Lord Of Beasts

{Gate Takeover Initiated}

{Gate difficulty increased from C- to B- Rank}

{Gate entrance has now been sealed and will remain locked until the Boss Beast is defeated}

The hoarse and powerful voice echoed throughout the giant underground chamber.

There was silence, then chaos erupted among the Titled squad.

”What the hell was that?!”

”Did you all hear that?!”

”The Gate-!”

”It’s gone!!”

Ethan’s head snapped toward the entrance.

The swirling rift they had entered through was gone completely without a trace; all that remained around them was solid rock.

”What the fuck is going on?!”

Panic spread instantly, voices overlapped as fear and confusion overcame many of them. Some staggered, while others raised their weapons, spinning around as if expecting something to attack at any moment.

And that hit Ethan even harder than the voice itself had.

’They heard it too.’

His heart almost leapt out of his chest.

That voice wasn’t just in his head, but had truly reverberated around them.

”That’s not possible...”

A cold weight settled in his chest as a troubling realisation dawned on him.

’That means the system can affect reality.’

The thought threatened to shake him, but then again, hadn’t it been doing so already?

Everything about his Title was unique: from the Tower, to his beasts that were a part of him and his variety of skills. That was without including the system interface itself, which gave him objectives and rewards.

All of it existed beyond just his mind and had tangible outputs that he just accepted since they benefited him.

’So this was all planned...’

His eyes darkened slightly.

The objective to enter a gate hadn’t just been random; it had been leading him here, to this exact moment.

Around him, the panic only grew worse.

”This has never happened before!”

”We’re trapped!”

”How on earth does a Gate suddenly change rank?!”

Even the higher ranks looked shaken, which was the most terrifying part. If they didn’t understand what was happening, then no one did. But Ethan didn’t have time to dwell on it.

More notifications appeared before him:

{Objective 1: Survive the Gate}

{Objective 2: Evolve one Beast to C Rank}

Seeing them, he just sighed.

’I was obviously planning on surviving anyway, and evolving a beast to C Rank will happen eventually, so I’ll take the free rewards.’

But the simple objectives just unnerved him more and left him with more questions than answers, his mind already racing.

’What’s the system up to?’

’Why now and this specific gate? Would this have happened no matter what gate I entered?’

’The gate is B- Rank now, there’s no way it thinks I can do it alone. Even a C- Rank is beyond me. So am I meant to let these fuckers around me do the work?’

None of it made sense.

But there was one undeniable thing, whether he liked it or not, he was at the centre of it all. Before he could think about it any deeper, a voice cut through the chaos.

”Everyone shut up!”

It was Darius, the B Rank.

His presence alone forced the noise to die down slightly, and his expression was tense but focused and commanding.

”We don’t have time to panic,” he said firmly, scanning the group.

”The Gate changed. Fine. We adapt.”

His grip tightened on his spear.

”The exit’s gone, and that means one thing.”

His eyes hardened.

”We clear this Gate, or we die here.”

The silence was heavy.

There were no more illusions of safety, and this was no longer a routine gate clearance. This was something never seen before, and could cost them their lives.

And as Ethan stood there among them, watching quietly, it became painfully clear that he was just like the others. Despite being certain he was the cause of it all, he still had no idea what the system had in store for them.

This wasn’t normal, but it wasn’t random either.

’It feels... engineered, just like Floor Zero had.’

Whether it was designed specifically for him, or simply manipulated in a way that dragged him into something far bigger than he understood, he couldn’t tell.

And that uncertainty sat heavy in his chest.

The only thing he could be sure of was that there would be beasts in this gate.

But even with less to go on, Darius stood firm.

The B Rank stepped forward, spear planted against the ground with a sharp clang, his presence cutting clean through the rising panic.

”Everyone, listen to me.”

His voice was steady and commanded attention, with even the most shaken among them turning toward him.

”Panicking gets us nowhere,” Darius continued. ”We will fight like we Titled always do.”

He scanned the group, jaw tight, his composure wavering slightly.

”To be honest, this situation is abnormal. But that doesn’t mean we give up and die here either.”

The harsh truth resonated with them much more than any fired-up pep talk would have. His squad anxiously nodded their heads along as he continued speaking.

”We’ve seen and lived through so much, not to die here.”

Darius paused for a moment, letting that sink in.

”We will all be going home soon to our friends and family, with a fat bonus after this experience.”

Ethan watched him closely, and beneath the strong facade, he could see it all: the slight tension in his grip, the sheen of sweat at his temple, the subtle shake in his voice.

’He’s as scared as the rest of us, but he’s just good at hiding it.’

Even if it was all an act, Ethan respected and appreciated it.

In group endeavours, morale was a massive factor in success, and he was doing a good job of raising it, even if only slightly.

Then came what mattered most.

”Our previous plan still stands,” Darius said firmly. ”We split into our previous groups and explore as small units before returning to this starting point.”

His gaze hardened.

”If this Gate wants to test us...”

He lifted his spear.

”Then we will prove we’re not prey!”

Everyone began cheering, the panic dulling and hope returning to the squad.

They split into their groups and began making a move, but it wasn’t long before they lost that little hope that Darius had ignited...