It was the dark-haired girl from my class. The one who stuttered a lot at the classroom earlier, coming out from the bush while raising her hands up in the air.

I stood silent for a moment, trying to think how I should react, or if I should react at all. Should I have tried to say something? Would it have been awkward if I had? Her sudden appearance raised all sorts of whys in my head... I kinda already know the answer though. We didn’t need a conformation about why both of us were here.

Before I knew it I was walking towards the long-haired girl. I guessed there was no harm in talking with her considering our situation.

As I walked the girl starts, looking scaredly up at me from underneath her fringe.

Ah right. I slowly releasing the nocked arrow, as I did that the tension and stiffness from her face somewhat gone.

I walked closer, she glanced at me, and our eyes meet. Underneath her long, dense bangs, my eyes were immediately drawn to her dark purple eyes. It took too many seconds to collect myself and remembered what I walked up to her for.

“You must be... Ka... Kata... Katamari?”

”K-Kawamoto.”

Her speech was still stuttering and so quiet that it was barely audible even in the still forest.

“So you are. Sorry, I’m bad remembering people name.”

”T-th-that’s F-f-f-ine.”

I didn’t even have time to respond before she asked a question.

”U-um... H-how abo-about t-te-team-teaming u-up w-w-with me?”

I could see this taking some time.

”Teaming up, eh? Sounds fine by me.”

She opened her status screen and nodded from behind it, but stayed silent. She looked kinda tense. A bit like when we did the introduction earlier, but in a different way. More like... confused, I'd say.

We stood there for a few seconds, like a Mexican standoff, until she finally broke the silence.

”U-um... Na-nat-tsu-tsume, ca-can y-y-you al-also s-show m-e yo-your sc-screen?”

“Ah...” I thought teaming out by working together, but it seemed like there was also a feature for that.

And so I did as she said, showing off my screen to her and she leaned forward, scanning my screen with hers.

899990-HUM-54428-TERRAN Lvl 2 Rank: Z-92. Has became a party.

Kawamoto was looking me right in the eyes. From the expression she was showing on her face, it looked like she was disappointed after the notification appeared.

“U-um... N-n-atsu-natsume... Y-you hav-have n-not fin-finish-ed a si-sing-single m-m-mission, r-right?”

“Yeah, something wrong with that?” I tried not to sound accusing.

Kawamoto nodded, but immediately shook her head. “N-no... t-that’s f-f-fine.”

She said that, but I sensed that she was putting both a mental and a physical distance between us.

I thought this might be my fault. Or maybe it wasn’t mine. But with every second passed, the situation got more and more awkward. The only way out of this, as far as I could tell, was to try to get a normal conversation going.

Okay, let’s just said something, don't mess this up. But now I was thinking about how horrible it would be if I said something stupid.

“So... what happen with the cats?” I asked as we began to walk across the forest.

“W-w-what?” She glanced at me a little bit.

“You know, most of the mission is collecting samples like cat, right? So... since I never done any, I kinda wonder what they did with the cat? Maybe they use them as experiment? Food? Or...”

Ah... I couldn’t bear myself to say more stupid words.

Her face slowly turned pale, maybe paler than a ghost. Her expression alone clearly told me “What have I done.”

“I mean... ehh... I didn't mean it like that... Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you.”

“It... it's okay.”

The girl certainly didn’t look like it was okay.

“Or maybe the keep the cats as their pet? Yeah, I mean, cat is cute right?”

And yet I almost got killed by one of the cats.

She glanced at me from the side, stalling a little before replying.

“I-I-I k-know, r-r-ight?”

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...All that effort just to say that.

We then remained silently walking. I was occasionally taking quick glances at her, with somewhat guilty feeling. After a while I realized that she was doing the same,but both of us didn’t show any sign of starting a conversation. This was pretty awkward.

“U-Um…”

Kawamoto suddenly halted her steps and addressed me.

“I a-am so-sorry f-f-for b-be-being s-so ru-ru-rude ear-ea-earlier.”

So she herself noticed she was being rude huh? Well, couldn’t blame her though. I, myself was kinda annoyed when someone at lower level joining my party when I played mmorpg.

I wasn’t sure if that was all she wanted to say, but Kawamoto couldn’t endure looking at my eyes for longer and casts her sight downwards.

Anyway, being awkward wasn’t our only problem though.

As the sky turned black, and I somewhat managed to create fire and torch just right on time.

The torch created a pool of light surrounded by pulsing, leaping shadows. We turned warily as we moved along the trail.

“Crap...”

In front of us were several pairs of reflective green eyes. Another pair flanking us beside the trail. Black-on-black shapes which seem to flow like liquid.

I looked up -- saw one cross a limb overhead. Another on my opposite flank.

Then a hideous sound, like a hyena's psychotic laugh.

The wolves like creatures were hunting us from the ground and the trees.

“Tch...”

Kawamoto might have a higher level, yet she was the one clinging on my body. Well... she might not uses to this kind of thing, and it wasn’t like I didn’t like the feeling but I couldn’t pull my bowstring if she kept acting like that.

“Oi, grab the torch and stop clinging at me.”

I started giving the torch to her and to my surprise, she began to follow, quivering a lot though.

The torch illuminated green eyes cutting ahead of us across the trail. The wolves had us encircled.

The psychotic barks become more intense as they signaled each other, getting excited.

One made a run at us, angling on our legs from behind but I whirled just in time, shooting the arrow in its face. It yipped and went past... tch, I knew it the arrow didn’t have enough piercing power.

As I protested like that, another moved in -- I wasn’t robin hood that could shot the arrow rapidly, so I forcefully grabbed the torch from Kawamoto and slammed it at the wolf. It snarled, retreating, baring its fangs.

Now half a dozen were circling us in the open, and I saw what we’re up against. The wolf-like were six-limbed, two of their limbs were sticking out from their shoulder blades which a little bit looked like primate arms, they had shiny chitinous skin, their paws leathery black. Intelligent eyes. Glistening black teeth in dead white gums, seemingly could run like a dog and climb like a monkey.

I realized that we were making our final stand. I gave the torch back at Kawamoto, telling her to whirled in on arc while firing another arrow, at least for now we were keeping them at bay.

Until I felt a rush of adrenaline. It went through me like a lightning bolt and the fear was gone.

My heart was beating faster, my teeth were clenching against each other.

“Come on!”

With snarls and a blur of motion they attacked.

I let loose another arrow on one, then spun my bow as another leapt at us and he smashed its face with my bow, striking

true, but the momentum wrenched it from my hands, and using its primate arms, it grabbed the bow and sent it flying.

Left without any real weapon, I took the torch and one sharp branch as a wolf lunges, sinking its teeth into my arm.... which thankfully got blocked by the barrier. For the bar, it seemed one bite did damage somewhere around 8. He yelled in adrenaline, stabbing with the sharp branch which stuck deep into the beast's shoulder and it went away.

Running obviously wasn’t an option. Or it might be... if I was alone... though, seemed like my boner couldn’t left her alone. Hora

A snarling wolf leapt, grabbing Kawamoto’s wrist with my open hand. I used her as the shield.

“Eeek!!!” She shouted.

But once again, the fangs made a loud noise as it collided with something that looked like a barrier that had appeared out of nowhere, lost its momentum, and bounced backwards.

“Hah! These guys really don’t hold back at all huh!”

I shouted as three wolves charged at once. The nearest leapt at my throat just as. “E-ener-energy b-bolt!!!” Shouted Kawamoto.

THUNK!!

A blue light energy pierced its chest. The wolf landed on us, already a dead weight.

“....oi! What’s that?!” I shouted as I pushed the corpse away from us. “Actually! Don’t answer! Just shot it!!!”

“En-energy b-b-bolt!!” She shouted and shot, but this time it missed very far.

“What the hell?!” I shouted, face completely facing her.

“I-I’m b-b-bad a-at a-aim-aiming.” Said Kawamoto.

“Gaaaah!!” I moved to her back and grabbed her wrist from behind. A huge, huge blush spreads on Kawamoto’s face and her eyes widen far larger than I thought it was possible for eyes to do... whatever you were thinking right now, I was just trying to help your aim.

“Shot! Shot! Shot! Shot!” I... I lost it. Seeing bluish hadouken like ball flying from her palm finally made me lost my calm.

She shouted and another bluish light ball emerged from her palm. I directed it then another unearthly yowl of another fallen wolf could be heard.

Your level is now 1.

Time’s up.

Four testers left behind. Giving 300exp for each tester.

Your level is now 2.

And in the next instant...

My surroundings was filled with darkness for a moment, but as soon as it cleared up, I saw that my environment had changed completely.

I could see a faraway range of mountains on the other side of the tall fence that surrounded the area, and the crimson light from the sun that was setting behind those mountains was illuminating the residential district. I could hear the voices of students going about their club activities from the windows beside me.

This... was the school corridor, right?

I kicked the ground beneath my feet several times, as if desperately trying to understand all the different things I had gone through.

....

I still wearing my shoes.

My blazer was neatly places on my body.

My phone didn’t broke.

There was no bruises or scratches on my body, yet I still felt the pain.

....

“...Right, let’s ask Kawamoto...” I said while cradling my confused head as I walked searching for her whereabout.