The list of treasures was far larger, and the quality far more diverse, than that of the bronze chest.
At 100% there were bronze items; at 80%, silver; at 60%, gold. And so it continued until, at 10%, diamond-quality items appeared, and at 1%, legendary items.
Seeing all that, Danilo — an old monkey in these matters — trembled.
This is only the easy mode of the first floor…
And there are still hundreds of other floors left.
He thought of a phrase appropriate for the moment.
With the Heart of the Monarch, I will conquer the heavens.
He began checking from the legendary category onward. Various items appeared — armors, weapons — all far more refined, until he found hidden career-change scrolls. There were many of them, of different attributes and classes.
There were also legendary pills.
Guild establishment orders.
Clan establishment orders.
And many other things.
The biggest pity was that from 10% (Diamond) onward, the number of items that could be selected was reduced to one — unlike the three that could be claimed in the lower categories.
Danilo was an ambitious man, so he scrolled further down: 0.1%, 0.01%, 0.001%…
Mythical eggs, like the Golden Crow's. There were even dragons. Mythical bloodline vials. Mythical clan establishment orders.
He could only choose one.
And the problem with having too many options is simple: it overloads the mind and, as a consequence, creates confusion.
There were too many incredible things, and he could only choose one.
Why could he only choose one?
If everything were different…
Then, one item caught his attention.
A storage ring.
Its appearance was exquisite, but in the area it was in — 0.001% — it seemed out of place. After all, there were dragon eggs there. A simple ring had to be special to be there.
The most frustrating part was that he could only see the name, not the attributes.
Ring of Infinite Space.
The name said it all.
Deep down, he knew it. At this moment, this was exactly what he needed — not dragon eggs, not mythical bloodlines, nor hidden career-change scrolls.
He could even choose a clan or guild establishment order, but without storage space — like in the stories — and if, to build power, they had to leave this place and go somewhere else, like the entrance hall… all their hard work would be wasted.
He did not want to abandon any of those mountains in front of them.
So the correct decision was not a dragon egg, not a mythical bloodline, nor a hidden scroll — but the damn storage ring.
Danilo confirmed his choice.
Ring of Infinite Space (Mythical)
Infinite Space
Unlimited storage space.
Mother–Child Mode
Can be bound to multiple people.
The owner acts as the mother.
The others become children.
Balance
Balances all of the user's attributes.
All attributes equalize to the highest existing attribute,
making them all the same.
Living Storage
Can store living creatures.
(The creature is frozen in time.)
Not bad, he thought.
Truly worthy of belonging to the 0.001% group.
People had been waiting for a long time to see what item Danilo would draw. For quite a while… they waited.
He continued staring at the chest. Since everyone knew what he was doing, no one minded. And after some time, he finally made his decision.
Then they saw Danilo open the special treasure chest.
And then they saw a ring appear in his hand.
They were shocked.
At first, there was disappointment. But when they noticed that the color was different, they did not jump to conclusions.
Normally, it is possible to see a weapon's attributes before the user binds it. Since Danilo had not yet bound the item, it was only possible to see the name — the quality, however, did not appear.
At first glance, the storage ring was a bit disappointing. But looking at their current reality, they urgently needed storage space for items. So that ring came at exactly the right time.
The pity was that there were surely much better items.
— Why did only one item appear? — Lesliana asked, confused.
— Only bronze and silver give three items. Diamond and above only give one, — Danilo explained.
Everyone nodded after hearing the explanation and, once again, regretted their imprudence in opening their own treasure chests too quickly, without waiting for Danilo.
Looking at the ring in his hand, even Lesliana showed envy.
It was a storage ring.
Even without knowing its quality, she knew how necessary that item was.
Hidden Mission (Ascension)
(Climb the first 10 floors of the Celestial Tower within 10 days, at level 0.)
Mode / Ranking:
Easy (C)
Normal (B)
Hard (A)
Hell (S)
Purgatory (SS)
Abyss (SSS)
All Levels (Chaos)
When they saw that notification, everyone was stunned.
A mission directly from the Celestial Tower.
Most of them did not know how to react.
Although it was flattering to receive such a mission, Pancho, Kiala, and Lesliana were not used to a constant combat rhythm.
They had just fought for more than five hours. The idea of repeating that several times was more frightening than appealing.
Michaela, Leila, and Danilo, on the other hand, saw it as an opportunity. No… a great opportunity.
With their current strength and abilities, everyone was confident they could at least complete the easy mode. As for the other modes… although Danilo was confident in his own strength, there was a major problem: he did not know the other floors. He had no idea what monsters would appear.
Even the easy mode they had just cleared had been extremely exhausting. Imagining the other floors was terrifying.
There was no way to take the risk without strategy. After all, knowing your enemy is a basic rule.
As if the system had heard his thoughts, question marks appeared in front of each difficulty level.
The curious clicked on them.
EASY (C) – 10,000 / 7,500 (Common) – 2,499 (Elite) – 1 (Baron)
NORMAL (B) – 10,000 / 5,000 (Common) – 4,990 (Elite) – 10 (Baron)
HARD (A) – 10,000 / 2,500 (Common) – 7,400 (Elite) – 100 (Baron)
HELL – 0 (Common) – 5,000 (Elite) – 4,999 (Baron) – 1 (Elite Baron)
PURGATORY – 10,000 (Elite) – 2,500 – 7,400 (Baron) – 100 (Elite Baron)
ABYSS – 10,000 (Baron) – 5,000 – 4,990 (Elite Baron) – 10 (Count)
After reading the information, everyone felt lighter.
They were shocked to realize that the task, for them, was actually quite easy. Any of them had the ability to complete it.
Although they had never seen a Count-grade creature, they knew their attributes had already reached 100 — the group's current level — so it would not be difficult. At most, it would be tedious.
After all, being attacked by thousands of creatures over a long period of time greatly increases mental stress.
Then Leila noticed something no one had seen before.
— The mission is solo.
After hearing that, everyone looked more closely.
It was true. The mission was indeed solo.
That changed everything.
For Kiala and Lesliana, it became difficult to accept. They gained a lot of confidence when they had others by their side, regardless of attribute disparity. Alone, facing monsters, they did not feel safe.
As for the others, Pancho chose Purgatory mode immediately. Considering the number of battles he had already fought, he was well aware of his own strength — especially since he was almost twice as strong as the final bosses.
Choosing another mode would be a waste of talent.
Michaela chose the Abyss.
Leila also wanted to choose the Abyss, but she knew her own weaknesses well. Without magic, she was relatively ordinary. Although she had great strength, her expertise was magic.
So she decided on Purgatory mode. Even though she could foresee attacks and regenerate infinitely, she did not want to take unnecessary risks. Not to mention that she wasted too many weapons — she needed to find a way to soften her blows to preserve equipment.
Seeing the choices of the three, Danilo nodded in agreement.
Still, he was surprised that Leila chose Purgatory.
The Abyss was almost guaranteed for her.
After all, Leila might not have magic, but she possessed the talent to foresee the future — and that talent made her a monster. Once she obtained time-related abilities… he almost pitied her enemies.
Danilo then looked at Kiala and Lesliana.
Pancho had courage because he was a man and felt the urge to explore. The two of them, despite the power disparity, preferred to play it safe.
In many cases, that was good. But in this situation, where victory was almost guaranteed, it was truly a pity.
In the end, they would not only receive spirit crystals and chests — there would also be monster carcasses.
Danilo believed many of them were edible. And now that they had infinite, shareable storage space, they could sweep everything clean without guilt.
— And you two? Aren't you going to take the risk? — Danilo asked, looking at Kiala and Lesliana.
Neither of them knew how to answer.
It would be very embarrassing to admit that they lacked confidence to fight alone and preferred to face everything as a group.
— I know what you're thinking, — Danilo said. — You're afraid. Afraid of failing. Afraid that if something goes wrong, there will be no way back. And above all… afraid of dying.
— But you must consider an important fact. Kiala Afonso. From today onward, since the arrival of the Celestial Domain, your destiny has already been set.
Danilo looked directly at Kiala.
— As my daughter, you will be the center of attention in the future. Many people will want to use you. From today on, I believe that, except for me and your brother, everyone in your life will want to approach you to reach me. Whether for good or evil, the world will pay attention to you.
— You will face many challenges. The whole world will want to see your jokes and your mistakes. Before, I didn't demand much from you. You were the youngest of my daughters. Reality was different. But you are no longer the little princess. Now, you are literally the princess of the Afonso family. Your status will surpass that of most people. And what the world loves most is seeing others make fools of themselves.
— So it's time to grow up and stop these childish tantrums. You have enough strength to end this. So get to work. Enter Purgatory mode or Abyss. You choose. Anything lower is intolerable.
— Among everyone here, you and your brother are the only ones whose talents can truly assist in battle. Your opponents — even the strongest — will be weaker than you. And even if you get injured, you can regenerate infinitely.
— You must keep in mind that you are now my eldest daughter. My firstborn. There will be no one else to clean up your messes. And the world will expect much more from you.
After hearing her father, Kiala fell into a trance. She did not know what to say.
Although she knew the others were not Danilo's biological children, internally she still had not fully accepted that reality.
Just over a week had passed since the discovery — and the implosion of the family as she had always known it.
During that time, she had to deal with the fact that she was not his biological daughter and later, after revealing everything, with feelings of indignation, betrayal, and emotional distance from her father.
She had never considered the possibility of being the eldest.
On one hand, she was happy to confirm that she was still his daughter and that he was someone powerful — life could become more comfortable. But the idea of being the eldest was a strange and distant concept for Kiala Afonso.
After speaking to Kiala, Danilo turned to Lesliana.
— Little queen… you are the love of my life.
After those words, the atmosphere became strange.
Lesliana was moved. Kiala and Pancho, however, felt uncomfortable hearing their father say that to a woman who was not their mother. After all, just two weeks earlier, their parents had still been married and well.
Leila and Michaela, for their part, felt jealousy and envy.
— At the lowest point of my life, as you know, you were the one who saved me and showed me the light. And I will always be grateful for that.
— For you, I created a revolution. To avenge your death, thousands died. And because of you, billions died afterward, as a consequence.
— It was after losing you that I decided to take control of my destiny. To never again feel that pain. The pain of losing someone. The pain of feeling powerless.
— Now, things are different. We are no longer insects who had to live in fear of being noticed or of provoking someone who couldn't be provoked.
— Do you remember those who didn't even bother to look at us? Those who thought we weren't even worthy of their contempt?
— All of them knelt before me. Crawled. Built statues in your honor, back in Azeroth.
— For hundreds of years, thousands of hymns were sung in honor of the saint. And do you know who that saint was?
He looked straight at her.
— You.
— And why did an insignificant servant of the Golden Crow race become that, when not even the descendants of gods could?
— Because of me.
— And why could I do that? Because I had power.
— You are no longer weak. No longer a servant. No longer insignificant.
— I know this is a harsh reality shock. A few hours ago, you were about to die with me. And now you have discovered too many things in too little time.
— You no longer have your family. The life you had is over. You must accept this. Your status is no longer that of an ordinary person.
— You are my woman. And as such, you cannot show weakness in front of others. You must move forward.
— Before long, the world will pay attention to you.
— You may be the weakest among everyone here… but you have your merits. With your talent, I will become the richest man in the world. Honestly, I think that talent is perfect for you. For someone who always loved money, receiving that talent only proves that your heavens have vision.
Danilo finished with a smile.
Hearing those words, Lesliana blushed.
She had always known she had a greedy side, but she had not imagined it was that obvious. Still, it made her feel more relaxed.
Since arriving here, everything had changed. Her lover had a different face. The life she knew had disappeared. The man she loved had children who were not hers — and other women, far more beautiful and talented.
Even without wanting to admit it, that made her uncomfortable and insecure. She knew she could not compete with the others.
So that speech — and the Golden Crow egg she had obtained — gave her courage.
Danilo turned to the two of them.
— So… what will you choose? Below Hell is forbidden.