Taboo Online

"If we’re permitted to return, we’ll go together."

"You don’t have to."

"I know."

"It could be dangerous."

"I heard everything he said."

"Your ability already hurt you today."

"And now we understand why."

Luke frowned, but Lauren placed her hand over his before he could continue.

"You said you wouldn’t be here without me. Do you think I would have come this far without you?"

Luke did not answer.

"I want to understand Oracle’s Glimpse, and I want to become stronger too. I didn’t join the awakening project so I could remain behind while you carried every danger by yourself."

Her fingers tightened around his.

"You keep saying you want to protect me, but protection does not mean deciding how strong I’m allowed to become."

Luke’s first instinct was still to object. He remembered Lauren collapsing in his arms only an hour earlier, her face pale while the sensor screamed beside her temple. Every protective impulse inside him insisted that keeping her away from Powerforge was the safest choice.

Then he remembered the way she had stood beside him in the Dungeon of Truth. Oracle’s Glimpse had not merely warned him about danger. Lauren had chosen the future they survived, trusted him to make it real, and helped create Fated Javelin with him. Asking her to remain outside would not protect that part of her. It would only deny how much of their strength belonged to both of them.

Luke wanted to argue, but the thought of entering Powerforge with Lauren made him smile before he could stop himself.

She noticed immediately and sighed.

"You agreed far too easily."

"You had already decided."

"That doesn’t mean you should look so happy about entering a dangerous game."

"I’m happy you’re coming with me."

The tension around her mouth eased.

Red Hound looked between them before turning toward the door. "I’ll arrange for a licensed hero who specializes in spears to train you before any decision is made."

Luke stood so quickly that the chair beside him scraped across the floor.

"A real spear hero?"

"No. I was planning to find an accountant with a broom."

Luke stared at him.

Red Hound glanced back. "Yes, a real spear hero."

Lauren hid another smile.

"You need to develop Reinforce, Arcane Thrust, and Quickstep," Red Hound continued. "Learn how to use the spear without throwing your entire body after every attack. If the game offers you new skills, understand them before depending on them."

Luke nodded eagerly.

"What about Fated Javelin?" Lauren asked.

"That will be examined separately," Red Hound replied. "It requires both of you, a shared future, and whatever Powerforge considers maximum partner resonance. No one is testing something that unpredictable without strict controls."

Luke’s excitement dimmed slightly, but he understood the caution.

The offer made the future feel suddenly real. Luke could picture himself standing on a proper training floor with a spear in his hands, correcting the mistakes Red Hound had exposed instead of blindly repeating them. He would still need to earn the Bureau’s approval, but for the first time, there was a clear step between wanting strength and actually learning how to use it.

Red Hound looked toward him again.

"And don’t treat Miss Lauren as nothing more than support. She needs time to develop Oracle’s Glimpse, test its limits, and discover what other abilities may work with it. Protecting her does not mean preventing her from growing."

Luke glanced at Lauren. She raised one eyebrow.

"I know," he said.

"Remember it."

"I will."

Red Hound reached for the door, then paused.

"One more thing. Neither of you has been approved yet."

Luke’s excitement faltered.

"Still," Red Hound added with a faint smirk, "forcing me back half an inch was a respectable start."

Luke’s smile returned.

"Yes!"

He bowed deeply to the hero. Red Hound shook his head and stepped into the corridor, closing the door behind him.

Luke and Lauren remained quiet for a few seconds before he turned toward her.

"We’re going back."

"Possibly."

"We’re definitely going back."

"You heard him. We haven’t been approved."

"He already found me a spear teacher."

"He said he would arrange one."

"That means he expects me to pass."

Lauren picked up the plain black blindfold and unfolded it between her hands.

"It means he expects you to require a great deal of training."

"Same thing."

"No, Luke. Those are not the same thing."

He smiled anyway.

Lauren raised the blindfold and tied it securely around her head. The wide black fabric covered her eyes completely, making her look even more like Yvonne.

Luke had already known they were the same woman for some time, but seeing Lauren wear a real blindfold brought the two sides of her together in a way he had never experienced before.

She still wore ordinary clothes and sat inside a sterile medical room instead of a fantasy dungeon. There were no violet symbols glowing across the fabric and no revealing black costume clinging to her body.

Even so, the resemblance stirred something immediate inside him.

Lauren tilted her head. "What is it?"

"Nothing."

"Luke."

"You look like Yvonne."

A faint flush warmed her cheeks. "I suppose I do."

His gaze remained on her for another moment. The plain blindfold lacked everything magical about Yvonne’s version, yet it still suited Lauren far too well.

She reached toward him. Luke took her hand without hesitation and allowed her fingers to close around his.

"We should be careful," she said.

"I know."

"We still don’t understand who controls the game."

"I know."

"The other problem waiting above the café stays untouched."

Luke glanced toward the closed door.

Lauren lowered her voice further.

"We are not going to do anything reckless merely because Red Hound mentioned the possibility of returning."

Luke hesitated long enough for her grip to tighten.

"Luke."

"I’ll try."

She sighed. It was not the answer she wanted, but she kept holding his hand as he sat beside her again.

Powerforge was still dangerous, mysterious, and connected to enemies far beyond their understanding. Even so, the path back had finally opened, and neither of them intended to walk it alone.