My hand still held the broken metal pipe.

  It was embarrassing.

  However, if I dropped it now, Lilith might start asking the wrong questions.

  So I kept it in my grip, as if it belonged there. Like it had always been part of a grand plan.

  Yes. This is my legendary weapon.

  Behold: the rusted pipe of destiny.

  Then my gaze landed on the blue System Crate beside her, hovering in the air pristine, untouchable, held by her magic as if it weighed nothing at all.

  I kept my face blank.

  Don’t mess up now.

  If you crack here, you become a loot box, remember.

  Lilith spoke first, voice flat and precise.

  “I sealed every exit to Floor 52,” she said. “Except through Staircase A.”

  Just a report.

  “The level-one undead on Fifty-Two died,” she continued. “The surrounding floors also lost many as the heat spread.”

  She glanced at the hovering Crate as if to prove it.

  “As for the level-twos,” she said, “there were three.”

  “They did not die to the fire.” Her tone did not change. “They were mostly melted skin and bones; they endured, and I finished them off.”

  “The heat has weakened” she said, “staircase A is still toxic. Smoke pockets remain. The air is thin near the choke.”

  “I used mana to track your steps; from the peak of stairwell A TO stairwell B,” she said.

  I didn’t react.

  I had tried to leave once, For half a second. And the heat had nearly peeled my skin off.

  But that version of the story never happened.

  Lilith made a small motion with her fingers. The System Crate drifted closer, stopping near my feet as i sat on the stairs, offering that didn’t feel like an offering.

  “I opened it once,” she said.

  Once meant she had used it.

  Now the system crate remained here, which means that at the very least the crate still had one more attempt.

  I didn’t ask what she got.

  I did not even bother thinking about it. If I sound greedy, then she might get greedy. Keeping things friendly is for the best.

  Every participant gets one activation per Crate.

  That is probably why she is standing here with the second attempt still intact.

  “You brought it to me,” I said evenly.

  “Yes,” Lilith replied.

  Her gaze flicked toward my pipe for the briefest moment, then away again, dismissive.

  Not a mocking gaze, but one of acceptance.

  It made perfect sense that she carried loot like a trophy while he held scrap metal like a sacred relic.

  I raised my free hand slowly.

  My fingertips hovered a breath away from the Crate’s surface.

  And the air in front of me began to shift, like a window preparing to unfold.

  Lilith stood a few steps away, still and watchful.

  I kept my expression blank as a system window materialized in front of me.

  SYSTEM CRATE ACTIVATION CONFIRMED

  USER: NIGHTWORN

  REMAINING ACTIVATION ATTEMPTS: 2/2

  REWARD OPTIONS:

  1. Allocation Charges ×2

  (Each Allocation increases a stat’s percentage within F-tier.)

  2. Stat Surge: +10% to all core attributes (DEF / MP / STR / AGI)

  (Excludes: LUCK, FOCUS.)

  3. Defensive Suit — “Ash Warden Shell” (Common)

  (Heat-resistant. Smoke-filter collar. Minor impact dampening.)

  4. Hollowlight Tower Dungeon Map (Uncommon)

  (Reveals Dungeon classification, routes, hostile entities, cleared/uncleared zones, and the location of the dungeon core.)

  5. Agility capsule (Uncommon)

  (One-time consumable: increases agility to the peak of level two for 5 minutes)

  NOTE: the user will suffer weakness for 12 hours after consumption

  My eyes skimmed the list, and Option two hit me like a punch, +10% to everything that increases survivability.

  Maybe only MP is a little useless, but still, this is a very good reward, after all, it is real strength.

  So the System Can be generous.

  Then my gaze caught on option four.

  Hollowlight Tower Dungeon Map

  I nodded to myself, of course, you are generous after all, you know I won’t choose it.

  Dungeon.

  The word carried weight.

  They were structures, designed for danger, designed for rewards.

  Suddenly, everything snapped into place:

  The early level-two Zombies, the system Crates, and the so-called mana current.

  This isn’t a cursed skyscraper but a goddamn dungeon of death; this is a Dungeon wearing a building’s skin.

  If I chose the stat surge, it would be… smart, but I would also be blind. If I don’t know what will happen, then mistakes might occur, for example, Lilith asking me for help in a fight.

  ‘We need information,’ I thought in regret.

  So I mentally choose option four.

  The Crate chimed, its blue glow dulled, and shimmering particles drifted upward, flickering, as the box disappeared completely, its role finished.

  Without thinking too much, I went to the items tab and opened the Hollowlight Tower Dungeon Map.

  INSTANCE IDENTIFIED: HOLLOWLIGHT TOWER

  CLASSIFICATION: DUNGEON (VERTICAL)

  STATUS: UNCLEARED

  DANGERLEVEL: ELEVATED

  DUNGEON CORE: FLOOR 40

  After these few lines, a map unfolded, and I instantly understood.

  So this is why Lilith said there is mana flow on Floor 40.

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  The mana core was the source, as far as I know, the core area of a dungeon is its heart, full of mana and protected greatly, because once the dungeon core is taken, it’s considered clear.

  I focused on the map again as it began to render routes, stair labels, and the location of enemies, which is represented by red dots, and, surprisingly, there were some green dots as well.

  The fact that some people are still alive in this godforsaken place is astonishing in itself.

  Vorn also saw a label on FLOOR 52 - SYSTEM CRATE (CLAIMED)

  I turned my gaze to Lilith.

  She was still watching me calmly, as if… waiting for something.

  ‘Why are you pressuring me like that? Don’t you know that my heart is fragile.’

  I forced my voice to stay flat.

  “This building,” I said quietly, “is a Dungeon.”

  Lilith didn’t think that was newly obtained information, but that Vorn is finally opening up to her; she had her doubts about this being a dungeon, and not just any dungeon, but one that is currently being formed.

  ‘A dungeon like this should be cleared upward, but he is doing it downward somehow, which gives us an advantage. In addition to his odd strategies, we could have a chance of clearing this dungeon.’

  She said, voice calm as ever, “What is our next move?”

  I kept my face blank, but inside, regret gnawed at me.

  I just turned down +10% to everything. I could’ve been less fragile.

  Outwardly, I didn’t hesitate. I got up from the stairs and looked downward as if contemplating, but in reality, I looked at the invisible map only I could see.

  The only thing I focused on was the key information.

  Floor 40: dense mana flow towards the dungeon core, not fully formed yet.

  We must clear the dungeon before it fully forms, otherwise the consequences will be… grave.

  Floors 30-49 are filled with level two zombies, with even more in transition.

  Moreover, on Floor 42, tucked in a corner, a tight cluster of blinking green dots.

  About 20 survivors.

  Lilith waited perfectly still, her Nexus in her left palm as if it can’t wait to be activated.

  She couldn’t see the map, only my back.

  So I spoke, giving her a rundown of our situation.

  “The dungeon core is on floor forty,” I said. “We must take it to clear the dungeon.”

  Lilith’s eyes sharpened, just a fractional tightening.

  I continued before excitement could become movement.

  “Thirty to forty-nine floors are saturated with level two undead everywhere.” I lifted the pipe in my hand and tapped the stairwell wall softly. “We don’t fight on open floors. We fight in the stairwell only; it gives us control.”

  Lilith didn’t nod or ask questions; she only looked at Vorn’s back calmly.

  “Going forward, there will be a slow transition; we’ll start seeing fast ones with extreme high agility, peak F grade, strength, and defense are the same, There are also a few special ones who are mages”

  ‘The words were ugly, but they were true. We are currently on floor 68, it’s a long and dangerous way to floor 40.’

  “The worst part is from floor forty-five to forty,” I said, “Hallways open, all the doors smashed, more angles and in the open.”

  Lilith finally spoke.

  “No noise is allowed. I’m now also capable of suppressing the Nexus signature.”

  I gave her a glance from the corner of my eyes, “Exactly, one scream and the whole band rushes toward us.”

  As I said that, I thought internally, ‘That scary orb of yours has a signature?’

  I flicked my gaze to the green cluster.

  “Floor forty-two has about twenty survivors. All in one corner, they’re optional,” I said coldly. “But they’re close to our path. If we can, we should meet them to extract information; if they’re compromised, we don’t linger.”

  Lilith didn’t ask what “compromised” meant.

  She knew.

  “The closer we get to floor 40, the mana density rises, the more aggressive the undead and the more coordinated.”

  “All of this is because of the still-forming dungeon core. Once it is formed, all of what I said before will be applicable on every floor, as for the floors near the core, they will be even more protected.”

  I turned to Lilith, “So we must take the core before it fully forms.”

  I kept my voice even.

  “We descend like this: one landing at a time. Open the door, clear it’s surrounding, then close the door. No wandering, if a floor is blocked by powerful undead, then we backtrack and reroute.”

  After I finished speaking, I continued to look at Lilith, waiting for her response.

  Will she kill me?

  Will she disagree?

  Will she ask a question I can’t answer?

  i can't use causality memento so I'm flying blind here.

  However, all I received was a nod, a permission

  So I started walking down Stairwell B first, because that’s what “leaders” do.

  The map followed my gaze, cold and clear

  Behind me, Lilith moved without sound.

  The map kept pulsing like a countdown.

  And I was extremely sad, but kept on moving.

  Stairwell B swallowed us in grey concrete, numbers above each landing, ticking down.

  68 → 67.

  The map hung in my vision—clean and bright.

  Red dots scattered across floors like an infection.

  FLOOR 40 – DUNGEON CORE STILL FORMING.

  FLOORS 30–49 – HIGH DENSITY OF LEVEL 2 UNDEAD.

  FLOOR 42 – 20GREEN DOTS, SURVIVORS.

  Lilith moved behind me without sound, her left palm glowing faintly as the only source of light.

  So I made tempo into a doctrine.

  Stop at every new floor.

  Listen carefully and check the map for any abnormalities.

  Clear the door’s surroundings to make sure we have a safe retreat.

  Move to the next floor.

  67 → 66

  At the next landing, I kept my hand off the handle. I merely looked at the door and pressed the pipe lightly against the metal railing.

  One soft tap, barely a sound.

  On the map, two red dots on the other side of the door shifted slightly toward Stairwell B.

  Without turning my head, I said, “Two weak level one undead behind the door.”

  After saying that, I opened the door and looked toward Lilith calmly without saying a word.

  ‘If she doesn’t kill them, then I’m dead, but I’m willing to gamble that she would listen as long as there is a reward at the end.’

  Without saying a word, she lifted her right index finger, and a thread flew from it at astonishing speed.

  Before I could turn my head to look at the door, I heard two thuds, and cold sweat broke on my back, but I remained expressionless as I closed the door without looking at it.

  Lilith looked at me calmly, but it felt terrifying.

  I descended another flight, checked the map, and all the Zombies were far away from the door, so I continued descending.

  At each landing, a tiny probe, tap if needed, wait, and watch the dots.

  Some floors had many undead, and Lilith had to get her hands dirty, but it still looked very easy to her.

  As we descended, the map began to feel like a living thing, and my taps felt like poking it with a needle to see if it bled.

  The map stayed steady… until it didn’t.

  A small red dot pulsed on the map. It looked no different from any other dots, except for the fact that it had entered staircase B through Floor 54, currently we are on Floor 62, still a distance away.

  Without giving it much thought, I mentally checked on it, and its status showed up.

  ?SYSTEM PANEL?

  IDENTITY: Level 2 Guard of Hollowlight Tower

  RACE: Undead

  CLASS: Physical

  STATS: DEF: F (40%)/ MP: F (0%)/ FOCUS: F (0%)/ STR: E (25%)/AGI: F (50%)/ LUCK: F (0%)

  Vorn ‘FUCK’

  I stopped in my tracks, and so did Lilith behind me.

  I said slowly and quietly, “Level 2 undead on the stairwell, he entered through floor 54.”

  Lilith frowned, she couldn’t use mana sense to see the environment, as there are mage undead who could detect it, and expose their location.

  She knew how hard it was to deal with them; she is now much stronger than when she arrived in this world, so killing a level 2 undead isn’t difficult, but it would take time and effort.

  So they needed another way down.

  Lilith asked quietly as well, “Why don’t we use another stairwell?”

  However in her mind, what really bothered her was the fact she couldn't understand how Vorn could locate and track the movement of all the undead, is this a new type of magic?

  Without thinking too much, I answered, “This matches my thoughts, floor 65 has a few undead, one with peak strength, and the other with agility, they are the only obstacle.”

  Wasting some time dealing with peak level 1 undead is safer than provoking a level two.