Not long after Eric had finally been able to turn mana into flame, Lu Feng had come to the decision of keeping him inside the barracks.

  It makes sense. None of my conversations with him suggest that he’s dumb or anything of the sort. It would’ve been obvious to everyone else that the attacks only began after I joined, Eric told himself while wiping some light sweat from his forehead.

  They should also be keeping an eye from afar, just in case. Up until this point the best they can do is suspect that I’m the cause of the attacks, but they can’t be sure. If the attacks suddenly change to the barracks, then that would be all the confirmation they need.

  And from their behavior, I can infer that they have no idea what the “infinite essence” is at all. They only began to ask about it after they kept hearing about it from the attackers.

  Taking in a deep breath, Eric cleared his mind and continued with what he was doing, mimicking some of the movements the barrack guards had shown him, in an effort to stave off some of the boredom.

  The world he was currently in was a fantasy version of ancient China, so while there were fantastical elements to it like magical beasts and what amounted to superpowers, for someone like Eric who came from the 21st century and was an avid consumer of digital entertainment, it was incredibly lacking. The only thing that he found remotely fun were fights, but he couldn’t do that since he was being kept under lock and key.

  So, seeing that there was nothing else to do, he asked some of those that remained behind, either to watch him, the barracks, or simply to rest, to help him with whatever he wished. They wouldn’t always agree, but what little he did learn was more than enough for him to make gains from it.

  It was mostly because of Mental Focus and his increased visualization capabilities that he was able to extract the most out of something he barely saw once or twice.

  This added practice didn’t mean he stopped practicing with fire or trying to create water. But there were moments were he felt like even if he continued, he would make either no gains, or far too little to justify the time invested.

  It was because he wanted to make the most of the time he had in a secure place, that he constantly shifted from one practice to another, barely taking time to rest. And while Eric was content with the rhythm that he currently had, he was beginning to feel the toll, even with his bloodline’s aid.

  Doesn’t matter. I need to be ready for when I clear the floor and ultimately end up in a place where I have no protection. I can’t remain so behind everyone else that I need the bloodline to keep me alive. With this, I should at least not depend as much on weapons.

  His mind lingered on the bloodline subject for a bit, remembering his efforts to bring a relevant screen up. But no matter what he did, nothing came up and the System, as if unrelated, refused to give anything up.

  Shaking his head, Eric returned to what he was thinking about previously.

  There was a limit to the amount of skills he could train within a barracks of martial artists that didn’t use weapons. So, other than the Flame and Mana Projection which he was already doing, he only added Fist and Kick Mastery to his training, with Body Reinforcement being an unintended addition.

  Fist Mastery has reached level 8.

  Kick Mastery has reached level 6.

  Body Reinforcement has reached level 9.

  Mana Projection has reached level 11.

  Flame has reached level 3.

  ----------

  When Stella woke up, everyone immediately jumped up to see if she was alright, but she quickly dismissed all of their worries with a simple hand wave.

  At first, everyone insisted that she rest some more since the previous night’s events seemed to have taken a significant toll on her, but she adamantly refused.

  Resigned, and opting for changing the topic altogether, they quickly began to talk about other matches. And before they knew it, Stella had already taken control of the conversation, directing it toward where she wanted to.

  “I still don’t get why your mom didn’t want to create a hub,” Stella said, looking intently at Jamie, her eyes a bit dim. “The benefits that they provide are too much to simply not use them because of ‘not wanting to settle.’ How does she even manage her people?”

  Jamie was the only one Stella ever really felt was an equal. Someone she could use and blame him for letting himself be used. Luz was too young, she always felt more like a little sister, so using her felt wrong. Adrian was too old, so there was always a natural sense of distance. There was also the fact that while he was a man of short words, he always appeared to know more than you, far more.

  If she wanted to have some semblance of control in this conversation, she had to focus her efforts on Jamie. And since she had passed out the night before, needing to be carried back, she was already behind.

  “You know how she is,” Jamie said, casually dismissing the heart of the issue. “And you don’t have to worry about her control over her people. She has… other ways to do that—You must be Anna,” he said, standing up from his seat and approaching her with incredible ease. “I’ve heard so much about you. Not from Eric of course, but from… people. Your family was always weird. So many connections, I guess now we all know why, huh?” he added, winking.

  Anna flinched at his comment. In fact, all three friends did. The reason they knew anything about Anna’s family was due to the small pieces of information they knew because of Anna, so how did Jamie know.

  From his wording it was clear that they began to suspect them from even before the integration, which only made it weirder. As far as Anna knew, her family was perfectly normal.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  The strangest thing about them, according to her, was the fact that they had money. It was strange because no one in her family worked a “big” job, but she easily attributed it to generational wealth and nothing more. But now she had to question everything.

  “Jamie,” Adrian said, his voice stern and his intent clear.

  “Sorry, sorry,” Jamie said, raising his hands in surrender. “But anyway, that’s all from us. All that we’re allowed to share anyways.” He turned to Stella. “Oh! I guess I can share one more thing. How we got here if we don’t have a hub, right?”

  “I actually was wondering about that,” Alex said. “I’m pretty sure that we all saw you running out from the elf’s pagoda. I’m guessing both things are related, right?”

  “Yes, we had to use an enemy portal because mom refuses to set up a hub. You know how she is…” Jamie said, taking a brief pause as his eyes fixed on Stella’s. “Without her old contacts she’s just doing whatever she wants.”

  Stella’s eyes widened a bit, regaining a bit of clarity.

  “But this talk about my family—.”

  “What talk?” Stella said, cutting him off. She had suddenly gained a boost of energy. “You’re not getting out of this conversation so easily. You’ve barely talked about your family at all. I also have a question about something I heard the elves say. Who or what did they mean when they talked about ‘her?’”

  Jamie blinked repeatedly in an exaggerated manner. “As I was saying, all this talk about my family.” He looked one way, and then to the other. “It makes me wonder… Just where is my little brother?”

  Stella immediately caught on to the fact that it was a topic that they weren’t willing to share. To the point where they brought forth something that they knew would define the rest of this conversation.

  Immediately, both Stella and Adrian turned to look at each other. Adrian was looking for any movement, any little detail that might escape her. He was gearing up for her answer, and he was determined to find out if it was the truth or not.

  Luz, feeling that he was the least experienced of the three friends. turned to look at Alex, who quickly returned her glance, if a bit awkward. And Jamie focused on Anna, merely because she was the only one left.

  Stella, not wanting time to drag on for too long and allow the three siblings to grasp some hidden information, quickly gave an answer. “He’s busy elsewhere,” she said flatly.

  Overexplaining was a key aspect of how to identify lying, keeping it simple was the best option. But that mostly applied to average people, with Eric’s family… it was a toss up.

  “With what?” Adrian asked, his expression unchanged, still fixed on her.

  “Matters of Solace. I don’t think those involve you,” Stella answered, her tone sharp.

  “Specifically?” Adrian insisted.

  “They don’t involve you,” Stella repeated.

  Time began to crawl. The three siblings narrowed their eyes and focused on their targets and almost in unison let out a sigh.

  “So, are they?” Adrian asked, turning to both Luz and Jamie.

  “Yes,” Luz answered as she kept trying to focus on something in Alex’s expression. “I still don’t know the how, but it’s clear that they are the same.”

  “Jamie?” Adrian asked.

  “They are one hundred percent lying about where Eric is,” Jamie said, causing the three friends’ eyes to widen in surprise. All three of them slowly shifting into combat positions. “But I can’t see how,” Jamie added, dismissing their movements.

  “Is it like we suspected?” Adrian asked.

  “I believe so. My intuition is screaming at me that they’re lying, but their bodies refuse to give anything up,” Jamie began, taking a few steps back. “Like Luz, I also think they’ve also been affected by it. I’m most surprised that he was affected by it as much as he was considering how little he’s known Eric,” he said, pointing at Alex.

  “What are you talking about?” Alex asked in surprise.

  “Later, later,” Jamie said dismissively. He then turned to his sister. “Your turn, any idea?”

  “Forest,” Luz answered, her eyes appearing distant. “There’s also water nearby, a lot of it. And… a city? Their’s?—No, but there are buildings.”

  “Adrian?” Jamie said in a questioning tone.

  “There are no forests in our continent,” Adrian answered.

  “Good enough for me,” Jamie said with a smile. “Let’s go.”

  With that the three siblings approached the door, only to be stopped by Anna’s drawn sword.

  “What was that all about?” she asked, some irritation clear on her face. “You think you can come here and—”

  “Let them go Anna,” Stella interjected, rubbing her forehead. “I’m not entirely sure that we can afford to take them on right now.”

  “Who says we’re the ones who—”

  “I’m not saying we’ll lose; I’m only saying that we can’t afford to take them on at this very moment. If you really want to fight them, than just stay in the tournament instead of risking an injury here,” Stella said, trying to make herself clear. “Plus, they weren’t here on a friendly visit, they were only following orders. So, don’t judge them too hard.”

  “Just like I remember you. Cool and able to see through anything,” Luz said with a smile, genuinely amazed at Stella’s attitude.

  “I’m still telling your brother about this,” Stella said, a grin forming in her face.

  “Fuck,” Luz said.

  “Language,” Adrian said, smacking Luz on the back of her head.

  Suddenly, the atmosphere changed. It was heavy only seconds ago and now it wasn’t, it was even friendly to a certain extent. Anna’s sword vanished and the stone that was slowly beginning to cover Alex’s arms, began to crumble and fall.

  “Looking forward to our fight,” Jamie said with a smile as he closed the door, but his words rung hollow.

  As the door closed and the mood of the room settled from what odd mess it had been a few moments before, Anna broke the silence.

  “Did they just imply that they know about us? I’ve never even heard about them, and they know about the fact that my family has to do with this tournament?”

  “They also seemed to know how long I’ve been friends with Eric. What was that about?” Alex asked, the tension leaving his body.

  “I don’t know,” Stella said, her voice tired from the short interaction. “That’s just how they’ve always been. His mother is even worse. And now that they know that Eric isn’t in Solace, we have to make preparations as soon as we get back. I’m guessing that Luz was somehow seeing where we came from.”

  “Forest…” Anna muttered. “Is that why she said forest and all that other stuff? Because she saw the trees and everything that surrounded Solace?”

  “That would be my guess,” Stella answered.

  “You seem a lot calmer than when you first told us about Eric’s family. What happened?” Alex asked, his brow furrowed.

  “I don’t know,” Stella said, rising to her feet. “I guess I was just afraid that this new world would have changed them for the worse. And while I still don’t think we’re entirely safe, I do think we’re safer than I thought we would be.”

  “I get why you think we’re safer than you originally thought,” Anna began, her eyes narrowing toward Stella. “They clearly have enemies they have to deal with, and we won’t be a priority, at least not yet. But…” She paused, her gaze gaining a certain intensity, “that’s not really why your relaxed, is it?”

  Alex frowned, quickly glancing between Anna and Stella. “What does she mean?”

  “I mean that she was never really worried about Eric’s family at all, at least they weren’t her main concern. Were they?”

  Stella gave a forced smile as she looked directly at Anna’s eyes. “Later,” she said, taking in a deep breath through her nose, her expression changing. “For now, we have greater issues. For one, did you miss that whole interaction were they treated us like we were infected with something?”

  “Yeah, what was that about?” Alex said, following along, eager to change the topic.

  “This isn’t over,” Anna said, her voice firm. “But yes, I did notice. And it has something to do with Eric.”

  “What would Marcus say in this situation?” Stella asked, tapping her chin with a finger. “‘Why is that fucker still causing us trouble?’ or something like that, right?”

  “Seems about right,” Alex said, letting out a laugh.

  Anna tried to keep her expression firm, fixed on Stella, but eventually, she too broke into laughter. What Stella had said wasn’t that funny, or at all, but it was clear to the two friends that Stella needed a laugh.

  If you have any suggestions of what you'd like to see, characters or plot points that you're curious about, please let me know in the comments. And if you can, please drop a rating or review, good or bad, I want to know how I'm doing and your feedback is the best indicator.

  Once again, thank you for reading!