Gotta go…

  As much as Isaac wanted to stay in this peaceful yet bleak forest and continue training Fire Manipulation, he had other stuff to take care of today. Besides, he had been at it for hours now. A break wouldn’t hurt.

  He rose to his feet and rolled his shoulders, stretching out the stiffness. A pull of his Legacy triggered the transformation. With a leap, he shot into the sky, continuing to climb until he almost reached the clouds. There, he paused and opened his new map.

  All right, so I should go… there, he thought, tracing a path toward LA. Got it.

  With a powerful beat of all four of his wings, he accelerated. Even if James had insisted he and his people didn’t need an escort, it didn’t mean Isaac couldn’t at least accompany them on the final straight toward Silent Oasis. And based on the last message the man had sent in the group chat, they should be close now.

  Hopefully, Marie has everything ready by then.

  After almost two hours of nonstop flight, Isaac finally spotted his target moving across the bleak lands of Faded Plains, the very same territory that housed Silent Oasis. Not wasting another second, he let out a sharp caw and dove.

  Instantly, the group of humans on the ground paused, dozens of heads snapping upward. Some drew their weapons, but a single gesture from the man at the front stopped the situation from escalating.

  Isaac chuckled inwardly and landed, a blast of wind accompanying his touchdown. As the dust settled, he transformed and approached the man leading the party.

  “James. Quite the group you got there,” he greeted, gesturing to the crowd in the back.

  He counted roughly thirty people, including his friend's sisters and uncle. And speaking of, the twin with the shorter hair grinned at him and waved cheekily. The other offered a shy smile instead.

  Brats, he thought, amused, and turned back to James.

  The man stepped forward and pulled him into a brief one-armed hug. “Boss. Told ya we don’t need an escort. You’re wasting your time.”

  Isaac shrugged. “Needed a break anyway. Any trouble on the road?”

  “Nothing worth mentioning. A few monsters here and there, but with so many groups moving around, we spent more time talking than fighting.”

  “Fair enough,” Isaac said. His friend’s squad was far from the only one he had seen on the way. “Shall we then?”

  James grinned and glanced over his shoulder. “You heard the big man!” he yelled. “Let’s move. We’re close now.”

  Right away, the group picked up their stuff and set off again. Isaac and James stayed at the front, their voices low enough to keep the conversation private.

  “How are our friends on the other side of the pond?” the older man asked.

  Isaac frowned. “They are… fine? As far as I know, Harry’s dealing with something in London. He won’t tell me what exactly, but apparently, he is considering moving permanently to Silent Oasis now that there is an option.”

  “Sounds good, no? Would eliminate the need for us to connect to London,” James commented, to which Isaac just shrugged. “And Sunshine?”

  Just like that, Isaac’s mood flipped, a smile spreading across his face. “She is getting a taste of her own medicine back home.”

  “Oh?”

  Isaac’s smile got wider. “Most survivors in the Naples Safe Zone want her to lead them.”

  James blinked. “So… she should be happy, right?”

  Isaac chuckled at last. “You would think so, but not even her family’s allies are enough to deal with the mess over there. People think she is gonna solve their every problem given her contribution in the war.”

  “Ouch.” James winced, then brightened. “Hey, what if she moved here, too? We would have all three Pioneers in one place.”

  “Not sure that’s a good idea.”

  “I say it’s a great one!” James countered. “Just think about it, man. We could make this place the safest on the new Earth.” He spread his hands wide. “Silent Oasis! The hub of humanity! What do you say?”

  Isaac snorted. “Sure. Why not. But you’re the one convincing Marie.”

  James winced, his face paling a bit. “Ah… Maybe sometime later, then?”

  “That’s what I thought.”

  They walked in silence for a while after that, giving Isaac time to mull over James’s words. And to be honest, he kinda agreed with him. Having all the Pioneers in one place sounded quite appealing.

  If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  On the other hand, it would also cause plenty of problems of its own once word spread.

  Sure, no one could form a direct connection to Silent Oasis using the first-round rewards, but LA wasn’t that far away. It would be only a matter of time before their small village was flooded with thousands upon thousands of desperate Hosts.

  Something to discuss with the others, he thought, just when he saw one of James’ sisters approach the man and tug at his shirt. It was Lisa, the shy twin.

  “What is it, Lis?” James asked quietly.

  At first, the girl did nothing. Then, her eyes flicked toward Isaac for a brief second before returning to her brother. She tugged at the fabric again, forcing the man to bend down.

  “Remember the promise?” she mumbled.

  James stumbled, barely catching himself. He grimaced and turned to Isaac with a look that spelled trouble.

  “Uh… so, boss… Hypothetically speaking, if I promised my sisters you would take them on a ride in your Legacy, would you agree?”

  Isaac fixed him with the flattest stare he could muster. “Really?”

  James shrugged. “I’m a weak man, okay?” He gestured to his sister. “Just look at that face and tell me you could deny her anything.”

  A deep, tired sigh left Isaac’s lips as he glanced between the two siblings. A quick look over his shoulder confirmed that, yes, the other twin was watching them with a wide, satisfied grin. No doubt the mastermind behind this entire plan.

  “Whatever,” he grumbled. “I will do it. But just to be clear. I ain’t becoming a roller coaster ride for everybody to use.”

  The laugh James gave him almost made him punch the man. At the very least, the big, happy smile Lisa gave him was worth it.

  I better not regret this.

  The arrival of James’ group in Silent Oasis was a quiet affair. Isaac simply led them through the village, taking in all the changes that had occurred here over the past two days. He still found it hard to believe how much Marie and Elaine had accomplished in such a short time.

  For one, the wooden defensive wall around the village was gone. Given its origin and the fact that the Safe Zone’s barrier offered better protection, they didn’t need it anyway.

  The streets had changed as well, now paved with cobblestone. Not a perfect fix, but it beat the muddy dirt they had before. And, if nothing else, it gave the village a certain aesthetic charm—assuming anyone cared about that sort of thing.

  The biggest difference compared to just a few days ago, however, was the buildings themselves. Wood remained the primary material, but here and there, large stone bricks had begun replacing some sections.

  The houses lining the streets also no longer resembled makeshift shacks abandoned by the monsters that once lived here. Walls were reinforced. Everyone had a proper door with a working lock. The roofs no longer leaked. And most importantly… almost every home now had access to a working bathroom.

  How was any of that possible?

  Reward Shop, combined with upgrades from the Safe Zone’s development menu. Printing out stuff was just that broken, even if the process was limited for now, and consumed a ridiculous amount of resources

  Hell, Isaac had even used his remaining points to support the effort. That it earned him his own room in the newly expanded shared house definitely had nothing to do with it.

  He chuckled to himself and turned to the crowd following him.

  “Come on, let’s get you all settled in.”

  The day after James’ return to Silent Oasis, Isaac found himself deep underground.

  Without a hurry, he walked through a tunnel wide enough to fit maybe three people side by side. Unlike all the caverns he had visited before, there was no lava here, just the bleak shades of gray that made up the entire territory of Faded Plains.

  Even the crystal clusters jutting from the walls glowed a dull, colorless white.

  Interesting place, he hummed, turning to his guide—a young woman with an entire armory of daggers strapped across her body. Caroline, she had introduced herself. Marie had trusted her to show him toward a problem apparently nobody could or wanted to deal with.

  “When was this place discovered exactly?” he asked.

  Caroline spared him a short glance before returning her focus to the path ahead.

  “Sometime during the middle of the first round,” she answered. “But we only began exploring it recently, sir.”

  Isaac grimaced at the formal way the woman addressed him. He could try to correct her, but at this point, it was a losing battle. He had learned that much in the past few days. He followed up with another question instead.

  “Monsters?”

  “Almost none, sir.”

  Isaac just nodded, and they continued in silence, following signs left behind by other Hosts. Along the way, they passed numerous people, all hard at work mining the crystals and the various metals embedded in the tunnel walls.

  Soon, though, after another turn at a crossroads, the tunnels emptied. The echoes of distant work faded, replaced by the soft hum of the wind that shouldn’t even be here.

  “Here we are, sir,” Caroline announced, stopping in the middle of the tunnel. A thick red line was painted on the ground in front of them. “Beyond this point, it begins.”

  Isaac hummed and stepped forward, passing the line.

  Instantly, an invisible weight pressed down on his shoulders. Nothing he couldn’t handle, but it was almost on the same level as the corruption in the heart of the Unregulated Quarantine Site on the Battleworld.

  And yet, the Interface provided him with no notifications.

  Let’s see.

  Flicking a switch inside his mind, he released the chained Carrion Sense, only to get nothing. Nobody had fought around here in the past few days or even weeks. This place was as clean as it could be.

  Isaac looked up at Caroline.

  “Has anyone gone further?”

  She nodded. “One scout with high-grade regeneration. He lasted about two minutes before having to turn back.”

  “He found anything?” Isaac prodded.

  Caroline shook her head.

  He clicked his tongue. “Very well. I’m unaffected for now. You can head back. I’m gonna try to figure out what the hell is going on here. Thanks for guiding me here.”

  “It was a pleasure, sir.” She gave a shallow bow. “Good luck.”

  “Right,” Isaac muttered and turned away, the Root falling into his grip. Without another word, he continued deeper into the bleak underground tunnels of Faded Plains.

  Can’t be worse than an Unregulated Quarantine, right?