Knives & Levels - Chapter 97

Three days can be an eternity, or pass in a blink. While waiting to enter the dungeon, Colt balanced rigorous training with essential rest, making the most of each hour.

With balance as the key, his three days followed a simple structure. 

First, he'd get coffee, then meet Julia at the gate. They greeted each morning with warm drinks and a plan to sharpen their skills.

With the mist thick in the air on the first morning of their plan, Colt greeted her, and they got ready. Between the two of them, with their lack of responsibilities in the city itself, they'd agreed that hunting monsters outside was the best use of their time.

Since discovering the dungeon and identifying the phantom threat, New Nashville had suspended all scout missions and expeditions. 

That meant they were on their own every time he and Julia headed outside the gates. It was a comfortable thing, though just the two of them. The first day went with a rather disappointing turnout—they'd slain some monsters, Julia had gained a level, but Colt had not yet moved forward. It seemed that advancing after level 60 was significantly harder.

Each level now demanded significantly more effort to achieve.

Still, it wasn't all for naught. The first day yielded a minor skill gain.

———

Thread Weaver (Intermediate) has gained a level!

———

Looking at his status sheet, he noticed three unspent points. Without hesitation, he allocated them to Soul, bringing the stat to a formidable 167.

After the first day, Colt concluded his training with hours in the spa, staying until the kind old woman who ran it gently ushered him out at closing time.

These two factors combined left him feeling relaxed and balanced going into the second day. Though he had fought and expended his power the day before, he was still ready to approach further training.

The second day brought a surprise in the form of Julia showing up at the gate with Nick.

Colt walked up slowly, coffee steaming in his hand, as he looked at the Light Archer and his former teammate. Nick still refused to meet his eyes, and Julia scoffed, "We can't have this going into the dungeon anymore. I know you're still upset about the fact that we forced you into helping us with this, but if we're going to put each other's lives in each other's hands facing off against this threat, we all need to be on the same page."

“For what it’s worth, I’m not holding a grudge.” Colt offered, feeling pity more than anything toward his former ally. 

Nick looked at her and then looked at Colt. "I'm sorry," he said. The apology was lukewarm at best. The cynical part of Colt really wondered if he was just sorry that he had lost the fight against Nate.

In the interest of progressing forward, he accepted it nonetheless.

"It's alright," Colt said, now understanding why Julia had brought Nick. "I still remember the times we worked together. I remember how you and I ran miles around a fortress full of ogres with them trying to kill us. I know that you can be that person again, so let's see it today."

He offered a handshake, which Nick stared at for a second before accepting, making Colt feel a little warmer about the situation. Nick, more than the rest of them, had fallen off in power.

Working for Denny, who had been hoarding the resources to himself, meant that Nick was put at around level 50, considering Nate, Sarah, and Julia were also nearing their level 60. There was a bit of a gap, not enough to matter all that much, considering they didn't even know what they were getting into and had agreed to their tight timeline on the basis that the phantoms outside were at least killable.

But if anyone could benefit from another two days of power leveling outside the gate, it would be Nick.

It turned out Julia had been wise and thoughtful. Colt felt a flush of gratitude toward his ally as he took in Nick with them. She was right, if they were to work together, it had to start somewhere.

They moved forward out of the gate. The second day saw much of the same—they moved quickly, spotting down any enemies they could find, but the mist was so thick it made it difficult to plan and find what they were looking for, much like the first day.

None of them had the reconnaissance skills of a scout to rely upon, so mostly they relied on speed. As much as Julia and Nick could muster, flooding through the mist, searching for shapes to fight, it yielded alright results, with Nick managing to accumulate two levels. But neither Julia nor Colt saw themselves advance further.

Gradually over the course of the expedition, Nick began to warm. Warning them when he spotted something, listening to Colt, and getting into the correct positions. They didn't encounter many enemies—just some Orcs and odd small green monsters with three arms and pointed ears. The point of today was to get their group dynamics into working shape.

Things weren’t healed between them, not by a mile, but it was more cordial than before.

At the end of the day, Colt bid Nick farewell with a gruff, “Thanks for the chance,” and ended his day in the spa.

The warm waters and faint scent of lavender melted away the stress and tension of fighting. This balance between battle and relaxation was better than Colt could've ever expected.

The third day, they went easier, patrolling slowly, keeping an eye out, working on refining skills, which yielded yet another bonus for Colt, in the form of another skill gain after facing down one of the lurking Phantoms in the mist.

———

Olympic Physique (Intermediate) has gained a level!

———

Then the day ended with another warm spa, as the simplicity of their schedule let the time pass with a swift speed.

Though he had gained a couple of skills, none of them was very difference-making because they would be facing such a high-threat-level dungeon. It did mean, though, that for Colt, he could pass the time to make sure his body was up to capacity to deal with the current threat after his confrontation with Denny.

The last three days had proven to him that he was capable and ready for this next challenge.

Then, like a snap of fighting and resting, Colt found himself bright and early in the morning four days later, with the phantom mist curling around and leeching the life and heat from all their party. 

They gathered at the gate. It wasn't just them alone, though. Surrounding the exit to New Nashville was a crowd of people who had helped with the current fixes to the administration and were helping facilitate the further unification of the city under new leadership. And… Just some citizens who’d shown up to cheer on the people who were setting out to take on their greatest threat.

Over two hundred gathered, playing music. Some had brought signs, others a guitar, for an impromptu music session. It wouldn’t be New Nashville without that.

For Colt, it reminded him of something from those ancient medieval processions when an army left the city to go fight a war. In a way, he supposed this was a war—a war against an alien and foreign enemy who would see them dead.

It wasn’t the same as fighting humans. No, this enemy army was made up of system-generated creatures and monsters. It was nonetheless an army, one that he and his allies were going to face alone.

He briefly considered including some others among their number but didn't think that including more would necessarily improve their odds. He felt confident in his team and himself. He knew that this was the perfect make-up to minimize the risks and maximize their chances of conquering the threat that was spawning this awful mist.

Cheers and cries from children and adults wishing them luck echoed through the air. The five of them set forward, the city at their back.

He stopped at the gate as a familiar hand tugged at his back. "Jimmy," Colt heard. "Colt, I can't let you go. Let me come with you," Jimmy said, drawing them to a stop.

They exchanged looks. Where Nick was a few levels below them, Jimmy was still sitting a little above level 30—not at all a condition to bring him into such a battlefield, despite the usefulness of his healing abilities.

"No," Colt said, shaking his head. "We would love to have you, but we can't. Jimmy, it's too dangerous there. I don't even know that we'll make it out. You are at such a low level—a glancing blow from any of our enemies could end you in a second. It would be criminal to let you come along for the ride."

The benefits of having a healer held significant value to him, especially one they'd worked with before. But Jimmy was never really meant for the battlefield. He’d admitted as much.

Jimmy's face deepened with a frown, and Colt set a hand on his shoulder. "Jimmy, some people are meant for fighting. You told me that it wasn't something you were interested in, but these powers you have don't have to be used purely on a battlefield. Make the most of what you have, and live a peaceful life. We will look after you, but you must look after yourself and realize your strengths and weaknesses."

Jimmy stared at him, tears coming, but slowly nodded in acceptance. The truth was, Colt knew he didn't want to come. Even though he made himself say this and would have perhaps forced himself to, he didn't have the willpower to carry through the mission they were about to embark on.

And that, more than anything, would have made Jimmy a severe liability and a mistake to include on this journey.

Colt felt a sadness as he turned away. Some people you outgrew, he supposed. Though they’d started their journey into this new world together, it had become clear that their future was heading in radically different directions.

With the last farewell said to his friend, Colt joined his team. Surrounded by the warm cheers of the crowd, they passed through the gates of New Nashville, perhaps for the last time.