"What on earth is this?!" Eva exclaimed, utterly bewildered by the inexplicable event unfolding before them.

It defied all understanding, defying the laws that governed the principles of physics and delineated the boundaries of reality. The small orb before them emitted a deep blue glow, seemingly absorbing the very air around it.

From the moment Eva first encountered Davey, he sensed an air of strangeness. It began with a tremendous roar, as if a colossal weight had been hurled into the sky and then plummeted back to the ground. It was precisely that sensation that had led Eva to the silver-haired girl of remarkable beauty and the handsome black-haired boy.

The boy, clad in a suit slightly divergent from conventional attire, donned clothing with a vintage design too distinct to dismiss as a mere prank. Instinctively, Eva realized that these two individuals were the cause of the resounding noise.

He also noticed an approaching horde of carriers infected with the RC virus and ominous black entities. Eva hesitated, caught between the urge to save them and his limited resources. After all, he was not the renowned alchemist Eva van Hoenheim, who had supposedly saved humanity in the past. Furthermore, there was the possibility that they themselves were carriers of the RC virus.

However, Eva's momentary indecision quickly dissipated.

‘Do you need a fancy reason to save a life?’

Based on the fact that the other carriers of the RC virus were attacking them, Evanov concluded that the silver-haired girl and the black-haired boy had not been infected yet. He swiftly pulled the pin of a smoke grenade he had as a backup and hurled it into the air, taking advantage of the diversion to lead them quickly to his hidden shelter.

The shelter was a meticulously constructed refuge, borne out of countless hardships, stocked with essential supplies, and equipped with an escape route. Having resided there for a significant period, Evanov had developed a fondness for the place.

Meeting new conversational partners and unexpectedly receiving visitors brought about an unusual sense of excitement. Despite not being able to determine their trustworthiness, Evanov willingly shared his story with them. He admired the silver-haired girl as she enjoyed the soup he had offered and appreciated the boy who attentively listened to his tale.

It had been three long years since the accursed RC virus had spread, and Evanov had been hiding in this shelter since the age of eight, losing his parents about two years ago. He had survived as a lone wolf, relying on his unique, genius-level talent.

Now, Evanov pondered whether there might be a way for him and his newfound companions to make their way to the city of survivors. He didn't want to lose these rare conversation partners, these long-awaited guests, in vain.

Suddenly, his joyous musings were abruptly interrupted. The location, buried five meters underground, had never been detected by the carriers of the RC virus or the black entities. But could this time be different? His personal devices sounded alarms, indicating a breach and sending distress signals. While a hideout might provide safety, it grew increasingly dangerous as space constricted.

Ultimately, Evanov had no choice but to leave. Making a rational decision to abandon the place swiftly and cleanly, he gathered a few necessary items and hurriedly guided the two individuals into a secret underground passage. Surely, they wouldn't follow him there. Never.

However, it seemed that "impossible" wasn't a concept that applied. Evanov was dumbfounded by the sudden appearance of a colossal monster, its tentacles attacking like a trap.

To compound matters, carriers of the RC virus started pouring in. Evanov's nail gun was only capable of incapacitating a single enemy, and he couldn't fashion a suitably powerful weapon with the available equipment. Despair settled upon Evanov as he realized that his nail gun lacked the firepower needed, and neither the boy nor the girl possessed proper weapons.

But then, the boy, who had been silently following him, stroked his own head and uttered, "Can't we save at least one of us?"

Monsters closed in on them, akin to a fox chasing a rabbit, while they remained unarmed, defenseless, with no obstacles to hide behind. What could they possibly do in such a dire situation?

Just as Evanov was about to ask, he witnessed something he had never seen before. Something that defied the laws of physics began to take shape in the boy's motionless hands. One hand held a radiant red orb, while the other held a black sphere.

The boy swiftly brought his hands together, crushing and twisting them as if to shatter them. Then, as time began to flow, the carriers of the RC virus, the cursed zombies, surged toward Evanov and the others.

However, their advance was halted by the silver-haired girl's swift movement. Evanov could only watch in bewilderment, rubbing his eyes, as she wielded blades of blue light in both hands.

Meanwhile, the boy silently formed a massive sphere in his hand. Initially red, it gradually turned white over time, eventually compressing into a dazzling blue sphere. What had initially been several tens of centimeters in size was now reduced to a mere fraction of a finger joint.

"Rinne, come back," Davey said, nonchalantly yet familiarly.

The silver-haired girl, who had been fervently wielding her luminous sword, extinguished it and swiftly clung to the boy's leg.

In that moment, Evanov, who had been standing in a daze, witnessed a narrow space enclosing himself, Davey, and Rinne distort and isolate itself.

"I'll handle that abyssal creature. You take care of the rest," Davey stated matter-of-factly.

Stunned, Evanov instinctively closed his eyes upon seeing a small, brilliant blue sphere suspended in the air. Its radiance was so intense that it pained his eyes. A faint, resonating sound echoed.

Gradually, amidst the subtle currents, Evanov cautiously opened his eyes and beheld a sight that defied the laws of physics. A colossal blue flame engulfed the entire area, reducing everything to mere ashes.

"Oh, my God..." Evanov uttered, seemingly overwhelmed, as he sank to his knees.

The aqueous blue flame, resembling water-drenched fire, eventually dissipated, and Evanov slowly emerged from the distorted space. The virus carriers that had posed a threat to his life moments ago, the ominous black entities that had faced repeated hydrogen bombings by the military, had all vanished without a trace.

As Evanov turned his head to comprehend the situation, he realized that both the boy and the silver-haired girl had disappeared, as if they were mere illusions. He wondered, ‘Is this a dream? Am I the Evanov of the dream, or is the Evanov of the dream the real me?’

Unable to comprehend the situation, Evanov simply gazed at the charred remnants scattered on the ground. Thoughts began to swirl in his mind, contemplating whether the vanished individuals could have been the apostles of God, a notion rejected by alchemists.

Then, a sudden realization struck Evanov. He felt an unfamiliar vibration emanating from his pocket. Reaching in, he retrieved a small cube. Startled, he threw it into the air and widened his eyes in astonishment as the cube rapidly expanded, splitting into two and transforming into peculiar, agile golems.

"User registration is required. Please state your name," both golems, nearly identical as twins, announced.

Although their appearances were alike, Evanov, well-versed in alchemy, recognized the distinction. These golems were not merely superior in design. Despite their human-sized stature, their strength was overwhelmingly formidable.

The question lingered in his mind: Why had these golems been in his pocket as small cubes? Evanov, stunned by the surreal turn of events, had no doubt that Davey was the mastermind behind this perplexing occurrence. He couldn't help but feel deeply troubled about how to articulate his bewildering experience.

* * *

With a massive spark, Davey was able to return to the Garden of the World Tree while carrying Rinne in his arms.

"Whoa!" Davey instinctively extended his hand and activated the status window to assess the situation. He found himself mildly taken aback by the information displayed within.

[Special Additional Mission Completed, Additional Mission: Ensure the survival of the Second Star of Hope on the Yurgian Continent.]

There was no doubt about who the Star of Hope referred to.

"You weren't gone long, how did things go?" the World Tree asked.

Davey quietly replied while looking at the changing text in the status window, "I just played a game."

"A game?"

“Yes, a game-like stupid mission.”

Once the data output was complete, the contents of the status window underwent a complete transformation.

[Unlocking 1 Transcendent Weapon, 1 additional Transfiguration Stack, 200% increase in total Dimensional Keys]

[Achieved the title, Starbreaker.]

Davey came to the realization that the additional rewards were contingent on the outcome of a specific action. Furthermore, he discovered that the key he possessed was not a one-time use item. This meant that it could serve as a perfect training location that could be utilized periodically.