[Bjorn, the Silent Brawler.]

  You're dead, Adam.

  You'll be forever stuck inside the hospital again, these people won't let you go.

  All that pain, that suffering. It will happen to you again.

  The only way you're ever going to escape this situation... is if you got burned by the Administrator.

  And that means losing this game.

  A torrent of thoughts flooded Adam's mind. His eyes trembled as they fixed on Bjorn. Fighting seemed pointless—the way Bjorn had effortlessly slammed and tossed the ratatusk aside made it known to Adam that his chances of victory were virtually nonexistent.

  Even if he somehow managed to win, Bjorn would simply respawn at the Spawn Crystal minutes later as if nothing had happened.

  Once again, he was trapped. His feet not chained by resolution but by raw fear. Fear of what awaited him. At the very least, he needed to ensure Grace and Samantha's safety.

  "Please, they're not involved in—"

  Before he could even finish his words, Bjorn raised his hand. Adam's mind went blank, and instinct took over. He swung his sword at Bjorn with all his might.

  Only for Bjorn to catch the blade with his bare hand.

  Adam gritted his teeth, struggling to pull his weapon free, but it wouldn't budge even a millimeter. Should he resort to biting? But if the sharp sword proved ineffective, then—

  Hmm?

  To Adam's astonishment, Bjorn casually released the sword and raised both palms. He took a step back and began moving his hands and fingers in precise patterns.

  Confusion washed over Adam until he realized Bjorn was signing. Bjorn pointed at the sword, then at the ratatusk still struggling to rise.

  He then exhaled sharply, shaking his head before raising a hand. With a flick of his wrist, his fingers brushed against his chin before moving outward.

  Then, without missing a beat, he lifted his hand into a thumbs-up before bringing it toward Adam, causing him to flinch. But all Bjorn did was tap his fist against his open palm.

  Adam narrowed his eyes. "I... don't understand."

  Adam shook his head and took a step back, this was a good chance to run away. He glanced at Grace to quietly say goodbye, but Grace and Samantha were already behind him, and she grabbed him by the arm.

  "I think... he is saying you did a good job," she whispered. "I... learned a little bit of ASL when I was in high school."

  Still confused, Adam squinted at Bjorn. "Good... job?"

  Bjorn exhaled, then simply raised a fist and bobbed it up and down. Adam flinched for a moment, but he subtly glanced at Grace and asked,

  "Is... he imitating a cat? Does it have something to do with the ratatusk?"

  "No..." Grace stifled a laugh. "He's just signing 'yes'."

  "Oh, uh..." Adam blinked in disbelief. Bjorn didn't recognize him? Hadn't Dr. Aniston and the hospital staff shown them his photos?

  As the realization sank in that Bjorn truly didn't know who he was, an enormous sigh of relief escaped Adam's throat. His knees buckled, and he collapsed to the floor, overwhelmed.

  “Ada—”

  “Mister!”

  Grace was about to scream his name, but Adam quickly covered his mouth before she could do so. Fortunately, Samantha also shouted at the same time, and Bjorn most probably didn’t hear Grace say his name.

  Grace narrowed her eyes, but quickly understood what he was trying to say before helping him up, Bjorn was about to do the same, but a loud rumbling distracted him.

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  The ratatusk was now once again on its four legs. But Bjorn did not seem alarmed by this. He raised the back of his palm at Adam and Samantha and wiggled his fingers before rushing toward the ratatusk.

  The monster squealed, its napkin-like fur rippling with the force of its roar. Before it could charge, Bjorn closed the distance—appearing directly in front of its face. A series of tiny explosions crackled around his knuckles. And without hesitation, he slammed his fist into its chin.

  That single blow halved the ratatusk's HP from 48% to 24%.

  The creature squealed in agony, but Bjorn wasn't finished. He leaped upward, spinning through the air, the back of his heel puttering with explosions before it drove down straight onto the monster's skull. The impact slammed its head into the floor with enough force to create a small crater.

  The floor wasn't the only thing that shattered—the ratatusk's head exploded on impact.

  [Ratatusk, Lv. 1 | HP: 0%]

  Just two attacks, and the ratatusk was dead. Adam watched in astonishment, confirming what he'd suspected—he never would have won that fight. No matter how many times he regenerated.

  His thoughts were interrupted by the Administrator's familiar voice whispering in his ear.

  [Once again, you have endured the impossible. The Administrator, Mikhal, acknowledges your bravery. Your actions have directly impacted your team’s performance. Keep pushing forward!]

  [1 Status Point has been granted. Please allocate your points. Choose wisely, your fate and the fate of your world depend on it.]

  This time, Adam did not waste time deliberating anything. As soon as the floating screen hovered in front of him, he tapped on Strength.

  His body felt like it was being torn apart again, but he had no choice but to stand up as Bjorn was returning to their side.

  “Are you… okay now?” Grace whispered, letting Adam lean on her as she helped him up. Of course, Samantha helped too.

  Adam didn’t say anything, only nodding to her and gently placing his hand on hers. The two of them, watching Bjorn approach.

  Something was different about him, however. There was a sort of white veil softly but tightly wrapping around his entire silhouette—the sign that he received the buff from striking the killing bow on the ratatusk.

  Bjorn looked at Adam, signing if he was okay. And with Grace clumsily translating it for him, Adam nodded and said,

  “Thank you.”

  Bjorn only shook his head, however, before pointing at the armor they were wearing as well as the sword. Adam glanced at Grace, but judging from her expression, she didn’t exactly know what Bjorn was trying to say.

  But when Bjorn pointed at their armor and sword again and started waving and tapping his finger around, Grace finally understood and answered,

  “Echo Smith. We were told that the… the Echo Smith is on their side,” Grace sighed and closed her eyes, trying to push the memory of almost being molested back in the restaurant, “We’re from the Middle Lane, and the creeps we got the armor from are from the… East Lane?”

  The look on Bjorn’s face quickly twisted, his head tilting down as he heard Grace’s words. He seemed to want to shake his head, but he glanced at the two and stopped himself from doing so.

  Instead, he let out a deep sigh, signing that they should accompany him since it wasn't safe. He continued signing more, but Grace could only interpret fragments.

  Adam initially wanted to refuse, knowing Dr. Aniston might be in Bjorn's lane. But seeing Grace and Samantha's exhaustion, he relented.

  I'll cross that bridge when I get there, he thought as he agreed to follow.

  With a Hero escorting them, Grace and Samantha finally relaxed enough to catch their breath. Even Samantha, who hadn't slept, walked alongside her mother with less crying.

  Adam felt somewhat at ease, but remained vigilant.

  "Grace," he leaned closer and whispered, "Please don't tell him my name, or that I have an... ability. Just call me Nathan again."

  Grace responded with a firm, affirmative nod. They continued following Bjorn, and surprisingly encountered no one along the way. The walk remained peacefully quiet...

  ...until it wasn't.

  Soon, screams and cries reached Adam's ears. Bjorn glanced at them briefly before rushing toward the source of the commotion behind the buildings, leaving them behind.

  "What... what do we do, Na—Nathan!?" Grace tightened her grip on both her sword and Samantha's hand. "We... we should join the fight! Samantha... Samantha needs to become stronger!"

  “What… what do we do, Ad—Nathan!?” Grace gripped the sword she was holding and Samantha’s hand tighter, “We…we should join the fight! Samantha… Samantha needs to become stronger!”

  She nearly gagged on her own words. Just imagining what she and Samantha would need to do to become stronger made her wonder if death might be preferable.

  But no. They needed to survive.

  Adam looked at her, then at Samantha. His stammering breaths betrayed his reluctance to fight.

  But he'd be fooling himself to think he had a choice. The Game had already decided for them.

  "There are Reds here!"

  Four people—men and women—emerged from behind the building's corner. Blue Halos hovered above their heads, and they clutched makeshift weapons in their hands.

  The enemy creeps first noticed the Red Halos above Adam and his companions, then fixated on their weapons.

  "They... they have swords! Where'd they even get those!?"

  "S-shit. Is the Echo Smith on their side!?"

  One of the Game's greatest problems was the lack of communication. With no way to instantly relay information between lanes and crystals, confusion was inevitable, especially for Outer Crystals that started far from the Heroes in the Spawn Crystal.

  "It doesn't matter!" One enemy creep gripped his shovel tighter. "There's only three of them, and one's literally a child!"

  "But the dude's a veteran!"

  "Fuck, so am I! Just kill them!"

  They prepared to charge, but Adam raised his palm, causing them to halt.

  "Wait," Adam said quietly. "Please, you can just let us walk away?"

  The six stared at Adam before exchanging glances, eyes wide. After a moment, they burst into laughter.

  Adam sighed and looked at Grace, who nodded firmly.

  "Okay," Adam whispered, turning his attention back to the enemy creeps.

  "You're the ones who wanted this."