As the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in shades of amber and purple, Celeste made up her mind to meet him at Takanaka’s Rest for breakfast before their departure the next day. She hoped to use this opportunity to talk to Khaliun before they all parted ways.

  The next morning, the cozy tavern was already buzzing with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and sizzling bacon when Khaliun arrived. Her eyes widened in surprise as she spotted Celeste sitting at a corner table, engrossed in conversation with Marcus. Without a moment's hesitation, Khaliun navigated through the maze of tables, her footsteps quick and purposeful, to join them.

  “Umm, Hello Marcus. Could we speak in private about a previous engagement.” Khaliun looked at him as he looked down on his plate of food and up at Khaliun Celeste spoke up.

  “Do you mean the power boost arrangement?” Khaliun turned to face the woman as she spoke again.

  “How do you know about that?” Celeste smiled and winked at Khaliun.

  “Because I believed in this lovable brute and he turned out to be right. I have received a massive power boost with little real downsides honestly.” Khaliun turned and stared daggers at Marcus before attempting to storm off Celeste grabbed the wrist of Khaliuns wrist and turned her around.

  “Woah, where are you going? That’s one hell of a way to leave a conversation. You can’t help me anymore so you are useless to speak to? Is that the kind of hospitality we can expect here?” Khaliun stared at the Blonde in front of her before she spoke.

  “I am leaving.” She turned and faced Marcus. “You aren’t welcome here.” Marcus looked at Celeste before trying to speak as she held a finger to his lips. She reached in her pocket and pulled out an identity lens and handed it to Khaliun as she took it she continued.

  “I want you to look at my stat screen and go over it. I have gained a lot of stats and he has plenty to give. This is my citizen card. They update them each year so unless its a rounding error I am still the same level but strangely I am now 75 stat points stronger than I was before.” Celeste leaned back in her seat and smiled a devilish smile before she continued.

  “I have looked into you. You were a decent warrior with a fire based spear but your stats were average and you called it quits around level 14. You retired to take over your parents place around age 20 and have made this place into a money making machine. I have birdies that tell me that you wish you were just good enough to become a warrior without being consigned to being a basic grunt.” Khaliun's mouth dropped as Celeste kept talking.

  “You think we don’t talk to each other? I have seen you come into Isabella’s and see Isaac. I can’t blame you, he is talented so you have good taste at the very least. Regardless, we could use someone like you on our team.” Khaliun had gone from curious to dangerously intense.

  “Why would I want to join the team of a brute and a whore?” Celeste got in close, so close that only Khaliun and Marcus could hear her before she continued.

  “Marcus is the Team Leader and is level 50 with stats in the 90s he would be considered Paragon level at this point in his development. He is willing to give you points and grow like me. He just gave me 75 stats points. I am sure he could give you something similar when he gets back in town after saving the city. But it is your choice, the offer lasts until we leave this place. “ Celeste motioned her hands around the place as several men and women looked their way, with several interested people stealing glances at Marcus.

  “I know you have seen others looking at him, wait till he returns from the attack much stronger.” Celeste stood up as Marcus did as well and paid as they continued towards the door. Celeste whispered in his ear as they walked towards the door.

  “She is gonna stop us as soon as we reach the doorway.” Marcus didn’t think so but Celeste was clearly the wheeling, dealing type so he let this experiment play out.

  “Wait!” Khaliun yelled as Celeste and Marcus turned around.

  “I’ll Do it!” Khaliun yelled as Celeste motioned for her to come closer as Khaliun walked over to them. As Jason came out of the doorway and looked around Khaliun motioned for him to return the door.

  “What are you doing exactly?” Celeste wrapped her arm around Marcus’s as Khaliun’s face turned red.

  “I will join the team if you will have me.” Celeste reached over and patted Khaliun on the cheek before she turned around with a shit eating grin and walked hand in hand with Marcus.

  “Told ya. We will be in touch…maybe.”

  As they left and headed towards the rendezvous point about a day’s travel outside of town Marcus finally put the words together in his mind to speak.

  “Why did you do that?! Khaliun seems like a good person. She didn’t have to do that to join the team? I did not ask you to join the team like that.” Celeste smiled up at him and entwined fingers with him as they walked together.

  “You are selling what you are offering for short, like stupidly short. You are giving them a blessing beyond measure. This is like giving an average person 35+ levels. FOR FREE! The average level of Ume’s is around level 8, maybe even lower. If she doesn’t want to play ball there are MILLIONS of others, including nobles that would drop to their knees and give up their entire estate for a taste of what you are giving. You honestly may say you are or were a commoner but you act like a noble more than anything.” As Celeste continued the wheels in Marcus’s mind began to turn in his head.

  “You can reject her, if you feel like she isn’t onboard. If I was in your shoes I would honestly. Your constitution is well over 50. Around that level any physical defects or genetic conditions…..smooth out considerably. You look exceptionally healthy. You are tall, built like a brick shithouse with a gentle giant personality. You won’t have a problem finding another person to join. She is average at best. I give +3 stat points a level so at least I am above average but at only +2 stats per level she is pretty weak at level 14.“ She turned to face him and cupped his face as she bent her face down towards her.

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  “You just can’t let people think you don’t understand your value. People can and will take advantage of you. I.E me.” She pointed at herself and smiled.

  “Everyone gets fooled or gets an ok trade once but if I am gonna be soul bound to you this can’t keep happening. She has ties to this world. She has friends and family that love and care about her. When the going gets tough she has the option to just leave and return to something.” She moved her hands away from his face and continued to walk away.

  “We don’t.”

  Marcus thought about it and damn this world was fucking brutal. It wasn’t an ideal situation but he would ask her if she wanted to join in a proper manner when the time came.

  As they approached the rest of the siege, he observed a vast assembly of hundreds of warriors being guided towards Guard Commander Deacon. What struck him was the eclectic array of attire among the warriors; their outfits varied widely, lacking any semblance of uniformity.

  Commander Deacon himself was an imposing figure, a tall Human man of Latin descent. His fiery red hair was meticulously cropped on the sides and slicked back, giving him a commanding presence. He wore an exquisite breastplate gleaming over his rugged brown leathers, a massive sword slung across his back, hinting at his formidable strength and presence.

  “Are you Marcus? He nodded as he shook his hand and motioned for him to follow him into the high level camp as he looked around he saw several dozen people that were attended by several what he figured were pagelike people and servants. “This is the Level 50+ section. Up here, alongside the serious big shots who have their own tent-like houses and possessions, we manage quite well. We have access to bathrooms and our own barracks with separate rooms for each person.“

  As he gave them a tour he could easily see the 20 foot tall tree like wall and the barracks grown out of it with Earth Mages helping the process. As he made his way to his room he could tell that while it was a much smaller room than his room in Takanaka's, at least he had his own room so he couldn’t really complain. Deacon continued as he finished the tour he got briefed with the rest of the group. As the meeting ended it was almost night time but powerful light mages and lanterns continued to light the sky so it was incredibly bright as they began to be served dinner.

  Marcus pulled out four food and beverage boxes and handed two to Celeste as she smiled and activated them, getting a massive burger and fry combo with what looked like a jug of beer. That did sound good he thought as he made the same thing but instead of beer he envisioned orange juice as they ate and drank together. Marcus broke the silence.

  ‘I want to thank you for helping me. I know this is a great boon and all but I appreciate you all the same. I don’t think I can do this alone anymore.” Celeste put down her burger and slid closer to him as they sat down outside of the barracks.

  “Regardless of what I say or do. Don’t lose that.” Marcus turned to her.

  “What do you mean?”

  “That moral compass, you can’t buy that. It’s innate.” She smiled up at him and patted him on the back before she continued.

  "Mine is a mess. Honestly. As support, I've been forced to make decisions that weigh heavily on me just to ensure as many people as possible could return safely." She gazed into the vast, open night sky, lost in thought, while Marcus hesitated, unsure if he should speak again.

  "I found myself stuck underground, relentlessly pursued by undead from level 1 all the way up to around level 8 or 9. Alone in the darkness, I had nothing more than basic equipment, and I spent the night beside the countless corpses I had to fight off to survive. I managed to clear a dungeon on my own before reaching level 15." She looked at him in shock but smiled afterward.

  “So what region from you from anyway because you never told me.” Marcus looked at her intensely.

  “I am from a different world. I was killed and summoned here or reborn. Whatever makes sense.” Celeste began chuckling before she stopped abruptly when she knew he wasn’t joking.

  “How did you get summoned here exactly?” Marcus leaned back in his chair.

  “It doesn’t matter but I am tasked with making a way for humanity. There are gonna be threats against this world that apparently will uproot everything. I am tasked with making sure humanity is on top at the end of this.” Celeste looked at him intensely.

  “What do you want to do?” Marcus closed his eyes for a minute as he felt Guin’s presence wrap around him.

  “I don’t want to end up isolated in solitude, like living in caves, nor do I want to be someone who frightens others. I aim to be a beacon for humanity, and I need to achieve it in my own unique way. I have no intentions of ruling over anyone else like a Tyrant.” She placed a hand on his arm and went back to her burger as they talked for a while longer before pulling away and headed to their separate rooms for the night.

  The remaining days passed relatively smoothly, with no significant issues arising. As he had anticipated, individuals in the higher ranks had to maintain a considerable distance from one another during combat, ensuring they were spread out along the frontline to avoid any clashes. The strategy was straightforward. With his whip extended to 12 feet, he could effortlessly cleave through dozens of weaker Shamblers in a single sweep. Behind him, Celeste would diligently follow behind him, her sharp eyes trained on the skies as she fired precision shots, efficiently taking down any flying threats that loomed overhead.

  Then after 5 days of being here the horde came.

  “It’s time for revenge for Oakbend.”