“It’s so sweet!” Emori exclaimed in delight as she scooped up a piece of cake into her mouth.

It was a fifth day. Normally, we would be preparing for our fight against the demon king, grinding away in some dungeon somewhere, but Maya and Solicea had some club business to attend to. Upon hearing that, the prince decided that he wanted to grind solo. He was falling behind, so maybe he wanted to go and catch up. I didn’t ask for the exact reasons, though.

It was just me and Emori, like usual. Instead of going out and grinding, I decided to take a break today. The demon king’s return still circled in my mind, so I couldn’t fully relax, but I didn’t want to keep pushing Emori. I invited her to a beautiful cafe on the northern side of the capital. Next to our cafe were many other shops, all offering a view toward a lake. It was a peaceful day, with clear skies and calm winds.

This area hadn’t changed much.

Back in the game, the stores around here offer some food for sale, often with stats boosting properties. The store two buildings away from us sold just that, some kinds of pills that could boost your mana levels.

The store we sat in offered regular cake, though.

“Are you sure it’s alright? It’s your money, after all,” she asked with concern.

“Of course. Besides, how many monsters have we killed? It’s not like we struggled for money.” I had collected more money than what I knew to do with. Although, to be fair, that statement was correct because I didn’t know what to use my money on. Had this been Earth, I would constantly be in the red thanks to the absurd amount of anime merch that I bought, but those things didn’t exist in this world.

Out of the five of us, the only one spending was Maya. She loves buying small trinkets and accessories out of gold, despite never using them. Just dragons being dragons, I guess.

Emori, Solicea, and Prilus had no need for the money. Being nobles, they already receive a hefty allowance each month, the earning from the stones pales in comparison. Maybe that was the cause of Emori’s concern. She did visit our place before, seeing just how normal we were. A small amount in her eyes might mean a lot to me.

But since I didn’t have anything I wanted in particular, I decided to send most of it to my parents.

“But, still…”

“Don’t worry about it. Just see it as my thank you for accompanying me.”

“Bu- But you’re the one that helped me grind?”

“Grinding is always more fun with others. Besides, we always worked so hard during our off-days, I thought taking it slow once in a while wouldn’t hurt.” For Emori and the rest, it was training. A tiring one, at that. Since Asytelar only spoke to me, in their eyes, they were raising their strength for a threat that may or may not exist. I appreciate the fact that they were willing to go with my shenanigans.

I appreciate their company as well, and what better way to show that than to treat them out for a meal.

Especially Emori, who worked twice as hard as the others. She could find an excuse to not go grinding with me on the sixth day, when the others took some time off, but she stuck with me.

“Emori, thank you.”

“Huh- What? Where did this come from?” Emori blushed.

“I appreciate you sticking with me. Even now, when we’re not grinding, you’re still willing to come with me.”

She averted her eyes. “I want to say I’m doing it because of the demon king… but…” She trailed off.

“But?”

“Never mind, please forget about it.”

The last time I pushed her, we ended up having a huge fight. I didn’t want her to dislike me, so this time, I decided to let it slide.

I was still curious, though. Did she have another reason she stuck with me? I wonder what…

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“Okay. Feel free to tell me if there’s something on your mind.”

“Okay.” Emori chirped, returning to her food. We ate our cake together, enjoying the sweetness of it.

“That was great…” I leaned my back to the seat, having finished my cake. “It had been a while since I last relaxed like this.”

“You didn’t go out often?”

“Going out means grinding for me.”

“Haha. You’re such a hard worker, Fortis.” Emori let out a little giggle. “By the way, there’s something I’m curious about.”

“What is it?”

Emori gazed at me. “Have you known about the demon king since you were little?”

“Kind of?” I mean, I did know, but that was after I died, when I was floating in that… place? Regardless, back then, I didn’t understand the details of what she meant. I only knew that the demon king would return.

“Is that why you worked so hard for your level?”

“I… I’m not sure…” It was an important factor, yeah, but I couldn’t say that it was my only reason. As a gamer, I love exploring. I love getting stronger. I love being on the top. That was simply the person I am. Since I came here with my memories intact, I could fit in easily.

I grinded until my level hit the ceiling. Even after that, I continued grinding. That led me here, sitting in front of the princess herself.

“I don't have a particular reason for it, I guess. It's just what I like to do.”

“You like fighting monsters?”

“I guess? I like getting stronger.”

It was everything I did in my past life. Back then, I got stronger by grinding. I then helped others get stronger, and received payment for it. That was the only way I knew to live. To get stronger, to keep being at the top. The person everyone looked up upon, the person everyone hated. A cheater.

When I arrived here, that was the only thing I could do. I expected to live alone, no different than my previous life, so I got stronger.

But here, things changed. My parents loved me for who I am. They valued me even without my strength. Even when I was just a useless baby that couldn’t do anything but read. They did their best to support me, buying expensive books and training me after knowing that was what I wanted to do.

Then I fought Maya in her dragon form, back then too young to speak. My in-game knowledge taught me of her weakness, and about how dragons were intelligent species. My choices earned me a close friend that supported me throughout my years.

I came to this school and met Emori and Solicea, and the prince as well. We formed a party to take on the demon king. It had only been the beginning. Haze filled our road to the future. When would we fight the demon king? Would our strength be enough? Would anyone be hurt? So many questions that I couldn’t answer.

“Fortis? Is something on your mind?”

My expression softened.

“Truly, thank you Emori.”

Emori’s cheeks reddened once more. “Thank you as well…”

I would be the same had it not been for my parents, my friends, and everyone that supported me throughout my journey. I would be level one hundred, I didn’t doubt my desire to grind, but I would be alone. No different from my past self.

But here I stood. The leader of a party of five.

So much had happened since that fateful day, when I got into a fight with a bunch of drunkards and died. Looking back on it, I couldn’t help but feel grateful.

“I need to thank you as well, Fortis. Properly, I mean.” Emori straightened herself.

“You mean?”

“Seeing your level two months ago… I felt ashamed to know I wasn’t even close. I was so far behind back then, even lower than my own brother.”

“But now, you’re almost at sixty.”

“All thanks to you. Fortis… thank you for everything you did.”

Had this been a game, I would have been worried, as this entire conversation sounded like a setup for a major event. Nothing happened, though. I returned the smile.

“What do you mean? I didn’t do much.” I laughed. At the end of the day, if Emori didn’t put the effort in, she wouldn’t grow.

“In truth, there’s something else I wanted to show you.”

“Let’s finish this, then.”

We enjoyed the rest of the desserts and I paid for it, before leaving the cafe. Emori asked me to teleport us into a dungeon. I didn’t know why she would want that, but I did that anyway. I chose the first dungeon that we visited, for nostalgia’s sake. Monsters had reoccupied the place, and they didn’t look happy seeing us.

We cut through them without problem, though, ending in the boss room. This time, the monster that occupied it looked like a giant lizard.

Emori stepped forward with confidence. “Fortis, watch me.”

“Okay.” I nodded and walked to the side, away from her. She aimed her hand forward.

“The last time I used White Void, I used it in a moment of stress, without proper technique.” A white circle appeared in front of her right eye. The lizard took its stance.

“You have helped me grow so much in the last two months, yet I got angry at you for your genuine concern.”

“No, it’s my fault for trying to interfere with your choices, but please continue.”

Emori chuckled. “But I want to reward you.”

The lizard leaped toward Emori. A symbol appeared inside the circle, at the center of her right eye, glowing a bright white.

The symbol to White Void, a secret that can rock the country.

“Please watch me, I shall show you the true power of my spell.”

That day, I saw the most powerful spell I have ever seen.