The seventh Floor of the Tower was brutally cold.
Hailfen had the generosity to become a Port Town, a Safeworld, despite its harsh weather of heavy snow. But, just because the Floor had been vanquished by monsters, never meant it was entirely safe. Everyone had to account for the Tower's conditions whether they liked it or not.
The seventh Floor had always snowed in unrelenting weather for its unfortunate humans. Though the sun would rise for the Floor's short grace, night time had a different plan in mind.
The squad rushed from the buried crystal pedestal and barged into a nearby shop. Their armor was covered in snow, their skin prickled by the freezing cold, and their breaths gasped from the short warmth inside.
Erin shivered, rubbing her hands frantically once Heather shut the door behind them. They were marching through the heavy snow for fifteen minutes before she spotted the shop's saving light.
"Really, Heather—" her voice trembled as she talked. "You had the Port Crystal to one of the worst Floors ever?"
The snow seemed to melt on Heather. Though, he wiped it off from the gaps of his armor.
"It was cheaper," he said. "And I'm the one that's always covering for Port Crystals anyways, why do you care?"
"Everyone is locked up in their homes during the night in Hailfen. It's practically a miracle that this place is open. We could have frozen to death."
"I wouldn't."
Jace sat along the wall, steadying his breath. The howling blizzard continued outside like it was furious they had escaped. Knowing the Tower, that was exactly what it thought.
'Erin was right. Each of the Tower's Floors have a different tell of time. Heather took a big risk by blindly descending into Hailfen.'
Brita shivered, clutching her cloak tightly against her body. She didn't have much Soul Points into stats that compensated for extreme temperatures.
Klav, on the other hand, looked to be doing fine. Even if his body had smothered the most amount of snow, he simply brushed it off.
The shop was decently sized, allowing enough room for the squad to sprawl around. Then the owner came to the front, hearing the commotion, and allowed them to stay after finding out they were Climbers.
Of course, Heather had to bribe the man for the sudden inconvenience. He wasn't too pleased about that.
Erin moved closer to Jace. Her wet, soft blonde hair was still sprinkled with snow.
"What Level are you now?" she whispered to him.
Jace turned his eyes to her, drowning out the winds outside. After judging the distance of the other squad members, he responded in a low voice just like hers.
"I'm Level nine," he said. "Pretty pathetic, right?"
"Jace, you leveled up four times in six days, that's not pathetic at all."
"And you?"
A small grin tugged across her lips, the same face that he would begin to find endearing.
"That's rude," she said. "You never ask a woman about her Soul."
"But I just told you mine."
She snorted, smacking some of the snow from his shoulder. Then she crawled back into her own space.
Jace planted his head against the wall again. It was obvious Erin was keeping progress with him, almost like he was her subject.
'What does she think of me, seriously? And why do I play along with her?'
He glanced at her quietly conversing with Brita, fashioning the traveler's cloak into a blanket.
They were waiting out the blizzard before stocking up for their next expedition. It would have been a while for their bodies to grow accustomed to the warmth, then falling asleep. The Tower had always screwed with the Climber's circadian rhythm. It could have been a bright day on one Floor, then pitch black on the next.
A hundred Floors meant a hundred worlds.
***
Finally, after the brightness of day, snow began to thaw. The squad could walk on the outside without fear of freezing to death.
Although, before they could leave, the shop owner had given them the chore of shoveling snow away from his doorsteps. It was a gesture of kindness, as a Climber would say.
They registered at an inn and decided their stay in Hailfen would be short before venturing into another expedition. After all, the amount of hassle in the Whispering Woods had left its mark on their armor.
A little while later, Jace was training in one of the town's open yards. He wasn't on the duty to hop between vendors for provisions so he spent his free time for himself.
[Skill Activate: Wide Slash]
The sword sharply whistled through the air even quicker than he thought. It appeared like his Skill was amplified due to his new stats.
Jace exhaled, following the swing in a combination of attacks. His AGL was his highest stat, at six Soul Points, and it felt intoxicating to him.
The muscles in his arms and legs had never felt so light. As the silver sword flashed all around his body, he couldn't imagine any monster that could stand his speed.
Was it his arrogance consuming his Soul? Or, for once, he didn't feel useless as a Climber?
Then footsteps crunched in the grass behind him, interrupting his short euphoric swordplay.
Jace turned, quickly wiping off the smug on his face.
Heather wore a simple light shirt and pants, unbothered by the cold. He drew his sigil sword and tossed off his belt, along with the sheath.
"Care if I join?" he asked.
"I thought you were with them."
"They can handle the task alone. But you're relentless, aren't you?"
"I don't want to fight you."
"I don't want to fight myself either."
Jace watched him pace around, kicking some of the excess snow off the grass.
'He's trying to level the ground.'
Heather turned back and flourished his sword, locking the gaze of a fierce warrior.
"It's a friendly duel, not a fight," he said. "It's my priority as the squad leader to keep all of my members in their best shape. I know your Soul has strengthened since the Whispering Woods, this is my way of confirming that."
"You seriously want to do this?"
"Why not? After all, monsters aren't the only threats from the Tower. I'm sure you understand."
Jace clenched his jaw. Then he readied his sword, standing back in a defensive stance.
'Fine, you bastard, come get a piece of me.'
Heather narrowed his eyes, marking the beginning of their duel. He dashed forward, leaving a spurt of snow behind him, and swung his sigil sword from the overhead.
Jace deflected his attack and followed his sword in a swift motion, aiming to slice through his abdomen.
'I'm not holding back, not a single ounce! You want to have a fight, I'll give you one to remember!'
Heather's eyes widened, surprised by the unknown burst of speed. He moved into a strong block, staggering a few steps back, and flourished his sigil sword again.
Jace pulled his silver sword back, preparing for a second attack.
'He knows. He knows my highest stat must be AGL.'
The air rang into a constant clangor of steel as bright sparks erupted in between their parries. They refused to yield, each of their boots heavily imprinting into the snow, and increased the intensity.
Heather was no stranger to sword fighting, Jace already knew that from the first impression when they met. He definitely had some type of noble bloodline. No Climber would be so equipped with Skills unless they were introduced to it early on.
He knew the Tower even before the Soul had chosen him. He was bred to become a Climber, a true advocate for the Third Generation.
Jace wildly thrusted his sword, forcing Heather to switch on the defensive side.
Heather stepped back, his eyes still glued to Jace's movements and erratic technique. It was like he was trying to tame a wild animal.
Jace knew he wasn't going to win. There was absolutely no chance he would beat a prodigy of a Climber in a duel. He was a poor orphan, raised with little care with stubborn ambitions.
But he would rather die than to use that excuse.
Sharp clangor echoed into the air, spacing each of the fighters apart. They paced around, catching their breaths through the cold air before engaging in another trade of intense blows.
Heather's eyes were still narrow. He was studying Jace, trying to figure out his Soul.
'He doesn't know about the Relic. Did Erin tell anybody besides me? That's fine, it can be my leverage to win this.'
Jace stopped, gripping his silver sword again, and stood back into a defensive stance. So far, he could confidently guarantee that his AGL was higher.
Heather dashed forward, swinging his sigil sword from the low, aiming to break through Jace's guard.
Jace diverted the blow away, forcing a new opening for a counter.
'He's weak and slow. Just what have you been investing in, Heather?'
He quickly coiled his arm around his body, tensing the muscles, and swung with the intention of shattering through Heather's sword.
[Skill Activate: Wide Slash]
Heather prepared to deflect his attack but it came through pitifully flimsy. His sword flung away from his hands as he stumbled onto the snowy grass.
Jace rested his shoulders, watching the sight of their fallen squad leader.
'Should I help him up?'
Heather didn't know what to say. His mind seemed to still process the attack even after it already happened. But his eyes, however, began to burn with new anger that none of them had seen before.
"You…" he slowly growled. "How did you do that?"
"Your line of attack was easy to read—"
"No, you—" he caught himself between his words. "There's something else. No Climber could have reached that Level of Soul in just six days in the Whispering Woods."
'Did I over–do it? No, that's not it. He's frustrated because he thought he could still beat me after I gained experience. This fight wasn't a test, it was a mockery."
Jace sighed, his breath clouding into the cold.
"I'm not going to tell you my Soul," he said. "Do you seriously think I'm that stupid?"
"Oh, really? Is that how it is?"
Jace turned around, indifferent to the question. His training was already done, matter of fact, it was more than done.
Heather scrambled for his sword and rose. Then his body began to exude steam, comparable to his frustration of defeat.
"Where are you going?!" he yelled. "Did you think this fight was over?!"
'This guy won't quit. Is this how the rest of the squad felt about me? Damn, what a pain.'
"Isn't it?" Jace yelled back. "I already won, right? It's over."
"No, no—I say when it's over."
"Listen, I won't tell anyone else if that's what you're concerned about—"
Jace turned around just as a gleam of a sigil sword was thrusting into his eyes.