Chapter 40

The next morning, Theo left the house early to head to Marco’s workshop—only to flinch when he saw Blaine waiting right outside his door.

“What the—why are you here?”

“I thought you might be going to Marco’s workshop.”

Blaine answered with a bright smile. Theo instinctively checked the time. It was just past seven in the morning.

“How long have you been waiting?”

“Not long.”

“You’re still a kid, but you don’t sleep in, huh…”

Blaine only smiled wordlessly.

The two of them caught a regular carriage at the post station outside the village and headed for Lucilvania.

As the carriage rattled along, Theo leaned against the window, blankly watching the scenery pass by, until a thought hit him.

“Oh, did you use the achievement reward from yesterday?”

“Yes. Thanks to that, I finally hit Tier 5.”

“Good for you. I need to decide on my Action soon…”

“You haven’t chosen one yet? Not even thought of anything?”

“I’ve thought about it, but I don’t think it’s something I can use as a main.”

“What kind of… Action is it?”

“It’s a bit complicated. Let me check how my weapon turned out first. If it looks good, I’ll tell you.”

“Okay.”

Not long after, the carriage arrived in Lucilvania. The two of them headed straight for Marco’s workshop. Despite the early hour, the doors were already wide open—and inside, Marco sat slumped over a table, dozing like a sick chicken.

“Marco.”

Theo stepped inside carefully and shook his shoulder. Marco’s head shot up, and he hastily wiped away the drool sliding down his chin. With a stretch and a yawn, he got up.

“Ahh… you’re here, hyung.”

Then he noticed Blaine standing behind Theo. “Oh, you came together today.” His face brightened.

“If you’re just going to nap like this, why bother opening so early?”

“It’s not like I enjoy opening early. You keep showing up at dawn, so I leave it open on purpose.”

“Oh.”

‘Guess I’m the guilty one here.’

Marco trudged over to the wall and took down Theo’s bow.

“I reinforced both limbs with processed Steel of Raia. The weight barely changed, but the attack power went up a little. If I had forged the steel bigger, the power would’ve gone up even more—but then the weight would’ve gotten too heavy.”

Theo accepted the bow and checked the info window. The main function had changed to Attack Power 78 (+1~7).

“This is more than enough. Thanks.”

“No need to thank me. Honestly, every time I make something for you, it’s a lot of fun.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Then we’ll get going. Go back to sleep.”

“Sleep? No way. I’ve got orders to fill.”

“Oh? Busy, huh.”

“Heh… all thanks to my genius craftsmanship.”

Marco puffed out his chest with pride, but Theo only waved lazily and walked out of the workshop.

“Hyung, where are we going now?”

“To buy an Action.”

“Oh, so the weapon turned out well?”

“Not sure yet. I’ll only know after trying.”

“…? Which Action are you buying?”

“Sword Aura.”

Blaine blinked. For a second, he thought he misheard. But Theo just kept walking toward the plaza, face unreadable.

Instead of heading to the stalls or trading posts, Theo went into an NPC shop. Sword Aura was a staple Action for sword users, so NPCs sold it directly.

Theo bought both the Sword Aura Action and the Manifestation Action, then combined them into Manifested Sword Aura. Unlike the basic Sword Aura, which coated a blade in an aura to boost attack power, the manifested version left a visible trail shaped like the swing of the blade. Theo slotted it in and left town.

Out in the field, he activated the skill and swung his bow through the air. Along the path of the swing, shards like jagged glass floated in the air.

“What are you planning to do now?” Blaine asked.

Theo removed the loop from the bowstring and hooked it onto the bow’s body. “I know it sounds cocky, but…”

“Huh?”

“My aim’s pretty good, right?”

Theo scanned the distance. A monster was moving between trees far off. He narrowed his eyes, hooked the manifested Sword Aura onto the bowstring, and released. The blade-shaped aura flew across the gap and struck the monster dead-on.

Blaine’s jaw dropped. The distance far exceeded the normal range of a bow. And the damage—clearly from a sword, not a bow.

“This skill’s actually really strong, but it doesn’t auto-target. Range doesn’t matter either. It’s all about accuracy. That’s why sword users don’t like it—they have to physically slash to launch it, not shoot it.”

“Wow… I’d never even imagine using it like that…”

“Firing it like this with a bow is fine, but slashing it myself will need some practice. Supposedly, one swing can target multiple enemies with the fragments—but with a bow, it only seems to hit one.”

Blaine kept marveling, though worry lingered too. Theo’s builds always felt like they broke the game’s balance. He’d already been accused of hacking once.

Oblivious to Blaine’s unease, Theo kept practicing—shooting, slashing, adjusting, until he got the feel of it.

After a long stretch of training, Theo finally glanced at Blaine. “I’ll be here a while. If you’re bored, you can head back to town.”

“No, I’ll stay here.”

Blaine smiled and sat down on a nearby rock.

Theo nodded.

“Alright, then.”

They stayed until late afternoon, when Theo finally put away his bow and walked over.

“Let’s go. It’s late.”

“You’re done now?”

“More or less. I got the hang of it.”

“That’s great.”

Blaine stood, smiling.

“Come to think of it, you haven’t eaten all day hanging around with me. Want to stop in Lucil for something to eat?”

“Yes, I’d like that!”

“Let’s go.”

Theo led the way, and Blaine quickly matched his steps. Once in Lucilvania, they went to their usual restaurant. Buying food at the counter and heading out to the open-air tables was routine by now.

They found a spot, sat down, and chatted idly as they ate, the breeze passing overhead. At one point, Blaine’s gaze flicked into the air, like he was checking something invisible, before he quickly turned to Theo.

“Ah, tomorrow’s system maintenance. I might not be able to log in.”

So he hadn’t been staring into space—he must have checked his schedule or an alarm.

“Does it take that long?”

Theo asked, biting into a croquette.

Blaine nodded.

“Yeah, a few hours at least.”

“Do you have to do that maintenance for life?”

“Once I finish growing, only once a year. But since I’m still in the growth stage, I need it every three months.”

“But… you don’t even have a physical body. Do you really need a growth check?”

“…Well, it’s more like the avatar needs updating…”

“Ah, r-right… sorry. Damn, I’m really sorry….”

Theo stammered, clearly flustered, and apologized again. Blaine quickly waved his hands and smiled.

“No, it’s fine.”

But his smile had a bitter edge to it. Seeing Blaine looking so deflated, Theo cursed himself inside for being careless.

An awkward silence stretched on before Blaine finally stood up.

“Hyung, you must be tired today. Should we head back?”

“Huh?”

Theo looked up in surprise. Blaine had never been the one to end things first. For a moment, Theo wondered if Blaine was angry, but his expression was no different than usual. The faint blush on his cheeks when he looked at Theo was still there.

Theo rose hesitantly. Blaine walked beside him, keeping his steps matched as always. His gait, his expression, his gestures—everything looked the same. But the atmosphere felt different. Heavy. He seemed deeply disheartened.

Even so, after catching the regular carriage back to Ratteon, Blaine didn’t forget to see Theo home, as he always did.

“Go on inside.”

Blaine smiled as he said it, but Theo’s gaze lingered on him uneasily. Then Theo stepped back down from his stoop. Blaine tilted his head in confusion—only for Theo to grab his arm.

“Tonight, I’ll walk you home.”

“…What?”

Blaine’s voice cracked with surprise. But Theo didn’t explain, simply tugged him along until they reached Blaine’s door.

“You said you’ve got maintenance tomorrow. Get some sleep early.”

Blaine blinked rapidly, stunned, then softened into a small, warm smile.

“Yeah… thank you for walking me home.”

“It’s nothing. Go on inside.”

Blaine nodded and stepped in. Theo stayed where he was until the door closed fully behind him, only then turning back toward his own home at a slow pace.

Not long after Theo left, Blaine’s firmly shut door opened again. He slipped outside, glancing cautiously in the direction Theo had gone, and then started walking quietly.

His destination was Theo’s house. Sitting down by the flowerbed beneath the window, Blaine tensed at the faint creak above him. He quickly glanced up, then scooted back a little nervously.

The in-game night was falling fast, the world sinking into darkness. Shrouded by the shadows, Blaine let out a long breath, pulled out a small leather pouch, and popped something into his mouth.

Then he drew his knees up, rested his chin on them, and finally buried his face.

Wishing the long night would pass quickly. Wishing tomorrow would come soon.