บท 10: Chapter 10: Familiar and Strange
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The sun had barely risen when Valerius rode out to the gate, flanked by his retinue of knights and guards. The chill of dawn clung to the air, and the land stretched out in misty silence. Ahead, the shimmering outline of the gate loomed in the distance, a swirling vortex of power that connected their world to the unknown.
Valerius kept his eyes forward, his mind still reeling from the meeting with the emperor's sister the previous day. He had yet to unravel the emotions she stirred in him—Valerius' emotions, not his own—but there was no time to dwell on that now. The gate awaited, and with it, the beasts that threatened the empire.
As they drew closer to the gate, Valerius' sharp eyes took in the scene. Soldiers were already gathered at the site, preparing for the hunt. The air was thick with tension, the unmistakable hum of mana swirling around the gate. The beasts could emerge at any moment, and everyone was on edge.
He dismounted, his movements fluid and controlled, despite the inner turmoil that still gnawed at him. Rhoan was at his side, ever vigilant, ever loyal.
"The gate has been restless, my lord," Rhoan said quietly, his eyes fixed on the vortex. "The beasts have been more aggressive these past few weeks. The soldiers are anxious."
Valerius nodded. He could feel it too, the rising power from the gate, the subtle shift in the atmosphere. There was something different about the mana flow today, something that made his skin prickle with unease. He had been to this gate many times in the game, had faced the beasts that emerged from it. But now, standing here in the flesh, it felt... different. More real. More dangerous.
As he approached the gate, his eyes scanned the landscape. The soldiers had set up barricades, weapons at the ready. Mages were positioned at the front, their hands glowing with the promise of destructive magic. Everything was as it had been in the game. The strategy, the formation, the anticipation—it was all familiar.
Yet, there was something unsettling in that familiarity.
Valerius turned his gaze to the horizon, where the first sign of movement caught his eye. The gate shimmered, and then, in a burst of light, the beasts began to emerge.
The first to appear was a creature he recognized instantly—a Dire Wolf, its massive form covered in dark, matted fur, eyes glowing with unnatural intelligence. In the game, they had been common enemies, fierce but predictable. Valerius felt a flicker of relief. He knew how to handle these. The soldiers moved into formation, their spears gleaming in the morning light.
But then, as more beasts poured from the gate, Valerius felt his heart quicken. Some were familiar, yes—the Shadow Bats that flew above, screeching as they descended on the soldiers, their wings slicing through the air with deadly precision. The Stone Behemoths, towering creatures of rock and earth, slow but devastatingly powerful. He had fought them all before, knew their strengths, their weaknesses.
But there were others—new creatures—that sent a chill down his spine.
One such beast was a twisted, serpentine creature that slithered from the gate, its body covered in sleek, iridescent scales that shimmered in the light. Its eyes were cold, calculating, far too intelligent for something so monstrous. In the game, no such creature had existed. Valerius felt a surge of unease. This was different. This was new.
The soldiers hesitated for a moment as they saw the unfamiliar creature, unsure of how to respond. Valerius stepped forward, his voice steady despite the tension in the air. "Hold the line!" he commanded, his telekinetic power surging through him, ready to act.
The soldiers obeyed, forming a tight defensive line as the creatures advanced. Valerius kept his eyes on the new beast, studying it with a calculating gaze. Its movements were fluid, almost too smooth for something so large. It was fast—faster than anything he had encountered in the game. And its scales... they reflected the light in a way that made it hard to focus on its exact position.
As the beast lunged forward, Valerius acted without hesitation. He extended his hand, and with a sharp flick of his wrist, his telekinetic power shot forward, slamming into the creature's side. The force was enough to send it skidding across the ground, but it recovered quickly, coiling its body and hissing in defiance.
Stronger than expected.
Valerius narrowed his eyes. This wasn't going to be an easy fight. But he wasn't unprepared. He had been gathering information, studying the gates and the creatures they produced. He knew that while some beasts were familiar, others—like this one—were entirely new, and likely more dangerous than anything he had faced before.
Behind him, the mages began casting their spells, arcs of lightning and fire streaking toward the beasts. The familiar sounds of battle filled the air, but Valerius' focus remained on the new creature. It was an anomaly, a wild card in a game that he had once believed he controlled. Now, he wasn't so sure.
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As the battle raged on, Valerius couldn't shake the feeling of disquiet. The beasts that emerged from the gate were, in many ways, as he remembered them from the game. Their patterns of attack, their weaknesses, even their ranks were all things he had mastered in his previous life. But the presence of new, unfamiliar creatures unsettled him. If the game world had changed, if the beasts had evolved or new ones had emerged, it meant he couldn't rely solely on his previous knowledge. He would have to adapt. And quickly.
The battle wore on, the soldiers and mages working in perfect synchronization, honed from years of experience defending the gates. But Valerius noticed that the newer creatures, the ones he didn't recognize, were testing the soldiers' limits. They moved differently, fought with a cunning that the older beasts lacked. These weren't just mindless monsters—they were adapting.
Valerius watched closely, his mind racing. He needed more information, needed to understand what had changed. The empire had always profited from the beasts—using their meat, their cores, and their hides in trade and crafting. The higher the beast's rank, the more valuable its remains. But with these new creatures came new opportunities—and new dangers. If they could be defeated and their cores harvested, they might offer even greater rewards. But if not... they could pose a far greater threat than the empire realized.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a soldier calling out. "The beast core, my lord!" The man held up a glowing stone, pulsing with mana. It was the core of one of the creatures they had just slain—a Rank 4 Storm Drake, another familiar foe. But the core's glow was brighter than normal, its energy more concentrated. Valerius frowned.
"Bring it here," he ordered.
As the soldier handed him the core, Valerius examined it closely. The mana contained within it was unusually potent, more than he had ever seen from a creature of this rank. Something was changing. The beasts were becoming stronger, their cores more valuable—but also more dangerous.
The implications were both exciting and terrifying. If the gates were producing stronger beasts, it meant greater profits for those who could harvest them. But it also meant the empire would face even greater threats.
Valerius' mind raced with possibilities. The nobles who owned gates would be competing fiercely for the new resources. The emperor would undoubtedly increase his own efforts to control the most profitable gates. And then there were the gods and demons, ever watching, ever plotting. They, too, would take notice of the changing tides. Valerius had to stay ahead of them all.
As the battle finally wound down and the last of the beasts were defeated, Valerius stood at the edge of the gate, staring into its swirling depths. His heart pounded with anticipation—and with fear. This world was not exactly as he had remembered it. It was familiar, yes, but there were cracks in that familiarity. New creatures, new threats, new challenges.
And if he wasn't careful, those cracks could shatter everything he had once believed in.
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That night, long after the battlefield had been cleared and the gate had fallen silent, Valerius returned to his estate. His thoughts were still racing, his mind filled with plans and calculations. He had seen enough to know that the world he had been reincarnated into was not exactly the same as the game.
The beasts, the gates, even the mana—they were changing. And if he was going to survive, if he was going to thrive in this new world, he would need to change too.
Slowly, carefully, and with all the patience of a true mastermind.
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End of Chapter 10
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