"Ban."

At Han Yuseong's call, Ban rose to her feet.

She slipped the arrow she had been gripping tightly back into her quiver.

"Yeah, Yuseong?"

There was something in Han Yuseong's hand.

"Catch. Here."

Whoosh—

Ban reached out and effortlessly caught the baseball that had arced from Han Yuseong’s hand.

"What is this?"

"A baseball."

Han Yuseong pointed at himself with his index finger.

"Now try throwing it to me. Gently. Don’t aim to hit me—this is something you toss back and forth."

"Hey, I get the gist, you know?"

Ban said that and looked down at the baseball in her hand.

The sensation of the raised red seams across the leather rolled under her fingers.

‘Come to think of it...’

When she asked how he had destroyed the wall earlier, he had said he threw a ball.

A small smile tugged at Ban Iner’s lips as she threw the baseball back at Han Yuseong.

He caught it.

She caught it.

Again and again, the ball passed between them.

Ban smiled faintly at the feeling that came with the contact.

There was a strange kind of comfort in it.

“Catch ball.”

Han Yuseong’s voice reached her ear.

“This is what we call catch ball. When my head got all tangled, I’d do this with a friend to clear it up.”

They lacked the gloves that would normally be essential for catch ball, but neither of them needed such things.

“Really?”

As they tossed the ball back and forth a few more times, Ban could feel her mind uncluttering just as he had described.

It was probably just in her head. Most likely just a fleeting distraction.

But even so, the clarity that immersion brought was vivid.

Ban tied up her silver hair.

A white background stretched out behind them as the baseball flew between them.

They continued their catch ball for a long while.

Pop—

“...It’s true.”

Ban looked down at the baseball that had slipped perfectly into her hand and smiled faintly.

“There was something kind of stuffy inside me... but I feel a little better now.”

“Right?”

Han Yuseong caught the baseball Ban had gently thrown his way.

***

Only one root remained.

But it wasn’t something that could be cleared just because they wanted it gone quickly.

He looked at the silver-haired woman dozing beside him, her head resting lightly on his shoulder.

If the thirteenth floor passed without incident after they took down this final root... could they climb together?

He hoped so.

The night grew deep.

Inside the tent assigned to him for personal use, Han Yuseong pulled out the Transcendent Gallery terminal.

He uploaded a post containing the footage of him and Ban eliminating the sixth root together.

Title: One Root Left

Author: ㅇㅇ*

— Once we finish this one, it's on to Floor 14.

Attachment: 893423894023849.mkv

ㄴ Oh.

ㄴ Fresh meat.

ㄴ Is it... mealtime... already...?

ㄴ Pioneer) They go all in on the doping right from the start, huh.

ㄴ fr, not even a shred of hesitation.

ㄴ Elf Guy) Hm, truly unrestrained.

At this point, the comments started focusing on the scene where I inject “Breath of Extremity” and “Dragonblood Serum” into Ban’s side.

ㄴ Suwang) Friend!!! Treat your body with respect!!!

ㄴ Ice Queen) Frozen frozen! Be careful...!!

ㄴ Dragon Demon King) Beltui— Why... why did you inject my blood into your side? I gave it to be drunk. To drink! To drink! To swallow! Swallow it! Swallow it!

ㄴ Dragon Demon King) Beltui— Please swallow the remaining dose. Pretty please. I even added a sweetener to make it taste nice. Really!

ㄴ Dragon Demon King) Beltui— You must drink it. Swallow it with your mouth. There’s no bonus effect, but still. You have to drink iiiiiit.

ㄴ Suwang) Hiiieeek!! It’s really the Dragon Demon King!!

ㄴ If you act that crazy, people will only want to inject it even more.

ㄴ fr, dude’s insane, but at least he’s not lying about the effects. Respect.

ㄴ Admin) That would’ve been a ban otherwise.

ㄴ Dragon Demon King) Beltuiieeek—!

The madness of the Dragon Demon King-sunbae was on full display.

I decided I’d continue injecting instead of drinking.

ㄴ Sword of Light) For real, Ban Iner’s movement has a lot worth studying. I should go over the footage again later.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*) Definitely.

ㄴ Gutter Swordsman) Ban Iner’s Domain really does seem to forcibly pull a target into a one-on-one zone. Looks like her abilities are boosted in that space too.

ㄴ Absolute Monarch) A very orthodox Domain.

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*) Is there a big difference between Domains and Unique Domains?

ㄴ Absolute Monarch) If you’re at the Seventh Rank and have a Unique Domain, it means you possess the power to obliterate an entire nation.

ㄴ Pioneer) Seventh Rank means you can open a world of your own. That’s how people describe that level of power.

ㄴ Pioneer) And there are all kinds of Unique Domains, so it varies wildly.

ㄴ Shrine Maiden) Hawawa, if a Domain is like a river, a Unique Domain is like the ocean. At least, if we’re speaking in metaphors.

ㄴ Elf Guy) Hm, well, I suppose the goal now is to reach the Sixth Rank, huh?

ㄴ Room Conspiracy Theorist) Hey, getting to Sixth Rank isn’t something you can just brute-force your way through. The world is one massive closed room.

ㄴ Spear King) This guy’s vessel seems pretty large. If he wants to completely fill his Fifth Rank, he’s still got a long road ahead.

ㄴ Suwang) Whoa, he really just threw the divine stone like that!!!

ㄴ Archmage) So that’s what he meant when he said he was confident in his throwing arm.

ㄴ Spear King) What’s the name of that again?

ㄴ ㅇㅇ*) Baseball. The thrower’s the pitcher. The one who hits it is the batter. The one who catches it is the catcher. I was a pitcher.

ㄴ Archmage) We had a similar game, but the ball was too soft. And no real system.

ㄴ Sword of Light) That posture is fascinating.

The footage ended with the scene of me and Ban sitting side by side, chuckling together.

ㄴ Shrine Maiden) Hawawa, it looks like fun~

ㄴ Did you just say climbing the Tower looks fun? You’ve definitely lost it, Shrine Maiden.

ㄴ Ice Queen) Frozen frozen... it looks fun. Not that I’m ever climbing the Tower again, hehe.

ㄴ Archmage) Yeah, it does look fun. Hng.

ㄴ Heavenly Demon) I’m sorry to say, but we must stay vigilant. You have to keep doubting until the 13th Floor is truly over.

ㄴ Heavenly Demon) Everything about Floor 13 is suspicious.

ㄴ Heavenly Demon) And the fact that Ban Iner—one of the climbers from our cohort—is with you now doesn’t make any sense.

ㄴ Heavenly Demon) Ban Iner’s presence is a contradiction in and of itself.

ㄴ Admin) That’s true.

ㄴ Absolute Monarch) He’s right.

I knew it too.

I knew it all too well.

***

Two more days passed.

Another baseball floated through the sky.

Ban looked at the one that had landed in her palm.

"Yuseong."

She threw the baseball toward him.

Thump.

“Yeah, Ban?”

The ball traced a smooth arc between them over the pale white background.

"Tomorrow, this catch ball here will be our last. We’re not going to fail at taking down that final root."

Han Yuseong looked at Ban as she said that.

Her neatly tied silver hair, and the blue eyes beneath it, were focused squarely on him.

"Of course."

Ban gave ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) a wry smile.

"You know you’re kind of amazing, right? Whether it’s sword or bow—I've never seen anyone absorb what I teach so well. It actually makes me want to keep teaching."

Han Yuseong threw the ball as he replied.

"Maybe that’s because you’re just that good at teaching."

“...Huh?”

Ban caught the ball with a dazed look.

"You’ve got a way of speaking that just... hits people in the heart. You’ve probably swept a few girls off their feet, haven’t you?"

She tossed the ball back only after saying that.

Han Yuseong caught it and shook his head.

"Not even close."

"Hard to believe."

"It's weird hearing something like that at all."

He threw the ball again.

Pop!

The baseball slipped into Ban’s right hand like it had been drawn there.

"Hey, that one had some heat."

Ban smiled and threw it back a little harder, mimicking his tone.

From there, both of them began tossing the ball with a bit more strength than usual.

"No matter how many times we do this, catch ball is always fun."

Ban tossed the ball up and caught it again and again.

She added, “I’ve had a headache for days... but now, it’s finally gone.”

Han Yuseong nodded slowly.

“That’s good.”

“Yeah, it is. I think it’s thanks to the catch ball.”

Soon, the game came to an end.

Early the next morning.

Ban and Han Yuseong were preparing to strike their final target—the sixth and last root.

Once they had completed their prep, they headed to the assembly hall.

The atmosphere there was different from usual.

Warriors raised both arms skyward, as if conducting some kind of ritual.

When they approached Turiana, she spoke in a low voice.

“Ah, just a moment longer. We’re holding a ceremony for the fallen.”

“Got it.”

Soon, the white smoke that had been billowing upward faded away.

Turiana raised her right arm.

“We march! Silane’s warriors must believe in one another! Let the sacrifices of the fallen not be in vain!”

A hundred Silane warriors followed suit, raising their right arms in unison.

As Han Yuseong checked over his sword, Ban Iner leaned in close beside him.

She held a quiver tightly packed with arrows in her hand.

"Hey. I gave you this quiver as a gift. You better take care of it. You’ve been letting it dangle all over the place."

"Ah—I'll stick it in my inventory."

Han Yuseong tucked it away.

Ban had taught him how to use it properly, but his skills still weren’t up to standard for this floor.

Equipping it would only get in the way.

Ban Iner and Han Yuseong stood behind the Silane warriors as they began to advance.

Ban placed a hand on Han Yuseong’s shoulder.

“Hey. I believe in you.”

Han Yuseong let out a dry chuckle.

“What, getting all sentimental now?”

Once again, various fragmented forms of Dranas stood in the way of the Silane warriors.

And once again, through their blood and sacrifice, the entrance to the final cave containing the sixth root was opened.

“Let’s go.”

At Han Yuseong’s words, Ban nodded.

They stepped forward at the same time.