Far from Skyler's location, Mila glared at Zack with a dark expression.
"If we were going to abandon him in the end, why did you invite him to join us so eagerly in the first place?"
She clenched her fists, fuming. She understood what he meant when he said that they were in a dangerous place where they could hardly protect themselves; it was not wise to let Skyler stay with them. She also knew that she was equally at fault, just like Zack, for leaving Skyler behind. But she couldn't shake her anger. She needed an outlet to express her frustration.
Oreon sighed, unsure of what to say anymore. Actually, they could let Skyler tag along, but what if another monster wave showed up or something similar? They wouldn't be able to protect him. So, it was better to separate from him. Even though what they did felt very immoral, it was the best course of action.
Zack paused in his tracks. The three had come a long way from Skyler. He couldn't help but scoff inwardly at Mila's remarks.
He looked back at Mila, his silver eyes narrowing with seriousness.
"I gave the two of you a choice, didn't I? I said to follow me or stay behind. What did you choose again?"
She pursed her lips, aware that this was indeed what had happened.
Zack continued, just wanting to close the Chapter of Skyler and forget about him.
"We've already helped him enough with what we've done. Don't worry about him, and focus on completing your trial. If we fail, you know that we can never enter the Battle Royal again, let alone become a powerful Light in the future."
Mila nodded silently. She couldn't compromise her future for someone she didn't even know; her entire family's hopes rested on her. But then she looked at him.
"I hope you won't do the same to us."
Oreon tensed up at her blunt words. But Zack just let out a chuckle. How could he abandon them? They weren't like Skyler, who was mentioned only once in the novel just to convey his death. They were indeed supposed to die here, but they had a lot of potential and were already quite powerful. Their spotlight had simply been taken by the protagonist and his team.
"I won't. I promise you this: as long as you two never betray me, I won't either."
He even made a cross sign on his heart with his finger to show the two his sincerity. The tension in the air finally eased, and Mila smiled at his childish gesture.
They began to move together once more, fighting and Killing monsters when a screen suddenly flashed in front of Zack.
#Keeper of Time: I have a bad feeling about this. You chose Skyler and altered his fate. He wasn't meant to be here. Are you certain this is the right choice? His presence could change the course of the story.
Zack waved his hand with a tsk, and the screen vanished into thin air. Skyler wasn't powerful. Why would his presence matter?
They didn't know much about him; all they knew was that he was the younger brother of one of the female leads who would die two years from now at the age of 20. From this, they understood that Skyler would be 18 this year and ineligible to participate in the preliminary test of the Battle Royale. So, the Keeper of Time, who brought him here, didn't pay much attention to other factors. But who would have guessed that even his potential was ineligible to be here!
Zack grimaced inwardly and whispered.
"Skyler only has 5-star potential as a Light. If only you, a higher being, had checked this earlier before bringing him here, I wouldn't have even bothered with him."
#Keeper of Time: The main system would have noticed my interference, so I had to act fast when I brought him here. Checking his potential is the last thing I could do with my abilities. Now, my access is restricted. I just hope you don't regret your choice.
Zack let out a laugh, but since he was quite far from Mila and Oreon, who had started fighting a monster, they didn't hear him.
"Why would I?"
***
In a different location, as if sensing his name being spoken, Skyler sneezed.
"Who's talking about me?"
He wondered for a moment but then shrugged it off. His eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the 2-star earth element bear panting before him. A brown gem gleamed on its forehead, and its limbs and stomach were covered in rocky armor.
With a sudden surge, Skyler tilted the curved dagger in his hand, slashing at the bear's left shoulder before executing a perfect backflip to evade its counterattack.
"Its skin is tough."
He murmured and ran when the bear stomped its limbs on the ground with a roar, causing the land to shake. Earth spikes shot out toward him, but he dodged to the side. He had learned the bear's attack pattern, so even though the monster was stronger, he could predict and evade its moves.
"Besides the armor on its body, it can form and launch earth spikes, stomp to shake the ground, and create mud traps. That's it. It's just like a game where one can analyze the beast's attack patterns to take it down."
Watching him, 505 was freaking out. Its host has forgotten that he has just 1-star power! The fact that he can kill 2-star monsters so easily just because he has a weapon does nothing to help the situation. Now he's even treating everything like a game!
("Host... please be careful!")
Skyler's eyes sparkled. He had long since learned to ignore the system. His gaze was fixed on the gem on the bear's forehead as he leaped toward the creature.
His movements were precise as he clenched the dagger, aiming for the bear's eye. After all, every monster's vital points that dealt the most damage were same.
Sensing the impending attack, the bear raised its forelimbs to shield its eyes and let out a roar, unleashing a barrage of earth spikes in his direction. 505 flashed a screen in front of him, momentarily forgetting that it wasn't supposed to interfere so freely.
("Danger! Retreat!")
Skyler smirked, but he didn't retreat. Instead, he tilted his body in mid-air. The golden Evol within him responded to him, surging through his body to enhance his movements. A few earth spikes grazed his arm, but his eyes gleamed, and with all his strength, he slashed the bear's neck. Blood sprayed out instantly as he landed a distance away behind the bear.
A loud thud echoed behind him, signaling that his opponent had been defeated. The system went silent but quickly flashed a notification when it remembered its duty.
("Congratulations, host! You have slain another 2-star monster! You have earned 10 more points, which can be used when the system store opens!")
Skyler cleaned the blood off his dagger. He noticed a few cracks in its blade. He didn't sense it at first, but the dagger's blade was imbued with elemental power; otherwise, it would have never penetrated the bear's skin, let alone last for so long.
"I guess I need a new weapon. This one will break after a few more fights."
With a sigh, he turned to the bear's body. Instantly, his face lit up.
"Hehe... time to get my gem."
A familiar, eerie laugh echoed in the air as he extracted the brown gem from the bear's forehead. The laugh startled the system, which was already quite spooked by him.
He stored the gem in his storage ring and could only mourn internally as he stood up and left the monster's body behind. Now that he had become accustomed to his situation, he could think about other things, like how the monsters' bodies could sell for a decent sum in the outside world. Many places used their body parts to craft weapons and various other items.
However, he only had one storage ring, so he couldn't fill it with dead bodies.
"What a waste of easy money. 505, guide me to another 1-star or 2-star monster. I still have the stamina to fight."