Conquering the Tower Even Regressors Couldn’t

Chapter 69: Sixteenth Floor, The Battle of Fort Pogoren (2)

The Community of the Dead, on the sixteenth floor.

[Hey, guys. Are we sure about this fight? The opponent looks insanely strong.]

[?]

[You don’t trust Su-Hyeok?]

[It’s not that I don’t trust Su-Hyeok, but look at that centaur-looking guy’s muscles. His biceps are as big as Kwon Su-Hyeok’s head! How’s he supposed to win?]

[What kind of nonsense are you spouting all of a sudden? Are you trolling?]

[lol he is just talking without thinking.]

[Going by that logic, Seo Ho-Su should be ranked first on the Climber Leaderboard. 😂]

[Ahaha true, Seo Ho-Su’s arms are insane.]

[Don’t worry. Mr. Su-Hyeok will crack that bastard’s skull for sure.]

***

"..."

None of the other climbers from other species reacted to my words. They seemingly looked on indifferently, as if they couldn’t care less. However, their eyes shone with a glimmer of interest.

Are they silently implying, "Handle it amongst yourselves"?

Perhaps they were merely biding their time, assessing our skills before deciding whether or not to issue their own challenge.

A booming voice suddenly broke the silence, and I heard the Great General shout, "Commander! What are you talking about? We’re on the brink of war!"

His face was contorted angrily, but his tone made it clear that he was putting on an exaggerated performance. The reaction was too obviously forced, as though it had been planned beforehand.

From the general’s perspective, it made sense. He wouldn’t be thrilled about infighting, especially not before a major battle. Still, he couldn’t realistically expect complete strangers to meet for the first time and be in perfect harmony, either. The furious outburst was likely a calculated attempt to defuse the situation.

"Don’t worry. I’ll make sure this won’t interfere with the war."

"What the—! Commander!"

He seemed genuinely surprised now, his face the picture of disbelief. He must have assumed I would back down.

I shifted my gaze away from the general, directing it toward Turen. His lips were curled upward in a self-assured grin. His expression clearly displayed that he thought everything was playing right into his hands.

I couldn’t help but smirk. At best, this guy was only marginally stronger than Alexei. Being looked down upon by someone of his level only stoked the fire within me. I didn’t let the excitement get to me, however.

Instead, my mind became calmer and more focused.

Only the strong survived in the Tower of Ordeal. This was the perfect opportunity to solidify my command once and for all.

"Su-Hyeok oppa..."

"Su-Hyeok."

My party members cast concerned glances in my direction, an uncommon occurrence. It had been a while since I had seen those kinds of looks—probably not since we reached the seventh floor.

They were well aware of my strength, but the fact that we were dealing with alien species made them uneasy. I understood their concern. After all, my opponent was part of another planet’s top-ranked party.

Between the worried gazes, Ha Hee-Jeong’s calm expression stood out. Our eyes met and she offered a faint smile, telling me I could do as I pleased.

I raised my axe.

"Are you going to come to me, or shall I come to you?"

***

To be honest, Ha Hee-Jeong hadn’t anticipated things would escalate to this extent.

In her previous life, Chloe Vincent had assassinated this same Koshark party with a handcrafted poison before the battle began.

Back then, Ha Hee-Jeong and Kwon Su-Hyeok were among the top-ranked climbers on the sixteenth floor, but they hadn’t quite reached the very top. In other words, they hadn’t had the opportunity to cross paths with Turen’s party and experience their temperament.

No matter how aggressive Koshark climbers were, they were always rational enough to communicate.

Though consumed by a lust for power, the Kosharks she had encountered in her previous life had always abided by the rules set by the Tower.

Naturally, she had assumed they would behave similarly on the sixteenth floor, not expecting them to openly defy the Empire’s decision.

No wonder they’re the top-ranked Koshark party.

Their hostility was palpable, razor-sharp, and unrelenting.

Still, Ha Hee-Jeong made no move to stop Kwon Su-Hyeok. In fact, she saw this as a fortuitous development.

Once a Koshark acknowledges they are weaker, they tend to fall in line.

Dealing with their insubordination now, rather than in the midst of battle, was far better.

She and Kwon Su-Hyeok had even discussed how to handle a potential mutiny. Of course, the idea that Kwon Su-Hyeok might lose never crossed her mind.

And, just as she had predicted, Kwon Su-Hyeok utilized just his raw strength and agility to effortlessly snatch Turen’s spear before hurling him against the wall.

The entire altercation lasted less than two seconds.

***

"Do you want to go another round? If so, I’ll have no choice but to start using my weapons."

I made my voice as cold as possible, subtly threatening that I couldn’t guarantee his survival the next time around. Turen, who had been thrown against the wall, remained crumpled on the ground with his head hanging low.

What’s this? Is he about to start crying?

Contrary to my expectations, I heard quiet chuckling. Soon after, he spoke resignedly, "Heh. So, this is what it takes to defeat a dragon, huh?"

Turen abruptly sprang to his feet before offering a small bow. His weakness evaporated, replaced by a renewed sense of vigor.

"Damn it! Fine! I accept defeat. My judgment was flawed. The Koshark species will recognize you as our commander."

Though his tone was loud and boisterous, his words had a distinct competitive edge. Regardless, he unmistakably acknowledged my authority.

I was caught off guard by how quickly he conceded.

After all the taunting and contempt, is it really over just like that?

It seemed Kosharks truly worshipped raw strength above all else. Turen strode toward me and extended his hand.

"Commander, my name is Turen, and I am the top-ranked Koshark climber. May I ask for your name?"

"Kwon Su-Hyeok."

"A fine name."

After shaking my hand, Turen returned to his party. Despite his crushing defeat, none of his party members cast him a reproachful glance.

The Great General, however, stood off to the side with a complicated expression. He pursed his lips tightly, silently expressing his opinion.

Now, all that remained was confirming the other parties would respect my position. We needed to resolve this matter here and now.

I turned my attention to them, deliberately speaking dismissively, as though fighting them would be merely inconvenient. "You’ve seen a glimpse of my abilities by now. Does anyone here still refuse to accept me? If so, speak up now. Because if you disobey me later, I’m going to be seriously annoyed."

Accepting my declaration, the top-ranked Subren and Turina party leaders shook their heads.

"No, the Subren climbers recognize your command."

"We have no intention of fighting."

"Good, then that settles it. Great General, shall we proceed?"

"Ahem..."

The general coughed, clearing his throat, before leading the way forward again.

As we followed the general, Seo Ho-Su gave me a light pat on the shoulder.

"Hehe, I didn’t realize you had such a fiery side Su-Hyeok!"

Though he spoke playfully, his touch was warm and appreciative. He was likely trying to ease the post-duel tension.

I suppose it made sense. I had deliberately acted angry, so naturally, Seo Ho-Su would think I needed to cool off.

I lowered my voice, trying to ensure only my party members could hear me. "Don’t worry. I wasn’t actually pissed. I purposely acted that way to discourage insubordination during the battle, as that would be quite the nuisance."

Seo Ho-Su scratched his head and responded awkwardly, "What? Really? I thought you were genuinely mad. Looks like I’ve been tiptoeing around for nothing."

Meanwhile, Cole had been casting cautious glances toward the other species.

"You handled it wisely. That confrontation solidified your position as commander. Judging from their reactions, I don’t foresee any major issues during the upcoming battle."

"Exactly. We all share the same goal anyway, and it’s not like we’re going to issue any unreasonable orders. We will likely only have major problems when our defenses are already on the verge of collapse."

"By the way, the way you fought was really impressive. I didn’t doubt you’d win, but finishing the fight in under three seconds? Now that caught me off guard."

"That’s right! How did you catch that spear? And it was amazing how you threw the centaur like you did!"

Their continued praise melted away the irritation Turen’s provocation had caused, although I did try to remain humble, brushing it off as if it wasn’t anything difficult. That didn’t stop a smile from creeping over my face, however, and I noticed Ha Hee-Jeong smiling at me from behind.

***

[Defend the fortress until the invaders are defeated. If the fortress falls, survive for six hours. There is no time limit.]

We made our way toward the center of the fortress walls, and I could feel the climbers from other species staring at me. They gazed curiously at me, eyes filled with intrigue.

Many of them were seeing a member of another species for the first time, just as we were, so the curiosity didn’t surprise me much.

One of the Kosharks approached Turen and asked, "Hey, Turen! How did it go?"

Turen responded, nodding in my direction. "Kwon Su-Hyeok from Earth is the commander."

The other Kosharks reacted strongly, their disbelief almost palpable.

"What? Him? He’s the commander?"

"No way! He looks like a mage!"

"Turen! Are you just going to stand by and do nothing?"

As grumbles of dissatisfaction erupted, Turen’s voice boomed over the crowd. "Silence! There was a duel and I accepted the result!"

A moment of stunned silence followed before murmurs of confusion spread through the group.

"He beat Turen?"

"Him?"

Turen had been a trivial opponent yet they were already overreacting. I could only imagine what their expressions would be like if I defeated a dragon. I attempted to maintain an air of composure as I walked, but a soft sigh still escaped my lips despite my efforts.

After walking part of the way through the four-kilometers-long fortress, we finally reached the center. It was there that I saw Kartrey Monaca once again.

She was conversing seriously with her subordinates, although when she noticed us she hurried over. Saluting the general, she quickly turned to me and extended her hand.

"Kwon Su-Hyeok! It’s been a while! I’ve heard the news that you’ve taken on the role of commander for the reinforcements."

"Hello Kartrey, it has been some time. Yes, I somehow ended up in that position. I look forward to working with you."

"No, the pleasure is all mine."

"Haha, weren’t you in the middle of a meeting?" I asked as we shook hands, but she waved it off casually.

"Nothing important. We were just finishing up the details. Now, let me explain how the troops will be managed. You’ll be using this..."

The walls of Fort Pogoren spanned over four kilometers, so no matter how loud a commander shouted, it would be impossible to communicate with every soldier. Even if a commander were to magically enhance their voice, it would still be unlikely for the sound to reach the furthest end of the fortress during a chaotic battle.

To solve that issue each commander was given a specialized microphone. Of course, it wasn’t like a microphone from Earth—electricity and machines didn’t exist here.

Each one was magically powered and had a peculiar name. The Soborns called it a "Command Loudspeaker," but for simplicity’s sake, I decided to just call it a microphone.

Anyway, Kartrey Monaca kindly explained how to use it.

"You just place it near your lips and channel a small amount of mana. Once activated, your voice will be audible to anyone atop the fortress walls, from wherever you are."

"Truth be told, I’ll be handling most of the coordination, so you won’t need to organize the reinforcements much. This is just a contingency if something were to occur to me."

"I understand. It’s just in case things go south."

Considering that the fortress belonged to the empire and the Imperial army was stationed alongside the climbers, the Imperial forces were naturally positioned at the top of the chain of command. That was if Kartrey Monaca survived the battle, however.

Ha Hee-Jeong had stressed the importance of my role—the commander of the reinforcements—for a reason. In most cases, the position was symbolic. However, during the battle, there would be an assassination attempt on the fortress commander.

Once the assassination occurred, the general, the emperor, and other high-ranking officials wouldn’t reappear. That’s when the commander of the reinforcements would have to step in to lead the defense.

Of course, preventing the assassination would be ideal, but Ha Hee-Jeong didn’t know exactly how it would unfold.

"Tooooouuuummmm—"

What’s that?

A deep, resonant horn echoed through the fortress. The low, drawn-out sound vibrated across the walls.

Kartrey Monaca turned to look sharply toward the horizon. Far off in the distance and starkly contrasted by the backdrop of a crimson sunset, an enormous black army marched toward us. Their numbers were staggering—impossible to count.

As the seconds ticked by, more and more black specks filled the horizon. No, not specks. It appeared more like a dark mass that consumed the landscape. The ground along the edge of the horizon began to darken, with the sky following suit not long after.

In the sky above the setting sun, ominous black shapes continuously appeared one by one until they blotted out the sky.

Dragonspawn.

A single red dragon led an overwhelming pack of crimson wyverns, likely the reason behind the other species’ failure on the fourteenth floor.

Atleast there is one bit of good news.

In Ha Hee-Jeong’s previous life, both a red and black dragon had appeared. Thanks to my decisions throughout the previous floors, only one dragon remained.

While staring at the red dragon, I recalled a decision from the eleventh floor.

My options were a black door and a red door. If I chose the red door, would the red dragon have appeared on our fourteenth floor? Probably—

"Craaaaargh!"

The roar tore through the plains like a storm, crashing against the fortress walls and interrupting my thoughts. Several soldiers instinctively clamped their hands over their ears, ducking for cover.

Then, a steady drum beat started.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

The deep, resonant strokes matched the march of the approaching lizardmen, growing louder and more intense. That sound marked the beginning of the Fort Pogoren defense operation.