Chapter 36

Chapter 36
## Chapter: 36

### Chapter Title: The Sole Task Only I Can Perform in This Realm

—

The Tower of Mystery.

Known formally as the Tower of Enigmas.

It served as a pilgrimage site for countless creatures of darkness, all venturing inside with the hope of claiming a “mystery” that resonated with their essence.

Every beast that set foot within Kramdel eventually passed through these gates at least once, making it as essential a stop as the local thermal springs.

“Are you aware of the reason so many monsters in Kramdel sport headgear of identical shades?”

“……?”

Isaac, resting his weight against the cold masonry of the tower, directed his question toward Isabella.

As she shifted her attention to him, Isaac rhythmically knocked his knuckles against the tower’s exterior.

“Word is, the color of their helmet is dictated by the specific mystery they manifest within these walls.”

“Is that the case?”

“……’Is that the case?’ You certainly don’t waste words, do you?”

“You are the secondary subordinate.”

“Which implies…… you consider yourself the primary one?”

A sharp nod followed.

Isabella confirmed this with a face so devoid of emotion that Isaac found himself momentarily speechless.

“I suppose I should be addressing you as ‘senior’ then?”

“No.”

“Is my conversation starting to grate on your nerves?”

“Continue.”

She wanted him to keep talking.

Despite her icy exterior, curiosity was clearly tugging at her.

That crow who claimed to be the Star Awakener was an oddity, but this woman was certainly a match in the department of strangeness.

‘How peculiar. Usually, my appeal is universal among humanoid females, regardless of their heritage.’

Isaac was well aware of his own assets.

By any objective standard, he was strikingly handsome.

He possessed a natural magnetism that rarely failed.

He had yet to meet a woman who didn’t eventually soften under his gaze.

Human or otherwise, it usually made no difference.

Yet, the woman standing before him was like a glacier. A palpable frost seemed to radiate from her very presence.

‘That specific look in her eyes—as if she’s observing a lesser life form. Those are the eyes of a monarch.’

But Isaac was an expert at deciphering women.

Isabella’s gaze belonged to a queen who had never known defeat.

She carried the unmistakable weight of someone who had once stood at the pinnacle of power, commanding legions.

‘Which makes this all the more baffling. She isn’t the sort of person who would ever submit to a common scavenger bird.’

A sovereign had been brought to heel.

And by a mere corpse crow, of all things.

Her obedience was absolute, yet her internal spirit remained fierce and unyielding. To everyone except that self-proclaimed Star Awakener, she maintained that same haughty stare.

“Did you also commit to a single year of service?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“And what was your prize for such a deal?”

“Autonomy.”

“Autonomy?”

Another nod.

The instant Isabella had crossed the threshold of the wasteland, she had attained her liberty.

However, it was a hollow freedom.

She yearned to uncover the truth of her ancestry and her true beginning.

To achieve that, she had entered into a twelve-month pact with the Star Awakener.

‘She’s recruiting. Gathering a circle of followers to serve her for a year. But what is her selection process?’

Isaac folded his arms across his chest.

This crow had appeared from nowhere, acting as though the world’s secrets were laid bare before her. She had clearly known Isaac was residing in Kramdel from the very start.

Yet, his personal history was a guarded secret. He wasn’t the type to reminisce about his past with strangers.

‘Could she truly be the Star Awakener, possessing such total knowledge?’

It was a riddle he couldn’t solve.

He lacked even the most basic clue.

He didn’t know why she had tracked him down, nor what purpose she intended for him to serve.

One fact remained undeniable: she was hunting for those who hungered for liberation.

‘That look again. She’s demanding that I keep speaking.’

Isabella continued to stare at Isaac in total silence.

It was a quiet but heavy pressure to resume his explanation.

She was far more inquisitive than she let on.

“……At any rate, the mysteries available are supposedly restricted by one’s species. Low-level creatures like goblins usually end up with trivial mysteries and are relegated to white laborer helmets.”

“And the black ones?”

“Black is reserved for the pathfinders. Monsters who unlock mysteries granting them the ability to perceive concealed routes usually wear those. Blue is the color of the overseers who manage the laborers.”

“What of the remaining hues?”

“Red signifies the administrators of Kramdel. They hold significant sway here—roughly equal to human lords. Above them is the sovereign class, marked by crowns shaped like fangs. They are essentially the royalty of this place.”

“It mimics human structure.”

The social hierarchy was as rigid as any human kingdom: those who rule and those who obey.

Still, the reason monsters swarmed to Kramdel was uncomplicated.

They sought the catalysts for evolution and the sacred waters of the goddess’s spring.

The boons granted to casual visitors were nothing compared to the high-quality rewards bestowed upon Kramdel’s official retainers.

Isaac gave a casual shrug.

“It is precisely like the world of men.”

Monsters in the wild didn’t organize themselves this way.

Only those drawn to the gravity of Kramdel adopted these behaviors.

Isaac turned his head slowly, looking up at the towering structure.

‘What kind of mystery is that bird seeking by going in there?’

Human mysteries were fundamentally different from those of beasts.

They differed in both intent and function.

For humans, a mystery was often just a badge of office or a minor enhancement.

They were standard rewards for becoming a mayor or a leader of a guild.

Sometimes they were just flashy aesthetic effects purchased from a mystery artisan.

‘Human and beast mysteries inhabit different worlds.’

Because human mysteries lacked deep spiritual weight, people didn’t hold them in high regard.

For a monster, however, a mystery was the very proof of their right to exist at a certain rank.

The power they could wield was strictly governed by their biological limits and their inherent status.

And yet, a corpse crow had walked into the Tower of Mystery.

‘A corpse crow is a mid-tier creature at best. Whatever mystery it manages to grab won’t be anything legendary……’

Even if it reached the final floor, the result might impress a human, but it would be mediocre to a beast.

If it simply wanted to work in the city, it would walk out with a white helmet immediately.

A blue overseer’s rank would be a stroke of incredible luck.

Red helmets required elite mysteries and immense raw power.

As for the sovereign class? That was a literal impossibility.

‘Legendary beasts possess legendary mysteries.’

In the hierarchy of the wild, mysteries were comparable to the mane of a lion.

The more magnificent the mane, the greater the mystery’s potency.

World-class mysteries were the birthright of mythical or spectral beings of high lineage, though Isaac had never seen one in person.

Regardless.

‘At the very most, it might gain something like ‘Vision of the Deceased’ to boost its senses.’

Beasts usually manifested mysteries tied to their innate traits.

Corpse crows were linked to the element of decay and curses.

Logically, it would likely gain a mystery that amplified its cursing abilities.

A mid-tier result.

The idea of a crow gaining a mystery like Medusa’s, which influenced all of Kramdel? Absurd.

*Rumble!*

Suddenly, the air shifted.

“The tower……?”

The earth began to shudder, vibrating in sync with the massive spire.

The transformation didn’t stop with a tremor.

“It’s…… it’s turning into solid gold……!”

Isaac was too stunned to finish his thought.

The entire tower was suddenly engulfed in a brilliant, celestial golden radiance.

In all his time in Kramdel, he had never witnessed such a phenomenon.

“What on earth is happening?”

“The tower is incensed!”

The monsters gathered nearby were falling into a state of hysteria.

Countless beasts were currently inside climbing or standing in the queue for their chance.

Amidst the chaos and confusion.

“The tower has issued a direct challenge to a contestant!”

A dark, goat-like monster trembled as it cried out.

The whispers in the crowd reached a fever pitch.

“The tower itself?”

“Has such a thing ever occurred before?”

“Did a being of such magnitude enter that the tower felt the need to intervene personally?”

“It couldn’t be…… perhaps the Minotaur King who entered just a moment ago?”

“No, it has to be that young spectral beast from earlier.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s clearly the Leviathan.”

Everyone offered their own frantic guesses, mesmerized by the spectacle.

The spirit of the tower had reached out to test someone within.

But with so many individuals inside, the crowd was divided on who was the recipient of this rare trial.

Isaac shook his head privately.

‘There’s no way……’

The timing was too perfect.

It happened almost immediately after the crow went inside.

That self-titled Star Awakener?

No. Isaac dismissed the thought.

Why would a grand structure like the tower offer a divine trial to a common scavenger bird?

—

*Ssssh.*

The moment the tower took on its golden hue, Medusa, the Sovereign of the Portal, reacted from her seat of power.

The serpents that made up her hair began to flicker their tongues and writhe with renewed life.

“L-Lady Medusa……!”

“It has been years since she showed any signs of movement!”

The lesser serpent-kin, born from Medusa’s own essence, hissed in excitement at her stirring.

Following a previous ‘incident,’ Medusa had kept her physical form motionless for years, dedicating all her energy to mending her grievous injuries.

*Splash. Splaaash.*

The serpents worked feverishly.

They were constantly dousing Medusa’s form in thermal water enriched with the potent tears of the goddess.

An entity of her transcendent status could not be healed by common medicine.

However, Medusa’s movement was fleeting.

‘Someone has triggered the Mythic level of the Tower of Mystery.’

The Mythic Tower had only been accessed twice in the era before the city was named Kramdel.

Once by the Monarch of Frost.

The other time by a magnificent, golden ancient drake.

The Monarch of Frost had successfully endured the challenge, but the golden drake had faltered and met a gruesome end.

‘And the path has remained closed ever since.’

The tower existed to provide monsters with their mysteries.

But it was a meritocracy based strictly on the potential of one’s species.

Only transcendent beings like the ancient drake or the Frost Monarch possessed the inherent quality to unlock the mythic trials.

Had someone of that caliber stepped forward to challenge it?

‘Success is impossible regardless.’

Even the radiant golden drake had fallen.

The Monarch of Frost had barely survived the ordeal, left in a state of total exhaustion.

The Mythic Tower was designed to present a sequence of insurmountable challenges tailored to the species and strength of the one who dared enter.

The Frost Monarch, the guardian of the north, had challenged it and emerged with terrifying power and a mystery to match his status, yet even he had not reached the true conclusion.

-This mythic ordeal is built to be infinite. It is a task that cannot be finished.

Since the Frost Monarch himself had made that declaration, no one dared to dispute it.

Therefore, Medusa was certain.

The challenger would fail.

Nonetheless, as a precaution, she projected an arcane eye above the tower.

She needed to observe the unfolding events.

—

*Caw!*

*Caaaaw!*

Two scavenger birds were circling high in the air.

By tapping into their sensory input, I peered down at the floor of the ravine.

‘This is madness.’

The moment I stepped into the Mythic Tower of Mystery, I was met with a sight that defied belief.

*Clatter.*

*Clatter, clatter!*

An unending sea of skeletal warriors.

There were at least ten thousand of them packed into the space.

‘The tower expects me to eliminate this entire army by myself?’

The real issue was that this was merely the opening act.

Luckily, there was a silver lining.

【Lv.4】

Every single skeleton warrior was restricted to level 4.

[‘Skeletal Warrior’ level is synchronized to the level of the challenger.]

[The use of all external tools is forbidden, excluding equipped gear.]

[All external buffs and divine protections have been nullified.]

They were standard monsters, but there were ten thousand of them.

At my own level, facing even a few dozen at once would usually be a death sentence.

‘It’s a lucky thing I’m not a standard level 4.’

Though my numerical level was 4, my actual power was far higher.

With every level gained, my attributes reached their peak, scaling at 1.2 times the normal rate.

With all my stats effectively at 48, I possessed the raw power of a level 6 or 7.

Additionally, carrying a star provided a flat increase of 5 to every attribute.

I was capable of standing toe-to-toe with a typical level 7 combatant.

‘If my level had been higher, I would be in serious trouble.’

What if I were level 10?

Level 10 skeletons are a different breed.

They would be using advanced combat techniques and channeling mana into their weapons to create blade energy.

Facing ten thousand disciplined, mana-wielding warriors would be certain death.

It was actually better that the levels remained low.

I had complained about the massive experience requirements before, but perhaps that slow progression was a hidden blessing.

*Clatter! Clatter!*

The skeletal horde began to charge toward the base of the cliff.

If I stayed put, I would be buried under the weight of their numbers.

“Wake up, caw!”

I roared my command, designating a target and triggering my ability. One of the circling corpse crows plummeted like a stone, crashing into a skeleton.

*Clatter!*

A corpse crow is a level 4 elite boss.

It could easily overwhelm a standard level 4 skeleton.

“Merge, caw!”

The sovereign of the corpse crows had the power to turn remains into something far more impressive.

The Artist of the Dead, as the title suggested.

The skeleton possessed by my crow began to exert a dominating influence over the surrounding bones, creating a chain reaction.

By infusing my own holy energy into the mix, the controlled skeletons began to knit together, forming a massive, golem-like construct.

The two crows acted as the conduits for the skeletal frame; I was the mind behind the machine.

‘Manipulation of the Deceased, Art of the Remains.’

These were the talents I had unlocked upon ascending as the Corpse Crow King.

They were the perfect tools for dismantling this specific trial.

“Crush them into dust, caw!”

*KABOOOM!*

—

How much time had passed in this struggle?

[‘Manipulation of the Deceased’ skill level has increased by 1.]

[‘Art of the Remains’ skill level has increased by 1.]

[‘Summon Corpse Crow’ skill level has increased by 1. You may now call forth an additional bird.]

[‘Manipulation of the Deceased’ skill level has increased by 1.]

[‘Art of the Remains’ skill level has increased by 1.]

[‘Summon Corpse Crow’ skill level has increased by 1. You may now call forth an additional bird.]

……

……

My mastery over my abilities was climbing without pause.

It was only logical.

My hidden attribute ‘Expertise’ adds +1 to all progression and causes skill experience to grow at an accelerated rate.

This was especially true in high-stakes, life-or-death scenarios.

Just as the endless waves of bone began to feel truly exhausting…

*Caw!*

*Caw!*

*Caaaaw!*

I was now surrounded by seven corpse crows.

My skill had reached level 7. Once it hit 10 and I could control ten birds, I would trigger a state of transcendence.

But the satisfaction of leveling up was only a tiny fraction of the joy I felt right now.

“Caaaaaaaaw!”

Standing atop a literal mountain of pulverized bone, I let out a triumphant shriek.

‘I did it!’

I had finally broken through the wall of ten thousand enemies.

You persistent monsters!

If I weren’t the Corpse Crow King, I would have collapsed halfway through.

Even the sound of their clattering bones felt almost nostalgic now.

《’Species Threshold’ trial completed.》

《Reward: You are eligible to claim the Mythic Mystery ‘Sovereign’.》

《Do you wish to claim it?》

《Refuse to proceed to the subsequent trial.》

This wasn’t the end?

I had never heard of a mystery with that name before.

I should take it and get out of here!

‘Any Mythic Mystery for a beast represents an insurmountable peak of power.’

No matter what its specific function was, the benefits would be staggering.

Besides, I had no energy left to fight.

I could barely manage to stand.

The very sight of a skeleton made me want to retch.

And yet, this wasn’t the final floor.

Continuing to push through endless trials was madness.

It was essentially a suicide mission.

《Claim for ‘Sovereign’ has been declined.》

If anyone were watching me, they would probably be screaming that I had a death wish.

‘If I let this opportunity slip, I will never be able to finish this.’

If my theory was correct, I was currently in the only window of time where clearing the Mythic Tower was possible.

If my level were higher, the difficulty would spike to an impossible degree.

But what if I leveled up in the middle of the challenge?

‘My progress is halted for now anyway.’

I hadn’t gained a single level despite destroying ten thousand skeletons.

Killing enemies of the same level, even by the millions, wouldn’t push me to the next stage here.

This was the one place in existence that only I had the unique set of circumstances to complete.

《The challenger seeks the higher tier of trials.》

《Achievement Unlocked: ‘Daring Challenger of Ancient Myths’.》

《The Entities of the Celestial Hall are beginning to focus their gaze upon you.》