Chapter 303

Ascendance (IV)

A phantom-like figure appeared in the sky, seemingly carried by a bolt of thunder, booming into the scene. The entire sky flashed in the bright cyan for a moment as Cain looked up, somewhat awed at the quantitative surge of Mana that temporarily swallowed the world. The man who appeared was middle-aged, from the looks of it, anyway, and was sporting a holistic, ‘looking-down-on-the-world’ appearance, garbed in adorned, azure robes.

Cain looked at the state of his Mana and wept for a moment, realizing he’ll likely burn through most--if not all--of his Mana Potions. After all, the man wasn’t exactly shy about his entrance, revealing he was twice-Awakened. From the tiny clues, Cain suspected it was likely a ‘Maelborn’ sub-class, or at least a variant.

It was a Shamanic Awakening, centralized around speedy bursts of damage and evasion. They tended to dance around the battlefield, going in and out. Though they were kind of annoying to deal with, they didn’t deal a lot of direct damage--and they were pretty awful duel-wise.

“WHO WAS IT?!!” the man roared, as though he didn’t notice Cain was the only one who dared to remain--seated, no less. Tsk, you wanna play that game? Fine.

“...” Cain began whistling, lunging one leg over the other and leaning further back. The man seemed as though he was vacationing, enjoying the ‘sights’.

“YOU! TELL ME, WHO WAS IT?!!” seemingly angered enough, the man pointed at Cain and bellowed. “WHO KILLED MY BELOVED?!”

“...” Cain glanced at him for a moment and snorted. You wanna fight me with showing-off? Tsk, fuck you. “Who let this dog in here to stick up the place? Fuck off, dog-faced, shit-eating grunt. No, comparing that thing you call a face to a dog is an insult to dogs. At least, your mother should be proud of having achieved something no other mother cross-dimensions has managed. I applaud her. Whoop,” Cain mumbled and blinked up into the sky as the point where he was sitting got blasted into smithereens by a blast of lightning. “A quick shot? Yea, you look like one.”

“... was it you?!” the man asked through gritted teeth.

“Was it you, was it you, was it you--do you think I’m a fucking clairvoyant or some shit?! What do you mean ‘was it you’? Was it me who took a shit yesterday that looked better than you? Yeah, I guess. Sure. There, are you happy?”

“AAAGGGGH!! I WILL KILL YOU!!!” the man roared at the top of his lungs, Mana surging from within his soul, coating his body in thousands of bolts of lightning. The entire dark sky, once more, flashed into life, enlightened. Tsk, this guy’s a good actor, Cain clicked his tongue, realizing something--the man wasn’t nearly as angry as he led on. Though Cain’s words definitely stung, this was merely a show of force, seeing whether there was anyone else by Cain’s side.

“Ah, I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear you over the sounds of thousands of fucking booms of thunder you caused,” he said. “Fuck. If you want someone to listen to you, at least make sure they can hear you. Otherwise, pipe down. It’s just the two of us here.”

“... hah. A stupid pup dares stand before me without begging for his life?!”

“... alright, I’mma be honest--you’re starting to piss me off,” Cain said. “I’m a well-renowned narcissist myself, but I’m at least the subtle kind. You’re... you’re just cringe. Nothing more and nothing less.”

“I will ask again--were you the one who killed my love?” the man asked, ignoring Cain’s jab.

“Your love? Didn’t you say it was your concubine?”

“Yes, so?”

“If you loved her that much, why didn’t you make her your main wife at least?”

“...”

“I mean, you can’t have loved her that much if you sent her ass all the way out here. Could it be that you’re using her death as an excuse to rob me? From how ugly you are, you undoubtedly grew up wanting to rob people. Aah, I feel pity, to be honest.”

“...” though the man was likely angry enough to attack, Cain was surprised that he didn’t. Instead, he held himself back.

On the other end of things, Lear stared at the ordinary-looking man floating in front of him. By all accounts, it was just a once-Awakened Mage--the ilk that he’d killed thousands of in his lifetime. In fact, if it was just any other Mage, he’d have long since buried the man alive for disrespecting him repeatedly. And yet, every instinct of his that he had honed over hundreds of years screamed at him that if he attacked the man... he would die.

It was the kind of ‘foresight’ that every warrior developed if they lived long enough and survived enough battles. Though he couldn’t say how he would die or even what sub-class the man was, he was certain that he would die. Yet, he couldn’t exactly retreat--not with such a grand entrance. There were likely hundreds watching them right now, expecting a great show. If he just swept his tail between his legs and ran, what would become of his reputation?

He was caught in an extremely difficult spot--he could neither go forward no retreat.

“I’m actually very tired from fighting some folk,” the man said suddenly. “There were like 300 of them. Honestly, if your concubine or whatever was with them, she might have died. Could we, though, delay this grandstanding revenge of yours until I eat a bite or two? You can join me, actually. I make some mean stake. Though my wife would disagree, she’s a batshit insane lunatic who likes hers well done and, for that, she can go fuck herself. Never tell her I said that, though. Anyway, what about it?”

“Uh--wha-yeah, sure?” Lear mumbled, somewhat confused by the sudden shift. The man went from relentlessly mocking him to... offering him a meal. Is... is he one of those mental cases that just does random things all the time?

“Great!” the man exclaimed, flashing a smile. “Ah, since you’ve destroyed my nice spot by accident,” Accident? “I mean, controlling thunder must be super difficult and all,” What?!! “Ah--there it is! Another nice place. Nice elevation. Nice view. And it’s not destroyed. Let’s go over there!”

“...” by now, Lear halfway wished he’d immediately started fighting. He wasn’t good with these types--the ones that did everything at their own pace, unconcerned with the world or any of its numerous norms. The man casually turned his back on someone who just threatened to kill him, flying over and sitting down without a worry. Yet, even with the back turned, Lear’s instincts remained the same--if he attacked... he would be killed.

“Please, sit,” the man said, pouring him a cup of some alcoholic beverage. “Ah, don’t worry--this is just pure beer. I’ll start prepping the stakes,” he added, taking out a bunch of cooking equipment from his inventory. “So, tell me about yourself.”

“... huh?”

“Like, you know, what’s your name? Where do you hail from? How many concubines do you have? What’s it like beyond the Wilds? I’m a very curious young man, you see. Would you kindly sate my curiosity?” Ah, Lear realized it. He just wants to squeeze some info out of me...

“You really are a newcomer here?”

“As new as a freshly-born babe.”

“...”

“Yeah, not the best one. But don’t judge. I’ve said worse.”

“How is that any better?”

“It’s really not. Anyway, yes, I’m a newcomer. What about you? How long have you been here?”

“Aah, what’s it been? Around two hundred years now?”

“Holy shit,” the man exclaimed. “But... why? Didn’t you get bored of the place?”

“Bored? How?” Lear chuckled. “Most stay here through their fourth Awakening since it’s the fastest. By the time we return, our Towers are usually stuck around the 90th floor. Since you can’t undergo the fourth Awakening anywhere within the Towers, and it’s practically required for the 90 and up floors, most worlds send their best and brightest here. You didn’t even know this much? Just how far along is your world?”

“... uh, like, Tenth Floor?” Cain replied awkwardly.

“Ah, the fucking hell...” Lear wanted to cry for a moment, but held himself back.

“What about yours?”

“It was around 70th when I left,” Lear said. “That said, I barely Awakened when I lucked into the bead. Being the moron that I am, I actually went ahead and used it. Barely survived, and spent the past two centuries clawing my way forward. Why didn’t you come some two-three years later? By then, I would have been thrice-Awakened and kicked your ass.”

“Unlikely,” Cain flashed him a smile, causing the latter to wince.

“What? You think you can match a thrice-Awakened? You may be talented, but... no. The gap’s... insurmountable.”

“Only in the case of the perfectly-executed Awakening,” Cain shrugged. “But, let’s not dwell on the dreams. Ah, let me put on the stakes. Yes, sizzle my babes. Sizzle. Anyway, why not join me?”

“... huh?”

“You have a good head on your shoulder,” Cain said. “Unlike a good chunk of the morons I’ve met in here. Plus, you’re fairly strong. With me acting as the wind behind your behind, I can likely get you to your Third Awakening within a few months.”

“... your confidence, at the very least,” Lear sighed. “Is astounding.”

“It’s assurance,” Cain said. “I ask you to be my guide in this place. And I? I will be your light. How about it? Ah, no, I can’t just ask you like that--you haven’t tasted my meat yet. No, wait, that sounds awfully wrong. I meant the steak, yes. Once you’ve had a taste of this heaven, you’ll join me just so you can eat it frequently. And after, we shall conquer this world together... well, parts of the world, at least. Sizzle my babes, sizzle...” Lear got teary-eyed for a moment. He realized, partly, why his instincts were screaming at him--the man in front of him wasn’t much different than the bloke-heads who heralded the Tower Rush in his own world. The legends who, till the day Lear left, were unmatched. Strength came seemingly naturally to them, and there wasn’t a challenge they didn’t dare face head-on.

Of course, over ninety percent of them ended up dead specifically because of that, but ten percent that survived... they were the ilk currently in the depths of the Primal World, chasing their Fourth Awakening.