Chapter 112: A Fool’s Journey Charles had torn off Aurhorn’s head from its body. The brutality horrified his allies, but he appeared completely unfazed. The monsters continued to attack him, but he was simply too strong and too fast for them to defeat. Even the joined forces of the Rank 3 Lizardmen and the Mini Boss Lizardman Berserker failed to stop his rampage. They perished by his hands in less than a minute. Just as Alex’s mind went into overdrive thinking of what to do next, Charles shifted his attention to them. The black knight then let out a horrifying roar before charging in their direction. However, when Charles was only a few meters away from Alex, a black blur flew past him. The next second, the black knight’s body slammed into the wall. A young lady wearing a fox mask had arrived, kicking Charles away from Alex just in time. Alex knew the perfect opportunity had come and immediately used Shield Charge to close the distance and smash his shield on Charles’ head. Sparks flew as the young man’s shield hit the black helmet with a loud clang. "Wake up, Charles!" Alex roared. "Shield Bash!" Another clanging sound echoed inside the dungeon as Alex desperately and repeatedly slammed his shield on the black knight’s head. "Shield Bash!" "Shield Bash!" "Shield Bash!" "Shield Bash!" "Shield Bash!" "Shield Bash!" Just looking at this scene made everyone’s teeth itch. Well, it was a very cruel scene. "W-Wait!" Charles, who was back in control of his body, cried out. "I’m awak—arghh!" Unable to stop in time, Alex smacked the pitiful boy once more, causing him to lose the consciousness he had just regained. "Alex, stop!" Cairo grabbed hold of Alex’s left arm while Lavinia held his right, stopping him from pummeling the already unconscious boy. "Ah!" Alex finally snapped out of his daze and realized Charles had already reverted to his human form. He had truly felt desperate earlier, so he had hit Charles like the latter was a stubborn whack-a-mole mole without stopping. Not to mention, the sound of his shield hitting the black knight’s helmet had numbed his eardrums, so he had temporarily gone deaf. At that moment, the sound of guards arriving in the dungeon reached their ears. "Everyone, are you alright?!" "What the?! Is this really a monster outbreak?!" "Damn! Protect the trial takers now!" "Peace Keepers, advance!" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶 The Peace Keepers, who were the private army of Frieden Academy, clashed with the monsters who were still active in the vicinity. While this was happening, several of the medics summoned a stretcher and carefully laid Charles on it. "Take the injured outside of the dungeon!" the Captain of the Peace Keepers ordered. ""Yes, Sir!"" Alex, who was almost like a spent candle, didn’t resist and allowed several Clerics to put him on a stretcher as well. His left arm was broken, and his right arm also felt as if it would soon break. Cairo and the others were still able to walk with some assistance, so they simply left on their own two feet. After Charles exited the dungeon, the effect of Challenger’s Mark also dissipated. However, this didn’t mean the monsters on the first floor would immediately return to the lower floors. The various Professors, like Professor Elias, and their escorts were ordered to eliminate the remaining monsters and investigate the cause of the monster outbreak. However, none of them would find the real reason because Alex’s group had already prepared for this in advance. They simply said they had heard rumbling sounds inside the dungeon, and before they knew it, monsters from the lower floors had started to appear along their path. But after this chaotic interrogation ended, Alex tried to ask who the person wearing the fox mask was, claiming that he wanted to thank them for coming to their rescue. However, the Peace Keepers only said that the young man would meet that person in the academy and that he could just thank them personally when they see each other again. After the Peace Keepers left, Lavinia entered the infirmary room where Alex was being treated and sat on the bed. "Are you feeling better?" Lavinia asked, looking at the temporary cast on Alex’s left arm. "I’ll live," Alex replied. "Thank you, Lavinia. You saved me a couple of times earlier." "What are you talking about?" Lavinia shook her head. "You saved me a couple of times as well, so let’s call it even." "Okay." Alex smiled. "By the way, have you seen that person wearing a fox mask? I want to thank him." "You mean thank ’her,’" Lavinia corrected. "Her?" Alex blinked. "She’s a girl?" "Yes." Lavinia nodded. "How do you know?" "Women’s intuition." "..." "What?" Lavinia arched an eyebrow. "You don’t believe me?" "Of course, I believe you," Alex answered, not wanting to prolong this topic any longer. "How is Charles?" A giggle escaped Lavinia’s lips after hearing the young man’s question. "His face is black and blue after a certain Oathkeeper smacked him repeatedly on the head with a heavy shield," Lavinia said in a teasing tone. "Lavinia, you know I have a special skill," Alex said. "What skill?" Lavinia arched an eyebrow. "A skill that makes me forget about embarrassing things that happened to me," Alex stated. "So, I have no recollection of what happened inside the dungeon. Everything is a blur to me right now." "What a very convenient skill." Lavinia sneered. "It seems you will be forgetting a lot of things from this point onward." Alex chuckled, only to wince in pain immediately. The injuries he had received wouldn’t heal right away, so he had no choice but to bear with them. "Lavinia, thank you," Alex said. "I just said that we’re even. Why are you thanking me again?" Lavinia asked. "It’s because you helped Charles clear the dungeon," Alex replied softly. "You have no idea how thankful I am to you, to Master, Elaine, Efa, and Roselia for accompanying us in this journey. "If one of you hadn’t been there, we might not have been able to make it. So, thank you very much." Lavinia didn’t respond right away and simply held Alex’s gaze. She had been taught the ways of spies, so she could tell that he was being sincere with his words. "You’re welcome," Lavinia replied after a minute had passed. "But my help isn’t free. You now owe me a favor." "Okay." Alex nodded. "As long as it’s within my ability, I’ll do it." "Mmm." Lavinia smiled. "Rest for now. The second phase of the Trial of Frieden Academy will start in two days. We’re just halfway done." After saying those words, Lavinia left the room so Alex could rest. A few hours later... *Poke* "Nghh..." *Poke* *Poke* "Ngh.. Mnh...." *Poke* *Poke* *Poke* "Nghh!" *Poke* *Poke* *Poke* *Poke* "Oh my God! Have mercy on me, Dim Dim!" "Dim~" The Dim Sum God giggled because it had finally managed to wake Alex. "Dim Dim," Dim Dim said, lightly poking Alex’s cheek. "You want me to go with you?" Alex asked before shifting his gaze to the window of his room. The first rays of sunlight were peeking through his window, which meant that morning had finally come. "Can I rest for a few more minutes?" Alex inquired. Dim Dim shook its head. "Dim." "It’s that important?" "Dim!" Alex was still exhausted, but he couldn’t help but wonder where the Dim Sum God planned to take him. Besides, Dim Dim looked very serious, so he decided to follow the little guy instead of getting poked into oblivion. The young man followed behind Dim Dim, who was humming a tune as they strolled on the streets of the City of Harmonia. The location they were in seemed like a private place, based on the meager number of people on the streets. A few minutes later, Dim Dim pointed at a sign in the distance with a smile on its face. Sunveil Orphanage. Just as Alex was about to ask why Dim Dim had brought him to such a place, the Dim Sum God motioned for him to follow. Alex smiled faintly and followed Dim Dim towards the gate. He didn’t go inside and only peeked. However, when he saw the familiar teenage boy in the distance, he finally understood where Dim Dim had taken him. Charles was hugging a little girl who seemed to be around five years old. She was crying and hugging her brother very tightly, as if she had missed him terribly. At that moment, Alex felt something warm and wet slide down the side of his face. He used his right hand to touch his cheek and confirmed that tears were indeed streaming down his face. "I see," Alex said softly. "So this is the continuation of your story, Charles." Charles Lambert’s Tutorial Quest had been deemed impossible to clear. Countless players, even professional gamers, had tried, and all had given up in the end. After spending nearly a year playing Story Mode, Alex had finally been able to complete his quest, but he had never seen what happened next. What was happening right before his eyes was something that 99.99% of the player base of ELO wouldn’t witness in their lifetimes. Charles reunited with his sister, Eris, who was suffering from the disease, Child’s Bane. A disease that had a 100% fatality rate among children, preventing them from reaching the age of ten. Charles might have finished his tutorial quest, but his story was far from over. Until he found a way to cure his little sister from the disease, the teenage boy would face more challenges and hardships in his life in the academy. Suddenly, Alex felt something soft press over his cheeks, wiping his tears away. "Thank you, Dim Dim," Alex said as the Dim Sum God smiled faintly. But despite all this, Alex’s tears continued to fall because he felt that his heart was finally at peace. Charles Lambert had defied his destiny, and the continuation of his story was finally about to begin. ---------- End of Volume One: A Fool’s Journey