If before, Ragnar had a hunch. Now, he was very sure that Ren wanted to kill him.

“You’re an Orc. Your STR is enough to carry two persons if ever they couldn’t run fast enough,” said Ren when he saw Ragnar’s face twisted into a frown.

It took everything Ren had not to laugh. He had no qualms against Ragnar, but the sooner he was out of the way, the better. Nothing personal.

“Ready?” Ren asked and equipped [Infernal Staff] before he began casting Inferno.

Rox flinched. “N-now?” He didn’t even get the chance to admire Ren’s staff.

“At the count of three. One . . .”

“W-wait . . . w-we should mentally prepare ourselves first!” Roxy panicked.

“Two.”

Evie and Ragnar didn’t have a choice but to be ready to blast forward.

“Three!”

“Oh, for God’s sake!” Roxy screamed.

Everyone bolted towards the narrow path as Ren instructed without looking back. They run at their fastest speed as far as their legs can carry them.

Just as the group took their first step towards the exit, the [Engaged] was automatically triggered, and hundreds of long thick tongues blanketed the horizon.

Roxy and Rox shrieked, and Ren shouted at them.

“Don’t stop and keep running!”

Multiple thick black tongues overshadowed everything, and for a time, it cast endless darkness over them until a blazing red magma erupted from all corners.

Ren made sure to aim at the front and let a few tongues go so they could get Ragnar at the back. Lucky for him, the spell covered the area just as he wanted.

The only problem was that Ren didn’t expect that Inferno was like a grenade with four times the coverage of the blast. Its AoE was huge. Even so, there were still a few tongues left at the back enough to pull Ragnar into the waters.

Ren smiled in triumph. But his smile dropped faster than a coin in the pond when Evie slipped, and she fell to her knees.

Ragnar was there to the pull her up by the arm, but the thick tongue wasn’t waiting for them to resume running.

“Evie!” Ren shouted.

Obscuring their sight with multiple tongues in the air, Evie and Ragnar were stunned, eyes wide. They were paralyzed in place, and it was too late to retreat or run.

The last thing Evie heard was Ren shouting her name before she closed her eyes tight.

. . .

. . .

After seconds, Evie opened her eyes. She expected to see herself as a wisp back at the entrance of Illusion Forest.

But against all odds, she was still there in the same area as where she was before. On her foot, while Ragnar was clutching her arm to steady her.

The dozens of tongues in the air that seemed like they would swallow them all stood frozen like time had stopped.

“Evie, run!”

Ren’s voice stole Evie’s attention, and she looked back. In the tiny gaps between the crumpled, thick tongues, she saw Ren. She didn’t know why but she felt Ren was worried for her based on his frantic voice.

If not for Ragnar who slightly pushed her forward, Evie wouldn’t move from where she was.

Ragnar and Evie didn’t know what happened, but Ren must have done something to make the Toads stop attacking them. It was their chance to escape and reach the exit.

They ran once more, but before Evie reached the exit, she stopped and looked back at Ren. But the man wasn’t there anymore, and when she blinked, he was right in front of her. She could even smell his scent, a combination of after shower shampoo, soap and a bit of sweat. He was so near she felt his hot breath on top of her head.

And just when the toads were about to move again, Ren slightly pushed her towards the exit, and the swamplands disappeared from their sight as they reached a new area.

What stumbled before them were the vast meadows and Rox and Roxy’s worried faces.

“You guys alright? What happened back there?” Rox asked.

“We thought you couldn’t make it when you didn’t appear here after us.” Roxy was still catching her breath after her marathon.

“Ah . . . I thought so too. Ren saved us,” Ragnar only said.

Roxy was silent before she burst into smiles. “Who knows that your crazy idea was going to work?!” She tapped Ren’s shoulder. “I have underestimated you. Sorry about that.”

“Forget that!” Rox pushed her sister aside and tiptoed to pry at Ren’s eyes. “What is that spell that you used? It’s like a . . . a . . . a massive explosion!”

At the side, Evie was silent. Ren had saved them – her countless times before. Looking at him in a daze, he seemed so far at reach. If she wanted to carve her name, she must at least be strong like him.

Evie unknowingly fisted her fingers. Her debt was adding, but she got to admit that she envied what Ren could do. It was like, no matter how hopeless the situation was, he always found a way — finding little details on the map and dominating every monster with his explosive damage.

Evie sighed. It seemed like the gap between them was getting farther and farther away. Could she really do this line of work and earn a large some of money?

While everyone was busy with their thoughts, Ren clicked his tongue in annoyance and disappointment. He didn’t know if Ragnar was just lucky, but he managed to avoid death two times in a row now.

Ren even had unexpectedly used one of his [Paralyzing Dud], the one Hubert gave him, just to save Evie since [Inferno] was in cooldown. He could cast other skills in his list, but it would take longer than using an item, and Evie didn’t have seconds to wait before she was going to become Toads food.

Ren sighed, and the gears in his mind began plotting Ragnar’s demise again.

“Where do you think is the boss?” Rox and Roxy looked left and right but found no Boss. It was there before, but now it was gone.

While the two were looking for it, and Evie was busy with her thoughts, Ragnar crept steadily to Ren’s side while the latter was busy plotting his demise.

Ren didn’t even notice that Ragnar was beside him, and he muttered in a low voice.

“Where’s Leonel?”

“He’s in Kartacol,” Ren answered without thought.

. . .

. . .

It took seconds for Ren to realize what he said before he blinked and gasped. His gaze shot to Ragnar, who was raising his brow with a sly smirk on his face.

“I had a hunched that it’s you.”

“. . .” Ren caught his tongue, and he looked at Ragnar’s smirking face before he recovered.

There was no use in hiding it if he was out in the bag. Best come clear and offer negotiations for damage control.

Ren sighed and stifled a laugh. “It must be karma for trying to kill you.”

“Though I have my doubts at first but that intent to kill was very familiar. Remember how you left me for dead in Gargantuan Cave?”

“You still hold on to that?”

“Thanks to that, it give your identity away. Are you worried that I’ll expose you? You’re hiding your appearance, so I assume you don’t want people to recognize you.”

Ren’s face turned serious. “That’s right. So ask away. What is it that you want for your silence?”

“. . .” Ragnar stared at Ren for a moment before his brow twitched. “You think that I would blackmail you?”

Ren couldn’t speak for a moment. He was used to everyone’s selfishness in the past. Blackmail, extortion, defamation, and even killing were some of the common occurrences in the game. Everyone wanted to be on top of one another. No one wanted to be at the end of the stick.

So Ragnar’s question baffled Ren. “Everything has a price.”

Ragnar crossed his hands and shook his head a little. “Ren . . . Even if you told me, I wouldn’t give a damn. As long as I play an Ugly Orc, I don’t care what others do.”

“. . .”

“Besides, who do you think you’re talking to?” Ragnar said with arrogance, complete with a tilting head.

It would have sounded cool if it came from Ragnar’s real face. But saying those words with his Orcish looks only made Ren want to laugh.

That was right. Ragnar was one of the billionaires in the world. A huge inheritance was waiting for him even if he didn’t work a day in his life. He could buy and do anything that he wanted.

A guy who had it all and only wanted to play an Orc. What would he get by blackmailing him?

Ren somehow felt at ease. Ragnar didn’t seem like he was lying, and he wasn’t the type to gossip or pry at others people’s lives too.

Ren didn’t know if it was a good thing that it was Ragnar who discovered his secret.

But one thing was for sure. He wouldn’t be sleeping as comfortably as he thought in the future, knowing that someone knew who he was.

“You’re still not convinced? Do I have to make a contract or something?” Ragnar said jokingly though his face was serious.

“Actually. For my peace of mind. Can we do that? In turn, I’ll grant one favor of yours in the future.”

Ragnar shrugged. “Suit yourself.” He really wasn’t interested if Ren had a double identity or not. As long as he didn’t cross him, everything was fine. To each on his own.

But for Ren to have a peace of mind, Ragnar would comply with the contract even if he felt that it wasn’t necessary.

—–

A/N (Doesn’t consume coins)

Dear Readers,

I’m taking a break the whole month of August, so that explains the one to two chapters a day.

Excuse my tardiness as I am constantly tired.

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