The Challenger's Return: Rebirth of the Rainbow Mage
chapter-12

Otto took Jeremy by the arm and strode quickly out of the military camp.

The duo went to the large market a minute's walk away.

Jeremy watched as Otto went on an extravagant spending spree.

Besides the ingredients for the 'Beast Luring Potion,' Otto also took the initiative to buy quite a few additional potions of different types. They weren't of good quality, but at least they were abundant.

With more money, naturally his transactions would proceed quickly. It took merely an hour before he'd bought everything he might need

Otto checked his wallet and his smile widened.

What man didn't like having money?

It was a pity that things like currency in the [Tower] worlds would immediately disappear after the trial ended.

Only the rewards from the [Tower] itself were valid!

Other challengers had once made a speculation.

They thought that no matter what kind of achievement one earned in a [Tower] world, as long as it was extraordinary in some way, the [Tower] would count it and reward the challenger.

Two merchants set out to test this theory once.

And the result was excellent. They found that if one made obscene amounts of money in a floor, the [Tower] would grant an achievement.

Moreover, one of the rewards allowed those merchants to exchange the local currency with official [Tower] currency.

Even their mission reward at the end of the floor had increased by a bit.

The [Tower] graded missions in two primary ways.

First was the mission difficulty.

Passing harder missions would obviously give greater rewards. Rewards scaled with difficulty, with 'Extreme' difficulty theoretically granting huge advantages.

It was theoretical because Otto didn't know of a single person who had cleared the [Tutorial] on 'Extreme' difficulty.

Well, just because he wasn't aware of it didn't mean it had never happened before.

The second was the mission grade.

Mission grades were scored from '1.0' which indicated a basic pass, to a '5.0' which indicated a perfect pass.

The mission grade didn't affect the basic reward, which was typically made up of attribute points and skills or spells granted by one's class.

However, it greatly affected the quality of the supplementary reward, which generally involved money.

Other than these two things, almost nothing was known about the [Tower's] grading process.

Even in the future, very little had been discovered about it.

Regardless, more money certainly didn't hurt.

Otto recalled he had seen a notification during his fight with Zeller, so he mentally directed his status to pull it back up.

[Congratulations. You have made an exceptional achievement.]

[Achievement Type: Creator]

Description: Created a pseudo-spell without assistance.

+10 AP

+Qualification

Added Fourth Circle Spell: Analyze

[Analyze]

Level 1

Use mana tendrils to read target information.

Cannot be perceived.

Cannot be blocked.

Upgrade of universal skill/spell: Identify

Mana Cost: Depends on strength of target

Cast Time: 1.3 seconds

No Cooldown

Otto directly added all of his new attribute points into 'Regeneration,' increasing it to 0.7 mana per minute.

He pondered over the new spell.

Honestly, Otto had previously thought it was absolutely impossible to learn a spell without the [Tower's] assistance.

He had tried many times in his past life to avoid paying for spell models and spell books.

But no matter how well he felt he had cast the spell, something always seemed to block it if it wasn't listed on his status screen.

So what was different here?

Was the [Tutorial] not subject to the same restrictions? Doubtful.

The [Tutorial] was different from the rest of the tower but it was definitely 'part of' the tower.

Did he do something differently?

No.

Right now, his skill in controlling his mana was slightly superior compared to his past life.

This was due to his [Talent].

But the amount and power of the mana he had been able to amass back then was incomparable to now.

So what could have been the difference?

Otto couldn't figure it out. He thought there was a clue in that the [Tower] had not called it a 'spell' but a 'pseudo-spell.'

Now, he had also obtained something called 'qualification' which he had also never gotten in his past life.

The main question in Otto's head was 'Qualification for what?'

There were no other leads.

Otto decided to turn his focus to his new spell. He felt a little giddy.

'Analyze' was normally a 4th circle spell! Actually, it wasn't very powerful.

Nor was it incredibly complex or tough to cast.

The reason it was a 4th circle spell was because of the words 'Cannot be perceived. Cannot be blocked.'

In other words, no matter how powerful an opponent, if Otto had enough mana, even a god could be analyzed, according to the [Tower].

Well, Otto doubted it would actually work on gods.

But it was still useful! As they say, 'Know yourself and know the enemy, and you need not fear one hundred battles.'

**************************************************

Otto rented a room for a few hours and prepared to brew a potion, while Jeremy looked on from the side.

Of course, not quietly.

Jeremy curiously looked at Otto's strange actions.

"What are you doing?"

Otto glanced at him in slight irritation. Would this kid become mute if he didn't talk for one minute?

"Making a potion. Watch my actions, and don't talk, or it might fail, and then I won't help you with your task."

Jeremy exaggeratedly mimed a zipper covering his mouth while he rolled his eyes at Otto.

He huffed a bit, but soon surrendered and obediently shut his mouth.

Otto was actually lying. He just wanted Jeremy to shut up for a second.

When peace and quiet returned to the room, this time, making the 'Beast Lure' solution was even easier.

It seemed that with the actual skills of an [Alchemist], his potion making was much more refined.

[Alchemist]

Grade 1

[Grade 1 Refinement] 3

[Grade 1 Heat Control] 1

[Grade 1 Concocting] 4

[Grade 1 Solution Formation] 2

[Grade 1 Pill Formation] 1

Learned: [Grade 1 Ingredient Properties]

His [Alchemy] was progressing well with the help of his vast experience.

It allowed him to raise his skill levels quickly by displaying refined technique.

There was no suspense in the concocting process other than Jeremy's continuous sighs of 'amazement.' (Otto suspected he just wanted attention)

Otto checked the final product.

[Beast Luring Potion]

High Quality

Effect: Lures beasts in a 20 mile radius to the location. All beasts with limited intelligence are affected. Lasts for twenty-four hours.

Otto turned to look at Jeremy with a small smile.

"Are you ready for a marathon?"

"A marathon?"

"Check this potion."

Jeremy did so but still couldn't understand what he was saying. Then his face paled.

"You mean…" he whimpered a little.

"I told you it'd be painful." Otto shot him a hard look.

"If you can't even endure this much, you'll never make it through training."

Jeremy's eye twitched a little at this. Otto had hit his weak spot.

But he still glared at Otto.

"Fine! But my stamina might not keep up…"

Otto totally thrashed his hopes when he brought out a glass vial with light green liquid inside.

[Stamina Recovery Potion]

Lowest Quality

Effect: Multiplies Stamina Recovery by 10.

Duration: 60 Minutes

Otto smiled with sadistic intent.

"I bought 50 of these."

Jeremy's body collapsed immediately.

***************************************************

Otto didn't bother to ask for Commander Zeller's permission to use the beast lure.

For one, he spread it outside of the walls.

Far enough outside that Otto and Jeremy could kill every single beast before they approached the wall.

Even if a few slipped through, it would only be considered a normal day for soldiers.

Secondly, when one asked for permission, there was always a chance of getting denied.

Better to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

The two ran outside before they came to the edge of a rocky outcropping beside the forest.

They were now a few miles outside the wall.

There was a long and somewhat narrow corridor in front of the two of them. Otto also spotted quite a few decent hiding spots for Jeremy.

The rocky outcropping was an excellent training ground.

Otto skillfully poured out the Beast Luring potion in a wide field in front of the outcropping. He left the heaviest scent a few dozen meters in front of the two of them.

This would force the beasts who were attracted by the scent to file obediently into the corridor, no matter their numbers, creating a perfect killing ground.

Now, they just had to wait.

Jeremy shivered slightly in fear.

The monsters here, even the weakest ones with the lowest intelligence, were incomparable to the monsters he had fought with his teammates.

Back then, the monsters they killed were technically still located inside the boundary of Bront City.

Those beasts were weak, meant only to give new soldiers some combat experience before guarding the wall.

Livestock like that were only a little stronger than wild beasts. But now Jeremy would be facing real monsters.

To his credit, Jeremy did not back down.

His head rose and he looked inside the rock corridor with determination.

Howls of beasts quickly resounded.

It didn't take long for the duo to ensnare their first prey.

It was a small bear who rambled over on all fours, with his nose to the ground. It looked young, and didn't seem to be wary at all.

Jeremy's grip on his daggers tightened as his muscles tensed.

When the bear passed the ambush spot, Jeremy unleashed his coiled muscles and jumped downward onto the bear.

His dagger entered the back of the bear's neck and buried itself in the bear's brain all the way to the hilt.

It was a strike filled with ruthlessness.

But the bear wasn't dead yet. It quickly raised its head and let out an earthshaking roar.

Seeing the row of viciously sharp teeth and red eyes, Jeremy was overwhelmed with fear.

It reminded him that no matter how the thing looked, this was not really a bear from Earth. It was stronger, faster, and much more bloodthirsty.

As his muscles were paralyzed for a second, he heard a calm voice enter his ears.

"Left foot slightly back."

"Power comes from your legs and waist. Don't break your position just because you're overwhelmed."

"Leave the dagger and switch to your offhand. Get it back after the monster is killed."

"Now! Strike again. Go for the kill!"

Hearing Otto's calm, unflustered voice, Jeremy regained his confidence and struck the bear-monster again.

This time, it was unable to bear its wounds and died. Jeremy retrieved his dagger and promptly returned to his hiding place.

Jeremy started to kill monsters until he was numb. At first it was occasional lone monsters, until it became two, then three, then small groups of them.

No matter how many, Jeremy knew he had to keep killing.

His dagger techniques became better and better as he learned how to strike most efficiently to the monsters' vital points.

Otto directed Jeremy when needed and watched him kill monsters.

So far, only a few dozen had arrived. He let Jeremy gain some experience before it got too dangerous.

Actually, Otto wasn't really masterful at melee combat. It was just that his battle sense was so good that many would mistake him for one.

Still, his little learning was more than enough to give pointers to a boy who was still wet behind the ears, anyway.

Jeremy fought and fought. At first, he got small injuries rather often because the monsters were either faster or more powerful than he expected.

Otto healed him every time with his spell.

Slowly but surely, Jeremy found his rhythm.

Most of his kills died by ambush.

Considering the increasing number of monsters around, it would normally have been surprising to be able to complete an ambush at all.

Since chances were, at least one monster would spot Jeremy and sound the alarm for 'prey.'

But Jeremy was different.

Not only humans, but even monsters seemed programmed to completely ignore him unless his figure was directly in front of them.

Otto had picked him up for exactly this reason. This was his incredible 'talent' as a rogue!

"Jeremy, what's your innate trait?"

Jeremy was too focused on the battle. Once he killed the wolf in front of him, he had time to check his status screen.

"It's called [Minute Presence]. It's only level 1 right now, and its description is 'all living things will have a tough time detecting you.' But I have a feeling it'll be better at higher levels.

Maybe it'll turn into a skill I can use."

Otto nodded thoughtfully.

"You chose the path of a 'Rogue,' the pure physical type, right?"

Jeremy looked a little nervous.

"I wanted to choose assassin, but it sounded like I'd have had to kill people, so I chose 'Rogue.'"

Otto looked hard at him. His eyes dimmed a little, and he sighed. His words were quiet, but solemn.

"You will still have to kill people."

'Before they kill you.' He swallowed those words and directed Jeremy to keep fighting.

More and more beasts entered the narrow path in the rocky outcropping.

Jeremy was slowly getting overwhelmed. He hid on top of a rock for a second and checked his status screen. His breath came hard and fast.

[Jeremy Smalls]

New Summoned

Health: 30/30 (0.02/minute)

Stamina: 11/30 (2.0/minute)

Energy: 20/20 (0.02/minute)

[Attributes]

Strength 2

Speed 3

Stamina 2

Sturdiness 2

Energy Pool 1

Comprehension 1

Energy Compression 1

Regeneration 1

AP: 0

[Skills]

[Stealth]

Level 2

Hide your presence and make it 200% harder for enemies to detect you.

Energy Cost: 2

Duration: 15 minutes

No Cooldown

[Stab]

Level 1

Coat your weapon with energy and pierce through a single target causing an additional 50% energy damage.

Energy Cost: 1

No Cooldown

His stamina was getting low, so he took a quick break on top of a rock while Otto cast his 'Rejuvenation' spell onto Jeremy.

Otto looked at him and growled,

"Manage your stamina better. If you can kill with a small action, never use a big one. Efficiency is king in melee. Remember this."

Otto's eyes glowed blue and he finally entered the fray to kill monsters himself.

Mana bolts came out one after another like they were free.

Well, to Otto, it was true they didn't cost much.

Plus, he now had almost a hundred tiny glass vials of mana recovery potions. With such a large mana pool, he wasn't too worried about running out.

Jeremy's eyes were glued to Otto's actions.

He also saw the monster count for his mission constantly going up as the monsters were being rapidly massacred by Otto.

The [Tower] didn't really have a 'team' or 'party' mechanic until they got to higher floors.

Otto wasn't totally sure how the [Tower] actually judged that they were a team. Either way, it allowed Jeremy to benefit from his monster kills.

Otto also made sure to use the enchanted bracelet he had received from Commander Zeller to record his kills.

As the kill count went up rapidly, Otto smirked.

Now, just need to maintain this for 24 hours.

**************************************************

23 hours later

The monsters had never stopped coming.

Jeremy wasn't sure exactly how many there were in this godforsaken forest, but he conservatively felt that there were millions of them.

That's because even after killing thousands of monsters, mostly with the help of Otto's mana bolts, and the occasional mana shield, there was no sign of them letting up.

Jeremy also couldn't guarantee that the beast luring potion would really stop working after 24 hours.

He felt nervous despite his exhaustion.

How much longer could he keep this up?

He dragged his exhausted body up back on top of a rock and continued ambushing them mechanically.

Except, his exhaustion was affecting his judgment.

Instead of ambushing the monsters, a small raccoon like monster jumped up behind him to return the favor.

It swiped at his neck and was about to take a chunk out, when…a light blue bolt came out of nowhere and exploded, smashing it into pieces.

Jeremy shivered as he suddenly felt killing intent explode from the man behind him.

His instincts screamed at him to 'RUN RUN RUN.'

But he slowly turned around only to find Otto surrounded by monster corpses, glaring at him.

His eyes were ablaze with anger.

"NEVER let your guard down in front of an enemy. That,"

He pointed at the dead raccoon thing,

"Would have killed you just now."

He sneered,

"I bet you didn't even see it."

Jeremy suddenly felt angry,

"I'm tired! Really tired! Exhausted! I can barely even fight right now! How am I supposed to keep my guard up?"

Otto raised an eyebrow.

"Ohhh, you're…tired?"

Jeremy felt a chill down his neck. He frantically shook his head, but Otto continued.

"So your excuse for letting your guard down in a hostile environment with an unknown amount of enemies surrounding you and your teammate is that…you're tired?"

"And what would happen if you had to spend days in the wilderness surrounded by enemies on all sides with only your teammates to guard your back?"

"Would you decide to collapse on the ground and let your enemies through because you hadn't had enough sleep the night before?"

"And if those enemies killed your teammate because you let your guard down and let them through, would you then turn around and shrug while you told them you were 'tired'???"

Jeremy sullenly shook his head. He poured out his anger and used his energy skill to stab a few nearby monsters.

Once they were cleared for the moment, he turned around and looked at Otto, who was clearly still angry about his lapse.

"I'm sorry." Jeremy bowed his head.

"For?"

Otto didn't like bare apologies. These kinds of simple apologies were often meant to appease another's anger.

In Otto's opinion, rather than apologizing, he would prefer if one sincerely learned from their actions and did not repeat it in the future.

But if an apology was given, it had to be sincere and demonstrate that the person had understood their fault and would not make the same mistake again.

Jeremy was sincere.

"I'm sorry I let my guard down. I'm annoyed because I'm uncomfortable and exhausted, but that's not a reason to place my own life and the lives of my team in danger."

Otto's anger was slightly abated.

"You're lucky we're only in the Tutorial right now. Had that happened on one of the upper floors, even I might not be able to save you.

Jeremy, now that you're in the tower, it's time to grow up, and fast. The path forward is long and painful, but you'll have to endure, endure, and keep enduring if you want to reach your goal."

Jeremy nodded, contrite. He had made the choice to join Otto's team, and it was his responsibility to give his all, even if he was exhausted.

He wasn't really mad at Otto, per se. Plus, this whole thing had been an excellent experience for him- his skills had improved a ton.

There were many times that Otto had so many monsters to fight off that he couldn't pay attention to Jeremy at all.

At that point, Jeremy started to fight like a wild man out of sheer desperation, using fists, feet, and even his teeth to kill all the animals surrounding him.

As soon as he barely made it out, he would always find out that more were on the way!

It was a terrifying training method. Jeremy's eyes were way different than they were even a day before.

Jeremy knew that Otto was doing all of this for his own benefit.

Deep down, he really appreciated Otto with all his heart. Otto's figure, in his mind, had slowly begun to overlap with his own older brother's…

Otto also noticed Jeremy's change.

The man was impressive, and he learned at rocket speed.

If Otto was a prodigy in many aspects related to magic, Jeremy was a prodigy in battle.

Otto continuously kept the pressure on to draw out Jeremy's potential. These twenty four hours weren't something that just anyone could complete.

The [Tower] wouldn't let anyone have an easy time. It wasn't a nice place to be.

So if Otto wanted Jeremy to survive, he'd have to make the kid the toughest, wildest, baddest monster out of all of the rest.

Coming up on the 24 hour mark, Otto understood a bit of why Jeremy was renowned in his past life.

The kid's innate trait, a perfect trait for a rogue that sneaks around, was nothing compared to his talent for battle.

He was a monster! There were times when Jeremy's killing speed had even outpaced Otto's!

Well, Otto was definitely not going all out against these monsters, but the facts were there.

After another minute, the duration of the Beast Luring potion was finally up.

The duo kept killing monsters for around another half hour before suddenly, there were none left.

Jeremy opened his eyes wide in relief.

But before he got the chance to say a thing, his figure swayed, and he fell to the ground, unconscious, amongst the beast corpses.

Otto clicked his tongue at Jeremy for falling unconscious in hostile territory.

Yet a small smile hung on his lips.

Otto picked Jeremy up in a fireman's carry and slowly walked back to the military camp.