Chapter 229: Sixty-First Floor, The Ice Castle’s Princess (3)

Logically speaking, giving Natalie the restriction would be the most optimal choice.

Considering that I needed to escort her out of the castle, it would be inefficient if I, as the strongest combatant, burdened myself with restrictions.

I could endure pain, but who knew to what extent the paralysis would affect me? If I lost my mobility, responding to perilous situations would become significantly harder.

Of course, the idea of forcing a young girl to endure pain or paralysis didn’t exactly sit right with me, but it wasn’t as if she would die from it. I could simply carry her on my back and rush through the floor as quickly as possible.

We had the power to decide who would suffer, though. There had to be a reason the tower had set it up this way.

I recalled the message that had appeared earlier.

[A restriction, either pain or paralysis, will be applied each time a door in the Ice Castle is opened.]

The fact that it was applied each time a door was opened stuck out to me. This wasn’t a one-time occurrence. It meant we would be faced with this choice repeatedly.

Trying to balance the burden between Natalie and me had been my second thought, but that still didn’t sit right with me.

Before we left the room earlier, Natalie had presented me with a choice: either play with her or immediately leave the room.

It was entirely possible that she had simply wanted to play, and there wasn’t a deeper meaning.

Maybe I would have thought that if the tower hadn’t liked to hide hints in even the most trivial details. Assigning significance to the first choice, I could interpret it as a test of who I prioritized: Natalie or myself.

Most climbers would have chosen to leave immediately, but I had prioritized her wishes over my own. The restriction functioned in a similar way.

At that moment, the floor’s name resurfaced in my mind.

The Ice Castle’s Princess.

I had wondered why it had included the word “Princess” instead of just being “The Ice Castle.”

The floors often highlighted their core objective through their name.

By definition, a princess is someone who is served and protected by others. Since Natalie was the princess, that meant perhaps my role was to serve her. In fact, that was part of the reason I had played with her earlier.

If this pattern—choosing between Natalie and myself—remained consistent throughout the entire floor, treating her as an actual princess was probably the hidden mission. I would bear the burdens as we escaped.

Having connected the dots, the floor’s name finally made sense to me. If I treated Natalie as a princess and ensured she was cared for accordingly, she would become one in return.

She had even hinted at it herself.

“Let’s play Princess and Prince!”

Perhaps she hadn’t meant it to be a simple game. Maybe she had literally implied that we needed to be a princess and a prince in order to escape.

If that were true, the prince couldn’t place burdens, such as pain or paralysis, on the princess.

This has to be the right answer.

The fact that Doppy hadn’t even been included as a potential recipient for the restriction further reinforced my theory. This was a matter between Natalie and me.

I had made up my mind. I would try to complete the potential hidden mission and shoulder all the restrictions. Natalie would escape the castle as a true princess, completely unharmed.

Dealing with enemies along the way still concerned me, though.

This is the sixty-first floor, so the opponents won’t be pushovers.

Even still, my instincts were now telling me that it wouldn’t be that difficult.

With how absurdly strong I had become, I didn’t have much to worry about. Plenty of my abilities didn’t rely on my mobility, so even if both of my arms became paralyzed, I would have a solution.

Flash Strike. Lightning Essence. Master of Shadows.

With Flash Strike, most problems could be solved immediately. I could slow time, summon lightning bolts, or use Master of Shadows to take down enemies for me.

Even if my legs were paralyzed, it wouldn’t be an issue. I could simply use Master of Shadows to move myself.

Moreover, Doppy could fight in my place while I activated Flash Strike.

Sure, it would consume a lot of my mana, but my gauntlet had stored more than sufficient mana. I had accumulated a vast reserve of mana for situations just like this one. Insufficient mana wouldn’t be a concern.

Now that I think about it, that gauntlet has benefited me more than I could have ever expected.

Whenever I had needed to exceed my limits on previous floors, the gauntlet had provided that extra boost that brought me over the line.

I had been lucky. In Ha Hee-Jeong’s previous life, the gauntlet had appeared in the hands of a climber from another species. I wondered if it had even been purchasable by Earthlings on the tenth floor like it had for me.

Not that it mattered right now.

I noticed Natalie’s eyes shifting uncertainly out of the corner of my eye

She glanced hesitantly at me. “Should I take the restriction?”

“No. You said you hated the feeling.”

“But you have to fight. Wouldn’t it be better if I took it?”

I shook my head. “I’ll be fine. Besides, you said you don’t even know what’s outside.”

“

Uhh

. yeah! No clue!”

“Also, you just said I’d have to fight. How do you know that?”

“That was just a guess! Like, maybe something’s out there?” Natalie responded nonchalantly, her expression as casual as ever.

She really was quite the bold princess.

Either way, we had to move forward, and I had already made my decision. “Is that so? Well, even if there are enemies, it’s fine. I’m stronger than you can even imagine.”

“I don’t mind either. I can handle pain!”

“No. I’ll take the restriction.”

“Are you really going to?”

I nodded unhesitatingly.

Natalie looked up at me, genuinely moved. Her golden eyes shimmered.

As if taking my words as confirmation, the system message updated.

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok had volunteered to suffer the restriction. Repeat ‘yes’ to confirm.]

“Yes.”

[Applying a random restriction to Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok.]

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has been assigned the restriction: ‘Pain.’ His sensation of pain will be amplified by a factor of 8.]

[A tremendous level of pain has been inflicted upon Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok’s left leg.]

My pain will be amplified eightfold?

I barely had time to process the message before it hit me. A searing agony erupted from my left foot, surging up my thigh like a thousand piercing blades.

Unfortunately, even that wasn’t enough to describe it. It felt as if molten needles were scorching every nerve in my leg, stabbing deep into my muscles and bones.

I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to endure it, but my brows furrowed involuntarily.

Even though I have the Pain Resistance skill, it is still this bad?

The sheer intensity of the pain was far beyond what I had expected.

At that moment, the door ahead of us melted away into nothingness. A long, frozen corridor stretched beyond it.

Natalie grasped my wrist tightly, her small hands trembling as if trying to share my pain.

That didn’t actually ease the agony, but strangely enough, a warm feeling spread through my chest. If anything, I was relieved to be the one enduring it.

This level of suffering was far too cruel for someone like Natalie. She was still just a child, so forcing her to endure such pain could leave lasting scars, both physically and mentally.

As for me... well, I suppose I wasn’t entirely sane to begin with. I could handle it.

“Are you okay? It hurts a lot, doesn’t it?”

Faced with her earnest concern, I couldn’t bring myself to be honest.

Suppressing the searing pain, I forced a smile and shook my head. “

Heh

. I’m fine. Let’s keep going.”

“Okay.”

“Doppy, stay on Natalie’s left side. We don’t know if something will ambush us.”

“Understood! I’ll guard her left side perfectly!” Doppy declared enthusiastically, though I caught him glancing at Natalie, perhaps hoping for some form of acknowledgment.

I had to stifle a chuckle. Just moments ago, he had been sulking over a steak. Now, he was trying to act all dependable.

Unfortunately, his efforts were completely wasted; Natalie didn’t even glance in his direction.

Instead, she kept looking up at me, her expression filled with worry.

In an effort to reassure her, I smiled and took a step forward.

Right foot first, then the left—

“

Huff—

”

I clenched my teeth.

Putting even the slightest amount of weight on my left leg had caused the pain to flare to an unbearable degree. It was beyond what should have been reasonable.

Natalie tightened her grip on my wrist once more. For someone so bold, she was surprisingly affectionate.

“Don’t worry. It’s not that bad.”

“Liar.” She pouted, her golden eyes glistening with concern.

Then, a chilling sensation ran down my spine; my instincts were warning me of something. I had no idea why, but I knew better than to ignore it.

Without hesitation, I activated Flash Strike.

Shwick—

A faint slicing sound echoed through the pristine ice corridor.

I snapped my head around. From the far end of the hallway, a barrage of ice arrows was hurtling toward us at incredible speed. Even at a distance, I could tell they were aimed directly at Natalie.

How are they still this fast?

Even though the world around me seemed to be moving sluggishly, the arrows appeared to be completely unaffected. This was no ordinary trap.

I instantly raised my axe. Electricity crackled as I wrapped the blade in thick lightning and swung in a sweeping arc. The surge of energy tore through the incoming arrows.

Crackle—

The ice projectiles shattered mid-air, scattering into a flurry of frozen shards.

As soon as I deactivated Flash Strike, two startled screams erupted from behind me.

“

Kyaaa!

”

“

Gahhh!

”

Doppy and Natalie’s reactions didn’t surprise me; they hadn’t even noticed the arrows until they had already been destroyed, after all.

Clutching her chest, Natalie stared wide-eyed at the falling ice fragments.

Her voice trembled as she asked, “W-was that... an arrow?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry. I’ll block every last one.”

“Okay! I’ll trust you, oppa!”

***

[Rescue the princess imprisoned at the top of the Ice Castle. Time remaining: 16 hours 54 minutes.]

Roughly thirty minutes later, we arrived at the next door. This time, it was positioned in the middle of a descending staircase.

It had taken longer to find than expected. Natalie had no idea where we were going, and the castle’s corridors were nothing short of a labyrinth. The journey had been grueling, to say the least.

No matter how long pain lasts, one can never truly adapt to it.

Unlike other sensations that dulled over time, pain remained just as sharp, no matter how prolonged. I had been clenching my jaw for so long that my facial muscles ached.

Will enemies appear after this door?

After passing through the first door, we hadn’t encountered any foes. Instead, the corridors had launched countless magical ice arrows at us.

That alone had been exhausting enough, but I wasn’t about to lower my guard.

This was only the second door. The first had primarily consisted of traps, and I felt confident that the second would introduce actual adversaries.

As I approached the door, a message appeared before me.

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has arrived at the second door. Please select the recipient of the restriction.]

As before, I had already decided that I would shoulder it.

However, before I could confirm, Natalie turned to me, a determined look flickering in her eyes.

“This time... I’ll take it.”

I firmly shook my head. “No. I’m not going to let you suffer.”

Even with how painful the first restriction had been, I still intended to shoulder every burden. In fact, my resolve had only grown stronger. Not even for a second did I consider putting Natalie through this.

The same went for Doppy. Even if I could apply the restriction to him, I wouldn’t force him to suffer in my place.

The pain was simply too overwhelming. No child should have to endure this.

Still, Natalie stubbornly protested, “Why not?! We have to escape together! If I take it too, it’ll be easier for you!”

“But you’re the princess. Didn’t you say you wanted to play ‘Princess and Prince’? A princess doesn’t suffer.”

I had just been saying whatever came to mind to pacify her, but Natalie froze, her lips parting slightly; she was displaying a look of pure awe. I wasn’t sure why.

At most, I thought she looked adorable.

Doppy, on the other hand, was glaring at me with open hostility.

He had fallen for her at first sight. After witnessing her emotional reaction to my words, he had begun treating me like some kind of love rival. This little guy was getting too bold. I made a mental note to properly educate him once we returned to the waiting room.

Ignoring Doppy’s glare, I confirmed my choice, “I’ll take the restriction.”

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok had volunteered to suffer the restriction. Repeat ‘yes’ to confirm.]

“Yes.”

[Applying a random restriction to Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok.]

[Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has been assigned the restriction: ‘Paralysis.’ His right arm has now been completely immobilized. It cannot be moved by anything.]

The moment the message appeared, all sensation in my right arm vanished. My axe slipped from my grip, falling to the ground with a dull thud.

I picked it up with my left hand as the ice door before us melted away.

A paralyzed right arm wouldn’t impact me too much against the average enemy. It would take some adjusting, but I could still fight one-handed.

Compared to the unbearable pain from earlier, this was an acceptable trade-off.

I turned my gaze toward the staircase.

“Hehehe!”

A strange, eerie laughter echoed from the darkness below.

***

「Invisible message: The future Dimensional Witch Natalie Marlene’s affinity toward Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has increased significantly.」

「Invisible message: ■■.■% affinity is required to unlock the hidden mission ‘The Dimensional Witch’s First Contract.’」