Galaxy's First Ruler

The highest temperature recorded on earth approached 57 degrees Celsius.

But none could even compare that data to the proximity of Baron Edmund. It felt like the hovering Baron wasn't a person but an active volcano. The heat seemed to increase with one's nearness to him. And this volcano was about to erupt, holding nothing back.

Hot red Mana rose from all around Edmund and the air around him distorted like a mirage in the desert. The people who had planted their faces on the screen could see the young Baron appearing and vanishing with every other second. Only the fluctuations of the Mana emanating out of him had relayed his unchanged position.

The lava-like veins in Edmund's eyes gave a bright flash. The boiling Mana that was seeping out from his body got pushed out in one go. It seemed like fumes that got released before a volcanic eruption. Edmund raised his hand and pointed towards the sky.

The Mana couldn't help but follow the Baron's gesture and gathered on the tip of his finger like an enormous globe of squirming gas. This was the first time for most of the world to experience the might of the Noble in front of their eyes. But the Dreamers present on the field didn't get to enjoy the scene.

Almost all except Annie and a few had their eyes completely shut. They feared they would lose their eyes if they even dare to open them to peek at the Baron. A greenish-blue ethereal field had already covered the normal humans and the members of the Press, filming the moment of reckoning. Annie waved her hand and a similar field materialized around the Dreamers, who couldn't seem to handle the heat.

The entire world saw with a gaped mouth as the humongous ball of Mana, emanating waves of heat, churned and outlined itself in the shape of a lance. It almost felt like someone had taken it as ink and had drawn the edges of the weapon. But this outlined weapon still lacked the substance. This weapon had yet to have a feeling of being solid.

The fire coursing through Edmund's veins heard the call of Mana and, through the pointed finger, entered the outlined weapon. A 20 ft long Lance pointed itself towards the Masked Menace. The Lance seemed to be made of lava, but there was nothing within it but pure fire.

This was the Skill that brought down a Rare Ranked Boss in a single move. The name of which had already marked itself in the world's memory.

"Sacred Fire Blood Lance… GO."

BOOM!!!

Edmund brought his hand down and pointed at Aldrich. The fiery Lance seemed to be thrown by an invisible hand and left a booming sound behind. The trees burned like it was the fire that had grown out of them and not leaves, and the puddles of water exploded in steam. Things that could melt had melted and the things that couldn't burst into pieces.

Nothing could survive, and none could have barred Lance's path. For it was the Class-specific Skill of a Dreamer of the Rank-Baron.

But Aldrich was as calm as ever. He had watched and analyzed the entire process through his Divine Sense. His focus was concentrated not on the Skill, but Edmund's body. This was the first time Aldrich had come across a Dreamer above Rare Rank. And except for confirming his speculations, he cared about nothing.

From the moment of his first level-up to his latest one, Aldrich had a theory about these Levels and Ranks. The first word that had come up in his mind was Evolution. And when he got his Rare Rank, he became sure of his guess. The only question that had yet to unravel was the threshold beyond which evolution would take place.

As Aldrich scanned the Baron's body, he got his answer. The Rank of Baron seemed to be the breaking point for the human shell. There weren't any visible changes, but Aldrich saw the quality of tissues, and many functions of the human body had evolved to suit the need of the class. The only reason that Edmund could use this destructive Skill freely was his veins. They had evolved to let the pure fire course through them like blood.

If every Dreamer was destined to evolve towards the direction of their Class, then what direction would he get to choose for his First Evolution?

But the moments from his last ranking up flashed by him and his face crumpled like a squeezed lemon. The pointy tip of the scorching Lance took him out of his reverie and before the Lance could approach him, his entire body felt like being burned alive. Aldrich sensed the camera pointed at him and he didn't want to reveal what he was about to do.

As the Lance was about to annihilate the Masked Menace for the good of the world, the people saw him making a fist. Just for a fraction of a second, many of them must have laughed at this pointless action. And it involved Annie and a few Dreamers who had seen the potency of the Skill. But they would remember this brief laugh for the rest of their life.

The puny and powerless fist of the Masked Menace smashed the tip of the Lance. For a moment, the world seemed to be stopped by an unnatural force. Baron Edmund's and Annie's hearts thumped loudly, sensing a power that made them remember their first raid. Annie's teeth clattered as she recalled her state after being touched by that "Being".

And the people of the world shuddered while standing, sitting, and laying wherever they were. As they saw the entire Lance getting blasted away like a puff of smoke after being hit by the unholy fist.

BANISH!!!

Aldrich had punched the Lance to give a false impression of strength. He didn't know if anyone watching could guess what he had planned to do or not. Just as his fist had struck Lance's tip, he Banished the Law of Fire contained within it. After losing its core, only Mana's outline had remained, which he countered with his raised Defense.

[...

Defense: 115 (+90)

Perception: 90 (-90)

…]

Aldrich looked at the pale face of the Baron and his utterly flabbergasted expression. Aldrich knew Edmund must have his reason to think that Aldrich could handle and remain alive after getting hit by the Skill. But the young Noble could have never imagined such an outrageous result.

Aldrich dusted off the slight burn marks over his skin and his clothes. He looked at Edmund and asked.

"Can we talk like civilized people now?"

Aldrich saw the Baron nodding reflexively and losing height to land on the ground. Aldrich also vanished and reappeared by his side. Every Dreamer around Aldrich faltered and took a step back. Aldrich saw Edmund gesturing to Olivia to prepare a room for further discussions. And he chanced upon Annie with her head down, standing behind Ms. Wells. From time to time, he could see a light shiver running from her head to her toes.

'Trauma?' Aldrich guessed.

"This way," said Edmund, pointing towards Olivia walking ahead.

Aldrich was about to follow them, but then halted his steps and turned around to look at every one. The Dreamers flinched like naughty children caught by their mother.

Aldrich's head stopped at the camera. The people on its other side had yet to process what they had seen when Aldrich's words resounded in their ears through the speakers of TV and laptops.

"The next time someone would trouble me unnecessarily... there will be consequences."