I raised my head from my pillow, groaning as I moved my shoulders and legs. My body was slightly bruised with a stinging pain circulating through my cheeks.

I opened my hands repeatedly and examined my body all over for anything bad but was in perfect shape. At least enough to go into the Tower.

Kana wanted me to get some rest, which I wouldn’t mind but…I need money right now and badly. I got to be out of this place in a couple of days and still have no way of affording it.

That old lady said she’d buy monster cores from me, who’s to say there aren’t even better things waiting on the higher floors?

As I was absorbed in thought, a familiar pinging sound followed the screen of light hovering in front of me.

{Upgrade complete}

“Uriel you’re back!” I celebrated.

I was beginning to worry since he has been gone the whole night, I’m glad he came back in time.

“You left so suddenly that I didn’t even get the chance to ask about the upgrade. Well, you’re back now, so show me what you got.”

{Appraisal Skill has increased its range of knowledge and capabilities.}

Uriel sounds different than before, it’s subtle but is he slightly older than before? He sounded like a toddler before but now he kind of sounds like someone who just turned ten years old. Is this from the upgrade?

“My appraisal skill got an upgrade too, well let’s test it out. Let’s see…uh! This should work.” I ran my hand over the table beside my bed and picked up an apple.

The faint blue glow surrounded the apple and a screen of text appeared over it.

{Apple} {Large red spots over the surface indicate it will have a sour taste}

“Woah! There’s way more detail than before, will it be accurate though?”

With a curious stare, I raised the apple to my lips and took a large bite from its side, bearing into the dull red spotted surface.

“Mmm~ It’s so good, perfectly sour!”

I doubt how useful it will be to determine how food tastes but I bet this could be pretty handy on monsters. Maybe it will help me find weaknesses in stronger monsters.

“This will help a lot, what else did you get?” I asked gleefully.

{An added effect to the Skill Arsenal has been activated. Use of skill is needed to activate}

I need to use the skill to activate it? Alright well, I can wait on that I suppose.

I’m currently level 10 which is strong enough to beat a Shadow Howler, since those spawn on the sixth floor I should be able to make it up there without any issues.

Still, even with that kind of strength I can’t get there on my own, one swarm of monsters and I’d be completely overwhelmed. I need a party if I’m going to get there, a few members would help with anything this early on.

The morning mist covered the streets, making it hard to see anything past my nose. It wasn’t too freezing but the air was definitely chilling, making it hard for me to stay warm in my long sleeve shirt and thin material pants.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Central Square was packed with loitering adventurers, most of them were joined by other members of their party but the rest looked too scared to enter the Tower. This area is where one would typically meet up with their party but for those without any, there’s an unspoken rule.

I walked up to one of the decorative fountains stationed a few meters away from the Tower and leaned back against its smooth stone build. A few others were doing the same, each of them nervous and even one holding his hands together in prayer.

This is what is known as ‘The Pickup ceremony’, something we Rust-ranked adventurers hate the most about Central Square. Since nobody would consider letting a Rust Rank join their party it’s almost impossible to get into one, unless they’re willing to pick up the slack of a team willing to accept them.

I’m not sure when this all started but it’s been a common occurrence since I was a kid. All you need to do is lean against the fountain and keep your head down, if your lucky someone will come to you and take you with them.

The jobs they give you might not be that exciting though… Carrying bags and equipment, cannon fodder and in some cases even a scout.

Joining their group for a day or two is what’s known as a Daily Party, the only commitment being the few days you join and then after that, you never have to see them again.

It may sound like a bad deal but it’s worth it for the Rust ranks. Joining a party lets you climb higher in the Tower than you could if you were alone, you’d be able to kill stronger monsters and explore many more areas in a day. Since killing monsters is what makes us stronger we need every opportunity we can to do so, even if we only get one or two hits in.

“Hey kid, you with the red and black hair!”

A masculine voice yelled out from ahead of me, soon after, a tall figure emerged from its direction. He was on the leaner side with light metal armour on, his messy black hair hung loose over his forehead in a wild fashion.

“You want to come with us?” He asked with a large grin on his face.

“What floor are you going to?”

“Does it matter, this is a one-time opportunity for you. I’m a silver rank asking a Rust rank if he wants to join a party.” He replied casually.

It’s pretty unheard of to even question the position but I’m not a regular Rust Rank. If I didn’t have my skill I probably would have done just that but now I need to climb higher, I can’t dwell on the first floor forever.

“If you’re not going where I need to be then I’ll just look for someone else.” I replied with a forced stern expression.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the hanging jaws of those around me. Their eyes were like daggers, shooting into the sides of my head.

The guy in front of me stood silent for a second before erupting into laughter. “I like you, that’s the kind of spirit we like to see in our party.” He said with some laughter behind his words.

After finally catching his breath he replied with a warm smile. “We’ll be going up to the seventh floor.”

I couldn't mask my excitement, a small grin cracked through and he reacted.

“I guess that works for you?” He asked with a smug look of conceit.

“That should be fine, I am curious as to what my role will be though.”

His eyes squinted slightly and a forced smile replaced his casual grin.

“I’ll explain later, first we should introduce you to the others.”

We approached the entrance of the Tower where three others were waiting. There were three men and a hooded woman.

Since she was wearing a hood I wasn’t able to see her face or anything of her body. The only way I was able to tell she was a woman was from the curves of her chest that stuck out like a sore thumb.

"I'm Welm, this is Marcel and Jasper, they're regular members of the party. This third one here is another day member like yourself."

The two men gave their nods and half-hearted waves, whereas the hooded woman stood there silently and gave a gentle nod.

"I'm Rei, nice to meet you all." I waved back, putting very little energy into it.

"You definitely look like a Rust alright, what class are you?" One of the members asked while resting their arm on the sword against their waist.

"A physical attacker, I mostly use Chakrams."

All three of them looked at me with raised eyebrows.

"Chakrams?"

"Oh sorry- it's what these blades are called."

The other member dressed in long robes leaned closer to observe them. "Never seen these before. Geez he even uses rust-grade weapons!" He snickered.

Are all of them this obnoxious, I got a completely different vibe from Welm though. Will it be a problem if I go with them after all?

Welm rubbed his chin while observing me from head to toe.

"You don't look too solid, how fast are you?"

Are they having doubts about letting me join? I did sound pretty cocky before, my body doesn't follow up in comparison.

"I’m confident in my speed." I replied

"Good to hear, you're going to help a lot then."

His smile deepened as the other two men behind him let out their own ominous grins.