Everyone had their weapons drawn, eyes locked on Luke as he calmly returned his kukri to his inventory. The tension was thick. Some watched him, waiting—maybe even hoping—for him to make a move. The anger in the room was palpable, but Luke didn't care.

"Lower your weapons," Allison said firmly. "Haven't I already explained his side of the story? Haven't I proven to you that Bartholomew's been lying to us—hiding a mechanism all along?"

"And we're just supposed to believe that Paul, who's always been one of us, was actually betraying us?" someone snapped back.

"That's the truth," Luke said, voice steady. "And he would've killed every last one of you if that's what it took to stop you from escaping this world."

The others stared at him, their expressions twisted with a mix of anger, disgust, and deep-seated hatred.

"Alright, alright," Evangeline cut in, stepping forward. "Seems like we're off to a fun start. If I wasn't already sick of being stuck in this tutorial, I might even enjoy watching this whole Wild West standoff play out. But here's the thing—we're short on people, and our enemies include Bartholomew, a bunch of psychotic killers, and every last nightmare this tutorial has to offer. So unless any of you have a helicopter to fly me out of here and straight to the castle, I'd prefer if you didn't start murdering each other."

Luke stood up from his chair.

"The truth is, I chose to take the blame and disappear. Not that I had much of a choice. Most of you wanted me dead back then—remember? So don't blame me. It was me against all of you and Bartholomew. After I killed Paul, vanishing was the only option."

Evangeline moved to stand beside him.

"Some of you already know each other, but I'll do introductions anyway."

She pointed as she went.

"The guy with the rapier is Quinn. The one who almost threw a spear through your face—that's Eugene. And the woman over there, who's more man than the rest of you put together, that's Miriam. Barbarian class."

She moved around the room, pointing at each person as she spoke. They were the core leaders of the Haven, each strong in their own right.

Gilbert was a Ranger-class fighter who wielded a hand axe. Then there was Byron, a mage specializing in barrier spells and lightning magic. Aside from Evangeline and Allison, there were two unfamiliar faces Luke didn't recognize. The first was Dustin, a newcomer who had joined the Haven after Luke had already left. He wasn't affiliated with any faction and preferred to operate alone. The last was Mason, a noble like Allison, who had lived in Bastion. He had joined the group after learning that Allison was also in this world.

"Like him or not, believe him or not, Luke is still our best chance of escaping this world," Allison said, cutting through the tension as she returned focus to the meeting.

Even though the tension had eased slightly, Luke noticed that everyone still had their weapons in hand. They didn't trust him. Not yet.

"Why do we need him?" Gilbert asked, voice sharp. "We've all grown stronger. We're powerful now. If we move fast and work as a team, we could take down a Midnight Warden. So what makes this guy so special?"

Evangeline sat down in a chair and crossed her legs with deliberate poise.

"Maybe because he's the only one who went into the new area of the tutorial, survived its dangers, found the third mechanism, and made it back alive?" she said, her voice laced with sarcasm.

Eugene turned to Luke, the corner of his mouth twitching.

"Well, that's easy to solve. Let's just torture him until he gives us everything he knows."

Luke chuckled quietly and leaned back in his chair, utterly unbothered.

"Tell them, Luke," Allison said, not looking away. "Would you give up what you know if we tortured you?"

"No," he replied with a faint smile. "Go ahead and try. Rip out an eye, an arm, a leg. Cut off fingers, nails. I've already suffered more than enough in this life."

"See?" Allison said, turning to the others. "We need him. We don't have a choice. He's the most valuable person here."

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Gilbert scoffed and clicked his tongue. "We'll manage. We'll find the third mechanism on our own."

Luke seriously doubted that. He had spent weeks wandering through the capital of the Midnight Kingdom, dodging death at every turn while searching for the third fortress. The idea that these people—comfortable and clueless—could retrace his steps was laughable.

"You wouldn't last a single night in that place," he said flatly.

"What did you say?" someone snapped, voice sharp with anger.

He didn't bother answering. Inwardly, he sighed. These people from the Haven didn't see him as an ally anymore—and they never would. That was fine. He was done pretending to be one of them. From now on, he played a different role.

He was a player now. And he held the best cards at the table.

"What class level are you guys at?" he asked, his tone casual, but his eyes sharp.

No one answered. That kind of information was far too personal.

Luke stood and slowly walked around the room, letting the silence hang. His gaze scanned the group, reading the flickers of discomfort.

"What is it? Level 20?" he asked, amused. "Wow. Level 30?"

A few pairs of eyes darted away.

"Hmm... Looks like it's under 40, huh?" he said with disdain.

He stopped beside the table in the center of the room and rested a hand on its edge.

"I know that other side better than any of you. I know every threat, every path to avoid them—and more importantly, I know the exact location of the third mechanism. Good luck finding that fortress in a capital-sized city. That's the truth: you need me. And right now, the one person who can actually help you is being treated like trash. Not exactly the smartest move."

He gave a dry laugh. "Honestly, you should be kissing my ass."

Gilbert slammed a fist down on the table, rattling a few empty mugs.

"I don't need to hear another word from this idiot. We'll figure it out. We'll explore that whole damn area. I'm sure we'll find it eventually."

Luke didn't flinch. He stepped closer to Gilbert, his voice quiet but firm.

"I believe you. But how many people are going to die in the process? I'm guessing a lot." He leaned in slightly. "And how long will it take? It took me months. Do you have that kind of time?"

The room fell silent.

"He's right," Allison said, folding her arms. "Once we activate the second mechanism, Bartholomew becomes our enemy. I'll take care of that part. But don't forget, we'll still have to deal with the threat around the third mechanism—and clear part of this forest to build hundreds of boats. All while preparing for the final war of the tutorial."

Her gaze moved across the room, firm and steady.

"Do you really think we can afford to waste time searching for that third fortress? When the second mechanism is activated, it becomes a race. Bartholomew won't just sit around. He might attack the second fortress the moment we leave it unguarded. Our best shot is getting help from the one person who spent months over there and knows more about that zone than any of us."

Luke walked over to the wall and leaned against it, arms crossed.

"Continue the report, Evangeline," Allison said.

Evangeline stepped up to the table and pointed at a marking on the map—a faded symbol representing the edge of the new area.

"Bartholomew is still sending his men to camp outside the barrier gate," she said. "Luke and I went there, stirred up a little trouble, and made it look like he returned to that zone. At the very least, it'll draw some of Bartholomew's attention away from the Wild Zone."

She glanced around the room.

"He doesn't know Luke has our support, and he has no idea how strong we've become. So he doesn't suspect we're this close to activating the second mechanism. Thanks to the distraction we set up, Bartholomew's now focused on tracking Luke down over there. And obviously, he can't afford to leave an army camped outside the second fortress, or they'd find out the truth — that Bastion already has one mechanism activated. This is the perfect window to act."

From the back of the room, someone stepped forward. It was Mason, quiet until now.

"And about the giant serpent guarding the area," he said. "You were about to tell us something before you got interrupted?"

All eyes turned to Evangeline.

"It's what we suspected," she said. Her voice was low, controlled. "That creature... it's the Beast Lord."

A wave of murmurs swept the room, and Luke could see the shift in their expressions—the tightening jaws, the flickers of fear. The Lords had always been threats, yes—but distant ones. The Orc Lord hadn't patrolled his territory personally. None of them had. Until now. This wasn't going to be a bonus objective. It was mandatory.

"We don't have a choice," Allison said flatly. "What else do we know?"

Evangeline scanned her notes.

"Several scouting teams from Bastion entered the region, and according to the reports, one of them actually saw the creature. They had fifteen people—twelve were killed by the Beast Lord. The three who made it back won't go near that place again. They're traumatized. Completely broken."

The room fell into a heavy silence. No one spoke. No one moved.

Gilbert was the one to break it.

"What does the serpent look like? How big is it?"

Evangeline hesitated for a second, recalling the details.

"In terms of length... about the size of a subway train."

"And how long is that exactly?" Dustin asked.

"Somewhere between five hundred and a thousand feet," Mason murmured, grim.

"Shit," Gilbert muttered, wiping his forehead. "The Orc Lord was bad enough. How the hell do you kill something that size?"

Luke leaned casually against the table, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

"I already killed it."

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