Second Update (Continued)

"Teito, don't be like this." His friend beside him kept trying to persuade him.

Yet Ryūgamine Mikado still stared at Tsukikawa Shu like an enraged young beast.

"Why did you kill people?" he demanded.

Tsukikawa Shu looked at him as well.

The other boy had probably seen the dozen or so corpses outside the dungeon.

"Why can't I kill people?"

Tsukikawa Shu smiled.

"Our goal is to establish a harmonious order in the Inner World. As a strong person like you, how could you so easily harbor the intent to kill?" Ryūgamine Mikado said angrily. "If there's a problem, we can settle it in court! Who gave you the right to kill?"

"I'm protecting my family. Why can't I kill?"

Looking at this naive sixteen-year-old boy, Tsukikawa Shu's lips curled into a mocking smile.

"Besides, you asked where I got the right to kill. Then let me ask you: who gave you the right to stop others from killing? Who gave you the right to act in place of the police?!"

"Your so-called justice is nothing more than your teenage delusions and arrogance!"

Tsukikawa Shu and his group simply walked past Ryūgamine Mikado, never giving him another glance.

Naivety would eventually be slapped hard across the face by reality.

As usual, the group cleared the dungeon.

After using Experience Cards, Fujiwara Chika had reached level 42. She was still somewhat behind Tsukikawa Shu and the others, but it did not matter much.

Fujiwara Chika's class was now Gunslinger. She wielded a Rare Grade weapon called Ice Fairy, whose weapon skill could freeze one enemy for three seconds, with a cooldown of 5 seconds.

She had two Skill Cards. One was Frosty Cold Tide, gifted by Tsukikawa Shu. It could create an area of low-temperature snowfall a hundred meters ahead, slowing enemy movements and generating hail to damage them.

The other was Precision Snipe, taken from Miyamoto Daichoku. It could greatly improve shooting accuracy and attack power. Tsukikawa Shu felt that skill suited Fujiwara Chika quite well, so he gave it to her.

After clearing the dungeon, Fujiwara Chika returned to the place where the original Elite Committee members were temporarily resting.

All the leaders in the group had been killed by Tsukikawa Shu. Only a handful remained now, but there was still plenty of food, so they did not have to worry about eating or drinking for the time being.

It was just that no one knew what they should do next.

They had survived the Inner World again this time through sheer luck, but what about next time?

Without anyone to protect them, they would basically be doomed. If they hired someone to protect them, they might end up as fish on someone else's chopping block.

It was not until the afternoon that they saw a familiar figure walk in.

"Minna-san! Good afternoon!"

She was still as lively as ever.

Everyone was startled and raised their heads.

"Fujiwara?"

"Senior Fujiwara?"

Everyone looked at her in astonishment.

"Senior Fujiwara, you weren't abused, were you?" Iino Miko hurried over and took Fujiwara Chika's hand.

"It's fine, it's fine. I'm doing great." Fujiwara Chika smiled.

Seeing that Fujiwara Chika was still the same as before, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Tanuma Tsubasa and Tomioki Nagisa also looked at Fujiwara Chika, then the couple exchanged glances.

Fujiwara Chika had gone out last night and not returned until now. What had happened was easy enough to imagine and, in a way, only natural.

Of course, everyone understood without saying it aloud.

"I came here today because I want to rebuild the Elite Committee," Fujiwara Chika said.

Everyone exchanged looks.

"Everyone who remains in the organization can receive five Large Experience Cards. Reaching level 10 won't be a problem. In addition, I'll give each of you a Fine Grade weapon and matching items."

Fujiwara Chika did not waste words and explained simply, "With these things, everyone will be able to survive in the Inner World."

"Of course, all these items are gifts from Tsukikawa-kun, considered an initial investment. So, I also hope everyone will follow my instructions, as well as Tsukikawa-kun's."

Fujiwara Chika then added seriously, "As long as everyone follows orders, you will all receive better opportunities for growth."

The few people remaining looked at one another.

By this point, they had no better choice, so they all chose to stay.

"I'll distribute weapons and supplies to you first. At the same time, there will also be a contract in your inventory. You can only use those weapons and items after signing it," Fujiwara Chika added.

"After all, this is the Inner World. These are necessary measures, so please understand~" Fujiwara Chika said apologetically, pressing her palms together.

Naturally, Tsukikawa Shu had no intention of letting others use his resources for free.

Freeloading was shameful, so Tsukikawa Shu would take certain measures.

While clearing dungeons and exploring, they occasionally obtained blank contract scrolls. Once terms were written on them, the contract would take effect as long as the other party willingly signed their name. If they betrayed the contract, they would suffer severe punishment.

They had been stored in the warehouse before, and now was the perfect time to use them. In any case, there were not many Elite Committee members left.

Iino Miko, Tomioki Nagisa, and Tanuma Tsubasa naturally understood Fujiwara Chika's difficulties.

Logically speaking, given Fujiwara Chika's trust in them, she probably would not have done something like this. The only possibility was Tsukikawa Shu, since he was the one investing in and building this team.

Everyone carefully read the contents of the contract.

There were no excessive conditions.

The first condition naturally required everyone to obey orders.

The second was that they could not leak any information regarding the Elite Committee to outsiders.

Third, they could apply to leave the organization, but they could not betray it. Even after leaving, they could not do anything harmful to the organization.

They had no other choice now, and the conditions did not seem particularly excessive, so everyone signed the contract.

Each person received a Class Card, a Fine Grade Skill Card, a Fine Grade weapon, and ten Experience Cards. This was enough to bring them to around level 15, barely reaching the level of second-rate players in the Inner World.

Tsukikawa Shu still had several Rare Grade weapons in his inventory, as well as quite a few weapons above Rare Grade. It would be more than enough to turn them all into first-rate players and equip a small elite group.

However, he naturally would not give them such good equipment from the start. What mattered was their loyalty and contributions. They would be rewarded according to their merits afterward.

"A full set of Fine Grade equipment right away?" Tanuma Tsubasa still found it hard to believe.

Before this, aside from Kyuutake Itsuki and Miyamoto Daichoku, the other eight people in the Elite Committee had only Fine Grade weapons. Even with that level of equipment, they were already considered second-rate players in the current Inner World.

Many more players were still struggling at the edge of survival, or had already been buried in the bellies of monsters.

Before dungeons could be opened, Fine Grade equipment had already been quite rare. Otherwise, the ten elite players in the Elite Committee would not have treated a mere Fine Grade weapon like treasure. Weapons above Fine Grade were things one could only hope to encounter by chance before dungeons became available.

For a novice player, a Fine Grade weapon was enough to let them run rampant before level 20. As long as they did not leave the city, they could live quite comfortably just by farming low-level monsters.

"Besides this basic equipment, each person will also receive 500 Refined Ore as personal development funds," Fujiwara Chika said.

"500 Refined Ore per person?!"

Everyone was once again shocked and delighted.

This Tsukikawa Shu was far too generous.

Back then, Kyuutake Itsuki and Miyamoto Daichoku had forced all players to hand over all their Refined Ore, yet they could not even gather a thousand pieces. Now, the handful of them possessed far more Refined Ore in total than those original ten elite players!

This amount of Refined Ore and equipment meant nothing to Tsukikawa Shu. As long as he could obtain weapon upgrade blueprints of Epic Grade or higher, he could use ore to create several weapons in minutes.

It was simply not easy to obtain blueprints of Epic Grade or higher. Tsukikawa Shu had no use for so much ore, so he might as well take some out and make investments.

These items were trivial matters to Tsukikawa Shu and the others, but to Iino Miko, Tanuma Tsubasa, Tomioki Nagisa, and the rest, it was like a destitute pauper suddenly receiving startup funds worth hundreds of millions.

Tomioki Nagisa hurriedly opened the forum to check the trade listings.

For example, weapon prices varied depending on function and rarity, but weapons of the same quality did not actually differ too much.

A Normal Weapon sold for around 55 to 60 Refined Ore, while Fine Grade weapons ranged from 250 to 300 Refined Ore.

As for Rare Grade and above, people did not even have enough for themselves, so no one would possibly sell them at this stage.

The Refined Ore they had on hand was enough to buy another Fine Grade weapon and a decent support item.

If exchanged for daily supplies such as food and clothing, it would buy even more.

One Refined Ore could buy two cans of meat or 1,000 grams of bread.

Of course, while daily necessities in the Inner World were precious, they were not as valuable as weapons and items.

"For now, there's nothing else for you to do. Your current task is to level up as quickly as possible," Fujiwara Chika said.

"We definitely won't let down Senior's care!" Iino Miko said gratefully.

Having entered the Inner World so long ago, they had seen too many people die in this cruel world. Now that they had a stable organization and a powerful player like Tsukikawa Shu backing them, they no longer had to fear suddenly dying at any moment. They could also gain more opportunities for growth.

After handling matters on the Elite Committee's side, the remaining time was rather dull. They mostly spent it clearing dungeons and exploring the map, and the seven days in the Inner World soon came to an end.

Tsukikawa Shu took stock of what they had gained over the past few days.

As levels increased, the Experience Points required for each level also increased. At this point, they needed higher-level monsters to help them level up.

Over the seven days, Tsukikawa Shu had reached level 48. He gave most of his Experience Cards to Fujiwara Chika to raise her level, while another portion was used to raise the Elite Committee members by more than ten levels, barely bringing them to the standard of second-rate players so they would not be wiped out the moment they appeared.

Aside from that, Tsukikawa Shu saw another new feature in the system update.

[Player count has reached the requirement. The Inner World is beginning an update...]

[New information: Secret Realm]

[The system will randomly generate Secret Realms. Location unknown, position unknown, monsters unknown, rules unknown. The only certainty is that each will contain abundant rewards.]

[Any player may enter a Secret Realm to explore.]

However, it was still unclear when the Secret Realms would open.

The first-rate players had now reached level 20 and could basically leave the towns to operate. Though they would still be instantly killed when facing high-level monsters, they could survive in the wilderness as long as they avoided monster nests.

Although the wild monsters outside the towns were high-level and level 20 players would basically die the moment they encountered them, those monsters had their own gathering grounds. There were relatively safe areas between each nest, and after conducting repeated reconnaissance, players could obtain safe route maps to avoid those monster nests.

Of course, none of this was necessary for Tsukikawa Shu.

Because those high-level monsters were now also his Experience Packs. As long as he cleared every monster in his path, he would not alert the monsters.

—So said Tsukikawa Shu.

If Secret Realms opened in the wilderness, it would inevitably lead to people from different towns fighting over them.

Even if they opened within towns, as long as the benefits were great enough, they might draw competition from players from other towns and regions.

After taking stock of this round of gains in the Inner World and looking at the countdown on the system, it was about time to return.

"You have to remember to come see me."

Fujiwara Chika wrapped her arms around Tsukikawa Shu's neck, looking pitiful. Then she pouted. "If you don't come see me, I'll make trouble for you."

"I definitely will when I get back," Tsukikawa Shu said.

Then, with an arm around Fujiwara Chika's waist, he looked toward Hiratsuka Shizuka beside them. "So, can I take leave?"

"No!"

Hiratsuka Shizuka put one hand on her hip and directly rejected Tsukikawa Shu's attempt to skip class.