8th-rank and 9th-rank.

When you compare a goblin to a death fiend, it feels like the difference should be night and day. But in reality, the gap between those two ranks isn’t that wide.

Not when compared to the gap between 1st and 2nd rank.

Typically, five 9th-rank explorers can take down an 8th-rank monster with ease.

Same applies to the 7th rank.

Five 8th-rank explorers are more than enough to hunt a 7th-rank monster, and that pattern continues...

Up to about the 3rd rank, that is.

Starting from the 3rd rank, even if the whole group is 4th-rank, you’re recommended to bring at least a twelve-man raid party. For 2nd rank? A full expedition unit of thirty or more is essential.

So then, what about 1st rank?

Honestly, every 1st-rank creature is so unique that it’s hard to make any blanket statements.

But if you think back to when we hunted Kashan, the Wolf of Prophecy, on the Library Island, and how we brought hundreds of people and still lost elite explorers in droves...

Out-of-standard.

That much I can say for sure.

1st-rank monsters aren't just a level above 2nd-rank—they’re in a class of their own.

That’s why simply possessing a 1st-rank essence is enough to earn massive fame and set tongues wagging all over town.

That Eye bastard was exactly one of those cases...

Anyway, that’s not what matters right now.

Creeeeak, eek, screee—

Was it all the warping from Sniktura?

Unlike before, the door now opened with a loud scraping noise, rather than gliding smoothly.

Watching the gap slowly widen made my heart pound.

Thump—!

Did it drop? Or didn’t it?

Creeeeak, eek—!

Maybe it was the dopamine kicking in, but every passing second as the door opened felt excruciatingly slow.

Thud—!

Finally, the door fully opened, and the answer to my question came through Raven’s trembling lips.

“T-That... uh...”

“...”

“That’s... an essence, right...?”

Eyes dazed and voice half-gone, she asked the question.

I blinked once, then gave my answer.

“Behell—yeah...”

Sniktura’s essence had dropped.

***

The shockwave that a 1st-rank essence sends through a group... is incredible.

“Wow...”

“So that’s a 1st-rank essence...”

“Adnus, don’t even think about anything weird.”

“Ahem, I was just admiring it.”

“Truly, even the glow feels different...”

Everyone stared with their mouths agape, overwhelmed by the pressure that emanated from the essence.

And it’s no wonder.

Even if you dedicate your life to being an explorer, actually seeing a 1st-rank essence in the flesh is absurdly rare.

Also, as someone pointed out, its appearance really is different from ordinary essences.

“It has two colors...”

Sniktura’s essence floated in the air, radiating a brilliant glow—two distinct colors swirling within it.

It wasn’t just a blended hue.

The colors were split clearly—almost like a yin-yang symbol.

“Oh, right. I’ve heard some 1st-rank essences are like that.”

“If there are two colors, does that mean it has two powers?”

“Yeah, that’s what I’ve heard.”

“Then that essence...”

“Who knows... Honestly, I’ve never studied one myself. Info on 1st-rank essences is so scarce... they’re practically mythical.”

“Still, hasn’t every generation had a few people with one?”

“Sure, but think about it—would you be cooperative if you had something like that?”

Raven said this while glancing at me sideways.

Clearly wondering if I knew something about the essence.

Not an unreasonable guess.

But still...

“Raven, first get the vial ready.”

Let’s take care of what needs to be done first.

We’ve got plenty of time, but come on—everyone does this, right?

Even if it’s unnecessary, when a rare item drops, the gamer instinct kicks in—you drop everything and rush to grab it first.

“But wait.”

As Raven pulled out the vial, she turned and asked me,

“It’s not the color you wanted, is it?”

Ah, that?

It’s... kind of complicated.

But the color isn’t the reason we bottle essences in the first place.

“That essence is for Emily.”

“Oh ho? Gonna prioritize the girl who wasn’t even here?”

Uh...

Is it... like that?

I guess from the perspective of the others, who just risked their lives in battle, that could feel a bit unfair...

“...It was a joke. Don’t take it so seriously.”

“Ah... no, I didn’t mean...”

“Seriously, how does a guy like you end up making rules like ‘the leader holds as many votes as there are members’?”

“....”

Yeah, saying anything else would only dig the hole deeper, so I kept quiet.

Thankfully, Raven was too focused on bottling the essence to needle me further.

Time passed.

“All done.”

Raven handed me the vial containing Sniktura’s essence, and with that, everything we needed to do here was finished.

And at that exact moment—

“U-Urghhh!!!”

Sven Parab, who had been unconscious, jolted awake.

“Hup!”

He screamed like he’d just come out of a nightmare and snapped into a combat stance as if ready to fight something on the spot.

Totally understandable.

His last memory was probably fighting Sniktura.

Frontline fighters often black out mid-battle, so this kind of thing happens more than you'd think.

“W-Where... are we...?”

But after looking around and sensing the relative safety, he slowly lowered his guard, blinking in confusion.

“D-Did we win?!”

“Yeah. We won. Calm down.”

“N-No one died?!”

“You can see for yourself.”

He looked around as I shrugged, then let out a deep breath of relief.

“Whew...”

That visible release of tension, that collapse of strength in his legs...

Is that what I look like to others?

I don’t know.

But even if I do, I don’t mind.

Seeing a comrade’s legs give out from sheer relief after confirming everyone’s safe—it made him look reliable, in a way. And I kind of liked that.

“But... what happened?”

“How much do you remember?”

“Well... you told us to say our last words because we were all gonna die, and... I was despairing, like, ah, so this is how it ends...”

As he trailed off, something seemed to click, and his voice grew excited.

“Oh! The authority! I used that new authority I got, grasping at straws! And... it worked, right?!”

“...”

“Eh? Why aren’t you saying anything? It did work, right?! That’s why everyone’s alive, right?!”

His voice was filled not just with hope, but a desperate need for confirmation.

And that made the weight on my chest even heavier.

“What did it do? Was it defensive? Offensive? Wait... did I take Sniktura out in one blow or something?!”

“...”

“Eh? Why’s no one saying anything?!”

He tilted his head and looked around, but every time he locked eyes with someone, they quickly turned away.

Or rather—they looked to me, waiting for my lead.

“Uh... can you guys hear me...?”

“....”

“Kaislan? Miss Marone? Kalstein...?”

“....”

Tch. I guess I’ve got no choice but to be the bad guy here.

It feels like we’re bullying him, which sucks... but...

Sigh...

It had to be done.

The goddess herself had descended to give this warning.

Sven Parab must not know the truth about that authority.

Yeah, so...

“What authority? What are you talking about?”

“...Huh?”

“...Nothing happened.”

Even if I felt guilty—this was the right move.

***

We climbed the ladder and returned to the original bunker. As soon as we entered, Auyen came rushing up.

“Captain! I’m so glad you’re safe...!”

“Thanks. You really came through this time.”

“No, not at all! It was just coincidence! I didn’t do anything special!”

“Don’t say that. We’re all alive thanks to you.”

As I praised him with full sincerity, Sven Parab suddenly looked confused.

“Wait... we’re alive because of Rockrove? What do you mean?”

“....”

“Didn’t we all just work together to defeat Sniktura?”

“....”

“Why’s everyone suddenly quiet again...?”

As the mood turned icy, Parab looked around, baffled.

Come on, man. If people are acting weird, maybe just take the hint?

Luckily, I didn’t have to figure out how to redirect the conversation.

Because someone else jumped in at just the right time.

[...We were watching the whole thing. You did it, heroes of the Empire!]

That «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» booming voice over the speaker belonged to Arta, the master of the secret base.

He sounded like he was giving a heartfelt blessing to some valiant adventurers—but given how he’d just been bitching about selfish imperialists, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.

And besides, there was something he said that I couldn’t just ignore.

[When you suddenly began destroying the lab, I wasn’t sure what would happen—but in the end, my decision was the right one.]

“...Right?”

[Think. If I had opened the door when you asked, what would’ve happened? This world surely would not have been saved.]

Seriously... what the hell.

I had so many things I wanted to say, but arguing with an AI felt pointless.

All that mattered was getting what we needed from him and moving on.

[Thanks to your actions, we’ve taken a great step forward on the path to salvation. If you help me a little more, we can surely stop this world’s end. Of course, we’ll have to rebuild the lab first...]

Rebuild the lab, huh...

That wasn’t in the game script.

But I guess it makes sense, given we destroyed it out of order.

“So?”

[Heroes of the fallen Empire, I have one more favor to ask.]

“Say it.”

Honestly, I didn’t need to listen.

The structure of this quest hadn’t changed. Just a few details.

To summarize: he’d help us, and in return, we had to travel to the origin of the apocalypse, kill the boss, and bring back the loot.

“Fine. We’ll do it.”

[I knew you would say that—champions of humanity.]

Now we’d gone from “heroes of the Empire” to “champions of humanity.”

Not that I cared. What caught my attention was something else.

[Oh, and I recently detected a human at the origin of the apocalypse—with the same symbol as you.]

“You mean this?”

I held up the Anabada Clan insignia.

Arta confirmed it.

[Yes. That symbol.]

“Was it a woman? Red hair?”

[Indeed. Is she an ally?]

“Yeah. She’s one of ours.”

At that, Arta gave a cryptically ominous response.

[Hmm. Then you’d best hurry.]

“...?” 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

[That woman—she’s going to die very soon.]

...A sudden quest had just dropped.