Chapter 18:

Once the group had left, Gerhman walked at a steady pace to the place where the door leading to floor 6 was located. He stood in front of the door that sank into the roots of the giant trees to lead to the upper floors. His decision was made... He would not stop until he had defeated the floor master of this tower.

When he crossed the threshold of the sixth floor, the environment changed abruptly. The humid forest gave way to a maze of rocky galleries. The air there was drier, heavier, laden with a smell of sulfur and decomposition. The density of mana had increased, creating an invisible pressure on his shoulders. Gerhman did not slow down. He already perceived the vibrations of the ground.

A pack of hellhounds, with burned skin and eyes injected with a malevolent red glow, emerged from the darkness of a side tunnel. There were at least a dozen of them.

Gerhman wasted no time, his silhouette becoming a blur for the monsters. The first dog leaped, its jaws wide open. Gerhman extended his right arm and seized the creature by the throat in mid-air. A sharp crack was heard as the bones of the neck gave way under the pressure of his hand. Without stopping, he used the corpse like a club to strike two other attackers coming at his left flank.

The impact was so violent that the bodies of the monsters exploded, sending shards of bone and flesh in all directions. Gerhman pivoted on his feet, dodging a bite aimed at his leg. He delivered a direct palm strike to the dominant’s skull. The brain and black blood splattered onto the rocky ground, while the monster collapsed, deprived of all life.

[Ding]

[You have eliminated 10 hellhounds]

[You have gained 10 experience points]

---

On the next floor, the structure of the tower began to mutate, giving way to damp underground galleries saturated with mana. Gerhman did not slow down. On each floor, he massacred everything that stood in his way.

[Ding]

[You have defeated a Rank D Cave Spider]

[EXP gained: +3]

On the eighth floor, a pack of gnolls armed with flails blocked his path... Gerhman threw himself into the melee, breaking the limbs of his opponents before they could complete their movements. Blood splattered on the stone walls, and the system notifications accumulated in his field of vision.

[Ding]

[You have eliminated 10 Rank D Gnolls]

[EXP gained: +30]

The ninth floor required more time. The monsters there were stronger and attacked in organized packs. Gerhman felt physical fatigue return slightly, but he continued without any real pause. He used his mana with precision to strike the weak points. Each victory brought him a little more absorbed mana that strengthened his body.

Finally, he reached the entrance to the tenth floor. It was the first lower floor of this section of the tower. The atmosphere there was heavier and the darkness more present despite the natural light sources. Gerhman stopped for a moment in front of the large black iron door adorned with bas-reliefs depicting scenes of carnage.

[Notification: You have reached the lower floor 10]

[Area: High Orc Throne Room]

[Warning: Presence of a Rank D+ entity detected]

Upon entering the room, Gerhman discovered a circular stone arena with a diameter of one hundred meters. Magical torches burning with a blue flame were fixed to the massive pillars that supported a ceiling invisible in the darkness.

In the center, on a pile of skulls and armor debris, sat a massive creature. The High Orc stood nearly three meters tall. Its green skin was tanned, striped with combat scars, and it wore a rudimentary plate armor reinforced by mana circuits visible to the naked eye. Beside it rested a battle axe with a scarlet blade.

The monster opened its eyes, two orbs of burning yellow that fixed Gerhman with a predatory intelligence of a completely different order than that of the beasts encountered so far. It rose slowly, the cracking of its joints echoing in the silence of the arena. It seized its axe.

"A human... alone?" The High Orc’s voice was a guttural growl that echoed through the room.

Gerhman sketched a smile, an expression devoid of all humanity. "You have quite the loose tongue for a beast that is about to be killed."

The High Orc let out a roar that shook the pillars of the room. "I am Korgar, master of this floor! Warrior, introduce yourself!"

"My name will be of no use to you," replied Gerhman. "But since you are so eager to know it, I will grant you this honor." he said as he assumed a combat stance. "Gerhman..."

[Floor Quest activated]

[Objective: Defeat Guardian Korgar]

[Reward: Temporary soul stabilization, +15 characteristic points]