The morning dawned, but no one in the safe area could tell whether it was bright and sunny or dark and stormy.
There were windows that should, in theory, show the outside, but they were all cloudy and misty, as if the outside world were enveloped in a thick fog.
To this very day, no one has ventured beyond the safe area and into the shrouded world of fog. No one dared to risk getting lost in the unknown.
Outside a small, cozy library, Donald and his friends were gathered around a table, engrossed in a game of chess.
"What do you think Ron and others wanted from Adam?" One of them asked while taking a bishop and moving it across the board.
Donald silently moved his knight, took the bishop, and said, "I don't know, but I don't think we should care about it now. We have to focus on the third floor and make sure that this time around, we'll get the boss kill!"
His friends nodded. While most of them felt confident in their current point score, a couple of them felt like they hadn't done enough to reach a good score. The tutorial was reaching its end, and they had to do something.
At that moment, they heard footsteps and soon their table was surrounded by a group of players. They didn't look like they were in a good mood.
"Where is he?" Nick asked coldly.
"Who..?" Donald asked hesitantly and moved his hand toward his broadsword. He started sweating profusely.
"That fucker, Adam, was it?" Nick said coldly and clenched his hand into a fist. "As long you tell me where he is, I won't kill you."
"I don't kn—"
Before Donald could finish his words, a voice came.
"He is in his room."
"Huh?" Nick turned to the side and saw two men standing nearby, licking ice cream cones.
They were Ramon and Hannibal.
"He ain't coming out either." Ramon chuckled and approached the group with a confident stride. "He knows you guys are coming after him, that's why he is staying in his room during the mornings."
"Hah, so he is a coward, after all?" Nick laughed with a hint of anger, and his friends around him joined him in laughter.
"Or not a fool." Ramon said and licked the ice cream off his lips. "Well, if it helps you, we cleared the second floor yesterday, thanks to you, hehe."
"…" Nick narrowed his eyes and slowly revealed the blade of his shortsword from the scabbard. "Are you making fun of me?"
"No, of course not." Ramon said with a chuckle. "Just saying. You guys are on the third floor as well? Get my drift?"
Nick's eyebrow twitched. He then nudged his chin towards his friends, and they sheathed their weapons—as most of them started to leave, Nick looked towards Donald, cleared his throat, and spat on the ground, right onto Donald's shoe.
"We get your drift." Nick glanced at Ramon, and then, with his hands inside his pockets, he followed after his friends.
Niko glared after Nick, his eyes burning with anger, and looked at Donald, wondering how he reacted.
At that moment, Donald pulled out a handkerchief, cleaned the spit off his shoe, and calmly pocketed the handkerchief before moving another piece on the chess board.
"Checkmate."
"Ah!" His friend exclaimed and scratched the back of his head in frustration. "I suck at this game!"
"D-Donald, you alright?" Niko asked, surprised by his friend's nonchalant reaction.
"I am fine, fine." Donald replied and started arranging the chess pieces back on the board. "Completely fine."
Niko gulped, unsure if he believed his friend's words. He had a hunch that something was off.
Ramon glanced at Donald briefly before shaking his head and walking away, followed by Hannibal.
"You sent those guys after Adam." Hannibal said nonchalantly. "You want them to kill him?"
"That would be preferable." Ramon said and then dropped the ice cream on the ground, splattering the cold treat all over the tiled floor. "If Adam's gone, the rest of the tutorial will be much easier."
"True that, but if he finds out you are scheming against him, he'll come after you, hehe."
Hannibal laughed sinisterly, excited about the chaos the future might hold.
Ramon's lips cracked into a smile that slowly spread across his face, stretching his lips into a crazy lunatic grin.
"That would be fucking exciting!"
…
Ding, ding!
A bell chimed across the safe area, and following that, an announcement rang across the loudspeaker. The third lesson was about to begin.
Players crowded inside the auditorium, taking their preferred seats, and after taking their seats, they talked loudly with their friends. After nearly a week in the tutorial, most players had grown close and had formed strong bonds with each other.
It made most of them remember their high school days, talking and spending time with their friends during class breaks.
After all the players got seated, Dakota arrived at the stage and cleared her throat loudly, instantly managing to silence the auditorium.
"Today's lesson will be about the Three Powers!"
At the back of the auditorium, Adam opened his lazy-looking eyes and straightened his back. This lesson was one of the more interesting ones.
The players looked confused, completely unfamiliar with the concept of the Three Powers, but Seth had his notepad and pen ready.
This was something his brother mentioned to him, but he still couldn't quite grasp the importance of it.
Dakota, after seeing that everyone had their eyes focused on her, started with:
"The Three Powers are the key to unlocking the true potential within each of us.
"They are important, yet so many fail to understand their significance. It is not only you, Coinfeeders, but also some famous, powerful mercenaries who overlooked their importance and realized it too late.
"While skills and levels are important in growing strength, the Three Powers are what truly shape the strength of a mercenary in this world. Without mastering them, one's potential will always be limited.
"Since there are the Three Powers, and mastering even one of those takes a lifetime, mastering all of them is pretty much impossible without god-given talent.
"That's why you should forget about the idea of mastering all of them and instead focus on balancing them. Each one of the Three Powers has its uses and strengths; it is up to you what you think is the more important one."
After that, Dakota moved over to the blackboard and drew three cubes, then wrote a strange name inside each one: "Kraft", "Magick", "Kiryoku".
"These are the Three Powers!" Dakota shouted and continued with:
"Kraft is the power to create invisible armor around yourself or objects. It can greatly enhance your attacking and defensive capabilities when used properly.
"Magick is the power of magic. There are skills that cannot be learned without Magick, such as the ability to heal wounds with just a wave of a wand or control elements.
"Magick is the most versatile of all Three Powers and it has no real limit to its potential when used properly.
"Lastly, Kiryoku. With that, you can sense the aura, emotions, and strength of your opponent. It is most difficult to learn and master, but it can be a powerful tool once mastered!"
The players exclaimed, very excited about Kraft and Magick, as those sounded cool, while Kiryoku was mostly overlooked as it wasn't as flashy and exciting.
Most of them, as children, had always dreamed of creating magic spells that destroy the terrain and defeat enemies with a wave of their hands. With Magick that sounded possible.
At the back of the auditorium, Adam wryly smiled and lowered his head.
'I was just like them, occupied with Kraft and Magick, not realizing the gold mine that is Kiryoku. If I had mastered Kiryoku, Calamity and the others would've never been able to betray and kill me.
'I would've seen their betrayal coming from a mile away. That's why Kiryoku is so overpowered!
'Kiryoku is difficult to learn and master, for sure. That's why I never bothered with it, as it needs lots of patience, which I didn't have. I won't make the same mistake in this life.'