Chapter 146
A month later.
Kallias, who had been shutting himself in, finally dusted himself off and stood up.
"You may rest now."
[Yes.]
[Then please call upon us again.]
Seeing the Grand Generals, Niol and Garcia, turn into smoke and seep into the sword, Kallias climbed the stairs.
One month.
For a month, Kallias had stayed in the basement of the tower, greatly increasing his divine power, checking his rewards, and gathering his overall energy.
Thanks to that, he had consumed most of the food in his subspace, but it was a necessary measure.
The Wailing Corruption.
The rewards obtained from defeating Titeo were as follows:
'First, the Goblin Gold Coins.'
A full five had come in at once.
It seemed about time to go look for the place where the goblin was hiding.
With a total of seven, it was now time when they could be exchanged for suitable relics or elixirs.
'Since I know the location... it wouldn't be bad to drop by.'
And next was.
"I have no idea."
It was obvious that he didn't know every single item.
Because he definitely hadn't created all the settings and designs.
But this time, he was quite flustered.
"I thought the tower's rewards wouldn't be much different from what I had set."
Even if the gold coins were one thing, he had absolutely no idea what the
Kallias immediately took it out from his subspace.
The size was about that of a troll's head.
It was quite larger than he had thought.
He couldn't feel any particular energy, and while he wondered what was inside since it was an egg, no life was detected.
"Is it because it's a dead egg?"
Seeing how heavy it was, it seemed like something was inside, but it was probably dead.
Considering the name and the fact that almost nothing could be felt from it.
'This looks like a dragon egg.'
Eggs this large were rarely anything else.
Or perhaps a giant avian-type magical beast.
"It's meaningless."
Because it was already dead.
Why would they give something like this?
He pondered for a moment but couldn't figure it out.
"Can it be eaten?"
He struggled for a moment but soon put it back into his subspace.
Rather than making a hasty decision, it wouldn't be bad to put it on hold for a while and seek advice.
'If there's anyone who would know about this kind of thing.'
The giant called the Avatar of Wisdom.
Or the goblin who desires knowledge.
They would probably know.
"Let's go up for now. I'm tired of this place too."
Kallias's steps as he strode up the stairs were light.
Physical abilities that had increased by about twofold compared to before.
His body was as light as a feather.
Halt. Kallias's running steps, as if he were flying, came to a stop.
The stairs between the 2nd and 3rd floors. It was because of the skeleton sitting slumped there.
"A skeleton that isn't in my memory."
Originally, it was just part of the scenery.
But now, he too would have been a living, breathing human in his lifetime.
Since the bones remained, if there was a soul, he could be made into an Iron Knight.
"Shall I test it?"
He was the one who had defeated Vlad, anyway.
Since he was strong enough to defeat the General-rank Vlad, if he came back to life, he'd at least be an Elite Knight.
"There are no restrictions."
There was no harm in it.
Kallias took out the Iron Monarch from his subspace and pointed the sword at the skeleton.
"Rise."
Stab.
The skeleton's bones breaking. Soon, a single drop of black tear fell from the sword.
Swirling together with Kallias's divine power, an Iron Knight rose. It took a larger amount of divine power than expected. As he frowned, wondering if it was originally like this, a complete knight appeared and bowed his head.
[I shall serve you as my lord.]
"Hmm?"
He had only expected an Elite Knight at best.
Wasn't a General-rank created?
A floating window indicating 'General' pulled up the corners of Kallias's mouth.
"An unexpected windfall."
Come to think of it, even he himself had used a shield to target the weakness when facing Vlad, so others wouldn't have known that.
"What is your name?"
[I do not remember. If possible, I hope you will name me, my lord.]
He couldn't even remember his name.
Kallias pondered for a moment.
"Let's go with Agato."
The Tower of Agathod, so Agato.
[I will gratefully accept it.]
A face enveloped in a gray aura.
The helmet and armor worn over it.
A gray sword.
[Agato]
Rank: General
- A knight who fought and defeated the Skeleton Knight Vlad, who could be called the first gate, but fell for the temptation of the stairs that lulls one to sleep and fell into an eternal slumber.
However, he was reborn as an Iron Knight through the Iron Monarch.
'The General-ranks are now thirteen.'
If he grows through many battles, the sword will become more powerful.
Kallias, who had unsummoned Agato, suddenly took out the
"What would happen if I make this into an Iron Knight?"
A suddenly arising question.
What if this really was a dragon egg, and a dead dragon hatchling was inside?
'The Iron Monarch can turn the dead into Iron Knights and make them grow.'
Then wouldn't this egg be possible too?
Kallias's talent.
His instinctive intuition told him.
The reason this egg came out as a reward from Titeo would be solely for that!
"Rise."
Kallias did not hesitate.
Stabbing with the Iron Monarch, it sank deep, and though it was similar to when he created Agato, a much more intense aura swept the area.
Half of Kallias's divine power drained out completely, and the eggshell cracked with a loud snapping sound.
Boom!
The egg shattered completely, an explosion occurred, and a being wrapped in black aura and gray divine power appeared.
"Oh...."
The scales were gray.
However, it was a dragon densely covered in black iron armor over them.
A dragon with two wings, four legs, and two large horns.
Its size was only a little larger than a horse, but the atmosphere it exuded and the majesty of the iron armor covering its entire body were remarkable.
"It's an Ironclad Dragon. Totally."
Ring.
[Ironclad Dragon]
Rank: Elite Knight
- An immature dragon that had not yet been born.
The dragon that discarded the dead egg during the battle with the Wailing Corruption has not forgotten the grudge from that time.
Reborn through the Iron Monarch.
Its potential is exceptionally outstanding.
"Its name became Ironclad Dragon. Is it because of what I said?"
[Squeak]
It seemed it couldn't speak properly yet. Since it was no different from a newborn, it was only natural.
The Ironclad Dragon squeaked and tilted its head, then chewed up and ate all the eggshells it had broken out of.
"Its energy got stronger."
Was it because the eggshell was the only thing related to its previous life?
The aura it exuded increased in an instant.
[Kraaaa!]
Kwaaaaang!!
Black and gray. And dragon power erupted explosively, forming shockwaves.
Wondering if something had gone wrong, Kallias grabbed his sword with startled eyes, but an unbelievable window popped up before his eyes.
[The Ironclad Dragon has evolved.]
[Ironclad Dragon]
Rank: General
- An immature dragon that had not yet been born.
The dragon that discarded the dead egg during the battle with the Wailing Corruption has not forgotten the grudge from that time.
Reborn through the Iron Monarch.
Its potential is exceptionally outstanding.
"Crazy."
It evolved to General-rank just from eating the eggshell.
Its body size had more than doubled compared to before.
Its claws were sharpened even more like swords, its teeth and horns thickened, and the aura it exuded included dragon power.
"Nice."
Despite its rather fierce aura, when Kallias brought his hand close, it rubbed its face against it as if it had been waiting.
It was a sight that would make Vivi sad to see, but Vivi was not here.
"You still can't speak."
[Squeak?]
It seemed to be because it hadn't learned anything.
However, the hard aura that dragons innately wrap around their bodies as soon as they are born.
That alone was powerful, but with iron armor covering its entire body, he couldn't guess how high it would rise as it gradually grew.
It might grow beyond Grand General and break through the rank of Grand Commander.
"Still, if its name is just Ironclad Dragon, it feels too impersonal. Should I name it Beati?"
Beatitude.
It is Latin for happiness.
'Beo' means to make happy, and 'atitudo' means attitude or mindset.
It is also a word that means bringing happiness through attitude or mindset.
Since its name when it was an egg was
It wasn't properly revived, but it was meant to wish it happiness at least in its regained life.
[Squeak! Caw!]
[Ironclad Dragon - Beati]
Rank: General
- An immature dragon that had not yet been born.
The dragon that discarded the dead egg during the battle with the Wailing Corruption has not forgotten the grudge from that time.
Reborn through the Iron Monarch.
Its potential is exceptionally outstanding.
"Return."
Perhaps because of its high potential, it had the disadvantage of consuming more divine power than a normal General-rank, but it wasn't something that could really be called a disadvantage.
Kallias, who had unsummoned the Ironclad Dragon, rested his chin on his hand and pondered a little.
"I incurred the wrath of the dragons because of the Mad Dragon a long time ago anyway."
Since he had revived a dead dragon, if the dragons were to see this, their wrath would be no small matter. Besides, it originally seemed like Titeo had obtained it while slaying a dragon.
[You have incurred the hatred of the dragons.]
[Rumors of the Corpse Dragon will gradually spread among the dragons.]
"...I should get a Dragon-Slaying Sword."
* * *
Sahara Holy Land. Agathod.
A bizarre place where clerics laid out mats and sold their respective goods.
And in such a place, familiar faces were gathered.
"Buy, buy! It's a salt-cured lizard tail, haha!"
A member of the multi-racial party who had even served as the chieftain of the Dragonborn tribe.
It was Philomathur.
His tail was slightly cut off, and it seemed he was selling his own tail.
Perhaps because it was a part of his body, it contained some divine power, so it sold well to pilgrims who lacked food.
"If the Dragonborn saw this sight, they would truly be devastated. Hahahaha!"
"Shut up... I can't help it. I have nothing else to sell."
Aldu laughed heartily for a long time looking at that sight.
Aldu wasn't much different either.
Flaunting his Dwarven identity, he was earning holy stones by repairing or sharpening the weapons of the pilgrims.
They had each suffered defeats on the 24th and 30th floors.
The only one still struggling alone in the tower was Serena.
"Just how many floors has Kallis climbed that we haven't seen a trace of him? Old man."
"Well, hasn't he passed at least the 50th floor? Since we haven't seen his face even once since coming to the Holy Land."
"As expected..."
He was an incredible man, unlike themselves.
Fillo's admiration for him welled up once again, and a sense of wretchedness about his own situation rushed in like a tide.
"Here comes another customer."
At that moment, a pilgrim began to approach them.
A man wearing a pure white robe over his head.
"Hmm?"
But his appearance looked familiar from somewhere.
"What are you doing here?"
The pilgrim's hood came off.
Fluttering in the wind, black hair and ashen eyes looked down at them.
"Why are you here?"
He was Kallias, who had just come up from the basement.