Chapter 179: Forty-Seventh Floor, Curse and Catastrophe (2)

I was still hurtling backward through the air when I twisted mid-flight, kicking off the air to redirect my momentum.

Not a second too late, either.

The Catastrophe’s spear tore violently through where I had been just moments before. As soon as he registered my adjustment, he repositioned. With a single, powerful beat of one set of wings, the Catastrophe shifted his aim, and the spearhead was once again trained directly at me.

I barely had time to steady my stance before he swiftly thrust again. Jerking my head sharply to the side, I narrowly managed to dodge, though the spear still grazed me right below my ear. The dragon scale earring dangling there rattled wildly from the force.

A chill ran down my spine.

The Catastrophe dragged his spear downward in a sharp arc.

Clang!

The shaft of the spear smashed into my right shoulder. I hastily funneled mana into my armor, but the impact still hit me hard. Raw and unfiltered pain flared from my shoulder, forcing me to retreat and widen the distance between us.

This isn’t going to be easy.

Yet despite the grim realization, I felt the corners of my mouth curl upward.

How long has it been since I felt this thrill?

An irrational competitive urge burned hotly inside me, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I had completely lost it.

“The aura... use it...” Ryun said urgently, breaking through my fervor.

Since the tower's censorship incident, Ryun had remained silent. For him to speak now only proved how formidable this opponent was.

Unfortunately, the Catastrophe wouldn’t wait for me. He lunged again.

I swung my axe upward just in time to deflect the spear. This was the first time since meeting Ryun that I had felt so helpless.

Ryun wasn’t of much help, either. I wanted to scream at him to hurry up and finish his sentence, but I didn’t have the chance to voice my frustration.

“You have to... use it...”

I stumbled back and arched my back to dodge another incoming thrust. The spearhead whistled past my face, its deadly aura brushing against my skin like invisible claws.

Clenching my teeth, I twisted my waist and swung my axe in retaliation.

Clang!

The Catastrophe intercepted the blow with one of his wings. He was far stronger than I had anticipated.

“You... need it...”

Of course, I knew what Ryun was referring to, but I still couldn’t fully manifest my own aura.

The best I could summon was a half-formed imitation, a pale reflection of Ryun’s technique. He had explicitly told me not to rely on it if I wanted to grow stronger, as well.

No other choice now.

I drew on my mana.

A faint, translucent glow emanated from my axe blade as Ryun’s aura coiled around it.

“Otherwise...” Ryun added as the aura took form, “your axe... will break...”

He wasn’t wrong. I had already felt the strain on the weapon during our earlier clashes. Mana surged through the axe just as the Catastrophe’s spear came crashing down against it again.

The impact forced us both back two steps. I braced myself, expecting another attack, but the Catastrophe remained still. The brief pause allowed me to notice the window hovering above his head.

[Valsaron, the Catastrophe]

With my mana draining steadily, I released Flash Strike to conserve energy.

Valsaron flicked his spear, eyes fixed on me.

“Are you... a being of truth... now?”

A being of truth?

The question caught me off guard.

What is that?

A weirdly specific and absurd memory resurfaced in my mind—something from a long-forgotten philosophy class. Unfortunately, the details eluded me now.

I didn’t answer. Whatever the reason the Catastrophe had for asking me that question, it wasn’t idle curiosity.

There were only two answers: yes or no. One was correct, the other a mistake. If I said the wrong thing, I could be erased.

The question seemed too simple.

Who wouldn’t claim to be truthful? Is he implying I am not?

Wait. The word “now” felt crucial.

The ‘me’ that exists right now.

Valsaron pressed me again, his persistence unnerving, “Answer me. Are you a being of truth?”

Instead of responding, I threw the question back at him. “What about you? Are you a being of truth?”

Valsaron burst into sharp and mocking laughter. The derision in his laugh made my skin crawl.

He spread his arms wide and unfurled his six wings in a display of elegance and menace. “Of course. I am a being of truth. There’s no question.”

For something called the Catastrophe, his beauty felt almost unsettling. “I’ve answered. Now, what about you?”

The question almost felt like a trap.

My instincts screamed at me not to give the same answer as Valsaron. That would mean death. However, denying it implied that I wasn’t truthful.

What am I supposed to say?

No answer seemed right. Even admitting ignorance wouldn’t help.

I wrestled with the dilemma, but Valsaron didn’t wait. Seeing my hesitation, he raised his spear again.

I needed more time.

“What are you?”

“I am the Catastrophe. For those who refuse to answer, death is the only path.”

His chilling remarks sent a shiver down my spine.

I instinctively activated Flash Strike.

Just as I feared, Valsaron lunged the moment he finished speaking. Even though Flash Strike allowed me to react significantly faster than normal, he moved faster and struck harder than I could.

Blow after blow, our weapons clashed in rapid succession.

Desperate for answers, I tried speaking between strikes, but Valsaron remained silent. Though I was slowly adapting to his attacks, unease gnawed at me.

What should I do? Can I even win this?

According to the tower, three hours still remained until the Catastrophe disappeared. However, trying to even stall him required constant use of Flash Strike and Ryun’s sword aura.

My mana was draining fast. Even with my gauntlet’s reserves, I wouldn’t last more than an hour.

I barely dodged another strike.

Damn it. I need more time.

I released the aura imbuing my weapon as I widened the distance between myself and Valsaron. Preparing for a possible pursuit, I kept my guard up. However, he didn’t follow.

What? Is he really letting me go?

Just then, a prolonged explosion echoed from the right side of the fortress wall—the climbers were still fighting for their lives.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

No way. Is he heading for them instead? Fuck.

I bit down on my lip and was about to pivot toward the sound when Valsaron suddenly raised his hand high into the sky.

A low murmur slithered through the air. The sky darkened above me, fading into an ominous blackness. I didn’t need Sixth Sense to know that danger was closing in.

I immediately pushed off the ground in a desperate attempt to get away.

“Judgment...”

The end of Valsaron’s deep and foreboding chant resonated throughout the area. He then pointed his outstretched hand at me, and a pillar of black light came crashing down from the heavens. It had to be at least fifty meters wide.

Pushing Ghost Step and Wind’s Route to their limits, I barely escaped the blast by a hair’s breadth.

I didn’t have enough time to dodge the shockwave, however. Realizing this, I channeled mana into my armor, hopefully reinforcing it enough.

Boom!

A deafening roar shattered the air. Turbulent winds, raw mana, and crushing pressure slammed into me, flinging me like a rag doll.

My senses were thrown into chaos. Debris and unseen forces struck me repeatedly as I hurtled through the air.

Everything went dark.

***

“

Ugh

...”

When I finally recovered consciousness, I immediately noticed how difficult it felt to move.

Every muscle throbbed dully, and an overwhelming weight pressed down on my back. A nearly unbearable pain filled me, and it dawned on me that I was buried beneath a mound of rubble.

The one small mercy was that I hadn’t lost my grip on my axe. Even so, the thought of standing seemed unbearable.

I am exhausted.

I had endured grueling battles before, but never had I been left feeling so powerless. This entire fight had been one-sided—a desperate attempt to hold the line.

For a brief moment, the urge to surrender to exhaustion tempted me. Ha Hee-Jeong’s voice then rang in my mind.

“If you can’t handle it alone, send a signal. I’ll come.”

I was struggling badly.

Should I call her?

No. Even if she arrives, what difference will it make?

Even when I had been boosted by Flash Strike, Valsaron had moved faster than I could react. Ha Hee-Jeong wouldn’t even have time to respond. Moreover, even if she had a plan, it wouldn’t solve the problem of how to save the climbers.

No clear solution presented itself.

I managed to hold my ground in close combat, but...

That mana beam raining down from the sky was a different beast entirely. If even someone like me struggled against it, the others wouldn’t stand a chance.

Even if I couldn’t kill my enemy or endure for three hours, that didn’t mean the challenge didn’t have a solution. We were in the tower; I had to believe it wouldn’t present us with an impossible challenge.

So, what is the correct answer?

Finally, a thought struck me.

Do I have to force him to lie?

Maybe that was the loophole.

How would I pull that off, though? He refuses to respond to me, so how am I supposed to get him to lie?

At that moment, Ryun interrupted my contemplation, “You have... to awaken... your own... aura...”

I didn’t respond. Finding enlightenment during a one-sided beatdown seemed impossible. If that were possible, no one would die in combat; they would just grow stronger before death.

“Damn it!” I cursed, disrupting my spiraling thoughts.

How much time has passed?

Not long, but I couldn’t afford to waste another second. If I hesitated, the climbers would die—Ha Hee-Jeong as well.

No. This wasn’t about the others.

I was just like her. I cared more about Ha Hee-Jeong than anyone else. Maybe that made me selfish, but her safety mattered more to me than anything. She was the one who would climb to the top of the tower with me. The one who would help save Earth.

Gritting my teeth, I summoned every ounce of strength and forced my battered self to rise.

“

Argh!

Fucking hell!”

My muscles bulged as I strained, forcing the rubble pinning me down to shift and slide away.

Thud. Thud.

Chunks of debris tumbled down, accompanied by plumes of dust.

Then, my instincts pulsed ominously. I turned sharply to the right, barely dodging a flash of black light that pierced through the haze.

What? He wasn’t targeting the climbers? He waited for me?

It didn’t matter.

Pain still pulsed through me, but my senses had never been sharper. I didn’t know why. The incoming spear seemed to slow as it closed in.

I swung my axe downward with all my strength.

Claaaang!

Valsaron’s spear collided with my blade and embedded itself into the ground below. In that fleeting instant, our eyes locked.

Valsaron gazed at me, void of emotion, just like his cold and detached self. “What are you?”

“What are the shackles of truth?” I questioned on impulse, but as expected, Valsaron didn’t answer.

I had to be missing... something.

Perhaps a keyword or phrase would trigger a response from him. Maybe I would’ve figured it out had we been able to catch the lying angel on the previous floor.

It was too late to dwell on that now, unfortunately.

Fine. If that is how it is, I will just have to take him down.

I wiped all thoughts from my mind, clearing it completely. Sometimes, clarity struck in the most unexpected moments—like during a shower.

The mana stored within my gauntlet hadn’t been utilized in a long time. Now, it overflowed as it surged into me.

For reasons I couldn’t explain, a burst of energy surged through me. I hoped it would last long enough to awaken the strength Ryun spoke of.

I smirked and glared menacingly as I locked eyes with Valsaron. “If you won’t answer, then I’ll just have to kill you.”

Returning his words felt extremely satisfying.

As if on cue, the battle resumed, and amid the relentless clash, the revelation I had been waiting for finally struck.

***

「Invisible message: Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has awakened a burning desire to save others. His skills have leveled up. Savior is now lvl 2.]