Online Game: I Started with Max Charisma and Caught the Goddess's Eye

Andrew immediately began to act according to the plan he and Luca had discussed.

He told Lucas that Luca would be joining the Crimson King’s army.

Originally, he thought Lucas would be pleased with this offer—but Lucas’s reaction turned out to be completely different from what he had expected.

“You’re only planning to let me take one person?!” Lucas roared furiously.

“You’ve got to be joking! I’ve already recruited more than one man from Riverbank City! My mission this time is to assemble a combat-ready unit—a force that can go straight into battle!

You need to let me take at least ten adventurers! That’s the bare minimum for me to cobble together a team capable of immediate deployment. Stop messing around with me, Andrew. If you keep trying to stall me, don’t blame me for losing my temper.”

Lucas’s outburst startled Andrew.

“That’s impossible!” Andrew shot back quickly. “Taking ten adventurers is absolutely out of the question! And besides, the one person I’m offering you is equivalent to an entire, fully trained squad!”

Lucas gave a harsh, mocking laugh.

“You’re still trying to lie to me! Even if there are some strong adventurers in this guild, there’s no way any one of them could match the power of an entire trained squad. I don’t have time to waste arguing with you anymore!”

With that, Lucas turned sharply and strode toward the guild’s council chamber.

Andrew had no way to physically stop him.

There was only one person who could—Luca.

At that moment, Luca stepped out from the office. Watching Lucas’s fast, determined pace, he called out loudly:

“My strength surpasses yours! Do you dare to accept my challenge?”

Lucas froze mid-step, his entire body tensing. Slowly, he turned his head and fixed his gaze on Luca.

His sharp eyes scanned Luca up and down, as if assessing his worth. Then he shifted his attention to Andrew and spoke coldly:

“So, this is your plan? To buy more time by pulling this little stunt? Dream on. I’m not giving your adventurers even a second to run.”

With that, Lucas turned back and was about to storm into the council chamber.

But just then, he suddenly felt a powerful force surging toward him from behind.

Instinctively, he threw himself to the side.

Even with his lightning-fast reflexes, he barely managed to evade the incoming strike—it was close. Too close.

Heart pounding, Lucas spun around, his expression twisting between shock and rage, his eyes locking on the direction the attack had come from.

At that moment, within Lucas’s line of sight, there was only Luca—standing there with a faint, mocking smile on his lips.

“That attack just now… was it from you?” Lucas demanded coldly, his voice sharp with hostility.

“It’s been a long time since anyone has dared to question my strength,” Luca replied calmly, his tone unnervingly steady. “Since you’ve chosen to doubt me, of course I need to prove myself.”

Lucas’s expression twisted slightly, a mixture of disbelief and suspicion flashing in his eyes.

He strode closer, stopping just a few paces away from Luca, and scrutinized him once more from head to toe.

“That strike earlier… was it really you?” he pressed again, his voice laced with skepticism. “You don’t look that strong.”

Lucas still refused to believe it.

In his mind, that attack had to have been a combined effort between Andrew and Luca—maybe even assisted by some powerful artifact or hidden treasure. There was no way a single person could unleash such force… at least, that’s what he told himself.

Luca, upon hearing his doubts, let out a short, derisive laugh.

“If that’s what you think,” he said softly, his tone carrying a razor’s edge of arrogance, “then why don’t you come at me and find out for yourself? Fight me—and you’ll know exactly how strong I am.”

Luca’s condescending attitude struck Lucas like a slap to the face, and he felt his temper flare violently.

“You’d better remember you said that!” Lucas snarled, his voice low and dangerous.

Then he turned his gaze sharply toward Andrew, his expression dark as storm clouds.

“This little brat is provoking me. If I kill him in this fight, don’t you dare blame me!”

Andrew gave a silent, indifferent nod, his face betraying no emotion.

But deep down, he was seething with frustration.

Lucas, you idiot, he cursed inwardly. You should’ve just taken Luca with you from the start. If you’d done that, this would’ve been a win-win for all three of us.

Instead, thanks to Lucas’s stubbornness, Andrew now had no choice but to stand there, right outside his own office, and watch a completely pointless fight unfold.

“Kid,” Lucas said coldly, his voice like steel scraping against stone, “I’ll give you one last chance to back down. Regret it now while you still can. Because once I make a move, this won’t end until there’s a clear winner.”

He still didn’t believe Luca was truly as strong as he claimed.

Besides, Lucas hadn’t come here to kill anyone—his mission was to recruit soldiers, not leave corpses behind.

If, in the heat of battle, he accidentally killed his opponent, the situation could spiral into chaos. And yet, despite knowing this, he was already too deep to back down.

Luca chuckled softly, his tone dripping with quiet confidence.

“You don’t need to worry,” he said lightly. “Whenever I make a move, there’s always a winner—and I’m certain that this time, it’ll be me.”

Those words, spoken with such unwavering conviction, only poured fuel onto Lucas’s growing rage.

This also meant that Lucas had made up his mind to leave no room for retreat.

“Confidence is good, but too much of it can be your downfall!”

Lucas let out a cold snort and, without any hesitation, transformed into a massive brown bear that lunged straight toward Luca.

The enormous bear possessed astonishing strength. With every step it took, the floor beneath the Adventurers’ Guild headquarters shook violently, causing the entire building to tremble.

Andrew immediately backed away to a safer distance.

He wasn’t someone skilled in combat, and he certainly didn’t want to get caught up in the chaos.

Meanwhile, Luca stood in place, smiling calmly.

He had weathered countless storms before; an attack like this from Lucas barely even registered as a threat to him.

At the same time, Lucas, now in his bear form, felt a faint unease creep into his heart.

Normally, when people saw him transform into a towering beast, they were either terrified out of their minds, fleeing instantly or collapsing to the ground, trembling in fear.

But someone like Luca — standing there with an expression of utter disdain — was something Lucas had never encountered before.

“Could it be… that he’s really that strong? Could he actually defeat me?”

For the first time, Lucas began to doubt himself.

Still, since he had already launched the attack, there was no turning back now.

“No matter how powerful you are, I won’t back down! I’ll tear away your facade right here and now!”

Lucas steeled his resolve, convinced that Luca was still bluffing.

The massive brown bear charged straight up to Luca. When there was less than a meter between them, the bear raised its massive paw and brought it crashing down with brutal force.

Luca didn’t even bother activating his defensive magic runes.

Instead, he simply snapped his fingers.

In an instant, a silvery-white glow wrapped itself around his body.

The moment the bear’s colossal paw slammed into the shimmering light, it disintegrated into ash on contact.

A thunderous scream erupted from the enormous bear.

The beast’s phantom form dissolved rapidly, and Lucas collapsed at Luca’s feet.

White smoke wafted from his right hand as he clutched it protectively against his body, crying out in agony.

Lucas’s piercing screams drew every adventurer in the guild headquarters rushing toward the scene.

Everyone stood there, watching as Lucas writhed on the ground, rolling back and forth in agony while screaming in pain.

Andrew watched for a moment but eventually couldn’t bear it any longer.

He walked over to Luca’s side and said quietly,

“You’ve already proven your strength. Could you… help him? At least ease his suffering a little.”

Luca slowly nodded.

He immediately instructed Sophia to cast a frost spell.

In the next instant, tiny snowflakes materialized out of thin air, swirling gently around them.

As the icy magic enveloped Lucas’s injured hand, his screams finally began to subside.

The wound on his right hand froze over, stopping the pain from worsening.

Barely managing to stabilize himself, Lucas forced himself upright.

He straightened his back, putting on an air of forced anger as he turned and roared at the crowd of adventurers who had gathered to watch.

“What the hell are you looking at?! Do you think this is funny?! Get the hell out of here, all of you! If you don’t disappear this instant, I’ll drag every last one of you into the army myself!”

Faced with Lucas’s furious threat, the adventurers scattered without hesitation, hurrying away as fast as they could.

After venting his frustration, Lucas turned back toward Luca.

This time, there wasn’t a trace of arrogance left in him.

“Your strength is… truly formidable. If you were to join Lord Crimson King’s army, you’d rise quickly, no doubt about it. You’ve made the right choice. You’re not suited to being an adventurer — you’re far more fit to be a soldier.”

Those words made it clear that Lucas had completely accepted Andrew’s suggestion.

Andrew’s lips finally curved into a faint smile.

Luca, however, remained as cold and composed as before. He gave a slight, indifferent nod.

“What’s your name? I’ll give you one day to prepare. We set out tomorrow at first light.”

Lucas didn’t seem to care about Luca’s cold attitude.

After all, he now knew beyond any doubt that he was no match for him.

“My name is Cole. I was an orphan from a young age — I have no family name.”

Luca replied quickly, using Andrew’s surname as part of his fabricated identity.

Andrew glanced briefly at Luca but said nothing.

Lucas nodded in response.

“Cole, huh? You’ve got one day to get ready. Tomorrow morning, I’ll be back to take you with me!”

With that, he turned on his heel and left without another word.

Once the hall was empty and only Andrew and Luca remained, Andrew smiled faintly and asked:

“Why did you use my surname as your alias?” Andrew asked, raising an eyebrow. “Aren’t you worried it might make Lucas suspicious?”

“I didn’t have time to come up with a fake name,” Luca replied quickly. “Besides, my cover identity is that of an orphan—and I’m also supposed to be your apprentice. Under those circumstances, it’s perfectly normal for me to take your surname. Nothing strange about it at all.”

Andrew gave a small nod, understanding that Luca’s explanation was reasonable. He knew the question was less about reproach and more about a reminder.

“Lucas won’t be taking you until early tomorrow,” Andrew said after a pause. “So, for tonight, stay here. I noticed how interested you were in that ceramic jar related to the Goddess of the Night. You can spend the evening in the collection room and study it as much as you like.”

As he finished speaking, Andrew handed a small, exquisitely crafted key to Luca.

Luca froze, startled.

He genuinely hadn’t expected Andrew to trust him this much.

Seeing Luca’s surprised expression, Andrew smiled warmly and said,

“I don’t give this key to just anyone. But you saved my life—and you’ve also helped me resolve a major problem. Because of that, I trust you completely.”