Return Of The Strongest Player

"Where did you even go before attempting the tenth floor?" The Saint Sealing Devil inquired, stroking his chin while observing Arthur, who seemed unconcerned about his behavior prior to their meeting.

"I was exploring the tower," Arthur replied, focused more on the Pho before him, rather than the conversation. "These noodles look amazing. Where'd you get them from? Can I have the recipe?"

The Saint Sealing Devil sighed. 'What have I gotten myself into? Then again, he did threaten one of my Elite Rankers and got out scot-free.'

"That's pho, a traditional Vietnamese dish," The Saint Sealing Devil explained.

"What the fuck is a Vietnamese?"

Felix facepalmed, shaking his head. "Anyway, congratulations on achieving first place on the tenth floor. I was surprised when I saw the announcement. You have ten Constellation Tokens now, correct?"

"You guessed the reason I came here," Arthur announced, raising an eyebrow. "And yes, I just received the Canis Major Token, so the people aiming for my head probably doubled. Once I get thirteen, you probably already know what's going to happen."

A short silence descended upon the room. The Saint Sealing Devil and Arthur remained silent for a few seconds. "And you want the Ganghan Guild to shield you throughout the entire conflict?"

"No," replied Arthur. "I only want a small group of Elite Rankers, and perhaps a single Ranker."

"Then that wouldn't be a small group," Felix replied. "A group of Elite Rankers led by a Ranker is not easy to assemble, especially for an aspect of the Ganghan Guild that generates virtually no income, and is not integrated with the guild."

"Cut the shit. That's not a very difficult team to assemble for a mid-rank clan. Also, I don't believe you would personally come to the sixth floor every time we needed to meet, if you didn't consider me more valuable than a few million tokens."

Felix sighed. "What did I do in my former life to have gotten such a rude child as an ally?"

"Think about what you did in this life, first."

"Have some respect for your elders," said Felix, slowly standing up. He walked to the window, staring at the bustling streets of the sixth floor. His eyes displayed subtle nostalgia, which he quickly wiped.

"I am in shock of your sheer growth, though," said Felix, glancing at Arthur, who seemed to be struggling to use chopsticks. "You were gone merely for a few days, yet you've grown powerful enough to face an Elite Ranker without fear."

Arthur didn't respond.

"But you'd most definitely lose to one if you actually fought. So, don't get too confident, Mr. Solace."

"Of course," Arthur said.

"So, what are you going to do from here?" Felix inquired, using his Attainment to seal the edges of the room, allowing not a single sound to enter or escape. "Are you going to clear the three floors first, or focus on the war?"

"Neither," replied Arthur, leaning in his chair. "People are expecting me to be greedy for the Constellation Tokens. But, I'm not."

"You're not? Seriously? You're weirder than I expected."

"No, I'm more focused on expanding my own force," Arthur replied. "I'm planning on finding a refinement expert for a new business I'm going to start. I can't do everything by myself, and tokens are difficult to come by."

"A Refinement Expert? The Ganghan Guild has a few of those," Felix's eyes lit up. "I could recommend some."

"I'm good. I have a few of them in mind, too."

"All right."

"Also, I'd rather not take too many favors from you. I don't want to accidentally join the Ganghan Guild through some unknown ritual."

The two laughed softly.

*

Following their meeting, Arthur headed to the First Floor's Residential Area. Only a few months ago, he'd almost gotten killed here. Wearing a cloak, the crimson-eyed man navigated through the Central City, observing the state of the world.

The upcoming conflict was worrying to many, but a majority of players still seemed either oblivious or uncaring of it. However, that would soon change as the two high-ranking clans antagonized each other further.

It was uncertain whether other clans would interfere, but if they did, the entire tower would be in danger of collapse.

Of course, the Celestial Peaks and the Tower Administration would not allow that to happen. Also, the Demonic and Heavenly Orders would also attempt to resolve the conflict, as their main purpose is to spread the beliefs of the demons and angels respectively.

Arthur traversed across the soil of the First Floor, arriving at a certain town by asking the citizens. The town was named "Lobrasque's Ridge," and was a rather tiny town only a few kilometers from Central City.

Usually publicized as a peaceful location, Lobrasque's Ridge was a tourist destination. However, not many who entered the city managed to exit without having their head chopped off by the locals.

'By locals, I mean the gangs,' Arthur muttered internally. 'Some low-rank clan named Frost King's Legion eliminated all the gangs in my former life, but during this time, they should still be dominating the town.'

'It's funny how such a town is advertised as peaceful, though. The manipulation of the PR must be wild. Everything about this town is fake.'

'But only in such crude locations does one find rough diamonds. Arthur eyes lit up as he saw a few men viciously beating a boy that looked barely fourteen or fifteen. The men wore long overcoats while clutching broken pipes in their hands.

With predatory smiles of mockery plastered over their faces, they swung their weapons, feasting upon the boy's cries of agony and despair. Arthur smiled at the scene, shaking his head at how crude the men's movements were.

'Ever since learning the sword, I've been more aware of movements, to the point where I can't help but judge.'

'The boy… he can easily beat them up, judging by his level of strength. Yet, he refrains from lifting a finger…'

'Interesting.'

'Well, he's a future Refinement Expert, so it only makes sense for him to be peculiar.'