53. Dead Battlefield and Rules

A dense layer of radiation fills the ground, blanketed in ash-coloured snow. In the middle of this desolate landscape stands a black pyramid, shaped like an isosceles triangle and encircled by a tall, fortified wall. Above the sharp apex of the pyramid, a blue spark flickers, casting a faint glow that ignites an energy shield stretching across the structure.

Midway up the pyramid's sloping side, a wide black glass panel reveals a glimpse inside: a meeting room with a striking red crystal table at its centre, rectangular and polished. Eight people sit around the table, with one person seated at each narrow end and three on either side of the long edges. A lone man stands beside one of the narrow-end chairs, his back to the glass panel, watching over the gathering in stoic silence.

Everyone in the room sits upright, their postures rigid and faces solemn. All are dressed in formal attire, save for two exceptions: one man seated at the narrow end facing the glass panel wears a military uniform, a stark contrast to the rest. Directly opposite him, another the man in the simple T-shirt sits, back turned to the meeting table, his gaze fixed on the desolate landscape beyond the glass panel.

Jose, standing beside him, announces, "Sir, General Sasaki has arrived."

Without turning, the man responds casually, "Sasaki, let them know why I called this meeting."

"Yes, Lord Martin," Sasaki replies.

Martin sighs, "Sasaki, we used to go by first names before I reached A-rank. You can still call me by my name."

Sasaki nods, "Yes, Lord Martin."

Martin rolls his eyes but gestures, "Alright, start the meeting."

Sasaki begins, "Yesterday, during the battle with Black Tower, we were forced into a truce." All eyes, except for Martin's, who remains indifferent to the meeting, shift sharply to Sasaki as he speaks. "The reason: a strange domain appeared in the middle of the battlefield."

Faces around the table turn wide-eyed, and Madelyn, with growing unease, asks, "A brand new domain formed there, or...?" A nervous energy fills the room as everyone silently hopes for the first possibility, dreading the alternative.

Sasaki holds their gazes, taking a steadying breath before answering, "An old domain has descended."

A wave of alarm sweeps across the room, fear and panic evident in many faces.

Leonard leans forward, voice tense, "Which one?"

Sasaki's answer is grim. "Dead Battlefield."

Diaz's face tightens. "Dead Battlefield – an S-Rank domain that moves unpredictably, like all S-rank domains. When it descends, it begins spawning monsters, from D-rank all the way up to A-rank. If we don't eliminate the monsters inside, they'll start spilling out, flooding the surroundings, and killing anything living in their path. The monster waves will continue to spread until either someone stops them or the domain relocates."

He pauses, the room tense. "The one silver lining," Diaz continues, "is that for the first month, the domain will only generate D-rank monsters. It won't produce A-rank threats until a year after its descent. That's what I found in the archives. Am I correct, General?"

Sasaki nodded grimly. "Yes, exactly."

Hei Shun asked, "So the army can't handle it alone until reinforcements arrive. Has headquarters confirmed they're sending support?"

Sasaki replied, "Yes, in one week, reinforcements will start arriving."

Elswell raised an eyebrow, "Then why the concern?"

Sasaki explained, "Dead Battlefield's D-rank monsters attack in swarms, overwhelming by sheer numbers."

Leonard frowned, "That's a serious problem. And what's the response from Black Tower?"

Sasaki's expression hardened. "They're withdrawing their forces, saying that the light titanium in the area belongs to us."

Diaz interjected, "But there is an agreement among all the forces in the continent that any S-rank domain should be managed jointly by forces in the area."

Sasaki sighed. "We reminded them, but they claimed they'd mistakenly crossed into our territory and offered Mireille City near our border as compensation. Now, their nearest settlement is 20,000 kilometres away—hardly close enough to help. "Hey insist that since the domain is within our borders, it's solely our responsibility to handle it."

Everyone scoffed, and Diaz muttered, "Shameless." This drew knowing looks from the other council members, aware that Diaz would likely do the same if he were in Black Tower's position.

Sasaki clenched his jaw. "This domain will drain our resources and manpower, and as long as it's here, our development grinds to a halt."

A tense silence filled the room, frustration apparent on every face—except Martin, who still hadn't given the meeting his full attention.

Sylvia broke the silence, "The good news is no forces will invade while the domain's in our territory. They know it's a threat to us all, so they'll provide support where they can."

Everyone nodded, reassured that one of their worries had eased, though they were fully aware of the horrors of S-rank domains; many tier-2 forces had been decimated or crippled by such domains, taking years to recover.

Martin finally spoke, "I have a solution," and he turned his chair to face the group, a 'old era' handheld gaming device in his hand. "Or rather, *we* have a solution." The council members recognized the "we" Martin referred to as the other three A-rank members of their ' Spark Technology'. Everyone listened with rapt attention.

Martin announced, "Every D-rank genetic warrior from this city will enter the domain until the nearby army start arriving. And any warrior from our country who fights inside the domain will earn merit points. These can be used as credit to buy anything they need, with merit points holding more value than standard credit. As long as the domain is within our borders, every five years, we'll tally the total merit earned by D-rank warriors from each city. The city with the highest merit will be awarded victory in the genius competition."

As everyone absorbed this, Martin scanned the room, "Does anyone have any objections?"

Seeing no objections, Martin gave a satisfied smile and called out, "Diaz."

Diaz straightened, worry evident. "Yes, Lord Martin?"

Martin's expression turned mischievous. "Diaz, you've changed. Back when I was just a B-rank genetic warrior, you questioned every decision I made. What happened?"

Diaz's face paled as he rose from his chair and knelt, his head lowered. "I'm sorry, Lord Martin."

Martin stood, walking over to stand before the kneeling Diaz. Everyone held their breath, eyes locked on the scene, while Diaz trembled in silence.

Martin paused, then said, "I used to enjoy that righteous look you'd have when you gave me trouble." After a moment's silence, he continued, "The meeting is adjourned. You'll decide our next steps from here."

And with that, Martin vanished.

----------

While this council meeting was underway, another meeting took place elsewhere—not above ground, but six floors below it, in a building within the police headquarters. In a spacious room with a sitting area, three girls sat together near two side rooms.

Siobhan looked over at Sky and asked, "Teacher Sky, if I break through to the Middle D-rank realm, where would I rank?"

Sky took a sip of her coffee. "You'd be within the top thousand."

Siobhan's face fell. "How many people will compete in the under-20 category?"

Sky replied calmly, "For the under-20 division, there will be over 10,000 participants." They continued sipping their coffee, each lost in their thoughts.

Sky's attention drifted to Lily, who had been unusually quiet since they arrived at the police headquarters, her gaze distant and absorbed in thought.

"Lily, what's on your mind?" Sky asked gently.

Lily glanced up, her expression thoughtful. "Sky, I've been meaning to ask you something. Before the competition—or in the near future—I'll likely reach peak D-rank. Since I plan to take the True Body path, I'm trying to decide which mystery I should focus on to break through to the True Body realm."

Sky nodded thoughtfully. "Most genetic warriors choose to comprehend a mystery aligned with their innate affinities. For example, Damian's genetic medicine comes from the bronze rhinoceros, giving him a strong affinity with metal and earth elements, so he chose metal to break through to the True Body realm. Sky continued, "For the Minor True Body realm, I chose the cold rule, which can be used by a C-rank genetic warrior to advance from the beginning to the middle realm. Now, I'm focusing on the heat rule to break through to the Major True Body realm. Eventually, to reach the Perfect True Body realm, I plan to comprehend a combined rule of cold and heat. By doing this, I do not have to comprehend any rule in C-rank, as I'll already have mastered the rules needed to break through each smaller realm within it."

Lily stayed silent for a while, then spoke seriously, "My genetic medicine is from a wind fox, giving me an affinity solely with wind. For the Beginning True Body realm, I'll focus on comprehending the wind element, then move to the sharp rule for the Minor True Body realm, the blunt rule for the Major True Body realm, and finally, a combination of the sharp and blunt rules for the Perfect True Body realm."

Just then, the sound of a door opening caught everyone's attention, halting their discussion. They turned to see Damian stepping out, a bright smile lighting up his face.

Lily grinned. "You've reached the beginning of the True Body realm!"

Damian nodded. "Yes."

Sky looked at him with interest. "How are you feeling?"

Damian replied, "Like my body is coursing with strength, and I could take on anyone."

Sky stood, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. "Let's test it out. A fight outside will show us how much your strength has increased and help you gain control over it."

Damian's grin widened. "Let's go." Sky and Lily rose from their seats, ready to join him.

Siobhan glanced around. "What about Rain?"

Lily replied, "It'll take him at least three hours to break through middle D-rank realm, and only one hour has passed so far."

Siobhan got up to follow them to the back of the building, where a large training arena awaited.

Sky and Damian took their positions on the field, standing face to face.

Lily counted down, "One, two, three—start!"

Neither moved immediately, assessing each other's stance. Then, Sky's hands shimmered as twin ice swords formed. Across from her, Damian summoned his metal gloves, a striking bronze and dark iron alloy, spreading across his body like armour until only his face remained uncovered.