Carn’s face drained of color after hearing Fen’s name, and Liam and Jenna were quick to notice the change.

“By god you know Fen Tuolong don’t you mate? Just how…?” Liam asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

With a feeling of unease, Carn responded, “Ya I know him. Last we met he tried to kill me. I don’t know why he’s doing me a favor.”

“Oh, Fen Tuolong tried to kill you. I definitely believe that… not! What are you gonna tell us next, that Gandhi was a fan of nukes?” Liam scoffed.

“He is telling the truth,” Jenna said as she stared deeply at Carn.

“Really!? I guess you’ve never been wrong before…” Liam responded.

Jenna leaned forward, her eyes locked onto Carn's. "We’ll get you through this hun, don't worry," she said firmly, "but we need to be strategic about it."

Carn nodded, his hands clenched tightly in his lap. "Okay, what do we do?"

Jenna grabbed a notepad and pen, flipping through the pages before settling on a blank one. "First things first, we need to find some reputable reporters to get your story out there. People need to know who you are and what's happening."

Carn nodded again, his eyes scanning the room as he thought. "I live in California, Laguna Beach in particular," he said, scribbling his address on the notepad and passing it to Jenna.

She studied it for a moment before nodding. "Okay, I live in Nevada. I'll come to you and help you prep in person."

Carn raised an eyebrow. "How exactly are you going to help me? I mean, I appreciate it, but I'm not exactly a public speaker."

Jenna leaned back in her chair and sighed. "Look, the best way to protect you is to put you in front of a bunch of reporters and have you answer their questions. We need to get the public on our side so that if someone tries to kill you, they won't get away with it."

Carn's face fell. "So what? I just have to hope that I'm charismatic enough to convince the other guilds not to kill me? What about the police?"

Liam chuckled, taking a swig from his canteen. "I hate to break it to you, mate, but a couple of cops aren't going to stop a guild assassin."

Jenna put a hand on Carn's shoulder, offering him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, we'll prepare you for any ambush questions and let you know what's okay to say to the press. You'll do great."

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

The beach was alive with activity as reporters and cameramen found their seats. The sun beat down on them mercilessly as they waited for the press conference to begin. Carn paced nervously, his heart racing as he wondered what he was getting himself into.

Carn's heart was racing as he anxiously tapped his foot. "How much longer until I go live?" he asked Jenna, who was fanning herself with a piece of paper.

"It's 12:55, so you're up in 5 minutes. Remember, there's little point in lying. Most reporters have a way to determine if you're not telling the truth, so if you can't say everything, at least give them something to believe," Jenna replied.

Carn nodded, trying to shake off his nervousness. He had tried to reach Alicia for some comfort, but she wasn't responding. Jenna had given him a rough outline of what to say, but he had never spoken in public before, let alone in front of so many people. And on top of that, he had to be charismatic enough for the public to care if he was killed.

"Alright, hun, you're up. Don't worry about it, and just try to be yourself," Jenna gave him a reassuring pat on the back, and Carn made his way up to the podium.

As he walked up to the podium, Carn could feel his heart racing. He straightened his suit and wiped the sweat from his brow before looking out at the sea of faces in front of him. Orcs, beastfolk, and elves, all dressed in their finest attire, stared back at him.

He believed in himself; he was always good at talking to people, just never to so many at once, or in such high-stakes circumstances. "Just take each question one at a time. You got this," he reassured himself.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Carn Roswal, and I'm a member of the Pillars of the Sun guild. I'll be taking questions one at a time and reserve the right to withhold any questions that could harm me. I'll talk with you all until you're satisfied, so please ask away," Carn began speaking with growing confidence.

A few reporters raised their hands, but most seemed uninterested. Carn knew he was just another unknown rookie, and the thought made his nerves even worse. But he managed to keep his composure and picked a dapper-looking dwarf in the front row, who Jenna had informed him about.

"Hello, Carn. I am Hans from the New York Pulse. You look a bit nervous, so I'll start you off light. How old are you? Where are you from?" Hans asked politely.

"I am 19 and am from San Francisco," Carn replied, relieved by the easy question.

Hans looked surprised at Carn's age and immediately asked another question. "At what age did you enter God's Paradise?"

"About a month ago," Carn responded.

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The reporters all looked shocked and started whispering with one another. Hans looked surprised as well but kept his professionalism and asked another question. "What tier are you today?"

Jenna advised him to answer a question like this truthfully, so Carn did. "As of right now, I am High-Copper tier."

The whispering grew louder as Hans finished his questioning, and Carn chuckled. "Thanks for the softballs. I appreciate that."

Hans gave a smile as a larger selection of reporters shot their hands up. Carn picked a stunning elvish lady in the second row who had also raised her hand at the beginning, eager to see what questions she would ask.

The lady looked happy as she stood up, "Hello, Carn. My name is Michaela from Falcon News. If I may be blunt, why did you join God's Paradise so late? You are clearly very skilled, so it doesn't make sense to me or the viewers."

Carn took a deep breath before answering, reliving the pain of his past. "Well, growing up, I was an orphan and lived on the streets of San Francisco. I worked at various restaurants for as long as I can remember in a vain attempt to get money for a home. As such, I didn't have the means to play God's Paradise."

Michaela bowed her head in apology. "I apologize for my rudeness. We weren't able to determine your background, so I ended up being inconsiderate."

Carn smiled, accepting her apology. "Don't worry about it. I am in a much better place now. Ms. Michaela, do you have any more questions?"

"Yes, actually. It is well-known that the Pillars of the Sun guild has very stringent joining requirements, as opposed to other leading guilds. How did you join the Pillars of the Sun guild despite not meeting those requirements?" Michaela asked before sitting back down.

Jenna had thoroughly prepared Carn for this question and advised him to say the partial truth, skipping out on the executive who recommended him. "Well, I believe it's because I'm the third-fastest player to beat the tutorial," he replied, flashing a wicked grin.

The cameras flashed like crazy, and the previously unenthusiastic reporters looked like mad dogs released from their chains, held back only by the people employed by the guild. It was clear that they had been looking for the person that completed the tutorial in the top 100, but to think that Carn was the one seemed like a stroke of good fortune. They failed to connect the dots when Carn had said his name, but now that he claimed this, the puzzle pieces seemingly fell into place.

Carn basked in the attention from the reporters, feeling the adrenaline coursing through his veins. He had never felt so alive. This is what he wanted. Attention and fame, the flashes of the cameras felt almost euphoric as they lit up his skin. At this moment he almost felt glad that Sanaa had accidentally streamed. Damned be the consequences.

The questions continued for hours, covering everything from things he could answer like his relationship status to things he couldn’t like his latent talent. Carn couldn't help but revel in the attention, even as the heat from the sun became almost unbearable. He took off his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves, continuing to answer the barrage of questions with a sense of accomplishment. Normally magic would be used to cool down outside areas but the Pillars of the Sun had nullified magic in the area for extra protection.

“Are you a pure-blooded human or some sort of hybrid?” a reporter asked innocuously.

Carn hesitated for a moment, “I am a hybrid.”

The reporter seemed slightly caught off guard. “Oh, that is a surprise. You don't look mixed. What are you mixed with?”

As Carn was about to respond he saw a watery figure in the waves of the beach, a blade at their side. He recognized the face of the man who had tried to kill him, Fen Toulong. The figure disappeared, but a chilling voice rang in his head, “Tell them and you die.”

“The viewers would love to know.” The reporter said mistaking Carn’s worried look with reservation against answering the questions.

Carn hesitated again, his gaze flickering back to the waves. “Sorry, the heat must be getting to me,” he said, wiping the sweat off his brow. “I would prefer not to disclose that information. Next question, please.”

The questions continued for hours, and Carn felt himself growing tired and overwhelmed. Some reporters even gave him their business cards, hoping to get a private interview with "the third-fastest tutorial clearer." Among them were the dapper dwarf named Hans and the stunning Michaela

As the reporters scattered, Carn exhaled a sigh of relief. He searched the beach for any sign of Fen Toulong, but the assassin was nowhere to be found. The adrenaline rush of the interview lingered, but the fear of Fen kept him on edge.

Jenna insisted that Carn should go somewhere safe, but Carn refused. He had just moved into his new home and didn't want to hide. Plus, it would give him an excuse to invite Alicia over. The thought of her made him grin.

As Jenna left, Carn strolled along the beach toward his home, taking deep breaths of the salty air. Fen's watery figure was still etched in his mind. Carn knew he was powerless if Fen decided to attack. He understood that if anyone discovered he was half high-elemental, he would pay the ultimate price.

Despite the danger, Carn was thrilled with the interview. He always craved attention and fame. He didn't know if it was due to his abandonment issues or his personality. However, he knew he was one step closer to his goal of being a star. As he approached his home, he couldn't wait to call Alicia and invite her over for the night.

Carn called Alicia and asked her to come to his place for a discussion. Moments later with a burst of white light, Alicia stood at his doorstep looking slightly drained, “I saw your interview you looked good up there but, don’t a little bit of fame go to your head. I would hate it if it changed you.”

Carn smiled as he walked her in. "Don't worry, that won't happen. Anyways, sorry we couldn't go to the city today. I really couldn't avoid doing this.”

“It's fine, I totally understand.” Alicia said plopping herself down on his couch, “Something important happened in our guild so I had a bunch of paperwork to do this morning anyway. You know after seeing that skill where you teleported to your arrow, I am starting to believe your theory that you are part space high-elemental.”

"Yeah, it seems like it confirms it," Carn said, busying himself in the kitchen. "But it's strange that nobody's ever heard of a regular space elemental. It still makes me doubt it."

As Carn prepared dinner, the two of them chatted about their day. Carn told Alicia about seeing Fen Toulong in the water, which made her angry. He also explained his plan to keep her at his place for protection, which she readily agreed to.

Later that night, with a bit of magic set up around the house and a kiss on the cheek, Alicia went to a guest room to get some rest. Carn went to his room and sat on his balcony, soaking in the events of the day and the cool ocean breeze.

As he turned to head inside, he was face to face with three men cloaked in black. They seemed to be transparent, with only their mouths visible.

The man in the center grinned wickedly. "We've got another one."

Carn shouted Alicia's name as loud as he could, but before he could react, he was hit with a powerful kick to the head. His vision faded to black as he fell to the ground.