The man speaks: "Sorry to bother. Could we ask you some questions?" I reply, "Sure, no problem." and invite him to sit. One of the girls joins as well. She put out a notebook and starts taking notes.

"My name is Akemi. I am the former president of our academy's Seito-kai. This is Chiyo, my wife, and former secretary." He presents his friends who were also members of his Student Council: Vice-president Akiko (F), Treasurer Haruo (M), and assistant Rei (F). He continues: "As you can see, our Seito-kai is much smaller than yours. However, we are responsible for our former colleagues and want to assist them." I find the group very polite and friendly. They already had a meeting with the Bureau, but they still have many questions. I reply the best I can.

They get very interested when they learn that I've been to the upper floors. It seems that the Bureau was quite shy on details. I explain to them the process of death and all the strange things that can happen. I tell them that reaching the top could bring a great reward and that some of us view it as a competition.

"And how do you view it, Joshua-san?" asks Akiko. I reply that I very much enjoy playing the game but that I don't want to get competitive to the point of making enemies. "I see; that's quite honorable of you." she says, "However, our colleagues come from a highly competitive environment. Let's hope that we all keep good relations."

The Seito-kai thank me for my time and leave the cafeteria. I pity them, as they seem anxious and very tired. I head for the bed myself and get a good night of sleep.

This morning I receive a message from Jack: "Can we talk?". When I meet him outside, he awaits me with Markus and Tao. "We want to participate in the game," explains Jack. They tell me that the ones who've beaten the first level are getting very popular. “We can’t let the Bureau get all the chicks,” precise Tao. “We also wonder about the reward,” add Markus.

Of course, I accept to help my friends. We walk a few moments outside and reach a private spot.

We start with the basics. Apparently, they did some research on their own, which is good. They already have a few notions about magic and combat, so I begin a deep analysis of their character.

Jack sucks with conjurations; we look through his screen to see where the problem is. His interface differs from mine, but I can still work with it. I tell him: “It looks like anything using your outer mana pool is weak.” He gets really depressed hearing that. But I add: “However, it seems that your inner mana pool is massive.” It is almost as big as mine; I ask: “Have you been training?”. “Not much,” he replies. I explain that the system will enhance his physical abilities as he trains. He should forget about spells and focus on that instead.

I surprise them by popping a sword out of my inventory. “That’s sick, bro!” says Tao. I give the sword to Jack and tell him to try it while I look at the others.

The next one is Tao. We review all the beginner spells and quickly find his strength: fire.

Me: “You’re a pyromancer, bro.”

Tao: “Good, now I’m going to blow some sh*t up.”

We craft a fireball spell together, and he gets really excited using it.

I switch to Markus; it turns out he’s decent in every field. I tell him that I have no particular advice and that he can train with Jack or Tao. I pop out a few items and say that I will enchant some for them. I also tell them that the system differs for every player and that they must find their own way of getting stronger.

I add: “If you work together, beating the first boss should be easy.”

Markus asks: “Can’t you come with us?”

I reply that I can supervise their first expedition if they want. We continue to train until Tao passes out. It seems he emptied his mana pool. I comment: “Well, I can’t blame you; let’s eat.”