I am the Ace!

Twang!

Drake fought like a matador in a bullring. Every time the Karkadann charged at him, he stepped aside, changing its direction with a blow from the flat of his sword.

It was a spectacle, watching a six-foot-tall man tackle a twenty-foot-tall, three-thousand-pound monster.

Of course, it had been chaotic in the beginning.

Animals usually went for the weaker targets. Thus, the Karkadann went after Chad and Omar.

The two had been ready with their shields for the first round. However, rookies as they were, they had huddled up instead of fanning out.

The Karkadann bolted towards them with frightening speed. Both of them panicked.

Chad threw his Belrite Ax straight at the Karkadann while Omar shot consecutive electric charges. The Belrite Ax, which explodes on contact with the target, missed the charging monster by several feet. It detonated on the ground, infuriating the Karkadann further.

The electric charges from Omar were futile, as the Karkadann's scales were too tough even to feel low voltage currents.

The beast slammed into them head-on, completely depleting their armor defense. Chad and Omar were thrown up fifteen feet in the air. They fell on the ground in awkward positions, rendered unable to fight anymore.

Drake had stepped in at this point.

The Karkadann had ignored him at first, choosing to turn towards Skylar instead. As it reared to go charging, the Ace had activated one of his tank abilities. Alice, who loved to see him in action, took a measure of his stats.

[ Appraise User ]

[ User: Drake Ace ]

[ Level 51: Special Race ]

[ Status: 49% Aggro ]

Building Aggro was a specialized skill that worked categorically on monsters, drawing their attention to the tank warriors.

The Karkadann had stopped in its tracks, unable to resist the lure of the tank. It had gone after Drake thereafter.

Twang!

Another parry blow. The beast was diverted towards a boulder that was pulverized with its head-butt.

However, the turnaround time of the monster was rapidly picking up. It gyrated so fast on its hooves it seemed like a high-powered vehicle.

Alice checked out its stats.

[ Appraise Monster ]

[ Species: Karkadann ]

[ Level 40: Forest Karkadann ]

[ HP: 17627/ 20000 ]

[ Status: Rage Mode ]

Uh-oh. That did not bode well.

Kerplunk!

Drake's broadsword was knocked off his grip as the Karkadann attacked too fast for him to parry. A follow-up charge left him on a direct collision path with the juggernaut.

The Ace let out an unintelligible battle cry.

"Watch out!" Both Alice and Skylar called out at the same time.

However, the clash never happened.

The girls squinted through the cloud of dust and found the monster was storming in place.

Drake was on top of the Karkadann, riding it!

Moreover, he howled with laughter. The girls wondered what was amusing about the scene.

The monster bucked, reared, and kicked as the Ace held onto it by its horn. The beast spun and twisted vigorously in an effort to throw the rider off. It roared in a frenzy, rumbling around in circles. The Karkadann was a proud animal, and being ridden by a smaller, weaker being was unacceptable.

Drake could not stay on top of it for an extended time. Its rage was rising spasmodically.

"Come to me! Almace!" Drake hollered above the uproar.

His broadsword, which lay on the ground, covered in dust, had returned to its metallic sheen. As soon as its master made the summon, it glowed red and shot into the air, the hilt landing in the Ace's grip.

Drake raised his sword arm and plunged his blade into the exposed neck of the beast. It was the only area of its body soft enough to be punctured.

The Karkadann keeled over and bit the dust in a skid. Drake dismounted with a single step, easing into a walk as the monster hit the ground. The Ace looked at the beast as the light went out of its eyes.

Alice and Skylar rushed to him, cheering.

"Wow! That was amazing, Drake!"

"Oh, darling, there is nobody else stronger than you!"

*****

"The carcass will fetch us fifty thousand credits alone if we sell it on the network," Drake announced to the girls as they reached their camp in the woods.

"I totally agree, dear," Skylar said, linking her arm with his.

Alice made a face at her. What a suck-up bitch!

"We could also hand it over to the branch and get a prize," Alice suggested.

"Hmm. Good idea, sweetheart. I'll think about it after dinner."

The sun was low on the horizon, and the light was dimming.

It had taken several hours to revive the petrified rookies and find the lost ones in the woods.

The group assembled after healing, lit a campfire, and prepared to roast a wild boar for dinner. The rookies had been sent to hunt in the woods as a punishment.

Alice had gained a cooking skill equation.

[ Roasted Boar ]

[ Cooking Dish… ]

Delicious food was ready in ten minutes.

"Mm, this is good!" Omar said, taking a large bite of his hog meat. "Alice, you are the best!"

"The Trinity network is weak here, isn't it?" Chad asked, drinking from his wineskin.

"Not that it would make a difference for you, rookie!" Drake said, guffawing. "You will get floored nonetheless." The others laughed. One of the other rookies, Nadja, had musical skills. He played an acoustic guitar and sang a quaint, exotic song about a blind girl who became a goddess and finally found true love. The fire danced yellow and orange, the crackles and pops of the burning wood drowned by the music.

Chad paired up with Rin, another rookie, and danced around the fire. Skylar snuggled up to Drake. The troubles of the day were forgotten.

Explosions of neon and gold streaks from floating embers burst into the night from time to time. It was as if a paint palette was being poured into the fire, which sprinkled magic on a black canvas.

Alice sat by herself in deep thought. She let her Trinity sister have the extra time with Drake. Sometimes, it was necessary to let go of the jealousy. The Ace would call her to bed later, anyway.

Three months back, the Trinity network, used by Providence enforcers for power enhancement, had been hacked by a criminal group- ANONYMITY. Information about the existence of God Formula, a technology that had the potential to unlock reality-bending possibilities, much like a video game, was leaked to the public.

One of the state secrets was the existence of a serum, God Vaccine, that enabled all races to tap into the technology.

The news leak had caused a huge citizen outrage in all the cities. People abandoned came out on the streets protesting against the opaque regimen and demanding that the technology be shared with everyone.

The Covenant government had to step in, allowing civilians to participate in the Trinity network. Synthetically prepared God Vaccine was administered to willing people at government booths.

The authorities felt that sharing the hidden system with civilians would boost the economy as more people come forward to hunt, forage and mine natural resources. Now occupying only five percent of Galatea's land, the five cities could be expanded beyond their periphery. The monster-infested outlands could be exploited for fresh revenues.

While older citizens were wary, the youth came forward in huge numbers. Teenagers, especially, were eager to go on exciting adventures and bring home treasures and new abilities.

However, only a few had managed to level up and become truly strong. The system was complicated, and the hardware was expensive.

After dinner, Drake retreated to his camp tent with both Skylar and Alice in tow. The rookies sniggered behind their backs and went to their respective lodgings as couples.

They had a hard mission the following day and needed the rest.