Started with a 10,000x Multiplier in a Game World

The transition back into the Zenith Protocol was incredibly smooth.

Dante materialized in his private suite above the Astral Emporium. He checked the time. It was early morning in Aethelgardia.

He didn’t feel hungover.

The absurd volume of Century-Old Lunar-Tide Wine he had chugged at the restaurant had been completely processed and neutralized by the physical bleed-over of his [Frost-God Constitution].

His mind was clear. His focus was sharp.

He opened his system interface and pulled up his active skill list.

He had tested the [10,000x Skill Proficiency Multiplier] on defensive parries, mobility dashes, and basic weapon buffs.

It was time to see what it could do with raw elemental magic.

He opened his infinite inventory. He retrieved a basic incredibly cheap skillbook he had looted from a random frost-boar weeks ago.

[Item Appraised: Skillbook - Ice Shard]

[Tier: Novice]

[Description: Fires a small sharp shard of ice at a target. Deals minor magical damage and applies a 1-second 10% slow. Casting Time: 1 Second. Cooldown: 10 Seconds.]

It was a beginner spell. It was typically used by low-level mages to kite boars in the starting zones.

Dante absorbed the book instantly.

[Skill Learned: Ice Shard (Novice)]

He didn’t need to find a target to trigger the evolution. He just activated the skill command within the safety of his suite.

[Skill Executed: Ice Shard.]

[Talent Activated: 10,000x Multiplier.]

[Registering 10,000 flawless executions.]

The combat enlightenment wasn’t about swinging a sword or manipulating atmospheric pressure.

His neural link was flooded with the absolute fundamental understanding of thermodynamics and molecular stasis.

He learned how to instantly strip thermal energy from an environment to force molecules to halt their vibration entirely.

He understood the exact magical frequency required to create a localized zone of absolute zero.

[Ice Shard has reached Adept tier.]

[Ice Shard has reached Master tier.]

[Ice Shard has reached Grandmaster tier.]

The temperature in the VIP suite violently plummeted.

Frost actively crawled up the walls. It coated the velvet furniture in a thin layer of sparkling ice.

[Ice Shard has reached Zenith tier.]

[Skill Evolution Triggered.]

[Ice Shard has evolved into: Absolute Zero Field.]

The system interface updated. It flashed a blinding icy blue.

[Absolute Zero Field (Zenith)]

[Description: The ultimate expression of thermal deletion. The user instantly freezes the ambient atmosphere in a 100-foot radius.]

[Inflicts a massive unavoidable 3-second ’Freeze’ (Total Paralysis) on all hostile entities caught in the blast. Deals 500% Magical Frost Damage upon shattering. Casting Time: 0.5 Seconds. Cooldown: 0 Seconds (Chrono-Shift Active).]

Dante smiled as he read the prompt.

It was a spammable massive area-of-effect hard crowd control.

With his [Frost-God Constitution] permanently doubling all ice-based damage, the shatter effect would hit for 1,000% magical damage.

He didn’t just have physical executions and wind vacuums anymore. He had an absolute lockdown mechanic.

If Silas tried to send another army, Dante could just freeze the entire grid square and walk through them.

His private message interface pinged.

[Sera: Dante, are you online? We have a situation in the lobby.]

Dante dismissed his skill menu.

[Dan: I am coming down.]

He left the suite and took the grand marble staircase down to the main floor of the Emporium.

The auction hall was empty, but the front lobby was bustling with NPC clerks organizing new inventory shipments.

Standing near the main entrance looking incredibly nervous and entirely out of place in the lavish commercial hub were two figures.

One was Clara, the exhausted Master Appraiser he had rescued from the slums.

She was holding the hand of Dave, her young son.

Sera was standing in front of them and looking slightly overwhelmed.

"Dante," Sera said and gestured to the pair.

"Clara arrived to sign her contract, but she brought a massive backlog of unappraised gear with her. She said you instructed her to clear her inventory before moving."

Dante walked over.

Dave immediately let go of the hand of his mother and ran toward Dante. He was completely unbothered by his intimidating [Carapace of the Void-Devourer].

"Mr. Hero!" Dave cheered and hugged his iron greave.

"Mommy said we get to live in the shiny building now! And my doctors said I am going to get better!"

"That is good news, kid," Dante said softly. He gently patted his head with his dark purple gauntlet.

He looked up at Clara. The appraiser looked significantly better than she had the day before.

The heavy crushing exhaustion was gone. It was replaced by a cautious profound gratitude.

The five million real-world credits Dante had authorized had clearly secured the necessary medical treatments for her daughter.

"I am ready to begin work, Guild Master," Clara said and bowed deeply.

"I brought all the unappraised items from my old shop to process as a gesture of goodwill."

"You do not need to do that," Dante said. "You are on a flexible schedule."

"I insist," Clara smiled softly. "It is the least I can do."

Before Dante could argue, a sudden blinding flash of silver light erupted in the lobby.

Aura popped out of her pet-space.

The Grade 8 Mystic Sovereign floated gracefully near the ceiling. Her three starlight tails wove intricate patterns in the air.

Dave gasped, and his eyes widened in absolute awe. "A fairy!"

Aura chimed happily. She floated down to hover right in front of the little girl.

The Celestial Sprite gently poked the nose of Dave. He let out a soft musical giggle.

The spatial rift next to Dante tore open.

Erebus stepped out.

The Half-Soul Celestial looked incredibly bored. She dragged her massive Mythic-tier backpack across the marble floor.

She saw Dave playing with Aura.

Erebus stopped. Her solid red and silver eyes locked onto the younger girl.

Dave looked at the teenager in the gothic dress.

She didn’t look scared of the terrifying cosmic weight radiating from the Anomaly. She just smiled.

"Hi!" Dave said cheerfully. "I am Dave. Do you want to play?"

Erebus blinked. She looked at Dante, then back at Dave.

Erebus reached into her massive backpack and pulled out a slightly squished [Magma-Seared Meat Bun]. She held it out to Dave.

"This is food," Erebus stated flatly.

Dave happily took the bun. "Thank you!"

"Okay, the childcare situation is officially handled," Casanova laughed. He walked out of the back room and adjusted his feathered hat.

Dante turned his attention back to Clara.

"We have a lot of work for you," Dante told the Master Appraiser.

"I have an entire inventory full of Celestial and Dark Demon tier gear that needs decrypting. And the system just announced a major update."

"An update?" Sera asked and pulled up her datapad.

Dante pointed to the massive glowing blue interface hovering in the corner of his vision.

[Global Server Announcement]

[The Cosmic Beauty Rankings are now live.]

[Players and Entities will be ranked based on systemic aesthetic value and localized popularity.]

"A beauty pageant?" Nyx groaned and stepped out from behind Sera.

"The server is currently tearing itself apart in faction wars, and the system decides to drop a cosmetic leaderboard?"

"It is not just cosmetic," Dante corrected.

"The Zenith Protocol does not do things without a mechanical reason. High rankings on global boards usually provide massive hidden passive buffs to Charisma and faction reputation."

Nyx aggressively tapped her datapad and pulled up the new leaderboards.

She stared at the screen for a long moment and was completely silent.

"What?" Lila asked and leaned over her shoulder.

"Look at the top ten," Nyx whispered.

[Global Cosmic Beauty Rankings (Player Division)]

[Rank 1: Aria (Soul Weaver)]

[Rank 2: Lila (Astral Arcanist)]

[Rank 3: Seraphina (Astral Vanguard)]

[Rank 4: Nyx (Astral Vanguard)]

[Rank 5: Clara (Master Appraiser)]

Dante looked at the list.

Every single female member of his immediate circle had completely dominated the top five spots on the global leaderboard.

"Well, that is going to draw some attention," Casanova noted and looked incredibly amused.

"Look at the NPC division," Nyx added and swiped the screen.

[Global Cosmic Beauty Rankings (Entity Division)]

[Rank 1: Alysia (Frost Sovereign)]

[Rank 2: Lady Carmilla (Demon Noble)]

[Rank 3: Aura (Mystic Sovereign)]

"The system really likes our squad," Mei grinned and spun her frying pan.

Dante didn’t smile. He knew exactly what this meant.

The Cosmic Beauty Rankings weren’t just a fun side event. They were a massive glowing target painted directly onto the backs of his allies.

Every single wealthy arrogant Guild Master and elite player on the server was going to see that list.

They were going to actively seek out the top-ranked players, either to recruit them, harass them, or try to force them into highly publicized systemic marriages for the stat buffs.

Silas and Ryujin wouldn’t hesitate to use this to attack his support structure.

"Sera," Dante ordered, and his voice dropped into a cold serious register.

"Lock down the Emporium. Nobody enters the building without a verified Aegis Vanguard guild tag. Nyx, set up automated defense turrets in the lobby."

"Dante, it is just a leaderboard," Lila argued nervously.

"It is a bounty list," Dante corrected her.

Before he could explain the tactical implications, the heavy oak doors of the Emporium banged loudly.

Someone was trying to get in.

Dante drew the [Dawn-Breaker Blade] and stepped in front of the girls. He wasn’t going to let anyone harass his team.

"We are closed," Dante called out.

"Open the door, Outworlder!" a gruff heavily accented voice shouted from the other side. "This is official business of the Aethelgardia City Guard!"

Dante frowned. The City Guard didn’t just knock on player-owned doors without a massive systemic trigger.

He gestured to Sera. She tapped her administrative console and unlocked the heavy oak doors.

A massive heavily armored NPC Paladin marched into the lobby. He wore the gleaming silver and gold armor of the Imperial Vanguard.

The guard didn’t draw a weapon. He stopped in front of Dante and offered a crisp flawless military salute.

"Champion Dan," the guard boomed.

"The City Lord requests your immediate presence. A matter of absolute critical regional security has arisen."

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