Chapter 45
《You have selected the ‘Orc Master Kankun’ faction.》
《Climb the tower with ‘Orc Master Kankun’.》
《TIP: Placing relics on the ‘display altar’ will strengthen ‘Orc Master Kankun’.》
《Relics to be placed on the display altar can be obtained by clearing the many trials within the tower.》
《Those who place relics will have the opportunity to become ‘Orc Master Kankun’s close aides. Additional rewards will be granted upon clearing each floor.》
《You can display up to 10 relics.》
《Each floor contains a ‘Floor Guardian’.》
《The ‘Floor Guardian’ is extremely powerful.》
《Assist ‘Orc Master Kankun’ in hunting the Floor Guardian.》
《Upon reaching Floor 10, ‘Orc Master Kankun’ and ‘Death Witch Adora’ will battle.》
《Only the victorious faction may advance to Floor 11.》
The moment the faction was selected—
Orc Master Kankun’s voice echoed in their minds.
—Witch Adora! You slaughtered my tribe! I’ll tear you to pieces!
A voice seething with rage.
And then, a new vision unfolded before their eyes.
A crimson-skinned orc, easily three times larger than a normal orc—Kankun.
And a white-skinned witch with violet hair—Adora.
The two titans clashed on an open wasteland.
KRAAA-BOOM!
The earth crumbled. The heavens shook.
Overwhelming power—enough to make even high-ranking demons flinch.
There was no victor.
It was a deadlock.
Adora wielded death magic. Kankun unleashed blade energy, showcasing the pinnacle of swordsmanship. Their clash was breathtaking.
But in the end, both sustained critical injuries and collapsed unconscious.
When Kankun reopened his eyes, he was on Floor 1 of the [Tower of Arrogance].
—Warriors, climb the tower with me and slay the Death Witch Adora! But… my wounds are deep. Heal me first. Only relics can mend these wounds.
Ding!
《Death Witch Adora’s death magic is eroding ‘Orc Master Kankun’s’ life.》
《Place relics on the altar’s display to heal ‘Orc Master Kankun’.》
《If you do not completely erase the death magic within the next 23 hours and 52 minutes, ‘Orc Master Kankun’ will die.》
《If Kankun dies, the climb of the ‘Tower of Arrogance’ ends.》
《Current relics displayed on the altar: 3》
《Death magic weakened by 13%》
The wounds from the battle with Adora—
They still hadn’t healed.
The death magic imbued in them could only be removed by relics.
And that magic wasn’t easily undone.
Even with decent relics, it was nearly impossible to dispel.
‘If even one of them dies, the climb ends.’
The highest record in Tower of Arrogance history was Floor 8.
Because Kankun had died, ending the climb prematurely.
To ascend, both Orc Master Kankun and Death Witch Adora had to reach Floor 10 safely.
If either perished, the tower would vanish, and all challengers would be forcefully returned to the entrance.
‘The problem is Kankun. He’s as fragile as a damn paper fish.’
Park Chan-woo stroked his chin.
The Tower of Arrogance was an interesting subject.
He remembered gathering a lot of information about it back in the day.
What amused him was how, unlike Adora’s faction, those who sided with Kankun had nothing but complaints about him.
—Is this guy really an Orc Master? Why is he such a crybaby?
—Gets a scratch, says he can’t move. Walks a little, says his legs hurt. I nearly died from the stress.
—You have to kiss his ass just to get him to face a floor guardian.
—It started on Floor 1. Won’t even budge unless all death magic is cleansed.
—They say Adora healed herself on her own. Now that’s impressive.
—Tch! Good luck with your life, Kankun! Don’t ever show up again!
The sentiment was unanimous.
Without exception, everyone badmouthed Kankun.
Some even said reaching Floor 8 was a miracle.
‘It’s not just a Kankun problem. Adora’s side just had too many monsters.’
But it wasn’t entirely Kankun’s fault.
Adora’s side was simply stacked with overwhelming talent.
Most of the powerful figures Park Chan-woo remembered had aligned with ‘Adora’.
The reason was obvious.
Orcs were stubborn and hard to communicate with.
Plus, their contractors—the [Creators]—had probably given advice.
Death Witch.
A being whose name alone screamed power.
And fear.
While [Creators] couldn’t directly intervene in the Tower of Arrogance, they could still offer advice to their [Contractors].
‘Most Incarnations probably sided with Adora.’
That included Han Shin and other top-tier Incarnations.
That was why Park Chan-woo chose to join Lim Chang-yeol.
At least he wasn’t an Incarnation.
And Park Chan-woo knew full well what would happen if the Seoul Union bet on Kankun and lost.
‘Kankun and Adora matter, but the tower itself is the real challenge.’
When Kankun died on Floor 8, fewer than 1% of challengers had reached that far.
Most either gave up on the lower floors or were forced to retreat.
The number of people who had reached Floor 10 to witness the Kankun vs. Adora battle? Probably less than 0.1%.
Maybe even zero.
That’s how infamous the [Tower of Arrogance] was.
‘I have to strengthen Kankun as much as possible.’
Kankun was a whiner.
But someone called Orc Master couldn’t possibly be that cowardly.
Rather, it was likely he had a very clear understanding of his condition.
‘Kankun simply doesn’t want to fight Adora. He believes if they fight again, he’ll lose.’
The death magic left Kankun terrified.
In short—
Overwhelming strength.
Only powerful relics could restore Kankun’s confidence.
“…Seems everyone’s here. Let’s go meet Kankun.”
Tower Floor 1.
It was a vast, open plain.
In the distance stood a colossal altar, and beside it, Orc Master Kankun leaned heavily.
As the full party of fifty members from the Seoul Union was summoned, Lim Chang-yeol led them toward Kankun.
Then Kankun turned his head.
《Kankun’s status has been updated.》
Affiliation: Planet Aion / Orc / Red Claw Tribe
Class: Swordmaster (Lv. 83)
Name: Kankun
Age: 85
Gender: Male
Height/Weight: 271 cm / 475.7 kg
Level: 83
Strength (281+10)
Stamina (315+13)
Agility (228+17)
Intelligence (98)
Magic (55)
Total Attack Power: 9,620
Total Defense Power: 9,880
Applied Relics (3):
Lesser Relic of Strength (+10 STR)
Lesser Relic of Stamina (+13 STA)
Lesser Relic of Agility (+17 AGI)
Status Ailment: Affected by [Death Magic] and is dying. Stronger relics are needed to cleanse the Death Magic. (13% cleansed. Time remaining: 23h 44m)
The moment they saw his gaze—
Everyone froze.
‘…He’s strong.’
‘Level 83?’
‘Those stats are insane…’
‘He’s huge…’
He looked like he could blow them all away just by exhaling.
His overwhelming presence froze the entire group in place.
‘Even with higher stats than this, he died on the 8th floor…’
Park Chan-woo’s thoughts turned grim.
Level 83.
Swordmaster class and the status of Orc Master—he was clearly one of the apex monsters.
And even without any equipment, his stat screen was monstrous.
During the previous Floor 8 climb, he had been even stronger—and still failed.
Just how terrifying would Floors 9 and 10 be?
“New warriors, I see…”
Still leaning against the altar, Kankun spoke in a lifeless, monotone voice.
“Looks like you’re all worthless.”
He sighed.
He could tell at a glance—none of them looked capable of helping him against Adora.
Kankun waved his hand.
“Fetch relics. If you cleanse this Death Magic for me, I’ll take care of the rest. You’ll earn glory as vast as the stars.”
Would he really?
In the past, Kankun never “took care of the rest.”
He only moved when coaxed and pleaded with.
Sniff, sniff.
Just then, Kankun’s nose twitched, and he tilted his head.
“…Wait. Someone among you smells like a warrior.”
Rumble.
Kankun stood up to his full height.
Then began walking, his massive body moving straight toward Lim Chang-yeol.
But he passed him without stopping.
Gulp—
No one could move.
Even just standing near Kankun made it hard to breathe.
Finally, Kankun stopped.
“You. The one with the strong warrior’s scent.”
…Park Chan-woo.
He stopped directly in front of him.
Kankun lowered his head and looked into Park Chan-woo’s eyes.
‘The souls of the orcs are with him.’
Kankun saw it.
The countless spirits that followed Park Chan-woo.
Han Shin’s last arrangement, obtained in the Beast God Dungeon.
The [Myriad Blood Elixir] forged from the blood of ten thousand orcs.
Had he merely consumed it, he would’ve been consumed by their grudges and perished.
But the spirits walking with Park Chan-woo were not resentful phantoms—they were luminous warrior souls.
The spirits of High Priest Yan and ten thousand orc warriors.
Even the altar’s blessing accompanied him.
Which meant—
‘If he walks with orc blessings, he’s trustworthy.’
This human was a friend to orcs.
The only one in this tower.
…A warrior Kankun could trust.
《Favor with ‘Kankun’ has increased by 125.》
《The higher your favor with ‘Kankun’, the more likely he is to grant your requests.》
《You may even succeed him as the next ‘Swordmaster’ if your favor rises high enough.》
《★Increase favor with ‘Kankun’ to obtain hidden rewards.》
《‘Kankun’ and ‘Adora’ possess the most unique treasures in the Tower of Arrogance.》
“Warrior! Magic is the most disgusting thing in the world. A witch who uses magic deserves nothing but death. Do you agree with Kankun?”
Kankun asked, his voice heavy.
This was the final test.
Even if one was a friend of the orcs and a warrior—if their ideals differed, they could not stand together.
This was Kankun offering Park Chan-woo a rare chance to walk at his side.
To increase favor with Kankun, the obvious answer was to agree.
But there was no hesitation.
Park Chan-woo replied, short and clear.
“I do not agree.”
* * * * * *
(T/N: I’m alive! 😂 Just dropping in with a quick update. Still not back to a regular upload schedule, but I’ll be uploading at least 5 chapters per series every week, in order based on the most recent series I picked up. No fixed days yet, but I’ll keep the bulk uploads coming as best as I can!)
