Tower of Endless: Death Granted Entry

Ding!

Ding!

Moon, who had been sleeping well undisturbed, woke up to a notification.

Whenever a notification came, it was always a Fate Alert, so he was sensitive to this very specific sound.

The moment he opened his eyes, his hands sought out Liquid Mountain without delay, ready to react.

But the moment his eyes finally cleared and saw the window, he thought, ’This is new.’

It was different from the usual view or even the warning message from last night. What he saw was a Quest Notice.

He started carefully reading.

[Quest Notice]

Eastern Normalisation Facility: Branch Exclusive Quest

Title: Skirmish Ring Quest

Details: Every Wednesday, the Skirmish Ring will open. Battles will take place for all Ascenders who have passed the First Floor Trial and ascended to the Southern Branch.

[Quest Rules]

The activation or usage of the following will result in an instant ban:

Weapons

Echo

Constraint: Ascenders must only use their own bodies.

Theme: Last Man Standing.

[Rewards]

Each round will have a specific gift. A Special Gift will be awarded to the Ascender who achieves the impossible feat of winning 3 or more of the 4 rounds.

Round 1 Reward: Tactical Combat Knife [Info]

Round 2 Reward: TBA

Round 3 Reward: TBA

Round 4 Reward: TBA

Special Reward: [HIDDEN]

Moon paused for a moment at the reward. He extended his index finger and clicked [Info]. A short description appeared:

[Tactical Combat Knife]

A short knife; durable with exceptional cutting ability.

Grade: C

Creator: Sky Splitting King

Moon’s eyes looked at the words for a moment. Sky Splitting King. Sky Splitting Edmond... ’So he could also craft weapons, cool bastard,’ Moon thought.

He remembered how Uon joined the Arcanists to gain independence, and looking at Ed, who stayed here regardless of his talents... he couldn’t help admiring the bastard.

[Warning]

Joining the quest but failing to follow the rules will result in various consequences. The severity of the breach will be assessed on the spot. Echo Sealing is the least severe; penalties escalate to instant death.

Time remaining until Round 1: 3 Days, 18 Hours, 56 Minutes, 12 Seconds.

At the very bottom, in a flashy red color, words were added,

This quest was designed and built by the Normalization Facility staff under the authority and supervision of the Tower System.

Moon wasn’t bothered by any of that. Now, what Ed wanted was clear, and it aligned perfectly with Moon’s own goal: absolute dominance of his peers in the facility. Moon was both extremely happy and excited.

He jumped off his bed and ran out. ”Brother Uon, where are you?” he screamed while running inside the hall.

Downstairs, Uon was sitting leisurely, sipping tea. ”Here, here, little Moon,” he spoke, holding the cup in one hand and waving with the other.

Moon’s feet drifted across the smooth floor. ”Morning, brother. Where can I find Chef Ed now?” Moon asked. No time to waste.

”Either the kitchen or Hall 3,” Uon answered. ”I don’t think he would be in the kitchen now, anyway.”

”Where’s Hall 3?” Moon inquired.

Uon drew a half-circle with his hand. ”The opposite side of this hall. Same building.”

So the other side of this huge dome. Moon now knew where to run, and he started moving. ”Thanks, brother!”

Uon waved at him. ”He seems more excited than usual today.” He took another sip of his steaming hot tea.

Outside Hall 1, Moon was running, and the place was not as he remembered it. It was crowded—very crowded. But he was disinterested now. He ran at full speed, not sparing anyone a glance, toward the other side.

Hall 3.

Knock. Knock.

”Chef Ed, this is Moo—”

Creak.

”—oon,” he continued absentmindedly as the door opened.

He was assaulted by a wave of searing heat, forcing him to sweat and squint the moment he felt it. Inside the hall, Ed was sitting on a chair, holding a piece of leather in one hand and a long needle and thread in the other. He was slowly hand-stitching, seemingly in deep focus.

Moon was unsure if he should speak, but he entered regardless. Once he did, the door closed on its own. He stayed there silently watching. His eyes went left and right. In one glass box sat the knife he saw on the quest rewards list. There were many more items laying across the smithery—guards, plate armor, leather sheaths—but as his eyes darted around, he found a specific one that caught his attention.

”Liquid Mountain,” he couldn’t help exclaiming.

”What do you think?” Ed was done and walking toward a hanging, naked, incomplete blade.

”You can make another one?” Moon asked in amazement.

”Nope. It was just my first time seeing such a blade; I wanted to get the feel of it myself.” He suddenly laughed. ”You flick your wrist and it wants to chop.”

”Is it also a perfect item?” Moon asked.

”Only a handful of perfect items have I managed to make throughout my entire lifetime... I’ve been living for a very long time.” He paused, thinking for a moment. ”But if I don’t stop here, it might get there someday,” he spoke while extending his fingers to touch the still-hot curves of the blade.

Moon remembered why he came here. ”You want me to dominate the new wave of Ascenders?” he asked.

Ed’s head swayed slightly. ”Most of them have combat arts strong enough to win if they can go all out,” he explained.

Moon’s warrior pride was hurt. Unimpressed, he said flatly, ”I can win regardless.”

Ed couldn’t help laughing. ”Sure thing. Entertain me... I’m bored. Entertain me,” Ed clarified, unrestrained. ”Just a few hours ago, you wanted to beat newcomers to establish authority... right?”

The words blew Moon’s mind. ”You saw?” Moon asked. ”How? You stayed in the kitchen?” Skepticism all over his face.

”Don’t overthink it, brat, lest your head explodes,” Ed said dismissively.

’Did he run back and forth, or could he see from there?’ Moon was still thinking.

”Anyhow, win. Keep winning and you will have a good set of items for the trial run soon,” Ed said, unbothered.

”Soon?” Moon asked, taken off guard. He knew they would stay in the facility for a while, but he didn’t expect the trial to start so soon.

”You want to delay the trial?” Ed’s demeanor and attitude changed suddenly, like a gambler who was about to fold instead of going all-in.

For a moment, Moon didn’t react; he didn’t know how he should. Ed needed something—an assurance that Moon would be worth the time and effort invested. Moon knew that much. But maybe it was also his own greed; Moon was greedy for more.

But to join and fight efficiently, he needed his Echo as soon as possible. He already didn’t have much time, and his control was so bad that it would take time to adapt.

”About my Echo then?” Moon asked flatly. If Ed had expectations, he should at least give Moon what he needed most.

”Win two rounds. You choose which of them. The day you win the second, your Echo is alive again,” Ed answered, fiddling with one of the knives.

”Did you make all of these items for me to pass the trial and stay unaffiliated?” Moon asked, seeking clarification.

”Nah. I made them for whoever needs them, fights for them, bleeds for them, and earns them.” He paused for a moment before adding, ”Right... one of them, I didn’t make.” He said, grinning.