[6 Hours Until the Start of the Second Task]

After my battle with King Charles, I went to my room, took a shower, and changed into clean clothes. Following our fight, King Charles gifted me a ring with its own storage space. When I channeled mana into the ring, it opened a passage to a vast storage area, allowing me to store my armor, various weapons, potions, and materials for traps and similar items. To store an object, I just needed to hold it, channel mana into the ring, and think about placing it in the storage. To retrieve something, I did the same but simply thought about the item I wanted, and it would appear in my hand.

Using my portal ability, I opened a portal to the Monster Kingdom.

[Portal]

I had only been gone for a month, but it seemed like there were constructions everywhere, and I saw new faces around the village. It was evident that we were more populated and hosting several new species, but I had no time to deal with all that now. The second task was about to begin, and if we survived it—which we must, as we had no other choice—I could pay more attention to the Monster Kingdom and start implementing some of my plans.

I ran quickly to the training field to avoid being seen by the monsters, as they would gather around me. I cared for and loved them, but I had no time for chatting now. At the training field, I saw Malik, Aiden, and Lilith attending to their armor and weapons.

"You all look quite good."

Lilith: "Daichi?"

Lilith ran and jumped on me as soon as she saw me, and we both fell to the ground. She was holding me tightly and seemed to be crying.

Lilith: "It's been a month, I missed you so much."

"I missed you too, Lilith, and I missed you kids. You all seem to have gotten stronger."

Aiden: "We missed you too, buddy, you seem stronger too. You have a different aura about you."
Malik: "Are we going to hug too?"

Aiden and I replied at the same time based on our past experiences.

"NO!"

After catching up with Lilith, Malik, and Aiden, we made sure we were in good condition and not hungry. This time we were more prepared and wouldn't have to eat monster meat when hungry or sleep on the ground when tired, as in the last mission. I called Dagger, who had become such an adept assassin that he could follow me without being detected. Fortunately, I could easily spot him with my Mini map ability.

"Dagger, isn't it time you showed yourself?"

Dagger suddenly appeared in front of me, bowed, and placed his fist on the ground as a salute.

Dagger: "You are amazing, my King. As I suspected, you are so powerful that hiding from your sight is impossible."

"Thank you, but now is not the time for chat. I told you earlier that I would need to leave for a while to go places and fight people, remember?"

Dagger: "Yes, my King. Are you leaving again? Can I come with you this time?"

"Unfortunately, that's not possible, but I trust you to look after the village in my absence. Bring enough food for four people for a few months, spare clothes, and something for us to sleep on."

Dagger: "As you command, my King!"

Dagger prepared and brought all the supplies within a few hours, even making three ground mats for us to sleep on. Lilith couldn't come with us, as she wasn't a sent like us. I could perhaps bring her to the mission area through a portal as I had done before, but the gods had more authority in the mission area, and they might try to harm her for escaping the previous mission site. Besides, the village had a lot to tend to, and Lilith had been doing a great job. Despite my trust in Dagger, I knew he wasn't as smart as Lilith, so I trusted her more. After all, behind every powerful man is a woman, right? I hope I have become powerful enough to be worthy of that saying.

Malik, Aiden, and I discussed what could happen and what we could do during the remaining time before the start of the second task. Although Lilith didn't want to leave my side, she took charge of the village matters and led the monsters.

Aiden: "Do we have some idea about what this mission is going to be?"

Malik: "According to the Arena of Sent Ones, we'll be fighting against people like us, right?"

"We can't be sure. In the first mission, we were told we would go into a maze, but the real goal was not to be killed by the monsters in the maze."

Aiden: "But in the end, we found the exit and escaped, didn't we?"

"Yes, you're right. We can assume they'll stick to the main theme, but they won't tell us everything."

Malik: "So, we might encounter unexpected dangers."

"That's right."

Aiden: "So, what will we do first when we teleport there?"

"The chance of being in the same place is quite low. We know millions of people have been sent here, but I'm sure we haven't seen millions of people in the maze. This means that the same mission is assigned to millions of people in different fields."

Malik: "So, encountering each other in the first mission was just a coincidence?"

Aiden: "Maybe, just like in the first mission, we can start the mission as a team."

"Being a team was entirely our decision there. I don't think everyone started together like us. There might be people who decided to go separate ways, even killed each other. Also, we can't be sure everyone started together like us."

Malik: "So, everything is a pit of possibilities."

Aiden: "Still, there's no definite thing that says we can't be together."

"You're right; there's a possibility. So, when we teleport, let's try to find each other first. But if we spend too much time trying to find each other, it will be to our disadvantage."

Malik: "You're right. While we search for our friends who may not even be here, others will already have formed teams."

Aiden: "So, what do you suggest?"

Malik: "Well, you're the leader, right? We'll do what you say."

"I don't know how strong you've become, but can you roughly tell me your level?"

Malik: "Hehehe, I've already reached level 64!"

Aiden: "Sorry, my friend, but I think you haven't worked hard enough because I'm level 65!"

Malik: "Is just 1 level a big deal? That doesn't prove you're stronger than me."

Aiden: "So, do you want to find out through a duel?"

The argument between Aiden and Malik was quickly escalating.

"No need for an argument, and Malik is right. Your level doesn't exactly show your strength. People with lower levels than you can be stronger, especially if you've trained with monsters lower level than you. You should have understood this by now."

Aiden: "You're right."

Malik: "Hey Daichi, what's your level?"

"Me? I actually haven't checked."

When I looked at the system to find out my level, I couldn't believe my eyes. I had already reached level 78. I had killed a few monsters to test my aura abilities, but it was not enough to jump this many levels. Could training also help us gain experience points? It made sense. If we were stronger than all monsters, there would be no room for further development, and that would be a boring end for the ruthless gods. When there were no monsters left to fight, the only thing left for us to battle would be humans.

"I've reached level 78."

Aiden: "Level 78? Are you sure you didn't cheat or something?"

Malik: "What cheat? You fool, don't you know he works harder than us? He's always up to something."

Aiden: "I guess you're right, just as befitting our leader."

"Forget about this leader thing, and listen to me. Try to keep your strength as hidden as possible. Most likely, due to the opportunities we have, we'll be stronger than most people. But don't let this lead you into a senseless mistake; there may always be people stronger than us. I'm saying this because I've experienced it personally."

In the tournament, I survived by arrogantly killing my opponents and in the last round, my life was spared by someone I knew from before. 

"I guess everything is clear."

[1 Minute Until the Start of the 2nd Mission]

Time had passed quickly, and we spent the remaining hours chatting and discussing our tactics. We were fully equipped and ready to fight; now all that was left was to come back in one piece.

"Are you ready, guys?"

[3 seconds]

Aiden: "Make sure you come back."

[2 seconds]

Malik: "Last one back is a rotten egg."

[1 second]

[Transferred to the Arena of Sent Ones...]

Suddenly, a bright light appeared, and when the light dispersed, I found myself in a room. The room was made of concrete, enclosed with walls on all sides. I tried to break the walls, but just like in the maze, it was impossible to break them. There was also a massive television on the wall.

[10 seconds until the start of the 1st Battle.]

"So, we're starting right away, huh?"

After 10 seconds, a broadcast started on the screen, and we could see an arena where two people were located.

[You can bet on which side, Red or Blue, will win. You will start with 1000 coins. If the person you bet on wins, you will receive twice the amount you wagered, but if the person you bet on loses, you will lose twice the amount you wagered. To advance to the next stage, you must be one of the top 100 people with the most money in the arena. Anyone outside the top 100 will be considered a failure and will be killed by the system. Also, when your money drops to zero, you will die. The battle will not end until only one person remains alive in the arena.]

So, this is how it's going to be? If the top 100 people win, how many people are in this arena? 1000? 10000? Maybe there are 100,000 people. Also, they say the battle won't end until one person is left alive. So, what are we going to do?

[This mission consists of three stages, and in the first stage, you will fight one-on-one, and the top 100 people with the most money will advance to the next stage, and everyone else will die.]

I guess these are the things I can learn for now. I hope the others can get through this stage because it looks like we won't be able to meet for a while. Do your best, kids; I trust you.

[First Match Begins.]