Six figures emerged from a collapsed house, carrying their weapons—everyone except one.
Uriel looked at his empty hands. Unfortunately, he couldn't carry his weapons or he would be even slower than he already was. That didn't seem to be a problem for the warriors who were going to lead the formation.
There was only a small issue, which in itself isn't really a problem for me, but it's a bit uncomfortable in the sense that I'm having trouble figuring out where the hell I'm supposed to put my hands.
"I'm sorry you have to do this."
Ininise looked at me with a flushed face; she truly felt bad about it.
"D-don't worry, it turns out I'm already a little used to carrying people."
What the hell am I saying?
"Oh, I see… I hope I'm not too heavy."
Obviously she wasn't. In fact, it felt like I was carrying feathers—feathers with a lot of curves and heavenly softness. I'm really enjoying my new task.
For some reason, Ininise now seemed even redder, and maybe even a little more embarrassed. I hope I didn't touch somewhere weird.
"Heeeey Uuuuuri."
I don't know who the hell this "uuuuri" guy Malach is calling for is, so I decided to ignore him.
"If you drop Ininise, I swear I won't forgive you."
I looked at him with a mischievous smile, raising one of my eyebrows.
"Oh, it's fine. I wouldn't drop her for anything in the world."
"Bastard! Let her go right now!"
Make up your mind—do you want me to drop her or not?
A moment ago, before Ralzire went out to scout, Kaelira explained to me that her people are known for their agility. However, their bodies usually don't have much muscle or endurance, which means that classes that add penalties to things like strength or vigor make them extremely fragile and tire quickly. That was the case for Ininise, who was practically a glass cannon.
Which brings us to the current situation, where I'm carrying her. Kaelira told me she had to carry her for quite a while before finding the house.
A hand appeared from around the corner of the alley, waving before the person stepped in. It was Ralzire.
"Hello guys, I'm done."
Honestly, he was a bit slow compared to Vykir, considering he was given only a third of the area Vykir had to explore.
"I hope it went better for you than it did for Vykir."
"Oh? How bad was it while exploring the area?"
Vykir answered this time. He was sitting on some crates, sharpening the tip of his arrows.
"Pretty bad… if we took any of the paths I saw, it would be a massacre."
He said it without taking his eyes off the arrowheads, as if sharpening them required surgical precision.
That made me wonder: does he make the arrows himself, or does the system give them to him? Honestly, I hope it's the latter. Running out of arrows as a ranged class doesn't sound good, although something tells me this guy knows very well how to defend himself in close combat.
"That sounds bad. We're lucky—I saw a path that had only a few dozen, although there might be more hidden in the buildings."
He said this with a sigh.
Kaelira suddenly seemed to be staring at nothing. No… everyone was doing the same thing except me.
"That's right, Uriel. You can't see it."
Ininise's delicate voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
"So you're sending secret messages through the system?" I smiled at her.
Ininise nodded.
"Yes. They're looking at a map that shows most of the areas on this floor to plan a proper route."
It seemed like the topic of the system really fascinated her, because when she explained it her little eyes were shining.
"Hmm, it seems like the tower has captured your heart."
Ininise stayed thoughtful for a moment.
"Isn't that the same for all of us?"
She had a warm smile on her face. I wondered if it was the smile of a mother explaining something to her foolish child, or genuine affection—although that's a bit redundant. After all, a mother's love is always genuine, right?
"Pffja… that's true. All of us are climbing because that's what we wanted."
I felt a bit embarrassed by the small slip I made by forgetting something so basic.
"And what do you want, Uriel? Why does someone as young as you want to climb the tower?"
That caught me a little off guard. The answer is simple: becoming a climber would mean a before and after for my family. But I'd be lying if I said this whole situation doesn't also amuse me. On Earth, I have to face every day in pain, and it feels like the world only insists on pushing me deeper and deeper. But here—here at least I can fight and carve my own path. Or at least that's what I hope. I'll find out how everything changes when I return to Earth. In the end, bringing my sister back and saving my mother is all that matters.
Maybe if I return, I could be friends with Cris, and his parents wouldn't treat me like some alley rat anymore. Maybe a climber rat, heh…
My mind wandered, but when I came back to my senses, there was Ininise waiting for my answer.
"When we get out of here, let's all sit down and talk about that."
I told her with a smile, but a sense of doom suddenly struck my mind. Isn't that the kind of thing people say right before they die miserably? Now I'm a bit worried.
"Alright. Everything will be fine, Uriel. Don't worry. They've been protecting me since I was a child—nothing will happen to us."
Ininise said that, trying to calm me down. I hadn't even realized I'd let my worried expression show.
"I have faith in that. And you shouldn't worry either, Ininise. I'll definitely protect you. I know it doesn't look like it, but I'm very strong."
Ininise looked at me a little strangely, as if she didn't understand what I meant.
"I never thought you weren't."
Thanks, Ininise. You're wonderful to this poor bag of bones. I hope the armor at least makes me look a bit broader.
"Alright, let's move."
Kaelira gave the order, and we left the alley at a speed fast enough that I wouldn't fall behind and Ralzire wouldn't get tired.
The districts rose around us. Honestly, it was a very gloomy and lifeless place. The moon hadn't moved even a little since I arrived. What did they call this type of structure again? Something like those pretty girls who dress in black… gothic? I think that was it.
At that moment, a panel appeared in front of me. It was the system.
[Attention all climbers: the human group led by the climber Viviane has reached the halfway point, initiating Sudden Event]