165. Champion (2)
Back to the training grounds.
"....."
Aila, who had come running over in a hurry, was startled and gasped for breath.
'How...?' Just how had they known?
To be honest, she had been confident that no one would notice her.
That was because she had used footsteps so stealthy that she could hide even from the demons' persistent gazes.
'There definitely wasn't any mistake.'
That man called HunGyo. His gaze had landed on her clearly.
And Aso.
That girl's wooden sword had flown straight toward her.
"Haa."
Were they really the ones spoken of in the oracle? It seemed they were no ordinary people.
'Besides.'
For about thirty seconds.
She had been able to watch the swordsmanship they were practicing.
'It was my first time.'
In all her life, Aila had never seen it before.
A swordsmanship that was so domineering, yet so beautiful.
What would happen if she fought him?
Honestly, she didn't know. She had confidence, but she didn't think it would be easy.
Whirl!
Aila spun the spear again and let it extend.
Swish, whoosh!
Then she swung the spear.
'Me too.'
I need to grow stronger.
I want to become stronger.
Fwiiiiish!
She scattered the spear strikes.
While thinking of the swordsmanship she had seen back then.
* * *
—My lord.
"Hm?"
—I went and checked on that woman called the Champion.
"Really? How was it?"
—It feels like she's hit a wall.
"...A wall."
Hmm.
Baek Jinwoo stroked his chin.
He had sent HunGyo to tail Aila.
Whether HunGyo had another stealth-specialized summoned creature ability in his head or not, somehow he had managed to follow her around without being noticed.
—Yes. Right now, she is trying to carry out efficient combat like a perfect machine. Sometimes intuition must also be valued for one to rise to that realm, but it seems she is consciously excluding it.
Intuition.
For Baek Jinwoo and Aso, it was something they had more than enough of.
"Wow."
Baek Jinwoo exclaimed in admiration.
"You can tell all that just by watching from afar?"
—Training others is my specialty. There are no exceptions, not even for a Paladin.
The problem is, she's not just any ordinary Paladin!
She's an S-grade Champion, no less!
"Then what if you trained her?"
—Naturally, I would be able to draw out her subconscious.
"Oh."
That was a novel method.
Back when he had climbed the 54th floor, HunGyo hadn't been there, so he couldn't do it.... But a route like this could also exist.
A method of training the Champion and the Commander themselves, making them stronger, and then capturing Asmodeus more easily.
'If this is possible, then I absolutely have to do it.'
The Tower of Trials was directly tied to life and death.
Back in 「Battle of Summoners」, he had several coins, and even if he lost, he could keep challenging again, but.....
Now, wasn't it basically one coin only?
When failure meant death, there was no reason to be picky about methods.
The problem was, how to lure that girl called the Champion....
Well.
It felt like coaxing people like them might actually be easier than expected.
When it came to Paladins, weren't they usually all brainless meatheads like berserkers...?
* * *
The next day.
'Hm?'
While swinging her spear, Aila sensed someone's presence nearby.
‘....That man from before?’
Whirl!
She retrieved the spear she had been thrusting and held it upright.
Then she sharply turned her head. Before her stood HunGyo and Baek Jinwoo.
"Didn't I tell you it wasn't polite to secretly watch someone training?"
Aila said, her brows twitching with displeasure.
But Baek Jinwoo did not react seriously. He merely brushed it off lightly.
"I wasn't watching your training. I just want to help."
"......."
Aila put on a wary expression.
Heh.
Baek Jinwoo smiled.
"Weren't you preparing to fight Asmodeus? If you're that desperate..... then this is no time to be showing pointless pride."
Whoosh.
Aila's eyes sharpened.
"Help? What kind of help could you possibly give me?"
"Who knows. But with that kind of attitude, even the best help would be wasted. No matter how good a teacher is, if the student lacks the will, it's useless."
At that sly grin, Aila gripped her spear tightly.
Heh.
Look at this girl.
You're getting provoked by something like this?
"What, are you going to try fighting me? I don't mind. More than the Commander, you were the one I was curious about."
"...I have no such intention."
The Champion was a Paladin who knew how to control her emotions.
She would never fight without the Holy King's command, and while she was currently doing everything she could to recover their forces, she could not create another injured person.
"Well, do as you like then. If you change your mind, come find me anytime. I'll welcome it."
Shuffle, shuffle.
Baek Jinwoo nodded and turned his back as he walked away.
He thought all Paladins would be berserker types, but she controlled her emotions better than expected.
'Then there's no need to provoke her any further.'
First, keep some distance and occasionally show his face to lower her guard.
And after that?
He had to make her come looking for him herself.
In his book, there was no such kindness as setting the table and spoon-feeding someone.
If you wanted to pluck and eat sweet fruit, you had to make the effort yourself.
"......"
Watching Baek Jinwoo disappear before she knew it, Aila narrowed her eyes.
Help.
And pride.
To be honest, those words had stabbed straight into her heart. For the first time in her life, she had been hit with such blunt truth!
'Let's just train.'
Whirl!
She unfolded her spear art once more.
Wooooooong!
An enormous amount of holy power burst forth from the pure white spear shaft, then scattered in all directions as though it would purify everything.
* * *
The day after that.
Baek Jinwoo came strolling from far away.
"....."
Aila, who had been polishing her spear, kept her mouth shut and cast him a sidelong glance.
Tilt.
Baek Jinwoo jerked his head, and Aila ignored the look.
So then he just turned and disappeared again.
* * *
The third day.
Her holy power was still coming out amply, but it felt as though her spear kept breaking apart in stops and starts.
Today as well, that man came briefly and then left just like that.
Haa.
Aila let out a short breath.
'I want to see Master.’
The previous Champion, Raphael Darius.
Called the Great Spear of Light, he remained as a legend of Lumentia.
‘Would things have been different if he had been by my side?’
Of course, he had quietly spent his final years during the continent's age of peace before passing away.
He is a being who cannot be here.
* * *
One week later.
Tremble, tremble.
Aila's hand shook.
The more she trained, the more she should have been improving, yet it felt as though everything was getting twisted in a stranger direction.
As if she were floundering at sea without a lighthouse to guide her course.
Swish, whoosh!
Really.
Could this even be called spearsmanship?
Just in case, she went to find the Paladin Commander.
Arno Billian.
".....You truly are strong, Champion."
He was completely defeated by Aila.
He was certainly strong. But she had no idea what exactly the problem was.
* * *
On the tenth day.
Swish, swish swish!
As she swung her spear with all her effort, a voice reached her ears.
—Do not deceive your emotions.
Flinch.
Aila's body trembled.
Had she been too immersed in it?
She had not sensed any presence at all....
When she came to her senses, that man called HunGyo was nearby.
—It is the mark of an amateur to use holy power solely for purification. Start by putting your will into that power. Only then will you surpass that realm.
HunGyo threw out just a few words, then disappeared without even waiting for a reply.
“!”
His sheer rudeness should have made her flare up.
But perhaps because she had been so frustrated all this time, her curiosity was greater than her wounded pride.
'Put my will into it?'
Hmph.
What kind of nonsense was that?
Wasn't that itself the foolish thing to do?
Holy power was the will of God itself.
They were holy knights. Those who served the will of God.
'My own will doesn't matter.'
Grit.
Grinding her teeth, Aila swung her spear again. Her stubbornness was firmer than expected.
* * *
And when the second week came.
"They say the Holy King has finished preparing for deployment!"
The message came from a priest.
"Oh, finally!"
"Is it starting?"
Baek Jinwoo and Rachel rose as if they had been waiting for it.
The 55th floor, the 56th floor, the 57th floor.
Seizing the three major strongholds located across the continent.
He was sick of training now.
He wanted to finish quickly and climb the Tower.
Asmodeus or whatever, he just wanted to crash into it already.
Only then would he know whether he was heading to the 61st floor or whether he could return home.
He missed Yoo Jia too, and he longed for a plush ultra-luxury bed.
"Let's hurry up and get this over with."
Stretching his body wide, Baek Jinwoo thought,
'Aila.'
That woman really was something.
Stubborn as hell.
He had simply given up. He decided not to teach her.
She could live by her own stubbornness.
'Asmodeus?'
We'll just beat him to death with our Ancient Explosive Dragon!
* * *
Iron Bear, headquarters.
"Rachel has disappeared."
Those were the first words Glushakov spoke after returning for the first time in a whole month.
"What?"
One of the Five Emperors. Moscowman, Veskov, rose from his seat.
His fist was clenched tightly.
"Are you certain?"
"Yes. No matter how much they try to hide it, some things are bound to come out. She has not shown herself for over two months already, and the last destination on record is the Tower of Trials."
"...The Tower of Trials."
Surely not....
Was he saying that Rachel had failed to clear the 51st floor?
Or had she...?
Kept challenging it over and over?
"People on the inside are also considering the possibility that Rachel may have died. And with quite a high probability."
"Hah."
Rachel died?
Veskov gave a bitter smile.
Still, they had known each other for a long time, and hearing that she might be dead did not feel good.
'But.'
There was a good side to it as well.
He had clashed with her quite often, and because her social standing was higher than his, he had never been able to raise his voice much....
Moscowman had always kept that in his heart.
"And.... there is also a high probability that Korea's Baek Jinwoo has disappeared as well."
"What?"
Veskov's pupils widened.
This time, he was even more shocked.
Rachel not making it out was hard to understand, but fine, maybe it could happen.
But God Ji-nu?
The idea that such a being would fail to clear somewhere....
He simply could not picture it in his head.
A monster among monsters.
That was also why Veskov had always been wary of God Ji-nu.
If he was around, it became difficult to control this world however he pleased.
"And judging by Olivia's frequent visits to Korea, it seems there was some sort of connection. If I had to guess, the two of them...."
Glushakov paused for a moment, then continued.
"With a high probability, they have been unable to come out of the Tower of Trials."
"....!"
Veskov's expression turned grave.
If that statement was true, then the Tower of Trials might have changed drastically from what they knew.
Rachel and God Ji-nu.
Neither of them were people who would fall on a floor in the 50s.
Especially considering the combat power they had shown in the League.
"You don't know how long they've been in there?"
"Not exactly, but.... I estimate it has been at least over two months."
He's definitely capable.
Breaking through security couldn't have been easy, yet he had found out something that specific.
'Probably.'
Veskov thought,
'From the point when she stopped answering messages.'
At the very least, Rachel had probably been unable to come out since then.
Perhaps.
She might have died in there.
Unless she had brought truckloads of emergency rations with her, survival would be even harder.
"For now."
Veskov sat back down.
"Watch for one more month."
There was no need to be hasty.
Wasn't there a saying about tapping even a stone bridge before crossing it?
If, by then, neither of them had returned?
'Then....'
At that point, he too could no longer yield.
Just as she had ruled like a dictator for the past four years, exactly as she wished, he too had the freedom to dream of a world of his own.
Why?
Because he had the power.
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