Chapter 55: To Go Home
The moment they resumed their journey after a good rest, it didn't end before they reached their true destination. For days, they ripped apart ghosts over and over. None of the combatants complained about their fast pace, as they unknowingly felt rushed. After all, they had been there for a very long time and for the first time in their lives, they had seen hope.
But unlike their urgency, they had to pause all their activities due to an expected yet irritating situation.
[Ghost King
Category: Monster
Variant: Ghost
Rank: M (high)
Description: Born out of countless humans that went mad after living in the Void Plane. Has higher intelligence and restraint than most humans due to its higher core rank. The outer tower guardian of the Tower of Hunters; Lifianest branch. Be extremely cautious when facing the monster]
—Mythic rank…—
Kyriaki mumbled in a daze.
The rank of a core was created according to the Alphabet, until it was A rank.
After A rank, there are ranks such as S, SS, SSS, Ex, L, M and so on.
According to the standards of humans and almost all residents of the Primal plane, M rank was something straight out of heroic tales. There's nothing above this rank for them.
Even if one worked hard and slayed monsters for their entire life, one cannot obtain such a high rank just because of that.
To achieve that kind of power, not only hard work, but also initial talent, bloodline, will, learning ability and time was also needed. And most importantly, one's core must be wide enough and growth must be possible for one to continue leveling up.
Not everyone has a growth type core. For some people, L must be their limit, and for some, A+ might be their limit while some might be forever stuck in G- rank. It all depends on one's potential.
Some might think that was all.
Those who know, know.
That wasn't all.
The prowess of an individual doesn't depend on rank alone.
For example; if an A+ human and an A+ wolf beastkin were to fight, the probability of the wolf beastkin winning was slightly higher.
But, if one was to pick out a 20 year old human and a 20 year old wolf beastkin, the human might have a higher rank core compared to the Wolf beastkin, leading them to win a duel.
Which means racial traits and bloodline abilities could amplify one's core rank.
Which was why there were individuals who could defeat monsters and others of higher ranks or age and individuals who could be defeated by monsters and others of lower rank or age.
In some ways, it was unfair.
But alas, that's just how the world is. Full of unfairness.
—Mythic high rank— Euclid immediately pointed out what Kyriaki missed.
—Right—
Each rank has sub-ranks. (High) or (+) was the peak of each rank one could achieve.
"Grrr"
Mr.Romanov growled with a troubled expression, saying 'This is difficult'
He too was M rank, but his sub-ranks was low.
—I don't think it'll be. Ghosts are weaker than wolf beastkin. Beside there are those with excellent supporting skills—
Kyriaki's words made the Wolf King look at those she pointed out as useful.
Two dragon hatchlings, one young titan, one young high-elf, one young deer beastkin and his Queen.
Well, to be frank, it wasn't bad at all. At least better than having weak humans.
"Grrr. Arrr. Grrrr."
And so, he requested a raid strategy.
—Yes, I understand—
Kyriaki readily agreed.
Looking at the Ghost King one last time from afar, her eyes landed on the Prime-Dimensional Gate standing high and mighty in the distance for a brief second.
Her heart warmed unknowingly just from seeing the end of her journey right before her eyes.
They stealthyly went back to their temporary hideout, avoiding detection of the Ghost King and his subordinates.
—First,— Kyriaki spoke even before they took a seat.
Seven pairs of various colors of eyes looked at her all at once.
—The Ghost King is of the level of a boss monster from a M rank Dungeon—
She nonchalantly threw a bomb.
"Wh-what?!"
"Mythic rank?!"
—That is correct—
"This is insane." Erik stared at the empty air with a blank look while Levana, Marina and Oscar lost their communication skills.
Mrs.Romanov silently glanced at her husband. Upon realizing it was true, she calmly got up and sat right next to him, rubbing her body as if telling him that fighting a M rank monster wasn't all that important to her.
—The kind of strategy for a monster of M rank is usually sneak attack, hit-and-run or guerilla attacks—
Meanwhile Euclid displayed the knowledge and rationality of a dragon, calmly and coldly calculating their next step.
—Hit-and-run isn't possible since the environment is unfavorable—
Kyriaki pointed her tail at the dense forest they were currently in. Euclid nodded his head.
—For the safety of everyone, a sneak attack would be the best choice—
"Grrr?"
'Who would attack first, then?' was what Mr.Romanov asked.
—Me or Ria—
"Huh?"
—We are planning to launch a sneak attack. The suitable candidates for the first attackers are me and Ria. Only we can fly among all of us—
Despite dripping with an icy aura, Euclid was kind enough to explain and translate their conversation to those who couldn't understand Beast vocals.
"I see. Then Mr.Romanov will continue from where you leave, is that right?" Marina woke up from her surprised state and diligently stuffed all information into her brain.
—Yes. Mrs.Romanov will assist him in close combat. And we'll support them from distance, ready to intertwine if necessary—
"Then what about us?" Oscar raised his hand like a model student asking appropriate questions in his favorite class.
—You, and Miss Marina have to protect the survivors as the defense team. After the fight starts, almost all ghosts will be attracted to the battlefield. But we never know, some might lose interest and roam around, so Erik and Levana will take the seat of semi-offence team—
"Ah…"
"It's okay, defense is as hard and important as attacking." Levana beamed. Her grey eyelashes fluttered as her eyes became crescent moons.
—Lucky for us, anything higher than S+ had been annihilated by the Ghost King for fear of losing the lord position. There were only below S rank Ghosts as his subordinates. We can set traps for them using artifacts and alchemy, infusing pure non elemental mana isn't hard work for us—
Euclid spoke of his strategy, offering the simplest solutions.
—Besides, we have someone with cloning skills. Luring prey wouldn't be that hard—
He was talking about Erik. He had the
According to Erik, this skill was also the reason he quickly found their locations previously in the
—That's a brilliant idea— Kyriaki had to admit it was a simple but effective idea.
—Thank you— Euclid wagged his tail up and down, his blue eyes glittering like the sun kissed ocean surface.
—But Eucee,—
In her point of view, it was too risky to do with so many low rankers. She was only C-, and Euclid was only D+. No matter how higher their bloodline was, facing many ghosts along with a M (high) rank monster was risky.
—How about using all three?— And so, she asked.
—All three?—
"Grrr?"
"What do you mean?"
There was a reaction from everyone.
Kyriaki smirked inwardly.
—Using all three strategies…—
That day until dawn, they exchanged their opinions, their ideas and resources.
And finally, after a day of waiting and preparing, the hunt began.
∆ ∆ ∆
Gloomy grey sky stared down at the silent forest, holding neither goodwill nor malice.
Too indifferent.
Like a bystander.
To sentient beings, that indifferent was something that could drive someone mad.
They say too much of something is always poisonous. No doubt, as It has been proven again and again in history.
Too much love causes wars.
Too much malice causes tragedies.
Too much sorrow causes disturbance.
Too much of anything breaks the delicate balance.
In the Void Plane, that too much is named "Indifferent".
The void's indifference that the sentient beings were directly exposed to might be just as poisonous as a demon's whispers. A tragedy of its own.
Because the void had always been like that.
Neither living nor dead. Beyond the understanding of mere mortals.
The sky, the earth, the sea, the trees, the pebbles, the dust, the air…
Everything inside the Void Plane was too indifferent to those living among them. Be it monsters, Primal Plane residence or god's children.
And that is also why long long ago the will of Mitherr-ge banished all the impure monsters into it. Because the world knew that dimension would treat everything indifferently. It was a perfect place to surpass those hideous beings.
But even the world has its boundaries.
They soon realized that those of the Primal Plane who accidentally enter the Void Plane must also receive the same treatments.
The result?
Madness.
Utter madness.
It burdened the body, crushed the mind and pressured the soul.
Some endured for days, some for months, while some endured it for years.
But faced with a maddening indifferent, as if something alive was always watching them but never bothering to help them, all people went mad.
And that madness led to their death.
Every.Single.One.Of.Them.
Regardless, each of those deaths differ from one another, depending on things like age, gender, race.
Humans were the most victims of those lonely deaths. And also the only race that can leave behind traces of monstrous tragedies for centuries even after their death.
Humans were part of the Primal Plane, part of the group that could accidentally end up in the vast dimension. When a human goes mad and ends up dying, that could give birth to only one thing; Ghosts.
Because of human egos, intense negative emotions in their dying moment, that much was expected.
Although on the weaker side compared to other monsters, ghosts were pretty common in the Void Plane, nesting in places where Humans died more often.
The vast Void Forest was one of those places.
Decorated with tall obsidian trees, with all shades of black and grey leaves, poisonous plants and flowers, flowing black water springs; it was named "The Black Forest" by GDC. A trademark in the Void Plane.
Flap. Flap.
In the eerie black forest, the sound of wings flapping together faintly resonated with the air.
Something golden shimmered like a forgotten dream of a jeweled paradise, even without the grace of the sunlight. It glided past tall trees, skillfully avoiding detection in an unhurried manner.
Flap. Flap. Flap.
The occasional flapping was so leisurely that one might think the forest was its own domain.
It looked substantial, yet it was light and swift.
Perhaps, it was the light of the sun itself. The only light in the gloomy grey world without the sun or moon. Dazzlingly beautiful, enough to warm a worn out heart.
Flap.Woosh.
And at last, it approached the open space inside the forest, revealing its true form.
Tiny horns, golden scales, wide wings, long tail and sharp claws.
Roar!
The little hatchling of the dragons roared. A roar so deep and sincere that the sheer amount of killing intent and dragon aura it possessed froze the lower tire monsters around the vicinity, leaving them with shattered souls and trembling, immoveable bodies.
Its reptilian eyes glared at the opponent in front of it.
The opponent, in return, glared back without a word.
The transparent silhouette, giant body over ten meters tall, clear features of something between human and monsters; it stood before the tower like a true guardian, protecting it with its own body as if something was controlling its mind to do so.
Looking at the fearless golden hatchling, it twisted its black lips and bloodshot eyes.
An eerie silence settled between two beings that recognized their positions as leaders.
Behind both, the huge Prime-Dimensional Gate stood in a different kind of silence.
The hatchling—Kyriaki, gave a single glance to the gate, hoping the dragon guards on the other side could sense her presence or the tremor of the fight that was about to unfold.
"Arrogant Lizard! Dare to approach the Great Tower!"
The ground shook, a booming voice tingling with mana exploded.
And the next second, two forces ran at each other without a moment's pause.
Boom!
The battle to go home had started.
∆ ∆ ∆
Core ranking;
G-
G
G+
F-
F
F+
E-
E
E+
D-
D
D+
C-
C
C+
B-
B
B+
A-
A
A+
S-
S
S+
SS-
SS
SS+
SSS-
SSS
SSS+
Ex (Low)
Ex (Medium)
Ex (High)
L (Low)
L (Medium)
L (High)
M (Low)
M (Medium)
M (High) ; The known limit for most lesser races including humans.
DG ; The known limit for most higher races
DT ; Only those who peeked to the realm of divinity can gain this. The only person to achieve this rank as a mortal was Thanasios the first Dragon King
SG ; Only those who gained divinity can achieve this. Mortals have to perform a ritual and face a trial to achieve this rank.
SGD; Only the apex of divinity can achieve this rank, becoming the highest tire in the vast Omniverse. Most are born with this rank, approved by the universe they were born into.
??? ; The rank above divinity. No divinity can achieve this rank as only those who were once present during the creation of Omniverse are of this rank. Most are unaware of the existness of this rank.
—???,the wandering entity—