Dexter woke from his long, wet dream, stretching his back and limbs, feeling the crack of his bones.
"That fucking Tribulation almost sent me to the Immortal Realm," he murmured.
After yawning for quite some time, he noticed he was sitting on a bed.
Stella's bed…
He removed the blanket covering his lower half, only to see his d—no, his naked body—with Stella clinging to it.
'Oh my god, did we… do that kind of thing?'
'With an AI, really?'
Stella's eyes flinched—she was regaining consciousness.
And when she looked up, she saw Dexter staring at her, mouth agape.
"Good morning, Dex~" She smiled as if she'd won the lottery.
"G-G-Good morning, Stella…" Dexter stammered. "Did we… you know? Last night… I can't remember anything…"
Stella didn't answer. Instead, she just smiled at him playfully, then sat up and hugged him.
Dexter flushed, torn between whether to return the embrace or not. Finally, he settled for resting a hand on her head, gently ruffling her hair.
"Can you give me some space? I need to put some clothes on…"
Stella released him from the hug and slipped out of bed. After one last lingering smile, she murmured, blushing:
"I really enjoyed last night with you…"
…
Dexter and Stella prepared for their departure, though there wasn't much to pack. They simply retrieved the coins they'd saved from the chest and loaded their equipment onto the new pack mules.
As they worked, Dexter kept wondering what had truly happened after he lost consciousness. Meanwhile, Stella cheerfully sang "La la la la la" without pause, her voice light and carefree.
Before leaving, Dexter turned to look at the house one last time, memories of the past three years in the Starting Area flooding his mind.
'I didn't even sleep in that house until last night… and now I can't remember a damn thing! Stupid system, bombarding me with endless lightning! If we really did R18 stuff, at least make me remember it!'
As they walked toward Gridlock's hut, their eyes widened in shock.
There was no hut!
Dexter ran toward the ruins, leaving Stella with the mules.
After removing some destroyed bricks and wood, the basement door suddenly opened—Gridlock emerging from it.
"What happened, old man? Are you okay?"
Gridlock wore his Mythic set, the same armor he'd used in his last fight with Dexter. Its materials were slowly dissipating, though this went unnoticed unless one looked closely.
"Don't worry... I'm okay... I can rebuild this house with just a snap..." Gridlock smiled weakly.
Gridlock then pulled out a small black bag and handed it to Dexter.
"This will be considered my final work... and I'm giving it to you as your master, hoping you'll succeed in everything you do..."
"Whoa! What's this?!" Dexter asked excitedly.
'So this is my reward for completing that Newbie Guide. Good thing I didn't leave immediately after finishing it.'
"Don't open it inside the Tutorial Zone... Wait until you reach the Warring Kingdoms," Gridlock said with a faint smile.
'Of course he's an NPC—he would know I'm in the tutorial.'
"Okay, old man... Thank you for everything you've taught me, and for this gift. I'm truly grateful," Dexter said sincerely.
"Goodbye, Master..." Dexter said with a deep bow.
Gridlock watched them walk toward the Small Village. Just before Dexter could open the Gate, he shouted:
"Don't forget to come back before you finish the Tutorial, kid!"
Dexter waved at Gridlock one last time.
"Sure, sure, old man! Wait for me—I'll bring something good for us to eat!"
"Goodbye, Mr. Blacksmith!" Stella added.
With that, both Dexter and Stella left the Starting Area.
Gridlock smiled one last time as his Mythic armor faded into nothingness.
He walked toward his destroyed hut and with a snap of his fingers, it reconstructed itself as if time had reversed.
Gazing at the crashing waves and the burning sun, he murmured:
"I guess it's really time for me to go now..."
…
After entering the Small Village, Dexter and Stella went straight to the market to sell their excess equipment. Despite their time in the Tutorial Zone, their total coins—including what they'd just earned from selling gear—still didn't exceed 20,000.
"Is this enough for fare to the Warring Kingdom you mentioned, Dex?" Stella asked.
"Who said we need fare? Come on... we're going questing."
They walked toward the village center where Captain Audrey stood waiting.
"Hey, Captain Audrey!" Dexter said abruptly. "We want to go to the Warring Kingdom. What do we need to do?"
[Newbie Guide: Proceed to Small Village and talk to Capt. Audrey [✓]]
Captain Audrey stared at them both, studying their equipment.
"You've already got good gear. Now you should gather materials to help us build the ship."
[Newbie Guide: Help Captain Audrey repair the Ship. [_]]
[TII Metal Bars: 0/100]
[TII Leather: 0/100]
[TII Cloth: 0/100]
[TII Planks: 0/100]
After accepting the quest, Dexter pulled all the required materials from the pack mule, handing some to Stella. Together, they presented the materials to Captain Audrey—leaving her completely dumbstruck.
[Newbie Guide: Help Captain Audrey repair the Ship. [✓]]
"Th-that fast?" Captain Audrey stammered.
"We didn't need it anyway... so what's next?" Dexter asked.
"Th-then go retrieve the map stolen by the bandits..."
[Newbie Guide: Help Captain Audrey recover the Map. [_]]
[Map: 0/1]
Dexter immediately pulled out not one, but two maps from his pocket, handing the second one to Stella.
"You mean this?" he said.
[Newbie Guide: Help Captain Audrey recover the Map. [✓]]
Captain Audrey couldn't believe her eyes. They were completing tasks impossibly fast.
"Th-then proceed to the bandit fort and send the signal so we can depart for the Warring Kingdom," Captain Audrey instructed.
[Newbie Guide: Burn the Fort to signal readiness and assist the Sailor at the Dock. [_]]
"Okay..." Dexter said boredly, pointing toward the fort visible just beyond the village.
"Stella, go burn that fort down. I'll buy provisions for our journey—who knows how many days it will take."
Stella's innocent princess-like expression suddenly twisted, her smile transforming into something maniacal that sent shivers down Captain Audrey's spine.