Ascension Through Skills-Chapter 491: 92nd Floor. Faith (2)

Every time Taesan entered a new floor, the first thing to greet him was always the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper would typically be waiting for adventurers at the entrance, ready to assist.

But this time was different. Even after passing through the entryway of the 92nd floor, there was no sign of the shop.

Taesan pressed forward and opened a door. With a faint creak, the chamber of the 92nd floor revealed itself.

“You’ve arrived,” a voice echoed.

Inside the room stood the shopkeeper.

He smiled at Taesan, his face alight with unspoken emotion.

“So, it’s finally you,” he said.

“Yes.”

The shopkeeper bared his teeth, his smile widening. The emotions on his face were impossible to hide.

“What is your wish?” Taesan asked quietly.

The shopkeeper had a wish—a purpose that bound him to his role within the labyrinth.

Yet no other adventurer, not even the ghosts, had been able to capture the shopkeeper’s attention.

Only someone of Taesan’s caliber could fulfill the shopkeeper’s wish. The fact that the shopkeeper remained stationed at the 92nd floor, even in the enhanced labyrinth, was a testament to this.

“Yes, my wish.” The shopkeeper chuckled bitterly.

He clenched his fist, his eyes burning with intensity. His beard quivered as he spoke.

“I am the king who lost everything.”

“What did you lose?”

“Everything!”

The shopkeeper roared, his voice filled with rage.

“My kingdom! My glorious treasures! My people! And the heights I was meant to reach! All of it was stolen from me! Taken by something cursed and vile!”

His words spilled out like a madman’s rant. The sheer force of his emotions shook the room, creating a tangible impact on the surrounding space.

This was a being capable of physically altering his environment with mere emotions. His strength clearly far surpassed that of the labyrinth’s main guides or even their elite leaders.

Taesan remained impassive, unshaken by the outburst. He had always known the shopkeeper wasn’t weak.

Without changing his expression, he asked, “And so, what is it that you desire?”

“An ordinary thing,” the shopkeeper replied, his smile turning sharp.

“A goal as common as the air itself. Yet, to me, it is of the utmost importance.”

The shopkeeper’s grin widened as his voice dropped to a near growl.

“I want revenge.”

[Side Quest Initiated.]

[The labyrinth’s shopkeeper wishes for you to enact his revenge.]

[Condition: The death of a Transcendent.]

[Reward: Determined by Lakiratas based on your performance.]

Taesan’s eyes narrowed as he read the system message.

“A Transcendent,” he murmured.

The shopkeeper’s wish was no small thing. For him to seek revenge against a Transcendent, the nature of his loss must have been extraordinary.

Taesan’s grip tightened slightly on his sword as he prepared himself for what lay ahead.

***

Revenge.

It wasn’t surprising.

The shopkeeper was the “Lost King.” For someone of his caliber to have lost everything, external interference was the most likely cause.

“I was once a resident of a world inhabited solely by dwarves. We called it Dverza.”

The shopkeeper, who had calmed his earlier outburst, spoke with a somber tone.

“It was... a beautiful place. Beneath the surface, precious ores glittered like common stones. Step into a mine, and rare minerals would pour forth in abundance. Dverza was the dwarves’ paradise. We crafted countless weapons there, competed against one another, and thrived in our own way.”

His eyes brimmed with nostalgia as he spoke.

“I was the king of that land. For centuries, I ruled. I conquered the deepest depths of the underground, claiming gems found nowhere else. I forged weapons even the greatest blacksmiths called impossible. I was the undisputed lord of Dverza. My people worshipped and revered me. I had their unwavering faith.”

But then, his expression contorted in anger.

“Yes! I was on the cusp of becoming a Transcendent! With their faith, I could have reached the pinnacle of existence! I could have truly ruled my world!”

Taesan listened in silence as the shopkeeper’s voice rose with vehemence.

“But then... that cursed thing invaded my world! It enslaved me, turned my people into mindless puppets of its faith!”

“A Transcendent’s interference?”

“Yes!”

The shopkeeper clenched his teeth, fury evident in his voice.

“It trampled over me, forced me to forge weapons for its own gain. But I refused! I was a king! The master of my people! And yet... none of it mattered before that thing’s overwhelming power.”

He let out a bitter laugh, spreading his arms wide.

“I lost everything. But I refused to be its slave. So, I cast everything aside and entered this place.”

“Your wish is to see that Transcendent fall?”

“Exactly.”

The shopkeeper twisted his lips into a grim smile.

“I want to kill the one who stole everything from me and reclaim what was mine. That is my wish.”

It was a tale as old as time: the loss of everything at the hands of an overwhelmingly powerful enemy. The simplicity of the story made it resonate. The depth of his despair made his desire for vengeance all the more compelling.

Taesan realized why no other adventurer had fulfilled this wish.

Few, if any, adventurers ever surpassed the realm of immortality.

But the shopkeeper sought the death of a Transcendent. His standards for assistance had always been impossibly high. Even the Ghost, observing the quest, commented wryly:

[He wants revenge on that? No wonder he ignored everyone else. How many adventurers could even attempt that?]

“It’s not a question of possibility—it’s standing right before me.”

The shopkeeper grinned darkly. The Ghost, for once, had no rebuttal.

Taesan contemplated the task ahead.

The quest required the death of a Transcendent who had conquered an entire planet.

‘It’s not fundamentally different from past quests,’ he thought.

He’d already taken on missions to free planets from domination, such as on the 88th floor when he dealt with immortals aspiring to become gods. The stakes were higher now, but the core mechanics seemed similar.

‘It’s manageable.’

Had the shopkeeper’s wish been strange or unprecedented, it might have posed a greater challenge. But this was a familiar path for Taesan.

The shopkeeper, seeming to understand his line of thought, added, “Think of it like your previous quests. The scale is larger, but the approach won’t differ much. Except...”

“Except?”

The shopkeeper’s grin widened.

“The cursed Transcendent doesn’t rule just one planet.”

...

“A Transcendent ruling over multiple planets?”

“Indeed. I don’t know the exact number, but it’s at least five.”

“Wait a second.”

Taesan raised a hand, his thoughts spinning. The scope of this quest had just expanded far beyond his expectations.

[Allow me to explain from here.]

A voice rang out as the floor beneath them shifted, revealing Balbabamba.

[Initially, I thought you wouldn’t need clarification, but given the scale of this task, an explanation seems necessary.]

Balbabamba turned to Taesan.

[You’re aware of the general classifications of Transcendents, correct?]

Taesan nodded.

There were two main types of Transcendents:

Faith-Based Transcendents: Those who ascended through the worship of countless mortals.Conceptual Transcendents: Those who governed universal laws and concepts.[For simplicity, let’s call them Faith Gods and Concept Gods.]

“Those terms aren’t official, are they?”

[No, I made them up for convenience. Distinguishing between the two is tedious otherwise.]

Taesan chuckled softly as Balbabamba continued.

[Faith Gods ascend through the sustained worship of mortals. It’s the level you’re approaching now.]

“Still unstable, though,” Taesan admitted.

Currently, Taesan could only exist as a Transcendent within the confines of his domain—areas where his faith was strongest. Outside of those spaces, he hadn’t yet fully transcended.

[Even so, it’s a rare level of existence. Then there are the Concept Gods. They govern concepts, dictating the very laws of existence. They are the true Transcendents.]

Figures like Lakiratas, Maria, and Baltazahar—rulers of victory, struggle, and choice, respectively.

They transcended the limitations of time and left their concepts etched into reality.

[Their rarity is matched only by their power. A Concept God’s strength dwarfs that of a Faith God.]

The Transcendent who had invaded the shopkeeper’s planet, however, was a Faith God.

[Like you, it rose by amassing the worship of countless mortals, ascending through faith.]

“A Faith God invading another’s planet?” Taesan asked.

It was an unusual notion. Balbabamba explained:

[It’s simple. That Faith God wasn’t content with its position. It sought more.]

Unwilling to remain stagnant, the Transcendent began invading other worlds, subjugating their inhabitants, and stealing their faith.

[It wanted to become a Concept God.]

A ruler of universal concepts, standing at the pinnacle of Transcendence.

[Realizing it couldn’t achieve that goal on its own, it changed its focus. If it couldn’t become a Concept God, it would accumulate enough faith to rival one.]

“How many planets has it conquered?” Taesan asked.

[No one knows for sure. But it’s likely over ten.]

Taesan let out a dry laugh. The shopkeeper’s ambition bordered on insanity.

Balbabamba glanced at the shopkeeper.

[When he entered the labyrinth, I told him repeatedly that no adventurer could fulfill this wish. That there was no point in even trying. And yet... here we are.]

“For my vengeance,” the shopkeeper said, his voice low and steady. “That is my everything.”

Balbabamba conceded with a nod.

[You’re a madman. But you’re a madman who has found a glimmer of possibility.]

Taesan looked at the shopkeeper.

“What’s the reward?”

“Everything I have. Within the limits of the labyrinth, I’ll give you all of it.”

This likely included the shopkeeper’s vast arsenal of equipment.

“Not bad,” Taesan replied with a faint smile.

“Then...”

Taesan nodded.

“I accept.”

[Quest Accepted.]

The shopkeeper’s face lit up with unrestrained joy.

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