Chapter 36 of 100

Chapter 36

10 min read2,497 words

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The only thing possible for me in this world

The Tower of Mystery.

Its official name is the Chamber of Mystery.

It is a place where countless monsters enter to obtain a 'mystery' suitable for themselves.

For monsters that have entered Kramdel, it is a place they pass through at least once, just like the hot springs.

“Do you know why there are so many monsters in Kramdel wearing helmets of the same color?”

“······?”

Isaac, leaning against the wall of the tower, spoke to Isabella.

When Isabella looked at him, Isaac tapped the wall of the tower with his right hand.

“The class is determined by the mystery obtained inside, they say.”

“Really?”

“······ Really? Your words are a bit short, aren’t they?”

“You are the second servant.”

“So, you are the first servant?”

Nod!

Isaac was taken aback when Isabella, with her expressionless face, nodded.

“Should I call you senior?”

“No.”

“Do you not want to talk to me?”

“Keep talking.”

Keep talking, he said.

It seems she is curious.

That crow, the Seongjagja, is strange, but this woman is no less strange.

‘Strange. I thought my charm would work on any humanoid female, regardless of species.’

Isaac is fully self-aware.

Objectively, he is handsome.

His charm overflows.

There is no female who does not fall for his charm.

Humanoid females, regardless of species.

Yet the woman in front of him was so cold, radiating a chill.

‘Her eyes, like those looking down on an inferior. The eyes of a queen.’

But Isaac sees through everything about women.

Isabella’s eyes are those of a queen who will never bend.

She has a unique aura that only those who have ruled and governed can possess.

‘That’s why it’s even stranger. She’s not the type to bow to a mere corpse crow.’

The ruler is being ruled.

By a mere corpse crow.

She has completely submitted. Yet her temperament has not died. She will show the same eyes to everyone except the self-proclaimed Seongjagja.

“So, did you also make a one-year service pact?”

“Something like that.”

“What did you receive?”

“Freedom.”

“Freedom?”

Nod.

Isabella had already gained freedom the moment she left the desert.

But it was not complete freedom.

She wanted to know her lineage, her place of origin.

To achieve this, she made a one-year service contract with the Seongjagja.

‘She is gathering people. People who will serve her for a year. What criteria does she use?’

Isaac crossed his arms.

She came to him out of the blue, speaking as if she knew everything. She must have known he was in Kramdel from the start.

But no one knew him so well. He had never even mentioned his background.

‘Does she really know everything because she is a Seongjagja?’

He has no idea.

He can’t even get a sense of it.

The reason she came to him, the task she wants him to do.

What is certain is that she is looking for someone who yearns for freedom.

‘That look. She wants me to keep talking.’

Isabella was looking at Isaac without saying a word.

The silent pressure to continue speaking.

She is more curious than he thought.

“······ Anyway, it’s said that the mysteries obtained vary depending on the species. Most lower species like goblins get insignificant mysteries, so they wear white worker helmets.”

“Black helmets?”

“That’s the color for guides. Monsters who have obtained the mystery to see hidden paths usually wear black helmets. Blue is for the upper class who manage workers.”

“What about other colors?”

“Red is for the managers of Kramdel. They are quite powerful in Kramdel, like the noble class in human society. The higher ruling class wears a crown shaped like a tooth, which can be considered the royal family of Kramdel.”

“Like humans.”

Humans and monsters have a clear distinction between the ruling and the ruled.

Yet the reason monsters keep trying to belong to Kramdel is simple.

Fragments of evolution and the goddess’s hot spring water.

What is given to most guests and what is given to Kramdel’s servants are of entirely different qualities.

Isaac shrugged.

“Like humans.”

Monsters in other places are not like this.

Only in Kramdel, only the monsters that have gathered in Kramdel, are they like this.

Isaac slowly turned around and looked up at the tower.

‘What kind of mystery is he trying to obtain by entering?’

Human mysteries and monster mysteries are different.

Their meanings and uses are different.

Human mysteries are merely proof of position or auxiliary abilities.

For example, the generic mysteries obtained by becoming the ruler of a city or the owner of a guild.

Simple flashy effects that can be bought from a mystic.

‘Human and monster mysteries are definitely different.’

Human mysteries are not significant.

That’s why humans don’t place much importance on mysteries.

But a monster’s mystery is equivalent to its qualifications.

The mysteries obtained and used vary depending on the species and the inherent rank of the monster.

Yet the corpse crow entered the Chamber of Mystery.

‘The corpse crow is at best a mid-level species. The mystery it can obtain won’t be much...’

Even if it reaches the end of the chamber, the mystery it can obtain, by human standards, would be great, but by monster standards, it would be insignificant.

If it came to Kramdel to work, it would immediately get a white worker helmet.

With good luck, a blue upper-class helmet.

A red manager helmet requires a high-level mystery and formidable power.

The higher ruling class is practically impossible to achieve.

‘Special monsters possess special mysteries.’

In the world of monsters, a mystery is like a lion’s mane.

Who has the more lush mane. That’s how mysteries are judged.

Monsters of high-value species like mythic and fantasy species are said to receive legendary-level mysteries from the chamber, but this has not been confirmed.

In any case.

‘At best, it can only obtain an amplification mystery like the eye of a corpse.’

Monsters tend to obtain mysteries related to their species’ characteristics.

The corpse crow is a species with a curse characteristic.

It is highly likely to obtain a mystery that amplifies curses.

At best, it would be a mid-level mystery.

Like the Medusa’s, obtaining a mystery that affects the entire Kramdel is impossible for a corpse crow.

Rumble!

Then.

“The tower...?”

The ground began to shake along with the tower.

The changes didn’t stop there.

“G, golden...!”

Isaac was too stunned to finish his sentence.

The tower was suddenly turning golden.

But this was the first time he had seen such a phenomenon in Kramdel.

“What’s happening?”

“The tower is enraged!”

The surrounding monsters were also surprised.

Many monsters were climbing the tower or waiting in line for their turn.

When the unexpected phenomenon occurred, everyone was shocked.

“The tower is giving a direct trial to a challenger!”

A monster in the form of a black goat trembled and said.

This made the surrounding murmurs even louder.

“The tower?”

“Has this ever happened before?”

“Is a powerful being that can make the tower give a direct trial entering?”

“Could it be... the Minotaur King who just entered?”

“It must be the young fantasy species that entered a while ago.”

“What are you talking about? It must be Leviathan, of course.”

Each one offered their own theory, focusing on the current phenomenon.

The owner of the tower was giving a direct trial to someone who had entered.

But many had entered the tower. If a special trial was given to one of them, who was the target of the trial? Opinions were divided.

Isaac shook his head inwardly.

‘No way...’

The timing is strange.

It happened as soon as he entered.

Could it be that self-proclaimed Seongjagja?

No. Isaac shook his head.

After all, the tower would not give a direct trial to a mere corpse crow.

Swoosh.

The moment the tower turned golden, Medusa, the Queen of the Gate, who was sitting on her throne, reacted.

The snakes that had been sleeping with her began to move, flicking their tongues.

“Medusa...!”

“How many years has it been since she moved!”

The serpents, much smaller in size but similar in form to Medusa, cheered at her movement.

Medusa had been focusing solely on recovery for years, trying to heal the wounds she sustained after ‘that incident’.

Swoosh. Swoosh.

The serpents’ movements became busier.

They were continuously drenching Medusa’s body with the hot spring water containing the tears of a high goddess.

A monster of her exalted rank could not be healed by ordinary means.

But Medusa’s reaction was extremely brief.

‘Someone must have opened the Chamber of Mythic Mysteries.’

The Chamber of Mythic Mysteries had been opened twice before Kramdel was named.

Once by the White King.

The other time by a radiant golden dragon.

The White King succeeded in breaking through the Chamber of Mythic Mysteries, but the golden dragon met a tragic death after failing.

‘It hasn’t been opened since then.’

The Chamber of Mystery is a place where mysteries are granted to monsters.

But the Chamber of Mystery is thoroughly selective of species.

Only a dragon that transcended all species or a being like the White King could open the mythic-level chamber.

So, is someone similar to those two challenging the chamber?

‘They won’t succeed anyway.’

Even the radiant golden dragon met its end.

The White King also failed.

The Chamber of Mythic Mysteries continuously gives impossible trials based on the species and the challenger’s rank.

The White King, the guardian deity of the north, obtained immense power and a corresponding mystery by challenging the Chamber of Mythic Mysteries, but he could not reach the end.

-This mythic trial has no end. It is designed that way.

The White King himself evaluated it, so there is no room for disagreement.

Therefore, she is certain.

They won’t succeed anyway.

But just in case, she kept an eye on the sky above the Tower of Mystery.

She needed to keep an eye on the changes in the tower.

Caw!

Two corpse crows flying in the sky.

I looked down at the cliff below, sharing their vision.

‘Amazing.’

The moment I reached the Chamber of Mythic Mysteries, I witnessed an unbelievable sight.

Clank.

Clank, clank!

It was an endless procession of skeleton soldiers.

There must have been at least ten thousand of them.

‘Am I supposed to kill all of them alone?’

The problem is that this is just the beginning.

Of course, there is a silver lining.

【Lv.4】

All the skeleton soldiers are level 4.

They are ordinary monsters, but there are ten thousand of them.

If they were the same level, I could kill at most a few dozen.

‘I’m lucky I’m not an ordinary level 4.’

My level is 4, but it far exceeds the standard of 4.

Every time my level increases, all my stats max out, and they are 1.2 times higher.

If all my stats are 48, it’s equivalent to a 6-7 level monster.

Not only that.

I have a star, which adds 5 to all my stats.

This means I can face a 7-level monster on average.

‘I would have been in trouble if my level was higher.’

If my level was 10?

A level 10 skeleton soldier is not an ordinary skeleton soldier.

It would use skills and imbue its bones with magic, turning them into sword auras.

It would be like facing ten thousand swordsmen who can use sword auras.

It’s better that my level is low.

I was cursing the excessive experience needed, but maybe this is a blessing in disguise.

Clank! Clank!

The skeleton soldiers were advancing up the cliff.

If I stayed still, I would be crushed by their numbers.

“Rise, caw!”

With a shout, I chose a target and activated a skill. The corpse crow circling in the sky dove vertically and entered the body of a skeleton soldier.

Clank!

The corpse crow is a level 4 boss monster.

It can easily control an ordinary level 4 skeleton soldier.

“Combine, caw!”

And the king of corpse crows can make the corpse more beautiful.

He is an artist of corpses.

The corpse crow controlling the skeleton soldier began to control the surrounding skeletons one after another.

After I added my power, the controlled skeleton soldiers merged, transforming into a giant golem-like being.

The two corpse crows connect the skeleton soldiers, and I control them.

‘Corpse control, the art of corpses.’

These are skills I can use after becoming the king of corpse crows.

There are no better skills for overcoming this trial.

“Destroy them all, caw!”

Boom!

How many hours have I been fighting?

...

The proficiency keeps increasing endlessly.

In a way, it’s natural.

The hidden characteristic I possess, ‘Handiness,’ not only adds +1 to the proficiency of all skills and equipment but also increases skill experience at an incredibly fast rate.

Especially in such extreme situations.

Just as I was getting tired of the endless waves of skeleton soldiers.

Caw!

Before I knew it, seven corpse crows were flying around me.

Skill level 7. If I reach level 10 and summon ten, a transcendence phenomenon will occur.

But the joy from the skill level increases is only 1% of the happiness I feel now.

“Caw!”

On top of the mountain of broken skeletons, I shouted with all my might.

‘I won!’

Finally, I broke through the wall of ten thousand.

These annoying guys!

If I wasn’t the king of corpse crows, I wouldn’t have been able to eliminate even half of them.

Now, even the cries of the corpse crows sound endearing.

《You have cleared the trial of ‘Species Barrier’.》

《As a reward, you can obtain the mythic-level mystery ‘Overlord’.》

《Do you wish to obtain it?》

《If you do not obtain it, you will move on to the next trial.》

Is this not the end?

The name of the mystery I’ve never seen before.

This means I can leave if I get it!

‘A mythic-level mystery is more than enough, no matter what it is.’

A mythic-level mystery used by monsters is an insurmountable wall.

No matter what it is, it must have an incredible effect.

I have no more strength to fight.

I can’t move a single step.