CHAPTER 3

As Jason was taking a look at his stats, the sound of footsteps could be heard from around the corner. He quickly closed his status screen and grasped at his waist, but found nothing. Looking down in surprise, he found that he was missing his shield and sword. He remembered that he didn’t have any equipment, his previous action was just a habit.

Three goblins appeared around the corner. They spotted Jason as soon as he saw them. A goblin was a frail green creature that reached up to four feet tall. They were like small children, but that’s where the comparison ended. They had yellow eyes, long narrow ears, and jagged teeth.

Goblin - Level 1

Health: 50/50

Each goblin wielded a dull rusty short sword. In the past, Jason could just stand still and not take any damage, but he was no longer the same as before. If he wasn’t careful, he might very well lose his life here.

Goblins were cowardly creatures, but their courage rose when surrounded by allies. Jason wouldn’t give them the initiative. He dashed forward, quickly appearing before the one in front. His knee collided with its chin, knocking it into the air. It collided on the ground and entered a stunned state.

-2

Jason nearly fell over when he read the damage notification. 2? 2?! Just two hours ago, if he flicked a booger, he would be able to kill a goblin, but now an all out knee-kick dealt only 2 damage? The goblins didn’t let Jason’s slip in concentration go to waste. Two swords pierced through his stomach.

-9

-11

The pain of having his stomach stabbed caused Jason to wince. He quickly chastised himself for losing focus during battle, something which only a rookie would do. Before the goblins could pull back their swords, Jason grabbed each side of their head and knocked them against each other.

-3

-2

Jason’s eye twitched, but he didn’t slow his movements. While the goblins were dazed, he yanked the rusty short swords from their hands and took a quick look at their stats.

(Crude) Rusty Iron Short Sword

Damage: 10

Requirements: 5 Strength

Good enough. The two goblins shrieked in a foreign language when their weapons were stolen. Jason’s movements were smooth as butter as he slid each sword across the goblin’s  necks.

-13

-12

Much better. Jason smirked. The two goblins recoiled as blood sprayed out of their necks. Normally such a wound would be fatal, but the tower had different rules than reality. Unless it was a skill that afflicted the bleed status, wounds wouldn’t bleed. Only a little blood would spray out. That was why Jason didn’t care about the two holes in his stomach. He was already used to the tower’s rules. If it was a newb who just entered the tower, they would probably grow scared and lose their life during the battle.

Before Jason could attack further, the goblin who was knocked to the ground stood up and attacked. He parried with one sword while plunging the other into its eye. It shrieked in pain while staggering backwards.

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All three goblins looked in horror at Jason. Their previous confidence was replaced by fear and a desire to run. Jason wouldn’t let them. He swiped out with his sword, sweeping them off their feet. The goblins fell to the ground with a thud.

Jason changed to a backhanded grip and stabbed into the nearest goblin’s chest. It shrieked in pain as hole after hole appeared in its chest. A mere second later it dispersed into motes of light as copper coins landed on the ground with a clang.

The other two goblins whimpered from the pain. One tried crawling away, but Jason pinned it against the floor with his foot before finishing it off. The last one quivered in fear as it too was finished off.

Jason perked his ears but didn’t hear any other monsters approaching. Only then did he relax. Crouching down, he inspected his loot.

Six copper coins and leather boots.

(Crude) Tattered Leather Boots

Armor: 2

Requirements: 5 Vitality, 5 Endurance

Jason shrugged. It was better than nothing. As he put them on, they magically changed shape to fit his foot. Another feature of the tower. The boots gave 2 armor, meaning if his feet was attacked, 2 damage would be negated. If any other part of his body was attacked, he would take full damage.

Next he picked up the coins and stored them in his inventory ring. If he recalled correctly, during this year, each piece of copper was worth around 1$. As time passed their value would drop as more copper coins became available. Being an ascender was profitable, although risky. Plenty lost their life in this profession.

With weapons in hand, Jason began a slaughter on the first floor. Sometimes a goblin would be alone, but they were usually in groups of two to three. When he encountered another group of ascenders, he would casually nod and move on.

A few hours later, his stomach rumbled pitifully. After finding a safe spot to rest, he sat down against the wall and took out a sandwich, some fruit, and a bottle of water. He ate quickly instead of enjoying the meal. The tower wasn’t a place to relax, except for a few locations.

At the same time, he opened his status screen and found that he was level 3. In but a scant few hours he had gained two levels, such speed would leave one utterly stunned. More importantly, he gained 10 stat points, 5 for each level gained.

Now was the hard part. Before he returned to the past, his path was that of a defensive tank. Someone who would take blows for their allies. If his goal was to clear the tower as fast as possible in order to save humanity, would that path be enough? He wasn’t a genius like Roy or the other heroes, but he was a hard worker.

He was confident that if he worked hard enough, he could become just as strong as Roy had, but did he have enough time? It would probably take him over a hundred years to reach that point. To learn how to master the skills Roy had would take time. Time he didn’t have. It was better to follow his previous path, one that he was confident in.

Even having reached this point in thought, Jason still hesitated. This decision would decide humanity’s future. He couldn’t be careless. Not now. The pressure mounted. It became stifling. It reached the point where he found it hard to breath, and even his eyes had turned bloodshot. Gritting his teeth, he decided to throw caution to the wind and put 2 points into strength, 2 points into agility, 2 points into endurance, and 4 points into vitality.

He had always fantasized about a path slightly different than his own. One in which he was still a tank but dealt significant damage. It would take specific items and skills to get there, but it was possible.

Jason stood up and inspected his equipment. After hunting goblins for a few hours, he was now fully equipped in a set of tattered leather armor. It provided a meagre amount of armor, but it was better than nothing. If he sold it outside, it would be worth around a hundred dollars.

As Jason made his way to the location of the portal that lead to the second floor, he fell deep into thought. To make my path work, I need money. Lots of it. He thought of ways to make money, but all of them required power. Power he currently didn’t have. Forget it. First I should strengthen myself. Jason paused. Wait...

The floors of the tower were large, much too large. The first floor was especially confusing. It was comprised entirely of tunnels. Guilds had long since mapped out these lower floors and sold the corresponding maps for a profit. Jason recalled that as of this time, the highest floor reached was thirty-nine. That didn’t mean that the guilds had mapped out that high, just that that was the highest floor reached. If he wanted to make money, it was simple. Sell maps of the floors.

Who was more familiar with the tower than him? He could count the number of people who did on one hand, but that was before he traveled to the past. As of this moment, Jason knew more about the tower than anybody else.

Being an ascender was an extremely risky profession, especially for the ascenders who were at the top. Having knowledge of the floors would increase their chance of survival dramatically. The top guilds kept most of the knowledge about the top floors to themselves. Only when enough people reached a floor would they sell information.

If Jason sold a map of the floors which haven’t been fully explored, how much would those rich top guilds pay? He smiled at the thought.