The force of the conflagration was such that little of the house’s top floor remained. That, in turn, led to the collapse of the foundations, and the whole thing came tumbling down, raising a large dust cloud.

Through Maria’s intervention, once she had picked herself up from where she and James had rolled to, the fires were swiftly contained. It took her several minutes to extinguish them, but the mere fact she was able to do so was evidence enough that she had grown massively.

When she had first joined the team, she had barely been able to conjure a dozen fireballs. Now, she could control an entire house fire, if with a lot of effort.

“I have the notification. We got her.” Ezekiel said from where he lay sprawled on the ground, looking at the collapsed dungeon.

James hummed in agreement, pulling up his own. As expected, an alert told him he had killed [Greta Winchester - Tormented Human], which confirmed his theory. The girl had truly not died in the technical sense. Her mind had just jumped from her body to what she was most familiar with - her home - when she awakened her Talent.

Unfortunately, after years of being alone by herself after the brutal murder of her parents and her own suffering, she had been too far gone.

Her death, coupled with the Boss’s - a [Mutated House Cat - Haunted Guardian] - had pushed James up two levels, bringing the total from the dungeon up to three.

After the first few fights, he had been afraid he might only get one, but the last two enemies had been much beefier than expected, and he had basically defeated the Boss by himself.

The creature had been limited by the small environment and massive size difference, making it easier for him to leverage his stats, but James decided to pat himself on the back for once.

He had grown a lot too, and his victory was proof that he was on the right path. It will take a while before I’m ready to tackle the Radiant Guild, but I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“Poor girl, she really was given a bad hand by life.” Daniel mourned, saddened by the loss of life. James couldn’t help but agree. For all that they hadn’t had a choice, given how deranged Greta had been and what the consequences of leaving the dungeon to itself for much longer would have been, it still was a pity that they couldn’t have reasoned with her.

“Bah, she was given a second chance and instead spent it wallowing in self-pity and despair. You heard what she said about her parents. That girl was a lost cause.” Lauren spat disgustedly.

The Italian-American girl was known for never holding back, but this instance seemed more personal. James cocked an eyebrow at her, silently asking if she wanted to expand, but she just grunted, turning to look at the collapsed house.

“You! I told you not to go in! And look what you did! My poor roses are covered in dust! Covered!” A familiar voice yelled, and they turned to see the old lady who warned them of the tragedy before they went in, looking absolutely incensed.

“Ah, fuck.”

----------------------------------------

After a long conversation with the crotchety woman, which ended with them handing over a crisp hundred dollar bill to finally get some peace, the members of team 0 had to spend a good part of the afternoon sifting through the rubble to find the monster bodies, so they could collect the mana stones.

Despite how much James would have liked to just leave the place behind, gathering them up was not done simply because of their monetary value.

If not properly handled, that concentration of mana could result in the spawning of another dungeon, which would be a red mark on their file.

It had taken them longer than they would have liked, but they still completed the task within the day, and after a quick briefing at the AA HQ, where they showered and changed, they were let go, with strict orders from Miss Walker to take the next day to rest.

As was often the case, James had taken the metro back to Brooklyn alongside Lauren. Ezekiel, who lived close to him, had been picked up by his older brother to go to a family dinner, leaving the two of them alone.

Usually, the Rogue was not one for long silences, but she had been uncharacteristically quiet for a while, and James had a strong suspicion as to what might have caused such a mood.

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Wary of being too direct, as he knew how touchy she could be, James decided that he could at least try to get her mind off whatever it was that had brought her so down.

“That dungeon was so creepy and disgusting.” He casually commented, observing Lauren’s will fluctuations with great care “That a drink might be needed tonight. What do you think?”

She gave him a side look, evidently not fooled by his act, but after a moment of silence, she sighed. “Alright, let’s do this. It’s better than going home, anyway.”

That decided they got off at Brighton Beach Station, the closest metro station to One Elleven, a beautiful and stylish bar close to Manhattan Beach.

The cool night air ruffled their hair, as they silently walked through Brighton Beach Ave, enjoying the moment of quiet.

Sounds of music and laughter became more prevalent as they got closer to the bar, heightened further by their enhanced SENSE.

By the time they got there, the place was almost packed, with dozens of young adults trying to enjoy their night, drinking their problems away to the tune of some good music.

“I always get the coconut piña colada.” James admitted once they had gotten there, getting a snort from Lauren.

“Yeah, you are the type to go for fruity drinks, aren’t you?” She shot back, a grin worming its way on her face.

James rolled his eyes, playing along with the banter “Well, my palate is sophisticated enough to appreciate the finer things in life. I don’t see why I would have to suffer drinking some of that swill people pass off as alcohol. No whisky for me, thank you.”

She chuckled, lightening the atmosphere as they slid into a cozy booth at the corner, away from the thick of the crowd but close enough to absorb the lively energy of the room.

Their waiter, a somewhat harried girl their age with frizzy hair and a bandana, stopped before their table, eyes silently begging them to be quick with their order. She barely remembered to check for ID, and her eyes widened like saucers when she saw the AA issued ones. That alone was enough to be allowed alcohol.

“Two coconut piña coladas.” James decided for both of them, earning him a slap on the arm from Lauren.

She spoke up “Don’t listen to this idiot. Make mine a whisky sour, please.”

The waiter offered them a tight smile, thankful for the straightforward order, and disappeared into the throng of people.

Lauren’s eyebrows quirked in mischief. “Sophisticated palate, huh?”

James smirked. “Impeccably so.”

The playful conversation seemed enough to crack the veneer of Lauren’s icy mood, but James could still see the shadows behind her eyes, the lingering ghosts of whatever had rattled her earlier.

He leaned back, sipping his drink when it arrived, and allowed the music to fill the silence, giving her the space she needed. He didn’t want to push her immediately, as that would simply see her clamming up again, but he’d gladly listen to her woes if she wanted to open up.

For just a moment, it looked like she might crack and speak up, but she took a fortifying sip of her drink and it passed, her jaw clenching.

James sighed, but decided he would at least let her have a relaxing night. If she ever wanted to confide in him, he’d be there for her, but now didn’t seem the right time.

“Any thoughts on what you’ll go for during your second Awakening?” He asked, rousing her back from her mood.

Lauren hummed “It really depends on what options I get. I know it’s going to be more stealth-based, but I’d really like to get some range. It’s been really annoying having to hold back when enemies had skills that made mine useless. I need some variety to avoid being countered so easily, but I guess that’s the same for everyone.”

James nodded along, knowing perfectly well what she was talking about. He had only recently developed a way to attack without necessarily coming in contact with his opponents. Still, with it not being a skill, it was inefficient and too expensive to use as anything but a finishing move.

“Well, basically all Talents gain some more versatile magic skills during the second Awakening, right?” He got a nod of agreement. “So we should only have a little while to go for that, if we can keep up with our growth rate.”

“If only we could find a few more dungeons filled with eggs.” She laughed, shaking her head. “That would push us to E-rank in a flash.”

“It would make things easier, yes.” James agreed, smiling. Their luck had been a mix of rotten and amazing so far, with very little in-between, which made him hope that despite all the obstacles they had to face, they would at least be met with a few more lucky breaks in the future.

“What about you?” She asked, propping her chin on her hands.

James hummed “I think some range would be good for me too, yes, maybe being able to use my skills on weapons… Most of all, I’m just genuinely curious about what the System will offer me. With all the crazy things we have been through, we should get some good rewards.”

Especially after meeting the Sin of Pride. If surviving that encounter doesn’t count, I don’t know what will.

However, he didn’t voice those thoughts, choosing to swirl his drink and take a sip, enjoying the coconut flavor. The alcohol content was not enough for him to get drunk, what with his VIT stat being twice as much as an athlete’s, but that didn’t mean that drinking didn’t serve its ancient purpose of being a social lubricant.

“Frankly, I’d be surprised if-” He stopped mid-sentence as several presences strong enough to be Awakeners entered the bar. Casually turning around to look, he immediately confirmed his suspicions.

He recognized one from Callum Wright's group among the five who had walked in. He didn’t know the guy’s name, and frankly wasn’t sure he had ever heard him talk, but he had been present at the confrontation at the rat dungeon’s entrance, which made him an asshole in his books.

He sat back and lowered his voice, making sure not to be overheard, helped by the general chaos around them. “At least one Radiant Guild guy, thirty feet behind me. The bald one.”

Lauren’s mouth tightened, and for a moment, it looked like she was about to get up and do something about it, but luckily her common sense won and she relaxed back in the booth. “He’s G-rank, isn’t he?”

James nodded grimly. “Yeah, and he feels like it. The people with him, too, are around that level.”

“So we can’t do shit.”

“We can’t do shit.” He agreed. Despite all that, however, he wasn’t that discouraged. Sensory skills, especially before the second Awakening, were quite rare and he doubted the Radiant goons would have one. Especially one sophisticated enough to recognize the two of them.

“Do you wanna go now?” Lauren asked, evidently thinking the night had been ruined, but James smiled back impishly.

“We are already here, and I can overhear some of what they are saying. What do you think of staying a bit longer to see if they drop something interesting?”

The Rogue shrugged, apparently okay with his plan. She stood up and walked to his side of the booth, sitting beside him despite how tight the space was.

“What, I wanna listen too.” She said, grinning.

Fortunately, their curiosity was satisfied soon after.