Climbing the Tower with Multidimensional Avatars - Chapter 135

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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 135. The Tower – The Golden Trial (4)

We placed our hands on the City Central Crystal and made for the 23rd Floor, where Causality had taken form.
“…The Tutorial?”
The corridor where we arrived had the atmosphere of an ancient ruin from the Tutorial that had comprised the 10th Floor and below.

[Pass the Golden Trial.]

The Golden Trial?
Usually these trials were concrete—protect someone, or grant someone’s wish—but this one seemed somewhat metaphorical.
“Do you think we need to use gold?” Lee Su-young asked.
I shrugged at her question.
“Beats me. Let’s just head toward that door at the end of the corridor. If it’s a trial, it should at least tell us what kind.”
As usual, I led the way while Diana hung back, ready for any surprise attack, and we made our way down the corridor to the door.
When I opened it, the space beyond resembled a massive underground bunker built for some nation’s emergency preparedness, or like the deep storage vaults where the United States keeps its strategic cheese reserves—immensely wide with towering ceilings.
The difference was that every pillar, wall, and ceiling was adorned with golden ornaments.
And standing as if waiting for us was a single knight clad in golden armor.
Just as I tensed at the knight’s appearance and moved to draw my blade, the Golden Knight spoke as if accustomed to this.
“I am a guide sent to escort you to my master. There is no need for caution.”
At the words of the knight in full plate armor, not a shred of skin visible, I relaxed my grip on my sword even as I remained watchful.
If nothing else, the fact that it was speaking suggested it might be human?
No—but if it were a living being, I should have sensed some vital energy from it, and I felt none.
“Are you perhaps undead?” I asked.
At my question, the Golden Knight let out a small exclamation, as if intrigued.
“Far from it. But I would say it is similar,” the knight replied.
Completely different yet similar? Like saying you drank alcohol before driving but it wasn’t drunk driving?
“Follow me. I shall guide you to my master, who will impose the trial upon you.”
The Golden Knight turned and led the way, its back exposed without any apparent defense.
As I followed, watching that golden back, I could find no opening whatsoever.
I was certain: this Golden Knight was stronger than the Lizardman King.
Perhaps even a Fire Realm Tier or Current Realm Tier master.
Why did a master of this caliber exist on the 23rd Floor?
More importantly, what kind of being was the “master” who commanded such a powerhouse like a servant?
We could only gasp in astonishment at where the Golden Knight had led us.
There stood a colossal Golden Dragon.
The aura that flowed from the Golden Dragon as naturally as breathing pressed down upon my entire body with an overwhelming sense of oppression.
How strong was this dragon?
Was this the sensation one felt in the presence of a master of the Star Moon Realm, spoken of only in legend?
“We welcome those who have accomplished a Great Deed acknowledged by the Tower and come to this place. Mor… wait?”
The Golden Dragon, who had been welcoming us, suddenly stopped mid-sentence, looking flustered.
“Hold on. Why is the verification not working? Climbers, tell me. What floor is this?”
At the Golden Dragon’s question, Diana and Lee Su-young’s faces went pale, and before they could answer, I spoke on our behalf.
“The 23rd Floor.”
At my answer, the Golden Dragon could not hide its shock.
Then the massive form that filled the great space blazed with golden light, the dragon’s shape vanished, and before us stood a woman with blonde hair.
“My apologies. Normally, those who reach this place are climbers well past the 50th Floor, so they bear my true form well enough, but for lower-tier climbers it would be quite overwhelming.”
The Golden Dragon now appeared in draconic form—golden blonde hair, sharp horns crafted from gold itself, with dragon wings and tail—a figure resembling the Draconians spoken of only in legend.
As the Golden Dragon took this draconic form, Diana and Lee Su-young’s breathing came easier; they drew in deep, ragged breaths and wiped cold sweat from their faces.
Seeing this, the Golden Dragon clicked her tongue.
“Has the Tower finally lost its mind? The minimum difficulty of the trials here is the 65th Floor. Climbers, no matter what hardships and adversity you have overcome to achieve your Great Deeds, this is not a trial you should attempt. Withdraw to the lower floors.”
At her warning, I raised my hand.
“Dragon, might I ask a few questions?”
“What is it, climber?”
“Since we are lower-tier climbers, we don’t actually understand much about what’s happening. We completed a quest on the 22nd Floor, and it said we had achieved beyond the objective. Then we were suddenly given the choice between the 23rd Floor and a 23rd Floor with Causality, so we came here.”
At my explanation, the Golden Dragon nodded, understanding what I wanted to know.
“I see. To reach this place, you must have endured hardships that transcend your abilities. The mere fact that you have arrived here is achievement enough—a Great Deed in itself. I have no wish to see such warriors depart with nothing to show for it. Out of respect for you, I shall share all the information I can tell you now.”
“Ah, then…”
The Golden Dragon cut off my question.
“Wait. I don’t answer questions. It seems you’re the type who would thrust your neck beneath the guillotine itself if it satisfied your curiosity.”
Well, surely not to that extreme?
“I merely speak to myself. Understand it that way.”
It appeared to be one of the means by which to circumvent the Tower’s restrictions.
Now that I thought about it, the Librarian Elder had faced similar constraints.
Back then, he hadn’t resorted to such roundabout methods as talking to himself—he’d simply pressed me with questions as though administering a test.
The Golden Dragon paused, as if choosing her words carefully, before speaking.
“First, the Tower distributes trials based on each climber’s inclination and abilities. Each floor is a world that has contracted with the Tower… tsk!”
She seemed to hit some invisible barrier mid-explanation and clicked her tongue, stopping herself. Then she gathered her thoughts and began again.
“…a world that has contracted with the Tower. The Tower determines the danger level of each world and assigns them to certain floors. If that floor’s overall standard—or in game terms, the average monster level of a stage—roughly aligns, then the world is assigned to that floor.”
In other words, the 11th Floor’s world was safe, while the 99th Floor’s was maddeningly perilous.
“The floor is, so to speak, an indicator of a world’s level. When times of stability arrive, worlds move downward; when chaos comes, they rise.”
The Tower’s worlds seemed to shift their positions fluidly.
“As a result, sometimes the chaos of turbulent times lingers in an age of stability. Averages always conceal pitfalls.”
If nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine people out of ten thousand each held one hundred won, and one person held ten thousand won, the average would be one hundred and nine won.
Even a peaceful world might harbor unprecedented danger.
Come to think of it, on the 18th Floor there was talk of some dark mage being resurrected or not—if that mage actually came back, would the floor be reassigned higher?
“The Tower grants to those who overcome the pitfall of such averages a chance in the form of ‘Causality.’ Where there is cause, there is effect. Today’s actions forge tomorrow; past events create future occurrences. Causality is the force that weaves separate floors together. There is a saying that crisis is opportunity. But flip it on its head, and opportunity becomes crisis as well.”
So that opportunity was the trial, then?
At that moment, the Golden Dragon seemed struck by a question and turned to me.
“Wait—the Golden Trial requires causality that is extraordinarily difficult to achieve among the Tower’s many trials. How did you form causality with me on a mere 22nd Floor? Climber, what did you do on that floor?”
“Ah, well… do you perhaps recognize this?”
I withdrew my notebook from my inventory and showed her the ancient script I had copied from the stone stairs and the contract text inscribed upon the Golden Altar.
“Indeed, you came into contact with the traces of those who once borrowed my power long ago. Then you formed causality more smoothly than expected. Gold is ordinarily dismantled and melted away by everyone’s greed, yet fate has bound you to it well.”
So the god whom the ancients of Tansa once borrowed power from—was that the Golden Dragon before my eyes?
Had the evil force that destroyed Tansa not existed, or had the altar been excavated by people long ago, it would have melted into ingots or crumbled with the passage of time.
Thinking about it that way, my fortune had been extraordinary.
“It seems you took the Golden Scripture, not the Golden Altar—it would be far too large and heavy for that.”
No, I had taken the Golden Altar.
“This should be sufficient reward for those who have accomplished such a great deed to reach this place. Now withdraw.”
At the Golden Dragon’s words, I raised my hand once more.
“But what exactly is the Golden Trial?”
To my question, the Golden Dragon pointed to the Golden Knight who had guided us.
“The Golden Trial is battling my Draconic Tooth Soldier there.”
Ah, so that knight was a Draconic Tooth Soldier.
No wonder it gave off none of the vital energy that a living creature should emit.
Now I understood why the Golden Knight seemed so similar to an undead without actually being one.
An undead was a being resurrected from death, but the Draconic Tooth Soldier had never lived in the first place, so calling it undead would have been inaccurate.
“You said the trial’s minimum difficulty was 65th Floor, but that Draconic Tooth Soldier doesn’t look like it could be faced by a 65th Floor climber.”
At my words, the Golden Dragon nodded.
“Of course. This is the Golden Trial. By the trial’s structure, the Draconic Tooth Soldier grows weaker as gold is offered.”
“It weakens?”
When I showed interest, the Golden Dragon chuckled softly.
“Though it weakens, it is far from a level that lower-floor climbers could manage. To bring it down to lower-floor standard, you’d need to offer dozens of tons.”
“Dozens of tons…”
I glanced back at my two companions, and both of them met my gaze with suddenly meaningful eyes.
“What becomes of the reward if we overcome the trial?”
“At your level, attempting the trial would mean a pointless death, but since causality has been established and you may come here again, let me explain in advance. The trial’s reward varies depending on how much gold is offered.”
“Does the reward diminish by the amount of gold we use to weaken the Draconic Tooth Soldier?”
It made sense that weakening it would reduce the reward accordingly.
Using gold to weaken the soldier was itself a kind of shortcut.
“What are you saying? Of course the reward increases separately from weakening the soldier—it grows with each offering of gold.”
“So we offer gold to weaken the Draconic Tooth Soldier, defeat it, and then offer more gold again to enhance the reward. Is that the right understanding?”
“That is correct.”
Was this creature obsessed with gold?
I should have realized it when she decorated this vast chamber with golden ornaments from the start.
The amount of gold spent decorating this lair alone would gobble up millions of tons without effort.
Now that I thought about it, hadn’t humanity on Earth excavated only around two hundred twenty thousand tons of gold in total?
In the Galactic Martial Arts World, mining asteroids rich in gold deposits—but this Golden Dragon surely did not do that.
How many worlds had she plundered for gold?
“I have enough Gold, fortunately. I wish to attempt the Trial.”
At my words, the Golden Dragon narrowed her brow.
“Foolish. I offer it to you because the Fortune-Blessing you carry appears abundant—grow stronger in time and bring me more Gold.”
Ah, so it’s the fisherman’s heart, releasing the young fish back into the water?
I pulled the Subspace Cube from my inventory and poured Gold onto the floor.
“Tons of Gold. Already in my possession. Even if not down to the lower levels, how much would be needed to lower the threshold to the 40th Floor range?”
At the cascading Gold, the Golden Dragon’s expression brightened.
“What! You had this much all along and didn’t say so? That Subspace looks considerable in size—how much do you have? If we’re lucky, I could lower it to the 10th Floor range!”
Look at those eyes spinning at the sight of Gold.
Living surrounded by Gold all these centuries—can it really be that precious to her?
“The 10th Floor range isn’t necessary. I must also receive a reward for the Trial, so I need to conserve what I can. I can’t fight hard and receive a reward worth a single gram, can I?”
“Hmm. I see.”
The Golden Dragon touched her chin as if reluctantly.
“Very well. I grant you permission to attempt the Trial. Place Gold upon that Scale. Gold alone shall grant you protection!”
The Golden Dragon’s Draconic Tooth Soldiers drew their blades.

(To be continued in the next part)

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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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