What happens when a person keeps climbing the Tower?
Yes, with each Level Up, wounds heal and the body is restored. However, mental fatigue is something that piles up. The strain a person has is something that gathers over time.
The Rankers knew this quite well, so they all agreed to climb together. It was very obvious what they were planning on doing.
—Letting the other person die!
In this world, there were many ways to get stronger. It was also possible to use certain loopholes in the System—especially if one wasn’t an Evil Aligned yet.
Since the Rankers were in a Party, they must have been very certain of their Alignments, making them completely ‘trust’ one another.
But, these things could be deceptive.
Just as I managed to kill a bunch of people without a change in my Chaotic Neutral Alignment, the same applied to a lot of people—especially in a dangerous place like the Tower.
As they fought monsters, it was certain that Rankers would get weakened. Then… if, by chance, some ‘accident’ occurred… some of them would inadvertently die.
Once a Party Member died, their property got evenly distributed to the members of the Party—except in certain rare cases. Still, the general rule was applied in nearly every scenario.
So, if the Rankers kept dying off one after the other, the others would benefit even more. So, it was simply like the strong riding a bus full of other strong ones.
There was no risk as long as a person was certain that they could outlast the other. That was why…
‘They’re saving their strength…’
It was no wonder I saw so much good stuff in their Inventory. They were probably just bidding time and waiting for the other members to go down first.
‘Such idiots.’
They all thought alike, so nearly all of them were going to last for very long.
Their preparations were so similar that it would seem that none was going to die while they had their items.
So… as I watched them discuss whether or not to add me to their ranks… I decided to help them a little.
‘Let’s rob some Inventories.’
Usually, using my abilities to Steal from others didn’t impact my Alignment. After all, it was a power given by the System. If I used it, there was really no penalty for it.
However, when I used it in critical times—for malevolent reasons—it counted against me.
That was why I didn’t use this ability when the Rankers were battling their monster. However, now that they were at ease… I could strike!
‘There. And there. Oh, that too!’
All the backup power they had in stock would be taken by me, and duds would be used to replace them instead.
I had a special Skill that helped me with that, and it was pretty convincing.
‘This isn’t my first Rodeo, you know? Hehehe!’
I could also steal their Stats, but these were perceptive bastards. It was best not to step on their toes too much.
‘So, with the special items they have gone, a lot of them will get wiped out sooner or later..’
My goal was for all of them to die. If I left a single Party Member live, the properties would transfer to them—including Karma Points.
If I let them all die, I could just rob their corpses.
‘Stealing Karma Points is illegal, so that will cost me my Alignment. It was different if I pillaged it from corpses, though…’
Wasn’t that just perfect?
In any case, I knew what their response to my offer would be. I just had to let things play out.
************
“We would like it if you accompanied us. But, only on one condition.”
‘As I thought…’
“We want you not to interfere in our battle unless we say so. You should have no problem with that, since we’ll basically be ‘carrying’ you, right?”
I could have eavesdropped on their conversation, but these guys were so predictable that there was no need for that.
There were two major choices they could have made.
One would be to let me fight—giving me the burden of attack—in order to wear me out first. Once they did that, they would be able to get my gear since we were a Party.
This option came with too many uncertainties and risks.
The first was that I never specified that I wanted to join a Party—and I really didn’t want to.
The second was the Golem in my command. It was strong. If I utilized it well, there was no need for me to engage in any combat on my own. That way, I wasn’t even going to get exhausted—talkless of dying.
Thirdly, I was an unknown variable. It was better to keep me out of the loop so they could carry out their original plan.
Which was why… they chose the second route instead.
I wasn’t going to interfere, and they would take all the rewards will offering to ‘carry’ me to the higher Floors.
They must have figured that there was no need to include me in their plans.
Of course, there was also the possibility of refusing me outright. However, if they did that and I decided to fight solo, there was a chance I would reap the benefits they wanted for themselves.
In any case, this was the best—though, not perfect—solution to the dilemma they faced.
“Alright, then. I also have a condition.”
Vivian bobbed her head—indicating that I should speak.
“I don’t want to be affiliated with a Party, so is it alright if I remain an independent group?”
After a moment of silence, they all agreed to my proposal.
‘Bunch of idiots. They’re too blinded by greed.’
Didn’t any of them consider the possibility of me being an Evil Aligned?
No, they probably did.
‘I’m sure they hope I can cause a bit of a mess so they can get the most profit out of this raid. These guys are really confident in their Items and their ability to survive.’
The jokes were on them, though.
While the Items of all the Rankers were incomparable to mine, I still had uses for them.
‘At the end of this little game… it’ll be my win.’
The source of this c𝐨ntent is fre𝒆w(e)bn(o)vel