I turned back to the pillar and went at it again. Another round of punches later, my Essence filled up once more but this time, something was different.
A sharp pain pulsed through my heart.
My body temperature kept rising, and even with the rain pouring down on me, steam began to rise from my skin. The water already clinging to my body evaporated in wisps.
I pushed the new Essence into Constitution again, hoping it would stabilize the changes, but the discomfort barely faded. My heart continued to burn.
Maybe the constant use of my talent was taking a toll.
Exhaling sharply, I deactivated it and walked back to Steve.
Steve finally stood up, stretching.
I spoke.
"Let's go. I need food in my stomach."
We walked back to the edge of the crater where I had left my bag.
I opened it, pulled out some food, passed some to Steve, and started eating. We sat beneath a tree, trying to avoid as much of the rain as possible.
Steve glanced at me mid-bite and muttered,
"Bro, you're eating too much. We still have over twenty days left."
I nodded, chewing.
"I know, but my body needs fuel right now. I'll figure something out later."
Some minutes passed in silence.
Steve looked up at the level rankings and spoke again,
"You're so far ahead of everyone right now."
"I have to get ahead in the early stages since I'll need to stop leveling before I reach 25," I replied.
He frowned.
"Why?"
i shurgged.
"Grandma gave me a suggestion, and I want to try it before I hit Level 25."
"What suggestion?"
I held up a finger to my lips.
"I'll tell you later."
Steve stared at me for a few moments, then nodded. He took another bite of his food and added,
"By the way, North is pretty strong too. She's Level 7 now."
I raised my head to look at him.
"That reminds me—when the Vice Commander called to inform me about you, she also mentioned that North is in danger."
Steve froze mid-bite, his hand hovering in the air.
"Why would they tell you about North?"
I coughed awkwardly.
"Well… I met this one guy, Logan, from the capital. I asked him about North, and we think the Commander might have been listening in on our conversation."
Steve put his food down and stared at me. Then, in a slow, deliberate voice, he asked,
"So you're telling me that you openly asked some random guy about North, knowing full well that her grandfather might be watching you? And then, when you found out she was in danger, you ran straight here to save me… completely ignoring her?"
I nodded.
"Yes, correct."
He threw up his hands in an exaggerated manner.
"Great."
I spoke again,
"So, I was thinking, since I've already saved you, what do you think about traveling together to Checkpoint 20 to save her?"
Steve wiped the rain from his face and sighed,
"Well, sure. The Commander already knows what you're thinking, so why not go and officially show him you're serious?"
"Yeah, that's what I'm thinking too. It'd be a great way to, you know, introduce myself to North as well."
"Yeah, yeah. Let's finish eating and head out as soon as possible," Steve replied.
Soon, we finished our food, and I put the new core in my bag. After strapping it onto my back, I pulled out the map, checked our direction, and we both started jogging toward Checkpoint 20.
As we ran, I glanced at Steve.
"So, what class are you planning for?" I asked.
"Swordsman. A very fast swordsman," he said, his tone filled with excitement. "If I keep upgrading my class, someday it might become something like 'Sonic Swordsman.'"
"Whoa. Ambitious, very ambitious," I said. "What about elements?"
"No elements, my primary focus will be Strength and Dexterity. Later on, I'll focus on sword-related laws instead of elemental ones." he replied.
"What about you? Any changes to your plans?" he asked.
"Well, yeah," I said. "I wanted to go for a Berserker or Juggernaut-type class, but now I'll have to rethink things."
"What about a weapon? You still haven't picked one?" he pressed.
"I'll decide after selecting my class. Given my current situation, I don't want my first class choice to be dictated by my weapon. But I'll have to pick one eventually—it's fine fighting Abominations barehanded, but against Phantoms, that'd be way too difficult."
"Any favorites so far?" he asked.
"Definitely no swords, spears, or anything with a blade," I said. "That leaves hammers, staffs, maces, and other blunt weapons."
"Suits you," he said with a grin.
I chuckled at that.
After some time, I turned to him.
"How do you think I should introduce myself to North? Should I just jump in and save her, or wait until she asks for help?"
Steve remained silent for a few seconds before replying.
"I think you should help her voluntarily. That way, she'll see you're genuinely a good guy."
"Okay, makes sense. What about after that? Should we party up? Should I act cool and aloof, or be more straightforward? Maybe humble and gentle, or—"
"Stop, stop, stop," he cut in. "Bro, have you ever seen me in a relationship? How would I know how to behave? Just be your normal self, maybe tone it down a little. I think it'd be a bad idea if you started challenging her to see who can do more squats."
My eyes widened at that.
"Why? I think it's a great bonding exercise. We did it, and now we're best friends."
"No," he said flatly. "You forced me to do it by constantly poking me and even stole my food when I refused."
I looked away at that. Well, I was a kid. I had energy. Steve was lazy. I thought maybe it'd help us bond more by doing squats.
And we kept sprinting through the forest. Excitement bubbled inside me, I was about to make a dramatic entrance. I was sure she'd be impressed.
**** North's PoV
I hid behind a rock, my breaths coming in heavy exhales. My right leg throbbed, claw marks ran across my thigh, and my ankle was snapped. I could barely stand on it.
My hands trembled as I gripped my bow, exhaustion weighing down every muscle.
I was drained, barely holding on, and still nowhere close to clearing this checkpoint.
Leaning against the rock, I tightened my grip on my weapon and let my mind drift to the reason I had joined Unit 02 in the first place.
I lost my father when I was very young. After that, my maternal grandfather became my father figure—he adored me, doted on me, but in his love, he refused to let me fight against the Eternals.
Instead, all his attention went to my older brother. My grandfather shaped him into a sword while treating me like a fragile doll, something to be protected rather than a warrior in my own right.
But I never wanted to be just a doll. I wanted to fight. I wanted to kill Phantoms and Abominations, to take revenge for my father, to stand beside my brother on the battlefield.
So, I forced my way into Unit 02, blackmailing my grandfather into letting me join.
And now, here I was, putting my life on the line, pushing myself to grow stronger.
I had so much to prove. I wanted to be the best in Unit 02, to help my grandfather achieve his goal of pushing 02 ahead of 01.
Though, knowing him, he'd never let me push myself too hard.
I peeked out from behind the rock and spotted 8 to 10 guys from my unit fighting off the Abominations.
I barely even knew their names, but they were here because the vice commander had sent them—apparently, I was in danger, and they had come to save me.
I gritted my teeth.
"So all of you think you're here to save some damsel in distress, huh?" I muttered. "Not happening on my watch."
Shakily, I pushed myself up, brushing my rain-soaked hair out of my face. Clenching my bow, I limped forward.
"Grandpa, just wait until the day I'm stronger than you. I swear, I'm going to rub detergent all over your bald head."