Rakna entered a certain bar with Hans following behind him, and he immediately felt a myriad of stares directed at him. Some were clearly wandering too. 

 

‘Uh, so this is how girls feel…’

 

“{Yes, go and feel some of our pain,}” Nyx quipped and he snorted.

 

He glanced around and walked to the counter. He made eye contact with the bartender and right as he did so, he flipped one Taly and tossed it to him with one finger. The man paused and caught the coin with a raised eyebrow then put it down on the counter before tapping twice on it.

 

When Rakna reached the counter, he followed up by tapping the coin the same number of times and taking the coin back. The bartender huffed and silently walked to the back.

 

“{A code?}” Hans asked through telepathy and the therian nodded. They both went after the man as he left and ultimately ended up at the end of a corridor.

 

The barkeep leading them opened the sole door located there and entered a rather simple playing room with a group of four people playing billiards. “Hey, Undertaker. New faces,” he addressed a fifth person sitting on a couch at the far back as they smoked a cigar.

 

It was a tall man with an imposing stature. If one were to classify a certain amount of muscle mass to be the optimal state of a human being, most people would describe it as how he appeared; with obvious musculature while still passing by as lean.

 

He was a relatively aged man, with almost fully gray curly hair that reached his chin. His eyes were blood red and a burn mark could be seen on his cheek as well as a scar above his left eye. Most of his attire was centered around the black belted trench coat he wore. 

 

When he was called out, he raised his eyes from the Tarot cards he was shuffling and squinted at the sight of the unknown duo. One was a spectacled man who at first sight didn’t look anything special and gave off a very snobbish vibe. But it wasn’t until he actually paid attention to his eyes full of unadulterated antipathy that the unknown gray-haired man straightened his back.

 

And if that hadn’t been enough to put him on edge, the woman would have for sure. Her mask and armor aside, or even regardless of her palpable sensuality, anyone with a functioning brain and a decent amount of experience would have felt the danger she exuded.

 

“Ooh… Seems like we finally got some guests worth my time,” he uttered and the bartender who had brought the duo in took that as his sign to be able to leave. “Well, name’s Treiber. But you can call me Undertaker. What’re you here for?”

 

“Zero,” Rakna replied succinctly and the man chuckled.

 

“Is that so? Figured. In that case, you both know what to do,” he said and put the cards down whilst tapping his cigar on the ashtray. “Show me your status. No need to share everything; just give me the first section. If you refuse, I’ll pry into it myself and look at everything.”

 

The purple ellipses of Scherzo narrowed. ‘…this man’s dangerous,’ Rakna thought after activating his Crystal Sight under the cover of his mask, making sure the LEDs wouldn’t turn golden. The result wasn’t reassuring at all; even enough to make him sweat.

 

“{Level 912…}” Fray spoke up in disbelief. “{What is this monster doing in Atlantis… and working for Kratos? Any Host above level 900 is a disaster that should be avoided at all costs.}”

 

[Rakna, that man’s presence is cutting me off from the servers,] Ceres abruptly said. [This is most likely one of their methods to keep Eva in the dark. They possibly may even have a secondary measure in place to lock specific data from being transferred…]

 

“{I suppose we have our answer as to how Kratos has been avoiding the System,}” Nyx remarked calmly. “{This Undertaker is perhaps just one example of their assets...}”

 

‘If there are more people of his caliber in Plateau Zero…’ Rakna frowned. ‘This will be hard; lack of System be damned,’ he uttered internally and glanced at Hans. They nodded and promptly sent out the altered versions of their status.

 

❮ ◈ ❯

Name: Ranka Valcroft

Age: 22 | Level: 192

Race: Human

Path: Slayer | Sub-Path: Soul Eater

Affiliation: None.

Titles: Ill-Fated – Legendary Slayer – Hunter From Yonder – Divinity Slayer – Seeker of Blood – Flesh Devourer – Calamity Hunter – Anti-Divinity – Femme Fatale

 

Potential: S | Host Rank: XIV | Ascent: I

 

---

 

Name: Chris Andersen

Age: 26 | Level: 198

Race: Human

Path: Tale Puppeteer | Sub-Path: Painter of Realms

Affiliation: None.

Titles: Doll Maker, Omen of Hatred, A Thousand Horizons, Pacific Killer, Fairy Doll.

 

Potential: S- | Host Rank: XV | Ascent: I

❮ ◈ ❯

 

“Well, well, well… would you look at that?” Undertaker stroked the stubbles of his beard. “Looks like we got ourselves a pair of S-Ranks…” He uttered and caught the attention of the others in the room. “And you girl; quite an impressive assortment of titles… but, Femme Fatale? Really? That’s a first,” he stated with a boisterous laugh. “Mind taking off the mask? Curiosity aside, I’ll have to forward your face to Kratos’ database.”

 

Rakna wordlessly complied and reached for Scherzo. He slid it off for a few seconds and he could hear and see the room’s occupants gulp and widen their eyes.

 

Treiber whistled with a grin as the ‘girl’ put the mask back. “Now, that’s what I call a befitting title,” he said as he puffed a cloud of smoke. “Word of advice, lady. While you’re down there, be wary of the food you’re given, the buildings you pass by, the items you’re sold, and dirty rats.”

 

“Advice taken. But unnecessary.”

 

“Hahaha, of course! You’re probably used to it. Femme Fatale means you have thorns after all,” he chortled. “Both your statuses are green. My skill is telling me they’re authentic,” he added and took on a serious expression. “Now, I need you to answer one question. What’s your motive in Zero?”

 

“To kill someone,” the answer instantly sounded through the mask, and Treiber was left gawking for a few seconds before he burst out laughing from the top of his lungs. 

 

“Hahaha! Holy shit, this is the hardest I’ve laughed in a while!” He declared joyfully. “Then be on your way,” he said and tossed two crystals at the duo. Their shape was rough and uncarved and released a ghastly white and black glow. 

 

“Break that and you’ll be transferred to Zero. To leave, you’ll need a new pair and if you want to return afterward, you’ll have to buy the third one down there in advance. Clear enough?”

 

Rakna nodded as he inspected the crystal. Any sort of appraisal through the System was returning an error but when he used Crystal Sight to see through the existence of the object, he confirmed its legitimacy.

 

“Also, a gift for you, lady,” Treiber added and fished out another item. This one was a sort of badge not unlike the Badges of Honor issued by Locals. But it had no perk or flashy appearance. It was just a symbol. “It’s like a VIP card,” the elder man explained and tossed that one as well.

 

“What does it do?” Rakna asked as he caught it.

 

“It lets you skip the lines,” Undertaker snickered. “Use it to get wherever without trouble. It gives you a free entrance to the Arena. Other than that? I guess it can make you a special guest at casinos and brothels if that’s your jam,” he said with a smirk.

 

“…” The disguised woman answered with silence and Treiber chuckled nervously.

 

“Hey, hey, don’t glare at me. It was just a joke… admittedly, it is an insult for a woman like you to be compared to those stooping to that level,” he snorted.

 

“…thank you for this,” Rakna said whilst waving the badge. “Farewell,” then immediately crushed the crystal. 

 

A light with a strange coloration, as if it was glitching, swallowed her and she vanished from the room. Everyone in the room blinked at the impressive decisiveness and then directed their gazes toward Hans whose expression was twitching.

 

“…what about you? You’re her boyfriend?” Treiber bantered lightheartedly but the reaction of the other party was downright the opposite of that.

 

“Heavens, no,” he spat and crushed the crystal as well before departing.

 

“…well, that was an interesting duo,” Treiber muttered and leaned back.

 

“Hey, Undertaker,” one man from across the room raised his voice. “You sure it was a good idea to let her in? What if her target is a higher member of Kratos or something?”

 

“Who cares,” the man retorted with a lazy wave. “Not my problem. I did my job. They showed me their status and I confirmed they were real. Even if they slaughter all of Kratos, I don’t give a crap about it. In the first place…” He narrowed his eyes. “There’s much scarier fish behind Kratos and Bora… no matter how strong that chick and guy are, they still can’t harm that thing.”

 

Treiber hummed and looked up at the ceiling. “Though… that girl was definitely something special for sure. I’m not sure… but it felt like even if I had tried to peer into her status, it wouldn’t have worked. Aside from that, she also felt… odd. I had a strange feeling as if there was more than just a mask hiding her.”

 

“Whelp,” he shrugged and grabbed his deck of Tarot cards. “Let’s hope that such an outstanding specimen doesn’t end up in the ditch of a back alley,” he uttered as he randomly pulled out a card from the top. He put it face-down on the table and made it spin.

 

He stopped it with one finger and then revealed it. His mouth formed a grin, “The Hanged Man in its upright position…” He mumbled and chuckled. “Good luck with that.”