Chapter 22
Lucas walked lazily through the city, observing his surroundings. He had come to buy some scrolls and was also growing curious about creating them himself.
Scrolls were artifacts created to store private information. If a person lacked permission, they could not access the contents. Scrolls could also store items, food, or anything at all, as long as it wasn't a living being.
His interest was sparked by the scrolls he had taken from the main vault of the Hidden City. His mana control was so refined that he could break the seals preventing him from reading them; he didn't need to learn formal sealing techniques. However, for his future projects in creating Artifact Mana Beasts, he knew he would need to learn those techniques soon. For now, his focus was on money.
The amount of Auron he needed for his ambitions was enormous, a fact that often stressed him out. This was why he wanted to start creating and selling scrolls to the great Five Empires and their Hidden Cities—a venture he knew would be highly profitable if he played his cards right.
He wanted to buy more scrolls and also learn Runes, which were similar to Seals but distinct. He believed this knowledge would aid him when he eventually studied seals. Since the war had ended only a year and a half ago, the Empires were still lacking in resources and manpower.
This was especially true for the Sky Hidden City, which had suffered more than the others. Just a year after the war, two of their Saint Class members left the city. One was heavily injured, losing the capabilities that defined a Saint Class. They also lost a significant number of 8-star and 9-star elites, as well as some Moon Class experts, when a Tier 9 Mana Beast escaped its seal.
It was a huge blow, but even so, the Hidden City of Sky could still hold its own against the other four Hidden Cities. Lucas acquired his scrolls; he already had the rune teachings he had stolen from the Sky Hidden City's main vault. He watched as people went about their day: shops opening, cultivators enjoying their time, and workers rushing to repair the more heavily damaged parts of the city.
Out of nowhere, he found himself at the mission center. Lucas looked at the building and sensed, "Blake is inside." He maintained a mana field around him at all times, extending 100 meters in every direction, making it rare for anyone within that range to escape his senses.
Entering the building, he found Blake, the ten-year-old boy, talking to a beautiful girl behind the counter.
"I know you've been promoted to 4-star, but the issue is that this mission is for those who are 5-star and above. If you had a 5-star with you, then I could give you the mission," she said with a smile.
Blake sighed. "Austin is already on a mission, so I can't get help from him." He could ask to join another team, but the problem was that after the Tier 9 Mana Beast attack, everyone was wary of the Clover Clan.
It was rumored that a Clover Clan member had been involved in the attack, though no investigation had proven anything. Because of this, other Sky elites were unwilling to go on missions with Clover Clan members. As the son of the patriarch, Blake could have asked someone other than Austin to accompany him, but all 5-star and above elites of the Clover Clan were on lockdown, forbidden from leaving the clan grounds under any circumstances.
'This kid is already a 4-star?' Lucas's expression soured. 'Why does the Clover Clan have three monsters?'
One was Austin, who had awakened the 4 Clover Eyes. The other was Blake, who, at ten years old, had a Mana Core at the peak of the Bronze stage—just one step away from the Iron stage, where Austin and Lucas were. Lucas reminded himself that Blake was only ten, while he and Austin were fifteen. From what Lucas could see, Blake would be promoted to 5-star in a month or two at most. "What the heck," he muttered.
Lucas sighed and walked forward. He approached the counter, showing the 5 stars on his shirt, and said, "How about I form a team with the kid?"
The woman smiled and said, "If he is okay with that, then I will sign you both up."
'This might hurt my reputation with the higher-ups,' Lucas thought, 'but this kid is going to become extremely powerful. He'll reach a point where he was just one step away from defeating—or even killing—the Abyssal Moon sub leader. He's worth getting into the good books of.' He smiled at Blake.
"Sir Lucas, it's a pleasure to meet you again. Are you sure you want to go on this mission with me?" Blake asked, sounding worried.
"Don't worry about it," Lucas replied. "I was already thinking of going on a mission anyway, so it's no problem." This made Blake smile.
"Thank you! I just need to complete a B-rank mission to be promoted to 5-star after I break through to the Iron stage," Blake said excitedly.
The Ranking System:
A 1-Star must finish at least 10 E-rank missions and 1 D-rank mission.
A 2-Star must finish at least 10 E-rank missions and 10 D-rank missions.
A 3-Star must finish at least 10 D-rank missions and 1 C-rank mission. They must also break through to the Bronze stage in their Mana Core to be promoted to 4-Star.
A 4-Star must finish at least 10 C-rank missions and 1 B-rank mission. They must also break through to the Iron stage to be promoted to 5-Star.
A 5-Star must finish at least 50 B-rank missions.
A 6-Star must finish at least 50 B-rank missions and 1 A-rank mission. They must also break through to the Silver stage to be promoted to 7-Star.
A 7-Star must finish at least 50 A-rank missions to be promoted to 8-Star.
An 8-Star must finish at least 50 A-rank missions and 1 S-rank mission. They must also break through to the Gold stage.
For a 9-Star, the only way to advance is to demonstrate capabilities above the norm. After completing more than 20 S-rank missions, one has the right to challenge a Moon Class. The challenge must end in a draw or a victory to become a Moon Class. The first Moon Class earned his title by defeating ten 9-star ranks simultaneously.
To become a Saint Class, one must defeat five ranked Moon Class elites.
A rank above Saint Class appeared after a single man, the leader of the Abyssal Moon, defeated the five Kings of the Hidden Cities and five other Saint Class individuals who were not Kings. This future class was named Overlord Class.