A 4-Star Gate

"Samanta Barrei." Blaze replied to Magnus with a name.

But Magnus did not receive any Scrolls to confirm that Hiding Rats II was completed. Thus, Magnus instantly made two hypotheses.

The first was that Blaze had given him a fake name.

And the second, was that Blaze hadn't given him all of her names.

He was close to the truth, but the final step was so far away. The Trials had not yet deemed his accomplishments sufficient.

It made sense.

Since it was also likely that Blaze would try to hide her identity as someone from Emerald Twilight. The hardest name to figure out would be her title in the organisation. Especially now, when her faction was waging a secret war against the Josuera Clan.

—Unless of course he joined them… But that was a recipe for death. Complete and utter death.

All if his bodies would be weakened and eventually eliminated.

"Well then, Miss Samantha. I never expected that we would meet again like this." Magnus forced a smile despite his thoughts.

He then looked around,

"Everyone. I'm Magnus Avary. I hope you will forgive me for suddenly pulling you all into the air without prior notice. I must have disturbed the thrilling sensation of fighting for your life. Things were pretty dire down there and—"

ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!

The ghost dragon suddenly took flight at that moment, interrupting his speech.

"It seems like we need to flee further away…" Magnus eyed the rapidly approaching dragon. "Who is coming with me?"

Magnus watched as every single one of the people he saved dazedly raise their hands.

"….Very well." Magnus nodded.

Whoooosh!

Magnus took out his Golden Gravity Sphere and pulled everyone along using horizontal gravity.

The ghost dragon only snapped at them once before halting in midair. It seemed like something was stopping it from giving chase.

"It should be safe here…" Magnus saw this and surveyed the crowded streets below him.

He then gently laid the dozen or so people down on the ground.

Many of them collapsed when their feet touched the cold, moist pavement.

"I… I am alive…" They muttered before turning to Magnus and giving him a bow.

"Thank you, really."

"Thank you for saving my life."

"Thank you so much!"

Tears welled in the eyes of some while others were incoherent. Of course, not all of them had instantly thanked Magnus.

Some took a moment to recollect themselves, while some sighed in silence.

But eventually, just like dominoes, the rest of those who had yet to thank him all bowed, "Thank you for saving my life."

Magnus waved his hand at the sight of this. None of them knew it, but it was his actions that likely caused this. If there weren't so many people fated with the undead, perhaps a tragedy like that ghost horde could have been avoided.

Although there was no way to know for sure, Magnus kept that thought in mind.

…It might prove useful in the future.

Thus,

"I saved you all because it was convenient. No need to thank me." He said, professional and polite for the sake of politeness in and of itself.

He also hid the fact that he mainly saved these people because Blaze was among them. He had assumed it likely that Blaze would give him her name after helping her up into the air.

He thought he would be able to complete his Trial with it. But alas, it seemed lacking.

Magnus now had to think about what to do next as he rubbed the vibrating creature on his shoulder.

Javelin hadn't been targeted by the ghosts for some bizarre reason. And Magnus noticed this.

It likely had to do with the specifics of being a Spirit Beast… Perhaps it was due to his constitution or perhaps it was because of his shrunken state…

But that was now a distracting thought.

Blaze suddenly spoke up at this moment. She was the last one to give Magnus a curt bow, "Thank you for your help back there."

She combed her hair back with her fingers, "Your ability to fly truly makes me envious."

Magnus chuckled as he was wrenched from his thoughts. He looked around and spotted the signs of Undead Energy going on a rampage in the distance.

"What's going to happen now?" He asked Blaze, genuinely curious as to how powerful a city like Midseer was.

"Similar to the first Gate Overflow, it is likely that the Interstellar Trinity will act," Blaze replied, glancing at the same place Magnus looked at. "I have a feeling that the Gate that had overflowed this time is a 4-Star Gate. Especially since the weakest monster present is at the 2-star level. So, the Interstellar Trinity will send their garrisoned 3-star and 4-star fighters over to hopefully suppress the ghost horde. As for 5-star threats… I'm not sure when they will arrive."

"…I also felt that the ghosts were a lot stronger than they appeared. Thousands of 2-star ghosts and a ghost dragon… It's terrifying. My gravity doesn't work on them at all… But why would the 5-star fighters of the Interstellar Trinity be late?" Magnus tilted his head.

"Because they're very busy with Vanthos. They have to constantly clear the 5-star Gate or an Overflow might occur and annihilate the city… Honestly though, that's what they get for trying to monopolise it. They can't respond to emergencies in their own territory."

Magnus inwardly smirked upon hearing this, 'I hear a little schadenfreude there. It seems like the Emerald Twilight wanted a piece of the cake.'

Despite his thoughts, he made sure his expression stayed the same in reality. The only change was his look of revelation, "I see… does this mean that some factions might try and cause trouble at this point in time?"

Blaze blinked, seemingly in thought, "They might. You never know. I just hope that they give this ghost horde proper attention."

Magnus nodded upon hearing the undertones of worry in Blaze's sentences. "Indeed. On that note… Do you think the [Gatemaker] caused this?"

Blaze bit her lip when she heard that. She sighed, "The [Gatemaker]… I think so. They chose the side of chaos, after all. But it's a mystery how they could achieve such a thing."

"A mystery?" Magnus asked, but he seemed to come to a realisation, "Is it because of the strength of the Gate?"

"The strength of the Gate..? No… Close, but no. It's more like, how did they know that there was a Gate underground? How did they access it? A more concerning fact is that there are Gates underground in the first place!" Blaze shook her head, "Overflows will likely be very common from here on out. Even without the [Gatemaker]."

Blaze then looked at Magnus straight in the eyes, "You Earthlings have quite the tendency for chaos, don't you? The Trials can feel it and so, this is what they're giving us."

Blaze gestured vaguely at the darkness that rose into the sky. The roars of several ghost dragons now filled the air.

Magnus could only smile wryly, "Do we now? As an Earthling, I'm sorry."

It was at this moment.

POOF!

The sound of thousands of Scrolls appearing at the same time rang out. A stir was caused among the oblivious, curious crowd.

A Scroll even appeared for Magnus. It was written by his Scribe, foretold by the familiar seal.

With a swift motion, he unfurled the Scroll before him.

[[ Defense of Midseer ]]

[[ Here begins the chain reaction. As one of the people closest to the disaster's epicentre, you have the special right of participating in what is to come. ]]

[[ If the Apocalypse of Monsters has its way, Midseer is likely to fall. And you will fall with it. Investigate and search— look for the Gate that spawns the horde of ghosts. ]]

[[ Bear witness to its chaos-tinged grandeur. There, you may find answers and an opportunity. ]]

[[ You have three days. ]]

Magnus laughed a little upon seeing the text written on the scroll. 'Miss So-Young is becoming more Scribe-like as time goes on it seems. Is her Blessing not as useful as it was before?'

He felt that it was likely. The scale of things had changed. She was now a Scribe competing with other Scribes to keep their clients alive. They were also giving Trials based on the same occurrences.

Magnus' eyes wandered to the bottom of the Scroll.

There, a line caught his eye, making it shimmer.

[[ Reward: 3 Years of Extra Lifespan ]]

"So this is possible too…" Magnus muttered, loud enough for Blaze, who was nearby, to hear it.

"Are you talking about the lifespan reward?" Blaze smiled, "There are even Resurrection Scrolls out there so a small increase in lifespan is nothing. You still have a lot you have yet to see, Earthling."

"Resurrection Scrolls, huh," Magnus smacked his lips. "I want one."

Blaze laughed, "Everyone does."

A spiteful glint flashed through Blaze's eyes at this moment. She thought to herself, 'And as long as it doesn't create undead, I am fine with it.'

After chatting with Blaze for a bit longer, Magnus said his goodbyes. Time was short for him. If he stayed outside the Hivemind for an extended period of time, it was likely that that group of people could pinpoint his location.

"'Till we meet again, Miss Samantha."

"Mm, you have a bright future ahead of you, Magnus. Stay alive. The Trials you will face aren't kind." Blaze waved the Scroll she just received, "Just like this one."

It seemed like Blaze's Scroll wanted her to do something different from Magnus. The reward had been similar, but the objective was different.

Magnus had found this interesting and expressed his curiosity about it. Blaze had answered him with the words, "Such are the Trials we are forced to face. They are different, yet similar for everyone. The only time we Otherworlders work together is when we fight for a world. Other than that, we are like cogs in a machine; each with our own role to complete."

'As if the Otherworld Trials themselves were trying to achieve something,' Magnus had thought, but he quickly shook his head.

Such thoughts were too deep for the problems he had to deal with now.

He would digest Blaze's words in the future.

For now, he had to figure out how to catch a glimpse of a 4-star Gate that was underground and likely swarming with 4-star monsters.

'I first need to wait.' Magnus thought to himself as he watched the crowd around him stirring. Everyone was heading to complete their Trials.

'Once things settle down a bit, I can act.'

"Wait, Magnus!" Blaze suddenly came running back to him at that moment.

"Take a picture with me," She said, holding her MagiPhone. The innocent smile on her face paired beautifully with her seductive features.

Magnus blinked.

"Okay."