I Don't Need To Log Out

Chapter 24 Leveling Up (2)

"Are the preparations for the saviors' tournament complete?" asked a man whose presence commanded the room. This was Zephyrion, the ruler of Trion, his gaze steady and authoritative.

"Yes, sir! Everything is ready," replied Ben, one of Zephyrion's closest aides and a constant figure by his side. Then, with a hint of hesitation, he added, "If you don't mind me asking, what is the purpose of this tournament? As far as I know, the saviors are still... lesser beings. They wouldn't be able to demonstrate much in a competition."

Zephyrion sighed, his tone softening slightly. "How many times must I remind you not to call me 'sir' when we're alone?" He waved the matter away and continued, "The tournament isn't about spectacle this time. There's more to gain. First and foremost, we'll identify saviors with potential—those who can be trained and developed more quickly."@@@@

This was Zephyrion's primary aim for the tournament. It was a clever plan in theory, but unbeknownst to him, the saviors—players from Earth—lacked the combat instincts necessary to make it work.

In the previous timeline, no savior had shown any real potential during the tournament. While two high-level players had been persuaded to undergo specialized training, they quit soon after. To them, this world was just a game. Why spend hours training when skills could be instantly activated by simply calling out their names, and death itself was little more than a minor setback? The need for rigorous practice didn't resonate with them.

Zephyrion's words were interrupted as he moved to explain further.

"Secondl—"

"Sir! Urgent news!" A man burst into the room, his breathing labored, an envelope clutched tightly in his hand.

Zephyrion turned to him, his expression hardening. "What is it?"

"A Keldar has been discovered beneath Oceina, and..." the messenger began, delivering a detailed account of the events. Finally, he handed over the envelope.

Zephyrion took the letter and scanned it quickly. His eyes narrowed, and his jaw tightened as he finished reading. "This is from Charon. I didn't think that old warhound was still out in the field," he muttered.

Ben noticed the change in his ruler's demeanor. "What does it say?"

Zephyrion's tone was sharp and decisive. "Postpone the tournament by one week."

"Understood," Ben said, though the sudden shift left him curious.

Zephyrion continued, "Also, have we sent any guides to the frontlines yet?"

"No, sir. The guides are all too high-level to be deployed there," Ben replied.

Zephyrion tapped the letter against his palm thoughtfully. "Charon mentions a guide named Arlon who discovered the monster beneath Oceina—and provided intelligence that may have saved Trion itself. This Arlon is worth investigating. Find out everything about him. If necessary, go to Istarra yourself. I'm entrusting this task to you personally. Also, assign two trustworthy administrators to search for Shirl Delvi's family and watch Magus Council's last movements."

Ben straightened, understanding the gravity of the assignment. "I'll leave at once, sir."

---

After the intense battle with Corven, the Gamers pressed on toward their destination. The remainder of their journey was relatively uneventful, though a few groups of low-level Keldars did attempt to ambush them. The encounters were minor compared to their earlier ordeal, and the Gamers handled them with ease.

As the day wore on, the horizon changed, signaling they were nearing their goal. By the time the sun dipped lower and the servers prepared to close, they finally arrived at Istarra.

They immediately headed for the Moonlight Potion Store to see Charon.

Pierre stepped forward, gesturing toward Shirl. "Sir Charon, this is Shirl," he said, his tone formal.

Charon gave the girl a brief, assessing glance. "Understood. You may leave," he said curtly, his demeanor as cold and businesslike as ever.

The Gamers exchanged glances but did as they were told. The servers were about to close, and they were eager to wrap up the mission.

---

Arlon reached the next settlement shortly after. The air grew heavier as he approached, the faint stench of Keldars' presence lingering like a warning. The settlement was larger than the last with crude stone huts sprawled across a rocky plateau. From the shadows, Arlon observed the Keldars as they moved about. They were completely unaware of the storm heading their way.

He crouched low and strategized his approach. The cluster of Keldars here numbered at least fifty, with a handful appearing more organized than the rest. A rare sight—Keldars with rudimentary formations.

"Interesting," With a faint smile tugging at his lips, Arlon muttered to himself. "They're trying to adapt."

But adaptation wasn't enough to save them. He decided to try his new skill and activated Silent Step. He closed the distance to the nearest group, his black sword absorbing the sunlight.

Before they could react, Arlon moved like a shadow through their ranks. His sword cut through the air, landing clean and decisive strikes. His movements were efficient, almost mechanical, as he dispatched the Keldars.

Immediately, he held onto the now-dead bodies of the Keldars and moved them away from the settlement. His trial with the new skill was a success and he didn't want to be discovered. It was time to get back to his main leveling plan.

He went back to the settlement and thought of starting with a fireball again. Casting a fireball was as easy as moving his hand now. This was the good thing about learning spells and not skills.

Skills were static—locked to their initial power level. Spells, on the other hand, grew with their caster, becoming faster, stronger, and more refined over time.

Skills were always the same. If they were strong, they were strong and if they were weak they stayed weak.

But spells could be advanced. For example, drawing more mana for a single spell was also possible.

Of course, a fireball spell would never be as strong as a meteor spell. But it would be much stronger than a fireball skill.

And one thing Arlon knew was Demons, the twelve strongest fighters of the Keldars, would attack with skills and not their own strength. Since their skills were strong, they didn't mind not training with spells or their own powers.

In the meantime, he chose his target. This was another building with wood as its material, so it would be better to hit it instead of the stone ones.

The fireball streaked across the settlement and smashed into the wooden building, the explosion lighting up the twilight sky. Flames spread rapidly, consuming the fragile structure.

The moment the fireball hit the building, shouts erupted as the Keldars scrambled out of their huts, weapons in hand. Arlon started to run away.

He didn't linger this time since there were more Keldars than the last settlement. They wouldn't be able to hurt him but if he was surrounded, the process would take a lot longer than intended.

Since he wasn't in a valley this time, he headed toward the most rocky area he could find.

The process was the same. He would wait for the Keldars to come, use Blizzard while the Keldars were trying to pass through the rocky area and kill them easily.

So, he started this process and used Blizzard when he saw the Keldars. They were gathered conveniently thanks to the rocky surface. A swirling storm of ice and snow engulfed the rocky path, the temperature plummeting in an instant. Keldars stumbled and slowed as the icy winds cut into them, their footing made treacherous by the frozen ground.

But something was off. Amid the chaos, one figure moved unaffected by the storm, striding forward as if the cold didn't touch it.

Arlon narrowed his eyes and activated Eyes of *****, his vision sharpening to reveal details hidden in the storm. His gaze locked onto the figure, but before the information could register, he heard a deep, guttural voice laced with venom;

"So, it was you who killed my kin."

Arlon froze for a moment, his mind racing. A Keldar that could talk? This wasn't in his plans.

"Well," Arlon said, gripping his sword tighter, a flicker of excitement in his voice. "This just got interesting."