Chapter 681 - The Open Path

POV Nathaniel

You have been invited to meet your master for 10 minutes. Will you accept?

Yes/No

It has been a week since I returned from the Beyond quest, meaning I still have at least 2 weeks left from my stay token, maybe longer, since it is boosted by the Primordial Knights.

During that time, I have been bullied by Weslin. Something tells me he did not like that he had to wait for me. But it is all good, since we still work on the progression of my quest as well as some side stuff he claims he needs to do “to make a living.”

“Hey, I need ten minutes,” I tell him.

He looks around to check for danger, then sits down on the ground in the next moment. “Go on.”

As a man of developed taste, I create a manabloc chair and sink into it before confirming.

The same as when I meet with my minion, I find myself in never-ending white space. Everything is just… white. There are no walls, floor, or ceiling I can see, but when I walk, I feel flat ground beneath my feet. With a few steps, I reach a figure standing ahead.

Lissandra has looked better. She is missing her right arm, and her clothes are in poor condition, though someone has done their best to make them look neat. Her left eye stays closed, and her silver hair has been burned down short, leaving it weaving and twisting at the edges.

“Rough day?” I ask.

Even in her state, she smiles with absolute confidence. “It reminds me of the good old times, before I even became Champion.”

“So, it could be better, I guess?”

“Likely, but there was a promise I had to keep. Little pup, I thought I would not see you for a while, not until you came to Eladore.”

“That is what I thought too. Did you get fucked over?”

“It was one of the results I expected, and nothing I can not handle.”

“I see, even without a heart?”

“How very perceptive. Little kitten shares her mana with me, so it is enough for now.”

“For now only?”

“Yes, for now. Little pup, I might have changed my mind. I will stay here longer, dig deeper, and see what it is all about.”

“Until they kick you out?”

“They will need a strong majority for that. It is not impossible, but it will be difficult. Even if they manage it, it would still work in my favor, since it means I would be sent out of the First Dungeon, along with little kitten. After that, I would return. But enough chatter. Do you know what I want from you?”

“My black mana?”

“Exactly.”

“Will it even work? I mean, where the hell are you?”

“We are on the twelfth floor of Beyond. It is spatially sealed, though the seal is, honestly, quite pathetic. Unfortunately, without my heart, there is not much I can do, but a few days ago, they loosened it enough for me to connect to you.”

“What even is the First Dungeon?”

“I do not know.” She smiles, and it is a big, excited smile. Damn, she really seems to be enjoying herself.

I try to see if I can channel and compress my mana. At first, it moves strangely, sluggish in this place, but the moment I compress it enough to turn black, it flows easier. As if this space does not affect it as much.

“Can you even take it? We are not meeting in person, after all,” I say as I shape it into a dagger, almost the same as the first one I ever created.

“Thanks to its inherent properties, it is possible.”

“They will not stop it?”

“It does not break any rule, so they cannot interfere. Little pup, will you not ask me for the name of your… black mana?”

“Nah, I'm done with that shit. I ask. You tell me you will reveal it next time, or feed me some other bullshit. The number of times it happened would surprise you. So, currently, I am at the point where if someone comes to tell me what it is called, I will tell them to fuck off, then later force everyone else to call it black mana.”

She blinks her single open eye a few times and reaches her hand forward, "For some reason, I'm now slightly curious about how many times it happened."

“It would surprise you. What do I get for the dagger?” I ask, still holding the dagger close to my body.

"Information. A small hint from me, left for you to think about on your own."

"Didn’t you get too cheap since you became a greed subclass?"

"How very amusing, little pup," she says as she moves, and I allow her to take the black dagger from my hand.

She immediately starts working on it. Unlike the replica of the last elf, who only pulled a few scraps of mana I fed into the black halo, Lissandra goes further. She uses the same method as before, strengthening and shaping it so it becomes solid enough to be used as a proper bridge between herself and the outer world. That way, she can let the dagger absorb mana, which she will later draw out whenever she needs it.

Without lifting her eyes from the dagger, she says, "There is something you should know about Absolutes and pairings. An Absolute is strongest while on their planet, which is why they almost never leave. But when one does, the system reacts in a very particular way, little pup. The moment an Absolute steps onto another world, that world’s Absolute is alerted. They are told another Absolute is present, and the system forces them to choose between two options."

When she finishes whatever she was doing, she glances at me. After I give a nod, she stabs just the tip of the black dagger into my arm. I make no effort to fight against the pull on my mana.

As she looks at the drop of blood flowing from the wound, she continues, "The first option is simple: nothing happens. The second is far more interesting. You can treat the presence of another Absolute on your planet as a challenge, and if you choose that path, you may proceed to begin Pairing."

When it is all done, she pulls the dagger out and slips it behind her belt.

The last few seconds of her visit begin to run out.

"Take care of Myrra, okay?" I say.

"How foolish you are, little pup. I gave you my word, and I will keep it, even if it costs me my life. You may not see it that way, but I would never break a promise to my disciple."

With a final smile, the place around us breaks, and I find myself back next to Weslin.

Dozens of thoughts swirl in my mind until suddenly the need for my ESM strikes.

"Ten more minutes, mom," I say to Weslin as I use my minion communication token.

Thankfully, my minion is online. Before Weslin even reacts, I already appear in that endless white space once again.

"Master! You haven’t forgotten me!" Just like always, my minion greets me with her mischievous smile. Her brown hair is longer, her horns are sharper, even though they remain short. I only hope the other demons don’t bully her because of that.

"Who are you?" I tilt my head, feigning confusion.

She does not even slow down, only giggles louder. I think she might leap into my arms, but instead, she suddenly stops in front of me. She lifts her arms up, asking me to pick her up.

I do it right away. She quickly nestles her head against my chest, shifting until she can listen to both of my hearts. As always, her pointy horns poke against the underside of my chin.

"Are you eating well?" I ask.

"Yes! I got my first minion, and she cooks for me! She is a half demon, too, and she swore to serve me in return for saving her life."

"Your what?"

"She also has a cute talking dagger! I’m glad I didn’t throw it into the volcano when we fought in that Demon Lord’s castle."

"You were where?"

"A big fancy castle, master! It even had a lake full of man-eating fish. You need to get a castle like that! I went there because I was poisoned. There was a healer who could help me, so I joined a small group of thieves to get inside, but they betrayed me. I had to kill most of them."

"The hell?"

"I met the leader of these thieves in jail, where those silly villagers had locked us up so they could feed us to the monster they called their god! I almost died, but I killed it instead. Then I burned the whole village down! But don’t worry, I stole everything valuable first."

Her face beams with excitement while she rushes through the story of her adventures. Since we only have ten minutes, she pushes herself to share as much as possible. She doesn’t even let me get a word in, but I don’t mind it at all. With a smile spreading across my face, I listen to her, praising her whenever I can while reminding her to be careful.

I only wish she would not always answer, "I’m as careful as master is!"

When only seconds remain, I finally stop her. She realizes how little I spoke and starts apologizing.

I wave it off and describe in a few sentences what I have been doing. My smile seems to calm her down.

"What will you do now, master?" she asks.

I think about it. My smile stretches further. "The only thing I can do, minion. My best. And if that is not enough, then I will make it enough."

***

POV Rafael Vaughn - Channeler

I am alone in the room. It feels strange, remembering how cramped things were only a few months ago, because this one is so much larger and far more luxurious. The wide windows stretch almost from wall to wall, opening onto a breathtaking view of cliffs and the restless sea in the distance. From here, I can see two helicopters lifting off the helipad beside the house, carrying the Easy Difficulty attendees. Out on the water, a smaller ship waits to take them the rest of the way.

I look away from it, and for a while, I just stare at the phone in my hand. Then I dial the number I received only hours ago.

"How did you get this number? Who are you?" a female voice asks after just a few rings.

"Jessica, it’s me, Rafael."

"Channeler? How the hell did you get this number? I just got it today."

I lean back on the couch while clicking through photos on my laptop. "I’m in good graces with the US Army. They give me things if I ask for them."

"They caught you? Do you need help?"

"It’s not like that. We are cooperating. You already know who I work for."

"Gwyn."

"Yes, the mana mania… oh right, Gwyn."

"I guess that makes them think twice before messing with you. So why did you call?"

"First, congratulations on finishing your tutorial. I think you are one of the first from normal difficulty."

"That’s right!" she says, her voice rising with excitement. "I thought it would be a total mess here, but it’s actually okay. Sure, a few monsters appear, like weird animals, but the Hard Difficulty guys will take care of them as soon as they get out. And it has been just one week since I arrived, but I’ve already made more money than in my entire life."

"If I remember correctly, you used to be a surgeon?"

"A Cardiologist. I made half a mil a year. But now? People just keep throwing money at me. I’m sure I can make billions. Oh, wait, is this call secure?"

"I’m not dumb, Jessica," I say. I wait, letting her talk, because I know she likes to show off in front of people she believes are high in the hierarchy. Thanks to my connections, I count as one of them.

"I guess you’re not dumb. You never were." She laughs. "Anyway, in a few weeks, I might even cure baldness. You cannot imagine how much money there is in that shit. I can use my healing skills to create a temporary solution and sell it. Not a one-time cure, but something like a subscription. People will pay me forever. I’ll drown in money."

She looks pleased with herself, waiting for me to say something. I take a moment, then finally speak. "Jessica, I have an offer for you."

"I was wondering why you called. What is it?"

"I want you to be a personal healer for around two years."

On the other side, there is silence until she finally replies with caution, "Go on."

"It’s for a cat. Old, sick, close to dying. I already tried throwing around millions, but no vet or doctor could do anything."

"So you thought a healer from Normal Difficulty would do the trick?"

"Easy Difficulty ones aren’t enough."

"Rafael… really? A cat?"

"It belongs to Grumpy."

I expect a long pause, but it lasts barely three seconds. "Tell me where you are. I’ll be there tomorrow."

***

POV Warden of the Parallax Eyes, Kyralon

Kyralon rises from the low table. A layered field surrounds him, strengthening the reach of his trait. His expression is unreadable as his gaze fixes on a single point in space. From the shelf, he selects an oval mana stone, which unfolds into the form of a transparent blue book.

From his pouch, he draws a wooden pen. With it, he writes the date in the private system only he uses, then begins recording.

16:00 - The Ruler of Pride has entered Beyond. All active Rulers were notified, and those available shifted their focus to it.

16:01 - The Ruler of Pride descended directly to the Twelfth Floor. A brief exchange occurred between him and the imitation of Absolute Lissandra Hawthorne. Without confrontation, he turned and departed, moving toward the center of the Twelfth Floor.

16:11 - The Ruler of Pride cleared the Twelfth Floor and entered the Thirteenth.

18:12 - The Ruler of Pride cleared the Thirteenth Floor and stepped onto the Fourteenth.

18:22 - The Ruler of Pride has departed Beyond. A message sent through the system itself, a reminder that his seclusion has ended, and his strength remains unmatched.

Kyralon pauses, his grip tightening around the pen. His eyes lift to the starlit sky, following paths invisible to others. When he writes again, his hand trembles slightly, though his lines remain precise.

For the first time in thousands of years, the path to the Thirteenth Floor stands open. Not through the effort of many, but through the power of a single being. The First Dungeon remains a mystery, its meaning and purpose still hidden. Perhaps it holds knowledge of the system itself, knowledge Pride seems to grasp more clearly than anyone else.

But the question remains: who among the Rulers will dare to follow?

After all, on the Twelfth Floor, a wounded Ancient Monster now awaits. Placed there by the Rulers to die, she remains, licking her wounds as she waits for those who cast her down.

***

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