In the wilderness
Sam and Jeffrey padded silently through the woods as they stalked their quarry, an F Rank Inferno Boar that had migrated from another sector of the forest. Jeffrey was getting ever closer to F Rank, and they both were confident that this fight would allow him to finally cross over the edge. Nobody else was with them, and the two men were able to have some time together.
Sam and Jeffrey’s relationship had been stagnating a bit as a result of the plethora of tasks that they had been needed to deal with recently. The other problem was Jeffrey’s strength. Right now, it was more efficient for Sam to travel with Lao and Eduardo if he was going on any especially dangerous missions. However, once Jeffrey reached F Rank, the man would be useful again. It was a starkly cynical, utilitarian way of looking at things, but such were the demands of the System. Power meant survival in this new world, and friendships would be tested by that demand. It was better that than dying though.
As they walked, the scorched footsteps of their target started to become visible on the ground, and Sam paused to study them. The footprints were still warm to the touch which meant that the beast had been here not too long ago. Sam had remembered the Juvenile Inferno Boar from before. The one that they were tracking now was a different beast altogether.
Sam had only heard about it from one of the units of soldiers from the city that had been waylaid by the creature while training, but it was apparently quite imposing. It had killed almost half their number, and was apparently far stronger than it had any right to be in this area. Even worse, it preferred to stick to the woods rather than attack the city, meaning that it was most likely an intelligent, if only barely so, beast. This would be a difficult fight. As they walked, Sam asked Jeffrey a question that had been bugging him for a while that pertained to monsters.
“Jeffrey?”
“Yeah?”
“What exactly do the designations of monsters mean? I’ve only seen Juvenile or Mature so far. Are there more?”
The only reason the two men could speak like that and still maintain focus on their quarry was because of their high stats. A part of their focus always remained on their target, even if most of it was split towards the conversation. That was a useful trick that Sam had learned over time.
“Yes. There are quite a few more in fact, although most of them will not be something you're likely to meet in a very long time. The first three designations are based on age, which are Juvenile, Mature, and Elder. Those names are based on the age of the monster in question, rather than power, but generally it lines up with the actual rank quite closely. A Juvenile will almost never be over G Rank, unless it is of an incredibly powerful species like a true dragon. Mature monsters are usually within F Rank, and Elders range from peak F Rank to early E Rank. Past that, they are ranked by power.”
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“Hold up, true dragons?” Sam interrupted, intrigued. “Are there multiple types of dragons?”
“I knew that would be what caught your interest,” Jeffrey sighed. “There are a myriad of dragon variants, created over the eons by interspecies breeding, such as drakes, wyverns and wyrms, but there is only one true species of dragon. They are just as intelligent as people, if not more so, and they jealously guard their genetic pool from outsiders. Those monsters are all born at the peak of F Rank.”
“Oh. That seems like a terrifying opponent to face.”
“I have never seen one in the flesh, but one of the royal guards in the Salvinni System had witnessed a dragon take on an entire fleet of ships during his military tour. And win. That man was never the same afterwards. Now, can I continue our original discussion? I would hate to be cut off by the monster,” Jeffrey responded.
“Oh. Of course. Sorry for interrupting.”
“Anyway. Where was I? Oh, right. Monster designations. After Elder rank, the ranks start to be based on power rather than age, because of the immense age that creatures can reach at that level of strength. After Elder rank comes Elite rank monsters. At that point, monsters start to exhibit the same characteristics as sapients, even if they were not originally sapient themselves. Elite rank monsters also start to be able to fight up levels rather than be clearly of one level. By that point, you are running into monsters powerful enough to devastate countries, if not entire continents.”
“Is that ability to fight up ranks based on the fact that they start to develop skills?” Sam guessed.
“How did you know that? Well, that’s part of the answer. The other answer is that all sapient creatures can gain titles, which boost strength to a large degree,” Jeffrey responded. “Anyway. After Elite rank are Lord rank monsters, each of which is powerful enough to unite hordes of lesser monsters underneath their banner, hence the name. Trying to fight one of those on an equal level as a cultivator would be an exercise in futility unless you were a true prodigy among prodigies. Most people fight them in raid groups. Then come monster Rulers, which have empires spanning entire galaxies. There are no official monster factions, as the System does not fully recognize them, but there doesn't need to be. Their raw power is more than enough.”
“I’m guessing that such powerful monsters are few and far between?” Sam asked.
“Yeah, no Ruler will tolerate another on their territory. In fact-” Jeffrey was cut off by a resounding crack from a nearby clearing, a noise that sounded suspiciously like a breaking bone.
Sam nodded and started sneaking towards the noise. Squatting within the clearing was a gargantuan boar, with skin limned in crackling flame. The heat was like being next to an oven, even from fifty feet away, and the sheer presence of the monster was immense. It was currently bent over the corpse of some massive stag, tearing great strips of flesh off the creature with every bite.
The meat sizzled as it touched the boar’s flesh, cooking it before it swallowed. Sam gulped and looked over at Jeffrey who was visibly shaking. Neither man was a coward, but this creature was a bit different than they had expected. Sam fired off an analysis at the monster a moment later.
Mature Inferno Boar
Level 74