Eun-ji, the Healer, proved to be an invaluable asset immediately. She was quiet, observant, and capable of using her soft, non-threatening presence to gather information the guards would never volunteer.
It took her less than an hour, simply by offering to examine a minor cut on one of the guard's hands.
She shuffled back to Heuk-jae, her body trembling slightly, but her eyes sharp. "It's Kael," she murmured, barely moving her lips. "Kael is wearing the silver ring. It's too big for his finger, clearly inherited. He keeps touching it, almost nervously."
Target Confirmed: Kael, the Greedy Guard. Weakness: Sentimental Vulnerability/Greed. Rexus, the Superstitious Guard. Weakness: Fear of Curses/Bad Omens.
Heuk-jae nodded, his mind already spinning through the next ten steps of the walkthrough. The silver ring was the key to the distraction. The ring belonged to Kael's deceased mother and was, according to the novel's backstory, prone to tarnishing quickly due to its poor alloy mix.
Heuk-jae reached into his tunic and produced the sliver of bone he'd used for leverage, the only remaining piece of non-metallic trash he possessed.
"When the 14:00 change happens, you will ask Kael why his mother's ring looks 'ill' today. Tell him it has a dark aura," Heuk-jae instructed, his voice low and urgent. "He is superstitious about his inheritance. That will cause the moment of psychological confusion we need."
Eun-ji looked terrified, but resolute. "And what will you do with that distraction?"
"I will secure our path out, and possibly a few more items we will need for the future," Heuk-jae answered. "We aren't just escaping. We are preparing for the next three years."
The 14:00 shift change arrived with the usual commotion. As the guards exchanged places, and Kael stood momentarily alone near the door, Eun-ji executed the instruction perfectly.
"Guard Kael," she spoke up, her voice surprisingly steady, though pitched low with feigned pity. "Your mother's ring—it looks ill today. The shadow it casts… it suggests a failure of spirit."
Kael froze, his hand snapping to the ring. His face, normally red with anger, went slack with sudden, genuine dread.
"What did you say, slave?"
"It is a bad omen," Eun-ji insisted, then quickly lowered her head, hiding her face in the shadow of her hair. "Please, Guard Kael, be safe today."
The guard stared at the ring, his internal battle between greed and superstition fully engaged. In that split-second lapse, the new guard, Rexus, failed to properly latch the final bolt on the main door.
Opportunity Window: 5 seconds.
Heuk-jae had already slipped his collar and was moving. He darted into the adjacent, dark corridor, pulled open the door to the guard captain's office (the lock already prepared using his master pick), and vanished inside.
He didn't take weapons. He didn't take gold. He took three things from the Captain's desk, all exactly where they were supposed to be:
A half-eaten loaf of salted bread. (Critical sustained energy.)
A sealed vial of Viper Dust—a low-level paralysis agent commonly used to subdue unruly prisoners. (Status Effect: Paralyze (Minor) on contact.)
The single most important item: A folded, officially stamped document—an Enrollment Application for the Aegis Arcane and Technical Academy.
He locked the office door, slid back through the supply room, and returned to his place, re-locking his own collar with the master pick just as Kael was loudly declaring that the slave was talking nonsense.
The night was their ultimate window.
Later, in the deepest darkness of the 03:00 Night Watch lull, Heuk-jae unlocked his collar and Eun-ji's. He used the Viper Dust to neutralize the squeaky main door hinges, then silently opened it.
"We go now," Heuk-jae whispered, holding out the bread. "Eat this. We need to reach the river docks before dawn."
The escape was a blur of shadows and silence. They slipped past the sleeping Night Watch, skirted the horse pens, and scaled the low stone wall using a coil of rope Heuk-jae knew was hidden in the latrine pit—a piece of lore known only to players who checked every single NPC conversation.
They ran until the facility was a mere speck of light behind them. When they finally stopped, hidden beneath the thick willow trees by the slow-moving river, Eun-ji felt for the wound on her leg, caused by the hasty wall climb. It was superficial.
"We did it," she breathed, collapsing onto the damp earth. "We're free."
Heuk-jae looked up at the moon, its light filtering through the tree canopy. He pulled out the application document and handed her half of the salted bread.
"No," Heuk-jae said, his voice hard with renewed purpose. "We completed the tutorial. Now, we start the real game."
He pointed to the official seal on the paper.
"This is an application for the Aegis Arcane and Technical Academy (AATA). That Academy is the gateway to power, influence, and most importantly, the knowledge needed to handle the crisis coming in Volume Five. We cannot stay commoners. We need status."
Eun-ji took a bite of the hard, salty bread, looking at the ornate, intimidating document.
"But we are former slaves. We have no credentials," she whispered.
"The entrance exam is in two weeks," Heuk-jae stated, crushing the last of the Viper Dust vial under his heel. "The first stage is a grueling 48-hour logic and endurance test designed to break the children of nobles. A commoner has never passed."
He paused, a familiar, predatory strategist's glint in his eye.
"A commoner who knows the exact answer key, however, will walk right in. We are going to pass the exam, Eun-ji. And then, we are going to change the world."
[QUEST COMPLETE: SLAVE ESCAPE - DAY 2]
[QUEST COMPLETED: ACQUIRE ALLIES (Eun-ji)]
New Main Questline Unlocked: The Path to Status.
Objective: Successfully pass the Aegis Arcane and Technical Academy (AATA) Entrance Exam.
Condition: Must pass the written and practical exam stages within 14 days.
Reward: Academy Enrollment (Tier 3 Status Unlocked).
Failure: Permanent Blacklisting from Aegis (Soft Game Over - Requires Re-roll).