[Candidate {Hunter Tamaniel} has been granted {Thirteen Armies}]
[In consideration of the severity of the wager and the unsurmountable odds, the quality of the perk has been exponentially enhanced.]
"What? Thirteen?"
Hunter was incredibly ecstatic at his successful wager, he absolutely was, but the quantity perplexed him. He had just witnessed an extraordinarily abundant number exceeding a hundred sextillion, a number that he hadn't ever thought he would have the opportunity to witness in one place. The entire Terraia realm, inhabiting over two trillion humans, wouldn't be worth a hundred sextillion of even the weakest currency across the five continents.
The problem that concerned Hunter was that even with a comparatively brutal wager, one that he bet every fiber of his being on, resulted in an allocation of only thirteen armies. Even if it were to fall under the softest of estimations, Hunter had believed the number would at least reach 20944, so while he would definitely pump his fist and shout in joy, he needed to know if there hadn't been a mistake.
He looked over at Nina who was stuck in the air with an incredulous expression. It seemed like she had taken off from the wheel the instant it was clear that Hunter had come out victorious, but was stupefied by the same information that had confounded Hunter.
"N-Nina will check!"
Nina, who was indeed flying over to rejoice and celebrate with Hunter, was stunned and flustered. She hurriedly straightened her posture and closed her eyes to check in with her supervisor. Nina's pupils behind her eyelids moved, and her lips trembled periodically, seemingly in communication already.
It took about five minutes for Nina's eyelids to raise, but the luster and joy had evaporated from her virage. Her expression displayed a sense of somberness and depth. However, Nina didn't immediately speak up or try to remedy the situation but instead stared at Hunter with an evidently sharp and scrutinizing gaze, one that wasn't malicious by any means of the imagination but conveyed an awestruck fascination.
The duo looked at each other for a few seconds before Hunter caved under Nina's relentless examination.
"So?" Nina's silence and grim expression concerned Hunter, he feared whatever had stunted even the chattering goddess herself. "What happened? Is there a problem?"
Nina continued to peer at Hunter in the eyes. Eventually, she rubbed the bridge of her nose and groaned, signing a couple of times before propping up and flying over to Hunter and settling on his shoulder.
"Haa~ According to Nina's Supervisor, the wager was simply too complex and unfavorable." Nina looked down at the white ground and hugged her thighs, burying her face in her knees. "If the usual protocol were to be followed, Hunter would receive 272,272,000
Nina's voice trembled, a bead of sweat rolling down her face.
She went silent, and with the tension and uneasiness bearing down on Hunter's stomach, he couldn't help but rush Nina.
"So...?"
Hunter urged in a soft encouraging voice.
"The thing is, there aren't that many
Nina's voice was the most tense and grim Hunter had ever witnessed, carrying a sense of solemnity and sheer shock that made Hunter's stomach drop even further.
"Y-yeah, it said that in the thing... But I don't understand what that means..." Hunter gulped, contemplating whether he wanted to hear the answer. "Is there an issue? I-I don't mind thirteen armies..."
Yes, he was startled by the immediate betrayal in his belief of this lottery system and its intricacies, but something was better than nothing at the very least. He didn't want to be the biggest idiot on the beach and lose even the rewards he was assured by kicking up a fuss.
Conversely, as someone who was used to getting thrashed by a couple of nineteen-year-olds, Hunter was more than happy to receive whatever he could in terms of support when against an unknown number of competitors.
Hunter wasn't exactly a strategic mastermind nor a born commander. However, since the very information window had proclaimed the exponential increase in quality, he assumed that receiving such high-tier forces would come with its own set of benifits.
"Issue? No, no... Quite the opposite..." Nina chuckled mysteriously, a sudden enigmatic essence behind body language. "Hunter knows what the highest tier is, right?"
"Yeah?
Hunter hesitantly answered.
Nina finally raised her head from her knees and looked at Hunter, but the gloominess and scrutiny were no more, her expression was clouded with a child-like excitement and giddiness.
"Ehehe~ Nina believed that to be the case as well~! However, Nina just discovered that there are two tiers above
Hunter was stunned by Nina's sudden change in demeanor. One second she was brooding and down, and the next she was ready to dance with joy.
'Is this her idea of a prank?'
Hunter wanted to give her a piece of her mind but ended up deciding against stuffing a live grenade in his back pocket. He redirected to focus on the issue at hand instead of digging into the pandora's box of Nina's emotions.
"So, what does that mean for the armies?"
"Oh~ Hunter will receive thirteen armies from the multiverse's history at the peak of their combat capabilities, starting from the peak of
Nina hummed cheerfully and twirled on Hunter's shoulders, piercing his flesh with her sharp heels, but Hunter endured the pain.
"Oh, okay." Hunter was still a little cloudy about the whole situation, but since his assistant was more than happy as evidenced by her demeanor, he couldn't really complain. "So, where are the rewards? They haven't been released yet. The battlefield tokens were awarded only a few seconds after the lottery."
Hunter didn't really care for these titles and monikers, for he didn't understand their significance and what they represented. To him, primordial was the same as gobbildy-gook, they didn't have any relevant meaning.
The only army Hunter had seen in conflict was the Rachan Country's army, that too in a documentary, and unless he understood if and where it would rank amongst these categorizations, he couldn't even make an educated guess. As such, while he didn't understand the strength these forces wielded, he believed in the entity known as Nina, and if Nina said that these were the best multiverse's long history had to offer, then that was enough for him.
"The allocation has been delayed, it sh—"
[Candidate {Hunter Tamaniel} has been granted {Vouviere-Mansal-Kumarraj Coalition Force}
[Description: The Vouviere-Mansal-Kumarraj Coalition Force was enshrined in the annals of the multiverse as an eternal monument to unity, resilience, and triumph against the impossible. An army formed of troops from twenty-seven civilizations working in tandem to tackle a threat to their galaxy cluster.
This coalition was forged in a crucible of desperation, called forth to repel a cataclysmic civilization out to consume their galaxy cluster in its unstoppable march, so every realm sent its champions. This particular force assembled the strongest members of the many domains and prevailed under the most unsurmountable circumstances.
At its zenith, the Coalition Force numbered over 900 trillion souls, an awe-inspiring ocean of strength spanning dimensions, ideologies, and species. By the war's end, their numbers had been carved down to a mere 1.3 trillion. A fraction of what once was, yet what remained was a core of the undying. Those who survived bore not only the weight of the fallen but the radiant embers of a victory won at the edge of extinction. They became symbols of defiance, paragons of unity, and living testaments to the power of shared resolve.]
"ONE-POINT-THREE TRILLION!?"
Hunter's voice boomed, pushing an unprepared Nina off his shoulder. She was disoriented by his scream, and it took a second or two for her to return to her senses.
"Hunter~!" Nina flew back and stomped on Hunter's head, poking his skull with her inch-long heels. "Nina just told Hunter that there will be armies comprised of quadrillions if not more on the battlefield! Hunter's can't be surprised by everything!"
Nina's outburst cooled Hunter as he chuckled embarrassedly. He picked Nina up and placed her back on his shoulder since her poking was really starting to hurt, almost drying blood from his head.
"Haa~" Hunter groaned and looked over to the pouting Nina who was digging into her ear with a pained expression. "I am sorry, Nina. It's just that my planet has just over 2 trillion people, and to me, that was something I could never even comprehend. Now, in just a couple of minutes, I have been made responsible for an army of 1.3 trillion, and we've not even properly started... So, you know...? I was a bit overwhelmed."
"Nina's not angry~" Nina smiled and waved her hands cheerfully, indicating that Hunter didn't have to apologize "Nina's happy too~"
"Thanks. That description does sound good though. 900 trillion to 1 trillion? I wanna see that ba—"
It was then that the window flashed again.
[Candidate {Hunter Tamaniel} has been granted {Warriors of the Kluard School for the Enlightened} ]
[Description: Kluard School for the Enlightened was one of the foremost martial institutions across the multiverse. Nestled in the nexus points of space-time, with branches woven through the folds of countless dimensions, Kluard stood as a luminous beacon for the abandoned, the downtrodden, and those betrayed by the capricious hand of destiny.
It drew students from all walks of life: lost wanderers, orphaned souls, and beings dismissed as anomalies. Forged in the fires of discipline and nurtured by a profound sense of empathy, they emerged as warriors who transcended the limitations of their origins. The Warriors of Kluard were not soldiers of conquest but architects of peace. The institution acted as a fair and compassionate vigilante corps intervening and solving conflicts that would otherwise cause the death of quintillions and the destruction of resources that could nurture much more.
Their presence alone was enough to inspire entire civilizations, to rekindle hope in the cold void of existence. The school is not defined by grandeur or numbers, for it was a chain of facilities accommodating 14.5 billion warriors, students, and faculty. Not even a fraction of the population of even the most mundane of civilizations, and although their numbers were modest, their strength was unparalleled, wielding the power to herald peace and sympathy toward fellow men in the dark and cold multiverse.]
"Kluard!?" Nina's shout startled Hunter. He looked over and Nina had her arms wrapped around his neck as she stared wide-eyed at the holographic screen. "Big Sister told Nina about them! Nina is such a big fan of the Kluards~!"
Nina's eyes twinkled as if filled with stars, she looked up at Hunter with an expectant gaze, as if hoping for him to join in on her excitement, but Hunter was clueless. He read over the description a few more times and arrived at a single conclusion.
"The first army was of a lower categorization but constituted of over 1.3 trillion troops, and this one has one percent of the manpower but is considered so powerful it could tip the balance of a war involving sextillions if not more. I know 14.5 billion is a huge number when it comes to actual individuals, but still..."
Hunter gulped as his neurons fired, his brain heating up just attempting to imagine the gloriousness of these forces. He didn't know if these descriptions were accurate or just a blatant over-exaggeration, but they sure suited a man's romance.
"Hmph~ Hunter is ignorant!" Nina crossed her arms and raised her chin like a proud peacock. "Kluards were mighty and just. They had been approached by a myriad of civilizations across the vast cosmos to mediate in conflicts, and when any territory faced a problem they could not take care of, the Kluards would be right there to help."
Nina went on and on about Kluards for two minutes, using her vivid descriptions and over-the-top gestures to paint a picture for Hunter. It worked, for by the time the holographic screen flashed with the next segment of his reward, his excitement was at an all-time high.