Quiz time! What did people think of the Dimensional Legion?  They would agree it was an OP faction, full of badass Climbers.

Now, Josh needed to escape the Tower without anyone figuring him out.  It was pretty much as difficult as committing a crime in broad daylight without anyone noticing. How would he accomplish that? Well, his plan was simple. 

Since people expected the Dimensional Legion to be powerful and mighty, Josh would appear the opposite. He messed himself up as much as possible. 

He cut himself over and over while letting the blood drip all over him. Then, he voluntarily messed up his hair, stood buck naked, and rubbed some dirt on his skin. 

Very soon, he looked so handsome that a vagrant would have looked like prince charming in comparison. Actually, even a zombie would have seemed more dashing. 

Now, all that loot would still get him busted. Luckily he had a lot of zombie skin left. He wrapped it around the items, making a bundle out of it. It wouldn't stop careful scrutiny, but it would at least appear as normal zombie skin on the outside. 

He was just missing a way to make sure no one would want to touch him or his bag. How was he supposed to accomplish that? 

It was time to bring to life the character of a poor Climber. This one's backstory was that he adventured on Floor 6 along with his four friends. They challenged it bravely with hopes in their hearts and the strength of their bonds to support them. 

Then, they all died except him (obviously). He was left alone, the sole survivor of a team wipe. Would he claim that? Nope. He would let others figure it out. They would 'perspicaciously' guess it with one look at him. 

What would he do? He would cling to that bundle of zombie skin. He would cling to it like it was the most beautiful thing in the world. He would disregard the rotten smell because this bundle was the Credits he would bring to the families of the deceased. 

If anyone came closer, he would shout at them to get away. He would loudly call them robbers. He'd repeat that it was for their families, nothing more. There was bound to be at least one nice guy in the crowd to defend him. 

Most people likely wouldn't care. Youngsters died all the time in the Tower. It wasn't anything new, especially with the new difficulties. 

Some would care but would understand his trauma and leave him alone. Perhaps some would follow him in hopes of helping. For that, he would just have to get a friend to come ad pick him up, both physically and emotionally. 

Josh only needed to be wary of any "good guy" that would try to help him forcefully. As long as he acted perfectly, he should be able to keep them at bay. It was now show-time. 

Was this plan foolproof? Not really, but what truly was in this world anyway? 

****

At the Tower plaza, many were assembled. They were wasting time, talking to their friends, browsing memes, watching movies, anything really. Many took this event as an excuse to procrastinate. Many were just minding their business when shouts began to echo. 

"Oh my god!" 

"Is that a human?!" 

"Why is there so much blood!?" 

"I want to know what he's carrying."

"It seems like a big ball of …zombie skin for some reason?" 

"That means he's coming from Floor 6?" 

"We should check his sack to see if it doesn't hide loot!"

"Are you crazy?! People don't go into Floor 6 alone and come out like that. The guy obviously lost all his friends!"

"Hey, kid. Are you alright?!" 

But, the bloodied and unrecognizable man kept mumbling like a broken record: "I gotta bring this to their families. They died for these materials. I have to bring this—" 

"Poor, kid. All his friends died. Someone help him and—"

That's when he suddenly became aggressive! "GO AWAY! It's theirs! Leave me alone! I won't let you rob! I—"

"It's fine, kid! It's fine!" 

People backed off in a hurry. They didn't want to appear insensitive, not in front of everyone. The poor man kept going forward unsteadily. People unconsciously moved out of his way. 

They could feel his sadness, his despair, but most importantly, his determination. He would rather die than allow anyone to touch the sack that obviously contained Zombie skin. It smelled so bad after all! 

"I feel like we should chip in and start a fundraiser to help…."

"That's very noble of you, but do you know how many others die daily?"

Soon, the bloodied man was out of sight as he left the plaza heading toward the D-district, probably heading home. 

"I still feel we should have stopped him. Who knows if he'll be fine?"

"Hopefully, he will. Now, keep your eyes open. We need to make sure we don't miss anyone leaving the Tower!"

"Of course, I remember. I hope we see someone from Dimensional Legion. It would be awesome!" 

"I know. I especially want to meet Zebra. He's the ultimate best!"

"I can only agree to that. If Zebra were here, I'd suck his dick. I'm not even gay!"

"Watch your language! But, honestly….same!"

How would they have reacted had they known that the bloodied pitiful being that had just passed was really this Zebra that they idolized? 

****

Josh kept walking, slowly dragging his big bundle along.

Behind, there was a man following him. He was making sure to stay a distance away and made it so the sound of his footsteps would merge in the bustle of the passerby. 

However, Josh perfectly knew where he was. Now, there was something weird about this individual. He didn't emanate any evil intent. It was as if he was playing guardian angel. But since he was alone, Josh could easily deal with it. 

After turning a corner, Josh raised a manhole cover and slipped in the sewers as fast as possible. Then he headed for his home, making sure to take a detour to get there and not to leave any bloody trace. 

He gave a satisfied sigh once he reached his destination. He quickly accessed his UW and sent a message to Dale to come to meet him while bringing lots of food and a shower. But he wasn't there…

Was it better to ask a member of Draconic? As Josh checked the chat he realized that they too were under surveillance from random people. Well, at least they didn't dare disturb the guild's operations. 

Now what? That is when he heard a sound at the door. 

*Knock Knock* 

"Hello, have you seen a young man covered in blood?" This was clearly the young individual that had been following him. 

"Why are you looking for him?" Josh tentatively asked in a deep voice.

"I just want to help. He just lost his friends in the Tower, and he seems to have hit rock bottom. I'm just worried about him." He sounded truthful. 

"How do I know that you are telling the truth?" 

"You've seen him?! I swear on my life that I do not have any bad intention."

Actually, Josh needed an errand boy. He didn't think that this guy was extremely strong either. His killer robot would most likely be enough to dispatch him in case of trouble. 

He ordered his robot to let the man in and to close the door behind him. As he entered the room, the newcomer couldn't help but stare at the weird decor. 

"Hello, I….— It's you?!" He was shocked. 

*CLANG* 

"Yep, here I got a little something for you."

Josh pushed toward him the magical contract he had gotten in the Tower. On it, the terms of an agreement were already written. 

There was a non-disclosure clause, a clause not to voluntarily do anything to harm Josh's interests, and finally, a clause for the guy to be Josh's subordinate for a day (nothing going against the user's morals). 

As the man saw the grinning and bloodied Josh, he couldn't help but show some confusion before suddenly looking stern. He wasn't sure what was happening, but there was clearly something extremely wrong with the whole situation. 

At first, he was very tense. But he then read the contract and figured that he didn't have much to lose from it. Plus he was curious as to who Josh was. He signed it under the bloodied man's watchful gaze. 

The magical contract then disappeared in a puff of smoke that seemed to enter the man's body. Wow. 

"Who are you exactly?" Curiosity seemed to overcome any fear he had. 

"Before that, I have a task for you. I need you to get me a shower, clothes, food, and ice cream. Can you do that? Perhaps I'll answer some questions afterward." Josh negotiated. 

Then Josh waited alongside his robot. Honestly, this thing was really well-made. How disastrous would it have been if it couldn't recognize him because of all the blood? He also made sure that the contract was reliable through quick research. 

The man soon returned, accomplishing his task like a champ with Josh promptly cleaning himself, wearing his usual gray suit. As he came out feeling refreshed, the man pointed at him, surprised. 

"It's you!" He exclaimed. 

"Do we know each other?" Josh asked, unsure. 

"Yes! We met at the plaza before! I was telling people about the changes in the Tower, and no one wanted to believe me but you! I'm Jayce, by the way! Ah, but why all this charade?!" 

"Oh, I just wanted to leave the blockade without getting stopped." Josh shrugged…

☉_☉ (Jayce's face: Holy Shit!)

Creator's Thought

One needs to know that people act differently in public than in private. The ones that had slight doubts about me initially wouldn't have hesitated to use force to verify their theory. But, they wouldn't risk public outrage for such a small detail. They quickly forgot about me.