System: Daily login!!, jackpot on the first day!!!

"Daniel. Stop." His voice was calm but carried a note of finality. The chatter ceased,"... I'm here to ask you something"

Daniel turned, unfazed, a slight grin playing on his lips.

"I know why you're here. Let's go"

Taufik blinked, caught off guard.

"You What? I mean, do you even know what I'm about to ask?"

Daniel gave a confident nod.

"Of course. It's about that strange tower, right? I already figured it out. I mean, come on, don't you think it's weird? A tower like that just appearing out of nowhere, like poof, and everyone's just supposed to pretend that's normal? Honestly, I think it's-"

*Slap!*

Taufik dragged a hand down his face and groaned, clearly reaching the limits of his patience.

"Daniel. Stop." His voice sharpened, cutting through Daniel's ramble. "Just… stop. Who told you about the tower? Did someone tell you I was coming?"

His gaze swept the area. Several Exorcists, clad in their signature dark robes adorned with silver crosses, stood a short distance away, eyeing him and Daniel with a mixture of curiosity and unease.

Some looked prepared for conflict.

"Seeing all of you gathered here like this..." Taufik continued, narrowing his eyes, "You were expecting me, weren't you? So, who warned you? Tell me"

Daniel shifted uncomfortably, his grin fading. For the first time, his usual casual demeanor seemed to falter.

"Daniel," Taufik said quietly, but with gravity, "I want the truth. If you're not honest with me… I won't bring you along"

There was a pause. Then Daniel sighed, rubbing the back of his neck like a guilty child caught sneaking out past curfew.

"…It was the Pope," he finally confessed. "He told us to wait here. Said you'd be coming. Said you'd be looking for me"

"The Pope?" Taufik murmured, surprised. He turned his gaze to the ground, thoughts momentarily clouded. After a pause, he looked back at Daniel, eyes narrowing in contemplation. "...So the Pope really can see the future, huh? Now I'm interested"

His mind wandered briefly. Just like when Justinus, one of the In Pectore Cardinals, spoke to him a long time ago. (Chapter 111 if remember it correctly)

A vision of Earth's demise.

A future where the world crumbled, and all hope flickered to extinction... except for him.

Only he could stop it.

The world was already teetering on the edge, on the brink of destruction. And yet… Earth still existed. People still walked its surface. Life still clung to what little hope remained.

The gods of the pantheons, once worshipped in temples and revered in legend, had left Earth except The Goda from the Greek Pantheon.

Even The angels in heaven, the ones that the Exorcist referred to as the Creator Messenger.

All of them had turned blind. Blind to Earth. Blind to humanity.

It was as if they had abandoned the world altogether.

Was the destruction that Justinus spoke of the one that had already happened?

Or the one that had yet to come?

Taufik couldn't tell. Not completely.

But he knew this much:

Everything had changed because of the path he chose.

That day, when he forged a new Earth Core with his own hands, he shifted fate.

Without that act, destruction would've been inevitable.

But what now? What was the next move?

'...Sigh. That's too much to process in one go'

'But… who is the Pope, really?'

'If he can see the future, then… is he even human? Or is he something else entirely?'

'Could he be like Alice? A being born with an ability beyond this world?'

'System, what's your take on this?'

[Too little information, Master. I cannot decide]

'I see…' Taufik exhaled, eyes scanning the group of Exorcists standing silently nearby.

They watched him not with hostility, but wariness. Uncertainty. Reverence, perhaps. Or fear.

He shook his head, brushing away the flood of questions swirling in his mind.

"…Never mind," he muttered under his breath. Then, louder, for any unseen ears, perhaps even the Pope's, he added: "There's still plenty of chances to meet him"

He looked at Daniel, a determined glint returning to his gaze.

"Alright, Daniel. Let's go"

--------

High above the clouds, the wind brushed past them, not from wings of mana like before, but from the soft ripple of a flying carpet gliding through the sky, shimmering faintly with runic threads woven into its fabric, entirely made from Taufik Imagination Magic.

Caldwell crossed his arms, visibly irritated as the carpet bobbed slightly in the air.

"…If you had something like this," he grumbled, "why didn't we use it from the start?"

Taufik just chuckled, one hand behind his head.

"…I just remembered I had it," he said with a crooked grin.

Clearly a lie.

Caldwell narrowed his eyes but said nothing more.

Daniel, on the other hand, was practically vibrating with excitement, his eyes wide with childlike wonder.

"Hmhmhm~ You're truly amazing, my friend," he said, stars in his gaze. "To be able to create something like this! A flying carpet! Incredible! Tell me, how does it work? Does it use pure mana to stay afloat? Or is there some secret mechanism embedded in the weave? Maybe it's bound to a spirit or- no, no! Don't tell me if you don't want to! I completely understand, I mean, it's not like I need to know, but really I would love to kn-"

"Daniel," Taufik interrupted, rubbing his forehead, "please. Just… stay silent. Ask less. Explain less"

"Oh~ I'm sorry, my friend. You know, sometimes I just-" Daniel started again, then immediately stopped himself, lips clamped shut as he realized he was about to launch into another monologue. He cleared his throat. "...Forgive me. So... where are we going? This isn't the tower's direction, is it?"

Taufik's expression turned calm again, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon.

"…We're picking up my other friends"

--------

After several hours gliding through the skies, zigzagging here and there without stopping, Taufik finally completed his task: gathering the companions he had personally chosen to accompany him into The Infinite Tower.

There were six of them in total.

Besides Caldwell and Daniel, three more had joined the group.

First, Rijal, from the Dai-Yak Tribe, a Magician, and Spiritualist who had inherited the mantle of Tribe Chief after the First Calamity, stepping in for his aging grandfather.

Then, Tokugawa Asahi, a fiery and enthusiastic young man from Japan's prestigious Tokugawa Family, who called himself Taufik's pupil, though that was never officially agreed upon.

And finally, Reza, Taufik's one and only true friend. Not a king, not a chosen warrior or heir, but someone who had always been by his side since childhood.

Now, standing at the forefront of this diverse group, Taufik looked over them with a sense of satisfaction and purpose.

"Alright, everyone," Taufik began, his voice steady and commanding. The group quieted, all six turning their attention to him. "Before we enter the Infinite Tower, I want to make my expectations clear. I didn't choose any of you randomly"

"Fik," Reza interrupted, raising his hand like a student in a classroom. "I get why you chose them. I mean, just look, one's a king, another an heir to the Tokugawa legacy, then there's a tribal chief, and even an Exorcist Association operative. But me?"

He pointed at himself, half-laughing. "I'm just an ordinary Warrior. Why bring me?"

Taufik's expression softened. He slowly shook his head.

"Reza, let me ask you something," he said. "What are you to me?"

"…A friend?" Reza replied, uncertain.

"You're right… but also wrong," Taufik said. "You're not just a friend, Reza. You're like family. I don't want you to stay the way you are now, I want you to grow stronger. I want you to live. Out there… things won't be forgiving. That's why I chose you. So don't underestimate yourself. You're important to me"

Reza fell silent. The words hit harder than he expected. He didn't know how to respond, so he simply nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Satisfied, Taufik turned his gaze to the others.

"Alright," he said. "Let's do a quick check. What level are you all at?"

"Level 43," Caldwell answered first, crossing his arms.

"Level 39," Daniel followed, grinning.

"Thirty-six," Rijal said with a proud nod.

"Level 40, Master!" Asahi declared, chest puffed out, clearly waiting for Taufik's praise.

"Umm… I'm just level 15," Reza admitted quietly.

Taufik nodded again. "Good"

No one mocked Reza, and Taufik made sure of that with his tone.

"The Tower has a level limit, normally," he continued. "But with me here, that's not an issue. I'll handle the access restrictions. What's more important is this, do all of you understand how to use the system interface?"

Reza nodded. "It's kind of like a game menu, isn't it? I figured it out"

"Exactly. As long as you can navigate it, you'll be fine"

He took a breath, and his tone grew more serious.

"Now let me explain what the Infinite Tower really is... before we step inside"

....

...

..

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#A/N - "One more Chapter before we hit 400!!!"