Chapter 136
Chapter 136 – Orbis Tower (1)
One.
One of the things that changed in the Mystic Gate era was competition between adventurers.
“It wasn’t easy to meet strong monsters in the past.”
In the past, adventurers competed with each other over a limited number of monsters.
For example, when a Junior Balrog appears in the Sleepywood Forest, adventurers who want the title of Junior Balrog Hunter flock to him.
“But now you can see it as much as you want.”
But the times of Mystic Gate were different.
Just by passing through the Mystic Gate, you could see monsters that were hard to find in Maple World, as well as monsters you had never seen before.
Although it was unknown what monster lay beyond the Mystic Gate, the adventurers paid no attention.
“So there is no need to fight.”
Of course, adventurers did compete for the Mystic Gate, but not as much as in the past.
Even then, except in very rare cases, there was virtually no competition.
An era of peace had arrived among the adventurers, and the adventurers tried to enjoy that peace in their own way.
They tried to avoid competition with each other, and even when they did compete, they wanted to do so peacefully.
“If it were Aran’s item, it would be a different story.”
But Aran, that era could not help but fade away in front of that name.
All adventurers flocked to the Elnas Mountains.
And they had a fierce competition with each other.
It wasn’t just a simple war of nerves between the two.
“Damn it, everyone run! Those guys are going to kill us all!”
In the snow-covered El Nas Mountains, an unseasonably cold wind began to blow there.
Aran’s items were worth that much.
To the extent that they will stop at nothing to eliminate their competitors.
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason for the bloody storm.
“Damn El Nas Mountains, I’ve heard rumors but I didn’t think it would be this bad!”
To begin with, the Elnas Mountains were a place with a very high percentage of criminals among adventurers.
The extremely harsh environment of the Elnas Mountains was ideal for criminals to hide, and above all, the Knights of Signus, who were responsible for upholding the rules of Maple World, rarely appeared in the Elnas Mountains.
For criminals, there is no better hideaway than this.
From the perspective of those criminals, Aran’s items were just items, but the adventurers who came after those items were also good prey.
An environment where the wind of blood is bound to blow in many ways.
“boss.”
Of course, there were exceptions.
“Was the Elnas Mountains originally such a quiet place?”
El Palm Party, which had left Magathia and now entered the El Nas Mountains, was enjoying more peaceful days than ever.
“How could that be?”
Of course, it wasn’t because I was lucky.
“That’s because the leader is no joke.”
El Palm, thanks to his abilities.
Actually, it wasn’t anything special for El Palm.
“There is no place as quiet as the El Nas Mountains.”
“yes?”
“Snow leaves traces, and the ceaseless falling snow is good for hiding your appearance.”
I had experience.
“So there is no better place to escape to than the El Nas Mountains.”
‘It was the same back then.’
El Nas Mountains, my experience living there.
It wasn’t easy.
‘It’s better to run away here.’
Because what was chasing El Palm, who had escaped to the Elnas Mountains, were a vast number of monsters.
Those were days when even a single breath could have killed me.
“It’s easier now.”
“Easier?”
“Because adventurers who are after adventurers are the ones who create the commotion.”
“ah.”
“You are volunteering to be bait for the monsters.”
For El Palm, who had experienced such things, the El Nas Mountains were now a very laughable stage.
Of course, this was an area that El Palm’s colleagues could not understand.
“As expected, he is the boss.”
And it was an area that didn’t really need understanding.
“Thanks to the boss, I will be able to get to the Elnas Market with ease.”
From my colleagues’ point of view, they just had to enjoy this fact.
El Palm responded to his colleagues’ words.
“I have no intention of going to the El Nas market.”
“yes?”
At that point, everyone was surprised.
“What does that mean?”
“No, weren’t you going to the Elnas Market?”
The El Nath Mountains were originally the territory ruled by the kingdom of the Lion King, Van Leon.
However, King Van Leon virtually gave up his influence over the El Nath Mountains after an incident hundreds of years ago, and the El Nath Mountains have since become a stage for lawbreakers.
But even those outlaws need a market.
That was the case at Elnas Market.
It is a market located in the El Nas Mountains, and is currently the only market in the El Nas Mountains.
So it was also the only peaceful place in the El Nas Mountains.
If the market is noisy, no one will use it.
Even the lawbreakers of the Elnas Mountains abided by the law that they were not to take out their weapons in the Elnas Market.
For that reason, all adventurers were now moving towards the Elnas Market as their destination.
El Palm’s colleagues also assumed that the destination would be the El Nass Market, so no one asked where they were going.
But that’s not it?
“We are heading to Orbis Tower.”
“Orbis?”
At El Palm’s words at that time, everyone did not look surprised, but rather showed expressions of understanding.
“Well, Orbis might be safer right now.”
Orbis.
It was a city that existed above the sky of the El Nas Mountains, also known as the city above the clouds.
It was a place where all the airships traveling across Maple World would stop by at least once, and it was also a place where all the airships in Maple World gathered.
It was a place that developed to that extent.
At the same time, it was a much safer place than the El Nas Mountains.
“These days, all adventurers come there.”
The biggest advantage among them was that the fastest and safest way for adventurers in Maple World to get to the Elnas Mountains was through Orbis.
Of course, it was expensive because it was safe.
In Maple World, the ticket price for an airship starts at least 10 times the price of the ship.
In fact, most adventurers wouldn’t even dare to use it.
However, most adventurers who aimed for the Elnas Mountains used airships.
The reason was simple.
“Actually, it’s crazy to go from the Nihal Desert to the El Nas Mountains.”
It wasn’t that difficult to get to the El Nas Mountains by any other means.
In any case, at this point, Orbis was a much safer place than the Elnas Market.
“You can quickly travel there by using the portal at Orbis Tower.”
In particular, the tall Orbis Tower connecting the Elnas Mountains and Orbis could be reached in a single breath by using the portal.
Because of this, adventurers visited Orbis more and more often.
Besides, it wasn’t difficult to find.
“Oh, I see it over there.”
The tower connecting the El Nass Mountains and Orbis had a definite presence that could be seen from anywhere in the El Nass Mountains.
Enough to be visible even if a blizzard hits.
So, adventurers in the Elnas Mountains used the Orbis Tower as a guide when going on adventures.
“This is no joke.”
That high up.
“You said that in the past, you had to climb that tower to get to Orbis?”
What’s even more remote is that adventurers of the past had gone on adventures climbing that tower, that high tower.
It was crazy.
Because the fastest climber among adventurers reached Orbis Tower in 39 days.
It was literally the fastest record. Some climbers died after climbing the tower for over a year.
Of course, that was a thing of the past.
“I’m glad the portal was discovered.”
After the portals located on each Orbis Tower were discovered, there were few adventurers who would do such crazy things.
“I’d rather bite my tongue and die than climb that way.”
“Of course, I’d rather die in the sea than climb up there. There’s nothing left to discover.”
As difficult as it was, the adventures on the Orbis Tower ended hundreds of years ago.
It wasn’t a vague statement.
The Adventurer’s Association spoke directly.
There are no more new mysteries in the Orbis Tower, so don’t take any risks.
That’s why they called anyone who climbed there a crazy person.
“That’s too bad.”
“Huh? Boss, what do you mean?”
That’s why.
“Because we became crazy.”
The moment they heard El Palm’s words, everyone froze.
“Hey, boss?”
Among them, Debo, who came to his senses first, spoke in a trembling voice.
“Excuse me, I’m going up there?”
“Yes.”
“No, why on earth?”
And the question that came up.
In fact, that question was a meaningless question.
Everyone knew it.
Whatever the reason, there is no reason to climb the Orbis Tower.
So it was crazy.
If there is a reason, a value, to climb, then no one would call it crazy, right?
“Because I have to get over the wall.”
“A wall? What kind of wall?”
“The wall of the 5 circles.”
But El Palm, the moment he uttered those words, everyone’s expressions changed in an instant.
His expression hardened, colder than the snowstorm that swept across the Elnas Mountains.
To be exact, I couldn’t make any facial expressions.
Because no one, including Devo, could immediately understand what El Palm was saying.
“… … A 5-circle wall?”
“That’s right. To get over the 5th circle wall, you have to climb the Orbis Tower over there.”
At that moment, when everyone finally understood what was being said, everyone’s expressions turned into surprise.
It had to be that way.
Overcoming the 5-circle wall, countless adventurers have tried hard to overcome it.
No, it wasn’t about the effort.
Some even gave their lives.
However, there were countless people who could not overcome it.
The same was true for El Palm’s colleagues, including Debo.
Frankly, they were worried.
El Palm has become a 5-circle, but they are concerned that they may remain in a 4-circle.
Fear that I might eventually have to leave the party.
But now El Palm is offering a chance to put those concerns to rest.
In fact, it would have been right to treat someone like a fraud the moment you heard that. Breaking through the walls of the circle was something that could only be done with two things: innate talent and destiny given by the heavens.
Because it would be impossible for someone to deliberately climb over that wall.
But El Palm was different.
He always made possible what everyone thought was impossible.
This time it was the same.
That’s why no one questioned it.
Besides, I also had that thought.
‘If it’s Orbis Tower, there’s nothing strange about it.’
Even if there is something in the Orbis Tower that goes beyond the common sense of Maple World, I think there might be something that will allow you to overcome the 5th circle wall.
“boss.”
When we got there, there were no more complaints.
“Let’s go quickly!”
2.
Orbis Tower.
The Adventurers’ Guild spoke of that tall and huge tower.
[Orbis Tower is strictly not recommended for climbing by adventurers with less than 4 circles.]
Only adventurers with a Circle of 4 or higher can go on adventures.
There were two reasons for this.
[One reason is that the environment is very harsh.]
The Orbis Tower was literally a tower.
The environment inside was different from the environment outside.
The plants could not grow properly, the rivers did not flow, and so on.
That was pretty fatal to survival.
Because food and water were essential for survival.
Moreover, the Orbis Tower was a place that required at least several dozen days, and up to a year to climb.
This means that food and water are becoming more and more urgent.
[Reason 2: The stone ball monsters that appear are very tricky.]
Of course, it was the monster called Stone Ball that filled the Orbis Tower.
As the name suggests, the shape is like a stone ball, and the size varies from the size of a human head to the size of a human torso.
Surprisingly, it was a very troublesome monster.
First of all, since it was made of stone, it was very difficult to destroy.
It was also very heavy.
The rolling stone ball itself was a very scary attack.
[The stone ball uses magic.]
Even among the stone balls, there were some that used magic.
Those who shoot hot rays or those who use cold rays.
So, depending on the magic used, they are named Fire Stone Ball or Ice Stone Ball.
Of course, that was the trickiest thing about these stone balls.
[Even if you catch it, there is no magic stone.]
Unlike other monsters, there are no rewards.
This was the biggest reason why Orbis Tower was shunned by adventurers.
Catching a thousand or ten thousand stone balls didn’t help an adventurer’s life at all.
So, none of the adventurers who faced the Stone Ball showed any energy.
“come!”
But the El Palm Party was different.
Facing the stone ball, they looked more powerful than ever.
“I’ll catch it!”
“I’ll catch it!”
“Get out! I’ll handle it!”
“Get out of here, I can break that with my fist!”
That level is just too excessive.
It was a rare sight.
It may have been a sight never before seen in the history of Orbis Tower.
Meaning a sight beyond common sense.
Still, the reason why El Palm Party took the lead in hunting the Stone Ball was simple.
“Well, I said I’ll do it! Where are the ranged and supporter dealing damage? I’ll take them all! I’ll take them all!”
“Hey! Let’s split it up! What’s the point of you being the only one in the 5th circle?”
El Palm Party thought that climbing the Orbis Tower, that is, hunting stone balls, was the way to get over the 5th circle wall.
“Boss! We’ll handle it all! Don’t come out!”
It is inevitable that you will be active in stone ball hunting.
El Palm said nothing about the sight of his colleagues.
‘Even if you catch hundreds of thousands of Stone Balls, it has nothing to do with crossing the 5-circle wall.’
That you’re doing something useless.
If you could get over the 5-circle wall just by catching the stone ball, there wouldn’t be any adventurers in the world who weren’t 5-circle.
‘What we need is the secret space in the Orbis Tower, and the Mystic Gate there.’
There was only one way to get over the wall that El Palm knew of.
‘Eliza appears there.’
Now, you can catch Elijah, a monster that has gone extinct in Maple World and can no longer be seen there.
Actually, it was by accident that I found out about it.
El Palm heard.
The story of those who were running away from monsters and climbing the Orbis Tower, discovered a secret space and escaped through the Mystic Gate inside, where they saw Elijah, who they had never seen before.
I heard that story from a dying colleague.
At the same time, the colleague said,
‘If you eat that guy’s horn, you can jump over walls.’
Thanks to that horn of Elijah, I was able to get over the 5th circle wall.
In fact, El Palm had a problem here.
‘Elijah had two horns.’
It means that only two people can overcome the wall of the 5th circle.
Anyway, I liked the stone ball. It didn’t matter if I didn’t catch it.
But El Palm didn’t bother to tell us that.
‘There’s no reason to stop you from gaining combat experience.’
I hope this experience will help.
El Palm’s colleagues, unaware of this fact, hunted the Stone Balls more fervently than ever.
I did something meaningless.
“Hey, boss!”
It definitely was.
“I, I, I feel strong!”
Devo, until he brought it up.