"Luke?" Lauren called from the café. "We need more cups out here."

"Coming."

Luke picked up the clean cups, still thinking about the strange change in his body.

Perhaps the headset stimulated his muscles somehow. The instruction booklet had mentioned neural signals, physical monitoring, and the importance of remaining still while connected. Luke had skimmed most of the technical sections because he understood almost none of them.

Maybe the system had improved his coordination rather than his actual strength. After spending hours handling a spear, balancing trays and carrying boxes could simply feel easier.

The explanation was weak, but it was the best one he had. Until something proved him wrong, Luke decided to accept it.

Around noon, the café grew even busier. A family with three children occupied two tables near the window, several university students argued over a shared laptop in the corner, and couples sat close enough together that Luke felt awkward whenever he approached to collect their plates.

Lauren handled every customer with the same warmth. She leaned across the counter when the room became too loud, laughed at terrible jokes, and somehow remembered every change people made to their orders.

Whenever work slowed, Luke found himself watching her. His interest was not entirely because of what he had overheard the previous night, or at least that was what he tried to tell himself.

There was something comforting about watching Lauren work. She always seemed to know where she belonged and what needed to be done. Employees listened when she spoke, customers relaxed when she smiled, and small problems rarely remained serious once she turned her attention toward them.

After finishing another order, Lauren gathered her long black hair away from her neck and lifted it with both hands. Her posture raised her chest beneath the fitted blouse, while the apron drew inward below her breasts and emphasized the contrast between her full curves and narrow waist.

She tilted her head and pressed her fingertips into the stiff muscles at the base of her neck.

"Mmmh..."

Her lips parted around the low sound.

Luke’s hand stopped halfway through drying a glass.

Lauren continued massaging herself, unaware of the effect she was having. Her eyes closed, and another soft moan escaped when her fingertips found a particularly tense spot.

This one sounded even closer to the noises he had heard through her bedroom door.

Luke’s cock hardened so quickly that his apron became the only thing saving him from public humiliation. He shifted his stance behind the counter and silently thanked whoever had designed the uniform.

No one else seemed to notice Lauren’s quiet sounds, but each one carried straight through him. He remembered the dark hallway, the rustling sheets, and the moment her breathing had broken apart behind the closed door.

The glass squeaked beneath his tightening grip.

When Lauren opened her eyes, she caught him staring.

Neither of them moved for one uncomfortable second before Luke quickly lowered his gaze.

"Careful," she said. "You’re going to crack that."

"Right."

"Does your hand hurt?"

"No."

For once, that answer was true.

Lauren came around the counter and reached for his wrist. Her touch made him stiffen for an entirely different reason, but he allowed her to turn his hand over and examine the fading scrapes across his palm and knuckles.

"You’ve been carrying too much again."

"I’m fine."

"You always say that."

"I mean it this time."

Her thumb brushed lightly across his palm.

The touch reminded Luke of Yvonne holding his hand inside the dungeon. His eyes drifted to the beauty mark beside Lauren’s lips, which sat in exactly the same place as Yvonne’s.

Lauren noticed where he was looking. "What is it?"

"Nothing."

"That didn’t sound convincing."

Before she could question him further, the bell above the entrance rang.

A man in a fitted black business suit stepped into the café, and the conversations nearest the door softened almost immediately.

He appeared to be in his early thirties, with carefully styled dark hair and the calm expression of someone accustomed to being noticed. Judging by his expensive suit, Luke doubted he had come in for an ordinary cup of coffee.

Two sleek black boxes floated beside him without wires or visible supports. His hands remained loose at his sides while the packages followed him into the café and stopped when he did.

The silver emblems printed across the boxes immediately caught Luke’s attention.

POWERFORGE ONLINE.

They were the same kind of packages that had arrived two days earlier.

Several customers turned in their seats. A child near the window pointed openly until his mother lowered his hand.

Public displays of power still drew attention, even in a world where roughly fifteen percent of the population possessed some form of innate ability. Most powers were too limited to decide a person’s future, but useful ones could open doors into hero work, research, private security, and countless specialized careers.

Judging by the stranger’s expensive clothing and effortless control, his ability had served him well.

By the time Luke glanced toward Lauren, she had already released his wrist and returned behind the counter. Any surprise she felt disappeared beneath her professional smile.

"Good afternoon," she said. "Are you dining in, or is this something else?"

"Something else."

His gaze moved from Lauren to Luke while neither box shifted in the air.

"I’m here on behalf of Powerforge Online."

Luke’s attention returned to the floating packages.

The stranger stepped closer to the counter. "You’re Lauren, and you’re Luke. Correct?"

Lauren’s smile became a little more cautious. "That depends on why you’re asking."

A faint hint of amusement appeared in the man’s eyes.

"You have nothing to worry about. Your first session produced an unusual result, and I was sent to acknowledge it."

Luke’s stomach tightened.

"What kind of unusual result?" Lauren asked.

"You cleared the Dungeon of Truth, defeated its hidden boss, and created a linked ability during your first synchronized session. No one else has done all three."

Of course the game recorded what happened inside it. Nearly every online service tracked player achievements, progress, and unusual events. Even so, hearing a stranger describe their dungeon run left Luke uncomfortable.

The customers around them began whispering.

"You cleared a hidden boss?" one of the university students asked.

Luke ignored him.

Lauren folded her hands on the counter. "How did you know it was us?"

"The systems were registered under your name, and the session data identified both users. It wasn’t difficult."

The explanation made sense, but the man’s calm delivery still left Luke uneasy.

"The Dungeon of Truth had never been cleared under those conditions," the representative continued. "Fated Javelin is also the first linked ability of its kind. Someone decided that deserved a reward."

The memory of what had activated the skill made Luke’s face warm.

Gorgeous and incredibly hot Yvonne.

When he glanced at Lauren, he found a faint flush across her cheeks. Her expression remained politely curious, but she had no reason to react unless the representative had already told her something Luke did not know.

The two boxes floated forward and settled gently beside the counter.

"These are for you," the man said. "Consider them a thank-you for giving us such useful data."

Lauren stared at the packages. "Both of them?"

"Yes."

"And we’re not getting an invoice next week?"

A few customers laughed.

The representative’s mouth curved slightly. "No invoice."

The systems she had already purchased were expensive enough to make Luke feel guilty whenever he saw them upstairs. Receiving two more without payment sounded almost unbelievable.

Luke saw the realization settle over Lauren. Her expression softened, and one hand drifted toward the nearest box without quite touching it.

She was thinking about her daughters.

With two additional systems, they could enter Powerforge from Canada. Lauren would be able to spend time with them despite the distance, and perhaps all four of them could explore the game together.

For someone who worried every time the news mentioned another villain attack near their agency, that opportunity meant far more than the equipment’s price.

"Thank you," Lauren said. "I mean it."

"You’re welcome."

The representative turned his attention to Luke. "Keep developing the abilities you chose. Your early results are promising."

Luke caught the wording immediately. The man had referred to abilities rather than characters or skills, and the choice left him uneasy.

Before he could ask what the representative meant, the man turned toward the exit, leaving the boxes beside the counter.