The woman was already on the brink of death, yet her trembling fingers still clung to Oskar's leg with what little strength she had left. Her breathing was ragged, each breath sounding like it might be her last.
"William? Is that you, my son?"
Oskar froze. He did not know why, but his feet refused to move away.
Slowly, he knelt beside her. A strange heaviness settled in his chest, as if the air itself was suffocating him.
It seemed the woman was hallucinating, mistaking him for her child.
"Ah… you know, it has been so many years since we last met. How is your wife?"
"She… is fine," Oskar replied softly, his voice barely above a whisper. His gaze lingered on the woman's bloodied body. Beside her lay a blue card, half-submerged in a widening pool of crimson.
"I heard you already have a child. What is their name?"
"Rudy…" The name was something Oskar invented on the spot. He could not bring himself to let her wait for an answer that would never truly come.
"Rudy… such a beautiful name." Her lips curved into the faintest of smiles. "You must be busy. That is why we rarely talk now."
"Yes… forgive William for being too busy."
"It is alright. I understand. You are doing your best for your new family. I was so happy when I heard you were coming home."
Her breath trembled as she continued, "Every night I waited for your call. I wanted to hear your voice… to know where you were. You must be hungry from such a long journey." Her cold fingers reached up to gently caress Oskar's cheek. The touch was fragile, like a leaf ready to fall.
"My son, forgive me."
Her grip was weakening. Oskar's own hands trembled as he held hers, as though trying to pour some of his strength into her failing body. Without realising it, tears were falling, soaking her paling skin.
"I was not the best mother, but you… you are the best thing I have ever had."
"Forgive me… if you ever left because of me… forgive me…" Her voice cracked at the end. Her lips quivered. Her breaths grew shallower, and Oskar could feel the warm mix of blood and tears falling onto his neck.
"No. You are the best mother there has ever been. Do you not remember that?"
With the last of his strength, Oskar activated his ability. Glowing letters materialised in the air, floating for a moment before sinking into the woman's mind.
One by one, memories formed. He saw a small boy running in the yard, a teenager laughing with his mother over a meal, a grown man embracing her before leaving on a journey.
All of them were moments bathed in light. He erased every dark shadow from their relationship, replacing them with happiness he had crafted.
He did not know how he was able to do this. He had only tried… and it had worked.
The woman slowly smiled. That smile was like the final sunrise before eternal night. It faded away, followed by the halting of her breath and heartbeat.
The hand that had been caressing his cheek slipped limply to the ground. Her body was still.
A faint light wrapped around Oskar. Even though he had not struck her down directly, his final act had ended her life and erased the colour from his opponent.
His energy was spent. He collapsed, barely able to move a finger. The light surrounded them both. Oskar took one last look at the woman's face before her body turned to ash, scattered by the wind.
This tower is insane. No wonder they call it the Tower of Madness.
His body felt like it was falling apart, his mind dull from using his class ability, Scribe, which allowed him to manipulate possibilities and the minds of those weaker than him.
"That took too much from me. Manipulating the mind is too dangerous. I will seal this power," he muttered.
He wiped his face, streaked with blood and tears.
After completing the tutorial, Climbers were supposed to be placed on a large altar at the peak of the first floor's mountain.
When his body was transported there, Oskar saw several Climbers who had already finished. They moved on without saying a word.
But then his eyes caught a familiar figure. Elisa was waiting for him.
"Yo," Elisa greeted with a smile.
"You waited for me?"
"Of course. I owe you. I am not the type of woman who likes being in debt, especially to a man." She clenched her fist as if it was a life principle.
Oskar sighed. "If you want to repay me, then carry me. I am too tired to walk."
Elisa gave him a look of disbelief.
"Are you serious?"
"Yes. Even moving my fingers is hard right now."
Elisa let out a long sigh, and for some reason, that sigh stung Oskar's pride, though he kept his expression serious.
Finally, Elisa lifted him, and they began walking down together.
As they went, Elisa noticed something strange. The faces of the survivors were not the same as she remembered. There were also far more of them.
"Why are there so many? And so many unfamiliar faces?"
"Because they are from different tutorials," Oskar explained.
In truth, their tutorial was just one among many. Some were easy, others difficult. The one they had gone through was among the cruelest, requiring participants to kill each other.
Elisa fell silent for a while, then asked, "How do you know so much about this tower?"
Oskar said nothing. He wondered how she would react if she knew this world was nothing more than a novel.
He tried to tell her, but suddenly Elisa dropped him and covered her ears.
"What is that? Why does your voice sound so strange?"
To her, Oskar's voice had turned into something incomprehensible, though in reality he was only trying to tell her the truth.
So this is what happens when someone hears that this world is a novel.
"Just say I found a manual. Now hurry up and carry me. I still cannot walk."
Elisa groaned but picked him up again. Together, they continued down the mountain.