The Gamer's POV

Cedric was speechless and his smile slowly disappeared.

’Three weeks ago? That’s been a while. Could it be that she did not sur—’

Although it was not surprising that people died every time in the rings, Cedric stopped himself from completing that thought.

"I really hope Aria is okay," Audrey muttered to herself. She turned to face him fully. "But I’m a bit worried, Cedric."

He wasn’t quite sure what to say.

He couldn’t say that everything would be fine and she’d be back. He also couldn’t say that she should not worry when she had every right to be terrified.

After some time, he did the only thing that came to mind. He reached out and gently patted her shoulder to comfort her.

Not long after, the front door opened and an instructor walked in.

The tall, handsome man was dressed in a dark jacquard coat and a felt hat, which he removed with a fluid motion as he stepped into the room.

This man with short, black hair and a neatly trimmed beard was Instructor Oliver, a Grade Four Weapon Master.

...Now, it was important to note that in the three empires, the majority of nobles ended their power advancement at Grade Four. Not because they wanted to, of course, but advancing further was extremely difficult.

The general power hierarchy was something like this:

There were very few Grade One Dominants in the empires. Those below thirteen were of course Grade One, but over the years, they had trained enough to evolve to Grade Two by the time they journeyed to the First Ring.

Moving on, there were so many Grade Twos. And that was because before now, most Dominants didn’t really care about going to the First Ring to kill monsters and evolve. Power advancement wasn’t the goal for the majority. Most of those children only cared about surviving enough to destroy the red bridge and gain themselves six months of peace.

Then there was Grade Three, whose numbers had increased a bit thanks to the unfortunate nature of the last eclipse.

As for Grade Four, most knights, instructors, and elite soldiers were of this grade. Even most of the barons, viscounts, and counts were Grade Fours. Most Dominants remained at this grade their entire life, unable to break through to the next.

Obviously, the higher the grades, the fewer the people in existence, and in all three empires, the highest grade achieved so far was the Grade Seven, which had the fewest number of people.

In all the three continents combined, Cedric wasn’t sure if there were even twenty-five people in this grade.

And currently, there hasn’t been any record of anyone being able to advance past this grade.

...Instructor Oliver, who held a whisper-globe in his right hand, walked up to the podium. He didn’t seem to care that the class was slightly noisy.

After dropping his hat on the podium, he switched on his whisper-globe, and a holographic screen projected outward from it for everyone to see.

On the screen, only a few words were visible:

[Not everything you see is true. Appearance might not be the reality, and reality might not be what you perceive.]

The man cleared his throat, then looked up at the crowd. He didn’t bother taking attendance and just began in a hoarse voice.

"Many of you must have already heard experiences about the second ring from nobles who have ventured there." He pointed to the text in front of him. "Yes. I’m here to confirm that all those horror stories are true. The second ring is known for monsters that cast illusions, drive people to madness, and turn allies against one another."

"In certain places, you will need your wits more than you need any kind of strength, and in other places, you will need a lot of strength to be able to fight your way through with brute force."

He fiddled with his whisper-globe and an image of a monster appeared.

When the cadets saw it, murmurs erupted in the large hall.

The reason for the murmur was not exactly because of the terribly hideous form of the four-legged creature, but rather because there was a man who stood not too far from it, appearing like a tiny ant beside a beast that easily towered over thirty meters high.

"In terms of the scale of the creatures you will find there, I’d say put aside everything you knew in the first ring if you want to survive. Even though there were a lot of deadly creatures in the first ring, they were nothing compared to what you would see in the second. Most of the creatures in the Grade Four territories are as massive as hills, and there are a few that have been recorded to be almost fifty meters tall."

He paused and looked away from the screen to the cadets who were all staring in stunned silence.

Then he added, "It is unfortunate that we cannot tell where one would end up upon crossing the blue bridge. Though we know that the majority of Grade Threes end up in the Grade Three territory as they should. However, if you are unfortunate enough to end up in a Grade Four territory, I’ll give you the same advice you must have always heard over and over again. Find as many of your fellow cadets as possible to increase your chances of survival. However, when you do find them, carefully make your way down to the Grade Three zones. Even if you are a large group, do not try to take on a Grade Four, unless you have a Weapon Master in your party."

Unlike the lower grades, after Grade Three, Dominants were addressed by their titles. Grade Fours were called Weapon Masters, Grade Fives were called Grand Masters, Grade Sixes were called the Elders, and the Grade Sevens were called the Monarchs.

But back to the topic of Weapon Masters, although they do not gain different magical powers after their evolution, they all become able to weaponize their Aura.

"As you all already know, right from the first grade, a dominant is able to emit aura by expelling their mana into the air. But a weapon master can take that raw emission and forge it into something lethal, allowing them to create truly devastating weapon techniques. This is why a weapon master can do something as incredible as slashing a building in two, or piercing straight through an entire fortress from dozens of meters away. This is also why they are your only reliable option for taking down Grade Four creatures."