A month has passed since the competition.
The reputation of five disciples of Ghost Spear Orion has spread throughout the territory of the human race. The strength displayed by the four of them has broken the previous precedent where some very talented adventurers could at most fight across one higher rank.
From the rumors, their combat capability is speculated to be at the highest point of A-rank.
This is incredible. In history, when was there ever a D-rank who could have such combat power? Not to mention, there are not one but five of them in the same generation.
Because of the sudden outbreak of five unparalleled geniuses, the domestic competition which attracted many people's attention became less interesting when they learned that the five of them has automatically got the five out of ten D-rank positions as the next matches has been unilaterally given up by all the opponents who matched with any one of them.
That's why, when the time for the global competition came the excited fans and speculating people rushed to the center of human territory, World Reclamation Council Headquarters, to see the appearance of those geniuses and whether the rumors are true or exaggerated.
Bernard is one of the many people who entered the grand city gate of the council.
He was a man in his late thirties with dark circles under his eyes and a haggard face. He is a B-rank adventurer but because of many reasons he didn't participate in the recent competition.
Bernard looked around the spectacular city which has gathered all the top notch resources from human countries. As the center of the human territory in the only continent of this planet this city is called Hope City, bearing the hopes and dreams of all humans to reclaim their original position as the overlord of this planet.
He snickered a little when he remembered the backstory of this city's name.
After showing his pass for the bought seat in the colosseum, Bernard entered the ancient style entrance gate of this place. This colosseum wasn't built by humans. This is one of the many in-game structures that appeared in reality after the game merged.
This colosseum can withstand attacks from over a dozen S-rank adventurers simultaneously. There are also many options to change the field according to the needs of the controller.
This colosseum isn't owned by any single individual or any specific country. Countries with permanent seats in the council rotates the overseer authority for every four years. The present overseer is North Coast Republic.
Humans only occupy a small resource-poor area of the vast continent in Azure Planet. If one were to look from above then the northern most part of the continent is completely occupied by humans.
This place was originally the land where poor countries gathered and after the game merged this trend of "poverty" also showed up in the form of insufficient mana-related resources. All the abundance has gathered towards the center of the continent.
The more one heads in that direction the greater resources one can find. Similarly the monsters and beasts one encounters is far stronger. There is also a chance to bump into a patrolling demon which is far more disastrous because of the past circumstances.
Bernard took his seat and observed the excited crowd. He waited patiently without engaging in any conversation with anyone. Maybe because of his tired looks or the aura that pushes away others from approaching him the nearby people didn't come up to chat with him at all.
After the time came for the start of the competition, a host arrived at the center of the colosseum's field for introduction, "Welcome, adventurers from all over the world! The time has come to determine the quota for the Orc Champion Labyrinth. The domestic competition has seeded out the best adventurers of their respective countries and now we shall witness the birth of the truly talented adventurers who carry the hope of our ancestors, that is reclaiming this world!"
"The domestic competitions were one versus one but in the global competition it will be party versus party. Starting off, we will watch the exciting battle of A-rank adventurers in the various environments of Orc Champion Labyrinth that has been so far discovered by the exploration team. The colosseum will simulate the environment perfectly so I want to remind the adventurers to not only be on guard against your opponents but also against the surprises from the labyrinth."
"Now let us welcome…"
As the host announced the name of the two A-rank parties that had been temporarily formed by putting together the qualified A-rank adventurers of the same countries after the original party failed to advance with all members, the audience also understood the rules and format of this competition.
When a party has managed to qualify with all its members then it will enter the field without any temporary stuffing.
Bernard watched the A-rank competition with great focus. In his hand was a small notebook and a pen. Because of the regulation that any item that can capture videos or images are prohibited from being brought inside he could only make do with this.
He wrote down all the details regarding the name of the winner and how they won, in what kind of environment they won as well as how they responded to various unexpected changes. Basically all information that can be collected has been collected by him.
Bernard wasn't the only one who was doing this. Many people with pen and paper were similarly writing down information with great enthusiasm. Some are naturally journalists while others are intelligence brokers.
There's also a small number who are of the same purpose as Bernard.
Collecting enemies' intelligence!
Indeed, Bernard is hostile to the council and in fact to all humans. He is a senior member of the Demon Worshipping Cult. This cult has been formed since the time when humanity saw the huge palm falling from the sky.
There were many humans who were extremely fearful of the Demon Lord because of it but also many people who admired and yearned for such power. In order to have the opportunity to get in contact with the aloof Demon Lord who they considered the strongest being on this planet they started to worship demons.
Their form of worship was by doing various sacrificial rituals or by hunting down any who could pose future threat to Demon Lord's rule. Though they believe that Demon Lord is the strongest and will never be defeated by any humans but in order to feel a sense of participation and more importantly to receive rewards from the exalted demons they would take the initiative to deal with anyone who they deems threatening because of talent and potential.
Their ardent and "pious" rituals moved the demons of the past so they formed many ways to contact the cultists from the center of the continent. Though it was unknown why Demon Lord simply didn't eradicate the humans for showing ambitions that year but as his subordinates they still took precaution just in case.
The Demon Worshipping Cult was the means they used to carry their agendas from a vast distance.
In addition to Bernard, a senior cultist, there are also some human traitors who have joined the Blood Skull Tower and Three-eyed Triangle. These two are the main hostile NPC faction designed in the game who constantly opposed the adventurers.
Any small to medium sized hostile factions had been eliminated by the first batch of S-rank adventurers back in that tragic year but this two faction was the largest and also the most influential. The Assassins Guild that operates under the dark throughout human territory is affiliated with Blood Skull Tower.
The branch in the coalition was uprooted recently but that doesn't mean they have completely disappeared. Their operation is still continuing unhindered in other countries.
The tower is filled with strong assassins who take commission from both the demon side and the human side. The highest bidder gets to mobilize them. This is the backstory of Blood Skull Tower in the game.
Three-eyed Triangle is a huge crime syndicate ranging from human trafficking, drugs, gambling den, money laundering, weapon smuggling, counterfeiting items, money extortion etc. They are the parasite which eats away the vitality of society.
Because of their nature sometimes many officials and S-rank adventurers are corrupted by them and manipulated as their personal weapon. They are entrenched in the very structure of human society so they are also the most difficult to eliminate.
Unlike the tower which has the single profession of assassin, the triangle is a hodgepodge of all kinds of big and small professions that can actually be seen in broad daylight. They also have frequent contacts with the tower and the cult. In the game, their backstory is that they are both the middle man for the existing factions and also the puppeteer who dictates the direction.
For the council, these three evil forces are the main antagonists.
Bernard's intelligence collection continued and soon it was the last segment of the competition, the battle of D-rank adventurers.
When the host announced the start of this segment Bernard's interest was at its peak. He had also heard of the five disciples who are rumored to have strength comparable to the top A-rank adventurers.
These five are one of the key targets for his observation. If the rumors are true then the cult will have to adjust their plan and if it is exaggerated then there's nothing more to say. They will still be in the list of targets because of their identity but it's just that priority will drop significantly.
According to some cultists who were present at the coalition's domestic competition the rumors are definitely true and they must be eliminated as soon as possible. The other sources of information also had similar descriptions.
The cult has already made up its mind but the last step verification from a senior cultist still needs to be conducted according to their internal rules. Here, Bernard comes into play. As long as his testimony matches with the previous reports then the existing plan will be drastically modified.
As the closed-door disciples of Ghost Spear Orion, the contemporary strongest adventurer, the risks and variables involved when targeting those five is huge. That's why no hostile factions made any decisive move against them for the past month.
They are all waiting for their senior cadres to confirm the rumors personally.
Bernard had his attention peeled to the field. The host just announced the name of the Drifting Cloud party. It wouldn't be wrong to say that this is the moment he has been waiting for in this competition.
When five figures entered the field of the colosseum the noisy crowd gradually calmed down before falling into silence. The rumors of these five and the hidden intentions behind them are so huge that human territory has been boiling for the past month.
The five young men and women stood on their side of the field with their heads held high. The aloofness and the sense of detachment that exudes from the congregation of the five stunned the crowd for a second.
The three young men were very handsome, especially the black-haired man and the silver-dyed guy. The ginger-haired man has a strong form of masculinity. The two ladies had otherworldly beauty. They were of regal elegance in every expression and movement.
With Royal Weapons on them and the standard adventurer's outfit it seemed as if they came out of a popular adventure novel.
The opponent they faced was another D-rank party which had temporary stuffing. The two sides faced off, one aloof and indifferent while the other nervous and anxious. The colosseum field changed its appearance and a damp underground cavern appeared in the view.
The open sky was blocked by the simulated cave ceiling.
With the simulation completed the match started. And a few seconds later, it ended…
Bernard had his mouth agape and eyes widened to the extreme. What did he see?
The mage Wuryan summoned a dozen Ice Chain that sealed the five opponents' movement in an instant. There was no hope of dodging it as the speed of casting the spell and the manifestation of the chains were near instantaneous.
With them shackled in one place, archer Irilea shot five arrows at blinding speed. Her hand speed was fast enough that it appeared as if five arrows were shot at the same time.
The arrows were coated with electricity and the launch speed was as if it had teleported to their flesh. It hit the shoulders and thighs of the five opponents. The moment those arrows hit the intended parts the blood and flesh exploded.
With a shrill scream of pain and hoarse shouts of surrender the match ended in a few seconds and from those two moves.
"Fast! Too fast!!"
This was the only thought that Bernard managed to come up with in those few seconds of match duration. He looked at the other three who didn't even bother to put on a fighting posture from the start.
His eyes became cold and terrible murderous intent surged for a second before he hurriedly hid it and returned to his previous excited expression as he acted in public. Any hidden agents need to be able to hide their true expression and intentions in a moment of notice.
Bernard, as a senior cultist, is definitely capable of doing it. It's just that these fives' performance broke his psychological expectations.
"No! I need to inform the cult quickly. These five can no longer be allowed to be given any time for growth. Otherwise it might become a huge disaster for my fellow cultists."
He felt anxious as he thought of this and the subtle sense of something bad happening in the future if those five were left unchecked creeped on his mind.
"Damn it, I have a bad premonition about this!!"
The plan urgently needs to be modified.