Silent Draining
Hearing the name for the first time, most would assume it referred to a powerful energy-draining skill.
Skills in that category were notoriously rare and far more difficult to come by than your typical offensive or defensive skills. After all, being able to drain an enemy's vitality could easily tilt the tide of battle, especially if the target lacked strong resistances. Naturally, many Hunters coveted such abilities when exploring the Tower.
By some miraculous stroke of luck, Thomas's party managed to obtain Silent Draining after slaying a grotesque abomination.
…Or so they thought.
What they actually acquired wasn't a proper draining skill. It did achieve the same result by giving the enemy uncontrollable diarrhea!
At first, they didn't realize what had happened. The first victim, or more accurately, some poor dungeon mob, just collapsed mid-charge, clutching its stomach in a grotesque display of internal agony. The party assumed it was some kind of delayed internal hemorrhage. Maybe even soul decay.
But then it happened again. And again. Every enemy struck by Silent Draining would stagger, go pale (or whatever their species' equivalent was), and within seconds… well, let's just say it wasn't blood decorating the battlefield.
It became crystal clear that Silent Draining wasn't draining power, stamina, or health.
It was draining dignity.
Thomas insisted they rename the skill to something more accurate like Death by Dysentery. But the system interface refused. For whatever reason, the Tower deemed it a legitimate drain-type skill; rare-grade, high efficiency, low cooldown.
And utterly horrifying.
Despite the embarrassment, the skill proved wildly effective. No one fought well when they were doubled over in abdominal pain, and even monsters had their limits.
Still, Thomas couldn't help but wonder:
What kind of sick developer programmed this into the Tower?
And more importantly… who the hell classified this as "Silent"?
'Damnit, I thought I discarded that useless thing but it somehow made its way into the Association Skill Archive. Was it possible that someone else found it and stored it there?' Thomas thought, suddenly feeling uneasy.
Gemstones couldn't be destroyed. Their form could only be altered, typically into Skill Tomes, making it easier for any Awakened to learn them.
The Level 3 Veteran had discarded Silent Draining long ago, burying it somewhere deep within the Association's archives. The reasons were many.
First of all, skills ranked from G to E were practically worthless for a Hunter of B-rank caliber. As high-level Hunters delved deeper into the Tower, they inevitably encountered far more powerful Hell Beasts, monsters with significantly higher resistances. A low-tier skill like Silent Draining would become useless, occupying a valuable skill slot that could be used for something far more impactful.
Logically, it was better to learn a high-ranking offensive or defensive skill than to rely on one that simply gave its victims diarrhea.
But that wasn't the real reason he made sure no one would ever find it again.
The second, and perhaps more important reason, was that the skill was embarrassing and utterly, profoundly humiliating to wield.
There was no elegant way to activate it either.
Unlike Magic, Skills doesn't require any chant or an incantation, only intent. Which meant the moment Thomas so much as thought about using it, the system would announce:
[Silent Draining has been activated.]
And then, inevitably:
[Target afflicted with Bowel Rupture.]
The memory still haunted him. Silent Draining was certainly an unorthodox skill that should never be used on any creature or man! Just thinking about it made his skin crawl with goosebumps. Anyone willing to equip such an absurd ability had to be some kind of perverted sadist who enjoyed watching their opponents shit themselves in terror.
But what about the Level 0 Sleeper who had just purchased that very skill?!
'Shit...!'
Thomas clicked his tongue bitterly.
Now that Sonny had already purchased the skill, there was no turning back. He couldn't stop him from using it or learning it. All he could do now was hope the skill didn't suit him.
…But that was nothing more than wishful thinking.
[Congratulations, you have learned the skill: Telekinesis!]
[Congratulations, you have learned the skill: Silent Draining!]
A few seconds later, the two skill tomes vanished from Sonny's hands as he focused his intent to learn them. Knowledge on how to wield the abilities—and their limitations—flowed smoothly into his mind. The entire process was over before he could even blink.
'How interesting.'
Curious whether he still had access to the Tower's system, Sonny mentally tried summoning his data interface.
[ Name: Sonny Redgrave ]
[ Age: 21 ]
[ Rank: Level Zero ]
Attribute Stats:
[• Strength: I51 ]
[• Endurance: I55 ]
[• Dexterity: H178 ]
[• Agility: I55 ]
[• Soul Power: SSS1999]
[• Abnormal Resistance: SS]
[• Luck: G]
'That's good. I thought I'd have to use the SnapWarp app to access my private information.'
Letting out a quiet breath of relief, he navigated the system interface to check his skill slots.
Skill Slots:
[1. Shackles (Exclusive)]
[2. Telekinesis]
[3. Silent Draining]
Sonny nodded in satisfaction. Aside from his Origin Ability and uniquely exclusive skill, he now possessed two additional skills.
Though both were low-ranked in the hierarchy of power, and his current skill slots were full, meaning he couldn't learn any more unless he discarded one, he had already prepared for that eventuality. That was why he had also purchased the skill Perseverance.
'This should be enough.'
With his preparations complete, Sonny was about to head toward the Tower, but then he turned and noticed Thomas staring at him with a strange expression.
It was the kind of look someone might have after seeing a ghost.
Tilting his head, Sonny asked:
"What? Is something the matter?"
Thomas blinked, finally snapping out of his daze.
"Ah… it's nothing."
Sonny raised an eyebrow.
"Is that so? Well then, I'll be heading into the Tower now."
Thomas cleared his throat.
"Alright. I'll accompany you to the entrance then be on my way."
Following their brief exchange, the two made their way to the Tower and passed through its entrance.
Inside, a spiraling staircase stretched downward in a circular descent. From Sonny's perspective, the stairwell seemed almost bottomless, vanishing into a deep, endless darkness below. He couldn't help but wonder just how far it went or if it ever truly ended.
In the end, he was unable to contain his curiosity.
"So this is the entrance? Do I have to keep walking until I reach the white room? Or will it teleport me at some point?"
Thomas nodded sternly.
"That's indeed correct. You'll descend until the Tower acknowledges your presence. When that happens, you'll find yourself in the white room. No one knows exactly how the transition works. Some say it's a teleportation. Others claim it's a shift in perception. Either way, once you're inside, that's when your real descent and journey begins."
"Do hunters have to go through this every single time? Sounds like a pain."
"It is a bit of a hassle, but you'll get used to it. The Tower doesn't exactly have elevators, so walking is the only option if you want you get around. Like it or not, that's just how it is."
Sonny frowned.
Whoever designed the Tower must've been a real piece of work. Then again, the Black Tower wasn't built for comfort. It was a place drenched in death, rewarding only those strong or lucky enough to survive. A bit of inconvenience was probably part of the point.
Compared to the horrors that awaited below, walking felt almost trivial.
Looking down once more, Sonny felt the black void below was somewhat darker than before. Ominously, there were no stair rails for person to hold, which meant that someone just happened to lose their balance, they would plummet uncontrollably into the unknown depths. This raised his curiosity.
"What happens if you fall down?"
Thomas hesitated. For a moment, he gathered his thoughts before answering.
"Honestly… I don't know. No one's ever been unlucky enough to actually fall. There's a teleportation trigger somewhere below, so in theory, it should catch you before anything serious happens. But..." He trailed off for a moment. "There's also a very real chance that you'd be crushed against the stairs before it activates. Painfully so."
A heavy silence followed.
"I see."
Even then, Sonny's expression remained unchanged. In fact, something about him shifted subtly, but unmistakable. The air around him grew calm, unnervingly calm. Like the surface of the ocean just before a storm.
Thomas frowned.
That look… it reminded him of the kind of person who might not just tolerate Silent Draining but embrace it.
He cleared his throat awkwardly.
"You'll be fine. Just, uh… don't fall. And more importantly, don't use that skill unless you absolutely have to. Trust me. It's better that way."
"Noted," Sonny replied flatly, fully aware of which skill Thomas meant.
Leaving Thomas behind at the entrance, Sonny descended the stairs in silence, one step at a time, until he suddenly came to a halt.
"By the way," he asked without turning back, "what's the real mission behind the Floors (阶段)? Is it just about slaying monsters, or is there something else we should be concerned about?"
It was a crucial question that needed answering before stepping fully into the Tower.
Thomas didn't reply immediately. Then, with a thoughtful nod, he said:
"I get where you're coming from, but there's no need to overthink it. There's no predetermined conflict within the Tower. Your main goal is to kill monsters and gather Exousia. That's all."
He hesitated for a moment, then added with a shrug:
"That said, I've heard rumors about High Rankers discovering hidden places within certain Floors. But those cases are extremely rare. Even if you comb through every inch of a Floor, the chances of finding one are painfully low. Honestly, if not for the testimonies of the Rankers, we would've assumed those hidden zones didn't exist at all."
In return, Sonny asked:
"So these hidden zones do exist, but they're just incredibly rare to find. Did I get that right?"
Thomas nodded.
"Yes, that's correct."
'In that case… isn't this just like a regular video game?'
The concept of hidden zones wasn't anything foreign or new. In fact, it was a staple feature in many video games, especially those in the RPG genre. Wait, thinking about it, wasn't the concept of Levels, Leveling up and Skills related to a video game?
Was this a coincidence? What were the odds that the mysterious creator of the Tower was nothing but a cruel game developer?
Sonny inwardly smiled.
His train of thought had taken him somewhere intriguing. It was still far too early to form a solid theory, so he filed it away for later consideration.
More pressing was the realization that if the Tower truly mirrored game design principles, then it could be analyzed, broken down and understood like any complex system.
"I'll keep that in mind," Sonny muttered quietly.
Then, without warning, he did the unthinkable and jumped.
Thomas's panicked scream rang in his ears, fading just as quickly as it came. The spiral staircase stretched endlessly downward, and the air grew colder with every second of descent.
Silence wrapped around him like a thick fog, broken only by the rushing wind and the growing weight of his fall.
And then,
[Awakened Sonny Redgrave has been acknowledged.]
The notification flashed across his vision.
An instant later, the space surrounding him completely changed as he entered a new world.
[Welcome to the Tower of Nightmares.]