Chapter 91 - Somethings Up With Cynrik (1/2)
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.