I woke up to the same foul odor I did yesterday; the bodies of the dead wolves were starting to rot. They were all piled up in a corner at the back of the cave. But that didn't matter now—I had found a new purpose for them. As I got up, I checked my watch; it was a little after 6 am. I went outside the cave to practice with my weapons for a bit.
When I came back, Luna was already awake. She gave me a polite smile and a nod, and I returned the same. It was a good thing since there was something I wanted to ask her.
"Luna, how does your inventory work?"
"My inventory?" she tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, are there any limitations to the items you can store?"
Mine, for example, limits me to storing only items I have registered, which can only be premium-grade weapons and above.
She shook her head.
"No, I can store anything I'd like."
That was convenient; it would make my job a lot easier.
"Good, I want you to store two of the bodies of the dead wolves inside it."
I had allowed her to extract their souls yesterday after we discussed her system.
"Eul~" she made a disgusted sound at the thought, frowning in apprehension. "But why?"
"We're gonna need them. We're also leaving the cave behind and heading north."
"We are?"
She seemed displeased about it but still complied and stored two of the wolves' bodies inside her inventory. After that, we left the cave, making sure to bring our supplies, including the ones I got last night.
I had a rough idea of where the settlements for the different factions were from my conversation last night. When everything was completed, we left the cave and headed into the forest. It was teeming with giant lizard-like monsters.
I barely laid eyes on them before they were gone, but I would say they were roughly the same height as me lying on the ground.
Klick!! Klick!!
They made clicking noises as we walked through the forest. It was strange; something didn't feel right. I could tell Luna sensed it too; she was just inches away from me, so much so that I could feel her breathing down my neck. A horrified look came on her face every time we spotted one of them.
The sound got louder and louder as we walked until…
SWOOSH!!
One of them made a mad dash out from the bushes. It was fast; its body wiggled wildly as it ran. It had green slimy skin, and from its open mouth, I could see that it didn't have any teeth. But what really caught me off guard was when it leapt 2 meters in the air toward me.
This place was truly a hellhole of the highest order.
Its skin was spongy; if the blade had been any duller, it would have bounced right off it, but I managed to get a clean cut through with the Middle Finger.
"Eeek!"
More of them emerged, seemingly out of nowhere.
They were coming from all directions. One thing was for sure: the monsters here were well-versed in launching ambushes. I had a feeling the lizard that I saw before was actually the same one and that it might have been scouting. The clicking sounds it made were probably to alert the others.
That means they must have some level of intelligence.
"Eeek!"
Luna was screaming, running circles around them. It honestly made things easier since it was keeping some of them occupied while I dealt with the rest. I cut them down one by one until there were no more left.
All in all, they weren't that strong, giving me only 5 points each for a total of 40 points. From what I read in the encyclopedia, they were E-rank beasts called Malgecko. This helped prove a theory I had: that killing E-rank beasts only granted 5 skill points. It was tough luck since this island mostly hosted E-rank beasts; the D-ranks here were few and far between.
It wasn't long after we came upon a river. Along with it, the joyful bliss of youth could be heard. There were applicants galivanting on the riverbanks, swimming and having the time of their lives.
They didn't have to worry about food or water; it seemed this island wasn't much of a challenge for them. The girls were in their own cliques, laughing and giggling, while the boys tried their best to impress them. They looked like they were on vacation rather than on an island teeming with monsters.
I couldn't help but frown at the sight of them.
These are the morons I'll be going to school with.
There wasn't even a monster alive in the surrounding area, as if they had all been wiped out. Someone here was powerful—so much so that everyone here felt confident they were safe.
We were bombarded by stares as we tried to walk past them; it might've been because Luna and I were arm in arm. Ever since the lizard ambushed us, I hadn't been able to shake her off.
"Hey, you guys wanna join us?" a boy with blond hair and a cheerful smirk called out to us.
"No, we're fine," I answered.
I'd rather not get involved with them, so I continued walking at a brisker pace to leave them behind.
"Hey, wait up!" He left the group he was with and came running after us. "I haven't seen you before; what faction are you in?"
"We are not with any faction."
He didn't seem surprised at all when I said that; his expression indicated he'd already figured it out.
"It's fine if you're not with ours; the river is free for everyone to use. We could give you bottles to fill up if you want."
"No, we're fine, just traveling."
My social skills hadn't improved a bit; any moment now, he'd realize that and leave.
"Oh, okay. My name is Hikari, by the way, and we're with Amelia's faction. You'll come across many of our settlements if you continue along the river here. Feel free to ask anyone for help if you ever need it." He flashed us a smile before running back to his group.
It was like they weren't even taking the exam seriously. I was suddenly reminded of what the man said during the screening exam: 'This year's group of applicants are monsters.'
I never used to give much thought to the lives of others, but now I felt myself wanting to tip the scales, to let this place dissolve into chaos.
I want to allow them to fight on equal terms.
Just once, I want to see what it's like for other people to fight for their lives.
"Luna,"
"Hmm?"
"I'll need your help. I want you to join Cassian's faction."