New Game+

Days before the scheduled fight against Meng took place, a strange meeting was happening.

The awakened Seeker Carlean sat at the table and continued to eat. An array of various foods was placed before him.

He continuously consumed the dishes in front of him as if his stomach were bottomless.

"So that's basically it." Arthur finally finished detailing everything that has recently happened. Arthur had given an extremely detailed report as to what had happened, their actions and the enemy's reaction.

"Um… Shouldn't we be celebrating and telling everyone that Seeker has awakened?" Kristine finally couldn't help but ask as the two didn't have any intention of telling the rest.

"No." Seeker and Arthur chorused.

"This is the first time that we can urge them to fight on their own. The mental preparation before the actual fight would be the best training ground for them to finally grow up mentally." Arthur explained.

"Yes. They have to be mentally prepared for death. Without it, they won't have any hopes at reaching Ranked Hero." Seeker smiled as he gave to the lovely Kristine.

"I'm quite pleased that Lennox managed to recreate Piercing: Valkyrie. Bet you're thrilled to get on that suit.

Kristine smiled.

"You bet I am. Although... I just hope I would be able to control it properly to minimize the deaths of Meng's soldiers."

"Just do what you can do. It's better for Meng's soldiers to face this threat. So much more awaits them. We can use this terrifying ordeal to see which one of them has the potential to go beyond Unbecoming or Inhuman." Seeker smiled back.

"Now that you brought it up... That brings me to my first question. How is it that you've managed to find a lot of people with the potential to be a Ranked Hero?" Arthur inquired.

"So you've finally noticed." Seeker smiled mysteriously.

"Noticed what?" Kristine gave a confused look.

"Making a Rank Hero is extremely hard. It's almost impossible." Arthur summarized.

"I initially argued that the reason why Meryl and Lynd reached their current and future standing is because they were innately geniuses. But now, Cliff surfaced. He's Path seemed to be forming at such an early stage. I even suspect Alean to have already created her Path as well."

"Alean has a Path?" Kristine was surprised.

"She was able to survive Lander's attack. Don't underestimate that man. He's fighting skills surpasses both Lynd and Meryl. If it weren't for the fact that he's just at Unbecoming Advent, he'd probably be the strongest and most experienced soldier we have. But despite that, he wasn't able to defeat Alean."

"True. It's good that we have the Hero of Helion's Tragedy. He didn't fare well in the future and died even before the Aragarian's arrived." Seeker smiled.

"What's Alean's Path?" Kristine asked.

"I spoke to Lander after the battle. He kept talking about not being able to find the right rhythm. Alean's attack was strangely accurate. She seems to be developing a Path similar to Richie's instincts."

"Oh. So it's that? Did she develop that pseudo-path? Interesting." Seeker was surprised and fell into contemplation.

"What do you mean, Arthy?" Kristine turned to Arthur as Seeker was in deep thought.

"Meryl and Lynd could have been those flukes but now that those two are showing signs of being able to have a Path. Since our mock battle, I started to wonder. I am the son of an Overcomer. The things I've been through are terrifying that even Alean, who was born on slightly similar circumstances, wouldn't be able to survive a single day from the life I lived." Arthur explained.

Kristine was silent. She had known of Arthur's life before he reached Pangea.

"Yet even this only caused me to have a potential of the least amongst Ranked Heroes. How is it, that suddenly, there are two more. Alean would have had that possibility but Cliff? What exactly is happening?" Arthur called out to Seeker.

Seeker sighed and gave a light laugh.

"It was me." Seeker began.

"I'm not as useless as I thought I was. Apparently, I had a very eccentric Path. It was never confirmed in my past life but only postulated by my Master. Few actually knew of this. I walked a Pathless Path. My Path is being able to copy everything else another Unlocked has, except their unique Paths."

Arthur and Kristine listened silently to Seeker's explanation.

"I don't get it." Kristine gave a confused look.

"You copied the foundations, correct?"

"Exactly." Seeker smiled.

"Each Path causes biological changes to an Unlocked Individual. That's why no two Ranked Heroes or why no two World Champion sharing the same biology. Each of them will evolve on a specific path. But my Path allowed me to take the base foundation of each of their Paths. I couldn't get their Path, but the foundation they've laid that was possible for another Unlocked to develop on their own, I was able to copy."

"But how does this explain Cliff and Alean's growth? Charles said that implanting cells from people with higher Unlocking gave no benefits." Arthur countered.

"It's impossible for the cells of another Unlocked to merge with another Unlocked. That has been confirmed even on my future. And I did tell Charles about that. This is because the cells of every Unlocked has it's own Path to follow. And even if an Unlocked doesn't have a Path, the Road of his or her own personal beliefs, upbringing, tendencies, habits and other factors cannot cooperate with other cells. But I'm different. I never had a Path. You could say, my Road of beliefs were generic."

"So that means your cells can cooperate?" Arthur questioned.

"Yes. When everyone around me Believed in a Path, I simply Believed that I could reach the higher stages of the Unlocking. And because of that, my cells can be used by others as a foundation. I've been unconsciously sharing my cells in my past life. This led to Lynd and Meryl, who were by my side the most, to reach Ranked Hero and develop their Paths."

"I see." Arthur gave an understanding nod.

"Wait! Arthur, explain! I know that look!" Kristine immediately caught Arthur's nod which indicated that his thoughts were far away from Kristine's present standing.

"How did he mixed cells with them?" Kristine asked Arthur.

"Scent." Arthur answered immediately.

"His training method uses the Reaper's Breath to create near-death experiences. We've been through it. I've always had the potential to be a Ranked Hero so that's why I've managed to form my pseudo-Path quite quickly. As for Lynd, Meryl, Alean, Charles, and Cliff had spent more time with Seeker. That's how they managed to develop their Paths."

"Our advantage is that because of my memories, the cells that I've been unconsciously releasing are stronger and smarter than my previous life. It contains the very memory of my peak at Ranked Hero and therefore, passing it on is easier."

"So the reason why Meryl and Lynd managed to awaken their Path so quickly and reach an incredible level is…" Kristine finally understood.

"Right. I didn't know it yet. But my cells were extremely beneficial to them. Those two are my dearest friends. And I don't want to see them die. My thoughts continued to hold on to this thinking. And as I continued to cling to that thought, my cells must have pushed their Unlocking faster. That's how even Lynd managed to awaken the Reaper's Breath so early. It was so fast that it allowed Lynd to imitate my very stage and accidentally hit Inhuman." Seeker sighed.

"So you're to blame in that little accident after all?" Arthur gave a sarcastic laugh.

Kristine was shocked at Arthur's reaction when he laughed.

"It's pretty rare to see you quite happy." Seeker smiled.

"Of course. This opens a large possibility for us in the future battle. We now have a shot in winning the future."

"I hate to burst your bubble… But if you think we can build an army of Ranked Heroes, that's not possible. After all, in my past lifetime, I've had a lot under me, but the most they could reach is Surmounting Inhuman. So it's not as easy as it seems."

"Is that why Charles, who has been with you the longest hasn't developed his Path?" Arthur frowned.

"Yes. He fell short of the requirements." Seeker sighed.

"What requirement?" Kristine asked immediately.

"At this point, I'm simply guessing. But I think… it's faith."

"Faith? How can faith do that?"

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1." Seeker smiled.

"Thanks for the encouragement, Pastor." Kristine gave a sarcastic remark.

"The requirement is for the person to have the same faith that a Believer has but not on themselves." Seeker began mysteriously.

"Not on themselves?" Arthur frowned this time.

"Yes. I guess it's more of having faith in me?" Seeker laughed embarrassedly.

"Hosanna, Lord Seeker," Arthur responded unenthusiastically.

"I know it sounds strange. But hear me out. Lynd and Meryl, by any standards, do not have the capability to be a Ranked Hero. They didn't have the same experiences, resolve and mental fortitude that Ranked Heroes should have. And in fact, those two don't have the same faith Ranked Heroes or Believers should have." Seeker explained.

"I've suspected that." Arthur gave another understanding nod.

"Arthy?" Kristine turned to Arthur.

"Think about it. If Lynd and Meryl, who lived a peaceful and calm life, manage to become a Rank Hero because of having a simple faith that Believers have, then why is it that others can't? There could be a million others who would have this same faith that Lynd and Meryl has. But why aren't they capable of doing it?"

Kristine kept silent at Arthur's challenge.

"They lack all those qualities that Seeker mentioned. Think of it this way, Ranked Heroes should have at least the same experience I've been through. In fact, they have to have more. The thing I lacked is to have this Faith to produce even more impossibilities. That is why I should be at the bottom of the Ranked Heroes ranking. Meryl and Lynd had this strange faith to make impossibilities but they don't have the other qualities."

"Right. If it was just a matter of Believing, then we should have more Ranked Heroes. But the truth is, this child-like faith, isn't as child-like as it seems. Faith endures. It continues to hold on. It doesn't falter nor does it surrender. It hopes even in the hopeless, it believes even when there is no light. That is true faith. My question is, did Meryl and Lynd have that?" Seeker smiled mysteriously.

"You mean to say, they didn't have that?" Arthur frowned.

"I believe so. Meryl and Lynd didn't have that true Faith on themselves initially. But they had that faith in me. They always believed that I can help them. And that mindset made them accept my cells allowing them to make the impossible leap towards the higher stages of the Unlocking. Perhaps their faith in me, allowed them to have faith in themselves as the war progressed and ultimately, it formed their Path."

"Sounds… farfetched… Not to mention weird." Kristine couldn't help but giggle. Then she turned to Arthur and noticed his straight face.

"Arthy?"

"No. It's true. We have evidence to support that. How is it, both Meryl and Lynd, who are yet to face the horrors of war, managed to awaken their Path so early that it could even match Overcomers?" Arthur gave a simple question.

"More so, Alean and Cliff also displayed signs of having their own Paths. They could be potential Ranked Heroes now. We cannot mark the appearance of two more Ranked Heroes as a mere coincidence. Seeker is indeed the key." Arthur summarized.

"Right. Luckily, for some strange reason, you started to have faith in me as well, Arthy." Seeker laughed.

"Of course I have. You could save my sister. That's the ground of my Faith. Seeker, this revelation calls for one immediate action. There is another who we must push to become a Ranked Hero. I also think he can easily believe in you. If we succeed, he could be another Prophet."

"Of course. I was waiting for you to bring it up. Look's like I was right in getting a hold of him this early. Let's just hope he would indeed have faith in me. Call him up." Seeker smiled.

Back at the present, the battlefield outside the mansion became strangely still.

Everyone's eyes were affixed at something. It wasn't at the sudden destruction of the wall, it wasn't at the strange sounds they could hear in the depths of the mansion, it wasn't at Blur's sorry figure. Everyone's eyes were glued at the arrogant figure of Lowengren who was slowly walking towards One and Specter.

For reasons unknown and unseen by the Assassins, Clutch was laying on the floor. He had the same sorry figure that Blur had.

Blur was struck by lightning. When the Assassin's attention was captured by this surprise lightning strike, they only realized later, that Clutch also encountered a similar situation. But no one in the Dragon's Fang or even the nearby soldiers saw what happened because of the sudden demise of Blur.

"Surprised?" Lowengren laughed wickedly.

The assassins continued to give a warry stare at him.

Arthur saw it all. While everyone was focused on Alean's fight, Arthur had turned his attention to observe the other fight.

Clutch had an impressive technology to emit a strange mist that took shapes. Particularly it could become the shape of a strange hand. Clutch could ride the mist hand and move freely within it. It appeared to be in a gaseous state, but with the way it could smack a grenade out of the way made it look like it could solidify for an instance.

Yet this technology proved pointless. Clutch had yet to attack and reveal his technology when he was already defeated by Lowengren.

"What did you do to him?" One finally asked angrily. He knew it was pointless to ask, but his confusion and surprise got the better of him.

Lowengren simply continued to laugh evilly. Lowengren gave a quick look at Arthur and sneered.

Arthur was extremely annoyed. There was, however, a sense of relief that followed his annoyance.

"So it really is a Path. He really has the potential to be a Ranked Hero!" Arthur told himself. Memories of his own defeat surfaced once more.

Arthur finally confirmed it. Lowengren had more potential than Alean or Lander. The Second Prophet was born.

"I can't believe such a stupid attack could be so effective!" Arthur finally voiced out his complaint causing the assassins to ponder.

"Tsk tsk tsk... Still going by the book Arthy." Lowengren laughed.

The frustration inside Arthur was pilling up as Lowengren continued to give him a look of contempt.

"I had to give my limbs to bring down one assassin and he could do that with a damned flashlight?!" Arthur silently complained.