Pick Me Up!

[Party 1, assemble at the first-floor plaza! Now!]

Late into the evening, Iselle’s voice rang out loudly in the waiting room.

“Tch, it was just getting good,” grumbled Goo Goo Con as he shook his head and slowly slipped out.

It was good timing, to be honest. Had they been ten seconds later, I would have been sliced to pieces by Halkion in the illusion void.

‘Come to think of it…’

I had been so focused on mastering the engraving that I hadn’t been paying attention to anything else.

The waiting room had finished its adjustments, and the climb had been progressing.

The ones responsible for the 50th-floor segment were Party 2. While we from Party 1 were engrossed in our individual training, they were carrying out missions. Every evening, Neryssa would report on their progress.

Edis, the leader of Party 2, had been replaced by the middle-aged spearman Roderick, who had once retired. He was a 3-star warrior summoned alongside Eloka during the initial climb. Although he had stepped down from the assault team to serve as the training camp director, he rejoined when there was a gap in the personnel, acting on orders from Anytng, which he couldn’t refuse.

In any case, with Roderick leading the restructured Party 2, they took over the mission… and now, our names were being called for another mission.

‘The 55th floor, huh.’

They’re moving fast.

I drained the water bottle next to my chair in one go and stood up.

Once I descended to the plaza on the first floor, I could see the rest of Party 1 gathered.

“Oppa, over here! Over here!” Jenna waved energetically when she saw me.

The other members of the party stood in line next to her.

“It’s been hard to even see each other lately. Especially you guys—you’ve been holed up in your rooms, training nonstop… It’s the first time we’ve all gathered since the 50th floor, right?” Jenna squinted her eyes at me.

“We used to be all in sync, the five of us.”

“It’s a natural change. Everyone’s had their own tasks to focus on. Isn’t that right, senior?” Velkist, leaning against the wall, smiled.

He was no exception either. Ever since he obtained the White Dragon’s Blood, he had locked himself in the training room, completely absorbed.

“I just wanted one day of rest,” Katiio muttered with a pale expression.

He hadn’t had a break, busy maintaining the airship.

“…Hoohoo.”

Kishasha let out a strange laugh. She claimed to have found a unit made up of beastmen within the Pria Mercenary Corps. Plus, she said she had been able to evolve her engraving with an item she got from the Beast King. All of us in Party 1 had been busy with our own training, striving to get stronger.

“Oppa, give us a briefing like always, please,” Jenna requested.

“There’s not much to say,” I replied.

“Come on, don’t be like that.”

Annoying.

Clicking my tongue, I began to explain.

I already knew the basic details from Neryssa.

‘A small-scale mission requiring just one party.’

The airship couldn’t be deployed.

Compared to the 50th-floor mission, which had required dozens of parties, this one felt almost laughably insignificant.

And the difficulty?

Party 2, which had been handling the climb in our place, had cleared the 54th floor without facing any serious resistance.

Judging by the patterns so far, whenever we had an easy floor, a tough one was bound to follow.

The sub-stages were always easy, while the boss stages were a different story. It had always been that way.

‘They said they even gathered forces meant for the upper floors.’

The reason the 50th-floor mission had been so difficult was that the challenge had been stacked.

“As long as you stay sharp, it shouldn’t be too hard,” I concluded.

“But it’s a boss stage,” Jenna pointed out.

“That doesn’t matter,” I replied as I stepped into the wide, shimmering rift in time and space.

I could hear the footsteps of the others following behind.

[Climb the tower and save the world!]

[Main Dungeon: Current Floor – 54]

The mirror in the center of the room glowed brightly.

I placed my hand on the hilt of the sword strapped to my belt. Soon, I felt the familiar sensation of floating enveloping my body.

It was the signal that the mission had begun.

[Main Dungeon: You are now on the 55th floor.]

[The door will open in 10 seconds. Prepare yourself!]

[Mission is being recorded. Playthrough data will be preserved.]

“Don’t butt in.”

Goo Goo Con laughed heartily in my ear.

Closing my eyes, I let the waves of light wash over me.

When I opened them again…

“Let’s give those bastards who dared invoke the goddess’ name a taste of our spears!”

“Charge!!!”

Bearded men were charging across the plains.

Their weapons and armor were mismatched, but they moved efficiently, cutting down any soldiers in their way.

Despite their wild appearance, their movements were sharply honed for battle. Blood sprayed across the plains with every slash of their blades.

‘Mercenaries,’ I thought, surveying the field.

[Human Mercenary Lv.??? x 8473]

Countless mercenaries marched under various banners, moving forward.

All around us, the sounds of battle roared. Shouts and screams filled the air, mingled with the relentless clang of weapons.

The war had already begun.

“Oh, this is…” Jenna stepped forward, glancing around.

We had landed in the middle of the battlefield.

[Floor 55.]

[Mission Type: Siege]

[Mission Objective: Seize the stronghold!]

[Special Objective: Ensure the survival of NPC ‘Priasis al Ragnar’ and NPC ‘Yoshua Girze’.]

The mission objectives flashed before my eyes.

‘A siege, huh.’

To the right, I spotted a towering wall that resembled a cliff.

Nearly ten thousand mercenaries were advancing towards it.

“It looks like a civil war has broken out,” Katiio murmured as he observed the battlefield.

“Though it seems pretty one-sided. I don’t think we even need to step in.”

I raised an eyebrow.

Katiio was right. The mercenaries were pushing forward relentlessly, while the soldiers of the opposing church army were falling back, leaving a trail of corpses.

“This is awkward. We’ve always fought on the losing side,” Jenna said, scratching her cheek awkwardly.

Taking a deep breath, I turned to Katiio.

“Katiio, can I leave this to you?”

“Huh? What are you leaving to me?”

“I want you to take charge of Party 1 while I’m gone. Watch the battle, and jump in at the right moment. Don’t do anything too risky. I have somewhere I need to be.”

“W-Wait, you want me to…?”

“Yup.”

I patted Katiio on the shoulder and took off.

The wind brushed past my face as I leaped several meters in a single bound.

‘There was a special objective.’

That meant that person must be here somewhere.

I picked up my pace, drawing closer to where the two forces were clashing. Eventually, the mercenaries on the field started to notice me.

“What the hell is that? Why’s he so fast?”

“Is he heading this way…? Is he an enemy?”

I stopped in my tracks.

The mercenaries had just finished off a group of soldiers and were making sure none survived.

The man who seemed to be their leader pointed a bloodied sword at me.

“Who the hell are you? What gives you the right to barge in like this?”

“Where’s Pria?” I asked.

“Pria?”

“Priasis al Ragnar. I’m looking for her.”

The man’s jaw dropped.

“Y-You crazy bastard… How dare you speak the princess’ name so casually…”

“Are you an assassin sent by the church? Heh, you’re dead meat! Consider this your funeral!”

“…I see.”

I hadn’t expected them to cooperate.

“I’ll just cut off an arm and drag you back!” barked a bald mercenary as he swung his sword at me.

“Ugh!”

Crack!

A quick jab sent him flying, blood spraying as he tumbled to the ground.

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