Chapter 3: Chapter 2

“So, heading off to the academy eh boy? I went there when I was your age too, Pops just paid for a semester, so I just had a shot at the basic merchant classes. From the looks of ya you’ll be signing up to climb the Tower I suppose aye?”

“Yeah, my uh, family, paid for a semester. After that it’s on me.” Unwilling to explain the concept of having four mums Alex simplified his living conditions and got a grunt in response from the carriage driver who wanted to make small talk to pass the long journey that they had ahead of them.

“Well, you look strong, and I saw that little bag of yours so looks like the tutorial should be easy enough for you, pray to Helios that you get a half decent first skill though or you may as well consider yourself broke if you’re gonna rely on the Tower for money.”

As the carriage driver named Noah rambled on about his experiences during his academy years that were now long past, Alex reflected on the knowledge that he had on the Tower and what he needed to do.

 

 

“Okay Alex you’ve got the basics on history of the three Empires, so now you can learn more about the Tower of Dawn.” Pumping his fists excitedly, 13-year-old Alex put down the book on the History of the Sol Empire as he was now being given a chance to learn what the Tower is like from an ex-tower climber.

“First of all, all new students are given the opportunity to clear the ‘tutorial floors’, this happens to all newcomers to the Tower, and no one can access the main Tower until the complete this ‘tutorial’. Luckily, the ancient magic in the tower means that no matter what, no one will die during the tutorial, rather, you’ll suffer mana exhaustion and pass out after getting kicked out of the Tower. Any Questions.” Emily asked Alex as she patiently waited for him to think of anything he was curious about.

After shaking his head in denial as he wanted to know more about clearing the actual Tower, Emily continued her explanation.

“Unlike the main Tower, the ‘tutorial’ floors will be completely randomized with [Tier 1] Monsters on three floors and a final boss who’s a [Tier 2]. If you fail, the next time you go in the monster will be randomized again, oh and the tutorial always to be completed individually.” After checking that Alex was still fine with the explanation up to now, she finished off by talking about the part she knew would excite him most.

“Once you clear the dungeon you will gain your first skill, which even after decades of research remain a mystery as to how these skills are granted. It is a commonly held theory, that I also believe in, that the skill you gain has a lot to do with your psyche and what your goals, desires etc. are. You could gain a combat type skill which are the most common or even something to help with alchemy, cooking or any other profession. There are an unlimited number of skills out there so just remember that no matter what you get, there will always be a use for it.” Although Emily was 90% certain the Alex would gain a combat skill which he so clearly wanted, she wanted to play it safe with that 10% in case his hopes were dashed, and he got a skill that made climbing the Tower impossible.

“Alright that’s just the introduction so next lesson you’ll learn about upgrading and evolving skills.”

 

 

Coming back to his conversation with Noah, Alex couldn’t stop himself from feeling a mixture of nervous and excitement as he envisioned a future of him climbing the tower with a party just like what the girls had.

When the Sun had set, Alex and Noah set up a small campsite in order to be as comfortable as possible even though they were stuck on the road. After a filling dinner of under seasoned stew with vegetables and beef, Alex fell asleep listening to the cackling fire as his nerves of living so far away from home had finally started to settle.

On the second day of their journey to the Capital, Alex had come to one realization, Traveling is boring as all hell…

To stave off his boredom Alex tried to continue listening to clearly exaggerated stories from Noah’s youth which resulted in him getting to know the man a bit better, even if he wasn’t sure if half of it was the truth.

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After exiting the academy Noah had started to work with his father as a Merchant, they made most of their money by selling to Villages like the one Alex previously lived in. After his father passed away about a decade ago Noah continued the family business, often going on journeys that could last as long as a month long in order to sell to multiple villages on the outskirts of the empire.

The trip back to the Capital would be Noah’s first time back in over a month now as he had plans to sell some clothing that was apparently meant to be surprisingly good quality considering it was built all the way out here. After this he planned on staying at home with his wife and little boy as his wife was expecting and a second kid would hopefully be born healthy within the next few months.

Listening to Noah’s non-stop bragging about how amazing his wife was and how cute his now 10-year-old boy made Alex wander what his life would’ve been like if he had a normal upbringing. Although the girls never got too deep into it, he understood that he was abandoned and then found by them in a forest. When he learnt this, he was confused at first, but it affected him way less then the girls had thought as he had truly come to recognize them as his only family.

After passing by trees, trees, grass, and more trees, Alex’s second day of traveling came to a quite end.

On the third day of travel the sun shone brightly overhead which caused the two travelers to say a quick prayer of gratitude to Helios. At about midday clouds had started to come out of nowhere and started to cover the sky.

“Tsk, looks like rain is gonna hit us in a day or two, hopefully it won’t last long.” As Noah looked up to the sky, he continued to rattle off entertaining stories to pass the time.

“You know this actually reminds me of this time in the Lunar Emp- Kgh” As Alex listened to Noah talk whilst leaning back and trying to get a bit more sleep, he was wondering what Noah was eating to have coughed as hard as he did.

As Alex looked up at the carriage driver, his eyes were instantly attracted to the shiny tip dyed in red that seemingly protruded from out of nowhere. Looking at Noah as he slumped forward with blood drooling out of his mouth from a punctured neck, Alex struggled to regain his mentality as he knew that if he didn’t, he’d die for sure.

“Get out the fucken cart! Do it nicely and we might just let ya live.” Shouted out a voice from the right side hidden behind some shrubs.

As Alex was not currently visible unless someone were to come up behind the carriage or straight in front, he silently pulled out his club and instant-equipped his Kobold armor. Trying not to look at the front of the carriage where lay one of his first friends, Alex’s mind felt like a jigsaw puzzle that was missing a piece.

“You deaf or something you little shit!? GET OUT HERE NOW!” The voice from outside continued to shout as Alex regulated his breathing while his hands turned white from gripping his club too hard.

Pushing the mana which he had been training for the past five years, he felt power surge through his muscles, like a bow’s string ready to let loose.

Slowly climbing out of the carriage, he tried to shield his club as much as possible to give even just a second or two more.

“You cracked in the head or something? On your kne- “As the snively voice continued to spout bullshit to Alex, he pushed his honed senses to the max and tried to scout out as many of the bandits as he could. After quickly identifying five assailants all on the right side of the carriage where the voice came from, he kicked off the ground at an impossible speed to the men’s eyes.

Although they weren’t new to murder or backstabbing, rarely would the men have to fight against a knowing opponent, much less one trained in combat and mana application. As Alex rushed at the man who had been talking the whole time, he saw the man try and raise a crossbow in time, however Alex’s speed enhanced by his mana was not what the man had expected.

Although he had never fought a person with the intention to kill before, Alex was well trained in hunting beasts in the forests with Celia, and that was a million times harder.

He didn’t even consider it a fight; it was just an execution.

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