“What the hell, man!?” Rebecca squealed. “You took my kill!”

“No,” Alex said as he fought to keep a smirk from curling at his lips. “I secured it.”

Rebecca flashed a dagger at him. “Secured my ass.”

Wayne jumped in front of her. “Hold on, Rebecca. We got through the barrier because of him. We can’t go fighting now.”

Alex shrugged. “Look, the shaman was an epic monster. I couldn’t risk it surviving and hitting us with some kind of spell. Besides, we all get experience points from it.”

Rebecca snarled. “Like hell. The one who finishes the enemy off gets the most exp.”

So, she knows.

“It’s fine.” Wayne said as he lowered Rebecca’s dagger down to her side. “The trolls are dead so let’s figure out how to distribute this loot.”

Alex stepped forward and picked up the artifact that the shaman had been holding. He felt the spirit energy swirling inside, and he directed it into his body. His spirit energy replenished instantly, going from virtually zero to full.

“Don’t go stealing anything before we get a proper look.” Rebecca said as she eyed him suspiciously.

“Don’t worry, it’s all out.” Alex tossed the artifact to the side. “It can’t be refilled either so it’s totally useless.”

Wayne created a small fire in the palm of his hand as he scanned the loot. “Looks like we got a treasure chest, a necklace, some coins, a few javelins and some other crude gear. How should we split it?”

Alex pointed to the scroll. “That scroll will create a portal that’ll take us to the next floor. We’ll all make use of it so there’s no point splitting it up.”

“How are you so sure?” Rebecca said. “I can’t trust someone who steals kills.”

Wayne walked over to the scroll and read the description. “He’s right. It does exactly what he said.”

Alex walked around Rebecca and picked the necklace up off the ground.

Necklace of Essence Effect: +5 Spirit Grade: Common Quality: Good

He turned to the others. “I’ll let you guys have the chest if I can have this necklace. It increases the Spirit stat which makes it useless for you two. I’ll even let you take the rest of the items.”

“Fine.” Rebecca said as she grabbed the treasure chest.

“No.” Wayne said. “Let’s a least split the coins, too. We owe it to you for saving us.”

Alex ignored the dirty look that Rebecca shot him and shrugged. “If you insist.”

They split the loot as they’d agreed. Alex stored his share of the coins, 3 in total, in his inventory ring. He then equipped the necklace and confirmed that his Spirit stat increased. I should do a little more damage with this.

Inside the chest was a Ring of Greater Magic. Rebecca gave it to Wayne, who’s look of excitement contrasted greatly with her disappointment.

“Perfect!” Wayne said. “With this my spells will deal more damage.” He turned to Alex. “By the way, I had no idea my Blaze Burst ability was that powerful. It one shot all those troll rangers!”

Alex nodded. “But it required a long channeling time to get to that strength. In most cases you won’t have the luxury of standing in one place for that long to charge it.”

Rebecca kicked at the dirt. “Looks like we got everything. Let’s get out of here.” She activated the scroll and a large, purple portal appeared before them. This was their gateway to the third floor.

Alex signaled for the two of them to enter and he followed right behind.

***

When Alex popped out of the portal, he was in shock at what he saw. This wasn’t the third floor. Instead he found himself on a tiny piece of land that barely covered his shoulder-width stance. Water surrounded his minuscule plot of ground in every direction. An endless sea covered everything save for one other piece of land just across a narrow stretch of water. This other land carried a small forest in front of which a woman sat on a throne made of tree trunks intertwined with leaves. Despite the materials, the throne looked regal in a strange kind of way.

The woman stared straight at Alex as she sat cross-legged atop the throne, her airy, green dress flowing gently in the breeze. Long blond hair framed the dignified look that rested on her face. “Hello.” She said. “I am Raphelia, the Warden of Nature.”

Alex’s eyes shot open in disbelief. Why was he here? This had to be some kind of mistake.

Raphelia kept her gaze fixed on him. “And you are?”

Alex swallowed. “I’m Alex Harrian. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“I see. I’ll skip the formalities and get right down to it, Alex. I brought you here to give you an offer. If you do something for me, I can grant you great powers in return.”

Alex wasn’t sure what to think. This had to be a dream. Did the troll’s gas get to him? Warden’s didn’t start offering contracts to people until they’d reached at least the 10th floor. To offer a contract to someone who just cleared the second floor was unheard of.

Last time around Amina, the Warden of Mind, had offered him a contract when he’d reached the 16th floor. She’d given him a condition; a challenge to clear. When he cleared the challenge over a year later, she’d given him a few Mind skills. While he’d been grateful for what he’d received, Mind powers hadn’t synergized particularly well with a Knight.

She eyed him intently. “Well?”

“Oh, uh, sorry, I’m just taken aback. This is all so sudden.”

This was a rare opportunity to talk directly with a Warden. Alex had so many questions. Questions about Chrono and this new timeline he’d found himself in. Could he ask her about that? Did she even know? Or were her memories reverted as well? Maybe this wasn’t the time.

Alex weighed his options and decided to focus on the offer at hand. He didn’t want to repeat the mistake of accepting the first offer that a Warden had thrown at him like he did the first time around. What if he received powers that didn’t help him in any way? Or worse, powers that slowed him down. He had to think things through. Choosing which Warden to make a pact with would dictate how things would go from here on out. But he couldn’t flat out refuse an offer, could he? That was unheard of. No one knew the full extent of a Warden’s powers or what would happen if a pact wasn’t accepted. That fear and uncertainty was part of the reason why everyone always accepted a Warden’s contract. The other part was the temptation of an increase in power that they offered.

“With all due respect, Warden. Before I accept the contract, may I ask what you will offer me?”

Raphelia’s eyes narrowed, and her gaze pierced through him. She waited a moment before she spoke. “First, answer my question. What is it that you want?”

Alex wasn’t sure how to answer. Could he say that he wanted the towers to disappear? How would a Warden respond to such talk? No one knew exactly what their role was within the tower or what stakes they had in it. So, no one tested them. Everyone just gave answers that flattered the Wardens and hoped they’d get some kind of power in return. Maybe now was the time to test those waters.

“I want to clear this tower as soon as possible. But I can’t do that on my own. I need power. Power to overcome every obstacle that comes in my path, and the power to help my future allies reach their full potential.”

“And what will you do with such power?”

“I’ll build the strongest force anyone’s ever seen, and we’ll defeat whatever awaits us at the top.”

“I see.” Raphelia said. “Then I have something for you. A unique class that only I can offer. Does that interest you?”

Alex’s heart skipped a beat. A unique class!? There were few things in the tower that were rarer and more valuable than a unique class. Less than twenty had been documented in the previous timeline. They were often powerful, though not overpowered. And they came with harsh conditions before they could be unlocked. Conditions such as killing thousands of a certain type of monster or providing rare items to the Warden in exchange. They were so hard to unlock that it wasn’t unheard of to take years to unlock a unique class. If he could get a contract now, he’d have a head start in meeting the conditions and unlocking the unique class.

“Yes, Warden. I am very interested.”

Raphelia smirked. “Then I am willing to offer you this contract.”

A screen appeared in front of Alex.

Raphelia has offered you a contract.

Conditions: Hidden

Reward: Unique Class

Hidden conditions? What does that mean?

“This contract is a little different.” Raphelia said. “I will offer you the reward upfront, but I will not tell you what the conditions are. Should you accept, the conditions will then become visible to you.”

Alex stared at the screen in uncertainty. “I’ll get the class upfront? But what about the conditions? Couldn’t I just ignore the conditions since I’d already have the reward?” He paused when he realized what he was saying. “Erm- not that I would ever do that, of course.”

Raphelia smiled. “You are free to ignore the conditions if you like, though I highly discourage it. Should you fail to meet them, you will die instantly.”

Death, huh? Of course, what else would it be?

Alex pondered over the choice. A unique class was certainly valuable. Not only that, but it would also come unlocked. But was it worth the price? What could the condition be? What if clearing the condition is too difficult or takes up too much of his time? And what if he died? He chuckled at the thought. A would-be savior dying from greed and leading to humanity’s destruction. That sounds all too familiar. But the reward is so alluring. Should I take the gamble?

After much ruminating he finally came to a decision.

He took a deep breath and looked at Raphelia. “I accept the contract.”

You have signed a contract with Raphelia, the Warden of Nature

You have unlocked the Nature Forms Augmentation

Skill Unlocked: Tiger Form

Skill Unlocked: Tiger Fist