"Well, that was nice," I murmured as I felt the darkness dissolve around me once more, feeling my body transform as I took a deep breath, Resilience allowing me to push the pain back. The process of leaving the corrupted lands and being promoted was surprisingly eventless, allowing me to improve both of my Abilities.

The heroic ability had consumed all available experience I had in storage, suggesting that it might have been a better choice to delay leveling up a while, but I decided against it.

I simply didn't have enough trustworthy people to bring into the Party until Zolast found a way to trick their patrons and allow me to recruit them. Considering everyone with a useful class was recruited by a Divine Patron well before their teenage years, and I didn't have a way to upgrade their classes yet, that was the only reasonable alternative.

Unless I found someone like Limenta once again due to pure luck.

No, currently, leveling as quickly as possible was a far more superior option, and the benefit of Complete Life Elevation was hard to overstate, especially when combined with my abnormal stat points.

I was

[Class: Hero

Level: 60

Experience (0/379,072,224)]

[Health (754/1200)

Mana (140/900)]

[Experience: 921,271,294]

[Authority: 32,327]

[STATS

Resilience: 50

Vitality: 40

Strength: 80

Agility: 35

Speed: 30

Perception: 50

Memory: 10

Charisma: 100

Attunement: 30

Concealment: 25

LOCKED…]

[Stat Points: 145]

[SKILLS: Archery of Destruction (0\X)]

[ABILITIES: Elevated Life - Complete - Human

Heroic Party (2) ]

[Alignment: Unaligned]

For the first time since I arrived in this new world, I felt truly strong … Too bad my challenges were going up with my stat point.

A quick conversation with Zolast confirmed that he was yet to finish setting up my new identity as a church member that would allow me to access Oniphia, still requiring the approval of the princess.

I decided to go back and take my well-earned rest rather than leveling immediately and risk destroying the magic that kept my presence isolated.

I didn't want to risk leveling without a ward. I still remembered what happened the last time I did that, and that time, I was using a fraction of the Experience my next level up required.

I went back to Town Yoentia at a leisurely pace, testing my new limits against the monsters I fought. Even before assigning my new stat points, the improvement was incredible. I was faster, stronger, more agile, and had even better control over my magic.

Only a lifetime of first-hand observation watching the fate of criminals who got too arrogant with their power kept the sudden surge of confidence in check. Ultimately, I was still nothing more than a criminal with no support other than what I had managed to cobble together.

All my tricks would turn useless against a flying castle, and considering the other things gods could accomplish, it was too dangerous to assume that my little trick with Life Elevation gave me a decisive advantage.

When I arrived in Town Yoentia, my plan was to enjoy a nice rest, only for Dahmut to pass me a letter the moment he saw me.

It was from Night Blades. Specifically, from my counterpart, the quartermaster, asking me for a visit at my earliest convenience. Something about our guild being the middleman as they tried to make amends for their earlier mistake.

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"Interesting," I said as I finished reading. "Send them a them I will visit them immediately."

"At this hour, boss?" Dahmut asked, surprised. It was unlikely that they would be sleeping, but it was certainly rude. "Maybe we should wait until afternoon."

"Tell them I'm in the mood for breakfast. They are the ones trying to make amends. A little inconvenience should be nothing. Just arrange two bodyguards who can keep their mouths shut," I said.

"As you wish, boss," he said, the doubt in his tone easy to read. Two bodyguards was a particular choice. Just enough to make their presence a subtle insult, while also showing that I wasn't really scared of them.

It played on the general perception of me — and I made sure to maintain a consistent image.

After several displays of my combat capability, the new public consensus was I was somewhere around level eighty, but didn't have a particularly good class. Most of these rumors were focusing on one of the merchant variants, but a significant minority guessed a production class.

The fact that I didn't join the dungeon runs further strengthened those guesses.

That public perception was part of why bringing two bodyguards with me was an insult. Any threat that could endanger me wouldn't be slowed down by them, making them purely ceremonial.

They were just there to show the guild of Dawn Hammers didn't trust the guild of Night Blades.

Even as I moved, I tugged my connection with Limenta in a particular pattern, one that told him to follow me once I left. The ability to constantly track their location was convenient, and I knew that while I was busy with the process, Limenta had already returned, focusing on setting up his new safe houses.

When I left the casino, the two bodyguards walked next to me, one a step ahead and to my left, the other a step behind and to my right, both decked in armor, with a bright hammer at the chest. Limenta was on a nearby roof, shadowing me as I requested through our connection.

It was partially a safety measure. I didn't fear any trap that they could set up, not with my most recent power-up, but that was no reason not to apply some reasonable precautions.

I chatted with the guards like we were just going for a walk. It helped me to look relaxed, and at the same time, it fostered a better connection with the guards.

Keeping a finger on the pulse of the lower ranks was never a bad idea.

At the same time, I used the opportunity to signal Limenta, who was following us almost a hundred feet back. Using some signals, I asked him to pick a hiding spot that was not too close to the meeting spot, and warn me of anything suspicious.

I avoided giving him more detailed orders, once again testing his capabilities, to see if his most recent enhancement had turned him arrogant and prone to mistakes.

Soon, we were in a short street called Crystal Lane, one of the more expensive locations in the outer town, with several jewelers making the place more prestigious. And, the largest of those stores belonged to my counterpart.

As I walked forward, the door opened and a well-dressed servant stepped out. "Master Euon, please come in," he said, but his face twisted with barely suppressed anger.

It didn't help when I gestured for my guards to stay outside and defend, like I owned the place.

"Lead the way," I said, acting like I didn't notice the subtle isolation spell that surrounded the building. It increased the risk of a trap, but with their guildmaster still absent, it was my best way to learn what they were trying to do.

The servant led me through several display cases, each filled with gems and other jewelry, some carved to support wards and magic weapons, others purely ornamental, but every single one of them was bulky and tacky.

"Anything that caught your interest, Master Euon?" the servant asked. I shook my head dismissively, making no secret of my distaste.

"As you wish, sir," the servant said and opened another door.

One that opened to a nice dining room. In this room, there was another surprise waiting for me. The quartermaster was there, but not alone. He was accompanied by another man, in his thirties.

That mysterious guest was sitting while the quartermaster waited next to him as a sign of respect.

Then, there was another interesting detail. There was only one chair.

The disrespect was clear.

Interesting. Another member of the supporters of Night Blades, most likely. Just like that mysterious young man.

Before deciding on how to react, I spent a moment examining the mysterious party. He was dressed in black and gray. His clothing looked understated, however they were anything but. I didn't recognize the material, but considering I was able to feel a subtle presence of mana from the fabric similar to a magic weapon, they were clearly expensive.

He clearly expected me to stay silent even as he raised his wine glass, confident that he was in control. A basic power move, which I did my best to show it was working. It was easier to play along to understand what he wanted.

"So, you're the mysterious Euon," he said before he sipped his wine delicately, watching me with self-assured confidence. His motions were slow, and controlled. Not just due to stats, but also because he had the confidence of a man who knew he was the deadliest one in the room.

There was a dagger hidden in his left sleeve, and another one at the side of his calf. Prepared.

Unlike him, I only had my sword, an ordinary one, and my dagger, a magic one, but poor quality. The fact that he didn't use his guards to remove them was another insult.

Of course, that many insults drew an interesting picture. Was he disrespecting me, or was all of this a subtle test?

All of these thoughts flashed in an instant before I settled on a basic strategy. Confident and smart, yet not too smart. "Since there's no chair for me, I must be in the wrong room," I declared sharply. He looked satisfied with that, but that turned into a surprise when I turned and started to walk away.

This was the problem with the theatrical setups. An unexpected response was enough to ruin the whole show. I took three steps before he decided I had no intention of actually slowing down. "Apologies, Master Euon. It's just an oversight from the servants," he said, and then turned to the other occupant in the room.

"Bring us a chair," he ordered to the man who technically shared the exact same rank with me, who swallowed his dissatisfaction after a flash.

"As you wish, my lord," he said, bowing deep enough to confirm that I was dealing with another noble.

"I hope you don't take that personally, Master Euon," he said.

"Of course not," I answered, accepting the apology. "It's not your fault. Some people are just incompetent."

The rival quartermaster looked at me angrily as he placed the chair. Regardless, he had no choice but to swallow his anger. I made a show of giving him a smug smile.

Of course, the display had nothing to do with actually getting one over him. He was a non-entity. I just wanted our mysterious noble to believe I cared deeply about the rivalry between Dawn Hammers and Night Blades.

I sat down, and another servant poured me a drink, giving me my first challenge.

To drink, or not to drink…