I stared at Ellen and Leona sitting inside the cave, my eyes scanning their miserable state.
Bandages covered many parts of their bodies, and even Leona’s left arm was set in a temporary splint and tied to her neck.
"So, did you fall from above or something?" I asked.
The two girls looked at me in silence before Leona spoke. "Something like that."
Izel stepped toward them. "Are you alright? There aren’t any serious injuries, right?"
Ellen sighed as she leaned against the wall. "Fortunately, no... they’re just superficial wounds. Only Leona’s arm is a bit worse."
"Then what happened to you?"
The two girls looked at each other while Izel and I waited.
Then it seemed Ellen decided to take the lead. "Well, after we passed through the teleportation gate, we found ourselves near this wall. With some guesses about your location, we decided to climb up and send a signal from above so you could see it from as far away as possible."
She sighed as she continued, "We thought we’d be safe on top of the wall, or at least have enough time to escape... but the moment we sent the signal, something unexpected appeared."
Ellen paused for a few moments, but I had already pieced together what happened in my head. "Let me guess. A huge Rank 4 bird appeared from somewhere above the wall and tried to grab you... so you jumped straight down to escape. Maybe you tried to control the fall using your metal manipulation, but you didn’t succeed completely."
"And you ended up like this after crashing into some rocks."
The two girls stared at me, blinking, until Leona smiled. "Mm... well, not exactly... but let’s say it’s close enough."
We fell silent for a moment before Ellen asked, "What about you?"
Izel tried to speak, but I beat her to it.
With a smile, I briefly recounted what happened. "Basically, after we arrived in this desert, we stayed near a large hollow bone. Then when I saw your signal, we set off on a small trip here, slaughtered a few giant worms along the way, before running into one of those birds and having one of our worms stolen."
"And in the end, we ended up here."
The two girls looked at Izel, who nodded. "Well, that’s pretty much it... just remove the part about our worms."
Leona let out a breath before smiling. "Anyway, I’m glad you’re safe, guys. Now the only one left is Elliot."
I walked to a corner of the cave and pulled out a mattress from my ring, placing it on the ground.
Everyone stared at me as Ellen asked, "Are you planning to sleep?"
I shrugged. "What else? I’m tired, and there’s nothing to do except wait for that hero."
With that, I threw myself down and lay there without giving them any more attention. I closed my eyes and sank into darkness.
...
I opened my eyes again and looked at the rocky ceiling of the small cave as sunlight slipped in from outside and illuminated the place.
I turned my head and looked around. Only Leona was there, sitting in the corner with a core stone in her hand... it seemed she was absorbing it.
She was very focused on it.
But the moment I pushed myself up to sit, she noticed me and looked over before smiling. "You’re awake."
I wiped my face with my hand as I asked, "How long did I sleep?"
She thought for a few moments before answering, "Not much. Just a few hours."
I looked at her, then at the stone in her hand. "It seems you’re close to reaching the Advanced rank."
Her smile widened when I said that. "Yes. Maybe in three days if I continue absorbing essence like this. It also helps me recover faster."
She looked at the stone in her hand. "But unfortunately, I don’t think I have enough core stones to do that."
I raised an eyebrow. "Why not ask Izel or Ellen for them?"
"Well, they need them too—especially Izel. I don’t want to be greedy and ask for that."
I stared at her for a few moments, then stood up and walked toward her. I channeled some essence into my ring, and core stones fell onto the ground in front of her.
Leona stared at them before looking at me. "What is this?"
"Core stones, as you can see."
She raised an eyebrow. "I know. I mean, why are you giving them to me? You’re not that kind of person."
I smiled and raised a finger. "First, I’m not giving them to you. This is a trade."
"A trade?" she asked.
I nodded. "You’ll return them to me when we get back to the Axis—with some interest. That way, you’ll be able to break through to the Advanced rank, and that will help all of us."
She was convinced by that. "Then I’ll accept this."
When I saw that she agreed, I added, "And I have other things too—like food and water... and many useful items."
...
I walked over the sand beside the rocky wall as the scorching sun beat down on me.
In the end, I sold more food cans and water to Leona and Ellen.
I stopped at a certain spot and looked up. There was a rock slightly protruding from the rest of the wall.
I approached it, placed my hand on a rocky ledge, and began climbing until I reached that rock and stood on it.
There, Kyle was sitting inside a large crack in the wall that provided some shade and reduced the heat.
The hunter looked at me as he tended to one of his arrows. "Is there something you want?" he asked, his voice cold and calm.
I smiled as I pulled out one of the meals and tossed it to him.
He caught the can and looked at it quietly. He wanted to say something, but I cut him off. "It’s free."
With that, I stepped into the crack before sitting opposite Kyle. I pulled out some core stones and began absorbing them.
Kyle stared at me for a few moments. "Are you just going to stay there?"
"Yes," I replied.
"Then why not stay in that cave with the others?"
I exhaled. "Well, I don’t mind the company of some beautiful ladies, but it can be annoying sometimes. And as you can see, I need to focus while you guard the place."
When I said that, Kyle fell silent and didn’t add anything more. Instead, he opened the food can and began eating.
As for me, I focused on progressing once again.
For several hours, we remained in deadly silence.
I completely forgot my surroundings, while Kyle watched the horizon for any sign of Elliot’s arrival.
The hours passed quickly as I sank into a state of deep concentration until Kyle’s words pulled me out of it.
"He’s here."
When I heard that, I opened my eyes and turned my head toward the horizon.
There was a silhouette approaching under the blazing sunlight.
With every passing moment, it grew closer and clearer, until his features became distinct.