Cynrik, Brance, Gabby, and Benny strolled behind the eight adults while looking around curiously. The Compound vaguely had the build of what Cynrik would expect a modern-day version of the Roman Coliseum would look like, with its step-like tiered platforms, raising up dozens of meters, forming a bowl-shaped image. These bleacher-like platforms were all numbered similarly to the seating rows in a large stadium.
Cynrik noticed a pattern the more he examined his surroundings. The Egresses were organized by their specific categories, and the higher up you went, the stronger the Egress you would find. The first two or three rings seemed to be all Green Alphas followed by a large gap of empty rings, which Cynrik could only assume was open space for future Egresses. The next batch of rings were the Blue Alphas, and this pattern of three to four rings before the strength of the Egress increased continued upward.
The highest and furthest rings of the Compound were relatively empty, except for four doors. These doors had a large amount of space between them, and it was these four that were emitting a fierce, bloody aura. However, that wasn’t all; Cynrik could vaguely feel that these points were the origin of the gross, sticky feeling he was experiencing. His eyes wandered from one Red Alpha to the next, and he calculated that they were each facing one of the cardinal directions, North, South, East, and West.
[Brance, check those out.] Cynrik didn’t point but only nodded briefly in the directions of the four doors that towered above the rest nearly a hundred meters up.
[Those…are they the reason I feel like it’s humid as hell here? It’s almost like we walked into a swamp.] Brance reached up with his free hand and wiped the small beads of sweat from his brow.
[Un, They’ve got four Red Alphas. That’s insane; whose bloody idea was it to have ticking timebombs all lumped together in one area?] Unconsciously, Cynrik clenched his fists and thought about the possible devastation that seemed apparently would one day occur.
[All it takes is a single entity to walk out of that door, and BOOM, all of Valor City becomes ground zero. Even being this close to them makes it kind of hard to breathe. Hell, I feel like eyes are staring at me from those doors.]
-Although these doors do indeed lead directly to the locations of specific Egresses, they are not the actual portals themselves. The doors are simply the means to travel a great distance and arrive before the actual Egress themselves. Host Cynrik does not need to pay them any mind.-
[Uh, Tobs, are you trying to comfort me?] Nearly tripping over his own feet when Tobs spoke up on her own, if it wasn’t for Brance reaching forward and catching the back of his collar, Cynrik would have faceplanted.
-Your statement is incorrect. I was simply informing the Host about the lack of danger. To further elaborate, each one of the doors in the Valor City Compound is linked to the specified coordinates of the Egress, and at any time, the party in control of the Egresses Dungeon Core has the ability to sever the connection to the teleportation door, sealing off the channel connecting the two. Thus as I’ve stated, there is no need for the Host to worry.-
[Eh, thanks…I guess. Anyway, Brance, we need to start thinking of which one we will tackle first. Based on my hypothesis, we should be able to complete at least one Egress every five to six hours, depending on the precise conditions. It kinda falls to RNG, though, since the clear quests constantly change. If we get unlucky and end up with a “Survive for X days” quest, we are kinda fucked.]
[Hold up; you seem to be forgetting an important factor. We aren’t alone. PLUS, we don’t know what kind of monitoring system they have inside the Alphas.]
[Huh, fuck monitoring systems, who cares if people see us at full power?]
The moment the words left Cynrik’s head, Brance dropped Gabby’s hand, grabbed his older brother’s shoulder, and spun him around, forcing Cynrik to face him.
[What the hell, Brance?] Confused by the sudden actions, Cynrik shouted in anger at his brother.
[Dont what the hell, Brance me. What the fuck is going on with you. For years you’ve been all about not letting anyone know our limits. You’ve spent night after night planning out every single step we take in the Exams, and yet now not only have you done a complete one-eighty and had us make a flashy entrance, but you are even throwing all caution to the wayside. What the fuck is going on with you?]
Initially, Brance had just gone along with the commotion on the stage and hadn’t really complained since the results were satisfactory. But now, he was growing concerned by Cynrik’s absolute lack of caution. He had always been a little reckless, but now it was like he just stopped caring altogether and had become overly cocky for seemingly no reason.
[What are you talking about? Nothing has changed; it’s just I wanna stretch my new metaphorical muscles.] Cynrik swatted at Brance’s hands and spun back around to chase after the Observers who had separated from them.
Benny stood quietly and watched the strange interaction between the Jetlensr brothers while Gabby wore a concerned expression. Sure, Cynrik and Brance always argued but never at essential times like now. She didn’t know how she knew something significant had just transpired between them, but her gut was telling her something big had just happened.
“Brancie…is everything ok?” Gabby tiptoed her way up to Brance and held his hand while looking up at him with her big eyes.
Seeing the look on her face, Brance patted her head with his free hand, “Yeah, it’s all good; Big Brother is just being a little childish right now. Cmon, we don’t wanna get left behind.”
“Un.”
Gabby, Brance, and Benny quickly caught up with Cynrik, who was sticking close to the pack of eight observers as they slowly crossed the large open area.
‘Tobs, what the hell is going on with Cynrik?’ Since his older brother didn’t seem to be aware of the shift in attitude he was experiencing, Brance went to the only person who may know.
-I am only authorized to explain a portion of the current events. You are right, something is going on with Host Cynrik, but there are also changes within you.-
Brance’s right eye twitched slightly.
‘What do you mean, Tobs? Tell me everything you can; if it’s too difficult, you can just filter yourself.’
-Two outside factors are affecting both Hosts…one of which is the absorption of Deity Class Bloodlines, and the second is the influence on you by the Benefits bestowed by Raven God Odin and God Of Light Yahweh. I am unable to explain any further as to what these effects are or how to overcome them, but I can say you must find a way to overcome these influences and integrate them.-
-I can also say that the effects are lesser for you than Host Cynrik.-
Brance felt as if he was just hit by a steel pipe in the back of the head. He had noticed slight changes in his way of thinking compared to how he was on Earth. Although he was a relatively good person back then, he wasn’t even close to being the goody-two-shoes he was now.
‘Tobs, may I see the description for Cynrik’s Æsir Bloodline.’
-Æsir (Asgardian)
-Deity Class Bloodline-
-Progenitor- Raven God Odin-
-Home Realm: Asgard (Erased)
– Characteristics: Narcissistic, Over Confident, Ruthless, Expert Tacticians, Highly Advanced Intelligence, Calculative, Reckless.
-Abilities: Extreme Durability, Extreme Regenerative Capabilities, Extreme level of Mana Manipulation
Brance stared emotionlessly at Cynrik’s back, lost in thought after reading the description of Cynrik’s Æsir Bloodline. The characteristics presented in the description lined up exactly with what he was seeing in his older brother.
‘Tobs…does he know about what changes he’s going through.’
-Host Cynrik has known something felt off from the day he was Reincarnated. He has been silently working through it, alone, with only my assistance since the beginning. When the Æsir Bloodline was integrated into his body, the first thing Host Cynrik did was demand a complete description of it, on top of having me run various simulations to factor in any adverse effects that may occur.-
‘Sigh, and I assume he also looked into mine as well.’
-Correct, Host Cynrik has been fully briefed on your situation as well, but in his words, and I quote, “Brance won’t experience too drastic of a change. His mindset, to begin with, was always morally white, so having a more pure-hearted Bloodline like the Lightbringer won’t change him as a person.” I was then commanded by Host Cynrik to not bring up this information to you unless you came to me and requested it first.-
‘That idiot,’ Brance shook his head while massaging his temples with one hand. He felt stupid for not figuring out something was up sooner. He could have been helping Cynrik this entire time, but instead, like always, his older brother shouldered the burden alone. On Earth, going back as far as their childhood, Cynrik had always been the one to deal with everything. Be it making lunches for school or dinners at night, it all fell on Cynrik. So it had become second nature to figure things out on his own at some point.
Now, here on Vinestra, he was back to his old ways of trying to solve every problem himself, without any help. Steeling his resolve, Brance sped up and gripped Cynrik’s shoulder once again.
[Tobs, give me a side-by-side comparison of my Lightbringer Bloodline and Cynriks Æsir.]
The words spoken through the mind link hit Cynrik like lightning, causing his whole body to shiver uncontrollably. He stopped in his tracks and turned to face Brance.
[Fucking, took you long enough.] A cocky smile crept up on Cynrik’s face as he shot a short nod to Brance and turned back to the Observers. They had arrived at the batch of Exam Applicants who had already passed.
It was time to get serious; the Practical Exams were right before them.