Chapter 65: C-rank Hero At Last
First and most important of all, Lance explained everything that the lady had said to him. Including what Theo might already know about the ranks being just a potential, and the Tower ranks being a secret.
But he approached it with more detail than the man had.
Theo inhaled as he digested all the information, and it was a bit overwhelming and uncalled for. The chair he sat in was too soft for a conversation like this. There was a paper clip near the edge of the desk that had come loose from a stack sometime during the last hour, and he had been looking at it long enough to have opinions about it. When all he just wanted to do was find a cure for Thall and smash Jupiter Lady’s head on the elevator door, he never would have imagined that the world bore far more complexities than his fragile mind expected.
But he was sharp enough to understand that he was not the center of the world, and wasn’t even vying for such position.
Although the explanation that Lance was giving him was quite disturbing and scary.
"The power to become a God sounds like a lot of expectations, Aide Lance." Theo chuckled as he responded to the man.
"I know right, but I put it to you, that it isn’t. This is what the rankings are for, and even the people in the Tower pay attention to the rankings outside the Tower, because this is where the diamonds in the rough are made."
Theo leaned forward until the seam of the desk pressed a line across his forearms.
"So you’re saying, I have the potential to through circulation art, reaching the Divine Realm, where one basically transcends the human limits."
Lance nodded.
"Of course, it’s not just as easy as it is stated, Circulation is something that is very difficult, and all based on your Circulation art, there are arts that need certain resources to grow, and when you get to Realms like the Grandmaster Realm, the Saint Realm, the Sovereign Realm, your circulation art slows tremendously and it is sometimes very difficult to go past these Realms and enter the Divine Realm. But at the very least, having SSS-rank potential says, you can enter that place."
Theo slowly recounted the man’s words, turning each one over the way he turned over a bill before he paid it.
"So therefore it places a target on my back."
The Aide nodded.
Theo sighed and suggested.
"Can we hide it then? I really don’t want to get targeted by a God, maybe give me a C-rank hero license."
Aide Lance had wanted to suggest those very words to Theo, but had been reluctant to, and seeing Theo suggest it himself shocked him a little.
Because it showed him that Theo was not the kind of person that was chasing fame, or glory. It seemed as though it really was as he said. The man across the desk had asked for a smaller name the way other people asked for a smaller portion, without any performance in it at all.
’He’s just looking for a cure for his wife, I guess. But that is another trouble, cures for a cancered Mana Heart is impossible to find... or at least take a God to find one.’
While Aide Lance knew such in his mind, he kept those words to himself. He believed it was not in his place to undermine Theo’s goals.
The Tower for one, was an esoteric land of endless possibilities, and the barrier was broken when one placed their foot in that place. He could either die or achieve his goal.
The man nodded.
"I’m glad you mentioned it yourself, but isn’t C a bit too low? You can at least settle for a B or A."
Theo thought about it for a moment and shook his head.
"That just means I’m closer to the ruckus does it not. Besides, I understand that what I intend to find will most likely not be possible without offending some kind of people. And I want those people to look at me like a cockroach. Undermine me and not prepare for me in any slightest way, that is how I’ll be able to win without having a backing isn’t it?"
Aide Lance was surprised. His pen had stopped somewhere in the middle of a word and stayed there.
’He’s thought about it that far?’
He laughed a little and leaned back into his seat, and the chair took the weight with a small complaint.
"If you have considered things well, then there isn’t much that I have to tell you. I will give you the C-rank Card, and also give you an S-rank Card, in case you need to access certain privileges in or outside the Tower."
Theo nodded politely and shyly.
"You don’t have to..."
"Please let me, Mr Theo. I can see you have no intention of letting the Hero Association take care of you based on your words, I guess you’ll be staying away from the Agencies too."
Theo nodded sternly.
"Yes."
Aide Lance pressed down on his lips and smiled.
"That’s good then. A Lone Hero will be a very rough path, never hesitate to reach out to me if you need anything. Perhaps, we can build a friendship independent of the Association."
Theo nodded at his words, spaced out for a moment and then spoke.
"Is it okay if I ask you a question?"
Aide Lance’s posture visibly improved. The loose tie stayed loose, but the slump came out of him.
"Yes, sure, go ahead."
"Have you climbed the Tower? What floor did you stop?"
Lance smiled, and leaned back.
His smile though was thin and somber.
"I did climb and managed to reach floor 14, in five years."
Theo sat forward again with his hands flat on his knees, the way a boy sits when the story is finally getting to the part he came for.
While Lance suddenly grew extra shoulders.
"You should see me in my prime, people called me a prodigy, and thought I was going to advance towards the Grandmaster Realm in no time."
"Oh, wow, you do look strong actually."
The man grinned.
"Right?"
A second later though, the grin drained from his face. He straightened the papers in front of him that did not need straightening.
"But before I got the chance to, floor 14, happened to me, I was lucky to survive it, after I recovered, I didn’t want to go to the Tower again."
Theo looked at the Aide pitifully, making him slightly discomforted.
"Oh please, do not look at me like that. I’m fine now, I’m more useful here than in there, and having the President is enough. There’s Chainsmoke too, so we’re blessed to be honest."
Theo nodded keenly.
"I see, then what Realm of Mana Circulation did you manage to reach, Aide Lance."
Lance responded with a thick tone.
"Second stage of the Master Realm. That is just below Grandmaster you know. Third Stage and I might have made it to the Grandmaster Realm."
Theo nodded as the Aide responded. He looked at him.
"Can I ask more questions?"
Aide Lance readjusted his position, getting ready for the barrage. He also moved the water glass to one side, as though the barrage might come with gestures.
"Of course."
"So what rank is the president, who is this Chainsmoke person, what rank are they and is it possible to advance outside the Tower?"
The Aide smiled and nodded.
"This is good Mr Theo, you’re asking the right questions. The President is a Grandmaster, and he has managed to reach the 35th floor. He’s a monster. Chainsmoke, well, Chainsmoke is our other SS-rank, and he recently just became a Saint, and entered the 40th floor. As for your last question. No, it is impossible for you to advance your circulation once you leave the tower. Don’t worry, you’ll understand it once you enter into there."
Theo nodded again, cataloging every response properly. Floor thirty-five. Floor forty. Fourteen, and a man who never went back. He set the numbers down beside each other in his head and did not like the shape they made.
"Can I ask more questions?"
Aide Lance visibly got more excited.
"Of course!"
"Can you tell me things about floor 1, what I need to be careful of and watch out for? You said we’re friends right? So you can share these sort of information with me."
The Aide chuckled dryly.
’This guy is slicker than I expected.’
This was information that got traded, in offices with better chairs than this one, for money or for favours owed. And yet Theo wanted it for free, and had built him a friendship ten minutes ago to hang the request on.
Still, Aide Lance found it hard to turn the guy down for obvious reasons, and he spent a long time feeding Theo some info on what to expect once he entered the Tower.