Back in the slums, high in the skies, Elise and Dustin were floating amid the chill evening winds that whipped through the decaying urban sprawl below. Dustin had just returned from questioning neighbors, their faces pale and weary under flickering streetlights, but most of them were normal people huddled in fear. How could they follow the movements of hunters who danced with death daily?
He shook his head in quiet frustration, the city's distant hum a mocking backdrop, but before he could speak his phone rang with a sharp, insistent alert that cut through the tension like a blade. On the screen of his phone it read. 'Hunters Association! New Enemy: Kaiya Mose, Reason: Murdering A Rank Hunter from the Association. Last seen here ---'
His eyes widened reading this—something not missed by Elise, whose sharp gaze caught the flicker of shock across his face.
"What is it, did something happen back at the Association?"
"No... but we just found our target. We must be quick though because she just went against the Hunter's Association." Dustin said, showing her the alert with a grim urgency. Although he worked for the Association, the Sunbelt family came first. The Association knew this as well, but they needed ties to the Sunbelt's vast influence and resources.
Looking at the screen, Elise's eyes widened in stunned realization. "She killed a hunter from the Association? Does she not know what happens to Hunters who violates their rules?" She asked in a bit of disbelief, her voice trembling slightly with the weight of the implications.
Although there weren't rules or laws in this world... some factions or families had unwritten rules etched in blood and power. The Association was a worldwide faction that had ties to almost everything influential on earth, its shadow stretching across governments and Gates alike. In the last 5 years, anyone going against them did not fare well—their ends swift, silent, and erased from records.
"It doesn't matter. We will get to her first. Let's go." Dustin said before flying off in a hurry, his form blurring into a streak against the darkening horizon. The location was an hour from them, so they needed to be in a hurry, every second a potential escape for their prey.
Elise nodded before following after him, her heart pounding with a mix of duty and unspoken curiosity.
------
In a tall sky-piercing tower that clawed defiantly into the clouds, sitting behind a sleek obsidian desk was a middle-aged looking man. He had grey hair that was short and a bit messy, strands falling rebelliously over his furrowed brow. His beard was grey as well; he sat in his chair with a tense look on his face, the lines around his eyes deepening under the harsh glow of holographic screens. In front of him was a tablet that was replaying the death of an A rank hunter in chilling, looped detail—the shadow's betrayal, the spray of blood, the lifeless thud.
"To kill him so effortlessly she must be at least the S rank.... possibly even at the Epic rank." He said before swiping the screen, pulling up Kaiya's hunter's information with fingers that trembled ever so slightly from restrained fury.
"Only a D rank hunter, just a few months ago... And a mere driver before that?" Things were not adding up for Jake, the puzzle pieces scattering like ash in his mind. He was only below one person when it came to the Hunter's Association. However, that other person was always busy with other things, leaving him in charge of the sprawling empire of hunters and secrets.
He continued digging as far as when she first awakened and tracked her growth, the data scrolling like a river of inconsistencies. "This is odd... she showed meager growth and being a Driver doesn't pay well. However, a few months ago she received 10 million deposited into her bank account?"
'10 million for driving? What the hell... who could have possibly paid for that?' He thought as it seemed too unreasonable, the numbers glaring mockingly from the screen. Most people who were that rich could already fly so car transportation wasn't always likely. Drivers normally only provided transportation for normal people or weaker hunters, ferrying them through the chaos of a mana-twisted world.
This led him to dig deeper; he tracked the deposit to the sender, finding the picture of a masked hunter that sent a chill down his spine. In the picture he could see a white haired, golden eyed figure, name and rank glowing ominously.
"Set? Hmm, he went from Awakened to S rank in a week?!" Jake exclaimed as this made him stand up from his seat, his chair rolling back with a sharp scrape. This was perhaps the most ridiculous thing he'd came across yet. As mentioned before one could have enough money to buy the cores that were available, but one would still need an absurd amount.
An amount that was not available readily on any markets, hoarded in vaults or lost in Gates. "Tristan, come now!" He said and in the next moment a lean man walked into the door, his presence filling the room with casual menace. He had short grey hair with red eyes that gleamed like fresh blood. Dressed in baggy jeans and a t shirt he approached with a smirk, hands buried deep in his pockets.
"Yo, you called for me?" He replied with his hands in his pockets. This was Tristan the son of Jake, though he was his son he was much more talented and stronger. Upon awakening Tristan unlocked not just an affinity for blood, but he also unlocked weird eyes. His eyes allowed him to see the weak points of anything, vulnerabilities glowing like targets in his vision.
Because of this his growth was prioritized and being a part of the first batch of awakeners he was just as strong as Jake. However, he didn't like being restricted by duty, so he chose not to be 2nd or 3rd in command, preferring the freedom of the shadows.
Jake's eyes narrowed hearing how he spoke. "I'm your father boy, speak with some respect."
Tristan scoffed a bit hearing this. "Come on old man, we're closer than that right?"
"Alright enough, I need you to head to this location." Jake said, showing the location of the deceased A rank with a pointed finger. He then continued. "There is a fugitive here, she killed one our members. Go and capture her, do not kill her. Also don't underestimate her, she might be an Epic rank."
Tristan nodded looking at the tablet. "Sheesh, what a beauty!" He said handing the tablet back to Jake. "Don't worry father, I will return with her as soon as possible." After he said this, he left the room leaving Jake alone once more. Jake returned to his seat and looked out the window. In his view was nothing but clouds; he was the second highest floor out of a near innumerable amount, the world below a distant, swirling sea of white.
'Set.... just who are you exactly?' He thought before turning back to his tablet. He planned to uncover all he could about Set while waiting, his fingers dancing across the screen with relentless determination.
-----
While all of this was going on Set was still training like a mad man. A few more years had already passed for in the time he was last seen and during this time he came to a few conclusions. The first and perhaps the most alarming... alarming for his foes at least, was that he didn't need to use skills.
From his understanding from test and conversations with Vyrak, skills only lowered one's mana consumption, and it also allowed one to use affinities they didn't have. For example, if one had water affinity they could learn a fire ball skill. The only downfall was that the skill would extremely weak. Next, if one opted to use their affinity raw it would cost too much mana for a fight and it would also depend on one's creativity.
Skills were normally learned from skill books gathered through Gate rewards, there had never been someone who had created a skill on Earth. This meant if one used their affinity raw, they would need to indirectly create their own skill. It might sound easy, but not everyone could think of unique ways to use their affinity and plus was it worth it when you would burn too much mana?
Well, it wasn't for them but for Set?
It was the most perfect situation for him. He had infinite mana, even if his mana capacity showed a number, his mana didn't budge a bit. Not only that, he read countless novels so surely he could get a bit creative.
Right?
BOOOM!!!!
"Fucking hell...." Vyrak muttered seeing something he couldn't believe, his serpentine eyes widening in the Sanctuary's eternal glow. However before he could blink the scene repeated itself. High in the skies of the Sanctuary Set stood with his hand behind his back. His eyes of infinity were swirling as he spoke.
|Abyssal Edge Cascade|
HUMMMM!!!
All around him there were hundreds of blades made purely of his Void affinity, humming with a low, ominous vibration that warped the air. From his practice with all his affinities he learned void could be used a few ways. One was traveling, it was similar to space. Using his void affinity, he could erase the distance between him and his target. He had practiced for some time, but he could never push the distance pass 2,500 meters... well that was at first.
He thought this was odd until Vyrak explained to him about mana sense. It was basically something tethered to your soul, cultivators could use their mana sense to see much further than normal. It was something like a 3rd eye. Apparently, a person's mana sense would be 10% of their mana capacity.
So, for Set at this current moment, he could |Null Stride| as he called it for 4,999 meters. The second way the Void affinity could be used was to erase. Pretty simple and deadly.... And now in this moment there were hundreds of swords made up of void that filled the skies for all of 4,999 meters. He didn't even have to speak again, with a thought they launched forward.
BOOOOM!!!!
They all hit the ground at once and completely disintegrated it, but thankfully the Sanctuary healed itself, the emerald plains knitting back together in a shimmer of mana.
"Good... I think that's enough training for now. I've been here for damn near 20 years.... I need to get laid!" Set said as he left the Sanctuary along with Vyrak. When he reappeared, he was in what used to be his apartment. However, the entire place was empty, the bare walls echoing with silence under the dim light filtering through cracked blinds.
"Uhh, Did I get robbed?"