Karl and Celeste stood before their well-earned reward, a black chest with intricate white metal designs, radiating an unmistakable aura of importance.

The two had just reached level 20 and chosen their [Specialized Classes] after clearing the second floor of the [Tower of Trials] in [Nightmare] difficulty.

Now, they were moments away from discovering what awaited them inside.

They exchanged a glance, both stepping forward cautiously.

The boss was already dead, meaning it was unlikely to be a trap, but they weren't the type to throw caution to the wind.

As they approached, Karl dismissed all his summons except for the [Frenzied Rabbit], which instantly hopped back onto Celeste's hair and nestled into place.

"Here goes," Karl muttered, gripping the chest's lid.

He lifted it open, and a blinding light burst forth, covering the entire area.

For a moment, neither of them could see anything.

Then, with a soft hum, several items materialized and floated above the chest before slowly descending.

[Acquired Items]

[1x Undead Blood Vial][1x Archbishop's Staff][1x Mid-Tier Proficiency Upgrade Scroll][1x Advanced Skill Scroll][1x Nightmare-Level Corrupted Archbishop Core]

Karl let out a low whistle, "Five items. Not bad."

Celeste nodded in agreement, though a slight frown crossed her face, "That means we have to split them."

There wasn't an issue with sharing, but deciding who got what was important.

The best approach was to consider their skills and strengths before making a decision.

Karl reached for the staff first, inspecting its properties before tossing it toward Celeste with a grin, "This one's yours."

[Archbishop's Staff: Rare-level staff. +15 Mana, +5 Magic Damage. The staff of a corrupted being, can be equipped at level 20.]

Celeste caught it effortlessly, running her fingers over the smooth, dark wood.

It was stronger than the one she currently had, so without hesitation, she equipped it.

The slight warmth that spread through her fingers upon holding it confirmed that it was a good fit for her.

"Not bad," she murmured.

Karl moved on, picking up the next item.

[Mid-Tier Proficiency Upgrade Scroll: Increases the proficiency of any skill below C-Tier by 50%]

This one was incredible.

Both of them had skills below C-Tier, making it a valuable upgrade for either of them.

But Karl hesitated, glancing at Celeste.

She had more skills overall, meaning it was harder for her to level them up, it seemed fairer for her to take it.

"You can have it," Celeste said before he could decide.

Karl looked at her, slightly surprised, "You sure?"

She crossed her arms, "You rely on your summons, but you also fight yourself. No offense, but right now, you're behind in terms of individual combat. If you want to be useful beyond just summoning things, you need this."

Karl considered her words, she wasn't wrong.

He had two main combat skills, [Spirit Flames] and [Spectral Blade], but neither was at C-Tier yet.

The stronger he was, the less he'd have to rely on others.

[Skills: Spirit Flames (D), Spirit Summoning (EX), Spectral Blade (D), Spirit Storage]

"Alright, I won't argue," he said, grabbing the scroll and activating it.

[Which skill do you want to increase?]

Karl opened his skill menu.

[Skills]

[Spirit Flames (D) – 64% Proficiency][Spectral Blade (D) – 80% Proficiency]

It was an easy choice.

"Spirit Flames, duh."

Spirit Blade was on the verge of upgrading as well, so he gained much more proficiency from selecting the first option.

The scroll's energy seeped into him, wrapping around his body in a faint glow.

[Your proficiency with "Spirit Flames" has reached 100%.][It has now evolved to C-Rank.]

[New Perk Acquired: Wandering Flames]

[You can summon up to three "Spirit Flames," allowing them to hover around you before sending them at will.]

Karl's eyes widened slightly.

"Oh wow."

Previously, [Spirit Flames], though it wasn't stated, had a cooldown of five seconds per use, making it difficult to use consistently in battle.

Now, he could summon multiple at once and store them for later use.

This was a game-changer.

Celeste smirked at his reaction, "Guess that was the right call."

Karl nodded, clenching his fist as he tested the lingering energy in his palm, "Definitely."

Next, he picked up the [Nightmare-Level Corrupted Archbishop Core].

Unlike the other items, this one wasn't particularly useful to either of them in battle.

It was just a material that could be sold.

He tossed it into his inventory, "I'll take this one. Not like we can sell it for points anyway."

Celeste didn't argue.

She had more than enough money, and items from lower-level floors weren't exactly worth much.

That left only two items, the [Undead Blood Vial] and the [Advanced Skill Scroll].

Both of them knew the skill scroll was the most valuable item here.

Learning a completely new skill was always a major power boost.

Celeste sighed, "Give me the blood vial. I'll use it to increase my mana again, and you can take the skill."

Karl hesitated.

"You sure? I mean—"

She cut him off with a chuckle, "You only have two combat skills. I have five. It'd be selfish of me to take it."

Karl felt like Celeste was either extremely generous, wanting Karl to grow strong alongside her so that they could keep climbing together.

Or she felt bad for him not having that many skills.

The second option seemed unlikely as Celeste saw Karl's summons.

And anyway, before he could argue further, she grabbed the [Undead Blood Vial] and downed it in one swift motion.

[Choose a stat to increase by 5.]

"Mana," she said immediately.

A familiar warmth spread through her body as her mana pool expanded.

"See?" she shrugged, "Now you have no choice but to take the scroll."

Karl chuckled, "Fine, you win."

Without further hesitation, he tore open the scroll.

An [Advanced Skill Scroll] was obviously better than the one they received at the end of the [Novice Trial], meaning that Karl had high hopes for this new skill.

Its energy rushed into him, merging with his being.

[Spirit Gun (C-Rank)]

[Proficiency – 0%]

[Effect: Summon a gun into your hands, each bullet you fire will cost one spirit.]

Karl blinked, "Oh."

It functioned similarly to [Spectral Blade], except instead of forming a sword from spirits, he formed a gun.

The main difference was that the gun itself was free, but every bullet cost a spirit.

That meant keeping his [Spirit Storage] full at all times just became even more important.

Celeste peeked over his shoulder at the skill description, "Huh. That's actually pretty cool."

"I'll have to test it out," Karl muttered, mentally making plans to try it in combat.

And of course, Karl made sure to approach the [Corrupted Archbishop's] body and take the [Spirit Orb] from it.

With all their rewards sorted, another panel popped up in front of them.

[Do you want to climb to the third floor?]

[Yes] [No]

Celeste glanced at Karl.

"Well?"

He grinned.

"I think we're doing good."

She smirked, gripping her new staff.

"Then let's do this."

They both selected [Yes], and in an instant, their bodies dissolved into light, transported to the next floor of the [Tower of Trials].

Fwish!

After a few seconds, they materialized in an entirely new environment.

Towering trees loomed around them, their twisted branches forming a tangled canopy overhead.

The air buzzed faintly, and the ground beneath them was damp, covered in thick, dark soil.

The scent of vegetation and something faintly rotten filled their noses.

A single notification popped up.

[Third Floor: The Insect Forest]

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.