The next day, Kai stared at Elijah like he'd just grown a second head. "You broke through to the Expert realm, didn't you?"
"Yup! First one to get there, so pay up!" Elijah declared, striking a pose that would've made a peacock jealous.
"You really need to stop betting with Elijah," Julia said, shaking her head. "It's like he's got some kind of freaky luck superpower."
The three of them were sitting in a circle, and Elijah, rubbing his hands together like a greedy merchant, reminded Kai, "You bet you'd buy me 1,000 plates of whatever food I want, remember?"
"Why did I bet something like that?" Kai groaned, hanging his head like a condemned man.
Julia and Elijah erupted into laughter. "HAHAHAHA!"
Just then, Adan walked into the room, immediately feeling like he'd walked into something he wasn't prepared for. He saw their grins but couldn't shake the feeling of impending doom. Elijah waved him over. "Hey, Adan, come sit here. We won't bite... much."
Adan cautiously sat next to Elijah, mirroring his smile with one of his own. Kai leaned in like he was sharing state secrets. "Word of advice: never, ever bet with Elijah."
"Okay, but why?" Adan asked, eyes darting suspiciously.
"Because he's like a walking, talking four-leaf clover," Julia quipped.
Adan, sensing that Julia was more playful than dangerous at the moment, relaxed a bit. "So let me guess—Kai's buying food for you?"
"Yeah!!" Elijah shouted, looking way too pleased with himself.
"And I'm going to be broke," Kai grumbled, shaking his head like a man resigned to his fate.
The trio broke into laughter again, and Julia finally asked, "So, why did you drag us all here, Kai?"
"Oh, right," Kai's expression grew serious, which was always a little unsettling. "When I was walking around the island—"
"You mean getting lost?" Julia cut in with a grin that made Kai's eyebrow twitch.
Veins practically popped out on Kai's forehead as the others chuckled. "Anyway, during my walk, I ended up by the ocean and saw some boats just sitting there. I'd never been to that spot before, so I ignored them at first, but when they were still there the next day, I got curious. I tried to get a closer look, but someone sensed me. Luckily, Tank and I managed to hide before we were spotted.
Then, out of nowhere, a (D-) rank appeared—an Emperor Tier being. Elijah, I have no idea why someone that powerful is hanging around here, but I think we should get out of here as soon as possible."
The room fell into an awkward silence. You could almost hear the gears turning in their heads before Julia broke the silence.
"But why would an Emperor Tier being hang out on this random island? There's nothing special here—unless they're after someone in the manor." Her eyes widened in realization.
Adan's face paled. "They might be after Stella. I knew she wasn't from a normal background, but to think an Emperor Tier is after her…" He looked like he'd seen a ghost.
Elijah patted Adan's shoulder reassuringly.
"Look, I don't care what kind of fancy background Stella has, I seriously doubt they'd send an Emperor Tier just for her. Those guys are like the final bosses of this world. There's gotta be more going on here."
"Elijah might actually be right… which is surprising," Julia said, her tone teasing.
"Hey!" Elijah protested, puffing out his chest.
"Yeah, didn't see that one coming," Kai chimed in with a smirk, while Adan nodded in agreement.
"Why does everyone think I'm an idiot?" Elijah grumbled.
"Your carefree attitude," Julia offered.
"Your laser focus on nothing but fighting," Kai added.
"And your ability to turn even the simplest task into a brawl," Adan finished.
"Even Adan has figured you out," Kai said, grinning. "Anyway, what should we do?"
Elijah, still sulking, muttered, "Why do you even listen to me?"
"Because you're our leader, remember? Don't overthink it. Just tell us what to do, and we'll figure out how to make it work," Kai said, patting Elijah on the back.
Elijah brightened a little and suggested, "Let's just grab Stella and run. I'd love to fight this guy, but I'm pretty sure I can't beat someone who's (D-) rank, an expert in their weapon, and has some kind of weird element I don't understand."
"A strategic retreat, huh?" Julia mused.
Kai grinned. "Alright then, Julia, tonight you'll grab Stella and her people, and make sure to deal with anyone snooping around."
"No problem," Julia said with a confident nod.
"Elijah, we'll search for whatever they're after. There's got to be some shady folks hanging around town, right?" Kai suggested.
"Probably," Elijah agreed.
"When the sun comes up tomorrow, we're leaving this island, and hopefully with whatever they're after. Adan, can you ask Stella about it and send the message with this?" Kai tossed Adan a watch-like device.
"What's this?" Adan asked, examining it like it might explode.
"Julia will explain," Kai said casually.
"Also, you guys keep mentioning (D-) rank. Does it mean something else?" Adan asked.
"Julia will explain that too," Kai added with a mischievous grin.
"Why are you dumping all this on me?!" Julia yelled, smacking Kai on the head.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Elijah laughed so hard he almost fell over.