"What is your goal?"

’My goal...’ Cassien thought. ’I have several different aims, but I won’t be telling him a single one. Not one.’

Cassien scratched his head awkwardly. "I don’t have one. Not yet, at least."

The elf stared at him for several seconds before finally turning his back.

"Fine, you may leave now."

Cassien nodded respectfully, acknowledging Elandor’s status as king, and began walking back toward Class-1C.

As he continued, a voice echoed through his mind.

It came from Elandor.

"You can lie to me, young man, but not yourself." Cassien continued moving. "You’ll fall to ruin sooner than you think if you continue. One can never truly measure the darkness within a malicious core. If you dare abandon your human roots and become whatever it is you seek to become... I’ll have to step in and kill you. Is strength worth your human soul? Would you really give your life away for power?"

Cassien smiled as he continued walking forward, then whispered calmly,

"I’m already a bastard, dammit. Let me live the remainder of my life to the fullest."

Elandor sighed.

"Good luck."

...

3:00 PM.

Class-1C had now been waiting quite a while, and Olivia had yet to decide what they should do next.

Meanwhile, Cassien decided to allocate the four Character Points he had received earlier, along with some new ones he had obtained just ten minutes ago.

[50 Character Points Received]

’I’ll take it.’

Now he had an exact total of [54], so the most logical approach would be to balance out his attributes and place the remaining points into his [Luck] stat.

But Cassien didn’t want to do that this time.

------------------------

[Status]

Level: 35 → 40

[Attributes]

Strength: 110

Agility: 110

Endurance: 110

Intelligence: 90

Perception: 91

Luck: 101 → 155

[Weapon Mastery: Pistol]

Accuracy: B- → B+

Reload Speed: C+ → B-

Handling: B → B+

Critical Aim: B+ → A-

[Skills]

Basic Firearm Handling Lv. 10 → 15

Quick Draw Lv. 13 → 20

Observation Lv. 23 → 26

Sniper Lv. 3 → 4

[Weapon Mastery: Metal Knife]

Accuracy: D+ → C

Cuts: D+ → C

Handling: D- → C-

Critical Aim: D+ → C

[Skills]

Quick-Stab Lv. 10 → 12

[Weapon Mastery: Duel-Knives]

Accuracy: E → C-

Cuts: D- → C+

Handling: E+ → D+

Critical Aim: D+ → C+

[Skills]

Flow State Lv. 3 → 10

Mana Threading LV. 5 → 10

Precision Counter Lv. 2 → 7

[Weapon Mastery: Hammer]

Accuracy: F

Handling: F-

Impact Control: F

Grip Stability: F-

[Skills]

Heavy Swing Lv. 1 Acquired

[Mana Updated]

Current Mana: 200 → 340

Maximum Mana: 230 → 400

Mana Recovery: 1.15 per minute

------------------------

’My luck will be like a benefactor on this island. Treating it with the utmost care and capitalizing on every opportunity is a must. If I wanted to implant that Demon Core into my own body and begin the synchronization process... luck would truly become my capeless hero.’

...

Soon, Olivia decided they should head back to camp and take it easy for the rest of the day.

They had extra supplies, and catching fish wasn’t particularly difficult.

On top of that, they still had their remaining canned food, which could last approximately two more days.

Luckily, no wild beasts or anything of the sort invaded their territory.

...

After spending some time rebuilding the campfire, catching fish, gathering fruit, and handling various chores, they were honestly just enjoying life on the island despite the high stakes surrounding them.

The Game-System finally returned.

But only for Class-1C this time.

Because it was utilizing the [Heart of Judgment].

[Ding.]

[Clue Revealed.]

[The leader of Class-1B has spoken with a member of Class-1C.]

The entire class disliked the simplistic clue.

How was that possibly the most relevant clue?

"THAT’S IT?!"

"FUCK!"

"You’ve gotta be shitting me!"

"Calm down, guys," Olivia said. "It’s better than nothing. At least we were given something useful compared to what Class-1A received."

[Ding.]

[Heart of Judgment Entering Cooldown.]

[Next Use Available In: 23 Hours 59 Minutes.]

Afterward, the notification vanished.

Cassien thought about it for a brief moment before writing it down.

’Has already spoken with... Hmmm?’

"Any clues?" Olivia asked Cassien.

"Not as of now," he responded firmly. "But most likely soon."

[Ding.]

[Current Rankings Updated.]

[1st Place — Class-1C.]

[2nd Place — Class-1A.]

[3rd Place — Class-1B.]

[4th Place — Class-1D.]

Not much of a reaction erupted since that was already obvious to them.

They had gained [30 Points] from discovering a single territory, so it made sense they were currently in first place ahead of Class-1A.

...

Later that night, Cassien was setting up his sleeping bag and tent while the others prepared to get some rest as well.

"Everyone," Cassien announced. "I just wanted to bring something up again that some of you may have forgotten..."

"..."

"What is it?"

"Go on then..."

"Traitor. I know who you are, and yes, I have identified you. If you don’t reveal yourself by tonight, you’ll be completely exposed. If you come forward now, I’ll let you off the hook and won’t tell the rest of the class about you."

He smiled.

"The choice remains yours."

The class gasped before slowly settling down again.

A few whispers still spread through the camp.

"Traitor, right...?"

"For all we know, he could be the traitor."

"Then why would he expose himself, dummy?"

"Think about it this way..." one girl said. "How did he even know we had a traitor in the first place? What led him to that conclusion? I know he talked about the twelve lies or whatever, but still... I don’t know what to believe."

Of course, not a single person truly knew how Cassien had reached that conclusion.

Because not all of them had participated in [The Transmigration Games], where the Game Shop allowed participants to purchase all sorts of things.

Including tickets to the future, which could reveal clues about recurring events.

But that wasn’t what Cassien was thinking about now.

Not at all.

Because the most important thing on his mind was quite simple.

’Tonight is the night I identify the traitor.’

He looked down at his pistol.

’Once I do, I’ll present them with my offer...’

A faint smile appeared on his face.

’And they will accept.’