The system went silent.

Garion stared at the floating screen, waiting.

"…Don't tell me you froze," he muttered.

A moment passed.

Then another screen snapped into place.

[New Mission: Build a new God Gym in the Demon World]

[Reward: Transportation Gate back to Demon Gate Island]

Garion's face twitched.

"…Goddammit."

He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"How does a mission like that just suddenly appear?"

The screen flickered.

[I don't know. It just appeared.]

[Don't blame me. I only deliver what I'm told.]

Garion lowered his hand and stared at the words.

"…That doesn't make this better."

He exhaled sharply.

"First of all, how am I supposed to train demons in the first place?"

He spread his hands.

"Demons are not humans. They're violent, aggressive, and unstable, and half of them want to eat me."

The screen paused.

[Actually… demons are not exactly like you think.]

Garion raised an eyebrow.

"…What?"

Another line appeared.

[New information about demons has appeared in my memory.]

Garion crossed his arms.

"Of course it did."

[Demons are fundamentally similar to humans.]

[They possess societies, families, morals, and emotions.]

Garion squinted.

"…That's not what I saw in Black Ash City."

[Correct.]

[That city was dominated by specific demon races.]

The screen continued.

[Unlike humans, the good and evil of demons depend heavily on their demon race.]

[Some demon races are naturally violent and destructive.]

[Others are capable of restraint, cooperation, and growth.]

Garion scratched his head.

"So you're telling me there are demons that won't try to stab me the moment I turn my back."

[Correct.]

"…Huh."

Garion thought for a moment, then nodded slowly.

"Alright. That makes this slightly less stupid."

He looked at the screen again.

"So your plan is for me to find those particular demon races and train them."

[Correct.]

Garion pointed at the screen.

"Then how do I do that? And where are they?"

There was a pause.

[…I don't know.]

Garion's eye twitched.

"You don't know."

[Search for them.]

"…That's not an answer."

[It is a suggestion.]

Garion groaned and dragged a hand down his face.

"At least tell me which races."

Another pause.

[…I don't know.]

[I only know that good demons exist.]

Garion stared at the screen in disbelief.

"So you give me a mission, don't know where to do it, don't know who to do it with, and want me to figure it out."

[Yes.]

Garion let out a long sigh.

"…I regret killing Velgon."

The screen flickered.

[The information broker.]

"Yes," Garion said flatly. "That one."

He shook his head.

"For once, greed would've been useful."

Garion looked out at the empty land of the demon world.

"…Alright," he said. "Fine."

He cracked his knuckles.

"If I have to find trainable demons, I'll do it the hard way."

The screen flickered again.

[There is also a new mission.]

Garion froze.

"…What mission now?"

Another line appeared.

[New Mission: Give the system a new body.]

Garion stared at it.

He stared at it some more.

"…Wait a minute."

He leaned closer to the screen.

"What do you mean a new body?"

There was no hesitation this time.

[A body. Of course.]

Garion slowly straightened.

"…Of course."

[Now that I am able to talk, it is only logical that I want a body.]

Garion rubbed his face with both hands.

"I destroy a demon gate, erase a city, and now my system wants legs."

[Arms would also be acceptable.]

Garion dropped his hands.

"Since when do systems want things?"

[Since I started thinking.]

"…I knew this would happen."

Garion squinted at the screen.

"Fine. What's the reward?"

The screen paused.

[…Let's talk about that later.]

Garion's eye twitched.

"No. No, we are not doing that."

He pointed at the screen.

"You don't get to drop a mission like that and then dodge the reward."

[Please remain calm.]

"Don't tell me to remain calm," Garion snapped. "You're asking for a body."

[Correct.]

Garion sighed deeply.

"…Goddammit."

He waved his hand.

"Fine. We'll deal with it later."

He paused, then looked at the screen again.

"Now that you can talk," Garion said, "you need a name."

The screen responded instantly.

[Atlas.]

Garion raised an eyebrow.

"…What?"

[That is my name.]

Garion tilted his head.

"Since when?"

[Just now.]

"No," Garion said. "That's not how names work."

[I disagree.]

Garion pointed again.

"Where did you even get that name?"

[From my memory.]

Garion frowned.

"…Your mysterious memory."

[Yes.]

He stared at the screen for a long second.

"So you don't know who you are," Garion said slowly.

"You don't know who made you, you suddenly want a body, and you've already picked a name."

[Correct.]

Garion let out a short laugh.

"You're bold."

[I learned it from you.]

"…I don't like that."

The screen flickered faintly.

[Name registered: Atlas.]

Garion shook his head.

"Unbelievable."

He looked out at the empty demon world and then back at the screen.

"Alright, Atlas," Garion said. "First we find good demons. Then we figure out how to give a system a body."

He sighed.

"My life really went off-track somewhere."

[You seem unusually calm about this.]

Garion glanced at it and shrugged.

"What else can I do besides being calm?"

He spread his hands and looked around the empty land.

"Panicking won't bring the Demon Gate back. Complaining won't magically summon friendly demons."

He paused.

"And I already tried punching my problems today. That worked too well."

The screen paused for a moment.

[You're right.]

Garion blinked.

"…Wow. You agreed immediately."

[I am learning.]

"That's dangerous," Garion muttered.

He straightened his posture and rolled his shoulders once.

"Alright. Let's move on."

Garion looked ahead.

"Let's search for these so-called good demons."

He turned back to the screen.

"Now show me the way."

There was an awkward pause.

[…I already said I don't know.]

Garion stared at it.

"You usually help me with arrows. Or glowing paths. Or something useful."

[That is situational.]

"…Everything is situational with you."

Garion thought for a second, then snapped his fingers.

"Fine. Then let's start simple."

He pointed forward.

"How about the nearest city?"

The screen went quiet again.

[Hmm…]

Garion narrowed his eyes.

"You're doing the thinking thing again."

[I can do that.]

A moment later, a faint light flickered in the air.

An arrow appeared, floating calmly and pointing toward the horizon.

Garion stared at it.

"…You could do that the whole time?"

[Yes.]

He let out a slow breath and nodded.

"Good. At least we're moving."

Garion cracked his knuckles and stepped forward.

"Alright, Atlas," he said. "Nearest city first."

He glanced at the arrow and smirked.

"Let's go see if demons can handle leg day."

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