I grabbed Emma just as the cages came tumbling down—she barely weighed anything. As we fell, I did my best to turn so that I’d take the brunt of the impact. With Emma being as weak as she was, I didn’t know if she could sustain a three-story fall.

Turned out, neither could I.

My cuirass clanged against the hard floor, caving in on itself and throwing the air out of my lungs.

We rolled to a stop, more out of sheer dumb luck than out of any intentional decision on my part. Emma had gone flying from my arms at some point, but I wasn’t in any state to think about others right now. My breaths came ragged and with immense effort. Not only because I’d had the wind knocked out of me, but because my damn cuirass had caved in on itself, pushing against my body.

A flurry of minimized System messages appeared in the corner of my vision. I ignored them for now.

Mustering my willpower, I unsnapped the buckles that held the front piece to the back. It might’ve had more Condition remaining, but even if it did, it was doing more harm than good.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

I looked up, suddenly remembering the reason those cages had come tumbling down.

My eyes traced up the dark black boots—made of obsidian, like all the other monsters here—before reaching its waist. Its upper body was unclothed, but being similarly constructed of obsidian, that didn’t mean a whole lot.

The thing’s face was a lot like the other goblins. Just, bigger. A lot bigger.

Hobgoblins. Two of them.

Towering twelve feet in height, they gripped an obsidian cudgel that was bigger and heavier than I was. And they were both looking at me. Their mouths cracked open into a wide grin, chipping bits of their obsidian faces in the process.

My flight responses kicked in. I don’t know how I had the presence of mind to grab the waterskin as I rolled to my feet, but I did.

I ran. I ran faster than I ever had in my life.

One hobgoblin paused and stared at my discarded cuirass. Shrugging, it stomped on the armor, crunching it beneath its immense weight.

Guess that was one less thing I needed to reclaim…

Luckily, its size meant mobility was like the troll I’d fought on the fifth floor—not great. That, and the time it’d taken for it to destroy my chestplate had bought me considerable distance.

It was only when I reached the far wall of the enormous circular room that my wits returned and I realized I’d just ditched the winged dog I’d come to save.

System messages continued to fly across my HUD, minimized. I ignored them like the previous ones.

I looked frantically around, trying to find any trace of Emma. What I found instead was a terrifying hobgoblin charging at me, but it was still a good thirty feet away. Despite every instinct screaming for me to run, I forced myself to remain calm. At least, as calm as I could manage in such a situation.

If only one Hob was after me, it meant the other was going for Emma. Except… it wasn’t. It was standing in the center of the room, grumbling a throaty roar as it flailed its arms in the air.

I looked up.

I didn’t know if Emma could fly, but she sure as hell seemed to be able to defy gravity. She was effortlessly spiraling up the walls of the tall cylindrical spire, bounding up another floor with each leap.

Up. To Aerion.

A sonic blast slammed into the open space. A monstrous explosion slammed me to the ground. My ears rang and both the Hobgoblin and his buddy that had been chasing me dissolved into a thousand shards of obsidian.

Aural Siege Bolt [Uncommon] has been destroyed. 8 Essence Reclaimed.

That gun is seriously overpowered, I thought, sitting up blearily.

Congratulations! [Initializer] has leveled up to Foundation - 9. Max Essence increased from 90 to 100. Essence Utilization: 58/100.

Would you like to reclaim Initialized equipment?

I waved away the message. A short while later, when my ears no longer rang and my head didn’t hurt, I panicked.

Putting my hands up to my mouth, I roared up at Aerion at the top of my lungs.

“Leave!”

I couldn’t be sure he’d heard. I couldn’t even see his small frame from behind the enormous weapon. I just had to hope for the best. That, and maybe Emma could protect the elf, assuming the goblins hadn’t already cornered him.

He’d taken far too much of a risk staying there as long as he had.

I turned and ran for the nearest exit, taking stock of my situation as I moved. My sword had miraculously remained attached, its leather sheath strong even after the wringer I’d put it through.

Adrenaline had suppressed the pain until now, but I was pretty sure I had a few broken ribs. Maybe some other stuff, too, judging by the numerous flashing yellow bits on my health display.

My waterskin was in sorry shape. It wouldn’t be long before it burst, so I popped off the stopper and downed what was left of the healing liquid.

The sensation was immediate. The pain in my chest vanished, and I started to run faster, though I did note that my health display was a few shades lighter than its normal green.

Retracing my steps, I sprinted through the hall, eventually arriving at a spiral ramp that led to the next floor.

Aerion was five floors up, and the route there was neither short nor intuitive. Going as fast as I was, there was a good chance I could get lost, too.

None of that mattered. Aerion had lingered far too long. Long enough for the goblins to mobilize their troops. The worst part? I had no idea how Aerion was doing. Even assuming Emma made it to Aerion, what good was a half-dead winged dog?

If only I could talk to him…

I wiped the sweat from my brow and rounded a corner, coming up on two goblins. One I took down with a flying kick that would make any martial arts instructor cringe. The other, I smashed with my sword.

I barely even stopped, turning a corner and darting down a hall I hoped was the right one.

Congratulations! Vigor has increased to 10.

System messages continued to appear on my HUD. Finally relenting, I opened one.

Congratulations! [Wooden Board Shield]’s ability [Minor Blunt Force Resist] has leveled up to Foundation - 6.

Why would… Oh no. Nononono.

Minor Damage Resistance had been at F - 1 before. For it to have leveled so quickly…

I brought up my Status screen as I ran, maximizing my inventory. One item in particular.

Wooden Board Shield [Common]

Condition: 34 / 100

“Shit! Fuck!” I roared, redoubling my pace. The shield had been at 97 ever since our cog cart collision. To have gone down so quickly…

33 /100

30 / 100

Congratulations! [Wooden Board Shield]’s ability [Minor Blunt Force Resist] has leveled up to Foundation - 7.

Congratulations! [Iron Dagger]’s ability [Quick Slash] has leveled up to Foundation - 2.

Aerion was getting hammered, and I still had another two floors to go. Worse, I was starting to get winded. My gait became uneven, and I had to slow down as darkness crept in at the edge of my vision.

Not now, dammit!

Never in my life did I curse my lack of physical fitness more than I did at that moment. Those endless days of sitting in front of a computer instead of hitting the gym… Not once did I think it would come back to bite me like this.

25 / 100

23 / 100

Congratulations! [Wooden Board Shield]’s ability [Minor Blunt Force Resist] has leveled up to Foundation - 8.

My ineptitude may very well get someone killed. The darkness steadily crept into my vision as I ran, and I could feel tears flying off my cheeks.

If I got out of this alive, I swore upon my late mother that I’d become the strongest, most ripped athlete this world had ever seen. And I prayed. I prayed that I’d make it in time. That someone wouldn’t have to die because of me.

Congratulations! Vigor has increased to 11.

The notification was like a godsend, giving my steps a second wind.

When I finally did make it to the fifth floor, I’d thrown up twice, and I could barely even stand.

My shield was down to 15 condition… and I could see why.

At least thirty goblins and five hobs surrounded Aerion in a semicircle. He’d taken cover behind the siege launcher. It was pointed the wrong way—toward the hall we’d wheeled it into. Toward the enemies.

Aerion, however, wasn’t manning it. I didn’t even know if it could be manned—mangled and riddled with arrows and crossbow bolts as it was.

I could barely see Aerion’s platinum blonde head peeking above the base of the launcher, hiding from the torrent of arrow fire and exploding rocks at the weapon. Emma lay limply beside him, licking his wounds with the last vestiges of her life. Likely healing Aerion's wounds. While I couldn't see her whole body, the pool of blood, and the half-dozen arrows, told me everything I needed to know about the poor dog's condition. Aerion's waterskin lay unstoppered on the ground nearby.

Fuck. Fuck!

How the hell was I supposed to get us out of this? Even at full strength, I couldn’t take even one of those hobs. Or all the goblins that surrounded them. Let alone all of them at the same time.

It took nearly everything I had to stop myself from blacking out. Thoughts came slower and harder than ever, and for the first time, I considered something truly horrible.

I considered ditching Aerion and his pet and escaping on my own.

Almost as soon as I had the thought, I found my legs moving. Retreating away from Aerion.

It sucks, but Aerion brought this on himself. He lingered too long. Not your fault. What could you have done? Better to live on than to die together.

My heart beat heavily in my chest. It made so much sense. Just leave him so I could survive. Whatever Initialized gear he had, I could reclaim later.

It made so much sense… And yet, my legs came to a halt.

I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t abandon him. Was it the smart decision? Definitely. Did I owe him anything? Maybe, but not enough to risk my life. If anything, he owed me more.

The thing was… I knew, deep down. That if I did this—if I abandoned Aerion here, I’d regret it for the rest of my life. I’d keep thinking of this moment. Thinking what if. If I abandoned him… I’d be no better than my useless dad.

And I definitely, absolutely, refused to become that person.

I turned around and threw my waterskin to the ground. I smashed it with my shoes, grinding it until it winked out of my inventory.

What I was about to do was bat-shit crazy. I’d never tested it. It’d likely fail. It ought to fail. But it was all I could think of.

So I didn’t hesitate. I turned around and ran.

I ran right into the mob of goblins, so occupied with killing the evil siege weapon that they failed to notice me dive through their ranks. Right into the railing next to the launcher. Right beside Aerion and Emma.

“Greg!?” Aerion cried in a high-pitched voice.

Tears streamed down his face in rivers. He looked so afraid. Terrified. And… Happy.

I righted myself, ignoring the stabbing pain coming from my back.

“Look at you. I leave for an hour, and you’ve got yourself a party. Why didn’t you invite me?”

A crossbow bolt ripped through a piece of mangled metal on the harpoon gun, and passed just inches by my ear, flying off the balcony railing and disappearing into the distance. We were lucky our enemies were so stupid, or Aerion would’ve died a long time back.

“Are you mad? Why?” he said, his voice nearly a whisper. “Why would you come back?” Before whispering, “For me…”

“Hey, what are friends for, eh?” I said, gripping his shoulder. “Now, let’s both pray to Cosmo that this stunt works. ‘Cause if it doesn’t, we’re both so dead.”

Initialize.

Initialize Aerion: Elf (Female)? 99% Chance to Initialize [Common (Foundation Soul)] Weapon. Essence Cost: 30. Current Utilization: 69/100

I stared at the message, a bit stunned that the System outright labeled Aerion a weapon. Then I took a deep breath, mustered my concentration, and muttered the magic word.

“Initialize.”