EV B2 Chapter 15:

When I got to the top of the stairs, I found there was no one waiting for us in an ambush, like I had feared. Astrid was still slowly healing and unable to walk, so I began a steady but relaxed pace down the road that led to the castle. Eventually, Astrid opened her eyes and looked up at me, either out of mana or healed enough that she felt she could take a break.

"Either way, no matter how this goes," she said, gesturing to the world around us, "I think you should introduce me to your friend." She tapped the side of her. "I'm pretty sure it's okay to say Loki's name out loud here. If the gods are listening in to us now, there's no doubt they'd be able to see the brand if they looked."

I nodded. "I'm pretty sure that's true, but also, I'm not about to go whispering and referring to him with some oblique name all the time."

"Okay, so I think after seeing you fight a few times, it's clear that I need some sort of… edge as well."

"Yeah," I said, nodding. "Though I'd have to say that the early blessings weren't the most useful. But if we can get you a class—"

She grimaced. "I still can't fucking believe you got a class. What, level five or something?"

I shrugged a shoulder, jostling her slightly. She winced as her damaged leg bounced. "Well, at the time, I didn't realize how special that was. But with how many extra stats it gives me…"

"At some point, the stats won't matter that much," I explained. "I mean, think about it. If you have a thousand points, how much does an extra level or two really give you? It doesn't make that much of a difference."

"True, but I don't have anywhere near a thousand points in any stat. Neither do you," Astrid said. "So talk to me when you're level 200. If you ever get there."

I snorted. "True. The extra levels in the class are extremely useful. Still, I can't help but think that, eventually, weapon proficiencies and skills are really where the power is going to lie. Those are what'll let me actually use the stats. I'm pretty sure if someone doesn't have any proficiencies with a sword and they've got ten times my stats, I'd be able to give them a run for their money, even with my low D grade proficiency."

"I don't know about that," Astrid said. "I'm pretty sure someone with ten times your stats would be able to break you like a twig."

"Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration," I admitted. "But you get my point."

"Yeah, I just don't think it's nearly as strong of a point as you're intending to make," she said. "What I get from it is basically just that you can't neglect any one part of your power to focus on everything else. They all sort of multiply into each other. Reduce any of them to zero, and you're in trouble. Best to spread them evenly if you're thinking about optimization."

"Well, maybe," I said, "if you take into account how easy it is to grow each of the different ways of getting stronger."

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We went back and forth, theory-crafting a little about how to get better. Eventually, though, I did agree to talk to Loki for her—or bring her to Loki directly. I figured she might not do well with Loki's blessing, but perhaps he had a friend who would fit her better. Or maybe Loki's own blessing would adapt to fit her. She definitely had the shiftiness and could be shady enough to fit into the organization.

***

A little over an hour later, Astrid was good enough to walk, and I was able to set her down. However, after another hour of walking, our hopes of fixing this scenario diminished drastically. I walked at a much faster pace than a normal human, and now that we didn't have to keep our gait steady, we covered far more ground in a few minutes of jogging. Far, far more than the sound of the alarm bells at the monastery could have reached.

Eventually, Astrid stopped and slumped onto a rock. As she sat down, she sighed, "I don't think we're going to be able to do anything. This road doesn't seem to lead anywhere. It's just running along the coast, and I still can't see any castle in the distance."

We were at the top of a rise, and she stood on the rock, pantomiming, shading her eyes as she scanned the horizon. I couldn't help but agree. Apparently, we were going nowhere.

"So, is it time to face the music?" I asked. "We've got to see if we hit that 20%."

"And then what?" she replied.

"We have to hope they'll let the run still in the dungeon finish before calculating if we passed or not, I guess."

She sighed again. "This is a really hard scenario. I don't know how other teams that don't have someone like you even come close to finishing."

"Well, a team of five that works together would be much more successful than just me by myself," I argued.

We went back and forth for a couple of minutes, but in the end, there was nothing else to do. I reached up and grabbed the amulet around my neck, as did Astrid, and soon, we were both stepping out of the challenge and back into the real world.

I looked over at Astrid, who had fear in her eyes, and I understood the sentiment. We had been so close, but 19% wasn't quite enough. I checked the board outside of the challenge hall. We had received some coins, but with only a day left, things weren't looking good. At least we had more than enough to pay Astrid's entry fee again, and mine was still free.

"Should we try again?" I asked. "Or do you want to talk to my friend?"

Astrid swallowed loudly.

"Having second thoughts?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "It's still terrifying, but we need to talk to him first. Should we get clarity on the rules?"

"We can try."

We went back inside and approached the raven manning the desk for this portal. When I tried to ask anything except about entering the dungeon, all I got in response was a loud, unhelpful "Caw!" I knew the raven could speak much more fluently, as I'd seen with the one near the first challenge I'd entered. That one had been able to talk about a wide variety of topics with no issue. This one just didn't want to answer our questions.

Frustrated, Astrid and I left and began walking through the streets. As we passed a few signs, I turned to her and said, "Perhaps you should wait while I talk to him before bringing you in."

Astrid readily agreed. We found a mostly quiet tavern, and she agreed to wait for me there. After making sure she was settled, I backtracked a block or two until I found the symbol I knew would take me to Loki. I descended the stairs and followed the familiar long hall until I reached the concierge.

It didn't take long to set up a meeting. When I asked about bringing someone uninitiated who might be willing to join, the concierge smiled a full and genuine smile. "Bring her down, and I'll make sure all parties are aware," he said.

The slight excitement in his tone made my skin chill, but at the same time, I couldn't help but hope I could trust Loki—at least enough to play this part straight with me. Besides, if I was bringing someone else into his service, that had to be a good thing, right? Perhaps I'd even get some sort of bonus.