The Primal Hunter

War…

War never changes…

Except for when a group of five extremely powerful beings decide to just fuck shit up. In cases like that, war would very much change, and not for the better. At least not for those already involved in the war.

Floating far above one of the smaller battlefields of the Vast Plateau, this group of five appeared as the fighting was ongoing. There were only a few hundred on both sides at this point, primarily because most of the weaker C-grades were already dead. The fighting also didn’t happen as one would usually expect from a war like this in the multiverse, which, for reference, was quite a bit different compared to wars on Earth before the system.

Usually, based on what Jake had read, even if an all-out war did happen at the beginning of a conflict, it would often devolve into a standstill. The most powerful beings on both sides would be hesitant to enter the fray out of fear that they would be teamed up on by the most powerful people on the opposing side.

This resulted in the weaker C-grades fighting in a big skirmish, with the stronger ones standing back for the most part. Only when it was clear one side would win the stronger people would step in, and even then, it was done with caution.

To become a C-grade, one had to have walked far on one’s Path. C-grades were not weak in even the context of the multiverse, and only a scarce few of the enlightened races would ever manage to reach it. It was only natural that someone would be careful after making it that far and not want to die needlessly in some big war just because thirty people decided to attack them at once.

Due to all this, what usually happened in big wars after the slaughter of those on the weak side was that the strong ones would only do smaller skirmishes. If one side sent out three fighters, the other side would respond with three in kind. If one died, the one with a death would send out another. If it could be avoided, neither side wanted to send out a fourth to get a numerical advantage because all that would result in the other side doing the same, making it a four versus four now.

If more was sent out, it could quickly become a five versus five, then six, seven… until suddenly everyone was fighting at once, and none of them wanted that. Big wars like that were simply horrible for the individual. As a C-grade, everyone had a strong sense of self-preservation, and entering a conflict where you could get unlucky and have a hundred people decide to attack you at once was not fun for anyone involved.

Even if one side did have a numerical advantage, such as having six hundred fighters while the other only had five hundred, the larger group wouldn’t just rush in. Sure, they would more likely than not win, but how many of them would die? Half? To the individual, the danger was simply too large, resulting in an all-out fight pretty much never happening.

This was also how war and just single battles during the war could last for extreme lengths of time. It was more akin to a sequence of duels between fighters from opposing factions, with neither side ever running out as they kept up getting new fighters to join them. At least, this is what Jake read as part of the explanation why factions like the Risen and Holy Church could have ongoing battlefields for thousands of years. This entire structure of war was also far more beneficial, as it allowed those fighting to improve more and gain Records without risking just getting unlucky and dying during a massive skirmish.

All this had to be clarified to understand why the wars on this floor were... off. When Jake and company arrived at this first battlefield, expecting things to be pretty calm, with things proceeding as usual, they instead found around a thousand total C-grades in a massive skirmish, just trying to tear each other apart.

There was no structure, no caution, just reckless fighting. Jake was really taken aback until he felt something, and he wasn’t the only one, either.

“Their souls are… polluted,” the Fallen King noted.

“I sense a negative energy inflicting them, affecting their mental states,” Dina also added.

“It’s a curse,” Jake finally said. “And a pretty damn powerful one at that. I can’t say for sure, but I get the feeling it’s there to amplify hatred for the other empire. At least that would explain what we’re seeing right now.”

is truly manufactured. But, this does make me wonder… if these

let them do whatever they plan on doing and let them get as powerful as possible… to then have a proper damn fight to finish out

wanted to make sure we were all

“Ree?” Sylphie asked.

an end to this war once and for all,”

alive on either side,” the Fallen

is behind

out his bow as the others also prepared to enter the

C-grades fighting were all around level 290 to 310, meaning the guard they faced had been on the weaker side of this world. At least

as the air repeatedly exploded with magic. Melee fighters clashed as they flew through the sky, sometimes crashing into each other as groups spiraled toward the ground. Whenever someone seemed to have a flash of clarity from the curse and tried to escape, they were hunted down. Jake watched all this as

react. The Sword Saint dove in from the side to pick off some of the ranged fighters, while the Fallen King and Sylphie dove straight into the middle of it all and unleashed their

been misappropriated; report any instances of this

groups didn’t team up or anything. Jake and the others just become more fighters of the enemy side for both factions. The entire situation was also so damn chaotic that even if some of the C-grades did notice Jake and company weren’t part

so minutes, the situation did change. Hundreds had died at this point, many of them easy kills due to their existing injuries.

sides, as everyone backed off a little, regrouping with their own factions. Jake and the others tried to incite more fighting, but soon enough, they noticed a clear target on their backs. Not necessarily because they were a third

in this

like the real fighting starts now,”

hesitation. “Focus on

circle around to get behind the group on the left, putting them between their party and the other faction. Sylphie helped as a wind tunnel was created, and while their movements weren’t

as arrows, crescent blades of water, and wind, along with golden shockwaves, rolled onto the army in front of them. Jake instantly knew what the Sword Saint wanted as the opposing faction noticed their sworn enemies suddenly under attack and decided this was a great

skills and do not tire yourself out, but fight with longevity in mind,” the Sword Saint reiterated, as they were very much taking this first battle as a trial session for the many

chill while the enemies tire themselves out before we attack and wipe them all out,” Jake made sure to explain as he already saw Sylphie

set in, some did break completely free from the curse, but at that point, it was too late. Jake and company made sure to not advance too much during this fight, resulting in many from the other faction also dying. Those who managed to survive till the very end were also well and truly tired out,

battlefields spread throughout the Vast Plateau. One of them even had a map detailing the few closest battlefields. Through some extrapolation, In total, there

was truly vast, but as they traveled, Jake did notice how odd things were in regard to the placements of these battlefields. They weren’t in a line as expected if two factions with borders fought but were far too spread out throughout the Vast Plateau. Jake began to consider if they were maybe placed purposefully to set up some form of large magic circle, but he couldn’t make that fit either with any of

to appear, Jake questioned how

soil in the process of turning gray, and right as he did, he felt something from his boots. A natural treasure of some kind, hidden in the middle of the battlefield, pretty deep underground. With the help of Dina, they quickly dug it up as a sphere of bones attached

from collecting all the ancient bones long-buried here. Bones that are connected to the land. It creates a field that seals in the soul energy of those

have come across one before?” Jake