[Two Years Later]


    Finally, my road to power was at its final stage. I took a deep breath, preparing myself mentally and physically for the last floor. I struggled to push open the firm, large double doors. After finally opening it, gas rushed out through the open doors. However, it was too light to physically impact my body. As for its effects on my health and mind...none.


    "Welcome to the 100th floor," a man with a black beak mask greeted. "You bravely pushed through all of the obstacles in your way, letting actions speak about your desperation, will, and desire." He got up from his throne and approached me. His tattered and torn black doctor''s attire—similar to mine—swayed with each step. His hair color was silver too, but the only difference between ours was that his hair length was shorter. Not to mention the black scarf. "As such, firstly, I shall commend and then inquire about your desire. Speak, miserable soul. What is it that you want so badly that you resorted to conquering such a dangerous tower?"


    Putting his tone in the background, I remained cautious about the gas roaming around. Even though the doors were open, the room was covered in it. I didn''t dare take a step inside.


    "Fear not. While in reality, the miasma is indeed something harmful, here it is nothing but a mere illusion—same as I am."


    "Then...take off your mask." I glared at him skeptically.


    "That..." He sighed sharply before complying. "Fine. You asked for it." He removed his mask.


    "W-what?!" My breathing became shaky as I tentatively stepped closer to him, entering the room.


    Am I looking in the mirror?


    The man before me was like my reflection. Red eyes, silver hair, even the same doctor''s attire. Except his hairstyle and length were different. The condition of the attire, too.


    "Who...are you?"


    "Like the Tower, I''m a reflection—a manifestation—of your mind. While you do not have a say in what I reward you with, I am inevitably the result of what you''ll turn out to be sooner or later after you receive the reward and proceed with whatever intentions you initially had when challenging the Tower. Now, the last floor of the Tower, of the Rebirth phase, of the future... are you able to accept what you will become? What lies at the end of the path you walk? Huh, Doc-ter?"


    "In this ''future'' of mine, do I succeed in my revenge?" I asked, clenching my fists.


    "Hm... one way or another, yes," he answered vaguely.


    He most likely can''t elaborate or answer any other questions I have about my future. Otherwise, there wouldn''t be any risks on the ''supposedly'' hardest and final floor. Well, not that I need any confirmation. If I turn back now, those three years of hard work would be for nothing. Besides, I don''t have anything to lose other than myself, which is fine.


    Not finding a glimmer of doubt in myself, I extended my hand.


    "Just give me my reward. I''ll deal with whatever comes my way."


    "Kekeke, I expected that much from the madman who climbed all the way here with a single skill and nothing other than a scalpel. Fine, fine. Before I give it, I have to explain the possible rewards because I''m prohibited from telling you what you were given. Is that okay?"


    "Just hurry up. I have people I want to kill." I lowered my hand.


    "There are four possible rewards: One of the seven deadly sin titles, but currently all are occupied, so you''ll need to wait until one of them dies–hm, oh wait, one is available; a Heavenly Weapon, crafted using God''s domain, making said weapon indestructible; an ability or more; lastly, a title along with a complementary ability or more, some requires specific conditions to activate."


    The abilities sound risky. It''d take a while for me to figure out whether I received an ability or not, and the contents of it. My best bet for my revenge would be a Heavenly Weapon. A sin title would work too, and I can tell immediately by looking at the dorsal side of my hand, but I don''t know which title remains—if it''s something like Lust, then it''d be useless. Also, you''re granted a sin title based on your personality. I''m pretty generic, so I doubt there''s a title available that suits me.


    "Now then, here you go." He snapped his fingers, but nothing flashy happened.


    "Huh?" I looked around after the place started shaking and crumbling. But then I looked back at him as he walked away.


    He covered his face with his black beak mask and turned his back to me. Amidst the miasma, the undead began emerging from the ground, groaning and screaming incoherently. All of them tried to grab my future self''s feet, but he paid no mind to them. Was it because he knew that half of their body was stuck inside the ground? Or...


    "Ba-bye, my foolish self." He waved and then sat on his throne. "Remember this. The Tower''s difficulty is only easy, and the rewards are generous because it doesn''t need to play an important role in your demise. Everyone that conquers the Tower will meet the day they ruin themselves."


    Even with all of this foreshadowing of my inevitable death, I still couldn''t find a part of my mind worrying or regretting anything. Any and every thing other than my revenge comes later.


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    With nothing remaining, I was teleported back to the entrance of the Tower and was no longer granted access by none other than the Tower itself. No matter the method, it was pointless. Also, doing so in public would only be an announcement that I conquered it. Typically, people keep it to themselves. Otherwise, you''ll be bombarded with questions. With my nefarious goals, attention was the last thing I needed.


    I quickly headed to the nearest wormhole, hoping that the staff didn''t notice me from two years ago. Well, I doubt they would because of my rapid aging.


    <hr>


    I spent two weeks in a rented room at an inn from the Central Faction. It was the faction for those who didn''t have any specific role or didn''t want to be involved in any faction. Anyway, I used that time to figure out my ability but to no avail.


    While I was infuriated and disappointed at the results, I couldn''t call it a waste because I gained valuable combat experience. On the other hand, I doubted those bullies had any experience other than from training. I had the advantage but for that masked man...


    I clenched the handle of the scalpel in my hand as I passed through an alley.


    Whatever. As that asshole said, I''ll die trying.


    Funny enough, I traveled from faction to faction but not to the Medicio Faction, where I was supposed to work after graduation. That aside, I arrived at the Assault Faction where the bullies were assigned. That masked man wasn''t a student, so I wasn''t sure if he worked at the Assault Faction. It would be a pain if he wasn''t.


    It took a few days for me to find their workplace, but I was satisfied with the results.


    All that remains...


    When the clock tower rang after hitting midnight, the three bullies finished their patrol. As for the masked man, he was nowhere to be found. Unfortunately, that meant the possibility of him residing in a different faction was high. Well, I''ll get to him eventually.


    "Maaaan, why do we have to work so late?! There are no girls to check out," the broad bully complained in a tired tone followed by a yawn.


    I observed them from a roof. I was waiting for them to walk past an alley. When they did, I dropped a stone from above, making a loud sound that caught their attention.


    "Waaaah!" He comically reacted. "What was that?" He asked after regaining his composure. "Hey, check it out, bro!" He threw the dangerous task on one of his friends.


    As expected, he''s a selfish and ruthless bastard. I''m glad to see that he hasn''t changed, not that any change would make me spare him. Now then...


    I dropped from the roof to the alley, a decent distance between his friend who was approaching the stone and me. However, in the dark, it was hard for him to tell whether I came after or before the sound, especially since I dropped subtly.


    "H-Hey, it''s a person," his friend called out to them.


    "Really? Heh!" The broad bully regained his confidence after realizing that he outnumbered the mysterious person. He then immediately walked to his friend. Not long after, they all stood before me, but my face was still hidden in the dark, save for my crimson eyes, but I wasn''t facing them.


    "Hey, fool, y''know what time it is?! It''s bedtime! Get your ass back to your house!" The broad bully reached out to grab my arm, but I vanished from their sight.


    [Lurk], a stealth spell I learned during my two years in the Tower. I was still there, but they couldn''t see me. As long as I maintained my subtle footwork and watched out for any obstacles, I could abuse this spell to my liking.


    But that''s no fun. If I had to make use of this spell, I''d have to kill them in one strike. As the phrase usually goes ''no mercy for the weak'', I prefer ''no mercy for the wicked'', so there''s no way I intend on giving them a swift death.


    But all in all, it was only two of them that gravely displayed hostility towards me and engaged in malicious activity—that broad bully and the masked man. Even if these three assholes were weak, I was in the Assault Faction, and I''d be screwed if they called for help. I can bind one of their mouths quick enough, but not all three. So it''d be best if...


    I swiftly dashed past them, slitting the throats of the two background characters. With my weapon coming in contact with a conscious being, my [Lurk] spell was deactivated.


    "Aghh...bleehhh!" The broad bully''s two friends drop to their knees, coughing and choking on blood. Instead of worrying about them, he looked behind, glaring at me.


    But then again, there won''t be any need to shut him up. His pride won''t allow him to call for help. Also, if he did, he''d call for that masked man, which would be in my favor.


    "You...! It is you! Hah- hahahaha! That damn demon boy!"


    I took out a handkerchief from my pocket to clean my scalpel from their disgusting blood.


    "That''s right. I''m the demon who will drag you to hell." I slowly walked to him and tilted my head, my unhinged and sinister red eyes radiated eerily in the night. "You dare resist?"


    "Don''t get cocky, you lil shit!" He unsheathed his broadsword. "What''s a doctor going to do?!" He stood skillfully in stance, albeit quivering.


    I cleared the distance with a single dash. I then parried his transparent attacks, awaiting the moment he fell into despair.


    Twenty minutes... it only took twenty minutes for him to sweat, pant, and have his muscles ache. It was natural for someone who constantly ditched practice, and never worked hard. It was pointless learning from a combat class if you didn''t bother with the activities. You don''t automatically become stronger even when being in the best environment.


    Accounting for all of his setbacks, his sword fell to the ground. He was no longer in any condition to wield it. Not long after, he joined his sword on the ground. He didn''t have the time to take his knees into consideration, relentlessly grazing them.


    "Hah... hah... hah..."


    "Panting, huh? Now, where have I heard that before? Right. The day you stubbornly chased me. The day before you raped and killed my sister. I was in the same state as you. Breathing heavily. My heart raced at the fear of getting caught by something... someone. As I constantly felt the irritation of my dry throat, I tried to wet it but doing so would halt my rapid breathing." I knelt, getting a good and satisfying look at his pitiful state. I haven''t even begun with the physical pain I had in mind to inflict on him.


    Even so, at the pleasure of asserting my revenge, seeing such a scumbag suffering at my hands, I couldn''t help but drain my sanity. I became more like them—those who I swore to destroy—and my...father.


    "Hah... you... hah... son... hah... of... hah... a... hah... bitch..." He glared at me helplessly. His eyes were heavy from the fatigue, but he stubbornly persisted on keeping them open, fearing what would happen in his absence.


    "Earlier, you asked—as a doctor—what was I going to do, right? Well, isn''t it obvious?" I rhetorically asked with a wry smile.


    "I''m going to dissect you. After all, your boyfriend called me a worm, so as such, dissecting you is my cooking process. I''m hoping you''ll be quite tasty for a broad boy," I said, licking my lips.


    I effortlessly pierced his kneecaps to prevent him from escaping.


    "Ehhh! Wait! Wait! Ahhhh! FUUUUUCCKKK!"


    "Don''t worry, I''m very considerate. I''ll take it nice, slow, and consistent so you can adapt to the pain. Oh, and your arrogance? Don''t worry, since you want attention and popularity so badly, I''ll dedicate an entire chapter to your pain and agony. So, let''s have fun~"