Essence Stones

These luminous fragments turn up within the bodies of fallen magic beasts and rank among the most prized loot a hunter can recover. They form the main revenue stream for hunters everywhere. Larger beasts tend to yield correspondingly larger stones.

A stone's value rests on both its rank and its quality. Common E-Rank stones fetch almost nothing because they flood the market, while the scarce, premium S-Rank variety can command millions. Color signals the grade as well: D-Rank stones appear white, A-Rank stones red, and S-Rank stones purple, with a rare few from monsters of extraordinary strength, such as the Ant King and Kamish, glowing pure black. Beyond commerce, the stones feed into crafting weapons and gear with unusual properties, and they double as a remarkably durable power supply. Kamish's stone alone kept the FBH headquarters running for close to ten years.

Later revelations expose the true origin of these crystals. The Rulers manufactured them and embedded them within the magic beasts they captured during their opening war against the Monarchs. The aim was to drive those beasts to slaughter humans, thereby steeping the human world in enormous reserves of mana so that mankind could survive long enough for the Rulers' eventual rematch.