Level Up Legacy

Ramiel remained in shock even after the Knight of the Silver Rose left the prison, promising to return once he arranged the logistics of Arthur joining the Xelorian Army. Although he was a powerful half-demon, he could not fathom the craziness of the plan he had just overheard.

“You both are crazy,” muttered the half-demon as he stared at the ground. “You want to wage a full-blown war just to force the ten lords into submission? Do you consider yourselves to be heroes?”

“We have the luxury of such a plan because we are inside this tower,” said Arthur as he sat back on the ground, leaning against the wall. “If we manage to pull this off, the entire second floor will be united. It will be a step closer to defeating this tower.”

“And do you expect the tower to allow that?” asked Ramiel with a shake of his head. “You are an outsider, so you don’t understand. This place is designed to break your spirits and bones. Peace was never an option for us.”

“As I said,” repeated Arthur as he turned his head slightly in the dim prison cell, “I plan on conquering this tower. A few lords would not pose an issue.”

“You are ignorant of their strength,” scoffed Ramiel with a shake of his head. “The ten lords are the ten strongest people on the second floor. If you plan on taking a single one down, you need another decade inside this tower.”

“I like to take my chances,” said Arthur as he leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. “If I doubt myself without even trying, I will miss the chances I have to do something great.”

“Something great?”

“Is that not what we all desire? To do something that would shake the world?” said Arthur as he opened his eyes slightly. “It might sound childish, but I sometimes find myself desiring something that juvenile.”

“What something?”

“To be cool.”

***

Seraphine walked through the crowded inn under the wary gazes of the mercenaries there. She stood in front of the request board before snatching three flyers and leaving the inn. Like the wind, she came and went.

Outside the inn were three men, looking at the construction of a building. It happened at lightning speed as the short, buff man jumped around like a worker bee. This, too, was the effect of a skill.

“I heard they have the [Build] skill, allowing them to construct things in minimal time,” said Haldor while sipping his tea. “This skill is the dream of every man!”

“Indeed.”

“Indeed.”

The other two nodded simultaneously, also sipping on their iced tea. The two hairy creatures were less resistant to the warm weather of Xeloria, so their choice of beverage differed from what Haldor chose. As the three men admired the worker, Seraphine returned and slammed the three flyers on the ground.

“What are you all doing?” she asked, her brows furrowed. The three ignored her as their eyes remained fixed on the worker who was building a three-story building in an exceptional time. “What is interesting about a man building?”

“Every man wants to build,” said Sarohan with a grave expression. “It is our united goal to build the biggest building the world has ever seen. Alas, some are more fortunate than others,” said Sarohan with a sigh. “Only a select few can have the talent.”

“…you three are brain-dead,” said Seraphine with a speechless face. “These are three requests I got from the inn. We need money if we want to stay in Xeloria without joining the army. If Seika agreed to take money from Sith Town, we would have been rich.”

“Oh, right. What are we going to do about Seika?” asked Whisker as he snapped out of his reverie. “Although we trust his well-being, we cannot abandon him. Should we break into the prison?”

“As I expected from a man of his caliber, even his spiritual energy is on another level. Not even the god we met had spiritual energy that could shake the world.”

“…not even Obsidianos had energy like that. I doubt he released it all, too,” said Seraphine with a frown. “We follow him without even realizing how powerful he is. I considered myself to be the strongest, but I dare not claim that against him.”

“I remember you wanting to fight him the first time we met,” said Whisker with a smirk as he turned toward the demon. “You even mentioned a ‘final stage to fight’ or something.”

“And I remember cutting off your arm,” retorted Seraphine while glaring at him. “It should have been your tongue, so you wouldn’t have cried for Seika to rescue you!”

“I heard that you were rescued by him as well, almost losing your life when you entered the second floor. At least I don’t throw away my life and expect others to save me.”

“At least I don’t get caught despite being a sneaky little thief,” said Seraphine while glaring at him. “If not for him, I would have turned you into a roasted cat!”

“We shouldn’t fight amongst ourselves, everyone,” said Haldor as he chuckled and intervened. “Whisker is right. We need to find a way to communicate with Seika and understand what he wants us to do. After all, Xeloria’s lord is cunning and powerful.”

“I can sneak into the prison and talk to him,” said Whisker as he rose from the chair. “You should finish the requests and gather enough money for us. We need to upgrade our weapons and buy survival items. What about you, Haldor? Are you going to return to camp?”

“Elinor would kill me if I told her that I left our benefactor in prison,” laughed the huntsman with nervousness. “I need to at least know that you are all safe and sound before going back. Don’t worry, I’m used to being away from home.”

“We appreciate it, brother!” said Sarohan while throwing his arm around the huntsman. “You are already doing so much for us!”

“Enough chit-chat,” said Seraphine as she took two of the requests. “We each have a mission to do. Haldor can rest while we do the requests. As for the cat, it can go and talk to Seika.”

“I’m a feline,” said Whisker with anger, but the demon was already walking away. After a sigh, he excused himself as well. “I will join you later. Farewell!”

Whisker then jumped into the alley and started running atop the walls. In no time, he reached the inn’s rooftop before stopping and looking at the building rising higher and higher every minute. With a regretful sigh, he jumped over the next rooftop and made his way toward the prison.

The city of Xeloria was big, but his agility allowed him to reach the prison in no time. Although it was infested with soldiers, even on its rooftops, Whisker was not worried. As long as there were no arrays

, he could make his way into the building.

After half an hour of surveillance, the feline learned of their entry points. He saw another cart bringing in supplies from the end of the street, and he rushed to sneak into it. Without anyone sensing him, Whisker made his way inside.

***

“You want to be cool?” muttered Ramiel with shock. The man before him wanted to start an all-out war just to be cool? He had to be a lunatic! “How can you be so careless regarding the well-being of others? Many will suffer the consequences of this war!”

“…you are misunderstanding my words,” said Arthur with a sigh. “I’m not the one who wanted to start this war. I wanted to leave this floor as soon as possible, but the knight proposed to me a chance to unite all the cities on this floor!”

“Then it has to be a lie,” said Ramiel with a frown. “Or he overestimates your abilities to take down the lords. You are but a single man, and there are countless fighters on this floor! Get a grip on reality!”

“I’m not alone,” said Arthur before he turned toward the iron bars. The guards fell to the ground one by one before a shadow appeared outside the cell. “My comrades are with me.”

“Good to see you unharmed,” said the shadow from beneath his hood. “I came here to learn of our plans. Should we break you out of this prison?”

“There is no need since I can do that myself,” said Arthur as he stood from the ground. Ramiel stared at the unconscious guards with shock then at the shadow. “I thought that you forgot about me.”

“We were busy watching a man with the [Build] skill,” admitted the shadow. “It was extraordinary.”

“Now, I’m envious,” said Arthur with a sigh. “You don’t need to worry about me. I will be fine. However, our plans in Xeloria have changed. We are going to join the army and cause a war against the other nine cities.”