Lev wasn't bothered by anyone else, only getting judgmental and resentful glances. Too many had died in such a short period of time, and the diviner had already outed him as the source. That left only one thing to direct their anger to, and that person happened to be in the same shelter as them.

This is a new brand of uncomfortable, Lev thought to himself while sitting on the ground in a corner. Do they think I can't feel their glances with my eyes closed, or do they want me to know they're pissed?

He sighed in his head. The storm was not going to abate for a while, which meant he had to stay in that hall for just as long. Going by the treatment he had received so far, the chances of a fight breaking out were pretty damn high.

Still… I really want to know what Noah is doing. Those crystals are so damn interesting.

Mana was transferred to and from the crystal on the strategist's desk. Each packet of mana was densely enchanted, both for it to remain in shape and to safely carry the entire message. Lev's Mana Perception just barely let him see them and their small range, which made sense. Sherron had said that long-range communication was barely a thing, and these crystals seemed much too advanced for that.

But Noah was very pissed off, likely because of the state Beatrice had returned in.

Lev got up and made his way to the strategist's desk and took a seat in front of the man. Noah glanced up from the crystals and looked at him, expertly concealing his anger.

"I don't think your reaction is the same as everyone else's," Lev began, eyes roaming all the communication crystals on the table before settling on Noah's own. "If you have something to say, please do so. Living down here for however long we need to will become hell if you keep glancing at me like that."

The Master didn't reply for a while and just stared at him silently, perhaps because of Lev's directness. Eventually, his eyes became even more unreadable as he spoke.

"You had a job, Hunter Lev," he stated in a calm tone that hid a storm entirely different than the one raging above ground. "Aura mages are rare, even more so than healers. Their safety is the highest priority, and you let one of our most promising ones almost die on your first assignment."

Yeah, Beatrice is definitely more to him than just an 'aura mage.'

Lev leaned forward. "Tell me, Strategist Noah, do you think I could've predicted a third-threshold stormrider appearing a week before the storm? Let me finish," he barked rather harshly when Noah was about to open his mouth. "We may have still had a chance to run if any of your guys had noticed it approaching, but Beatrice jumped in front of a lightning bolt that was aimed at me while tackling us to the ground.

"It is only because the stars aligned and I had a passive that activates in such moments that I was able to mostly pull her out of the bolt's way and save her from instant death. Even then, it was only because of my strength that I was able to heal her enough to not let her die on the spot and carry her to the healers while running from a third-threshold monster. That doesn't even take into account that we had been fighting for four days straight now and were bone-tired. Both of us coming out of that alive is nothing short of a miracle."

"Do not forget whose fault it was," Noah said in an infuriatingly calm tone. Lev gritted his teeth, biting back scathing remarks, and stayed quiet. "I have been briefed about your capabilities and performance in the tournament even if some of it is suspiciously underplayed. Perception and eyesight are your strong suit, so don't try to blame someone else for your negligence."

I can only do so much, Lev surly thought to himself, unable to find a flaw in the argument. Beatrice had taken the role of keeping an eye on the skies so Lev could focus on the plains and the ground below and deal with the monsters. Her eyesight was understandably not as good as his own.

"And… you say Beatrice intervened at the risk of her own life?" Noah continued, tone flat.

"Yes," Lev replied, voice similarly neutral. "The same Beatrice who doesn't speak unless necessary or ever tries to skirt orders."

Noah's brows furrowed in concern and confusion as he replied. "Be as it may, I'd appreciate it if you would let me work undisturbed."

Lev left without a word, finding the dismissal better than Noah's earlier behavior. Their conversation had been heard by everyone present, but he didn't care about them. The top priority was to make his stay down below bearable and make sure not to let anything escalate. No matter what, Lev couldn't allow anyone to brand him as the enemy of humanity simply for existing.

****

A few hours later, Beatrice entered the shelter. She almost seemed to be back to her usual state, masking everything behind an expressionless face. The effects of the recent traumatizing experience could be observed by her slightly twitchy fingers and sunken eyes.

Lev, who was meditating in a corner, opened his eyes to glance at her once and confirm her well-being. Then he closed them again and waited to see if she would even approach him.

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Beatrice first made her way to Noah. A sound ward blocked their conversation, which went on for a while. There was some anger in Noah's aura, but it was contained to seem mild.

Hearing footsteps, Lev opened his eyes, already knowing who they belonged to. Beatrice stood in front of him, neither angry nor resentful. Lev's shoulders involuntarily slumped after seeing that, and he summoned a couch for her to sit on.

That was what she seemed to be waiting for and she sat down. Standing up, he summoned another one and made himself comfortable. A cube appeared in Beatrice's hand, not letting any sounds escape from a sphere around them.

She stared at her hands and stayed quiet. Lev gave her time and space, knowing whatever she was about to say was important.

"You're not a good hunter," Beatrice voiced in a neutral tone, still staring at her hands.

"…"

"So confidently reaching above your station when you're obviously inexperienced. That almost got us both killed."

"I'm sorry."

She continued, heedless. "Both of us would've definitely died if I hadn't foolishly moved without thinking. Somehow, we survived because you pulled me closer, then saved my life again by healing me out of nowhere. I didn't even know you could do that."

"Thank you," Lev bowed his head once she didn't say anything else, "for protecting me. I will never forget how much I owe you."

She fixed him with an unnervingly intense stare. Lev looked back, unsure what brought that on. Seconds passed in tense silence before her eyes started to turn almost… nervous?

"But you're strong. Far too strong for your level," she began again, not breaking eye contact. "I kept track. We killed seventy-two second-threshold monsters in four days, and only forty of them were with assistance from others. That is not normal."

Lev stayed silent and let her speak. Beatrice was visibly tense now. "When we first met, you said you would just evolve and refuse to tell them more about your class again. Are you really going to push for Master after this?"

"I am," he agreed, understanding where this was going. Perhaps she wanted something else, so he still didn't say anything else.

"Then…" her hands clenched into fists. She gulped, struggling to say the next words. Just when her resolve was starting to crumble, Lev finally opened his mouth.

"Windkeep is the best place for that. The pit has more opportunities for hunting and gathering resources but well, you know what happened above first-hand," Lev casually voiced his opinion.

The request was more than reasonable. Honestly, it was negligible compared to his life's worth, and Lev had no qualms helping her along to begin with. One might argue that it would hurt his evolution's potential, but he had plans to counter that.

A relieved breath escaped her lips as she smiled faintly. "I know it's not a small ask-"

"It is," Lev interjected. "When do you wish to go through with it?"

"… Give me some time to think."

****

Life, young man, is boredom.

Lev rolled around on his huge, luxurious couch. The days were passing with excruciating slowness, and nobody tried to stir any trouble after the first day, either. Beatrice's words came to mind.

"He wanted to know about your skills and strengths. All I said was that if you can't make it to Exalted, then nobody can, not anymore."

Turns out, Noah took that more seriously than she intended. He warned off everyone not to make an enemy out of Lev, because no matter what, he was not going to be punished or even blamed for the vulture's presence. It was an accident, no matter what a diviner's skills said. Lev himself had played no part in it.

That was news to Lev. He was worried that someone might see it as a bad omen and try to advocate kicking him away from population centers. Noah also informed them about his tournament wins and relation to several Exalted and other key figures. Many had seen him frequently enter the royal booth, giving rise to many manners of rumors.

The worst of them, at least, had been silenced without mercy. Or so Noah's spooky tales said. Lev knew the strategist was both trying to defuse any budding animosity and also score some points in his good graces.

He didn't mind, but Beatrice found the whole situation endlessly amusing for some reason. Noah was usually a polite man who never slacked off. That agreeable and polite personality vanished into thin air whenever someone stepped on his toes.

To see such a competent and stern man scramble not to make an enemy out of him was top-tier entertainment, according to her. Lev supposed the reasoning made sense. It made him curious about what kind of feedback the strategist got from his skills and intuition.

Other than that, nothing of note happened. Lev meditated, practiced some basic runes and formations so others couldn't steal the ones he got from Drakys, and generally just wasted mana to watch it regenerate. The cycle repeated again and again for three weeks, which meant he was bored out of his mind.

There were very few people left in the hall they were in. Nearly two dozen more had arrived after Lev, bringing the total occupants to forty. Now, there were only seven, including him and the aura mage.

She really has mastered the art of napping, Lev flatly stared at Beatrice's sleeping form for a moment before looking away. How is this girl sleeping ten hours daily with her level and constitution even?

There was bound to be a profound technique behind it, something far too precious to be shared with the likes of him.

Shoving her out of his mind, Lev returned to his silent poolgazing and let his mind wander. Nothing had attacked them in the shelter, something he was infinitely grateful for. If a monster could see past all the enchantments and find them, they stood absolutely no chance against such a creature.

Several attendants had brought equipment with them to the shelter. Rings and other accessories that masked auras and mana were distributed freely once the storm started in earnest, bringing with it an endless torrent of rain and lightning.

Lev and Beatrice both refused the equipment and elected to stay. They sorely needed the downtime to digest the near-death experience and prepare themselves for the future.

"Still nothing?" Beatrice questioned with a yawn, a routine they had developed.

"Still nothing," Lev agreed without opening his eyes.

"How long has it been now?"

"About thirty-four naps long."

She gave him a bemused glare that he could feel without looking. "Not funny."

"I find it pretty funny," Lev countered.

"Oh really? How many times have you meditated so far?"

"Total sessions? Nearly sixty. I'm more bored than you are."

She snorted lightly and ignored him as she walked to Noah. They often chatted, though Lev didn't know about what, nor did he want to.

Rain, rain, go away… go rain death somewhere else. Not sure if the original poem was so morbid.

"Let's go. It has passed. The cleanup finished a few hours ago."

Lev opened his eyes and stared at Beatrice, looking for any hints of a prank. There weren't any.

With a sigh, he got up and followed the Master strategist and his helpers.

"Fucking finally."

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