Spirit Game

There were still at least 40 Ebizo soldiers left, while the rest had been held hostage by Druger and the others back to the port town.

With only a few carriages and horses available, only a fraction of the Ebizo could be transported. The rest trudged on foot, their faces determined despite the slow pace.

Thraigar, Pup, #4, Chill, and Chick stayed behind in the shelter to protect his statue and their home, and to create cover stories if Hana and the townsfolk decided to visit.

This journey would take days to complete, and it was imperative that no one knew their plans or destination. Secrecy was essential to the success of their mission and goals.

The journey continued with the Ebizo trudging slowly behind. Rain\'s mind raced with plans and contingencies. He had to ensure the success of their mission, protect his village, and somehow meet the demands of Eve\'s deal — all while staying alive.

Despite the weight on his shoulders, Rain felt a sense of purpose unlike before. The challenges ahead were daunting, but he was ready to face them head-on. He couldn\'t afford to falter now; he had come this far.

As they traveled, Rain was abruptly summoned back to his real body. He had spent so much time in the Spirit Realm that his physical body demanded attention.

"I need to buy that pod so I don\'t have to be disturbed while I\'m in the Spirit Realm," Rain muttered to himself as he brushed his teeth, annoyed by the inconvenience of being pulled back to reality at critical moments.

He knew he needed more Soul Elixir to convert into real money to buy the pod, but his current focus was on developing his village in time for his Novice Lord Title.

Balancing the demands of both realms was becoming increasingly difficult, yet Rain was determined to make it happen.

Rain lacked enough Soul Elixir to convert into real money, a critical resource he needed to develop his village in time for his Novice Lord Title. This created a dilemma: he needed resources in both realms, but his means were limited.

There must be another way to get those Soul Elixirs besides killing beasts. Rain thought. Something like a business, or something.

As he completed his morning routine, Rain contemplated his next steps. The Spirit Realm demanded his attention, but so did the real world.

Exams were nearing, projects were piling up, and he still needed to attend his therapy sessions. Balancing these demands was like walking a tightrope, each step critical to avoid a fall.

Each had its own challenges, and he was caught in between, striving to balance both without letting either fall apart.

Failure was not an option; his life depended on it, literally. The Spirit Realm was fraught with dangers that could kill him, but the real world held its own threats — his parents\' wrath if he failed at school.

There was no escape from his fate.

Rain felt the weight of it all pressing down on him, making him want to cry. There was no rest for him, only relentless challenges in both worlds.

=======

After school, Nathan and the others tried to convince Rain to join them for a trip downtown to grab dinner, and some games over the weekend.

"Sorry, but I have a lot of things to do," Rain said abruptly, bolting back to his apartment without looking back.

Rain couldn\'t pass up the chance to spend extended time in the Spirit Realm. Weekends were his golden opportunity, allowing him to stay longer than on any other day. His first priority was to buy the helmet that allowed him to sleep whenever he wanted, bypassing the real world\'s interruptions.

Once he was done eating and satisfying other basic needs, he could just put on the helmet and slip back into the Spirit Realm within seconds. He couldn\'t afford to be away from the Spirit Realm for long, not when they were marching to war.

As Rain hurried away, Nathan and the others watched him with gaping mouths and frowning faces.

"T-that . . . did Rain just refuse to play games with us?"

"That game addict! Did he really just refuse us?"

"What\'s going on? Is the world ending?"

"Like I said, Rain is acting strange. He\'s not himself lately."

"Yeah, he\'s muttering to himself all the time, and he seems to be in a daze during class. We can\'t even have a normal conversation with him anymore."

"Is he really okay?"

Nathan shared their concern, then his face brightened suddenly. "Alright! Listen up, guys! I have an idea!"

=======

After Rain purchased the helmet from the Player Association, he quickly went back to his apartment and dived into the Spirit Realm without wasting another second.

"What did I miss?" Rain asked as he reappeared inside the carriage, in the exact position he had left.

~Chi!~

Chi reported that nothing remarkable had happened. They were still advancing at a slow pace, encountering some Raklings, lizards, some beasts, and Hobgoblin scouts along the way, but they quickly took care of them.

"Hobgoblins . . . they came this far already?" Rain was troubled by this fact. "Are #4 and the others going to be okay?"

~Chi!~

"I know they have Thraigar, Chin, Chill, and Chick, but still . . ." Rain waved the curtain from the window and saw the sea beyond the horizon. "Finally . . .

we\'re finally here."

The sooner they get this done with, the sooner he was back in his territory.

After arriving at the ocean, Rain didn\'t waste any time. He disembarked from the carriage to see the shore.

The ocean was calm, and the sun was beginning to set. He had been away from the Spirit Realm for a day not including their slow paced travel time; they should be here by now.

"Did something happened?" Rain went to ask an Ebizo soldier, but then the sound of the waves grew restless, taller and taller, until a gigantic wave rose from the ocean, threatening to swallow all of them on the shore.

"Oh shit! Run!" Rain warned, but against all odds, the Ebizo only kneeled and lowered their heads.

\'Is that some kind of defensive maneuver against tidal waves?\' Rain lamented as he watched the strange actions of the Ebizos.

The Ebizos could swim effortlessly, and Rain had no doubt they would survive this. But that logic didn\'t apply to him and Chi. The crushing waves would spell certain death for them.

The tsunami loomed over, blocking the sun, and just when Rain thought he and Chi would be swept away, it slammed onto the shore, and the water formed Lord Izumi and thousands upon thousands of his soldiers.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Rain . . . shall we depart?"