The earthen wetness squelched beneath our boots, while the stale and humid air was prevalent throughout the atmosphere. Jacob and his team of acolytes marched ahead of us, while Amara and I positioned ourselves at the rear.
Each of the acolytes was carrying a backpack, filled to the brim with destructive potions that usually cost exorbitant amounts of money. They were to be used against the monsters to bring peace and harmony to the lands. Yet, Amara's words had struck a chord in , and I couldn't help the feelings of unease from gripping my heart.
I sighed. "In the unlikely scenario we do end up in a situation beyond our ability to handle, what are our chances of survival?"
Amara had proven ti and again her tactical insight and battle awareness. As an SSS-Rank existence, it stood to reason that she must've had knowledge regarding how to deal with existences on higher levels.
"Depends." She said. I gave her a critical eye, and she continued. "Most of my talents are focused toward keeping alive. Even my highest attribute is agility, to help extricate myself when faced with a scenario like you described. However, the attribute difference among higher ranks is simply enormous, and even I can't guarantee anything beyond a 'maybe'."
"So, not very likely?"
"Anything beyond A-Rank would be impossible." She finished.
After my earlier discussion with Amara, I was now aware of the level to rank correspondence. E-Ranks ranged from Level 1 to 25, D-Ranks from 26 to 50, while C-Ranks were those between Level 51 and 75. However, starting from B-Rank, the difference grew startlingly huge. Those from Level 76 to 125 could all be categorized as B-Ranks, while Level 126 to 200 were known as A-Ranks.
The Dragon that had brought back to life was at Level 205, positively in the ranks of S. Though Amara speculated that its level might've dropped due to long-term isolation and heart extraction.
But the point remained—A-Ranks were currently beyond our ability to handle. One might wonder why I would even bother calculating my chances against A-Ranks as a re E-Rank, but for a while now a seed of ambition has embedded itself within my heart.
With all this power at my fingertips, I would have to be a fool to not direct it toward fulfilling my dreams and, most of all, sohow benefiting the world at large.
I would never consider myself a hero, but the world facing extermination-level threats was the one I lived in. And when the threat of death cos knocking on our door, both the good and the bad must band together to fight against it.
The Kingdom of Eirland, in particular, housed more threats than the Empire despite being weaker than the latter. End Forest was a glaring powder keg, but the Red Forest adjacent to Dorein Marquisette fared no better.
Thinking about the Empire, I couldn't help but wonder if the vampire clans of that place would hold any relations to Amara. Though that prospect seed far-fetched and wishful thinking.
"We can leave if you want, you know?"
I was so lost in my monologue that it took a few seconds to register Amara's words. When I did, I turned toward her with a questioning look that said, Why would I want to leave here?
"I thought you might be anxious to reunite with your forr teammates." She offered. "You know, thank them and all."
Oh!
As the realization dawned on , I felt a spark of happiness flicker in my heart. She was concerned about , and that filled my heart with warmth.
After leaving ho, I had been so focused on realizing my dreams that I had forsaken the small joys that life could offer. People my age would usually partake in rry activities among their friends or search for a partner to share their youthfulness with.
After my near death—well technically actual death experience I now understood the weight of regrets one would feel at the end. I had promised myself to live a life worth rembering, and I was determined to uphold that promise.
"I can't." I shook my head. "Not with what we're facing here."
"Sure you can." Amara countered. "If you really wish to leave, who would be foolish enough to stop you?"
I smiled at that, and seeing Jacob almost stumble turned my smirk even wider. "We can't, Amara. We have a bigger priority at the mont, and reuniting with my friends can wait."
Elias and his team would have to be within the Erdwatch, and as long as I remained anonymous, nothing would urge them to escape. I wasn't in a hurry.
Amara stopped pestering after that, and we continued with our walk. It was about half an hour later that Jacob stopped and held up his hand.
"This is it." He spread his hand to emphasize the empty glade we stood in. "We are to spread out from here."
The acolytes dropped their bags full of potions and started equipping themselves.
"I would like to help in distributing the potions." Amara spoke, the words more of an order than a suggestion.
"Eh...?" Jacob glanced up from where he was picking a glass vial and shot a conflicted look. I shrugged. "I was hoping you would keep guard and extricate any of us that need help."
"He would do that in my stead." She pointed at . "You can trust him."
To say I was confused would be an understatent. I hadn't expected Amara to suddenly direct the motion and put in the middle of rising conflict. She, however, ignored any inquiring look I threw her way.
Jacob glanced between us and bit his lips. He seed to be contemplating sothing and ultimately nodded his head. "Very well. You can cover the East."
Amara bead and happily took her portion of the potions. I pulled her aside promptly behind a tree where we wouldn't be heard properly.
"Why would you do that?" I asked, equal parts confused and annoyed.
She shrugged and lifted her case full of potions. "Don't you want this?"
"What?" Her gesture only served to enhance my confusion.
"Listen, they need to scare the monsters and push them toward the center, and they are using potions for that. However, if I want to terrorize the monsters, why would I rely on sothing as fickle as magical liquid within a glass bottle?"
Seeing the mischievous glint in her eyes alongside the wink she was giving , I couldn't help but consider her words.
"You're not suggesting..." I trailed off, and Amara's smile widened further.
"That's exactly what I'm suggesting."
"And you're sure you can handle it."
"More than handle it."
Suddenly I was matching her grin. The sack of potions appeared as a bag full of gold and silver to my eyes. With the mana stones I had and with this number of potions, we may have solved the problem of our funds for the future.
We returned soon after and found the team ready to go. My duty was to handle any monster attracted to the origin of tremors and send them to the afterlife. Jacob would accompany , though our stations would be farther apart.
"May the Goddess bless us." Jacob muttered a small prayer, and the acolytes mirrored his devotion. It always struck as odd that the Church of Ilios, which was primarily rooted in the Empire, would have followers within the Kingdom and those who affiliated with the Royal Family at that.
Either way, our destination and purpose determined, each of us left in a different direction. While acolytes and Amara spread along East and West, only Jacob and I pushed further inward up North.
Our paths diverged midway, and I soon found a spot that would prove beneficial to my combat style. Which, for lack of a better term, was non-existent.
My level 7 with a Scout Origin was very telling of my attainnts in terms of ard combat. I could use a dagger a bit more proficiently than a sword, but I unfortunately lacked one. That said, my attributes were absolutely monstrous, even when discounting Spirit that seed primarily focused on enhancing my summons.
The past would've been nervous at the prospect of facing a monster tide. The current , on the other hand, had to calm the excitent my heart seed to be bubbling with. It wasn't distracting, but sothing told keeping my emotions in check would only serve in the future.
While I was ruminating on my non-human existence, the ground quaked beneath . The trees and branches swayed with furious intensity, while fractures beca visible all around. For a mont the scene reminded of the ti when the Event Rapture had happened.
I shook my head to focus on the situation at hand. With the sword in my hand, I would be facing demons from hell. With a beat in my heart, I would laugh at every turn. And when the embers turned to ash, I alone would rise from within.
Despite the beat of excitent filling my dragon heart, my very human mind felt nervous.
The fact that we were cornering the monsters, breeding desperation and rage made question the intelligence of those at the top. It was certainly not sothing I would advocate for, but I was willing to extend my trust.
Hopefully everything would be resolved, and the Kingdom would welco the peace once more. Hopefully.
Sigh, I just jinxed it, didn't I?
Reviews
All reviews (0)