The Achievement Junkie

With a devilish smile, Jack explained, 'You see, our small party of three is merely a scouting party. As Lunara stated, the true creator of this entire world has announced the unsealing of Galcier Keep. And if Elders Hindrad and Wingreig were curious as to why no one here received such an announcement, it's because you're all too low-leveled.'

When Hindrad scoffed and Wingreig shook his head in response, Jack added, 'You're all lv. 89, correct? None of you have managed to reach lv. 90, right?'

'Clearly! Such a thing--'

'Isn't impossible,' Jack stated, finishing Wingreig's sentence. 'Take a look.'

As Jack removed his cloak and allowed his level to be seen, the sarcastic glances of the two consuls immediately morphed into stares of unbelief.

'As you three, as well as all the elders present, can see, I'm at lv. 94.'

That statement was the equivalent to a tsunami rocking the foundation of spectating hydras' beliefs, and the lack of an argument from the elders created more collateral damage to their shattered expectations. Both consuls were silent, struggling to imagine what to say next to keep the audience on their side. Raztol, on the other hand, was smiling wider than he had in centuries and chuckled softly.

'To enter Glacier Keep, one must be lv. 90 or stronger, preferably stronger,' continued Jack, further destroying the minds of those listening in. 'I've taken charge over Lunara, who I believe could face the head and the consuls by herself and come out without a scratch. Despite the level of respect she's showing you, she's far stronger than you three combined.'

'That--'

'Would you like to test that theory?' asked Jack, smiling back at Hindrad and glancing at Wingreig. 'If not, please allow me to continue. Soon, you'll have eight Flood Dragons arrive in your precious trench, all of which are at least lv. 90. Both the party of Flood Dragons and ours are merely scouts, as well, so that we can teleport the rest of our allies here without the need to traverse the deep sea.

'And if you don't believe we have such a capability…' Suddenly, Jack vanished in a dull flash of purple light and reappeared sitting casually on Raztol's back, 'then how about now?'

'T-that--'

'Splendid!' roared Raztol, happily eyeing Jack lounging on his back.

'Head Raztol… I want to know why you're so excited to hear such terrible news,' stated Wingreig, phrasing his sentence carefully to seem domineering and caring at the same time for the audience's sake.

Still laughing but more loudly, Raztol shouted, 'If this is true, then it's a thing of celebration! Don't you get it? This is a miracle freely offered to us, so why should we dare offend it?! With Jack's abilities, would that not mean that our people can connect with the outside world without the need to traverse the distance from their shore?'

Such a progressive thought left many speechless and unsure of how to react. Some spectating hydras struggled to imagine anything of the sort yet some hydras began to desire such a thing, particularly those that had been fed Ralzok's stories of the life beyond the trench.

'Also, if Lunara will be entering there and has such capabilities, wouldn't that mean that she is also over lv. 90?'

That question shot itself directly into the hearts of the people. Many present were too overwhelmed by it to completely digest the thought within the span of a moment. As those speaking paused for another moment of reflection, the crowd and listening elders began to realize the impact of Head Raztol's theory.

If there was, in fact, a Glacial Hydra with strength beyond the supposed limit of lv. 89, would that not be a thing of celebration? Wouldn't that mean such a hydra would be the immediate candidate to rule as the hydra head? Wouldn't having the sole nine-headed hydra be a politically progressive move beyond anything the hydra civilization had ever conceived? Wouldn't that shift the entire chain of command and social structure in one fell swoop?

'Head Raztol, please don't make such preposterous suggestions!' Wingreig shouted, not wanting to give the people any more time to think. 'Unless she can prove such a thing, how could we ever believe that such a docile woman would be so powerful.'

'I've known a few women far less docile than you, Wingreig,' commented Raztol. 'I stand by my theory. If the rest of their words are true, then that's the only conclusion we can reach.'

'ANYWAY…' Jack spoke loudly, regathering attention as he teleported back to where he once stood. 'I'm merely proving that many creatures of all species have surpassed lv. 89 and that most of which will be entering Galcier Keep whether the elders like it or not. Some may be peaceful, like Lunara, some may ride the line of allegiance according to your response, like me, and some would threaten the entire existence of Glacier reef upon denial, like the disgusting man commanding those Flood Dragons. I suggest you allow us and all incoming guests to access Glacier Keep, at the very least for the time being. Otherwise, I don't know how much time I'll be able to devote to protecting your civilization while I too am fighting to enter the keep.'

Taking those words to heart, Raztol gradually nodded his head. 'Jack… To summarize what you're saying for the crowd to better understand, Glacier Reef will possibly face extinction should we fail to properly welcome our incoming guests as well as yourselves?'

'Correct, that's one way to put it.'

'He admits it!' Hindrad roared. 'We should--'

'What, Hindrad? What should we do?' Raztol sarcastically questioned with a shaking head. 'Would you like to chase him out of town? Go ahead, I'll allow you to do so should you be able.'

'I-I…'

'Then don't ask of our people what you wouldn't dare attempt yourself!' roared Raztol, pulling the crowd further to his side and impressing Jack and Lunara further. 'As I said, they are currently my guests! Let us now hold a recess so that I can host a banquet for them and we may all eat before a long council meeting over the new policy of foreign visitors is drafted and upheld. Unless there's anything else you would like to add, Jack.'