Amongst the numerous events that occur annually or every generation, the Tower Climb Event is perhaps the most famous and well received of them all.

  Not only is it an opportunity for the current generation— from the average to the elite, from the poor to the rich— to unearth treasures to help them through the boundary and, perhaps, also hasten their growth through the Spirit King realm, it is a chance for those of common background to earn patronage from wealthy and powerful patrons.

  Opening once every generation, the Tower plays host to a number of young and aspiring Spirit lords from across the galaxy and beyond, aiding in their burning desires for greatness.

  Dangers and rewards in the Tower come hand in hand. To earn a reward, contestants are expected to brave harrowing dangers and prove themselves worthy, with powerful treasures linked with dreadful tasks. These can range from essence bones to equally rare elixirs, each a very important component in the Ascension and journey through the Spirit King realm.

  Damien frowned, and then turned to Gray.

  "Gray? What are these Essence bones and Elixirs?"

  It took a short while for Gray to answer, but then his voice came forth.

  [As you well know, the realm of Spirit King gives you chance to restart and create the body of your choice. Your Astral image is the foundation for that, but to truly finalize and step into that illustrious realm, you need an Essence infused bone.]

  Damien frowned. "What's the need of the essence bone if the body is already created? I thought the bodies of Spirit Kings were simply made of Essence."

  [Essence bones are important because of the powers one has to channel at that realm. Tell me, what do you think will happen to you if you channel the power of a Spirit King as you are now?]

  Damien thought about it for a few moments. The powers of Spirit Kings were powerful, no doubt, and that was an understatement considering that he'd been subjected to a front line experience a short while ago. But Damien knew his body, the level of danger he could survive. If it was the powers of a first domain Spirit King, he was sure he could handle it.

  [Wrong,] Gray said after Damien's answer. [What happened back on the outpost was you surviving a graze, which could have led to your death had you taken a few more. The full brunt of a Spirit King will turn you into splatter the same way your palm did that Lord realm grunt back on Ra. The same applies with the powers that runs through their metaphorical veins.

  [Imbibing Essence bones is simply a way to help you get past the limitations of your current body. The greater the bones, the more power you'll be able to channel or contain.]

  "Wait, these bones are ranked?"

  [Of course! Everything in reality is ranked. The same way no two Spirit lords, even those of equal tiers, can ever be equal, so too are Essence bones not equal. Or do you think the bones of a feline can ever be compared to those of a dragon?]

  Gray coughed.

  [Anyway, that's that. If the Astral image is a building, then Essence bones are the pillars to keep it standing. You understand?]

  Damien nodded slowly, still somewhat groggy from all that had just been said. He had never expected that the cross to Spirit King would be easy, but he surely hadn't expected it to be this daunting. It was one thing to rely simply on your prowess and essence to get you into Spirit lord and through it, but it was another to know that your journey through Spirit King was going to depend on your treasure hunting skills.

  Damien sighed.

  He had never been a treasure hunter. He was more likely to run into a crazed, terrible monster than find a pile of treasure simply lying around, so he'd long given up. Why hunt for treasures when he could simply take it from his enemies? Unfortunately, the enemies he'd been meeting lately and prevailing against all seemed to be broke.

  What a terrible luck.

  Well, he was going to have to find another way, 'cause he'd be damned if he ended up with the bones of a rat for his Ascension.

  "What about the Elixirs? What sort of Elixirs are those?" He asked.

  [If the image is the building, and the bones are the pillars, then the Elixirs are simply the adhesives to hold it all together. Of course, they have other, equally important uses, but what I just explained is one of the most important, perhaps the most. That's all I'll say—]

  "What?!" Damien asked, perplexed. "What do you mean, 'that's all you'll say?"

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  [You know what I meant. I do love having fun, and it wouldn't be much fun if I told you everything, now would it? In fact, I think I've already said enough. Oh, and do try to get sublime elixirs. It wouldn't do to use a sub par paint to coat your walls now, would it?... Well, unless you're planning on getting an equally sub par bone...]

  Damien sighed as he felt Gray retreat. He could have pushed for more information, but honestly, he didn't have the strength to argue. So he'd just take the steps as they came... Or he could simply just Vanis. That was another option.

  With a deep breath, he turned back to the book.

  Scattered across the inner world of the Tower are numerous Monsters, often rare and unseen of. Each are powerful, from the peak of the Spirit lord ream to early domains of the Spirit King.

  Braving and succeeding such harrowing creatures will undoubtedly grant one either an elixir or essence bone.

  The Tower event has been known to birth out geniuses who have gone out into galaxy, accomplishing feats worthy of being sung about in the halls of the great. Each has the potential to become a great power in their own right.

  Figures like Duchess Attrevia Verrille, The Desolate Duchess, Duke Vilsus Duveyar, The Crimson Death, and Lord Nessus Saulae, The Unseen Void, are all notable entities birthed by the Tower.

  Other notable figures include the Supreme Chief of the Chirameni Tribes, Arak Zar, and the twin queens of the sun and moon courts.

  Damien blinked at that, unmoved. He'd never wanted to be famous, and had always wanted dearly to be unknown, mostly by the masses, and to a lesser extent, the elites. He loved the freedom that came with being unknown, the ability to walk around without being followed or monitored. To be treated as any other person. Unfortunately, that wish had been unsuccessful right from the beginning. Not only had he been found out a short while after he and Keilan had escaped that dreadful proto space, but he'd been hunted soon after, mostly by people who wanted to learn how a couple of boys managed to reach the Lord realm at such a young age, and also by the others who simply wanted him under them. After all, potent destructive affinities like Destruction had been extremely rare on Ra.

  But here on Lese, he had the chance to change that... and so the possibility of fame did not move him one bit.

  The Desolate Duchess, The Crimson Death, and The Unseen Void. Those were famous names right on top of the ladder. Feared and respected in equal measure.

  The Aveanii had been hailed as both powerful and terrible. Capable enough to give most of the nations on the Fringe pause. But even they had to be wary when it came to the founders of Lese.

  Damien wanted that. No, not the fame, or the prestige. He wanted that power, the capability to give even potential enemies pause without moving a finger. And like the book said, the Tower climb event was one such way to achieve that.

  With a sigh, he dropped the book and finally looked up after hours of pouring from one book to another. His eyes rose up in surprise when he found out that his other neighbor, Galaris, had already left. How had he done that without alerting Damien? Given, he tended to tone down his perception most of the time, unwilling to deal with the crushing level of sensory data that was sure to pour into his mind, but even with that, he should have at least been aware that another presence had moved in the room. Sound, vibration, and some other ways.

  Damien shook his head, shifting his thoughts elsewhere. The man must have been really powerful to have been able to move without alerting Damien, but that was that. He should have been afraid, sure. Someone skilled enough to sneak past him without alerting him was worthy of being wary off. He could have easily snuck up on Damien without him being the wiser. But any stealth specialist worth their mettle knew that it was one thing to easily sneak up on a foe, and another to easily dispatch them.

  Damien stood up with a tired look and then made his way out of the reading room and down the stairs. Calestra was nowhere to be found but Destrul was still behind the huge table.

  The man gave him a wary look when he approached, which Damien pretended not to see. Nevertheless, he didn't come to chat.

  Damien returned the book, thanking the man once again for his help, and then made his way straight to the atrium.

  Reaching the wall at the other end of the atrium—the place where he'd appeared—he simply placed his token right on the arrow and muttered "outside", and instantly, he found himself standing at the top of a long line of stairs.

  Blinking furiously, Damien shielded his eyes from the bright golden light of the sun. He didn't have an object to tell the time for him, but considering how bright the sun was, he reckoned it was probably midday.

  The big ball of light up in the sky shone blindingly, raining down golden sunlight through the thick crimson clouds to bathe the city's skyline in a wash of rich, warm yellow.

  Damien wondered at first how he was able to see the city's skyline from where he was... Until he looked down the stairs he was standing on.

  His breathe caught, and his eyes widened. The steps, aside from the fact that they were so wide—wide enough for a dozen large carts to pass side by side without issue, but they also went down and down into the distance, far enough that it took some effort to make out the people at the base of the stairs.

  If the stairs leading up to the library was this huge, then he wondered how the library itself was.

  With a sigh of resignation, Damien turned around, and he wasn't disappointed.

  The library was a monolith of obscene proportions.

  Made from black marble, with exquisite crimson reliefs decorating the stygian monolith, the library rose far up into the sky, its jutting crown reaching past the clouds and out of sight.

  On both sides of the stairs were huge windows made from bright ruby running down the body of the building in two straight lines. And in front of both glasses, to the side and closer to the stairs, were two statues of humongous proportions.

  The statue on his left was of a man clothed in heavy armor covering his entire body except his head. His face was regal and on both hands, like a scale, were two objects: a giant sword and a book, each raised in equal heights into the sky.

  Damien didn't know what the statue signified, so he didn't bother guessing.

  The one on his right was a woman in a healer's garb. Her face managed to convey both expressions of sorrow and peacefulness in equal measure. She was leaning on a staff that reached up to her head, similar to a weary person.

  A dove stood on her left shoulder, wings half unfolded like it was about to take flight.

  Damien sighed at the magnificence of the building... and the statues, to a lesser extent. He wished he understood what both signified.

  With a smile, he looked down on the mile long stairs, nodding in greeting to the many people who seemed to be coming and going, and then began making his way down.