Little Ripples III — Ambrosya

I walked through the different corridors and hallways of the seventh Roaming Tower with nay a single obstacle. I had yet to take any treasure from this place, allowing me safe passage.

It took quite a bit of effort for me to ignore all those razor-sharp swords, sparkling gems, and gleaming pieces of jewellery. My strength would surely spike if I took them, but then, my foes would be way beyond my rank.

I needed to be at least C rank to even start taking things from this tower.

Thus, I continued to simply walk past humanoid statues that would normally come alive, waltz through inactive traps, and sneak around sleeping high-ranking beasts.

Every now and then, I would activate [ Golden Eyes of the Mirror World ] and look into what my living reflection was doing.

Sometimes, I would see him have near-death experiences, surviving only because Galad had access to high-ranking rejuvenation spells. Sometimes, he would be cowering in a corner of the battlefield, doing his best to activate [ Camouflage ] by staying as motionless as possible. And sometimes, he would be fleeing frantically from plentiful traps, relying heavily on his meagre [ Foresight ].

All of these sights made me shudder. That might've been me if not for my benefactor, the mirror mermaid. I would've had to guide those fairies through puzzle room after puzzle room on this path filled with danger that Galad had to prefer.

The good news was the group had collected quite a few items. If I sacrificed all of those items to Lappei, then she would surely be overjoyed. The issue with the church of Hevendrone was still on the table, after all.

This was also probably a part of their prophecy. If I emerged from the tower through this unique item technique, then they would surely sense my presence.

Thinking until here, I sighed.

I watched as Galad made another choice that went against my plans, thus forcing me to stand up to walk to another room. I passed through a narrow hallway and opened a small door to what seemed to be one massive rustic cafeteria.

Tables and benches crafted with wood and lined with a black coloured iron were organised in rows, while ghostly effigies floated around, acting like living beings and participating in one large banquet.

They were like statues whose only ability was to float and pretend like they were eating. Their stiff arms and legs made for a weird sight—they looked like they were the toys being played with by an invisible child.

It was in this room that I waited for over an hour, silently hoping that this would be the final room I had to stay in. I had enough of walking around and resisting temptation.

My gaze wandered.

There was a pot of molten gold in the centre of the room, and from what I recall, it was called the [ Rainbow's Prize ]. It could be infinitely refilled with riches aplenty as long as one shone a natural rainbow upon its blackened steel.

I really wanted such a treasure. It would surely guarantee that Lappei would recover, but alas, the consequences were beyond my abilities.

"But if it's this room..."

Perhaps if things went perfectly, I could use Galad and the others to acquire it.

I crossed my fingers.

'Please let this be the room.'

I switched perspectives and looked at the world through the eyes of my living reflection.

It seemed like Galad was moving in the way I desired. I had finally encountered the plan that best reflected her thoughts, thus allowing things to proceed smoothly.

From all the items that the group had collected, however, there were only two items amongst them that could allow me to escape the seven Roaming Towers. Unfortunately, the final item required for my special escape could not be retrieved with the current path.

The items that they did have were all valuable, but not valuable enough for my situation. I would much rather sacrifice them all to Lappei to increase her power, and by extension, my [ Foresight ].

'I guess I have to take the last item myself.' I thought.

I blinked away my golden irises and returned to my usual sight. Feeling that the time was right, I stood up and began the final part of my plan.

Galad and her companions were going to end up in this room, that was for sure. Thus, I could finally expend the last of my mana reserves.

"It's now or never,"

A blueprint of mana programs sprouted from within the depths of my mind. It was a special set of enchantments that I created to match the movements of the effigies in this room.

I gave this formation a simple name,

[ Soul Harvest ].

After all, these effigies wanted nothing more than flesh and blood. Had I taken any item from this Roaming Tower, they would have swarmed me for my body and soul. Nothing was more flavourful than an intelligent race's soul, after all.

That, and the human body matched them perfectly. They would have no problems using even a bit of flesh to grow their own physical bodies.

Thus, I moved across the room, drawing large mana programs onto the backs of every effigy in sight. I used up every drop of my mana, weakening myself to the point of fainting.

When I was done, I had already collapsed, incapable of any movement whatsoever. The tower still sapped me of my mana, preventing me from any form of natural regeneration.

'I've already consumed all the potions I have on my body. This should hopefully be enough... The difference between what our minds have archived shall bridge the strength gap between us.'

These were my final thoughts as the world before me slowly went dark. The visage of a room full of effigies, each with their own set of mana programs engraved upon their ethereal forms was a grand sight.