The last surprise Ethan had after exiting the Tower had been waking up to Elara riding him. Looking back on it, the system hadn't warned him of it, so it hadn't considered that a threat.
'It knew better than to interrupt that one,' he joked to himself.
This time, there was no immediate surprise waiting for him, only extreme exhaustion. The frozen wasteland dissolved into countless motes of light before the familiar darkness of the Black Howl's basement returned.
Ethan slowly opened his eyes.
The muffled sounds of conversation and laughter drifted faintly through the floorboards overhead, telling him the bar was still open. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he squinted at the screen before letting out a tired breath.
Almost twenty-four hours had passed.
To anyone else, it would've looked as though he'd spent an entire day asleep.
The reality couldn't have been further from the truth.
