The Gate-Ranker

"Well, as I told you before, this place is a separate dimension also called a Gate. It is ranked 'D' which means the strongest creature it holds is at the D-Rank.

That beast or creature at the D-Rank is known as the Gate-Ranker responsible for giving the Gate its rank." Aidan explained.

"I see. So what beast is it?" Vincel asked and Aidan shrugged.

"We don't know. It's impossible to know until we see it. And we will see it most likely at the end of the Gate."

"And what is the reward? Is it something like those cores you took from the crows and the Wolves?"

"Yes. A D-rank beast Core would go for a lot but that's not all. We'll divide every part of the beast to sell them once we are out of the Gate and back to civilization.

Well, all of us except Kleon who wished to receive her pay up front," Aidan said to which Kleon gave a simple consenting nod.

"But she's been getting cores since" Vincel pointed out.

Aidan nodded.

"Yeah, she's paid to help me with the Gate-Ranker. Any gains she makes from her kills along the way are all hers"

As the group walked and neared the end of the dimension, they had the occasional battle with E-rank beasts that came at them and every time, Vincel just stuck close to whichever member he was closest to at the time.

What amused Vincel the most was how many Arcane shards he was getting from just standing by and watching this group of strangers battle it out with multiple beasts all hoping for a taste of human flesh.

'I almost feel like I'm cheating' he thought.

"Let's rest here" Aidan announced after the group's most recent victory against another group of E-rank beasts.

"We'll need to be at our best against the Gate-Ranker. We're close now. I can feel it"

As Aidan spoke, the rest of the group sat down and began eating rations to recover their strength. Vincel just stared ahead and called out the Status screen.

<User Status Screen Updated>

[Training Arc]

[Name: Vincel Grey]

[Race: Human]

[Job: Arcane Initiate Lv.1 {81/100 Arcane Shards}]

[Specialization: None]

[Title: None]

[HP: 39/50]

[Arcane Mana Reserves: 25/100]

[Strength: 5]

[Stamina: 5]

[Agility: 5]

[Resistance: 1]

[Job Skills: Arcane Augmentation Lv 1]

Of all the stats presented to him, only one really caught Vincel's eye.

'My Arcane Mana reserve is recovering much too slowly. I really want to have enough to use Arcane Augmentation. I'm not sure I'll be able to rely on anyone for protection if things get crazy.'

Vincel looked past the status screen and his eyes fell on the back of Lea's pretty head.

'That's right!'

"Hey Lea" he called to her in a whisper as he hurried to get closer to her.

"What is it?" Lea asked him equally in a whisper.

"How do you recover your Mana?" Vincel asked her.

'She claimed to have the best connection to Mana so if anyone can help, it would be her'

"By default, I wait for it to recharge. Mana is like energy. As long as I'm healthy, my reserves will refill eventually" Lea said.

Vincel's brows furrowed.

''Eventually' sounds a bit too far away'

"Is there anything that makes your reserves recharge faster?"

Lea smiled.

"Of course, there are Potions. The higher the grade, the more potent the effects. Very expensive though so I try not to use them unless I absolutely have to"

"Oh"

'She's trying to tell me she can't share in the most polite way possible'

Vincel was sure they rested for at least an hour and had been in the forest for even more than that but the position of the sun in the sky, past the thick covering of bushy tree branches, never shifted. Almost like this dimension was suffering from eternal daylight.

Lea saw Vincel staring up at the sun with a puzzled expression.

"Day or night-time usually doesn't work the same inside Gates. Some Gates are steeped in perpetual darkness, some in constant daylight and the others shift between at random" Lea explained to him.

Aidan never sat down with the rest of the group. He remained on his feet with his back against a tree trunk, his head bowed and his eyes closed while he recovered all lost energy.

Eventually, he opened his eyes and pulled away from the tree trunk to address the group.

"That's enough rest."

Aidan pumped his fist in the air as he led the group and proclaimed.

"Let's hunt the Gate-Ranker!"

"Yeah!" Jilan and Knowle chorused with equally raised fists.

The group got to walking and as Vincel followed with his barefoot cushioned only by the soft grasses of the forest, he called up his Status screen and instantly felt dismayed at the sight of his Arcane Mana reserves.

[Arcane Mana reserves: 35/100]

'Damn'

The deeper they got into the forest, the more quiet it was. It was like they were nearing an area of the forest that the other occupants knew not to go to.

Aidan thrust his hand to his side as he came to a sudden stop. His voice dripped with caution.

"We're here"

"We can tell," Kleon told him in a deadpan voice and although she sounded rude, she was right.

The area they were now at, was littered with skulls and carcasses in all manner of sizes and forms.

From a casual look, the bones looked strewn about- disorganized but the more Vincel stared, the easier it was for him to see a pattern.

'This is a nest of bones' Vincel thought in realization.

"Everyone be at the read. The Gate-Ranker could be any sort of beast" Aidan yelled.

Almost as soon as Aidan was done speaking, the sound of flapping wings filled the area they were at, followed by an angry growl.

Aidan yelled instantly.

"Knowle Now!"

Knowle let an arrow loose with its target being squarely at the center of the beast's head.

The Arrow was knocked aside by a focused flow of wind that Vincel did not think was a freak accident of nature.

Neither did Aidan.

"It can use Magic"

The beast was at least Nine feet long with a wind span that was almost double that.

The wings of the Beast looked like those of a Bat and they were even attached to its front limbs in the same way a Bat's were, however, its limbs were not thin and weak like that of a bat. Rather they were large and muscular.

The Beast's hind legs were like that of a dog and the same was the case for its head.

*Snarl*

As the beast showed off a scary set of fangs, it flapped its wings and creates a small funnel of wind that had enough force to knock the entire group back.

Everyone in the group had something to keep them grounded.

Aidan stabbed his sword into the ground.

Knowle used two arrows stabbed into a tree trunk to keep from being blown away.

Jilan hugged a tree close to him.

Kleon stabbed her dagger into a tree trunk and,

Lea used a defensive water bubble to protect herself against the wind's force.

The longer the wind blew against the protective bubble, the more water droplets it lost but it still held better than Vincel who was blown away and smacked his head against a tree trunk.

"Ack"

[HP: 38/50]

'I knew it! I knew I would be on my own'

The moment the wind stopped blowing, the group got to work against their magic-using opponent.

Aidan and Kleon led the charge with Lea and Knowle staying back and offering support with arrows and ranged water spells.

Jilan just waited until the beast was close to the ground so he could wack it with his club.

Vincel groaned as he watched it all.

'I'm going to need that Mana recovering potion'

Vincel opened his mouth to call to Lea and then he heard a growl from behind him. A growl that did not seem to come from the creature the group was already fighting.

Slowly, Vincel turned around and became face to face with a large dog head with a scary snarling maw. The creature looked very much like the one the group was already battling.

Dog-head complete with wicked fangs, Bat wings attached to muscular front limbs, Nine feet long body, and a clear disposition for violence.

'There's two of them' Vincel realized with wide scared eyes 'And... Is it smiling?'

Vincel's question was answered when the Beast let out a chuckle,

"Easy pickings"

There was something about hearing the beast actually speak words that made the situation seem even more scary to Vincel.

The beast swung a wing at Vincel and he just stood frozen while he waited for the impact that he guessed would reduce his HP to a single digit.