EPISODE 11: THE TRIAL ## PART ONE: THE APPROACH ### CHAPTER 1: THE FINAL STRETCH [FLOOR 61 - CLEARED][FLOOR 65 - CLEARED][FLOOR 70 - CLEARED - GUARDIAN: The Colossus (Level 70)] The upper Tower was everything Sarah's Archive had promised—and worse. Floors became longer, enemies became smarter, and the challenges required not just strength but wisdom. Each Guardian tested a different aspect of climbing: combat, strategy, morality, sacrifice. Kael grew with each floor. [LEVEL UP! KAEL VANCE - LEVEL 48] His Reality Walker abilities had reached new heights. Reality Weaving now let him modify significant patterns—weakening enemy attacks, strengthening ally defenses, creating brief pockets of altered physics. Reality Pierce could strike through almost any defense, finding cores that enemies didn't even know they had. But Floor 75 waited ahead. "The Reality Walker Trial," Marcus Okafor said through the communication crystal. "Every Reality Walker who's reached this floor has faced it. It's designed specifically for your class—testing whether you're worthy of the choice at Floor 100." "What kind of test?" "Different for everyone. The floor reads your patterns, identifies your greatest weakness, and constructs a trial around it." Marcus paused. "Two of our Reality Walkers died on Floor 75. One never reached it. That leaves four of us, including you." Four Reality Walkers. Four chances to reach Floor...