James proceeded to eat with Arthur.


    "Come on, let''s eat. I want you to try the food here."


    Before Arthur could refuse, James grabbed his wrist and dragged him along like an overeager puppy.


    Arthur didn''t resist.


    Inside the mess hall, soldiers and recruits filled the space. The smell of grilled meat and seasoned rice lingered in the air.


    Still, he ate without enthusiasm.


    James, on the other hand, ate like a starving beast, devouring his meal between bursts of conversation.


    "So," James said through a mouthful of food, "what do you think?"


    Arthur swallowed, setting his fork down. "It''s food."


    James chuckled. "You''re a tough one to impress, huh?"


    Arthur didn''t respond.


    After they finished eating, James stretched and stood up. "Alright, let''s continue the tour."


    Arthur mentally sighed. More brainwashing.


    James led him to a massive gym, thergest Arthur had ever seen, although he hadn''t seen many. It had rows upon rows of weightlifting machines, advanced equipment designed to target every muscle group, and even an entire basketball court for soldiers to unwind.


    James gestured proudly. "Pretty impressive, right?"


    Arthur acted surprised, giving a small nod.


    In reality?


    He couldn''t care less.


    Everyone here was either a potential enemy or a brainwashed puppet. He had no ns to y basketball or lift weights, he wasn''t in the mood nor did he have enough time to do so.


    If the worlds were merging, his in-game strength would eventually transfer to real life. When that happened, this entire gym would be nothing but child''s y.


    So why waste time?


    James, of course, didn''t notice Arthur''sck of interest. He kept up the enthusiastic tour, showing off thebat training center, the simtion rooms, and even the dormitory recreational lounge.


    Arthur pretended to be engaged, nodding and asking the asional question.


    Finally, after what felt like hours, James pped his hands together. "Alright, that concludes the tour!"


    Arthur exhaled quietly. Finally.


    James grinned. "We should add each other in Armageddon. Maybe do some hunting together."


    Arthur raised an eyebrow, feigning confusion. "I''m stuck in prison inside the vige. Meanwhile, you''re most likely in the city. How''s that gonna work?"


    James blinked. "Prison? You''re in prison?"


    Arthur narrowed his eyes slightly. Was he faking it? Did he really not know?


    After a moment, Arthur decided to test him.


    He casually recounted the mayor incident, exining how he got himself thrown in jail alongside Adam.@@novelbin@@


    James listened intently, his eyes widening slightly.


    Then—


    James burst intoughter.


    "Wow, you guys are having all the fun! Your mayor sounds like a real viin. Ours is so… vani inparison."


    Arthur wasn''t sure whether James was pretending not to know or if Adam had deliberately kept him in the dark. Either way, something told him that the man in front of him wasn''t as simple as he seemed.


    He''d have to be careful.


    James, still oblivious to Arthur''s thoughts, stretched his arms behind his head and grinned. "Wanna hit the gym? You could use a proper training session."


    Arthur waved a hand dismissively. "Nah. Not interested."


    James shrugged. "Suit yourself. I''ll catch youter, then."


    With a casual wave, he turned and headed off toward the gym, his red hair catching thest glimmers of sunlight.


    Arthur watched him go for a second before turning toward the dormitory.


    He didn''t trust James. You wouldn''t reach his status, with just talent. To be picked as the captain, of the strongest beta yers team, you must be trusted by the military.


    By the time Arthur made it back to his room, the sun had dipped below the horizon.


    He sat on the edge of his bed, rubbing his temples.


    Donald.


    Arthur needed to contact him. He needed to check on Charlotte. To see her. Talk to her. Make sure she was okay.


    But he didn''t.


    Not yet.


    He had a feeling Donald wouldn''t do anything rash. Not to Charlotte. If anything, the man woulde to him soon enough.


    Arthur just had to be patient.


    With nothing else to do, Arthur pulled up the Armageddon forums.


    As expected, the ce was flooded with discussions, rumours, and theories.


    A pinned post caught his eye—


    "GUYS! There are already five people at Level 14! How is that possible?!"


    Arthur arched an eyebrow. He hadn''t looked at the leaderboard ranking ever since it came out, but it seemed like he caught up to the top rankers.


    The thread was filled withments—


    "And the rest of the top 100? The lowest is Level 10! This is insane. How are people levelling so fast?!"


    "I''m stuck at Level 8. I can''t wait to leave the vige and head to the city… but it sounds dangerous as hell."


    "Yeah, I heard the city is insane. Dangerous, but filled with opportunities. The real game starts there."


    ...


    Arthur scrolled through the forums a little longer, watching as the discussions blurred together—spections, theories, heated arguments about the best ways to level up.


    But after a while, his eyelids grew heavy.


    He nced at the clock. ''Still, a few hours left before he could log back in again with a full daily timer.''


    With a quiet sigh, Arthur shut off the screen and leaned back against the pillow. Just a short rest. Enough to let time pass.


    ...


    A sharp buzz jolted him awake.


    Arthur groggily reached for his phone, silencing the rm he had set.


    It was time.


    Dragging himself to the bathroom, he sshed cold water on his face, rubbing away thest remnants of sleep. The cold bite of the water helped.


    He didn''t waste another second.


    Arthury back down on the couch, closed his eyes, and—Logged in.


    The familiar pull of transition swallowed him whole.


    When his vision cleared, he was no longer in his dorm room.


    Instead—he was back in the inn.


    He didn''t linger.


    Time to move.


    Rising from the bed, Arthur stretched briefly before slipping on his mask. The shift was instant. Azarel now stood in ce of Arthur Fate.


    He stepped out into the morning bustle of the city.


    The streets of Caldera were already alive, filled with merchants setting up their stalls, adventurers gearing up for quests, and chatter flowing from every direction.


    Arthur moved through the crowds, heading toward his destination.


    The Gilderhaven Guild.


    Arthur pushed through the doors, stepping into the grand hall.


    "Time to submit the mission," Arthur muttered.


    "Wee," she greeted.


    Arthur reached into his inventory, pulling out the bag of fangs.


    "I''m here to submit a mission," he said simply.


    She took the bag from him, inspecting the contents before nodding.


    "ckwater Hollow, right?"


    Arthur nodded.


    "Give me a moment to verify."


    She turned, opening a drawer beneath the desk and pulling out a small, glowing crystal. cing it over the bag, the crystal pulsed faintly, confirming the authenticity of the materials.


    A chime echoed.


    [Ding! You havepleted the D-Level quest: Retrieve fifty fangs of Poisonous Painted Serpents from ckwater Hollow. Quest duration: Seven days.]


    [Reward: 10 Gold Coins & Rare Poison Vial.]1


    [Ding! Reputation Increased by +50]


    Arthur nced at the reputation increasing and nodded his head. Although the increase was very minimal. It was still better than nothing.


    Arthur didn''t care about the 10 gold coins that were transferred to his ount.


    It was the reputation that mattered.


    The 10% tax has already been deducted. For example, the person who sets the task gives the guild 10 gold coins. So the guild simply ces 9 gold coins as a reward.