It was 2:30 in the morning and Carl was exhausted, yet jubilant, because he had come out on top, fulfilling his prediction – the next run, on which the 3 remaining NPCs waited, would be his 37th one today, and 32nd of his own.

He had gained 35 Scrolls of Danger, having already used up 33, including the conquests of rank 5 boars' nest and bear's lair. By that point their market price had reached a ridiculous 40 gold, and with the buyout set firmly to 20 gold, while the party slots were auctioned off at 56-58 gold, there was no more takers joining the queue to take advantage of priority. Or, maybe there were none left in Europe? After all, crossing time zones via teleport cost on average a hefty 2 Gold Crowns … each!

Even mega-guilds didn't dare send too many people to distant lands, instead opting to have their branches plan ahead and select members to create their characters on designated servers. Luckily for them, telecommunications had progressed to the point where latency was no longer an issue, with top service providers boasting a mere 100 milliseconds of delay between the opposite ends of the planet. Sure, this still made a difference to experts, but not so much to casuals, and the latency over 5 000 km was a respectable 25 milliseconds, greatly widening the range of smooth operations.

As to Carl's income, it disappeared as soon as it arrived. He exceeded 2 700 gold from selling party slots and pelts for the day, but the expenditures were no less staggering. Just the supplies ate up half of that, on account of Carl's insatiable appetite – while the NPCs, especially Theodore and his perception potions, cost him around 250 gold, he alone burned more than a thousand gold worth of brews, food, beverages and medicaments …

That was a preposterous amount. Alas, it had to be done.

Then, there were 5 trips to the temple, the necklace and health capsule that had to be replaced after the scuffle with Jade Lotus, miscellaneous gear and consumables for Bulwark, Reckless, Azure, Silky, Mercy and Liss, purchasing information, establishing contacts, Whispering Leaf's piece of crystalline manatite, sanctuary fees, the funds reserved for Liss' master instructor, etc.

They were all running on fumes once again …

… but their spirits were at an all time high!

Carl, mentally drained from experiencing the wholly realistic fatigue, and pushed forward in spite of it by his feverish excitement, had mastered Champion's Conviction to everyone's astonishment.

[Champion's Conviction] (activable)

Empowering skill, grade 0 (peak), master level.

Effects: x*(1+x/base_vitality)/s mana upkeep for x points of vitality, target: self, augments vitality and improves pain tolerance, exhausts proportionally to the upkeep costs.

Pure horsepower!

With his base vitality passing 20, in the best case scenario he could now sustain a boost of 40 points on a great mana potion during a blessing, and 30 points without it. That was 50-60 vitality! He could sprint without end! Well, until he tripped up, at least …

Next on the agenda was solidifying the foundations, since the actual numbers were still far from that, as well as mastering Last Hurrah, which Carl estimated to be at the 45% mark. Just thinking about it made him jump for joy. As excessive strength had to be kept in check by sufficient toughness to prevent fatal injuries and provide the necessary stamina, he would be able to break the limits of his avatar's body and contend with giants who maxed out their physical constitution!

At this junction, the black wolves' den was not a challenge for him any more. It was yet menacing, but his ability to recover from slip-ups made him confident he wouldn't die there even if the Black Fang broke mid-swing. Meanwhile, the new one held nicely, the old one was given away for arcane gluing, he had a spare rank 5 reward in the bank, and the praiseworthy gravidon leather demonstrated its resilience by standing up to all the punishment without the need for interim repairs, although it did require some overdue mending. He had also brought Vicious Hook and Jarring Fist to the expert level, expecting Ripping Claw to graduate from this realm soon, as Merciful Breeze did with Confuse.

The brave girl, accompanied by her cousin and uncle, made tremendous waves on the local scene. Their exploits elicited slack jaws and dumbfounded head-shaking. The general consensus was that Carl was investing heavily into them because he needed the two elves on high-rank conquests, which prompted excruciating envy and an outrage over the extravagant spending. Among all the gossip, the rough appraisal of self-proclaimed authorities on the matter evaluated his costs at 80-100 gold per hour, which got cut in half by the bountiful loot his NPCs recovered. With this, the young women had a bright, prosperous future ahead of them.

In reality, Carl only paid 10 gold for the first clear, 3 for the second, and then Mercy leveled up, dual-wielding wands and breezing through the dungeons, no pun intended. Her capacity for crowd control had risen to new heights, prompting a readjustment of the team's approach, escalating the intensity and further shortening their runs, which translated into token profit. This, however, put additional pressure on Ingolf, who was already exerting himself thoroughly by lifting the heavy rock-like crabs, his boundless stamina barely keeping up, so he had to start juicing. Once Mercy mastered Confuse, they could stay at this tempo, reducing their consumption of mana potions and securing decent gains – and that was still without the blessing!

Liss didn't want to be outdone, either, so she developed her own system of pulling aggro and luring new mobs, growing courageous and gracefully weaving between the lethal claws. She also reached the advanced level with Piercing Shot and swapped the common arrows for inferior ones, which were enough to instakill the hulking crustaceans on an accurate hit, but wouldn't threaten to stab at Ingolf after puncturing the shell, thus contributing a little to the savings. Eventually she boldly pushed for Scrolls of Threat – the peak ones at 5 gold by then – raising the maturity of the stone crabs and hoping for a boss spawn. In any case, their clusters got more condensed, with fewer of them hiding in burrows, and the increase in loot had offset the expense, so it was a worthwhile move.

Radiant Bulwark and Reckless Javelin, humbled by the MacMillan family, rejoined the arena lobby, bent on destruction and carnage. There was always a bunch of sparring partners there, as the liberated lions shared the burden of running errands to allow themselves some respite from the bloody madness. Looming Oak and Fleeting Time, on the other hand, were nowhere to be seen, focused on grinding willpower and pursuing pain resistance perks.

Amaranthine Bushido regretted he couldn't be a part of the armed endeavors, but he did a splendid job managing all the assets. It was a refreshingly clean arrangement – there was no contracts, no stringent demands, and no stress, only mutual trust and working to the best of one's ability. Carl was so inspiring that his word was considered legally binding, and his forbearance was pleasantly reassuring – something inconceivable in this day and age.

As to concerns over painting a huge target on their own backs, nobody cared. Carl's terrifying persona chased away all worries, and the boy himself was the opposite of a regular person, that is he wished for his enemies to reveal their true colors in due time.

Oblivious to the storm raging in the wide world, which he set in motion, the hero tactfully thanked the participants of his auction who yet lingered, stating that there would be no more party slots upon his return from a well-deserved slumber.

“Nooo!”

“Aaargh! Why?! You've only sold a handful!”

“I'll pay 65 gold! No joke!”

“Come on, we'll have more scrolls once you're back!”

“What's up with these guys? Why are they so desperate?” Carl wondered.

“I'm sorry, but I can't split myself. There's other pressing matters I need to attend to,” he explained without going into details.

“What gives? Is he not satisfied with this much money?! What did he make, a thousand gold in a day?!”

“Imagine if he didn't carry all those stupid NPCs …”

“Gah, why didn't I outbid someone on this run!”

Carl heard all the whispers as distinctly as normal speech, courtesy of his mastered Hyperacusis, and he racked his brain for possible answers. 65 gold? In face of imminent inflation? That was simply illogical. “Hmm? What are you doing here?”

“Wait a second, I only see three NPCs!”

“Boss Lionheart, you still have a spot left?”

“I bid 65 gold!”

“68!”

“70!”

Carl didn't even acknowledge the loudmouths. Hidden among the congregation, he noticed a timid little figure, almost invisible in this vivid picture containing well-dressed and animated representatives, cheeky gawkers and hopeful gatherers, illuminated from countless angles by street lamps and all the lights within the massive hall. Somehow … he felt that this individual wanted to step forward, yet didn't dare, struggling internally, but failing, looking down dejectedly after the fierce bidding ensued.

Suddenly, the venue silenced, as if flipped by a switch. All it took was for Carl to raise his hand.

“Whispering Leaf, was it? What troubles you this time?”

The whole mob turned as one, investigating Carl's line of sight. At the end of it they found a petite female wood elf, who was totally at a loss.

“I– … I'm …” she stammered helplessly, ashamed by the overwhelming attention.

“Did you get your gaming helmet?”

“I … did.”

“Then what's the problem?”

“I'm … I … wanted to repay you … Sir … Brother Lionheart!” she confessed with difficulty.

“No need. You don't owe me anything.”

“Oh … that's … okay,” she acceded and lowered her head sheepishly.

Luckily for her, Carl wasn't the same as before. He had matured by years within those few days, and his spirit was on fire. He saw through her effortlessly.

“You want to go to Camp Redmont?”

“Y-yes! I'll work extra hard for you!” The girl lit up immediately, with verve and elation.

This, however, upset the illustrious assembly.

“Seriously?!”

“Come on, Boss Lionheart, 75 gold!”

“80!”

“Enough!” Carl roared.

That was indeed enough. Yet unuttered words got stuck in throats, as if denied by a higher power.

“Let's go,” he declared calmly, whisking the small wood elf away to the crowd's chagrin. Initially he planned to give the last slot to Fleeting Time, whom he wanted to learn Confuse later on, but this would do just as fine.

Whispering Leaf could not believe it was happening again – the bloodied monstrosity dispersed the dark clouds with a single sweep of his hand!

She felt like in a blissful dream, where danger was nonexistent, and the prospect of comfort neverending. Captivated by this unwavering man, she imagined him to be a knight taken straight out of medieval literature. But the thing was … he didn't act!

This wasn't roleplaying!

He was the real deal!

Urged by Amaranthine Bushido, she took the exclusive ration and the bottle of energy juice, then stepped through the portal absentminded.

“Eat up,” Carl instructed everyone, quickly organizing the supplies.

He was now a beast of burden, so his backpack was the biggest one available, a truly humongous travel bag akin to a wardrobe, and he shouldered the entire weight of the party. Still, he could easily outrun all the NPCs with his stamina, supplemented by luxurious meals and potent stimulants, and he only stayed with them to keep the wolves at bay.

“B-but … I'm a player …” Whispering Leaf said in doubt, “shouldn't I stay … ?”

“Let me guess – maxed out mental constitution and agility?” Carl voiced his suspicions based on the girl's meager body.

“Y-yes … it's a stealth build for scouting and exploration,” she disclosed.

“Then you'll need the boost dearly. Go on,” Carl compelled, while pulling out a scroll.

Soon, they were on their way, and Carl promptly beckoned for the tardy elf to catch up to him.

“So you've been to the open world?”

“Mhm … why do you ask, Brother Lionheart?”

“What's it like?”

“Oh, it's … amazing! The instanced dungeons are so generic and … fake in comparison! You haven't seen it yet? You're going to love it!”

“Tell me about it.”