Fatigue washed over my body. I'd spent the entire day running from place to place, and this last encounter had completely drained me. As I sat on the ground, I watched the three of them climb down from their positions and run toward me.

"Are you okay?" Arisa was the first to ask, beginning to examine me carefully for any signs of injury.

"Are you really just an Amethyst rank? There's no way you took down that many goblins on your own." Bush narrowed his eyes as he looked me over. I didn't sense any hostility in his Imra—just curiosity.

"I'm fine. I didn't take any direct hits or slashes." I answered Arisa softly as I accepted her hand and stood up. I gave Bush an innocent smile, ignoring his question.

"We should take the grade-two core. It might be useful," Miroi reminded us, standing behind the others and scanning our surroundings.

"I don't know how to extract it." My response was completely honest. I had never learned how.

"I'll take care of it. My dad taught me." He ran over to the hobgoblin, using a small knife to search around the chest until he found it.

We waited a moment, and once he was done, we started heading back to the cave where we were sheltering. Along the way, we avoided all the grade-one rabbits. We didn't want to get into a fight at night without any advantage.

Once we arrived, we sat in a circle. Miroi spent a while trying to light a fire. He finally succeeded, giving us a bit of light and comfort.

"That was brutal, Maki. For a moment, we really thought about jumping in to help you." Miroi seemed more relaxed now and was speaking more than usual.

"Arisa almost ran straight to you when we saw the hobgoblin." Bush, sitting across from me, was promptly smacked on the head by Arisa. She sat beside me, examining me again to make sure I was really unhurt.

"Thanks for your concern, guys." The gratitude came from the heart. Even though I didn't need their help, the gesture mattered.

"So what do we do tomorrow? Will we train against the rabbits?" Arisa looked at me like the question was directed at me alone.

"That's the plan. You need experience in real combat where you can actually get hurt. But don't overdo it. We don't have many potions, and if you get injured, you'll be out of commission." The three of them nodded. Their eyes showed concern—a simple cut could be dangerous right now.

My body felt heavy. I needed to sleep soon. I looked at their faces—they were in the same state. We were still recovering from when we first woke up. Adrenaline had made me forget everything.

"You can go sleep if you want. You'll need all your energy for tomorrow." They all agreed, stood up, and headed to their makeshift beds made from spare clothes.

"Aren't you coming to sleep?" Arisa asked, looking back.

"In five minutes." My answer seemed to ease her, and she kept walking. First, I needed to check my notifications—I had to have leveled up a lot after such an intense battle.

I've gained so many levels! My eyes widened with surprise as I looked through all the notifications. Excitement surged through me. Finally—finally—I could raise my Imra Sword Reinforcement skill to rank III.

Maki: 8 years old – Advanced Amethyst Rank Skills:

Fortified Construction (III) – Lv. 1 → Lv. 2

Sword Reinforcement (II) – Lv. 13 → Lv. 15

Pseudo Domain (II) – Lv. 9 → Lv. 10

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

Lightning Step (II) – Lv. 7 → Lv. 8

Concentrated Spherical Formation (II) – Lv. 11 → Lv. 13

Glacial Focus (II) – Lv. 5 → Lv. 7

"Sword Reinforcement has reached level fifteen. New evolution paths available…"

"Sharp Blade Reinforcement, Crushing Blade Reinforcement, Razor Cuts, Edge Control."

I understood the first two. The first one was the standard evolution, and the second was a variation I'd been trying by making my Imra denser. "Razor Cuts" likely came from trying to slice everything with my Imra. "Edge Control"? That sounded broader—probably connected to the path I was taking. I often focused on controlling the sharpness of my Imra for slicing attacks. This is tough...

I didn't want to follow the standard path. The first two were off the table. The third one was interesting, but the fourth—that was what I was looking for. I didn't want to rely on my sword alone. There could be times I'm unarmed, or when I want to infuse Imra into my mana constructs. That ability could shine in many situations. I chose the last one.

"Sword Reinforcement has evolved into Edge Control." A soft voice echoed through my mind. It wasn't like hearing it—it was more like a thought placed in my head.

Now I had two skills at rank III. Just four more to go. The closest one to leveling up was Concentrated Spherical Formation. It would be hard to level it quickly without using the new version. What if I started making electricity spheres? With a new idea in mind, I headed to bed. Time to rest and be in top shape for tomorrow.

We woke up just before sunrise. Our breakfast was light, as we watched the rays of sun filter in through the small opening in the cave.

"Are you ready for your first hunt?" Everyone froze. Their faces showed different reactions. "Just do your best. I'll step in if I see you're in critical danger." If they were in danger or got hurt, I'd let it happen. But if I saw a potentially lethal blow coming, I'd do my best to stop it.

We rested a little before heading out. We were looking for a large group of rabbits. They were just kids—but the top three kids in the tournament. Probably the most talented in their generation in the marquisate. At the very least, they should be able to handle five or six.

After a long search, we found what looked like a rabbit den. I couldn't get an exact count without getting closer, but some moved in smaller groups—at least seven.

"Get ready. You'll attack from the front." They could ambush them and win easily—but that wouldn't count for this kind of practice.

"There are seven rabbits. You should be able to win." The three of them nodded, dropped from the tree, and waited a few seconds. When the rabbits saw them, they began to growl and took defensive stances, their large horns pointed forward.

The first two rabbits leapt with great force straight at the trio. Miroi managed to create two earthen walls, slowing their charge enough for the others to dodge. He pulled back further—he would support from the rear with walls and earthen spikes, balancing offense and defense. Bush and Arisa, being more offensive, moved into the fray. They'd avoid being surrounded and rely on Miroi if they made any mistakes.

Their first battle was decent. Coordination was rough, nerves caused some slip-ups, and the rabbits' speed made everything harder. But in the end, they won—thanks to Miroi's walls. No critical injuries. Just some scrapes from being pushed back. No one got gored or slashed.

"Miroi, good job. You've got a bright future as a support."

"Arisa, Bush—great offense. Your slashes and magic attacks can pierce the rabbits' defenses. Don't focus on killing them in one hit—wear them down first. That's what made you mess up and almost get hurt."

Miroi looked at me with a happy smile and nodded. Arisa stared at the ground and Bush locked eyes with me.It looked like all three understood their roles now. That first fight had been their welcome to real combat—and with their talent, they'd only get better.

"What do you want to do now? Rest or continue?" The strain wasn't physical—it was mental.

"I want to keep fighting." Bush answered first. The others simply nodded. They were gradually overcoming their fear—turning it into courage.

"Let's go. Back to the rabbit den."

That's how it went for two full days. The three of them started leveling up their skills, which made things easier. They also began coordinating better, and by the end, they would wait for my feedback. Since when did I become a coach?

They could now face up to nine monsters of the same grade with difficulty. They slowly reduced the numbers, finishing each battle exhausted, both physically and mentally. That was a huge step forward.

I used the time to begin crafting electric spheres with ice spikes—and vice versa. I could feel their speed and power improving. So far, we hadn't encountered any more goblins in the past two days.

"We're heading back early. The fatigue is piling up—you're all getting clumsier toward the end." Continuous fighting was pushing them to the limit. I was the only one still fully rested. We made our way back to the cave—our base. Seriously, when did I become their leader?

We arrived. They ate fried fish and went to sleep. I had been fishing while they trained. At first, it was ridiculously hard—but I'd started to get the hang of it and improved a bit.

"I didn't expect to run into someone from another world again." A voice echoed in my mind. It made me jump and instantly draw my swords.

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