However, he did manage to gather some interesting information: in this world, people are not ranked using numbers like the system (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5), but instead each stage is named after alchemical elements. The ranks from 1 to 8 are: Sublead, Dimiron, Flexin, Flamecopper, Mercurialfloat, Silverdivine, Puregold, and Etherium. Beyond Etherium, there are two additional ranks called Legendary and Transcendent, which are exclusive to humans.
The Etherium stage is particularly unique. It has become almost synonymous with the top-tier creatures like dragons, and humans often directly advance from Puregold to Legendary. Transcendent, on the other hand, is a very vague rank that could be described as "too few examples to classify." All those who have surpassed the Legendary rank are broadly referred to as Transcendents. The three major powers each have at least three Transcendents supporting them, making them the superpowers of this world.
The tentacle monster vaguely remembers the assassin mentioning that Laidi Liya is at the "Dimiron" stage, which means she is at the second rank. According to Laidi Liya, her father, Lamidati, is a Mercurialfloat-level powerhouse.
However, what puzzles him is that the system only provides nine ranks, but this world has a total of ten ranks. Could it be that Etherium is not included, and Legendary is the eighth rank while Transcendent is the ninth?
Nevertheless, he still has a long way to go before reaching the first rank, so it's pointless to worry about this now.
After packing their belongings, the tentacle monster and Lydia immediately set off on the road to Loom. The tentacle monster expresses regret because he really wanted to have a good meal before leaving. However, Lydia probably wouldn't allow him to feast on the bodies of her loyal guards, and the assassins are all formidable characters above the third rank. The tentacle monster wouldn't even be able to digest them.
Lydia has just gone through a fierce battle. Although it only lasted a few moves, her body was overly tense for a long time, leaving her feeling a bit exhausted. The tentacle monster can only lead her to a small hill that he recently discovered, where there is a cave that can serve as temporary shelter.
However, as soon as they enter the cave, Lydia frowns.
"Here..."
She doesn't say it out loud, but the tentacle monster understands what she means. The cave, which provides shelter from the wind and rain, is not only favored by humans but also by many animals. As a result, the cave is now filled with bones and dried dung. Although these things are not as pungent as when they were "fresh," if they go deeper into the cave, the smell becomes quite strong.
There's no choice but for him to find a way to break off a large branch with leaves, using it as a makeshift broom to start cleaning the cave with his weak body, which only has 7 points of strength.
Lydia, on the other hand, feels embarrassed and tries to help the tentacle monster by grabbing a branch as well. However, before she even gets close, she is overwhelmed by the smell and rushes to the entrance of the cave, retching.
"You just sit there and rest. I can handle it over here," the tentacle monster says helplessly.
Lydia's face turns slightly red, but after thinking about it, she realizes that she really can't do this kind of work. So she obediently sits down at the entrance of the cave.
When the tentacle monster manages to clean the cave and make it somewhat habitable, the sun has already set.
Lydia sits inside the cave, nibbling on dried meat and bread, which are soldiers' rations. Even though in the tentacle monster's eyes, the quality of this food is not considered low for medieval times—clean and neatly prepared dried meat that seems to be salted, and bread made from pure wheat flour—it's still the worst-tasting thing she has ever eaten in her 15 years of life, something that commoners may not even have the chance to taste.
"Be content. If you continue with your adventure, even if you join the army, you'll face even harder days than this," the tentacle monster says as he lies down next to her, giving her a reality check. "The more carefully cultivated a flower is, the more beautiful and delicate it is, but it's also more susceptible to being destroyed by wind and rain. Since you've decided to seek greater glory than Princess Beronisa and Prince Sinop, you have to learn what it means to endure hardships."
"I understand," Lydia responds, but her face still shows the bitterness she feels.
Seeing her like this, the tentacle monster starts to feel anxious. Is it possible, now that they are alone together in one place...
He wanted to establish a solid foundation of trust with Lydia before taking things further, but he is currently too weak and desperately needs to improve his strength. His way of consuming prey is comparable to some biohazardous creature in a horror movie. Even if Lydia is a girl who has been accustomed to seeing corpses, she might vomit just by looking at it.
Although he could eat Lydia's rations, it would only fill his stomach. If he wants to quickly enhance his strength, he needs to consume several times more food than an ordinary person. He would waste a lot of money on food every day if he relied purely on processed food. Furthermore, Lydia also needs to grow her physique, and advancing from Dimiron to Flexin is a hurdle that requires a large investment of resources. So, the tentacle monster doesn't want to waste money on food.
In such a situation, he can only turn to Lydia.
Iamnotabot· Jun 26, 2023
