NOVEL NEXT 26 - Jin Hayou
What's wrong with this guy? It's been almost a full minute now and he hasn't said another word. I haven't spoken again either, since I want to see just how long he'll keep this up, but it's getting kind of ridiculous. I guess maybe he's sizing me up? Looking for openings? I have been on guard since he walked in. And for good reason too.
He's well into the peak stage, which I guess means he's in the early 2 star range by the Tower's metrics. It's only one stage higher than Jinlan, but the jump from first rate to peak is much bigger than second rate to first rate, or even ki-less to first rate. In Peak, the body goes through fundamental change, becoming strengthened and reinforced to superhuman levels. On top of that, it also drastically condenses the ki in the body, meaning that he has about ten times as much ki as Jinlan did. Maybe more.
I guess maybe it's technically possible for me to defeat him, but I'd have to really surprise him, and probably burn most of my innate core ki, shortening my lifespan to the point that it would no longer be victory, and instead just be mutual destruction. Definitely not an option. I doubt he'd attack me, since Organa did say it was illegal, and he can't really avoid getting caught if he does it here.
Who even is he? Why is he doing this? I can see Hana hiding on the edge of the room behind him, so I can only assume that this is who she brought my information to, but why is he here? What is he doing? Whatever the case, he's utterly ruined any chance I had at being subtle on this outing, so I might as well start building my arrogant public image now.
"I've made men speechless before, but never to this extent," I say.
One person who is doing a very bad job of pretending not to eavesdrop snorts in laughter. The man in front of me frowns, but still doesn't say anything.
"If you have nothing else to say, I'll be going now."
"Wait," he says, holding a hand up.
"Yes?" I ask, not even needing to pretend to be annoyed.
"Why did you enter the Tower?"
"What?"
"Why did you enter the Tower?"
I think for a moment. Obviously I can't tell him the full reason, but I get the feeling that's not actually what he's asking. He doesn't care what I want to get from the top of the Tower. He's just checking my resolve.
"To reach the top," I say.
"And what if you fail?"
"I'll keep trying."
"What if you give up?"
"I'd die before I gave up."
"Good," he says, smiling for the first time. "That's the mindset that a true Climber should have. Are you going to enter the upcoming Tournament?"
"I was thinking about it," I say carefully.
I'd like to, but depending on where he's ranked, it might be too dangerous. I think I would want to reach Peak realm before I'd feel confident in winning if there are more people like him, and I'm not sure I can do that in the 2 months I have. Maybe if Ganyu has more pills for us, it will be possible. Or if I find a thousand year ginseng of my own.
"You should," he says. "You may not win right now, but it will be a good learning experience."
"I'll need to learn more about it first."
Mainly about the mortality rate and if there are any consequences for losing.
"If you're serious about reaching the top, I'm sure you'll decide to join. In that case, we'll meet again there. If not… I'll be disappointed."
And why should I care about your disappointment?
That almost makes me not want to join. However, he's probably right. The way he's talking about it, the consequences for losing probably aren't harsh, if they exist at all, and it will give me some good insight into how the people of the Tower use ki. Or rather, "oum."
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"What's your name?" I ask.
"Jin Hayou."
That name sounds familiar. And not just because he shares the "Jin" with Jin Jinlan. I've definitely seen or heard his name somewhere before. After about a second, it comes to me. I feel stupid. Not only have I seen the name before, I just saw it literally a few seconds ago.
I glance back at the wall behind me, reading the names on the leaderboard. Right near the top in 6th place is Jin Hayou. That means there are only 5 people on the Floor who are stronger than him that I might encounter in the Tournament, and in that case, I think I can probably actually win if I can get some kind of treasure that will let me push to peak in 2 months.
While I glance up though, a couple other names catch my eye. The person ranked in 1st place is named "The Stray King" and the one in 2nd is "The Stray Princess." The names aren't particularly strange on their own, but given what I've learned so far, I have no doubt that these two are some of the Strays that Organa mentioned before. In that case, that means that Jin Hayou might actually be the most powerful legitimate Climber on the Floor.
When I turn back around to face him, I see that his smile has turned a bit proud. When I see him like this, I am struck by how young he is. He looks like he might be a couple years older than my current body, but he's still basically a child, even if he's trying to act mature.
"How many of the top ranked people are Strays?" I ask him.
"Of the top 50, 32," he says. "Of the top 10, 7. Of the top 5, 4."
"So you are the second strongest among the non-Strays."
"I am the strongest," he says, his face turning serious. "Penniless Wraith has a few more achievements than me, but if we fought, I would win. Not that she would ever agree to a fight."
He sounds bitter as he says that last sentence. She must have rejected his challenge, and not just once.
"Anyway, I heard you received a sponsorship offer from the Hateps," he continues.
"I did," I confirm.
"You should reject it."
"Why?"
"The Hateps will ruin you," he says. "That family has been going downhill for millennia. The last time they had an Ascendant was so long ago that only the Ascendants remember it."
"Well, Ascendants are quite rare, aren't they?"
"Every other force headed by an Ascendant has produced at least one more since then," says Hayou. "Most have raised at least two. My family, the Jin family, has produced four."
"So you want me to accept your family's sponsorship instead?"
"No," he says, shaking his head. "Sponsorship from anyone is a crutch. You become dependent on it, and you never learn how to do things on your own. Better to struggle and grow than to receive support and stagnate."
His words have merit, but I also find them a bit amusing. He's clearly not speaking from experience, and is just repeating something else he's been told. For him, what he said is probably true. For me, it doesn't really apply. I've spent thousands of years learning to do things on my own. A bit of support to handle the annoying things won't hurt my growth. Also, didn't he say he was from one of the great families?
"What about you? Are you not receiving support from your family?"
"I am not," he says proudly. "The Jin family does not support its members on their Climbs. If you can't succeed on your own, you won't succeed with support either. No point in wasting resources on someone who won't amount to anything."
"I see."
The Jin family sounds interesting. And cruel. Powerful, but cruel.
"Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, but I have to get going now," says Hayou. "And I don't want to hold you up too much. If you ever want to spar, stop by Emberstone Hall. That's where I spend most of my time."
"I might just take you up on that offer," I say.
It would be useful to see how the self-proclaimed strongest Climber of the Floor fights.
"Then I guess I'll be seeing you later," he says with an eager smile. "Good luck on your Climb."
"Good luck on yours as well."
He turns to leave, and a few seconds later, I am alone in the middle of the room. There are still people staring at me, whispering amongst themselves, but none of them approach me.
I stay rooted in place for a moment, lost in thought, then I turn around and return to the desk. I wanted to lay a bit lower today, and at least keep my identity secret from the people watching the leaderboards, but Jin Hayou kind of ruined that. Might as well rip the band-aid off now.
"Good afternoon," says the female construct. "How can I help you today?"
"I want to make my nickname change go live right now."
"Certainly," she replies. "Please hold out your ring hand."
After scanning my ring, she looks up at me and smiles.
"Your nickname has been successfully changed. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
"No, that's all," I say. "Thank you."
When I turn around, I can see the people who were watching the Batch ranking start to mumble, a few of them looking at me like I'm crazy. Two of them immediately run out of the room, probably to deliver information. For a moment, I'm pleased with the change, but as I walk out of the room, something starts to feel off. Some of their gazes are almost hostile.
Did I make a mistake? Is there something about "the Phoenix" that's special? I wanted to get my name changed as soon as possible, but maybe I should have done more research first…
Oh well. I don't really want to change it. I like this name. If it ends up being a serious problem, I might have to pick something else, but for now, I'll just go about my day and see what happens. On to the Quest Hall!