Chapter 694: The Red Hybrid

The fight was continuing from all over, and thanks to Dame fighting off against Murkel, it meant that Raze was able to focus on regaining his strength just like he did before. He was unaware of just how well Dame was now doing against the Dark Faction leader. Out of all of the fights going on though, the Light Faction couldn't keep their eyes off the Hybrid and Murkel.

"I've heard of Hybrids before, but this is the first time I've heard of them being ranked into different colors," Hannah explained, her brow furrowing in thought.

"As I said, think back to the transformation," Ricar continued. "Most people focus on the features they are seeing, but a strange liquid forms as part of these odd bodies, and that liquid is extremely important to pay attention to."

"But if what you said is true about there being a red-colored Hybrid, and you know about it as well, Clan Head, then that means there had to be one at some point... so why is this fact not known throughout all of Pagna?" Beatrix asked, her voice filled with curiosity.

Ricar continued to watch the situation unfold. The history of Pagna was recorded in books and passed down by word of mouth, but historical records were only recently kept, and due to the divide in factions, events were recorded differently depending on who wrote them and their biases.

"You all know about Hybrids and how dangerous they are. The whole of Pagna knows this because there was a significant incident that put Hybrids on the map of Pagna in the first place," Ricar said, his voice grave.

Beatrix nodded, understanding what her Clan Head was referring to. "The incident that created the alliance in the first place, are you talking about that?" she asked.

Ricar nodded again. "As you know, when the three factions were created, they were in constant conflict with each other. Now, we are in a state where we constantly check each other's strength and even have things like the Martial Arts Tournament. But these things didn't exist before."

"There was one event that occurred that caused the three factions to stop fighting and unite against a common threat. A portal break happened in the Dark Faction's land, and out of it, a Hybrid appeared."

Hannah had learned this history of Pagna, but the alliance between the factions and the Hybrid event were taught as two separate incidents. She listened carefully, eager to gain knowledge that only an Elder could provide.

"The Hybrid that appeared was so devastating that those from the Dark, Light, and Demonic Factions had to be called upon to eliminate such an opponent. That being was a red-colored Hybrid."

"It took the strongest from the three factions to fight against it, and in the end, we are not even sure if the thing was defeated. After that, people became much more cautious and aware of Hybrids coming through portals."

"As for the three factions, they all received a significant blow from what happened and were in no state to continue fighting. That was when the alliance was formed."

"However, the group most affected by this event was the Dark Faction. A change occurred within the Dark Faction, and the strongest group, the Noctis Clan, was replaced by the Erupting Fist Clan, led by Murkel."

"He proved his strength many times when the Demonic and Light Factions tested him, and slowly, he revived his name as the strongest warrior in all of Pagna, the closest to reaching and becoming a Divine being."

Beatrix was quite shocked to hear the further details. She knew the damage the Hybrid had done, but it seemed the three factions hadn't dealt with it as a simple matter.

"Are you saying the red-colored Hybrid was able to best those from all the factions? Does that mean that the red-colored Hybrid was as strong as the Divine beings?" Beatrix asked, her voice tinged with disbelief.

Once again, Ricar nodded. "You should know that beasts aren't limited to the rules of Pagna. This seems to be the case for Hybrids as well. The beasts in the first place have great power in other dimensions, and you know that Divine beings can still use their full power in these dimensions, just not in Pagna itself."

"And you're saying that thing is still alive, right? They didn't kill it back then!" Hannah asked, her eyes wide with fear. "That it could still come back any day."

"That I'm not sure about. We aren't confident it was killed that day. Most likely, it might just be heavily injured, healing and biding its time to return. Regardless, it hasn't disrupted things as they are, and most have forgotten about it, a thought that just goes to the back of the mind."

"The reason I wanted to tell you all of this is to truly understand how dangerous Hybrids are, and why it's not surprising that Dame is now able to even go against Murkel. It feels as if I'm seeing a repeat of the past."

They certainly felt that way and were thankful now that the Dame they were looking at only had a strange black substance and scales surrounding his beast and transformed parts.

Yet, it was quite clear he felt much stronger than Amir. Even among the colors of the Hybrids, they were sure to have differences in their strength. That was when a thought clicked in Beatrix's mind.

"You said that it was a Hybrid that came and attacked, not a beast. Doesn't that mean it was linked to a person, linked to a warrior of the past? I'm assuming the strength of the beast has to be linked to the warrior in some way, right? So who was the warrior?" Beatrix asked, her curiosity piqued.

"I don't know much about why certain colors appear on the Hybrids; that might be information that only those below know about. I don't know if an individual needs to be strong or not, but you are right."

"A very skillful warrior had become a Hybrid, a warrior from the Dark Faction."