After assessing the new skill, Diane and I went to report to the dungeon clerk that we had cleared the Sea Dragon Palace. At the same time, we decided to tell them about the oddities that had formed, such as ten minibosses in one room, and the addition of a new boss not recorded. Finally, we presented our theory about a master-level Swimming skill being able to breathe underwater. Although it wasn't much, we were given ten gold pieces for the information.

However, as we were leaving, the clerk called out to us. "If you're planning to stay, we'd like to ask you to clear the palace periodically." She said, and the two of us looked at each other. "It will take a few days before the docked ships will be able to leave, now that the sea dragons are dealt with."

Diane hesitated, looking up at me and speaking with a quiet tone. "We don't need scrolls anymore, so it wouldn't cost us anything but time."

Thinking about that, I similarly understood, turning back to look at the clerk. "Fine, we'll clear it once a day to keep it under control. In the meantime, I'd suggest training your best swimmers to quickly level up their skills. At the very least, they need a high enough level of Diving to make it from one safe zone to another."

I knew that it wasn't as simple of a matter as that. For most people, training a master-level skill could take years. However, this was a port city. It stood to reason that there would be several who had long since been regularly swimming. If they weren't high enough level for the dungeon, they could enchant equipment for the proper clearing party.

The clerk nodded her head, and the two of us left the office. "So, what do you want to do while we wait?" Diane asked, looking back at me. "Are you just going to be training your fire and water skills again? Or maybe try to get your dragon transformation completed?"

I hesitated, but declined both of her suggestions. "Actually, there's something that I'd like you to help me with, if you can."

When Diane raised an eyebrow, I continued. "I'd like you to train my clones. I have the skill levels, and I trained with a great martial arts instructor, but I have no doubt that your talent for fighting is greater than my own."

"You want me to train the clones you make with your skill..?" Diane asked in confusion. "Does that mean that they can learn?"

I crossed my arms, thinking about it. "It's hard to explain. They don't learn like you or I do. They only have a low level of intelligence, after all. However, if they are taught to fight in a certain way, they can replicate that style. They can't make decisions on their own, but they will follow patterns."

Diane thought about it for a moment herself, and then nodded. "Sure. That sounds interesting. That should help increase the level of your clone skills, too. I won't say no to more well-trained meatshields."

I chuckled at that, and the two of us quickly left the city, walking out to a rocky mesa nearby. The smell of the ocean air only barely reached this place. As I was checking our surroundings, Diane began to stretch. "Let's get started, then. I've only got another hour before I need to log off for the night."

With a nod, I summoned both my Fire Clone and my Water Clone, and instructed both to use Ki Shadow. As for myself, I sat down, watching the fight cross-legged as water and fire began to circle around me.

Once the clones were ready, Diane slipped a pair of daggers into her hands, lunging forward with incredible speed. The clones were slow to react, the fire clone having its head cut off while the other lost an arm. "Again!" She shouted, and I reformed the clones, who charged at her again.

These clothes weren't even as fast as myself, not when they didn't use Glancing Steps-X, so there was no way that they would be able to keep up with Diane. One of them would slice down at her, and she nimbly swayed to the side, cutting off both of its wrists. If they cut at her horizontally, she jumped up over the attack, kicking it twice in the head before spinning in midair and slicing its neck.

For a while, it seemed that any attack they did was met with an instant death. Moreover, even if they took defensive stances, Diane could slip into their gaps with uncanny precision. Every strike was cold and lethal, with not a single shred of mercy.

I could tell that Diane was enjoying this, as well. After all, this was the best way for her to train her own skills. Well, it would be once the clones managed to survive her basic attacks.

The next day, we began by raiding the Sea Dragon Palace. Given that there was only one king and one prince this time, our loot was far worse. We did manage to get a skill book for Dragon Pulse, but the biggest prize was a pair of Dragon King Pearls, both of which Diane gave to me, since she wasn't ready to evolve hers yet.

After raiding, the two of us resumed our training from the day before, with my clones gradually managing to fend off her strikes. It wasn't often, but even fending off one out of every six attacks was an improvement.

During the training, I made sure to watch, sending mental commands whenever I saw something that needed to be improved. In the process of doing so, I was surprised to earn a new skill, Captain. This was a Utility skill, one that acted like a proficiency skill with minions. Once I had this skill, I noticed that the fighting prowess of the clones began to increase more rapidly.

By the end of the first full day of training, the two clones had begun working together, covering each other well enough that Diane was forced to start using her skills. She slipped in and out of stealth, stepping into their blind spots, and even deployed traps in the middle of combat.

When I awoke the day after that, I was preparing to raid the dungeon yet again with Diane. I put on my gear, checked my inventory, and headed out of my room at the inn. However, I saw Diane waiting for me with a troubled expression. "Is everything alright?" I asked, and she hesitated.

"I received a message from the GMs last night." She began. "They asked to have a word with you."

When she said that, my eyes widened, unsure what to say. The GMs wanted a word with me? Why? Had I done something unforgivable. But, more importantly… I looked at Diane in confusion. "Why would they go through you to ask for a meeting with me?"

"Apparently, because we're traveling together as a party, most people regard you as an extension of my own assets as a player. Like if a knight captain were to travel with their men." She answered awkwardly, and I could tell that she was legitimately bothered by this.

"Do you know what they want to talk to me about?" I asked, and she shook her head.

"They didn't say. However, they told me that they would not force any action without the consent of both of us." Well, that was a relief. Though, the way it was worded did concern me.

"Alright… where do we meet up?" I asked, and Diane gestured back to my room.

"If you agreed to meet, I am supposed to send them a message, and they'll go to you. However, they asked to talk to you alone for this meeting." She said, and I blinked. Still, after a moment of thought, I reached out and gently patted her head.

"Don't worry. You have their word, and I won't do anything to get myself in trouble with them." I promised, smiling at her before turning around and heading back into my room.

"Be careful!" Diane called out quickly when she saw the door closing, and I simply nodded to her. I walked over to my bed, sitting down on it and waiting.

Thankfully, they didn't keep me waiting too long. After a few minutes, the air in the room shimmered, and a man was suddenly sitting at the desk within my room. He was a human with messy brown hair and green eyes, his chin covered with a thick layer of stubble. "Yo, mister Fallen Martial King." He said with a grin.

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"So, I was right with that assumption." I responded calmly. "The highest ranked traits were made to be packaged intentionally."

"Yeah, you got us there." He sighed, waving it off. He wore a messy brown coat, a white undershirt, and denim pants. "Honestly, when we learned that a King character had been thrown away at level one, we were freaking out. I mean seriously, what kind of idiot just trashes a winning lottery ticket?"

I could understand what he meant. I had the same thoughts when I first saw my traits, and that my player had immediately abandoned me. However, he continued. "Really, look at how far you've come at level one. If you were able to properly level up, you'd easily be one of the top five players."

Okay, the fact that he worded like that meant I shouldn't have even been close to the upper echelon, which had me worried. Still, I tried not to let it show on my face. "What was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"It's all related, don't worry." He said, shaking his head. "See, the 'King packages' we set up are designed to be unique. Even if a character is deleted, that trait won't enter circulation as long as the Fallen that has it still exists. And we're trying to get the Martial King package back for new players, before the next major update. At the same time, your actions have antagonized a few different players. Don't worry, we reviewed all the relevant records."

I hesitated, unable to help myself. "What ended up happening with Grog and his men?"

The GM smirked wryly. "Gabrielle really doesn't know how to hold back. When they learned that they'd be imprisoned for a year for their actions, they deleted their characters. Better to lose two months of hard work than a full year, after all."

"But, anyways. We've been trying to figure out a suitable deal to offer you, one that could get you to willingly surrender your current traits. And don't worry, you'd be trading them both in. We're not going to leave you with just the negative."

Hearing him talk, I clenched my fists in my lap. "And what is this deal?"

"There are two offers." He said, snapping his fingers and causing two windows to appear between us. "We looked through both your personal records and our traits database to come up with these ideas. The first offer is to receive a fairly rare trait known as Offline Leveling, which allows a character to continue to level up even when their player is offline. Or, in the case of a Fallen, after their player has deleted the character. And we'd give you a random one-star negative trait, as well."

"With this, you'd be able to level up like any normal player, and you'd keep all of your existing overpowered skills. Win-win, right?" He asked with a wide grin.

"What's the other deal?" I asked, looking at the second window.

The man clicked his tongue, before continuing. "The second deal is early access to a future update we have planned for later this year. We're still working out the details on it, tweaking the balance and everything. We call it the Companion system. Basically, your player friend will be able to take you in as a personal asset, and your level will be bound to hers. Granted, this means that you will never be able to leave her party without losing all of those levels, but from what we've seen, you didn't seem to want to leave her, anyways?"

"How much have you been watching?" I asked, my eyes wide. However, the man simply let out a laugh.

"Not us specifically. The intelligence governing this world, which is always watching everything. We had it create a profile on you. You're pretty protective of Diane, huh? Both her player and the Chosen. Not romantically, mind you, but--"

I cut him off, taking a deep breath. "She's had a tough life. It's only right for her to find someone that genuinely cares for her. I want to let her experience the world as it ought to be experienced, not from some sealed room where nobody cares to visit."

The man gave a silent smile, nodding his head. "Precisely. That's why we figured this second deal would be the one you'd go for."

"Actually, I would like to refuse both of your offers." I corrected, surprising the man. "While on the surface, they seem like they are fair deals, I am in fact losing everything if I agree."

The man blinked, looking at me in confusion. "Mind explaining that one to me, man?"

"It's simple. At my current stage, my skill levels are simply too high. Even if I were to receive levels matching Diane's, I would immediately incur Mana Burn as soon as I fired one of my more powerful skills. Rather than becoming an ally that would stay with her forever, I would turn into a burden holding her back."

"This applies to both of your deals. While it is true that I would be overjoyed if I were able to level up, giving up my current traits would be the equivalent of condemning both myself and Diane for weeks, maybe months until I reached a level where I could use my own skills like a normal player. By that point, other players would have overtaken Diane, and she would lose her chance to reach her goals in this game. I refuse to become a burden to her."

The man looked at me for a long moment, before sighing. "You're well aware that your current growth has a limit, aren't you?" He asked, to which I nodded my head. "If you can't find more enhancement skills to keep stacking on top of each other, you'll never be able to contend with players at the higher levels, no matter how much you can spam high-level skills."

"I'm aware." I confirmed. According to the standards of the League of Assassins, my growth would likely plateau around the mid-ranking levels, around two hundred. "I'll keep looking for ways to overcome this on my own. But, I won't take any deal that results in me becoming a burden on Diane."

The GM looked troubled at my decision, leaning back in his seat. "This is turning into a real headache. If you were on your own, we wouldn't even be having this conversation. You'd be stripped of the traits, and probably just given the Offline Leveling one as a compensation. But at this point, you and her are seen as an iconic duo, really. If we did anything to you, it would directly impact her experience in the game, and our rules prevent that. We can't get involved in any way that would negatively impact the game experience of a single player."

I gave a small smile when I heard that, knowing that I was safe. In truth, had they approached me with one of these deals within the first couple of weeks after I gained these traits, it probably would have been worth it to accept the deal. However, at that point, I hadn't made a big enough impact on anything for them to care.

The man tapped his fingers along his arm, thinking it through. "We need to do something. Right now, your trait package is being wasted, no offense. I'm sure you're using it to the best of your ability. You're easily above average as a player that joined at launch. And those packages have special significance, so we can't just let one of the biggest ones rot away."

After thinking about it for a few more seconds, he abruptly sat up. "I've got an idea. Wait here for a sec, and don't call your friend back in just yet. I need to discuss something with my boss."

With that, he disappeared from the room, leaving me stunned. Was he just going to go to a developer and try to find another deal that they could offer me? What would even be worth offering me? Unless they could provide me with an item that had the same effect as my trait, I couldn't see myself getting rid of it any time soon.

It took about fifteen minutes for the GM to return, a small smile on his face. "I've gotten approval. We won't be able to implement it yet, but if we get your approval, we might have another solution."

"And what's your solution this time?" I asked with a raised brow.

"If we can't reclaim your traits, we'll need to make use of you in another way. We'll use you as promotional material for the game, showing highlights of your battles and training as an example of the freedom players can have with their skills. After all, if someone at level one can do what you can do, why should they not dream even bigger?" He asked, spreading his arms out dramatically.

"I… fail to see what I'd get out of this arrangement? Especially if the idea is to advertise that I'm still only level one, meaning that having me able to level up won't be part of the deal." I pointed out, and he nodded his head.

"There's another feature in the works, one we were preparing for select players who would use their exploits to advertise the game. We call it a Sponsorship System. Depending on the quality of the promotional material, as determined by the system, you will be able to earn points. These points can be redeemed for only two things. First, you can use them to temporarily increase the amount of experience you get for yourself and your skills."

"Secondly, you can pose questions to the system. Depending on your current circumstances, and the question that you're posing, the system will place a value on that information. For instance, you could ask about those key skills you need to improve, or where to find a special trait."

My eyes widened at that, lowering my head in thought. Out of the three deals offered thus far, this was the one most like a 'win-win'. I didn't truly lose anything, but my work in advertising the game would bring benefits that I could share with Diane.

However, this decision wasn't strictly mine to make. "If you can convince Diane to agree with this, then fine. However, I want to slightly adjust the terms of the agreement." When I said that, the man seemed surprised again.

"Oh? What do you want changed?"

I gave a small smile as I explained. "I don't want the focus purely to be on my fighting and skills. I would much rather it be about the connections between Players and Fallen like myself. Many Players see us, and even Chosen, as disposable entities with no worth. More than anything, I want the content I provide to show that this is more than just an adventure game to your Players. This can easily become a second life for them, one where they can find friends and loved ones, making meaningful connections. Ultimately, I believe that this type of mindset among your players would lead to a far better experience for you as GMs."

The man's expression softened as he listened to my speech. "I'll see what I can do, and talk to your friend now."

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