----

Lucian fell silent after hearing his choice. After all, based on what Oryon revealed, once they signed their contract, it limited most Guardians to the Corps' island unless stated otherwise. However, the only reason for the Guardian's confinement was to ensure they advanced as quickly as possible.

Essentially, the Guardian Corps eliminated all outside obstructions to promote their fastest growth. Not only would this decision prompt the Guardians to enter the monolith frequently, but the training received in the Corps also benefitted them greatly.

After all, most of the training was live combat provided by the Anomaly Rifts. Additionally, as the name implied, the Special Division held special privileges. If they wished to, they could easily leave the island for a breath of fresh air or to perform some menial task.

However, as valued individuals, their positions experienced monitoring at all times, making their freedom stifled. Hence, why Oryon gave Lucian an additional choice. From what he sensed, Oryon felt Lucian wasn't the type to appreciate binds.

Eventually, Lucian scratched his cheek while glancing towards Oryon, "When you say training, what exactly do you mean?"

"Squadron training and ability honing. Although activating an ability is easy, there's also room for improvement in the way it is applied," Oryon said with a shrug of his shoulder.

"Squadron training?" Lucian parroted with an odd expression. He didn't expect the training to extend that far. Because, that was typically the type of training used to prepare for wars, including up to 500 people, sometimes more.

"Correct. There are three types of group training we introduce to our recruits," Oryon nodded before continuing, "Division, Squadron, and finally Personal."

In short, it was as it sounded. Division training included all the members of that division in mass training. Squadron training divvied up those numbers into more manageable groups. But, the training regimen was similar, just on a smaller scale.

Lastly, though called personal training, it included a group of 8 aptly known as an attack team. Just like the beginning floors of the monolith, some Anomaly Rifts only allowed up to 8 people, whereas others required a much larger number to have any chance of clearing it.

However, the difficulty of the rifts matched the rewards.

"I see. And, what's the difference between an exclusive and non-exclusive contract under the Special Division?"

"Quite large. The former allows you 10% of the retrieved value from the rift, whereas the latter only allows you to keep 2%, nor will you get the bonus for the grade of the rift," Oryon answered.

Lucian's eyes narrowed when he heard this answer. 'Such a large disparity? Quite the ruthless bunch, aren't they?'

However, Lucian understood that as the mightiest organization on Alteria, the Guardian Corps possessed the means to manipulate the rates as they saw fit. After all, the rifts were something that only Guardians could amend as of now. Perhaps it might change in the future, but as of now, things were rather one-sided.

Besides, this was a tactic employed by many companies to entice the recruit to join under their exclusive banner. After all, what company would risk their profits on an individual that wasn't exclusive to them?

Unless their worth was unfathomable, then the odds of that taking place were slim to none.

Not too long after, Lucian raised another question. "A bonus, you said? Depending on the grade of the rift? What exactly are these grades?"

"As of right now, there are 5 known levels of these rifts―green, yellow, orange, red, and crimson," Oryon answered. Towards the end, Oryon's voice became grim, symbolizing the dread of a crimson gate.

Until now, the world had only seen two, and each of them required Skybreaker to personally step in.

Each color represented rift's general difficulty.

Green represented a minor difficulty, even able to be cleared by new Guardians as the strongest enemy never surpassed C Rank. Typically, the enemies of such rifts would be goblins, knolls, or other races of this magnitude.

Yellow represented moderated difficulty, typically requiring more experienced Guardians to resolve it. After all, the general monster ranking was on par with a B Rank Guardian. Unless up to the 4th floor was cleared, then unless it was a Maximized Elite or an Extraordinary Guardian, it would be hard to achieve that attribute level.

Orange represented considerable difficulty. Rifts of this magnitude usually required numerous attacks teams to overcome. Although the highest monster was only an A-Rank, the sheer volume of monsters made the difficulty of clearing the rift considerable.

Red represented a rift of high difficulty. Without a doubt, the highest monsters inside there were S Rank, and they numbered more than a few. The Alphas always handled these gates as only their attributes were strong enough to combat the terrors inside.

Finally, a crimson rift meant extreme difficulty. After all, of the two rifts that formed of this level, each of them released a monster of the Heroic Order. Hence, why Skybreaker was forced to step in. Even then, clearing those rifts resulted in some appalling outcomes.

After listening to the recount of the difficulty, Lucian's expression changed drastically. Because according to Oryon, each rift produced a type of vault at the end. And while the items inside the vault varied, there was always some type of use for them.

Eventually, Lucian made his decision.

"Though it's not the best choice, I'll have to opt for the lesser option. The 8% difference is something that I'll have to deal with," Lucian answered.

Despite his response, Oryon smiled. "I couldn't agree more. Also, if you give my boy a chance, I'm sure you'll come to like him. Though I had to reprimand him to keep up appearances, he's one of this generation's Maximized Elites."

"Interesting," Lucian muttered while thinking back to Cezar. He wasn't unlikeable, but as of now, Lucian couldn't picture himself teaming up with Cezar. At least, not inside the monolith.

His current party, while lacking in strength, complemented Lucian nicely. As long as they refined their abilities, then Lucian could see himself using their powers to increase their efficiency on the floors.

But, Ahri's Radiation ability remained an anomaly. If it continued to level up, she could become a weapon of mass destruction, outclassing even nuclear weaponry. However, that frightening ability was accompanied by some alarming worries.

"Anyway," Oryon slipped a paper towards Lucian, "Sign this and we welcome you to the Corps."

Lucian unhurriedly scanned the paper before he signed it. Halfway through the scan, he saw a piece of intriguing information. The bonus Oryon mentioned went by the ranking, starting from 20,000 Credits it escalated all the way up to 20,000,000.

However, that number was rarely reached because it required a crimson rift. In addition to this information, Lucian also learned that there was a signing bonus and it could be designated to whomever they wished.

But, since Lucian was only non-exclusive, he only received 10% of the 100,000 Credit welcome bonus. Still, 10,000 Credits was nothing to scoff at.

Without hesitation, Lucian put Cyrus's name as the beneficiary of the welcome bonus. One, Lucian didn't want to manage the money, as it was too much of a hassle. Two, Cyrus could use the credits to buy Mana Crystals.

Though it only produced a marginal increase in training speed, every boost was worth it when aiming to acquire strength.

"How often will you be venturing to and from the island? As a non-exclusive member, you're allowed up to 6 passes every month. Any additional travel will have to be shouldered by you," Oryon said.

"I suppose every 5 days will work if that's the spacing of the schedule," Lucian answered.

"Understood. Take this card to the registry area and they'll form your credentials," Oryon said before waving his hand. In the next moment, he vanished, leaving Lucian by himself to glance at the card in his hands.

'The War Tiger, Byakko. I suppose that's his full title,' Lucian thought to himself before standing up. Since he was here, he might as well test out what all the fuss was about. After all, there were two weeks until he could get anything worthwhile done.

Eventually, Lucian shifted his attention elsewhere, "I wonder if I could ask them to locate Ahri while they make my credentials. She should be here seeing as she asked to meet me here."

Not too long after, Lucian followed Oryon's directions and reached the institute that made all the credentials on the island.