I Became the 1st Floor Boss of the Tower

Even the wizards in the third and fourth matches were defeated by Lee Shin.

"Keugh…!"

The Empire's Head wizard was carried out on a stretcher after he had vomited blood and collapsed. As for Para McMatain, he would have long since stepped on the stage had the Empire not been keeping him from it.

'Lee Shin...'

Para McMatain visualized his fight against Lee Shin. Despite being a Great Wizard, he felt their fight wouldn’t conclude easily.

'I could only become a Great Wizard after surpassing the barrier of Transcendence. But… what is up with that wizard?'

Para McMatain wondered if Lee Shin had also reached the level of Transcendence.

'No… That can't be.'

Para McMatain wondered how someone from this world could reach Transcendence when the ordinary folks here couldn’t even live up to their potential.

"Mr. Para McMatain, please come forward to the stage," the referee said.

'But if that wizard really is a Great Wizard...'

Para McMatain thought that this match would then become an opportunity for his stagnant potential to progress further.

***

Para McMatain, a 'true' wizard, had achieved Great Wizard status. He had done so without the Tower’s assistance and through his own talent, and that alone made him an extraordinary figure. In contrast, Lee Shin had the Tower's assistance. Yet, this didn't make Lee Shin lesser. McMatain simply respected his adversary.

'Reaching the level of a Great Wizard was the culmination of my past life’s hard work. I am much stronger now than I was back then.'

Lee Shin hadn’t used Transcendence until now, but winning without it now would be difficult.

"I'm looking forward to a good match, Lee Shin," said Para McMatain.

"All right," Lee Shin replied.

The barrier emerged, the match began, and the audience watched with bated breath.

Zzzap—!

Lee Shin extended his hands, releasing magic from within. Blue currents surged from his palms, infused with the kind of power never displayed before. Threads of lightning energy crackled within his grasp, ready to burst in any direction.

[Lightning Extension]

Zzaaapp—!

Lee Shin’s mana spread across the entire stage, and his lightning arcs surged erratically in all directions. They soon engulfed Para McMatain.

"He’s starting with an incredible spell," Para McMatain muttered.

Fear, curiosity, interest—a plethora of emotions danced within Para McMatain’s pupils, accentuated by the glint of blue light.

"Seize him," Para McMatain said.

Soon, a burst of white light manifested in the air. Amidst the sea of blue, patches of white clung to the space like blotches.

"Engulf him," Para McMatain said again.

Each time Para McMatain cast his spell, the battlefield transformed dramatically. His bright masses seemingly absorbed Lee Shin’s thunderbolts, making them disappear like they were never there.

'Impressive.'

Lee Shin was taken aback by Para McMatain’s way of using light magic. McMatain's mastery of mana control, precise visualization, and ability to manipulate mana was truly impeccable. Furthermore, thunderbolts had a slight disadvantage against light. Therefore, using thunderbolts alone was not quite favorable to defeat Para.

'Then, how about this?'

Zap—! Pizz—!

Black currents materialized from Lee Shin’s hands and revolved, generating sparks. Soon, the sparks turned into branching lightning arcs that came together to form a black sphere.

[Deep Lightning Explosion]

The black lightning sphere exploded.

Baaam—!

Zap—! Pizz—!

The black currents erupted in all directions, engulfing the trapped blue current within the light. They grew in size, overpowering and obliterating the light.

"Keugh...!" For the first time, Para McMatain groaned.

If a wizard had such a massive spell, there was no need to attack them directly. Just breaking their spell was enough to hurt them.

Thunk!

Due to the explosion, there were rocks and rubble on the stage floor. Using Psychokinesis, Lee Shin grabbed those and hurled them directly at Para McMatain.

Babababam—!

As the rock fragments pelted his shield, Para's view became obstructed. Lee Shin used this opportunity to retrieve a sharp spear from his Subspace Pocket and got ready to launch it.

‘This is a spear made from the tail of the 65th-floor boss, Razmo, the Queen of Monsters. There is nothing better than this to pierce a shield.’

Razmo’s tail had evolved countless times to kill monsters with a thick and hard carapace. Therefore, this spear should be able to slice through just about anything.

[Strengthening of the Piercing]

[Rotational Acceleration]

[Target Fixation]

[Resistance Reduction]

[Strengthening of the Durability]

Mana flowed from Lee Shin’s hand, enveloping the spear’s blade and creating layers upon layers of mana on it.

‘Try blocking this.’

Lee Shin hurled the spear straight ahead.

Woong—!

A streak of light raced through the air, piercing through Para’s shield. 𝙗𝒆𝒅𝙣𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒏𝙚𝙩

Crack—!

Brimming with intense destructive power, the spear's blade penetrated all ten layers of Para McMatain's shield. Perhaps sensing its overwhelming force, Para shot a stone upward to strike the spear from beneath, changing its trajectory slightly. The spear still struck his shields, but he could twist his body to avoid the attack now.

Baaam—!

Swoosh—!

The spear narrowly missed Para McMatain and slammed into the barrier, pressing against it momentarily before losing momentum and falling to the ground. Lee Shin was disappointed, but his eyes widened when light fragments filled the air and suddenly converged toward him like a whip. He looked at Para McMatain and realized his opponent was several times faster than before.

‘Transcendence...?’

Lee Shin had expected it, but it was still surprising. It seemed like time for Para was flowing more slowly than for others.

‘But still, he’s not that skillful.’

Para McMatain had avoided his spear and prepared another spell, the light whip, in the meantime. A faint sense of satisfaction emerged on his face, likely from thinking that the tide of the battle was now turning in his favor.

‘You’re wrong.’

[Transcendence]

Time began to slow down. The whip sliced through the air, leaving behind a white afterimage, as it flew toward Lee Shin’s wrist. As their gazes locked in the air, Lee Shin could see bewilderment dawning in his eyes. Para McMatain must have been surprised by Lee Shin’s movements, which were faster than his.

Now, it was time to turn that surprise into astonishment. Lee Shin spread his mana throughout the stage, seemingly painting it with mana.

[Rebound Stone]

A part of the stage floor cracked, and a squire piece rocketed into the air.

Thud—!?

The long stone flying up struck the light whip, which bounced off the slab and faded away. Lee Shin instantly spread his mana in all directions, endowing it with the water attribute to freeze the space.

"Ah... no..." Para McMatain’s voice was filled with confusion.

The mana barrier around the arena underwent a sudden, drastic change. The previously semi-transparent barrier turned opaque, and flames sprang from its surface.

Swoosh—!

The collision of the flames and the ice barrier produced a dense fog. Lee Shin smirked and gazed ahead, while a blue gleam flickered in Para McMatain's eyes. Although a thick fog concealed the arena from the audience, McMatain and Lee Shin could anticipate the match's outcome based on their recent clash.

Para McMatain had been preparing this move from the very beginning. He had been subtly interfering with the barrier, only slightly adjusting the mana flow to deceive Lee Shin’s senses. After all, looking through the ever-changing and enormous mana flow that followed an intricate path was difficult, even for Lee Shin.

While manipulating that flow was no easy affair either, it was within Para’s capabilities. If not for the Immortal Sphere, even Lee Shin would have found it challenging to predict Para’s move. Lee Shin had been observing the barrier’s mana flow since the beginning of the match.

Thankfully, Lee Shin had an eidetic memory, which he used to calculate in real-time the subtle difference in the situation each second. This allowed him to sense Para McMatain's move. Para wasn’t aware that Lee Shin had such a power, so his eyes were filled with remorse.

'It will be difficult for him to comprehend this.’

Even in terms of utilizing Transcendence, Lee Shin had been significantly ahead of Para McMatain. Therefore, even if Para had shattered the barrier unexpectedly, Lee Shin was confident he could have countered it well.

‘Although I would not have been able to block it perfectly like now.'

On the other hand, Para McMatain's hand was trembling. It seemed like he had lost control of himself due to the shock.

"I've... lost," Para McMatain muttered, admitting his defeat.

However, the declaration had been so soft the audience couldn’t hear it.

'Even so...'

Although Para McMatain had acknowledged his defeat, the audience was unaware of the situation.

'I will have to end this match more properly.’

Lee Shin stretched his palm and gathered black currents within it.

[Dark Blitz Gun]

Lee Shin unleashed his magic straight ahead, catching Para McMatain off guard because he had thought the fight was over. Para hastily erected his shield, but it was futile since Lee Shin had anticipated that and imbued it with even greater power.

Baaaang—!

Para McMatain flew far beyond the stage with the barrier gone, crashing into the wall before the audience seats.

Zap! Pizz—

Sparks danced across his body. The Great Wizard’s eyes rolled back, and he fainted. The wizards from the Empire were left momentarily stunned, seemingly failing to understand the situation.

"Para! Mr. Para!”

“Mr. Para!”

"Call the medics quickly! Or the priest! Call someone who can use divine spells!"

The wizards belatedly grasped the situation and started to move busily. Lee Shin looked at the referee standing far away from the stage. As soon as he noticed the situation, he quickly blew his whistle.

Phwwwhht—

"T-the winner of this match is! Mr. Lee Shin!” the referee shouted.

After a moment of silence, the crowd erupted into a thunderous cheer.

'The most powerful combat force of the Lostria Magic Empire has been defeated.'

This Great Wizard would find it difficult to recover for a while. It would take quite some time for him just to recuperate.

'How will they react...'

Lee Shin wondered if they would maintain their alliance with Earth on the surface, or if they would flee for life or…

'Will they make another move?'

***

“Huh! What did you say? Mr. Para was defeated?” asked the Emperor.

The Emperor of the Empire, Pyon Dunaide, repeated the question as if he could not believe what had happened, but the answer didn’t change.

"You're saying that the wizard from before, Lee Shin or something, is that strong?" Emperor Pyon Dunaide asked.

"Yes, that’s right."

The Emperor tapped his fingers on his throne’s armrest, deep in thought. The gods had entrusted the task of dominating Earth to him. He used to think that Earth, inhabited by a lower species called humans, was ignorant of magic and lagging far behind in development.

'Is that Tower truly as remarkable as they say?'

Earth had become this strong in a mere decade or so. Despite being faced with such a reality, he couldn’t give up.

Crunch—

The Emperor got up abruptly, gritting his teeth.

"I must go to the altar," said Pyon Dunaide.

"As you wish, Your Majesty."

The Emperor went to the altar, a place only he could enter. There, he poured his mana and offered prayers to the gods. This was not a temporary consumption of mana but a permanent one. Despite the overwhelming sense of fatigue, he prayed calmly. And then, a golden shimmer materialized, revealing the emergence of a faint figure.

"Oh, dear God…” Pyon Dunaide muttered.

The Emperor, Pyon Dunaide, who had never bowed his head to anyone in the Empire, lowered his head as if he were familiar with the act.

[You have failed in your task.]

Pyon Dunaide trembled before God because it seemed like God already knew why he had come here even though he hadn’t said a word of it.

"I apologize for that. But I will make sure to make up for it," Pyon Dunaide said, trembling.

[How will you make up for it?]

"There is a wizard named Lee Shin on the other side. If only I had the power to capture that wizard, I am certain I can conquer Earth,” Pyon Dunaide said.

There was no response from God. As the Emperor sweated coldly and lowered his head, an answer finally came.

[I will send an Apostle.]

"Thank you," Pyon Dunaide replied.

An Apostle referred to someone chosen by gods with powers from the gods.

[There will be no next time.]

"Understood,” Pyon Dunaide replied.

The golden light faded, and the Emperor stood up. Before him stood a blonde man he had never seen before.

"Lee Shin? Where is that guy?" the Apostle asked Pyon Dunaide.

"I will take you there," Pyon Dunaide replied.

Though the Emperor was seeing an Apostle for the first time, he was slightly confused with his appearance as the Apostle did not look as overwhelming as he had expected. Of course, Pyon Dunaide did not make it obvious on the surface.

'He's a messenger sent by God, so I must have faith in him.'

The Emperor planned on invading Earth as soon as the Apostle captured Lee Shin. Pyon Dunaide intended to regain his wounded pride this time.