Seth stood alone in a dimly lit chamber, waiting for the tower's instructor to return and initiate his trial. His gaze wandered around, drawn first by the crystal-clear orb resting atop a four-legged stand at the center. Its faint glow was almost completely overpowered by the brilliance of the light-lamps hanging around the room. Inch-deep grooves dropped from each side of the stand, running across the floor and up the rune-covered walls to the ceiling.

Just as Seth was about to move, the heavy door behind swung open and the tower's instructor stepped inside, carrying an orb filled with azure aether in his hand.

"Sorry for the wait," the man said, swapping the ball-shaped artifact on the stand for the new charged one. The moment he did, aether flowed through the grooves along the floor, crawled up the walls, and reached the ceiling in a few seconds. "All right, I'll now explain the trial, so listen carefully."

Seth snapped his focus back to the instructor and nodded.

"When I leave, place your hand on the orb to start," the man explained. "An aether barrier will form around you, and the clock will begin. Each floor has its own orb. Touching it will summon a beast on a white cross painted on the floor on the other side of the chamber. You'll have five seconds to prepare before it appears. The time limit to defeat it increases according to the floor—two minutes for the first five, four minutes for floors six to ten, and so on. Each beast will be different. Their Rank goes up by two per floor until the eleventh, then by four after that."

The instructor pointed to the door on the opposite side of the chamber and continued, "Once you kill it, you'll have one minute to reach and activate the next floor's orb. If you fail to do so—or your barrier gets broken, or you run out of time while fighting a beast—all the orbs deactivate and the trial ends. Your clock will stop at that specific moment, so no need to rush down the stairs to exit the tower. But don't take too long. Oh, and don't bother using potions or instant spell-scrolls. They won't work here. Any questions?"

Seth shook his head, processing everything. "No, sir."

"Then good luck."

With that, the instructor turned and stepped out of the room, leaving him alone once more.

'The aether barrier probably won't cover you,' Seth said to Nightmare, weighing the pros and cons of letting the direwolf fight without protection. Even if Devus had made it clear before Seth entered that no one could watch the fights, the Tower's rewards would only be given out at the end of the spring semester—eight months from now. Which left them plenty of time to use their free attempt. 'I don't think it's worth the risks.'

'Let's just try first,' Nightmare retorted, moving out of the teardrop's domain and materializing by Seth's side. 'If it doesn't cover me, I can still help clear the first floors.'

'Fine,' Seth relented, approaching the stand.

Taking a deep breath, he placed his hand on the orb brimming with aether. Almost instantly, a cloud of tiny blue particles appeared around him, dancing and twirling gracefully before enveloping him and fusing into a shimmering barrier. Turning his head, he saw Nightmare also covered by an identical layer of aether. 'Looks like I was wrong.'

'Oh yeah!' the direwolf exclaimed, his joy resonating deeply through their bond. 'That ponytail jerk will finally shut up when he sees your ranking!'

Seth's eyes moved toward the large black door, which was now opening on a staircase on the opposite side. 'Alright, let's go.'

They both dashed forward, their rushing footsteps echoing as they climbed up to the first floor. Beside Seth, Nightmare licked his chops—it would be his first fight in almost four days.

The moment they reached the top of the stairs, they entered a vast chamber illuminated by the light-lamps adorning its walls and the blue aether swirling in the orb a few feet in front of them.

Seth's eyes swept the room, quickly spotting the white cross a few dozen yards ahead. Without wasting time, he touched the orb to activate it, then charged forward, followed closely by Nightmare. According to Devus, the first beast would be Rank 2, so there was no need for caution here.

As they neared the cross painted on the floor, a brown rabbit appeared out of thin air and glanced at them apprehensively.

Brown Cottontail

 

Potential: Copper Tier

Rank: 2 (Low-Copper)

Affinity: -

 

Strength: 3

Arcane Power: 3

Toughness: 2

Well Capacity: 3

Agility: 4

Regeneration: 4

In a flash, Nightmare lunged, and his powerful jaws snapped shut around the small creature's neck. The rabbit's body instantly turned into dust and vanished, leaving nothing behind.

Seth sighed. 'Looks like summons don't have beaststones. That's a bummer.'

'At least the fights will be quick—'

Before the direwolf could finish, the door ahead swung open, inviting them to the next floor. Seth and Nightmare exchanged a quick glance and instantly broke into a sprint. Every second could make a difference on the final ranking.

They continued their rapid ascension, clearing the next six floors without even stopping their stride. Nightmare made quick work of each summon, taking their lives in a few powerful bites. High offensive attributes were proving to be a major advantage for this trial, especially when facing casters—a term used in Seth's father's encyclopedia to describe beasts with low Toughness that relied on spells to attack from a distance.

Although the fights had all been brief, Seth had still discovered important insights about the summons; they bit, slashed, and used spells like beasts, but they lacked the instincts and fierce determination. So far, each of them had given up without fighting to the end, as if their lives hadn't meant much to them.

On the eighth floor, Seth and Nightmare stopped momentarily to catch their breath.

'We'll probably need to use aether from now on,' Seth said, spinning Marine's dagger in his hand. 'But don't use Shadow Bite if the next one's Toughness is below twenty-five. We won't be able to replenish much aether between our fights.'

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

'As you wish.'

Seth touched the orb, and then bolted forward while Nightmare vanished behind him, his blurry figure melting into the shadow of the chamber. Seconds later, a white fox with striking blue claws appeared on the cross painted on the floor.

White Fox

 

Potential: Copper Tier

Rank: 16 (High-Copper)

Affinity: Water

 

Strength: 18

Arcane Power: 34

Toughness: 22

Well Capacity: 30

Agility: 29

Regeneration: 25

"Another caster," Seth shouted in case the direwolf hadn't looked at the attributes through his eyes.

The fox's white fur suddenly began to glow, and aether coalesced in front of its muzzle, forming a dense, shining blue ball. Seth immediately dove to the side, avoiding the spell, then rolled back to his feet and kept running forward.

The beast snarled and began casting again, preparing for what seemed to be another Aether Blast.

But before it could finish, Seth threw his dagger at the fox's face, aiming for its right eye. Forced to dodge, the beast interrupted its spell and leapt to the left. Mid-air, the creature realized the trap and its blue eyes widened—but it was already too late.

Nightmare phased out of Illusionary Emptiness and pounced, his jaws clamping down onto its neck and pinning it to the ground. The fox yowled in pain and tried to channel another spell, but Seth lunged forward and sent lightning arcs searing across its body through a powerful punch that stunned it momentarily—and secured their win. A caster who couldn't use spells was no threat to them.

A few bites later, the fox's lifeless body dissolved into dust inside Nightmare's maw.

Seth stood up and quickly scanned their Well—eighty-five percent for him, eighty for the direwolf. Enough for at least two more floors.

Picking up his dagger, Seth turned toward the opening door. 'Let's keep going.'

The next floor's battle played out almost exactly like the previous one. Seth lured the beast toward Nightmare, so they could pin it down and take care of it in no time. With Illusionary Emptiness, casters had absolutely no chance against them. Brawlers—subdivided in the encyclopedia into offensive and defensive ones based on their attributes—would be far more challenging. The element of surprise didn't give Seth and Nightmare much of an advantage against the creatures, especially those that used spells to enhance their Toughness like the Stone-Scaled Sloths.

Standing next to the tenth floor's orb, Seth turned to Nightmare. 'This is probably the last one we can beat, so go all out.'

'Not a chance,' the direwolf retorted, sitting beside him as their Wells slowly refilled. 'Those empty puppets are weak. We can definitely kill the next one too.'

Seth sighed. 'Do as you wish, then.'

He knew the direwolf was wrong, but he didn't want to argue right now. The gap between Copper and Iron was simply too wide to overcome. Professor Albert had explained in class that breaking through a new Tier caused drastic changes in Wielders' and beasts' bodies, Wells, and aether channels, granting them a boost of a hundred attributes the moment after ascending. That meant a Rank-21 beast wouldn't have between two hundred to two hundred ten attributes—instead the total would be between three hundred to three hundred ten.

They couldn't take on such an opponent, even if it was an empty vessel devoid of will.

'Get ready.' Seth glanced at Nightmare as the direwolf moved to the side, preparing to go invisible. The moment Seth's hand touched the orb, they burst forward.

Halfway across the chamber, Seth skidded to a stop, fully aware that charging headfirst at a Rank-20 beast would be foolish. The instant he raised his dagger, a deafening roar filled the room. A lion materialized on the white cross, its golden fur shimmering under the soft glow of the light-lamps. The beast, slightly larger than Nightmare, stood tall and menacing. Its brown mane bristled, while its long canines and razor-sharp claws gleamed in the lamplight, poised to tear them apart.

Plain Lion

 

Potential: Copper Tier

Rank: 20 (Peak-Copper)

Affinity: Earth

 

Strength: 43

Arcane Power: 28

Toughness: 33

Well Capacity: 29

Agility: 35

Regeneration: 31

An offensive brawler, Seth thought while his core stirred for the first time since entering the tower. The summon had nearly the same Agility as Nightmare and fifty percent more Strength. This won't be easy.

Nightmare disappeared into the shadows, circling the lion while Seth rushed forward, his core's energy flooding his mind and body. The lion growled and pounced, its aether-clad claws slicing through the air. Seth spun out of the way and lashed out his dagger, but the blade bounced off the beast's skin, which was now covered with a thin layer of dark rocks. Granite Scales.

It's not even a reptile, Seth cursed, taking a few steps back. 'I'll need your Shadow Bite.'

As if on cue, Nightmare emerged behind the lion and sank his teeth deep into its flank, black smoke emanating from his maw and melting its way through the beast's defense. The enormous feline howled in pain and tried to retaliate, but Seth blocked its fanged bite with his dagger. Snarling, the beast slashed, aiming to tear apart Seth's arm while Shadow Bite kept seeping through its rocky barrier and flesh.

Suddenly, the Plain Lion opened its maw and let out a deafening roar that knocked Seth and Nightmare off their feet, sending them tumbling across the room. As they both scrambled up, the summon charged toward Nightmare, its claws and teeth coated in a soft brown light. It clearly understood who the bigger threat was.

Shit.

Seth dashed toward them, funneling aether into Haste's groove. Nightmare dodged and weaved, but the lion's claw racked him a few times, partially draining his aether barrier. Closing in, Seth lowered his shoulder—he knew his dagger wouldn't help much against the rock-armored flank. Clenching his teeth, he rammed into the beast.

Despite the Strength difference, the lion still lost its balance and crashed to the floor. Seth immediately pounced, grabbing the beast's mane, and drove his knife through a gap in the granite plating around its neck. Lightning arced along the blade, then jolted across the summon's large body.

The Plain Lion howled, then roared again and unleashed another blast of aether that struck Seth, catapulting him a dozen yards backward.

"Argh!" he groaned, crashing onto the dark floor. Clutching his sternum, he pushed himself up while coughing. "You—ugh—damn bastard, you're so dead."

The lion growled and charged. Seth's core pulsed and flooded him with the mysterious energy as he locked eyes with the beast, who was ready to attack. What would a mindless vessel do next? Pounce straight at my face. Obviously.

In a flash, Seth spun to the side, dodging the beast, then slashed its corroded flank. The lion growled and glared at him, ready to retaliate. But just as it dashed toward him, Nightmare surged out of Illusionary Emptiness and leapt at its neck, shattering the rocky scales and plunging his large teeth into its flesh. The summon thrashed and roared, nearly breaking free from the direwolf's grasp, but then Seth joined the fray and plunged his knife hilt-deep into the newly exposed flank. After a few more thrusts, the beast then let out one last roar and collapsed, its body dissolving into a cloud of dust.

Panting, Seth leaned over, hands on his knees and heart pounding in his ears. As the door to the next floor opened, he glanced at Nightmare. 'Still think we'll beat the next one?'

The direwolf nudged him while walking by. 'It's just gonna be a little stronger than that one. Stop being so negative.'

'Sure. Just a little stronger.' Seth rolled his eyes and followed his partner, wiping sweat from his forehead. A hundred more attributes from the breakthrough would make any beast more than a little stronger.

They trudged up the stairs and halted once again in front of the stand with the orb of blue aether. Fighting their strongest opponent while having half their aether and two-thirds of their initial barriers; the Trial Tower was rightly named.

After half a minute, Seth glanced at Nightmare beside him. 'Ready?'

'Yeah,' the direwolf answered, excitement flashing in his crimson eyes. 'Summon that puppet.'

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.