One Plan

My body ached as we ran. Ahna no longer needed to hold my hand, but I felt like I was slowing us down. She never complained, only slowed if I fell behind.

The run seemed endless, and just as I felt like my body was about to collapse, we reached a cave. I could open both eyes now, and my body didn't feel as battered. I was confused about how that could be until C6 spoke up in my mind.

[Since you have reached level two, now you have health regeneration. Health is your total lifeforce, and if that bar runs out, we end. Now, even though it is prolonged, your body is repairing itself with the System's help.]

What? Can my body really heal itself now? That would make sense, but it was almost too unbelievable if I didn't see and feel the effects right now!

"How are you feeling?"

Ahna's voice scared me, and I jumped back from her. I wasn't paying attention and must have just stopped walking in the middle of the cave. She walked back up to me and repeated the question.

"Umm... I think so, but I feel better than before we left, which is strange," I said, and it was true, I did feel much better.

"Strange? Did the angel not explain about your divine regeneration?" Ahna asked me while tilting her head.

Angel? Divine? She must be talking about C6 and the healing thing. This situation was more than strange now, I had never heard most of these words, but I was starting to understand what they meant.

"He told me, but I don't find it any less strange after having it explained. I don't understand anything that's going on right now. The angel, C6, he keeps telling me words that I have never heard before, and I have no idea what they mean," I explained to her,

"What do you mean? Are you not in school?" Ahna asked me honestly.

"What? I'm Castless, don't you know what that is? You said your father is the King, right?" I asked in confusion.

"Yes, well, I am Princess Ahna, and I grew up in the capital. There are no Castless allowed in the imperial city, so I have never seen one before, and I can't tell the difference, besides your clothes. I came here from there over a month ago to reach you in time, but I almost missed you because I didn't believe it."

"You didn't believe what? You mean when you ran into me?" I asked even though I was pretty sure that I knew the answer; I was a nobody Castless, not what she expected.

"Yes! I can sense your direction, so I thought I had missed the person when I ran into you. You're not what I had pictured, that's all, but It's clear you have received the blessing of God," Anha told me with fervor.

Blessing of God? The imaginary person ever the church people believed in?

[Yes, only a few believe in 'God,' because such things have never benefited anyone in the past other than made-up stories, but this will spark them up like a firestorm!]

'That's a good thing?' I asked C6.

[I think it could help with your cause but start another problem later.]

"So, now that I have this blessing, what am I supposed to do?"

"Kill, the King, my father!" Ahna declared, clenching her fist in front of herself.

"... Is that all?" I asked.

"Huh?" She asked back in confusion.

"... I just mean, then why didn't you do it? Your way stronger than me... So I just don't understand why you didn't do it when he wasn't looking or something..." I asked, not wanting to be rude, but it was a fair question.

Ahna looked away from me and turned, putting her hands out in front of herself. They were shaking, but her hair was hiding her face, so I couldn't tell the expression that was causing it.

Ahna balled her hands into fists and put them to her side, taking a deep breath, before turning back to me.

"I tried... But he only took it as a joke and backhanded me. I almost died from a single strike; I couldn't even see it coming, even after my training. The injury put me in a bed for almost a month, and after I trained more, I started going to the temple and prayed for a miracle, and now I'm here," Ahna explained.

"So, you tried and almost died because he only took what you did as a joke, right? Now, weak and frail, what am I going to go and do what you couldn't?" I asked despairingly.

"Yes, but not yet. Both of us need to get stronger, or your right; it would be stupid. I'm not blind to it all, and I know this mission can't be finished in a day; I am not asking for that. I want your help to get stronger," Ahna told me.

"Stronger? Can I help you get stronger? How?" I asked in confusion.

"Come on. I know what you did; the buff I used focuses only on strength, but I felt you change the spell, and the blowback effect was amazing. Maybe you're not strong right now; that's okay; I'm not either. Those people we killed were nothing compared to the monsters in the capital, so we need to work together; I will train you if you can help me make my magic better, deal?" Anha challenged me.

'Is that even possible? Can I make her magic permanently better?' I asked C6

[In time, many new doors will open up to you, Rhune. Your Magical Hacking System will bring you to new heights and allow you to do things you could never have dreamed of. Work with Ahna, get stronger so you can help people like your friend Yuri.]

Yuri, that was right. There were more Castless just like us that didn't deserve this... Did we?

I hadn't ever thought about whether we deserved this punishment. It had always just been a fact of life we had grown up with, but... No, it wasn't alright.

I looked at Ahna for a moment before speaking. I still didn't know if I could actually help, even with C6 and the System, but Ahna seemed to think so.

I had a hard time refusing the person who just saved Yuri and my life and took me away from that place, could I?

"I don't understand why the world wants to treat people like me and my friend like this, but I want it to change. If you say there is a way, then I want to help even if I'm weak."