Level -99 Archmage - Chapter 56

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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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Episode 56. The Tower of Arrogance, 10th Floor
―Death is an ending and a terminus.
―The strongest, most terrible witch to monopolize the affection of the Abyss.
―I shall call your name ‘Adora’.
Adora, the Witch of Death.
The Black Witch had given her that name.
To the girl who bore the destiny of ‘death’ from birth, the Black Witch paradoxically bestowed the name ‘Adora’—a name that carried the meaning of ‘love’.
She spoke with certainty that Adora would become the strongest, most terrible witch to monopolize the Abyss’s affection.
Naturally, the Black Witch never taught her how to control death.
Instead, she indoctrinated her to maximize death itself.
Death is an ending, a terminus.
―No one shall ever stand at your side.
Not even if the other were the Lord of the Abyss.
They would never escape the ‘death’ that Adora wielded, she said.
And she was made into a solitary, lonely being.
Adora accepted this without the slightest doubt.
That was the karmic burden of an absolute.
She believed her path would be filled with death alone.
But then.
“…I’m curious. What is this ‘death’ you speak of?”
Adora found herself reconsidering the definition of death.
The human who took her hand and stood at her side.
One who was neither ending nor terminus.
She became curious about Park Chan-woo’s definition of ‘death’.
To her sudden question, Park Chan-woo simply shrugged and answered.
“It is noble.”
“Noble…… is it?”
This too was an answer Adora had never anticipated.
Death was noble?
The sublime and beautiful, the excellent and precious.
Were such things not described as noble?
Yet the death Adora had learned from the Black Witch was devoid of meaning—the very essence of nothingness from which nothing remained.
To wield death was to stand at the end.
Where, then, could nobility exist?
But Park Chan-woo had answered with complete sincerity.
Having died once himself, he knew better.
Perhaps he was the one in this world most intimate with ‘death’.
There could be no one else who had returned from beyond death.
“Meaninglessness itself contains meaning. Death is not an ending but a closure. That is why it is noble.”
The death he had experienced was like that.
The Dragon God Sephiro.
When that being, manifested as a transcendent entity, had brought him to a futile end.
When humanity had vanished like dust from a single word of his, and all the effort accumulated thus far had turned to nothing.
With endless regret came a strange sense of relief.
It had also been a closure for a life heavy with sorrow.
Was that not laughable?
If one was going to die anyway, why strive for meaningless things?
Yet that very reasoning gave it meaning.
Without that closure, he would not exist now.
Through experiencing death, he had burned with brilliant intensity and gained a stronger soul.
“…You speak as though you’ve died once.”
At Park Chan-woo’s calm reply, Adora finally spoke.
He spoke with such certainty, as if he had truly experienced death once.
Park Chan-woo let out a soft laugh.
Adora gazed at him quietly.
‘……Not an ending, but a closure.’
She had overcome death and managed to exercise a degree of control over it.
Yet it was entirely Park Chan-woo’s doing.
It was because he had struggled desperately, hoping Park Chan-woo would not die.
But if his words held true—if death was not an ending but a closure—
…and so her fate would change.
No longer that of a catastrophic force bringing about the end.
No longer one who walked alone.
‘One who walks alongside all fates.’
One who teaches the preciousness of each fleeting moment.
One who reveals that nothing in this world lasts forever—a bridge in the middle, not at the end.
The moment she thought this, her shoulders grew lighter.
The realization struck her suddenly: she was no longer alone.
Adora looked around her surroundings.
The countless Undead that followed her.
She had not summoned them, nor had she transformed them into Undead to command.
It had happened naturally, without her even being aware of it.
The decisive reason why even the witches refused to approach Adora.
Adora slowly opened her mouth.
“Return to the place where you ought to be.”
Whoooosh—
In an instant, every Undead crumbled into fine dust and scattered away on the wind.
At last, they had reached true death.
And in that same moment, Adora could face a ‘death’ unlike any she had known before.
‘Memory.’
It was their memory.
Stories of days long past—moments of happiness, moments of regret.
They unfolded before Adora’s eyes, glimmering like stars.
Countless points of starlight converged into a single Milky Way, sprawling before her like an ocean.
“…How beautiful.”
Adora whispered without thinking.
She was overwhelmed by the galaxy of memory.
The memories organized themselves one by one, and the stars soon faded from view.
Such a pity.
And yet, she felt she understood.
‘It is noble.’
The meaning of what Park Chan-woo had said.
Why death itself was noble.
…How could he have known this?
About the world that lay beyond death.
About that moment as fleeting as a flash.
Park Chan-woo seemed to know it with absolute certainty.
Truly a remarkable and mysterious man.
‘If I climb this tower, I will understand.’
At the same time, one certainty took hold of her.
If she reached the summit of this tower, she would come to know Park Chan-woo far better than she did now.
Swoooooooosh—!
Adora deployed the Domain of Death across the entire layer.
And simultaneously.
《All monsters on the 6th layer of the Tower of Arrogance have been annihilated.》
《All Sacred Objects existing on the 6th layer of the Tower of Arrogance are acquired.》
《Adora has transferred all Sacred Objects to you.》
《All Sacred Objects in the display case are automatically rearranged.》
《The Layer Guardian ‘Colossal Soldier’ on the 6th layer of the Tower of Arrogance has been shattered by the aura of death scattered by Adora.》
《The path to the 7th layer of the Tower of Arrogance opens.》
《You are Adora’s sole close associate and powerful ally.》
《Ten superior Sacred Objects have been displayed in the display case.》
《As a reward, you are given ’12 Coins’ and ’40 Boxes of Arrogance.’》
…….
《All monsters on the 7th layer of the Tower of Arrogance have been annihilated.》
…….
《All monsters on the 8th layer of the Tower of Arrogance have been annihilated.》
…….
《All monsters on the 9th layer of the Tower of Arrogance have been annihilated.》
…….
《You have reached Layer 10 of the Tower of Arrogance, the Final Battle Arena.》
* * *
Crack!
The thick carapace of a massive insect, moth-like in appearance, splits wide open.
Kankun then swings his Greatsword, shattering the creature’s head, before tearing away its wings with both hands.
Emerald blood laced with poison sprays in all directions.
Yet Kankun paid it no mind.
Instead, he opened his mouth wide and drank deeply of the pooling blood.
“Excellent taste.”
He even offered his critique of the flavor.
It was a sight to make one’s skin crawl.
Lim Chang-yeol and the other Seoul Alliance members, watching from a distance, found themselves at a loss for words.
‘A monster……!’
Yet they all thought the same thing.
Orc Master Kankun.
He was an overwhelmingly powerful monster unlike anything they had ever encountered—and likely never would again.
Of course, it wasn’t merely the grotesqueness of Kankun’s conduct that left them stunned.
It was the sheer, incomprehensible magnitude of his power.
Strength, agility, swordsmanship—
not a single aspect was lacking.
How could something so massive move with such terrible speed?
But what they found even more baffling was this:
‘Is that… Telekinesis?’
‘A dropped Greatsword just flew back into his hand on its own…!’
‘He waves his hand and monsters far away split clean in half.’
‘It’s insane. The Greatsword just flies around!’
What truly defied comprehension was the endless parade of impossible sights.
Monsters far away being cleaved in two without a single touch.
Creatures hurtling toward Kankun freezing mid-air the moment he stamped his foot.
A Greatsword fallen to the ground soaring about at will, slaughtering enemies in its wake.
It was an unending sequence of things that made no rational sense.
That was how strong Kankun had become.
‘Beyond Heaven.’
A realm so far beyond mortal understanding that it warranted the name—Beyond Heaven.
《You have hunted the Layer Guardian of Tower of Arrogance Layer 8, the Fallen Volcan’s Pet Insect!》
《You receive basic rewards: 1 Coin and 3 Boxes of Arrogance.》
《The path to Layer 9 of the Tower of Arrogance opens before you.》
《Only close associates acknowledged by Kankun may ascend to Layer 9.》
They reached Layer 9 in an instant.
No force in existence could have stood against the awakened Kankun.
Left to his own devices, Kankun climbed the tower without pause.
In truth, it was questionable why they stayed with him at all.
“…Aren’t we rather useless here?”
“Well, Coins keep duplicating even when we do nothing…”
The Seoul Alliance members muttered softly among themselves.
Lim Chang-yeol had no real response to offer.
Because what they said was true.
Kankun was annihilating monsters single-handedly and collecting Sacred Objects to place strategically.
He even hunted Layer Guardians without requiring any assistance.
As a result, the alliance members were simply reaping the benefits—gathering the spoils that fell like honey.
Even without placing Sacred Objects themselves, simply witnessing a Layer Guardian die at Kankun’s side guaranteed at least one Coin per kill.
But there was more.
The Boxes of Arrogance had accumulated substantially.
‘Thirty-five.’
By the time they reached Layer 9, Lim Chang-yeol had amassed thirty-five Boxes of Arrogance.
It was thanks to his prudent placement of many Sacred Objects early on, befitting his position as alliance leader.
“Heh heh. Already forty-two boxes.”
Beside him, Kim Byung-han chuckled with unmistakable greed.
He had collected even more boxes than Lim Chang-yeol.
Whenever a monster or Layer Guardian appeared, he would land a blow or two—and if direct engagement proved difficult, he would drive his pet at enemies from all angles, determined to claim his rewards by any means necessary.
He was going for what people commonly called the “last hit.”
By targeting only the final blow on prey that Kankun had labored to hunt down, Kim Byung-han was able to claim far more of the reward than Lim Chang-yeol.
It was shameless behavior by any measure, yet Kim Byung-han’s face showed no sign of shame—thicker than anyone else’s in this place.
‘From the Tower of Arrogance alone, I’ve got ten Coins and forty-two Boxes of Arrogance. The moment I leave this place, I’m climbing Royal Road.’
A brilliant future awaited him.
Wearing a brazen face a hundred times, a thousand times—he could do it without flinching.
Those too weak to do the same were the true fools.
A rare stroke of luck, this ride.
While Kankun was being generous, shouldn’t he squeeze out every advantage he could?
“Anyway… Park Chan-woo. That coward must have gotten scared and fled the tower.”
Tsk, tsk.
Kim Byung-han clicked his tongue in derision.
He shook his head with contempt, mocking Park Chan-woo for vanishing early in the tower’s progression.
He’d half-hoped the man would reappear, but now at the ninth floor, there was no trace of Park Chan-woo.
He must have abandoned the tower for certain.
“Park Chan-woo is the reason we’re able to stay as Kankun’s close associates, Kim Byung-han.”
Lim Chang-yeol defended Park Chan-woo, perhaps more earnestly than was warranted.
After all, the Seoul Alliance had caught Kankun’s eye entirely because of Park Chan-woo.
From the very beginning, he’d provoked Kankun, secured a Sacred Object, and won the wager against him.
Why he’d suddenly abandoned the tower, though, remained a mystery…
Without Park Chan-woo, they wouldn’t be here at all.
Kim Byung-han glared at him.
“Hah. So you’re defending the coward who ran away in fear?”
“I’m simply stating the facts.”
“Well, the fact is he ran away, isn’t it?”
“…He may have had his reasons.”
“Reasons? What reasons? Come on, let’s go ask him ourselves.”
Certainty gleamed across Kim Byung-han’s face.
But Lim Chang-yeol’s expression darkened.
In truth, he too harbored doubt about whether Park Chan-woo had really fled.
―Roooaaar!
It was then.
《You have hunted the Layer Guardian of Tower of Arrogance, Floor 9: Fallen Volcan!》
Kankun had slaughtered the towering, burning monstrosity.
After hacking at it savagely, he’d reduced it to fragments.
The scene was gruesome beyond measure, yet by now they’d grown accustomed to such sights.
《Base rewards: two Coins and five Boxes of Arrogance.》
《The path to Floor 10 has opened.》
Without hesitation, Kankun ascended to the tenth floor.
The alliance members followed him up the stairs.
And at the same moment.
《You have reached Floor 10 of the Tower of Arrogance: the Final Battle Arena.》
《The final confrontation between ‘Kankun’ and ‘Adora’ begins.》
They saw her.
In the distance before them—the Black Witch.
Shudder.
Merely laying eyes on her set their entire bodies trembling.
This witch was on an entirely different level from any creature Kankun had hunted before.
And yet, the witch was not alone.
‘Who is that?’
‘There’s another person?’
‘Is he one of Adora’s close associates?’
‘Just one person?’
Everyone exchanged bewildered glances.
If he were a close associate, he’d be one of those who’d chosen Adora’s faction.
Yet unlike the others, he stood alone.
More than that, while the rest maintained distance from Kankun, this man stood directly beside Adora, moving as her companion.
A man they’d never seen before.
Dressed like a Mage.
Had such a person ever climbed the tower?
“……!!!”
That was when it happened.
Without warning, Kim Byung-han’s body convulsed violently, as though seized by madness.
And then.
Thud!
He dropped to both knees without ceremony.
Clasping his hands before him, he cried out as though standing before a god incarnate.
“Yes, yes, Prophet……!!!”

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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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