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The original was posted on /r/hfy by /u/DrBlackJack21 on 2025-11-27 16:02:30+00:00.
As we gathered up at the base of the Tower, Dame Freya laid out some ground rules for everyone. "Alright, now this is the easiest floor in the Tower, but that doesn't mean you get to be cocky! People still die here every year, and if ANY of you manage to humiliate me by being one of those casualties, I'll resurrect you so I can kill you all over again!" Several of the students laughed, but I wasn't entirely sure she was joking. A moment later, she continued. "Now, on this level, all you're going to run into are goblins, which are relatively easy to kill, but they move about in patrols. It is very easy to get focused on the fight in front of you, only to get ambushed from behind, and suddenly, your backline is your frontline. That usually ends poorly for everyone involved!"
A couple of students were prepping some drones to follow them around and get footage. I noticed Freya frown at the sight before she spoke up again. "Also, no drones up there today! I want you focused on surviving! Besides, no one but your mother is gonna want to watch you killing goblins on level one! You aren't exactly going to make a name for yourself fumbling about on camera this early in the Tower. At least not one you'll want!" There were a few grumblings, but the drones disappeared back to wherever they'd been pulled from.
Seeming not to notice any complaints, Freya continued. "Also, do not engage a patrol already fighting another party! I'm sure most of you already know this, but for the slow ones out there, when more than six members engage a group of enemies, they stop giving loot or experience to anyone! So don't be an idiot, all you'll do is piss the other group off and get nothing out of it in the process!"
Freya's countenance was suddenly a lot colder. People must have felt the tension in the air, because everyone was so quiet that she could say the next part even more quietly than the preceding warnings. "One final warning to any hot heads in the class! If I find anyone harming or otherwise betraying a member of this class or this academy within my Tower, I will personally see to your punishment, and I promise you it will be both unreasonably harsh and cruel. You will wish I'd let you rot in jail!"
I thought we'd have to wait in line to ascend the stairs, but once again, I was singled out as Frey shouted. "Alright, everyone, line up and get your NWs, starting with Cai's party! They'll clear out any patrols right by the stairs, then pick a direction and head out. Everyone, try to find your own way in the Tower. I'll be able to track everyone's locations from the NWs!"
As we passed, Freya handed out NWs to everyone except Darien and me, since we already had ours. I tried not to pay attention to all the eyes focused on me as we approached the stairs leading up to the first level. Darien had the sword and shield he'd taken from the goblins ready to go, but I noticed everyone else had much nicer-looking gear as we ascended.
Before I even got to the top of the stairs, I heard Darien shout, "Charge!" Then, a moment later, I saw Elise lose an arrow and heard Lilith yell, "Shadowbind!"
By the time I made it to the top of the stairs, a patrol of three goblins was dead. Elise was retrieving an arrow while Nyx was cleaning her blade. The last goblin had probably been killed by Darien on the charge. Bellatrix was scowling as she complained. "There wasn't even enough for me to swing my sword at!"
Nyx looked pleased with herself as she gloated. "As slow as you are, I'll have everything dead long before you'll ever get close!"
If he was fazed, Darien didn't show it as he looked over at me and grinned. "What do you say, Cai? Should we pull them like Freya did yesterday? With a Full party, we'll probably be fine!"
Before I could answer, Bellatrix was smirking as she weighed in. "Anything the two of you could handle should be easy! Lead the way, we'll be right behind you!"
Darien was still looking at me, but I nodded. The large woman was right, with six of us, this floor should be easier to handle. Darien set out at a quick pace, and the rest of us followed. It was only a few moments before I heard the familiar shout, "Charge," and he sped off further ahead of us. However, this time, rather than stay and fight, he ran on ahead, the three goblins trailing after him. A few moments later, I heard another "Charge!" and soon he was engaged with seven goblins.
I immediately readied a heal, and sure enough, Darien took a stab to the back from a short spear. By the time I got the spell off, Elise was firing a tracking shot, while Lilith locked another down with shadowbind, while Bellatrix and Nyx charged into the fray. However, as soon as my heal landed, Darien was off again, shouting "Charge!" as he swept into another patrol further along the path we were already following.
Cut off from Darien, I cursed, using every bit of my own mobility skill to rush forward and charge into the goblins between him and me. One goblin stabbed at me with his sword, and I jerked to the side. Even then, I took a glancing hit, and my side felt like it was on fire, but rather than get distracted, I countered, knocking the goblin to the ground as Nyx and Bellatrix finally reached the fight.
Knowing they could handle things from here, I continued forward, not bothering to finish off the goblin I'd knocked down. I once again saw Darien as he slammed his shield into one goblin while dodging back from another. He seemed alright, so rather than heal him, I charged into the melee to join in the fight like we'd done the day before.
I picked out one of the goblins that looked like he was about to get a piece of Darien and jumped up to kick him in the spine, knocking him to the floor. Once it was down, I followed up by caving its skull in with my fist while Darien finished off the other goblin.
I took a moment to catch my breath as the rest of the group caught up, a little breathless themselves as Lilith glowered at Darien. A few breaths later, she verbalised her anger. "Just what the hell was that? At least let us finish a pull before you start another!"
Darien simply grinned. "Well, that's about how fast we were pulling groups yesterday when it was just Cai and me! I figured you'd all be able to keep up!"
It looked like a fight was about to break out, so I held up my hands between the two, turning to Darien. "Yes, and Freya had to carry our unconscious bodies back to the dorm! Let's just pull two at a time for now. Once we've worked together a bit and get a feeling for what everyone is capable of, we can try and get more ambitious, alright?"
Darien nodded, and I turned back to the rest of our group. "Before we go again, does anyone need healing?"
Bellatrix held up a hand while her other was clamped to her side. I came over and hovered my hand near her side as I stated the familiar spell. However, as I worked, I noticed the sword over her shoulder. It was a gigantic claymore. I would have had trouble swinging it on my own, and judging by its construction, such a weapon couldn't have been cheap. Looking around, I also realised Elise's bow, Lilith's wand, and Nyx's rapier were finely crafted. In comparison, Darien's scrounged equipment looked like scrap.
Elise must have noticed my gaze, because she held out her bow for me to better see as she explained. "It was a gift from my father once I got into the academy."
Looking it over, I frowned. "Is that a mundane bow?"
Elise shook her head. "Nope. It's from a low level of the Tower, so I can equip it, but it's a rare drop, so it hits harder than anything we're likely to find or buy for a while."
Darien whistled before offering his own thoughts. "That must have set him back a bit!"
Elise blushed slightly. "Well, he's the leader of the Starry Knights, so it didn't set him back that much..."
My eyes bulged as I took a seat to steady myself. The Stary Knights were a highly ranked Ascension group. I couldn't help myself. "Your father is Sir Roland of the Starry Knights? Hell, you must have got Tower climbing in your blood!"
Elise gave me a confused look. "Well, we all do. After all, once Dame Freya announced she would be teaching, people from all over the world signed up for her class. There was a waiting list a mile long, and only the best of the best were accepted." She nodded to the other female members of the party. "Each of us is from a family that is either high-ranked or has other connections that let us get in." Then she looked at me quizzically. "Isn't it the same with you?"
I stared dumbly as Darien plowed into the conversation, heedless of how out of place the two of us were. "No, nothing like that. Cai and I grew up here. The only reason we went to this academy is that it was the closest and we couldn't really afford to go anywhere else! I'm going to be the first Eskalad in my family, and honestly, I probably wouldn't have come if Cai weren't so set on climbing the Tower. I wasn't about to let my boy enter this place alone!"
Elise looked at me, even more confused than before. "So then it must be your family that got you two in?"
I sighed and shook my head. Might as well get this part over with, so I didn...
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