Atlas slowly opened his eyes and saw a wooden ceiling, which confused him. Then he remembered everything that had happened since coming to Valoria. He was slowly coming to terms with being in a new world.
He shook his head, and that's when a heavy feeling pined his right side to the mattress. Atlas turned his head and spotted the sleeping Amethyst, who was letting out adorable snores, causing him to smile.
Something inside him told him never to let this girl go, and Atlas decided to do just that as he leaned over and kissed her forehead, earning him another noise as she rolled over, taking the covers with her.
Atlas chuckled as he thought, 'A Phoenix burrito.'
Following that, he put on some fresh clothes after taking them out of his Dimensional Storage. Atlas grew curious as he checked the new skill he learned.
[Dimensional Storage: Stores items up to a total volume of 1 cubic meter - Capacity expands as the skill levels up - Living beings cannot be stored]
'Oh interesting, Its not too much but enough space for now,' Atlas thought. 'Now should I level up some more before Amethyst wakes up?'
Atlas shook his head, deciding against it since she wouldn't like it. He wandered out of the room and heard Biric's children downstairs, listening to Neryssa speak. This caught his attention, so he headed toward the stairs and descended the creaky wooden steps.
When he arrived in the dining room, everyone glanced at him. Neryssa looked at him with a motherly smile, ''Have some breakfast, Valsonr; I made some porridge, barley flatbread, and smoked Mossbelly meat darling bought from the market.''
He looked at the brown-haired woman and nodded as her sons stared at him. That was when Wrenna, Biric and Neryssa's second daughter, questioned, ''What are you and Amethyst planning to do today? A storm is due to hit this afternoon.''
Atlas shrugged as he reached a free chair Neryssa motioned to. ''I was going to go in the forest with her and level up before moving on,'' he said while getting comfortable.
The children's faces paled, but the older woman expressed, ''If you do go out there, be careful as far scarier things than monsters in the Wailing Woods.''
He nodded, ''I understand, and we will escape at the first sign of a strong creature.''
''Escape?'' Amethyst's voice came from behind them.
Atlas turned around and smiled as he spotted the Phoenix girl walking toward the table while stretching. He quickly explained, ''We're going into the forest to level up, then we can move on tomorrow.''
''Okay,'' she chirped with a smile beside him as the other children watched her.
He noticed the oldest boy, Aldric, wanted to say something and did a second later, ''How come you dragging a pretty girl into that dangerous forest!''
Atlas's eyebrow arched in a sudden surge of jealousy that caught him off guard, but he embraced the feeling, ''She's not a damsel. Amethyst is a powerful Phoenix and can handle herself.''
Neryssa beamed when hearing this, but it angered Aldric, who stood up and left the table as his other siblings laughed at him as Adara explained, ''Big Brother hates the forest and is scared of it.''
He was just about to reply to the older girl but stopped when he felt Amethyst's hand in his, causing a smile to appear as Atlas squeezed it in return. Soon after that, the group started eating, but everyone noticed the happy smile on the Phoenix girl's face.
Half an hour later, breakfast was finished, and Atlas helped Neryssa with the dishes while Wrenna took Amethyst to get some winter clothes that would fit her. The older woman looked at him with a smile that a mother would give her son.
''I hope my boys grow to be as kind as you. How you treat Amethyst is shocking for someone you just met,'' Neryssa commented while cleaning a plate.
Atlas thought about it and wondered why he treated her well, but he didn't know, so he stopped thinking about it and finished washing up just as the girl in question returned wearing a thick tunic, woolen pants, and a pair of old boots.
'She's adorable in anything,' Atlas thought while looking at the Phoenix girl.
They said goodbye to Neryssa before leaving the house and strolling through Frostwood. Atlas took in the sights and loved every second of it as the place reminded him of a medieval village.
People went about their daily routines, some fishing on a nearby dock while others did their tasks. The duo strolled through the village until they reached the gate, where the guards allowed them to pass.
While outside the village, Atlas pulled out his dagger and tomahawk while Amethyst readied a Cosmic Bullet. She turned to him and smiled proudly, ''I will be able to sense when the monster grows closer. It's called Cosmic Sense.''
''Okay,'' he replied. ''Just be careful and don't spill up; the monsters are sneaky.''
The two continued and finally crossed the threshold, separating the village from the dark forest. Once they stepped inside, the sounds of monsters reached their ears, causing Amethyst to step closer to him.
Atlas smiled as he put away his dagger and took the girl's delicate hand, making her look at him. He could see her eyebrow raised as she questioned, ''Why are you being so kind to me?''
"Because I was always alone, with no one to connect with, until I met you and felt something special between us," Atlas explained. "I'd like to embark on adventures with you and explore all the lands we can."
Amethyst stopped walking and looked at him. Her hand raised to the blindfold covering her eyes, and she started rubbing it as if it were bothering her. "Doesn't it disturb you that I'm blind?"
''No? You can still see with Cosmic Sight, so what's the issue?'' Atlas said with a smile, and he felt his cheeks red due to what he was about to say. ''Plus, I find you pretty and want to see where we go.''
Atlas noticed her whole face and pointy ears were as red as tomatoes, which caused him to laugh. But something told him to push her out of the way, which he instantly did. Amethyst stumbled to the side as a ramshackle spear pierced the ground where she was standing.
He looked around and saw a group of five pig humanoids rushing toward them, which caused Atlas to scan it as he was confused because he didn't know what they were.
[Wild Orcs]
[Rank: E - 200 Exp]
'Oh god. But it doesn't surprise me,' he thought before gazing at Amethyst, who was ready to fight as two purple bullets spun in her hands.
Atlas informed her of his plan, ''I will take three while you take the other two, but we need to help each other.''
Amethyst nodded with a smile and unleashed the Cosmic Bullets toward the two Orcs at the back. The spell hit them square in the chest, knocking them to the ground. Although injured, the monsters were still alive as Atlas charged forward.
Thanks to the old Atlas's training with his father's guards and Dagger Mastery, he had a basic understanding of fighting using the weapon ingrained into his body. He cast Void Shield to block the monster's swing when he got close to the nearest Orc.
When the wooden club hit the blue shield, it bounced backward, allowing Atlas to lunge forward and slash at the Orc's ankle, bringing it to its knees before he fired a Void Bullet into the back of the monster's skull.
With one down and four to go, Atlas looked at Amethyst and saw her dodging one Orc's swing before she rushed away like a rabbit, which confused the monster. It chased after her, but she got the upper hand and managed to trip them up using the tree roots.
As it hit the ground, Atlas watched as she conjured a purple arrow and sent it flying toward the downed Orc. The projectile punched right through its flesh, causing the creature to drop dead.
That's when he spotted one of the monsters creeping up on her and took a swing. Amethyst noticed it at the last second and cast a spell that covered her body in a purple barrier, but it couldn't stop the club as it connected with the shield.
The strike force sent her flying deeper into the forest with a scream. When Atlas saw this, he went to rush toward her, but an Orc stepped in front of him and struck one of his legs, causing him to feel it snap when its club connected.
This caused Atlas to flip like a cartwheel before slamming on the ground with a thud, and he screamed in pain as it shot through his body. But he still managed to spam Void Arrows, which peppered two of the three remaining Orcs, causing them to drop to the ground injured.
Without wasting another second, he felt his bones mending themselves. Atlas was panicking as one Orc was left, causing him to take out an immediate Health Potion from his storage and downed it.
He felt his body repairing itself, allowing him to struggle to his feet. Atlas aimed his hand at the two wounded Orcs and cast twenty Void Bullets. The azure projectiles flew through the air and pierced through their heads, killing them instantly.
Atlas looked around and was worried about Amethyst but soon found out that he was struck by a club and sent crashing into a nearby tree, causing some of his bones to break as he slumped to the ground.
He tried to get up, but his body wasn't listening. That's when he noticed the last Orc approaching with a smug grin. As the creature drew near, it raised its club, ready to swing it down on him.