Genetic Ascension

Israeal was almost akin to a slumbering beast. When he stood there, unmoving, it felt like nothing could make him change his pace of living. He liked the quiet cold; he liked his stoicism.

But when he attacked, he seemed to have changed entirely. Sharp, fast, bloodthirsty.

His expression was much the same, but the echoing crimson of the scimitars that suddenly appeared in his palms, or the flash of ruby that formed as his third eye opened, all underlined a sinister air that hadn't been there just moments before.

A devilish man in the truest sense, hiding behind a façade of calm before erupting like a volcano.

With a step, he seemed to have already crossed the distance between himself and Jala.

The others reacted as though prepared to do battle at any moment, but when they realized they weren't the ones being attacked, they sent quick glances toward one another to confirm there wouldn't be any other sudden assaults before relaxing just the slightest bit.

BANG!

Israeal's scimitars crossed, bashing against Jala's staff and sending him sliding back, the feet of the latter's white knight armor leaving deep trenches in the moon's otherwise tough surface.

There was hardly a pause. With another tap of his feet, Israeal launched a whirlwind-like assault, but by the third, Zoryx's eyes couldn't help but narrow.

He didn't know who this human was, but how had he survived to this extent? There were no humans like this that could display such strength—not in this galaxy. And even beyond it, into the Sector, Zoryx wasn't sure if there were any.

There were powerful humans in the universe, but each of them seemed to have undergone mutations of some sort. The Venom Clan, for example, were technically humans. But they had mutated so much that it was hard to say that anymore with any sort of assurance.

But this…

Jala's expression didn't change either. He had no idea who Israeal was, actually, but it also didn't matter. He had come here with a singular purpose in mind:

To come out on top.

He had been places in these last few weeks that others couldn't fathom. Taking advantage of the unique Hidden Quest and the improvements he had made, he felt… were second to none.

Although his personal strength wasn't yet great enough to take on a genius of the outside world like this…

It was a good thing he had his Treasures to make up for the gap.

There was a sudden pulse of light in Jala's eyes and all of a sudden, a shockwave was sent out.

BANG!

Israeal was almost blown off his feet as the accumulated strength of his previous strikes nearly sent him flying. However, to his credit, he managed to stay on his feet, his gaze flickering.

Legendary Treasure. He was sure of it.

He had only just finished the thought when Jala swung down from above, his staff pulsing with might that gathered large amounts of Aether from the Dungeon. It was such a large, sweeping total that the portal flickered as though it might collapse at any moment.

Dodge.

Israeal threw himself to the side as the staff slammed into the ground, a deep trench running ahead.

An annoyance began to build up in Israeal's heart. It didn't reflect on his face, or even boil over into true frustration, but it was there nonetheless.

He needed Jala for a very good reason. The Halls had a method that he could use to snatch Overlord status in this galaxy. He wanted it so that there wouldn't be any other complications, and the key to that was Jala himself.

So long as he could get his hands on it, he could even take what he wanted from Zoryx and wouldn't have to just hope that whatever system was overseeing this segment of the galaxy wouldn't blast him off the face of existence because he didn't meet its criteria.

But he also wanted to actually win. He might be from the outer galaxy, but he wouldn't underestimate what Zoryx and the others could do either—especially if they chose to gang up on him.

Of course, Israeal was almost certainly in a league of his own. But the restrictions he faced, and the price he paid to come here, left him bare of most of the things he needed to level the playing field and crush these so-called geniuses.

But now his ticket to clearing all of those obstacles was wreathed in so many treasures he could hardly see his face clearly. It was hard not to be annoyed.

But cool, calmness was Israeal's forte. No one could accomplish anything hard without first going through hardship.

He wasn't willing to reveal everything that he could do just yet, and there was also no telling just how many Legendary Treasures Jala was hiding either.

In that case…

Israeal's body flashed and he appeared before the portal. He gazed back at everyone, who seemed quite surprised, before he stepped inside.

Something was telling him that there would be a new variable soon, and since there were only five slots to enter, and only five people here… he would prefer not to be left holding the bag.

Jala seemed to have had the same idea as him, because Israeal had only just moved when there was a warp of space around him and he appeared before the portal as well, jumping in even a hair before Israeal could.

And suddenly, there were three left. All at once, they rushed toward the Dungeon as well.

…

High above, Matriarch Valeria looked on with the very same frown. She was starting to feel antsy as she saw the scene unfold, and right then, something compelled her to check a certain list.

It didn't make sense as to why she would. Soryntha was still in fourth place; the last leg of the help Matriarch Valeria had given her was only meant to trigger at the perfect time.

But when she did check it, her eyes widened.

—

[5. Soryntha Valeria | Lv. 50 | (Florineth)]

—

Fifth… why was she fifth?

The Matriarch's heart skipped a beat as her senses caught just the faintest edge of something—a spatial portal moving through the bounds of black.

—

[1. Sylas Grimblade | Lv. 50 | (???)]