Overgeared

Chapter 1863

The Overgeared Empire was different from the Saharan Empire. The will of the Empire wasn’t imposed on other nations. From the perspective of other nations, there was no reason to disobey.

In the first place, they shouldn’t disobey. It was because every kingdom on the continent was economically dependent on the Empire.

At some point, they came to their senses and this was what happened. It was the result that Lauel created. Lauel shackled the other kingdoms with money and power, not force. It was covertly and tenaciously. It was designed so that they couldn’t disobey the Empire even if the sky collapsed.

It wasn’t strange to incur other people’s grudges. In particular, it was normal for the royalty of other kingdoms to not see Lauel in a good light.

However, this wasn’t a normal situation. All the royal families in the world served Grid. They offered up tributes of their own will. They gave unconditional favor and support that was beyond the level of not disobeying the Empire. They were even grateful to Lauel.

“Prime Minister Lauel. Thank you for making my kingdom dependent on the Empire. Thanks to you, I can happily serve the Empire to my heart’s content without any backlash from anyone.”

In fact, there were many kings who secretly greeted him in this way.

“......”

At the banquet hall after the grand wedding...

Lauel, who had strengthened his escort because there were so too many places to stab him, made a strange and complicated expression.

Oh my god. There was actually a time when he received thanks, not complaints.

The impact of Grid was realized. It was very touching that all of humanity loved and respected Grid.

‘I’m happy and proud, but it is awkward.’

To be exact, it was embarrassing. The goodwill of the people made him feel guilty. It was an emotion he didn’t feel even when he buried tens of thousands of enemy prisoners who surrendered and abandoned their weapons.

Basara, who was watching Lauel gradually increase the speed at which he drank from the glass, cautiously said, “I think it would be good if you can relax a bit in the future.”

Be generous—she didn’t dare use such words. She didn’t want to look like she was blaming Lauel.

Basara had a personality that was the opposite of Lauel, but she still respected Lauel. She could clearly feel the existence of the current Empire thanks to Lauel.

“……”

Lauel was a clever person. He immediately grasped the meaning and consideration contained in Basara’s words. A life of oppression and using others for the development of the Empire and Grid. Was it necessary to do this in the future?

He thought about it while watching the faces of the people who filled the banquet hall. After a while, Lauel emptied his glass several more times and said, “That’s right. I would like to go on a vacation.”

Grid and the Empire had become even stronger. From the time when Grid’s hell expedition, which felt a bit unreasonable, was successfully completed, it became okay to add modifiers such as ‘immortal’ and ‘eternal.’ No matter how many years passed, Grid’s feats wouldn’t be undermined. He would be remembered and praised forever unless the world was destroyed.

In other words, there was only one thing that the Overgeared Guild should be careful about in the future. It was to prevent the world from being destroyed.

‘Rebecca.’

Lauel responded with a toast to the smiling Basara and raised his head.

The soaring ceiling—he thought of the sky and Asgard that existed beyond it. He remembered the supreme ruler of Asgard who repeatedly destroyed and recreated the world.

That’s right. Now there was only one thing for the Overgeared Guild to guard against: Asgard.

“......?”

Lauel was contemplating it with a serious face when he suddenly listened carefully. It was because an interesting conversation was taking place at the gathering of Overgeared members.

“Infinite Tower?”

“It is weak.”

“Then... Tower Where You Can Be Infinitely Stronger?”

Tower? Infinitely stronger?

Lauel had difficulty leaving the distinguished guests sitting next to him so he sent a whisper to Pon.

-What are you talking about now?

-Eat Spicy Jokbal has learned a new ultimate skill. He can build a tower that can be climbed endlessly.

-......?

He couldn’t easily understand it. In this case, it was best to ask the person involved. Lauel sent a whisper and Eat Spicy Jokbal explained it.

-That’s right. I can build a tower. It is even in the instance dungeon format. As you know, dungeon building has many limitations because it eats up a large area, but I have overcome those limitations.

-It is good news. Then what does it mean to be infinitely stronger?

-Ah... It is a bit annoying, but there is no limit to the number of floors you can climb. As long as you can raid the boss monsters that exist on each floor, you can theoretically climb a tower with thousands or tens of thousands of floors.

-Do the boss monsters give rewards?

-Of course. Haven’t all the training dungeons I’ve built so far give fair rewards? It is like that. The only difference is that only the bosses on every 10th floor give ‘rewards that can be taken out.’ The other bosses give ‘buffs that only apply within the tower.’

-Buffs... so you can become infinitely stronger?

-That’s right.

-What about the penalty for failing to climb it?

-If you die or leave of your own volition, you won’t be allowed to re-enter for 48 hours. That is all. If you die, you won’t lose experience or items.

The utilization was endless. The fact that it was an instance dungeon was the biggest advantage. It seemed that even Eat Spicy Jokbal couldn’t properly judge the level of the rewards. Still, there was no penalty, so the fact that rewards would be given was an unconditional benefit. In some cases, it seemed good for the members of the Overgeared Guild, the knights of the Empire, and the soldiers to climb the tower.

Just in time, Peak Sword’s voice was heard. “Tower That Grows Stronger As One Climbs It. How about this?”

“Oh... Isn’t that good? It seems to attract the aggro?”

“Peak Sword, what is it? Why do you like this?”

‘As expected, an amazing writer.’

Lauel was admiring it only for his expression to distort.

Did he really like this name? Was this really the influence of Grid? Did his standard go down in the aftermath of suffering from Grid’s naming sense?

Aside from Lauel’s skepticism, Eat Spicy Jokbal and all the Overgeared members responded positively. Lauel quickly grasped the situation.

-Are you going to allow outsiders to enter the tower?

-It will probably be amazing to make a lot of money... of course, I was going to get the permission of you and Grid first. If it doesn’t work, then I won’t do it.

-No. Do as you please.

Heaven was different from hell. It was a complete group. This meant that if there was a conflict, a large-scale war was inevitable. As they had learned from the Great Human and Demon War, it wasn’t just the Overgeared Guild who should be strong. Such were the current times.

-However, can I designate the location where the tower will be built?

-Of course.

-I’ll let you know when it is decided.

Lauel paid attention to the concept of the tower.

A tower that rose endlessly.

Maybe. Maybe it could make it all the way to Asgard?

Asgard was naturally a separate dimension from the surface. It would be hard to reach physically. However, he didn’t think it was impossible. Grid had a history of riding a dragon to heaven.

‘If only I could get advice from an Old Dragon... depending on the location of the tower, wouldn’t it reach Asgard?’

Of course, in order to do this, the tower had to be high enough to reach the sky. In other words, someone had to climb the tower. It might be impossible. Usually, towers with this structure also increased the difficulty level indefinitely. Still, it was worth looking forward to. There was nothing to lose by looking forward to it. Additionally, there was an Old Dragon to ask for advice.

Evil Dragon Bunhelier—they thought he would be the enemy of humanity, but surprisingly, he was the first Old Dragon who stood on the side of humanity. Of course, Bunhelier didn’t care much about humanity. He cooperated with Grid purely for his own sake.

Still, that was just the trigger. Lately, the feeling had been very different. He even attended Grid’s wedding today as a guest. He was polymorphed into human form and hid his identity, so there was no disturbance, but... from what he noticed, Bunhelier was interacting with the half-draconians. The king of the half-draconians wasn’t happy and trembled with fear.

‘In any case, it is good.’

The Overgeared Guild was blessed. The talented people who gathered around Grid were as great as each other and they hit a jackpot once in a while. Thanks to this, he would be busy again for a while...

Lauel smiled as he raised the black dragon, making Basara nervous.

***

Night—it didn’t impress Marie Rose at all. The concept of time was useless for her, who lived forever. In the first place, she spent most of her time in a coffin. She didn’t distinguish between day and night and was never conscious of it.

However, it was different today. She felt it the moment she felt Grid’s touch during the daytime wedding. She was going to have a hard time tonight. She knew she would experience all types of things that she had never experienced before at once and would face a tremendous change.

Tension, anticipation, and fear—emotions that she never imagined before came faintly to her. All of them were emotions that disturbed an Absolute’s clarity quotient.

Thanks to this, Marie Rose realized how great the man in front of her was. A being who fought to protect his precious things—he must’ve always suffered from these emotions. She thought there must’ve been so many moments when he wanted to run away.

But now he reached this point. Starting as a weak human being to eventually trying to dominate her...

Marie Rose stood with her back to the fireworks exploding in the sky and slowly took off her clothes. Areas that no one dared to invade before were laid bare in front of Grid’s eyes.

“I’m afraid I might be different.”

Marie Rose didn’t know anyone else. She thought she might be different from others. She was worried. She was afraid she would be different from others and earn Grid’s disgust.

Grid stared at her in a trance and slowly opened his mouth, “You are different.”

“……”

Marie Rose’s expression didn’t change, but inwardly, she was agitated.

Grid smiled as he counted her dark eyelashes that were trembling very faintly. “It is a beauty I’ve never seen before.”

The most beautiful woman in the world—Marie Rose’s naked body, which shimmered transparently in the moonlight... the following was omitted.

Grid’s resolve was shaken. It was his resolve not to sleep with anyone until his ‘vital energy’ gathered.

‘But I have to endure it no matter what.’

Grid shook his head to come to his senses and recalled the events of the day. He recalled the reaction of Marie Rose, who was embarrassed by his touch. He believed in his dexterity, which could work even on an Absolute.

He would satisfy her without doing it...

He made up his mind and focused on the situation. He used his fingers and started serving Marie Rose.

“Ahh...” Marie Rose was captivated by a sensation she never felt before and embraced Grid.

The snowy white skin exuded heat. It seemed to melt in the aftermath of touching Grid’s heated skin.

Grid was uneasy. He thought Marie Rose would melt away like this.

He didn’t want to miss it.

He gripped her soft skin strongly, leaving red marks. He put his arms between her armpits and strongly restrained her. They were entangled like snakes.

“...This isn’t enough.”

He felt dizzy. He wanted to pour everything into it regardless of his vital energy. The more he satisfied Marie Rose, the more Grid was bewitched. Then he came to his senses.

Marie Rose was sitting on his stomach.

Suddenly?

The senses of an Absolute couldn’t read the situation. Grid came to his senses thanks to his great confusion and looked at Marie Rose’s omitted.

‘I have to endure it. Endure it.’

Thus—

Skipping through the following process, Grid’s efforts continued throughout the night. It felt like he was fighting multiple Baals. His physical strength and mental strength were exhausted tremendously. He felt like giving up several times. Finally, when he pressed his sweat-drenched body against Marie Rose’s back—

[The ‘Core That Has Existed Since the Beginning of Time’ senses your strong desire.]

[Do you want your wish to be fulfilled?]

The item he got in exchange for saving the world reacted.