I Don't Need To Log Out

The term "Keldar" didn't refer to a single race but was a collective name for the natives of a distant planet.

With hundreds of distinct races inhabiting the planet, they collectively decided to adopt "Keldar" as their shared identity. Of course, this decision ultimately rested with the strongest among them.

These races varied wildly in appearance—some resembled wolves, while others were humanoid. However, their intelligence had no direct correlation to their form; it was tied entirely to their power.

Every Keldar was born without intelligence, relying solely on instinct to survive. With enough luck and strength, they could grow more powerful by killing others, and this power brought intelligence. In turn, intelligence led to even greater strength.

Thus, a wolf-shaped Keldar could be stronger than a human-shaped one, while a goblin-shaped Keldar might surpass both in power.

Of course, if the parents had intelligence, they could make their child stronger easily.

That is why, Keldars were always ruled by the same family until the day the ruler was killed.

---

It didn't take Arlon long to finish off the remaining Keldars. Among them, the strongest was only level 99.

The Keldars had been hesitant to approach while Zerax was fighting, which made Arlon's job much easier.

He cast Blizzard again and started killing the Keldars swiftly.

Before the battle with Zerax, Arlon had estimated he'd reach around level 85 after defeating these monsters. But things had drastically changed.

First of all, leveling up became significantly harder after reaching level 100.

Arlon remembered gaining 17 levels from defeating the stone guardian Tailon, who was level 138, back when Arlon was only level 37.

Normally, the higher your level, the less experience you'd gain from defeating higher-level enemies.

But Zerax was level 153—and the gap between level 138 and 153 was like the difference between a mountain's peak and its base.

Secondly, there was the matter of bonus experience.

Keldars had specific elite members, known as "Named Monsters," that players had to defeat to protect Trion.

Killing a Named Monster was considered a major accomplishment and awarded additional experience points.

With these thoughts in mind, Arlon dispatched the last Keldar, and the system notification rang out:

"You have leveled up 13x. You have gained 39 CP."

"Great Achievement! You have killed an influential Keldar. You have leveled up 7x. You have gained 21 CP."

"F*ck!" Arlon cursed under his breath. "Couldn't you give me just one more level? I'm stuck at level 99."

Then, one final notification appeared Arlon knew he would get soon.

---

It was a sunny noon in Istarra, and the city was buzzing with activity. On Earth, it was Friday, which meant players were logging in to make the most of their time in the game before the weekend lockout.

Knowing they wouldn't be able to play for the next two days, most players avoided venturing too far from town. Starting a journey only to leave their character stranded in the wilderness wasn't a good idea.

Instead, they found other ways to have fun. Some jumped off cliffs just to feel the rush of air while falling, knowing they wouldn't die. Others preferred safer activities, like shopping or spending time with friends.

Many players chatted with NPCs, discovering the dialogue options were far more nuanced and lifelike than anything they'd encountered in other games of the era. Only a few ambitious players or those indifferent to time constraints were out grinding for experience.

Meanwhile, the Gamers had just emerged victorious from a battle against monsters. They were resting and chatting when a notification appeared:

"The player Arlon has slain the Named Monster 'Zerax the Warden.' The enemy's focus on players will increase."

"No way! Not again," Zack groaned, immediately opening the Leaderboard.

***

Leaderboard (Level)

1- Arlon (99)

2-June (28)

3- Evan (28)

4- Carmen (27)

5- Pierre (27)

6- Zack (27)

7- Lei (26)

8- Carole (26)

9- Arun (24)

10- Jack (23)

***

"What kind of bullsh*t is this? The game's only been out for two weeks! This is impossible. Are the devs even monitoring their own game?" Zack exclaimed, staring at the rankings.

Everyone was stunned. Someone had already reached level 99.

The group had been grinding levels relentlessly and even though they'd been slightly delayed by the mission, they were still among the fastest to level up.

"There's no way this is just from killing mobs. He must know something we don't," June speculated.

She had been following the best strategies and couldn't believe someone was so far ahead. "Even if we never wiped and never rested, the highest we'd be is maybe level 35 or 40."

"Are we ever going to catch up to him?" Carole asked hesitantly.

"It doesn't matter," Pierre replied. "Let's focus on playing our own game. At this point, he's playing something entirely different from us."

---

Elsewhere, a man and a woman were locked in combat with a monster.

"I'm going around back," the man called out.

"Okay. Belfvick, go!" the timid woman commanded the ghostly entity beside her.

These two were Evan the Assassin and Carmen the Summoner. They were childhood friends and Evan forced Carmen into playing this game.

Even though Carmen was very timid and scared of the realistic monsters and fights, she didn't want to refuse Evan, seeing how his eyes were shining talking about the game.

Evan was usually cool and reserved. Outsiders would think he would prefer to be alone and not to be disturbed.

This couldn't be any farther from the truth. He actually liked spending time with others. Though he was only like his actual self while he was with Carmen.

Carmen was a timid girl who usually went after Evan when they were children. This didn't change much when they grew up.

To avoid direct combat, Carmen chose the Summoner class, supporting Evan from a distance with her summoned creatures.

Evan had always been good with games. So, to Carmen's surprise, they were on the Leaderboard.

In fights, Carmen's summoned creatures tanked the monsters while Evan went behind and killed them.

Their teamwork was good, so they defeated the monster soon.

"Did you level up?" Evan asked.

"No, I'm close, but it's getting harder and harder," Carmen replied.

"Honestly, compared to other games, leveling here is pretty easy. I just hope it doesn't kill the challenge," Evan said thoughtfully.

As they spoke, the notification about Arlon slaying Zerax appeared.

"Level 99? I have to meet this guy!" Evan exclaimed, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Why would you want to meet him? He's probably a cheater or something. Even you, the best gamer I know, aren't anywhere close to him," Carmen pointed out.

"I won't know until I meet him. I want to learn his secret. Besides, I'm not the best—there's someone else better. Though she's slowed down for some reason," Evan replied.

---

Across Trion, the news spread like wildfire: a player named Arlon had defeated a Named Monster and reached level 99.

The revelation dominated conversations among players and even caught the attention of NPCs.

Curious Trionians, especially those accustomed to chatting with players, began asking questions about the buzz.

It didn't take long before the entire townsfolk in the starting regions caught wind of the event.

Trion had 38 frontlines, of which 35 were starting towns. In all these towns, the news of Arlon's feat traveled fast.

Trionians who overheard players talking pieced together the story. Soon enough, the information made its way to Zephyrion's ears.

"Is this the same Arlon we've been investigating?" Zephyrion asked.

"We're not sure, sir," Ben replied. "When the Keldar report was sent, the guide was here, but all the other saviors were in pause time."

Pause time referred to the period when players logged out, an explanation crafted to reassure the Trionians that their saviors hadn't abandoned them.

"Then, contact him right away! He seems promising," urged Zephyrion.

"Sir, we don't have any means to contact him. We also don't know where he is. None of us have ever seen him in any towns."

"Don't saviors have a way to communicate with each other without a need for a communication crystal? Can't we ask some of them for help?"

"We tried that, but the answer we received from the saviors was 'He blocked external communication'. We are not sure what it means but he can't be reached now."

"I see. Summon Lady Rael. We'll use another method."

"Yes, sir!"

Lady Rael, the kingdom's diviner, could establish direct mental communication with saviors, but the process was costly.

Fortunately, Zephyrion had already prepared the materials required, anticipating such a need. He was a wise ruler who liked to be prepared for every situation.

***

"Sir Zephyrion, everything is ready," Lady Rael announced as she began the ritual.

They would use Lady Rael's special crystal to communicate directly to the mind of Arlon.

"Let's start."

With this order, Lady Rael started focusing her mana on the crystal. There wouldn't be a display, just sound.

But this was more than enough.

A few seconds later the crystal started to blink and then the light dimmed down completely.

Then, a sound came from the crystal, "What the hell is happening?"

"Sir Arlon, I am known as Lady Rael. I apologize for this intrusion, but we had no other way to contact you. On behalf of the Trionian government and our ruler, Zephyrion, we ask that you provide a means of communication so we can cease this method," she said hurriedly unlike her usual demeanor, mindful of the strain on the crystal.

This method took a lot both from the caster and the castee, so she didn't want to talk longer than needed.

The answer came after a brief silence, "I will see you at the tournament."

Then, the crystal shattered into pieces. Even though it was one of the most durable ever made, it couldn't handle the strain.

It was made by three Trionians who are at the top of their occupations; the alchemist Magus, Charon; the blacksmith Fhrem, Sato; and the magic device engineer Dwarf, Arun using a lot of expensive and rare ingredients.

These three people would probably never get together to make something new again, even if Zephyrion ordered it himself.

That was why the price of using this kind of communication was high.

Though they still had two more crystals, they couldn't use them as freely.

After the communication crystal broke down, there was silence until Zephyrion talked, "How did he know there would be a tournament? Even though it wasn't a secret, it wasn't something we announced either."

"Sir, he must know some important Trionians, otherwise it is impossible. Also, according to the other saviors, he is already level 99."

"What? It has only been 2 weeks since they came to Trion. Sir Zephyrion, do the saviors level up faster than the Trionians?" asked Lady Rael, only she would dare to ask questions this freely to him.

"Our research indeed shows that they level up faster, but not to this degree. Even with their faster leveling speed, they should only be around level 20 since they are new here. This is impossible. I want to meet this guy," answered Zephyrion.

No matter how intelligent Zephyrion was, he was still a Beastman seeking power. That is how he got where he was. He always sought power and became the strongest.

His eyes gleamed with interest. "Let's proceed with the tournament. Announce it as soon as the pause time ends. And expedite the investigation into that guide. He may also be crucial."

"Yes, sir!"

With that, Arlon had created two identities in Trion. Now was the time to keep both of them safe.