[The Granian Palace.]
[Lord Grania’s Throne Room.]
Lord Grania, Lord Grim, Grand Master Helda, One Horn, and the Granian Council of Elders sat in the throne room in their seats of power. Standing before them were a now-conscious Ace, Cherry, Anya, Jim, and Skyler, the four humans brought back from Earth. The reason for the summoning was that Ace had finally achieved the Blood Bishop Rank, a powerful rank that allowed him to transform others into Mutants like himself.
"Greetings, Mutants," Lord Grania greeted with an amused smirk on his face. Seated in a slouched position with his head resting on his hand, he looked down at the Mutants from his throne, his scaly eyes scanning their facial expressions.
"Are you enjoying the uniforms we made for you?" The Mutants were dressed in scarlet red suits with black trims on the edges, while Skyler wore an expandable onesie that allowed her to be as flexible as needed. "Well, are you not going to answer?"
Neither of the humans wished to answer. They all remained quiet, judging the Granians in their minds. Since no one wished to talk, Lord Grania rose from his throne and approached the Mutants. With his tail swaying side to side, he took off the royal robe he had on and remained, at this point, naked—thankfully, Granian bodies were different from humans in terms of where their private parts were kept. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⁂𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⁂𝕟𝕖𝕥
"Congratulations on getting to the Blood Bishop rank," he congratulated Ace, who wasn’t even looking at him. The Blood Mutant’s eyes were fixated on Chris and Lily, the humans who once bullied and tricked him back on Earth. Since Ace wasn’t responsive, Lord Grania walked over to Skyler and locked eyes with her. The two glared at each other, one smiling while the other battled not to jump at the other’s neck.
"Why don’t you show them what you have been learning?" Grania stepped back and let the others, including the Council, witness Skyler’s new achievements from her training. Unlike the others, Skyler was more than willing to showcase her talents.
Taking a few steps back, she gently placed her fists together, closed her eyes, and started to breathe calmly. Slowly, the atmosphere around her grew cold. A slight breeze filled the room, and her ruby-red hair started to rise and dance with the wind. Soon, her body produced an orange glow. Her eyes burned a bright orange color the longer she tapped into her Eneraflux.
"She has already tapped into her Eneraflux at this stage?"
"And that quickly too?"
"These humans are proving to be of more use to us than we expected."
The Council members remained fascinated by Skyler’s achievement. Her training with Lord Grania, in only these few short days, allowed her to activate her Eneraflux skill. Now all she needed to do was learn how to control, yield, manipulate, and bend it to her will.
"Now then," Lord Grania continued, "Since we now know where each one of you stands, it is time to go over the War Plans as promised."
The Granian Emperor debriefed the Granians and Council Members, meticulously elaborating his plan while also receiving counsel and advice. As he spoke, the Humans began to slowly agree and readjust their thinking toward the Granians. Now that they knew what was expected of them, they were anticipating seeing what they could do against creatures possessing intelligence. Eventually, the briefing came to an end with Lord Grania giving orders concerning the Humans.
"The two Mutants, Anya and Jim, will be given the same symbiotes as Ace and Cherry. Skyler will receive one as well and make sure she gets one that is similar to what Lord Grim has.
"In the meantime, Ace, you and I will have a slight battle to assess your strength and see whether a platoon will be entrusted to you. If you succeed, well and good. If not, further training will be done."
"Don’t we get to learn the same thing she’s learning?" Cherry asked, clearly interested in Eneraflux. "It looks like an important necessity to us."
"That will have to wait." Clapping his hands twice, Lord Grania dismissed the Council and sent the Humans on their way. He and Ace remained behind for their little ’battle’.
[You have been challenged to a practice battle.]
[Defeat your opponent to receive an instant level-up.]
Ace and Grania, both kneeling with their backs facing each other, stood up and slowly approached each other in the center. While Lord Grania’s body continuously glowed a green color of aura, Ace remained in his human form, wanting to test his natural strength first.
[Blood Sprint Activated.]
Both opponents dashed for each other’s necks, moving at incredible speeds. The Granian, using its large hands, attempted to grab Ace’s head. Ace, on the other hand, was going for Grania’s chest, more specifically his heart.
[Pulse Breaker Skill: Activated.]
As soon as Ace’s finger touched Grania’s chest, the Granian’s body jerked and started to grow cold. Ace stood still and watched his opponent fall to the ground with his hand gripping his chest. The scales on his back stood upright, his teeth were clenched tight while he groaned in pain.
"Release me...from this..." he ordered, but Ace remained unresponsive, his face having an unreadable expression. "Are you DEAF? R-release...me!!" "Why should I?" Ace questioned and waited until the Granian’s breathing reduced. At this point, his whole body had become blue and cold to the touch. In so much pain but no strength to speak, Grania remained on the ground, completely at the mercy of Ace.
[Pulse Breaker Skill: Deactivated.]
[Level 44>>>Level 45]
"It would be unwise of me to kill you now." He smiled and left, leaving Lord Grania breathing and grunting for dear life. The Granian Emperor was bathed in fear at this point but at the same time, he was pleased with Ace’s progress. Even though he was close to meeting death, he still rejoiced within himself for the progress the Human was making.
’We will return to our former glory soon.’