Chapter 58. Water

The amount of progress Chloe had made during this was enormous. At first, I only allowed three monsters at a time, knowing she could handle them just fine, but after a few hours, I had to increase the number.

She got faster, quicker, and cleaner the more she fought. Arthur might not be her match now.

Chloe had the talent to rise-

"Are you okay?" she asked seeing me stumble a little.

The voices were the loudest they had ever been, it was chaotic. I couldn't even think properly as they continued on in my mind, nonstop.

"I'm fine," I replied. She didn't look convinced but inquired no further than that. I couldn't even remember the last time I had heard my own voice without their interruption.

The only difference between Chloe and me was the stat points, as I had two classes and she had one. Not everyone that had survived the trial was rewarded with two classes.

If she also had two classes and we two had to fight, the skill level would be the deciding factor. Not [Cleave] or [Bloodlust] such skills, the skill with your weapon and control over it.

There were some hidden criteria that had to be met in order to get a second class. The ones at the top, leaders, were all people with two classes, but they were not the only ones.

According to Garry, the Union leader's first class was a blacksmith, but he was still on par with the other leaders.

"I can almost see where the land and water meet!" Chloe exclaimed and brought me out of my thoughts.

"Be careful, the atmosphere doesn't feel right." This should be the only source of water in a few dozen miles, but not a single monster approached the lake.

Monsters mostly acted on instincts, they could scheme but they will never overcome their instincts. And now not a single monster was in view, meaning there was something wrong with this lake.

It was a large lake, the water was clear and there were no signs of disturbance on its surface. It was a peaceful atmosphere, perfect for a picnic or date but something felt off.

"Chloe, stay here and be alert, I'll check the water."

Even she had noticed the unusual silence and was alert. Nodding, she readied her swords.

I walked towards the water with Thirst in my hand, Thorn was for precise attacks while my axe was for powerful attacks. If there was a surprise attack, raw power would be the most useful.

I dropped a stone in the lake after getting too close, but nothing.

No lake monster or abomination of some sort jumped out, leading me to think that something was wrong with the water. I dipped a finger in the water and still nothing.

I placed a drop of the lake water on my tongue. It tasted fresh, like cold normal water and nothing was wrong with it.

I was confused because there were so many monsters in the forest like wolves, goblins, big snakes, and even some aggressive plants. But not a single one approached this area.

I had my doubts but having tried everything, I could only put them aside for now. "It looks safe for now, you can come here." I turned around and informed Chloe.

She relaxed a little but did not completely drop her guard. Only when she reached me did she fully relax, "Is there nothing wrong with the water?" she asked.

"It is drinkable, there's no problem for now but we can't be sure. Fill up the empty containers you have, the tower opens in a week and I want to reach level 50 before that.

We do have to mark a path so that others could use it, and we have to kill monsters anyway. Two birds with one stone."

"You are almost fifty? I am nearing level forty but still can't compare to you."

"I have two classes while you have one, I have almost twice the amount of stats that you have. The biggest difference is the difference in skill, my masteries at a higher level.

Levels will naturally come as you keep challenging yourself, but you have to practice a lot for the masteries. Which you are, so there's nothing to worry about."

"I still don't feel strong enough." She said will looking towards the ground.

"Chloe, you need time. I got this strong early because of unavoidable circumstances, a goblin is not the first thing you would want to see after waking up in the middle of a forest.

And almost dying to it, surviving only because of something as unreliable as luck."

"You do not believe in Luck?"

"Luck is similar to a God. People thank or blame them for their success or failure, and I do not want to depend on these factors when my life is in danger. The only one I fully believe is in me."

She said nothing after that and kept thinking about my words, she might not agree with them but everybody had something they believed in. I just didn't want to blame God or luck on my deathbed and spend my last moments in regret.

We were going to stay in the forest for a few days, even though the journey took a few days, as we had to kill a lot of monsters and continuously check if we were on the right track.

We set up a crude tent and decided to rest near the lake as no monsters approached it even now. I would also have to look if there are some other sources of water nearby.

The animals and monsters would need water, and seeing that so many were still able to survive there had to be something else. It would be nice if there was something close to our settlement.

A change happened in the lake as the sunset and the moon rose.

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