🔊 TTS Settings
chapter62
My Dark History is Too Strong
The Elf’s Tower (3)
Adventurers all over the world had no idea how to adapt to the new system.
Kuuuung!!
Brrrakakak!
“Uwaaah!”
A mage screamed, clutching his head, then collapsed to the ground.
[The Mental Strength of Solrung, Mage of the Great Nature, has dropped by 50.]
At the same time, a web-like crack spread across Solrung’s status window.
[Mental Collapse is occurring.]
[You enter a state of hallucination and lose control of the summoner’s commands.]
[You experience delusions and disorientation.]
“A… no, no! I… I love nature, I love nature!!”
Solrung screamed, his mind gone.
Chen Loo-in had no idea what was happening.
‘Damn it… mental strength drops this easily?’
[Solrung, Mage of the Great Nature, attacks allies.]
It happened in an instant.
Solrung’s area-of-effect magic poured onto the very summoned allies he was meant to protect.
Glorious leaves, streams of water, and earth elementals… tore his companions apart.
“Damn it! Can’t I reverse-summon them?”
Chen Loo-in couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
His summoner had annihilated other summons.
[Would you like to fill the empty slots with other summons?]
The cold message overlaid on the chaos.
It was like a death certificate confirming demise.
But that chaos wasn’t limited to Chen Loo-in.
[Sakura, Swordmaster of Lotus Flame, suffers Mental Collapse.]
[She falls into self-loathing and loses control of the summoner’s commands.]
Sakura cut at herself with her sword, screaming:
“Why! Why am I still alive! Please… erase me… I beg you…!”
Her screams ended in death.
Haruki Saito, Japan’s #1 ranked adventurer.
His summon chose its own death.
“Wha-what are you doing! Stop it! I said stop!!”
The cries shattered into the void.
It wasn’t just the summons that were dying.
[Seto, Ninja of Ambush, distrusts Sakura, Swordmaster of Lotus Flame.]
Their trust, spirit, and teamwork all collapsed.
Adventurers everywhere experienced similar tragedies.
“What the hell! What’s going on!”
“Uh? Who are you targeting now!”
“Don’t you dare shoot here!”
Many adventurers unfamiliar with the Mental Collapse system had to abandon the dungeon.
[Would you like to leave the Elf’s Tower?]
But the Glorious guild members were different.
Before entering, they consulted Oh Hyun-woo about their deck.
They learned how to manage decks in different scenarios.
Especially, Yoon Hae-jun never forgot the guidance of the “Unknown Adventurer.”
‘So, first assess enemy positions and terrain, then check attack patterns and elemental attributes…’
Compared to before, dungeon strategy now required much more thought.
But that also meant it was safer and faster.
Until now, Glorious had only done party-based dungeon runs.
This time, following Oh Hyun-woo’s advice, they started solo.
Yoon Hae-jun sent out about three summons to analyze enemy attack patterns and elements.
‘Attack patterns are irregular, elements are Grass and Darkness.’
After the survey, he began reshuffling the summons of Team 1 and Team 2 right there.
‘If I combine summons as he suggested…’
A smile appeared on Yoon Hae-jun’s face, entering the dungeon for the first time.
It didn’t matter if they didn’t clear it. No matter how tough the obstacle, “he” would surely overcome it.
What mattered now was:
‘Grow as much as possible so that his guidance isn’t wasted, and lessen his burden even a little.’
The new system caused upheaval in the ranking of dungeon clears.
Even traditional powerhouses had to retire when “familiar” strategies didn’t work.
[Elf’s Tower Floor 1 Progress]
-
DE Toabis Schultz – 8.58%
-
ES Miguel Delgado – 8.44%
-
JP Haruki Saito – 8.17% (Retired)
-
CN Chen Loo-in – 8.06% (Retired)
-
KR Unknown Adventurer – 7.64%
-
KR Yoon Hae-jun – 6.88%
⁝
Ranking info spread worldwide instantly.
[Breaking News! Unexpected Success for Korea! Yoon Hae-jun Shocks the World, Ranks 6th!]
[Jeong Bul-mo secures 5th despite late start!]
Korean communities were astonished.
-
What? Why are Korea 5th and 6th?
-
Is this for real?
-
Haven’t you seen China and Japan retire? We’ll follow soon, haha.
-
Still, 5th and 6th is impressive.
-
Where’s Seo Joo-hyun from the Japanese server?
-
Not Jeong Bul-mo, but Yoon Hae-jun is crushing it!
While communities celebrated, the atmosphere at the Tower of Records was grim.
Silence filled the command room.
“…Even 10% progress looks unlikely.”
At the analyst’s words, guild managers only stared at their monitors.
Even Toabis, who was in 1st place, slowed noticeably.
Bad news kept coming.
“Mr. Miguel Delgado has retired… failed to reach 9% progress.”
Silence followed again.
Jeon Myeong-il’s frustration grew.
‘Even for a first clear… this is too slow.’
During the first clear of the 100-floor Tower of Battles, world rankers had 20–40% progress at a similar time.
Now, barely 10% progress had been made.
‘World rankers #1 and #2 haven’t joined yet…’
While officials imagined a bleak future,
“…Huh?”
One adventurer’s progress began to shift slightly.
Dungeon difficulty?
Without a doubt, it’s one of the toughest I’ve faced since the Cataclysm.
I wouldn’t say it’s the hardest of my life.
In Legend Seven, there were far worse challenges.
Compared to taming the Seven Deadly Sins as summons, this is just light stretching.
Back then, every bit of time, mind, and stamina was shredded.
Compared to that… yes, this is thrilling fun at an amusement level.
[Mental Strength of Doomsday Witch Hertia decreases by 3.]
[Mental Strength of Chattering Gardener Serfilia decreases by 2.]
Rotten ents.
Each hit gradually chips away at the mental strength of the summons.
Mental strength is a resource, not easy to manage.
Thanks to “Hertia’s Principle,” I suffer less…
Most adventurers would find this dungeon unreasonable.
‘Hehe, writing a guide will be fun.’
Moreover, the dungeon’s structure is insane.
Traps everywhere, ents appearing as melee, ranged, and ambush types—all called “Rotten Ent.”
In other words, unfriendly!
‘No wonder this game isn’t casual!’
Even in reality, it’s brutal.
“Her, advance.”
“Yes!”
“Serfilia, wait behind. No need to go first.”
“Yeeees~!”
Now, I’m intentionally lowering my summons’ mental strength slowly.
Some would say I’m insane.
Tempting death deliberately.
But… I’m certain.
This system can be controlled.
No matter how unfair it looks, there’s no system in Legend Seven that can’t be used.
‘Mental Collapse. Definitely a dangerous variable.’
But if you know the exact numbers, conditions, and reactions—it becomes a weapon.
I experiment for one reason:
‘Whoever controls this will hold the initiative on the next floor.’
I left Caligo in the back.
My insurance to prevent or manipulate mental collapse.
‘Use the exchange principle right, and I can experiment repeatedly.’
Through thorough analysis, I eliminate uncertainty.
That’s me, Lucifer.
[Mental Strength of Doomsday Witch Hertia decreases by 5.]
Oh Hyun-woo checked the status window immediately.
A red warning icon blinked next to her mental strength.
‘Minus 45… collapse point soon.’
Hertia’s calm demeanor made him uneasy.
The storm always comes after the calm.
Hertia, meanwhile, was stepping into the deep void of quiet despair.
‘…Why now?’
She thought she had forgotten.
She believed she had suppressed everything.
Being by Lucifer’s side, she assumed all her emotions had faded.
But no.
“Ugh!”
An ent’s root slammed into her abdomen.
Suppressed emotions burst forth.
She felt deep-seated feelings rising.
[Mental Strength of Doomsday Witch Hertia decreases by 5.]
[Mental Collapse occurs for Doomsday Witch Hertia.]
[She falls into self-loathing.]
Her eyes turned black, mind fading.
The screams of children burning before the World Tree echoed in her ears.
What does a mother feel seeing her children die?
She couldn’t even find their bodies, yet had to swear at the World Tree that they went peacefully.
Her body survived, but her heart died that day.
Yet… she had laughed? Chattered?
“…Disgusting.”
She was trash unworthy of this world.
Being an elf disgusted her.
She hated the beings who caused this, the bloodline that took her children.
And now… even herself.
Her eyes turned black.
Her mind snapped.
Then,
“Didn’t I say it?”
A familiar voice behind her.
“I will bear all of your burdens.”
In the cold darkness, a radiant hand rested on her shoulder.
It lifted her shattered self.
[Activating Caligo’s Exchange Principle.]
[Mental Collapse converted into Hatred Awakening via Caligo’s Exchange Principle.]
The darkness in her eyes cleared, replaced with a blood-red gleam.
She slowly lifted her head.
The dark emotion directed at her turned toward the enemy.
“…Elf.”
Things that deserved to die.
A cursed race that shouldn’t exist.
If that ent before her was a child of the World Tree that elves treasured, she would offer it as a tribute for the burned children.
“Hahaha! Yes! Yes! I’ll show you!”
Hertia laughed madly, soaring into the air.
Orbs of magic gathered in her hands.
“I’ll show you what the Doomsday Witch who burned the World Tree can do!”
In her blood-red gaze, Hertia was reborn.
Black thorns erupted from the ground; red lightning struck from the sky.
An ent’s bark was shredded and crushed horribly.
“Come on… scream for me.”
[Due to Hatred Awakening, the summon’s Ultimate ability is temporarily unlocked!]
[Doomsday Witch Hertia uses Ultimate: ‘Flame of Lost Paradise’.]
“I will burn everything on this land!”
It was the rebirth of the cruelest, most vicious, most terrifying witch.
