Chapter 115: [115] Thank You Gift
Ark felt a disturbance in the force.
He could not see a single thing, which meant his eyes were not active. But he could not remember falling asleep...
He could feel something soft underneath his head, and a cool breeze was washing over him. He was likely in a room, lying on a bed?
Ark tried to remember what had happened before he fell asleep. He had been fighting Tristan...
’Oh. I must have died...’
That would make sense considering the person he was fighting, but then again, is this how it felt like to die in Eden?
No... Ark’s memories finally cleared, the fight was over, he had managed to negotiate a deal with the mad man.
But—
Ark immediately felt a hollow feeling in his chest as the realisation hit him.
’Damn it!!’
’Did I really go unconscious?’ The very thought of it filled him with dread.
’Like one of those shitty novel MCs?!?!’ Ark could remember the countless times he had mocked them while reading light novels.
Unlock a new skill... faint. Get your ass kicked by some over powered boss... faint. Get confessed to by the woman you love... faint.
It was almost as if fainting was a daily routine for them.
’I can never be like them!"
Ark immediately sat up straight, only to bump into something hard. He held his head and winced as his vision returned.
Olivia was sitting beside his bed, grasping her head with tears in her eyes, while Thalia was standing next to his bed side, a worried smile on her face as she stared at him.
"Y-you’re awake!"
"Of course I am..." He sighed. If anything, he had likely slept for too long. "How are you doing, Thalia?"
"I’m doing great, thanks to you." She stuttered with tears already forming in her eyes. "I thought... I thought something might have happened to you..."
A few seconds passed in silence.
"As you can see, I’m doing great." Ark flexed his bony arms. "It will take more than a Mithril Rank player to bring me down, you know?"
Thalia laughed. "Of course, Guild master."
Ark felt good seeing her laugh. Tristan had kept his part of the deal, and he was more than grateful for that.
He glanced at Olivia, watching as she painfully massaged her forehead, while trembling all over like she had caught a cold.
"Ummm... Are you okay?"
"Y-you— what the hell is your head made of?!" She yelled as she jabbed a finger in his direction.
But when she met his gaze, her face softened, just before she puffed her cheeks and folded her arms across her chest.
"Are you really okay, Skelly?" She asked in a much calmer tone, staring down at the bedsheet. "You were asleep for a long time..."
Ark nodded. "I am. It was likely just exhaustion."
Olivia smiled. "That is good to hear..." her voice slowly trailed off. "Anyways, never do that again! Do you know how worried we were?!"
"Alright, next time I’ll just leave you to get stabbed by a psychotic assassin." Ark bit back.
"You know that’s not what I—Tch! Why is your luck so sour?! We need to take you to the temple to get an exorcism!"
"What?" Ark could not believe his ears. How ungrateful could she be? "Are you saying I am possessed by a Demon?!"
"Aren’t you? It is probably sitting on that large, rock solid head of yours!"
"Now that is taking things too far, my head is perfectly sized!"
"Ha! How can you say that confidently with a forehead the size of a continent?!"
Thalia stood by the side, listening to them bicker like children, but this time, there was a pleasant smile on her face.
She had grown to love the noise. Because it meant they were all right...
<•••>
According to Thalia, Ark had been sleeping for twenty four hours, meaning one day had passed since he fought Tristan.
But despite that, he felt even more exhausted than well rested.
It didn’t take long for Ark to realise that they were not in the Transcontinental Hotel. While Olivia’s room had been layered with gold and expensive furniture, this place was basic in comparison.
All Ark could see was polished wood in all directions, and honestly, he missed the gold.
The association was covering the damages they caused to the hotel, which meant they would be paying the company enough money to rebuild the entire top floor, as well as reimburse them for all the lost business caused by it.
"So how long will it take before we can go back?" Ark asked Olivia.
"Three weeks at most. They said they would be done by then."
"So we have to live in this dump for three whole weeks?"
The place was actually several times bigger than his apartment back on Venaris.
The room had a magical heater, a balcony with a city wide view, a hot tub and a cooling device, but that was besides the point.
Olivia shrugged. "We’ll just have to manage until then..."
"Also, what about the woman that helped me?" Ark tried to recall her name. "Satella?"
"Oh, she stayed here throughout the time you were unconscious, but she immediately left when you showed signs of waking up."
"I see..."
She was likely trying to avoid being questioned by him. There was even a chance she was hiding, stalking him from the nearest shadow, but there was no way to tell...
"By the way." Thalia’s expression turned serious. "How did you convince Tristan to not kill me?"
It seems Olivia was also interested in knowing because she seemed very invested in his answer...
"Didn’t Satella tell you?"
Thalia shook her head. "Her answer was vague. She said it was not in her place to say what happened."
’Is she trying to keep my secret?’ Ark thought..
"I made a deal with him."
Ark then went on to explain everything that had happened right from the beginning. He also told them about his ability to copy skills, and the key of the abyss.
Tristan already knew about his ability, and it did not sit right with him for someone he did not particularly like to know, while his friends were in the dark.
Besides, it was only a matter of time until they figured it out.
Naturally, his revelation came as a shock to the two women.
"You mean, you can copy skills?" Olivia’s eyes widened. "How is that even fair? That is cheating!" She huffed, sulking at the side of the bed.
"Wait, no wonder your lightning spell is just like mine! Did you..." Her eyes widened. "Did you steal my skill??"
"Are you just figuring that out now? You’re really dense aren’t yo—"
She held his jaw closed before he could finish.
"Don’t even say it, you thief!"
Thalia on the other hand seemed to think deeply. "Now it makes sense why your skill synergy never seemed to make sense..."
Players often got skills that synergized with each other, but Ark’s collection had been all over the place, without any real pattern.
"But if you have such a powerful skill. You could have joined any guild you wanted to. Is there a reason you chose to create a guild instead?"
Ark got off the bed and stretched. "Taking orders did not just sit well with me."
He walked towards the window and pulled it open, only to be assaulted by a ton of lights shimmering down below.
The city was alive. Ark had not noticed it earlier, but now he could hear the sound of music ringing below as street performers played their instruments.
There were large statues made of hay being pulled around by carriages, while beautiful native women sat on them, and every now and then fireworks would brighten up the sky.
"What is going on?" He asked as he watched the display.
Thalia and Olivia appeared at his sides, and stared down at the city, dubious looks on their faces as fireworks exploded up above, cascading down in pretty sparks.
"The pre-harvest festival has begun." Thalia clapped excitedly.
Plop!
Olivia suddenly placed new, neatly folded clothes on his hands.
"Get changed, we are going." Olivia said, before smiling lightly. "Comsider it a thank you gift from us~"