Chapter 205: The Final Shell

Following my soldiers, my party members stepped forward and began to block Gaia, who had entered her final phase.

“My children, I will, I will…!”

In truth, not a single trace of Gaia’s original appearance remained. 

She was now a monstrous creature formed from the fused bodies of all the Titans, Gigas, and Typhon.

That was the current Gaia.

The dignity and beauty she once possessed as the Goddess of the Earth were nowhere to be seen. 

She was simply swinging ‘her children’ violently in an attempt to destroy the world.

To stop her—

-Slash!

The Sword Saint swung Excalibur.

“I’ll try to stop her movement!”

-Whoosh!

Cheongryong blocked Gaia’s body with a storm of wind and rain.

“Rumble!”

Above that, the Lightning Caster called down bolts of lightning.

“Boom!!”

The Berserker charged wildly and attacked Gaia.

All of them were armed with the even stronger EX-grade equipment I had newly crafted. 

Even my soldiers, who moved solely by the power of their equipment, were this strong; what about my party members, who possessed the skills and knowledge of Hunters?

It went without saying.

They were already displaying combat power several times greater than that of my soldiers. 

One could tell just by looking at how Gaia, who had seemed unstoppable, faltered and could no longer advance.

In the meantime—

[Using Crafting Skill.]

I began production. 

I was crafting the final shot that could finish off that gargantuan Gaia.

The material was, of course—

[Chaos and Destruction Storm]

This was the item Combat 1 had brought back after defeating Typhon. 

It was likely at least an L-grade material. 

If the L-grade material I obtained from Surtr was the lowest of its rank, this was likely among the highest level of L-grade materials.

Of course, this alone was not enough. 

The ‘Chaos and Destruction Storm’ was a type of energy. 

To turn it into an item, I needed a vessel to contain this storm.

[Scale of Leviathan]

I used the top-grade materials I had acquired while climbing from the 95th Floor to this point. 

I used these scales to create the ‘vessel.’

[Ammit’s Heart]

Using the heart, I ensured that the ‘Chaos and Destruction Storm’ could flow even more violently inside the vessel. 

In addition to this, I used every top-grade material I had gathered on the way up to maximize the properties of the storm.

Though I needed to focus on crafting, I couldn’t help but look up from time to time.

“My, my children…!”

“You’re the one who killed them and draped them over yourself! What are you talking about?!”

“Kill her!”

“Rumble!!!”

“Your back is open!”

-Stab!

“It’s dangerous! Get out of the way! Saint Shield—”

“Crash—!”

The battle against Gaia continued.

Gaia was a foe on a different dimension from any monster we had faced before. 

No matter how many attacks were poured into her, it was difficult to pierce through the flesh of the giants she was wrapped in. 

On the rare occasion a desperate attack succeeded in piercing her—

“My children… are hurting!”

Gaia would instantly regenerate the area and launch her next attack. 

True to her title as the Goddess of the Earth, she twisted the terrain and called forth spears of rock. 

No, they were pillars—too large and sharp to be called spears—one after another. 

Even without that, simply swinging her body made of giant flesh was a threatening enough attack. 

That flesh didn’t just deal physical damage; it even pulled in the enemies it struck.

The more it happened, the more I told myself, ‘Let’s focus.’

I shook my head and concentrated harder on crafting. 

To deal with Gaia, I had to finish the work quickly.

After consuming all the materials to strengthen, refine, amplify, and encase Typhon’s storm, the result appeared.

[Crafting complete.]

[You have acquired ‘Chaos and Destruction’s Strike’.]

I finally managed to create the item I wanted. 

As I loaded it into the cannon and looked toward the battlefield—

“Boom!!”

“Ugh!”

“I’ll heal you!”

“This isn’t breaking through? Even with all our strength combined, it’s only this much.”

“We wouldn’t have even held out if not for Vulcanus’s soldiers.”

The battlefield was slowly being pushed back by Gaia. 

As time passed, her health didn’t drop; instead, perhaps thanks to Typhon’s power, she over-regenerated her body and grew even larger. 

It seemed completely impossible to face her if any more time passed.

In that situation—

“I will create an opening now! Once the opening is made, everyone concentrate your attacks on that spot!”

“Vulcanus!”

“Understood!”

“Everyone, prepare to attack!”

My voice echoed across the battlefield. 

Hearing it, not only the Rankers but even my soldiers began to pull up their strength.

In the meantime—

“Fire!”

Along with the soldier in charge of aiming, I triggered the cannon while targeting Gaia.

“Bang!”

The shell was fired. 

It was a Mythic-grade shell made by combining the materials of Typhon, the father of all monsters, with the top-grade materials obtained from the previous trials.

‘Chaos and Destruction’s Strike’ cut through the air, soaring forward smoothly. 

Gaia flinched as she felt the threat of the attack, but no matter how fast she was, it was impossible for her to perfectly avoid it with such a massive body.

Ultimately—

“Crash—!”

Chaos and Destruction’s Strike successfully collided with Gaia’s body.

“ROAAAARRRR—!!”

It began to unleash its true power.

While Typhon is famous as the father of all monsters, he also has a strong connection to typhoons—so much so that he is said to be the etymology of the word. 

Accordingly, a massive typhoon was compressed inside the shell I had made from Typhon’s materials.

That typhoon exploded in an instant, beginning to tear Gaia’s body apart. 

If it had been just a typhoon, Gaia might have mitigated the damage somehow, but that shell was made by mixing the power of all sorts of top-grade materials. 

The power of the typhoon was reinforced, and the power of various gods dwelt within it, attacking Gaia.

As a result—

“Aaaaaahhh—!”

From Gaia’s body, which let out a precarious scream, the flesh of the giants began to be stripped away bit by bit. 

No, beyond the flesh being stripped, Gaia’s innermost hidden body was being torn apart.

And then—

“Now!”

“Attack!”

My party members did not miss this opportunity.

The Sword Saint rushed in and performed a drawing technique, sending out a blade of Sword Qi. 

Cheongryong and the Lightning Caster performed a joint spell, calling down a thunderbolt. 

The Heavenly Bow poured out hundreds of arrows in an instant. 

The Shadow King’s dagger was buried in her, followed by the Berserker’s dagger.

Countless attacks slammed into Gaia’s body.

“Aaaaaahhh—!”

Gaia’s screams grew louder. 

As her power diminished, the flesh surrounding her body fell away. 

Missing no opportunity, my party and my soldiers pushed Gaia even harder.

I, too, fired all the shells I had prepared from the rear. 

When I ran out, I repeatedly rummaged through my space pocket, used whatever materials I found to hurriedly shape shells, and fired them.

Amidst that—

“My children… my earth…”

Gaia’s voice reached me. 

Perhaps she couldn’t pay attention because of the battle, or perhaps only I could hear it. 

No one else seemed to care, but amidst those noisy attacks, Gaia’s voice was crystal clear to me.

“Now, let us sleep…”

With those final words—

“She’s falling!”

Gaia’s massive frame began to collapse. 

Because her size was so enormous—

“THOOOOM!!”

The ground shook as if an earthquake had struck. 

Above the fallen Gaia, only the ragged breathing of my party members could be heard. 

It was because they had exhausted all their health, magical power, skills, and mental strength for this one moment.

They were now so spent that it was difficult to even move a single finger. 

If Gaia were to rise again and start some hidden final phase right now, the conquest of the Tower would end there.

But, fortunately—

[Level has increased.]

[You have overcome the Trial of the 100th Floor: ‘Gigantomachia’.]

[Evaluation Rank: SSS]

[You are awarded ‘Gaia’s Earth Stone’ as a reward.]

[The Trial of the 100th Floor has been conquered, weakening the Tower.]

“It’s over!”

“We conquered the 100th Floor!”

“Great work, everyone!”

“Haaaaah—.”

Before everyone’s eyes, the system message announcing the conquest of the 100th Floor appeared.

However, the anxiety couldn’t be completely shaken off. 

Although people implicitly thought the Tower would go up to the 100th Floor, no one knew if it really ended there. 

What if there was another floor? 

What if the Tower continued to the 110th Floor… or even the 200th or 500th?

We wouldn’t be able to conquer it. 

Even this floor was barely cleared because I had used all the materials I’d gathered as one-time consumables.

There was only one way to confirm.

“I’ll go up.”

The stairs had appeared at some point. 

All I had to do was climb them.

In fact, from the moment the stairs appeared, I felt incredibly anxious. 

The existence of stairs meant that this place wasn’t the summit. 

‘Will I be able to conquer the Tower properly if the Trial of the 101st Floor appears?’

…No, there was no choice. 

Even if it was impossible, I had to do it. 

To prevent destruction.

Thinking that, I took a step.

-Flash!

I stepped onto the next staircase.

[Exiting the Tower.]

“Huh?”

***

The moment Vulcanus headed for the next floor, the nine party members who were watching from behind with nervous eyes were all kicked out of the Tower.

They had been worried about what would happen if the 100th Floor wasn’t the top. 

But if they were ejected from the Tower the moment he headed for the next floor, didn’t that mean the Tower was fully conquered?

As if to prove that expectation—

[The Republic of Korea has completely climbed the Tower.]

[The Monster Wave is ending.]

[The Tower is disappearing.]

[Monsters are disappearing.]

Along with the messages announcing the successful climb—

“Look at that!”

“The, the Tower!”

“The Tower is disappearing!”

The Towers that stood tall across the world as symbols of destruction began to vanish. 

That was right. 

The world had escaped its doom.

“My god…”

“Sob, sob. Finally. Finally…”

“We lived. We lived! We finally held out and survived!”

The sounds of people’s joy and sorrow could be heard. 

People who collapsed on the ground wailing as their tension broke, people rejoicing in the fact that they had overcome it, people fuming with rage as they looked at the ruined world. 

People poured out the emotions they had been holding back and suppressing until now.

The same was true for the Rankers who were members of Vulcanus’s party. 

Each expressed their joy at the fact that they had protected this world.

Then, the Sword Saint suddenly snapped back to his senses.

“Where is Vulcanus?”

“Didn’t Vulcanus hide his identity from the beginning? I’m sure he returned to the world with us.”

“Can’t we find out if we contact the Vulcanus Guild?”

“I suppose so?”

Vulcanus was nowhere to be seen. 

The protagonist who had prevented the destruction of this world—the most important person—was missing. 

The memory of Vulcanus’s back as he climbed the next staircase after conquering the 100th Floor came to mind.

That image felt a little unsettling, but the Sword Saint shook her head, casting aside the bad thoughts.

“Then, shall we go to the Vulcanus Guild first?”

“That sounds good!”

“Right. That would be the best place to celebrate.”

“Even if he hides his identity, he’s someone who shows himself when necessary. We’ll surely see him if we go there.”

“Maybe he’ll show us his real face now.”

“Haha, Vulcanus’s real face. I’m looking forward to it.”

While waiting for Vulcanus, people slowly began to adjust to the peace that felt somewhat unfamiliar.

***

The moment I arrived on the next floor—

-Flash!

The dark vision expanded. 

It wasn’t a field like the ones I had seen while normally climbing the Tower.

It was a stark white space. 

It was a space so purely white that no forms were visible, to the point where I couldn’t even tell if what I was stepping on was the floor.

Since I didn’t know what kind of trial might begin, I tried to warn the others, but no one was around. 

The Sword Saint, Cheon Seung-heon, Cheongryong—not only my party members but even my soldiers were nowhere to be seen. 

It meant I was the only one who had come up here.

‘System messages aren’t appearing either.’

Normally, when you go up to the next floor, a message appears accordingly, but no message was visible. 

I didn’t even know what I was supposed to do.

With a sense of doubt, I first moved my feet, thinking something might appear if I went forward.

“Clack, clack.”

Still, nothing was visible. 

The only thing I could hear was the sound of my own footsteps.

As I walked through the endless white space, I became anxious. 

‘I’m not trapped here, am I? I’m not going to wander here forever and collapse, am I?’ 

Such worries arose.

Fortunately, before long, something revealed itself within the white space. 

Its identity was—

“Click.”

“Gears?”

A massive gear. 

No, they were gears.