limited?]

Then Vikir spoke as if reluctantly.

“Among the rewards you can offer, do you have any artifacts or items? Even consumables would do.”

[Hmm? Hmm? Hmm? Hmm?]

It seems there aren’t any.

Vikir spoke with resignation.

“Well, there’s nothing to be done. After all, this mission wasn’t made for the sake of proper rewards. It seems it was just made to mock the people trapped in the tower.”

And soon after, Vikir spoke with great discomfort.

“But you know, this tower is quite meticulously crafted. If someone can create such a thorough system, they would be very strict about the results they produce. They must have selected only masterpieces on each floor.”

[Hmm? Hmm? Hmm? Hmm?]

“But isn’t it a bit strange that such an error occurred in the beginning floors? Could it be that what just happened was a mission outside the regulations, done by someone for fun? Perhaps someone got drunk on their own power and acted out of line...”

The fairy looked extremely embarrassed at that remark.

It was trying to appear calm, avoiding eye contact, but it’s wildly beating heart was clearly visible in the torn chest.

Vikir cut in abruptly.

“I don’t need any rewards for this bonus stage. Instead, I will file a claim with the tower’s management when I meet them later about this incident. I’ll protest it seriously. They’ll have to look into it thoroughly.”

The fairy then shouted urgently.

[A reward? I have a reward for you]

At the mention of a reward, Vikir finally smiled slightly.

“Then give it. The reward.”

[But the rewards in the early stages are quite limited?]

Vikir knew well that the only reward available in the early stages was some strange candy.

So he could say firmly,

“I prefer quantity over quality.”

[Really?]

“No, I’m not. As long as it’s not just a handful.”

With Vikir nodding his head sternly, the fairy widened it’s mouth to the point where it looked like it might tear open and bleed.

[What? Really?]

Eventually, the fairy started vomiting an enormous amount of candy from it’s mouth.

Red, green, blue candies poured out in piles.

Granola’s eyes widened at the seemingly hundreds of candies.

“Wow! Look at these stats! If we eat all of these, we’ll become stronger in no time!”

It tastes sweet.

– Level +1

A golden candy emitting a radiant glow.

Upon seeing it, Granola sent a reverent gaze.

“Wow. It raises the level? That means with just one of those, you can regain 1% of the power of reality? So if you eat 100, you can regain 100% of your power! Plus, when you leave the tower, that amount of stats will be added to your original power! It’s the ultimate candy!”

For survivors weakened a hundredfold, this candy would be more urgent than anything else.

However, it was too expensive. Despite being called candies of any color, requiring 300 of them made it a rare item that was hard to even consider in the early stages.

...Of course, it didn’t apply to Vikir, who had managed to defeat all the hell hounds.

“Hmm.”

As Vikir seemed to ponder, the fairy subtly persuaded him even more.

[Do you really have no use for this candy? If you level up, the stats will naturally increase, so wouldn’t it be a total gain?]

Literal as it may sound, leveling up means partially regaining the power outside the tower, so pursuing rapid leveling in the early stages is indeed the right move.

...However, Vikir shook his head.

“Leveling up is still taboo.”

Vikir stared at the number ‘1’ displayed in the level bracket for a while.

While rookies might be all in for gathering stat candies and converting them into level candies, Vikir was not one of them. For a while, or rather, for a considerable period, Vikir had no intention of leveling up.

“In this tower, lower levels are advantageous.”

According to the memoirs of the great heroes, there are some rules regarding rewards within this tower.

If a strong individual achieves a great feat, they receive modest rewards.

If a weak individual achieves a minor feat, they still receive modest rewards.

When a strong individual achieves a minor feat, they hardly receive any rewards.

...But.

When a weak individual achieves a great feat.

In such cases, the rewards bestowed transcend common sense.

Vikir paid attention to the notifications he heard before while fighting.

[“Level 1 Warrior, Vikir, as part of the Leveling System...”]

[“Level 1 Warrior, Vikir, as the first to defeat an F-rank monster in the tutorial zone...”]

[“Reward for the ‘Rare’ achievement...”]

[“Level 1 Warrior, Vikir, as the first to defeat a B+ rank monster...”]

[“Reward for the ‘Difficult’ achievement...”]

[“Level 1 Warrior, Vikir, as the first to engage in group hunting against a B+ rank monster...”]

[“Reward for the ‘Great’ achievement...”]

[“Level 1 Warrior, Vikir, as the first to successfully hunt an A+ rank monster, Cerberus...”]

[“Reward for the ‘Awesome’...”]

Since Vikir was now part of the leveling system, he was treated as a “weak individual.” Even if he had significantly more stats than others, starting at the same level meant being treated as equals.

If the ‘Level 1 Warrior’ continues to clear difficult missions, better rewards will gradually come. Vikir was naturally stronger than other students, and even at Level 1, he could cover his shortcomings with stats.

‘So, in the early stages, it’s advantageous to maintain a low level and challenge difficult missions to maximize rewards.’ It was a strategy quite different from that of ordinary survivors.

Moreover, Vikir knew another reason why he shouldn’t level up.

“Someday, the levels raised in the early stages will undoubtedly become useless. I’m not sure when, but... until then, it’s better to save the level candies without eating them.”

After organizing his thoughts, Vikir stopped the trade with the fairy.

[Oh, huh? Are you sure?]

The fairy made an incomprehensible whimpering sound and closed the trade window when Vikir didn’t comply.

And then, at that moment...

*Rumble...*

A strong earthquake occurred, causing the ground in the area to sink deeply.

“What!? Looks like 108 minutes have already passed!”

Granola was right.

– Ding!

[Mission Completed] – Survivors: 69

The same status window appeared before Vikir and Granola. Probably all 69 survivors who survived the Hell Hounds’ attack were in the same situation.

*Kwoooosh!*

A gate in the shape of a whirlpool opened, sucking in everyone falling from below.

– Ding!

[Exited from Underground 2nd Floor, ‘Familiar Ground’]

[Entered Underground 3rd Floor, ‘Familiar Ground (2)’]

It seemed that all survivors from the 2nd floor were going to the same place.

[Translator – Clara]

[Proofreader – Lucky]