Volume 3 Chapter 41 That's Surprising Even For The Tower Of Time
"Randy, it's coming!"
At Luke's words, Randy focused his attention ahead──he looked up and saw a strange creature falling down. It looked like a person with spider-like legs. You could call it a pure white Arachne... but it had no eyes, a bald head, and a mouth that was split open and bright red, making it look even more disgusting than a beast.
The creature's body was about the size of an adult. With its spider legs, it was even taller than Randy. Despite its huge size, it landed silently on the floor and opened its big mouth.
"────────."
The creature let out an indescribable scream... and just like that, Randy's fist sent it flying.
The creature crashed into the wall, taking others with it. Dark, thick liquid sprayed from it as it got absorbed into the wall.
"That's gross. What the heck is that?"
"Probably the tower's guardian."
A new creature landed in front of a grimacing Randy.
"That's really bad taste. Should we take a picture?"
As Randy pulled out his camera from his magic bag, Luke quickly cut down 2 more creatures that had just dropped down, shouting, "Is this really the time for that!"
Even so, more and more creatures kept falling.
Luke slashed,
Randy took pictures,
Ellie burned them with magic,
and Randy kept taking pictures.
"Randy, you need to help too!"
Luke frowned, and Randy cracked his neck and clenched his fist, saying, "Fine, I guess."
"But I feel weird, and I'm not really into this..."
Randy's fist roared as he blew away several creatures in an instant.
With Randy joining in, the number of creatures quickly dropped, and in just a few minutes, all the creatures that had come down to the first floor were silent, leaving only their remains.
"I can still feel some presence, but..."
"It seems like there are no more coming down from above."
Randy and Luke stared at the ceiling they could see across the open space. It was probably 4 or 5 floors up. Anyway, they could assume that all the creatures that appeared in between were defeated.
"So, can we say it's calmed down for now?"
"Yeah."
"Right."
When Randy and Ellie nodded, Cecilia let out a big sigh of relief.
"Still, what's going on here?"
Cecilia's question was understandable. The tower appeared, broke the dimensional barrier, then they teleported to a strange place, and monsters started falling down. It was impossible not to be confused.
As Randy explained to Cecilia and Luke that they had been stuck outside, it led to a very reasonable question.
"Why were you two safe?"
Randy could only respond with, "I don't know?" and looked at Ellie for answers.
"...I'm a great magician, so messing with dimensions is easy for me."
Ellie looked exasperated, but that didn't explain why Randy was safe. With all 3 of them looking at her, Ellie sighed deeply and spoke.
"Randy... it must be because of the dragon's blood."
"Dragon's──."
"──blood?"
Cecilia and Luke looked at Randy in sync, but Randy wanted to say, "What's that?" Even though it was happening to him, he had no idea what they were talking about.
Randy just shook his head silently, saying he didn't know, and Ellie continued.
"Randy is carrying the dragon's blood──."
Ellie explained that it was the change he showed during the previous Void Walker battle. The dragon's blood that was in his weapon chose Randy as its host, and now it was slowly showing its power inside him.
"That's pretty amazing."
Luke smiled wryly, but Randy looked unhappy and frowned.
"I see. So that's why I've felt lighter lately."
Randy's clenched fist was slightly trembling. It was understandable. He thought he was getting stronger, but it turned out a meddlesome dragon was lending him its power. For Randy, who didn't want borrowed strength, this was extremely unpleasant.
"Randy, we don't have time to deal with your 'stubbornness' right now!"
"I know, I know."
Randy pouts. He knows Ellie is right; this isn't the time to throw a tantrum. He understands that, but...
(I'll make sure to train it properly later)
...deep down, he decided to come up with a plan to deal with the foolishness that has taken root inside him as soon as possible.
He's made up his mind.
Now that he's decided, he won't dwell on it anymore. To switch his thoughts, Randy took a deep breath. His mind quickly focused on stopping the groans echoing inside the tower.
"Let's get back to the topic... it's okay to think that time is moving here, right?"
"That's right. We have to drive away those intruders. It seems like only the inside of the tower is moving."
Ellie nodded with satisfaction and explained how time outside has stopped. It seems that because they forced their way into another dimension, the Tower of Time's defense system kicked in, stopping time for the entire dimension.
If you think of the flow of time like a river, the dimension is like a boat. The state of time being stopped outside is like the boat in the river sensing an enemy and dropping anchor to respond to the emergency.
"So, the dimension that stopped against the flow is here... and because the broken walls of the dimension connect the worlds, time in the original world has also stopped to align with this one."
Because they forcibly connected the two boats, the original world's dimension is also affected by the anchor they dropped. So, just like this dimension, it has also stopped against the flow of time.
"I see..."
Randy nodded, while the other 3 looked at him with a "you don't get it" expression.
"It's fine. As long as you understand that this place is moving and everything else is stopped."
"It's blunt, but that's enough for now. In fact, other than us, things can still move inside the tower."
Just as Ellie said, this is the only place in the world where time is currently moving.
Cecilia and Luke have started moving too.
Dust that rises when you blow on it.
Old, broken equipment that crumbles when you poke it.
All of these things show that time is flowing here.
"It's a pain that other things... like the guardians for defense can also move."
Ellie continued, explaining that when they broke the door to enter the tower, the whole tower sensed the danger and stopped time inside for a moment. The tower itself is a crystal of magical science and can be considered a higher-dimensional existence.
It's not just 3-dimensional; it can move through time, making it a 4-dimensional being. That's the true nature of the [Tower of Time]. Because of its powers, it fixed its own timeline, but the intruders, Ellie and Randy, are exceptions. They walk beyond logic, so in the end, they ended up moving time.
"I see... controlling time. So we can do experiments on how photos age."
Randy nodded with satisfaction, while the 3 looked at him in disbelief. Stopping, reversing, and speeding up time. Among beings that can do such things, thinking of using it for aging experiments is very much like Randy, but this time, their disbelief was stronger.
"What's with that look?"
"Nothing, really."
"Okay."
"It can't be helped."
It's a pretty mixed review, but Randy just pouts and says, "A man doesn't look back at the past."
Even so, Luke, Cecilia, and Ellie, along with Liz who is waiting inside, feel a bit encouraged by Randy, who is still acting normal despite the situation.
It's strange how the unknown can bring anxiety, but with Randy around, curiosity wins out.
"For now, let's ignore the fool and head up."
With a sharp comment, Ellie pointed to the door ahead. It was an entrance that Randy recognized all too well──an elevator.
"Can we use it?"
Randy asked with a frown, wondering if they could really use an elevator in the middle of such a tense situation, but Ellie just smiled and said, "Leave it to me."
When they reached the elevator entrance, it looked surprisingly metallic for a pseudo-life form. Of course, it was tightly closed and showed no signs of opening. Even when they pressed the triangle button that pointed up, it didn't make a sound.
"What should we do? Stairs?"
Randy pointed to the emergency stairs behind him with his thumb. "Wait a sec," Ellie said, nodding toward the elevator entrance like she was saying, "Go for it."
"Okay, but we can't move it, you know?"
Randy frowned, but he still managed to wedge his fingers into the gap and easily pried the door open.
Inside was the elevator box that Randy recognized. Of course, it was completely dark since there was no power running to it.
"Alright, everyone get in."
Ellie led the way with a satisfied look, and Luke, Cecilia, and Randy followed, all looking a bit confused. Once everyone was inside, Ellie pulled out a stick from thin air.
"Oh, you finally finished it?"
"Yep. Somehow."
The stick Ellie pulled out was the one they had taken from the church basement. It had been taken apart before because they didn't have enough blood to put it back together, but now it seemed they had finally gathered enough.
"Kid, make a hole here."
Ellie pointed to the floor, and Luke, looking unsure, carefully cut a small piece out of it.
Ellie tossed the stick into the hole and started to focus her magical power with a deep breath.
"If there's no power... we just have to make some."
The moment Ellie grinned mischievously, a sudden force hit Randy and the others.
"What the──."
"I'm using the stick to push the whole box up from below."
Ellie laughed loudly, praising herself, "Just as expected from me!" Even Randy had to admit that was impressive.
(I can't believe she's using the stick like this...)
Randy thought the stick was just for helping with magic, but according to ancient wisdom, using a stick was just a basic skill.
"Creating something artificial inside a living being is where the real challenge lies."
Ellie laughed and explained that this elevator was added later to help people move around inside the giant tower. So, the only way to stop it was to cut the power...
"Usually, cutting the power should be fine, right?"
"What are you talking about? If there's no path, we just make one. Isn't that your way?"
Randy sighed, "You got me there."
"I can't just climb this tall tower like an idiot."
Ellie looked up, her eyes reflecting the unseen top floor. Seeing her like that, Cecilia suddenly spoke up.
"By the way, why is Lady Eleonora in this tower?"
Randy was interested in the magic that had aged over time and thought it looked fun. Luke was also curious, and Cecilia was interested in ancient wisdom.
But Ellie's reason wasn't clear. Remembering this, Randy nodded and looked at Ellie.
"What about you?"
Ellie smiled mysteriously, then changed her expression to serious.
"I want to try time-travel magic... to see if I can find clues about where my body is."
Ellie's serious voice cut through the loud sounds of the elevator for a moment. So...
"We can... go back to the past...?"
Luke's regretful whisper reached Randy's ears.
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