"Roland, who did you bring here this time? And what happened to your scouting?"

The man's voice is authoritative. He is tall, muscular, and has curly black hair. His face is clearly shaven. He is dressed in comfortable-looking clothes, and at his side, there is a sword with a thin blade.

Roland only bows slightly and smiles at the man.

"Drifters, sir! I spotted them while on watch. Talon is still out there, keeping an eye on things."

"Drifters, you say," I feel a wave of mana from the man. It pushes against me, scans my body, and probes me.

I feel disgusted. Is that how others feel when I am scanning them?

I want to do the same, to look at the leader's mana, but I do not dare. I don't know if he would feel it or if it's considered rude in the same way asking for levels is.

"They are fairly weak." He puts his hand on his beard and scratches it while glancing at us for a second. "The crippled one's mana is strongest, and the creature they have with them is... weird. But they won't be of use here." He turns away, "Have Finnegan take them to Stonehaven. It will be their problem to deal with."

Then he goes back behind his table, ignoring us.

The entire time, he barely looked at us; only his mana scanned our bodies. As if we aren't even worth his time.

"You heard Sir Sterling, kids. Now move your asses before someone moves them for you!"

We quickly follow Roland out of the tents and wobble behind him like baby ducks following their mother.

I keep my mana to myself and do not try to use [Mana Perception]. Others seem to be doing the same.

Unfortunately, Biscuit is already acting cute in front of a man who is eating some meat.

Biscuit, if you end up getting killed, it's on you!

Fortunately, the man laughs and throws a big piece to the corgi. Victorious doggo comes back to us.

His face seems even cheekier than before. He doesn't say anything in my mind but pokes me, as if gesturing for me to take some food.

"..."

Knowing how much food means to him, I can't help but feel a little bit of emotion. Just a tiny little bit.

"Just eat it."

Stupid dog, your tricks won't work on me.

He doesn't wait anymore and gobbles up the meat quickly.

[Shadowstalker - lvl ?]

Like everyone in the camp, we can't even see Finnegan's level. The man is quiet and just listens to Roland, and then nods.

It takes him a few minutes to pack his stuff, and then he gestures for us to follow him to another man who gives us some provisions after Finnegan signs some papers.

So, we've got ourselves another paperwork-ridden country, huh?

After we manage to leave the camp and walk for a few hours in total silence, the surrounding landscape keeps on showing off its amazing colors and gorgeous scenery.

We stop, and Finnegan gives us some food. Hard bread and dried meat, plus some water he made us carry.

While finally getting some food in my stomach, I carefully watch the man who is also slowly eating while staring into the distance.

The countryside around us remains stunning. Lush green grass and trees, expansive plains, and a beautiful blue sky with hardly any clouds. The weather is just perfect too. It all feels almost unnaturally picturesque.

I notice that the man holding us captive seems to be weaker than Roland. His moves aren't that agile, and even his presence is weaker. Knowing that I have to try it sometime, I slowly wake up my mana and send it towards the man after gesturing to Tess to get ready.

I didn't dare to do it with Roland because he had Mana in his class name and was a scout, probably a class that is made to be better able to feel such things.

As thin strings of mana as I can make reach out and touch the man. I try to probe him, try to guess his strength.

If he's weak, we can fight him and then run away. Some level difference won't stop me, and it's too dangerous to just do whatever they want us to do. Sure, it could all be going as the system intended, but it also doesn't have to be.

At first, he doesn't react, so I send a bit more, feeling the edges of his mana pool.

Carefully.

Slowly.

Then I realize that he is looking at me.

Deep, deep eyes as if piercing straight through my head.

"That's really rude," he just says in a quiet voice, and then everything blacks out.

POV Kim Min-Jae

As we leave the camp, the quiet man in front of me hands me a bottle of water. I take it gratefully, but when I glance up at him, his eyes send a chill down my spine. He calmly tells us what to do, but the fear in his eyes makes me wonder what we're walking into.

Running away is not allowed. We're not allowed to drink water or eat our provisions unless he gives us permission. Talking is not allowed.

We follow him quietly across the grassy plain with trees here and there. Everyone is just going with it.

Even Nathaniel, who is walking slightly to the side. His eyes are most of the time on the man leading us.

They are full of curiosity.

He is not scared; he is just watching his surroundings and waiting. I notice that he also tries to copy Finnegan's movement a few times. Light, quick steps that seem as if he is floating.

I turn away, unable to watch any longer.

I can't compare myself to him. He is not normal. No normal person would turn back to face a Cinderbear instead of just passing through the entrance. Yes, no normal person would do that.

But he won.

And then he forgot about Kevin. No word about that. No sadness in his eyes. And he doesn't even seem to be mad at Lily because of that. On the contrary, it looks like he is even closer to her now.

But it's okay; I will deal with it. As up until now, I will continue to grow stronger. I will put in the effort and improve the same way I did on the first floor.

I am stronger now.

While we sit and slowly eat the food, I hear Finnegan say something for the first time in a few hours since we left.

"That's really rude," his voice is calm and quiet.

Then something hits Nathaniel, and he falls down, defeated just like that.

"No!" I hear Lily and even Tess say something as they hurry towards the young man. Even the dog starts barking, and these weird purple tentacles appear around him.

And I am just looking at the unconscious body of a young man.

Just like that, he was defeated. Without having a chance to fight back.

Pfff.

I can't help but smile, and for the first time since leaving the first floor, I feel relief.

It's all starting over, isn't it?

We are weak once more, and even he is again at the starting point.

Okay.

Okay!

I get it; it is rude to try to probe someone's mana in the same way it's rude to ask about levels, but at least say something instead of quietly looking at me.

Dang it, my head hurts so much. What did he do? Thankfully I'm still alive and smarter than a few hours ago but I could live without the pain. Don't mess with people with a question mark over their heads.

Yup.

I don't know if it's because of that or something else, but Finnegan takes us towards the trees, and we enter a small forest soon to find an animal.

[Boar - lvl 19]

"Kill it," the man says shortly and pushes me towards the animal that isn't running at all.

The boar is massive and black in color, each of its tusks longer than my arm.

Not knowing the man's intentions, I rouse up my mana and step towards the monster.

I enter [Focus] and feel my mind split into two parts.

One of them focuses on creating a spear with my [Armament], and the other part does what I would always do.

The mana flows through my body, strengthening it, making it faster, and I take it all in, missing the feeling even after only a few hours of barely using mana.

The translucent spear in my hand becomes denser and stronger while I continue to strengthen myself.

The boar rushes at me, and I dodge to the side while stabbing the animal deep inside its neck. The animal is fast while charging but has some trouble reacting quickly. Its hide is very thick, but not too thick for my improved skill.

With another charge, I dodge to the side and attempt to stab again, but its skin becomes even tougher and turns a deeper shade of black. The spear's blade breaks, so I let it dissipate and recreate it.

When it charges me again, I stab against its head and bury the tip of the spear inside the animal's eye while calmly watching it under the influence of [Focus].

I leap to the side, release the spear, and then dash towards the creature. I form an axe with [Armament] and, using all the strength I can muster, bury it in its neck. Blood spurts everywhere, and I somewhat awkwardly repeat the process while holding the axe in one hand.

[You have defeated a Boar - lvl 19]

I look at the man with the Shadowstalker class, and he just nods shortly, his eyes piercing and watching the entire fight.

Keep watching, keep guessing. You'll see only the facade, the skills I choose to reveal.