“No, this ’t be right,” the bewildered crab said, reading through the text in his eyes over and ain, but arriving at no different clusion.

  “You have reached the maximum level…” he repeated to himself. “At level 15?! How does that make any sense?”

  Balthazar started pag bad forth in front of the bazaar’s ter, his mind rag to find logi that new development.

  “Why would the max level be 15? And I’ve seey of adventurers out there way beyond that level!”

  He rubbed his with his silver pincer, while g his iron cw as he walked around in circles, lost in thought.

  “This system. This damnable system. From the beginning, there’s always been something wrong with it. I keep trying to ig, keep trying to not think about it, but each time this thing keeps making that more difficult.”

  Balthazar looked over his attributes.

  [Level 15]

  [Attribute Points: 1]

  [Skill Points: 1]

  [Strength: 3] [+]

  [Agility: 2] [+]

  [Intelligence: 24] [+]

  [Skills]

  “This still seems to let me assign attribute points…”

  He hesitantly pressed the plus sigo his Intelligeh his eyes, as he had always done from the start, and it ged to 25.

  “Yes, still works. Now there’s just the skill point.” The crab paused, looking at his one remaining skill point and the list of his skills. “What if this really is the st level I get? That means I will not get any more skill points.”

  His stomach dropped slightly, thinking how little thought he had given to it until then. He had never sidered those points as a finite resource, made any pns for them, or double checked any of his choices before. Now that he had abruptly discovered that might be his st o was as if he was experieng choice paralysis over it.

  “Should I spend it on somethiirely new while I still ?” the crab muttered to himself while standing alone in the middle of his bazaar. “Or should I use it to improve one of my already selected skills for o upgrade while I still ?”

  His eyes drifted over to his list of skills.

  [Charisma: S(+5)] [Medium Armor: A] [Speech: A] [Reading: B] [Fishing: C] [Imbuing: C] [Leadership: B] [Sshing ons: C]

  His Charisma, still boosted by his imbued golden shell. Balthazar remembered the past ents about how imbuing wasn’t supposed to be perma, and the questions on how his use of it didn’t seem to run out. Yet another unanswered mystery, but one he was sure had to be reted to whatever odd thing was going on with his system.

  His Sshing ons skill, the Medium Armor, even his Fishing skill. All things he recalled already having some profi when first disc skill points. They were all worthy options frading.

  And then there were still things like Speech, Reading, and even his more ret Leadership skill. He liked them all, and knowing there was only one point remaining, he could not decide whie was more important to i in.

  “This is ridiculous!” Balthazar excimed, as he hopped on his stool and smmed his powerful iron cw against the ter. Fortunately for him, the carpenter’s work proved sturdy, and the wood did not budge under his strike. Unfortunately for him, that did not serve of much sotion against the annoying fact that he, Balthazar, the proud and fident crab, was now finding himself too hesitant to make a choice, even a reckless one.

  He wondered what had ged. The old crab had never beeo sed guess himself, or hold back from taking a ce without g much for the sequehat might e ter.

  It was as if he now felt differently about everything. As if he now felt he had something to lose. As if he had things he... cared about.

  Other than just himself, naturally.

  Balthazar realized he now had many things he was never used to before, and one of them was responsibility.

  Something else he was not aced to was self-refle.

  With a long sigh, the crab dismissed away all his system menus.

  “I guess I’ll just save that skill point for now. Wait for the right moment where I might , just in case it really is the st one I’ll get. I o make it t.”

  Crossing his arms, Balthazar looked out of the bazaar, his gaze lost on the rays of sunlight that pierced through the clouds and hit the ground outside.

  “If only I could discuss this with someone,” he let out, with anh. “But the only adventurer I ever entered that seemed to know about these things had to go and vanish after one visit. So many damn adventurers pass through here every day, but of course, the one I need never shows up again.”

  It had been weeks since Balthazar had put the word out that he was seeking to deliver a message to Ruby the entress, but he had yet to hear any news back.

  Lag in patiehe crab decided he would not keep waiting, and that he ain, and harder this time.

  ***

  “And you are absolutely sure nobody has seen or heard from her tely?” Balthazar asked, standing outside his bazaar with nothing else near him other than a very inspicuous berry bush.

  “No, I already told you, nothi. Don’t know how many more ways you wao expin it to you,” the piece of shrubbery replied.

  “It’s just that I really o speak with her, Rob,” the crab expined.

  “What do you want with that one anyway?” the thief asked. “I’ve done some digging on this entress since you first asked me to find where she was, a me tell you, your Ruby dy has quite the reputation.”

  “What do you mean?” asked Balthazar, intrigued to find out more about the mysterious woman.

  “She moves around a lot, and wherever she goes, trouble seems to find her. She always seems to be looking or researg for something, and asking inve or strange questions. Most people think she’s kind of a nutcase, full of spiracy theories. A few think she’s hiding something. Whatever is the truth, she seems dodgy, you might want to be careful who you associate yourself with, bud.”

  “Really?” the crab said, giving the shrub his most ironic stare possible.

  “Alright, fine, I guess I get that’s not saying muing from me,” Rob responded, making shuffling hat Balthazar suspected came from him shrugging and throwing his hands up. “But at least you know what I’m about. There’s no doubt oher I am a criminal and a thief. With this mysterious scarlet entress? Who knows what yetting yourself into. All I’m saying is, she smells like trouble to me, and I’m telling you, I got a nose for these things.”

  “Yes, I’m sure you do,” the crab said. “Just like I’m sure you have a nose for precious gems.”

  “Wow, uncalled for, man,” the hidden adventurer said. “o be so ky. I also have some good news I think yonna like.”

  “Oh? And what’s that?” asked the crab, his i suddenly piqued again.

  “It’s about your favorite rival mert, Antoine.”

  “Really? Please, do share!” Balthazar requested, visible excitement transpiring through his slightly wicked smile. “The anticipation is killing me here!”

  “Well, first he was seen being very irritable at his emporium the day after your new friend Hea didn’t go ba. Most people don’t know why, of course, but some mentioned he was going around the ers muttering stuff about toads and how he should have knower. They must be thinking he’s kinda losing it, hah!”

  Balthazar let out a booming ughter of pure satisfa, apanied by an amused giggling from the bush o him.

  After the two of them finished ughing over Antoine’s woes, Rob tinued.

  “It doeshere, though! A couple of days ter, he found out your baker girl was moving out of his market spot and to a new one. He was not amused, heh. My sources say he went straight to the town offices to find out who her new spot beloo, demanding an audieh them, probably pnning t arm them too. My ta there said his face was redder than a tomato when he heard his old business partristan, was the one who owhe space. Yelled and shouted, said it couldn’t be. His stupid little mustache was all curled up by the time he stormed out of there, stomping his feet like a spoiled brat who didn’t get his way. I’m telling you, man, even though I’m not the one who has beef with him like you do, it was hirious to hear about it.”

  Balthazar listeo every word beied to him with unwavering attention, holding back his ughter as best as he could, his face turning red as his cheeks filled up with air.

  Rob’s hands opened a rger cleariween the leaves of his shrub as his eyes peered through to give the crab a better look.

  “Are you alri—”

  Uo hold it in any longer, Balthazar finally exploded into ughter, his cag eg all the way around them, through his bazaar and pond, over the pins to the west, and against the mountain to the east.

  Nothing in a long time had brought him so much amusement and joy as the mental image of his nemesis Antoine having his pns frustrated by a crab and beiremely mad about it. It urely cathartic.

  After a couple of minutes, as Balthazar’s ughter finally wound down, Rob spoke again.

  “You, uh… you dohere?”

  “Y-yes, I’m… I’m done now,” the crab responded, still struggling to speak between his final panting and wheezing. “I just… I just really hat today.”

  “I tell,” the thief said, sounding vaguely ed. “So, anyway, it seems your dear enemy is oo pleased with your moves. I’d be careful about a response. I doubt he will just let this go and do nothing to get back at you.”

  “And that’s why I have you,” Balthazar said, having finally regained his posure, but still wiping away a tear from his eye. “You keep doing your thing, and keep me informed of any danger ing our way.”

  “Speaking of danger,” said Rob, shifting around in his bush, “I heard some rumors at a tavern st night that might you.”

  “Oh yes? And what were they? Were they talking about a handsome crab who lives by the side of the road?”

  “No, not like that,” the other resporying to sound serious. “Some adventurers who had e to town from the Bck Forest through the pins and got a little lost for a while said that when night started falling, they heard haunting sounds out in the distand spotted ethereal green lights over the horizon. They said they raher way and made it ihe gates as quickly as they could, so never found out what it really was, but they seemed really shaken up by whatever they experienced out there.”

  “Hmm, I wonder what that could have been?”

  “Not sure, but it might be reted to something else that happened earlier this week.”

  “And what was that?” Balthazar asked.

  “Some party of adventurers set out to the pins early in the m and said they found a dead adventurer on the side of the road,” the thief told. “It wouldn’t be that unusual, except for the fact that this guy looked… strange. He was this very rge guy. One of the party members reized him as some pompous fighter from the guild, except he was dressed in wizard robes. Now why in the world would a fighter be out there in the wild wearing are clothing instead of his armor?”

  “Uh… yes, very odd indeed,” Balthazar agreed, trying to sound as casual as possible about it.

  There was certainly o make aion of his previous iion with the now deceased adventurer. Surely there was no relevance. He bought the robes out of his own free will. The poor mert had no bme for his bad deaking. He was an i crab.

  “Anyhow, that wasn’t the worst part,” Rob tinued. “When they found him, he ale as a corpse.”

  “Wait, didn’t you just say they found him dead?” Balthazar interrupted. “So, wasn’t he already a corpse?”

  “Well, yes, but… it was a way of speaking, man, alright?!” Rob responded, shifting around abruptly and causing some leaves to fall off the bush.

  “A dumb way of speaking, but sure, go on.”

  “His face was frozen in a terrified expression of shock, like he etrified in the middle of screaming. They said he had no visible wounds or any ns of harm that could have killed him. It was as if he died from… horror.”

  Balthazar paused after listening to the emphasis Rob put into that st word.

  After a moment, the crab suddenly spoke. “Bah! I’m sure it’s nothing!”

  “I don’t know, man. There might be something out there. Something dangerous. These pins are vast, but maybe watch your back out here at night.”

  “You adventurers love to make up tall tales,” said the boastful crab. “If there really is something out there, I’m sure it won’t scare me.”

  H0st