[Ding!]

[Welcome to the First Realm, Lord Crow]

Oliver’s body materialized in the midst of the familiar streets of Alkarya. The bright lighting, the beautiful blue skies, and the clear, breathable air greeting him like an old companion.

This place was surely a step up in comfort and convenience compared to the suffocating presence of the Dark Castle.

Oliver yawned, stretching his hands high into the air, his joints cracking faintly from exhaustion. He turned one last time to the swirling portal behind him, its dark energy pulsing ominously, and smiled faintly beneath his mask.

"See you later, Eva."

With that, he left the portal behind, taking the usual routes as he headed to his first stop upon returning, which was meeting Jarvis to sell all his materials.

As he walked, he made sure to pay attention to his surroundings, watching the glances people gave him.

Only a few waved. Others paid little to no attention.

Definitely, his hype as the new Ranker had died down greatly during the past few weeks.

This was quite a bonus to Oliver, since he neither liked nor wanted any form of unnecessary attention.

He continued through the familiar paths for a few more seconds until he spotted the large stall at the intersection. There was just one customer there, packing his purchased materials neatly into a storage bag. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

From his clothing alone, he looked to be part of a well-established guild.

Given the blue uniform and the spear strapped firmly across his back, Oliver could only assume he was part of the Blue Shark Guild.

A powerful guild, with vast resources that allowed its members to grow at an accelerated rate. For anyone who had just Awakened and become a Player, this was the best guild to join if they wanted steady, progressive growth—reaching the tenth level in almost a year’s time.

At some point, Oliver had wanted so badly to join them.

But well...

Right now, he had no more use for them.

Reaching the counter, the Blue Shark Awakener was already walking off, leaving Oliver as the only person before the shop.

Stopping there, Oliver watched as Jarvis Botswaner stood behind the counter, organizing a few of his goods with practiced ease.

"Hello, bright salesman. Can I get your attention?" Oliver said.

At first, Jarvis lingered. Then, upon turning around, his gaze lit up though for a brief second, it remained blank, as if confirming what he was seeing! before a wide grin stretched across his face.

Then he burst out laughing.

"Hahahahahah! Look at you, bastard! You look like you went to prison and back!"

Oliver couldn’t deny that part. He really did look like shit—thanks to the countless injuries and the dried blood staining his cloak in uneven patches.

"So, how has work been?" Oliver asked.

At this, Jarvis Botswaner shrugged casually. "I don’t really know. I’ve been making quite the sales lately... but I have missed my favorite customer."

"I’m glad to hear that."

Oliver raised his hand and began organizing all the products he wanted to sell. From the A-rank Cerberus cores to the Giant Knight cores, sending them all over to Jarvis in one smooth transfer.

However, he deliberately held back the Void Knight core and the core of the King he had obtained after speaking with Zeph.

He had special plans for those.

Jarvis Botswaner simply chuckled as he saw the materials being transferred. "Just when I thought you couldn’t surprise me any more than you already do."

Oliver nodded slightly. "As for my payment, I’ll need you to hold onto it... for now, at least."

With that, Oliver turned around to leave, but Jarvis suddenly stopped him, stretching out a hand as he spoke.

"Are you forgetting something?" he yelled.

Oliver halted, raising a brow in curiosity.

"Your damn contract!" Jarvis snapped, hastily transferring the contract back to Oliver as though it burned his hands.

He clearly wanted nothing more to do with it.

At this, Oliver smiled faintly. "Oh, I almost forgot..."

Before Oliver could finish, a strange thing occurred.

The space around him distorted, rippling like water struck by force as three figures burst out of nowhere, tackling him to the ground all at once with overwhelming brute force.

"Gahhhhh!" Oliver groaned, his hands spreading wide, ready to summon the Blades of Racell into his grasp when—

He saw their faces.

"You bastard! How dare you disappear on us like that!" Hera yelled. She was directly on top of him, her hands pressing firmly against his chest, pinning him down.

Zack was no different. In his grip was a gun, which he pointed straight at Oliver’s skull.

"Boss... I ain’t proud," Zack muttered, though his grip didn’t loosen.

Yuki was the last of the three.

But unlike the others, there was no anger on her face.

Instead, she wore a beautiful, calm smile as she bent slightly forward, her gaze soft yet observant as she looked down at him.

She was the oldest among them, older than Oliver in his current life. So naturally, she was the most mature.

Her and Jarvis...

’Well, scratch that. Just her.’

Oliver thought, glancing toward Jarvis, who leaned casually on the counter, stretching out both hands and flashing two middle fingers at him.

He was clearly still pissed about being left with the slave contract without even being given the chance to respond.

"Next time you want to run, at least tell us. Sheesh!" Hera said, sliding strands of her hair behind her ear. "If you would have told us, we would have gladly followed. After all... we are your party."

Oliver let his lips curl behind the mask and nodded slightly. "Can I be allowed to rise now?"

Hera shook her head, smiling as she glanced at Zack, then back at Oliver, her warm gaze locking directly into his empty eyes.

"Actually..." she paused.

"There is something we would like for you to see."

***Author’s note***

Thank you for always reading loyally.

Thank you for also binging up to this moment.

Thank you for everything. Please continue to support.