Chapter 11 11: The Twelve Gates Of Bliss

"I WON'T SURRENDER!"

Raven's loud voice sounded in the pitch-black cavern; feeling a tightness in his chest, gasping for air as his body suddenly moved, his left arm reaching for the skies as if to pluck the stars themselves and smash them to the ground.

"Haa...Haa..."

He began to breathe with slow, baited breaths, still feeling the unbearable pain in his body, like magma filled his veins, travelled through his entire body and charred his arteries.

His state was awful; he could barely lift or move his body, slowly waiting for his senses to return fully.

'Fuck... what is there so much blood everywhere...'

"Wait..." His deep voice echoed through the cavern, deeper and more magnetic than before, but still close to his original, not enough to make people curious or ask questions, maybe thinking he just smoked too much.

Raven tried to move his body, feeling a strange sensation filling his body, the crackling sound as dried blood began to peel from his chest, the black shirt his father had prepared now gone, mere scraps of burnt cloth on the ground, his black shield crushed and deformed into a small ball.

But that wasn't what stunned him as he looked around, feeling delighted and fearful at what had happened.

"Why can I see so clearly, in this complete dark?"

Strange... He felt it was bizarre as not only his sight, but now he could hear the sounds of small insects chirping from near the entrance, the little bugs rubbing their legs causing him to wince with a headache as he began adjusting.

He could remember that purple gemstone, with the same markings as the Manticore Lilith, the ring on his finger reacting to it strangely before it bore into his chest, and the pain caused him to blackout.

'This... was this maybe meant for Lilith? Have I done something irreparable by using her ring? What is my class like? What about the talent I should have unlocked?'

Guilt began to overrun him for a moment before he shook his head.

"No, let's be realistic... Would she have entered the dungeon? Could the chest have been guaranteed to appear for her? Either way, I have taken the benefits of this ring and will use it to the utmost limit..."

Raven took a deep breath, the brittle rocks almost crushed to powder as he placed his hands down, 'it seems my physical power has increased.... significantly at that.'

Tired of lamenting, instead happy to be alive, he started to climb to his feet, a strange sensation as he seemed to be a little taller, his pants now a little above his ankles, now roughly 6ft 6 inches tall.

Slowly, his eyes scanned the area and found his mother's axe, a little scratched and damaged but all good.

He began to enjoy this new [Dark Vision], which allowed him to see clearly in the darkness, the black walls, broken pillars, and eerie pattern's on the wall.

"Huh? Is this a picture?" Raven exclaimed as he stepped closer, one of the paintings not weathered, allowing him to describe the images moderately well.

"Is this woman... a manticore?"

The pictures created a strange image; a woman with a tail and large wings greeted a group of what seemed to be humans after she left a pillar.

All the humans bowed to her as the sun began to lift high before the picture was dark and gloomy with a vast moon painted.

Raven followed the old wall, tracing his fingers across the images that seemed to detail a past, maybe the history of his world or the world Manticore's first appeared.

He watched in awe and sometimes sorrow as the young female Manticore began to grow, her wings becoming filled with beautiful gryphon-like feathers, her head adorned with two horns and fluffy antennae like a furry set of feelers that grew down to her buttocks, with a voluptuous and curvy body that could make any man interested.

"She's beautiful..."

Somehow his eyes saw a complete image, not the mere images on the wall... as she grew up, experiencing life, and finally fell in love with a human male.

At first, the humans began to rejoice; the [Goddess] Raven labelled her as she seemed to be worshipped by them, and the images showed them piling fruit and treasures for the two who seemed to get married.

But it was strange...

"Why does he look weaker... frailer with each image..." Raven muttered as he walked along the wall before finally coming to the huge brown door with the final image painted on the door.

A strange text along the border, while the image of that beautiful woman, holding a child and the male laying in what seemed to be a primitive coffin.

While behind her was a massive group of humans with sharp tools and weapons.

'Such a sad fate...'

Raven remembered his mother's words; she seemed to know a manticore personally, likely to be Lilim, who he believed was somehow linked to Lilith, but would never jump the gun, not wanting to hurt Lilith, who seemed to be alone in the world.

"Manticores will drain the person they love until death... Is this what it means? Not a malicious thing, but naturally.... as they spend time together? Is that why my body felt sluggish after riding the bus? Maybe why I sometimes felt too tired after riding the bus late at night with her opposite?"

'It's not her fault... Don't be stupid, Raven.'

He shook his head; why care about something she didn't do intentionally? His mother said long ago that his constitution quickly recovered and was the ideal partner for essence-absorbing races.

"Forget it... Let's talk to Lilith seriously once I return and she settles in. Let's take care of her until she's ready, as thanks for the special opportunity and because she's alone in the world like me..."

Raven's body began to stretch, his muscles feeling more loose and flexible, while a strange sensation of power and Vitality almost pumped through his veins.

However, he couldn't see himself for a moment; he was worried about a massive scar on his chest and quickly looked down.

"Eh? What's this?"

The air stagnated, and his body stopped as he looked at the strange marking now painted on his chest; the figure was almost bizarre, but it also felt nostalgic, as if there from birth.

'Status!'

o-- Alistair "Raven" Granbell

o-- Chimaera (Manticore / High Orc)

o-- Class N/A

o-- Cultivation: The Twelve Gates Of Bliss (Manticore Only)

o-- Cultivation Stage: [Gateway of Awakening] Stage 1

o-- Experience: 0/10

o-- Credits: 80

Attributes (Average = 1)

Strength: 3.5

Agility: 1.5

Stamina: 5.5

Vitality: 5.5

Intellect: 1.6

Wisdom: 1.7

o-- Skills:

Manticore's Heart (Passive) [Level 1] - Increases Vitality and Stamina regeneration at all times, creating the perfect mate for a female Manticore.

Shadow Strike [Level 1] - Dash towards an enemy and brutalise them with a dark strike causing heavy shadow damage, ignoring defence.

5-second cooldown

Stamina -0.5

Wisdom -0.1

-

Raven's heart began to throb with a powerful vibration, the sound filling his ears, tracing his giant fingers slowly along the image.

A male with the same image as himself, with tiny gryphon wings, horns and the same feelers the female Manticore had in the pictures.

But beneath his feet were the crouching and kneeling images of countless female manticores and succubi.

It seemed like they were praying to their god, which filled him with an eerie feeling.

'Let's make sure to cover this up in future.'

He was worried about the guild seeing his changes, but when he pulled out his adventurer card, the Manticore skill and races were gone, leaving only [Shadow Strike] and his race, the old [Human/High Orc]

"Chimeara... What is that? Thinking of that, what exactly is a manticore?"

His finger clicked the system interface, and there was a small bestiary.

He began to browse the lists, wanting to see the differences between his idea of a Manticore, like the images seen here and his mother's words and stories.

[Manticores] - A female race known to be extremely dangerous as they constantly drain a male to death, extracting their essence from fluids and scents, and the mere presence can lead to the death of a target without knowing.

A vile and deadly type of creature far more dangerous than a succubus.

Danger Level: SSS - No freedom.

WantedLevel: SSS - Kill on sight, Arrest if possible.

There was a big difference between his mind and the knowledge in the system; if all adventurers and ordinary people believed this, then what about the truth?

Raven knew they would only latch onto one male in their lifetime; even if it bore no fruit, they would feed from that male alone.

How was it as cruel and deadly as the bureau was claiming?

'This isn't right... fucking hell... so annoying....'

"Isn't this too cruel? Lilith isn't a bad girl... Although if it wasn't me... the person say she latched onto a normal human male? Wouldn't she be the one who ends up the most unfortunate... She would not only. Eventually, die, but kill the man she....wait..."

He wondered if he should bury this subject after losing Philis, Raven was not interested in anything like a relationship, especially something as heavy as a manticore's love.

Maybe she had yet to bind to him fully. Thus, he could help her stand on her two feet, and she would find the man destined for her.

'Either way, until she is ready, I won't desert her.'

Raven shook his head; although he wanted to think about these things seriously, there was too much to do, and the dungeon exit was through this door, not to mention he could no longer tell how long he was inside the dungeon.

What if the buses were no longer running?

"The Twelve Gates Of Bliss...? A manticore technique... what's cultivation? Is that like the eastern equivalent to our special arts?"

He tapped the small text for the Twelve Gates as a long list of words appeared, too much for him to even take in, so he only checked the first Gate as this was his current Stage.

Gateway of Awakening - Cultivation Level: Foundation

Gateway of the Heart - Cultivation Level: Passion

Gateway of the Body - Cultivation Level: Affection

Gateway of the Mind - Cultivation Level: Desire

Gateway of Balance - Cultivation Level: Equilibrium

Gateway of Serenity - Cultivation Level: Climax

Gateway of Harmony - Cultivation Level: Unity

Gateway of Joy - Cultivation Level: Delight

Gateway of Love - Cultivation Level: Devotion

Gateway of Ecstasy - Cultivation Level: Rapture

Gateway of Nirvana - Cultivation Level: Transcendence

Gateway of Endless Bliss- Cultivation Level: Overwhelming Bliss

-

[The Twelve Gates Of Bliss] - A secret cultivation technique created by the first Manticore after losing her beloved and being forced to kill those he loved just by existing; she made this technique and passed it down to all males who paired with a manticore.

Although it would twist them into a monstrous chimaera, they would not die from their beloved partner's affection and presence.

Engaging in sexual intercourse will increase both partners' physical and mental capabilities and increase the other person's pleasure and sensitivity by a certain amount.

Sexual pleasure and sensitivity were boosted by 20% for the female partner for each Gateway opened.

[Gateway of Awakening] - The first step, you have been fused with the inner core of a manticore. Her memories and feelings will eventually guide you in understanding and caring for your partnered Manticore.

There are 6 stages to each realm, increased by continued physical contact with any female.

Due to the nature of the Twelve Gates of Bliss, the male's libido increases to amounts that even a Manticore couldn't handle. Thus it is suggested to find other creatures that desire essences, like higher succubi or dryads.

Strength, Vitality and Stamina increase drastically with each Stage until the second Gateway opens, which will focus on Vitality entirely.

Raven read the details and felt it was terrific, but there was one big problem...

He didn't have a class, so he couldn't level up, right? Didn't this mean he would never be able to rank up, unable to bring Lilith into the dungeon to help her find a way to make money?

Which caused him to feel a headache as he rubbed through his hair with a frustrated look, reaching for the inner pocket of his jacket for a dragon stick to soothe his nerves; sadly, they were all burned to dust, along with his dad's tunic.

"Fuck this is too deep... I just wanted a simple class... Can an orc not become a damn warrior in peace?"

He muttered under his breath, finally entering the last room, his enhanced hearing able to locate four goblins, two with light armour in the distance, the slight movement of the feather on their arrows, letting him know they were archers, with two close to the door, a slight clang of rusty armour, merely a metre from the doorway, blocked by a simple stone ledge.

'Typical... Archers when I want to rush home...'

Raven's eyes narrowed, grasping his axe with a tight grip. At the same time, the marking on his chest glowed a faint purple as he stepped into the room with a heavy step, tossing stealth and subtlety out the window as his large foot stepped on the brick wall, and leapt over, a shadowy black mist slowly forming as he dropped down.

"When in doubt! Crush them to paste!"