"Thayer Argent," I repeated flatly.
So this was the guy Litha mentioned, the one who tried to recruit them because he wanted to form a strong team. "Step away from him. I've not yet decided what I want to do with him."
Thayer's mouth tilted in amusement. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you kill him. Or beat him too hard, because of the test next week. I apologize for causing all this.
"But take it as an invitation and acknowledgment from one strong Awakened to another." He stretched out his hand. "How about it? Join me to climb the Tower, and I'll promise you riches."
I'd seen plenty of rich brats before, but this guy might've been the most shameless of them all. "You sent someone to attack me, and now you want me to join you? Get away from there, or I'll be forced to move you."
I lifted my hand as I spoke, my flesh shifting until fangs pushed outward.
Thayer didn't drop his smile.
A good smile, his father always told him, could solve matters faster than anything else. He didn't fully believe it, but he knew it helped smooth things over. "What do you want? This is the Tower. I can give you anything you want if you join me."
That actually caught me off guard and I blinked. "You're right. This is the dungeon. Anything I want.....I'll take it."
His hand lowered, a small frown marring his face. But that's not always possible. Of the Climbers in each set, only about two percent become Ascendant. Even fewer reach high-rank Ascendant.
"I'm rich. My father is richer still. Name what you want."
I snorted. "You're boasting with your father's money."
The more I saw of Thayer, the clearer it became. He was like a kid on a playground, bragging that his father could buy the most expensive toy just to make others play with him.
"Of course I boast with my father's wealth. I didn't ask to be born rich, but I was, and I'll take full advantage of it. You're destined to receive a powerful Grimoire. Will you take advantage of it or not? Millions are born with common Grimoires.
"Life isn't fair. Everyone starts somewhere. In the end, it depends on what you do with the things you have before the race is over. Well? Do you want to join my team?"
I… was shocked.
I'd expected empty posturing, not logic that actually made sense. I scowled, some of the intensity draining from my gaze. "I'm not joining your team. You can take him with you." I waved at Tim. "But if you try something like this again, be ready to face the full consequences."
Thayer smiled. 'Interesting indeed. Temur and Litha, and now Torvan. All strong Climbers. I want them'
But he glanced at Tim. Now isn't the time.
"Very well. The offer remains open anytime."
He grabbed Tim by the cuff of his shirt with one hand and scrolled through his Grimoire phone with the other. "Ah. Bad market today. Only the lightning aspect is for sale. Well then, thunderbird wings will do the."
He tapped the screen. A notification chimed, and the next second, blue wings crackling with lightning formed on his back. With a powerful flap and a rush of wind, he lifted into the air. "Until I see you again, Litha!"
Then he was gone, leaving behind the sharp smell of ozone and a single blue feather drifting down.
I blinked and let my hand return to normal. "What… did he just buy that?"
Temur slapped me on the back hard enough to make me stagger.
"Not bad for your first official fight in the Tower. How does it feel?"
I rubbed my back, briefly noting that Hermit had already healed most of the damage, stacked with the natural recovery of an Iron body. That, combined with the buzzing excitement in my blood, made me grin.
"I like it."
Litha snorted and shook her head. "Thayer's Grimoire is a complex one. He interacts with it personally. From what I can tell, he can buy almost anything in there."
"Anything… like the wings he used?"
I knew Grimoires varied wildly, some could even be used directly as weapons but this was my first time seeing something like that.
"Yes," Temur said. "Last time he tested us, he fought me and Litha together. It wasn't serious, but we learned he could even buy attacks,fireballs, gravity falls, different techniques, things like that."
I stared in the direction Thayer had disappeared. Goosebumps rose along my skin as excitement churned in my chest.
How many strong Awakeners were climbing this Tower with me?
I couldn't wait to find out.
"Come on, I'm starving. Let's go celebrate Torvan's first victory in the Tower!" Temur reached for my back again, but I dodged him.
Litha smirked at his expression and gestured toward Mopi, who was watching us with a small, quiet smile.
☆☆▪︎▪︎☆☆
Arkin descended from the 94th floor, where he had been overseeing the construction of a new temple. He'd come down to the 102nd floor because he'd been told all preparations were complete.
Instead, he found dead bodies.
And his Devourer was gone.
He'd poured resources into its creation, bribed multiple guilds to turn a blind eye. All of it wasted.
And what would his sponsor think now?
Rage shook him. His hands trembled as he picked up a bloody knife from the worktable and sliced his palm multiple times. Only then did he sigh in relief.
Suddenly a small communication crystal glowed nearby, casting harsh light across the workshop. Arkin flinched from the light, and the was was briefly casted with the light, bodies littered the floor, pentagrams smeared and drawn in blood, everything was stained red.
The crystal vibrated.
"High Priest. I have located the Devourer."
Arkin stiffened. Then his breathing steadied.
"But… extraction may prove difficult, and...."
"Summon the Dark Paladins in the area," Arkin said coldly. "It will take time for my squad to descend from the upper floors. I think I want to see this personally."
"As you wish, High Priest. Hail Chaos."
"Hail Chaos."