Tower of Endless: Death Granted Entry

Ed leisurely rested his blade on his shoulder. He studied Moon who was panting heavily. He shook his head. "Want a moment to catch your breath?" he offered; his tone was very casual.

He tried to make Moon not feel tense about the spar, allowing him to gain confidence in the process.

"He’s entirely clueless about managing stamina or his body," Lucen commented sternly. "His movements are also too chaotic." Seemingly expecting more things from Moon.

"You’re not the one facing him, and considering your age, I doubt you would remember how you fought on the second floor, this kid is—"

"Erk." At the moment, Ed found himself facing a sudden situation, and only his reflexes would decide, since his body was weakened.

While Ed was resting the blade on his shoulder, Moon was secretly letting his Echo phase underground. Aiming for Ed’s head, the recoil that Moon failed to take advantage of since the beginning for some reason.

Moon wanted to defend against Ed’s blade to force his blade into recoiling, giving him an opening, but what happened was different.

Ed’s sharp Echo softened every time it came in contact with his Echo, and that softness refused to induce a recoil.

It was like punching a pillow, soft and squishy.

Which wasted all of Moon’s effort so far, but he was far from being cornered.

His Echo was now shooting at Ed’s face, emerging from the ground at the fastest Moon could send it.

"Erk." Faced with the situation, Moon sprinted at Ed. He was waiting for which he would choose.

First, he leans backwards, or takes a step, which gives the same conclusion.

Second, he’s overwhelmed with his instinct and will attack the Echo away before his blade is completely coated again with Echo, resulting in a recoil.

Since the beginning, Moon never expected his Echo to actually hit Ed.

Ed snapped his head back, allowing the lump of Echo to pass by his face.

Moon, on the other hand, was already inches away; his eyes glared behind the helmet as he slid down and whipped Liquid Mountain at Ed’s legs.

Caught in his calculated attack, Ed found himself with no choice but to—

Jump... against the demands of his large belly.

Whoosh~

Liquid Mountain passed a beat late, missing Ed’s legs.

But that wasn’t the end of his calculated attack.

Midair, Ed found himself cornered again.

"Gotcha," Moon whispered once.

His hand shot out with the knife he had on his waist, and from above, his Echo was inches away from Ed’s head.

As for Moon himself, he whipped Liquid Mountain upwards as he lunged at Ed before his feet touched the ground again.

Ed suddenly smirked, which caused Moon to grit his teeth and squeeze every muscle in his body to hit harder.

Ed’s right hand holding the blade slashed down—

Ting~

Sending the knife flying while still going down for Moon.

His left hand went for the second blade on his back; he unsheathed it halfway. Coated in soft Echo, it met the descending lump of Echo, producing a soft bounce away before—

Clang~

Ed’s descending blade finally met Moon’s ascending Liquid Mountain.

"Kid, that was a good one," Ed praised, before shaking his head. "You still took advantage of my bad shape," he sighed.

Right away, his voice went back to Lucen. "That kid is familiar with being at his last breath. You aren’t the one facing him, so you don’t understand the lethality and how hard it is to land a hit on him."

"I understand what you’re implying." Lucen went silent for a moment. "I intended to leave, but I guess I should wait and watch for a little longer."

"Just leave already; the kid’s scratching his neck every time your eyes fall on him," Ed retorted.

"I’d like to recall your words. As the owner of the facility, I can stay if I want." Lucen didn’t heed Ed’s demand.

"How strong are the other brats in this wave anyway?" Ed asked.

"A few are stronger than him by far!" Lucen answered without a second of thought.

"Is that so?" Ed didn’t believe it completely.

"I’ve matched all of them closely. In the power index, that kid might be the strongest, but there are many who broke that power index," Lucen explained.

"The Tower has changed. I thought they were giving away their stuff," Ed lamented.

"So many things have changed. You have no idea how much they prepare for ascension these days, unlike the olden days," Lucen stated flatly. "The Universal Armor is one of these things they’re using to bypass the Tower restrictions, and it’s just one of many things."

"I was also surprised when I saw it; it seemed to need a power index of the fifth floor to break," Ed said with a troubled voice. "I honestly wasn’t confident in the brat managing."

"I’m here and still staying because he managed," Lucen added. "Killing that guy will get him both hunted and desired; he’s a ragamuffin but a valuable one."

"I wanted him to stay independent, but—" Ed wanted to say something more.

Yet, Lucen cut him off, "Independence doesn’t mean making everyone an enemy; that girl is quick-witted too. She placed the odds in every possibility that they would work together in the next trial."

"Well, I guess knights’ realms aren’t the worst of them all," Ed commented. "I had a few friends from back in the day, useless asses, but we did spend some time together." His voice turned heavy.

"Anyway, if you want that kid to live, push him further," Lucen said, not slightly concerned about Ed’s nostalgia. "The other side has numbers and talents. That girl is unlucky with the current wave."

"Should I have pushed him to kill a few more, not just the Havoc brat?" Ed questioned casually.

"Their Echo is sealed; it wouldn’t matter." Lucen dismissed it.

"What about you?" Ed asked.

"What about me?" Lucen asked back.

"What’s your stance in the next round?" Ed asked. "You central brats, what are you doing with them?"

Lucen didn’t answer immediately. "The next round will be one of the most murderous in the history of the Tower. I had everyone postpone the trial to the next."

"Oh, since when did you care who lives or dies?" Ed said sarcastically.

"I always care, Edmond. I always do. There’s no need to send them to die without allowing them to reach their full potential." He paused for a moment. "That kid, I also wanted to take, so he would have more time to develop, but thanks to you."

"Lucen, you shouldn’t be like this. I’m not feeling bad for you or for the kid in the slightest; drop the act." Ed gave his piece, bringing the conversation to a halt.

He watched Moon, who stood there, unmoving since his attack failed. Ed himself was also standing unmoving.

His entire conversation with Lucen didn’t take long, but Moon was still in place.

"Brat, are you going to stay frozen like this?" he asked Moon in a very light tone.

Moon’s body started shivering lightly; he let go of Liquid Mountain and started rubbing his helmet.

Before—

He took it off and—

Clang~

Threw it hard on the ground.

"FUCK DAMMIT!"

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