The Primal Hunter

Question of the day: what happens when a Planetary Core breaks?

Nothing good would be the short answer. For a more detailed answer, it was all a bit more complicated, with many factors in play. One of the main factors was the method by which the core had been broken.

Breaking it through pure power wasn’t something a C-grade was capable of. Not even a B-grade would be able to accomplish it, which quickly made Jake write off that the dead planet had its core outright destroyed. Instead, it was likely a method of more subtle means that had been deployed.

Jake knew annoyingly much about planet-wide sacrificial rituals due to Villy and his constant semi-joking, and one of the primary methods of doing such a ritual was using the core. The Planetary Core functioned as the wellspring of mana and energy for the entire planet, and it was what held the entire thing together. Corrupting it would thus lead to the corruption of the whole planet, and using the core as the catalyst for a massive ritual to kill every living being on a planet was truly the best method.

When the Planetary Core was transformed into a Planetary Pylon, things got even more complicated still. From Jake’s talks with Kindroth and Miranda, he learned that it was entirely possible to use their influence and control over the Pylon to mess with it. Miranda even mentioned that one could likely rig the entire planet to blow only using the control granted by the Planetary Pylon.

This wouldn’t be something that could happen in a day, though. Not a few months, either. This was why Jake was so confused about what had happened to the planet now turned black on the map. It was especially confusing why this creature known as “I” had done it. It had been the only living creature on the planet… why would it have to go out of its way to seemingly spend the last three months also destroying the core?

All that would accomplish was to make sure the planet would never recover. That no new life would appear. It would effectively just turn it into a giant dead rock, susceptible to the destructive forces floating in the universe, as one of the primary functions of the core was to maintain and regulate the atmosphere, and with that gone, it was open season for all kinds of meteorites and whatnot.

Jake was wracking his brain as to why anyone would bother with that, as the Sword Saint did offer some potential explanations.

“Is it possible the core was absorbed or transformed in some way? Perhaps this “I” was capable of devouring it?” the old man proposed.

“That isn’t possible,” Jake shook his head. “While there are creatures that can consume Planetary Cores out there, we would be utterly fucked if we were dealing with one here, as the power required to do something like that is ridiculous. If some kind of ritual had been used to absorb the core’s energy it would also have taken way longer than a few months. No, the core must have been corrupted somehow.”

“Would a C-grade truly be capable of such levels of magical corruption?” the Sword Saint questioned.

“I would be capable of doing it,” Jake just answered in a dry tone, earning him a judging glance.

“What? I didn’t say I would do it,” Jake muttered. If he remembered the work he’d done alongside Temlat and his study of planetary rituals the Viper made him do for funsies, he believed that if he used Eternal Hunger as a catalyst of corruption along with-

“Naturally, you would never do anything so crass,” the old man cut off Jake’s thoughts. “The question still remains, though. Why would someone who’d already taken control of their planet choose to destroy it?”

“The only explanation I can find is that it’s part of this creature’s Path. Clearly, it isn’t some unintelligent beast, as it requires more than just raw power to corrupt a core, especially when one considers that it must have entered the Prima Vessel after killing the Guardian, teleported to the core, and then done whatever it did there… in fact, the mere fact it was capable of doing that must mean this creature was the World Leader,” Jake frowned.

“Doesn’t that mean it’s enlightened?” the Sword Saint raised an eyebrow.

“I would assume so unless there are system rules we are not yet aware of,” Jake sighed. It was entirely possible there were rules or exceptions, especially on planets with so few people on them. Either way, this entire situation was one they had to watch closely.

“Definitely make sure Miranda doesn’t accept any applications from this creature to visit,” the Sword Saint said in a semi-joking tone, shaking his head. Ɍã𐌽ȰᛒËṤ

“If I really had to tell her something like that, we would have even bigger problems to deal with.”

The two of them stayed there a bit longer, talking about the latest planets they had visited. No one else came to the Prima Vessel during this time, which was to be expected. Only people from Earth who had gone to help other planets used the Vessel, and they didn’t even have to do that anymore if they didn’t want to.

Originally, they didn’t have any plans of making a Prima Guardian Alliance teleportation circle to allow people to visit Earth from other planets in the Prima Guardian Alliance, but after some further deliberation, they made one anyway. In their first plan, Miranda wanted to send people to the planets they “saved” in order to not expose Earth to potential bad actors or to give away too much about their homeworld and its peculiarities. After the entire Ell’Hakan fiasco, people also weren’t that keen on the potential of people affiliated with the enemy Chosen sneaking in.

However, it quickly became clear Jake and the others were just too damn efficient in their work, and there was no way Miranda or those she trusted could keep up. When they established this new teleportation circle, they wanted it far away from the Prima Vessel. Making the circle had been incredibly easy as the system had made it to be, and they placed it in a secluded small city with teleporters capable of taking the visitors elsewhere on Earth while not taking them straight to Haven or another major city from the get-go.

As an added bonus, Arnold commented this process of making the magic circle had been beneficial for his research. So definitely worth it.

“I should head out again,” the Sword Saint said after they spoke a bit more. “Can’t fall behind Ell’Hakan and his alliance.”

“True, true,” Jake nodded, also preparing to go help out another world. The thing about keeping up with Ell’Hakan also wasn’t a joke. His alliance was clearing planets fast, and while Jake honestly didn’t have a complete overview of who had done more, he had a feeling the other Chosen wasn’t that far behind if he was behind at all.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

So, nothing to do but get back in the saddle and kill some more would-be word-ending bosses as if they were some annoying chore that had to be dealt with.

One thing did definitely suck. As was already touched upon, the Prima Guardians had just gotten easier and easier with time. Not only did this mean Ell’Hakan’s alliance could clear planets more easily with their elite teams, but it also meant that Jake’s experience gain had flatlined.

Maybe he shouldn’t complain too much, though… 3 levels – or 4 if he counted the first one on Olliandra’s planet – wasn’t bad progress at all in only three months.

’DING!’ Class: [Arcane Hunter of Horizon’s Edge] has reached level 294 - Stat points allocated, +50 Free Points

…

’DING!’ Class: [Arcane Hunter of Horizon’s Edge] has reached level 296 - Stat points allocated, +50 Free Points

’DING!’ Race: [Human (C)] has reached level 286 - Stat points allocated, +45 Free Points

’DING!’ Race: [Human (C)] has reached level 287 - Stat points allocated, +45 Free Points

System events were well-known for having what were effectively hidden experience amplifiers, primarily due to the many Records associated with any event. Knowing this, Jake wasn’t sure if he should be happy or sad about his level gain, though he was fairly certain he wouldn’t really get more than one, maybe two, more, even if he killed hundreds more Guardians.

While there certainly were extra Records associated with the event, Jake was still killing monsters he could pretty effortlessly slay, and their levels were only dropping the further the event went on. The uniqueness of the Records gained also reduced with every Prima Guardian kill, as while every Guardian was different, they still had many of their Records in common.

Killing one Prima Guardian was impressive… ten was incredible… but a hundred and it just turned into a regular unnoteworthy hunting trip. Jake effectively felt like a hunter regulating population numbers, with the desired population number of Prima Guardians equalling zero across the galaxy.

Jake saw the Sword Saint walk off as he quickly referred to the updated list of planets looking for help made by Kindroth and the associated code he was meant to put in the application description. With it mentally noted, he went toward the teleporter, ready to kill yet another Guardian and save yet another world. Truly not too dissimilar to a regular day job.

Kindroth smiled as he looked at the city called Haven, admiring its simplicity. The touch of magic was surprisingly light compared to his own world, but that did have its own charm. What was also very charming were the people of the planet. They were indeed an interesting bunch, from the monsters to the enlightened, who were quite frankly also rather monstrous in their own rights.

Miranda, the Court Witch, was also something of an interesting figure. He would readily admit she was more powerful than he was, and while she still had much room for growth in her role as the de facto leader of the planet, she was adequate, if still lacking. Unsurprising, considering her young age as a human. They only lived for a few decades before the system, after all. As an elf with quite a few centuries under his belt before the integration even arrived, he had relied on the wisdom of age during much of his Path.

Because of the value he put on wisdom, Kindroth did find it confusing why the Court Witch was the leader in the first place. While their interaction had been brief, Kindroth had met the swordsman people called the Sword Saint – a title nearly as arrogant as his own. Never had he thought he would meet a human from this new universe who made him feel like a young man once more, nor to meet someone so wise from age. This Sword Saint was a frightening existence in the eyes of Kindroth, possessing not only power but extreme political prowess and insight. If he had been the leader, it would have been fully understandable.

Sure, he was a member of this World Council and clearly held a lot of influence, but it would just make more sense if he was the dominant voice. From what Kindroth had gathered, though, the swordsman hadn’t sought the position of leader but wished to focus on his blade. An odd sentiment, but likely what was required to reach his level of power.

Speaking of power… the Chosen of the Malefic Viper. Jake Thayne. Kindroth had spent a good while with him but still couldn’t get a full read on the man. He seemed simple. Oddly uncomplicated for someone of his status. If not for his overwhelming power, and the unsettling feeling he gave off when he looked at you, Kindroth could easily have confused him for a regular hunter. Clearly, he was far more than that, though.

The primary reason he was sure of that was due to Ell’Hakan. The Nahoom was the most self-assured and confident person Kindroth had ever met. Yet the elf had felt it when the Chosen of the Malefic Viper was mentioned during their meetings. There was a level of apprehension and doubt when it came to dealing with the hunter.

Then, there was, of course, the title of Harbinger of Primeval Origins. A title not claimed or taken by the hunter but granted and cemented by the system. Kindroth still wasn’t entirely certain what it meant, but he did know it was related to the fact a True Royal and two other monsters of extreme power seemed to have been born or evolved into what they were due to this power.

For the Chosen to hold powers like that and also appear like a simple hunter was… puzzling.

As Kindroth was stuck in thought overlooking the city, he soon got a message that Jake had left the planet and where he’d gone. When Kindroth saw the planet he’d chosen, he couldn’t help but let a small smile creep to his lips. Finally, the time had come, and he muttered to himself as he looked at the setting sun in the distance.

“And thus the impetus takes flight.”

The scalekin lizard World Leader felt excitement in his heart when he heard they were next on the list. He had quickly gone to fetch his queen, a winged beastkin, and her response was equally elated and relieved.

They needed the help, and they needed it badly.

Their planet had, to put it nicely, not been united leading up to this Prima Guardian event at all. They had a mix of so many different races and could never truly get along and form one cohesive society. Before the system arrived, half of the world had been at war with one another, and the fact everyone got stats and power only escalated things. Entire races had already been wiped out or enslaved, and the fighting was far from done.

The only way the lizard man had managed to become the World Leader was because they had to pick one, and at that stage of their conflict, he had been the most influential. Since then, he had lost and gained power, with overall everything a mess.

It was so bad that many on their planet hadn’t taken the entire event seriously, even if the scalekin and a few other leaders had tried to make them. Despite the Primas ravaging the planet, the war hadn’t stopped... in fact, some factions took advantage of the chaos caused by the Primas to try and assassinate influential or powerful figures in other countries.

As things were going, they were headed toward destruction. It wasn’t even certain the Prima Guardian needed to be released before they tore themselves apart. The only slightly positive thing was that some stability had begun to emerge in the last month and a half as factions banded together. The scalekin World Leader managed to leverage his position to gather a coalition of smaller forces, and in response, other factions had also come together to oppose him.

But then… then everything turned to shit. During all the commotion, no one had kept the Prima Guardian Alliance teleportation circles a secret, meaning many different factions had their own. This didn’t seem like a big problem until one day, it suddenly was as the coalition that opposed the scalekin called in help from across the stars. The permission settings had been messed up for sure, as the scalekin had incompetently just not thought about it, which was the cause of his downfall.

In a single week, the scalekin was branded a usurper who had unrightfully claimed the title of World Leader. Two other World Leaders had appeared on the planet, and as things were, things were bleak… until the Voice of the One reached out.

He gave them hope. They had believed that fighting the opposing coalition would be impossible due to who they had allied with, but now the scalekin saw a chance.

For who would be better than the alliance formed by the Chosen of the Malefic One to defend them against those backed by the Celestial Child?

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