[THREE WEEKS BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT]
[DAY 1 - APARTMENT 4B - 5:47 AM]
Alex woke before dawn, as he had every day since signing up for the tournament. Three weeks. Twenty-one days to transform from "lucky survivor" to "legitimate competitor."
Or at least, to learn how to pretend to be less dangerous than he really was.
He sat up on his mattress, looking at Grim who was in his usual spot on the windowsill. The skeleton stood at a meter and a half—his "comfortable" height—red lights glowing faintly in the pre-dawn darkness.
"Alright," Alex said aloud. "Today we begin. New training regime. And the first skill we need to master isn't an attack or defense."
He opened his system, navigating to the available skills section.
"It's acting."
[System - Available Skills]
[Aura Suppression] - C-Rank
Cost: 20 MP/hour
Effect: Suppresses the user's power aura, making them appear 5-10 levels lower than actual. Does not affect real combat capabilities, only perception.
Limitation: Users with advanced [Soul Sight] or Master-level detection skills can penetrate the suppression.
Learn cost: 500 EXP
Alex had 2,340 EXP accumulated. Enough.
[Learn Aura Suppression?]
[YES] / [NO]
He pressed YES.
Knowledge flowed into his mind—not like memorizing, but like remembering something he'd always known. How to wrap his aura around himself, compressing it, hiding it, becoming less than he was.
[Aura Suppression - Learned]
[Remaining EXP: 1,840]
"Let's test it," he murmured.
He activated the skill.
[Aura Suppression - Activated]
[MP: 370/390]
Immediately he felt the difference—like putting on a heavy coat. His presence, which normally felt like... well, like him, suddenly felt smaller. Weaker. As if he were level 15 instead of 22.
"Does it work?" he asked Grim.
Grim tilted his head, observing him. Then nodded slowly.
"Good. Because we're going to need it."
---
[DAY 1-7: TRAINING WITH MAYA]
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Mornings belonged to Maya.
The contract Alex had signed required him to work with her team, and Maya took that seriously. Every day from 8 AM to 2 PM, it was guild missions.
"Again," Maya ordered, watching as Alex and Grim fought a simulated Armored Bear—one of Jake's companions controlled to act as a training opponent.
Alex could have ended it in thirty seconds. Grim in Intermediate Form was more than enough to dominate the level 25 bear.
But that wasn't the point.
Instead, Alex "struggled." Made mistakes. Let the bear land hits he could have dodged. Made Grim appear to be working harder than he was.
"Too obvious," Maya called out after three minutes. "No one fights that badly. Smooth it out. Act competent but not exceptional."
Alex adjusted. The next attempt was better—he still won, but it looked more like a victory through tactical skill than raw power.
"Better," Maya agreed. "But your skeleton moves too fluidly. Like he has military training. E-rank skeletons don't move like that."
"How am I supposed to make him move clumsier?" Alex asked, frustrated.
"Watch." Maya had her fox—showing only three of its six tails—circle around. "See—occasionally stumble. Hesitate before attacking. Make it look like it's thinking instead of reacting by instinct."
Alex practiced adding small hesitations to Grim's movements. It was... strangely harder than just fighting normally.
"Pretending to be weak is harder than being strong," Jake commented, watching from the sidelines.
"Welcome to the world of espionage," Maya said. "Half of winning is making the opponent think you're weak until it's too late."
During lunch breaks, Maya shared intelligence:
"Marcus has been boasting at the academy. Says he'll win every match in under a minute. His dragon is fully awakened now—all skills unlocked. It's level 52, possibly 55 by the time the tournament starts."
"Any weaknesses?" Alex asked.
"Arrogance," Lin said. "He underestimates everyone. If you can survive his initial assault, he might get rattled when someone lasts longer than thirty seconds."
"Useful," Alex murmured.
"But Alex," Maya turned serious. "Don't underestimate how strong he really is. I watched his practice match last week. His dragon used [Solar Supremacy]—an ultimate attack—and vaporized a level 30 training stone golem in three seconds. Three. Seconds."
Alex's stomach dropped. Level 30 to level 22 was a significant gap. And if Marcus could delete the former in seconds...
"So," Maya continued, "if—if—you face him, and if he's actually taking the fight seriously instead of playing around... Grim will have to be at full power. No pretending."
"I know," Alex said quietly.
---
[DAY 8-14: SOLO NIGHT TRAINING]
Nights belonged to Alex.
After training with Maya ended, he'd go home, sleep three hours, then head out at 11 PM for unregistered dungeons.
These were his real training sessions. No witnesses. No pretending. Just raw power and growth.
[MINOR RIFT - SECTOR 9 - NIGHT 8]
Grim in Awakened form carved through a pack of Shadow Wolves, scythe blazing crimson. Alex practiced coordination—commanding Grim while simultaneously using [Reanimate] on fallen enemies, creating a temporary army of five skeletal wolves.
[+180 EXP]
[Souls: 240.2/1000]
[ABANDONED DUNGEON - HARBOR DISTRICT - NIGHT 10]
A D-Rank dungeon the guild had "lost track of"—meaning it was supposed to be sealed but the door had been broken in by thieves.
Alex cleared it solo. Goblins, acid slimes, a mini-boss (Cave Ogre level 24).
The ogre fight was instructive. Alex practiced using [Shadow Step] not just for evasion, but for tactical positioning—teleporting behind enemies, creating attack angles, forcing opponents into bad positions.
[+420 EXP]
[Souls: 245.8/1000]
[Level achieved: 23]
[OLD DISTRICT RUINS - NIGHT 12]
This wasn't technically a dungeon—just a collapsed building where wild beasts nested. But there were enough giant rats, poisonous bats, and a surprise Queen Spider (level 26) to make it worthwhile.
Alex practiced with the [Soul Dominion Necklace], pushing it to its limit. Fifteen simultaneous reanimations—a full army of minor skeletons.
[Vitality: 45/50] (the necklace had drained 5 points over the last two weeks)
Worth it. The coordinated fifteen-skeleton army allowed Alex to defeat the Queen Spider without Grim taking a single hit.
[+350 EXP]
[Souls: 251.3/1000]
But the most important part of night training wasn't soul collection.
It was efficiency.
Alex timed every fight. Measured how much MP he consumed. Calculated damage-per-second ratios. Analyzed enemy patterns.
By the time night 14 arrived, he had data:
· Average time to defeat level 20-25 enemies: 45 seconds (Grim Intermediate form), 12 seconds (Grim Awakened form)
· MP consumption: 60 per battle (Intermediate), 150 per battle (Awakened)
· Reanimation success rate: 94% (necklace helped significantly)
· Reanimation survival rate in combat: 43% (skeletons fragile but useful)
Numbers. Cold, objective, reliable.
---
[NIGHT 15 - ABANDONED RIFT - 2:34 AM]
Alex had just finished clearing a minor rift—nothing special, just slimes and rats—when he felt eyes on him.
He froze, activating [Soul Sight].
[MP: 280/410]
An aura. Bright blue. Level 25-30. Fifty meters away, in the shadows.
"I know you're there," Alex called out. "Come out."
Pause. Then a figure emerged from the darkness.
Emily Chen, her lunar unicorn glowing softly beside her.
"Hello, Alex," she said quietly.
"Emily." Alex's voice was cautious. "What are you doing here?"
"I saw you," she said simply. "Three nights ago. Leaving your apartment at midnight with your companion. I followed you."
"So you've been stalking me."
"Observing," Emily corrected. "There's a difference." She stepped closer. "And I know you train alone. And I know you're stronger than you show."
Alex said nothing. What could he say?
"Why are you following me?" he finally asked.
Emily hesitated. Her unicorn moved closer, nuzzling her hand with its muzzle.
"Because I care," she said quietly. "Still. Despite everything."
"Despite what? Ignoring me for three years at the academy? Saying nothing when I was expelled?"
The accusation hung in the air.
Emily flinched. "You're right to be angry. I... didn't defend you when I should have. I was a coward. And I'm sorry."
"What do you want, Emily?" Alex was tired. It was past 2 AM, he'd been fighting for four hours straight, and he had no energy for this.
"I want to help," she said. "I don't know what you're doing—I don't know what your companion really is—but I know you're in danger. And I..." She stopped. "And I don't want to see you die."
Before Alex could respond, a third voice slid from the shadows:
"Aww, how sweet. An academy reunion. Did I miss the part where we exchange numbers?"
Alex turned.
