It took Michael only a few minutes of back and forth before he got all his friends to agree to meet him in Yellowbright, as well as tell Allison that he was coming. Every single one of them had decided to drop everything they were doing to head to Yellowbright.

Michael leaped over a large rock as if he were walking on flat ground.

It helped that none of them were in the middle of a hunt or anything.

His friends had decided to simply recover in order to reach their best condition on this last day of the Tutorial. It was a notion that Viktor also agreed with. As a result, all of the people he deeply cared about were free to go to Yellowbright, but Michael wasn't done with his Whispers. He activated the spell again. The feeling of connection struck him a couple of seconds later.

"Holy shit," the blue ethereal mouth said in Rose's voice. "I thought you were fucking dead. What happened? Why did you vanish? I thought you would come back to at least get that buff from Sullivan you told me about."

Michael smiled.

"Something happened, but I'm fine. Everything was dealt with. I'm going to meet my family and friends now. Just wanted to let you know that I appreciate the relationship we built."

The mouth chuckled.

"I feel like we've already had this conversation, back before you went deeper into the Consumed Territory. Yeah, I'm glad we got to know each other too, and I'm sorry for the way I treated you back when we first met. You're a valuable ally. See ya out of this Tutorial hellhole."

"See you, Rose. Stay safe."

The ethereal mouth disappeared into particles of mana. Michael smiled to himself. This was good enough.

It took him only a few minutes to reach Yellowbright. As usual, he attracted quite a few stares and whispers, but he ignored them and leaped to the roof of the nearest house. By traversing the Villages as he usually did, he quickly arrived in front of Allison's house, which looked just like the others. With a deep breath, Michael opened the door and entered the building, shutting the door behind him. In the middle of the room, jumping to their feet while staring at him, were his friends and family. He couldn't help but grin as his mother ran toward him, tears in her eyes.

"Michael!" Allison shouted before hugging him tightly.

Michael gave her a bittersweet smile.

"I'm back, Mom."

As usual, she stepped back and scanned his entire body several times, looking for injuries. Meanwhile, Michael only stared at her. He hadn't seen her for an entire year. The weight of that realization, which was previously so light, instantly became crushing. The wrinkles around her eyes, the way her black hair looked under the dim lighting, and even her dirty robe. He hadn't realized how much he had missed all of them until this very moment. Her concern, which had previously felt so commonplace, now felt like blinding sunlight in the middle of the Consumed Territory. A veritable supernova at the heart of the Abyss.

…I'm glad I'm back.

Despite the burden he had to bear, despite the desperate struggles he had already gone through and would continue to, despite the pain he would have to endure, he was happy to be here in this moment. Seeing his mother and friends like this made everything worth it. Michael could feel the tears welling up in his eyes, but he didn't try to hide them. Allison froze once she noticed this.

"Michael?" she asked tentatively, then gently cupped his face in her hands. "What is it, son? What have you been through?"

Michael wiped the tears away.

I will protect them. No matter what.

It didn't matter who his enemies were or their power. He would preserve these moments to the bitter end.

"It's just been a long time," he looked at James, Elizabeth, and the others, who were staring at him from a few meters behind Allison with smiles. "I'm happy to see you guys, too."

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Dylan beamed at him, as did Naomi. Anthony nodded at him with a grin, and Thomas let out a sigh of relief with his hand over his chest. Even Elizabeth seemed to be happy. Of course, the one who looked the happiest was James. The young man opened his mouth.

"What do you mean?" Allison suddenly interjected in a worried tone, before James could say anything. "A long time?"

Michael gently grabbed her hands and pulled them away from his face, before gesturing at everyone to sit down. He sat down on the nearest bed and looked at his mother, tapping the spot next to him. Allison stared at him with a frown for a few seconds before sitting down next to him. Once all the others were also seated, he started his story. First, he told them of how he had entered the Consumed Territory with the intention of going deeper than before to fight even stronger Forgotten. By this point, Michael was speaking slowly.

I need to come up with a good story.

It had been his blunder to let out that it had been a long time since he'd last seen them, and Allison had latched onto it like a vice. However, because he didn't know what the Gods of War were capable of, he was unwilling to tell the entire truth even to them. Should he go with a half-truth and say he had entered the Abyss, which had made time flow slower, but without mentioning Veilthar? No, Allison would rant for hours on end about why he shouldn't have risked himself by entering the Abyss, which was considered a death zone. In the middle of his story, Michael furrowed his brow.

Besides, if I tell them I entered the Abyss and a god reads their memories, they would be able to connect the dots and realize what happened.

Since the gods knew that an Umbra was at the heart of the Abyss, it wouldn't take much to raise their suspicions. As such, Michael made a decision.

"The deeper I went into the Consumed Territory, the more it felt like time was slowing down. Where I decided to stop and just farm the Forgotten, each day felt more like a week. I don't know how it worked or if it was even real, but it feels like it's been months since I last saw you guys," Michael finished, ignoring the bitter aftertaste. "That's why I said that."

Next to him, Allison narrowed her eyes, but said nothing. She laid her hand over his.

"I'm glad you're okay, son," she said in a tired tone. "I was worried. I'm really glad."

Her voice became more choked up as she spoke, making Michael put his arm around her shoulders and hug her firmly.

"It's good to see you're fine, Michael," James said, making Michael look at him. The young man looked relieved. "I was afraid, really."

"But you're alright!" Naomi said excitedly, clapping her hands once.

Michael smiled at his friends and talked to them about what had happened while he was away. Just like before, the group had delved into the Dungeons they knew they could clear for the sake of acquiring Equipment. Once the stories reached this point, Michael flinched.

Wait, why didn't the Forgotten drop Equipment?

He resisted the urge to frown. Since even the Elder Lizardman had dropped a staff, shouldn't the much more powerful Forgotten have dropped better Equipment? The only one he got was the Consumed Wolf's Ring, even though he had cleared many more consumed Villages.

…Did I just get lucky with that first one?

He could only hope the environment after the Tutorial was more generous. Dragging himself out of his thoughts, Michael continued to listen to his friends' story. James and Elizabeth had reached Level 26, while the others were in the low twenties. It was a respectable number, given that they only hunted as a group and much weaker creatures than Michael had, which proudly showed how much effort they had put in. They finished their story by telling Michael of the unique Dungeons they had faced. Rat-like monsters, giant wolves that moved in packs, and even lizardmen like the ones Michael himself had fought. They had battled and defeated a variety of monsters without a single casualty.

Michael nodded at them as they finished their story. He was genuinely proud of what they had achieved.

"It seems you guys managed everything well even without me," he said jokingly. However, James immediately shook his head.

"It would have been better if you were with us," he replied. "No contest. Not because of how strong you are, but just because you're our friend."

The others nodded and smiled, making Michael grin back at them.

They continued to talk. The whole time, Allison held Michael's hand, her expression shifting over the course of the story, especially as he shared more about the Consumed Territory and what he had gone through. After some time, she started actively participating in the conversation.

Once they were done, Michael and the others agreed to go 'sightseeing' in the other Villages as they waited for the Tutorial to be over, as a way of hanging out, which they hadn't done in so long. Naturally, Allison had asked to come along. They left Yellowbright after talking to Viktor and his organization's core members. Their first destination was Greenwood, a place they hadn't done much in at all. Once they arrived, however, it immediately became clear that it was simply a Village like any other. Michael had laughed at James' disappointed expression before they set out for Bluestone.

Once they were done sightseeing, Michael trained his friends a bit, giving them advice. The day continued, though they struggled to measure the time, since they were underground.

Finally, ten minutes before the end of the Tutorial.

Michael sat on a random giant mushroom in the middle of the area between Redglow and Bluestone, looking up at the giant System window floating near the underground's ceiling. It was a massive timer that had appeared fifty minutes ago. Behind him sat his friends and Allison.

"That thing is kind of ominous," Naomi said loudly. "I feel like I'm looking at a ticking time bomb."

"Maybe that's not far from the truth," Thomas mused, making her slap him on the shoulder.

Michael smiled and lowered his gaze.

Status Window.

His Status Window unfolded in front of him.

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