As the welcoming crowd drew closer, the cheers grew louder.

From the youngest children to the white-haired elderly, people of various ages scattered confetti in the air and waved flags.

“Lady Daphne!”

“Team Daphne!”

“Welcome! We missed you!”

“Elder sister! Please look over here once!”

“I enjoyed watching your broadcasts!”

“Ilein! You’re so handsome!”

“The wings suit you so well! It’s like an angel has descended! Goddess! Goddess!”

Amidst the welcoming voices pouring out in various languages, Suji softened her stiff expression. Although she had merely come to work based on contracts and interests, there was no need to show a displeased face to those welcoming her.

Hiding her slightly embarrassed feelings, Suji folded her wings and stood at the entrance of the ‘Tower of Sages’.

Due to the large crowd, barricades were set up at the entrance to prevent onlookers from crossing over. A woman in a blue uniform standing inside smiled and extended her hand.

“I apologize for making you come such a long distance. I am Noah.”

Suji widened her eyes.

Noah, the S-class hunter from America.

It was known that she had suddenly announced her retirement, so this was the first time seeing her face in person.

Suji hadn’t expected such a person to come out to greet her.

“America also has a Gate Stability Department. And it’s a recent matter that I was appointed as the director there.”

Noah extended her hand, and Suji grasped it.

“Ah… I’ve been busy, so the news was delayed. Congratulations.”

“No, it’s an honor to meet you like this. I always wanted to meet you at least once. Because you are truly the hope of humanity.”

The words ‘hope of humanity’ could have been just a passing remark, but somehow they sounded meaningful.

Suji reflexively looked straight at the woman in front of her again.

Her golden hair, mixed with a lot of white, was tied up, and there was hardly any makeup on her face. Her eyes, close to green, were filled with a sharp energy.

She seemed like a person who wouldn’t match words like abandonment, discouragement, or frustration at all.

Come to think of it, Noah was also someone who had reached the top floor of the ‘Laurel’.

Suji thought it would be good to ask and clarify.

“…You have seen the reward of the ‘Laurel’, right?”

At Suji’s question, she smiled warmly and nodded.

Just the fact that she immediately acknowledged it even though the reward was expressed as being ‘seen’ meant that she had undoubtedly witnessed the same apocalypse as Suji.

Her attitude was completely different from Ageha’s.

To the point where it was incomprehensible how they could be so different despite seeing the same thing.

Woah!

Peace and Saint arrived shortly after, and another round of cheers poured out loudly.

Amidst the commotion, Suji asked cautiously.

“Can we talk for a bit?”

“Of course. It’s crowded here, so I’ll take you somewhere else. Please let me know when you come out of the tower.”

Noah smiled and finally let go of the hand she had been holding tightly.

Suji nodded and turned around to greet the team members joining her.

“We’re here, Team Leader.”

“We brought Nature for now, but should we take it up the tower as well?”

“I think that would be good.”

As she answered, Peace declared their entry to the status window.

The area around where the team stood glowed blue.

The sensation of entering the tower was familiar.

The only difference was the cheers surrounding them.

And the floor they had to conquer was the 71st. It didn’t feel like such a big burden.

The party members also had light expressions as if going for a walk.

Suji closed her eyes for a long moment and then opened them again.

‘Huh?’

At the momentary sensation of Ilein, who was standing behind her, staggering, she turned her head and saw him barely standing while leaning on his sword, his face incredibly pale.

“…Ilein?”

Thud, thud, thud.

The floor began to vibrate. As she turned her head at the strange sound, the boss monster of the 71st floor was revealing itself.

It took about 30 minutes for the battle to end.

It was because Ilein suddenly complained of abnormalities.

Normally, considering the time when Team Daphne used to conquer the 71st floor, it wouldn’t have taken that long, but suddenly going from 4 members to 3 caused a slight delay.

By the time the battle was about to end, Ilein had also fully recovered and tried to join, but Suji strongly dissuaded him, so in the end, the three of them finished it.

Thud.

Staring at the giant insectoid monster that had collapsed on the floor, Suji turned her head towards Ilein, who was sitting obediently to one side, ignoring the initial conquest reward message that popped up.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Ilein answered immediately, but it was hardly believable.

Not only Suji but also Saint had a worried expression.

“You still don’t look well. It would be better to go to the Hunter’s ward.”

Ilein shook his head.

“As I told Daphne back then, I’m not feeling unwell.”

“Ilein.”

“I’m not pushing myself… really. I’m fine.”

Suji frowned deeply.

Certainly, his face now was completely different from when his complexion suddenly worsened. He really looked fine, as he said.

But as an SS-class hunter, he would have known well enough.

The condition of each team member affects the entire team.

It wasn’t something that could be resolved by insisting like this.

She glared at Ilein for a long time and then signaled to Saint and Peace with her eyes.

It meant that she wanted to talk with him alone for a moment.

“Then we’ll go ahead and hold a fan meeting or something. I have a lot of fans here.”

“What fans? Peace, you’re really ridiculous. Aren’t you worried about Ilein?”

“Let’s say Ilein suffered some organ damage. Would he show weakness in front of us? It’s best for us to step aside.”

“Do you think Ilein is like you? Unnecessarily putting on airs?”

“When did I ever unnecessarily put on airs?”

“Ah, I don’t know. Let’s go quickly!”

Peace and Saint readily left the tower first, bickering. Before they knew it, Nature, who had become a burden, also disappeared with the two.

Once the two completely disappeared and the blue light subsided, only silence flowed in the dark interior of the tower.

Suji sat on a small window on one side of the wall and looked at Ilein.

He really seemed fine, but the more so, the stranger it was.

“Ilein.”

“Yes.”

“Be honest. Tell me what’s been going on lately. Don’t make people frustrated.”

He stared at her for a long time and then spoke as if confessing.

“I had something to tell you anyway. I’ve been putting it off, but I think now is the time to say it.”

His solemn attitude was unusual, so Suji narrowed her eyes.

“…Don’t tell me you’re also going to confess that you were the ‘Messiah’.”

Ilein smiled bitterly.

“It’s not that.”

Even as he responded to the joke, a complex emotion passed over his face.

Suji tried to read Ilein’s expression, but it was difficult to grasp his inner thoughts. He seemed apologetic, but also wistful.

“Actually, I’ve been to the 100th floor of the tower before.”

It was an abrupt and absurd statement.

Among the countless words she expected to come out of his mouth, it was perhaps the most unexpected.

Suji mulled over the nonsensical words Ilein had said.

The 100th floor. It made no sense at all.

“You’re talking about the ‘Tower of Sages’, right?”

“Yes.”

“Did you go through a rift?”

“No. If that were the case, I probably wouldn’t have been able to return alive. I climbed up step by step, floor by floor.”

The more she heard his testimony, the stranger it became.

What was he talking about?

“…Then.”

But no matter how much she thought about it, it wasn’t logically possible.

“Really… really?”

“It’s true.”

“We received the first reward together. It doesn’t make sense that Ilein has been to the 100th floor. Especially if it wasn’t through a rift.”

She refuted his words point by point, but Ilein nodded without any concern.

“I know that too.”

“…What are you talking about now, seriously?”

She was worried because he didn’t seem to be in good condition, but he was spouting nonsense.

Without even matching the context.

Because she knew well that he wasn’t the type to joke around about such things, and because she had believed in him, it was even more confusing. What did he want to say?

Despite Suji’s expression, Ilein calmly continued with what he had to say.

“Proving it is simple. The 86th floor, the 87th floor, the 88th floor. I can tell you what kind of bosses exist and how to defeat them.”

It was unbelievable.

“Ilein.”

“Yes.”

“You’re not sleep-talking or something, are you? Did you drink alcohol by any chance?”

“No.”

“…You have to say something plausible for me to even pretend to believe you.”

“It was possible. Because I didn’t go to the 100th floor alone, but with Daphne.”

Suji’s heart pounded loudly at Ilein’s words, which he revealed with a gentle smile.

Suji had been wondering what the prophecy she saw in the ‘Laurel’ meant.

She had been curious about why she was so exhausted and what Ilein had said he would take care of.

Thud, thud.

Her heart raced with an uneasy premonition.

“I think it’s best to tell you about the reward of the 100th floor first.”

“…The reward of the 100th floor?”

“Even the temporary small tower like the ‘Laurel’ pours out a final floor reward, so wouldn’t the ‘Tower of Sages’ have a considerable reward on the 100th floor?”

“…I don’t know what to believe from where.”

“There is ‘Deviation’ there.”

“‘Deviation’?”

“It’s an item that can turn back time.”