A few minutes later:
"Uh Shirley, are you sure Peppy came this way? And why doesn't this place look more… natural?"
Ann was puzzled as she led the team with a ball of light lighting the way. The more they all walked through this winding path, the more they realized that the cave didn't appear to have come about by natural means. While it was all rough, like big rocks jutting out of the walls and some of the ground being too unleveled, it's deliberate winding and twisting was too eye-catching to be ignored. And soon enough, they reached a fork in the road.
"Here. This was where I thought Peppy went as I kept hearing his croaking. The left led to an opening where I eventually met you guys while the right—" she paused a little as she realized her previous mistake, "is probably where he went. In other words, she had followed Peppys croaking and had mistakenly taken the wrong path. She had even heard his croaking from above ground, but nothing suggested that he had actually gone there.
And indeed it was so; after taking the right path for a few minutes, the path did suddenly wind in the same direction the left path had originally taken, directly going behind it. It was as if whoever made the cave tricked her into thinking Peppy went one way when he actually took another. But, it had already been hours since he first disappeared.
…
A few hours later:
"Ugh! This is taking too long; just how far does this cave go? This can't go on any longer?"
Ran, and even Fluffy, had developed a distaste for caves, especially being stuck in them. So, he stopped everyone who was seemingly tired as well. Their bodies were not tired, but mindlessly walking for hours on end had drained their mental fortitude. Lickily, they weren't any more forks on the pathway, otherwise, who knows how lost they would be.
"Hmm? then what do you suggest we do about it?" Shirley looked at him, concern still written on her face. All of them were covered in dirt, much to Rans dislike, and were all out of ideas.
He thought for a moment and then thought of a solution.
"Why don't I use my fetal organ?" He asked but didn't wait for a response before summoning his sword.
"Fetal organ?" Shirley was curious as she looked at the beautiful sword that hummed quietly. It was almost like a tune, with rhythm and melody.
Obviously, only humans had fetal organs on this world and while Shirley's home's geographical location does mean humans pass by there, they would only stay for a few days before moving on. Not to mention, one would usually only use their fetal organs when fighting, unless it was more auxiliary oriented. Like how Ann uses hers to make spicy dishes.
Yet, what amazed not just her but everyone here was that under Ran's sword's special ability "thought exchange", his sword's blade suddenly turned into a giant pointed ear!
Seeing the ear appearing to be inspired by his own ear, Bob was flattered.
When Ran put the swirly ear on the cave's walls, any vibrations within a three-mile radius would immediately come to his attention. And because of the in which the energy is being used, the shelflife of this transformation was unlike those that came before it.
Thus, they ended up walking two miles like this, being long out of the towns periphery, before Ran finally heard something:
swish… swish… swish…
Splash.
"uh, guys… I think I found something."
He encouraged them to give it a listen and they were surprised.
"Water… flowing?"
They were probably two or three miles underground by now, how would there be water flowing here?
But, after adventuring another two miles, indeed, the sounds of water raging was as clear as the night sky.
But what they found wasn't water flowing, but rather, a vast river of all colors furiously driving itself to some destination.
Some of it was on fire, some of it was frozen. Other parts emitted all kinds of while other parts absorbed light and appeared to emit darkness. Some parts had life growing on them while others had that very same life withering. It was a bizarre and wonderful sight to behold.
Crazier yet, the aura combined was like a truck hitting a person; the whole of the surroundings were as smooth as glass and reflected light on the same level as a mirror. Ann had to erect a thin membrane-like dome over everyone to protect them as they moved in the direction the river was heading.
"Is that what we think it is," Shirley asked out loud.
"Let's find out," Ran responded. He unhesitantly unsummoned his sword and summoned some juice before removing his will.
The juice immediately dispersed into a small cloud that went through the dome and seeped into the rocks above. He shook his head.
"Why don't I try?" Ann then threw the ball of light that had illuminated the way until now through the dome.
When it hit the ground and she removed her will, the juice then turned into an actual juice; a liquid that seeped into the ground below. Next, just beside them, the juice flowed straight into the river and flowed with it.
This shocked them and only now did they realize why the upper ranks were so much more powerful than those below them.
Density. This was a very prominent factor as to why they were powerful. However, that isn't the question to be answered. The real question is why; why is there such a thing as the ranking system in the first place? Why is there such a thing as bottlenecks and breaking through them?