Chapter 211
“The Tower’s trial has been readjusted.”
“Looks like someone found a hidden piece.”
“…Good. The Illusion Lord was nothing but a nuisance.”
The 13th floor of the Tower.
The Kirin Clan members each chimed in.
They were the ones who had reached the highest floors of the Tower, but the Illusion Lord in front of them suddenly vanished.
[Someone has completely annihilated the Illusion Lord!]
[The Tower’s trial will be readjusted.]
[Ancient Bengalodon has appeared.]
An Ancient Bengalodon with immunity traits had appeared in its place.
It was sudden, but fortunate.
Dealing with the Illusion Lord that appeared after the 12th floor had been harder than expected.
Its legion grew stronger with every floor, and even projections of the Kirin Clan themselves began appearing one by one.
While they were stuck on the 15th floor, struggling, the trial itself changed.
“It’s practically a trial made for us.”
“Ha. To think it’d be replaced with a mere Bengalodon.”
“Our Mystique has nothing to do with that lazy beast’s immunity.”
The Bengalodon was no match for them.
From the start, the Kirin Clan stood at the apex of all beasts, and the Mystique they wielded was on a level entirely different from magic or swordsmanship.
And they weren’t ordinary Kirin Clan members.
They were mid-level warriors dispatched to recover the Kirin Clan’s Tradition, hidden somewhere within this Tower Of God.
With the trial readjusted, they were able to climb even faster.
But they weren’t just climbing.
“There’s a regularity to this Tower.”
“Looks like there are multiple rooms on the same floor.”
“And depending on the score, you ascend to a specific room.”
In that instant, the three Kirin Clan members’ thoughts connected.
It was one of the reasons the Kirin Clan was feared among the Twelve Species.
As the Mystique Clan, they used techniques completely unlike other species—linking life, souls, thoughts, and perspectives.
The moment they connected, they could see and think from multiple angles at once, strengthening every other aspect of themselves.
Even as they climbed the Tower Of God, the three of them remained constantly connected.
Thanks to that, they could keep analyzing the Tower without ever slowing their ascent.
“How many rooms are there per floor?”
“The trials seem to run slightly differently in each room.”
“It’s not just the trials. Even the installed rules differ, just a little.”
Every time they advanced, they tested and recorded patterns.
One thing was clear.
Based on evaluation criteria, including clear grade, they would be sent into a more superior room.
Superior and inferior rooms differed not only in difficulty, but in rules.
For example, Ancient Bengalodon appeared in every room, but—
“In the superior room, the remaining time is shorter, and it can have two immunity traits.”
“The inferior room only has one immunity trait.”
“And the rewards in the superior room are far more valuable.”
It was a conclusion drawn from repeated experiments.
The Kirin Clan were cautious by nature—tapping even a stone bridge before crossing—and their curiosity ran just as deep.
The Tower Of God was more than enough to stimulate it.
Even on the same floor, there were three room tiers: inferior, intermediate, and superior.
Naturally, the superior room offered the best rewards.
In particular, Superior Spirit Stone only appeared there.
But clearing it was that much harder.
“Still, this Tower doesn’t seem to welcome us.”
“It feels like it’s deliberately forcing us to run into other representatives of the Twelve Species.”
“Does the Tower have a will?”
There was another problem.
While climbing, the Kirin Clan had encountered representatives of the Twelve Species twice.
Once, they passed by.
The other time, they sent them off to the afterlife in battle.
It proved that quite a few of the Twelve Species had entered this Tower Of God, but the Kirin Clan couldn’t shake the sense that the Tower itself had intervened.
Was it because it was built on Earth, a world where humans were the masters?
It either did not welcome other species—or it was deliberately arranging collisions between the Twelve Species through patterns they had yet to uncover.
But that also meant that some of the Twelve Species had taken a strong interest in the Tower Of God.
The fortunate part was that no species had fully committed its top forces yet.
In other words, they were still testing the waters.
Losing a top warrior was a massive blow, and for the sake of the upcoming Species War, those forces had to be preserved.
The three Kirin Clan members stroked their chins in unison.
“This Tower is thoroughly balanced.”
“Did this happen because the balance between the Twelve Species and humans was disrupted?”
“Or maybe all the superior rooms are connected.”
So they waited.
They climbed to the 19th floor and tested whether other Twelve Species would catch up.
In the meantime, a trivial exchange slipped out.
“…Surely the Dragon Clan hasn’t entered the Tower.”
“Those who deny god inside the Tower Of God?”
“Haha. Isn’t their only god Dragon God Sephiro?”
The Kirin Clan shook their heads inwardly.
There was still no trace of the Dragon Clan.
As a proud species, they wouldn’t bother setting foot in a place called the Tower Of God.
Their only god was Dragon God Sephiro, and they acknowledged no other.
For that same reason, it seemed unlikely they’d take interest in a tower bearing the name of “god.”
After a short wait…
They met them.
The Dragon Clan had appeared.
And, of all dragons—
‘Black Dragon Ataraxia…!’
‘The Dragon Clan sent a top Ancient Dragon?’
‘If it’s Black Dragon Ataraxia, he’s one of the warriors they deploy in the Species War!’
It was Black Dragon Ataraxia of the Tribe of Despair.
They knew the moment they saw him.
Among the Twelve Species, it was impossible not to know.
Black Dragon Ataraxia had appeared in the Species War multiple times, a powerhouse with an almost undefeated record.
The Dragon Clan always contended for first or second place.
If he was one of their top warriors, he was a target to avoid at all costs.
However—
“Is he alone?”
“It looks like he’s run out of mana.”
“Even if he transforms into his true form, he can’t handle all three of us at once.”
It was a golden opportunity.
Black Dragon Ataraxia was visibly weakened.
He must have burned too much mana while climbing the Tower.
‘…We can do this.’
They could kill the Dragon Clan’s top warrior.
That single thought was enough to make the three Kirin Clan members’ blood run hot.
In the last Species War, the Kirin Clan had placed third.
If they killed Black Dragon Ataraxia and exploited the resulting gap, they could push for second—or even higher.
Becoming the strongest species had been their long-cherished desire.
If the odds rose by even one percent, they had to seize it.
And if they consumed his heart, they could become top warriors themselves.
“…What safety are you youngsters talking about so recklessly?”
Black Dragon Ataraxia’s voice rumbled.
Their assessment wasn’t wrong.
He had expended a great deal of mana dealing with the Dusk Clan brats.
And the Kirin Clan before him were nothing like those brats—real warriors he couldn’t face without assuming his true form.
‘Three Kirin Clan members.’
Black Dragon Ataraxia tensed inwardly.
Why had the Kirin Clan sent three mid-level warriors?
He already knew the answer.
– “It is best to avoid three Kirin Clan members gathered together.”
It was a saying well-known among the Twelve Species.
The Kirin Clan were strongest when three gathered, their bond letting them draw out power beyond their level.
In other words, the three before him could be comparable to—or stronger than—Black Dragon Ataraxia in his current state.
That was when it happened.
“Ataraxia. I allow you to transform into your true form.”
Those welcome words came from the Great One.
In that instant, a smile spread across Black Dragon Ataraxia’s lips.
“…I obey, Your Highness.”
Finally.
A chance to show Sephiro the power of his true self.
Wasn’t this the perfect moment to display the Dragon Clan’s dignity before the three?
He couldn’t dare betray that expectation.
“……?!”
“There was one more?”
“Could it be Absolute Magic?”
The three Kirin Clan members stiffened in shock.
They couldn’t believe there was another presence.
Linked as they were, they should have perceived every angle—what was hidden, what was concealed, what could not be seen—through the Kirin Clan’s Mystique.
Even a Wish User shouldn’t have been able to slip past their sight.
Yet they hadn’t sensed anything.
If they hadn’t known, there was only one explanation.
Absolute Magic.
Absolute magic that even Ancient Dragons like Black Dragon Ataraxia could not use.
As far as the world knew, only the First Dragons—Primordial Dragons—and Sephiro could wield it.
Then did that mean the human who had appeared was a First Dragon, or Sephiro himself?
Meanwhile, Park Chan-woo stared at them, swallowing his greed.
‘A Kirin’s horn. An item worth a fortune.’
Like a dragon’s heart, a Kirin’s horn was a material overflowing with Mystique, incomparable to anything else.
Refined into medicine and consumed, it became an elixir on par with Arkham’s Life Water.
Forged into equipment, it could grant a special Mystique effect.
Not only that, it had immense value in Magical Engineering as well.
‘It can even be used as golem material.’
A material he absolutely wanted.
In the past, he couldn’t even dream of obtaining it.
Kirin rarely appeared alone; they moved in groups, and dealing with them required an entire host of strongmen.
But Park Chan-woo was a thorough outsider.
He wasn’t suited to asking others for help or fighting alongside them, and no one wanted him at their side either.
Naturally, the Kirin’s horn had been nothing but a fantasy.
But now, it was different.
Now, Black Dragon Ataraxia stood beside him.
“Kirin Clan whelps, I’ll show you.”
Black Dragon Ataraxia’s voice sank low.
“The true power of the Dragon Clan.”
…And he began to transform into his true form.