Infinite Realm

"Captain, the other party has begun moving." The [Druid] in the team said after some consideration.

After he had discovered the presence of Sato and his teammates, the [Druid] was assigned to be constantly monitoring their movements and alerting Black Tempest of any changes. This wasn't a difficult task but it required him to put all his focus into it. As a result, the [Druid] wouldn't be able to scour the area for any ambush and he also wouldn't be able to react to one. Luckily, they were almost close to the Exit gate, so the chance of suffering an ambush was quite low.

"So soon?" Black Tempest raised an eyebrow.

"Just when we're closing in on them." Black Tempest looked displeased at the report.

The team was currently on their way to the Exit gate so it was understandable as to why Black Tempest felt dissatisfied.

"If you think of it that way, it feels strange." The [Ranger], Blue Sky, suddenly spoke up.

"What do you mean?" Black Tempest looked at him.

"I'm not so sure yet as I need more info."

Blue Sky then turned to the [Druid] and said, "Describe everything you've sensed."

The [Druid] then went on to describe the changes he had spotted from the other side. Overall, he had discovered that the mana fluctuations in the area had surged and the rate of death of the monsters also sky-rocketed when compared to before. This meant that the 'mysterious party' had increased the intensity of their attacks.

"If my guess is correct, then there's a possibility that we've been spotted." Blue Sky said after a few seconds of consideration.

"Hmm? Why do you say so?" Black Tempest asked.

The team had been very careful with their movements and they had even used a stealth scroll. It would be very difficult for anyone to sense them in this scenario.

"The target suddenly increases the intensity of their attacks and they begin heading deeper in. This could mean anything but I feel it points towards a single direction; they were being chased by something.

"If this is the case, the bothered are two possibilities. We could infer in the first one that it's a powerful monster that forced them to hasten their actions in search of an escape route. And in fact, this sounds quite logical and might as well be the answer. But there's also the other possibility. Though the likelihood of this is low, there's the possibility that they might have discovered our presence. It could explain why they are running towards the Exit gate." Blue Sky explained.

"But how?" Black Tempest widened his eyes. "We already used stealth scrolls and our mana signatures are being manipulated. It should be impossible for such to happen."

"I don't know either, that's why I feel the chances are low." Blue Sky said.

"Then why did you suggest it?" Black Tempest felt incredulous at his words before frowning at him.

"It's like this: while the chances of the other party being chased by a strong monster sounds logical, it's not so possible. For there to be a monster that can agitate one to the point of only thinking of escaping, the monster has to be at least level 9; possibly an Elite rank at that. If you were to encounter such a monster when surrounded by a bunch of others, what would be your orders, captain?" Blue Sky asked.

"My orders? It would be a full-scale retreat." Black Tempest said after pondering for just 2 seconds.

"But what if the monster is a level 8 or thereabout creature? What would be your orders?" Blue Sky questioned again.

"A level 8? I would face it. As long as we make good use of our tactics and abilities, we can not only defeat it but profit from that event." Black Tempest said without much thought. He was a level 8 [Berserker] and a 'false king' at that. If he couldn't face a level 8 monster alone, he would be a great disappointment to the guild.

"Precisely. Whoever our targets are, we should presume that they have equal or at least, similar strength to ours. When considering this, we would believe that their reactions would be the same as ours.

"As for the issue of the monster's strength, a level 9 monster wouldn't so easily appear anywhere especially in the Outer region. If it does exist, it would be in the Mode region rather than here and the same could be said for a level 8 monster. That's why I didn't seriously consider the chance of there being a strong monster out there and included the second possibility." Blue Sky Said.

"But if they found us, then how did they do it?" Black Tempest was confused.

"I don't know either but we haven't fully explored the game. Who says there isn't some kind of equipment that could pull that off? Maybe it's a sensor or maybe it boosts the scouting capabilities of a [Druid]. Thing is , I don't know. But I don't think we should rule out the possibility of them discovering our position." Blue Sky answered.

Blue Sky's speculations, though rational, didn't apply to Sato and the others. Unlike what he had assumed, Fudo was only able to spot the others because of his level and his high affinity towards fire elemental mana. With a level difference of 2, it was quite easy for him to sense Black Tempest's team even if the [Druid] in the team was trying to hide their mana signatures. As for how he had perceived them despite the stealth scroll being active, it was because of his advantage in elemental mana affinity.

In IR's player base, Fudo could be said to be one of the players with the highest affinity towards fire elemental mana. This came from both his advantage as a fire [Elementalist] as well as the accessory [Igneel's Guidance] and his weapon, [Vermilion Pine Staff]. A combined 25% boost to fire affinity saw his fire spells increasing in firepower as well as increased his sensitivity to fire elemental mana.

Among Black Tempest's teammates was a fire [Elementalist] and though the stealth scroll was used on them, the standard was a low one which had weak ability against above level 10 creatures but was suitable for current players. Fudo's affinity was enough to bring his prowess to a level above that so he was able to pick up the 'scent' of a fire [Elementalist] in their formation. Once he did, Fudo had then concentrated harder on the signature and discovered the others.

Black Tempest would never have thought that his decision of bringing a fire [Elementalist] with him, would lead to his position being revealed.

"If that's the case, then for them to be running away means that they are suspicious." Black Tempest thought out loud.

"Probably but maybe they just don't want to mess with other players, yet at least." Blue Sky replied.

"Hmm." Black Tempest nodded.

"Everyone, increase your speed. We need to make it to those guys before they escape. There are the odds of them being related to our ambushers so we need to catch up to them and interrogate them. Move." Black Tempest gave the orders before increasing his pace.

The players in his team also increased speed and everyone dashed towards the Exit gate. They had abandoned their previous strategy of slow and steady since they couldn't afford to let Sato and the others escape.

From the information displayed on the map, it would have taken them 5 minutes to make it to the basin by moving at their previous steady speed. But as the team had picked up their pace, it would only take them half the time to make it there or even less. In other words, the team would require at least 2 minutes to make it over or maybe even a minute. For the faster ones in the group, like Black Tempest, they could do so before that time.

'Hopefully, we can make it.'