Luke returned from his short expedition to help Princess Charlie level up. Night had already fallen, and the forest around him was dark and silent. But as he pushed through the brush near his cave, torchlight flickered in the distance.
A group of soldiers waited at the entrance, led by Allison. So faces he recognized, Miriam, Cecilia, others were new. Their armor caught the light: iron plates, so light, so heavy, all engraved with the sa insignia, a dragon. He'd seen it enough tis to know it was the crest of House Rhiannon.
"I've been waiting for you," Allison said.
Luke sighed, closing Charlie's interface with reluctant fingers, his excitent fading into quiet frustration.
"We need to discuss war strategy," Allison continued.
"Figured as much," he replied.
He gestured toward the cave. "Inside. Better place to talk."
It had been days since he'd last seen her, and even then, their exchanges were brief. Allison was constantly surrounded by people now, commanders, advisors, nobles. Like Erza, she was treated as royalty here. And, technically, she was one.
She followed him, but when the soldiers moved to do the sa, Luke turned back.
"Not you," he said. "My cave, my kingdom, my rules."
The soldiers froze, exchanging awkward glances.
"You already know why I'm here," Allison reminded them.
"B-but…" one began, but her sharp look shut him up imdiately.
Eugene, the most loyal of the bunch, stepped forward. "If you need anything, Lady Rhiannon, I'll co at once."
"Yeah," Luke said dryly. "She'll text you."
The soldiers didn't laugh. Luke didn't care. He walked inside without another glance, leaving them outside under the torches.
Allison followed in silence.
The tunnel led to the deeper section of the cave, where Luke had built his small underground ho. It wasn't fancy, but it was solid, his own space, his own rules.
"So," he said, setting so food out from his storage. "You've got a fan club now?"
She smiled faintly. "Weird, right? They swore loyalty to . Said they want to join my family's faction once we return to Earth."
"At least they're optimistic," Luke said, pouring water into a wooden cup. "Assuming there'll be a 'return' to begin with."
He was ready for a long strategy talk, but when he looked up, Allison was tossing a heavy bag into the corner. Then ca a mattress, pillows, even a blanket, all pulled straight from her storage item.
"Wait," Luke said slowly. "What exactly are you doing?"
"I'm staying here. Temporarily." She stretched and exhaled. "I'm exhausted, Luke. I'm taking a few days off."
He froze mid-pour. That was not what he expected.
She flopped down onto the mattress, lying right in the middle of the room.
"You know," he said, setting the cup aside, "there are other rooms in this cave that could work as an actual bedroom."
"I'm too ntally drained to care," she murmured, eyes on the ceiling.
Luke approached and handed her the cup of water. She took it, and as her fingers brushed the wood, a faint chill spread through it, the water inside cooling instantly to a perfect, refreshing temperature.
"Unofficially, I'm here to push my rank as high as possible," she said, sitting down and taking a sip of water.
"Good excuse," Luke replied.
"So, I'll have to head out now and then to kill monsters and level up, but I'll stretch my stay here as much as I can."
Luke was quietly grateful for people like Allison, Mason, and Erza in this tutorial. Without them, he'd be stuck managing an army of nearly two thousand. His plans were already crazy enough with just him and Charlie. How could he possibly convince anyone else to let a giant snake eat their arm for the sake of a strategy? His thods worked, but only because they were his.
"How's the final plan coming along?" he asked.
"The main goal is still to get the core team to the peak of our ranks before we outline the actual battle strategy. There are too many unknowns. Like, am I supposed to fight the Midnight Lord or the Witch? Do the war bosses appear all at once, or one after another? We can't rely on a single plan; it has to be adaptable, with different contingencies for each scenario."
Once Charlie unlocked her second epic skill, he figured he could start contributing to that plan too, especially with the potential trump card waiting if she chose that level 45 Pugilist skill.
"What about the Wild Zone chests?" Luke asked.
That was one of their standing operations. Every event chest, whether from the two Safe Zones or deep in the Wild Zone, had to be collected. The more potions they stockpiled, the better.
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"They're taking everything they can find," Allison said. "What used to be suicide missions are now standard practice. Fighting a Midnight Warden used to terrify people; now they hunt them for the experience. The reward events have turned into double bonuses. The events draw the Wardens in, which makes them easier to find and kill."
That idea had co from Luke himself, just like his strategy of making noise in the capital to lure out the Midnight Watchers. Sotis he wondered if that was the tutorial's real intention all along. The clues had been sitting right there, hidden in plain sight. Wardens weren't just guards protecting the chests; they were part of the reward. Kill a Warden, gain experience, maybe loot a rare drop, and claim a chest filled with gold, food, and potions.
The 'players' weren't surviving the tutorial anymore. They were mastering it.
Allison yawned, almost in sync with him.
"I think we're both exhausted," Luke said.
"I've been awake for days." She stretched her arms, rummaged through her bag, and pulled out a shirt.
He blinked. I'm pretty sure that used to be mine.
Luke picked up her empty mug from the floor. "I'm heading to bed too. Been awake a few days myself."
"Oh, right. Good night, Luke."
"Good night, Allison."
He walked to the next room, planning to take a long, quiet bath before finally crashing. And of course, before he did, he made sure to remove his necklace, just so Artemis wouldn't be watching.
***
The next morning arrived, and as usual, Anne stopped by the cave to check on her friend Charlie. The two left together for another hunt in the capital, hoping to gain a few levels. Luke had let Charlie take Artemis along, mostly so there would be a third mber in the group. Even if she didn't fight, Artemis talked enough for three people, which at least balanced the quiet between them.
Part of Luke was genuinely pleased. Charlie had picked the skill he'd been hoping for at level 45 in her Pugilist path, and her trip out was as much about training that new power as it was about leveling.
Outside the cave, Luke was mid-workout, doing crunches on the grass. It was strange; before the system, he doubted he could've managed ten. Now, hitting a hundred was easy.
When he went back inside, the air slled different.
"I'm cooking lunch," Allison called from the corner.
He blinked. The place looked different too. Ice sculptures, small and intricate ones, decorated the space. She'd been practicing her Ice Sculptor profession again.
"Didn't expect to see you cooking," Luke said.
"I've learned to enjoy it," she replied with a small shrug.
On the table lay a map covered in markings, places Luke had scouted and circled himself. Each one was an important location they planned to visit. The more people flocked to the capital, the harder it beca to find good hunting grounds.
"If you co across any interesting plants, could you store them for ?" he asked.
"Sure. Your chatty necklace is with Charlie, right?"
"Yeah. Had to send her out with it. Anne and Charlie might get along now, but having a third presence helps keep things balanced. Besides, having a talking necklace around them should make things entertaining."
The food slled incredible. Luke wanted to grab a bite right then, but she was clearly saving it for later. Then, without warning, sothing dropped in front of him and clattered on the ground. It was the angel mask.
He crouched and picked it up.
"It's still doing that?" Allison asked.
"Yeah. More often lately," Luke replied, frowning.
He stared at the mask.
'Not yet…' a voice whispered in his mind.
"Then why are you leaving my inventory?" he muttered.
It had started happening over the past few days, the mask sohow slipping out of his inventory on its own. He sighed and willed it back inside.
"When I get back to Earth, I'm sending this thing to a specialist," he said.
"The demon god you t?" Allison asked.
Luke nodded.
Allison knew about Samael, at least the surface-level parts. He had told her during an earlier conversation. He had also apologized for receiving the armor from the Order of Lakarion and for still wearing it, since it was a good piece of equipnt. But she had understood and said it wasn't a problem. Though she did ntion she might be upset if he ever accepted the God of Assassins' offer.
***
Artemis hung from Charlie's neck, the pendant swaying lightly as she walked beside the maid, Anne. Charlie raised her fist and slamd it into a charging undead, sending the creature flying before it hit the ground with a wet crunch, this ti staying dead for good.
"Very good, Lady Charlie," said the doll-like maid in her soft, chanical tone.
The two were out leveling together. Anne cast support buffs on Charlie to gain shared experience, barely using her scissor-blade sword and favoring a wand instead.
Charlie pumped her fist and began throwing mock punches at the air.
"Punches... are nice," Anne comnted.
Artemis found it strangely amusing how well those two got along.
"Lady Charlie... used to fight with... sword," Anne said as they walked. "Now with... fists. Lady Charlie... has two classes?"
Charlie paused for a mont, then quickly drew her sword from her inventory.
Anne rested a porcelain hand on her shoulder. "Friends... keep... secrets."
Charlie hesitated, then dismissed the weapon back into her inventory. The two kept walking through the forest.
"You two are like the most unlikely yet obvious friendship in existence," said Artemis. "And I'm the social glue holding this masterpiece together."
"Lady Artemis ...still prefers... statues?" asked Anne.
"Oh, you rembered that talk we had about who's hotter, statues or dolls." Artemis' voice dripped with mischief. "Greek statues are naked, so that gives them a solid lead. But dolls…"
Charlie pinched the pendant between her fingers.
"Fine, fine. I'll stop being a pervert," Artemis muttered.
A low growl cut through the air. Charlie lifted her fists as a monster stepped out of the trees. Anne raised her wand, casting a buff that made Charlie's body shimr faintly with power. Charlie's fists ignited, the flas dancing across her knuckles as she charged forward. Her punch connected with a crack of heat, hurling the creature back in a burst of fire.
Then the ground shook. A larger beast erged from the underbrush, a massive brown-furred wolf, big enough to swallow a person whole. It lunged. Anne pointed her wand, and a square yellow barrier materialized midair. The wolf crashed into it mid-leap and was thrown backward into a tree.
Charlie's fists burned hotter. She dashed in, striking again and again, each blow echoing through the clearing. One fist flared, its fire replaced by a bright silver light, Steel Fist. Her punch landed like a cannon. The wolf flew back, crashing through multiple trees before she sprinted after it and kept hitting until it stopped moving.
When she finally turned, Anne clapped her hands together in her quiet, eerie way. Charlie bowed like a perforr on stage.
"By the way, Charlie," Artemis asked, her tone curious now, "what's that skill Luke said he was so excited for you to test?"
Charlie then activated the skill.
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