We talked and discussed for quite a long time. Slowly but surely, as minutes turned into hours, a solid plan began to form. It was way past midnight when we finally decided to sleep.


    As usual, my sleep was plagued by nightmares. Though I was used to it by now, I was still glad to wake up and return to reality. I flinched. Reality? What was I even thinking? I slowly pushed myself up to a sitting position and sighed. It was so easy to forget we were trapped in a game.


    Glancing around, I could see Asher was still asleep. His slow, deep breaths reminded me of the time when we nearly lost him. So much time had passed since then…


    I shook my head and got up on my feet. Now wasn''t the time to get lost in thought.


    I wondered where Lucius was, but that question was soon answered as I headed to the shallow lake. The young swordsman was standing still by the shore. His sword in hand, his posture reminded me of the old days.


    "Oh, Kai." He said as I stepped closer to the lake. I could see how I''d startled him. "Good morning." He quickly placed his sword back into his inventory and looked away. "Is Asher up yet?"


    I shook my head. "No," I knelt by the water and splashed some on my face. Was it just my imagination, or did Lucius seem troubled? "Hey, what about a spar?" I asked as I rose to my feet and smiled.


    Lucius hesitated, then shook his head. "I''ve finished training for today already." He glanced away. "Besides, we should probably get going anyways." He headed back towards our little camp before I could say anything.


    Had something happened while I was gone? Why was he so cold? What was troubling him? I pondered a while, but nothing came to mind. Eventually, I decided to observe the young man for now, since there wasn''t much else I could do anyways.


    When I returned to camp, Asher had also woken up. He quickly prepared a simple, light breakfast and we set off.


    "Where are we headed anyways?" Lucius asked as Asher prepared to cast his flight spell.


    "First, we''ll get some of Asher''s things from the place he used to stay at." I explained. "Then we should check how the situation is in Ereth territory." I hesitated; I still hadn''t come up with a plan for disguising myself.


    "Ready." Asher mumbled. I felt his magic spread out. Soon, both of them were in the air. I also followed them, my wings carrying me with ease. "We should hurry," Asher continued as our long journey began.


    I nodded, then glanced at Lucius. His expression showed just how much he disliked flight, but I could also see traces of something else. Whatever was troubling him, it wasn''t something simple. He wouldn''t have been hung up on it for this long if that were the case.


    My thought process was interrupted by shrieks and wails coming from the forest. Asher and Lucius stopped immediately while I hesitated. What was going on? Were there other players here? If that was the case, I had to get away from here as fast as possible. If anyone discovered I was alive, we''d lose the only advantage we had – the element of surprise.


    "Monsters fighting." Asher mumbled. He glanced at me. "It''s been happening more often these last couple of months."


    Lucius nodded. "According to Rina, they get affected by Ereth or Demonic magic and give in to the primal instinct to kill the opposing side." He glanced at the sky, then his expression darkened. "Asher, we should land. I see something flying."


    I followed his gaze but saw nothing. Not even a dot in the distance. Despite that, I didn''t doubt his words. He had proven just how sharp his sight was time and again. "Let''s do that." I said as I folded my wings.


    Moments later, we had landed. Still able to hear the creatures fighting in the distance, we hid ourselves under the thick leafy roof of the forest.


    A short while later, I felt it. Demonic magic, searching for intruders. I clenched my fists, ready to summon my sword and attack them at a moment''s notice. They were flying low – so low that we clearly heard the beat of their wings as they passed over us.


    I held my breath, my heart beating quickly. On one hand, I wanted to avoid fighting them, on the other, my hands itched with the anticipation of battle – a chance to test my might.


    Thankfully though, they passed over us without noticing we were there. We waited for about twenty minutes before finally moving again.


    "Maybe flight is a bad idea." I said, instinctively keeping my voice low. "We should walk."


    While they both agreed, Asher did seem somewhat unhappy about this decision. We realigned ourselves with our destination, then set off.


    Though naturally, the journey on the ground proved to be much more challenging than flight. Not because of the terrain – it was just forest, no hills or such – but because of the constant attacks by crazed creatures.


    At first, they were just an inconvenience. I was usually the first to notice them, so they died to my dark bolts or my sword. Then, they slowly began to increase in numbers. Asher and Lucius had to step in – and that was when I noticed something that was off.


    "Asher," I said as he killed half a dozen of different monsters with a simple spell. "What''s your level?"


    The blonde sorcerer chuckled. "It''s not because of my level – these are just really weak." He kept moving without even a moment of hesitation, leaving my question unanswered and my curiosity unsatisfied.


    "It''s useless." Lucius said as he brushed past me. "He won''t answer no matter how much you ask."


    "Why?" I asked, curious and also somewhat worried. I knew Asher had to be ridiculously high level – he was so even when we first met – but it wasn''t like him to hide it from us. Well, no. Actually, it was exactly what he would do, but not answering when asked just seemed off.


    "No idea. Doesn''t matter anyways." The young swordsman sighed. "I''m fairly sure he could take on the Demon Lord. He''s been killing everything we came across with ease."


    I flinched. That wasn''t something to be said so lightly. Having met the Demon Lord myself – and twice at that – I was sure I''d only felt a fraction of his power. And even that fraction was enough to kill a Divine with ease. The man could almost freeze time!


    "I don''t know about that," I said with a low voice. "But anyways, why are you so down? Did something happen?"


    Lucius hesitated. "Something did happen!" I exclaimed. "What is it Lucius?"


    The young man looked away for a moment, then clenched his fists. "Really?" He hissed through his gritted teeth. "Are you seriously asking me that?" His eyes were filled with anger when he turned his gaze back to me. "By best friend died!" His loud shout startled me. I heard the wildlife scurrying away from us as Asher looked at us.


    "What''s going on?" The blonde sorcerer asked, clearly somewhat confused.


    "Months ago, I hear my best friend died – killed by demons!" The Lucius continued to shout. "Alone, in some old ruin!" His eyes reddened slightly. "And months after that, I hear he is alive, but weak – helpless. Stuck somewhere in demon territory, with some Divine who''s supposed to be dead! And I''m not even allowed to visit him!"


    I flinched. The guilt I felt back then resurfaced.


    "And then I finally hear we can meet with him. But what do we find? A demon!"


    His words hit me like a truck. As he continued to shout, I felt as if each word was a stab in my heart.


    "A demon who just destroyed the Divine Pillar my friend had supposedly fought so hard to protect! A demon who just killed two Ereth guards – the supposed good guys in this god forsaken land!"


    Asher seemed like he wanted to interfere but decided otherwise. A wise choice, as Lucius only proceeded to get angrier.


    "And now what? We''re on a god damned revenge mission! Revenge, Kai! Since when do you do revenge?" He stepped forward and grabbed me by the collar. "What has gotten into you? This isn''t you!"


    "Lucius," Asher''s warning voice wasn''t enough to stop the young man.


    "What happened to getting us all out of here? What happened to making sure we''d all survive?"


    I couldn''t help it as a flame of anger began to grow within me. I grabbed his wrists and forced him away from me.


    "What the hell do you want from me?" My voice echoed. "I was killed! I died! Death!" I repeated the word. Each time, I could see both of their faces grow paler. "Do you know what it feels like? Awful! Horrible! Terrifying!"


    Remembering that cold, dark nothingness sent a shiver down my spine. "Do you think I can be the old me after something like that?" My voice rose with each word. "Do you think I can just forgive them? Alina pushed me into that trap, Lucius! It wasn''t a fair fight, it wasn''t a quiet assassination, they made sure I suffered, they made sure I was trapped and powerless and only then," The dark blade appeared in my extended hand. It seemingly refused to reflect the sunlight. In fact, the air grew heavier and the light dimmed despite it being noon still.


    "And only then," I repeated my words. "She killed me. With a smile on her face! What do you expect me to do?"