The Rise of the Black Plain

"We will go. It's only a matter of time before the group is formed and we finish our preparations. But in less than a decade, we should reach the North Sea". Minos answered the question of the Kraken elder before him.

Despite the low level of this human, the kraken didn't doubt it. Even though he was weak, this young man spoke confidently and determinedly.

When he saw the expressions of the many people of different races on this ship, he said. "It's a pity that I'm busy guarding this area. Otherwise, I would join your group myself."

The most nervous people on the ship opened their mouths in surprise, not expecting this being actually to say something so positive to them.

Basically, he was saying that he would support them in their ambition to go to the most dangerous sea in the Spiritual World.

The level 91 Sea Folk woman smiled when she heard this and asked. "Too bad, you'd be a great help. But then? Will the elder allow us to join his tribe? We just want to present our travel plans and try to recruit one or two interested people. If no one is able or willing, we'll leave."

He let go of these people's boats and hid his terrible teeth in his mouth.

He pulled his huge body away from the small ship and said. "Go ahead. I'm sure you'll find someone brave enough to join your group."

This group was not strong enough to cause trouble within the Kraken tribe, and members of the Sea Folk would not lie to get permission to enter a place like this. Confident of this, the elder made way for Minos' party without a second thought.

But as their ship set sail again, he added. "I look forward to hearing your group's stories. I hope at least one of you survives to tell the tale, haha."

The mercenaries and the mermen and mermaids on the ship looked at the Kraken in silence, imagining that many of them might actually die on this voyage.

But at the same time that their adventure made them shy away from the mortal danger of that place, the distance they were now from the North Sea also protected them from trembling with fear and considering how close they might be to death.

Years would pass between the decisive point of their journey and the present.

Even with the recurring thought that they might die, they held on so as not to back down or give up!

As each of them dealt with the problem in their minds, they soon saw the Kraken from earlier disappear as their ship continued on its way to the Kraken tribe.

Sometime later, during this nocturnal part of their journey, they began to see a small glow on the ocean floor from afar.

It was night on the ocean floor near the South Pole of the Spiritual World.

In these icy waters, their group soon set their sights on the "small" tribe of Krakens, where a few thousand of the race lived on a gigantic coral reef.

Though few in number, the Krakens were very large. As such, their headquarters were much larger than those of the Fish People, where Minos' party had recently stopped.

Arriving near this coral reef, the group soon noticed several Krakens of various sizes and levels watching them.

But none of them stopped them. Given their level, it would be impossible for them to reach this place without being authorized by one of the elders in the area.

As beings who highly valued hierarchy within their tribe, no one there would stop a group that 'deserved' to enter this place, even if some of them didn't like beings like some of those on the boat.

Realizing this, Minos' group made their way to the center of the coral reef, where there was more movement around the city of the Krakens.

This time, Minos would not use the same strategy he had used in the Fish People's city.

With only 10,000 members and less than three-quarters of them present, Minos managed to get the attention of more than half of them in a matter of minutes!

While the Sea Folk woman piloting her boat was looking for an interesting place to stop, many low, medium, and high-level Krakens had already noticed them.

Minos saw this, and thinking back to what the elder had told them earlier, he imagined that he could achieve his goal there even more easily than he had in the Fish People tribe.

As soon as he left his boat, he simply put up some posters around it, indicating that this was a crew heading for the North Sea, looking for brave Krakens willing to join the group.

"North Sea?"

"That's absurd! Even our elders wouldn't go there alone. Imagine a small group like that..." A level 79 kraken nearby thought to himself, feeling that this group wouldn't get anyone.

On the other hand, a level 88 being commented. "Don't be so rash, young man. Don't underestimate the numbers. Even though a trip to the North Sea is dangerous even for our tribe's elders, it doesn't mean that a group with balanced strength would have so many problems."

In battle, it would definitely be better to have a higher-level being on your side than to have a larger number of lower-level people with equal strength combined. However, this was only true for combat. Beyond that, numbers always won.

No matter how strong one was, one was still just one. Could such a being be in 2 places at once?

Most of the time, no. Therefore, having several lower-level specialists might be better than having one high-level specialist, as each member of the group could perform different functions.

In the case of Minos's party, while some could detect enemies, others could defend, others could attack, and others could support. In short, the possibilities were endless.

"The level of one doesn't set the limits for the others. This group may only be at the beginning of its formation, but it already has important elements in it." A level 95 elder saw Minos' group and commented to the young man who had made that first negative remark. "If he gets another 10 or so members of powerful races capable of performing various functions, his chances of success will increase exponentially."

While the guy in his bestial form was making this comment, a member of that race in his humanoid form left a smaller part of the coral reef to see these newcomers, looking at them with interest.

'North Sea, huh? That's a pretty crazy destination!'

...