Chapter 55

It was about two hours till Dawn when I awoke. I’d been tired, and yet had slept terribly. My excitement for my next day in the Tower had filled my mind. The minute my head had lain on my pillow, a thousand scenarios began to roll through my mind, battles fought, battles to be fought, and countless wondering about what awaited within the higher floors.

Needless to say, I’d needed quite the pick me up when I got to the Breakfast Hall. Luckily, the skilled chefs there were able to deliver.

By the time Nyle and Lyn joined me, both appearing much better rested than I was, my poor sleep was a thing of the past. Three extremely strong cups of coffee, a drink crafted from another tree located on the second floor, and I was wide eyed and practically shaking with excitement. One of the cooks had offered to sell me a chewable mixture of the coffee beans as well, in case I got tired later through the day, but I’d opted against it. I highly doubted I’d need any help staying awake within the Tower.

They finished their meals relatively quickly, just as eager as I was, if less punctual when it came to waking early, they didn’t want to waste time sitting around Climber’s Rest. Regardless of our encounter with Hans, and the mishap with the Den Mother, we were all equally excited to head back into the Tower and continue our journey as Climbers.

“And here’s the job,” Lyn handed the sheet to me as we walked towards Alexandra’s desk. She was there, just as she always seemed to be, handling the jobs of all of the Climbers preparing for the day. There was a line at the moment, though not terribly long, and mostly filled with members of our platoon. I had to wonder if the Veteran Climber’s got up earlier than we did, or they knew something about the system we didn’t. Ryker’s mention of special services for reaching certain Climber Ranks made me wonder just how much there was about Climber’s Rest we didn’t yet know about.

“Thanks,” I grabbed the sheet and looked it over as we stood in line. As promised, Lyn and Nyle had decided on our job for the day while I’d been collecting Claw and Fang. Those very daggers currently hung comfortably around my waist, my pride and joy. The white handles on the dark leather, against my black Climber’s Regalia and its silver trim, looked striking… I may have spent a little time admiring the look in the mirror of my room, before heading downstairs.

Hunting Request

Rank – F

Floor – 2nd

Guild – Hunters Guild

Hunters Guild seeks aid in hunting down Gorillas

Expected Duties:

Protect Hunters from monsters during Gorilla Hunts.

Ensure Gorillas are led to appropriate hunting zones and traps.

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Assist in slaying Gorillas.

Provide additional services as requested.

Reward:

25 Copper per Gorilla slain

Additional rewards at the discretion of Senior Hunter of the Day

We continued to step closer to Alexandra’s counter as I handed the job back to Lyn. We’d already hit the limit for levels we could gain from the first floor. It was logical then, that we head to a higher floor. According to Ryker, the first-floor monsters were level one, but the monsters on the second floor were level 4. That meant we could kill them for Tower Essence until we had enough to reach level 10.

“Think we’ll be able to take out enough monsters on these jobs?” I asked, doing some quick math in my mind. We all currently had 4 Tower Essence towards level 8. That meant 4 more essence for level eight, nine for level nine, and then ten to reach level 10. A total of 23 Tower Essence.

“You said it yourself,” Nyle grinned at me, “the jungle on the second floor was filled with slimes. Should be easy enough to take them out while protecting the hunters. And doing this mission ensures we stick with the Hunters we’re assigned to, so less chance of us,” he coughed, “stumbling upon mini-bosses and getting ourselves killed.”

“Fair point,” I said. The slimes had died pretty easily to fireballs. Between the three of us, there was no doubt we’d be able to kill enough of them. There was only one concern I had regarding the whole situation.

“Did you see a gorilla when you were climbing Lyn?” I shot a smirk at Nyle, “since unlike Nyle, you actually made it to the second floor.”

Nyle tried to elbow me, but I knew it was coming, and blocked it easily, a smile on both our faces.

“I didn’t,” Lyn said, shaking her head. “But they’re second floor creatures, so they shouldn’t be too tough, right?”

I thought again to Alax, and how he’d been pummeled to death by the massive, black furred, hulking creature. I’s arms were the size of my body, its fist larger than my head. The creature had definitely been strong. After all, it had shattered Alax’s shield.

“I think we’re going to need to be careful,” I said with an involuntary shiver. “We can’t underestimate them. And first and foremost, we are there to protect the Hunters. If they die in the Tower-”

“-They’re dead forever,” Nyle finished. “We know.”

“Alright,” I said as we reached the counter. “I just want to make sure. I saw a gorilla kill Alax during the Reaping. It was strong, fast, and fierce. Add in the slimes in the jungle, and I’ve a feeling they’re extremely dangerous to hunt.”

“We’ll be fine,” Lyn smiled at me. “It’s a Rank F Job. If it was too dangerous, they wouldn’t assign it to Rank F Climbers. Besides, dodging gorilla attacks and falling slimes seems like the perfect continuation of Flint’s training from last night.” She looked at Nyle. “You’ve got a bit of catching up to do in that regard. Hope you’re a fast learner.”

Nyle turned pale, and I had no doubt he knew full well how much we’d suffered at the hands of Flint. I really hoped whatever he’d been learning from Eb had been equally as important. At the very least, I knew the pyromancer had given Nyle a lot of information on the potential magical path’s he could take. Guidance that Nyle was definitely grateful for.

“Good morning you three.” Alexandra said with a bright smile. She held out her hand expectantly as she spoke. “The three of you heading off on a joint job together?”

“That’s right Alex,” Lyn smiled back at the Overseer of Climber’s Rest and handed her the job. “Gorilla hunting.”

Alexandra glanced at the three of us as she took the paper with one hand, flipping her book open, perfectly, to the page with our names listed with the other. A small smile played across her lips as she took us in. It grew as she looked at my daggers.

“I see,” she began scribbling in the book, and I felt the magic in my mind tingle as my Climber’s Card was updated. “An ambitious start to your second day,” She continued to scribble, her smile growing even larger. “If I may be so bold, I would suggest a few additional items you may want to bring along for your job, today.” Her smile was as wide as it could get. “Which I’ll gladly provide, of course, for a price.”