Ryu silently descended onto the branch of a thick tree. His body was so weightless that the thin piece of wood hardly registered his appearance.
Down below, Ryu's sharp eyes caught sight of several groups of people. It didn't take much observing for Ryu to understand the situation.
The Ruins had been discovered several months ago by three adventuring teams, not all at the same time, but staggered. Unfortunately, the first team didn't have the ability to stop others from trying to take a piece of their discovery, so they could only give way, accepting a three-way alliance. At least like this, they could gain some security in stopping any more from trying to take part.
The three teams put their funds together to hire a Ruin Master from the Core Region to help them with this exploration. This was currently their seventh venture in Necromancer Hecate's Ruins.
Usually, Ruins would be completed in stages. Because of their danger, only a fool or someone supremely confident in their abilities would dare to sleep in one. As a result, groups would often explore for as long as their bodies could hold out before retreating and repeating the process.
Still, though much of this made sense, Ryu was curious. Why was it that a Ruin that had remained undiscovered for so long suddenly the product of interest for not just one, but three groups? What were adventure teams doing so deep within Marandi Forest?
Necromancer Hecate wasn't a terribly powerful individual. Though she, at the end of her life, could have killed the current Ryu with a single glance, if compared to the true powerhouses of the Shrine Plane, she was lacking. If Ryu recalled correctly, and he knew that he did, at her height she was a Path Extinction Realm expert, a step above the Immortal Ring Realm.
Ryu had chosen this Ruin for two reasons. Firstly because Hecate followed a path of Necromancy the intrigued him, and secondly because his deductions led him to the conclusion that this Ruin would be graded at the Fifth Order.
Ruins, much like many other concepts, had grading systems of their own. A Fifth Order Ruin required an Earth Grade Ruin Master to clear at the very least, or a moderately powerful Black Grade Ruin Master. Of course, Ryu, who had earned the illustrious Origin Grade Ruin Master title far exceeded these requirements.
The unfortunate part was that Ryu's Origin Grade status was contingent upon Nuri being by his side. Though no Ruin Master could match Ryu in knowledge, he was lacking in the power necessary. In the end, Ryu believed that a Fifth Order Ruin was about his limit with his current strength.
The reason why all of this was important was because the three groups had several Divine Vessel Realm experts with them, and a Peak Black Grade Ruin Master. Logically speaking, seven attempts was far too many. And, by the sounds of it, they didn't appear to be close to the end either, or they wouldn't be so irritated.
"I refuse to pay the same amount once more! Do you think I'm made of money?!" A woman dressed in half silver and half black leather armor spoke out, clearly frustrated. "You brought this Ruin Master to us and he swore that it would take at most three attempts and quoted his price based on this truth. But…
"… Not only are we on the seventh attempt, you expect me to continue paying the same quoted price?!"
"Amarice is right." The leader of the second group defended the woman. By the look in his eye, he wasn't doing so for some petty love affair because he was clearly quite irritated himself. "Think of your status as a Ruin Master, do you really want to cheat small figures like us?"
An older man with a head of grey hair expressionlessly watched the group. To his side, a younger man with a fat gut but a disproportionately chiseled face stood. He seemed unfeeling toward the concerns of the two groups before him. But, he couldn't hide the slight flash of ill intent that coated his eyes after there was mention of his profession.
"You said it yourself that this was a Fifth Order Ruin. There's no reason it should take so many attempts to clear with a Peak Black Grade Ruin Master and so many Divine Vessel experts on our side. Logic is on our side, you're being unreasonable." Amarice piled on.
Ryu's eyes narrowed. 'The two groups have definitely realized that something was wrong. But, it's also difficult to give up on an investment after buying in six times already. This Ruin Master and his accomplice understand this, which is why they're so blatant with their disdain.
'A seemingly untouched Ruin found by three people at once? It was too much of a coincidence.'
Ryu needed to figure out his next plan of action. He obviously had no intention of letting any of these individuals benefit from a Ruin he had set his mind on. His best bet was to wait until they failed their seventh attempt, but from the way things were going, it was very obvious to a third party observer that whatever plan the Ruin Master and his large bellied accomplice had schemed would be pushed forward. These adventurers had already been pushed to their limit, it was impossible to expect that they'd do this for an eighth time. So this would be their last chance.
'But why… Were they just trying to squeeze money out of them? But couldn't they take everything they owned by just killing them? Is there a need to keep up this farce for seven attempts?'
'Ryu, there's a very thick smell of death around them.' Ailsa suddenly said.
Ryu's eyes narrowed. 'Are you sure it isn't just from the Ruin? It's not more than a hundred or so meters away now.'
'No, it's definitely coming from them. But, oddly enough, it's only on the two irritated groups. The Ruin Master and the fat man seem unaffected.'
'Is that so…'
Much like many other professions and paths, Necromancy was incredibly complex. The simple title of Necromancer might have the same image in the mind of laymen, but the process and beliefs among groups varied greatly.
Ryu was interested in Hecate precisely because her path was so novel. A lot of the reason her cultivation was so low was because she spent so much time researching this path. If Ryu was correct… The smell of death might be related to Hecate's path of Necromancy.
In the end, after listening to the ravings of the two groups led by Amarice and Dalonte, they reached an agreement. If this seventh attempted succeeded, they would pay. Should it not succeed, the payment would be reduced. Like this, the three groups entered the ruin, followed by a closely lurking shadow.