Episode 15: Townsperson A Conquers the Sage's Tower

"Course clear. Takeoff OK. Taking off."

I ignited the Wind Magic Engine, and the Wind Magic Glider accelerated down the runway until it lifted into the sky.

If there isn't a runway, I’ll just have to make one, I’d thought. With that pragmatic logic in mind, I had gone ahead and cleared a strip deep in the forest of northeastern Luluden. Traveling back and forth from the city was a bit of a hassle, but it wasn't as if I could take off or land in the middle of a bustling town anyway. I really should have just done this from the start.

The glider gained altitude steadily, soaring with enough momentum to reach the height of the stratus clouds.

To put things into perspective, the Sage's Tower was located in an incredibly inaccessible region. From Luluden, one had to take a series of carriages for ten days to reach a specific town, then trek another four days through dense forest on foot.

The tower was said to have been built by an ancient sage. It was a staggering 300 floors high—a skyscraper that would make the Burj Khalifa turn pale with envy. At 300 floors, the actual height was likely somewhere between 1,000 and 1,500 meters.

In the game, you could visit this tower as part of an independent research project for the second-year school festival. However, it wasn't mandatory; you could clear the main story without ever stepping foot inside.

Because the tower was so far away, I didn't bother with fuel-efficient gliding. Instead, I kept the Wind Magic Engine firing at full blast. I was moving significantly faster than during my previous flight; at this rate, I estimated I would arrive in just a few hours.

The Wind Magic Glider had undergone several improvements since its last outing, specifically tailored for the conquest of the Sage's Tower.

The most significant upgrade was making the core of the Wind Magic Engine—the heart of the glider—removable. Last time, I had transmuted everything into a single, cohesive unit, meaning the whole thing was ruined if one part broke. This time, even if I crashed, I wouldn't need to hunt for a new Wyvern Magic Stone as long as I recovered the core.

I had also switched the airframe's material almost entirely to carbon fiber. I used Wyvern bones only for the wing roots, where the structural stress was highest. Thanks to that efficiency, I’d only used half of the Wyvern’s femur.

As for the medium to transmit the mana... that was my own hair. Plucking it out was painful, but desperate times called for desperate measures. I’ve never liked having long hair—it's nothing but a nuisance—but I supposed I’d have to consider growing it out for future components.

By cutting costs this way, the Magic Stone required for the rest of the airframe’s transmutation didn't need to be a rare Wyvern stone; an Orc Magic Stone sufficed.

This was a massive breakthrough.

I could buy an Orc Magic Stone from the Guild for about 100,000 Cent. While Orcs were loathed by the general populace for various reasons, they were popular as a source of meat. Since hunting them was a primary source of income for mid-tier adventurers, the market inventory of their stones was always abundant.

Balanced between cost-efficiency and high performance, the Wind Magic Glider hummed along smoothly on its maiden long-distance voyage.

As I sat there, stuffing my face with a sandwich I’d prepared for the trip, a tower of impossible height appeared on the horizon.

There was no mistaking it. That was the Sage's Tower.

"Time to begin the operation, just as we practiced," I muttered.

I gripped the elevator controls with my left hand, banking the craft into a turn while climbing higher. The glider pierced through the stratus clouds, emerging into the clear air above. Since those clouds usually topped out at around 2,000 meters, that was roughly my current altitude.

Below me, a vast, white sea of clouds stretched to the horizon. The upper reaches of the tower thrust through the white expanse like a needle. I could finally see the rooftop with my own eyes.

I piloted the glider closer, but no interference or defensive magic triggered.

Just as I thought.

I swung the glider out wide, distancing myself from the tower before banking into a sharp U-turn. I leveled the nose, aiming it straight at the structure.

"Vector good. Altitude good. Target: Top floor of the Sage’s Tower. Glider Missile, charge!"

I cranked the Wind Magic Engine to maximum output.

The airframe groaned and rattled under the strain. Speed built rapidly as I went into a dead-sprint dive toward the very peak of the tower.

"Now! Eject!"

I yanked the engine core from its housing and slapped the emergency escape trigger.

The mechanism functioned perfectly, launching me upward and clear of the craft with a heavy thump.

"Mana. Source of all creation, gather in my hand and become the wind."

I fired a blast of wind diagonally downward to kill my forward momentum, then deployed my custom parachute. Once the canopy caught, I ignited a secondary, miniature Wind Magic Engine to stabilize my descent. It wasn't powerful enough for true flight, but it allowed me to steer my landing precisely.

With this setup, I was essentially a motorized paraglider.

Meanwhile, the glider I had abandoned transformed into a makeshift missile. It slammed into the top of the Sage’s Tower with a resounding crash. Because the craft was lightweight, the impact wasn't world-ending, but I had reinforced the nose with iron to ensure it had enough punch to break through.

I guided myself down onto the rooftop and quickly assessed the situation. The area where the glider had struck was crumbled, leaving a gaping hole, but the rest of the structure seemed unharmed.

I hurriedly stowed my parachute and used a rope to descend through the breach into the top floor.

"All according to plan!"

I had successfully reached the summit while bypassing every single trap, monster, and boss the tower had to throw at me.

As I looked around, the Sage's Tower's self-repair functions kicked in. The stone masonry began to knit itself back together, gradually erasing the hole until the exterior looked as though the accident had never happened.

To be clear, the only reason I knew the exterior walls were destructible was because of the game's story. In the original timeline, there was an event where Amy and her party reached the top floor to celebrate their victory, only to be ambushed when a wounded Black Sky Dragon smashed through the outer wall to attack them.

The dragon's character design had been undeniably cool, but it was an "abrupt encounter" boss with no dialogue that was also absurdly powerful. At the time, I remember cursing the developers for the sudden difficulty spike.

Having successfully infiltrated the room, I marched toward the treasure chest sitting in the center of the floor.

The lid let out a dry, metallic groan as I pried it open. Inside lay a single scroll.

No doubt about it—this was the Scroll of Multicasting.

I used the item immediately, and the knowledge flooded my mind as I acquired the skill.

Name: Allen
Rank: E
Age: 12
Divine Protection: 【Wind God】
Skills: 【Stealth】, 【Appraisal】, 【Alchemy】, 【Wind Magic】, 【Multi-Cast】
Residence: Luluden
Funds: 3,308,751 Cent
Level: 1
Stamina: E
Magic Power: D

Well then. I only needed one more skill to complete my build. It was time to start the preparations.