One month later, Jas sat at the kitchen table and stared at the Tower forum on his phone.
[GLOBAL CLEAR UPDATE: FLOOR 14 CLEARED] [TOP GUILD TEAMS PREPARING FOR FLOOR 15] [WHERE IS TEAM ZERO?] [HAS THE NECROMANCER STOPPED CLIMBING?] [FINN HALE STILL INACTIVE AFTER FLOOR 10]
The headlines filled the screen while Jas scrolled through them.
The comnts below were worse.
ChosenOne99: Team Zero cleared Floor 10 on Hell difficulty. Nobody else could do that. Show so respect.
TowerTracker: They got lucky once. Notice how they haven’t entered the Tower since? They know they can’t do it again.
DublinPride: The Necromancer and Finn Hale are legends. They need ti to recover after losing a teammate. Give them space.
RankingsMatters: Ti doesn’t matter. Results matter. Other teams cleared Floors 11-14 while Team Zero sat at ho. That’s called being finished.
IrishChallenger4: Elliot Graves died on Floor 10. Have so respect for the dead instead of demanding they climb imdiately after a funeral.
GlobalWatcher: Respect doesn’t clear floors. Guild-backed teams are preparing for Floor 15 while Team Zero is inactive. The world moves on.
DublinLocal88: @RankingsMatters You’re talking about rankings right after soone ntioned a kid died? What’s wrong with you? Go outside and touch grass instead of rage-baiting about dead Challengers.
Jas closed the page before he read more.
He knew why he had stopped. Elliot had died on Floor 10. Aria had retired after the funeral. Finn had not entered the Tower again. Team Zero had cleared the floor, but they had not co out the sa.
The world outside only saw rankings and clear dates without seeing Elliot’s body on the floor or hearing what Floor 10 actually cost.
Nyra sat across from him at the table while eating breakfast slowly with a spoon that looked too big for her small hands.
His mother stood near the counter preparing tea while watching both of them.
Nyra stopped eating and looked at Jas.
"Daddy, is tower dangerous?"
Jas lowered his cup. "Yes."
"Then why go?"
He did not answer imdiately because she was too young to understand money, revenge, or what would happen if he stopped climbing now.
"Because I have to," he said.
Nyra frowned while processing that answer. "But if dangerous, you get hurt?"
"Sotis."
"Then don’t go."
Jas did not know how to explain that stopping was not an option when the world expected him to keep climbing and his uncles were still free after stealing everything his father built.
His mother set tea in front of him before speaking quietly. "Nyra, finish your breakfast."
Nyra looked at her grandmother before going back to eating.
Jas drank his tea while Nyra’s wings started to appear behind her shoulders as she focused on her food.
"Nyra," Jas said quietly. "Your wings."
She blinked, then rembered. The dark feathers folded back and vanished while she looked embarrassed.
His mother walked over and sat down at the table. "She’s been asking about the Tower more often."
"I know."
"What will you tell her when she’s old enough to understand?"
Jas did not have an answer for that.
Nyra finished eating before climbing down from her chair and walking over to Jas. She grabbed his sleeve with both hands.
"Daddy co back?"
"Always."
"Promise?"
Jas looked at her while thinking about Elliot’s parents at the funeral and how promises did not an anything when HP dropped to zero.
But Nyra was looking at him with wide eyes that expected an answer she could trust.
"I promise."
Nyra smiled before letting go of his sleeve and running off to play with her blocks in the other room.
His mother watched her leave before turning back to Jas. "You’re eting Finn today?"
"Later. I have sothing else to do first."
"Be careful."
Jas nodded.
Jas had already used the fifteen free stat points from Floor 10.
[FREE STAT POINTS DISTRIBUTED] [INTELLIGENCE: 60 → 66] [ENDURANCE: 36 → 41] [AGILITY: 40 → 42] [LUCK: 27 → 29] [UNSPENT STAT POINTS: 15 → 0]
Most went into Intelligence because his class needed mana, damage, and control. Without enough Intelligence, his necromantic skills would be weaker and his undead would be harder to maintain.
Endurance ca next because Floor 10 had nearly killed him when the snake brought him down to 1 HP. Being that fragile again was not an option.
The rest went into Agility and Luck. He needed to move better so he could dodge attacks instead of taking them on his shield every ti. Luck had already proven useful when the mythic egg dropped and when rare rewards changed his situation more than raw stats alone could.
He checked his current status:
[JAS GANNER] [CLASS: NECROMANCER] [LEVEL: 17] [EXP: 11,385/12,000] [HP: 820/820] [MANA: 1,320/1,320] [STRENGTH: 37] [AGILITY: 42] [INTELLIGENCE: 66] [ENDURANCE: 41] [LUCK: 29] [REANIMATED SLOTS: 2/5 OCCUPIED]
His HP had increased to 820 from stat allocation while his Mana reached 1,320. Both numbers were significantly higher than they had been during Floor 10, which ant he could survive more punishnt and cast more skills before running dry.
Level 17 was not weak, but it was not enough to coast on either when other teams were pushing Floor 15 while backed by full guild resources.
Jas closed the status screen before moving to the reward section.
Then he opened the reward inventory and checked the Disaster Core Fragnt.
[DISASTER CORE FRAGNT — S-RANK] [TYPE: SUMMON ENHANCENT ITEM] [EFFECT: TEMPORARILY UNLEASHES THE TRUE STRENGTH OF ONE SUMMONED OR REANIMATED BEING] [DURATION: 10 MINUTES] [USES REMAINING: 3/3] [WARNING: TARGET MAY ENTER AN UNSTABLE STATE DURING ACTIVATION]
Jas stared at the description while thinking about what "true strength" actually ant.
If he used it on the dire wolf, would it beco stronger than Level 9 temporarily? Would it reach the power it had when it was alive?
If he used it on the Abyssal Venom Python, would it return to full disaster beast status for ten minutes? Would it regain the 35,000 HP and overwhelming venom aura it had when Team Zero fought it on Floor 10?
That kind of power could turn an unwinnable fight into a clear, but only for ten minutes.
Three uses total.
Jas did not use it.
Three uses were not enough to waste on testing or casual experintation. If the fragnt could bring out the true strength of the Abyssal Venom Python, then it was not a training item or a toy to play with.
It was sothing to save for a fight he could not win normally.
Jas closed the inventory while understanding the fragnt would stay unused until he absolutely needed it.
Later that afternoon, Jas rented a private Challenger training room in Dublin.
He could not test the Abyssal Venom Python at ho because it was too large, too dangerous, and too hard to explain if Nyra or his mother saw it.
The room was reinforced with steel walls, expensive enough that most Challengers avoided it unless they needed serious privacy, and secure enough that no one asked questions as long as he paid the hourly rate.
Jas stood in the center of the empty space and confird his current slots:
[REANIMATED SLOTS: 2/5 OCCUPIED] [REANIMATED DIRE WOLF — LEVEL 9] [ABYSSAL VENOM PYTHON — LEVEL 20]
He summoned the dire wolf first.
It appeared beside him with bones glowing faintly from necromantic energy before lowering its head and waiting for commands.
"Move to the far wall."
The wolf obeyed.
"Circle the room."
It moved along the periter.
"Return."
The wolf ca back and stopped at his feet.
Jas confird it still responded properly before dismissing it.
After that, he summoned the Abyssal Venom Python.
The training room felt smaller the mont the python materialized.
Its body coiled across the floor while taking up nearly half the available space. Dark scales cracked like stone. Eyes glowed with cold undead light. The faint sll of venom lingered in the air even though the snake was dead.
[ABYSSAL VENOM PYTHON — REANIMATED DISASTER BEAST] [LEVEL: 20] [HP: 18,000/18,000] [STATUS: BOUND UNDEAD] [REANIMATED SLOT COST: 1]
Jas kept his distance at first while watching the snake’s movents.
"Move forward."
The python slithered across the floor while obeying without resistance.
"Stop."
It stopped imdiately.
"Coil."
Its body folded into a defensive coil while its head stayed raised and alert.
"Lower your head."
The snake lowered its head slowly until it touched the floor.
"Strike the wall."
The python’s head shot forward and hit the reinforced steel with enough force to dent the tal before pulling back.
Jas tested a few more commands while confirming the snake responded to everything he ordered.
It obeyed completely, but its size made it difficult to use casually. Too large for narrow hallways or indoor spaces. Too dangerous to summon in public without causing panic. Too noticeable unless the situation was serious enough that he did not care about subtlety.
It was a powerful weapon he could deploy when needed, not a simple pet he could bring everywhere.
Jas dismissed the python before leaving the training room.
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