“That guy is amazing!! Was it the 【Puppeteer】?”
He was the lowest Climber in the Royalty-grade league, but…
She was showcasing incredible talent and steadily rising.
Even managed to neutralize the Predator by binding it with strings, securing victory through submission.
Not just that, against the King of Authority, avoided close combat entirely, eventually wrapping him up with strings to seal him, proving her skill.
Summoning countless puppets simultaneously and remotely controlling them to fight.
The summoned figures, which she probably made herself, had a mannequin-like crude feel to them.
“Oh~ it would be great to make [VTuber] characters with those.”
Adelheid, as an 【Artist】, evaluated it as a harmonious match with Legendary Class.
Creating [VTuber] characters to have the Puppeteer manipulate them for concerts or fan events?
The potential for using the ability seemed limitless with just a little thought.
But was it useful in climbing? It was useful enough.
The way she freely spun thin threads was like watching a spider.
It was even overwhelmingly advantageous against the “physical class”.
The closer you got, the more you became entangled in strings, your movements slowed until finally, you were bound and sealed.
If only it ended there, she even had a skill to control the opponent wrapped under strings.
In the case of the King of Authority, he almost turned the tables by pulling the Puppeteer towards him, but being a Climber, she cleverly used puppets as shields.
“I’m scared…”
Trung Hieu muttered, watching the scene.
Wakamou was masterfully utilizing the [Boxing] he had learned from him.
He was moving around the field like a ring, employing footwork unseen in Taekwondo.
“Right….”
Wanda Haye agreed.
In her match, he had reached a level where he used [Skill] without actually employing [Skill].
Using [Idol’s Body] to liquefy his arm, turning it into liquid, hardening into metal to showcase various tactics.
Imagine fighting an opponent who not only starts imitating your techniques but also steps into new realms.
Even Monsters judged they had no chance and chose suicide over surrender, so how desperate would Climbers be?
Climbers proficient in martial arts ran out of tricks, those using special abilities had their methods mirrored and taken.
“Go!! My killer dolls!!”
With the start of battle, the Puppeteer deployed dozens of puppets simultaneously.
Equipped with weapons across all classes, the puppets even seemed capable of using [Skill].
Even the sight of a cleric-like puppet buffing them drew applause from the President of American Association.
─All the more since he was a Legendary Class from America.
The [Professor] watching leisurely realized it was the smart friend who had asked him a question before, his eyes twinkling.
“You have a talent for graduate studies!!”
“Argh…..!”
“Using a debuff from the audience is cheating!!”
At the Professor’s words, the Puppeteer clutched his head in pain.
Wakamou, who had breached from the side, said this couldn’t go on, lifted him, hugged, and consoled him.
The Puppeteer, who was startled as he was nestled in Wakamou’s chest, flailed around.
“Le-let go of me!!”
Threads stretched taut from the handle in his fingers as the motion-stopped puppets started moving again.
With a clattering sound, as they crunched their joints, the puppets charged towards Wakamou.
As the attacking blow sliced his head, Wakamou avoided it by dispersing mana and turning into mist.
Being able to transform into liquid also implied it was possible to vaporize.
Although it came with the downside of losing as much mana as the body part he essentially sacrificed─it wasn’t a big issue for Wakamou.
“Oh, oh…”
Wakamou, who dispersed into mist at the simultaneous onslaught from the Puppeteer’s puppets, vanished.
Something done before, transforming a fragment into the main body was feasible.
How then would Wakamou Inarizushi’s body, evaporated by his own will, be reconstructed?
Releasing control over [Idol’s Body], suppressing its return to the original state, Wakamou’s body reformed at an unexpected location.
Does it regenerate at the spot with the highest concentration of mana in the air?
“Destroy him!!”
With Wakamou appearing from afar, the Puppeteer manipulated the puppets to charge at him.
A puppet wielding a spear aimed and lunged at Wakamou.
He didn’t forget to trigger a [Skill] pose before sprinting.
Observing the lower-body horse-like puppet’s charge in silence, Wakamou calmly inspected.
Without the Puppeteer’s command, the puppet would just stop.
The sight of the stopped puppet felt reminiscent of something, and Wakamou realized this whilst watching the match.
From that state, [Puppeteer] drives magic power into it to move the puppet by “will”.
The string from the Puppeteer is fatal because those without [Magic] can’t see pure [Mana].
They can see [Skill] or [Magic] flying, but can’t usually see mana being absorbed to cast it.
But Wakamou could see it, perhaps the Wizards watching the match also saw it all?
The thin thread connecting from the Puppeteer’s hand.
Never tangled or twisted.
Furthermore, without limit in length, endlessly extending threads that could be used diversely for attack or defense.
Moreover, the stats could go up depending on the puppet’s material, so the growth of [Puppeteer] must have been rapid in this Climber-friendly age.
No need to go far, even in the Russian Tower, there are probably dozens of places making puppets.
Feeding mana through the threads made puppets move automatically as well.
“Wonderful, show me more!!”
With every twitch of their fingers, displaying versatile motions beyond human joints, the Puppeteer attacked.
While the Puppet used class-related skills, it appeared to only use one or two, revealing a clear pattern.
Although the attack style had few patterns, that made it rather tricky instead.
As the tank blocked Wakamou’s movements, archers and shooters attacked from a distance.
Assessing from the absence of mages, Wakamou concluded the [Mana] was drained from the puppets.
The more the puppets used skills, the more Wakamou sensed mana diminishing from them.
‘Not bad at all’
Infusing commands into the puppets, controlling them remotely for combat.
Simultaneously, directly controlling the strongest puppet to attack during openings.
“Indeed─ [Six Legged Beast] is fun”
“How…!?”
“For a rookie Climber, fast growth. [Mediator]’s help, I bet? Expertly nurturing the class, truly a professional’s touch.”
Within five minutes into the encounter, the Puppeteer was completely deciphered, their eyes trembling.
Though they were the same Climber, there was something else, an indescribable terror.
Could it be something wearing a human’s shell talking?
To think even such a monster wouldn’t stand a chance against [Man-eater] sent shivers down a Climber’s spine.
But─that makes it even more appealing.
Against a powerful foe, rather than being afraid, the Puppeteer’s hand, revealing a fighting spirit, competitiveness, and a greed to win, moved swiftly.
Human-shaped puppets morphed into Monster forms and began emerging.
Inside a giant Minotaur puppet, she protected herself and began her rampage.
“Then shall I fight the same way?”
No matter how many puppets gather, ultimately, he’s fighting four.
Ignoring the tank’s push, which didn’t even budge him, he brushed off the approaching close combat puppets lightly and used the tank as a wall to evade incoming attacks, Wakamou activated [Idol’s Body].
Then out popped Mei Xiao Long Bao from a distant spot.
Even further stood Jiang Yeoul, arms folded, with a smile.
“I thought you couldn’t use [Skill]?!”
“That’s just a doppelganger!! It’s Wakamou’s own trick, independent of [Skill]!”
“Indeed, the real idol is extraordinary!!”
Totally misunderstanding, Wakamou didn’t bother to correct.
Unable to adjust the camera angle with [Camera Control], he used Jiang Yeoul as a camera to change angles.
Then a mana string stretched from Wakamou’s fingertips.
“No way…?”
It was the moment when the Puppeteer panicked, Wakamou already having widened the gap.
“Could that be the thread my daughter talked about?”
“Huh? Dad, you can see it?”
So thick and long was the mana string from Wakamou’s hands connecting to Mei that even those who can’t see mana could easily spot it.
Finally, Wakamou, who had fully sat down as if holding a game console, moved his hands.
Tap─!!
Mei Xiao Long Bao, whose red eyes completely lost focus, charged forward with a puppet-like blank expression.
“Block─!”
“Wh-ya!!!”
With a single chop, Mei sliced through the necks of three puppets.
Nimbly bending backward, she kicked away the tank, scattering their formation.
“Wh-ya!!”
Unrelentingly, Mei shattered a puppet’s ankle joint with a lower chop.
Regardless of the material, the joints are inevitably the weak points!!
The Puppeteer attempted to ensnare Mei’s movements with strings.
As soon as it connected, Wakamou’s mana surged back through the string, causing the Puppeteer inside the Minotaur to spew blood and fall to the floor in agony.
“Aaah…!!”
“Is that [Mana Recoil]..? Did they botch the incantation?”
“No, Professor. Looks like they tried to seize control.”
“Reckless behavior…!”
Even well-acquainted with Wakamou, experiencing firsthand was another matter.
Unfortunately, the Puppeteer couldn’t see mana.
Even the President of American Association, the [Akasha Wizard] Timothy, was shivering in awe at Wakamou’s mana pillar.
Therefore, any sensible wizard wouldn’t challenge him with mana fights.
“That’s the Capoeira move, Meia Lua de Compasso..!”
With outstretched legs, supporting hands on the ground, performing a spinning kick!
The technique carrying colossal rotation, comparable to a top swordsman’s horizontal slash!
Even the Holy Swordsman couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
Lightning surged from Mei’s entire body.
While strongly gripping the long staff she raised, she readied her stance.
Watching the puppets shatter with each swing was quite a spectacle, but the vision of lightning converging into the staff, transforming into raging flames, drew gasps from the crowd.
The spectacle was impressive, but the scene where the lightning gathered at the staff and transformed into fierce flames caused gasps of amazement.
“【Inferno Tornado Staff】!!”
The flames whirled around following the spinning staff. When the staff was swung with force, the blazing wheel of fire surged towards the Puppeteer, who hurriedly used the puppets as shields, but they collapsed with an explosion.
Tap Tap─
Wakamou was still controlling everything with the feeling of playing a game.
By inputting commands, Mei was using all the [Skills] that could be realized in a fighting game.
Since it was essentially about inputting one’s will, it didn’t matter if the commands were incorrect. It moved exactly as Wakamou wished!
Mei Xiao Long Bao swept through, displaying an absolutely overwhelming solo performance.
“Kugh… Puppeteer!! You couldn’t hold out until Mei used the dishonorable and petty dark martial arts!!”
“Oh, you don’t get to see the 2nd phase.”
“How sneaky to fight with orthodox martial arts(?)”
There were some strange complaints from fans, but Mei smiled and made a V sign after her clean victory.
“Next is the match between Holy Knight Alexander Doherty and Japan’s Wizard!! Oyama Sadako’s turn!!!”
“Damn, I’m already looking forward to it!!”
“Of course, our British Knight King will win, right?”
“Isn’t the Pirate King winning?”
“Hey, Sadako is with the Navy.”
“What…?”
“Alright─!! Should I go win!!”
Sadako headed to the arena with an excited expression, loosening her shoulders.
Wakamou returned to the spectators’ seats and sat down.
Having some downtime, Wakamou decided to watch a VTuber broadcast and turned on YouTube.
Despite this, she couldn’t see the broadcasts of members who should have been live streaming.
Neither the urgent SOS from Asuka nor the message from the Inari Fox Deity who saw it outside could reach her.
The top-ranked Climbers gathered in the arena were completely isolated without even knowing it.
※※※
“Shoot the angel!!”
“Don’t shoot!!”
The Saint, who was driving the large vehicle they had somehow caught up to, exclaimed urgently.
“Because there’s no time to explain!! Please use the skill to open that space!!”
“What would I trust and use it for!!”
“Let’s use Korea’s authentication method.”
The Saint driving the vehicle raised one hand.
She crossed her index, middle, and ring fingers, placed the thumb against her tongue sticking out from her mouth, and touched her pinky to the space between her eyebrows.
Asuka, who even Hajime Ichigo would not be unaware of this distinctively Korean authentication method, had a blank look.
“Damn”
It was a shocker proclaiming that if she was lying now, calling her mom a prostitute would be acceptable!
“It seems to be true, Ichigo!!”
“Wow, shit. This is tempting. Open the portal now!!”
Asuka opened a portal in front of them, and the Saint courageously jumped in.
Following her, Robert also threw himself in.
When the angel flying in the sky was the last to join, and they were all rolling around on the wide grassland,
As the large vehicle opened, the Oracle walked out.
“Honestly, I don’t understand why the Man-eater, meant to kill Human Climbers, is so strong against Idols.”
Surprisingly, since Wakamou was classified as a different race as an [Idol], his stats wouldn’t have decreased despite that.
Simply─ the Man-eater in America was simply monstrously strong, so if he fought head-on, Wakamou would only lose.
Wouldn’t Wakamou, even without pushing himself, be able to easily win against the Man-eater that has now appeared?
──Strangely, it was one of those classes full of secrets and indefinable identities.
Even 【Mediator】 only knows its existence but cannot give explanations due to lack of information.
Precisely a class like an Executioner, existing solely to kill humans, but it first emerged now.
And it emerged as a Monster!! Even though the Tower collapsed, it didn’t disappear!!
“Hoo..Hoo…At least!! I’ll say it beforehand as this could be misunderstood!! ──I had no time.”
“I was caught off guard too, but after listening to the explanation, I understand.”
“Shut up, Morpheus. I’ll put a bullet between your brows★”
Oracle hushed, acknowledging it was indeed true that their accident was initially manipulated, after seeing Pipkin Mami speak so refreshingly.
The Saint caught her breath and cautiously mentioned to Ichigo if the [Path Guidance] was perfectly done.
She explained how she was guiding them in a way to avoid encountering the [Executioner] and hindering the [Holy Knight Order] at the same time.
“…. It has something to do with being the 7th generation. Hajime Ichigo─ didn’t I mention my skill uses [Lifespan]?”
“…..Yeah.”
“Lifespan is restored upon climbing the Tower. In exchange for using lifespan, almost any skill can be used. Among them, there are skills that consume life. When it became impossible for the 6 Saints above me to climb the Tower, they chose noble sacrifices for the cause.”
“Noble sacrifice?”
“The Pope calls it that. Because all Saints have genuine faith and pure belief in God….I was too.”
Continuously catching her breath, she seemed anxious as if chased by something.
“What it means is to be in a state where even doubt isn’t a luxury. In my case, I realized something was off during the Legendary Festival. The Pope shouldn’t acknowledge Idols as a thing—anyone could see they were human-like.”
That’s why she claimed it was a divine punishment that the Pope transformed into an 【Idol】.
“There were records in the church. Deep in the Catacombs, a history of expelling [Idols] was left. And that history is now the awakened Gazers in response to the appearance of [Idols] at the Vatican and the malfunctioning Towers.”
“Was that why you were going to kill the Pope?”
“Me? I didn’t intend to dirty your hands.”
As mentioned before, she was genuinely ready to protect with her own [Lifespan].
But, given that the Pope realized once the broadcast started, she said she twisted the accident for belief due to the shortage of time, with a bitter smile.
“…Couldn’t you have used that on yourself?”
“Haha─ it’s not just one or two…. And by the way, my identical face is also a skill effect, probably meant for garnering faith…. To someone who doesn’t know, it’s the same face, same person, isn’t it?”
“Ah…”
“By the way, since this is also considered a skill, lifespan decreases.”
The Saint stated so nonchalantly, as if even breathing dropped her lifespan.
Asuka, already familiar with someone saying something similar, felt a pang of sympathy.
“The Pope… isn’t a Climber. Even now, I can’t understand why they’re an 【Idol】.”
Though the process of creating a 【Companion】 was something the Vatican had done, it understood.
But the Saint claimed it was very peculiar that the one managing that Companion wasn’t a Climber.
“They even conduct inhuman experiments underground, right. Doesn’t the [Mediator] know that? What about the Towers like in Russia?”
“──Didn’t I say that the Towers are pathways to God…? My additional anxiety is because there are many writings from past Saints that highlight the Pope talking to God.”
Ichigo also started feeling a sense of unease that something was amiss.
Soon, they began feeling faint tremors.
“Although it’s a strange thing to say!!”
That moment, Robert spoke up.
“If the Towers have a will! Each has an apostle! And there were Towers in the past!!”
The vibrations grew more intense.
This place was presumably the personal space of Wakamou Inarizushi.
How could this area still be shaking despite Wakamou having canceled his skills?
“In no way it could be that the Towers could turn into distorters, right??”
[A Tower is appearing!]
As if it couldn’t wait to finish that, a massive spire appeared intruding into [My Worlds].
Just like when Jiang Taigong crossed over, the Tower had moved on its own to reveal itself before them.
The sight was so shocking that they couldn’t even scream, leaving everyone frozen.
[The Italy Tower is invading the [Wakamou Tower]!!]
Why on earth would this be happening?
Why would a Tower that had been so silent until now suddenly erupt?
But more than that, their gaze landed on where Wakamou’s house used to be.
“What… the hell”
The house completely collapsed as it was crushed and swallowed by the expanding Tower, bursting through the ground.
Wakamou’s lifetime collection of merchandise, clips, cherished figures, and computer.
Even the data of the journey shared with Asuka, Mare Pirate, and Ichigo, together with the Wakamou Corporation’s goods, all were swallowed.
[South Korean Tower urgently notifies allied Towers of an invasion!]
[(No Response)]
[The South Korean Tower screams that the Italian Tower destroyed Wakamou’s collection!]
[The China Tower rushes in.]
[The Japanese Tower faints!]
[The Russian Tower shivers in horror!!]
“……Doesn’t that mean the Pope’s life is no longer a concern?”
The angel, eyeing the situation carefully, said with a trembling voice.
With no concern for the Pope’s life or state, Asuka silently pulled out a dagger.
“I must commit seppuku…!!”
“Don’t you dare escape into death, dude!!”
Pipkin Mami promptly whacked Asuka with a club, reading his mind instantly.
The Italy Tower, oblivious, radiated a terrifying presence!!
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