100 – The Trial of Nothingness – 31
“…?”
f*ck, where is this place?
When I woke up, all I could see was a vast meadow and a huge tower built in the center.
I must have been at the top of the rocky mountain…Where did I come from?
“Hmm… It’s unexpectedly smooth. Well, it was pretty good from the beginning…”
“..Who?”
I heard a woman’s voice tickling behind me. Is there anyone other than me on this plain?
“…Illi..Anna..?”
“Wrong.”
I heard a voice and turned her head in the direction I came from. There was a beautiful woman with impressive gray hair looking at me.
The appearance of the woman is almost 99.9% Similar to Illyana, the mature mode who killed Berazie in 1 second, so of course I thought it was Illyana and called her name, but it wasn’t.
Then maybe…
“Bathory Erzebet…”
“That is correct. I do have my eyes on you.”
Bathory Erzebet, the second greatest wizard in history and the creator of the system
…, Veronica had said. I don’t know because he didn’t tell me more than that.
“I don’t understand the current situation. Could you please explain?”
“Hmm… Didn’t really teach me anything. That child is also angry.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t make such a stupid face, right? Before ripping your face off.”
You can just call it impression blood, sister…
“Whoa…Okay, let me explain briefly. I’ll explain it only once, so listen carefully.”
“Yes.”
“First of all, you came here to take the magic test. To be precise, it would be more accurate to say that only the spirit came this way.”
Magic test…? What else is that Is it the same as the last judge’s test that you only came to your senses before that?
“Veronica, that child resonated with you and Illyana’s soul and forcibly opened the door to the magic test. If I did something wrong, you, Veronica, and Illyana’s lives could have been in danger.”
“..Veronica…?”
What the hell did I do while I was losing my mind Veronica… The resonance of the soul…
“Well, that’s how it happened. To sum it up briefly, you must now be tested by me… That’s what it sounds like.”
“Ummm…. I understand it with my head, but I don’t understand it with my heart. So could you give me a little more time?”
“As you like, there is no time limit anyway.”
Whew… Now take a deep breath… Alright! I understand now!
.. Is an asshole, what the f*ck is this?
I always feel that, but Veronica is uncommunicative. He doesn’t even give the slightest warning or caution before that.
If you were planning to send it to a place like this suddenly, I’ll tell you a little bit earlier… Of course, it’s because Veronica has her own thoughts, but the aftermath is always like a dog, so it’s a problem.
“Veronica, are you thinking about that child?”
“..Perhaps you are like Veronica…”
“I don’t have the ability to read thoughts. But it all shows in your expression.”
Is my expression that obvious? No, but what kind of expression did I know that he was thinking of Veronica? That person.
“It’s good to trust Veronica… But don’t try to get too close.”
“…What do you mean by that?”
“That kid has been greedy ever since he was little. What he wanted, he wanted by all means. Whether it be magic, riches… or love.”
Erzebet continued, pointing his finger at me.
“And one of the things Veronica wants to get is you. Park Ga-on.”
“.. Me?”
“Yes, even though you may be a strong supporter now, someday they will try to restrict you and bind you. Maybe it already is.”
Veronica…? That can’t be the case, she didn’t look possessive or anything like the ones I’ve seen so far…
Um…… Isn’t it? She seems to have a lot of greed…
“Well, you might not understand now. But one day you will surely understand what I mean.”
“..I will engrave it in my heart.”
“Hmm… But just in case you don’t know, I’ll give you one piece of advice.”
Erzée Beth patted her own neck with her finger as she smiled seductively.
What do you mean..? Neck? Does it mean to beat the party and destroy it?
“Blood, and blood magic, the Blood Witch. Remembering these three things will help you a lot later.”
“..?”
Blood, blood magic, blood witch. Remember these three?
Blood…Well, it just means my blood, and blood magic is a magic that is rarely used because it has a strong propensity to be auxiliary rather than offensive magic… What does bloody witch mean? Oh man, I don’t know.
“Sometimes you have to be the owner yourself in order not to become a property.”
“….I don’t know what that means, but I got a rough idea.”
“Yes, that is enough. If you keep it in your heart, the day will come when you will understand it.”
Erzé Bette waved her hands as if that was all she was doing.
“Then let’s get to the main topic, and from now on I will tell you about the magic test.”
“The Magical Test…Huu, let’s try it.”
“The test of magic is simple. See that big tower over there?”
I see. Before that, a tower was placed on a flat plain like this, but who could say it was invisible?
“You will climb that tower from now on. It’s over when you reach the top. Isn’t it simple?”
“…Well, if it’s simple, it’s simple… Of course it’s not possible to fly, right?”
“If you want to leave the world quickly, I recommend it.”
“……”
Are you saying that all expedients are blocked?
“Oh, and I have something to tell you in advance.”
“..What is it?”
“This applies to all types of tests, not just magic tests, and those who take the test, whether they pass it or not, all the memories they have experienced in the process are erased.”
That’s what I expected to some extent. Even if it was just the referee’s test, I had no memory of the test process at all.
“Of course, there are variations for each test. Some tests only partially erase memories, while others erase all memories.”
“Ohhh… That’s right. I didn’t know.”
“The test of magic is electronic. Only part of the memory is supposed to disappear during the exam process, so please refer to it.”
Only some memories will be erased. If the test tube is black, it should be black.
“Okay, then you can start now. I’ll be here watching over you, so take good care of yourself.”
“…Do you have any tips or tricks?”
“Maybe?”
Sheesh, that’s petty.
I can’t help it. I have no choice but to climb the tower ignorantly… It seems like I can’t get out of here if I don’t pass the test anyway.
“Whoa…. Seeing it up close, it’s really dirty and big.”
As I approached the tower, I felt its size. It almost feels like two Namsan towers were plugged in at once. Of course, it would be lower than that in reality, but it was so in my experience.
[Would you like to enter the Magic Tower?]
“f*ck! It’s a surprise…”
As I put my hand on the tower, the system window asked me whether to enter the tower or not. How does the system react when you enter a tower of some kind?
“Enter.”
[Enter the Magic Tower.]
[You have entered the lobby on the 1st floor of the Magic Tower.]
Lobby, one of the very basic structures, often located on the first floor of a large building.
‘The lobby…is it just a place to prepare?’
But don’t let go of tension just in case. This is a magical test place, and I shouldn’t have judged anything rashly.
[The test in the lobby on the 1st floor of the Mage Tower begins.]
[The subject of this test is talent.]
That moment.
The manas that were sleeping on the first floor of the Mage Tower began to become ferocious.
“Keugh?!”
[Survive the ever-changing mana vortex.]
[Time remaining 00:59:57]
Koo-gu-gu-gu-!!!
‘That’s f*cking..!’
Talent, and also the talent of mana.
The test in the lobby on the 1st floor was a very eccentric test that asked how outstanding Mana’s talent was.
Then what is the talent in this world? The answer is simple.
Abilities, among them, unique abilities are the ‘talents’ that are sought in this world.
The more talented you are, the stronger your unique ability, and the more stats and points you get each time you level up.
Among many abilities, people with abilities specialized in mana have a higher chance of surviving in a place with high mana concentration, and the Mage Tower is currently testing them.
To see if the tester can survive an hour in this insanely violent mana vortex.
“f*ck…I know who is an asshole…!”
This is absurd. Frustrated at the same time.
Did you come up with this as a test? Mana vortex, yes scary. If you’re a normal mage.
‘The top of the rocky mountain is tougher than this, you bastards..!’
Compared to the rocky mountain where the crazy mana storms arose, this place was nothing short of heaven.
There is no cold as low as 100 degrees below zero, no crazy slopes over 75 degrees, and no piles of snow to hinder progress. If this is not heaven, where is heaven?
From noble mtl dot com
But…
‘…Why does it seem to be getting stronger?’
I knew only one, but I didn’t know the other two.
In the system window that appeared when the test started, it clearly said, ‘Survive in the ever-changing vortex of mana.’
That means that the concentration of mana will not always be constant… I missed that.
“Huh?!”
The mana vortex is getting stronger. It felt like a light breeze from a small fan until just a moment ago, but now it has become a large fan placed one by one in the restaurant.
And as time passed, the electric fan turned into a slightly harsh spring wind, the spring wind turned into an autumn wind blowing in autumn, the autumn wind turned into a deadly winter wind, and the winter wind turned into a typhoon called disaster…. The robbery got stronger.
“Ughhhhh…!”
Damn it, I’m starting to lose some stamina.
No matter how high the concentration of mana was, there had never been a decrease in physical strength before.
[Time remaining 00:27:14]
‘It’s only been 30 minutes..?’
I feel like 3 hours have passed, but to say that it’s been a little over 30 minutes… It’s the worst.
The speed at which the current stamina decreases is about 10 per second. In fact, it was true that it wasn’t a level to worry too much about.
But…
‘How far do you plan to go up..!’
The mana vortex becomes stronger as time passes.
Right now it’s 10 per second, but with 5 minutes left, it wouldn’t be strange to cut it down to 300 per second.
Of course, if someone sees this right now, they might think like this. ‘Can’t I just use [Chastity]?’
Do you think I’m not stupid and would never have thought of that?
[You cannot use active abilities in the lobby on the 1st floor of the Mage Tower.]
[Purity] Is a very clear active ability. Thanks to this, it cannot be used only in the lobby on the 1st floor.
Fortunately, in the case of passive abilities, they were not sealed. If it had been sealed, the 80% magic damage reduction of [Those who fell into the void] And the HP increase of [Blood Witch’s Circle] Would have disappeared, and they would have gone to the other world without lasting less than 30 minutes.
[Time remaining 00:21:25]
[HP: 163,151/182,680]
You have to endure with evil. My pride wouldn’t allow me to fall right off the first floor.
[Time remaining 00:15:18]
[HP: 126,167/182,680]
Suddenly, my whole body feels sore. It is clear that fatigue is coming as the stamina gradually starts to fall.
[Time remaining 00:08:42]
[HP: 77,713/182,680]
I feel dizzy. Gradually, my vision began to blur. I can’t even see how much time is left.
[Time remaining 00:03:37]
[HP: 32,126/182,680]
Isn’t it over yet…? It’s really dangerous now. My mind is confused. If you do wrong, you will die.
[Time remaining 00:00:49]
[HP: 9,621/182,680]
f*ck……Am I really going to die? Only on the 1st floor?
[Time remaining 00:00:05]
[Health: 1,345/182,680]
…………
[Remaining time 00:00:00]
[Health: 246/182,680]
[You have passed the test in the lobby on the 1st floor of the Mage Tower.]
[All health, mana, and status ailments are recovered.]
[The 2nd floor exam starts after 3 hours, and if you want, you can take the 2nd floor exam even if 3 hours have passed.]