You have slain Goblin [Assassin] Lv. 3

You have reached Cultivation Level 3 [67.5%]. You have reached Swordsman (O) [52.32%].

You have received:

TPx 100

Qi Replenishing Pill: Replenishes 5 Qi Points upon consumption.

“Damn it,” Jack cursed under his breath, already knowing what would happen. He tried to reach for the dagger laying discarded on the ground, but his hand just passed through it as if it were incorporeal. The same thing happened when he tried to pull off Andrew's gauntlets from his body, irking him to no end. The system only allowed him access to those items that it deposited to his inventory, and as frustrating as it was Jack had no choice to accept it.

On the brighter side, he had finally found a way to replenish Qi— Jack hoped that the [Qi Replenishing Pill] was added to the [System Shop] at an affordable price, choosing to save the one he’d acquired for emergencies.

Sarah on the other end, pulled out another short spear from her inventory, examining it with interest.

“Huh, interesting,” Jack muttered, observing that Sarah had received the spear, which also coincided with her class. “Sarah, can you toss me that spear for a second?” He decided to ask directly.

“Sure,” she replied, and lightly tossed it to him. Jack tried to grab it midair, but it just phased through him.

“So that’s how it is,” he muttered in understanding. The System only allowed looting weapons of the same class that was selected in the beginning. Jack wondered what would happen if Sarah threw her spear with intention to kill or maim someone, would it just phase through them? But then he remembered that the system could read, or at least skim his thoughts, making that a moot point.

“What?” Sarah gave Jack a puzzled look, which considering a spear just phased through him as if he were a ghost, was fair.

“You only get to loot weapons if they belong to your class.”

“Stingy,” she replied simply.

Jack tried to stifle it, but ended up chuckling lightly— smiling for the first time since he had landed on [New Earth].

Sarah burst out into laughter a second later, feeling some of the tension evaporate— they had fought, and they had come out victorious. For a moment, she forgot that she was bathed in alien blood, standing over two alien corpses, in the middle of the forest. There was only the sweet taste of victory and the awkward laughter over bad jokes. A tear spilled out of her right eye, and she wasn’t sure if it was out of the happiness of surviving or the terror that this forest had wrought upon her life, but she quickly wiped it and hardened her expectation, pretending as if the past minute’s events had never happened.

“Which one should I use?” she asked him, her gaze oscillating between the two spears with concentration— trying to change the topic before Jack could bring it up.

“What’s the new spear’s rank?” Jack asked her, some interesting ideas floating though his mind.

“Uhhh, F minus,” she replied, though Jack had kind of expected it by this point. Every piece of equipment he had received so far was [F-] in rank, making him wonder exactly what he had to do to recieve [F] grade equipment.

“Use the old one. But, the short spear could come handy as a throwing spear, if you figured out a way to maintain [Qi Spear] remotely, and if throwing attacks don’t just phase though your enemy,” Jack thought out loud, but realized that such a feat probably needed a special skill or better Qi control than they currently had.

“Okay,” Sarah replied, and deposited the short spear back into the Inventory.

A blessing has been detected in the nearby vicinity! Blessings offer special rewards upon slaying the guardian, including guaranteed [F] Grade Items! Current Guardian Level: Level 3 to Level 5 [Random]. Time left to claim blessing: 2:12:34 [Hours, Minutes, Seconds]. Location has been marked on Map.

‘Are you reading my mind?’ Jack thought to himself incredulously, having just complained about the lack of F tier loot a few minutes ago. ‘This is even worse than targeted advertisements,’ he grumbled in his mind, but there was obviously no response. Well, getting a response would be even more terrifying, so he supposed this was fine. He attributed it to a freaky coincidence for now, if nothing else but for his own piece of mind.

“Let’s go,” To Jack’s surprise, Sarah was the one that proposed they head into the proverbial shark’s maw.

“You sure? Everything about this smells like a trap,” Jack replied, not really opposed to the idea but offered a logical counterpoint. Anything that sounded too good to be true, usually was. Though he could not deny being tempted, getting a powerful defensive item could be the difference between life and death. Was this truly an opportunity he could afford to pass up?

“We can just scout from a distance with [Qi Pulse]. If things feel off, we can always retreat,” Sarah had already prepared an answer in advance, and Jack found her proposition reasonable. He was surprised by Sarah’s determination, but had she discovered herself anew in the apocalypse, or did it stem out of a desire to keep moving so she didn’t have to think too long upon her present circumstances.

Sarah chuckled mirthfully, gazing at Jack with complex emotions in her eyes before replying, “If I hold you back you’ll just leave me behind, right?” she asked, but there was no accusation in her tone, just acceptance.

“I-,” Jack tried to respond, but found himself tongue tied for a second, ‘-Would never leave you behind?’ he thought. He had met the woman a few hours ago, and had helped her more than obligation or common courtesy demanded. If Sarah started flinching from combat or kept getting them into trouble, could he really promise her that?

“We barely know each other, and you have helped me greatly, Jack. But everything you’ve done so far, your actions and your choices, they seem very professional. Very pragmatic. You could have told the group about your discoveries, but you chose to remain silent. And after what happened… your decision turned out to be the right one. But… I don’t think someone like me would have that foresight,” Sarah explained, causing Jack to flinch slightly. The woman was impressively observant despite having gone through much, leaving him thoroughly impressed but also made him feel as if he had been… exposed.

“I don’t expect you to protect me, Jack. I want you to think of me as an ally, an equal. Will you accept me?,” She extended out her hand, putting on a façade of strength to not make him feel pressured.

Jack clasped her outstretched hand, giving it a good shake. Sarah broke out into a wide, genuine smile and even Jack couldn’t help but feel his frozen heart start to thaw at that sight.

“Allies,” he spoke with an air of finality.

“Allies,” she responded, confirming their pact.