CHAPTER 58: CHAPTER 58 "NEXT TRAIL"

Ahana was running from one group to another, while her father and grandfather were helping the villagers settle.

Some looked anxious, some were afraid, while there were those who were happy to be reuniting with their family. Then came the group who lost their family members.

They were already aware of the whole situation and, knowing how things ended up for those who left even after Ray’s warning. So, they all settled silently and didn’t stir any trouble for Ahana and the others.

Rohan said with a solemn tone, "Ray, it’s still hard to believe that such skills exist in this world."

Ray had the same thought, but he was used to his own skills. He said, "Maybe there is a way so you and others can also use your skills outside the game."

"I can’t wait to see that day, but before that, don’t you think we need proper housing here?" Rohan asked.

"This!" Ray now realized what he was missing.

It was the accommodation he needed to prepare, but with so much on his mind, he forgot such a basic thing.

Then he called Ahana, who was happy to see Ray and Rohan return unharmed. Ray asked, "Is everything okay now? Did you face trouble again?"

She shook her head. "Well, except for convincing them that so many people had lost their lives, it was easy. Especially since the other villagers from earlier, my father, and even my grandfather helped."

Ray nodded with satisfaction. "Ahana, can you tell me how many families are here? Just estimate the numbers, as I’m going to build houses here," he declared.

Ahana looked stunned. "Is that one of your skills? How are you going to do that? I want to see that too!"

"You’ll see when I do it, but for now, I’m logging back into Apex Survival."

"I think I should do that too, to catch up to you, but..." Rohan looked at Ahana. "Did you bring my headset?"

Ahana looked at Ray, then back at Rohan. "Brother, your headset! I think it’s gone now."

Rohan’s face fell. "Shit," he cursed, thinking he couldn’t log into the game. "Now I have to buy a new one, and with all these problems, I don’t even have the cash to buy one."

"Huh!" Ray chuckled. "No big deal, here, use this one." He took a new one from his inventory and handed it to Rohan, who looked very surprised. "How did you? It’s a new one!"

Ray smiled. "I was already preparing for this, knowing there would be an occasion when a new headset would be needed. You can take this one."

Rohan accepted it with a smile. "Then, see you soon," he said, leaving for the place where his family was resting.

Before logging in, Ray then created a mid-size place to serve as a public washroom until he could build proper accommodations. He then left and decided to log in from inside his armored truck, which had a luxurious interior.

[You have logged in]

First, he looked at his stats, then decided to message the Red Hand. "Before anything, I want to meet him and find out the whole conspiracy behind all of this," he thought as his eyes landed on his stats.

[Player: Ray]

[Level: 9]

[Health: 100/100]

[Mana: 100/100]

[Skill: Scavenger One]

[Passive skill] -Pocket Dimension -Restore -Modification -Search -Lucky one

Ray: Hey, I’m inside the game. I want to meet you.

Ray waited for an answer, but nothing came. Just as he was about to write again, Red Hand came online.

Red Hand: Typing...

Red Hand: Little friend, you’re safe, huh! As expected for the guy I chose.

Ray: I want to meet. I want to know the truth.

Red Hand: I know you want to know everything, but unfortunately, I can’t.

Ray: Why is that? You know how important this is. I don’t know when the apocalypse will begin. This is urgent.

Red Hand: I also know that, but there is a reason I can’t tell you here. As for the apocalypse, it will be soon, maybe within a month.

There was silence as Ray didn’t expect the deadline to be so soon. His heart gripped with fear, then he asked.

Ray: So what do I have to do to meet you? There must be a way, right?

Red Hand: If you want to meet me, then come to this site and challenge the mini-game called, God’s Puzzle (Level 25).

There was another long silence. Ray spoke with desperation.

Ray: This is impossible. I’m only level 9 at the moment, and I don’t know if I’ll have time to reach level 25 before the apocalypse destroys my world.

"There is a way for a small meet, but it might be dangerous. This way we can meet, but our conversation won’t be long. First is to obtain the Key of Hellsing, and second is to find the stone with an engraving of a dwarf on it. If you can do this, then there is a chance of a small meeting."

Ray thought for a while, then spoke. "I do have the Key of Hellsing."

Red Hand: "Hahaha, as expected of my chosen one," Red Hand replied. "But this won’t be easy. If you die, your level will decrease, and so do the chances of our meeting."

Red Hand continued.

Red Hand: "Then I’ll take my leave. Go and challenge the next mini-game as soon as possible and reach level 14, the basic level of Hellsing. We’ll meet soon. I have hope in you, Ray."

Red Hand went offline, leaving Ray to ponder his next move. He checked the map for the next closest mini-game. While it was far away, that wasn’t his main concern. What worried him was the mini-game itself.

[Trail of Manoban].

The description read: The woman named Manoban was once a very beautiful woman with many admirers, but her heart was already taken by a man named Astban. However, the city lord had his eyes on Manoban, who killed Astban and forced Manoban against her will. In the end, she took her life.

[You are tasked with creating a happy ending.]

[Note: You can only use one of your passive skills once you are inside the trial.]

[Note: Failing the trail means dead end, but there is no time limit.]

[Note: One day inside the trail will be 10 minutes in real world.]

Ray felt that the trial might be easy or it might be tough; that would depend on where it started.

He wasn’t sure if things would end fairly. He summoned the Hummer inside the game and sped toward the next safe zone.

Just like before, his car attracted a lot of attention. Some speculated about his identity while others speculated about the cost of the car.

Soon, the game forum was buzzing with trending news: "New modified car has been seen. The mysterious car dealer might be back."

However, when they saw that it wasn’t the mysterious car dealer but just a normal player, they all began speculating about Ray’s identity.

While Ray ignored all of this, he entered the safe zone and approached the portal to enter the trial as he saw the virtual screen above the gate:

[Trail of Manoban].

There were hardly any people around, which indicated that not many were challenging the trial, either because they didn’t want to at the moment or their level wasn’t high enough. Still, there were 20-25 people circling the portal. As he came closer, a window popped up showing his stats.

[Player: Ray]

[Level: 9]

[Health: 100/100]

[Mana: 100/100]

[Skill: Scavenger One]

[Passive skill] -Pocket Dimension -Restore -Modification -Search -Lucky one

[Choose one passive skill]

He looked at all his skills and felt confused. There was no detailed information about the world he was about to enter. He didn’t even have any offensive skills, so he began thinking about which passive skill he should use.

"This is a puzzle," he muttered to himself. "I can only choose one skill, and the whole trial depends on this choice."

He first considered ’Pocket Dimension’. It was his most valuable skill; allowing him to store and access anything he wanted. It was versatile and could be used for many things, like carrying weapons or supplies.

But the trial was about creating a "happy ending," not survival. Would storing things be useful for solving a historical puzzle? Probably not.

Next, he considered ’Restore’. This skill could repair any broken object, but would it be useful? Perhaps he’d need to fix something broken to progress, but what if it proved as useless.

Then he thought about ’Modification’. This was a powerful skill that could alter the properties of an item. Could he modify a weapon to defeat the city lord? Or maybe modify an object to change a key event? This seemed more promising, but it felt like a gamble. He didn’t know what items he would have access to.

He pondered ’Search’. This skill allowed him to find hidden rare items. Given the nature of a puzzle-like trial, finding a hidden clue could be the key to success.

This felt like a strong contender. If he could find a way to expose the city lord or find a hidden item to end the trail, this skill would be invaluable.

Finally, he considered ’Lucky One’. This skill gave him an increase in luck, but it was unpredictable.

It could lead him to a lucky encounter or help him find a rare item, but it could also do nothing at all. Ray didn’t like to rely on luck; he preferred to use his wits and skills. After thinking through each option, he had a clear idea of which passive skill would be the most effective.