As we walked toward the location of the elevator camp, I found myself once again lost in my thoughts.

First, Malii, then Patate. The information I now possessed contradicted my initial perception of this place. It wasn't a virtual world designed solely for the entertainment of the Dominants. This world was as real as ours, as Earth.

I attempted to recap everything I had learned so far. Staying mindful that this knowledge was provided by the "game" and might not be entirely accurate, it could just be part of the "game".

First, I had died and found myself in this place alongside my killer. According to what we were told, the first one of us to reach the top would be granted the chance to return to life. However - as Carol mentioned earlier - the exact mechanism of this revival were a mystery. Would the world reset? Would we simply wake up as if nothing had happened? No clue yet.

Secondly, this place wasn't comparable to heaven or hell or even the purgatory. Patate claimed it was akin to a parallel universe to our own. But if that were true, could people who died here find their way to our world? This didn't make sense to me, as we would have known by now if Enkis or goblins were travelling on Earth doing random quests.

Lastly, the White Gems - they didn't belong to either this world or ours.

In Patate's analogy, they were the "bread." This aspect was still completely unknown.

Nevertheless, we weren't bound by the rules of this world. Our adventure resembled a video game with stats, magic spells, and, of course, the Gems. So what were we in this world?

"This whole place is confusing," I remarked to Carol as we continued walking.

She looked at me and nodded :

"You think too much. Let's focus on one step at a time."

"But don't you feel curious?" I asked.

"I just want to go back and find my daughter. That's all," she replied, her smile assuring me of her determination.

"You will. We both will return," I reassured her with a smile of my own.

As we walked in silence, my thoughts once again consumed me, I needed to know, to understand. We proceeded for another hour, encountering few disturbances - a few goblins, some wolves, but nothing really dangerous.

Suddenly, Carol placed her hand on my chest :

"Stop," she said, her gaze fixed ahead.

"What is it?" I asked, concerned by her expression.

"Smoke," she replied urgently. "Come quickly!"

She swiftly ran into the bushes, and I followed suit. Looking up, I noticed the smoke permeating through the trees and fog in the distance - a billowing cloud rising in front of a small mountain.

"Do you think it's the camp?" I murmured.

"The map," she responded succinctly.

I glanced at the map, and there it was - the red square indicating the location of the mob's camp.

We exchanged nods of understanding.

"We need to do this silently, we can't be seen," I proposed.

"Agreed," she replied. "Let's stay hidden in the bushes and foliage and observe from afar."

We cautiously maneuvered through the lush forest, ensuring we made minimal noise. After about 45 minutes of slow progression toward the smoke and mountain, we finally reached what appeared to be the forest's edge. Before us lay only dead and burned stumps - a desolate scene. In the distance, we caught sight of the camp.

It was massive, situated against the mountainside, fortified by tall metallic walls adorned with spikes and chains. Thick pillars of black smoke billowed from within. The entire place resembled something out of Mad Max. The drawbridge consisted of thick metal sheets, and a road led from the forest directly to it, separated by a narrow waterway filled with greenish water, roughly ten feet wide or more. Approximately 50 to 60 feet in front of the camp, there was no cover - only burning stumps and smoke. Nowhere to hide. Bunglin was smart.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

At the back, connected to the camp, the mountain stood with what appeared to be a large metal structure - a gateway to the elevator.

On either side of the drawbridge, two reinforced towers were equipped with mounted mini-guns. One on each side, pointing forward.

"The mini-guns," I remarked, pointing at them.

"The smoke from the burned trees won't provide sufficient cover. If we move closer, we'll be sitting ducks out in the open," Carol explained.

"I agree. This is going to be more challenging than anticipated."

"We need a tank or something," Carol mused, turning to face me. "What kind of vehicle is your Gem?"

I grinned mischievously :

"It's a hoverboard."

She looked intrigued.

"A what?" she asked.

"An hoverboard, you know, a floating skateboard - similar to the one in the 'Back to the Future' movie."

She stared at me in silence for a moment.

"That's not a vehicle," she finally said, her disappointment evident.

"Well, sort of," I replied, slightly defeated but I had to agree with her.

"Look over there!" she exclaimed, pointing towards the road leading out of the forest.

A group of about ten or twelve goblins were marching along the road, heading for the drawbridge. It took them a good two to three minutes to reach the entrance.

"Do you see how much those mounted mini-guns can rotate?" I observed.

"Yes, they have a wide range. This is bad," she added.

"Perhaps not," I countered.

She looked at me, puzzled.

"This might work in our favor," I explained.

"How so? It means they can easily shoot at us while we run toward them without any cover," she reasoned.

I smiled and said :

"Yes, that's true. But it probably means they can also point inward. Based on what Malii mentioned about Bunglin, we can assume that he relies on these weapons to protect the camp from both outside threats and potential internal attacks. I wouldn't be surprised if they have a 360-degree rotation capability."

Realization dawned upon her, and a smile graced her face :

"You want to turn those guns against them," she exclaimed.

"Exactly!" I confirmed.

She redirected her gaze toward the mini-guns. The party of goblins continued their back-and-forth shouting with the guards, and the bridge remained raised.

"What if they don't?" Carol suddenly asked.

"We can ask Malii about it. Perhaps he'll have some insight. So far, everything he's told us seems to be accurate."

"You're right. Everything the fish man said has been true," she agreed.

She pointed once again, this time towards the drawbridge :

"It's opening," she said.

The party of goblins stepped back as the bridge began its descent. It took a considerable amount of time, frequently halting along the way. Moving back and forth as if there were malfunctions.

"They haven't fixed the mechanism yet," I noted.

Carol nodded in agreement.

It took approximately two minutes for the bridge to lower completely and another five or more to close back up.

"We have plenty of time to get inside," I remarked.

"But we'll be seen," Carol interjected.

"I have an ability," I explained. "It's called 'Hide and Seek,' granted by my class. It can render me almost invisible for 47 seconds. The only drawback is that if I move too quickly, I emit a thin, dark smoke."

I pointed at the sad devastated area in front of the camp and continued ;

"A similar effect to that of the burning stumps," I said. "It would provide cover for me. So, as soon as the bridge opens, I could run in and reach it in about 20 seconds or even less. Once inside, I can disable the mechanism so they can't close the bridge."

"You'll have to wait until the goblin party enters," Carol added.

"Yes, but once inside, I can take control of the mini-gun and turn it toward the interior, causing chaos and diversion. Then you can come in through the front door," I suggested.

"You'll be alone for quite some time," she commented, concerned.

"I can handle it boss," I assured her.

A smile spread across her face :

"Before we proceed, we could check with Malii to confirm the limitations of the mini-guns," she proposed.

"I agree. In any case, time is running out. We have less than five hours left. So we should head back now. While we prepare for the assault we can go by Malii and see what he knows." I said, glancing at the night timer.

"Let's go. We have enough information to make a plan," she agreed.

We retraced our steps slowly through the dense forest, walking for approximately 30 minutes until we reached the main path. When we arrived, I suggested :

"Let's use the hoverboard to save some time."

"Alright, show me!" she replied with enthusiasm.

I summoned the hoverboard, but her excitement quickly faded.

"It's too small for both of us!" she exclaimed.

"No, it's not," I reassured her. "We can squeeze together a bit."

She stared at me skeptically.

Stepping onto the board, I gestured to the empty space behind me. Reluctantly, she climbed aboard, holding onto my waist.

"Go slowly," she advised.

"Don't worry," I smiled.

The hoverboard carried us for more than half of the journey before dematerializing. We completed the rest of the trip on foot.

As we approached the Green Tree Village, an odd sensation gripped me, something wasn't right in the distance.

"Do you see that?" I asked Carol, pointing toward the colossal tree.

She squinted her eyes and then widened them in fear and panic.

"It's on fire!" she exclaimed. "The village is under attack!"

Both of us ran as fast as we could toward Green Tree, but the reality surpassed our worst fears.