NoveLight ™
At the topmost layer of the Tower of Ends.
A massive spider with a black carapace was endlessly spitting out pipes.
Building the tower.
Continuously, eternally.
Until the tower fulfills its purpose.
The spider, long past its designed operating time, was falling apart.
Its shattered eyes no longer reflected reality, only showing a distant past.
All the memories were nostalgic dreams related to the spider’s master.
[Well done. You've created so much again today.]
[This is a problem. We're out of materials. Somehow, we must find more.]
[How are you feeling today? I know carrying the “eyes” is hard, but bear with it a little longer. I’ll find a solution soon.]
[I’ve found a way. It’s from the records of an ancient alchemist skilled in working with jade.]
[I’m sorry.]
[I’m truly sorry.]
But they were fragmented memories, too disjointed to fully recall.
Creeeeak. Creeeeak.
The spider, endlessly weaving pipes, suddenly stopped, emitting a metallic grinding noise.
The halo resting above the spider's head flickered, like a broken fluorescent light.
The light dimmed gradually, fading into darkness.
Plunderer…
Like Icarus flying toward the sun, the spider, endlessly building its tower toward the sky, lowered its gaze.
In the mysterious resort filled with Black Reapers.
I was clutching a Black Reaper in my hand, vigorously rubbing its chubby cheeks—this was the one that seemed to have gobbled up the Golden-Mecha-Tyranno Armor.
Wah!
After rubbing its cheeks for so long, the Black Reaper’s face, who had devoured the dinosaur armor, began to swell up.
Even these almost immune little ones could look like this.
Hehe.
Once I’d vented my frustration enough and released the Black Reapers, the others crowded around.
Puffy cheeks!
Squishy!
The Black Reapers poked at the swollen-cheeked one, some even sneaking in playful bites.
From above, it was clear that Black Reapers bore a close resemblance to Golden Reapers.
They only seemed a bit more subdued and lacked the same liveliness.
After tumbling around with each other joyfully, the Black Reapers suddenly seemed to remember something and gathered near my ankles.
Mom!
We guarded the temple!
We cleaned!
We gathered faith!
We waited and waited, even when no one was here!
Then, they started tugging on my toes.
Did we do well?
The Black Reapers clinging to my feet looked both innocent and a little anxious.
Yes, you did well.
I didn’t know what their actions meant, but I hugged each Black Reaper and praised them.
As if rewarded, the Black Reapers went limp, tears welling in their eyes.
Hehe.
It’s Mom.
Kind Mom.
Well, they did destroy the dinosaur armor, but it wasn’t entirely their fault.
Lying around with the Black Reapers surrounding me, I felt a strange sense of peace.
If I asked James to make it again, why had I been so anxious?
As I floated on the rippling water’s surface, a loud sound suddenly echoed.
Beeeeep!
A booming sound, like the crying of a Black Reaper but amplified a hundredfold.
At the same time, a strange Maw, with long legs and a sorrowful appearance, emerged urgently.
It was clearly made up of a cluster of Black Reapers.
In the rubble of the Tower of Ends.
The Blue Reaper looked down at the Tooth Maw, which was gradually crumbling into dust.
Haa, haa.
Having used spellcasting, the Blue Reaper’s chest rose and fell as if he were out of breath.
Victory!
He had defeated the Tooth Maw, an object as powerful as the White Maw!
It was an incredible feat, considering that the Blue Reaper could barely stand against such an opponent normally.
Hehe.
The Blue Reaper smiled slightly, feeling genuinely happy about it.
And I protected my dear human!
At that moment, an ominous noise filled the Blue Reaper’s ears.
!!!
Creeeak. Creeeak.
The sound of a poorly oiled machine forced to move.
Simultaneously, a massive shadow slowly began to cover the ground.
It wasn’t even that close, yet it was large enough to cover most of the sky—a giant spider’s shadow.
The Sun-Eating Spider!
A spider as massive as the disc that made up each layer of the tower appeared.
It was a far more powerful object than the Tooth Maw.
The spider looked directly down at the Blue Reaper.
It’s hostile toward me…
Clutching his microphone staff tightly, the Blue Reaper looked up at the sky, tense.
The spider on the disc above was clearly damaged.
Its black carapace was cracked in many places, revealing magma-like red flesh beneath.
Eyes unfocused and devoid of life.
Joints creaking with each movement, emitting a horrific noise.
Its condition reminded him of the way Mom struggled with the side effects of the halo.
Creeeak. Creeeak.
With every movement, it broke down further.
As it approached the Blue Reaper, fragments crumbled and fell from its body.
Thud. Thud.
The pieces landed on the disc with heavy thuds.
The Blue Reaper stood by his dear human, looking up at the spider, preparing a spell.
It’s incredibly strong. And something about it feels dangerous.
After gazing at the Blue Reaper for a while, the spider suddenly, without any warning, slammed one of its massive legs down toward him.
...!
<Protect us all!>
<An unbreakable water shield!>
The Blue Reaper, pressing his mouth to the microphone as if singing, cast his spell.
Boom.
The water shield, formed by the spell, effortlessly blocked the spider’s enormous attack.
I’ve grown stronger.
Maybe I can win this.
I can protect my dear human!
Just as the Blue Reaper smiled confidently, the halo above the spider’s head began to emit a blinding white light.
<The plunderer will be torn by this power.> <It will sink into darkness like the sun.> <The blade of silence pierces the foe.>
Shriiiiip.
A tearing sound echoed.
Huh?
At that moment, the Blue Reaper’s eyes lost their light, and all sound disappeared from the world.
It’s dark. I can’t see. I can’t hear.
Then, a heartbeat later, excruciating pain came.
A pain that felt as if his eyes were being torn apart.
It hurts. It hurts. It hurts.
Clutching his eyes, the Blue Reaper collapsed.
Mom… it hurts so much.
In the darkness where nothing could be seen or felt, the Blue Reaper, with a faint will, reached out for Mom.
A truly enormous tower of steel pipes.
Or should I call it a tower?
A colossal structure, maybe, or a giant staircase for giants?
Anyway, I was quickly ascending this massive structure, riding on the back of a Black Maw.
The Black Maw, made from “Black Reapers,” moved with a wriggling, tentacle-like motion but was incredibly fast and strong.
One step from this Maw was probably equivalent to an entire day’s worth of my own steps.
The Blue one is in danger.
The Black Maw didn’t even seem tempted to consume my energy, simply rushing forward with urgency.
It must mean the Blue Reaper is in danger.
Yet, despite extending my senses in all directions, I couldn’t detect the Blue Reaper’s presence.
I had felt it before—when had it disappeared?
Feeling a pang of anxiety, I stood atop the Black Maw’s head.
Looking down from the top, the tower appeared as a spiral staircase, winding endlessly toward the sky.
The energy is warm.
Hurry and try it.
The Black Reapers perched atop the Black Maw encouraged it to consume energy, but the Black Maw ignored them.
How many levels did we skip, riding on this Maw?
As we ascended, I saw a gigantic spider, wearing a halo, in a level reduced to ruins. There, lying on the ground, was the Blue Reaper, clutching his eyes.
...!
Using my “eye,” I observed the scene and smirked savagely.
My eye revealed the spider’s destruction condition: Separate the Halo.
Its destruction condition was the same as the Maw’s.
In the ruined level of the Tower of Ends.
In this level, there was an underground space plunged into endless darkness.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In this dark, forgotten underground, a series of heavy tremors began to echo.
But even those intense shockwaves couldn’t break the silence.
Then, a tiny golden light descended into the quiet, as if the ocean of darkness had been disturbed.
A tiny fragment of the firewood emitted by the Gray Reaper.
It’s warm.
That single light, that single warmth, shattered the endless silence.
Mom is here!
A fragment of will.
After that brief signal spread, hundreds, even thousands of golden eyes simultaneously opened in the dark underground space.
Mom!
A torrent of black surged up from the underground.
Like oil, it was the torrent of Black Reapers buried deep below the level.
Mom is here!
It’s really Mom!
Awakened from a long sleep, the Black Reapers ignored the spider, the halo, the humans, and everything around them.
They saw only one thing.
Mom!
The Black Reapers swarmed around the Gray Reaper, who felt like Mom to them, surrounding him in a familiar form.
Mom has gotten smaller.
Mom, are you still hurt?
Why are you so small?
We need to help Mom!
Thus, the Gray Reaper found himself clad in a giant suit of Black Reapers.
It looked as if he were wearing the starry night sky itself.