Climbers

Next was the boy, who had an air of quiet confidence. He introduced himself simply, but his words carried weight. "I'm Anarmika, class: Luckbringer. Path: [Fate]."

Neo, seemingly unbothered by the tension in the air, let out a loud laugh. "A Luckbringer, huh? Must be nice to have fate on your side. Maybe I should call you Big Brother." His words were casual, but there was something playful in his tone.

The boy, however, didn't respond. He simply gave his rank, his voice cold and detached. "1501."

A heavy silence followed. Another high-ranking Climber. The difficulty of the scenario was only escalating with each new revelation. But Z's attention was still on the boy. 

It wasn't just because of his ranking. It was because Z knew something they didn't. The boy had just lied.

Z couldn't exactly tell how the boy had lied, but he knew his vision never lied. Lies manifested as a shade of grey around the liar, like a tangible mist clinging to their body, and to Z, it carried a scent—rich, enticing, and unmistakably laced with Chaos. Chaos, the very essence of it, was something Z reveled in, something that made his blood sing. The boy had lied, and that grey mist all but confirmed it.

But how had he lied? Z couldn't piece it together just yet.

It was now the girl's turn. She stood next to the boy, her demeanor calm yet guarded, as though she carried a secret she dared not reveal. "I'm Gladly," she said in a clear, steady voice. "Class: Priest. Path: [Beginning]. Rank: 1502."

Z's scalp tingled, and a jolt of shock coursed through him. [Beginning]?

The room fell silent for a moment, the weight of her words settling over the group. Everyone was thinking the same thing: both she and the boy were backed by an Entity. But for Z, the implications were far more chilling.

His thoughts churned as he studied her, though he kept his expression carefully neutral. There's something terribly wrong with her backer. Grey smoke lingered around her, the telltale sign of a lie, and Z could smell it—the sweetness of Chaos. Yet it didn't add up.

Z recalled what he knew about the hierarchy of power. Entities wielded fragments of authority, aspects that defined their domain. Existences, however, were the pinnacle. They didn't just wield aspects—they were the very embodiment of those concepts, their authority overriding both gods and Entities alike.

If this girl was backed by an Entity, she would have said [Birth], a mere aspect of [Beginning]. But she had claimed [Beginning] itself—a vast, encompassing authority far beyond the reach of an Entity. That level of power was something reserved for an Existence.

Z's pulse quickened at the thought, but he forced himself to calm down. Existences aren't weeds growing on the side of the road. They don't just appear. If she were truly backed by an Existence, the Ladder would never have thrown her into a group like ours.

He exhaled slowly, pushing the thought aside. He was overthinking it. There had to be more to the situation than he could see right now. Whatever the truth was, it didn't change one thing: he needed to stay away from both the girl and the boy.

As if sensing his unease, Gladly glanced at him. Her gaze was sharp and unsettling, and Z instinctively looked away.

Next, T-Jan stepped forward, his expression as neutral as ever. "I'm T-Jan," he said flatly. "Class: Executioner. Path: [God] of Order. Rank: 2101."

Jack nodded in approval, pleased to see another Climber sharing his path.

Kai followed, his posture relaxed but his voice steady. "Kai. Class: King. Path: [God] of Humanity and Authority. Rank: 1990."

Then it was Hao's turn. He stepped forward with a wide grin, introducing himself with his usual theatrics. "Hao. Class: Clown. Path: [God] of Buffoonery and Madness. Rank: 2090."

Jack's expression darkened, and Naya, the Watcher, frowned. Z could see the unease on their faces. Climbers with Hao's class and path weren't exactly welcomed. The Clown class was infamous for its treacherous nature. They were unpredictable, chaotic, and deceitful—liars, backstabbers, and manipulators. But nobody voiced their concerns.

Finally, it was Z's turn. He leaned on his walking cane, flashing a warm smile. "I'm Z. Class: Priest. Path: [God] of Disharmony and Confusion. Rank: 2500."

The sweet taste of lies lingered on his tongue as the words left his mouth. He felt the eyes of the group on him, their reactions a mixture of surprise and unease. A boy as unassuming as Z, with his thin frame and polite demeanor, walking such a chaotic path? It didn't seem to fit.

Neo, ever the curious one, broke the silence. "How come you're still blind in the Ladder?"

Before Z could respond, Hao's grin widened. "How about you mind your business, Neo?"

Neo raised his hands in mock surrender, taking a step back. "Fair enough." He chuckled nervously, clearly realizing he'd overstepped. While certain details needed to be shared for the sake of cooperation, everyone had secrets they weren't willing to reveal to strangers.

Jack cleared his throat, redirecting the group's attention. "Alright. Let's share what we've gathered so far."

Naya, the Watcher, spoke up first. Her voice was calm, almost detached. "There's a dead body in the room next to mine. One of our fellow Climbers didn't make it."