Chapter 340 Volume V - Chapter 58: Rest Decision
First, my consciousness slowly returned. Then, even more slowly, my senses.
The first thing I noticed was the green blur behind my eyelids. Then the sensation that screamed that I was lying on a hard surface, and finally the gentle howl of the gently blowing wind.
I opened my eyelids slightly, but the movement quickly dazzled my eyes, the glare in the direction I was looking was... a bit too much.
Nevertheless, I got used to it quickly. Soon, I pulled back the arm I was holding in front of my eyes and slowly sat up from where I was lying.
Green sky, rocks everywhere, a huge plain... Dungeon? Oh, right...
My memories came rushing back. Both the memories before I collapsed and that... strange experience.
However, I quickly put those thoughts on the back burner and looked around. Soon, I found what I was looking for, or rather, who I was looking for.
Lucia and Sue were looking at me with curious eyes. They must have been talking to each other before I woke up because they were sitting on the floor facing each other. But now all their focus was on me.
I smiled slightly.
"Wel-"
But I couldn't even finish the first word that came out of my mouth, let alone my sentence.
As soon as I moved my lips, a pain I hadn't been aware of until now spread violently throughout my entire body. All my muscles contracted at once, and I had to hold myself back from letting out a sudden scream in pain.
I gritted my teeth, narrowed my eyes slightly, and soon a voice, different from the howling of the wind, filled with anxiety, entered my ears.
"Adrian!"
Sue came quickly in front of me, got down on her knees, and put her hand on my back. With her supporting my body, my muscles relaxed a little. But the pain didn't go away, it was still there.
Just behind Sue, Lucia approached me, and I saw that she was holding a plastic bottle full of water. But she didn't give it to me. Rather, she just showed it to me, then asked me politely.
"Want some water?"
I gave a quick nod of approval. Lucia sighed and uncapped the bottle. I waited for her to hand it to me, but she didn't. Instead, she brought it to my lips with her own hand.
"Don't move much, just drink."
I didn't complain, and I didn't really feel like complaining anyway. With my first sip, the pain spreading through my body again increased a little, but it wasn't unbearable. With my second sip, the dryness in my throat went away. The rest was just... comforting.
Finally, Lucia separated the bottle from my lips and it disappeared in a flash of blue, turning to dust.
"We're still above the crater full of rocks. It's a little over a day since you passed out. And we're... okay, I guess. At least for now."
She quickly answered almost everything I wanted to know the answer to. I had not expected this, so it took me a little longer than usual to process what she said. Only after a while was I able to nod my head in understanding.
If I've been here for a day, at least another night must have passed while I was unconscious. But we are still alive.
The wolves didn't go back on their word, huh...? They must have protected me, Lucia, and Sue…
Then can we finally call this plain safe for us?
This and a few other questions swirled in my mind. But Lucia wasn't finished talking.
"How are you feeling? Is there anything wrong with your body besides the pain? With all the mess your body is in... I didn't expect you to wake up in a day."
I waited a short while before answering, then spoke slowly so that my muscles would not contract again and the pain would be minimal.
"I'm not very well... I think I'll be fine if I rest for a few days, maybe even a week or more. It wasn't a wise idea to push my body too hard, I'm just paying for it."
Lucia let out a deep sigh and continued without letting me speak.
"Yes, it cretainly wasn't. But... we are alive because of it. The wolves are no longer aggressive. On the contrary, they are quite... friendly."
Her eyes focused behind me. Then she pointed to the same spot with her finger and I turned curiously to where she was pointing.
What I saw... made me stiffen where I was, unable to perceive what was happening.
Because what was behind me... were pieces of meat piled on top of each other.
"The night you fainted, they disappeared without a trace. Only a few minutes later three wolves emerged from the darkness. Honestly, I thought they were going to kill us when they came back. But instead, they left these on the ground and disappeared back into the darkness. Apparently they knew we were hungry. So... they really see you as their new leader."
My mouth hung open. I looked at the pile of meat in front of me and at Lucia.
The wolves... They not only kept their word but did more than that.
I was really surprised because I hadn't expected anything like this, but... realizing that there was nothing extremely abnormal about it, I eventually put it on the back burner, just like the rest of my thoughts.
I let out a deep sigh as my lips flattened again and my eyes squinted slightly.
"If the wolves are protecting us, not attacking us... Then we can rest here until we are fully recovered, I guess? A week or two. Maybe it will take a while... but I don't think it makes sense to throw away a good opportunity when we have it."
I turned my eyes back to Lucia. Normally, I would look at her briefly and then look away, but this time I focused on her.
It seemed that she was not interested in cutting her blonde hair more neatly. Her shoulder-length hair was still a bit asymmetrical. But at least it didn't seem to bother her too much.
On her face was another mask than before, obviously new. She probably always carried a few extra with her. And her blood-red eyes were... thoughtful. Strangely thoughtful. As if something was occupying her mind.
That's exactly why I kept my eyes on her this time.
"But these are my opinions. And we don't need to deny the fact that you are smarter than me, that you think more. So... what are your thoughts? Do you see a problem with what I have in mind? Do you think it would be appropriate for us to continue resting here?"
Lucia looked directly into my eyes. It was perhaps the first time we had made such a long eye contact and she also seemed to realize it.
For a brief moment, the thoughtfulness in her eyes disappeared, replaced by her old cool composure. This time, she was not thinking about what was bothering her, but about our situation.
"If the wolves are truly loyal to you... then resting here is the best option. But if the way to become leader of the wolves is to defeat the current leader in a duel, then there's no telling if one of them will become your rival sooner or later."
Here's one of the things I didn't think about...
"You may have overwhelmingly defeated the previous leader... but they saw what you became as a result. So they might take advantage of your current situation and bring a new wolf against you as soon as they see you awake."
She paused for a moment. Her eyes turned back to me, this time with a tiny curiosity in them.
"You are C grade right now, right? The wolves seem to be at about the same power level as you. Do you think you could beat the wolves in a one-on-one duel? Not in good form, but in your current form. That is the important question."
I can only straighten myself without discomfort with Sue supporting me... So even standing up would be too painful right now.
What if I try to push my body again? Last time, I was sure I was going to die, but I didn't. On top of that, if I push my limits again... can I survive?
Will my body fail me, or can I fight?
"We don't have any potions with us, do we?"
Lucia quickly shook her head from side to side at my question. I... could only sigh.
"How many hours do we have until nightfall?"
"The days last about seven hours. The nights are about four hours. There's a day and night cycle of almost eleven hours. Right now... we should have a little less than six hsecond
"The best I can do with six hours of rest is just fight for a few seconds. Which is not the best thing… But I can fight them, I think. They don't know exactly what I can do, but I know most of the things they can do. If I catch them off guard for a night, maybe two, I can end a duel in a few seconds."
The thing about duels was that they only lasted a few seconds. When opponents of the same power level faced each other, all either side had to do to prevail was to find an opening and exploit it. Some duels lasted longer because both sides found it difficult to find an opening or a mistake in each other.
But these wolves had a weakness. And that was that they were not very strong as individuals.
Yes, they could have been C grade… But they didn't have any abilities to strengthen their bodies or increase their speed in a duel. Their howls were disorienting, their camouflage allowed them to hide, and their red eyes had a hypnotic effect… but nothing more.
These creatures were animals that specialized in hunting in groups. So they didn't really have the physical strength of a C grade.
I took a deep breath, breaking the silence between the three of us.
"Let's rest. I'm not sure we're in any condition to move. I don't even know if we can find a place to hide. I can make it through tonight, and I guess the next night. And getting through this is enough. I can instill enough fear in the wolves not to challenge me to a duel... at least I believe that.
Lucia... approved me, preferring to respect my decision. She looked worried, yes. It wasn't something that could be overlooked. Sue was just like her. But... there was nothing better we could do.
So, we decided to spend our days inside this crater full of rocks. Lucia went outside the crater and collected wood to build a fire. Sue... was in charge of turning the meat we had into something edible.
Me... I was just going to rest, that's all. And while I was doing that, I had plenty of time to think.
For example... the dream I had before I woke up. The writing that appeared on that white orb...
I turned my eyes slightly to my right, and just where I was looking, in the distance... mountain ranges could be seen. These were the mountains I had been told to come to, the mountains we had chosen to travel toward at the beginning of our journey here.
I had deliberately not told Lucia and Sue about the dream, because I didn't want them to be nervous or scared. But now, looking at this mountain range that was our target... I realized again that this dungeon was not a normal dungeon.
The strange state of mana, that river, the green colored sky, that... suffering being in the dream I had.
Something is wrong here. And... wrong in a not good way.
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