The cave was mostly quiet.

Our little heart-to-heart discussion was over, and Kehl had decided it best to prepare before heading out into the wastes again, an idea I happily agreed with.

After all, I wasn't exactly looking forward to leaving and finding out what my new partner was planning. Although I would typically be anticipating leveling up and getting stronger, I had a feeling this training Kehl had in mind would be... unfun.

The two of us had taken up stations in opposite corners of the small cave, close enough to the entrance to hear any threats incoming but far enough to respond in time.

While Kehl hovered nearby the mana pool, doing something with his system and muttering to himself creepily, I sat down with my shortsword and tried to wipe off at least some of the grime- a process that was much harder than it seemed, mainly because my cleaning tool (i.e., my sleave) was just as dirty.

I frowned to myself for a moment, lamenting the massive deficiency of washing machines in Hell.

However, as I continued working on the blade, I realized how little equipment I actually had. In the previous fight with that Tiletik boss, the makeshift chest plate I cobbled together had been pretty much decimated and was in no way usable, with my health potion emptied as well. The only thing still in decent condition was my shortsword, and even that had a few small scratches along the blade.

Usually, in these types of scenarios, wouldn't I get some sort of legendary weapon? That's totally a common trope, right?

Having a legendary sword would make this whole situation so much better...

"Hey, Kehl, I just realized, now that my Cirilka chest plate broke, we don't have any actual armor between the two of us. Or, like, weapons or supplies or potions. At all. Is there some sort of... Demon-Amazon, we can order stuff on?"

However, the lack of equipment didn't seem to faze my partner.

"Do not let the deficiency of proper items worry you too much, Lake. I have no experience with crafting weapons and armor on my own, especially with such poor materials like Cirilka shell and looking at your handiwork... Well, I suppose we will simply have to make do. Besides, I have a plan to acquire higher quality equipment in time."

I decided to ignore the subtle dig towards my craftsmanship, mostly because I totally agreed with him.

"What do you mean you have a plan? Is there some sort of secret treasure horde where all the cool magic items are? Am I actually going to get my legendary sword?!"

"No."

He instantly shot me down.

"However, a certain nearby region is well known as a perfect scavenging location due to numerous battles waged there in the past. It should be simple to find functioning weapons and armor in that place, but certainly no magic items."

"Damn."

The conversation died out as I opened up the menu and checked all my notifications.

Main Menu: Lake Rogers

- Character Profile

- Quests (2)

- Loot Boxes

- Options

- Traits

Oh, didn't I have a quest for getting to level 5? I must have completed that one, right? That means another loot box!

Available Quests (1)

Completed Quests (1)

I quickly opened up the Completed Quests tab.

Completed Quests:

Baby Steps - Objective: Acquire Level 5 - Reward: Common Loot Box - Claim Reward?

Yes! Claim reward!

Quest: Baby Steps Has Been Completed

Common Loot Box Acquired

Although the 'Common Loot Box' was the lowest-ranked box I had gotten yet, I was still pretty excited to find what was inside of it. After all, the previous boxes had things like health potions and big bundles of food. Hopefully, this would be something useful as well...

Quickly pressing through the menu tabs, I activated the loot box, and with a flash of light, a small white box appeared between my hands. It was plain; a cube the size of my fist made of a metallic white material with an indent near the top as a cap that could be peeled off.

From the other side of the cave, Kehl turned towards me when the box materialized but didn't say anything.

With a smile on my face, I shoved my fingers under the lid and pulled firmly, the top coming off quickly and bursting away with a second flash of light, the reward coming to life in my open hands.

As the stars in my eyes faded, I looked at what I had gotten.

Leather Boots: Common

A pair of leather boots. Average size, unassuming design, and made from entirely standard leather. The most common of all fantasy footwear, and just about as cheap as you can expect.

"..."

In my hands were two leather hiking boots with a simplistic look to them. The kinds of things a rookie adventurer in a story would wear.

...I have to admit, they were slightly underwhelming.

Although they would probably be useful, since the sneakers I had worn since waking up were beginning to wear out and get holes, due to all the conditions I had been through, but...

A pair of average leather boots just weren't the same as the other cool things I had gotten from loot boxes, you know?!

I supposed it did make sense, though. All the other boxes had been higher rankings, while that one was just Common.

I sighed before pulling on the boots and making sure everything fit right. Already, I could tell that they were at least made decent, feeling more comfortable than the tattered sneakers I was previously wearing.

Looking up at Kehl, I saw him staring at me with a sort of interest in his eyes.

"What's wrong, dude?"

"...What was that strange box of yours?"

I tilted my head slightly.

"You mean, the Loot Box?"

"If that is what it is called, then yes."

"Um... You know, there's a tab for it in the menu... You just have to open it up and access it. The thing is right there, under Quests."

"The menu...? Ah, it must be your system ability."

Oh good, more terms that I don't know.

"And what's a 'system ability,' exactly?"

Kehl looked at me strangely.

Wait, was this something that everybody in the world knew about? Was that question making me look suspicious or something?!

"A system ability is a certain ability that every person with the system has, not restricted to one race like humans or demons. Every individual has the Profile, Options, and Traits selections in their menu, but along with those is the tab that represents your system ability. Your system ability is unique to you and a few other people, but most others have different abilities."

"..."

That's really, really weird. So, everybody has a fantasy system that shows their Character Profile, their skills and health, and the Options and Traits tabs in the menu, but then they each have individual menus as well? Does that mean that only I have the ability to get Quests and Loot Boxes?

Like I said. Super weird.

"So... What's your system ability, then?"

"It is not extremely useful. There is a tab in my menu called 'Inventory' which works as a spatial magic spell that I can cast to store items without using any mana. Individuals with this ability usually have at least a small spatial magic affinity."

Oh no. Are all of these system abilities... just everyday things that you could find in a game menu?

"...Could you give me some more examples?"

"Yes. Some demons I know can create maps of the area around themselves automatically, while others have a list of the relationships they have, and a few can instantly transport themselves to locations they have been before. Obviously, some abilities are better than others."

Okay. Yeah, all of these things are just standard mechanics found in different types of games. I just don't get why all of them are split up between people instead of everybody having everything.

"However, I have never seen a system ability called Loot Box. Could you explain it to me?"

"Um, sure. It's kinda like two abilities in one, actually. I get a list of objectives I need to complete, called Quests. Once I complete the objective, I'll be rewarded a Loot Box with a random item inside of it. I'm pretty sure that depending on the difficulty of the Quest, the item I get will be better."

The demon frowned thoughtfully, his voice taking on a pondering sort of tone.

"...That seems quite useful, Lake. It should somewhat help us with our resource-deficiency even before we start moving towards the ruins to scavenge."

"Yeah, it's already saved my life a few times."

"I see."

Kehl nodded before taking out a few small clay bottles and walked over to the mana pool. He opened each one slowly before dipping them under the liquid. After filling the bottles up, they disappeared in his hands due to what must have been the Inventory.

"Lake. If you have everything prepared, then we should leave this place. It would be best for you to level up quickly, along with raising your Skills. We need to fight more demons."

"Alright, then let's get going!"

I stood up energetically, the sword light in my grip as I smiled at Kehl. He nodded silently and quickly left the cave, with me right on his heels.

....

I was right.

This was a horrible, horrible mistake.

"Hey um, could you repeat that? I... probably didn't hear you right."

We were standing outside the cave in the burning hot winds, dark orange dust swirling around us as we crouched down behind one of the cracked boulders surrounding the area. Kehl had just finished explaining the plan. I must have misheard him, though, because what he had said seemed slightly dangerous.

"Of course."

Kehl let out a scratchy cough, which I think was his attempt at clearing his throat.

"Listen closely. Your skills will level up faster while you are in desperate situations, and combat experience comes best when you are in real danger. Therefore, we will seek out demons at least four or five levels stronger than you, and you will fight them by yourself."

No, I heard him correctly the first time. This guy was definitely trying to kill me. There could be no other explanation.

"Also, you will not be allowed to take breaks unless it is due to involuntarily losing consciousness. Do not worry; I expect it to happen quite frequently due to the exhaustion that will likely seep into your body from nonstop combat."

"..."

"However, whenever you do fall unconscious, after giving you a short time to rest, I will wake you with an attack. This is to train your sense of awareness and raise your defense against assassination."

"..."

"Along with this, you are not allowed to eat the rations we have previously prepared from the Cirilka carcasses. You must procure your own meals from your prey. It is up to you to figure out if they are poisonous or not."

"..."

"Please note that if you get in over your head and fall into a lethal situation due to stupidity, I will not rescue you. If you are unable to survive the weak demons in this area, then you will certainly not survive future struggles against far greater threats."

"..."

"But do not fear too much. If a stronger, unpredicted demon appears and attacks you, I will step in before your death if you cannot defeat it. I will only leave you to die if the cause of it is yourself. That said, seeing you now, I have a feeling most of the dangerous situations you enter will not be due to the demons..."

"..."

This is the guy on my side, right? This is the one who's my ally?

I mean, I knew that demons were assholes, but it's a whole different story when you realize that the person you'll have to rely on in the future is also an asshole.

His training idea made some sort of sense, I guess, since if I couldn't survive in what was supposedly the tamest place in Hell, then I wouldn't survive the actually dangerous places. I understood that.

But still, this whole plan totally sucked.

And I had a feeling there was no way Kehl would let me refuse.