Genetic Ascension

With his back to Zoryx and Thalrik, Sylas bent forward as though he hadn’t seen them at all on the way here. There was a calmness about him at the moment that made it seem like all of this had simply fallen into his lap.

Was there a chance that he could have been wrong at any given step? Yes, he knew that it was possible.

Was it likely, though? He hadn’t really considered that.

It was rare for him to be wrong when it came to matters he had information on. Much of his follies at the start of his exploration into this new world had come from simply not knowing enough.

While he still didn’t know everything, he knew more than most of these people did. And that was more than enough to outmaneuver them.

But information alone wasn’t enough to read people as well as he did. Information was one aspect, understanding people was another.

Sylas had no personal experience with Soryntha or her mother… but Nyssa certainly did. Even so, ultimately, those deductions only played a small role in everything.

What it ultimately came down to was the Petals of the Seeing Thorn acting as he expected them to, and the Thryskai and Trakar falling in line. Once that happened, everything else was obvious to predict.

It seemed like there were countless options before him, when in reality… there had only ever been one way things could have possibly gone.

‘It really does work. Fascinating.’

Sylas probed Soryntha’s body for a moment and confirmed that he was correct.

As expected, the protections that had once been on her Genes had been compromised, allowing Taboo Bond—or specifically, Extricate—to work on them.

This would be very useful to him in the future. This wasn’t just because of Soryntha’s Florineth Race; Sylas wasn’t actually very interested in that.

It was instead because of how Soryntha had benefited from her mother’s Foundation. Now, so long as she was preserved until Sylas could use it, those benefits would be his.

Sylas put Soryntha’s corpse away and stood to his full height. He turned back to find that Zoryx and Thalrik were still looking at him.

The former had returned to his gentle disposition, a smile gracing his face as he looked Sylas from top to bottom.

As for Thalrik, there was a pulsing red aether around him that seemed to flare like the sun’s rays. It looked like it was taking all of his effort to not rush ahead and battle it out with Sylas right here and now.

There was a seemingly silent mutual understanding between the three of them. They knew that they didn’t need to enter the Dungeon at all to settle things. The True Chosen marks they were looking for were all right here.

However, Sylas knew that they would enter.

Neither of the two of them had the confidence to battle him right now. What they needed more than anything were variables.

Sylas didn’t say a word as he flashed toward the Dungeon entrance. Trying to stop them from entering wouldn’t be an effective use of his strength.

What they didn’t understand was that their best chance at beating him was when the variables were as few as possible. If there was something that required deduction, understanding, and adaptation, whatever small chance they had would become nothing at all.

However, regardless of how he looked at it…

The conclusion would be much the same.

No matter what, he would come out on top.

With a flash, Sylas disappeared.

“Interesting,” Zoryx said calmly. “He took her corpse. I wonder why that is.”

“Are you trying to talk to me? Since when does the mighty Zoryx do that?”

“I’ve tried to talk to you many times before. You just always refuse my hand in friendship.”

“Don’t say it like that, it makes it sound like you’re trying to fuck me. I only like women, alright?”

Zoryx laughed. “I only have a fondness for the opposite sex as well. You have nothing to worry about, friend.”

“Don’t put that fake smile on. You know exactly what I mean when I ask that question. This is the first time you’re talking to me and not at me or through me. There’s a difference.”

“How fascinating. Maybe the reason you feel that way is because I’ve been talking to the fake you rather than the true you. Isn’t that what you’ve wanted all this time? I was just respecting your wishes.”

Thalrik grinned. “You really are an annoying son of a bitch.”

“Well, if you don’t team up with this annoying son of a bitch, I somehow highly doubt we will have much of a chance this time.”

“It’s pathetic, isn’t it? We actually let a Human surpass us right under our noses. But I have no intention of working with you until you tell me what that other Thryskai is up to.”

Zoryx fell into silence for a long while, staring at the Dungeon’s portal as the timer quickly began to run down.

“… I am honestly not sure. He is from the Main Kaelthar Clan. I can only tell you that I have no intention of giving up my True Chosen mark. What I do not understand is why he attacked the other Human.”

“Oh god, you’ve reminded me. There are actually two of them here. How incompetent are we?”

Zoryx chuckled again. “So are you in? Or not?”

“I’ll watch your back for now.”

“Good enough.”

The two flashed forward at the same time, entering the Dungeon together.

There was a large rippling light that spread out the moment they entered. Then with a BANG! the Dungeon portal closed.

**

Sylas’ eyes flashed open, finding his body floating in a green bubble that hovered high above an abyss. Across from him, there were four other bubbles, two of which were empty for a moment before they were filled with Zoryx and Thalrik.

This Versus Dungeon was quite an oddity. It was one where there was no Description. The only details on the outside were the Level Limit and the Entry Limit.

Now… it was time to find out what exactly they would be doing.

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