My Charity System made me too OP-Chapter 450: Throne V

The signal had been sent.

And now, they waited.

Not idly. Not in fear. But with intention.

Leon continued his work on the Dream Corridor, refining the weave that would let his Bastion floor project upward into the Architect Layer. It wasn’t just technical. It was emotional. A story told in Tower syntax, each line shaped by floors survived, allies forged, enemies endured.

Even the stones remembered now.

Roman and Milim tuned the resonance layers, crafting harmonics that could carry the signal without interference. Kael inscribed pathways along the edge, creating directional anchors to prevent hijacking from hostile floors. Naval shaped the inner veil’s defenses with cold efficiency.

Roselia stood at the gateway they’d constructed and watched the skies.

She said nothing.

But everyone knew what she was waiting for.

That Night

It came without warning.

A shimmer at the edge of the Dream Corridor.

Not a rift. Not a challenge.

Just a step.

A ripple.

A presence unlike the others.

And from it—a woman stepped through.

Not a goddess. Not a storm. But something just as heavy.

She wore deep navy robes embroidered with faded runes, and carried no weapon. Her skin was dusky, her hair a curtain of black streaked with steel, eyes pale violet like they’d stared too long into truths most avoided.

Leon approached alone, posture calm.

"You answered."

"I did," the woman said. Her voice was soft, but steady. "Because I remember when the Tower stood for growth. Not survival."

Roselia’s shield lowered—just slightly.

"I am Asera, Architect of the Lost Bloom," the woman said. "My floor was cut off long ago. It no longer accepts new climbers. I didn’t stop it. I... gave up."

Leon didn’t judge. "But now you’ve come."

"I saw what you built," she said. "Not just the structure. The idea. A floor that teaches, remembers, connects. That cares what happens after the duel ends."

Leon studied her.

"Why did you really come, Asera?"

She looked down.

"To ask if I’m still allowed to hope."

Later

Asera walked the Bastion silently.

She watched Naval shape a mana riverbank with perfect efficiency. Listened to Roman’s echo crystals replay a memory of Floor 472—when Leon stood against three Sovereigns alone. Observed Roselia teaching Kael how to redirect heavy pulse strikes through a moving barrier. Smiled faintly as Milim rode her tamed thunderbeast in wild loops across the cliffs.

And she stopped when she reached the heart tree—Kerren—who greeted her with blooming silver leaves, reacting to her floor’s resonance.

She touched the bark.

"This is alive."

Leon stood behind her. "It wasn’t, until we made it matter."

Asera nodded slowly.

"Then I’m with you."

Tower System Update

Architect Contact: Asera – Accepted

Alignment: Passive Harmonist

Signature Registered: Lost Bloom Seal

Dream Corridor Progress: 34%

Bridge to Architect Layer – Unlocking...

Three Days Later

They stood once more on the Dais of Wake—the highest point of Bastion Aether. Above them, the stars had begun to move. Not spin. Shift. The Architect Layer was aligning. Listening.

Leon stepped forward and activated the completed Corridor.

It didn’t open a gate.

It didn’t tear space.

It simply parted the veil.

And through it, they saw the Architect Layer for the first time.

Dozens—maybe hundreds—of domains, each shaped like a floor but far beyond one. Realms of law, madness, logic, war. Some shimmered like concept. Others burned with hatred. Many pulsed like breathing engines, overseen by powerful figures.

Some watched in silence.

Others turned away.

But a few stepped forward.

Three signals echoed down to Bastion Aether.

Not threats.

Challenges.

[You have drawn the attention of Architect-Class Entities]

Incoming:

– Architect Fervan of the Trial Maw

– Architect Seluune of Endless Pacts

– Architect Halver, Judge of Balance

Duel Invitations Pending

Floor 543 Classification: Architect Bastion – Status: Defended

Conflict Forecast: Unstable Equilibrium

Roselia stepped up beside Leon.

"Well," she muttered, "you got their attention."

Leon looked at the veil—at the Tower’s true upper realm.

He smiled faintly.

"Good."

He turned toward his team.

"Because it’s time we show them what it means to climb together."

They arrived one by one.

Not through portals.

Not with armies.

Each Architect came alone, descending from their domain into Bastion Aether without fanfare, without declaration. They didn’t need it. Their presence was enough.

Fervan of the Trial Maw stepped onto the plateau as if the ground bowed to him. A being of bone and furnace, clad in chains made from the regrets of failed climbers. His voice was not sound—it was pressure. Heavy. Measured. "You called the Tower’s attention, Leon Aetheren. Now earn it."

Seluune of Endless Pacts appeared like a shadow splitting from the dusk. She was neither old nor young, her form constantly shifting through contracts, lives, forms—like she carried the burden of every deal ever made. She spoke with the voice of many. "Let’s see if your resolve is stronger than the promises that break the rest."

Halver, Judge of Balance, didn’t appear—he manifested. One moment, there was air. The next, he stood on it, dressed in ceremonial armor forged of mirrored decisions. A being whose law was absolute and whose domain was fairness. Even Leon felt the weight of judgment just standing near him.

No one attacked.

Not yet.

This wasn’t war.

This was reckoning.

At the Dais of Wake

Leon gathered his team. The Bastion trembled, not from fear—but from potential.

"Three challenges," Roselia muttered. "At once?"

"They won’t come together," Kael said. "Each of them has too much pride. They’ll want a personal fight."

"Then we give them what they want," Leon said. "One at a time. But on our terms."

Naval stepped forward. "We use the Bastion’s flexibility. Alter the zones. Each Architect gets a duel on a floor sculpted by our own will. If they want to measure our strength, they’ll fight us in our strength."

Roman smirked. "Echo halls for me. Let them walk through the sounds of their past failures."

Milim spun a coin. "I want lightning and chaos. Let’s see if that pact lady can keep up with unpredictable."

Roselia locked her gauntlet. "And mine will be stone, iron, storm, and shield. Judge or not, he’ll break before I do."

Leon nodded slowly. "Good. But remember—this isn’t just about winning."

Kael tilted his head. "Then what is it?"

Leon looked toward the Architect Layer, pulsing in the skies above.

"It’s about proving. That climbers can build. That the Tower isn’t theirs alone. That legacy belongs to those who shape it, not just those who survive it."