The Primal Hunter

Jake got quite varied reactions from the different people in the room upon joking with Minaga. Casper smirked slightly, Carmen gave the Unique Lifefrom a friendly wave, Caleb looked a bit worried, Maria was still not entirely over the guy just popping into the room, and Jacob looked more confused than anything. Eron and the Sword Saint both looked relaxed, with Eron bowing his head slightly, making Jake more sure than ever that the guy knew something they didn’t about Minaga.

”A good joke begets repetition,” Minaga answered, still standing on the ceiling. ”Plus, it works every time, so why not keep doing it? Just because you are never surprised doesn’t mean others can’t enjoy the experience.”

Throwing the startled people in the room a glance, Jake smirked. ”They sure look to be enjoying your presence.”

”Who doesn’t feel happiness at my presence? Look at me, I am always in my own presence, and that has turned me into a very joyful and positive person,” the Unique Lifeform joked as he stopped sticking to the ceiling and did a flip before landing on the floor.

”For the record, Casper and Jake are both correct when it comes to their assessments of me. I monitor how people do my labyrinth to see places I can improve, but also to get a feeling for the general power level of the generation. It’s good research and valuable data,” Minaga explained. ”As for engaging with you while doing it… well, that is purely for entertainment purposes, of course! To add a unique flair of me to the experience, making my part of Nevermore truly stand out.”

”Does it not hurt the competitive integrity of Nevermore that you so openly interfere and engage with the individuals doing the dungeon? Especially as you take a subjective disposition toward each party, either becoming a helpful or detrimental force?” Jacob asked, looking to have gathered some courage with all of them present. He still did look pretty damn nervous just asking that question.

”Eh, nothing is ever perfect,” Minaga waved him off. ”With how varied the multiverse is, creating a truly balanced playing field is utterly impossible, and adding myself and my mostly meaningless commentary is such a small factor it isn’t worth mentioning. I have said it before, but if my talking and commenting are enough to throw you off your game and make you fail, then you have bigger problems. In other words, stop being so damn punctilious with how you think a dungeon is supposed to be run. The multiverse isn’t fair, and neither is Nevermore. What it does give is mostly equal opportunities, and so do I.”

”How is it mostly equal when some Paths are downright handicapped while others are assisted?” Jacob argued.

”How is it mostly equal when someone with a Bloodline or a Transcendent can walk in and ignore ninety percent of the challenges?” Minaga pointed out as he threw Jake a glance.

”How is it fair when some are not only immune but can use the fire energy of the Demon Lord to empower themselves?” he continued as he pointed at Maria.

”When others are borderline invincible, no enemy capable of breaking through their sheer level of durability or seemingly infinite health pool?” Minaga said, referring to both Carmen and Eron.

”Or… when someone is able to continuously resurrect a party member of theirs, allowing that party member to repeatedly burn their very life away to release suicide attacks over and over again?” Minaga finished, looking straight at Jacob.

”My point is that you can cry about equality or fairness from now till the end of the multiverse, and you will sound like an idiot all the way,” Minaga smirked. ”So embrace the unfairness and overcome it. That is how you become strong. I should know, seeing as I am a Unique Lifeform. I was born only being awesome and managed to overcome that fate to become amazingly awesome.”

”I, for one, commend assisting dungeon engineers,” Casper raised his hand.

”See, I have the crowd on my side,” Minaga smiled confidently at Jacob.

The Augur seemed to consider the Unique Lifeform’s words as he just sighed and nodded. ”Very well… it is ultimately your creation.”

”Exactly. But if you do have any grievances, you can file a written complaint after you have completed Nevermore, and I will be sure to read it. I am not saying I will do anything, but I do read every written complaint we get.”

”How many written complaints do you even get a year?” Jake questioned.

”Well, we don’t really count them by the year… but at least one every million years or so,” Minaga nodded. ”People just can’t be arsed to go through proper procedures to submit them, you know?”

”Pray tell, what are these totally reasonable procedures,” Jake smirked.

”Well, first of all, you need a written letter, right?”

”Right,” Jake nodded.

”And you need to go to Nevermore,” Minaga continued.

”Reasonable.”

Nevermore, you just have to do the final stop of handing the letter to the Wyrmgod or myself,”

”I am sure you two meet with anyone

take us for? We meet with all gods that come by within the very reasonable waiting time of a single second to a few eras, based on how much we like the god that showed up,”

are actually a god,” Jake

never did,”

I am pretty sure you just implied

and I deny all such

you were the one who

we were on the same team here,” Minaga muttered, looking all

at Jake. ”He is clearly not a god, and if you keep making

stood up and bowed. ”I apologize on account of my client – myself –

smiled wide as he clearly had fun. Still smiling, he looked around the room. ”Anyway, are there more questions? If not, then we must get to

as

to discuss the wonderful harem

the thirty-fourth floor?” Jacob began. ”That one was quite

everything that wasn’t a demon or the Prime Consort, and that was it. I am not saying that wasn’t allowed, just that it was thoroughly uninspired,”

guess

You didn’t even exchange a single word with any living being outside of that first demon,” Minaga pointed out. ”It was pretty damn good to see the sneaky boys strike like daggers from

then, glad you liked

would have been way better than trying to make friends with all those fuckers…” Carmen muttered in annoyance as she began to explain how they had

first Mistress you met because she tried to flirt with you,” Minaga said with a deadpan

tried to attack

tried to

constituted as an attack,” Carmen smirked. “But, hey, things ended

Secret Scrolls through that. Maria’s team turned out to have a demon on it, and

time and kill the Prime Summoner. All of the Mistresses and even the Guard Captain had witnessed the Prime Summoner try to sacrifice him, and the group managed to spin a tale where they had taken

some allies and enemies on the thirty-fourth, initiated a vote, and started an internal conflict

happened and even praised the Sword Saint for properly understanding the assignment when the floor was called a harem. They also all had a good laugh when Minaga took over and narrated Jake’s ”flirting” with the Prime Consort. Jake had to threaten Minaga to stop the Unique Lifeform from sharing a recording of the entire

to the last person in the room. Eron had been pretty silent, and the

your

powerless as he sighed before speaking. ”Well… the rules

not kill a single entity on that

there truly that big of

burn… and do not try to convince me that the original dull flames of their souls had any more meaning than what they do now.

bummer. Anyway, my objective here is done, and I guess I should leave you all alone again. See you all soon, and I hope you continue to enjoy your time in my little

left, the others also soon began taking their leave, with Jacob leaving first. The Sword Saint followed soon after, with the others trickling out one by one until

felt the gaze of Minaga still on them, but he threw a brief look toward the ceiling as he frowned, making the god back

curious are now

”You were less than interested in the

spoke as he leaned a bit forward and looked at the floor for a bit. ”But you are correct. My primary reason for attending was not to learn of Earth or those we share a home planet with. I came to seek you out, and I would