Heaven’s Fortress City, capital of the Heavenly Path Kingdom. Divine Plane.
On a narrow street with little foot traffic, a man sits on the ground, peddling his wares. His offerings are merely some simple accessories, suitable for hunters level 650 to 700.
In the capital, such items are insignificant, yet there are those curious enough to buy them as souvenirs.
“A Buddha bell.”
A woman points at a beautiful golden bell.
“That's the only one I have, name your price.”
“Ten thousand golds.”
For the first time, the merchant looks into the woman's eyes and asks: “May I inquire why you desire it? This bell has been in my family for generations, you are the first to insist so much on this simple artifact.”
“It reminds me of the leaves falling in autumn.”
“If the lady says so, I cannot refuse.”
The transaction concludes and the woman walks calmly until she enters an alley. A man was smoking there, and she casually throws the bell at him. Contrarily to what was expected, he catches it as if it were a routine act and walks out of the alley to then goes to the merchant sitting on the ground and hands him the bell.
Meanwhile, inside the alley, a man stops in front of the woman.
“It's the first time I see such a beautiful huntress asking for services from someone as humble as me. I am Sacrilegious Pagan, who recommended me?”
The woman does not respond, instead, a small mountain of gold appears before the man.
Sacrilegious Pagan shifts his gaze between the gold and the woman, repeating this twice until he smiles again. “You understand what this means, right?”
“If you refuse my request, you keep the money.”
“Correct, then speak.”
“I want the information about the elders…” She lists their names one by one, until the list ends. “Elder Ash, Elder Cloud, and Red Mountain.”
Sacrilegious Pagan observes the woman with a smile, but then it slowly fades.
“I accept your request. Information about each of them will cost 1 million gold, with the information about Elder Red Mountain being the most valuable at 2 million gold. To start the investigation, you must pay 10% right now.”
He is an information broker and as such, has encountered many hunters and rankers in his field. Each reacts differently to the value of his information, but what they don't know is that this is also a test.
He does not accept haggling.
“Here you go.”
But this woman with long jet-black braid doesn't change her expression upon hearing the high price for his information. Just like the initial fee, she casually extracts gold coins from her storage ring as if they held no value for her.
Sacrilegious Pagan stores the money after verifying that everything is in order.
“Once the investigation is complete, where would you like it to be delivered?”
“I will come to fetch it myself.”
“I understand.”
Normally, they would say goodbye and end their encounter in the underworld, but the woman's lingering presence makes him think she has another request.
His intuition is correct, but as to what information this woman would ask for…
“I want to know the location of the demonic beasts Orion, Aquila, and Cepheus, whose level does not exceed level 700.”
Since when has his illegal service been used to investigate dogs and cats? Sacrilegious Pagan feels offended, but the worst part is that he actually has an acquaintance who knows about these things. He cannot turn down such an easy business.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“500 thousand gold.”
It is a fair price because he will not get the information for free.
The woman agrees to the deal and hands him the money.
Unlike the previous request, this one can be resolved right now, so Sacrilegious Pagan contacts one of his subordinates, and shortly after, the information is in the woman's hands.
“In four days I will have the information you requested ready. Regardless of whether they had bastard sons or lovers, all will be included in the documents.”
After the farewell, everyone disappears from the alley. Seconds later, a man appears and pulls a cigarette from his pocket, repeating the cycle once more with the next client.
The woman with the jet-black braid walks away from the place and stops in front of two women.
“You were right, Sky Petal. Everything you said was true.”
The women in front of her were none other than Sky Petal and Coldness Divine.
“I couldn't read his mind because of the level difference, but I could feel that everything he told me was true. He is an information broker who has carved out his reputation, he wouldn't want to ruin it easily.”
While the woman with the long braid, was none other than Serene Will.
Everything started with Sky Petal looking for an information broker, using plants to locate him. After succeeding, the next step was to figure out his password and the requirements to contact Sacrilegious Pagan. What followed was Serene Will heading to the place, paying a high sum of money for not having a recommendation.
“When your level surpasses his, take over all of that man’s contacts.”
Serene Will smiles at Coldness Divine's words. “Yes, I know.”
They will never trust a middleman, just as he sells information from third parties, in the future he might sell their own information. That's why they will increase his trust, make him believe they are reliable customers, while behind his back Serene Will will read his mind and steal every one of the information broker's contacts.
If in the future they wish to build something big, they must contact the source directly. Only in this way will they ensure they obtain the truth.
And eliminate the problem at its root.
+++
On the borders of White Utopia City and Heaven’s Fortress City.
A large mountain rises to the very sky, its peak hidden by clouds. It is home to countless demonic beasts, but one species in particular draws attention due to its large size and hunting instinct.
The demonic beast known as Aquila, whose resemblance to an eagle is impressive. If there were a difference between them, it is that this beast measures 20 meters from wing to wing.
It easily kills a terrestrial demonic beast, even when the difference between them is 50 levels. It is a predatory beast par excellence, ending all battles with a single attack.
‘A human in our territory?’
In its flight, it notices the presence of a huntress of level 617. What is she doing in this place? How can she be so foolish to step on this mountain with such an insignificant level?
‘Humans are not welcome here.’
As a youngster, it might have escaped from them, but not now. Its level 699 is enough to overcome all obstacles by force. It has even defeated hunters who have proven their Way! Nothing and no one is a match for its race on this mountain!
‘You must die.’
The demonic beast Aquila flies high and waits for the moment to attack, just seconds away from doing so it finds the opportunity.
At great speed, it falls from the sky and in an instant is in front of a delicate emerald-haired human, but soon discovers the inconsistency.
‘Isn’t she human--?’
“Eh?”
It loses control of its flight, feeling something is missing.
“My wings? Aaaah!”
The pain quickly attacks its head and it discovers it is in danger, but then it feels time stop. It's not a metaphor, but the harsh reality.
A thin line of fire appears in its view, that is and will be its last memory.
The demonic beast has died.
+++
On the borders between the Immortal Radiance Kingdom and the Heavenly Path Kingdom. Divine Plane.
It is not simple to cross the border between kingdoms. Each of the 7 kingdoms has deadly traps at its borders, perhaps the underworld may know passageways between them, but even so, success is not guaranteed.
The only sure way to do so is through teleportation portals. Although the cost of travel between kingdoms may be considerably high, it is not an impossible sum to reach because it depends on the level of the traveler.
Those who risk crossing the border are either criminals or innocents unjustly accused.
In such a place exists a demonic beast that feels at home. It is a beast that has the potential to reach level 900, not the only of its kind to roam this place. It is a black-scaled serpent, horns on its head, and a spinal column that is exterior to its body, extensive bones like armor making it impossible to attack from behind.
This is the demonic beast Orion, level 700.
A demonic beast that has proven its Way.
“Get out.”
The moment the beast speaks, it senses danger.
Behind it appears a dark image with red patterns. This is its Way, an abomination that only a demonic beast could tread.
In the blink of an eye, three women appear near him, but their attack is already over. Blood drips from its scales, but it remains alive looking at these women with disdain. Had it not manifested its Way, they might have been able to end its life, but it is too late.
“Time... How is it possible that a human has successfully trodden on that Way?”
“I’m not human, reptile.”
“To my eyes you are, a human with dragon accessories.”
Orion smiles having successfully insulted a race some might consider its relative, but it hates that a dragon is considered a legendary beast while it is merely an infamous demonic beast!
It hates the woman who stands before it with pride!
“What do you want from me?”
Contrary to what was expected, Orion does not attack them although they gave it the excuse to do so. “You were capable of piercing my scales and although it is not legitimate, all of you possess a Way. One of us will die, so why?”
“We need your spine, to grind it down for use in a magic formation.”
“Ha!”
The serpent snorts, its path begins to fluctuate and everything around it loses brightness.
“Further talking is pointless!”
