Chapter 15: A new s-ranker
Ini finally reached his former house, and as he opened the door, a wave of nostalgia washed over him. The familiar home, though very dusty, felt like a warm hug. He got to work, cleaning every nook and cranny, and after a refreshing shower and change of clothes, he felt like a new person.
As he stepped out of the house, he was about to call a taxi when he stopped himself. Taking a deep breath through the mask covering his nose, he jumped hundreds of meters into the air, feeling the rush of adrenaline as he began to fly towards the Warrior Association. The wind blowing on his skin was exhilarating, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of freedom.
A few minutes later, he saw the Warrior Association building in the distance. It was not what he remembered - formerly a cluster of tents and camps, now only a huge, tall skyscraper stood. He landed and proceeded inside, sensing that the number of people in the association had dropped drastically. He could only sense about 50 warriors.
Ini walked to the reception to ask the receptionist what had happened to all the warriors and why they were so few. The receptionist, thinking Ini was a newly awakened warrior, answered, "The warriors here are only here for supervision and guidance. The guilds have all the warriors. You'll be able to join a guild once you go through your evaluation. Please follow me."
Ini wanted to tell her that he was not a newly awakened warrior, but he decided to see if he was really an S-Rank warrior. Although he was trying to believe Tosak, it was better to confirm than to go into battle biting off more than he could chew. He followed her, and she led him into a room where Ini noticed the techniques had advanced.
The receptionist told him to stand on the platform, and he did. The machine began to hum as a circular part from the base began to rise from his foot up to his head continuously. The receptionist was staring at the screen with six bars for each of the levels from E to S. The bars began to light up, making a beep sound. _Beep_ The first level signified E-Rank, then the second beep, the third, the fourth, the fifth, and then the machine humming began to decrease.
The receptionist thought it was over and wished she could have awakened as an A-Rank warrior. When she awakened, she would be rich instead of watching other people get rich. But then, the machine humming increased again, and then _Beep_, the sixth bar lit up. The receptionist's eyes were wide open as she couldn't believe it - an S-Rank hunter. She was standing in front of one.
"Is it done now? What's my rank?" Ini's voice woke her up from her shock. She replied, "S...S...S Rank, sir." She became more respectful instantly. S-Rankers were at the pinnacle of warriors; they were like legends and had massive power. Being able to stand in front of one was a great honor.
Ini just muttered, saying, "I guess he was right. I really am an S-Rank." He then began to leave, but the receptionist quickly blocked him, saying, "Sorry, but could you meet with the Chairman before you leave, please? He'd like to speak to you." Ini nodded, allowing the receptionist to lead him to the office.
She knocked, and a voice replied from inside, "Come in." Ini entered and saw an old man whose hair had gone white with aging, but still had a strong presence. The man smiled, greeting Ini, saying, "Nice to meet you, Mr...." Ini replied, "Inioluwa." The Chairman then shook his hand as they both sat down.
He seemed to recall that the name sounded familiar, but he couldn't pinpoint where he had heard the name. The Chairman then asked, "Do you have any guild you want to join in mind already?" Ini thought of how to reply. Maybe he should take on a new identity, but he decided not to. If he died, they would believe he was hiding something, which he was.
He then said, "I'm not sure how it works yet. I literally woke up in the middle of nowhere this morning. I checked the date, and I think I've been in a coma for ten years." The Chairman saw something odd, remembering the case of the stolen body ten years ago. He then asked Ini, "Please lower your mask." Ini lowered the mask to his jaw line.
The Chairman used his computer to run a face recognition and pulled up his file. He checked it and saw it was really him, just more mature. He then checked the rank and saw he was a c ranker previously.
The Chairman's eyes widened in surprise. "You were a C-Rank before?" he asked.
Ini nodded. "Yes, I was a C-Rank fire mage."
The Chairman's eyes narrowed, and he thought to himself, this was an anomaly. Although some rankers reawaken it's just to a level above. No ranker has ever reawakened to two levels above but ini rose three ranks upward, not to mention that it was to the s rank. There were two possibilities: either Ini had been experimented on by an unknown organization and his memory of the last ten years had been wiped, or he had simply awakened as an S-Rank warrior. The Chairman believed the first possibility, but he didn't reveal his thoughts. Instead, he simply said, "You can go. A few weeks, and you'll know how much has changed."
Ini thanked the Chairman and left. As he walked away, the Chairman watched him, lost in thought.
---
Rumors began to spread like wildfire through the warrior community: a new S-Rank warrior had awakened. The news sent shockwaves through the guilds, each one scrambling to locate the mysterious warrior. S-Rankers were extremely rare, and having one on their side could tip the balance of power in their favor.
Guild representatives were dispatched to every corner of the city, searching for any lead on the S-Ranker's whereabouts. They questioned warriors, scoured the streets, and even resorted to bribing informants. The guilds were willing to do whatever it took to find the S-Ranker and recruit them to their cause.
As the search intensified, the streets began to buzz with excitement and speculation. Who was this mysterious S-Ranker? What kind of abilities did they possess? And which guild would ultimately succeed in recruiting them? The air was electric with anticipation, and everyone knew that the discovery of the S-Ranker would change the landscape of the warrior world forever.
Meanwhile, Ini walked through the city, oblivious to the commotion he had caused. He had decided to keep a low profile, at least for the time being. With his mask firmly in place, he blended into the crowd, just another face among the sea of people. But the guilds would not give up easily. They would stop at nothing to find him, and Ini's peaceful anonymity would soon come to an end.