Kim Hajun glanced at his watch. Time didn’t have much meaning in the tower. Like a certain city in his home world, the big tree never slept. People could be found using its amenities at all hours of the day, and inside the tower, the light was all artificial except on the higher floors. Regardless, Kim Hajun adjusted his watch, which had slid out of position by less than a centimeter, and slicked his hair back with his hand. Having power wasn’t the only way to get ahead in the tower. Dressing well and looking presentable worked wonders too.

Kim Hajun pushed open the door, and instead of the peaceful, bustling chatter he had expected to hear from the guild recruitment area, shouts and screams filled his ears instead. A few people even rushed past him, bumping him with their shoulders as they ran out of the area, which was strange because the guild recruitment area was one of the safest places within the tower; the guilds and clans agreed not to cause any trouble there.

It didn’t take long for Kim Hajun to spot the source of disturbance. An orange streak flew through the air and smashed into the wall beside him, sending a wave of heated air towards him. Despite the speed at which the object flew, the wall remained undamaged. Kim Hajun’s eyes widened upon getting a better look at the person who had been launched like a ballista bolt. The leader of the Extreme Heat Clan, Deowi, looked like a broken puppet with his legs and arms bending in places they shouldn’t.

Kim Hajun’s head snapped towards the far side of the room, the area Deowi had been launched from. Upon seeing the man responsible for Deowi’s flight, Kim Hajun clenched his hand. It was the variable, Vur, once again interfering with the plan. Deowi wasn’t supposed to be defeated, not until the alliance formed and pushed to the hundredth floor. “Excuse me,” Kim Hajun said to the collapsed explorer. “Are you alright?”

Deowi turned his head to look at Kim Hajun. The fire spirit race member coughed, and spurts of black flames were ejected from his mouth. His limbs rattled and whirled around, correcting themselves as needed. Deowi climbed to his feet and grunted. A new set of armor grew out of his body, his previous set littering the ground by his feet in shattered chunks. “Don’t worry about me,” Deowi said and gave Kim Hajun a thumbs-up. “Are you new to the tower? Would you like to join the Extreme Heat Clan?”

“Your leg fell off,” Kim Hajun said, pointing at the flaming man’s lower half.

Deowi looked down. He nodded. His leg, had, indeed, disconnected from his torso. He bent down and grabbed his leg. It burst into flames which surged into his body and exited out of his thigh stump where the gaseous substance reformed into a leg made of fire. “Come talk to me later,” Deowi said and licked his lips, staring straight ahead at Vur, looking past the crowd of people who were scattering along the path he had flown. “Let me finish my spar first.”

Kim Hajun didn’t have time to say anything before Deowi’s body morphed into flames. The flames surged forward like a tidal wave, causing people to scream and leap away as they passed. A furrow appeared on Kim Hajun’s brow. Deowi’s special ability was very strong, nearly on the verge of overpowered; it was hard to believe he was on the losing end of a spar. Kim Hajun frowned and stepped to the side, positioning himself behind a foundational pillar of an awning.

Deowi’s ability, if the timeline hadn’t deviated any further than it already had, allowed him to burn the energy from his opponent’s attacks and use it as fuel to power himself. The stronger his opponent’s attacks, the livelier and tougher Deowi would get. Even physical attacks, kinetic energy, Deowi was able to use as fuel for his flames, so Kim Hajun watched very carefully to see how in the world Deowi was shot out like a ragdoll.

Deowi’s body was completely made of flames, looking more like a firestorm than a person. He charged towards Vur, but the half-naked man simply stood still and waited despite the approaching flames. Kim Hajun frowned. Currently, he didn’t have any skills that’d let him see at a distance, so he did the next best thing: he leaned forward and squinted really dang hard. He was barely able to make out Deowi’s gaseous body solidifying and glowing as bright as the sun. Deowi clashed with Vur, and then, the fire spirit race member turned into a comet as he was blasted away, causing another series of screams to ring out from the crowd.

Kim Hajun frowned. Did Deowi lose his overpowered ability? If he didn’t, then the earlier collision should’ve empowered him instead of repelling him. Kim Hajun watched as Deowi picked himself up again. The wall behind Deowi remained undamaged, a telltale sign his ability was at play. As for Vur, he was still standing in the same spot, in the same posture, arrogantly positioned with his arms across his puffed-out chest. Dozens of thoughts ran through Kim Hajun’s head, but he couldn’t identify the ability Vur was using to so easily deal with Deowi. A grimace appeared on Kim Hajun’s lips. If Vur was an enemy instead of a neutral variable, then climbing the tower was going to be a whole lot more difficult.

“Hey!” someone shouted. “What do the two of you think you’re doing?”

Kim Hajun raised his head. The guilds and clans agreed not to make trouble in the lower levels of the tower, but that didn’t mean there weren’t any explorers stationed as guardians to protect the guilds’ and clans’ interests. Thick fog descended from the ceiling, blanketing the ground and air in a layer of white. Kim Hajun turned his head, or at least, he tried to. The fog was binding him in place, which would explain the lack of screams coming from the crowd. The familiar skill brought a faint smile to Kim Hajun’s face, and his body couldn’t help but relax under the grip of the clouds.