I Became A System

"Who was that, Master?" 

It was Rosellete asking Ellena. For the reason why she was calling Ellena "Master", isn't it obvious? After a few reminders to Rosellete not to call her 'Master', Ellena could only shake her head in frustration. She eventually surrendered.

Ellena sighed before answering. "It was a messenger from HQ telling me that my fight with Verxal is on the clock."

Since Rosellete doesn't know some details, Ellena started explaining it to her, also to Selena since she's obviously still confused at the moment. Even though Selena already knew some, it still might have been appropriate to explain.

As for Thalia, she's starting to understand everything and it was commendable since she's fast in comprehending things.

"Well, in the adventuring field, I have another identity named Noelle. Also, I am hiding my face, and just for some specific reason, I got the nickname "The Masked Monster"."

Then she continued until she got to the point where she needed to fight Verxal. And as I wanted, she explained why Verxal was someone she agreed with.

As for what Verxal was known, she already said it, and people would be curious if they saw them fight. Ellena doesn't need to defeat Verxal, just fight and survive to get assessed. Since she doesn't really belong in such a lower rank, she made a deal with Yskaen that instead of giving her security, she'd just take some assurance for herself.

Well, she kinda wants to build her own foundation. And that foundation will be the starting point of her reputation. She still has a year to complete it, and before she enrolls in the Royal Academy, she must clear some threats that will hinder her.

"That's surprising! I didn't know that you were a greater person in the outer world, Master!"

Rosellete's praises were almost making Ellena cringe. Well, it was like making her have a stomachache, so Ellena just reminded her to not keep on doing it.

But still, she still didn't listen to Ellena's pleads and continued praising her.

Oh… Just forget about her, she'll eventually get tired of it and won't be surprised in the future.

Thus, they ventured for 4 days, going back to Phlabian where another phase will start. 

Driven by Thalia, everyone inside the carriage thanked her for her effort. She just said that it was the least she could do as Ellena's slave. She's loyal, and I can't think of any particular reason why she became loyal to Ellena. Was it because she bought her or Ellena's traits? Even if I assume, I couldn't still pinpoint it since it's on Thalia.

So… Right now, I just need to figure out this soul of mine. I need to know how I can exploit my capabilities, as that employer of mine said. I'll still call him my employer since it doesn't change the fact. I just forgot to ask his name.

In the 4-day venture, everyone just talked about things, started to get to know each other deeper, especially Rosellete, who was Selena's idol… in the past, as she said.

I must say that these girls are starting to get closer. And some of my assumptions about their personalities have been corrected.

Selena, the redhead I called in the past, was caring. However, her uniqueness was that she liked the competition and wanted to win despite being utterly defeated. That is how it explains why she wanted to compete with Ellena and wanted to have a race with her.

Thalia was timid. She rarely talks, but when she does, it is limited. However, in some instances, she gets too talkative when it piques her. And when she gets overly emotional, she can't hide it.

Rosellete is kind of what I remember as a loyal knight. She is somewhat dedicated and obsessed with people who are stronger than her. However, it doesn't mean that she likes all strong, but only those she finds likable. That also explains why she felt she wanted to be with Ellena.

Through the whole venture, nothing went wrong. And without even noticing it, we had already returned to the Phlabian City. And it makes me worry. Where will we put this huge number? 

Ellena decided to pay for Selena and Rosellete's room. Even though they declined at first, Ellena still won when she pointed out that they didn't have any money.

Well, they have, but not enough for the whole week if they don't take any quests. And as Ellena insisted on it, they just surrendered.

"I will surely do a great job, Master."

Here we go again with the word "master". I still find it bothersome, but Ellena has gotten used to it.

"Ellena, thank you. Now I can fulfill my dream of venturing around the world." A smile came from Selena.

Everyone settled, but I remained vigilant. We are at Phlabian, so there might be people watching for "The Masked Monster". Even if they couldn't point out Ellena, I still wanted to stay in this way.

For some unknown reason, I feel responsible. I already felt it, but it felt stronger. 

I need to calm down. Even though I can't comprehend my own soul, I still need to do what I can do. I am Ellena's rune, so my progress is still limited and it must affect Ellena.

***

The next day…

Everyone made their way to the guild. But all of them were wearing their normal attire. 

Ellena planned to buy some for their masks, but it can be delayed since this time they will register Thalia in the guild.

When she was finally registered, training was compulsory. And that's why Thalia needed training. But Rosellete felt that the training of the guild was slow, so instead of taking training from the guild every day, Thalia was tutored by Rosellete.

Thalia finished her training in three days and only had to take a fight test to prove her fighting capabilities. Even though it was still sloppy in some ways, she still passed the test. 

The training also needed their knowledge about places and monsters, but since she is with a party, it wasn't that focused.

I thought that it might be dangerous to have their faces in public. They could pinpoint Ellena when they got curious about the Masked Monster's party. They could just search for their party members' identities and eventually be exposed.

It is a problem. Thalia could be easily distinguished since she is a slave. And if there's a spy lurking in the guild that takes information about them to find 'Noelle', Ellena would be in greater danger.

Not a danger that would kill her, but a threat to her plans. Imagine the loss of having time to prepare for everything. If she were discovered, she would have to fight a great number of enemies, and that would be bad.

So, I thought of an alternative way to perfectly hide their identity. 

And that way is to hide the party before she can be promoted to a higher rank. After that, it won't end. Ellena will secretly assist them in the shadows to quickly raise their party members' rank in the guild. Gold rank is enough.

If they can establish this, Ellena's plan of making a mysterious party will succeed.