Babel

While Linnaeus was cautiously venturing through the First Floor, a very different scene was playing out in one of the other ninety-nine testing grounds.Though not the strongest by any means, Saht had been blazing through the First Floor test after killing her opponent during the preliminary evaluation.Unlike Linnaeus, who was very cautious and tried to avoid direct engagements, Saht had never been the type to overthink things. All she knew was that Linnaeus had also entered the Tower so, in order to reunite with him, she needed to survive and kill any enemies that stood in her way.Just as Linnaeus had broken through the restrictions of his Blessing, Saht, who spent most of her waking moments in a sem-transformed state, had already reached Level 51 in her [Demonification]. Upon reaching the Level 50 threshold, she sprouted a second set of horns, this time forming a gentle curve around her brows, while a pair of small wings now poked through the slits in her blood-red bodysuit.Due to their small size, the wings did not allow for flight but, while she was running around at high speeds, the allowed her to swerve and change direction more rapidly. If she put enough strength into her legs, she could also leap very far, using her wings to extend the distance by allowing her to glide, albeit barely.With these changes, Saht's Strength, Constitution, and Agility were all greatly enhanced. Since she was exceptionally brutal compared to most people, irrespective of being born in the megacity or slums, she had already mowed through several opponents. One had even been unfortunate enough to be pierced by her horns when she charged into them from behind.Saht didn't believe she was an unstoppable force but, so long as she trusted her instincts and tried to avoid anyone that seemed dangerous, the only thing that mattered to her was progressing to the next Floor. Because of this, she was currently chasing down a duo consisting of a muscular man with bull-like horns and a rather petite girl whose body was covered in a thin layer of white fur. She also had two tiny curved horns at the sides of her head and, while the muscular man carried her, she kept shooting beams of white light to deter Saht's berserk charge.Even with her new wings, it was difficult to dodge magic in a frontal charge but, despite taking a few direct hits and suffering some severe burns, Saht's rage made her numb to the pain. When she didn't have Linnaeus to direct her, it was as if the entire world blurred on her periphery, giving her a strong sense of tunnel-vision that only allowed her to identify the enemy.Despite her cute appearance, the petite girl had a layer of moisture in her eyes as she shouted, "Why won't this bitch just die!? Ray Burst~! Ray Burst~! Ray Buuuuuurst~!"Her companion didn't bother to answer her question as, after trying to defend against Saht's first attack, he had been sent flying several meters by the comparably smaller figure. Since this had also fractured his left arm, while simultaneously draining nearly a tenth of his health in an instant, there was no way he would fight her before whittling down her health.For the time being, he just focused on his breathing as he ran in a zig-zag pattern to evade getting skewered by the rampaging demoness. The Ba'haat tribe's [Demonification] was relatively famous so he knew it was only a matter of time before her SP ran out, causing her to enter a weakened state. It was fortunate that the girl chasing them didn't seem to have trained her control over the form so, by changing directions constantly, she was unable to overtake him despite having superior speed.As the bull-headed man expected, the only thing Saht was thinking about were the points the two had as, if she managed to kill them, her passage to the Second Floor was confirmed. This allowed her to ignore the vague feeling that her SP was dangerously low as she continued her relentless pursuit of the fleeing duo.Eventually, the girl being carried ran out of SP as, on the low end, most offensive Magic spells cost around 200SP. Even if she had been born into a prestigious family, her reserves wouldn't be greater than 4000 points, barring very few exceptions. Since the girl was just an average citizen of Heart, she had only been able to cast seventeen spells, despite pacing herself and allowing her SP to replenish.With Saht constantly gaining on him, causing a cold sweat to cover much of his body, the horned-man took exception to the fact his partner had stopped attacking. If he wasn't already heaving for air, he would have shouted at her to keep attacking. Since it was possible to overdraft your SP by eating into your Health, he knew she could keep going for a little while longer.Rather than waste his breath, the man decided he no longer needed the extra baggage, despite the girl only weighing around 37kg. He very unceremoniously tossed her body toward their attacker, an action that caused the girl's mind to blank completely as she traveled in a parabola, directly toward the girl she had been peppering with magic for the last few minutes.Though Saht was going to rip the girl apart, the actions of the man had caused her focus to lock onto him. When he turned to look back, obviously checking to see if his plan had been a success, she was already right on top of him, causing the man to roll to the side as she crashed passed him and shattered a tree into splinters.Ignoring the aches in her own body, Saht flicked her tail like a whip, allowing her to shift her center of gravity quickly as she leaped toward the fleeing man once again. He was preparing to dodge a second time but, just as he waited for the proper timing, a beam of white light smashed into his side, causing him to grimace in pain before realizing what had happened.In the distance, with her eyes, ears, and nose all leaking blood, the girl he had tried to sacrifice was glaring at him with a murderous and vindictive smile. She had overdrafted her SP by quite a bit to make sure he couldn't flee. This allowed Saht to easily close the distance and, though he tried to resist, she began to thrash his body around like a ragdoll, breaking several trees and stones in the process.Having already accepted her death, the girl took great pleasure in watching the man's brutal end. He had been nice to her when they first met so, despite not truly trusting him, she had agreed to Party with him due to their complimentary Blessings. When he picked her up and fled, she began to feel a few tender emotions toward him but, during the moment of weightlessness when he had tossed her through the air, the only thoughts in her mind were killing the traitorous bastard.Despite a considerable amount of fear, the girl didn't look away when the demoness made her way over. The latter was covered in fresh blood and, with wild pink hair, blood-red eyes, red skin, and four ivory horns, it was like looking into the face of a devil who had come to reap her soul.Against any expectations she might have had, the girl suddenly found herself pushed onto her back before, moments later, a tingling anxiety welled up from her stomach as she felt a pressure against her groin. She was absolutely certain her attacker was a woman so she had no idea what was going on as she weakly cried out, "Please...just kill me..."Rather than the reprieve of death, the girl heard the sound of someone inhaling deeply before the pressure suddenly subsided. Then, causing her mind to blank yet again, the demoness stood over her and asked in a raspy and ice-cold tone, "Have you killed...?"Though it took her a few moments to process what was being asked of her, the girl began to shake her head rapidly before stammering, "I-I-I've n-n-nev-" She wasn't able to finish her sentence as the pink-haired demon suddenly picked her up in a bridal carry before running deeper into the woods after saying, "You are innocent...I will protect you..." in a decisive tone.After this overwhelming series of events, the petite woman didn't have any words left and, as she had been in the Critical Health state after overdrafting her SP, she gave up trying to stay awake. The last thought to go through her mind before darkness claimed her was, "I'm going to get eaten..." as the trickle of blood from her nose increased slightly.---There was nothing more important to Saht than being able to reunite with Linnaeus but, no matter how brutal she was during a battle, she would not kill those who didn't fight back. She did not want to become the type of person she and Linnaeus often hunted so, after seeing the man betray his ally, most of her hatred had been directed toward him.After venting most of her frustrations on the man, even after his death, Saht had calmed down quite a bit as her SP had nearly flatlined. As her [Demonification] slowly began to wear off, she neared the girl who had previously peppered her with Magic spells. She could see the resolve to accept death in the girl's eyes, something she had seen often in young women in the slums.Once again feeling like she was comparable to the men and women she hated the most, Saht made the split-second decision to confirm something. Before the girl could react, she pushed her down and, knowing there was a distinctive smell that lingered inside a woman after she lost her virginity, Saht confirmed that the girl was untouched. After that, she asked the girl if she had ever killed and, though there was hesitation in her eyes, it didn't feel like she was lying when she began to say she had never killed anyone.Without any crimes to place on the girl other than defending herself from an attacker, Saht felt a bitter feeling in her heart. After that, she decided to repent by protecting the girl until she had the requisite Aether to move on to the next level. At the very least, she would help her until her own Aether value naturally reached a thousand points on the second day. She already had 917 points so it wouldn't be difficult for her to help another person for a short while.With her mind made up, Saht dug a burrow with her bare hands before spreading the dirt all over the surroundings to hide her tracks. She then tucked the fur-covered girl into the hole before using a decaying tree to cover the hole. After that, she quickly hunted down a massive quadrupedal creature with spear-like horns that curved backward. It hadn't taken much effort for her to snap its neck and, though she wasn't adept at cooking, due to rarely having anything to cook, even burnt meat was better than nothing when it came to treating the Critical Health status.Though it wasn't the gentlest way to wake someone up, Saht used her nail to scratch the underside of the girl's horns, knowing that her own were sensitive in the same area. This could be very pleasant if gently caressed but, if someone did it roughly, it was a very startling and painful sensation.As could be expected, the fur-covered girl awoke with a start, bonking her head on the roof and causing dirt to rain down over her. Since she was surrounded primarily by darkness, she began to panic but, before she could cry out, Saht shoved the slightly overcooked meat in front of her face, saying in the same cold tone as before, "Eat."After hearing the familiar voice, the girl remembered what had happened so she quickly viewed her own Status, finding that her health was already lower than 30%. Though the meat smelled burnt, she wasted no time in gulping it down. If given the choice between life and death, most people would obviously choose the former. Now that the adrenaline from battle had worn off, her resolution to face death had gone with it, replaced by a very strong will to survive.

After nearly seven days on the First Floor, Linnaeus had acquired a total of 829 Aether, most of which had been obtained from hunting the various oversized animals littering the seemingly endless forest.By constantly avoiding areas where people would naturally congregate, he had been able to avoid any direct encounters with other Fledglings. Instead, he focused on increasing his proficiency with his Skills, Abilities, and Magic as, even without people to use them against, the animals residing on the First Floor had become a veritable treasure trove of experience.Though he had gotten quite a bit of experience when he first started killing his pursuers in the slums, this number had decreased to between 5~20 experience after his Level had increased. Since it took an increasing amount of experience to raise his Level, these diminishing returns had been weighing heavily on his mind after reaching Level 21.Now, Linnaeus found that even relatively weak animals, such as a peculiar toothed duck and a three-meter long bottom-feeding fish, could grant him a considerable amount of experience. Some of the larger predatory animals, such as the red-furred leopard he had killed, granted a phenomenal 201 experience in a single go.It wasn't exactly easy to find animals within the forest but, by leaving corpses as bait, he had been able to draw the attention of a few sensitive predators to rapidly increase his experience gains while also training his Skills, Abilities, and Magic. He was actually surprised with how easy it was to hunt and trap animals using a combination of his [Barrier], [Stealth], [Presence Concealment], and the environment itself.After encountering traps previously, Linnaeus had decided to try and earn the [Trap Set] and [Trap Disarm] Skills on his own. With his attributes, he knew it would be very difficult to fight enemies directly so, in order to ensure he could pass through increasingly dangerous Floors, he wanted to increase his foundation as much as possible.Because of the gracious contribution of the various fauna inhabiting the forest, Linnaeus felt like his horizons had expanded exponentially. Not only was his power increasing rapidly but, for reasons he didn't quite understand, not being able to see the Tower dominating the horizon suddenly made it seem as if his future had been opened to limitless possibilities...----------------------------------------[Status]Name: Linnaeus FinnianTitle: Fledgling(+2 Spi, +1 Luk per Level)Race: Hume(50%), Manalyte(50%)Age: 15Gender: MaleLevel: 21~23(1008/3900)Health: 1120/1120Soul Power: 2971/2971Strength: 50Constitution: 50~52+4Agility: 70~79+15.8Dexterity: 51~56+2Intelligence: 82~91+50.5Wisdom: 82~90+50Spirit: 38~42+12.6Charisma: 25~28Luck: 10~13+1Free Attributes: 16Skills: [Kinu Comprehension:(-)], [Fleet-Footed:LV1~LV11], [Magus:LV1~LV14], [Resilient Mind:LV1~LV8], [Knife Mastery: LV21], [Throwing: LV14~LV15],[Sense Danger: LV29~LV30], [Presence Concealment: LV30~LV32], [Acrobatics: LV30~LV31], [Pain Tolerance: LV18~LV19], [Barrier Master:LV50~LV51], [Assassination: LV33~LV35], [Charm: LV7~LV8], [Trap Set: LV11](new), [Trap Disarm: LV6](new), [Dismantling: LV7](new)Abilities: [Steal: LV27~LV28], [Stealth: LV28~LV30], [Night Vision: LV17~LV19]Magic: [Enhance: LV26], [Barrier: LV50~LV51], [Barrier Aura: LV50]----------------------------------------Every time Linnaeus saw the increase in his experience and attributes, he couldn't help but smile as it wasn't an exaggeration to say he was more than twice as powerful as a week prior. Attributes didn't scale linearly so the difference between 40~50 Agility and 50~60 Agility was significant.Now that his attributes had increased so much, even his weakest [Barrier], using the minimum 50SP, could hold upwards of 400kg. In the past, he had only been able to support around 140kg so it was quite a sizeable increase.. Better yet, as his [Barriers] persisted for the duration of his Spirit, he could now erect them for nearly a full minute, a stark contrast to the pitiable seconds he could maintain them previously.The only downside was, after reaching Level 50, he was no longer able to arbitrarily gain experience by simply casting his Magic. He needed to proactively use them by stress-testing their resistance or actively using them in combat. It seemed that breaking through the Level 50 threshold made it a lot harder to grow unless you were willing to put in some serious effort.Despite this setback, Linnaeus was optimistic for the future as, with his SP regeneration reaching 149 per minute, it was possible for him to perform some pretty amazing feats. He had even been able to make platforms that allowed him to ascend high into the sky and, so long as he paced himself, it was possible to stay airborne indefinitely.In the future, Linnaeus was hoping he would be able to freely move his barriers around as, unless he made them dynamic from the start, they were fixed once he created them. Since the barriers had no weight to them, at least not enough to matter, there wasn't much use for a platform that simply fell to the ground the moment he created it.Using his Blessing to its limit, Linnaeus had ascended a steep cliff before making a small camp for himself on one of the larger ledges. The chances of him begin attack so far away from any other Fledglings and resources allowed him to relax, even if he never dropped his guard.In this manner, he had been able to last until the eve of the seventh day when a voice began to echo in his surroundings, saying, "You are the last Fledgling remaining on this Floor. Congratulations, Mr. Finnias, as you will be given a small bonus for your patience and cautionary nature. Though it is only a pittance compared to what the frontrunners earned, I hope to see how far someone like you is able to climb this Tower. Ufufufufu~."The moment the voice faded away, Linnaeus heard a ding as his Aether value increased to 1829. At the same time, transparent blue text appeared in his vision that said, 'You are the 577th Ranking member in your group. Due to your peculiar nature, you have been awarded the Title of Sheepish Fledgling'. (A/N: Sheepish Fledgling(+1 Wis, +1 Spi, +1 Cha)Linnaeus didn't mind the bonus 1000 Aether but, when he saw his new Title, his mind completely blanked as a feeling of loss welled up inside of him.Though some might do anything to get their hands on it, he didn't have much use for the Charisma attribute. Luck, however, was one of the most important attributes as it directly influenced the large majority of his active Abilities. Now that he no longer gained the free Luck per Level, he suddenly felt that his efforts over the last week, while fruitful, had cost him something important.Without being afforded the time to brood, Linnaeus suddenly felt his vision blacken as a nauseating sense of weightlessness seized him. Then, as if it had been an illusion, this feeling faded away as his feet were firmly planted on a hard stone floor.Unlike the previous Floor, which was a vast and open wilderness, the Second Floor reminded him of the slums. The air was very humid and, much like the alleyways he had called home for his entire life, there were tall stone walls that had pipes of different sizes passing between them. As for the ceiling, only pure darkness could be seen, even with his [Night Vision] activated.Just as he was thinking about what kind of test awaited him, a distinctly different voice from the one present on the First Floor announced, "Congratulations to everyone who had cleared the First Floor's challenge! There are now a total of 577 Fledglings remaining of the original 1,000 so I am pleasantly surprised. It isn't uncommon for only 300~400 people to make it this far so I have high hopes that this batch will complete my challenge with ease!"Since the fastest way to get Aether was to kill other Fledglings, Linnaeus wasn't surprised by the voice's words in the slightest. He was bothered by the fact he was the lowest ranking member of his entire group but that didn't really matter, so long as he survived. Unfortunately, the voice seemed to be able to read his mind, and not in a good way..."As I'm certain everyone has noticed, the Second Floor is quite a bit different from the First. I hope you all were able to enjoy the amenities provided during your wait as, from this moment onward, the only luxuries you have are the ones you collected in your Inventories! Unlike the previous Floor, you will find that the only enemies waiting for you here are other Fledglings! As for the challenge that awaits you, it is a game I like to call Hunt, Hide, and Seek. Every hour, for the duration of a single minute, a red thread will connect you and your target. In order to proceed to the next Floor, you have to either kill or team up with your target! Keep in mind that, while you are hunting others, there is also someone hunting you. Good luck, and may you one day soar amongst the Heavens~!"Though the rules of the game weren't particularly threatening, what the voice had failed to say was that the name and rank of their target and the person hunting them were both displayed in the information panel of their Status. There, Linnaeus could only stare blankly as he saw the name of his Target, Ersk Kivanh, Rank 133, and the name of his Hunter Merek Alexandros, Rank 1.Even living in the slums his entire life, Linnaeus was familiar with the names of the Eight Heavenly Families. This included the Geminis, Evendoom, Silverlake, Andromeda, Titania, Bellsprit, Goldbeard, and, last but not least, the Alexandros family. Since it was practically a death sentence to claim the surname of one of the Eight without being an actual member, Linnaeus knew that the person who was hunting him undoubtedly belonged to the Alexandros family.Without wasting any time, Linnaeus began to vault up the walls, using the pipes and footholds formed from his [Barrier] Magic to ascend as high and out of sight as possible. He didn't know how big the Floor was but, if he went high enough, Linnaeus was confident he could avoid being made easy prey for the prodigious Rank 1 Fledgling. As for fighting back, that would depend wholly on the type of Blessing his Hunter had as, unlike some of the other families, the Alexandros weren't famous for any particular Blessing.After ascending for nearly half an hour, to the point he couldn't even see the floor below any longer, Linnaeus finally reached what appeared to be the ceiling of the Second Floor. He wasn't really sure how far he had traveled but, if a person fell from this height, death was assured.Without any other materials on hand, Linnaeus began to chip away at the outer layer of the pipe, only to quickly discover the material was far harder than anything he had ever dealt with. He had actually been curious about whether or not it was possible to pass into other corridors through the pipes but this seemed to be beyond his capabilities.With few alternatives available to him, Linnaeus could only wait in his [Stealth] mode while waiting for the small timer in his information tab to finish counting down. He wasn't actually planning on hunting down his target as this meant exposing himself to the Rank 1 player while also potentially earning the ire of his target. After all, even if he could convince the person named Ersk to team up with him, the chances of them siding with him after learning he was being hunted by the Rank 1 were slim, at best.For the umpteenth time, Linneaus felt that the Tower was actively putting him into unfair situations while propping up other Fledglings, despite them not needed the help. He felt it was ridiculous that the Rank 1 Fledgling, who was already well ahead of his peers, was assigned with the lowest-ranked person in the batch. It was practically a death sentence as, by reaching the Second Floor ahead of everyone else, it was almost guaranteed that the person hunting him had no qualms about killing others...Thinking this far, Linnaeus couldn't help but release a tired sigh as he looked toward the ceiling above, missing the sky of the First Floor...

In the thousands of years people had been climbing the Tower, there had been a select few to reap the most benefits. From amongst trillions of potentiates, they were the ones who had either returned with the greatest wealth or, due to belonging to a specific race or possessing a certain Blessing, were able to benefit the most from settling outside of the Tower.Of these powerful and influential figures, there were eight families and three organizations that set themselves apart from the rest. These were known as the Eight Heavenly Families and, since the time of Heart's creation, they had controlled the territory closest to the Tower's base.Over time, the Eight Heavenly Families had grown to monstrous proportions due to their wealth and influence. Some families had even grown well beyond a million members though, when compared to the three-hundred billion people residing within the megacity, these numbers were just a drop in a very vast ocean.Despite this disparity, they still had a strong, almost unshakeable, foothold within Heart. This was due to the existence of the Party, Company, and Organization system, allowing them to groom the successive generations with greater efficiency. They also proactively engaged in alliances with each of the other Heavenly Families, exploiting a loophole within the Tower's seemingly random selection to guarantee their descendants had the highest chance at success when climbing.By using unique markings and making sure each generation familiarized themselves with their peers, it was possible to greatly increase the chance of finding allies amongst the other Heavenly Families during your climb. This would further strengthen the bonds between the families as, without proper allies, it was virtually impossible to proceed to the higher Floors.Those who managed to climb up often did so as a direct result of their cooperation with other members of the Eight Heavenly Families. Since each different family specialized in one of the core Classes that would be assigned to Fledglings upon reaching the 10th Floor, they were able to constantly strengthen the foundation of their families, guaranteeing none would overtake them.At least, this was how things were supposed to go...Though not impossible, it was very rare for any member of the Eight Heavenly Families to fall within the first ten Floors of the Tower as, compared to their peers, there was a vast difference in power and capabilities. They were groomed since birth to be the absolute strongest, possessing a compliment of Skills, Abilities, and Magic to ensure they had significantly higher attributes than the competition.When a member of the Eight Heavenly Families did die, it was generally the result of interference from the Three Major Powers, consisting of the Sacred Order, the Shadow Guild, and the Alchemist Association. Only these three organizations, possessing even more power than the Eight Heavenly Families, albeit significantly less concentrated, had the resources to groom successors that could rival the descendants of the Eight.Of course, there were outlier cases as, due to their upbringing, it was not uncommon for a member of the Eight to be rather arrogant and haughty. Though they often had the capabilities to back this kind of behavior, it was not impossible for their own hubris to cause their downfall. Because of this, the Elders of the Eight tried to remind their descendants not to overestimate themselves before they were able to establish a full Party, even if their advice was often ignored.During the nightmares accompanying her fever, the Saxon woman, whose true name was Estelle El Andromeda, couldn't help but be reminded of the several old men and women who had advised her not to give in to her explosive temperament. She had been born as the 17th daughter of the Lord of the South, the leader of the Andromeda family, a member of the Eight for over seven-thousand years. Though not the most powerful amongst her brothers and sisters, she had always been treated well by her family, even during the harsh training all primary descendants were required to undergo.Now, instead of the kindly, albeit wrinkled faces from her memory, their forms had become twisted and demonic. Instead of smiles, they had scowls of pure derision and contempt, replacing the pride, compassion, and love she had come to know. This caused her body to be covered in a cold sweat and, though she put on a strong front in almost every situation, whimpers began to escape her lips as she tried to refute the harsh words resonating within her mind.While watching her companion suffer through intense fever dreams, the Lori girl, named Shuri von Silverlake, couldn't help but show concern as she lightly caressed the sleeping Estelle's head. She was also a daughter of the Eight Heavenly Families, though only the 83rd in a very expansive family. The Lori tribe wasn't exactly known for their power, as they generally obtained utility and support-type Blessings, but they more than made up for this with their rather prodigious ability to reproduce.Despite being one amongst more than a hundred, Shuri had been considered a true prodigy among her generation, even though she did her best to avoid conflict entirely. Though most of her battles ended with her subduing her opponent, rather than harming them, she was often capable of coming out ahead against people much stronger than herself.If not for the fact that Estelle had told her to stay out of the fighting after realizing she was a 'soft-hearted crybaby', the likelihood of Linnaeus being able to gain even a pyrrhic victory would have been reduced to nill. Her ability to bind and capture targets, combined with Estelle's ability to use ranged explosions, wasn't exactly something most would be able to deal with.Linnaeus, of course, was completely unaware of this fact but, with his instincts that had been honed over a lifetime of living within the slums, he knew he wasn't the girl's match. This, combined with the fact he didn't want to become a ruthless killer, as he only ever desired the power to protect, made it impossible for him to deal the final blow.Though Linnaeus felt extremely conflicted about his decision at first, this had faded away after more than an hour of squatting in the tree. With his health and SP recovered, he was no longer burdened with the characteristic headache and mental cloudiness that accompanied low reserves.Now that he could think clearly, Linnaeus decided it was best not to stick around as, unless there had been some kind of complication, it wouldn't be too long before the Saxon woman recovered. He had the distinct impression she wasn't the most understanding individual so, rather than stick around to learn how she fought with full SP, he decided it was best to put as much distance between himself and the two girls as possible.With one last look in their direction, he slipped down the opposite side of the tree before vanishing into the forest, this time moving away from the river. If he needed to, he could always rough it out for the remaining nine days, even without water. Since his Aether value was now at 231, as he had actually been able to gain a few points from using [Steal], Linnaeus was confident he could clear the Floor without exposing himself to even more danger.The battle against the Saxon woman had taught him a lot about his status in the Tower and, though he wasn't the weakest, there was a vast gulf between himself and the strongest. Even the Vulcan he had fought during the first challenge wasn't much weaker than him, despite having a Blessing that related to forging equipment.From this, Linnaeus could deduce that his power might actually be below average so, unless he used his advantages cleverly, there was a good chance he would lose his life. With this in mind, he wanted to continue observing other Fledglings to determine the veracity of his assumption, all while training his Skills, Abilities, and Magic to higher Levels.Though he might not have the advantage in direct engagement, he doubted there were many born within the megacity who were adept in [Assassination] and [Presence Concealment]. So long as he had the element of surprise, he would be able to kill his enemies without having to worry about any kind of counter-attack.The only problem with this method of fighting was, despite having honed the Skills to reasonably high standards, Linnaeus wasn't a cold-hearted killer. He wouldn't go out of his way to sneak attack an enemy unless he had already judged them as an irredeemable despot who was undeserving of his mercy.If not for the interference of the Lori girl, he would have ended the Saxon woman without flinching in the slightest as, though she was quite beautiful, such sentiments would have gotten him killed a long time ago if he cared about such things. The only thing that held him back was the pleading of the rabbit-like girl and his convictions to never become the type of person that couldn't look the few people he cared about in the eye.Linnaeus knew that this flaw of his was actually a major weakness but, so long as he avoided being wrangled into the affairs of others, he would be able to survive. Though he also knew it would be necessary to team up with others when trying to ascend to higher Floors, he wanted to make sure he had a full understanding of his potential allies before entrusting his back to them.With this in mind, Linnaeus intended to observe the Fledglings on each successive Floor in order to determine if they were all moving together or being randomly assigned to certain regions.Since a number of people were already forming small teams, he assumed there was a good chance that they would be competing against each other for some time. He might even come across the same Vulcan woman from his first challenge, which would be a godsend if she could be convinced to forge him a dagger.Though creating makeshift weapons out of his [Barrier] could give him an edge, they were only useful for a very short period of time. Over the course of an extended engagement, his SP reserves would rapidly deplete, especially if the enemy was able to land a few direct hits on his [Barrier Aura].In order to overcome this weakness, Linnaeus decided it was best to make a few weapons from tree branches and stones. He also discovered some sticky resin on the side of a damaged tree, indicating a battle had recently occurred in the area. Using this resin, he was able to cover much of the exposed parts of his body with leaves, allowing him to blend in with his surroundings better. He lamented the fact that, while his bodysuit was dark-blue, allowing him to blend in with the shadows, his pale-blue hair stuck out like a sore thumb against the green backdrop of the forest.It took a while, but Linnaeus was able to create a makeshift hood and mantle using the hide that had been looted from the sleeping girls. Though he had been tempted to muck up his hair and face with mud, just the thought of it irritated him a bit as, even as a former slum dweller. He might be able to tolerate it for an extended period of time but, from experience, Linnaeus knew how unpleasant and itchy it would be to have mud flaking from his skin.By the time he had finished his preparations, Linnaeus had moved several tens of kilometers away from the two girls. He now looked like a living bush skulking through the forest as he dealt with a few oversized animals and avoided conflict with other Fledglings.Fortunately, as he had been moving away from water sources and any discernible landmarks, there had been very few signs of other people. As for the creatures he encountered, Linnaeus wasn't quite sure they could be considered monsters as, from what little he knew, they should be far more vicious and dangerous. Though it could be due to this being the First Floor, there weren't any particularly dangerous enemies and, so long as he used his [Stealth] and exercised proper caution, many could be dealt with in a single blow.In this manner, Linnaeus continued creating more distance between himself and others, only slowing when the sun had started to descend once again. He knew the twilight of Dusk and Dawn were the most ideal times to start a fire as, with the reddening of the sky, visibility would be severely reduced. This made it very difficult to discern flames and, so long as he avoided burning anything green, there shouldn't be much smoke either.Though he had felt the availability of edible plants and fruits was already a blessing unlike anything he had ever experienced, Linnaeus couldn't help but salivate at the thought of eating grilled snake and whatever mystery meat he had stolen from the girls. Despite his desire to dig in immediately, however, he made sure to properly cook it through, so as to avoid any parasites, and only ate after moving far from the fire he had established.The last thing he needed was for another person with [Stealth] capabilities to attack him while he was enjoying food so, until he was well away from the smell of cooked meat, Linnaeus tempered himself. Then, after climbing a tree, just as night had descended upon the land, Linnaeus enjoyed the flavor of cooked meat, eating his fill of the protein-rich and incredible juicy morsel for the first time in his entire life.

Chapter 19: Divergence : Parallels