The Acknowledgment - Volume One

Frozen Wonderless Land

                On the road, Billy took a ride from River, in a luxurious Mythical Dungeon Association car. "Nice ride," Billy complimented from the back seat. "Not nice enough for an S-rank such as yourself, sir," River replied, driving the vehicle himself. "True, especially since you're driving slow. It'd be faster to run," Billy jokes, as they hit 100 miles an hour on the highway, going uphill. "Anyways, what happened to my brother's funeral?" Billy asks, looking out the window. "It was kept a low profile. Unfortunately, we weren't able to retrieve his body," River explained, "Would you like to visit the mortuary, sir?" He asks. "Nah, I have no interest in the dead. What I'm interested in is the trash he left behind," Billy explained, popping his knuckles. "Then, where would you like me to take you?" River asks. "Where else? To a dungeon of course... To find those assholes. As pathetic as they are, if they're raiders, they'll be there," Billy replied with a sinister smile on his face. "There are many different dungeons in Klato. How do you plan on locating them?" River asks, sweating a little bit. "Not a problem. This is the 31st century," Billy replied. "E-rank, Winter Greats, looks like he just entered a dungeon," He looked at his phone. "Let me remind you, dungeons have a different set of rules. The laws of society don't apply. I trust you understand what I'm saying," Billy stated sinisterly. "I think you might have to spell it out for me, sir," River replied. "I'm telling you to mind your own business, River. Whether or not I bury that guy inside a dungeon is my choice, got it?" Billy explained. "Yes, sir," River replied.

                Deep within the Collapsing Dungeon, the strike squad of 12 members found themselves in a clearing of a tundra. In a panic, they looked around their surroundings, an expanding forest of pine trees covered in snow. "Where are we?!" One asks, "This doesn't look like a dungeon!" Another added. Murmurs rushed from one person to another, "Where's the way out?!" the first asks, looking back from where they felt they came from. "I don't sense any suspicious movement.," Winter thought, looking out into the trees, his eyes glowing aquamarine. "We must have been transported to another dimension of sorts," he thought, standing in front of Stella. Suddenly, a frozen arrow flew towards her. In that same moment, Winter caught the arrow just an inch from her face. Screams from others filled the air, as another Mythic was struck by another frozen arrow. "What the hell! We're being ambushed!" Chattered one in a panic. "Up in the trees! That's the one attacking us!" Another pointed to a much larger tree. Winter's vision zoomed into them, his eyes turning orange as focused on the elf figure. "Ice elves?!" A third asks in a panic. "An ice elf. I couldn't sense their presence because they were so far away," Winter thought, still holding onto the arrow. To the touch, it was cold, and the ice it gave off began to spread up his hand and arm. "Those who have never encountered these creatures are called Ice elves," Ultima began, "but I call them by another name," It explained. "Unlike the beautiful name, 'Ice elves,' this name means these creatures use brutal methods to hunt down their prey," Ultima continued. The elf who had fired the arrow smirked with an insane look in their eyes. "Hyakki," Ultima explained.

                "The entrance is shut tight. This isn't good. Wasn't this supposed to be a C-rank dungeon?" Beak asked after placing his hand up against the collapsed entrance. "It was, sir," Jonah replied. "Have you tried contacting the association yet?" Erik asks, looking back at Jonah. "I have, but they just keep telling me they were sure this was a C-rank gate," Jonah explained. "Damn pricks," Erik growled. "A Collapsing Dungeon only appears in high-ranking dungeons. There's another world beyond this portal, but it's emitting mana waves that are equivalent to that of a mere c-rank dungeon," Erik thought, staring into the portal. "Something is not adding up. This portal in front of me is at the very least B-rank. If we're unlucky, it could even be an A-rank gate, or perhaps even higher," Erik thought. "Should we try measuring the mana waves using the mana meter again, sir?" Jonah asks. "A dungeon that has already turned red won't emit any more mana waves, so it's impossible to measure. As of now, there's no way of knowing exactly what rank this gate is," Erik explained to Jonah. "How many of our Mythics went inside?" He asks, "A total of 12, sir," Jonah replies. "How many are high ranking?" Erik asks again. "An A-rank, Charles is the leader and seven B-ranks," Jonah explained, "One A-rank and seven B-ranks..." Erik mumbled to himself. "Will our recruits be okay?" Chul asks with deep concern. "This gate is most likely B-rank or A-rank. An S-rank dungeon would put the entire country into a state of emergency but they're rare, so I can rule out that possibility," Erik thought. "If this Collapsing Dungeon is B-rank, they'll need at least 3 more A-rank Mythics. If it's A-rank they'll either need one or more S-rank Mythics," Erik began. "Which means... If the Gate is A-rank, or higher, the Mythics in there are as good as dead. Two to three A-rank or B-rank Mythics might be able to make it outlive if they're lucky," Erik explained with a straight, serious face. "One other person entered the gate," Jonah began. "Who was it?" Erik asks, "He's a Mythic that I've had my eyes on for a while now," Jonah explained. "A Mythics you've had your eye on?" Erik began. "Yes, sir," Jonah nodded. "What is his rank?! A, or B?!" Erik asks. Jonah did nothing but shake his head. "Then are you saying that an E-rank hunter went in with our recruits?" Erik asks. " I don't know," Jonah replied, awkwardly sweating.