Return Of The Strongest Player

"Hey! Can I get my reward?" Arthur shouted to no one in particular, staring at the sky while forming an expression of annoyance as if he were a customer awaiting his order at a restaurant.

The bear-like humanoid emerged from the shadows yet again, his face drowned in sweat and his eyes displaying fear. "Ah, yes, I'll give you that."

[The Eleventh Trial has been completed.]

[You have completed the Challenge of the Eleventh Floor.]

[Rankings are being displayed.]

[1. Arthur Solace: 30 Seconds.]

[2. Diya: 46 Seconds.]

[3. Vesto: 2 Minutes 34 Seconds.]

Arthur couldn't help but grin at the massive difference between second and third place, realizing Diya was the one who'd cleared the floor by killing everyone. 'That snake has always been decisive.'

'That's what made her a Divine Ranker.'

'Anyway, the Fake Dragon probably cleared it the normal way. Still, it's surprising that she placed third, considering her actual power is quite average when compared to other people, like Zeus, or Odin.'

'I was expecting someone like Indra to be third.'

[Arthur Solace has achieved the impossible yet again.]

[Unique rewards are being allotted.]

[User has received 200,000 Tokens, Pegasus Token, and Bladesteel's Helmet.]

[User has completed all possible trials.]

"There," Junior announced, bowing. "I wish you good luck on the twelfth floor. Just notify me if you wish to challenge the next floor."

"Yes," replied Arthur. "But wait a few minutes."

Junior nodded.

Glancing at the dark helmet in his hands, Arthur used the properties of [Ascertain] to reveal the information. Suddenly, a translucent, blue window spawned before his eyes, revealing the capabilities of the helmet.

The helmet was light and seemed to be quite sturdy. However, much like Blaire's ring, Arthur did not have many hopes.

[Name: Bladesteel's Helmet]

[Grade: B-]

[Trait: Boosts Defense, increases the durability of the user's skin by 15%, and increases attack speed by 20% when using a sword.]

Arthur raised an eyebrow in surprise, finding the artifact to be quite useful. However, that fact was also determined when he noticed the grade was B-. Such an item was bound to be useful, either directly or through selling.

In order to make money, Arthur didn't mind selling even the most valuable of artifacts, as long as they weren't directly useful.

"All right, you can teleport me to the twelfth floor, now," said Arthur, stuffing the helmet into a rather crude backpack stained with blood.

Junior nodded before flicking his wrist, enshrouding Arthur in azure particles that seemed to twinkle. Suddenly, Arthur's body melted into such particles, vanishing from the face of the world. 

"Thankfully, that bastard's gone."

*

"Is that who I think it is?"

"Yeah, I think it is! It's that lunatic!"

"Oh, it's him? Damn, I could've never guessed. Gee, thanks!"

"Ay, fuck you, Gregory!"

"I should just leave this floor. Too bad this dumbass Guardian doesn't allow me to."

As Arthur's eyelids fluttered open, his gaze fell upon a dim cave, illuminated solely by a few candles. He was surrounded by several players, all shooting him gazes of wariness, cautiousness, or disdain.

'It seems I'm hated quite a lot. I wonder how I forged this reputation.'

Arthur couldn't help but let out a chuckle at the scene, finding it comical. To be hated by this many people who didn't even know him was quite the achievement, in his opinion. 'That makes things a bit difficult in the long run… But these guys are fodder, anyway.'

The crimson-eyed man hadn't run into someone like Eleanor ever since clearing the second floor. Everyone he participated in floors with were usually weak, or not noteworthy. 

The cave was damp, with clear, running water on the rough, dark ground and moist walls overrun by algae. 

The smell was squalid, along with an infestation of bugs that seemed to love human flesh. 

As Arthur stood up, he noticed that the players backed away almost instantly, as if they were repelled by the crimson-eyed man's aura. Arthur chuckled, noticing he'd unconsciously unsheathed Skofnung when sensing the hostile auras of the other players.

"Ah, I apologize for that."

He said, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment before sheathing his sword, and retracting his aura.

He watched with amusement as the expressions of the players distorted, wondering if this was truly Arthur Solace. 'Wasn't the guy supposed to be a vicious demon that kills without reason? What the fuck is this?'

"Anyone know where the Guardian is?" Arthur inquired, sweeping his gaze across the dozens of players trapped in the cave, attempting to spot the Guardian who was in charge of the floor. Suddenly, a mysterious existence stepped forward.

"Ah, yes, Mr. Solace," an egg with weird, lanky arms, legs, and a tiny head greeted the crimson-eyed man.

"Ah, it's Yolk," said Arthur, greeting the Guardian.

"I am honored to be recognized," said Yolk, kneeling in courtesy. 

"Why hasn't the trial begun, yet?" Arthur inquired, sweeping his gaze across the crowd of players. "It seems everyone is ready, no?"

"Ah, it's because of a tiny problem…" Yolk muttered under his breath. "A Spectre King seems to be obstructing the pathway, and the team from the Tower Administration hasn't arrived yet. It's wasting our time."

"A Spectre King?" Arthur asked rhetorically. "Why don't you just kill it?"

"None of us can," replied a random player. "And this dumbass Guardian doesn't have the power to interfere, else he will become a Fallen Guardian."

Arthur shook his head internally, commenting on how weak the players were. A Spectre King's power was only a little above what a regular twelfth floor player should possess, yet a group of them couldn't exterminate it?

Or, they didn't want to.

Maintaining one's peak condition was necessary for a trial, and engaging in a battle prior to a difficult challenge could hinder one's capabilities.

"Just add some rewards and continue the trial," Arthur suggested, glancing at Yolk, who seemed troubled. 

"But…"

"I'm sure none of the people here are so weak," replied the crimson-eyed man, interrupting the Guardian. "Yolk, you–as a Guardian–should know that, correct? What is the penalty for purposely delaying a trial for no reason?"

"Uh…"

"So start the trial."

Yolk glanced at the other players, who also seemed troubled. The Guardian did not wish to be punished, and deliberately delaying the trial could possibly incur penalties. 'So, should I just start it?'

"Okay, let's begin," Yolk announced, inciting wrongful murmurs among the players. All hostility was directed towards Arthur.

Yolk stood before the players, ready to explain the contents of the trial.

"The Trial of the Twelfth Floor includes a race. All participants will race to the end of the cave, with Spectres and each other as obstacles. The one who reaches the end first will be considered the winner."

"As for the leaderboards, that will be decided according to the time in which one reached the end."

Yolk glanced at Arthur, and so did everyone else. It seemed as if the latter had become notorious for his tendency to achieve first place in all trials. Arthur returned the gaze with an embarrassed smile.

"Does everybody understand?" Yolk inquired, to which everyone nodded. "The stopwatch begins… now."

[00:00:01]

[00:00:02]

Within milliseconds, all players unleashed their movement skills, heading towards the end of the cave, which seemed to be endless at the moment. Although the water restricted the movements of some of the players, most were able to ignore it.

Arthur used [Ethereal Glide], practically gliding across the water as if he were surfing. With an expressionless face and a determined gaze, he sped through the rather vast cave, his eyes fixated on the end.

After this trial, he would need to complete the thirteenth floor. Following that, Arthur would need to bring the thirteen tokens to a temple located in the Residential Area of the thirteenth floor, which would mark the end of it all.

However, reaching the temple with his life intact would be challenging, considering the obstacles–namely, the stronger characters of the tower–would attempt to kill and rob him at every turn.

'If someone gets the thirteen tokens, everything will go to shit.'

'I have no idea what the reward is, but if it's what I speculate, then the entirety of the tower's balance would crumble.'

'Still, the High Guardians wouldn't be able to interfere, since the player wouldn't have broken any rules.'

Arthur sped past three people, inadvertently splashing water at their faces, causing them to clench their teeth in indignation. The crimson-eyed man only chuckled, attempting to conquer first place in his heat.

Suddenly, a lanky entity with a translucent body appeared before Arthur, knocking him off balance. The crimson-eyed man twirled, trying to avoid contact with the entity at all costs. He gritted his teeth, forging a barrier between him and the entity.

'A fucking spectre… Just my luck.'

Arthur glanced at the man holding first place, who had a grin on his face while staring mockingly at the crimson-eyed man.

'So it was that guy.'