Chapter 74: The Feelings Of A Ranker (1/2)

”How many people were in your party?” Vivian asked, her eye twitching slightly.

*T-they've got to be lying. There's no way Bracha would do something so reckless.* Vivian thought to herself as she struggled to maintain her calm.

”Just us.” Katrin responded, with Agni nodding to herself.

”Well, Bracha was with us..” Agni then added, causing a bit of relief to wash over Vivian.

*They must be trying to impress me since I'm the Doyenne.* Vivian thought to herself, until she heard--

”But Bracha never helped us fight. Also last week we went into the blood shard on our own.” Agni said.

*Y- you what?!? Reckless! Foolish! Do you know how many adventurers die in blood shards? This can't be right.* Vivian's thoughts were racing as she struggled to calm herself down.

Agni felt as if she saw a vein throb in the young girl's temple but she dismissed it after a moment of thought.

”If this is a joke it isn't funny. Blood shards are very dangerous. It's not something you can waltz into without being fully prepared. The enemies inside blood shards are anywhere from twice to ten times as strong as their counterparts.” Vivian explained.

”We know. Even the Fulger Stags were pretty tough, but it's not like they were unbeatable. Once you get used to fighting them they are actually pretty easy to take down. They rarely move out of the way when you attack them and some of their magic strikes are so obvious that they can be avoided. The only real danger is -- ”

”Do you have any proof?” Vivian interrupted with a wave of her hand. She was now furiously crunching on the candies in her mouth.

”Sure.” Katrin responded as she opened her inventory and quickly called forth a monster drop.

”This is...a Fulger Stag Horn.” Vivian said as she eyed the long piece of shattered animal bone in Katrin's grasp.

*There are so many tales of zero rankers being killed by enemies inside the blood shards. How did these two manage alone? With a party of two no less?*

For Vivian it simply blew her mind that anyone would speak so casually of placing themselves in danger. It was the same reason she regularly found herself annoyed with Georgina. The foolhardy girl would constantly seek battles and even excitedly speak of the day when she could face off against the 'Grimlock Threat'.

Vivian was obligation bound as a third ranker to participate in quelling the expansions. For her it was a very annoying job that she would have to do monthly. She'd seen her fair share of blood and carnage in the process. One wrong move could cause entire parties to fall to ruin and for her it was mind boggling how anyone could aspire to thrive in such situations.