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Barbatos Academy…

Alexander was signing documents in his office, when a knock was heard on the door.

“Come in,” Alexander said without even bothering to raise his head as he continued to sign the documents that were on top of his table.

“If you keep forcing Iris, you’ll end up pushing her away and she will run somewhere far from you,” Vera said as she walked towards her son who was busy with work. “You know who she loves and yet you still push other young men to become her fiance. Did you lose your heart after stepping into the Ranks of a Saint?”

“Love won’t keep her safe when the sky falls down above her head,” Alexander replied. “What she needs is someone that can take care of her, and not a good looking Half-Elf who faints at the first sign of danger.”

Vera chuckled as she shook her head. She knew that her son didn’t really dislike Lux. In fact, he liked the young man to a certain extent. His only concern was that he didn’t think of Lux as someone who could take care of Iris because of his weak body.

For someone that stood at the peak of the world, they knew that only strength mattered. Without it, you will just get trampled on by those who were stronger than you. It didn’t matter if you were right or wrong. All that mattered was whether you were strong enough to make all those who oppose you, shut up.

“You’ve already made a declaration that whoever wins the tournament would become Iris’ fiance,” Vera stated. “What if the one who won mistreats her in the future? What then?”_-.

“Impossible.”

“Impossible?”

For the first time since Vera entered the room, Alexander raised his head to look at his aged-mother with a serious expression on his face.

“Anyone who dares to harm my daughter will be erased from the face of this world,” Alexander declared. “Even if a prince does it, I would kill him, as well as the rest of his entire family. If he’s from an influential clan, I will wipe them all out until none is left. Mother, do you really think that anyone would dare to harm Iris, knowing the Fate that awaits them?”

Vera leaned forward in her chair and lightly tapped her fingers on top of the table.

“You think too much, Alex,” Vera replied. “Since you’ve already declared that whoever wins the tournament will become Iris fiance then so be it. Just don’t regret your decision later.”

Alexander frowned. He thought that his mother would openly oppose his decision to have the champion of the tournament become Iris’ fiance. Since Vera didn’t come to his office to dissuade him, it only meant one thing.

“So, you plan to let Lux join the tournament,” Alexander narrowed his eyes. “Aren’t you afraid that he will become a laughingstock because of your whims?”

The corner of Vera’s lips rose as she listened to her son’s words. She knew that Alexander had no faith in Lux when it came to fighting in the tournament, so she just kept her mouth shut.

‘Actions will speak louder than words,’ Vera mused as she allowed the smile to spread across her weathered face.

Her reaction made Alexander feel that something was off, but he didn’t pay much attention. He knew that if Vera really wished to renege his earlier declaration, his mother would have already done it, even if it meant that the two of them would end up fighting against each other.

“I’m going back to Wildgarde Stronghold,” Vera said as she stood up. “If I hear that my granddaughter is getting bullied again, I will return to bring her back with me. You can come and pick her up when the tournament starts.”

The old woman walked towards the door without even looking back at her son. No more words needed to be spoken, for this was not her fight. She believed her grandson, and knew that no matter how high the hurdle he faced, he would never give up, even if the entire world were to turn its back against him.

—–

“I give up!” Lux shouted. “No more! I quit!”

Cadmus, as well as the other Kobolds who accompanied him inside the dungeon glared at the Half-Elf who was throwing a tantrum. As soon as they entered the dungeon, the Half-Elf had almost been swallowed whole by two Rank 4 Basilisks that were over two hundred meters long.

If not for Cadmus’ quick rescue, the Half-Elf might have spent the rest of his days inside the stomach of the Giant Black Serpents.

The two Basilisks weren’t slain because they retreated quite quickly after discovering that one of their opponents had a higher rank than them. Unfortunately, even as a Rank 5 Alpha Monster, it was quite difficult for Cadmus to kill both Basilisks at the same time.

“Just stick close to me if you don’t want to die,” Cadmus stated as he picked the Half-Elf up like a kitten by grabbing onto his clothes.

If not for the fact that almost all the passages inside the dungeon required someone with Elven blood in them, he would have long abandoned the red-headed teenager who was getting on his nerves.

Lux stopped struggling and simply looked at the map in the upper right corner of his vision. He could see that the two basilisks were stealthily following them in the distance, and just waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

In truth, if Lux really wished it, he could have gotten out of that situation alive. He just wanted to know if Cadmus would really go and save him if his life were ever threatened inside the Dungeon.

The Grotto of the Forbidden Guardian was a labyrinth style Dungeon. Unlike the Orc Dominion which had an “open world” setting, this particular Dungeon was similar to the Kobold’s Nest which had many underground pathways.

Even with the Elysium Compendium, Lux couldn’t fathom how big and deep the dungeon was. If there were already two Rank 4 Monsters near the entrance of the dungeon, he was afraid to find out what lurked in its depths.

‘Orobak had jumped to the Initial Stages of a Rank 5 Monster near the end of Story Mode,’ Lux thought. ‘Back then I thought that having a Rank 4 Alpha Monster (Barca) with me guaranteed smooth sailing, but I was terribly wrong in my assumption.’

Right now, he was under the protection of a Rank 5 Alpha Monster. Hell Mode Dungeons were known to adjust their settings, depending on their challengers. If their group had one Rank 5 Alpha Monster in their party then the Dungeon would definitely make things difficult for them.

‘I sure hope that a Deimos Ranked monster will not appear here,’ Lux thought. ‘If that happens, I’ll take Eiko and run as far away as possible. There is simply no way we are going to defeat something of that rank.’

In the world of Elysium, there were Five Primary Stages. They were Rank 1 up to Rank 5 Monsters.

For the Elysians, as well as Solains, there were Grade D Apostles, up to the Initiate Rank. Initiates were what people referred to as those that had the strength equivalent to Rank 5 Monsters. They were called Initiates, because it was the stage before being a Ranker.

A Deimos Monster was equivalent to E-Rankers and F-Rankers.

A Rank 5 Monster was simply food to a monster of that rank. Even though Cadmus could walk unhindered in the Beginner’s Zone, once it stepped into the Intermediate Territories, it was just another Boss Monster that was slightly harder to kill.

In the Intermediate Territories, Deimos Monsters were the Apex Creatures. They were the threat that many Apostles avoided fighting because they were simply too powerful if not fought with hundreds of people at a time, or by a strong Guild.

They were the “World Bosses” that dropped Unique up to Mythical items, and any guild would be willing to pay just about any price for any of those items to fall into their hands.

‘I hope I’m just overthinking things,’ Lux thought as Cadmus and the Rank 3 Kobolds that had accompanied him in this endeavor, scanned their surroundings with vigilance.

They had no destination in mind, and were simply trying to find out what this particular Dungeon had to offer.

Unknown to them, a pair of golden eyes were watching them in the darkness. It was simply waiting for the perfect opportunity to grab the Half-Elf, whose blood was calling out to it.