“So, the system said to look for the towers? I saw one in this direction.” A boy, seemingly no older than seventeen, said proudly. “I could’ve sprinted there, pick up the pace, guys!”

“Are you really sure? This place feels so creepy…” a high-pitched voice replied. The source of the voice emerged moments later, a beautiful girl of the same age as the boy, wearing tattered remains of a luxurious dress. Her well-kept blue hair, along with her dress, suggested she was someone who was considered wealthy in this world.

“It should be a bit better than over there at least.” Another girl replied. She looked a bit more unruly than the previous one, her tone more confident and her gait conveying how sure she was of herself. She possessed a pair of golden eyes and black hair, haphazardly cut and uneven at the edges.

As the girl stepped into her territory, Alice tried to see what she was talking about, only to feel as if she had hit an invisible wall.

“You can’t see beyond your territory, or even go outside your territory, for that matter.” Vuer said, while it floated close to her. Meanwhile, on the live feed, she saw the last person emerge from the bushes. It was a meek-looking little boy. He was clutching at his bag, most likely to keep himself steady.

Alice switched the view to the wolves she had placed, and sure enough, the pack seemed to have sensed the four who had just entered. They were sniffing the air, and one wolf, bigger than the rest, howled on top of a cliff.

She switched the live view back to the four children, right as the meek one jumped in shock.

“H-hey, guys, I think we should…”

“No worries, Elliot, if it’s too dangerous, I’ll protect you.” The first boy said. “With your healing and my powers, there won’t be anything left to stand in our way!.”

The boy made a show of raising his fist, invoking the image of a hero who just triumphed in the battlefield. His gesture was accompanied by a fireball emanating from his fist.

Alice listened to them, while gleaning what information they were spilling from their conversation. It seemed like the world and huge chunks of civilization outside has practically crumbled in that instant. The miasma killed most people, except for those lucky enough to gain a magical power instead, and there was a system-wide order for those who survived to head into one of the towers.

A total of ten towers were discovered, though from their conversation, it was likely they have no idea of what they will find there.

“Now what?” Alice asked the tiny dragon.

“Now, we wait. I suggest against interfering too much, or the whole thing will be moot.” Vuer replied. “You can meet them, but probably they’ll be skeptical if you say you’re bound here. Just tell them you’re the administrator.”

Alice watched as the group began their slow trek through the forest she had created. The tower was currently right in the middle of the circular territory, allowing them an easier time to reach it. Though, the easy atmosphere did not last for long. There was a rustle of moving bushes, and then, a wolf snuck up behind them.

“Hey, there’s—“ one of the girls said.

“Watch out, Vivi!” The boy with fire powers ran towards the wolf, punching the air to release fireballs from his fist. The attack was a bit sloppy, a clear testament to his lack of training, and the fireballs only struck a glancing blow, just enough to singe a part of its fur, while the rest caused the bushes to catch fire.

Luckily for him, the wolf was nothing special. Clearly scared by the blow, it retreated away.

“You okay, Vivi?”

“Ah, thank you, Lucian,” the girl with tattered dress nodded. “I was just caught off-guard.”

“Valerie, Elliot, Lucian, save it for later. We should keep moving. This place isn’t quite safe, but at least there wasn’t a swarm of those things. It’ll be easier to fend off an oversized dog or three than to fend off those monsters at the edge of the forest. For some reason, they can’t step in here. It’s like there’s an invisible barrier there for them.”The girl with the black hair said.

“Isn’t it probably… a bit better to hide and move when it’s bright again, Izabel?”

“When will it be, Elliot? The ROOT system never went down in our entire lives. The more time we spent twiddling our thumbs, the less time we’ll have to get our bearings on the situation,” Izabel said, while she picked up a random branch from the ground. She gave it a few test swings, then she swung it onto a tree, slicing the trunk clean off and causing the tree to fall.

“If we want to survive, we need to take initiative. Now.”

“Okay, okay, the point is, we have to go to that tower first. The system will probably give us more information afterwards, and we can decide our course of action from there,” Lucian said. “Not to mention, if we stay in one place, chances are we’ll get swarmed real quick.”

“He’s right, we should go,” Valerie nodded in agreement, while dusting off her clothes. Seeing a small scrape on her arm, Elliot approached her and casted a blueish-green light on the wound, healing it in an instant.

Alice opened a tunnel upwards and floated to the treasure room at the second topmost floor of the tower, while keeping the live feed projected. Just like before, she tried to conjure spirit stones, though this time, she made quite a few more than before, along with a makeshift chest made of stone to put them all in. The chest was small, its height only reaching up to her ankle, but it should be enough.

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The act exhausted her a bit. Though she could her energy come back with each minute passing, she still needed a bit of rest. As she found no other options from the system to reward them, she decided to leave the rewards at that.

Then, she went up to her room at the topmost floor and watched. While she wasn’t looking, the group had already engaged with the pack of wolves. The four were lucky to possess abilities covering each other’s weakness. Lucian would shoot the enemies with fireballs, while Valerie plays a bit more passively, conjuring white, glass-like shielding aura all around her teammates and herself. In contrast to her teammates, Valerie was the most aggressive, swinging the branch on her hand with a force enough to throw a wolf back several meters.

Elliot also chose to dodge the attacks of the wolves, and gave quick heals in by throwing spheres of light towards his teammates.

However, as Alice watched the battle go on, it was almost painfully clear that it was their first actual battle. Sometimes, Lucian and Valerie would bump onto each other, disrupting each other’s concentration and dispelling whatever attack they were preparing. Meanwhile, Valerie and Elliot was far too passive, to the point of being obstacles to their more mobile teammates.

On the bright side, though, they were at least able to hold their ground. Alice also felt herself gain some energy with every action on the battle. Be it from Elliot’s healing, Valerie’s shields, attacks, and down even when the four suffer injuries.

A few minutes passed, and a few burned and hacked-off wolf corpses lay on the grassy ground, and a prompt to recycle them appeared in front of her eyes. Alice chose to do so, and felt around a fourth of the energy she used to conjure each wolf seep back in. It felt… strange, for lack of a better word.

But then again, the whole day has been a strange one.

She switched back into the live feed, watching as the group slumped in exhaustion. Bizarre as it may be, she felt a sense of pride for their accomplishment, small as it may be.

After all, though they fumbled their way through, they all made it relatively safely.

“Let’s rest here for a bit,” Lucian said as he plopped his butt on the ground. “I’m tired.”

“Don’t you… find it strange?” Elliot warily glanced around where the corpses once was. “They just disappeared without a trace!”

“Calm down. Not like we have never seen any similar technology, anyway. The ROOT did the same thing to the dishes, food waste, and trash after all. It’s probably something about the recycling system set up in the area.” Izabel pointed out.

“What is the use of a recycling technology right in the middle of nowhere like this, though?” Valerie asked.

“It’s probably maintained before the monsters broke out of nowhere. No need to be so tense.”

Lucian laid down on the forest floor, staring at the swirling void on the dark purple sky. When he squinted, he was able to make out thin, brittle-looking hexagonal segments forming a massive dome that separated them from the outside world.

“Say, how could we not notice that before? This place has a barrier.” Lucian pointed upwards.

“Yeah, now that I’m staring at it, it’s more visible, though it’s blending into the sky’s colors,” Valerie said. She was sitting with her back leaning against a tree trunk.

—

Meanwhile, Alice tried to cast her senses upwards, trying to make out the dome they were talking about.

“It’s a territory marker, basically. Everything within that dome is under your command. The air, the tower, that forest you created… you can even turn the air poisonous and kill intruders if you wish.” Vuer said. Though it appeared disinterested, the dragon’s slitted eyes kept glancing at the live feed projected in front of Alice.

—

“We should get going,” Izabel stood up and stretched her arms. “There might be more wolves. How are you feeling?”

“Better,” Lucian stood up, and wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead.

“I’ll be okay,”

“I’m, ah, I’ll manage.”

The four of them stood up, even though their exhaustion was still clear in their gaze. They reached a clearing not long after, and they saw the tower in all its crimson glory. From outside, the tower looked a bit like a dried tree, with its trunk forming the main part of the tower. The top parts looked normal at first, but some parts have extended into a mockery of jagged branches, its very tip touching the hexagonal barrier as if it was a small seed that was eager to grow out.

From outside, the tower looked menacing. It was something straight out of a book - perhaps, some would say that it looked like how a poet would describe a tree enshrouded in horror. Veins branched from the base to the very tip of the tower, complete with what looked like glowing red liquid flowing within.

“I said this before, but this just makes the whole place feel creepier…” Valerie looked at the top. There was a long, window-like opening there, but it looked dark.

Even as she squinted, she could not even make out the slightest hint of what lies within.

—

“… Vuer, what does it even mean when you say I shouldn’t interfere much? Is there a difference between telling them what is inside this place and outright helping them?”

“You’ve felt it. When they came to blows, when they get injured, and when they heal their own wounds, your energy increases alongside their skills. If you coddle them too much, they will die after they leave your territory. But then again, it is your choice. I may have the same access as you do, but I do not have any stakes in this ordeal your world is involved in. Choose.”

“That is certainly very helpful,” Alice eyed the creature wearily. “In shorter words, I can help them, but if they don’t get any experience, they’re not going to survive outside.”

“Yes.”

Alice decided to stay her hand for now. She watched as Lucian and Izabel approached the door in small, calculated steps, while Valerie and Elliot followed close behind. They looked a bit tense as they pushed the door open, finding nothing at first as their eyes has not adjusted to the darkness yet.

“They can’t see inside,”

Oh, right.

Alice chided herself for forgetting, then settled to conjuring a few torches along the walls of the room. One by one, the torches lit up, bathing the simple room in an orange glow. The kobolds were there, their stares blank and lifeless, despite the four standing not too far from them.

When they noticed the kobolds, the four of them took a step back.

“What are those—“

—

Alice stopped viewing the live feed for a moment, and turned to ask the little dragon. Before she could say anything, though, the dragon explained. “This is still mainly a place for training, despite all appearances and the high stakes. When they are ready, they can get in, and only then will the enemies start to attack. These creatures you are summoning are notsentient beings. They are controlled by the tower based of their simulated behavior.”

“And how do you expect them all to know that— you know what, screw it, let me just tell them.”

“Are you sure they won’t just attack you and reveal your status as the embodiment of this place?”

“I can deal with that.”

Alice had to admit she was not an enthusiast and she cannot claim to know everything, but something in this whole setup did remind her of games in her old life. From that, she got an idea.

“Vuer, you said I can alter my appearance?”

“Changing your appearance is a perk of being a Defier, yes, you can change any part of your body. Yes, even that, if you wish.” Vuer added, its tone rather conspirational.

“… I think I can tab that knowledge for later. How do I do that?”

“Just imagine yourself with the appearance you desire.”

Alice closed her eyes. She remembered how once she had leaned to see her friend playing a game on a handheld console about eight inches long. One of the characters possessed a beautiful blonde hair that almost shone under the light, while her other colors are mostly light blue. That was all she could remember. Alice tried projecting a similar appearance to something not threatening, but she needed to also convey power, and something that differentiates her from the four entering in.

Something that looks friendly, but not too friendly, or they might pry too much into her lies.

Reddish-light bathed her body as she changed according to her whims. Her hair turned into a soft flaxen hue, reddish streaks coloring a few strands. A pair of long red horns, almost as tall as her own head, sprouted from the top of her forehead, curving right before gold, vein-like patterns was etched on it. Her ears turned a bit pointed, and then, light bathed her before a luxurious red dress appeared on her body.

Then, she opened her eyes. They remained green, a contrast to her color scheme.

“Isn’t that a bit excessive?” Vuer asked. “It might make them not trust you, you know.”

“I mean true, but if I look like another adventurer, wouldn’t they just dismiss me?”

Before the dragon could answer, Alice had already created a small portal, leading to a concealed spot outside.

—

“Okay, Valerie can cast her protective and boosting abilities first, then we can all attack at the same time. Elliot will stay in the back and give us healing when needed, but ideally, we should hit them hard enough to maximize the element of surprise, ready?” Lucian said.

“Let’s stay cautious,” Valerie nodded and raised her hand, casting a protective bubble around them.

Izabel only nodded, and Elliot did the same, though the tips of his fingers trembled. The air felt heavy as they were about to take their first step in—

“Have you considered what to do if you have to engage in a direct combat?” Alice finally spoke up.

“Who goes there?!” Izabel was the first to react, as she turned to look at the source of the voice, right next to the closest cluster of trees.

The other three followed suit, and they turned towards the source. She stepped out, and saw the group eye her with a wary gaze. Izabel gripped the branch on her hand tightly, strong enough to form a web of cracks on the branch.

“I have been following you since you dealt with the wolves. If my aim was to kill you, I would have done it while you were resting,” Alice pointed out. “You can call me Alice. I’m here to guide and help you with the challenges of the tower.”