Making a Decision

Seeing the notification—but having already agreed not to leave immediately—they ignored it and checked their stats instead.

Name: Joseph

Class: Spirit Ranger [E+] (+3 Spirit, +2 Dexterity, +2 Agility, +1 Magic)

Title: Survivor of the Unsurvivable, One Who Consumes Enemies’ Hearts

Level: 18 > 20

Vitality: 5
Strength: 20
Dexterity: 49 > 53
Agility: 49 > 53
Magic: 42 > 52
Spirit: 42 > 52

Available Stat Points: 10 > 0

Active Skills: Channel Spirits(D), Spirit Sight(D), Magic-Spirit Communion(D), Condensed Fireball(E), Concrete Creation(E), Bursting Shot(E), Piercing Shot(E), Mana-Spirit Shockwave(E), Rippling Water Barrier(E),

Passive Skills: Survivor(D), Spirit’s Affection(E), Exploit Weak Point(E), Mana Control(D), Concealed Presence(E), Silent Steps(E), Focused Hearing(F), Guardian(F), Structure Master(F),

Guardian(F) – Minuscule increase to the potency of defensive skills when protecting another.
Structure Master(F) – Create structures with minuscule improvement to efficiency.

Reading through each updated description, he was elated. He’d hit level 20, crossed his self-made 50-point milestone in four stats, and picked up a pile of upgrades.

The water barrier + Guardian synergy was great, and Structure Master paired nicely with Concrete Creation—even if that “structure” wording annoyed him. It meant not everything he formed would count and would require arduous testing to actually find out.

The rise in Mana Control and Bursting Shot was just a bonus—especially Mana Control, which he coveted. A quick glance at the others showed the same surprise on their faces. With his allocations finished, he turned to the notification, its tempting ‘yes’ button gleaming back at him.

A hand on his shoulder drew his attention. Han was standing there, eyes filled with a strange mix of pleading, understanding, and conviction that threw Joseph slightly off. “I know our deal was only meant to last until the end of the trial, and here we are, but…”

Joseph pulled his shoulder away, cutting him off. “I’m still not sure yet. I think it depends on what you can realistically offer me that I can’t get on my own.”

Returning to negotiations, Han refused to let the air grow tense and took a respectful step back. ‘Not much, to be honest. While I would say my information I have about future events, I have a feeling your resourceful enough to make do on your own.

Instead, I can only say that I won’t hold you down, you’re free to do as you like and if you need anything I’ll do my best to help you out, and hopefully… you can do the same in return.”

Joseph scoffed, a hard squint sharpening his gaze. “So, friendship.”

With a warm smile Han nodded. “Friendship indeed, that’s all I can offer you.”

Joseph cast him a brief glance, gauging his honesty, before looking away in thought. After a moment, his eyes returned, fixing directly on Han. “What am I getting myself into? You want me, then I at least need to know what I’m up against.”

Han’s eyes darkened as memories of his final moments resurfaced. He glanced at the other two, waiting patiently in the distance, before letting out a heavy, emotion-laden sigh. “I suppose that’s only fair…”

Without going into too much detail Han spoke about the driving forces of his motivation along with a description of what happened just before he died.

Joseph listened with intense focus, analyzing and breaking down each piece of information until the very end—when Han stopped and turned back to him. “So… there’s this guy called Gabriel, who isn’t related to angles but is at the same time?”

Han raised his hand and shook it slightly with a slight head tilt. “I’m not fully sure on his origins, what he told me may have been false, but that’s good enough for now.”

With an exhausted look, Joseph continued. “Okay, so this guy was your companion for a while—you fought, drank, saved lives together. Then he betrays you, kills your friends and family, and finally kills you.”

Han gave a slow, downtrodden nod. “And this guy’s working for someone… and you have no idea who?

Han gave another nod, adding quietly, “Just before …, I overheard them talk about running out of time, and ‘they’re’ getting impatient. Whether that means a group or individual, I do not know.”

Joseph’s brows furrowed. “So, there’s no overarching higher being or interdimensional threat? No demon king? No… world ending catastrophe?”

Han shrugged slowly. “Not that I was ever aware of. But there have always been whispers—rumors of something moving in the shadows—a group dictating how the world progresses. Something ancient, as old as life itself, watching, dictating from the dark. I’ve never been able to confirm it, but…

“Let me guess, this whole Gabriel thing started just as you started to dig deeper?”

Han gave another weary nod, as Joseph let out his stale, thought filled breath. “Well… I suppose it could be worse.”

For a moment Han let himself drift back into old memories, emotions visibly shifting on his face, but soon forced them aside, refocusing on the present. Joseph, meanwhile, wrestled with a deep conundrum—until he felt it: a tingle, a whisper, something beyond description.

An almost instinctive pull gnawed at his logic—every lesson told him to stay alone, but something deeper, older, insisted otherwise. Against his better judgment, he sighed. “Ugh, fine. I’ll… join, sort of.

But no friendship bullshit—you don’t just say we’re friends and that makes it true. This is a mutually beneficial deal. You provide information and resources, and in return, I’ll help when needed.”

Joseph extended his hand, a flicker of annoyance in his eyes—as if he already regretted the decision. Despite noticing, Han smiled and clasped Joseph’s hand firmly. “Thank you.”

Returning to the group they briefly discussed Joseph’s renewed position before discussing the next part of the plan.

“Me and Joseph are going to take a trip back to camp and bring everyone here. I trust you two will be fine here for a few days?”

Both of them nodded without complaint. Compared to Han and Joseph, who were in mostly good condition, Che lacked both speed and stamina, while Logan had been battered to a pulp in the fight. He was lucky nothing was broken, but he still couldn’t put much pressure on any part of his body.

After a brief rest and leaving behind some rations and supplies, the two set off back into the maze. Following Joseph’s markings in reverse took only a fraction of the time their original multi-day push had.

With only a few brief breaks, they pushed hard until the final stretch, then eased into a steady jog with Han leading the way. Thankfully, no creatures crossed their path, and hours later they arrived at the safe zone—Han’s camp

Joseph couldn’t help a small flare of jealousy. The camp sat beside a river running wall to wall, its source hidden by mist that also blurred the far ceiling and walls. Above, cracked black brick framed an artificial sun casting steady light. Clusters of oak and ash ringed the water, enough to almost pass for outdoors if not for the stone overhead.

After weeks on scaffolding, then walking through a dreary maze, hydrating himself with the disgusting blood of Rukvar’s just to survive, it stung—just a bit—to see everyone else in something like a resort by comparison.

They passed a gate guarded by wary eyes, then entered the busy camp. Han’s arrival stirred a small commotion as people came to greet him. Joseph slipped away from the attention, dropped onto a log bench, and waited. Not long after, Han approached with a woman in tow.

“Joseph, this is Li Lianhua, the second-in-command while I’m gone. I’ve told her about escorting everyone to the exit. She wanted to meet you.”

Lianhua greeted him with the kind of polished confidence that came from command—chin lifted, words measured, eyes flicking once over his gear before meeting his gaze. “Hello, Joseph. Thank you for guiding us. I also hear you’ve joined Han’s party and are very strong. It’ll be good to have you.”

She offered a handshake. Joseph sighed, took it, and returned a simple greeting. Silence followed—he had nothing else to say, and Lianhua didn’t quite know how to proceed either.

He laid back again and asked Han how long until departure.

“A few hours,” Han said. “We need to organize everyone and prep food and water. Many here aren’t high level and we’ve been short on supplies for a while.”

“… Alright. Let me know when you’re ready. I’ll wait here and practice some magic or something.”

As Han and Lianhua left, Joseph stretched out beside his sack and tried a bit of lightning magic. He didn’t know the exact science—just what stuck from school—but the gist was there. Lightning happens when charges separate, build up, and then snap back together. Simple enough.

So he split his mana into two imagined charges: positive and negative. In theory, if he mimicked nature, the gap should close with a spark. In practice? They just bled back into each other like two drops of water.

Through a few clumsy experiments, he noticed something. Speed mattered. The faster he pushed the charges apart, spun them, shifted them, the more tension built between them. Widen the difference, sharpen the pull—until it finally snapped. A thin crack of light darted across the space, bridging the gap. Not textbook physics, not real volts, but close enough to feel right.

It wasn’t “real” lightning—he doubted it would fry anything more than a bug—but it proved the process could work. Imagining it “deadlier” only guzzled mana for pitiful returns. What worked better was pushing the charges faster and adding a third flow, something to feed and aggregate both sides instead of just splitting them.

With that trick, he started producing regular micro-bolts. Tiny arcs, sharp and bright, at about two-thirds the mana cost of the brute-force imagination method. The drawbacks were obvious: slower charge time, heavier mental strain, and still nowhere near strong enough to matter in a fight. But as far as proof of concept went, it wasn’t bad.