Climbing the Tower with Multidimensional Avatars - Chapter 99

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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 99. The Magician of Sephiroth – A City in a Dying World (2)

I walked through the Slum District, pausing to consider my options.
Should I just pick a different world right now?
But I decided against it.
Before I created the Astral Body, I might have abandoned this place, but now that I had, shouldn’t I at least learn magic properly?
And more than anything, the fact that I could use martial arts and magic simultaneously without any conflict was genuinely appealing.
The magical power accumulation method that mad mage at the Magic Tower on Tower Floor 10 had given me seemed impossible to learn alongside my internal cultivation techniques.
Of course, even without such a method, I hadn’t experienced any problems using magic.
Still, the Old Witch Woman who expanded my inventory must have had her reasons for making me fight Gung-gi and pushing me toward magic instead of martial arts—she probably thought learning both simultaneously was the wrong approach.
Indeed, Andromallius had assessed my martial arts and concluded that using magic would be extremely inefficient.
But now, by training martial arts and magic separately—one for the physical body and one for the spiritual form—there was no conflict whatsoever.
Other worlds might have better methods, but for now, this was the optimal path.
I’d already been fortunate enough to find a solution; there was no need to abandon this world and gamble on adventure elsewhere.
“What are you thinking so intently about?”
“Oh, nothing. I was just worried about whether I could survive well in this city.”
“Hehe, don’t worry. I’m here, and we have other allies too.”
Those allies are her companions, not mine, I thought.
But I kept that observation to myself.
Beyond the Slum District, I encountered an enormous city wall.
The wall had to be over 100 meters tall.
Given that high-rise buildings were typically 120 meters, the wall appeared to be nearly that massive.
At the base of the wall stood a colossal gate with “GATE 12” written in large letters, and beside it was a smaller entrance sized for pedestrian traffic.
The smaller gate had a guard post, and what looked like a full squad of armed soldiers stood watch.
Before approaching the post, Andromallius stopped and produced something resembling a terminal device.
One of the guards cautiously approached and scanned the device Andromallius held with what looked like a barcode reader.
“Confirmed.”
The guard spoke into a radio rather than to us, and when a voice crackled back saying “Confirmed, passage approved,” the guards let us through without obstruction.
After passing through the massive wall, which had to be fifty meters thick, I spoke carefully.
“The security is quite strict.”
“Well, this city is humanity’s last bastion. Mutant monsters frequently breach the Outer City and reach the wall.”
The interior of the wall resembled the Slum District, but at least it smelled far more like a place where people actually lived compared to outside.
Though the buildings were dilapidated, signs of repair were visible, and people moved freely through the streets.
Outside the wall, people were extremely cautious about venturing out, and the atmosphere was so tense that while you could feel eyes on you, it was hard to actually see people’s faces.
“The exact population of this city is unknown, but it’s certainly over 250 million. That’s the minimum—it could easily be double or triple that.”
“A city? Wait, how large is this city to accommodate such a population?”
“I don’t know the exact figure, but it’s probably around 10,000 square kilometers.”
So more than five times Korea’s population was crammed into an area roughly the size of Gyeonggi Province?
That’s not accurate either, so it could be 10 times or 15 times the population?
“Can the city even sustain that?”
What kind of insane city is this?
“Of course it can’t sustain it on the surface. That’s why there’s an Underground City spanning 9 levels beneath this place. The citizens living above ground are those with relatively higher citizen ranks. Sunlight itself has become a luxury in this era.”
An Underground City spanning 9 levels. Even so, it’s only about the size of the Korean Peninsula, yet the population is at least 5 times higher. This is madness.
“Isn’t food a bigger problem than sunlight? It didn’t seem like farming was possible outside the City Wall.”
“That’s why most citizens sustain themselves on Mana Food or Energy Blocks. Proper warm meals are the exclusive domain of high-ranking citizens and the wealthy.”
Mana Food? Are Energy Blocks something like energy bars?
Please tell me they’re not cockroach paste.
“Mana Food literally replaces meals with magical power. Fortunately, water resources are abundant, so we use that to create nutritional gels or intravenous-style meals.”
Can you really replace meals with just magical power?
“Energy Blocks are primarily high-protein insects mixed with nutritional supplements and Mana Food, then hardened into blocks. They’re actually quite savory and tasty. Mana Food comes in gel or intravenous form, so it lacks that chewing sensation, which is why people have divided opinions on it.”
For now, I’ll procure meals through The Tower and my reincarnation clones.
I have absolutely no desire to eat cockroach paste.
As I walked through the city, bicycles and motorcycles began appearing around me.
“Bicycles and motorcycles are the primary transportation in the outer districts. The outer areas are densely packed with buildings, so there are quite a few alleys where it’s difficult to navigate by car.”
As we moved toward the center, I noticed the roads gradually widening.
Then, though rarely, I began spotting old 1-ton cargo trucks.
At least I can confirm this place isn’t medieval.
When Andromallius reached the main avenue, he pulled out something like a smartphone and summoned something.
Not long after, a taxi arrived in front of us.
A taxi—well, it’s not strange that they’d exist if cars are driving around, but somehow it made the city feel more lived-in.
“We could take a bus, but since we’re wearing masks, I called a taxi that people in our line of work frequently use. Let’s go.”
Given that the city is the size of Gyeonggi Province, public transportation like taxis and buses would be essential.
Andromallius and I got into the taxi, and he told the driver, “Please take us to District 27 Gate 12.”
Once in the taxi, Andromallius used magic to block sound so only I could hear him, being mindful of the driver.
“Once we enter Naedo City, we’ll head to my official Safe House first.”
An official Safe House. Well, if you’re doing mercenary work, you’d need something like a client office.
“Credit’s identity should be ready by tonight or tomorrow morning.”
“Do identities usually get made that quickly?”
At my question, he chuckled.
“Of course not. I’m just expediting it through my connections.”
The way he spoke made it seem like obtaining an identity like this wasn’t his first time.
“When working, there are times when I can’t handle things alone, so I scout talented individuals for such occasions. Talent isn’t born into a particular status or position, so I often recruit talented people from among those without citizen IDs outside the city or lower-ranking citizens from the Underground City.”
According to Andromallius’s explanation, the city’s citizens were divided into ranks from 1st to 9th, with lower numbers indicating higher ranks.
Incidentally, citizens of 7th rank and below are legally prohibited from even ascending to the surface.
So when recruiting those of 7th rank and below, he said they wear masks like I do and ascend to the Safe House, then receive new identities.
Since I had no citizen ID and was technically unranked, I was essentially unable to enter the city, so wearing a mask and entering was the same situation.
After hearing various explanations about the city, the Taxi Driver said we’d arrived at our destination, and when I got out, I saw a massive City Wall.
“There are three City Walls in the city. The Outer Wall separates inside from outside the city, the Inner Wall where only citizens of 3rd rank and above can reside, and the Royal Wall that only 1st rank citizens can enter. Our official Safe House is located inside the Inner Wall.”
So the citizenship I’ll be issued is third-class citizenship?
Should I celebrate my promotion for saving one person?
According to Andromallius’s explanation, if the entire City was the size of Gyeonggi Province, the area inside the Inner Wall would be approximately 700 square kilometers—slightly larger than Seoul.
The Royal Wall apparently encompasses an area about the size of three districts.
As I rode in the taxi and gazed out the window, I felt the City transform into a prosperous metropolis with increasingly better facilities and towering skyscrapers the further inward we traveled.
However, the excessive density of buildings created an impression of suffocation and constraint.
Yet the place I entered following Andromallius resembled a peaceful wealthy district or a collection of villas rather than a metropolis.
I had expected something cyberpunk to unfold beyond the City Wall, but the reality was the complete opposite.
Spacious boulevards, mansions spaced at intervals, meticulously maintained flower beds and street trees, people strolling leisurely.
The landscape was so different from the cramped and densely packed Outer City that I felt cultural shock.
Even I, not a resident of this City, questioned whether this could truly be the same place—I couldn’t fathom how actual residents must feel.
Andromallius laughed self-deprecatingly as he spoke.
“Naedo City does have high-rise buildings, but there aren’t many because of concerns about obstructing views. It’s truly pathetic.”
If this area had been developed with more planned-city architecture, how many more people could it accommodate?
If the wealth here were distributed to the Outer City or Underground City, how many more people could be sustained?
Such thoughts made this peaceful and beautiful urban landscape feel grotesque.
So this is why people stage revolutions.
The French popular uprising suddenly made sense to me.
Now I understood why the Inner Wall exists.
“The Safe House isn’t far from here. Shall we go?”
Andromallius retrieved a small cube from his pocket and produced a four-seater automobile from thin air.
“Subspace?”
“Yes, a subspace magical artifact. A masterpiece from the City Space Corporation.”
If a car could fit inside, how vast is this subspace? No, more importantly—
“If you had the car, wouldn’t there be no need to take a taxi?”
“Ah, I’m not very familiar with the geography of the Outer City. I’m not a skilled driver either, and navigating narrow alleys is difficult.”
Indeed, seeing how they use four-lane roads as two-lane streets suggested that driving here would make driving in the Outer City impossible.
Andromallius took the driver’s seat while I settled into the passenger seat.
The car’s structure didn’t seem significantly different from what I knew.
“Does this also run on magic?”
“Yes. Some technology from the old mechanical civilization is incorporated, but we’ve filled the lost technology gaps with magic.”
It seemed there had been an era called the mechanical civilization.
Once I settled in, I’d need to find a history book to study.
After driving for about ten minutes, Andromallius stopped in front of a three-story building.
I stepped out of the car and asked.
“Is this the Safe House? It’s smaller than I expected.”
Surrounded by grand mansions, the three-story building was, at best, modern, and at worst, austere.
Moreover, it wasn’t particularly large.
Of course, that was small compared to the mansions next to it, but the building’s floor area appeared to be at least 200 pyeong.
Naedo City’s buildings also grew larger and more impressive toward the center.
The way the building transformed was so blatant that I couldn’t help but laugh.
Andromallius placed the car into the subspace as he spoke.
“Once you step inside, you won’t think that way anymore.”
Following his guidance, I entered, and he was absolutely right.
“Wait, no matter how I look at it, this is wider than the building’s actual size?”
Just the hall visible upon entering appeared to rival the building’s entire floor area.
“Of course. I expanded the interior space through magic.”
As Andromallius stepped inside, a woman stationed at the counter at the far end of the hall spotted him and rose from her seat in surprise.
“Commander! You’re safe! I was so worried when you suddenly went silent!”
At her words, Andromallius removed his mask and offered a wry smile.
“I was fortunate, it seems.”

(To be continued in the next chapter)

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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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