He inspected the youth’s body. David’s right arm had been completely crushed by the blow, while his ribs seemed to be broken. It was only then that Arthur’s anguished self noticed that the boy’s chest still moved up and down, while his face was covered in a pained frown.

He was alive!

Arthur curbed his excitement almost immediately. There was no time to celebrate. David’s broken ribs could end up puncturing his lungs and that would be the end of him, or there could be other hidden internal injuries that Arthur wasn’t aware of. David needed urgent treatment if he were to survive.

Arthur turned around as he heard groans coming from behind him. The beastman clutched its stump, still grunting in pain, but seemed to have recovered from the shock enough to move. Its eyes shone with pure hatred and violent intent as it stared at him. He grasped his sword’s hilt with trembling hands. Could he kill this beastman quickly enough to still help David? What if he took too long and David died because of it? What if he spent too much energy while fighting and didn’t manage to get to their headquarters while carrying David?

‘How did it even escape my perception?’

He had been paying attention to his surroundings ever since they killed the ape-type. He didn’t have the Danger Sense Skill like Liam, but there should have been no way for a creature as large as a beastman to escape his sight. The only possibility was that the beastman had been hiding and waiting for an opportunity to strike them when they had their guard down.

‘It’s been following us ever since we killed the ape.’

Arthur felt his heart sink as this realization hit him. Avenging the woman had caused them to draw the attention of the nearby beastmen and one of the beastmen had decided to follow them. It was only because of their decision to help the woman that David was in this situation. It was the price they had to pay for showing goodwill on a battlefield.

As myriad thoughts went through his mind and his heart got colder and colder, two human figures suddenly dashed in front of him. They were part of the group that had been fighting the beastman trio.

“Run, kid! We’ll deal with this one! Grab your friend and get him medical attention, now!”

Momentarily stunned, Arthur was unable to react. What was this? Why were they acting like this? Why were they trying to help him? Weren’t they aware of the possible price they would have to pay while doing so? Just like Arthur and David had paid for avenging the woman, these people could end up dying because of their decision to help them.

Yet, there they were. Standing in front of him and shaking like a flame in the wind, both men were clearly struggling to overcome their fear of the beastman. It was only in order to save David’s life. Shaking himself out of his stupor, Arthur carefully picked David up and nodded at the two men. They nodded back, gritting their teeth and raising their weapons towards the beastman with the severed arm. The enemy was slightly intimidated now that it saw that the number of opponents had tripled, but courage was slowly emerging in its eyes. It would soon attack, Arthur realized. This was the best time to run away with David.

He hesitated. This feeling shocked even himself. He was hesitant to leave the two men to fight on their own while knowing they were trying to save his friend. Under ordinary conditions, he would have simply turned around without looking back. This was the reason why he bothered to get closer to people; so he could use them. The two men were acting as prime tools, but he was hesitant to leave them. Why did he feel like this?

‘I’m too shaken up.’

Arthur’s trembling eyes stabilized. He knew in his heart that he needed to think about the way he felt and how he had changed, but there was no time. He needed to get David some urgent help. He turned around and started to run towards the Drakkhan headquarters, his thoughts a complete mess.

His eyes darted from side to side, taking in as much of the surroundings as possible. They were unwilling to let a beastman ambush them for the second time. He passed by several battles, witnessing the deaths of many, many humans. The more he saw, the more his heart was shaken. The image of the two men who had selflessly saved him and David overlapped with the figures of the dying strangers.

He felt for them. He was saddened. He despaired.

Caught up in trying to stabilize David’s body in his arms and heading the right way, Arthur only realized he’d arrived at his destination when a female Drakkhan dressed in black armor walked up to him with an indifferent expression.

Neither of them said anything. The Drakkhan looked at David emotionlessly. Arthur’s heart sunk as the Drakkhan’s gaze turned to him with a questioning intent, as if asking what he was doing there.

“…My friend needs medical care.”

The Drakkhan said nothing, but her eyes were filled with contempt. Before she could say anything, Arthur continued with a determined expression.

“I’d like to remind you we’re still in an alliance. I’ve walked a long way to get him some assistance.”

The contempt in her eyes didn’t fade, but the Drakkhan’s expression contorted into a frown. She wordlessly turned around and started walking. Arthur followed her.

His thoughts turned to the two men who had decided to fight the beastman in his stead. He wondered if they were still alive. He was worried.

At the same time, he knew he would never find out.

What mattered was the lesson they had taught him.

...

Liam stood in front of the opening in Arimiar’s ship’s hull, nodded at the guards, and entered it. The guards calmly bowed as he walked past them, now used to such a sight.

It had now been a month since he started going to Cinzolia after training. This was the fourth time he’d completed a siege on his own and come back safely. The humans and Drakkhan inside the ship were now used to him going out to fight, and even he could feel the growing respect the army felt for him. The humans already wholly idolized him, but the Drakkhan were also beginning to realize the distance between him and them, which gave birth to fear and admiration.

As he headed to his training room, Liam felt lonely.

‘It’s now been almost one and a half years since I’ve last seen the others.’

He missed them dearly, Cassandra and Arthur most of all. He longed to lay in Cassandra’s arms once more and to talk to Arthur about whatever came to their minds. He wanted to discuss training methods with Alexander and laugh with Olivia and Mikhail. He even missed Eiko’s foul-mouthed self. He needed to know how Albert and Andrew had been doing and if Armaan had recovered.

Yet, here he was. Stuck on the same planet and region for almost one and a half years, with no way to contact his friends whatsoever. He was alone.

Despite these thoughts momentarily consuming him, Liam’s state of mind wasn’t shaken at all. His loneliness did not disturb him in the least, unlike before. His Will had risen considerably; it meant that he could endure such feelings with willpower alone. He wouldn’t waste time dwelling on the loneliness he felt or letting it hinder him. His peak state was maintained.

Liam’s eyes focused and gazed at the doors in front of him. He pushed them open and entered the training room. As the doors closed behind him, he sat on the mat and let his mind become clear as a mirror due to the mat’s effects. The loneliness he felt disappeared. He thought to himself.

‘I can finally wield the full power of my stats.’

His last four sieges against Cinzolia hadn’t been for naught. Not only had he managed to test the results of his training in real battles and acquire more XP, but also adapt to his newfound power. At last, he was now capable of using the entirety of his strength.

‘Now, I can probably team up with Arimiar and take down Cinzolia’s commander.’

Even though he had already identified that both commanders possessed stats above 100,000, his own power was significant enough to shift the course of their battle. It was the result of his pure skill, materialized in the form of One With The Spear, and Ethereal Body, which raised the effectiveness of his stats tremendously. He was confident that as long as he helped Arimiar, the two of them would be able to take down the enemy commander without much difficulty. There was only one thing to consider.

‘Is it the right time?’