Interlude | Balance of Power

In this world, there exists multiple factions of power.

As such, after the integration of ranking systems and danger classification between the Free Guild and the old Adventurers Guild, a massive reform in the perspectives of power commenced due to the change of power ratings.

From then on henceforth, the Free Guild's ranking system became the internationally-accepted system of grading and was further optimized by the newly appointed leader ten years ago, Yuuki Kagurazaka.

The factions of power that dominate the world are known as the Power Quaternity: The Dragons, the Demon Lords, the Sentinels, and the Lances.

The Dragons are the oldest faction of power and is founded by the Stellar Dragon Veldanava. Having the only five True Dragons as its members, they're more of a family than a faction and actually see each other as siblings. They are the only beings placed on the ranking of Supreme-S and the danger classification of Eschaton.

Also known as Apices (apexes), Supreme-S is a ranking assigned to entities of apocalyptic powers, capable of threatening the entire world's existence and fate. The Eschaton-Class, meanwhile, is the equivalent to the Supreme-S Rank and is a classification for threats that endanger the collapse of civilizations and the end of life as known.

Such beings are believed to be beyond the scope of any earthly force to fully defeat, and both Supreme S-Rank and Eschaton-Class are only assigned and reserved to the True Dragons due to their natures as eternal beings.

There's the Demon Lords Council. Founded by the Lord of Darkness Guy Crimson two-thousand years ago, it is essentially the second oldest of the power quaternity and is believed to be the second strongest with the Dragon Race being the first.

The demon lords are the pinnacle of monster-kind and each member rule over vast amounts of territory. It is an international political organization with its numbers and names changing many times over many eras.

Then, the Sentinels. Founded by the ancient hero Chronoa nearly a thousand years ago during the Age of Ragnarok, they are the strongest of the human race to exist, and are all at least in the level of Saints individually.

Their members are all Special-S rank adventurers and after the disappearance of Chronoa, their numbers are currently cut down to six and has been that way for three centuries straight. The sentinels are chosen hero-class beings and are anomalies within the human world, possessing destructive potentials that border on immeasurable.

They are their own council and have their own political standing like the demon lords. Meaning, they are not tied to any nation's authority as they reign like kings. The strongest members among them—even being Special-S ranks and Catastrophe-Class—are only rivalled by the strongest of the demon lords and are only below the Supreme-S ranks and Eschaton-Class True Dragons.

Finally, the Lances. Not much is known about the lances aside from the fact that they are from the west and are the only ones in the Power Quaternity that serve under someone rather than having an appointed leader.

Because of its circumstances, the Lances are believed to be the weakest of the Power Quaternity. Rumors say that they are all the single-digit members of the Imperial Guardians under the Emperor, with the Empire's marshal leading them.

As the Power Quaternity, their interactions—sometimes collaborative, often adversarial—shaped the geopolitical landscape, ensuring that no single entity could unilaterally impose its will upon the world.

The Sentinels protect the west, the Lances the east, while the Demon Lords and Dragons oversee the world. The balance between the Power Quaternity has been broken and subsequently restored throughout history through the efforts of its members.

Thus, their interplay defined an era where the fate of nations and the course of history hung in precarious equilibrium.

And now, with the movement of the primal demons, the looming Great Tenma War around the corner, the disruption in the ranks of the demon lords, and the rise of Tempest… this delicate balance is on the brink of collapse.

And if history has proven anything… it's that balance is a fleeting concept, always at the mercy of ambition, conflict, and change.