Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos
chapter-1772

With the excitement of advancing to a new Floor keeping them awake, Vahn wasn’t surprised to find several people waiting outside his door much earlier than usual. As a result, breakfast began a little early, and, by the time everyone had eaten their fill, they still had more than half an hour until they needed to be at the plaza. Despite this, they decided to head over early, as, more often than not, it was better to be early than risk becoming late.

What Vahn didn’t anticipate, even though he had expected something similar to happen, was for the group to come across Parakewl sitting like a beggar on the side of the street. Fortunately, he was able to sense the man long before Team Wolf Pack encountered him, so, with ample time on their hands, he led the group along a more scenic route while placing a few consolation items in Parakewl’s hat.

Vahn had actually been willing to give the man the benefit of the doubt, but, as Parakewl’s path had intersected with his ’a lot’ over the last two weeks, he had ample opportunity to determine that the man was a detrimental existence to the group dynamic. In fact, he often found Parakewl proactively trying to scam other Regulars, and, even when he was in an inferior position, he still had a bad habit of referring to everyone around him as ’trash’, ’scum’, or ’garbage’.

Though Parakewl assuredly had a tragic past of his own, much like the majority of Regulars climbing the Tower, that didn’t justify his treatment of others. He was the type that willfully profited from the efforts of others, and, though he wasn’t likely to betray Team Wolf Pack, you didn’t judge people on how they treated those who were useful to them; you ascertained their true nature from seeing how they treated those beneath them.

If he was in a position of legitimate power and authority, Parakewl was the type that would give into corruption in an instant. He already extolled himself above others, despite his weakness, so it wasn’t difficult to imagine how he would behave once he became truly powerful. Thus, regardless of what destiny the man held, Vahn had no interest in pandering to an egotist who would unquestionably demand more power than he ever worked to obtain.

Fortunately, while Parakewl seemed to have some kind of GPS that allowed him to cross paths with people he could potentially leech off of, it wasn’t omniscient. As a result, Team Wolf Pack was able to reach their destination without crossing paths with the green-skinned man. There, Marble could be seen with a slight smile on her face, stating, "Welcome, Regulars." in a soft tone that suited the early morning calm.

Since it would be their last time interacting with each other, potentially for decades, Vahn surprised the rest of the group by casually walking over and petting the top of Marble’s head. This caused the youthful-looking Ranker to tense upon realizing his intentions, but, rather try to avoid his hand, she released a resigned sigh before closing her eyes and enjoying the inordinately pleasant sensation.

After getting his fill of the not-so-young woman’s silky soft hair, Vahn took a few steps back, a calm smile on his face as he said, "Thank you for watching over us these last two weeks. It might take a few years, but I will do my best to make your dream a reality."

Though he was referencing the ambitions of Wolhaiksong, Marble’s cheeks began slightly flushed in response to Vahn’s words. She thought he had someone come to learn of her dream of growing six more centimeters, something she had only ever told her own mother and younger sister. This made her feel more than a little embarrassed, her face quickly developing a rosy hue as she aggressively urged, "Get on the platform. I will now transfer you to the 4th Floor."

Deciding not to laugh at Marble’s expense, an amused smile spread across Vahn’s face as he joined the members of Team Wolf Pack near the center of the teleportation circle. Moments later, each of them disappeared into motes of bluish-white light, eliciting a relieved sigh from Marble, who, with nothing else planned for the early morning, decided to go cool her head...

As was often the case when entering a new Floor of the Inner Tower, Team Wolf Pack’s arrival on the 4th Floor was greeted by the presence of a Test Administrator. This particular Ranker was wearing a dark blue overcoat that seemed to be made from a type of chitinous material, and, though the had prominently heeled boots, they didn’t appear to have an actual gender. Rather, they seemed to be some kind of bio-mechanical organism, as, rather than a ’helmet’, Vahn was pretty certain that the tear-shaped visor covering their face was their actual head.

Since it was difficult to ascertain the true nature and structure of a Ranker without direct contact, largely due to the protective membrane that surrounded their body, Vahn decided against trying to probe the entity’s secrets. Instead, he just listened silently as the Administrator explained in a purely synthetic voice, "You are currently in a region known as Testing Ground 173. Your objective this time around is simple; you need only survive within this region for thirty days. As far as earning Points is concerned, there are eighteen other teams within this same region. Each Regular has been assigned a bounty based on their past performances. Subduing or killing another Regular will award you with their bounty. This, in turn, will increase your overall bounty. Any questions?"

Never the type to miss out on an opportunity to acquire more information, both Gandr and Shibisu spoke out at the same time. In the end, however, the latter just chuckled awkwardly, allowing Gandr to ask, "Are there any uses for Points on this Floor? What about penalties? Will we get in trouble for leaving the region? Are the borders adequately marked?"

Though they didn’t reply immediately, the Administrator ultimately nodded their head, responding to each inquiry in an emotionless tone, "There are five supply stations scattered around the Testing Grounds. Your Party may earn additional Points by defending these territories from other Parties. It is there that you can spend your Points to obtain a variety of goods. However, as this is supposed to be a Survival Test, even simple bread and water are very expensive. As for penalties, the only rule is that you stay within the Testing Grounds for the entire thirty days. There is a membrane of Shinsu surrounding the entire region, so, unless you force your way through, it is impossible to leave. If you did force your way through, you would be immediately disqualified. Any more questions?"

Despite asking if there were more questions, the Administrator, without so much as providing their name, tapped an invisible icon on their personal terminal. Immediately after that, they vanished into thin air, leaving Shibisu with his hand in the air and mouth hanging open. This elicited a laugh from Gandr, but, seemingly unamused, Endorsi remarked, "What a rude bucket of bolts." before promptly asking, "So, what’s the plan? Do we want to eliminate the other Parties or are we going to just hole ourselves up in the Little Garden for the next thirty days?"

Interjecting before Khun could answer, Vahn, very plainly, remarked, "The Little Garden is not meant to remove obstacles in your path and make your lives more convenient. This is a Survival Test, not a vacation. You will undertake the test like any other group of Regulars."

Hearing Vahn’s remark, Endorsi, Nare, and even Anak all showed troubled expressions. The first two simply hated the idea of camping out in the wild. As for the latter, she didn’t particularly mind, but, having grown rather fond of the large bath and spa facilities available within the Little Garden, she couldn’t help but display a look of regret.

Since she had slowly come to understand the futility of trying to oppose Vahn’s words, Endorsi just balled her hands into fists, visibly pouting as Khun went on to explain, "We are not here to crush the dreams of other Regulars trying to climb the Tower. We will occupy one of the supply stations, and, so long as they do not come seeking trouble, we will allow representatives from the other parties to make use of the facilities. We have more than enough Points after earning free passage on the 3rd Floor. We don’t need to be greedy and confrontational."

Though warriors like Rak and Hatsu didn’t wholly agree with Khun’s plan of action, neither decided to oppose his decision. The former had mellowed out quite a bit after being thrashed by Fenrir for the better part of two weeks, so, while he was eager to hunt down fresh prey, he was willing to wait until they came to him. As for Hatsu, he had learned that mastery of the blade had less to do with actual combat than it did with mental discipline and your perception of the world around you. For this reason, he was no longer as eager to seek out strong opponents. Rather, if he was that eager for a challenge, there was an ever-increasing number of opponents within his own group that he could spar against...

With everyone in line with his judgment, Khun directed Gandr, Shibisu, and Nare to scout out and map the surrounding region while the rest of their group walked towards the presumed center. It was pretty much guaranteed that they would find a supply station in the very center, and, as was often the case within the Tower, coveted positions often provided greater benefits. Khun assumed that the central supply station would either have an increased stock or cheaper goods, so, while it would save them a lot of trouble to secure one of the other stations, their ’pride’ as a Team dictated they occupy the most highly contested region.

Khun knew there were quite a number of battle junkies within Team Wolf Pack, so, while he would rather avoid conflict, he knew it would hurt morale if they proactively avoided battles. Thus, while it made the most sense to just secure an isolated region, living off the land for the next thirty days, he unhesitantly directed them towards the place that was guaranteed to see the most conflict. He also wanted to avoid sleeping on the ground, so, while it might not be possible to find a bed, the supply station was bound to have rooms where they could safely lay down mats and sleeping bags...

After trekking through heavily forested terrain for more than four hours, much to the chagrin of Endorsi, Team Wolf Pack finally arrived near a massive structure that appeared like an ivory white pylon from afar. Unfortunately, other than a large circular chamber, there weren’t any other rooms present within the facility. Instead, there was a massive circular pool near the very center of the room.

Floating above the pool, a massive blue crystal could be seen gracefully spinning along its central axis. Beneath that, a small terminal, which could only be accessed by a Lighthouse, allowed for the acquisition of various items. The options ranged from simple foodstuffs to D-Rank Items, the latter of which was consider a ’substantial’ boon for a normal Regular. In fact, most of their current items were only F-Rank, so, upon learning they could purchase D-Rank items from the supply station, a greedy light flashed across the eyes of many.

Fortunately, after experiencing the benefits providing by the Quest Board and the Little Garden, the majority of Team Wolf Pack was content with their current blessings. Vahn also selectively prevented Quests such as [Eliminate all other Parties] and [Harvest 100 Bounties] from appearing on the Quest Board, so, while it was exciting to see such variety within the list of items, nobody openly suggested they begin hunting down the other parties. Instead, everyone worked collectively to come up with a guard rotation, fully determined to hold the supply station for the entire thirty days...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: ’Marble is too pure for this world...six centimeters xD...’,’Questions? Concerns? Complaints? No? Bye.’,’Those are some pretty delicious Quests though...’)