Day 1: Personnel Optimization (Lena and Elson)
The first day was dedicated to strengthening the team and the rear guard. You found Master Elson, the former manager, now responsible for organizing the camp's supplies.
"Master Elson," you said, with the authority of one who had already healed wounds with magic. "Lena, the others, and I will disable the Demon factory. But the camp must survive the inevitable counterattack. Your mind, your knowledge of system management, is the most valuable weapon we have here."
Elson, once skeptical, could not hide the impact of your words. The power you had demonstrated had shaken his disbelief. He straightened, resolute. "Resource optimization and defense… A good system cannot have logical flaws. I'll handle rotations, supplies, and the blind spots in the palisade."
Result: Master Elson assumes the role of Logistics and Defense Officer of the Outpost, ensuring defenses and watch rotations are organized optimally while you are away.
Later, you and Lena isolated yourselves. "Lena, your mind is sharp. Your Tactical Focus is a weapon. Think of the greatest processing failure you can force in a Cyber Demon. Something that blinds and disorients. Concentrate on the need to vanish."
Lena closed her eyes. You spent 5 Mana to guide the process, while she channeled 10 Mana from her own reserve, forcing compilation into her empty Level 2 skill slot.
The energy stabilized in her mind like perfect code.
[CODE COMPILATION COMPLETE!] [NEW SKILL UNLOCKED — LENA]
Active Skill: Static Wave (Cost: 10 Mana)
Description: A pulse of chaotic energy that saturates the optical and auditory sensors of Cyber Demons within a 5-meter radius, causing temporary blindness and processing errors. Ideal for tactical escapes.
Result: Lena was now equipped with an offensive/defensive skill and ready for the field.
Day 2: Hardware Preparation (Staff and Explosives)
The second day was dedicated to heavy work, to the heat of the forge. You met with Jax and the blacksmith Garin, presenting the salvaged Code Metal. Garin had never seen a metal with such intricate patterns, etched like programming lines across its surface.
Staff Reinforcement You explained to Garin the concept of a lethal contact point. Using one unit of Code Metal, the blacksmith forged a short, sharp blade, resembling a spear tip, and fixed it to the base of your staff.
Result: Your staff was now an effective melee weapon, capable of dealing physical damage when Mana was depleted.
Preparation of Code Explosives Meanwhile, Jax, demolition specialist, assessed the situation. "Conventional explosives won't do more than scratch the portal's structure," he explained. You agreed. A system error had to be provoked.
Guiding Jax, you slowly channeled 10 Mana into the improvised artifacts. The energy fused with the components, transforming them into Code Explosives, capable of causing critical failures in the portal's system.
Result: Jax now possessed 3 Code Explosives ready for use against the portal. Your last unit of Code Metal was consumed in reinforcing the staff.
✨ The camp was prepared. Lena had awakened a new skill, the staff was reinforced, and Jax carried weapons capable of destroying entire systems. The attack on the Logistics Hub would not be just a battle — it would be a war of logic and code.
After forty-eight hours of intense preparation came forced rest. You spent the time in meditation, restoring energy for the imminent confrontation. At Level 2, Mana regeneration was more efficient. In two days, your reserve was full, ready to be unleashed.
Departure
It was night. The shadows of the Blue River Forest swallowed the world, as if the very environment awaited in silence for the outcome. At the palisade, you, Lena, Dorian, and Jax gathered. Alaric awaited, firm.
"Fortune favors the bold. And the well-prepared," said the Captain. "Go. Destroy that factory."
You nodded. The reinforced staff, charged with Mana, pulsed in your hands. It was time to strike at the enemy's heart.
The team plunged into the darkness, following Dorian toward the Imperial Road and the Logistics Hub.
Synchronization.
Before advancing, you halted the group in the forest. "The Logistics Hub is large and active. The only way to strike the Portal/Generator is during the guard change. Dorian, what's the cycle time?"
Dorian answered without hesitation: "Exactly thirty minutes. They move clockwise. The fifteen-second window between one pair leaving and the next arriving is our chance for Jax to reach the portal."
Lena added: "My Static Wave can give us cover if the switch fails. And my Flow Analysis will give me a fraction of a second to react if we're discovered."
Jax, his voice deep and steady, spoke: "I'll be quick. I plant the explosives, Kael uses magic to detonate, and we run."
The tension was palpable. The team was synchronized.
Dorian's Awakening
You gestured for Dorian to sit. "Your Tracking Optimization was a spell I activated, but it isn't truly yours. To survive what's coming, the system must awaken within you. Your mind is ready, but the code needs to be forced."
Kneeling behind him, you placed your hands on his back. Closing your eyes, you recalled the overwhelming sensation of touching the staff for the first time: the download of data, the system boot, the realization that reality itself was code.
You channeled 10 Mana, not as a spell, but as an initializing current.
Dorian gasped, his body stiffening. A low groan escaped his throat. His eyes widened, reflecting the pulse of energy coursing through his nervous system.
[Forced Exposure to System Mana!]
"I… I see the lines… the colors!" Dorian murmured.
Result: Dorian Awakens! [Dorian – Rewriter Scout: Level 1!]
Passive Skill: Perception Optimization (Permanent Active)
Description: Permanently enhances visual and auditory acuity to detect code flaws and abnormal patterns. Permanent increase to tracking and accuracy.
The ability you had once activated in him fused, becoming part of his essence. Dorian would no longer need to spend Mana to see beyond the normal.
He rose, transformed. A new presence emanated from him. "I don't need your magic to see the trail anymore, Kael. I am the trail."
Advance
With the team optimized — you at full Mana, Lena with Static Wave, Jax armed with Code Explosives, and Dorian with his Permanent Perception — the group pressed forward.
Guided by his new vision, Dorian led with uncanny precision. He avoided subtle traps along the edge of the Imperial Road and bypassed patrols with ease.
At last, you reached the edge of the Logistics Hub clearing. The air was thick with the scent of hot metal and saturated Mana. At its center, the Portal/Generator — a structure of emerald crystal sparking with blue energy — pulsed ominously, like a living heart.
You stood fifty meters away, waiting for the exact moment of the guard change.