SS Awakening: My Monster Merging System!

This is a bonus Chapter for the golden tickets. Thanks for your support, everyone! This next volume will be even more interesting!

...

Arthur, who had remained silent behind them, continued to say nothing. He had evidently known about these matters for a long time.

Yet even so, when Razeil truly spoke of them aloud, his expression still became somewhat solemn.

"So the Nullborn and Sorath are not what you call higher races?"

Zich asked.

"No."

Razeil shook her head.

"Just like humanity, they are merely races living within the lower levels of the Mountain of Ascension."

"In the eyes of some lower-layer races, your five races may already seem sufficiently powerful. However, in the eyes of the true higher races, your conflicts can at most be compared to immature beasts that have yet to complete their transformations, biting one another over limited territory."

"All five of you belong to the First Sequence of Lower Races."

"The Angel Race, to which I belong, is part of the Fourth Sequence."

The Fourth Sequence.

Upon hearing this phrase, Zich instinctively recalled everything he had witnessed during the tournament.

The Nullborn, whose bodies could seemingly transform into nothingness and whose movements were almost impossible for ordinary people to perceive, had already been considered near-invincible beings according to humanity’s original understanding.

Yet Razeil was now telling him that, whether it was the Nullborn or humanity, both were merely Lower Races of the First Sequence.

Meanwhile, the Angel Race belonged to the Fourth Sequence.

"How large is the gap between the Sequences?" Zich asked.

Razeil did not answer directly. She merely raised her right hand slowly.

No magic formation appeared above that pale, slender palm, nor did any earth-shaking energy surge forth. Only a thread of pale-golden light resembling a firefly danced gently upon her fingertip.

But the instant that light appeared, every hair on Zich’s body stood on end.

It was not because he could truly sense some horrifying power.

Quite the opposite. That strand of pale-golden light emitted no aura that could be perceived at all, but his body instinctively issued its strongest possible warning, as though he were standing before an incomprehensible level of life.

Arthur’s expression also changed slightly behind him.

The next second, Razeil gently flicked her finger.

The strand of golden light flew soundlessly into the sky.

The moment the light disappeared beyond the limits of sight, a perfectly straight passage of emptiness suddenly appeared through the evening clouds. Every cloud along its path seemed to have been completely erased from the world by an irresistible force, and even thousands of kilometres away, the golden trace piercing through the heavens could still be seen.

The entire sky had been divided into two by a casual flick of her finger.

Zich stared silently at the scar that refused to close.

For several full seconds, he did not speak.

Razeil, meanwhile, appeared as though she had merely done something utterly ordinary. The golden light upon her fingertip rapidly dispersed.

"This is not the difference between the First and Fourth Sequences."

She spoke softly. "This is merely the difference between you and me. And even among the Angel Race, I am still far from being considered a true powerhouse."

The wind once again swept across the platform, and Zich’s short white hair moved gently.

For the first time, he clearly realised just how insignificant the championship trophy he had just won truly was within this genuinely vast world.

Countless people across the First Layer regarded him as humanity’s future.

The major news outlets and forums had elevated his name above all others.

Countless people believed he had already reached the summit of the younger generation.

But in truth**, he** did not even fully understand what kind of world he was living in.

"Why has humanity hidden all of this?"

Zich slowly asked.

"Because of fear."

The person who answered was not Razeil.

It was Arthur, who had remained standing behind them.

Zich turned to look at him.

Arthur remained silent for a moment before slowly walking beside the two of them, his gaze also falling upon the empty arena below.

"Many years ago, when humanity first learned the truth about the Mountain of Ascension, the existence of the higher races was also made public."

"At the time, humanity had only recently completed its first large-scale Awakening**, and** the power we possessed was not even enough to guarantee the safety of every human settlement."

"Yet during such a time, people suddenly learned that countless races far more powerful than monsters existed above them."

"They could destroy cities with ease. They could cross between worlds. They could even erase an entire race from the Mountain of Ascension during a single war."

Arthur’s voice was calm.

But the calmer it was**,** the more clearly Zich could imagine what had happened back then.

"Panic. Riots. Cults. Mass exoduses. Some believed there was no longer any meaning in continuing to ascend the mountain because humanity could never catch up to those races."

"Others believed that armies belonging to the higher races were hidden within every layer, waiting to descend and exterminate humanity at any moment."

"Some even began worshipping powerful lifeforms they had never seen, regarding them as gods, and willingly destroyed city defences in the hope of obtaining so-called salvation."

"In only three months, the number of humans who died during the internal chaos exceeded the total number killed by monsters during the previous ten years."

Arthur slowly closed his eyes.

"From that point onward, humanity’s leaders reached an agreement with several higher races."

"Before we possessed genuine power to defend ourselves, ordinary people would only be allowed to know about the four other races existing on the same level as humanity."

"As for everything beyond the First Layer... That information would only be revealed to those who reached the required level and prepared to undergo Ascension."

Zich finally understood what Razeil had meant earlier.

Humanity had indeed upheld its side of the agreement.

Whether in school textbooks, Association records, or public networks, there had never been any information concerning higher races.

Even when the Chosen Tournament was broadcast to the entire world through countless projections, humanity had only been shown the other four races.

"Do the Nullborn and the others follow the same agreement?"

"Not entirely." Razeil took over the explanation. "Every race made its own choice. The Sorath and Keth know more about the existence of higher races because their civilisations were once interfered with by races of a higher standing.

"The Velhari worship strength, so they do not conceal everything completely. However, they only share such knowledge with adults who have earned the title of Warrior."

"As for the Nullborn..." Razeil’s pale-golden eyes narrowed slightly. "They may know even more than humanity’s leaders. That race simply never shares its secrets with outsiders easily."

The fully concealed figures of Nameless, Veyron, and Ainos involuntarily surfaced in Zich’s mind.

Until the tournament ended, not a single Nullborn had revealed their true face.

Zich could not even determine with certainty whether their bodies truly possessed fixed forms.

"Do you want to know what lies beneath the Nullborn’s cloaks?"

Razeil suddenly asked.

Zich did not conceal his curiosity.

"Yes."

"Then go and see for yourself."

Razeil chuckled gently.

"Once you truly leave the First Layer, you will eventually have the opportunity."

After saying this, she extended her hand towards Zich once again.

"Now, you should be able to give me your answer."

"Are you willing to become my student?"