Ben walked behind Dominic who took the lead. With Nathan’s directions, they headed for the cabin.

He looked around the group. Half of them were injured in some way. Some had large gashes, while others had deep puncture wounds. Some of them were still bleeding as they didn’t have the time to cover them with bandages.

He saw the first girl he saved being carried. Out of the survivors, she was the worst off. Blood covered her legs, drenching not only herself but also the guy that carried her. The skin around her wounds was turning yellow as some kind of pus started to accumulate underneath. Sweat dripped off her unconscious face as her face was resting against her carrier. Ben doubted she’d make it if she didn’t get treatment soon.

Ben’s focus was interrupted when he noticed a weak white glow in the corner of his eye. Nathan had stopped and put his glowing hand on his wound. The glow reminded him of the one John had used to heal Nathan before. It proved to be similar because Nathan’s complexion visibly brightened and his walk got slightly faster. Maybe not to normal levels, but every little bit helps.

Nathan walked to the girl with the wounded legs. He put his hands on her legs and used his skill again. The bleeding visibly lessened as the wound slowly started closing. Nathan abruptly stopped, when Ben noticed Nathan’s shirt was wet from sweat.

‘’That’s all I can do,’’ Nathan said.

Nathan walked back to the front after a quick thanks from the girl’s carrier.

Ben grabbed his stump. The magical healing powers of Nathan only increased his longing for his missing arm. He didn’t have any hopes that Nathan could heal his arm right now, but perhaps in the future… He’d think about that later.

Ben was exhausted. He only used his soul arm for about thirty minutes, but he found himself having a hard time keeping up with Dominic. He wiped a drop of sweat from his brow when he noticed most of the people in the group were sneaking peeks at him. They were curious.

Some were looking at him with admiration, while others had conflicting expressions on their face. All of them revealed a hint of fear, though.

‘’How is your arm?’’ Dominic said while pointing his finger at Ben cupping his stump.

Dominic signaled for Rolo to take the lead, after which he reduced his pace until he walked next to Ben.

‘’Wouldn’t know, it’s not there anymore,’’ Ben joked.

Dominic turned bright red, causing Ben to chuckle. It looked like Dominic wasn’t used to these kinds of jokes.

‘’I’m okay,’’ Ben said. ‘’Just exhausted.’’

Dominic nodded as they shared a moment of silence.

‘’Thanks for saving us, Benjamin. I think I can speak for the whole group in that you saved our lives. If it weren’t for you and your… blue arm, I don’t know how many of us would’ve died.’’

‘’Call me Ben,’’ Ben said. ‘’And don’t worry about it, anybody would’ve done the same in this situation. If they also had my arm at least.’’

‘’Please don’t underplay what you did for us, Ben. You put your lives at risk to save us. We owe our lives to you, and I’ll never forget it. Truly…’’ Dominic said.

‘’…’’ Ben scratched the back of his head and started to blush.

‘’Anyways,’’ Dominic said. ‘’I noticed you, Nathan, and Rolo have some unusual powers…’’

Dominic’s face turned even redder than before. It seemed like Dominic was interested in the skills they had but was too embarrassed to outright ask for it. Ben chuckled.

‘’They’re skills. We killed some wolves, and along the way we got some levels and these skills,’’ Ben said not delving deeper into the topic.

‘’Must’ve been hard,’’ Dominic said.

Ben nodded, cupping his stump again.

‘’Lost my arm along the way, but at least we’re still alive’’ Ben said with a grim smile.

‘’…’’

Dominic sighed.

‘’What a cruel world we ended up in,’’ Dominic said. ‘’It appears we have to kill to live.’’

‘’Out of the group, I am the highest level at 3 but I haven't gotten a skill, yet. I guess it’ll take some more effort then.’’ Dominic said.

Dominic eagerly looked at Ben. Probably hoping Ben would reveal his own level and skills. But Ben stayed silent and didn’t reveal any more info.

It was rather conspicuous. Ben, Rolo, and Nathan had all acquired skills, but none of the people in the group got anything similar. He could attribute this shortcoming to their lower levels and lack of kills, but Nathan and Rolo weren’t that high-leveled either.

Especially Nathan had mostly been idle from the moment he got injured. But he already displayed two skills! His communication skill and his healing skill.

Ben thought of John’s sacrifice. The group only started getting skills after John’s suicide charge. Did that somehow affect them? Hell, Ben even got a soul skill and soul manifestation. He didn’t have any reference to compare, but he had a feeling those powers were rare. Even in the future. Ben’s thoughts were interrupted by Nathan’s mental message.

‘Do the trees look different to you? Bigger somehow?’

Ben looked at Nathan who met his gaze, waiting for his answer.

Ben viewed his surroundings and noticed the oak trees were taller than he was used to seeing them. Initially, he thought this forest just had big trees. He had never been in this place before and no one else seemed to have noticed yet. But after a quick inspection, the oak trees looked significantly smaller. Perhaps about 40% taller. Ben nodded to Nathan.

‘Then it’s not just me. Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve noticed the regular paths are gone too. I recognize the forest to be the forest it used to be, but it’s different. I hope the cabin’s still there.’ Nathan mentally told him.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

‘Can you fight?’ Nathan asked.

Ben shook his head.

‘Then let’s stop after a mile. If the cabin’s there all is good, if it’s not we find a nearby resting place. And then our big boy can finally take a rest. You look exhausted.’

Ben ignored Nathan’s remark and kept walking. If the geography changed, would he be able to find his family? He could estimate which direction his hometown used to be, but if it suddenly wasn’t there anymore… Ben put those thoughts away and focused on walking.

Ben heard the occasional groan from the group behind him, but others in the group hushed them. Making too much noise could attract predators. The group walked in silence for another thirty minutes when Nathan motioned them to stop.

‘’The cabin’s not here,’’ Nathan said.

‘’Are you sure? Didn’t we just walk the wrong way?’’ Someone pleaded.

‘’No we went the right direction, it’s just not there,’’ Nathan said. ‘’Let’s find a place to rest. The wolves should be too far to be dangerous by now.’’

Rolo and Dominic volunteered to find a suitable resting place and went off. The rest of the group rested until the duo came back.

‘Are you sick? You’re as pale a sheet.’ Nathan mentally asked.

Ben put his hand on the back of his head. His headache had only grown stronger and stronger. He initially thought he fixed his problem by assigning his stats to Will. But his state was worsening by the minute. It wasn’t to the point that his vision turned into gray-scale, but it was still noticeably growing worse. At this pace…

Ben didn’t answer Nathan.

‘I assume that’s a no then. I would heal you if I could, but I’m completely drained. Anyway, people are starting to notice you’re having a hard time, please raise your chin and walk with your shoulders back. It’s bad for morale if the group sees our strongest fighter like this.’

Ben frowned as he felt the vein in his forehead pop out. He was irritated. Ben was contemplating his potentially fatal problem, while Nathan wants him to ‘act’ as if everything was okay. He would’ve kicked Nathan if he didn’t see Nathan caring for Kara right now.

But Nathan was right. He had seen how the group looked at him. He was the one that saved them, he was strong. And if any enemies were to appear, he would be the one protecting them. He wouldn’t want members to panic if they knew what Ben was experiencing.

Ben awkwardly shifted his seating position upright and put his chin up.

‘Good boy, it’s almost convincing’

Ben felt his forehead vein almost explode, but he calmed himself. Even though it seemed ridiculous, it was necessary. He might have imagined it, but the group visibly relaxed a little after a few minutes of Ben’s act. In the meantime, Ben assigned his stats to Will once more.

Name: Benjamin Neilson

Level: 12

Class: None

Titles: None

Constitution: Normal

Soul Manifestation: Soul Arm

Strength: 23

Dexterity: 13

Vitality: 12

Endurance: 11

Perception: 11

Intelligence: 11

Wisdom: 11

Will: 54

SP (+): 0

Wealth: 81 Bronze Coins

Skill(s): Piercing Grasp (Lv. 2)

Ben sighed. He didn’t know if investing everything into Will was the right decision in the long term. But right now it was necessary. It was the sole solution he had to alleviate his problem. At least it would give him time to find a definite one. If there existed one.

Soon after, Rolo and Dominic returned. Rolo’s hair was ruffled, but Ben didn’t inquire about it.

‘’We found a place, let’s go,’’ Dominic said.

Ben got on his feet and started following Dominic while Rolo picked up Kara. He heard Nathan speak.

‘’Found a good place?’’ Nathan asked.

‘’Yeah, we found a small clearing surrounded by bushes. If Rolo didn't accidentally stumble and fall in, we would have walked right past it.’’ Dominic said.

Rolo blushed. So that’s why Rolo looked a bit roughed up. Maybe Rolo was right in that even an apocalypse may not cure his clumsiness. Luckily it worked in their favor.

They walked for a few minutes before they arrived at the hiding spot. Ben walked through some bushes when he stumbled into the clearing.

It was perfect. It was just a grass patch covered by some tree stumps and branches and surrounded by bushes. And fortunately, it could comfortably hide about thirty people, they had room to spare.

He had a hard time spotting the people that were still outside the clearing. The spot was truly well-hidden.

Ben, Nathan, and Dominic bought bandages from the shop. After about fifteen minutes most injuries were finely wrapped. Ben thought it was time to talk, but everyone was too exhausted and started resting. It looked like talking would come later.

Ben found a comfortable spot and plopped on the ground.

He tried to fall asleep, but the headache left him restless. He was exhausted, but the piercing pain in his head kept growing worse. His worries grew alongside the pains. Unable to fall asleep, Ben sat up.

His time was running out. The pains kept growing worse, and he had no way to fix it. He might make it to tomorrow, but what about the day after? And would he be fit enough to fight? He had to kill enemies to level up, but if his symptoms got worse…

And what if he couldn’t find any monsters to kill? Too dizzy to walk, too weak to kill. He’d be doomed. Not to mention, the requirements to level up will increase with every level. He was already level twelve. How many wolves would it take to level up?

There weren’t any monsters in their surroundings. They walked for over half an hour but hadn’t been attacked by even a single monster. Not only were the chances of finding a monster slim, the chances of finding large groups of monsters were even slimmer.

He made up his mind, he had to go back.

He gazed at the group. These people almost died just a few moments ago, almost munched by wolves, and most of them were already fast asleep. They were drained. For now, at least they were safe.

But what if he left. Would they be safe? Nathan didn’t have any offensive skills. And Rolo was mostly good for defending. He hadn’t actually killed a wolf on his own yet. If another pack of wolves happened to come by, they would die.

Why couldn’t he leave? He barely even knew them, he had no obligation to protect them.

He slapped himself. ‘Don’t think like that’ Ben thought.

It was true that he barely even knew these people, but they were still people. And what about Nathan, Kara, and Rolo? Without them, he’d be dead already. He definitely could not leave them to die. Not to mention John. If anyone, he owed it to him to protect these people.

‘What’s up, big man?’ Nathan transmitted as he took a seat next to Ben.

‘’I have a headache,’’ Ben whispered as to not wake the others. ‘’Anyways, how is Kara?’’

‘’She’ll be alright. My skill gives me hints about someone’s health, she’ll wake up soon.’’ Nathan said.

‘’I’m glad…’’

‘’…’’

‘’But don’t switch the topic like that. What is so bad about this headache?’’ Nathan asked.

‘’…’’

‘’Nathan, what would you do if I were to go back to the monastery?’’

‘’You won't,’’ Nathan emphasized ‘’You’ll die.’’

‘’I’ll die if I stay,’’ Ben said matching his gaze.

Nathan sighed. ‘’It’s that bad, huh? Is that why you’re so pale?’’.

Ben nodded. Nathan put his hands in his hair.

‘’…’’

‘’Can’t I heal you later?’’ Nathan said.

‘’I doubt it’’ Ben replied.

‘’Then what are you waiting for?’’ Nathan said. ‘’Go on then, you dimwit.’’

Ben stared back at Nathan as if he was crazy.

‘’You’re not convincing me to stay? What about the others?’’ Ben said.

‘’Do you want me to tell you to stay?’’ Nathan asked with a confused expression. ‘’What good are you if you’re dead. We’ll take care of ourselves. Not to mention, have you seen any monsters around? We’ll manage. I’ll explain it to the group.’’

Ben still seemed to hesitate when he flinched from the sound of someone turning around. It was the girl with the wounded legs whom Nathan healed. She had woken up and was angrily staring at Ben, and it looked like she heard them talking.

‘’Just fucking go, you wimp,’’ she whispered, as she wheezed and put her hands on her leg. Her wounds hurt from the movement.

Ben smiled. He was grateful. He knew he had to go, but didn’t know how to convince them. Luckily, they were understanding. At least these two. He didn’t know what the others would say if they overheard as well. He better leave quickly.

‘’Nate, please take care of Kara and Rolo.’’

‘’Sure, just don’t ever call me ‘Nate’ again.’’ He grumbled.

‘’And, thanks,’’ Nathan said as he smiled at the wounded girl.

The girl just looked at him and shooed him away.

‘’I’m Liz, by the way,’’

Ben slowly stood up and went to the exit. Some people noticed him, but they just went back to sleep. They probably thought he was going for a piss. He passed the exit and headed back to the monastery.