'It's not a Boss-level monster...'
Alexei waited until he was certain that were no more monsters nearby before he sprang up from behind the boulder and jogged towards the edge of the cliff. He then carefully climbed down, his eyes occasionally looking in the direction that the hounds fled from.
'I don't feel any crippling aura nearing this location.'
'So just what is it?'
He narrowed his eyes at the horizon. His hands were not idle, picking up the usable weapons that did not get destroyed by the stampeding hounds. The new monster drops did not also get ignored. However, instead of taking his time checking the new items that he got, Alexei chose to immediately run away as he did not believe that monsters known for their excellent sense of smell would leave their territory without any good reason.
Sure enough, there was really a serious reason behind the pack's panic-driven immigration.
'F*ck. Wait! No! Is this for real?'
The young man's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when he saw a sky-high black wall that suddenly appeared on his left. Sounds of rushing waves and tides accompanied it and could be heard from the distance. Shadows covered the entire area in no time, looking like a mouth of a behemoth that had opened to ruthlessly engulf everything in front of it, including Alexei who happened to be in that place.
"Sh*t!" Profanities could not help but escape from his mouth.
He quickened his speed, running with all his might because right now, his life depended on it.
But could somebody tell him how to outrun a sky-high tsunami that came out of nowhere and without a warning?
Alexei could not remain calm as there was no place in sight that seemed high enough to escape from the furious waters. His heart started to feel despair. He had only been in the abyss for a little more than a week and he had yet to reach the same level as the in-game Alexei or escape to Mavria. How could he be so resigned to fate and die here just like that? Yet how would he know that this place was not only filled with dangers from monsters but also from unpredictable natural disasters?
'Is there really no way?'
The youth did not like the negative thoughts that made their way into his brain.
Unfortunately, it was a fact that he did not manage to outrun the pack that fled in the same direction. He also did not manage to find anywhere safe from the incoming tsunami. Lastly, while he was no longer as weak as before, his current prowess was still nowhere enough to help him control a natural disaster.
That time, Alexei momentarily felt hopeless and that the whole universe was completely against him.
...
"... She's at it again, obliterating groups of monsters by herself. I wonder how many more she would kill today?"
"Is she really a new recruit like us? How is it possible for somebody who just entered the Tower to be this strong?"
"... I also want to know the answer to that. It's just... unbelievable."
"Right?"
Two new members of the Red Dawn guild watched as the strongest 'Fallen Blessed' of their batch stood atop a small mountain composed of monster corpses. They could see no expression on her beautiful face as she wiped the blood that splashed on her right cheek. Even though they could see her shoulder and chest heaving, they knew her fully-armored body still had enough stamina to take on a few more battles.
Seeing the woman's routine of killing mobs and elite monsters for an entire week, they could not stop themselves from talking about her and wondering how she managed to be this tough and strong.
Suddenly, the two newly awakened Fallen Blessed who got recruited before Mikaela heard a voice behind them that answered the doubts in their heart.
"Fools! Don't lump yourself with the likes of her!" Greg's tone was full of disdain. The knight who was also one of the highest-ranked members of the guild crossed his arms as he stood alongside the two with his eyes staying on the girl's bloody figure.
"Rumors had it that she killed a lot of people even before she entered the Tower." He spoke in a low voice to the two guys beside him as if he was afraid that the subject of their conversation would hear him.
"For real?"
The knight's disdainful expression did not go away. "I'm telling this to you two for your own good. Don't provoke her. The leader has his eyes on her."
Greg patted the shoulder of the guy closest to him then strode forward with his free hand holding the detached headpiece of his armor.
When he was about seven meters away from the blonde woman, the latter turned to him with a placid look on her face. "Sir Greg." Although Mikaela Hanover merely nodded to him as her greeting, the man was in awe because the way she did so was full of grace.
He thought, no wonder the Guildmaster was interested. She had both beauty and strength. And she was top-tier in both aspects.
"Miss Mikaela," after shaking off the messy thought in his head, the knight in red-black armor gave her a smile and a gentleman bow. He then said while roaming his eyes around, "It seems you had fun slaying Floor 2 mobs today as well."
"Yes." While cleaning her blood-stained sword using the handkerchief that was gifted to her by the Guildmaster, she asked, "Sir Greg, did you come over today because your team of informants and spies discovered something? Perhaps about the one I asked help to find?"
"That person called Alexei Orlov?" The man shook his head. "I came here for this. We did our best, but we did not find somebody named like that. Are you sure he's in this Tower?"
Mikaela's eyes showed disappointment which the perceptive knight did not miss. After some time, she answered, "It's been a week since you guys began the search so if none of you saw or heard about him, it must be because he's not here yet. But I'm sure he will be summoned by the Tower."
"You sounded confident. Is that person that vile and ambitious?"
The blonde's gaze suddenly turned cold. While sheathing her weapon, she replied. "He is. I know nobody who can match up to his evilness and iniquity. He's somebody the Abyss would feel ashamed to not summon right away."
"So is he your goal for gracing the Abyss with your presence, Miss Blessed of the Sovereign of Wind?"
Mikaela had already turned around to look for another hunting spot when the question reached her ears. She kept quiet, feeling disinclined to answer him. The woman was long aware of the reason the guild had gone through great lengths to make her one of their own. They knew she was a Gift user.
In this godforsaken place, a person like her appearing was like openly declaring that there was a newly discovered way to travel between the Abyss and Mavria. Because she understood this, she knew she could act as she pleased and received more benefits from the higher-ups of the lucky guild that she joined. One such benefit was being able to request something directly from the Guildmater. Another benefit was her attitude being tolerated by high-ranking members like Greg.
Sure enough, the guy merely shrugged before he followed. "So are you sure that the name he used in the Tower is still Alexei Orlov?"
"No. I'm aware there's a chance that he changed his name to not be recognized by others. That is, if he's really already summoned."
"Miss Mikaela, we'll continue to investigate. We will also keep an eye on future cycle resets and floor 1 summoning and inform you as soon as we find this person."
"Thank you."
The words came from Mikaela's mouth, but for Greg, it sounded like the woman was merely going through formalities for something that was meant to happen anyway.
After letting out a fake cough, the man finally went ahead with what he actually really descended for. "Since we're done with discussing that person, may I know now if you're okay joining the floor 10 team as a hybrid healer? The guildmaster scheduled the main teams to raid a Boss' lair, and since you're as strong as somebody who already cleared at least five floors, he's confident that you won't fall behind if you join the raid."
"Sure." Mikaela readily responded. A moment later, she glanced over her shoulder and added, "However, I have a condition."
Hearing her answer, the knight toothily grinned. "Pray tell. Red Dawn is not the largest guild in the entire Abyss. But it's definitely the best when it comes to welfare and privileges of members, especially to special ones like you."
The worst thing that could happen in negotiation was for the other party to not even bother hearing the details of the transaction. Since the woman demanded something, in the knight's mind, the deal was already sealed.
"I hope I won't be disappointed," she said before she returned her gaze in front. She nonchalantly sliced the giant worm that drilled out of the ground before she continued, "I want to request for your people to look for the thief who stole something very precious to me."
Greg patiently waited for her to describe at least the missing item.
Mikaela did not fail him as she listed on.
"The stolen thing is a necklace. A simple and cheap-looking one. If I remember correctly, the string is just a strip of cloth. The pendant though, it's the precious part. It's pure sapphire."
"... Or maybe I should just be honest," she closed her eyes momentarily. Then when she opened them again, a faint smile could be seen on her face. "... it is a Gift that belonged to a deceased friend of mine."