70 Plan

"Well, I'm really tired. I'm going back to the cave to take a nap. Call me when you guys want to go somewhere or if something important happens. Don't get too intimate now," Jay said, walking back into the cave, not before staring daggers at the seemingly oblivious Moby. 

"Same here! Bye! You two have fun!" Travis said in his usual overly joyous tone, following right behind Jay who gave him a mean look a second after.

"Hey… I'm sorry to ask, but, what is that yellow stuff dripping from your clothes?" Moby asked, feigning ignorance, trying his best not to break his poker face and burst out in laughter. 

Suddenly, Haley stopped her treatment, her face became redder than a tomato. She took a few steps back before awkwardly waddling into the cave for a few seconds before coming back.

"Sorry about that! I spilt my water all over myself when I saw you coming, carrying that monster on your back. We all thought we were under attack." Haley said with an embarrassed chuckle. 

"Yeah! It's ok! I'm so sorry for scaring you! I promise that I only had good intentions. I really care about you," Moby said with a radiant smile, running his hands through her hair before putting it firmly on her shoulder. 

'Is he an angel sent from the heavens? Was he always this attractive and cool?' Haley thought, putting her hands over her blushing cheeks.

"Hey, I just wanted to ask. Would it be possible if I hanged onto Natalia's storage ring? It would be the safest with me since I now have the second-highest power level on the team," Moby said in a sincere and worried tone.  

"I'm sorry, I can't do that. I want to respect Natalia's privacy. She is my saviour, I can't just give it to you… I understand that you only have good intentions, but I already vowed that I would not expose it's contents to anyone. I hope you understand…" Haley said, nervously fiddling with her thumbs. 

As soon as Moby heard her response, a small, barely noticeable dent was made in his poker face. A few bulging veins became slightly visible on his face and his right eyebrow started sporadically twitching. Luckily, no one saw him. His back was turned to his other teammates and Haley was too nervous and ashamed to even look him in the eyes. 

"Of course, I completely understand… You seem like a very trustworthy friend," Moby said, trying his best to maintain his poker face.

'ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING MEE!?? WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN RESPECT NATALIA'S PRIVACY!?! YOU ALREADY TOOK A FUCKING PEEK!? WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU CAN LOOK AT IT AND I CAN'T,'

'PART OF THE REASON THAT I EXPOSED MY POWER WAS TO GET A PEEK AT THAT FUCKING STORAGE RING!!!' 

'I DON'T CARE ANYMORE!! THIS TWO FACED BITCH CAN DIE A HORRIBLE DEATH FOR ALL I CARE!!'

'At least your other plan worked. You successfully managed to convince the team that you have an ability meaning that they will allow you to go hunting with them, gaining you more XP,' Avilia said, trying to cheer him up. 

'True. Although everything did not go perfectly, I had no intention of scaring them. I honestly just wanted to give them a beast as a present to raise their spirits and help persuade them into believing my story. I even injured myself in an attempt to nerf my own strength. But, that backfired badly in my face!'

'Also, this is the only time that I can somewhat realistically convince my team and the school that I got an ability. Luckily, I know the school has no way of knowing if my "Ability" is actually an "Ability" and, no one would question if it is as it resembles one. They have no reason to think otherwise.'

'Furthermore, If I got one on earth, it would be too obscure as there would be no ability like my pure demon energy. They don't need a lie detector to figure that out. It's common sense. So, if I just get it on another planet and show convincing evidence, then they would have no choice but to believe me. The school would most likely make me take another lie detector test. But, when I get that skill you were talking about, I'm sure I can bypass it with no problem. Furthermore, If I were to get an ability in the future, it would have to be something subtle or that looks very similar to my pure demon energy which can be a hassle for obvious reasons. ' 

'I also chose not to expose my full power level for many reasons.'

'The first is that I want to give Natalia the illusion that she is still in control and that I am not a threat to her. It was hard to choose a power level that allowed me to do that while at the same time making it at least possible that I could defeat a B- rank beast. I also needed to make my power level low enough for me not to be noticed by any of the stronger second-year students.' 

'The second, my team all thinks that my equipment is normal and that it gives me no power boost at all. If I showed my full power level and either took off or wore magical equipment, I would not be able to adjust my power level accordingly. Exposing my lie as a result.'

'And, the third, and last, is that it is always good to keep your power hidden. It gives you an upper hand in most fights as your opponent will most likely underestimate you. This is also the reason why I will be hiding "Eyes of Sin", "Devil's Hand", and "Sin Mode" as they will be my hidden trump cards and won't make sense with the theme of my "Pure Demon Energy Manipulation".' 

'This plan just made the most sense, I can now freely use most of my powers without the fear of being exposed. And, I can now gain more XP by hunting with the group. I would have to do this eventually and it's better to do it now than later. The only other time I could pull something like this off is during a future exam. And, who knows if it will even be an exam on another planet or how long in the future it will take. It was just my safest bet to do it now,' Moby thought.

'Seems like someone cheered up a bit and rambled on a little too long…' Avilia said with a chuckle. 

"All done!" Haley said in an energetic tone as she completely finished healing Moby's wounds.

"Wow!! I feel good as new! You are an incredible healer! Thank you so much!!" Moby said, stretching his newly healed body. 

"Aww, it's nothing… I'm just doing my job," Haley said, trying her best to do a cute chuckle but failing miserably in the process. 

'Fuck that's disgusting! She now has a crush on me for no reason! Natalia is going to now kill her anyway so it would be more advantageous for me to do it myself. At least she could help me by serving as XP. I can't imagine lasting a week with her in the group.' Moby thought, inwardly shuddering.

Suddenly, the air around the area dropped by what seemed like a few degrees. Then, a strong, suffocating, killing intent emanated from within the cave.

This could only mean one thing...

'Fuck! It's her! There goes any chance of me getting that ring.' Moby thought, knowing exactly what was going on. 

Then, suddenly, as soon as the killing intent arrived, it instantly disappeared. A few moments later, a familiar figure walked out of the slightly lit cave. 

"Good morning guys! How long was I asleep! What did I miss?" Natalia said with a cute yawn.

"Team leader!!! I'm so glad you're okay!! You've been out for almost 24 hours now!! Umm… I just wanted to thank you for saving my life. I owe you a great debt!" Haley said, excitedly running towards Natalia. 

"No need to thank me! I was just doing my job as a leader. You are a very important and vital part of the team! We are friends, right?" Natalia said with a wide smile. 

"Team leader! I…" 

"Just call me Natalia." 

"Umm… Natalia, I am so grateful for having such a great, selfless, honest, team leader such as yourself. I doubt the other team leaders are as amazing as you!" Haley said as if she was a little kid. 

"You flatter me, you're giving me too much credit," Natalia said with a chuckle. 

"By the way, here is your storage ring! I kept it safe for you the whole time!" Haley said, pulling the ring out of her bra and handing the ring over to Natalia.

"Did you by any chance take a peek at what was inside?" Natalia said, her smile becoming even wider than before. 

"Well… I did take a little peak when I used it to grab your sleeping bag. Nobody else saw what was inside. It was only me. I promise on my life that I will keep it a secret! That's what friends are for." Haley said in a nervous tone. 

"Well, that's good to know. Friend..." Natalia said, with a small chuckle.

"Anyways…"

"I see that you and Moby are getting along a lot better now… I'm glad to see that you guys are no longer on bad terms… So, what is that about?" Natalia said with a wide grin that seemed almost ominous.