Lord Of Beasts

After everything that had just unfolded across the gate, a strange stillness settled over the battlefield. Kaela’s ultimate attack had shaken the entire gate, while the effects of Elara’s minutes later had been much more subtle, but no less terrifying.

One unleashed all the energy their body could muster in a single strike; the other unleashed it in a wave of pure devastation. But both attacks had managed to take down an A Rank Beast, which was all that mattered.

Now, the gate felt eerily quiet.

This wasn’t peace or relief; it was something heavier.

It was the kind of silence that came after chaos, where the air itself seemed to hesitate, as if even the world needed a moment to process what had just happened.

Then a domineering voice resounded throughout the endless void.

{Phase Two has now been completed, despite some hiding away from their designated foes.}

The message hung there, blunt and almost mocking.

It did not name anyone directly, yet the implication was obvious. Some had fought to survive, while others had chosen differently.

Far away, hidden within her layered constructs, Liora’s expression stiffened ever so slightly. Darius exhaled slowly, rubbing the back of his neck as he leaned against the faintly glowing barrier behind him.

"Yeah, alright," she murmured under his breath. "No need to call us out like that."

Darius said nothing, but he also felt the cutting remark.

Still, neither of them argued, since they couldn’t exactly deny or do anything about it. And ultimately they had survived, which in this gate was an achievement in itself.

-

Meanwhile, Ethan slowly opened his eyes.

The dull ache that had been gnawing at his body began to fade as the effects of Beast Recovery settled in. The rotting sensation that had been spreading across his shoulder had finally stopped, the corrupted flesh stabilising as his energy circulated more evenly.

His breathing steadied, and his mind sharpened.

’This skill is working wonders.’

In the matter of minutes since his battle had ended, which had only been momentarily disturbed by Kaela’s shockwave, he had recuperated massively. Now he paused after hearing that Phase Two had ended.

’So, what’s next?’

As if to answer him, the voice continued.

{Gate parameters adjusted again.}

Ethan’s gaze lifted slightly as a flicker of anticipation crossed his face.

{Phase Three Initiated.}

The words alone carried weight, but the system was far from finished.

{This is the final phase, and you will receive instruction on how to complete it.}

Ethan straightened slightly, his focus locking in completely now.

{There are five Boss Beasts remaining. One was eliminated by the Riot Valkyrie and another by the Blood Demon, the Pink Flash, and the Verdant Warden.}

That caught Ethan’s attention, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.

’Figures that lunatic could take one down on her own. And I’m assuming Elara is fine with that thing inside of her.’

Just hearing her moniker was reassuring.

But on that note, it was unusual that the system was using what were essentially their nicknames rather than their Titles or names.

He frowned slightly.

’I mean, the system seems to know pretty much everything, but it still is weird.’

He didn’t dwell on it, as the voice continued.

{Each Boss Beast has its own base within the gate, guarded by its own kind. Eliminate them all to leave the gate.}

Ethan was expecting as much, but it honestly wasn’t as bad as the horrors he was imagining after experiencing Phase Two.

’Oh... so we can take our time,’ was his immediate thought. ’Find everyone, regroup, figure things out.’

That made things seem much less daunting, but he had spoken too soon.

{You have 24 hours to do so.}

"Right," he said flatly.

The system wasn’t giving them any breathing room.

They had to traverse the vast gate, locate five separate strongholds, each guarded by unknown numbers of enemies, and defeat five A Rank Beasts - all within a single day.

Ethan let out a slow breath.

"This is fucked."

And yet, a grin slowly spread across his face, because another thought had already taken root.

’But... maybe there are more breeding grounds.’

His eyes gleamed.

Now that Race Crystals could be purchased, the Evolutionary Shards he received from eliminating beasts became even more important. And this gate might just be a massive blessing in disguise, a gold mine.

’I take it back,’ he thought, almost laughing to himself. ’I love insects, gates, and the system.’

Still, before anything else, he closed his eyes and resumed Beast Recovery.

’I need to be at my best before we make a move.’

He wasn’t sure when he’d get another chance to rest like this, so he was going to make the most of it. The energy flowed through him, stabilising his body further and restoring his MP bit by bit.

Beside him, Wolfy stood guard, silent and alert.

Its crimson eyes scanned the surroundings, its massive frame radiating quiet dominance.

Dave floated nearby, seated cross-legged in the air, his eyes closed as he focused on recovering his drained mana. Meanwhile, the Bulldozer paced restlessly, his massive form shifting uneasily as he glanced between Ethan, the Fenrir, and the empty horizon beyond.

They were both unnerved by the Phase Three announcements, but the best thing they could do was mimic Ethan and make the most of the moment of respite.

But the blue-eyed man was shaken out of his trance again.

{Beast Eliminated!}

Ethan’s eyes snapped open, and he frowned.

’I didn’t kill anything.’

His gaze immediately shifted to Wolfy, who was still there but hadn’t fought anything.

For a moment, confusion lingered.

Then, realisation hit.

"The Steel Scarab," he mumbled under his breath.

His Fenrir had knocked it off the side of the floating island earlier, but he hadn’t received the notification for it.

’Just how far is the fall?’ he wondered.

The lowered gravity probably made it slower, but after dropping that long, it had to go on for miles.

But then came another chain of thought.

’Should I acquire it?’

He had not even considered acquiring the Rotwing Fly, which was disgusting and nothing special either. But the Steel Scarab was worth contemplating, especially with its impressive defensive capabilities.

’Nah,’ he eventually decided.

It did not excite him, not compared to what else he had seen.

’There are better options.’

His mind immediately drifted elsewhere.

To the butterfly that could hypnotise and manipulate its foes with its entrancing wings.

’An A Rank version of that would be perfect.’

Then, another thought struck him, one that made him grin to himself.

’If I kill an A Rank beast...’

His eyes sharpened.

’Then the beast I acquire would at least have A Rank potential.’

Even if it started at E Rank when acquired, the ceiling would already be set, which meant he wouldn’t need Race Crystals until he wanted to evolve it to S Rank. All it would need were Evolutionary Shards, time to grow, and a lot of beast meat.

"So the cost of evolving it is basically halved," he murmured, almost impressed with himself.

It made perfect sense.

Even better, there were at least five potential opportunities.

’I’ve got options.’

And he did not even need to solo them.

If his understanding was correct, all he needed was to get the final hit, either directly or through one of his beasts, for him to be able to acquire it.

His expression darkened slightly.

’My last kill was stolen. So it should be fine if I take someone else’s.’

It was a fair trade, at least in his mind.

But what he didn’t realise was just how soon he would be stealing somebody else’s kill and whose it would be...