The Tower Of Prophecy (4)

“Sigh…”

Phew.
Ugh, damn it.
I can’t take this.

On the spacious sofa prepared inside the tower.
It was made of very expensive material, so it was soft and comfortable without any discomfort.

Yu Seha lay down there like a limp piece of laundry.
He rubbed the dark circles under his eyes with his palm.
Small cries of pain erupted from various parts of his body, showing how tired he was.

At times like this, high-efficiency healing is necessary.

Fortunately, next to Yu Seha sat a being whose mere presence was healing.

Literally an angel.
A fluffy black furball.

“Meow, Seha, are you okay?”

It was Ma Hana.
A cute cat-person girl with two wagging tails.

Yu Seha looked at her.
He sat up and with a grunt, slipped his hand under her armpit.

Naturally, he lifted her up.

“Meow~”

Such a familiar action.
Ma Hana also raised both arms and did not resist.

Plop.

Finally settling on his lap.

Yu Seha gently hugged her and smiled broadly at the soft touch.

He also fiddled with her soft cat ears.

“Hehe…”
“Meow~”

Additionally, he sniffed the scent of her crown.
Along with the smell of well-dried barley sprouts,
The scent of high-grade shampoo provided by the mixed in, creating a pleasant fragrance.
It could literally be called the ultimate sweet smell.

So, had he been like that for about a minute?
Another fresh scent brushed past his nose.

“Yo-Yong…”
“Ah, Ju Na-young is here?”
“Yong-eung.”

The identity was none other than Ju Na-young.

Ju Na-young sent a very envious look toward Ma Hana.
Noticing that gaze, Yu Seha chuckled and sat her beside him.
Then he equally stroked both their crowns.

“Meow~”
“Yong-aa~”

Yu Seha listened to their cute “Meow” sounds.
Feeling the emptiness of the last harmony, he gently asked.

“Is Moon Bora still far off?”
“Yeah, she’s helping senior Mari with the star-level test.”
“Senior Mari’s test type was definitely… racing car, right?”
“Yes, to come in first on a virtually simulated car. But senior Mari’s driving sense is terrible, right? She’s already failed nine times.”
“Meow~ Senior seems to have no talent in using her body overall. She was the last to pass the dance test… maybe a bit slow in reaction.”
“That’s strange. She pilots helicopters well but can’t drive cars… Well, still, she might get two stars today?”

At Ju Na-young’s words, Yu Seha nodded as if hoping that would be true.

It had already been a month and two weeks since Yu Seha and his party entered the .

Because they had done the time Bill Gates trick in advance,
In reality, not even a second had passed.

The first test they entered and were chosen for was, as expected, dance.

‘…It wasn’t easy.’

Each person had to dance at least four different dances for over 20 minutes each.
Not just that, they had to dance really well,
And in between, they had to do aegyo or winks, which was quite a torment.

Moreover, since the types of dances assigned to each were different, it took quite some time for everyone to pass.

Hence, a word of relief.

“I’m really glad Moon Bora is here.”
“Agreed. Without Bora, it would have taken months longer, right?”
“…She really dances well. And teaches well too.”

Moon Bora passed the dance test in just three days.

Since then, she went around teaching the party dances and the important aegyo for passing.

Every day, morning, noon, and evening, over five hours of lessons and teaching.

Yu Seha was certain.

If it weren’t for Moon Bora, they would have given up and run away long ago.

Additionally, an unexpected person was a great help.

“Hehe!”
“Holy Saints appear!”

It was Natsu and Yuri.
The two who entered while Choi Mari was carrying supplies.
Wearing cheerleader outfits, they skillfully danced and guided them to passing.

To be honest, he was very surprised.
That 10-year-old kids could dance so well…
However, thinking a little, there were foreshadowings.

‘…The choreography they always showed when appearing.’

Holding hands and spinning around.
On the surface, it looked like just kids playing,
But looking closely, it was possible because they were skilled dancers.

Also, past conversations where they subtly said they raised stars themselves.
That moment was proven true.

“Ding dong! We are naturally 5★, but two of those stars we raised ourselves!”
“Docking! We raised them!”

Anyway, enough of the digression.

Thanks to the three leading and teaching, after many twists and turns, everyone succeeded in raising one star.

Of course, for Yu Seha, it was a terrible time he never wanted to experience again.

“Meow, the real problem was the second one.”

Ma Hana’s muttering.
Ju Na-young trembled as if suffering from PTSD.
Her protruding dragon tail also shivered.

“Yong-ugh… just thinking about it was horrible.”
“Na-young definitely had… Tetris, right?”
“Yes.”

‘Tetris.’

A word that sounds easy.
But when it became a test, the level changed.
It turned into a brutal game where you had to run with your feet, not just click with your fingers.

“No way, you really had to catch and connect falling stones from the sky. Without the buff, I would’ve been crushed. Ma Hana, were you in a reinforcement simulation?”

“Meow, yes. The mission to directly refine one piece of equipment to +12 enhancement… that was hard because I couldn’t get the hang of it.”

“How on earth did you succeed?”

“Later on, after so many failures, I could predict by sound whether it would break or not when struck. So I avoided those spots as much as possible and challenged it.”

Ma Hana explained it took a full three weeks.

Meanwhile, Yu Seha said nothing.

In fact, unlike the first test, he cleared the second test easily.

The fatigue now was from practicing the first dance.

It had little to do with the second.

“…”

The second test given to Yu Seha.
It was a rare special mission to escape the .

If accepted, you move to a straight cave.
You just had to pass through it without shaking.

As you might guess, it was a trial where the past was present.

It was a test similar to the Nightmare Forest in the middle of the path.

In fact, the content was roughly similar.

‘…Of course.’

Though he did see an unexpected face there.

Ignoring roughly the scenes with his deceased brothers and father, he moved forward.
It was when he felt the end of the maze was near.

Suddenly.

Yu Seha stopped where he was.
Beyond the thick fog, a man stood at a distance with his back turned.

The man wore an old martial arts uniform tinged with black.
His long ponytail was tied down, and his entire body was covered in blood.

The man sensed his presence and turned around.
Their eyes met naturally.

“…”
“…”

Certainly a stranger’s face that should have been unfamiliar.
But it did not feel awkward.

The reason was simple.

Because Yu Seha knew that man well.
The man also knew Yu Seha well.

“Catch him! Kill that guy!”
“He’ll harm the world someday. We must kill him now!”
“He’s the Heavenly Killing Star!”

A fragment of the past that came to mind once during the Jing Daram incident.
A distant and far past fragment without a proper memory.

Yu Seha was once again certain.
This man before his eyes.
The protagonist who fled in memories and tore apart those who approached was this man.

Yu Seha did not even remember the man’s name.
But he understood him better than anyone, as if they were one.

They stared at each other silently for a while.
After a moment, Yu Seha slowly walked toward the man.

The being and cause with the greatest stake in Yu Seha’s talent for nothingness.

The man who carries the karma of the Heavenly Killing Star.

Also,

The very first and earliest memory Yu Seha has.

The existence commonly called a past life.

“Meow, Seha?”
“Hmm?”

Yu Seha snapped out of his thoughts at the voice near his ear.
Looking down, Ma Hana and Ju Na-young.

The two resting their heads on his shoulder looked up at him.
Their bright eyes were full of worry.

“Meow, are you okay?”
“…There’s no problem, right?”
“Ah, no. I just had some old memories come up.”

Despite their puzzled looks, Yu Seha just smiled.

Soon, Choi Mari’s loud cheer “Mauu!!!” echoed in his ear.

Judging by the reaction, it seemed they finally passed the second test.

To prove it, an updated in front of everyone.

[All participants of the ‘Tower of Prophecy’ have succeeded in raising 2★.]
[No more tests can be taken. An exit gate will be generated.]

As the Holy Saints had said.
The basically had a maximum of two stars to raise.
Therefore, it was right to pack up and leave now.

‘Yes, basically.’

-But! There is a special event that occurs if you raise more than two stars. Depending on that, you can raise up to three stars.

Natsu’s confident words.
That had just appeared before their eyes.