Despite the existence of non-combat awakeners and their tremendous importance to mankind, there was always a special place for the strong in people's hearts. That's because whenever a dungeon break happened or a Monster Madness attacked cities, powerful awakeners were there to protect them.
Therefore, the ranking of the Magic Tower of Yearning was always updated in real-time online. Any change happening would be recorded by a machine and the text would be identified and translated to several news websites.
That's why the most popular entertainment industry for the people was the awakeners' lives. Their strength, their routine, their appearances, and anything related to awakeners was the focus of the people.
Analytics and investigators made a living by predicting any change in the hierarchy regarding the awakeners of the world. This was true for every rank out there, even the neo-rank. They would monitor the lives of potential candidates and how their strength would grow to predict who would come out as the strongest of each rank.
The Magic Tower of Yalen, one of the few magic towers in the world, was logically one of the focal points for such industry. After all, the ranking there was undisputable and the tower itself only allowed the strong to advance. This was clear by its rule that only those who completed the floors would be ranked, passing becoming a norm.
After a few days of the war happening on the Union's border, a piece of news made its way to every media agency out there. The crown prince of the Yalen kingdom would aim for the ranking of the Vetus-rank in the Magic Tower of Yalen.
This news was timely as the public interest was, once again, shifted toward this. Of course, movements demanding the royal family to be questioned for the latest war was still in full swing, but this news was a reprieve for the royal family.
After all, everyone admired strength. Despite being the royal family of the Union, the other two being vessels, the Yalen family was known not for its strength, but wisdom. That's why the betrayal of someone in their midst was a huge blow to their standing.
"Prince Caleb Yalen would aim for the ranking of the twentieth floor today. This news has been confirmed by the royal palace, stating that it has been planned for over a few months."
A reporter stood with the giant tower behind him. The Glory List, recorded on a giant slab hung on the tower, was in full view with names shining brightly under each floor. With how giant it was, every floor had room to list every ranker that has completed it.
There was a difference between completing a floor and passing it. Talented awakeners can pass a floor but only geniuses could complete it.
"As known to the public, the first-floor ranking is only for neo-rankers. From the second to the tenth, it's solely for rei-rankers while eleventh to the twentieth was for Vetus-rankers."
This was a TV broadcast and also live internet streaming. Many of the netizens of the internet discussed avidly among themselves. After all, the Magic Tower lists were always a testimony of strength and glory. People who ranked on this were their respective countries pride and joy.
"Prince Caleb would aim for the ranking list of the twentieth floor, the highest floor Vetus-rankers could contend for. Stay with us as we saw another name carved into the annuals of glory."
The prince had entered a whole day ago. Normally, the first twenty floors could take anywhere between a day and five for one of them to be cleared. It was a matter of suitability. The environment of the floor was a major factor in deciding the success or failure of the challengers.
"Since the prince had been preparing for this for months, we can expect his victorious emergence any time soon."
It was then that the Glory List glowed in bright light. Words started appearing on the list as everyone below turned their heads. This moment was always a sacred one, accompanied by silence. This was the birth of another powerful awakener.
Even though most of the people already knew who it was, they expectantly watched nonetheless. When the light dimmed out and the slab returned to normal, everyone tried to see the change in the twentieth floor's ranking.
"Everyone! The prince has finished earlier than we had expected! It seems this is the birth of another powerful awakener in the Yalveran Union. Now, let's see the ranking of the twentieth floor. This…"
The report's voice suddenly grew quieter. As the camera tried to search for the name of the prince, it was unable to do so. The audience, in their homes and behind the screens of their devices, was also bewildered.
The name carving ritual was unmistakable, but it seems that someone else has entered the ranking than the prince. This news was bizarre because no one predicted the appearance of a sudden character.
There were always rare cases that a hidden genius would emerge to the world. However, it was always accompanied by some promotion to the said genius. After all, everyone tried to grab attention to themselves since it meant more benefits. However, there was no news whatsoever that someone would be ranked today.
It took a few moments until someone pointed at the ranking of the first floor. It should be said that the first floor was the one that saw the fewest changes because of the challenge it posed. The monsters were focused on strength, agility, magic, and lastly the all-rounded Orc warrior.
"Someone… ranked first?" A tall man with sharp eyes blurted among the crowd. Chattering and disbelief ranged through the crowd and the audience. The reporter and the camera team hurried to shoot the first ranking of the first floor.
[Extrasort]
[Yurirl]
[Ina Vena]
In bright glorious letters, the name Extrasort has been inscribed. Roars of frustration rang in people's hearts as they realized that the person who had ranked first had chosen to use a nickname rather than a real name.
Nicknames were rare, but they could be found everywhere. Sometimes, prideful nobles chose to hide their rank to avoid being mocked. They would wait until they ranked in the top ten until they revealed their names.
However, it was extremely rare that someone who ranked first chose to leave an alias rather than their real name. After all, it was a matter of glory and recognition.
The crowd avidly chattered until their noise turned into a blanket covering the area. The reporter gritted his teeth and reported anyway.
"Ladies and gentlemen! We have witnessed history. The first floor of the Magic Tower of Yalen has been cleared by an unknown individual."
Rather than the expected news of Prince Caleb's rank, this piece of news traveled far and wide in the world. After all, the first rank was taken away from someone who was known as a genius by everyone.
Yurirl of the Sword.
Despite it being a few years since Yurirl has ranked first in the Magic Tower, it has never changed all these years. Geniuses challenged the first floor as neo-rankers but none of them managed to outrank Yurirl, who was known as the Divine Swordsman.
Yurirl was a member of the strongest guild in the world, God's Blade. He was one of their most promising newcomers and a potential candidate to inherit the guild in the future. That's why this news of him being beaten, albeit a few years late, still made ripples in the world.
In one hour, the name Extrasort made the top trending names searched online. Every news and intelligence agency started vying to be the first to unearth the identity of this monster.
Would the world see another Yurirl? That question was on everyone's mind. As for the new of Prince Caleb's ascendance in the rankings, while it was still relevant and extraordinary, was of little importance.
When the ranking of the Twentieth floor changed, listing Prince Caleb as the 13th ranker, very few people had the mind to care. That's why when he emerged, he didn't receive the applause he had expected. The scene was familiar. It was like the ball two days ago.
***
Disappointed by the strength showed by the Orc warrior, Arthur left the first floor. He had the mind to challenge the second floor, but he decided against it for now. He didn't know how dangerous it was to challenge the second floor as a neo-ranker, so he left it at that.
After he returned to the wide ring beneath the cloudy blue sky, Arthur reviewed the message he received from the tower. He hoped he would level up, but he was still a short distance away.
"One gold ticket has been obtained. Do you wish to redeem this?" Was the tower's message. Arthur grinned as he eyed the harvest this time. It seems whenever someone ranked first, he would get a golden ticket.
Arthur pondered and realized higher floors should give more tickets. The more tickets you use to redeem an item, the more powerful it would be. That's why he decided to pocket the ticket for now.