The next morning, Arian exchanged blows with Isshin. Their wooden katanas clashed intensely on a carpet grass field while his fiancée watched from the terrace of their bungalow.
There was no other building around so their attention shifted to the motorcycle racing down the path toward their compound.
The loud sound from the engine boomed against their eardrums as the motorcyclist made a swift turn into the yard and stopped.
His golden hair spilled out as the helmet was pulled off.
"Back, already. How was it?" Arian asked with a smile.
"You knew, didnât you? You knew that the dungeon was a tower type." Godfrey replied as he removed his gloves and waved towards Kira, who smiled and waved back.
"Raid enough dungeons and youâll be able to tell some secrets just by looking at it." Arian chuckled.
"Heâs lying. We have a seer who can only see things about dungeons. His summon knows when dungeons will open and what to expect in the dungeon." Kira exposed Arian with a scoff.
When Arian saw Godfreyâs expression, he burst into laughter. "I told you the first time, didnât I? I said someone saw into the future and knew about the dungeon of the orc your father fought. Thereâs no way you could look at a gate and know whatâs in it. Itâs just a swirling mass of coloured light. No amount of raids can tell you if a dragon or a mud golem is going to be inside."
"Haha." Godfrey scowled. To think he almost believed that.
"Whatâs your current tier?" Arian asked when Godfrey came close.
"Origin."
Arian smiled. "Youâre one of the strongest on the planet then. How does it feel?"
"Different. All those years I trained in boxing are still fresh in my mind. I can remember when I awakened in Manhattan like it was yesterday. I remember relishing the feeling of punching a good chunk out of a pillar. Now... I can shrug off a collapsing storey building and do much more. Yet strangely, being this strong still hasnât gotten rid of my problems."
Arian smiled. "It canât. Those problems will evolve to match your strength. Right now, you might be oblivious to it but there are people who want to be like you, want your strength, the same way you looked up to me back then."
Arian stabbed the wooden katana into the ground and began to walk. He gestured for Godfrey to follow him.
"I reached my limit in the Divine Tier. Iâm still easily amongst the strongest people in the world and yet thereâs you, thereâs Percival. The two of you might be the only Origin Tiers we have except Gabriel. Well, until the mana tree decides to transform anyone else." Arian told Godfrey.
"I think it will find you soon."
"It already did." Arian said, shocking Godfrey. He squatted, opened the grass and brought out a glistening mana fruit.
"I saved it for you."
Godfrey frowned. "I canât take this. With this fruit you can become an Origin Tier or even a Paragon like the one that attacked your fiancĂ©e."
"Probably. But I donât want it anymore. You know as well as I do that the mana tree is just using us. I felt insecure when I knew of how rage took over Percival but I didnât have the power to stop him. It was a feeling of powerlessness I rarely feel and shortly after that I got this."
Arian lifted up the mana fruit.
"But the moment I had it in my hands, a source of more power, I gained clarity by asking myself a question. Wasnât it enough?"
Arian paused for a moment.
"This greed for strength. Who knows if there will ever be a limit. Iâve long reached what I believe is my limit which is why I call this external growth greed but itâs different for you. Your internal potential is vast."
Arian sighed. "I foresee a day where hundreds of millions will die for a fruit. This greed, it grows and grows until youâre lost. I no longer have a need for all this. Being one of the strongest on Earth is enough for me."
Godfrey sat down on the grass.
"Keep it. You might find a need to be better than your current self one day."
Arian chuckled. "There are millions that will jump at this opportunity and you just reject it?"
"It doesnât work on my summons. The mana tree has a certain distaste for their race. It became interested once an elf was involved." Godfrey replied.
"I see. Howâs progress with Isolde?" Arian smiled warmly. He was oddly homely, like a man who got a taste of peace and didnât want to let it go.
It was nothing like the slayer Godfrey knew him as. He couldnât erase the picture of Isshin sitting on a heap of Fanatic and Agent corpses. That was the first time they met and that impression was hard to erase.
Godfrey groaned and fell on the grass.
"Thatâs a sign of hiccups. Whatâs the problem, sheâs lost interest?"
"What?! Of course not! Itâs just the authorities being too nosy. Iâve had just enough of them interfering with my life."
Godfreyâs complaint made Arian laugh.
The mana fruit, gleaming with an enticing glow, sat there, ignored by both men.
***
Two modified trucks ran through an old road in a desert.
"Wow! This mission was a blast! I canât believe we got a great chunk of dungeon metal! The good kind!" The driver of the first truck chuckled while Dax, who sat in the back with Valentina and a few other vagabonds, shook his head.
Valentina had a small smile. This was her first mission with the Daxâs team and her healing skills came in handy several times.
Everyone was happy she was with them. The thrill and the appreciation mixed together in her heart.
"You did good, Ms. Valentina. Your son will be proud." Dax said. No one could figure out if he was smiling or not because of the face mask.
Just when Valentina was about to reply, a purple gate opened up. The first truck ran through it before it could stop and the gate vanished.
The second truck screeched to a halt and Vagabonds jumped out.
"What just happened?!"
"A purple gate. I saw a purple gate." The driver of the second truck gasped.
"I saw the same thing but what in the world is a purple gate?"
"Who cares! It just took our leader and Godfreyâs mother along with the others!"
...
A/N: Alright. So hereâs the deal.
I would like you guys, those that would be interested to write a rich review of what youâve experienced, what you think could be worked on and why youâve stuck this far.
Iâll give a reply to those whose review are really insightful. And if Iâm impressed by at least three reviews, then Iâll mass release for Summoners on February.
This will last until the end of February 2nd.