As the thoughts of the said passage surfaced, Scarlet halted her legs one after the other. The air felt warm, contrasting with the nightmare pooling in her mind.
Various people had made attempts to have her dead. But none of these makes her feel insecure as the memory she often avoids thinking back to.
Her prime days caught her adrift. This was when her tough job brought her four reliable and skilled teammates. They formed almost the best group out of a million others voyaging to Remnora. They were a team that stood undefeated till one rainy night.
It was rainy. Very rainy. The heavens wept, as though mourning for a soul that was soon to depart. Wrecked cars sat around, while a flickering bulb from nearby buildings lit up the dark night.
Scarlet stepped cautiously down a track's closure, which lay between lofty buildings. Her teammates, two males and a female, moved with caution behind her. Without any scepticism, they had to be super careful as Elder Orin had just given a warning. His keen senses had picked up a strange energy fluctuation down the pathway.
Life is always the master of trickery; they must leave this zone tonight. It was both dark and rainy, which was helpful.
If they don't, they are at risk of opponents' teams' attacks. They might have figured out their location already, for they had spent two days there. Wise adventurers had a ritual. They changed locations every two days in this outside world.
Thunder struck the moment Scarlet peeped outwards, reaching the route's end.
To both sides were a colony of forsaken remnants. Yet, the oldest man said the fluctuation was even more intense at that moment.
The terrified gaze he held that night was a memory for Scarlet in its own
Then, on the roof of an opposite building waved the fifth teammate. Julian Cole, the charismatic male good at keeping everyone lively no matter the mood. He had climbed the roof to get a bird's-eye view; yet, he shouted that,
"Coast is clear!" Also, he was more than a teammate; he was also Scarlet's lover.
What does she find great about him? He had a very extraordinary strength that gives everyone an upper hand in every fight. His bright smile always painted him... cute.
But no one was aware today would be their last meet. Their jaws dropped as electricity crackled behind Julian. They screamed at him to watch out.
But in a heartbeat, the electricity bore a red-skinned monster.... who drove a yellow-edged sword into Julian's back without hesitation.
This felt like a dream, maybe another trick the enemies pulled to trouble their minds. But it wasn't when Julian's body rolled down the roof. Not with a flicker of consciousness.
His murderer was more than a random beast to everyone. But a knight who would forever place a taunting dirt in them.
If only they didn't allow Julian climb the roof, if only they even journeyed on in the next morning... maybe there wouldn't have been any loss.
In the same sense, Scarlet won't have returned to the underground city with a sense of guilt. To find the artifact able to revive her lover, everyone tried to prevent her, but she always gets what she wants.
No one knows where this relic kept itself. But for Scarlet? - it was just a part of the series of forbidden knowledge gifted to her by her Constellation.
Finding it only took time, but didn't waste her efforts. After some months, she finally unravelled the location of "The Key".
It was deep in the intricate, complex structure of a sacred temple in Mecha Ruin: the Oracle's Tomb.
...
The warm air jolted Scarlet back to reality. She muttered, "A person walking through the temple's door dies before they even enter. Only two people may enter at a time."
This was the Dual Passage Law of the temple. Scarlet always wondered about the reason behind such a deadly law. She related it in a way. This may have been the usual practice of the priests and acolytes during the temple's prime.
''
Yet, she couldn't care less this time. She was more concerned about her long-term plan now close to getting achieved...
"That guy seems the only one I can trust here. He's unique for his decision to keep his power secretive, which no madman in Mecha Ruin would do. Also, he has a solid purpose," Scarlet mumbled, her tone offering anxiety more than a compliment.
She clenched her fists. "I swear I will get him to agree at all costs. Hang in there, Julian! I will get that relic this time."
****
Day by day, the neon sky gets bright in the day, then the half-moon takes control at night. Innocent souls have died at the hands of the massacrer. Hundreds have definitely bitten the dust due to hunger.
But one fact about time was that it moves on irrespective of anyone's hardships. Assassins are heartless?—Well, that would be a breeze too fickle to ponder compared to 'time'.
It was a powerful entity on its own, one that has got all humans under its control.
Ignoring any tragedies, it further ascended Leon, borne of four days of intense focus. His routine was to complete daily missions, take a bath, and rest. His room's door was not closed until the owner came for extra payment. Leon had exceeded his stay; anyway, he had paid for more nights.
The missions always had him swamped. But the rewards were satisfying at the end. The main reward was EXP; as Leon gained them, he allocated them to each stat based on importance. Additionally, he gets Regenerative Liquor too.
The silvery moon grinned behind the window; Leon sat at the edge of the bed. Sweat clung to his body like a cobweb.
He gazed at the screen before him.
[You have levelled up!]
[Level 4 - Level 5.]
'I levelled up again,' Leon thought. He cleared his throat, then said, "Display stats..."
[Stats.
Strength: 77
Agility: 79
Intelligence: 81.0
Stamina: 88]
His eyes first widened, then a warm smile covered his face. A smile of excitement and satisfaction.
"I guess I'm no longer a Failed Awakener with these stats. This officially makes me an E-rank Ascendant... how pleasurable."
The stats of S-rank Ascendants back then usually climbed above a thousand points. For this, Leon couldn't call himself anything more than an E-ranker. Still, he couldn't contain his delight with just a smile.
It came to Leon's mind. This world's classification system seemed the same as the Dragon City's. The ranks vary, but not entirely so.
Ranks here range from Trainee, equal to an E-ranker, down to an Overlord, the same as an S-rank superhuman.
'Ryker Voss was a Sentinel. This makes him a C-rank Ascendant...'
Brim! The panel switched interfaces without warning. Leon's eyes flared at it, his brows furrowing.
[Notification: An optional quest is available. ]
[Side-quest: Obtain the Genesis Pill trapped within an E-rank boss by daybreak.]
[Location: Graveyard.]
[Reward: Class Awakening.]
Leon mumbled, brows creased, "I can even awaken a class?"