Raven, Claire, and Rose finally finished their lunch.
Claire handled cleaning everything up, while Raven tossed the food scraps onto the ground or into the nearby bushes.
Rose actually wanted to help too, but Raven told her not to. She had no choice but to stay quiet while waiting for them to finish.
After five minutes, the two of them were done. Raven walked over to her and held out his hand.
Rose took it, and Raven lifted her up.
"What are your plans now?" Raven asked.
He didn't mind taking Rose with them, but if she didn't want to, he wouldn't force her.
"Hmm…" Rose fell deep in thought.
She didn't know what to do. After being betrayed by those scoundrels, she had developed a distrust of everyone in this place.
But honestly, that feeling didn't apply to Raven and Claire. At least, she could sense that the two of them were genuinely kind—especially Claire, who seemed innocent and had no ill intentions toward her.
But she was too shy to say it. She was afraid Raven and Claire would think she was just trying to take advantage of them.
Suddenly…
"Why don't you just come with us?"
"Huh?" Rose was startled and turned toward Claire, who was smiling at her.
"A-Are you sure?" she asked hesitantly.
"Of course." Claire nodded without hesitation. She stepped closer and held both of Rose's hands tightly. "Instead of being alone, it's better to form a group, right? Well, I know what happened to you from Raven, and I can understand if you're wary of us. But I can guarantee we're not like them. Right, Raven?"
She glanced at Raven with a sweet, charming smile.
Raven nodded. "Of course. If you want to join us, that's better. We can work together to pass this test."
He knew Rose actually wanted to join him and Claire, but her pride was holding her back.
That wasn't surprising, considering Rose was the type of woman who was arrogant and stubborn.
Luckily, Claire reacted immediately and invited Rose to join them.
If it weren't for Rose's presence, he would have been tempted to pat her on the head and say, "Good job!"
Rose remained silent, but the relief on her face was very clear.
"Alright, I'll join you guys."
"[Ding! A player has been added to the party! Party members: 3.]"
Raven was surprised. He glanced at Claire and Rose, then noticed the same notification in front of them.
"Did you guys see that?" he asked, feigning ignorance.
Both nodded. "We saw it."
"There wasn't anything like this before, was there?" Claire asked hesitantly.
Raven nodded. "You're right. It wasn't there before. I suspect the appearance of this party panel is related to the next mission."
Although only a few days had passed since the test began, Raven had already begun to understand its inner workings.
Take, for example, the barrier not far from here. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't break through it.
There were also several sealed-off areas that remained completely inaccessible.
When he consulted the system, he learned that the world they were in was essentially a cage—or more precisely, a fragment of a much larger world from the past.
The barrier he had encountered earlier appeared to be an empty space directly connected to the void.
Meanwhile, the sealed-off areas were either restricted zones or places that had yet to be unlocked, likely reserved for future missions.
Because of this, the appearance of the "party" panel must be related to the next mission.
However, Raven still couldn't clearly grasp the details of that mission.
Rose and Claire furrowed their brows, finding his explanation reasonable.
"Alright, no need to dwell on it. For now, let's go hunting and level up. The more monsters we kill, the stronger we'll become," Raven said firmly.
Both of them nodded, and without wasting any more time, they set off to hunt monsters.
***
The next morning, Raven woke up very early. The sun had not yet risen, but he had already lit a campfire.
While waiting for the food to cook, he began jogging around the cave.
After tiring himself out, he moved on to stretching exercises—a routine he had maintained since his previous life on Earth.
Although he had been transmigrated to another world, he still kept this habit. A strong and healthy body was essential for survival here.
"You're up early, Raven. Aren't you tired?"
A weak voice came from behind him.
Raven paused and turned around, only to see Rose stepping out of the cave.
"This is nothing unusual," Raven replied casually. "Wait a moment. Breakfast will be ready soon."
Rose nodded and walked over to the stream, splashing water onto her face.
The water was cold—bitingly so—but she didn't seem to care as she continued washing up.
When she finished, she walked a few meters away from Raven and sat down on the ground, silently watching his every movement.
Raven only glanced at her before looking away.
Time passed quickly, and soon the food was ready.
With Rose's help, it was served onto plates more efficiently.
"By the way, Rose, what's your level?"
Rose froze for a moment, falling silent as hesitation flickered across her face.
"If you don't want to say, it's fine," Raven added indifferently.
Rose quickly shook her head. "No, it's not that. I'm level five. Why?"
"Level five, huh? That's pretty good." Raven gave a small nod and said nothing further.
Rose studied him for a few seconds before looking away and murmuring, "What a strange man."
Once everything was ready, Raven went to wake Claire, and the three of them began their breakfast.
In the middle of their casual conversation, a notification suddenly appeared before each of them.
"[The second mission has been issued…]"