Windkeep was still standing by the time Lev returned, which was a positive. Considering how his presence kept luring calamities one after another, returning to ruins was one of Lev's greatest nightmares.

The sigh of relief that escaped him after seeing intact walls and a lack of destruction could attest to that.

Showing his fancy new platinum badge at the gate, he was allowed entry without any trouble. If anything, the guards immediately stood straighter because they knew Lev was solo. None of them had seen him come and go with anyone else.

News about his victories in the tournament had also spread, which explained the more than usual glances from people. Or maybe they just noticed something he didn't, which was slightly worrisome.

Putting the weird looks out of his mind, Lev contemplated what to do next. Delving again was off-limits as a wave could form at any moment. The previous one was three weeks ago, and they usually happened monthly.

In the same vein, he didn't want to just rush into the dungeon by himself again. Fighting alongside the defenders in front of the wall was the primary goal of growing stronger, and his arsenal was also shaping up to be supremely useful against large hordes, especially with the recent upgrades.

Do I go look for Beatrice, though?

That question bothered him. They were close, but not nearly enough for Lev to seek her out whenever he wanted. Circumstances had pushed them on the same path abruptly, and he supposed some time apart would do them good.

His wandering took him through the empty streets, where he refrained from letting his mind wander. Instead, Lev observed all the little details he usually missed.

In front of him, a worker was carrying a little girl who was staring at him. Lev just smiled at her and looked around. People were going about their day on the large road, some carrying hundreds of pounds on their backs without breaking a sweat. One large man was even dragging a cart filled with barrels with a single hand while ogling a group of women down the street.

Some things never change, Lev mused, also ignoring any such enticing sights. The people of Monarch were modest, but they were also so goddamned beautiful because of healthier physiques. He was infinitely grateful for growing up in the occasional presence of Orianna, who made everyone else's looks feel tame.

Minutes turned into hours as he simply walked with his Perception pulled back. Time passed far too quickly but he was getting used to it. When he was done exploring the residential district, he instead made his way closer to the base of the wall.

Nobody was going in that direction, though. Curious, Lev continued towards the wall as the crowds around him thinned, replaced by the more subdued or thuggish kind of folks. He got plenty of greedy glances but anyone who could feel his aura knew that he wasn't someone to be messed with. Not like anyone was above level 150 in that place, to begin with, even if they were all combatants.

Shady area, hmm? Lev debated turning around but he couldn't see why passing through would be an issue. Not like he was disturbing anyone's peace, given how the place became even emptier as the wall loomed closer.

Several auras were still present here and there, which he ignored until a certain point. Lev stopped in the middle of the road and turned around, finding a pale bald man staring back from atop a triple-story building.

[Rogue - Level 208]

No weapons were drawn but the man's hand hovered near the sheathed daggers on his waist. Lev didn't make a move except summoning his barrier armor, just in case.

"Turn back, kid," the rogue spoke in a deep, echoing voice. It lacked any weight that usually accompanied such a deep accent however.

"Don't wanna," Lev replied, constantly scanning his surroundings. They were alone. "I just want to see the base of the wall."

"There are plenty of ways to do that away from here. Don't make me repeat myself."

Ignoring him, Lev instead flew up and started jumping from roof to roof, closing the distance between him and the wall. With a small sigh, he stopped and grabbed the hand reaching for his neck from behind. It wasn't an attack or anything dangerous but it annoyed him much the same.

Bones creaked in between his armored hand as the rogue's eyes narrowed, surprised at the sheer strength from a mage. At least, that was probably what he deduced from Lev's aura.

"What, exactly, is your problem?" Lev asked slowly, not hiding his irritation.

"It's you, brat," the rogue spat back, visibly angry. "Why do you insist on making life much harder for yourself?"

"Explain."

His eyes narrowed even further. "Do you even know where we are?"

Lev's anger slowly dispersed, giving rise to confusion. "Seems like some shady area but I doubt I was gonna run into trouble."

The rogue actually facepalmed as Lev let go of his hand. "Kid, the Masters up ahead are the ones you don't ever want nearing anyone. You want to see the base of the wall? Follow me."

"… You better tell me what that means."

"Sure, get away from here first," the rogue replied as he jumped away, his trajectory on track to meet the wall several kilometers away.

Curiosity was running rampant in Lev as he followed. The man's words were enough to convince him not to go deeper into that part yet.

He followed behind, leaping over buildings without talking. In terms of speed, Lev could easily overtake the rogue but the man didn't seem to be in a hurry.

"Is asking for names offensive around these parts?"

"Depends," came the answer. "Mainly on who you're asking. I go by Stalker."

Lev stayed quiet, not sure how to answer. "I don't have such a nickname to give."

"You don't need to introduce yourself," the rogue said, some amusement finding its way into his gravely voice. "People here don't give a fuck."

Safe to say, Lev was very interested in said people by the time they reached an open square. Nearly two dozen hunters milled about, their classes as varied as their appearances.

True to Stalker's words, no one cared beyond some cursory scans but some eyes lingered still. It was not a neighbourhood Lev could take lightly, and the levels reflected that.

[Warrior - Level 220]

[Warrior - Level 199]

[Mage - Level 233]

…

[Rogue - Level 240]

Quite the force gathered in the middle of nowhere, Lev noted, somewhat wary, though nobody seemed to have negative intentions, given how everyone simply ignored him. Stalker glanced at him, silently telling him to follow.

Lev was led to a… small restaurant of sorts. It was an open-air location, with a large wooden dome for a ceiling, held up by eight thick pillars at the edges.

"Welcome," a warrior greeted with a polite smile. Without any armor or weapons, the man looked quite out of place. There wasn't any ring on his person either. "The Stalker stalked another one, eh? Who are you introducing to our lovely plaza this time?"

"Kid doesn't have a name," the rogue casually remarked and took a seat. "You got one of those steaks still?"

"I'll be back in a jiffy," the warrior nodded and made his way to one of the abandoned buildings next to the small place. Lev took it all in for a few seconds and looked at Stalker.

"What is this place?"

The man just shook his head. "Let the cook do the talking. He's better at that stuff."

Lev snorted. Fair enough, the cook does seem to know what's going on around here.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Less than a minute later, there were a few pieces of beef being grilled while the cook took a seat on a random table. Lev and Stalker were waved to the empty chairs, which they occupied.

"Name's Foodie," the cook introduced himself. "It's completely fine if you don't wish to share your name, but I don't see why you wouldn't. Not like we're some criminals in hiding."

"Why this… quiet place, then?" Lev asked, still in his armor.

Foodie smiled. "You answered your own question. It's quiet and free. Tell me, who do you think we are?"

"Hunters," Lev replied confidently and gazed at everyone else lounging in the square. "Guess that just means you're the more experienced ones."

"Spot on," Foodie nodded. "But that doesn't mean we're upto something nefarious. The silence, at least for us, is peaceful. Many who aren't looking for a companion come here to decompress instead. Today's one of the more active days, since a wave is nearing."

That shattered all the previous thoughts Lev had about the hidden gathering. The more he looked around, the more he saw the truth in Foodie's words. Be it the mage sewing clothes in a corner without the use of skills or her high attributes, or the warriors exercising in the middle of the road with massive weights. It really was just a gathering of those who wanted peace and quiet.

Foodie got up and tended to the steak before returning. "So, how'd you end up on our Stalker's scanner, which is admittedly quite easy."

"Kid was about to enter the territory of the crazy lot," Stalker said with a grimace. "Listen, where we just want to be left alone, they have been borderline imprisoned there. Never make the mistake of going near them."

"He's right," Foodie chimed in, none of the previous amiable expression remaining on his face. "I wouldn't say imprisoned, but anyone who has to face third-threshold monsters can break very easily. Those guys are just close to the breaking point and are given time to get a hold of themselves or quit being a hunter. Once again, that doesn't make them bad, just… severely traumatized."

Like war veterans on Earth, Lev summarized in his head, forming a clearer picture. It also revealed that Stalker's words were exaggerated, but there was enough truth in them for Lev to take them seriously. Lack of control in such strong people could be disastrous.

"Appreciate the warning," Lev dipped his head and smiled. "What does that make you, then?"

"I'm the Foodie," Foodie smiled broadly. "Which is to say, I make tasty food for these people who don't mind splurging. Except Stalker."

"Hey, I always pay in full," Stalker interjected.

"Precisely," Foodie sighed, unable to mask his amusement completely. "You count every single silver, whereas everyone else just throws me a gold."

Stalker grumbled under his breath but didn't refute. Lev liked the duo so far, but he was also looking to return to his usual rented room soon.

"It was nice to meet you both, but can you show me the way now, Stalker?" Lev said as he got up. Stalker glanced at the steak still far from ready and nodded, his priorities obvious.

"Let's go."

Ten minutes later, they were gazing at the tall wall from the ground, craning their necks to even see the top.

"Why'd you even want to see this in the first place, kid?"

Lev shrugged. "No particular reason. Never saw it from this angle before."

No detectable enchantments, if there even are any, Lev thought to himself and walked along the edge of windkeep. Despite being so mundane, it was a novel experience, made surreal by knowing just how much stone towered next to him.

"Well, there you have it," Stalker broke the ensuing silence. "I'll be off, make sure to stay the fuck away from that place."

"Will do," Lev replied, keeping his tone as neutral as he could while sweat suddenly streamed down his neck. Stalker nodded and vanished, leaving him alone with a much more dangerous stalker.

Stargazer appeared in his hands and was infused with enough lightning to raze a diver to ashes.

"Kids like to exaggerate, don't they?"

"Come out," he growled, eyes darting to find the hidden Master.

A hand landed on his shoulder just as the person's aura became noticeable. Lev immediately stiffened, all thoughts of fighting going out the window the moment he felt the aura brush against his own.

S-strong, he Identified the pale, smooth hand on his barrier armor, which he dismissed after seeing the result. The armor wasn't going to help him at all, and the last thing he wanted was for the warrior to take offense at him keeping it on.

[Warrior - ???]

"One of the Crafter's weapons," she commented, her voice cold but not without an undercurrent of … warmth as her hand caressed his cheek. That was already nerve-wracking enough, but the way her aura 'felt' out his own was doing weird things to his brain. The excellent mastery aside, her obvious intentions and probes left him gulping involuntarily, despite them not being intrusive.

She appeared in front of him, momentarily making him forget his wariness with her gorgeous appearance. Hair as dark as the starless night sky fell down her back, accentuating her pink lips and piercing brown eyes as she stared into his own.

"Not interested?" she tilted her head a little, disappointment obvious in her tone. Lev slowly shook his head, trying not to tremble as a storm of emotions swirled in him. He had to constantly remind himself that, while he looked legal, his actual age was just shy of thirteen. No matter how beautiful the thrill-seeker in front of him was, he had to refrain.

"S-sorry," Lev stuttered out with a great effort of will.

"That's alright," she answered in a sweet yet firm voice, suddenly right next to him. Pulling his chin up with her right hand, she gazed into his eyes, further increasing his heartbeat. If her slight smirk was was any indication, she could feel it too. "People like us know when we see an Exalted in the making. It won't be long till you're strong enough to join our ranks."

She leaned forward until her lips were nearly touching his left ear, her hot breath softly brushing past his neck.

"Come see me, then. I'll introduce you to the rest. We don't bite… except me."

Lev stayed rooted on the spot even when she vanished after those words. His body was going to take a while to calm down, but his mind was in an entirely different state of confusion. There were so many questions and different flavors of emotions reverberating in his mind as he mechanically walked back to the inn once he could move again.

Half an hour later, Lev was back in his usual inn's room and staring at the ceiling devoid of any designs or decorations. Both his mind and body were past the experience, though his thoughts still kept circling back to it.

Older women flocking to young men was nothing new. Lev had seen that happen far too many times in his past life, whether it was in his job or in bars that he only went to because of parties that he couldn't afford to skip and risk seeming rude, and he had been subjected to alluring glances and cleavages a few times too.

The recent experience however…. It was something he hadn't ever expected to happen. Not only was the warrior woman obscenely strong…

Now that I think about it, Lev frowned at the ceiling, She was unbelievably strong. A random attempt at seduction shouldn't have been that scary when there was no hostility, but I barely kept myself from shaking. My words were still stuttered.

Someone knocked at the door, scaring the crap out of him. Slowly, he walked up to the door and opened it inwards slightly, revealing… Drakys. With a sigh, Lev opened it further to allow the grinning Exalted to step inside.

Lev sat back down on his bed and Drakys summoned a chair for himself, letting the young human break the silence.

"That was… unexpectedly unexpected. Seriously, what the hell just happened?"

"You resisted an admittedly difficult-to-resist attempt at charming. Well done on that front, at least."

"No shit," Lev remarked impassively. "And why, exactly, did I have to go through that in the first place?"

"Mel is… peculiar," Drakys remarked with a full-blown smirk, supremely amused at Lev's misfortune. "She's still no predator. Had you told her your real age, she might've recoiled hard enough to snap her spine."

Lev leaned back on the bed with a sigh. "I would rather stand against two stormrider vultures than go through that another time, because Monarch knows I won't be able to say no again."

Drakys actually cackled, making Lev raise a brow to demand answers.

"You know," he controlled himself with deep breaths. "Most men would happily line up for a chance to date her. Yet, of all people, she decided to pursue you, probably because she could smell your virginity and innocence."

"Innocence?" Lev questioned, bemused.

"Hmm," Drakys's amusement mellowed out as he genuinely questioned. "What do you think would've happened if you had agreed?"

"Well, assuming I'm not used as some organ harvesting slave…" Lev began before falling into thought.

That began the rabbit hole of imagining a whole life ahead of himself with a random ass woman he had just met briefly. The usual manly thing. Lev stupidly imagined himself slipping, because he knew himself best, and Monarch knew he was easy to win over. Even worse, Mel was undoubtedly extremely strong, which he was learning that his brain considered it a positive. Weird how that worked.

In less than a minute, his ears were burning hot enough that one may suspect his head was on fire. He didn't say a word and hugged his knees before burying his head in them.

"You're cruel," he threw out to the Exalted, just so he knew. "How strong is she, anyway?"

"As long as you promise to keep it to yourself. Mel doesn't care," Drakys said, finally moving past his embarrassing state, to which Lev nodded. "She's well above level 400."

The barrier mage exhaled as the pieces clicked into place. Seduction aside, Lev had reacted more intensely than even he expected. Knowing of her cloaked yet great strength explained more.

"You alright?" Drakys eventually asked. Lev nodded slowly, lost in thought.

"She wasn't a bad person at all, was she?" he questioned after a period of silence, his voice muffled due to his face hugging his knees.

"Far from it," Drakys immediately replied. "You had a law-enforcing force in your past life, right? Mel single-handedly does that for the entirety of windkeep. You didn't notice, but she was probably following you since the start. She also does so of her own volition."

Lev couldn't quite hold back a wince at that. PTSD from fighting monsters was one thing, but if that behavior and cold tone of hers were caused by other humans… He shook his head to clear those depressing thoughts. Mel was strong enough to take revenge on whoever she desired. It would do him no benefits to rile up his mind for something he couldn't do anything about.

"Right…" Lev exhaled, getting rid of all his non-positive opinions about the woman with it. Supressing a smirk, he looked at Drakys.

"How common is that, by the way?" He blinked innocently. "Are there many who go around seducing anyone who seems remotely gullible?"

"No," Drakys answered after a bit, not even close to bothered by the sensitive question. "Mel's position is unique. She's still very young according to most standards, and her past…" he trailed off, hoping Lev would understand.

Lev couldn't say he did, but the idea was clear. She was a survivor of circumstances potentially far more dreadful than facing down terrifying monsters, yet she still chose to stand up for justice. His opinion of her changed rapidly, as did some worldviews about humanity.

Humans were, at the end of the day, still humans.

"What are you doing here, anyway?" Lev changed the topic. "And how did you learn of this?"

"Hakim called a meeting earlier today," Drakys explained, mulling over what to reveal. "He and I will be leading the most dangerous of the exploration and monster culling ventures. As for learning about your encounter, I heard it from the girl herself. She was doing her usual rounds and asked me if I knew about you, since you happen to be an unknown talent just roaming around."

"Unknown? Wasn't winning the tournament big enough?"

"That's assuming those guys care about such a 'playful competition.'"

Lev snorted, unimpressed. "I would've liked to see any of them try to face me, Aryan, or Elias."

Drakys didn't seem to share the same opinion. "Don't ever say that in front of them, please. Mel and a few others were definitely stronger than the finalists. Not you perhaps, but certainly more than the other three."

Lev blinked. Slowly. "… I see. Thanks for the early warning."

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