"As you may know, the act of ascending to a higher class rank increases one's overall capabilities, eventually surpassing the limits of what a human could achieve once one ascends to a higher class rank. Even the capabilities of someone at Level 10 would be enough to astound those at Level 1," said Riekan.
"However, those at Level 10 are still within those limits. Only those who ascend to Rank 1 and beyond are said to have broken past those limits and have become superhuman."
"Naturally, the higher one's level and class rank gets, the more unbelievable one's capabilities become. At some point, it wouldn't even be surprising for one to have the capability to fly at high speeds, or to shatter mountains into rubble with a single punch."
"Nevertheless, even that is child's play to those at my level of power, having already formed a connection with the world itself, allowing us to wield part of its might in every move we make." Taking a deep breath, Riekan continued as Valyr committed all of his words to memory.
"Of course, there are those who have gone beyond this level, transforming the might of the world into their own as even a single move of theirs would be enough to destroy half, if not the entirety of Veldanyr. Though those who achieved this level are few in number across the entire world, each of them occupy highly esteemed positions, all feared and respected by everyone due to their feats."
"Now, you might be wondering. What would call someone at this level of power?" Seeing Valyr enamored by his explanation, Riekan could not help but chuckle. "Well, this level of power has gained multiple names thanks to the passage of time, but for those at my level, as well as those who have surpassed it, it is only known by two names."
"Legends and Myths."
'I had a feeling he was at that level.' At the very moment Riekan had uttered the phrase that had last come out of his mouth, Valyr instantly knew that his hunch earlier was correct. After all, from Rank 1 to Rank 5, the ability to engage in combat by only relying through one's sheer aura was unheard of. Though there was a class that allowed one to be able to achieve similar results, being the Aura Fighter class, that still mostly relied on expenditure of mana.
Of course, there were other high-rarity classes that came to Valyr's mind aside from Aura Fighter that could explain Riekan's earlier feat. However, once those words came out of Riekan's mouth, all those previous thoughts were swiftly discarded as his eyes glistened with interest. 'Now, the question is… is he a Legend or a Myth?'
Although Riekan mentioned that Legends and Myths were at the same level of power, there were a few things that separated one from the other.
All Legends were at the highest level a Rank 5 class holder could achieve, being at Level 100. However, unlike normal Rank 5 class holders that have reached the peak, Legends had formed a connection with the world they live in, gaining partial authority regarding a certain element of the world that they had great understanding of. It was all due to that reason that Legends were regarded as dangerous existences, having the ability to fight even multiple peak Rank 5 class holders at once and emerge victorious.
As for Myths, their connection with the world was deeper, gaining full authority over the element of the world they had great understanding of. In fact, establishing a full connection with the world was the main reason Myths were vastly superior to Legends. After all…
Only when one had established a full connection with the world would one be able to break past Level 100 and ascend to the next rank, reaching Rank 6.
Indeed. Aside from the fact that all Legends were at the precipice of Rank 5, all Myths were at Rank 6, entering what Valyr and all the other players considered as true mid-game.
Unsurprisingly, once the thought of Legends and Myths passed through Valyr's mind, he could not help but think about the various methods he knew that would simplify and guarantee his chances of ascending to Rank 6 without much difficulties. However, he discarded all of those thoughts for now as Riekan had opened his mouth once more.
"Those who have formed a connection with the world are called Legends, while those who have transformed the might of the world into their own are called Myths," Riekan told Valyr, to which the latter nodded in response. "With that categorization, I would be considered a Legend, though I am quite near to reaching the requirements needed to become a Myth."
Hearing that Riekan was a Legend, Valyr committed the information to memory, though he could not help but find it weird that such a powerful existence was out in such a barren place. Then again, after recalling Riekan's earlier explanation as to why the dungeon was built, everything eventually made sense for him again.
"Well, my explanation ends there," said Riekan as he looked at Valyr. "Hopefully that was more than enough to satiate your curiosity."
"It definitely was." Valyr nodded in agreement. "Your explanation has definitely expanded my horizons."
"I'm glad to hear that." Riekan chuckled in response. "Do you have any other questions you would like to ask me? Preferably something I could answer without having to be vague."
Listening to Riekan's words, Valyr could not help but have a mischievous smile on his face, recalling Riekan's earlier mention that the dungeon he was in had been built 300 years ago. With such a thought in mind, it was quite easy to figure out what question Valyr was going to ask next.
"How old are you?" asked Valyr in an innocent tone. Hearing Valyr's question, Riekan's eyes could not help but slightly widen as he looked at Valyr with a knowing smile before scratching his head for a bit, causing Valyr to flash a cheeky grin.
"I know you're asking this in purpose just so you could remind me how much time has passed since I've been in this dungeon for the entire time it was here," said Riekan in response, which elicited an expression of shock to appear on Valyr's face as he had never expected Riekan to be in the dungeon for the past 300 years.
In his mind, since the man in front of him was a Legend, Valyr thought Riekan would generally be away from the dungeon and only check in from time to time. At the very moment he heard that, a pang of guilt washed over Valyr's body.
"Well… I haven't been really keeping track of my age ever since I've built this dungeon." Nevertheless, amidst the slight guilt Valyr felt, Riekan answered nevertheless. "I think I'm only a bit older than when Astarto Village was first founded. Around 30 to 50 years older, give or take."
"In any case, I think you've asked me more than enough questions, no?" Just as Valyr had kept a mental note to ask Alfaera how old the village was by the time he got out, these words came out of Riekan's mouth, prompting Valyr to pay attention.
"Well, let's end it here. Once again, I appreciate you for helping me take care of Riekan. From the moment I teleport you out of this place, this dungeon shall cease to exist, marking the end of a page that I've been stuck on for the past 300 years." As Riekan said these words, an expression of faint relief appeared on his face. Soon after, he conjured a magic circle under Valyr's feet, saying his parting words not long after.
"May we meet each other again in the future." With those words, a huge flash of light appeared around the magic circle as Riekan infused a great portion of his mana into it. Not long after, as the light subsided, all traces of Valyr being in the room earlier had disappeared, prompting a light smile to adorn Riekan's face as he let out a light sigh of relief.
"Hopefully, we'll be equals the next time we meet again."
