Lyn quickly made his way to the employee's only section of the ACPP.

If it wasn't for the chief, I wouldn't have been able to get away from the crowd so quick. At least everything went well.

Lyn judged that a flashy end for his assessment would be more advantageous in the long run. Although rumors would never spread as long as the ACPP didn't want them to, if he could create positive press on himself, or even the Saintess, it would be even easier to create powerful connections.

"With this, I'll be able to stand next to Sunny and Ren with no resistance. In the future, that is."

Proud of himself, he moved into the stairwell confidently, and made his way upstairs. He still had a long way to go, but his foundations were nearly complete.  First he had to notify the chief, who managed the official team listings to some extent, for his final request.

If possible, I'd like to choose her as the fourth addition to my team.

Lyn thought that it was time to finally complete his trio into a full squad, and had the perfect candidate.

That Saintess. If I could get her to use the [Aura Bead], it could strengthen her power immesnely since she works with living animals.. Not to mention her numerous buffs..

Working with a few theories, Lyn was ready to commit to sponsoring the Saintess, in a way. He had no idea if the Saintess' skill was high enough for her spirits to count as living, but with time he hoped she would meet all the conditions, since he had no indication that she had a team prior to her debut. 

"Regardless of her potential, it would be idiotic to fight alone. I'm sure she'd understand."

Lyn hoped that his request would go smoothly. At least in the ACPP, situations concerning him always went in his favor.

. . .

Bellora lost Lyn at a turn somewhere in the winding halls. 

Everything looks the same in this place? How does he even get around?!

Huffing after putting all her energy in moving through the crowds to find the oddly fast mystery man once again, she decided on waiting in the VIP lounge.

"There's no way he'll escape me now!"  

Unsatisfied, the Saint powered through the mental fatigue she'd been building up since the early morning, and waited attentively. An employee came up to her to get her attention almost immediately. 

"Chief Rivers in requesting to see you, ma'am." 

"For what reason..?" She replied apathetically, trying to stay focused on her mission without being too rude.

"I don't know the details, but he was in a meeting with the man who tested after you for sure. Maybe that has something to do with it."

"Ah, um yes I'll be right up! If you could guide me, please."

Hiding their excitement, the employee happily obliged. "Yes, of course, ma'am."

It couldn't be any easier, hehe. 

For once, the luck of the Saint and Lyn himself intertwined.

. . . 

"This is the room." The employee was saddened that their brief trip with the Saint came to an end, but stayed professional the whole way through.

"Thank you, again." With short words, the Saint refocused on the task at hand.

At first, she truly considered that the employee had made a mistake. She stood outside a room that seemed a little too loud for a meeting, but after a little thought, she dismissed the idea.

There is no chance an employee doesn't know where their boss's office is.. so who else is in there?

Between Rivers, known for being stoic, and mystery man, they both shared a characteristic of only talking when necessary. Without her knowledge, the sound of two other voices also joined the pair in the time it took her to get here.

"Haah, standing won't get you anywhere.."

Without any extra thought on the situation, she stepped into the room. The group inside went quiet while she stared, so Bellora took the initiative and introduced herself.

"Good morning I'm-"

"We know, we asked for you to be here. No need to act like a stranger."

Although she was a stranger, Bellora thought the strong woman, who gestured to a seat, had a point.

Ehem, they must know who I am if they wanted me here...

Without faltering, she sat next to the man, who she hadn't spoken to yet. He gave off the atmosphere of a guard dog, especially accompanied by the man she wanted to see the most.

"Lyn Cypher?"

Lyn was surprised Bellora had known his name, as she never referred to him by name before.

Although I guess I never gave her the opportunity to talk.. but she seems like the type to overlook small details.

Even if his conversational skills were weak at times, Lyn could read people well enough to judge how to deal with them

"Ahem. Yes, hello" Before he could get lost in thought, Lyn greeted the Saint and smiled politely. Then Rivers began his speech.

"There have been reports of a faction of people forming north along the coast. It is unknown how they survive out there with the threat of sea monsters, or their goals. However, due to recent reconnaissance, we have determined that the faction is based in religion. Their, often ritualistic, activities suggest they are devout to their icon without question. Originally, we would have asked you to determine if the group was hostile in nature, however that is no longer necessary."

The chief's face darkened with the atmosphere. It was unusual for the calm man to express his anger with his situation, but it seemed as if the fact that he was showing his emotions were lost on him. 

"Soon, the ACPP will converge to contain the group and their sources of power, preferably with the least amount of death than necessary, as they are still human. Please hone your skills, and raise your levels, respectively. We cannot lose in the balance of power, especially in times like these."

A raid mission.. against humans?

Lyn was surprised by the chief's decision. He would have never guessed that the chief would be pushed so far as to choose the option to kill people. 

Well it's 'Capture if you can' but that is... very unlikely...

The importance of power was a concept that everyone in the room understood well.

If there was a force that rivaled them in power but proved antagonistic to the goals of the ACPP, or in any case unwilling to cooperate, the warriors knew that the force should be dealt with. The ACPP as an entity was ruthless. It leaves no space for variables in the saftey of those under its protection.

With the results of the fight against the Calamity, now more than ever the ACPP must reign supreme against any threats before a threat bigger than the ACPP appears again.

Unfortunately, this is a fight impossible to avoid..

Lyn still had his worries about his energy limits growing higher, and it's effect on his body, but he knew that his [Deep Sleep] skill could save lives. The image and actions of the ACPP represent his livelihood after all, but it was anything but a win-win situation for the warrior.

. . .

Collecting his thoughts on the way out of the building, Lyn realized he was swept up in the chief's momentum and didn't even get the chance to talk to Saintess about his ideas in depth. 

I'm sure we'll meet again, so let's see about these more pressing matters...

Lyn had a total of three things that were still bugging him ever since he awakened. First, he needed to able be conceal the Calamity's strength so that it couldn't be recognized. He was sure that there were many skills the Calamity had that he didn't observe himself, but he had no way to verify which were the average warrior's pool of skills or the direct influence of the Calamity.

"There's no telling how many skills a being that was supposedly impossible to defeat had either.."

'Impossible to defeat'

The second thing that bothered him is the fact that an angel of all things informed him that the Calamity was not supposed to be killed.

"Nevermind the fact that an actual angel appeared, there is no telling the long term effects. It's something that is completely my fault too.."

There had been no talk of what would happen, or what should have been inside the Calamity's dungeon.

Ah! The dungeon!

Lyn recalled something that the system told him the day he used his [Absorption] skill.

[...the progress of it's Domain Completion]

Although the terms [Domain] and [Dungeon] are used interchangeably, they do represent different zones at their core. A domain is a confined space where an individual has the most control over their power compared to all others. Skills like [Mana Burst] used a Domain as a limiter for maximum effectiveness.

But a [Dungeon], like the nest of milliants were spaces that were commanded by monsters. It wouldn't be wrong to say that the Queen Milliant, who onwn that [Dungeon] had a multilayerd [Domain], which acted as their boss room, and the Dungeon itself.

I.. probably shouldn't go through the ACPP for something like this...

Lyn could only trust those in his teams with information that threatened the saftey of his life. The mere mention of the Calamity would shake someone like the chief to thier core with rage, and strike fear into Bellora, both who knew the horrors of that battle but are continually forced to press on nonetheless. 

"Haah, then is it time for solo leveling?"

Lyn, as he thought previously, was truly proud of himself for being able to take care of menial mobs like bugs and goblins but he had no idea what to expect for his next fight. Perhaps, for going in alone, he was truly in over his head.