[Ignite!]
Flames erupted from Iolca's hands, exploding simultaneously.
While Skeletons take almost no damage from pure flames, the physical impact of the explosion is another matter. Several skeletons caught in the fiery blast shattered, splinters of bone flying.
"These skeletons are a pain!"
Jena's roundhouse kick struck a skeleton's ribs.
Not missing the opening, Aaron swung his spear shaft and shattered the creature.
Though neither strong nor agile, Skeletons have a few strengths.
They take almost no damage from piercing attacks. Normal arrows or daggers were useless. And they possessed near-immunity-level resistance to pure elemental forces like simple heat or cold.
Of course, their weaknesses were just as stark as their strengths.
They were absurdly weak to striking attacks.
Using my shield more than my sword, I smashed the approaching skeletons one after another.
Thwack!
A skeleton tumbled.
Stomping its neck vertebrae with my heel, its entire frame collapsed into scattered bones.
Honestly, they're only a nuisance when mixed with other monsters. Alone, they aren't much of a threat. Before long, all 14 skeletons lay defeated on the ground.
[Stage Clear!]
[Han(★★) Leveled Up!]
[Reward – 30,000G, Iron Ore(C) X 3, Fine Bone Powder]
[MVP - Han(★★)]
It's been a while since I leveled up.
'Status Window.'
[Han Israt(★★) Lv. 11(Exp 24/110)]
[Class: Novice]
[Strength: 27/27]
[Intelligence: 10/10]
[Stamina: 25/25]
[Agility: 25/25]
[Owned Skills: Low-Grade Sword & Shield Arts(Lv.6), Projectile Defense(Lv.1), Fire Resistance(Lv.2) Pain Tolerance(Lv.3), Calmness(Lv.3), Berserk(Lv.1), Horsemanship(Lv.1)]
Strength +2, Stamina +2, Agility +2. Intelligence unchanged.
Total growth value of 6, comparable to a high-tier 3-star. Even if this growth rate doesn't persist, it's an encouraging result.
But I wasn't particularly happy.
Returning to the Waiting Room, we arrived back at the square.
Jena stretched widely then headed towards the lodgings.
I gave a small laugh and said,
"Where are you going?"
"Just going to rest a bit."
Jena stopped after a short distance and turned back to me with an awkward smile.
"Ahaha, I'll be right back. The schedule isn't over yet."
True enough. The training schedule wasn't finished. Final sparring and wrap-up remained.
I looked up at the lit sky. Then turned my head towards Jena and said,
"Training's over for today. Go rest."
"...Really?"
"If you don't want to, you can keep going."
"No, no! Then I'll go first!"
Jena dashed off towards the lodgings.
Was she worried I'd change my mind?
Iolca also cautiously glanced my way before heading into the lodgings.
Normally, I'd grab them by the scruff of the neck and drag them back, but this time, I let it slide.
Aaron, however, was still heading towards the training center.
"You're not going?"
"I'm fine. I promised Usher I'd spar."
"Alright."
I was left alone in the square.
I sat on a bench in the corner and slowly watched what Amkena did next.
Took out the spare 1-stars and put them into the Daily Dungeon, then issued orders to process the clear rewards and materials obtained from the Daily Dungeon—turning branches into planks, torn leather into tanned leather, iron ore into iron ingots. And then sent a sub-party composed of a few 1-stars to a lower floor, and that was it.
The measure I hoped for never occurred.
After Amkena logged off.
I went into my room in the lodgings and sat leaning against the headboard of the bed.
"Isel."
[Present!]
"You appear pretty quickly when called."
[Ahem, naturally.]
Isel cleared her throat and puffed out her chest.
[So, what is it?]
"There's something I want to know."
[Something you want to know? What I can answer is...]
"You're not going to say it's limited, are you? I already heard almost everything from her. Can't you even provide supplementary explanations?"
[W-Well, normally it's not allowed, but...]
Isel started sweating bullets.
I knew that the information I'd received wasn't something attainable on the 10th floor. Still, what could I do? I already knew it. After pondering for a while, Isel nodded with a determined expression.
[Okay. I'll make a special exception and answer!]
"Good."
I had confirmed that Amkena had contracted 'Najalhae Disease'.
However, there might be some variables I hadn't anticipated.
It was necessary to preemptively address these.
"First question. What's her name?"
[Her?]
"Your original."
[The Director's name isn't just one or two. There are over 100 million. She's called by a different name in each world. If I had to pick one, using the Taonier style... it's Tel.]
"Tel."
A different name for each world. So there's a Niflheim name, and other kinds of names too.
When clearing the 10th floor, the designation given to the Waiting Room differs for each Master.
This Waiting Room was named Taonier, but mine was Niflheim, Rank 4 was Ragransid, Rank 3 was Izecael.
If that woman, Tel's, explanation was true, it meant each Master carried the fate of a specific world.
The current total number of worlds is over 100 million. And still increasing.
'Preposterous.'
I continued with the next question.
"What is Mobius?"
[Mobius? You mean our company? Our company is...]
"Not the company."
After thinking for a moment, Isel seemed to understand the intent behind my question and answered.
[It's a spiral multiverse where numerous worlds are connected in parallel.]
"..."
It was beyond imagination.
But combining Tel's and Isel's explanations, some information could be deduced.
'Pick Me Up isn't random.'
Each account has different missions.
Tens of millions of users have summoned billions of times or more, yet there are no duplicate Heroes.
Introducing the explanation above provides answers to two difficult problems.
Because each Master is assigned a different world.
Of course, there are some commonalities.
A civilization level similar to medieval to early modern times using swords and magic.
Existence of demi-humans resembling humans, alongside monsters.
A common object called the Goddess Statue appears in all accounts.
And they belong to an unidentified dimension called Mobius.
'I think I have a slightly better idea of that woman's identity too.'
I returned to the main topic.
I asked the question I should have asked initially.
This was actually the main point.
"Is Amkena an ordinary human?"
[Human? I answered that last time. Of course! Only humans from Earth can become Masters.]
"That's not what I mean. I'm asking whether that woman, Tel, has manipulated Amkena or not."
[Manipulated? Manipulated the Master?]
Isel's eyes widened.
[Wait a moment. I'll go find out!]
Isel vanished, scattering stardust.
A short while later, Isel returned.
[Don't worry. Amkena is a 100% pure, normal user.]
"Can I trust that?"
[You can trust it. I got confirmation from another Director! In the first place, doing something like that requires immense conditions and risks.]
Come to think of it, the business card did say Co-CEO.
While Isel's word couldn't be completely trusted either, trusting nothing meant having no ground to stand on.
At the very least, Isel drew a line when she couldn't answer a question. She might have evaded, but she had never lied.
"Understood."
[Anything else you're curious about?]
"I'll ask gradually as things come up."
[Okay. Then I'm off to sleep. Whoosh!]
The room went dark.
I sat on the bed and thought slowly.
Set aside the complicated problems like Mobius and whatever else.
No need to think about that yet.
My concern was about the Master running this Waiting Room.
I had confirmed that Amkena was a Master free from any interference.
That means this current mess is the result of Amkena's pure gameplay.
'This confirms it.'
There can be no misdiagnosis.
Amkena has contracted Najalhae Disease.
If the symptoms worsen like this, something major will blow up eventually.
It's still the early stages of onset.
There was still a chance to turn it around with appropriate measures.
The most effective cure for Najalhae Disease, as claimed by Pick Me Up users, is to eliminate the Hero the Master relies on entirely.
Which meant me.
"..."
This method is rejected.
The means and the end must not be confused.
I pondered for a long time, but every option carried significant risk.
Naturally, the consequence of risk was my death.
Even so, there was a correct answer.
'Doing nothing is not an option.'
The conclusion was reached.
Only implementation remained.
The next morning.
After finishing a simple meal, I joined the members at the training center.
After that, the usual training continued. Basic physical training in the morning, then lunch. Afterwards, weapons training begins. As evening approached, it was time for sparring. However, the situation was slightly different from the usual one-on-one duels.
"Here I come!"
Usher, shield covering his left side, thrust his sword.
His stance was textbook, but his speed was slow. I lightly dodged and aimed for the opening. Just then, a spear shaft suddenly shot out. It was Roderick.
The spear shaft, swung in a perfect arc, slammed into my shield.
A heavy impact. He immediately switched to thrusts, attacking various parts of my body.
Fast and precise. Roderick's level was lower than Aaron's, but in terms of physique and technique, he had long since surpassed Aaron. Spear strikes that seemed to split into multiples rained down like rapid fire.
Block with the shield, parry with the sword. Dodge what can be dodged.
Roderick alone was a tough opponent. While dealing with him, Usher, having regained his posture, attacked my left. Edith, who had been concealing her presence on my right, appeared, aiming for a vital spot. A timing impossible to dodge or block.
'Three against one is too much.'
I tapped the floor three times with the tip of my left foot, giving the signal.
Just as the dagger was about to slice deeply into my right arm, Aaron and Jena, who had been watching from afar, joined in.
The sparring shifted from many-versus-one to many-versus-many.
In short, group battle training.
It was also training for adapting to chaotic melees. Distinguishing friend from foe amidst continuous fighting. And maintaining teamwork. With more combat-capable personnel, this kind of training was possible.
Though Iolca was excluded since using magic was dangerous in training.
After the training segment concluded, Amkena logged in.
I had already figured out Amkena's login time patterns. It was as expected.
[Han, Jena, Aaron, Iolca!]
As soon as they logged in, Amkena called for us, the main party.
The four of us gathered in the square.
"Isn't it Floor 12? This is breakneck speed." Jena said with a wry smile.
Aaron, on the other hand, looked somewhat downcast.
"If it is Floor 12, isn't the speed a bit strange? It's too fast."
The Floor 11 climb was just yesterday.
Yesterday in Waiting Room time. Less than a single day had passed in Earth time.
Meaning, if Amkena sent us to Floor 12 now, they were attempting an ultra-high-speed climb of 2+ floors per day. A foolish act.
[Open, Space-Time Riiiiift!]
Clunk.
As Isel stretched out her hand, the main gate at the front of the square opened.
The three entered with somewhat unsteady steps.
I stood outside the square, arms crossed.
"Aren't you coming in, Oppa?"
Jena gestured to me.
Aaron and Iolca were also waiting for me.
Even though the order was difficult to accept, the consciousness that they couldn't refuse was deeply ingrained.
I closed my eyes.
And remembered.
Back when I wasn't a Ranker in Pick Me Up, whenever I made wrong choices, a certain Hero would step forward.
That Hero had put their life on the line.
I opened my eyes.
"Isel, what floor did Amkena designate?"
[...Floor 12.] Isel replied reluctantly.
Just as I thought.
I recalled an aspect of knighthood I'd seen somewhere.
'Heroes may also make requests or assertions to the Master, and sometimes refuse orders.'
And I said.
"I refuse deployment."
[Han(★★) has refused deployment!]