After memorizing the full contents of the Book Of Champions, Rocky decided to head out of the library with his mind filled with doubts.
He had to start ascending the tower fast to catch-up to his peers before the final evaluation, however, with the threat of 'Vorithra Slyithen', Rocky was unsure if ascending fast was a good idea?
According to Vladimir's notes, while just the presence of the Champion was enough to trigger unexpected dungeon raids and events, this danger was more pronounced on special floors such as floor 10-20-30 and so on.
As the Champion matured and tried to climb higher, the threat he faced from the mysterious phenomenon 'Vorithra Slyithen' also increased, as if there was anything that Rocky realized from reading about Elenion's life, it was how much he regretted losing his teammates to floor raids which became increasingly difficult as time went on.
To ascend the tower, Rocky definitely needed a strong party around him as nobody could climb the full length of the tower alone.
The concept of forming a 'Champion's party' had only originated because there were limits to the capability of a Champion alone, however, Rocky seriously doubted if he could maintain his usual demeanor and not break down mentally, should he lose all of his closest friends and allies one by one to mysterious phenomena.
If any floor raid that he would be a part of would automatically become 3-5 times more dangerous than a normal raid, then just climbing the tower for someone like him would be a sure-fire mess.
In life one could get lucky and evade death once, maybe twice, however, if one played with death on a regular basis, it was bound to catch up to them sooner or later.
'Vladimir Stanev.....' Rocky mused, as he decided to meet the man at the first opportunity available.
***********
( Meanwhile Sophia )
Sophia was very happy as she wrote a letter to her father and brother detailing how she was slowly but surely succeeding in winning over Rocky's trust and heart completely.
( Meanwhile Perseus )
Unlike what Sophia expected, the second Perseus received her letter, sweat began dripping from his forehead as he feared for the safety of their plans.
Instead of having full faith in his sister's abilities, Perseus instead felt like this was definitely one of Shakuni's schemes as he refused to believe that someone like Rocky, who was missing in action for months, could suddenly come back, face an assassination attempt during midterms that had now been linked back to Olympus and still try and get closer to Sophia.
" I hope that in the process of trying to get to know him, that foolish sister of mine doesn't spill the secrets of our family to him instead...." Perseus said, clutching his head, as he already expected the worst to come pass.
Pacing back and forth in his dimly lit office room, Perseus clutched Sophia's letter tightly. He was filled with apprehension as the letter, which Sophia intended to assure him of her progress, did the exact opposite.
"She thinks she has Rocky wrapped around her finger," he muttered, "but she might be walking right into his trap instead." Perseus mused, as he shook his head and tried to understand the reason behind why he was feeling so uneasy.
His instincts forewarned him about an upcoming disaster. He had never fully trusted his sister's abilities in this mission. Although Sophia was cunning and persuasive, he feared her blind confidence would lead her to underestimate Rocky.
His disappearance for months before his return still raised suspicions within Perseus's mind, and he couldn't shake the feeling that Rocky's intentions weren't as clear-cut as Sophia believed.
Clenching the letter, Perseus's gaze hardened. "Father will be furious if this plan falls apart because of her carelessness."
The stakes were too high to rely on Sophia alone. If she slipped up and inadvertently revealed their family's intentions or any crucial information to Rocky, the consequences would be dire. Perseus knew that Rocky could exploit any sign of weakness or treachery to turn the tables on them, jeopardizing their plans.
"Sophia might not see it, but Rocky is no fool, he's the champion of Gemini, there's no way he falls prey to the seduction of a childish hoe" Perseus muttered to himself as he took this letter and Rocky's behavior in trying to befriend Sophia as a big red flag.
"I have to act quickly to mitigate any potential fallout" he said to himself as he determined that a new strategy was required on urgent basis, one that didn't rely solely on Sophia's ability to manipulate Rocky.