June, on the other hand, didn't share his silent contemplation. She imdiately turned to Agema with suspicion. "Okay, so what exactly are we supposed to do in a place like that?"
Agema waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, don't worry too much. I doubt there are any ascended beings there."
June blinked. "I… wasn't even thinking about that, but now I'm worried."
Agema laughed, clearly enjoying their reactions. "Relax! I said I don't think there are any. But—since those monsters have been trapped for so long, there should be plenty of strong ones."
Arlon leaned forward slightly. "So that's why you're taking us there? To test ourselves?"
Agema nodded. "Exactly. You'll be facing monsters of all kinds, creatures that have been evolving in isolation, waiting for sothing—anything—to challenge them.
It's the perfect place for you to push your limits. And, of course, the experience points should be great."
June raised an eyebrow. "So you just conveniently don't know what's inside?"
Agema gave her an innocent look. "I wasn't interested in going before, so I never checked. Even I have my limits, you know."
Arlon, however, caught sothing off in her tone.
She wasn't lying exactly.
But she wasn't telling them everything, either.
Still, it didn't matter.
Even without knowing what was inside, this was an opportunity they couldn't pass up.
But then, Agema's expression turned a little more serious.
"There's sothing else you should know."
She glanced between the two of them.
"You won't be going in together."
Arlon narrowed his eyes. "What do you an?"
Agema smirked. "You'll be separated."
June imdiately straightened. "Wait, what?"
"I don't know the full chanics of the Tower, but I do know this—once you step inside, you'll be placed into different… let's call them dinsions."
She tapped her chin. "You might see the sa places, the sa floors, but you won't be able to interact with each other. No helping, no teamwork."
"So it's a solo challenge?" Arlon asked.
"More or less."
June frowned. "So even if we try to stay together, we'll just get separated?"
"Exactly." Agema shrugged. "If you're strong enough, it won't matter. If you're not, well…"
She trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid.
A test of strength.
A place filled with unknown monsters, all locked away for centuries.
And they would face it alone.
Arlon clenched his fist. Good.
This was exactly what he needed.
There was only one question he needed to ask before, though.
"What happens if we die inside the Tower?"
---
A cool breeze rustled through the leaves of the sparse trees, carrying the scent of earth and steel.
Three figures moved swiftly across the landscape, their footsteps light, their presence nearly undetectable.
Maria, as lively as ever, walked a few steps ahead, her hands clasped behind her back as she turned toward her two companions with a mischievous grin.
"Well, well, well. Look who's finally back on the field."
Carn, walking beside her, raised an eyebrow. "You an us?"
"No, dummy. June and Arlon." Maria stretched her arms. "They finally answered their ssages, which ans they're done hiding."
Evan simply shrugged. "Took them long enough."
Maria smirked. "Oh? Are you saying you missed them?"
Evan gave her a blank look. "Not really. But it was weird not seeing them at all for three months."
Carn nodded. "I guess they were training sowhere. Must've been intense if even June ignored all ssages."
Maria laughed. "You say that, but Arlon was probably the one forcing her to ignore us."
Carn smirked. "True. I bet she was dying to talk."
Maria giggled. "I guess we'll find out when we see them again."
Evan, as usual, didn't comnt much.
He had fought against Arlon before. He knew how strong he was. If he had been training for three months straight, then—
Evan pushed the thought aside. It didn't matter.
What mattered now was their own growth.
Maria suddenly turned toward Evan with a knowing smile.
"Speaking of important events—our little Evan finally turned eighteen last month!"
Carn's eyes widened slightly. "Oh, that's right!"
Evan blinked. "Yeah. So?"
Maria grinned. "So? That ans you can finally marry!"
Evan stared at her, unimpressed. "…What?"
Maria dramatically placed a hand over her heart. "I an, now that you're a legal adult, you can finally think about marriage! Have you prepared your proposal yet?"
Evan gave her a blank look. "Prepared for what?"
Carn, who had been sipping water from a flask, suddenly choked.
Maria cackled. "You're so hopeless, Evan. I swear, it's like romance just flies over your head!"
Evan narrowed his eyes. "I don't have ti for that."
Maria leaned toward Carn, stage-whispering, "See? This is why you have to step up your ga."
Carn turned bright red. "Maria!"
Maria snickered. "What? It's true. If you don't make a move, he'll be single forever."
Carn sighed. "Can we talk about sothing else?"
Maria relented—barely. "Fine, fine. Let's talk about your levels, then."
Evan, Carn, and Maria had been training nonstop since they separated from the others.
And the results showed.
Maria smirked. "So, Mr. Assassin, you're still ranked third on the leaderboard, huh?"
Evan nodded. "Yeah."
Carn raised an eyebrow. "You say that like it's nothing. You're right below Arlon and June."
Maria grinned. "Our little Evan is a rising star. Maybe he'll overtake June soon?"
Evan shrugged. "Doubt it. She was training with Arlon. She probably got stronger, too."
Maria pouted. "Tch. No confidence. What about you, Carn?"
Carn crossed her arms. "I'm 8th now."
Maria whistled. "Damn. Moving up in the world."
"And you?" Evan asked.
Maria grinned. "Oh, I'm sitting comfortably at 6th."
Evan nodded. It was impressive.
They had grown a lot in these past months, far beyond the average player.
Every once in a while, they had run into other players—so strong, so not.
Maria stretched her arms. "I swear, most of the players we t were so weak compared to us."
Carn nodded. "They don't train as hard as we do. And they're not as used to combat."
Evan, however, remained silent.
Because not all of the players they t were weak.
Maria's grin faded slightly. "Well… not all of them were weak. So were just on the wrong side."
Carn's expression darkened. "Yeah."
Evan glanced at them. "The ones who defected."
The players who had sided with the Keldars.
Maria's usual playfulness disappeared as she sighed. "I still can't believe there are idiots who actually chose to fight for them."
Carn clenched her fists. "It's disgusting."
Evan, however, simply stated the facts. "We killed them."
A heavy silence followed.
It wasn't just monsters they had fought.
It wasn't just Keldars.
It was other players—humans who had chosen to betray their own kind.
Maria clicked her tongue. "And they don't even realize what they're doing."
Carn's voice was quieter. "They will soon."
Maria let out a slow breath. "Speaking of realizing things… have you two seen the forums?"
Carn nodded. "Yeah. People are starting to ask the real questions."
Evan remained silent, but he had seen it too.
There were too many coincidences.
Too many strange things happening.
Maria tapped her fingers against her hip. "First, there's the whole thing where people who die to the other side can't log back in and their Zeno breaks down."
Maria sighed. "Exactly. So people on Earth are starting to think this is real."
Evan stayed quiet.
Because they weren't wrong.
Maria shrugged. "Honestly? I don't really care if people figure it out."
Carn didn't respond imdiately.
Then, in a quiet voice, she said—"I do."
Maria turned to her, startled.
And in that mont, she understood.
Carn had struggled more than anyone when she learned the truth.
Killing monsters had been one thing.
But accepting that they were living beings—even the unintelligent ones—
Let alone intelligent enemies…
Maria exhaled.
She placed a hand on Carn's shoulder.
"I get it."
Carn didn't respond.
Evan glanced between them but said nothing.
They all knew what was coming.
It was only a matter of ti.
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