The man wore a badge that celebrated his bravery within the Derma Layer, and on his shoulders, one could find the golden embodiment of a symbol that showcased his position within the Golden Index. There were three levels between a City Defender and the highest-ranking Soldier.
Associates were depicted by no symbols. City Defenders had five fingers. Soldiers had anywhere between four or three depending on their strength. Three were the strongest, much like the one standing before them.
Captains had two, and finally, the Underbosses possessed only one finger, symbolizing their ranks as being the literal fingers of the hand that was the Golden Index, as well as being the metaphorical hand of Carpalis.
“They’re doing their job thoroughly. Just rude.” Jury answered in Frost’s stead, annoyed by what she saw as a slight towards Nav. She reached out to pat Nav’s head through her cap, humming: “It’s not weird at all~”
Their supervisor shot the people in question a glare that shouted: ‘Do you not realize who the hell they are!?’ as he apologized once again.
“Please forgive them. Everyone’s on edge after the disasters. Doesn’t help that only just last night we’ve been hit by a Dungeon in this Sector. I’ve ordered them to be extra vigilant, so that fault lies with me.”
Frost had already forgiven them. She was surprised. Shocked even to hear that D-J had suffered from an Impuritas attack. Curious, she asked:
“Isn’t this Sector supposed to be immune to Dungeons?” Her eyes moved to the inner walls that closed off the compound they found themselves in, seeing nothing out of the ordinary as the tall spires were left mostly untouched.
“You’ll see it when you get past. Big holes from heavens knows where.” He said, referring to the pores where Impuritas usually flooded out of.
He then began to escort them towards a glass-mirror building that served as the official checkpoint. Along the way, and after several tens of meters walking along the black-bricked paths, Frost asked if it was the doing of the Animals.
But to her surprise:
“The fact that no one saw anything makes us think the Scourge has us in their sightlines. Those mind-fuckers. Problem is that they manifest themselves to some people like the Wandering Healers. The Eyes used to detect them easily but we’re blind now and gotta start relying on Succubae to sniff them out.”
The Fractured Nilhim. Sounds like they have CogitO’s tech on their side.
“Or it may be an ability of theirs rather than the effects of a stolen tech. There is little known of the Fractured Nilhim even within the Collection.” Nav immediately answered. “They seem to target the mind. CogitO is the same.”
Frost asked what the Scourge were like, and the only response she gained was that they were the manifestations of people’s nightmares, thoughts, and dreams. The Corrupted immediately came to mind, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Instead, the Scourge were known to break people down and were the source of spontaneous breakdowns. They passed through the wide interior of the glass building, watching the stars shine through the translucent ceiling before they reached the other side and were greeted with the astounding stretches of civilization.
But before that – just in the foreground – were the holes that the man spoke of. There were less than a dozen and were oddly tiny. Even Frost would struggle to fit inside. Each were found at the base of a palm tree, and there she saw CogitO’s Repenters and their Harrower shoveling dirt to fill the hole.
| Harrower | ||||
| Soul Rank: X | Atelier: Oboros Infinitas | ||||
| LEVEL : X | ORIGIN : Human | HP : 450 | ATT : X | MAG ATT : X |
| MP : X | ATT DEF : X | MAG DEF : X | RESIST : 25 | AGI : X |
The Harrower was an individual that wore a black suit and the green symbol of a bitten apple, found woven into their shoulder. The patch was beautifully crafted, and the woman in question oversaw the hole-filling from afar with crossed arms, her eyes with an inhuman number of bags due to the restless nature of their work.
That suit had specific details that differentiated them from Receptionists and the Moons. Namely, the tie was green to symbolize the sin of Gluttony, and the under shirt of their two-piece suit was also in a similar color.
Green symbols of a dragon devouring its tail could also be found on their collar, and the buttons of their suit.
Somehow, that suit reminded Frost of the one Raoul wore when they first met. She didn’t remember it clearly, but she was certain that his buttons possessed similar details to theirs.
| Repenter | ||||
| Soul Rank: X | Atelier: Oboros Infinitas | ||||
| LEVEL : X | ORIGIN : X | HP : 1,200 | ATT : X | MAG ATT : X |
| MP : X | ATT DEF : X | MAG DEF : X | RESIST : 30 | AGI : X |
The Repenters were far stronger than the Harrower, but they were subservient to them in a way. The Harrower called the shots and served as a manager for the collection of seven Repenters that worked themselves to the bone, audibly complaining as they appeared on the cusp of murdering one another.
They wore a similar apparel to the Harrower but possessed blue armbands with the red self-devouring snake printed on it. Surprisingly, they were noted to be working under Oboros Infinitas rather than CogitO as opposed to what she had heard.
CogitO in fact managed them, and just when one was about to swing their shovel to decapitate a companion, a surge of terror overwhelmed them, causing them to collapse onto their knees and begin wailing hysterically.
“… Not the kind of sight people of our City want to see. Oh, also, Stella has been looking forward to seeing you! Everyone has to be honest.” The man parted ways with them, exchanging goodbyes and good lucks as Frost’s eyes lingered on the wailing woman who inadvertently reached for the light of the stars above.
When in truth, what she reached for was the floating, living light of the City of Diamonds.
“The Nex generation is substantial. Can you imagine how much Nex they can accumulate when they Corrupt?”
… I’d feel sorry for them if they weren’t bad people. But seeing them from the outside makes me feel sorrow. However…
Frost ignored the scene as she recalled the Gambit Teams that harvested the spinal fluids of the healers. She remembered the Syndicates that left people to pickle in preserving juices for years on end.
Such people were not allowed to be given the luxury to forget what they had done.
Jury’s ears flapped to the sound before steadily falling down flushed against her head. It had always been like that, but somehow, they appeared saddened by the ordeal. They ventured past them, wandering deep into the city of Gold as they followed the trail towards the one tower that was a cut above the rest – Carpal Tower.
The man wore a badge that celebrated his bravery within the Derma Layer, and on his shoulders, one could find the golden embodiment of a symbol that showcased his position within the Golden Index. There were three levels between a City Defender and the highest-ranking Soldier.
Associates were depicted by no symbols. City Defenders had five fingers. Soldiers had anywhere between four or three depending on their strength. Three were the strongest, much like the one standing before them.
Captains had two, and finally, the Underbosses possessed only one finger, symbolizing their ranks as being the literal fingers of the hand that was the Golden Index, as well as being the metaphorical hand of Carpalis.
“They’re doing their job thoroughly. Just rude.” Jury answered in Frost’s stead, annoyed by what she saw as a slight towards Nav. She reached out to pat Nav’s head through her cap, humming: “It’s not weird at all~”
Their supervisor shot the people in question a glare that shouted: ‘Do you not realize who the hell they are!?’ as he apologized once again.
“Please forgive them. Everyone’s on edge after the disasters. Doesn’t help that only just last night we’ve been hit by a Dungeon in this Sector. I’ve ordered them to be extra vigilant, so that fault lies with me.”
Frost had already forgiven them. She was surprised. Shocked even to hear that D-J had suffered from an Impuritas attack. Curious, she asked:
“Isn’t this Sector supposed to be immune to Dungeons?” Her eyes moved to the inner walls that closed off the compound they found themselves in, seeing nothing out of the ordinary as the tall spires were left mostly untouched.
“You’ll see it when you get past. Big holes from heavens knows where.” He said, referring to the pores where Impuritas usually flooded out of.
He then began to escort them towards a glass-mirror building that served as the official checkpoint. Along the way, and after several tens of meters walking along the black-bricked paths, Frost asked if it was the doing of the Animals.
But to her surprise:
“The fact that no one saw anything makes us think the Scourge has us in their sightlines. Those mind-fuckers. Problem is that they manifest themselves to some people like the Wandering Healers. The Eyes used to detect them easily but we’re blind now and gotta start relying on Succubae to sniff them out.”
The Fractured Nilhim. Sounds like they have CogitO’s tech on their side.
“Or it may be an ability of theirs rather than the effects of a stolen tech. There is little known of the Fractured Nilhim even within the Collection.” Nav immediately answered. “They seem to target the mind. CogitO is the same.”
Frost asked what the Scourge were like, and the only response she gained was that they were the manifestations of people’s nightmares, thoughts, and dreams. The Corrupted immediately came to mind, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Instead, the Scourge were known to break people down and were the source of spontaneous breakdowns. They passed through the wide interior of the glass building, watching the stars shine through the translucent ceiling before they reached the other side and were greeted with the astounding stretches of civilization.
But before that – just in the foreground – were the holes that the man spoke of. There were less than a dozen and were oddly tiny. Even Frost would struggle to fit inside. Each were found at the base of a palm tree, and there she saw CogitO’s Repenters and their Harrower shoveling dirt to fill the hole.
| Harrower | ||||
| Soul Rank: X | Atelier: Oboros Infinitas | ||||
| LEVEL : X | ORIGIN : Human | HP : 450 | ATT : X | MAG ATT : X |
| MP : X | ATT DEF : X | MAG DEF : X | RESIST : 25 | AGI : X |
The Harrower was an individual that wore a black suit and the green symbol of a bitten apple, found woven into their shoulder. The patch was beautifully crafted, and the woman in question oversaw the hole-filling from afar with crossed arms, her eyes with an inhuman number of bags due to the restless nature of their work.
That suit had specific details that differentiated them from Receptionists and the Moons. Namely, the tie was green to symbolize the sin of Gluttony, and the under shirt of their two-piece suit was also in a similar color.
Green symbols of a dragon devouring its tail could also be found on their collar, and the buttons of their suit.
Somehow, that suit reminded Frost of the one Raoul wore when they first met. She didn’t remember it clearly, but she was certain that his buttons possessed similar details to theirs.
| Repenter | ||||
| Soul Rank: X | Atelier: Oboros Infinitas | ||||
| LEVEL : X | ORIGIN : X | HP : 1,200 | ATT : X | MAG ATT : X |
| MP : X | ATT DEF : X | MAG DEF : X | RESIST : 30 | AGI : X |
The Repenters were far stronger than the Harrower, but they were subservient to them in a way. The Harrower called the shots and served as a manager for the collection of seven Repenters that worked themselves to the bone, audibly complaining as they appeared on the cusp of murdering one another.
They wore a similar apparel to the Harrower but possessed blue armbands with the red self-devouring snake printed on it. Surprisingly, they were noted to be working under Oboros Infinitas rather than CogitO as opposed to what she had heard.
CogitO in fact managed them, and just when one was about to swing their shovel to decapitate a companion, a surge of terror overwhelmed them, causing them to collapse onto their knees and begin wailing hysterically.
“… Not the kind of sight people of our City want to see. Oh, also, Stella has been looking forward to seeing you! Everyone has to be honest.” The man parted ways with them, exchanging goodbyes and good lucks as Frost’s eyes lingered on the wailing woman who inadvertently reached for the light of the stars above.
When in truth, what she reached for was the floating, living light of the City of Diamonds.
“The Nex generation is substantial. Can you imagine how much Nex they can accumulate when they Corrupt?”
… I’d feel sorry for them if they weren’t bad people. But seeing them from the outside makes me feel sorrow. However…
Frost ignored the scene as she recalled the Gambit Teams that harvested the spinal fluids of the healers. She remembered the Syndicates that left people to pickle in preserving juices for years on end.
Such people were not allowed to be given the luxury to forget what they had done.
Jury’s ears flapped to the sound before steadily falling down flushed against her head. It had always been like that, but somehow, they appeared saddened by the ordeal. They ventured past them, wandering deep into the city of Gold as they followed the trail towards the one tower that was a cut above the rest – Carpal Tower.
