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There were others who sympathized with Alexander Dean’s resolution.

“Celestial gods, behold! This is a place surrounded by holy banners! Behold, now the mythical land, the ancient divine site, shall open! {By the strength of Surraz, the tyranny of Enuwalios, the victory of Bahram, the military authority of Inanna, and the honorable army of Mahesh’s Pure Land! Let us now punish the enemies before us!}”

Following Alexander Dean’s chain lightning spell, what unfolded next was the ultimate move of the Imperial Nun Knight, Hildegard Ritter von Wolfstein—’Pantheon.’ Her ‘Pantheon,’ the deployment of this sacred domain, was far more refined than the first time she had unleashed it.

Under the protection of multiple blessings, she borrowed the power of the Immovable King Wisdom Technique to deploy the most sacred domain. The celestial blessings bestowed within this domain granted unprecedented strength to the warriors who had arrived on the scene, from Plymouth to those who had earned the right to ascend the Beanstalk. Conversely, it began to impose near-crippling debuffs on the opposing giant soldiers.

Some giant soldiers, realizing Hildegard’s presence, began to show hostility, attempting to remove her. However, their hostility never truly reached its target.

“{Hmm!}”

A deep, resonant battle cry echoed like the tolling of a massive bell. Simultaneously, the pulsating muscles of a half-naked priest began to distort the surrounding landscape. Soon, the giant soldiers, startled by the sudden change, saw the priest’s muscular figure, which stood out starkly against the scenery.

An inexplicably bizarre pose, one that would never be seen under normal circumstances. The overly vivid outlines of his muscles, swelling and pulsating with each movement. Witnessing this, the giants’ hostility began to spiral out of control, driven by an irrational urge to eliminate the presence before them.

If Sophia had seen this, she might have described it as “resembling starlight being drawn into a black hole.” Conra, observing the familiar scene, smirked and soon regained the light in his eyes.

Regardless, reinforcements had arrived. Conra, who hadn’t expected support from Plymouth, considered this a truly unexpected boon. To him, hesitating to seize the opportunity immediately would be foolish.

With a battle cry, the reinforcements from Plymouth began to clash with the giant soldiers. Behind them, Esiocles and Hildegard led the charge. Feeling as if he had gained an army, Conra also took a step forward to fulfill his mission.

Lowering his stance and gripping his spear, Conra began to sprint toward the tower. Luck was on his side.

‘It’s weakened!’

For some reason, the sword aura and sword energy surrounding the tower had noticeably weakened. This allowed Conra to activate his boots’ abilities fully, and he let out a triumphant shout.

Mid-sprint, Conra’s figure leaped through space several times, appearing near the tower’s entrance in an instant.

The tower reacted immediately. Perhaps it sensed the intruder’s proximity? The sword energy and aura surrounding the tower began to churn violently, like a storm or whirlwind.

Facing this intangible onslaught, Conra laughed lightly.

“Too late, really.”

The minor sword energy posed no threat to Conra. Trusting only the condensed storm of intangible, martial, and meaningless power on his skin, the boy charged relentlessly toward the tower’s entrance. Moments later, he boldly passed through the entrance.

+++++

“By the way, there’s no door here?”

After entering the tower, Conra glanced back at the entrance.

{According to Jack O’Lantern’s chronicles, the Sky City did not install a separate door for the central tower where the Divine Sword was enshrined. After all, to enter the central tower, one had to first conquer the three preceding towers. Plus, as you just experienced, the process of entering the tower itself was perilous.}

“Indeed. Considering that the entrances of the other towers were all tied to dungeon gimmicks, it seems this tower’s entry process itself was treated as a gimmick.”

{That’s the impression.}

Through his conversation with Rugus-Artaeus, Conra speculated on the reason for the tower’s lack of a door and surveyed the interior.

The inside of the tower was quieter than expected. The structure was similar to the previous towers, but there were no tricky gimmicks. Despite being wide open, the absence of giants entering from outside made it feel even more serene and pristine.

This serene atmosphere extended to the process of ascending the tower.

It wasn’t exactly silent, but rather, it felt stripped of unnecessary distractions.

There were no obstacles from the entrance to the top. The only things present were humanoid marble golems on each floor, resembling unarmed giants.

After a few minor trials, Conra realized that to defeat the marble golems and proceed to the next floor, he needed to wield a sword, not a spear.

“Using the Divine Spear to destroy them only causes them to regenerate immediately. What a tricky opponent. And you must use a specific sword aura to pass? They could at least put up some instructions…”

{It’s a test thoroughly designed for swordsmen. Perhaps it was originally intended to select a giant to guard the Divine Sword at the tower’s summit.}

At Rugus-Artaeus’s explanation, Conra narrowed his eyes. Indeed, that would mean the tower’s boss, the giant guarding the Divine Sword, was a swordsman who had passed all the trials on these floors. Conra felt his blood boil, recalling his past martial arts duels with Karl Hector Meyer in the land of Yoseim.

Conra easily passed the trials on each floor. Though he was a spearman trained by his father in Erin’s spear techniques, he was also a swordsman who had learned the essence of Rotaringia’s sword arts from his mother, Kaliastra.

Moreover, his martial arts, taught by Sophia, were flexible and not bound by rigid forms. Wielding a sword like a spear and a spear like a sword was second nature to Conra. Drawing a sharp one-handed sword, he swiftly passed through five floors.

‘At least there’s some gain.’

In fact, he gained something incredibly valuable. The five sword auras required to defeat the marble golems. Conra realized that these five sword auras intertwined to create an infinite sword path. The giant guarding the Divine Sword at the boss floor likely wielded a sword technique based on these five auras.

Just grasping the possibility of a strategy made passing the marble golems’ trials meaningful.

After passing the fifth floor, Conra was greeted by the wide-open door to the boss room.

‘Now, just this last part.’

According to the legend of Jack O’Lantern told by Rugus-Artaeus, when he released the treasure—the Divine Sword—from the last tower, the city, having lost its concept of protection from the apocalypse, lost its buoyancy and fell to the ground, soon to be swallowed by the apocalypse outside the barrier.

Thus, if there was a clue to conquering the dungeon, it would lie beyond the artifact of the last tower. Passing through the corridor leading from the hallway to the boss room, the scenery of the boss room, similar to the previous three towers, came into view. The only difference was that this boss room resembled a swordsmanship dojo.

Well, the floors with the marble golems were similar too. Perhaps that was the tower’s essential nature. Thinking this, Conra carefully observed the training dummy standing in the center of the boss room.

There stood an armored giant. Resembling the giant soldiers outside but wearing armor designed for a master swordsman, the giant stood tall, leaning the tip of his massive sword on the ground.

The sword’s shape was so thick it almost resembled a shield. Conra, considering the possibility of shield techniques using the sword’s form, bowed his head slightly toward the opponent. As a martial artist skilled in both spear and sword, he showed respect to a worthy adversary.

{Jack O’Lantern’s tale, it has been a long time since a visitor from that day.}

“Indeed, do you remember the events before the apocalypse? The other giants don’t seem to recall.”

{It’s merely a difference in the accumulation of experience. In essence, I and they are no different. Ultimately, we are but illusions projected by the traces of an era.}

“Knowing all that, can I assume you also know what I must do next?”

{Of course. However, I cannot easily yield. Regardless of right or wrong, I am also a swordsman. I have never learned to yield in matters of the sword.}

If you have a goal, draw your weapon, defeat me, and pass over my corpse.

Facing the giant swordsman’s resolute stance, Conra bowed his head again and drew his weapon.

At that moment, the giant swordsman spoke again.

{I have a few questions for you.}

“I’m listening.”

This would be the final exchange. The giant swordsman asked Conra,

{What did you gain from the five floors you just passed?}

The five floors. The trials of the marble golems encountered while ascending the tower. Conra pondered and then answered.

“I witnessed the culmination of ancient sword arts.”

The five sword auras required to pass the golems. Each aura represented the essence of the sword arts developed and refined by the giant civilization from its birth to its apocalypse. Since the Bronze Age ultimately met its end, this could be seen as a kind of conclusion to the sword arts of that era.

The giant swordsman asked again,

{Is that so? Then what did you feel from it?}

“I felt the end of an ancient era and the future to be built upon it, that expectation.”

Hearing Conra’s thoughtful yet deeply intuitive and personal response, the giant swordsman slowly nodded and stroked his beard. A strange satisfaction was evident on his face. Perhaps he was pleased that the value he held more important than the survival of civilization had been achieved.

{Good. Then come.}

Satisfied with the boy’s answer, the giant lifted the great sword he had been leaning on and held it properly. A serene yet majestic aura began to fill the boss room. Facing this, Conra also adjusted his grip on his weapon.

Moments later, the duel between the two martial artists began in the center of the boss room.

 

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