Chef in the Apocalypse

"Huh?"

Lianna blinked her eyes a few times, unsure of if Jayce was being serious or not.

"Y-You’re not messing with me right? Cos it’s not funny..."

Jayce shook his head, his clear blue eyes staring into hers.

"Then everything I saw and heard were real?" She asked in a small voice, her mind reviewing all that she had witnessed.

"Yes. I’m telling you the truth. I survived through the Apocalypse for 10 years before I regressed back to 3 months before Cataclysm descended." He let the words sink in, before continuing, "This is why I knew so much and could increase everyone’s strength."

Lianna was speechless for a moment, seemingly deep in thought. Then without warning she moved forward and wrapped her arms around his bare chest, hugging him deeply.

"I’m sorry you had to go through all of that." She said with emotion. Jayce could feel warm tears running down his chest and stomach.

He held back a chuckle, not expecting this kind of reaction. He felt relieved, as if a large weight had been lifted off his chest. The only other person in this lifetime that knew his secret was Macie, and she wasn’t the easiest to talk to, at least before.

The reason why he had been so bold as to mention all this information to Lianna, was the new skill he had received from the Event Quest. While he didn’t have time to check it out before the massive fight with the Draconic Panther’s broke out, he had time before Lianna had awoken.

The skill description seemed vague, however it felt like the quest reward was a direct result from the intervention of the three beings on the thrones. It seemed that the World Balance skill that they had used, also worked both ways.

It actually made sense if he thought about it. The clues he received when they had been talking to each other, using words such as backlash and the like. If he were to take the word balance at face value, it would likely tip the scales in the other direction after the three intervened.

The Hydra boss was created after the three beings had meddled in his world, therefore when they cast the ability, there had to be something to balance it out. He had been thinking about this for a while, especially when he lost his VIP15 skill.

Under the Radar (passive) - Player is immune to surveillance and detection. Includes those within 100 meters.

This gave him the confidence to be able to voice some of his secrets that he dared not say in front of prying eyes and ears. Hence also why he had stressed to Lianna that she must not tell another soul.

Judging by the vague description, he wasn’t sure if this thing would also work with his stealth ability. Unfortunately he had no monsters to test this theory at the moment, so that would have to wait for the future.

Lianna eventually pulled back from her impromptu hug and looked at him through teary eyes. "Was it hard?"

Jayce thought for a moment before responding, "Survival is always hard. But the past is the past, we need to look forward and do what we can to help others, not just ourselves."

This life would be different from his first, he had already said these words many times in the past. But it was only today that he was able to share this with someone else, making it feel more real.

"We’ll make the Alliance, and protect everyone that we can." Jayce said with conviction, eliciting a nod and soft smile from Lianna.

"Well, how about we have a meal and then get out of this god-forsaken tree?" He said with a smile. This was seconded by his stomach which began to voice its opinion.

"Hahahaha." Lianna let out a beautiful velvety laugh, lifting both their spirits. Her face despite being puffy from crying, looked ethereal and fairy-like.

With that, Jayce continued to finish making the meal, chatting away with the fairy-like woman beside him. From the outside looking in, they seemed like a couple that was dating, enjoying a home cooked meal together.

The two continued to chat and eat their meal. The awkward atmosphere which had followed them throughout the past 9 months had seemingly disappeared. Jayce’s walls around his heart which had been fortified countless times, began to crumble away.

This was the first time that he had felt this open and carefree ever since regressing. It was as if he had laid all of his secrets and vulnerabilities bare, yet instead of being shunned or rejected, he was fully embraced.

Lianna too suddenly felt more confident. Her initial curiosity with Jayce had bloomed over time, turning into something more... much more. Now that she had seen his past, and he had seen hers, she no longer felt awkward or self-conscious.

Despite not vocalizing this, both of them had accepted each other for who they were, not judging what they had seen. In essence, this was the foundation for all budding relationships.

After a hearty meal, Jayce did his usual cleaning of his utensils and packed everything away into his inventory. "Let’s blow this Popsicle stand." He said, standing up and stretching.

"What? Hahaha." Lianna giggled, she had never heard such a statement before, causing her to break out into laughter.

Jayce grumbled, "I mean, let’s leave this damned place." He said, and headed towards the tunnel. Now that the Dryad was gone, the force field should no longer be in place.

Lianna, still laughing, chased after him and locked her arms with Jayce’s walking beside him. She flashed him a cute smile, easing his grouchiness.

After a short few minutes, the two made it back to the "lobby" of the tree where all of the tunnels began. Jayce and Lianna did not even look at the other tunnels, they had had enough of giant trees. Hell, Jayce would be happy if he never saw one again in his entire life.

As they walked out of the entrance of the tree, Lianna asked "So where to next?"

"We’ll carry on our earlier plan and head to the river. I don’t know about you, but I could use a bath." He said, lifting his arm up and smelling his arm pit.

"Thank goodness, A bath sounds heavenly." She said before pausing and sending a mischievous grin his way, "No peaking okay?"

Jayce’s eye twitched for a moment, "You’ve already seen my memories, you know I’m not that kind of person." He complained.

"Pfft. Weren’t you just spying on me while I was changing earlier?" She teased, letting his arm go and running ahead.

"H-Hey! I was asleep and you were changing next to me! It was your own fault." He yelled, chasing after her.