Chapter 200

[Yоu hаvе сonquerеd thе 98th flооr оf the Anciеnt Тower.]

Кhan’s pаrtу hаd finаllу сonquerеd up to thе 98th flоor оf thе Аnсiеnt Tоwer.

Whilе climbing the tоwеr sо fаr, Byutеk and Shаrin had done аlmоst nothing excерt for Khan.

“Hahаhа! As expeсtеd of Hуungnim!! Hоw оn еаrth do you defеat the Моnstеrs so eаsilу?!”

“Тhe Mоnsters loоk incredibly strong… but nоnе of my аttаcks wоrked at аll?”

For Khan, whо knew аll thе strategies for the Аnciеnt Тоwer, it wаs truly an еаsу task.

Originаlly, thе Моnstеrs thаt aрреarеd frоm the 90th floor of the Ancient Tower were impossible to defeat with ordinary attacks.

‘Their structure is such that you must know their Weak Points and attack them properly to defeat them.’

Of course, if one’s basic specs weren’t sufficient, conquering the Ancient Tower was impossible no matter how well one knew the strategies.

Only one step remained until the 100th floor, the end of the Ancient Tower and the game’s ending.

Once they passed the 99th floor, they would be able to challenge the 100th floor.

‘Originally, I planned to conquer a few more floors and then leave… I never imagined the plan would change like this.’

Khan’s original plan was to conquer only up to around the 95th floor and then take a few days to reorganize, but that became unnecessary.

‘I never thought Main Quests would appear on every floor. And thanks to the Skill Selection Tickets only giving Mana-related Skills each time I used them, it became possible.’

Khan’s current Level was exactly 900.

And from Level 500 onwards, Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Tickets no longer appeared.

[Upon reaching Level 1000, you can acquire a ‘Transcendent Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Ticket’.]

Recalling the message that had appeared before, it was almost laughable.

‘My Level is rising well… but even if I succeed in conquering this 99th floor, the chance of reaching Level 1000 is low.’

It seemed that after conquering the 99th floor, he would need to reorganize, achieve Level 1000, and then conquer the 100th floor of the Ancient Tower.

‘I should check my Status Window.’

He hadn’t properly checked his Status Window while climbing the Ancient Tower.

◈ LV.900

◈ Khan (Lee Huseong)

◈ Mana: 3412000/3412000

◈ Talent: Magic

◈ Experience Points: 77%

◈ Skills: (10★)Sage’s Heart, (1★)Arrow, (1★)Barrier, (2★)Fire Boom, (2★)Fireball, (2★)Mirror Defense, (2★)Mana Enhancement, (1★)Wind Cutter, (3★)Dragon’s Breath, (4★)Mana Circulation, (4★)Power Amplification, (4★)Space-Time Leap, (5★)Dark Flame, (1★)Wind Drill, (4★)Flame Curtain, (5★)Absolute Sight, (5★)Chrono Reset, (8★)Infinite Growth, (6★)Mana Amplification, (7★)Concentration, (6★)Mana Torrent, (6★)Mana Release, (8★)Mana Transcendence, (8★)Mana Extreme, (8★)Mana Evolution

From the Enhanced Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Tickets obtained as rewards for reaching Levels 400 and 500, he had received the Rank 8 Mana Skills, Mana Extreme and Mana Evolution.

‘Thanks to that, my Mana Capacity increased a lot.’

When Khan last checked his Status Window, his Mana was around 400,000, but now it was a whopping 3.4 million.

‘But what Skills are in that Transcendent Random Skill Selection Ticket they say they’ll give upon reaching Level 1000?’

Even Khan was hearing about this Skill Selection Ticket for the first time, so he truly had no idea what Skill would come from it.

The moment he closed his Status Window, the next Quest appeared perfectly on time.

• [Conquer the 99th floor of the Ancient Tower.]

• Will you accept the Main Quest?

• Refusal will make future Quest progression impossible.

• Reward: A certain amount of Experience Points, progression to the next Quest

[You have accepted the Main Quest.]

Accepting the Main Quest, Khan spoke to Byutek and Sharin.

“Byutek, Sharin. I plan to go up and conquer the 99th floor right away. What will you two do?”

Then, Byutek laughed heartily and shouted.

“Hahaha! Hyungnim! Why ask such a thing! Of course we’ll go together! I will absolutely not leave your side!”

Sharin was the same.

“I’m going too, of course! I’ll go up with you and watch Master’s Magic… and I plan to assist in case Master is in danger too!”

Actually, it wouldn’t have mattered if Byutek or Sharin didn’t come, but still, both Byutek and Sharin were significant assets.

‘It’s true, these two are also cheat Characters. They only messed around on the side, but to think they grew this much while climbing the tower together…’

Khan was once again dumbfounded as he looked at the names and Levels floating above Byutek and Sharin’s heads.

[LV.712 Khan’s Escort Knight Byutek]

[LV.774 Genius Mage Sharin]

Byutek had occasionally thrown himself in front of Monster attacks to save Khan, and each time his Level had risen tremendously.

In Sharin’s case, her Level had risen simply by observing Khan’s Magic from the side.

‘Both of them are amazing, I tell you.’

Khan shook his head slightly and threw himself into the Gate before his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, he was inside a dark room with a door painted with a skull face, just like before.

‘Anyway, the 99th floor isn’t particularly difficult either. The 100th floor is the problem.’

In fact, Khan didn’t properly know the true nature of the Ancient Tower’s 100th floor either.

Because after arriving at and entering the 100th floor of the Ancient Tower, he had died while defeating the initial trash mobs.

‘It seems like the Ancient Tower’s 100th floor wasn’t even made to be cleared in the first place…’

For now, Khan pushed open the massive skull door before him with his hand.

As the door opened, the field changed in an instant.

This time too, Khan, Byutek, and Sharin were standing inside a vast temple.

Shortly after, the Monster of the 99th floor began to reveal itself from afar.

[LV.890 Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon]

The Boss Monster of the 99th floor was none other than the Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon.

It was a gigantic dragon whose entire body was covered in steel scales, and its size was so immense that it exuded an indescribable sense of intimidation.

‘In <Geo Arc>, the highest Level was 820… but now I’m Level 900, so I should be able to clear it more easily than back then.’

The strategy for the Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon, the Boss Monster of the 99th floor, was very simple.

‘You must accumulate 1 billion Damage to kill it.’

Since it dies after receiving 1 billion cumulative Damage, it was a very easy opponent for the current Khan.

‘With Byutek and Sharin here, I just need to finish it as quickly as possible!’

Khan shouted to Byutek and Sharin.

“Byutek, you block its attacks by throwing your whole body in front of them when it attacks.”

“Understood!”

“Sharin, you focus solely on attacking the Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon with me. Even if you use up all your Mana, don’t stop, keep attacking continuously.”

“Got it!”

Since Sharin’s Mana Recovery was fast even if she used up all her Mana, she would be able to attack without rest.

‘It was disgustingly difficult when I did it alone… but this time it should be much easier.’

The 99th floor of the Ancient Tower was a floor so difficult that even Khan had only managed to clear it once after dozens of attempts.

‘The Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon immediately resets and recovers its Stamina if the Player stops attacking. But if you focus solely on attacking it, its powerful attacks come flying at you, which is also a headache.’

Originally, you had to dodge all its attacks while pouring out Skills, but since there were three of them this time, they should be able to defeat it smoothly.

The Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon roared and suddenly spewed out its Breath.

A massive Breath flew towards them as if it would sweep Khan’s party away at any moment, but.

“Huuaaahp!!!”

Byutek ran forward, swung his massive Greatsword, and blocked the Breath.

“Sharin, now!”

“Yes!”

Khan and Sharin simultaneously drew up their Mana and used Skills and Magic.

Khan used all the Skills he could, and Sharin was also using her most powerful Magic.

The Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon’s body began to burn in black flames.

Simultaneously, Thunderbolts were falling on its head.

While writhing in pain, it steadily spewed Breath from its mouth.

“Hyaaaahp!!!!”

Since Byutek was taking all the attacks in front of Khan and Sharin, Khan and Sharin could focus solely on attacking.

How many times did they repeat this?

It was around the time when they had used both charges of the Mana Reset Ring and their Mana was almost completely depleted.

The Iron-Blooded Demon Dragon, which seemed absolutely unkillable, finally fell.

Immediately, numerous messages appeared before Khan’s eyes.

[You have conquered the 99th floor of the Ancient Tower.]

[You have cleared the Main Quest.]

[Your Level has increased.]

[Your Level has increased.]

[Your Level has increased.]

[Your Level has increased.]

[Your Level has increased.]

[Your Level has increased.]

[Your Level has increased.]

.

.

.

[You have reached Level 1000.]

[You have reached Max Level.]

[You have acquired a ‘Transcendent Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Ticket’ as a reward for reaching Max Level.]

Khan immediately used the Transcendent Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Ticket.

[You have used the Transcendent Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Ticket.]

[Please select a Skill.]

1. Infinite Mana – 9★

Only one Skill came from the Transcendent Job-Exclusive Random Skill Selection Ticket.

‘Infinite Mana…? A Skill I’ve never seen before.’

It was fortunate that a Mana-related Skill appeared just when his Mana was depleted.

[You have acquired the Skill ‘Infinite Mana’.]

The moment Khan acquired the Infinite Mana Skill, even before he could check the Skill’s information, messages began appearing one after another before his eyes.

[The Skill ‘Infinite Mana’ and the Skill ‘Sage’s Heart’ are merging.]

[You have acquired the Rank 10 Transcendent Skill ‘Sage’s Mana’.]

The Rank 10 Hidden Skill Sage’s Heart that Khan originally possessed.

And the Rank 9 Skill Infinite Mana he just acquired merged.

Simultaneously, Mana surged and overflowed throughout Khan’s entire body, and he felt as if his Mana had become infinite in that instant.

‘Now I can conquer the 100th floor…!’

Since his Mana seemed to have become infinite, confidence welled up within him.

“Byutek, Sharin. I plan to conquer the 100th floor right away. Will you come with me?”

“Of course!”

“Me too!”

“Alright, understood.”

Khan threw himself into the Gate leading to the 100th floor of the Ancient Tower that had formed before his eyes.

At that moment.

Swoosh.

Suddenly, Khan’s vision turned black.

Just like when he first entered the game.

* * *

Khan hurriedly opened his eyes and sat up.

“Wh-where is this… my room?”

He had clearly thrown himself into the Gate leading to the 100th floor of the Ancient Tower, but when he opened his eyes, he was in the room where Khan lived… no, where Lee Huseong originally lived.

“This is my bed… Did I return? Then what about the game’s ending? Byutek and Sharin… what happened to them? I at least wanted to say a final goodbye before parting…”

Thoughts crowded his mind.

Yet, he didn’t feel panicked or confused at all.

“Huh…?”

While having such thoughts, Lee Huseong suddenly looked at the mirror hanging on the wall.

“This is… Khan?”

Looking in the mirror, he saw not Lee Huseong’s face, but Khan’s gaunt face.

The only difference was that Khan’s hair was ash-gray, while the reflection in the mirror had black hair.

But then, suddenly, his body and face filled out.

“Th-this is… me?! Then, could it be that Khan’s appearance in the game… was my appearance when I was skinny as a bone?”

If it were Lee Huseong’s original personality, he would have been incredibly shocked, but perhaps because he had lived as Khan for so long, it wasn’t as surprising as he thought.

Wheeeeeeen—!!

Wheeeeeeen—!!

Wheeeeeeen—!!

He felt dazed, as if he had just woken from a long sleep.

Amidst that, a siren sound was coming from outside.

-National state of emergency declared!

-All citizens, please move to designated shelters!

A voice came along with the siren sound.

Lee Huseong hurriedly took out his smartphone and checked the news.

-Mysterious gigantic tower appears in the heart of Seoul!

-Monsters appearing in large numbers all over the country!

-Government declares national state of emergency! All military forces immediately deployed!

Checking the news, Khan realized that the tower in the photo perfectly matched the Ancient Tower.

“That’s the Ancient Tower…? Wait, then could it be…?!”

Lee Huseong immediately opened his Status Window.

◈ LV.1000

◈ Khan (Lee Huseong)

◈ Mana: ∞/∞

◈ Talent: Magic

◈ Experience Points: 77%

◈ Skills: (1★)Arrow, (1★)Barrier, (2★)Fire Boom, (2★)Fireball, (2★)Mirror Defense, (2★)Mana Enhancement, (1★)Wind Cutter, (3★)Dragon’s Breath, (4★)Mana Circulation, (4★)Power Amplification, (4★)Space-Time Leap, (5★)Dark Flame, (1★)Wind Drill, (4★)Flame Curtain, (5★)Absolute Sight, (5★)Chrono Reset, (8★)Infinite Growth, (6★)Mana Amplification, (7★)Concentration, (6★)Mana Torrent, (6★)Mana Release, (8★)Mana Transcendence, (8★)Mana Extreme, (8★)Mana Evolution, (10★)Sage’s Mana

Then, surprisingly, a Status Window appeared before Lee Huseong’s eyes.

“Then my Skills too…?”

Lee Huseong used a Skill.

[You have used the Skill ‘Space-Time Leap’.]

Then, Lee Huseong instantly arrived before the Ancient Tower that had appeared in the heart of Seoul.

“Kyaaaaaah!!!”

“P-please save me!!!”

The Seoul area was in utter chaos.

People were running around, fleeing from the swarming Monsters.

Lee Huseong drew up his Mana, created Mana Bullets, and fired them, and the Monsters began to die.

“Thank you…!”

“Wh-what just happened?”

“Let’s just run for now!”

Some people expressed their gratitude to Lee Huseong.

Others were running away first without even understanding what was happening.

“The Ancient Tower must be conquered for it to completely disappear… So, everything I did in the game was practice? And now it’s the real thing?”

Muttering to himself like that, Lee Huseong headed towards the entrance of the Ancient Tower.

At the entrance, a blue-hued Gate leading inside the tower was situated.

“This time… I have to do it alone, I guess.”

He hadn’t even properly confirmed the true nature of the 100th floor yet, and conquering the 100th floor alone might be a bit difficult.

Still, he had to conquer the tower first, so Lee Huseong threw himself into the Gate.

[You have entered the 1st floor of the Ancient Tower.]

Upon entering the tower, it was again the interior of a dark room.

Beside it stood two very familiar people he had seen in the game.

“Hyungnim! Where did you disappear to all of a sudden?!”

“Master! Do you know how shocked I was when you suddenly vanished?! Huh? But you’ve gained a lot of weight? This looks much better, you know?”

Surprisingly, Byutek and Sharin were standing on the 1st floor of the Ancient Tower.

“You two……”

Lee Huseong felt a sudden lump in his throat, but tears didn’t ultimately fall.

“I don’t know why you two are here… but from now on, I’ll tell you my real name.”

“Huh? Khan isn’t your real name?”

“Hahaha! What does a name matter! I’ll call you Hyungnim anyway, Hyungnim!”

Lee Huseong was about to tell them his name, but hearing Byutek’s words, he decided there probably wasn’t much time and that they should climb the tower quickly first.

“We don’t have much time, so I’ll tell you while we climb. Let’s go up quickly first.”

“Yes!”

“Understood!”

From now on, he plans to go conquer the real Ancient Tower’s 100th floor that has appeared in Korea.

Together with Byutek and Sharin.

And then, after that?

‘After that… shall I take Byutek and Sharin to some famous restaurants in Korea?’

This time, he will truly be able to conquer the 100th floor of the Ancient Tower.

-<Rank 10 Skill is Too Strong> The End –