A rge bonfire had bee up in the ter of the camp, surrounded by several tents pitched on the rocky ground at the edge of the cliff that night. The air was filled with the sounds of singing and ughter, breaking the stillness of the night and eg far into the distance, carried away by the winds of the desert oher side of the shore.

  The troops shouted and danced around the bzing boheir energy filling the space. Meanwhile, Ats sat quietly, enjoying his dinner in the pany of a few elite subordihey were deep in versation, reviewing the overall progress of his training and that of everyone else on this first day.

  Some of the troops had bee into the sea during the day’s training but were promptly rescued by Kurogasa and Karian, who had been overseeing the training along the wild shoreline.

  The sessions were undeniably life-threatening, yet it was clear that, by now, everyone had begun to embrace the brutal regimeher out ned acceptance of their fate or sheer inspiration drawn from their Lord’s madness, no one could say for sure.

  Judging from the progress Ats had made on this first day alone, he was on traplete his quest within a week at best. That was still a tolerable time frame. Furthermore, the grueling training offered invaluable bes to everyone involved, either by sharpening their existing abilities or unc hidden talents and skills they didn’t know they had.

  Yawning, he set down his pte and stood up. “Have fun, everyone,” he said casually before walking away from the group.

  Now, where was his tent again?

  His tent was in an area close to the ones assigo his elite subordinates. It was the rgest tent in the camp. He reached it, lifted the fp, and stepped inside.

  But then…

  He paused, turned around, and stepped back out to check the name written oent. Yes, it was definitely his.

  But why…?

  Why was Manna asleep inside?

  Did she ehe wro?

  He gnced back toward the tral area where everyone was gathered. Only now did he realize Manna hadn’t beehe eime.

  Shrugging off his curiosity for now, Ats re-ehe tent. Though the interior was dimly lit, he was aced to seeing in low light or even without vision, and the elemental particles around the space were calm. He made his way over to the bed—a knee-high mattress—and sat down.

  The mattress shifted slightly under his weight, and…

  There was ay space beside the woman.

  Without much thought, he y down, positioning himself, while Manna, who was turned on her side, faced him directly.

  Is she already asleep?

  At this point, it wasn’t the first time they had shared the same space—or even the same bed.

  The sound of shouting and ughter outside the tent was still audible. It wasn’t even midnight yet, and it seemed like many of the troops were still caught up in the lively atmosphere by the sea. Uandably so—most of them were aced to the fined space of the floating isnd, spending their days enduring grueling training in the volic terrain.

  ing down to the lower nds, their true homend, offered a rare ce to unwind and enjoy themselves.

  Is she already asleep?

  The question surfaced again in his mind.

  At that moment, the woman reached out, her fingers brushing his left arm before she ed it gently. She pressed her cheek against his arm, her touch cool and soft.

  For a while, there was only sileween them. her spoke a word.

  Even now, Ats still struggled to ect fully with this vampire queen. Talking to her wasly difficult—it was more that their exges were always dictated by her whims.

  She spoke only when she wao, or when she needed something from him. Usually, it was something specific: her favorite food, ice creams, perhaps, or… his blood.

  Ats shifted his position, turning to face her. She was still lying there, eyes closed, her serene expression illuminated faintly in the dim light.

  “Tell me…” he said softly, his voice almost a whisper.

  There was no response. But surely, this vampire queen wasn’t truly asleep, pletely unaware of her surroundings. Not someone like her. Especially sidering how, just moments ago, she had moved closer to him.

  “How do I train more?” he asked, his tone quieter this time.

  “How I bee stronger… far strohan I am now?”

  Bee a vampire?

  The thought surfaced in his mind, unbidden. It was something Manna had suggested to him before—a fleeti weighty proposition.

  But was that truly the quickest path to power?

  Vampires, after all, were said to weaken under sunlight, weren’t they? Yet Manna showed no signs of that weakness. Maybe their strength grew in the darkness instead.

  The idea liempti uain.

  Even so, Ats couldn’t bring himself to make such a decision. Not yet.

  He turned his gaze baanna's face.

  This vampire queen—on Immortal Rank in his previous world—was now reduced to mortality. Here, she would struggle against anyone beyond Rank 3 or Rank 4, a far cry from the power she once wielded.

  Without thinking, Ats lifted his hand and pced it gently on her cheek, his palm resting softly against her cool skin.

  “Remove your hand from my face.”

  The voice came suddenly, sharp and clear, yet the woman hadn’t opened her lips or even her eyes.

  Ats simply smiled. Ign her and, he tio stroke her cheek softly.

  No further pints came from the woman.

  The moment lingered, steeped in silend stillness, until Ats leaned closer.

  Their faces were mere inches apart when he pressed his lips gently against hers.

  There was ance.

  And then, as if slipping into the familiar rhythm of their unspoken bond, it happened once more.

  This time, however, she didn’t draw his blood. Perhaps she had already satisfied herself earlier, indulging in the feast.

  But there were always the days ahead. As long as his blood supply remained plentiful, it wasn’t something he minded. At least, not yet.

  ***

  The training on the sed day didn’t feel as grueling as the first. Ats had improved signifitly, able to withstand the crashing waves, though he still relied on his spear for support.

  Between each retreating wave, he used the brief moments of calm to spin the spear and practice attack maneuvers before brag himself again for the powerful impact.

  By the third day, he could maintain his footing without relying heavily on the spear. However, he had to crouch low and grip the rocky surface beh him to stay steady.

  Still, the progress tinued.

  On the fifth day, he mao stand tall as the massive waves struck him. Utilizing his Water ah Affinity, he created aal water space around himself, allowing the waves to treat him as part of the water. The current carried him toward the cliff, but with swift agility, Ats nded ba pce as if slipping effortlessly between the surging waves, maintaining his stahroughout.

  Zefyros leapt with joy when he saw Ats achieve this.

  By the seventh day, Ats began incorporating more advanced spear teiques into his training. Activating his water shield, he cloaked himself in its protective barrier and tinued practig bat moves with the spear. The once-relentless waves no longer seemed to affect him with the same ferocity—they were part of the rhythm he had mastered.

  Wasn’t this an incredible level ress?

  Ats tihe same rigorous training regimen, day after day, pushing himself further with each crashing wave. What he had initially hoped to master within a week ended up stretg lohan anticipated. Yet, the results were undeniable—every passing day brought him closer to mastery.

  And then, oh day, as he stood amidst the uing waves, the sea surging around him, a series of notifications appeared before his eyes.

  [You have demonstrated resiliend strategic adaptability, pleting the first step in unlog the Tempest Warden's potential.]

  [You have received 30,000 EXP awarded.]

  [New Skill Unlocked: Epic - Spiral Tide (Active Skill)]

  [Summons a spiraling vortex of water and lightning at a target area for 4 seds. The vortex pulls nearby enemies into its ter, dealing 100% damage per sed and redug their movement speed by 30%. Enemies inside are staggered repeatedly for 4 seds, disrupting their as and leaving them vulnerable to follow-up attacks.]

  [You have received the quest.]

  [Sed Quest: "The Eye of the Storm"]

  Spiral Tide?

  Another AoE skill.

  Previously, Ats had acquired Tempest Arc, a skill that also covered a wide area. However, this new ability, Spiral Tide, introduced a unique meic—it gathered enemies into a single point. This would make it signifitly easier to follow up with another AoE attack, dealing massive damage to tightly packed foes.

  If he ever found himself surrounded by enemies ing at him from multiple dires, this skill could provide a quid effit way to trol the battlefield and create mueeded breathing room.

  “Well,” he thought, “more skill variations are always a good thing.”

  Before he could reflect further on the possibilities of his new ability, another notification appeared before him.

  [The Current Season of Dominion Skirmish is about to begin. Prepare yourself.]