“Hmm?”

Luda wasn’t in a hurry to leave the table we were at.

“You’re not going to see them at the landing area, Luda?”

“I’ll pass, KC.” She shook her head. “Bona and Xuanyi unnie will be coming here anyway, won’t they?”

“Fair enough.”

I stood up and looked over the three other people with us.

“I’m guessing none of you are coming, either?”

“We are exhausted from the hunt.” Memphis answered. “It is mystifying why you aren’t, KC.”

“You’re right. Beats me.” I shrugged.

Was it because I was looking forward to meeting the two? Maybe so.

“I’d like to go with you, but, you know…” Jina motioned to the bandages on her arm.

“Don’t force yourself.” I responded.

Speaking of which,

“The clinic is open today, isn’t it?”

I saw people in the building on our way here, right next to the hall. This would be the best time to get herself checked, while none of us are doing anything important.

“I’m taking Jina there after we find out when and where the Trial is going to be held.”

It was Kalasia who answered, glancing at the counter where the others were queuing.

“I’ll go with you two.” Luda offered herself.

“Alright, sounds good.” I approved.

There was no reason to doubt the Feran, but having another human woman accompany Jina was definitely better.

With that settled, I left the table and started walking out from the Trial Hall. Before I could leave, however,

“Are you going somewhere, KC?”

A soft voice called out to me. I turned around to see a person in red and pink, who seemed to also be leaving the hall.

“I’m going back to the ships, Soobin.” I replied. “Bona and Xuanyi are coming here and I want to be there when they land.”

“They are?” Her eyes widened.

“Yeah,” I nodded. “You going, too?”

Soobin seemed like she was thinking of something for the slightest moment. Then,

“Sure.” She replied. “I left something in my ship anyway; we can get both done in one go.”

“Mhmm.”

I looked back at the queue, and spoke to her again.

“Seola’s going to be okay, won’t she?”

“Without me, you mean?” Soobin caught my drift.

Seeing me nod,

“Unnie’s stronger than you think, KC. We’ve been through a lot ourselves.”

In real life as well as in the game, she reassured me.

“If you say so.”

I decided to trust her word and leave it at that.

Telling the other members about the meetup, Soobin and I left the Preliminary Trial Hall and made our way out of the town.

Deusrust was bustling with activity in the afternoon compared to the early morning last time, despite the much less people around. Other than a noticeable lack of Magna, all sorts of people could be seen going about their day: Shaen, Gray, Feran, plus no less than five races I couldn’t identify. There were also plenty of Humans around, which was expected given that they are a major Frontier race, too.

There’s no way Jina missed all the other humans on her way here, I pondered. Did something happen to her when she was traveling?

On the topic of travel,

“What have you been doing so far in the game, Soobin?”

I asked the one walking beside me.

“Me?” She looked at me. “Some odd jobs, missions here and there; just trying to find a way to stay alive, as usual.”

“Stay alive?” Her words drew my attention. “Are people after your life or something?”

“Maybe. I don’t think it’s too serious, though.”

Soobin shrugged, telling me that it wasn’t something to get hung up about.

“How about you, KC? I hear that you’ve been focusing on your Path: How’s that going?”

“Ah, yeah, I am.” I nodded. “If I’m lucky, Arbosienn will have what I need and I’ll be able to complete it by today.”

“That’s good. I should find one for myself too, like Seola unnie…”

Soobin tilted her head.

“Or maybe not, Paths do sound like more trouble than they’re worth.”

“Well, they’re not compulsory in the first place. No reason for to let them ruin your fun.” I pointed out.

“I guess so, but seeing the others work on theirs makes me want to have my own too, you know?”

Oh, right.

I had overlooked Hyperspace Frontier as a VRMMO until Soobin said that: The game was multiplayer by nature. As with games like these (and just games in general), optimal playstyles and ‘meta’ builds will inevitably pop up in discussions around it.

Given the nature of this world, players will surely be limited in some of the things they can do; I don’t believe that resources in this universe are infinite, and even people like Khibu or Isket wouldn’t be able to handle talking to hundreds of players per day, let alone Carthena.

The emergent player economy…

It was something I couldn’t wrap my head around.

“KC?”

Soobin called out to me, seeing that I wasn’t responding to her.

“Ah, yeah, you’re right.” I belatedly replied. “Hopefully Arbosienn has something for you, then.”

“Yeah.”

We reached the landing area without issue, and it looks like quite a few more ships have parked in the spaces since before.

“You think there’ll be room for Bona and Xuanyi to land once they’re here?”

“Even if there isn’t, you can always land your ship outside the town, right?”

“Yeah, but…”

My words trailed off, unable to argue with Soobin’s logic: Sure, there will be more walking, and the ship’s probably going to be unprotected, but it’s not like the clearing is much better either.

“Are you staying outside, KC?” She asked me. “I’m going to get the one I left in my ship.”

“Yeah, I’ll be here.” I nodded.

There was the option of staying in the Wandering 14’s crew quarters, but I didn’t feel like powering up the ship for no reason.

Leaving me outside the entrance, Soobin went into the landing area and towards her ship. Remotely opening the hatch of her Relentless 05, she jumped into it and disappeared from view.

Looking around the area,

“There’s really no place to sit, is there…?”

The ground around the place was dry, but too dirty for me to comfortably sit on. I don’t recall having any sort of mat with me, either.

“Just going to bear with it and keep standing.” I grumbled to myself.

After a while, Soobin came back out of her ship. Coming over to me, I saw one of her hands wrapped around what looked like a large glass jar.

Inside it was some sort of brown material.

What on earth is that…?

As she approached me—

“Who is that, princess Soobin? Did you woo another man without my knowledge?”

A mushy voice could be heard, spitting out its words.

…Wait.

“Can you be quiet for once? Please.” Soobin snapped back at the voice.

Don’t tell me,

“Soobin.” I called out to her.

“What is it, KC?” She turned to me.

“What the hell is that thing in your hand?”

Within the glass jar, a dirt-coloured, slimy lifeform restlessly sloshed around. Below a large yellow eye that alternated between looking at me and Soobin, its body split apart in the vague form of a mouth, from which it spoke.

“Kneel, peasant! You are undeserving of my presence!”

It screamed out to me in response.

“Shut up or I’ll leave you in the sun.”

Soobin smacked the jar in her hand, reprimanding the creature inside. I stood there speechless, seeing it quietly obey her words.

“I guess I should introduce you two.” She began.

Staring at the abomination inside the jar,

“Lord, this is KC. A friend of mine who is definitely not a subordinate, minion, or anything like what you think.”

Returning her gaze to me,

“KC, this is Lord, Lord Wremud.”

She explained.

“To put it simply, this thing was the big bad boss of the mission Seola unnie and I did on Venus. Things happened, and it’s now under my care.”

Hearing her words, the lifeform turned and showed me a smug grin.

“Princess Soobin’s love and affection is reserved only for me, infidel. Know your place in this world.”

---

Lord and I stared at each other for a few moments in silence. Then,

“Anyways,” I sighed. “When you said that you left something in your ship, Soobin, did you mean…”

“Yup, it’s this pile of muck.” She held the jar out to me.

“I can’t see how it’ll help you or us out in any way.”

I raised an eyebrow at her.

“Unless there’s something I’m missing…?”

“The Magna back at the hall told me that all sentient lifeforms must undergo the Trial to gain entry into the cities. Only creatures that cannot communicate with language or reason are exempt from this requirement; you can see why Lord didn’t make the cut.” Soobin detailed.

“So it’ll be joining us for the Foundation Trial?”

“Looks like it.”

“The Foundation Trials… such useless formality,” Lord rambled. “One look at me and they’ll be groveling on the ground, pleading for me to grace their settlements with my presence.”

“Not sure if that’s a good idea, Soobin.” I expressed my honest thoughts about it. A former antagonist becoming part of the team was enough reason for me to put up my guard. What if it turns on us at the critical moment?

“Most of its power came from the hordes of Wremuds it commanded, so I think it’ll be fine.” Soobin assured.

I tried to further voice my doubt, but—

*DING*

A notification arrived on my system:

One new message, coming from Bona.

“Hm?”

Opening it up,

Bona: Landing in a bit.

“Was that from them?” Soobin asked.

“Yeah, it’s from Bona. They should be here any minute now.” I nodded.

“More subjects to enslave!”

The creature’s laughing was cut short by Soobin shaking the jar violently up and down.

“You know I’ll blast a hole through your head if you touch any of my members, right?” She warned.

“Not if I strangle it first.” I followed immediately after.

Seeing the abomination grow quiet, our gazes went to the skies, looking for any sign of the newcomers.

Across Kamag’s bright afternoon, through the planet’s clear atmosphere, amidst dusted clouds,

“Is that them?”

Following Soobin’s line of vision, I saw two tiny dots close to each other, right next to where the sun was in the sky. The dots gradually grew larger, taking on the form of two spaceships around the same size as ours.

“I can’t tell.” I squinted, wishing that I bought a pair of binoculars for situations like these.

The sounds of their engines grew louder as they descended, becoming deafening howls by the time they slowed to a hover above the landing area.

From this distance, I could finally see how different the two ships were to each other: One of them took the form of a dedicated fighter with forward-swept wings, while the other had a shape closer to that of a sleek, wedge era sports car. It is at this time that I can see the numbers painted on their hulls: 03 and 04, respectively.

In any case,

“They really won the spaceship draw, huh?”

It’s almost unfair how good the ships looked, and how much each of them fit the image of its pilot.

Soobin only shrugged in response, though her eyes remained looking at the pair of spacecrafts above us.

The wedged, angular ship was the first to lower onto the ground, with the other fighter circling around the area while waiting for it to land. The admittedly chic spacecraft’s engines let out one last, satisfying roar, as it touched the ground. Dimming its lights, it proceeded to power down.

Soon after, the reverse-winged ship joined it down on the clearing, though it had to land further away from the first one on account of limited parking space in the area.

After that, silence returned to the landing zone. One minute, then two…

“They’re taking a while to come out.” Lord muttered.

“Yeah.”

That was the first time I agreed with anything the monster in the jar said.

“Give them time to get ready, KC.” Soobin replied. “It’s better than having to go back to the ship again because they left something, no?”

“Mm, makes sense.”

Talking to her like this, I was reminded of how surprisingly reliable Soobin is at times. Maybe that was part of the reason Exy and Seola hung around her so much.

It was late in the afternoon here on Deusrust, the sunlight and the heat already beginning to recede. Even then, the day was still bright enough for us to clearly see the moment both spaceships’ doors opened at the same time.

“Yo…” My jaw dropped.

Two absolute visuals appeared from inside the landed ships in equally stunning ways: The one wearing a white and blue spacesuit came out the hatch of her ship, which opened like the scissor door of a luxury car. The other, in an emerald-blue suit, pulled herself out from the cockpit of her spacecraft, like a pilot leaving a jet fighter.

“There’s no way they had those ships right at the beginning of the game.” Soobin mused.

“The numbers don’t lie, though…” I muttered.

“Hmph.” Lord turned away.

Glancing around the clearing, the first of the two women saw Soobin and I standing here outside the gate. I could see the heart-shaped grin spread on her face the moment she locked eyes with us.

“Over here, Bona!”

I waved my hand, calling out to her.

Following my voice, Xuanyi also found us and waved back. She met up with Bona, then left the clearing through the automated gate to join up with us.

“How’s it going, everyone?”

Bona greeted us as soon as we met up. The moment she saw the jar in Soobin’s arms, however,

“Ah!! What is that!?”

She virtually jumped back and clung onto the person beside her.

“Yuck.” Xuanyi stuck out her tongue as well.

“Don’t be too mean, unnies.” Soobin spoke out. “Sure, Lord was an of a monster that tried to kill Seola unnie and me before, but still.”

“Tried to kill you? This thing?”

“And you’ve captured it in a jar?”

The two of them kept asking questions too quickly for Soobin to keep up.

“Let’s save it for the trip back.”

I slipped in and wrapped the conversation up. From the looks of it, having her telling the entire story here will take up too much time.

As we left the landing zone and entered the outpost,

“Oh, how about you, KC?” Xuanyi turned to me and smirked.

“What about me?” I asked.

She raised her eyebrow and continued.

“I heard that you’ve become really strong after the previous day?”

“Hm, I don’t remember powering up that much after Mavacena and Mara Artemis…”

I pondered about my adventure.

Fought many things, yes, but gotten stronger?

“Don’t tell me you mean…”

“Yep, the Fahrenheit’s Ovation.”

She grinned.

“I can’t put into words the amount of work I had to do to get the Sentinel Hexacolia, myself; I can only imagine that it’s been the same for you, too.”

“Well, it’s more of a fluke, more than anything…”

I paused, letting my mind finish processing her words.

“Wait, the Sentinel what!?”

My response certainly came out as a yell.

“What is that!? It sounds so cool!”

“Heheh, you want to see it, don’t you?”

Xuanyi assumed a stance and beckoned me over with a finger.

“You’ll have to fight me for it, then; let’s duel!”

“Ah, fighting is a bit…” I shrank back.

Regardless of how strong she was in this game, physically trading blows with a WJSN member was out of my capability.

“There’s a time and place for everything, Xuanyi unnie.”

Soobin came in and tried to calm her down.

“We have the Trial to participate in, remember?” Bona reminded her.

Turning to us, “We got here as fast as we could. I hope we’re not too late.”

“I don’t… think so, maybe.”

I opened my window to check.

“No one is saying anything in chat, and the Magna haven’t told us anything about it at registration.” I shrugged.

“There’s a registration?” Xuanyi interjected

“Why wouldn’t there be?” Bona argued.

“I was expecting more of a spontaneous thing, like,”

“The Magna are ordered and disciplined, Xuanyi. I thought you knew this?”

Guess that’s that.

Leaving those two to their own affairs, I went back to Soobin’s side.

“Huh, your pet is surprisingly quiet, after all that trash talk.” I pointed to Lord. “Is something wrong with it?”

“It’s weak to bright light, apparently.” Its caretaker answered. “Prolonged exposure will tire it out.”

“Ouch.” I pursed my lips. “Was that why you left it in the ship before?”

“Kind of.” She muttered, saying nothing more.

“Huh.”

Speaking of which, I just noticed that the jar which contained it was transparent; was it intentional on Soobin’s part, as a precaution?

Seems like taking care of Lord is more trouble than I thought.

We made our way through the streets, following the signs. Before long, the four of us arrived at the centre of the town, the last landmark of the trip before our destination. On the way here, I noticed that most of the passersby stared at us for a few seconds, before they looked away.

It was the same when Exy and the rest first arrived.

Was it that rare to see explorers travelling together here on Kamag? I’ve seen groups of people in the Trial Hall before, and Memphis and Jina did say that they banded with other hunters too. It must be something else about us that attracted their attention.

Maybe it’s just because the girls are pretty AF. Yeah, that makes sense.

Following the directions committed to memory, I found the stretch of buildings in which the Trial Hall was located. Next to it, the clinic was open, and I could see a few figures inside through the windows of the facility.

Hm.

Turning to the others,

“Soobin, how about you go on ahead and Bring Bona and Xuanyi to the Trial Hall?”

“Are you stopping by somewhere, KC?” Bona asked.

“Yeah, the clinic just next to it.” I explained. “One of the people I’m friends with got banged up pretty badly earlier today, so I’m just going there to see if she’s fine.”

“Can I come with you?”

“Come with me?” Her question caught me off guard. “Don’t you need to register for the Trial?”

“I’ll do that later. Right now, I want to see how your friend is doing myself.”

“Ah, alright then.”

There was no real reason to say no to her.

“How about you, Xuanyi unnie?” Soobin asked her.

She shook her head in response.

“I’m fine, it’s not nice to have so many people come see an injured person after all.”

“Okay. I’ll let the others know, KC.” Soobin turned to me.

I nodded to her, and we parted ways once we reached the entrance to the hall.

---

I slid open the framed glass door of the clinic and entered the building, Bona following after and closing it behind us.

On the other side of a partition behind the counter, most of the floor was dedicated to what looked like a miniature ward, curtained beds opposite chairs and all sorts of medical equipment.

It is on one side of the room, by these chairs, that the people I saw before were. Three of those were faces I knew, all their attention focused on a dark blue lifeform with what looked like eyes all over their head. From the white coat around their body, I figured that they must be the presiding practitioner of this establishment.

One of them glanced over to us, smiling and waving quietly when she saw Bona behind me.

Returning the gesture,

“Luda must be pretty close to her. That’s the one, right? The black-haired girl with bandages on her arm.” She whispered to me.

“Yeah.” I nodded. “Let’s just wait over here until they’re done.”

We took our seats by the reception counter and waited for the consultation inside to finish.

“So they have a Schisarunn doctor here, too.”

Bona spoke up.

“Schisarunn? Is that their race?” I asked her.

“That’s right.” She nodded. “Quite a few scientists in the research collective I’m part of are Schisarunn, too.”

“Wow, what was that like?”

“You’d probably guessed this, but they have a good, well, eye for things, which makes them great in the research field.” She giggled.

“Heh.” I laughed along.

“They’re rather individualistic, though. Not in the selfish kind of way, but just that they don’t really care about their own more than others.”

Bona went on.

“Their abilities are very useful in all sorts of areas, but other than that they’re just, you know, there.”

“Forgettable, despite how alien they looked?”

“Yeah.”

Our conversation ending there only proved her point further.

“I take it that you’ve seen Ferans, yourself?” I asked her.

“Here and there, mostly Xuanyi’s contacts.” Bona nodded. “Those who stayed behind on Mika-Klene with us were Ferans as well. Pantherlike, bearlike ones; those who were at home in the forest environment.”

“Great fighters too, I presume.”

“When it came to it, which was fortunately not a lot of the time.”

“I see.”

I can’t even begin to imagine the situation they found themselves in, especially now that I recalled what they said to Sejin last time.

A beast beneath the ruins…

It made our own fights in Mavacena and Nadeum sound like a cakewalk.

I wanted to ask more about their adventure, but the murmuring behind the partition told us that the people inside were finishing up.

Soon after, the Schisarunn doctor appeared, telling the mechanical lifeform behind the counter that they were done. Trailing behind them, Luda, Kalasia and Jina came out, approaching us.

We stood up from our seats and joined them.

“How did it go?” I asked.

“Pretty well.” Kalasia answered.

“None of the damage to Jina’s body was permanent, and she’ll recover before long.”

Luda detailed the diagnosis they received.

“The doctor had a few support stents put into her to keep the affected areas in check, too. She should be fine in the Trial later, even if only temporarily.”

“And that costs how much?” Bona inquired.

“Really not a lot, just a little more than the repair costs of our starter ship.”

“That sounds reasonable.” I nodded. An hour or two’s worth of farming materials in the wild, less if you opt for salvage instead.

“I hope I can make the credits back soon…”

Jina hung her head, mumbling. She had just paid for the medical services at the counter, and was now going back over to us.

However, her words stopped along with the rest of her, as soon as she saw Bona.

The moment she smiled at her, the Human’s entire face reddened in flusterment, and she practically ran to hide behind Kalasia’s large, furred body.

“Who is she!? She’s so beautiful!”

 I heard her whisper to Luda, who only smiled understandably in return.

“Hey, Luda’s cute too you know.” I said to her.

“Well, I mean yes, but…”

Jina couldn’t find the right words to speak.

“Stop it, KC. Don’t put her on the spot.” Luda shot me a glance. I yield, I put my hands up.

“You must be Jina, aren’t you? I’ve heard about you from the other members before.”

Bona said, leaning her face towards the shy girl.

“Yes, that’s me…” She replied. “It’s nice to meet you, um,”

“Bona. Just call me Bona.”

“Okay… Bona.” Jina slowly nodded.

That’s adorable.

“Also,” I turned my attention on Kalasia. “Did you find out when our Trial will be held?”

“Ah, right.” The Feran nodded. “Your friend Exy talked to the Magna at the counter, and apparently they’re just waiting until everyone’s ready to go.”

“Oh, so it’s our call.” I mused. “How convenient.”

“We’ve decided to have them commence the Trial once all of us have signed up. Your group of Humans seem eager to start… perhaps there was some truth to the preconception after all.”

“Maybe.” I agreed with him. The girls probably just wanted to save time, but that didn’t matter.

“From what I understand, Jina isn’t sitting out of the Trial, is she?” Bona asked.

“That’s right.” Luda answered. “How about you, Bona unnie? Will you be fine later?”

“You’re talking to someone who survived the jungle both here and in real life!” She asserted herself. “Of course I’ll be fine.”

“Okay.”

Neither Luda nor I doubted her. Bona has always been the trustworthy one; at least, that was how I felt.

“If no one has anything else to do here, let’s go.”

I rounded up the group.

“We don’t want to leave the others waiting.”

“Sure.”

“Got it.”

Thanking the people in the clinic, the five of us left the building and went back over to the hall next door.

---

As soon as our group entered the Trial Hall,

“Luda, KC!!”

Xuanyi ran over to us.

“What? What is it?” I responded.

Looking at the rest of the group, most of the others weren’t as agitated as she was. Memphis also stood there without saying anything, though they looked at us with a sort of an apologetic expression.

“Did you really hunt down one of the wild metal beasts earlier today?”

Only Yeonjung spoke up, following her over to us.

“The Sammad Fellean?” I tilted my head. “Yeah, why?”

“You did that without waiting for us!?”

Xuanyi practically grabbed and shook me by the collar of my suit.

“We just got caught up in the situation, Xuanyi!”

I tried to explain myself.

“We were looking for Memphis and Jina when they let us join them, unnie.” Luda followed.

“Don’t go too far, Xuanyi.”

At the table beside Memphis, Exy warned her.

“Ah.” She realized what she was doing.

“Sorry about that.”

Letting go of me, she apologized.

“It’s fine.” I waved her off. “Why are you so interested in the Fellean, anyway? It’s not as strong as the beast you fought in the forest, is it?”

“The Fellean is a metal creature, isn’t it, KC?”

From the back of our group, Bona took over. Seeing me nod, she continued.

“We read up on the Sentinel Hexacolia’s properties, and apparently it can become stronger if you fight powerful metal monsters with it.”

“Ah,” I understood what she meant immediately. “That’s a shame.”

“We should have told everyone earlier, ourselves.” She admitted.

Going over to Xuanyi,

“I’m sure there will be more chances today. Cheer up, okay?”

“…You’re right.” She finally calmed down.

“Does it have to be a fight, or can I just give you some of the parts from the monster?” I asked them.

“It has to be a fight. As long as the enemy is strong and made of metal, the battle will temper the armament and strengthen its abilities.”

“Huh.” I pondered.

Wait.

I recalled what Chengxiao said she did back in Day 2.

She was looking to… train, under someone, wasn’t she?

“Does the opponent have to be a monster?”

Hearing my words, the same realization dawned on the two.

“The warriors…!”

Like just about any other race, there were strong individuals among the Magna. Guinness was proof of that, as were Gilbert and his army.

“Looks like that’s settled, then.” I nodded.

At that moment,

“It seems to be the case.”

A voice reached us from the back of the Trial Hall; it was the Magna officiator, who had since left her seat at the counter.

“Um,”

“I go by the name of Emer, but you can address me by my title of Overseer.”

The glass markings on her spinning top-shaped head glimmered, as she swept her gaze around our group.

“Convention would dictate that I put an end to your rowdiness at first notice, but given that all fifteen of you here will participate in the next Trial as a group, I figured that some discussion would be fit to pass.”

Turning to Bona,

“If you may, we will proceed with your registration, and I will have the test ready to commence.”

“Ah, right, thank you.”

Led by the overseer, she went to the back of the hall to sign herself up.

As the atmosphere settled, everyone began talking among themselves again. Kalasia and Jina joined back up with Memphis, while Luda and Xuanyi returned to where the other girls were.

Having heard what the Magna said, I took the time to look around the hall, observing the people inside.

Me and the girls make eight; with the NPCs, that’s eleven.

Discussing among themselves on another table were four other people I didn’t know. Curiously, while all of them looked perfectly human, something about them gave away the fact that they weren’t.

I went over to Exy and pointed them out to her.

“Ah, that group?” She mused. “They introduced themselves to us before, calling themselves the Vyrgatel.”

“Vyrgatel, never heard of it before.”

“It means ‘apparition’ in their old language, apparently.” She explained.

“Think of them as something like vampires, KC, without the bloodsucking and dying in sunlight parts.” Yeonjung added.

“Night hunters adept at hiding themselves; no wonder you humans would call them that.”

Lord mumbled; still trapped inside the jar, it couldn’t move from atop the table beside us.

“I’m curious about how they live, Seola unnie. Do they eat humans too?”

“I don’t think so… or maybe, if they landed on Earth in the past,”

“Brr.” Luda shivered, having heard the discussion between Seola and Soobin.

In the other group, I saw Memphis talk to Jina, the latter assuring them that she was in good condition. One nod, two; a hand outstretched to hold the Ilyid’s in hers.

They’ve gotten pretty close, haven’t they?

“Anyways, the one that spoke to us called himself Krieg.” Exy told me. “He’s the one with the upright hair and charcoal vest.”

“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Names were more important; I could always look up the Vyrgatel again in my own time.

Also,

“Also, have you all eaten?”

I belatedly realized how hungry I was.

“Not yet.” It was Seola who answered. “We were thinking of going around to look for food, but Emer said that there will be lunch provided on the way to the Trial.”

“Hope it’s good. I don’t really trust food people give us for free.” Soobin pouted.

“Food is food, just gotta eat it, Soobin.” Exy interjected.

“Easy for you to say.”

“If you mean what I think you mean by that, you’re going to get it.”

Classic Exbin.

No matter the setting, I guess the girls are going to find one way or another to argue with themselves.

I got myself seated on the same table Lord was, and looked towards the counter at Bona and the overseer. It looked like she chose to verbally register herself, maybe to save time.

Still, this is taking a while…

To pass the time,

“Are you going to help us pass the Trial, or are you just going to sit there inside your jar?”

The abomination in the glass jar didn’t answer.

“I’m talking to you.”

No response.

“Lord?”

“Took you a while to learn how to use people’s names, imbecile.”

It finally turned to look at me. Its yellow eye was full of disdain, but I could also see the fatigue behind it.

“Well?”

“Well what?”

“Are you going to be active in the Trial or not, Lord?”

“We shall see.” The creature looked away. “Those like us have little in the way of agility and dexterity, so I’ll have to rely on princess Soobin for those times.”

“Being humble; now that’s a first.”

Having heard us, Seola made her comment.

“Quite the opposite, knight Seola: I pride myself highly on her abilities.”

“Heh.”

You’ve only been with her for a day; that’s what her eyes said.

“Speaking of which,” I turned to her. “About what you said before…”

Seola raised her eyebrow, trying to remember what it was.

“The whole living ship thing.” I reminded her.

“Ah.” She recalled. “Oh, right…”

“Hmm, what’s the matter?”

I caught the tone in her words and asked.

“No, I just remembered that you’re not one of the twelve, KC. I can’t really show her to you directly.”

One of the twelve? ‘her’?

“That’s fine, I think.” I reassured her. “I just want to know about it.”

“Well,” Seola began. “It’s like what Mr Sejin said before: My Soarer holds an ancient drive, which awakened sometime during Day 2.”

“Awakened?”

“That’s right. The… spirit, inside; It woke up and linked itself to my mind.”

“Wow.”

Considering what VR technology could do, mental stuff like that was definitely possible.

What was I saying? The Rake and Ovation did pretty much the same thing.

“What was that like?” I continued.

“Like a space opened in my mind, Seo-ri’s ethereal form appearing inside it.”

“Seo-ri, huh?”

I heard Soobin use that name before.

“That’s the name I gave to the Winterhymn Drive, the one that woke up inside the ship.”

Seori: ‘Frost’.

“That’s a good name.”

“Well, one thing led to another, and I lost control of the abilities it gave me.” Seola continued. “That’s why I’m here now.”

“Strength is scary when it’s not under control, isn’t it.”

I remembered the incident back at the park in Mara Artemis.

“It is.” She agreed.

“I would know.” Lord rolled its eye.

A few minutes passed without much incident. Bona had already finished her registration, and the overseer left the hall from the back door afterwards.

To tide over my appetite, I took a Xetune ration bar out of my inventory and bit down on it. There were also the snacks from Nadeum, so I had more to spare.

“Snacks.”

Soobin’s eyes darted to me, followed by Exy and Yeonjung.

“…I understand.”

I pulled out a few more packets and laid them on the table.

“Come and eat, everyone.”

Some of the other girls joined our table for the food. Jina helped herself to them too after asking for my permission, while Kalasia opted to stay back.

We also saw Soobin feed Lord some the crumbs from an empty packet, which was interesting to say the least.

“If you stop cursing and insulting us, I might buy you food to eat. How about that?” Bona offered.

“Hmph.” The muddy lifeform ignored her.

“No changing such a blockhead, I see.” Exy shrugged.

“You’re the blockhead.” It replied.

The girls quickly learned not to fall for Lord’s dirty mouth.

Having eaten my fill, I left the group and went over to Memphis and Kalasia.

“Are you not eating, Kalasia?” I asked him.

“Nah.” The Feran shook his head. “I’d rather sate my hunger with actual meals.”

“As do I.” Memphis nodded.

“You can eat organic food, Memphis?”

“The process is more… external, than you think, but that is correct.” They answered. “If hydrocarbons can make fuel, it is only sensible that organic substances do, too.”

“I see.”

So they’ll only eat for energy, not growth. Well, they are a mechanical lifeform after all.

“Seeing your friends, KC,”

Memphis began, out of the blue.

“Yes?” I looked at them.

“They’re kind people. I can see why Jina would quickly get attached to them.” They mentioned.

“They are, indeed.” I agreed. WJSN has always been kind, whether during debut or even now.

“Waiting for you has proved its worth. I am glad to be given the privilege of seeing a scene like this after much time has passed.”

“That’s good.”

I didn’t think much about the Ilyid’s statement: As a lone traveler, they wouldn’t have experienced many occasions of warm social interactions in their journey.

The group finished the food between themselves before long, and Xuanyi disposed the trash away from of the Hall along with Jina.

I wasn’t too worried about my stock running out: Food expenses were relatively cheap compared to other explorer needs, and there should be some food in Arbosienn after we’re done.

And, of course, the lunch provided to us as soon as we get to leave for the Trial.

Just as I was about to ask what was taking her so long, the overseer returned to the hall.

Calling for attention from our group, she nodded and made her announcement.

“Our transport will arrive shortly. Finish your preparations, and we’ll depart for your Trial.”

---

Her words made the entire area murmur with conversation.

“It’s time.”

Exy told me as soon as I went over to her.

“I’m looking forward to it, though I’m nervous as well.” I responded.

“Understandable. By the way, KC.”

She motioned for me to come with her to the corner of the room.

“What is it?” I followed her there and asked.

“About this,”

She opened the window to her inventory and carefully pulled out something black and thorny. At first, I thought it was a kind of sea urchin or something like that. The moment she held it out to me, however,

‘Insufficient Clearance to Access Technology’

‘Insufficient Prestige to Use Equipment’

‘Requirements Waived – Consent of Holder’

System warnings flashed in front of me for a brief moment, before disappearing. Then,

‘Okira-Nagam / Harrowing Lament’

I finally saw the true form of the thing in Exy’s hands: A handgun, which looked like it was woven from the jet-black spikes and what looked like a bony material.

I needed clearance to even see this gun in the first place.

Reading the description for the weapon in her hand,

Damn…

“Where did you get this?” I asked her.

“The Day 3 login bonus.” She explained. “I haven’t seen anything like it before, do you think I should use this in the Trial?”

“Hmm, I don’t know…”

The Trial the ’98 liners did had no combat in it, but I wouldn’t rule it out just yet.

“I’m going to ask for Xuanyi’s opinion as well.”

Exy stated.

“You two are the only ones I know with high-grade armaments, so any advice would be helpful.”

“Alright.” I nodded. “For starters… don’t use it carelessly, I guess.”

“Got it.”

Returning my attention to the group, I saw Bona holding some sort of stone spear or javelin, which emanated a dark red in the middle of the forward tip. She held it confidently, while Jina and the others looked on in awe.

“What’s going on?” I asked Luda, who also had the same expression on.

“Bona unnie’s weapon…” She gasped. “It moves on its own!”

“Really?”

“Take a look, KC.” Bona faced me and let go of the stone spear.

*SWISH*

Almost too quick for my eyes to see, the spear left her hand and flew towards me, avoiding everyone else. It halted right in front of my face, floating still in the air; as if allowing me to examine itself.

The spear itself looked old, as if made through primitive means; how it managed to defy gravity and move by itself, I had no idea.

‘Niterib of Garnet Rain’

As soon as I saw the description, everything made sense: This spear was an artifact from the Mika-Klene forest ruins she was at last time.

Pulling my face away from the Niterib,

“Are you sure it’s safe to use this? No ancient curse or anything?” I asked.

The spear returned to Bona’s hand in a flash, and she put it back in her inventory.

“Not to my knowledge. The researchers didn’t say anything about side effects when we asked them.”

“They didn’t know you took the spear for yourself, either.” Beside her, Xuanyi grinned.

Shhh, She held a finger up to her lips.

“I hope it doesn’t break, unnie.” Yeonjung pointed out. “Good luck trying to find anyone who can fix it!”

“I’ll be careful, Yeonjung.” Bona agreed.

“I can’t lose either…!” Xuanyi declared. However, just as she tried to bring out something electric blue from her inventory window,

*BRRMMMM*

The low roars of engines could be heard outside the Trial Hall. A metal craft descended into the ground in front of the building, and, owing to its open-air design, gusts of wind from the landing blew all the way to the hall itself.

“Is that,” I narrowed my eyes to see it clearly. “Is that a flying bus?”

“Looks like it.” Soobin responded.

“It’s a provincial personnel transport aircraft, KC.” Jina explained. “Simply put… Yes, it’s a flying bus.”

“Haah…” Xuanyi sighed, having missed the chance to show everyone her weapon.

“There should be fifteen of you and one creature, is that right?”

The overseer double-checked the list of participants.

The eight of us, Jina and co., and the four Vyrgatel, plus Lord.

“I think so.” I answered.

“That is correct.” Exy confirmed.

“Well then, I wish you fortune and success, candidates.”

The Magna nodded, gesturing to the vehicle outside.

“May the Starlight watch over you.”

“Thank you.” I bowed to her, just in case.

“Let’s go!”

“Let’s do this!”

“We’ll do our best to cover for you, Jina.”

“Thank you…!”

The scene of everyone talking to one another as we moved out of the hall felt like a group vacation trip more than anything.

“You’re coming with us, aren’t you?”

A voice called out to me as people began to leave. It was Krieg, the Vyrgatel man Exy mentioned.

“Yeah, I am.” I answered him.

“I look forward to your cooperation.” He held out his hand. I returned the handshake without letting him wait.

“You too.”

His eyes were darker than ours, as were those of the other three, but I didn’t see any malice behind them.

Waiting for me by the entrance was Memphis and Kalasia, and of course,

“I thought you’ve gotten on board, already?”

“Nah, I just felt like standing here for a while longer.”

“I’m only here to accompany her.”

“Heh, I’ll trust your word on that.” I chuckled.

At this moment I felt the sentiment Memphis shared: Experiencing things together with people, forming bonds with them… those things were worth it.

Forming the last of the group to leave, the five of us hopped onto the aircraft and set forth for the Trial grounds.

---

The provincial aircraft let out a high-pitched whine as it lifted to the skies, flying into the sky away from Deusrust.

The interior of the bus-like vehicle was more akin to a passenger ship, with about twenty seats arranged in two columns on either side of a central walkway. There was plenty of legroom in each seat, enough that even Kalasia seemed more comfortable sitting in one than back then on the Wandering 14.

I took mine near the back of the ship, a bit away from the rest of the group talking like there’s no tomorrow. Funnily enough, the Vyrgatel: Three masculine and one feminine in appearance, all got involved in the girls’ conversations after a particularly heated game of word chaining.

“Using terms outside of Human knowledge is kinda cheating, no? No one has time to look them up to see if you’re telling the truth or not.”

I expressed my opinion to one of them, a rather well-built man by the name of Egon. Not as talkative as the others, he didn’t participate as much in the game that brought them together.

“By that logic, there are words we’ve never heard before, too.” He argued. “Pray tell, how would we know what a bungeoppang is?”

“Ah.”

His words stopped me in my tracks. In the end,

“Let’s agree that no one’s playing fair, then.”

“A mutual understanding.”

Nodding to him, we spoke no more of the matter.

I’ve heard from Memphis earlier that people without their own ships have had to use passenger crafts like these to travel everywhere; whether it be different places, planets, or even star systems.

Jina nodded along, saying that she used such means to travel here through Point Galileo, the Gate Space Station by Jupiter.

The Vyrgatel look like they’d own a ship, though.

Maybe the image of wealthy vampire families just gave me that notion.

Ignoring the noises from the front, I looked over the notes I made about our group, equipment-wise. There was no suggestion that our Trial would involve combat, but I just wanted to write these things down myself.

• Okira-Nagam (Exy) – A Frontier-restricted firearm that corrodes its targets inside out with deathly efficacy. Day 3 login bonus.
• Winterhymn (Seola) – Powers from her awakened ship. Unstable.
• Sentinel Hexacolia (Xuanyi) – Something strong?? She hasn’t showed me yet. Gets stronger if fighting metal enemies.
• Niterib of Garnet Rain (Bona) – A thought-controlled ruin artifact in the form of a spear. Swiped without her research group’s knowledge.
• Lord Wremud (Soobin) – She called it an ex-final boss. Must be strong, right?
• Hydropump Grenade Launcher (Luda) – The one from Nadeum. Has essentially infinite ammunition when paired with her energy transport system.
• ??? (Yeonjung) – Yeonjung been playing solo for some time; she must have something to show, too.

Add to that Jina’s hammer, Memphis’s bow, Kalasia’s spear, and whatever abilities the Vyrgatel might have…

Yeah, I can’t make sense of this.

There were still too many gaps in my information, and what I did know couldn’t be compiled into something more intelligible.

For now, I opened a window and made a new chat room.

You: Yeonjung, what’s the strongest weapon you have?

A few minutes passed without her reply. Her bickering could still be heard from the front, still excited as before.

Oh well, it’s not like I have to know anyway.

Putting away both the chat and notepad windows, I rose up from my seat and went over to the row where Luda, Bona and Xuanyi were.

As I approached them,

“What’s up?”

“Excited, KC?”

Their words reached out to me.

“I guess.” I answered. “I was just going over, like, the best weapon each of us had.”

“Some better than others, I’d assume.” Bona pursed her lips.

Completely absorbed in the field trip mood, she was eating from the lunchbox placed on her lap, talking in between munches of a smoked sandwich.

It was the same one the rest of us got from the provincial transport pilot, which I’ve already scoffed down long ago. The pilot was Magna, by the way, though his manner of speech was surprisingly casual compared to the others.

“Let me guess, you still curious about the Hexacolia?” Xuanyi followed.

“I am, but it’s fine if you don’t want to explain it.” I waved my hands. “Seems like Yeonjung doesn’t want to tell me hers, either.”

“Maybe she’s keeping it a secret?” Luda suggested.

“I don’t know, maybe?”

“I don’t think so. Stuff like this is better shown than explained, in my opinion.” Xuanyi contended.

“Or maybe she just hasn’t read your text?” Bona added. “Yeonjung does that often.”

“You’re right.” I nodded. I’ve heard that from the members before.

At this moment, the roar of the aircraft’s engines changed its pitch, and I felt the entire ship begin to descend.

[Get ready, candidates. We’re landing soon.]

The pilot stated through the bus’s internal speakers.

“Already!?” Soobin’s voice exclaimed among the resulting commotion.

A piece of meat still jutted out of her lips, which she gulped as she scrambled to finish her food. Needless to say, that made the two with her lose it, having to hold onto the seat in front of them to keep from falling over laughing.

“Heh.” I smirked. Turning to Bona, “You should finish eating, too.”

“I’m just about done, actually.”

She swallowed the last of the sandwich and packed the lunchbox away in her inventory space.

“The rest is for later.”

“I hope it doesn’t spill, unnie.” Luda advised.

“In virtual storage?” She raised her eyebrow. “It’ll be fine, I made sure to close the box tightly when I put it away.”

“By the way,”

Xuanyi held up her own empty container.

“Where should we throw the empty ones?”

“I left mine on an empty seat, but yeah, we should round them up to throw away somewhere.”

Discussing it with the rest of the group, Krieg volunteered to gather everyone’s boxes to throw into the trashcan just behind the door to the pilot’s room.

That settled, I went back to my seat to brace for the provincial transport ship to land. Takeoff was smooth enough to not have to do so, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.

Looking outside the window, the bus was descending onto a wide expanse of barren land, filled with dark brown soil and scattered with rocks.

They look more like ruins, on a closer look.

Both Deusrust’s buildings and Arbosienn’s skyline were still visible in the distance, so we know we weren’t too far away.

Unless there was additional formality, we could just call our ships here and fly straight to Arbosienn after passing the Trial. Even if this bus goes straight to the city, I didn’t want to leave my ship out in Deusrust if a better hangar exists in Arbosienn.

Still, that will have to be for later.

*THUD*

The impact of the landing reverberated throughout the entire aircraft.

We had arrived at the Trial grounds. Whatever lurked past this door will be the test set out for us to pass, and the shortest way for Kamag’s cities to accept us.

---

“Phew.”

“I’m nervous.”

The group left the flying bus one by one, and I joined up with Yeonjung and Jina on the dull clearing. Now that we were on foot, the scattered stone ruins looked more menacing up close.

“You two ready?” I asked them.

“I am, I think.”

Yeonjung brought out her inventory window.

“How about you, Jina?”

“We’ll see…” She moved her limbs around, checking if her stents were working as intended. “I should be fine.”

All the NPCs’ carry, including their share of the Fellean carves, were stored away in the transport aircraft. The pilot assured us that he would stay, explaining that the ship was dedicated for the current group taking the Trial.

“Just call out to us at any moment you feel overwhelmed.” Memphis advised as they approached us. “We are doing this together.”

“It’s cooperative, isn’t it?” Luda followed behind them. “All the more reason to rely on us.”

“Okay… Thanks.” Jina nodded. “I need to repair the Ditherer, first. Make sure it’s ready for the Trial.”

“I shall accompany her; the Fused Arc needs some care of its own.”

“Alright.”

The Ilyid and Human went over to a nearby clearing, where a simple shelter stood intact among the rubble.

The rest of the group scattered around alone or in packs, many of which stayed close to the landed aircraft; visibility had gotten low this late in the evening, and the uneven terrain turned from an inconvenience to a risk.

It looked like everyone else was doing the same thing: Going over their inventory, practicing with their weapon, moving around and warming themselves up. It was as if we were preparing ourselves for some sort of battle.

Must be the mood in this place, I feel vulnerable if I don’t have something to defend myself with.

At this point, I also saw a glimpse of the Vyrgatel’s abilities: The only woman in the group straightened her palms into a knife hand stance, and at once the sides of her arms gave off a sharp glint.

Blade arms.

The other male did the same thing, while Krieg and Egon curled theirs into a tight fist, allowing some sort of shell or tough skin to envelop their forearms.

“Wow, that’s pretty cool!”

Soobin went up to them, admiring their reinforced limbs.

“One of our natural abilities, it has its strengths.”

The woman acknowledged her compliment.

“A humble minion of mine can do that, princess Soobin. It’s nothing to be impressed about.” Lord boasted, still in its glass jar.

“Don’t make trouble we don’t need.” Seola warned it.

Pulling my attention away from them, I saw Xuanyi, Bona and Exy together in another area, discussing something among themselves. I thought to see what they were talking about, but then decided against it.

Odds are that it’s about the Okira-Nagam, anyway.

Instead, I went through my arsenal again. The weapons were already lined up from the Fellean hunt earlier, so all that was left is to decide which ones to use. For now, I brought out the Ovation, as well as prepared the Howl to switch out as necessary.

I swung the charged shield around, switching it once or twice between forms. Tinkering with the wheel a little, I also tested its heating and cooling with as little power as possible, so as to not cause a commotion. Even then, the red and blue energy lines that covered the weapon glowed brilliantly, drawing some of the others’ attention.

“That looks strong.” Yeonjung mentioned.

“It is reliable.” I agreed. “Oh, right, speaking of which—”

*RUMBLE*

Tremors rippled through the ground we stood on, cutting my words short.

Something emerged from the ground further away from where we were, in the middle of a field littered with smaller, more weathered stone structures.

“What is that?”

As the shaking subsided, the Vyrgatel group moved to examine it closer.

“Should we?”

“Let’s go, unnie.”

Kalasia began rounding up the rest of the group while I followed Luda and Yeonjung to where the brown, old structure had appeared.

Krieg saw us approach and nodded.

“This is the place.”

Following the others’ gazes, I finally laid my eyes on what this object really was: A throne made of rock, dirt, and rusted metal, sat atop an elevated pedestal.

Around the central platform was a formation of arches and pillars, giving the entire structure the appearance of a primordial altar of sorts.

Sat on the throne, awaiting our arrival,

“You have come.”

A Magna, donned in ceremonial armour, announced.

“…Who are you?”

I asked him.

Gripping the metal rod planted in front of him,

“I am the Gatekeeper of this Trial: Grear of the Burning Globe.”

The mechanical lifeform answered, his featureless octahedral head spinning slowly suspended above his shoulders.

“Have you been waiting for us?” The Vyrgatel woman followed.

“Yes.” He affirmed.

Luda came forward to ask her own question, but the Magna bellowed before she could do so.

“Where is Aidan?”

The two of us looked at each other, neither of us recalling the name anywhere.

Was this already the beginning of the test?

Before we could answer,

“I’m over here, Grear.”

A voice reached us from behind. Looking back, I saw the others walk over to us; the ’95 line together with Seola, Soobin and the others.

The one waving to the Gatekeeper was the other Magna, the pilot of our provincial transport ship.

“Didn’t know you were calling.”

The group parted ways to open a path between the two, waiting for some sort of ritual to happen.

The first one to speak was Grear.

“…Is the game night on the 6th still in place?”

Huh?

“Oh, the one at your place?”

Aidan’s three-eyed head had no facial muscles, but I could tell by his tone of voice that he was grinning to the other Magna.

“Of course, I know your kids have been looking forward to it. Wouldn’t want to disappoint them now, would I?”

Grear let out a sigh.

“I fear that the Trials on that day will run late into the evening, disrupting the plan.”

“I’m having someone cover for me on that day. It’s unfortunate that Caragh isn’t around to take your place, though.”

“I will be sufficient. You can start with the children ahead of me.”

“Uh…”

“Um.”

Xuanyi and I spoke at the same time.

We were here to do the Trial, not listen to casual talk between two working colleagues.

“Can we come?”

Bona, however, took her own approach, and the other girls barely held themselves from wheezing.

“Oh, sorry, it’s a private event.” Aidan shook his head.

In contrast, Grear let out a chuckle.

“If you perform well in this Trial, however, I may consider extending you an invite.”

“Challenge accepted.” She agreed.

Damn it.

Leave it to HF to turn even the dumbest things into progress opportunities.

“Let’s get the show on the road, then.”

The aircraft pilot urged everyone along, motioning towards the field behind the altar-like structure.

“Very well. I shall now explain to you the conditions of the Burning Globe Trial.”

---

As the Gatekeeper rose from his position atop the throne, the central platform and pillars let out low harmonic hums, and patterns of light formed on them as well as on the metal rod in his hands.

Amongst them, Grear descended from the pedestal and moved to the low pillar directly between us and himself.

Sensing the metal rod, a mechanism within the stone pillar parted, revealing a bronze coloured orb, the size of a basketball.

“Is that…” Krieg asked, wariness in his face.

“The Burning Globe.” Seola finished the sentence.

“That is correct.”

With one arm, the Gatekeeper grabbed the globe in his hand and lifted it from inside the pillar.

At once,

*TREMBLE*

The field behind the altar shuddered, and the ground gave way to the rise of several other entities.

No way.

“Oh my God.”

“Are you serious…?”

Several people in our group exclaimed.

“…So this is what we have to clear.” Kalasia let out a laugh.

What rose from the ground was a legion of warriors armed with spears, swords and axes, twice as tall as we were. With body structures identical to that of the Magna, these masked, savage fighters only emerged up to the level of their torsos, but they moved through the ground without issue.

Lit against Kamag’s setting sun, both the figures and the weapons they held reflected the dull shine of earth; these were constructed warriors, summoned to fight by the altars.

“The knights are temporary entities, so you do not need worry for their permanent destruction.”

Grear explained.

“Though, from your eyes, it seems that you fear more for yourselves.”

*SIZZLE* *CRACKLE*

The sound that drew our attention did not come from the giant warrior knights that appeared; rather, it was from the orb the Gatekeeper held.

“What the—”

The globe glowing a searing red, intensifying in brightness as it threatened to melt Grear’s hand which held it up to us.

Before our eyes, he dropped it on the ground next to the pillar. At once, the red light dimmed, and.

*BOOM*

The constructs lost their shapes and crashed into the ground as mounds of dirt.

Jina drew a deep breath, while Exy moved to ask if she was alright.

“I think I understand this Trial now.” Egon stated.

“Commendable. I will explain the conditions for your success, nonetheless, such that the entire group may recognize them.”

Grear held the metal rod with both his hands, once again.

“Defeat the legion of knights without letting the globe touch the ground;”

Bending down, the Gatekeeper picked the globe back up and placed it inside the low pillar from before.

“You will attain victory once the last warrior turns to dust.”

The actions he took demonstrated a mechanic of the Trial we already suspected; the orb will only heat up when in contact with his hand.

“Damaging the altar or its power source is forbidden.”

Grear warned.

“In addition to being a Trial ground, the Southern Niel Hall of Ancestral Guards is also a registered Magna heritage site. Its defacement will not give our people your pleasant impression.”

“You can go ham on the earth knights, as long as you don’t do anything to the altar itself, got it?”

Aiden repeated the Gatekeeper’s explanation.

“A dexterous effort and a challenging fight in one…”

Memphis groaned. Even with the wealth of experience they seemed to have, it was clear on their face that this wasn’t going to be easy.

Everyone else looked tense as well. The WJSN members began to gather around, talking about their game plan to tackle this Trial. Jina and Kalasia went over to join up with them, while the Vyrgatel seemed to be discussing among themselves.

“Hm?”

I noticed the anxious expression on their faces.

“What’s wrong with them, Memphis?”

The Ilyid looked at the people I pointed to and realized something.

“The Vyrgatel… this will be more difficult than it already is.”

“Why?” I didn’t understand.

Memphis looked at me straight in the eyes.

“They are ill-matched for this test, KC.”

They explained.

“Fire is the bane of their people. One mistake with the heated globe will potentially cost them their lives.”

---

I froze at Memphis’s words.

That’s a death flag if I’ve ever seen one.

There was no way the Trials were this difficult, let alone pose a risk to other people’s lives.

Meiqi and the other ’98 liners told me not to worry too much about them. Was theirs the easier of the Trials, or was ours the unexpectedly difficult of them?

Nonentheless,

“Give me a minute.”

Leaving the Ilyid’s side, I went over to the group of four.

“Hey.”

“Hm? Something wrong?”

Despite being preoccupied with their discussion, the third male Vyrgatel turned to accommodate my intrusion into their talk.

“Sorry, I haven’t gotten your name yet. My name is KC, by the way.”

I began with a belated introduction.

“No problem. I’m Krieg, and this is Dagmar and Lenard.”

Krieg motioned to the woman and man, respectively.

“Greetings, KC.”

“Good to meet you.”

“Glad to meet both of you, too.”

We exchanged our salutations.

“You should know Egon, already.”

Both the muscled man and I nodded to him.

“Anyways, about the Trial.”

Done with the introductions, I got to the main topic.

All four of them turned their attention on me.

“Are you sure you want to go through with this? I don’t think something like this is worth risking your lives for.”

I proposed.

“Can’t you ask Grear to make an exception for your group? Or just get Aidan to take you back to Deusrust, if that cannot be done.”

Krieg smiled at my words.

“Thank you for worrying about us, KC.”

However,

“I’m sure the Overseer had a reason for sending us here.” He explained. “She would have already known we were vulnerable to fire, yet chose this path for us anyway.”

“You sure about this?” I looked at the other three. “All of you?”

“We believe in Krieg, and Krieg trusts the Overseer.” Lenard proclaimed. “Our oath of family is built on trust, and we will honor it to the end.”

“We will survive, KC.” Egon assured me.

“Still…”

“We will not throw our lives away, Human.”

Dagmar shrugged, turning her bladed limbs back to normal.

“I’m sure your group will understand if we choose to withdraw in the middle of the Trial, won’t you?”

“Oh.” I nodded. “I’m sure they will.”

At least they’re already prepared to let go of the Trial in case things got out of control.

“It’s a team effort,”

I said to them.

“So don’t be afraid to ask for our help if you need it, okay?”

“We will.” Krieg accepted my offer.

Having gotten a mutual understanding with them, I left the Vyrgatel and moved to the WJSN members.

Memphis had also joined up with the girls while we were talking, so I slotted myself into the group between them and Kalasia.

“Are they going to stay, KC?” Yeonjung grasped the situation and asked.

“Yeah.” I affirmed. “They will consider pulling out if things go south, though. And I already told them to ask for our help when they need it.”

“That’s good.” Exy commended. “We should be able to cover for each other.”

“You can count on us, KC.” Bona followed.

“I always did.” I smiled. “So, what’s the plan?”

“Every one of us will take one of two roles.” Exy reiterated the plan. “Either the batter or the dribbler.”

The batters would be responsible for sending the globe high up in the air, giving us as much time as possible to catch it. The airtime will also let the orb cool down a lot.

By contrast, the dribbler will slow the path of the globe’s fall, directing it for someone else to catch.

“Memphis will be our last resort; as the holder, you will be hanging onto the orb as long as safely possible while we fend off the knights’ attacks.”

Alternating her gazes between Jina and me,

“You two will be our default batters: Your hammer and shield should be able to send the globe flying, right?”

“That’s no problem.” Jina answered.

“Yep.” I added. “But, you know, can’t I just make some ice to let it sit on?”

The icicles from the Ovation were strong enough to hold itself up; a metal sphere should not pose a problem.

“I wouldn’t risk it.”

Luda shook her head.

“Unless you’re willing to carry the entire thing around, it would be considered part of the landscape, wouldn’t it?”

“Ah, that’s true.”

Touching the ground meant touching anything affixed to the ground, and the Trial would fail.

“You can try wrapping the globe itself in ice, but I’m afraid that the melting would make it slippery.” Xuanyi suggested.

“Hmm. I could keep the orb stuck to the Ovation and keep it cool, but that will leave me unable to fight against the knights effectively.”

I expressed my thoughts.

“That might work, though, if you don’t engage with them.” Yeonjung supported. “Keep the option open as a last-ditch effort.”

“Alright.”

Our strategy meeting continued for a while. It was decided that Jina, Xuanyi, and me will be the batter, while the rest of them will be dribblers. The holder position was indeed held by Memphis, but also,

“Rejoice at the knowledge of my participation, peasants! This body that only moves for princess Soobin will show you its splendor!”

“Yeah, yeah, amazing indeed.”

Lord Wremud offered itself, before promptly disappearing somewhere out of sight.

“You sure that thing won’t escape, Soobin?” I asked.

“Escape where, in this middle of nothingness?” She answered.

“Annoying as that monster is, I’ve not seen it go back on its words.”

Seola followed.

“And if it dies in this Trial… well, that’s one load off our shoulders.”

“Mm.”

The two of them said that, but I could see in their eyes that they’d rather not owe anything to Lord for its sacrifice.

I wouldn’t, either.

---

“Are you all ready, candidates?”

Grear had returned to his throne, looking over the group.

“Don’t push yourselves too hard, people.” Aidan advised.

Glancing at the Vyrgatel,

“Especially the four of you.”

“We won’t.” Dagmar responded.

“I think we should be fine, right?” I asked the members.

“We’ve planned all we could.” Luda nodded. “All that’s left is to do our best.”

“Everyone ready?” Xuanyi spoke up.

“Make sure you go over your stuff, too.” Exy continued. “And don’t forget your daily login bonus, it might just help all of us pass this test!”

Hmm?

“Ah!” I exclaimed.

“What’s wrong?” Yeonjung asked.

“Of course, the daily login bonus!”

I had sworn not to forget about it after what happened in Day 2. The Spined Rake proved its worth not only in Mavacena, but also in Nadeum.

Exy’s reminder barely saved me from doing the Trial without drawing from it.

And the others too, it seems.

Seola and Soobin fiddled with their own holograms of Uzzu, going over the process.

“Come out, Uzzu. Give me the goods!” I called out.

“Right away, Astronaut!”

The mascot appeared out of thin air, and pulled out the bonus window for me to see.

“Hmm…”

As usual, three items appeared, from which I could only choose one. Looking at the pictures of the items and their names.

An earpiece, a module, and… a bridge?

Did I roll badly this time around?

“Ugh. Well, it’s better than nothing.”

I brought back my resolve. An item was only as good as how well you use it.

What should I pick?

---

A) Inert Earpiece
B) Analogue Module
C) Amethyst Bridge