My Charity System made me too OP-Chapter 418: Null Void VII

Back to Leon

He collapsed to his knees. Time had no meaning. Thoughts slowed. Even fear had abandoned him.

But somewhere... deep inside... something flickered.

A core.

It wasn’t elemental.

It wasn’t magic.

It was a memory.

One memory.

"Screw the odds. We climb."

—Leon, Floor 87.

It ignited like a spark in dry grass.

And suddenly—

A flash. Another.

Kael’s laugh. Aris’s scowl. Roselia’s stubborn smile. Roman’s quiet nod. Milim’s chaos. Naval’s steady voice.

Names.

Faces.

Self.

Leon’s hand twitched.

A faint glow emerged beneath the dust.

The Crownless Fragment he’d earned.

A voice—his own—echoed in the empty field:

"Standing still is surrender."

Leon stood.

And the Tower shuddered.

The dust warped around him. The void hissed, trying to press in, but it couldn’t reach him now. His memories weren’t just thoughts—they were anchors.

And he called on one more:

"I came here because someone has to reach the top."

He reached into the void with his will—nothing more.

And the Crown returned.

A halo of silent, steady light. Not heavy. Not loud.

Just certain.

With that—

Floor 511 cracked.

Not collapsed.

Cracked open like a shell.

And the world reassembled.

The Party Reunited

Aris gasped, falling to one knee as her memories slammed back.

Kael groaned, clutching his head. "Okay. That sucked."

Roselia looked around, dazed but recovering. "We... were gone."

Leon helped her up. "No. We were made to forget."

Varessa nodded slowly. "That was a floor meant to wipe you. If you hadn’t remembered who you are..."

Leon exhaled. "We’d be dust."

The Tower chimed faintly.

[Tower Fragment Reclaimed: Floor 511 – Identity Stabilized]

• Passive: Anchor of Memory – You can no longer be affected by Forgetting Zones.

• Skill: Name Echo – Restore the willpower of allies in a 30-meter radius once per floor.

Aris punched Leon’s shoulder. "Took you long enough."

He smirked faintly. "Next time I’ll forget faster."

As they prepared to ascend

Roselia asked quietly, "What if the next floor takes something worse?"

Leon’s eyes turned toward the gate.

"If it does... we take it back."

The gateway shimmered open—this time, with no sound.

No wind. No pressure. No challenge.

Just a long stone path, straight and narrow, stretching across a chasm of obsidian mist. And at the far end stood a gate, simple and unadorned, yet radiating a presence that made the entire Tower seem like it held its breath.

Leon stepped forward, the others just behind.

Varessa whispered, "This floor doesn’t feel like the others."

Kael’s hand was on his weapon, but his voice held no certainty. "That’s not an enemy ahead. It’s... a memory. A living one."

Roselia narrowed her eyes. "More than that. I think it’s a judgment."

They crossed the bridge slowly.

And as they reached the end—

The gate didn’t open.

It simply dissolved, like mist caught in morning light.

Beyond it was a great hall. Stone and crystal. Light filtered in through a broken ceiling, though no sky was above. The walls were lined with thrones—thirteen in total.

Twelve of them were cracked, shattered, or melted into the floor.

Only one remained whole.

A single figure sat on that final throne.

He wore simple armor—ancient, dull, worn down to steel-gray. His eyes were closed. His sword rested flat across his lap, untouched by time.

And his presence...

It filled the hall like gravity.

Leon stepped forward, slow and steady.

The man on the throne opened his eyes.

Golden. Not warm—just tired.

"You’ve come far," he said, his voice like dust being shaken loose from forgotten stone. "I waited for one more."

Leon said nothing.

"I am the last Crowned King," the man continued. "Before you."

The others watched from behind Leon—silent, respectful. Even Aris didn’t speak.

The King stood, one hand on his blade’s hilt.

"I did not fail," he said plainly. "I chose to stay here. Because the ones who climbed before me were not ready. They wore the Crown, but it broke them. I took it back before it ruined more floors."

He walked down the steps of the throne.

"I am the weight the Tower placed here. The final test of what it means to lead without losing yourself."

He stopped two steps from Leon.

"Your team follows you. But would they still, if they saw what you’ll become?"

Leon didn’t flinch. "They already have. And they still walk beside me."

The King drew his blade.

And the room darkened.

"Then we see."

Trial of the Last King – Begins

The duel wasn’t fair.

The Last King didn’t fight like a man—he fought like a concept. Every swing of his blade echoed through the floor, shaking the air. Every movement carried the weight of history—of regrets buried, battles endured, victories that tasted like ash.

Leon fought not with overwhelming strength, but with clarity.

He didn’t summon.

He didn’t retreat.

He moved in rhythm with each element, his Echo Crown pulsing with memory.

Fire swept in to meet the King’s crushing strikes—burning will.

Water curved his dodges, shaping his motion—adaptive mind.

Earth anchored his feet through ground-splitting impacts—resolve.

Wind carried him past killing blows—freedom.

Lightning sharpened his counters—precision.

And Void...

Void wrapped around his soul—acceptance.

Not to erase.

But to endure.

Their blades clashed once more, and for the first time—

The Last King stepped back.

He looked down at the thin crack that formed in the stone beneath his feet.

Then he sheathed his blade.

Silence.

He looked at Leon not as an opponent anymore.

But as a successor.

"You have balance," he said. "Not perfection. But purpose."

Leon nodded, panting. "Then I pass?"

The King nodded slowly. "You do."

He turned toward the crumbled thrones along the hall’s walls.

"Each of these men and women wanted to climb for different reasons. Power. Escape. Glory. Even revenge."

He faced Leon again.

"You climb because you know someone has to. You’ve made peace with that."

He extended his hand.

Leon took it.

And the Crown on his head pulsed—then fractured.

Not in destruction.

But in evolution.

[Crown Ascended: Phase II – Crown of Concord]

• The Crown now links Leon’s presence with his team across floors.

• Passive: Unyielding Circle – Allies within range cannot be knocked out unless Leon falls.

• Active: King’s Resolve – Temporarily amplify one ally’s core by 300% for 10 seconds, once per floor.

The Last King stepped aside.

"You are the first in three thousand floors to leave this chamber alive."

Leon asked, "What happens to you now?"

The King looked toward the broken ceiling.

"I rest."

He returned to his throne, and this time, as he sat, his body faded, leaving only a blade.

Leon walked forward and picked it up.

Not a weapon.

A symbol.

[You have acquired: Heir’s Pactblade – May serve as conduit for the Tower’s deeper layers.]

As the gate to Floor 513 opened above, Aris approached Leon and whispered:

"You didn’t just pass that test."

Leon looked at her.

"You became the Tower’s answer."

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