Climb the Tower

"Oscar… Ah, yes, I know of him."

The theologian pondered Elza's words for a moment, then reacted as if he remembered something.

"But how could you read it? Those characters weren't in any document I've seen."

"A book kept at the convent where I was raised had them."

"… I see. I suppose such texts could survive in local convents."

The theologian said this and copied down the tower's inscription.

"Oscar was called a warrior, yet is said to have been adept in all manner of secret arts. If Barbaroi represents pure combat prowess, Oscar could be considered a god of versatility."

"And this is his tower. Priests are surprisingly well-informed."

"No, not at all. Just a coincidence."

Elza replied to the duke's gaze with those words.

We hadn't told the duke she was a priestess of the Creator King faith, so he was probably wondering how she knew such things.

"A god's tower, is it. I've heard they occasionally appear as labyrinths… But I never expected one to manifest so suddenly."

"A normal labyrinth would show warning signs, but this area should have been empty plains."

"The question is whether it's dangerous. I came thinking the Church of the Sun God might have done something, but…"

While they spoke in front of the tower, the entrance opened on its own.

"Come in, it says. If a god himself is extending an invitation, we can hardly refuse. We need to investigate whether there's any danger regardless."

"For Your Grace to enter as well seems rather perilous…"

"If worst comes to worst, Anatia will simply take over. That's precisely why I sent her to safety in the Royal Capital."

I'd assumed the duke would wait outside, but it seemed he was going to charge inside.

I couldn't exactly say I'd be useless in a fight and stay behind.

Besides, I was also concerned about Elza.

Useless or not, I had supplies in my bag. I'd work as a pack mule.

"You there, the priestess. Elza, was it? Is there anything else you can tell us?"

"Nothing, I'm afraid. Only that if we don't climb it, the Church of the Sun God will try to conquer it. That wouldn't lead to anything good, I think."

"Indeed. I can't imagine they'd leave a divine relic alone. Whether they'd claim it or destroy it, I couldn't say…"

"But why did this tower appear now, I wonder."

"If there's a god present, we can simply ask. If there is one."

The duke commanded his army and led the charge inside.

The horses couldn't enter, so he sent part of the army back with them.

Leaving them here would make them targets for monsters.

Once inside the tower, a great hall awaited. The interior was far more spacious than it appeared from outside.

When I'd first seen the entrance, I'd thought the army wouldn't fit, but now there was room to spare.

"The space inside this tower is distorted. Some kind of application of storage magic, maybe."

"Fitting for a grand tower, the mechanisms are equally grand."

I nodded at Alexia's words.

This clearly wasn't normal space.

At the back of the hall were stairs that should have led upward, but…

"Is that… a wall? It looks like the stairs are blocked off."

As Azu said, a wall stood at the far end of the stairs, blocking progress.

I wondered what that meant when a pillar of light suddenly appeared in the center of the hall.

Within it stood a single person.

An androgynous face, impossible to tell male or female.

Blue hair reaching to the shoulders, with part of the left side braided.

Wearing a slightly loose robe over something like a modified tuxedo, making their build hard to judge.

The only thing certain was that they were mystically beautiful.

Even the trained knights and soldiers stood dumbfounded, unable to speak. The duke strode toward the figure.

"Who are you?"

In response, the person raised their right index finger to their own lips.

A gesture for silence.

They glanced at Elza and winked.

Then pointed the same finger toward the stairs.

"I look forward to meeting you."

With those words, they vanished.

The next instant, monsters suddenly spawned from the floor.

Brief chaos erupted, but the monsters were the weakest kinds around, and the group was composed of trained soldiers, so order was restored quickly and the monsters dispatched.

Our group joined in as well.

Once every monster in the hall was defeated, a small treasure chest appeared in the center, and the wall blocking the stairs vanished.

The monsters disappeared along with it. The system seemed similar to a labyrinth.

On top of that, no materials remained either.

"So this is… I see. A trial from a god."

"So that's how it works. I must record this."

The duke opened the treasure chest. Inside was a small amount of valuables.

Less than expected given the chest's size.

Once the contents were retrieved, the chest vanished.

"Well, this is different from what I expected. I thought it would be more… dramatic."

"This is a low floor, after all. You'll understand as we climb."

"Hey Elza, you do know something, don't you? That person looked your way earlier."

"Just your imagination, I'm sure."

My question was deflected as always. Same as ever.

We continued climbing the tower with the duke's army.

On the lower floors, all the monsters were weak, the kind even ordinary people could easily defeat with a weapon in hand.