Climbing the Tower with Multidimensional Avatars - Chapter 124

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 124. The Tower – Jungle (4)

The cave we’d claimed as a campsite reeked of unmanaged snakes and reptiles—that acrid, fishy stench that clung to everything—but there was no helping it.
Fortunately, the nose tires quickly enough; once we endured it for a few minutes, it simply faded from awareness.
The cave’s interior narrowed as you went deeper, so I used Earth Magic to draw soil from the ground and seal off the passage behind us.
I didn’t know where this cave connected to elsewhere, so it was a precaution against the unknown.
“If you have magic like that, couldn’t you have just built a proper shelter?”
At Lee Su-young’s question, I tapped the earthen wall I’d made.
“Hardening it properly would take too much Magical Power. We can’t afford that.”
Lee Su-young and Diana, noticing the handprint my knock had left in the soft earth, nodded in understanding.
In a place where anything could happen, it was wise to conserve Magical Power.
“Still, since I made it quite thick, if something tries to dig through, we’ll hear it immediately.”
I then pulled vines from the surrounding trees using magic to camouflage the cave entrance.
Between the vines, I layered Alarm Magic so that any creature approaching would trigger a sound only we could hear.
“When did you learn all these spells?” Diana asked.
I answered while lighting the firewood I’d taken from the explorer’s tent. “In little bits, whenever I was alone. There’s not much to do in The Tower, after all.”
That was a lie. No entertainment, my foot—the Galactic Martial Arts World’s accumulated content spanned so many generations it was endless no matter how much I consumed.
Even the history of the 21st century, similar to my own time, was different enough that the available media differed significantly.
But to the two people inside The Tower with me, it was a plausible excuse.
In The Tower, you could waste a few minutes on Community posts and jokes, but there weren’t many hobbies like games or movies.
Besides, my phone—where I’d stored movies—had died, so practicing Martial Arts or magic when alone wasn’t entirely false.
“Impressive,” Diana said simply.
“Studying when you’re bored? I’d rather read novels. The Library has plenty of interesting ones,” Lee Su-young remarked, eyeing me with something between amusement and slight suspicion.
“Look, I practiced beforehand so I could actually use these spells in a situation like this. Want the cloak back?”
At my half-joking complaint, Lee Su-young gave a small, apologetic laugh. “Oh! Sorry, that was my true feelings slipping out. Just let me keep the cloak, okay? I’ll literally die without it. You’re amazing! The light and salt of our party!”
She coaxed and flattered in the same breath, her voice turning deliberately sweet.
“Fine, I’ll let you keep it. In exchange, you’re taking the Middle Watch.”
Even with magic set up as a defense, someone had to stay awake for the Night Watch; otherwise, we’d be helpless if something went wrong.
“Ugh! You pounce on a weakness the moment you find one. Okay, okay.”
Since the Night Watch wasn’t fixed but rotated in shifts anyway, Lee Su-young accepted readily enough.
But how did a high school girl even know an expression like “pounce”?
I used spare wooden stakes from the explorer’s tent as poles, draped canvas over them, and secured everything with anchor pins and rope while asking Diana a question. “Do you prefer the First Watch or the Last Watch?”
Offered a choice, Diana smiled and replied, “Then I’m grateful for your consideration. I’ll take the First Watch.”
Diana would take the First Watch for three hours, Lee Su-young the Middle Watch for two hours, and I’d take the Last Watch for three hours.
The Middle Watch was exhausting, so the Night Watch hours were staggered accordingly.
Diana gazed at the completed tent in wonder. “Wow, where did you learn to make a tent like this?”
“The Military.”
Ah, those dreadful Military days.
Since entering The Tower and spending considerable time in this multidimensional avatar, I still occasionally have dreams about being reenlisted.
Of course, that day will never come, but PTSD doesn’t simply vanish.
I made the women’s tent, which needed to sleep two, a bit larger, and my own tent, where I’d sleep alone, somewhat smaller.
After finishing both tents, I added more firewood to the bonfire, stacked large stones on either side as supports, and set a cooking pot on top.
I opened a tin of Canned Preserves left by the explorer, pulled out some meat, cut off a small piece, and tasted it.
“Blegh! This is incredibly salty.”
The explorer had apparently brined the meat heavily as a precaution, then canned it.
Given the jungle’s sweltering climate, the salt would certainly help with electrolyte balance.
Still, I couldn’t eat it as-is, so I cut a small portion and boiled it together with water, canned tomato sauce, and vegetables.
The saltiness of the brined meat would serve as seasoning.
Fortunately, the sauce and vegetables hadn’t been salted themselves.
Though they’d cooked so long they’d lost any crispness, turning mushy instead.
The shorter cooking time actually worked in our favor.
Since the amount of meat was small, I grilled some pork separately—pork I’d bought on the Common Floor and stored in my Inventory, where time doesn’t pass.
I checked with the Hourglass and confirmed that the Inventory, being its own dimension, had preserved everything without aging.

Is it ranked the same as Tower Floor 1? I’m not entirely sure.
“All right, cooking’s done. Tomato-based stew, pork neck steak, and biscuits.”
As I portioned the food into bowls, both of them tasted it and gasped in appreciation.
“Wow! I didn’t know you could cook?”
“I didn’t expect much from preserved food, but this is delicious.”
Well, I’d used universal seasonings from the Galactic Martial Arts World—monosodium glutamate and nucleotide-based seasonings—and masked the distinctive funk of preserved ingredients with pepper and garlic, so there was no way it could taste bad.
“I lived on my own before joining the Military, and both my parents worked, so I ended up cooking pretty often.”
That lazy gorilla of a younger brother would complain every time I carefully measured ingredients with a scale, saying I was doing a science experiment instead of cooking, and never once offered to help.
Damned brat.
“The biscuits are hard, so soak them in the stew or pour water over them to eat.”
Some of the water came from the Common Floor, but I’d also collected atmospheric moisture using magic and purified it once through a Purification Magic-enchanted water container that had belonged to an explorer.
After the meal, we used rock-paper-scissors to decide who’d do the dishes.
Diana lost and did the washing up.
Lee Su-young and Diana glanced sideways at me.
“I wish we could take a proper shower instead of just using Cleansing Magic.”
“Yeah, same.”
At their reaction, I let out a small laugh.
“It’s natural not to shower in the field. Be grateful you have a Cleansing Magic Tool.”
Diana looked disappointed at my words.
“Well, I suppose that’s true.”
We each headed into our tents and settled in to sleep.

* * *

About five hours later, Lee Su-young shook me awake—I was on the Last Watch.
“Discharged from the Military, and here I am doing night watch duty.”
At my grumbling, Lee Su-young giggled.
“I had the Middle Watch.”
“Tomorrow I’ve got the Middle Watch.”
I crawled out of the Sleeping Bag I’d retrieved from the Galactic Martial Arts World and got dressed.
Once I stepped outside the tent, Lee Su-young told me how during her Night Watch she’d practiced some Martial Arts, sent Slimes out of the cave to deal with approaching monsters, and various other things, then headed into the tent where Diana was sleeping.
I spent a few moments wondering what to do for the next three hours, then I disassembled my tent and built a makeshift shower enclosure.
I brought over camping shower equipment from Tower Floor 1 and installed it, then gathered water using magic.
I cut up some of the preserved meat I’d soaked overnight to remove the salt for breakfast preparations, then spent the remaining time reading a Magic Book by the campfire.
Electronics don’t work in the Tower, so it was in the form of printed documents, but the content was a Magic Book.
As I read the Magic Book and passed the time, I gradually noticed sunlight starting to pour into the cave from outside.
Once three hours had passed, I stowed the Magic Book in my Inventory and woke Diana and Lee Su-young.
“Both of you, wake up.”
“Ugh…? Is it morning already?”
“Ugh, I hate the Middle Watch… I’m so tired.”
Both of them squirmed in their Sleeping Bags, reluctant to get up.
They’d draped the Cooling Cloak on the wall to use it like an air conditioner.
Pretty clever.
“If you don’t get up soon, I’m taking away the shower head.”
At my words, both of them froze for a moment, then bolted upright.
“The shower head?!”
“You said yesterday you’d love to have one. Wash up quickly while I’m making breakfast.”
At my words, both of them scrambled out of the tent, saw the shower enclosure I’d built, and gasped in wonder.
Since I’d also set out soap and shampoo inside, I could hear delighted squeals from them.
I leisurely brewed instant coffee and black tea, laid out a simple breakfast, and when both of them emerged clean, they chattered away happily.
After the meal, we ate canned fruit chilled with magic for dessert, then cleaned up.
“All right, let’s head toward our destination again with renewed vigor!”
“Yes~!”
“Yes~!”
The two of them’s morale was sky-high after having showers.
I felt slightly like a nursemaid, but if I could boost my party members’ morale, this much effort was nothing.
Besides, there wasn’t much else to do during the Night Watch anyway.

* * *

On the second day, I led the way through the Jungle, carving a path and practicing the Stepping Method while helping the two trailing behind me train.
Diana had grown capable of reinforcing her body with Inner Force, so I had her practice circulating Inner Force through her body while treading the Stepping Method. Lee Su-young, likewise, continued treading the Stepping Method while strengthening her Slime in an effort to break through into 3rd-class Rank.
Since both had spent all of yesterday walking while practicing the Stepping Method, they’d grown accustomed to it—their pace quickened noticeably.
We’d covered roughly thirty-one kilometers yesterday, so today we could manage at least forty.
Among the three of us, I was the one with the weakest stamina and physical capabilities.
I, who had cultivated Martial Arts as my primary focus, possessed a catastrophic Tower talent for absorbing Magical Power—or rather, “Experience Points”—when killing monsters, so I couldn’t hope to grow through monster hunting. But the two of them? They were growing steadily.
Lee Su-young’s physical abilities had reached, or were perhaps certainly approaching, 2nd-class Rank.
She simply lacked the quantity of Inner Force and the sensation to wield it, which kept her from ascending to the next tier.
With enough effort, she’d surely reach 3rd-class Rank.
“Oh! A downpour! Let’s take shelter over there for a moment!”
I fashioned a temporary barrier from Magical Power, creating an improvised umbrella, and dashed toward the nearest spot with the largest tree.
We sheltered beneath a tree that must have been centuries old, rested while the rain passed, and then resumed our journey toward our destination.
The jungle ground, now soaked by rain, had become marshy and boggy.
I regulated my footing using the Essence of Lightness Skill infused with magic so my feet wouldn’t sink, but the other two weren’t so fortunate.
“Diana, I think it’s about time you tried practicing the Lightness Skill. I’ve already shown you the Incantation Formula and the flow of Inner Force, haven’t I? Have you memorized all the Meridian Routes?”
“I’ve memorized all the Meridian Routes, but can this skill really be learned at my current level?”
“Normally you’d need to reach 2nd-class Rank to use it properly, but it can still be used at 3rd-class Rank.”
In fact, I’d learned and used it well enough even at 3rd-class Rank myself.
“What about me?”
At Lee Su-young’s question, I smiled wryly.
“You, Lee Su-young—let’s stick with Stepping Method practice. This mire is practically ideal training for that, wouldn’t you say?”
At my answer, Lee Su-young’s face fell, while Diana threw herself into learning the Lightness Skill.
“Look, if either of you really doesn’t want to, you don’t have to. Your strengths lie in different things, after all. Learn if you can; if not, let it be.”
I had no intention of forcing someone unwilling and dragging them along through instruction—the efficiency would suffer, progress would stall, and only feelings would get hurt.
At my words, Lee Su-young and Diana felt their competitive spirit ignited and moved with greater determination.
We walked on—encountering monsters, dispatching them, camping in nearby caves at night—pressing forward again and again.
On the fifth day since arriving on Floor 22, after having traversed roughly one hundred eighty kilometers, we emerged from the Southern Jungle and entered the central region. It was then that Lee Su-young finally attained 3rd-class Rank.
And the monsters that predominantly appeared shifted from snakes, lizards, and crocodiles to bipedal Lizardmen wielding weapons.

(To be continued in the next episode)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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