Thud-Thud

Anon moved stones continuously, hoping to locate Gin.

"Oi, Gin... Where are you? Giiinnnn?" Anon shouted.

'Why can't I find him with the sensor spell? Why is he invisible to me?' Anon wondered as he continued to search for Gin.

On the screens, everyone observed Anon's search efforts.

"Oh my God, I hope he's alright. Poor little puppy," Moon commented as she watched the screen.

"I think he's dead... I don't know why the explosion occurred, but I'm relieved Jule survived," Ian said.

"Yeah, same here. I'm also curious... How did he survive?" Hillary pondered.

"What?" Ian asked, surprised.

"Ah, nothing. I'm just grateful to God for saving my son," Hillary replied, looking at Ian.

"Yeah, me too," Ian responded with a smile.

"Your son is doing well this time, Hillary," Fauna remarked, her expression neutral.

"Thank you."

"No, I mean he hasn't died yet," Fauna clarified.

"Excuse me?" Hillary asked, looking at Fauna.

"Bitch, your son lured mine into this deadly competition, and you think I'll just sit idly? You'll pay for that," Fauna said angrily, approaching Hillary.

"Whoa, whoa... Please calm down. There are kids here," Ian interjected.

"Get your wife and leave, or you can't imagine what I'll do to you," Fauna warned Ian before walking away.

"Y-Yes..." Ian acquiesced.

"Darling, what are you doing? Why should we listen to her?" Hillary asked.

"Because she's a noble, Love. We have to heed her words. Let's concentrate on the competition for now," Ian redirected.

Inside Evensong Forest...

"Oiiii, Gin. Where the heck are you?" Anon yelled.

"What happened to that dog? I planned on strengthening him later. Please don't tell me he died so easily," Anon murmured while searching.

Woooof

Suddenly, Anon heard barking emanating from beneath the rubble.

He followed the sound and reached its source.

"Oi, Gin. Are you here?" Anon inquired to confirm his location.

Woof-Woof-Woof

"I'm coming, boy," Anon assured, using his skill.

<Telekinesis>Massive boulders levitated, revealing Gin's legs.

Anon manipulated more boulders with telekinesis until he finally spotted Gin.

The dog wasn't in good shape. Blood flowed from his stomach, a tree had broken his ribs, and his lower jaw was fractured.

"What's wrong?" Anon asked with a smile, addressing Gin.

Wooof

Gin responded with a mournful bark.

"Don't worry, boy. I've got you," Anon comforted, offering Gin the troll necklace from around his neck.

Wooof

Gin's wounds began to heal instantly.

In just 30 seconds, all his injuries vanished.

Woof-Woof-Woof

Gin awakened, excitedly licking Anon's face.

"Easy, now. I'm still your master. Let's go," Anon said, and both began making their way toward the main forest.

'Link, do you think you can supply me with mana while I fight the assassin?' Anon inquired.

[I can, Master, but you need to specify the amount of mana you require; otherwise, I might overwhelm you.]

'Yes, I'll let you know. How much mana did we gather here?' Anon asked.

[I believe this will last a lifetime.] Link responded.

'Was it really that much?' Anon inquired, baffled.

[Indeed, Master.]

As Anon advanced toward the exit, a message appeared before him.

[Level 100 reached... Evolution will commence in 10 minutes.]

'What the heck? How did I gain so many levels?' Anon marveled, surprised.

"I need a safe pla-"

"Hello, little one." An unexpected voice emerged from behind.

Anon swiftly turned around, discovering that the speaker was none other than the assassin sent by Peter.

"Talk about bad timing," Anon quipped, facing the assassin.

"Look, kid, I hold no personal grudge against you. My employer contracted me to kill you. It's nothing personal," the assassin explained, drawing his daggers.

"Oh my God, what's he doing?" Ian exclaimed in shock, watching the assassin unsheath his daggers.

"D-Dad, that's not part of the competition, is it?" Moon questioned.

"I'm going to the forest," Ian declared, rushing toward the woods. However, soldiers halted his progress.n0VelusB.c0M

"Let me go, I need to save my son!" Ian protested, struggling against their grip.

"We apologize, Sir. We serve the village chief. You'll need to speak with him," one of the guards informed, restraining Ian.

"Village Chief... Alright, I'll talk to him," Ian said, heading directly to the village chief's chamber.

Inside the village chief's room...

"I'm sorry, but I can't grant you permission. While you're a friend and your son's like a nephew to me, I'm afraid I can't allow it," the village chief stated.

"So, you'll let my son die?" Ian questioned.

"This competition was inherently dangerous, and you were aware of it. You had the chance to withdraw him, but everyone on that screen is willingly risking their lives," the village chief explained hesitantly.

"You and I aren't friends anymore. You're a traitor, Jacky," Ian said angrily, storming out.

"I'm sorry, friend, but I must look out for my own family," the village chief muttered.

Inside the Evensong Forest...

"I will give you a smooth and fast death, you won't even know when you died. So, accept it or die a very hard way." Clint spoke.

"How much did he offer you ?" Anon asked as he summoned his rail gun behind his back.

'Link, charge it up with pure mana... I need a blast.' Anon commanded.

[Yes, Master. Charging up.]

*Zzzzzzz*

"What do you want with that ? Don you think you can purpose me a turn around offer ?" Clint asked as he smiled inside his mask.

"I can and i will quadruple the amount that peter promised you." Anon spoke with a smile as his rail gun got charged.

"Don't fuck with me, just die." Clint said as he came at Anon with his full speed.

"Fuck off, Loser." Anon said as he took out his rail gun and pointed it directly at clint.

Clint's speed was fast but the rail gun was also charged.

Anon pulled the trigger and...

*Booom*

The rail gun made a see through hole in Clint's body.

"Haha... What now fucker ? Why aren't you running no-" Before Anon could've said something else, clint recovered almost immediately from the injury as his wounds got healed up.

"You are not the only one with a troll locket, boy." Clint said as he looked at Anon with a smile and continued walking towards him with his sharp daggers.