Chapter 92

After passing through several towns, we finally arrived at the village closest to the Sky Tower.

From a distance, we had caught glimpses of the Sky Tower, but now that we were here, its full form was clear.

It was so tall that we couldn’t see the top when looking up from below.

This tower was not built by humans. It is said to have been created by the Creator King as a means of transportation to the heavens during the time when angels and demons could freely come and go.

The actual truth is unknown. All that is clear is that it has existed here since ancient times.

Only one person is recorded as having reached the summit. They returned to the ground with vast wealth and died without saying a word.

While there had been a fair share of troubles on our journey here, they were all easily managed by this party.

“Intermediate courses are now complete,” Sepia announced proudly upon our arrival.

I was surprised at how quickly we advanced without unnecessary lessons.

It seemed that adopting the academy format had only increased the inefficiency.

The master-apprentice system allowed for overwhelmingly quicker learning.

Practical training as an intermediate mage had taken place during our encounters with monsters along the way.

My magical aptitude seemed lacking except for lightning, so it turned out I could only advance to the advanced course in that one element.

“Only fitting for a Sky Knight to wield lightning from the heavens,” Mastema said, pointing at me.

This girl…

It seemed to have amused Sepia.

The slaves looked at me in a bit of a panic.

I wasn’t angry at such a light-hearted jab.

Noel and Arnella also had advanced courses limited to their strong attributes.

“Normally, if you complete the intermediate level, you graduate from the academy.”

It appeared that even among the elite, there were few who could wield advanced magic.

If you consider that, my aptitude wasn’t too shabby.

That nobleman had barely managed to create a mediocre golem, after all.

The village was desolate.

When challengers flocked to the Sky Tower, it had been bustling with people and had developed into a large town.

However, as the summit climbers ceased to appear, it slowly became more and more deserted, and now it was in this state.

There were no inns, and securing food was difficult, making it just a place to pass through.

It was just as I remembered from my previous visit.

There were many edible monsters in the area, so food wouldn’t be a problem.

It was also possible to be self-sufficient within the Sky Tower.

I set the magic carriage to automatic defense mode.

With this, unless there were formidable forces, any would-be thieves would be repelled.

I decided to take a break before entering the Sky Tower, but a woman approached us from the village.

“Are you planning to ascend the tower?”

“Yes.”

“If you don’t mind, could you leave this at the top when you arrive?”

She offered me a transparent orb.

Sepia appraised it but seemed unable to identify what it was. However, it appeared harmless.

“Why?”

“A person who once reached the summit told me to give this to you.”

“Just because we can climb it doesn’t mean we will.”

“…I was just instructed to hand it over.”

The woman’s face was hidden, but her voice sounded youthful.

If she claimed that this was something brought back by a summit climber, she might know something about the Sky Tower.

I accepted the orb.

The woman looked relieved and quickly left.

I examined the orb, but it seemed unremarkable.

I couldn’t sense any magical energy, though…

Mastema reached out for it, so I handed it over.

“This is probably a communication device,” she suggested.

Mastema seemed to recall something.

“They probably thought it was a gem and intended to take it back home. Once you reach the top of the tower, it might connect to the heavens?”

I called Victor to ask about it, but he said he didn’t know.

That low-ranking angel…

I opened the door to the Sky Tower.

The interior of the Sky Tower is broadly divided into three sections: the lower, middle, and upper levels.

The lower level is straightforward, with monsters roaming about. We defeat them as we climb the tower.

Since all five of us are mages, we can finish the lower level simply by casting spells as we progress.

Having left the academy behind, everyone is equipped with good staves, so our firepower is high.

Sepia’s staff was the cheapest, so Mastema had given her a spare staff she hadn’t used since obtaining the Thorn Staff.

“This is the financial power of adventurers!”

Sepia was impressed with the staff she received. It seemed to suit her well.

Occasionally, there are monsters that are immune to magic, but Mastema would knock them down with her Thorn Staff, and I would finish them off with my sword.

“Is it okay for me to hit them with my own strength?”

“It’s fine. This staff is durable and repairs itself automatically.”

Saying that, she swung it around.

Is that really true…? I felt as though the Thorn King was faintly crying somewhere.

The interior of the Sky Tower was distorted in space-time due to magical energy.

The lower levels are hardly affected, but once we reached the middle level, the effects became apparent.

For instance, we could find ourselves stepping into water at the top of a staircase.

There was no water leaking from above; that particular level was entirely submerged. It was a mysterious space.

Fish-like monsters spotted us and rushed toward us.

Noel and Arnella used wind magic to create a layer of air around everyone’s faces.

This allowed us to breathe.

It had been a great struggle when Kasugal couldn’t use this spell.

As long as we could breathe, there were no issues.

Our movements were slowed in the water, but we could mitigate that with water magic.

I sliced through the fish-like monsters with my sword.

Mastema grabbed a filleted fish.

She must have been hungry.

After taking care of most of the monsters, we found a staircase and ascended.

Everyone was soaking wet.

The contents of the bags I handed to Noel and the others were safe, but we only had underwear as spare clothes.

It would be too bulky to bring extra outfits.

So, we ended up in our underwear, drying our clothes while preparing a meal.

It was a rather ridiculous sight, but since Sepia hurried to dry the clothes, it didn’t take long before they were ready.

We grilled the fish thoroughly and enjoyed a delicious meal with just salt.

The fish monsters had been quite large, but we finished them off in no time.

This kind of meal is a true delight that can only be enjoyed while adventuring.