The sun sat high in the sky, its heat baking the stone where Leo’s group waited. They had already swept the buildings on every side, checking for ambushers or traps. Still, unease clung to Leo. The last thing he wanted was for this meeting to spark a war between their camps.

  Minutes ticked by. The shadows shifted. Almost noon now, Gareth’s group should have been here any moment.

  Then Leo felt it, like the air itself shifted a little, carrying a pressure that wasn’t physical. It was as if he could sense the very power of what was approaching and could gauge its strength. The feeling confused him. He hadn’t felt this before, why now?

  Focusing stronger on the feeling he realised he could also sense the same in those near him, all varying in strength. It wasn’t that he couldn’t feel them before, but was that he was so used to their presences that it felt natural.

  What definitely wasn’t natural however, was the one approaching.

  “They’re here,” he muttered.

  Cecelia’s eyes narrowed, but she didn’t question him.

  A moment later, a shock of red hair peeked around the corner.

  Ruby gasped in delight and bolted.

  “Ruby, hold on—damn it!” Gareth snapped, jogging after her.

  She dashed straight for Leo, arms wide, leaping in for a hug.

  A shimmer of light erupted in front of him, forming a thick barrier. Ruby bounced off with a thud, landing on her backside in a very ungraceful heap.

  Ashley quickly snapped her hand back to her side, stifling a laugh with pursed lips. The rest of Leo’s group stared at her with various expressions. Cecelia’s jaw was hanging open.

  Leo tilted his head back, staring at the sky. One minute in, and it was already off the rails.

  Ruby sprang up, dusting herself off as the rest of her group appeared, lining up opposite Leo’s. They had more people here, all at decent levels. Leo briefly wondered if Cecelia had taken less people on purpose, but didn’t know why.

  “Why did you do that?!” Ruby demanded, eyes flashing. “Are you trying to keep me from my Leo?”

  “Your Leo?” Ashley scoffed. “You’ve known him for five minutes. You almost tried to kill him in the first two. Where in there is the part where you fell madly in love? Don’t think he left out the candle-light dinner when recounting your madness.”

  Leo braced himself. Voices were rising, heat was building. He fully expected fire to start flying. But instead of anger, Ruby broke into a wild laugh.

  “I like you!” she said, grinning at Ashley. “That wall was fun. Think it can stop fire?” Her wand twitched, suddenly in her hand, eyes glittering with that predatory excitement Leo knew all too well.

  “Try me,” Ashley snapped, her mood souring further.

  Ruby’s laughter turned maniacal as her wand lifted, flame coiling at the tip.

  Cecelia stepped smoothly between them, graceful and unthreatening. “You must be Ruby. Nolan here has told me all about you.”

  Ruby’s eyes went cold, her smile fading as if it had never existed. She stared at Cecelia like a predator whose meal had been interrupted. But then her gaze flicked past, settling on Nolan and Gordon. Recognition sparked in her eyes, her mood flipping instantly once again.

  She bounded towards them with a wide smile. “Hey guys! Long time no see! Just you two that made it? Rough break.”

  “Ruby.” Nolan spat the name like poison. “You owe us an explanation. You just disappeared! We thought you died or had been kidnapped. People died because of you!”

  Ruby shrugged. “I got bored. Wanted to see what I could do on my own. People die all the time here, I mean look at the Tutorial quest.”

  Leo’s eyes flicked to the glowing blue window that appeared before him.

  Current survivors remaining: 399/1500

  She was right. The numbers had already dropped, just in the last two days. At this rate, only a fraction of the original survivors would see the end. The need for safety in numbers was increasing by the day, with the numbers that could be used dwindling.

  “That doesn’t make what you did okay!” Nolan snapped. His fists clenched, voice ragged with frustration. “You should have said something.”

  Ruby waved him off with a flick of her wrist, already bored. “Whatever.”

  Leo could feel the anger burning in Nolan, a fire ready to ignite. Thankfully, Gordon’s steady hand landed on his shoulder before he did something he’d regret.

  Cecelia stepped in, her voice even but carrying the weight of command. “Gareth. I thank you for saving my people and allowing Leo to bring them home. With your numbers and strength, you could have just as easily taken them by force.”

  Ruby edged closer to Leo as Gareth stepped forward, her eyes still fixed on Ashley like sizing up a rival. The tension in the air was thick enough to choke on, despite Cecelia’s best efforts.

  “Hello,” Gareth greeted, voice tired. “It’s no problem. Our group does not have hostile intentions, despite some people’s actions.” His eyes flicked to the red-head. “We simply did what was right. Leo probably mentioned it, but I’m here to discuss a potential alliance.”

  Cecelia’s gaze sharpened. “Before that, I need to know your intentions. What are your goals here?”

  Gareth studied her for a moment, like he was weighing the worth of honesty. “You plan on pushing to the Tower,” he said finally.

  The corner of Cecelia's mouth tugged upward in a faint smirk. “Correct. My goal is to reach the Tower and claim whatever treasures lie inside. While I don’t oppose the idea of an alliance, that is my priority.”

  “We tried that before,” Ruby cut in, her tone suddenly serious. “It’s an endless tide. They swarm the thing like it’s their last fortress. You can’t even get close.”

  “Even so, I’d like to try. Perhaps with both our strengths we could succeed. I cannot speak for your fighters, but ours are strong.” Cecelia’s tone was calm but unyielding.

  “Pff,” Ruby scoffed. “They’d be dead before reaching it. There are things called Goliaths guarding the place as you get closer. Massive brutes with armour thick enough to laugh at magic. My fire basically tickled it. Luckily, they’re slow and stupid.”

  “I’m aware,” Cecelia said coolly. “One broke into our camp during the blood moon. It took a lot of effort but it fell.”

  Ruby’s expression shifted. Disinterest gave way to intrigue. Her eyes slid back to Leo, locking on with a lick of her lips.

  “Bet it was you,” she said, her grin sharp. “You must be strong.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “It was a team effort,” Leo shrugged.

  For a heartbeat, Ruby’s intensity pinned him. She was beautiful, radiant in her own chaotic way, but all he felt was unease. No spark, no rush of heat, only the faint itch of danger crawling along his skin, almost as if opening that door would be the last he ever opened.

  She pouted and flicked her hand. “Fine, sure, team effort.”

  “Back to business,” Cecelia interjected smoothly.

  “Yes,” Gareth readily agreed. “I think an alliance and a combined effort to wipe out the ants by the Tower could be arranged. What terms do you suggest?”

  “Our crafters are coming along well with their professions,” Cecelia began. “We’d like to make sure the loot of the corpses is divided fifty-fifty.”

  “What if we end up doing all the heavy work?” Ruby asked with a coy grin.

  Leo caught the twitch at the corner of Cecelia’s lips, not in irritation but satisfaction. Ruby had walked into her trap.

  “Then it makes sense to divide by effort,” Cecelia said, her smirk slipping free.

  Ruby’s eyes narrowed. “You’re expecting to come off better from this deal.”

  “I simply agreed to your terms,” Cecilia countered smoothly. “Now, I believe we should keep our camps separate until the Tower has been reached, to avoid any… tensions.” She smiled. “By then we will have fought together and more trust can be accrued. Agreed?”

  “Fine by me,” Gareth said. “When do we move? It could take multiple pushes to make it.”

  “In that case, why don’t we start at first light tomorrow?” Cecelia suggested without hesitation.

  Ruby’s grin turned mocking. “Eager, aren’t we?”

  “If you’re unprepared, simply say so and we can take more time,” Cecelia replied evenly.

  Ruby clicked her tongue, sharp as whip crack. “Tomorrow it is.”

  The red-headed menace spun on her heel and walked away. No goodbyes, no flirting. For once, she wasn’t playing games. Cecelia had slipped past her guard, and Ruby clearly didn’t like it.

  Cecelia stepped forward, hand extended. Gareth clasped it firmly. The alliance was set, however fragile it may have appeared.

  Leo wasn’t really interested in politics, it was never something he had really cared about before the System. What stirred his blood wasn’t the handshake, it was the promise of tomorrow. The swarm by the Tower. The fight that awaited them. His jaw clenched in anticipation.

  After the deal was struck, both groups went their separate ways back to camp. Leo wasn’t sure how much there was to really prepare for tomorrow apart from just maybe work on his mana control.

  He could perhaps go out and fight some ants for some experience for Ellie. Although he’d have to run that by Cecelia. Any stat boosts he could get before tomorrow could be crucial.

  “Are you itching for a fight yet?” Leo asked the little hatching on his shoulder.

  Ellie responded by biting his finger. It wasn’t enough to break skin, but with her Strength already double what his had been at the start of the tutorial, it still stung a little.

  “Ow. Yeah, I get it,” Leo said, grinning. “Raring to go, huh? Guess I’ll need to get you a few more levels first.”

  She chirped happily and flapped her tiny wings. For a heartbeat she lifted off his shoulder, then crashed back down, scrambling to climb to her perch again. Her head dropped.

  “You’ll get there,” Leo said softly. “You just need a little more time to grow. You’re already such a patient one, soon you’ll be soaring the skies.”

  Seemingly cheered up, the little dragon turned and leapt into Ron’s arms, as Ashley gasped in outrage, trying to wrestle her from Ron’s arms as he dodged around with her.

  Leo smiled openly. He hoped these moments would never end, but he wasn’t na?ve. Tomorrow, people would die. Maybe a lot of them. He clenched his jaw. He’d make damn sure it wasn’t one of his friends.

  In order to do so he would need more power, more advantages, more–

  Leo slapped himself mentally and took a look at his Credits;

  Current Store Credits: 203

  Enough to awaken his last two Essence Skills…There was his option for growing stronger before tomorrow staring him right in the face. He’d somehow forgotten with all the things that had happened that he could just buy two more unlocks.

  Definitely the first thing he’d be doing when they got back. Right after he told Cecelia his plans.

  Arriving back at camp, Leo asked Cecelia if he could speak to her, she nodded and the two went to a more private area.

  “I’m going to learn my last two Essence skills and go and get Ellie some level ups. If that’s okay?”

  “As long as you’re careful,” Cecelia replied evenly. “You know how crucial you are for tomorrow.”

  “I won't go wild,” Leo lied.

  He was somewhat planning to go wild.

  Back in the place he’d dubbed as ‘Ashley’s office’, Leo sat cross legged, the first crystal glowing in his palm. With a steadying breath, he braced himself and activated it.

  Lightning tore through his nerves like a live wire. From toes to skull, every inch of him spasmed under the surge. By the time it had passed, he was sprawled flat, gasping, his vision swimming as faint flashes continued to dash past him.

  You have unlocked the Lightning Essence Skill: Spark Dash (Common)

  Spark Dash (Common)

  Channel lightning into your limbs, converting mana into explosive movement.

  You may dash a short distance in a chosen direction in a burst of electric speed, leaving a faint crackle of lightning in your wake. Spark Dash stores up to 2 charges. Each use consumes one charge.

  Regen time scales with Agility.

  Cooldown: 10 Seconds

  Lightning Essence Skills unlocked: 2/2

  You can now channel lightning mana with greater ease and intensity

  Leo just lay on the ground, breathing, as his nerves settled down and he regained control of his body. He wasn’t sure why unlocking his second Essence skills for each Essence caused him so much hassle.

  Maybe it’s due to me having four Essences? Maybe my bloodline?

  The speculation would do him no good for now, this skill however, that would be very useful. Quickly clearing a space, Leo attempted to use his Spark Dash.

  Lightning mana gathered in his body, and with a snap his body blurred forward in a streak of blue light, landing several metres away. His stomach lurched, threatening to throw up the wonderful ant skewers he’d eaten this morning. It was like experiencing the entirety of a rollercoaster in less than a second, with none of the thrill, well maybe a little.

  Experiment after experiment followed: short bursts, chained dashes, mid-air movement. Each time he felt like his body was an errant spark seeking the ground. The results were clear: The potential this skill held was incredible, although the cooldown between dashes did feel a bit restrictive.

  Panting, he collapsed in a heap, Ellie’s head hovering over his face. She trilled in excitement, watching him dart around had sparked an interest in speed in the young hatchling.

  “Bet you’ll be darting through the air like that soon,” Leo told her, lifting her above him and swooshing her around as she spread her wings.

  She chirped again, delighted.

  Once his mana refilled through meditation enough to abate the mana headache, he pulled out the final crystal. Leo stared at the glow emanating from within. Bracing himself, he triggered it.

  His arms quickly dropped to the floor like lead weights, taking his body with them. It was like his whole body was trying to push its way through the ground due to the sheer weight of it. Small cracks could be heard from the floor as it struggled to hold his weight. Leo’s breath caught in his throat, his head pounding from the pressure.

  Thankfully the pressure soon eased off, the weight of his body returning to normal as if it had never happened.

  “Fucking hell,” Leo groaned.

  You have unlocked the Earth Essence Skill: Earth Wall (Common)

  Earth Wall (Common)

  The ground bends to your will, forming a crude shield of stone and soil

  Raise a barrier of hardened earth in front of you

  Scales with Toughness

  Cooldown: 14 seconds

  Earth Essence Skills unlocked: 2/2

  You can now channel earth mana with greater ease and intensity

  Leo staggered upright, rolling his shoulders, still feeling the phantom heaviness. A grin tugged at his lips. This would be useful. Very useful. He could already see all the ideas and ways he could utilise it in combat. Being able to actually shape the stone around him sounded awesome.

  He considered testing it in the room, but thought of Ashley screaming at him for blocking her “office” with random walls. Probably best to save it for the field.

  …Still, the thought of making a stone maze for her to come back to was tempting.

  Ellie chirped pointedly, snapping him from his mischief.

  “You’re right,” he said, ruffling her horns. “Enough playing around. Time to hunt some ants.”