Ethan picked up the glass of water and took a sip. He wiped his mouth and glanced at Olivia, who was now looking away in embarrassment. He spoke up, "If yesterday's attack was as big as it was, and we don't have that many players, I'm not sure how we can defeat that many monsters."

“Do you think yesterday's attack was successful because of who was behind it? If you hadn't taken out all the monsters at once, there could have been even more victims.” Olivia asked.

Ethan thought about her question. He recalled the chaos during the attack. "I can't say for sure, but I don't think I can pull off something like that every time. It's costly to make up for the damage caused.” Ethan answered after thinking about it carefully. "I mean, yesterday's attack was so huge because it was a special and urgent situation, and I can't just create those conditions whenever I want. There must be a way to use this system to our advantage to ensure fewer people die if there's another one."

Olivia pondered over this information before responding. She wondered whether they should simply accept this new reality or continue fighting against it.

Olivia stood up with her cup in hand. She walked towards the counter and turned on some music. The soothing music had an instant calming effect on Ethan when he heard it.

"I hope I'm not ruining your post-meal satisfaction by bringing up this topic. Is that alright?" she asked.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks." replied Ethan while continuing to drink water from his glass. "This is really important. We need to discuss it right away."

"I understand this isn't some kind of game. However, the systems we abide by today are very similar to those in video games. Think about it: monsters, leveling up, potions, skills, and other elements. With all these facts in mind, the only thing we can do is fight back and level up so that we can finish this game soon!" Olivia explained.

She took a deep breath and continued, "The best part about playing a game is enjoying a story; what if you could tell a unique story that nobody has ever experienced before? What would happen if you could save humanity as you know it? Isn't that exciting?" she said passionately.

Ethan considered her words as she stared at him with her eyes sparkling. Her face looked as though it was telling him to imagine something bigger than himself. She was staring at Ethan with an excited look on her face.

Ethan smiled at Olivia. "Is this a challenge for you, or are you just playing around?" he asked teasingly.

Olivia blushed. "No! I want us to succeed in this quest for the good of everyone." She gave a big nod in response to his question. "We can't just wait and do nothing until the Monster comes and takes our lives. We have to understand the rules of the game and win it."

Ethan reflected on the time he had unintentionally killed another player. He knew that extra power could be gained if one were to do so, and the System would not punish him for it. This was when he began to understand that fighting was the only way to make it out alive.

"There's no way to win this without power. Without more strength and knowledge." Ethan added.

"If that's true, then let me be your partner, Ethan." Olivia suggested again. "Let's form a Party and do whatever it takes to make it through this!"

"Party?" He asked, unsure if he remembered correctly.

"Yes, Party," Olivia confirmed. "It's a feature in the System that lets us create a group to communicate with each other."

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Ethan was surprised. "Do you have some special power that enables you to do this?"

[Olivia Invites You Into The Party]

Ethan got a notification that Olivia had invited him to a party, and he accepted.

[You Have Joined A Party]

[Olivia Lvl. 2 (Group Leader) HP: 600/600]

[Ethan Lvl. 13 HP: 600/600]

"Wow, level 13!" Olivia exclaimed. "But why is it you only have that much HP?"

Ethan looked at the HP displayed on the screen and thought about the possibility of Olivia having allocated all her Status Points to Constitution.

"My weapon is too heavy, so I have to use the Stats Points I have for Strength. But, I think you have a problem here. You put all your stat points into the Constitution. Are you trying to be a walking punching bag?" Ethan joked.

Olivia smiled back at him. "I didn't get to do much in the last battle, so I'm still at a low level. But don't worry, I'm both smart and reliable."

"Ethan, I'm sorry if it sounded like I was taking advantage of you. But I promise I won't be a burden. If you find that I'm not helpful, you can just throw me away."

"Don't worry too much. It will take all of us working together to get through this, right?" Ethan replied.

Olivia was relieved to have people she could rely on at her Party. But this wasn't enough for her; since anyone could join and leave at any time, she wanted something more permanent. She was consumed with thoughts of how to maximize her chances of survival.

"Party features are temporary and don't provide any real security," she thought. "Do you have anything that could help us strengthen our bond as a partner, like a written agreement?"

Ethan recalled his newfound ability and tried to explain it to Olivia.

"Interesting! I don't think that far about this contract. But I think that kind of contract is fine with me. Let's do it." she said enthusiastically before pausing to gather her thoughts.

Ethan did not fully understand the power he had just acquired. "Are you sure? This power isn't fully unlocked yet; I don't know what else I'll get when I level up. What if, in the next levels, I unlock a skill that forces my contract partner to submit to me completely, like being my slave and making them unable to refuse any orders I give?"

Olivia was now speechless, frozen in place by Ethan's words and left staring at him blankly.

After a while, she said, "We don't have much time! How long do you think you've been asleep since the last attack?"

"How long?"

"Two days!"

"Two days?!"

Ethan was surprised to learn that he would naturally be very hungry after so much sleep. He quickly checked when the next attack was scheduled.

[Main Quest 1/4]

[Monster Hunt - Defeat 5 waves of Monsters, hunt as many as you can, and protect your Race.]

[Reward: Performance-based.]

[Consequence of Failure: Human Extinction.]

[Quest Progress: 2/5.]

[Status: The next wave will appear at 12 pm]

Upon seeing the information in the Quest about the impending attack tonight, Ethan anxiously rose while scanning the room for the clock on the wall.

Olivia then picked up a small box from the table and threw it at him.

"Catch it quickly!" she said. "It's a new phone, so we don't have to worry about it being tracked by the military. It's safer."

Ethan sank back into his seat and glanced at his phone - it was already two o'clock in the afternoon. He only had a few hours to get ready and adjust to his newfound powers.

"I think this is our best bet right now," Olivia added. She spoke softly again with a more serious look on her face. "So, when are we going to make the contract?" She asked uncertainty.

"Contract?" Ethan hesitated. He was unsure of making a contract with her, whom he had just met. "The contract would make it impossible for you to attack or betray me. "Are you certain you would take such an action with someone you have just met?"

"Yes, do it now. We don't have much time," she insisted. "I've lost so much already. My father was supposed to be alive, but he died in the meteor impact."