[You have defeated a Goblin Lvl 3]

[You have defeated a Goblin Lvl 2]

[You have defeated a Goblin Lvl 3]

[You have defeated a Reanimated Wolf lvl 2]

[You have defeated a Goblin shaman Lvl 5]

[Lvl 2 > Lvl 3]

I instantly put two points into constitution and one into mana.

My body feels terrible. Every muscle feels as if it's about to tear and I feel weak.

I'm also so terribly hungry.

"Are you fine? Do you need..."

Just leave me alone.

"Nathaniel." The voice becomes louder.

Fuck off.

I slowly calm down by breathing.

Calm down.

Focus on breathing in and out.

Filter out the pain. A little bit is fine.

Good.

Now put more strength into your legs.

Good.

Now fall down and scratch your knees and palms, adding to your wounds.

Goo...What?

...

Fuck.

I clench my teeth. Deep breath and again.

Yes, like this.

A bit more strength into the left leg.

Good.

More strength in the right leg.

Nice.

Now turn to Hadwin and try to look a bit more friendly, and not like someone who tore off the neck of a living being. Do it slowly so that your head won't spin.

When I turn around, I see a worried look on his face. I notice the fact that he's still holding a gun in his hand. I'm sure that it's just a coincidence that he's pointing it slightly in my direction.

Just in case, I try to predict the way he would lift it up if he wanted to shoot, and slightly shift my body. If he moves that way, I can rush him. Forget about using my hands, I will hit his nose with my forehead. He might be able to shoot me, but before he does so, I can slightly move his hand so it won't kill me.

Probably.

"God damn, Nat. You look terrible."

No shit No fucking way! Really?

Asshole.

I nod slowly, not wanting to waste my precious energy on talking.

Hadwin puts his weapon away, and I feel the tension in my body dissipate. Instead, I focus on our surroundings.

"Let's keep our guard up. And I need a weapon," I mutter.

I lower my body slightly, and another wave of pain attacks me as I grab the shaman's dagger with my right hand. Before grabbing it, I wipe the blood on my fingers onto my once-white shirt.

I also grab pieces of his broken necklace and put them into my pocket.

"We have to go quickly. Sophie and Damon are also wounded, but they should be okay. Thankfully, they leveled up and put all their points into constitution. That should help them a little bit," Hadwin says, looking at me.

"How are you?" he asks.

"I'm fine. Let's move."

The points I invested seem to be doing their part. Just a little bit, but it´s not like I can complain. Of course, I still feel terrible. The hunger I'm feeling is like there's a big empty hole in my stomach, and I bet soon enough, my stomach will start digesting itself.

As I'm walking, I let some mana flow through my body. It's not a big difference, but it's slowly becoming easier and easier. A small, really small, but noticeable difference.

Damon is still unconscious, and Sophie is breathing weakly while holding her hand with a terrible wound on it. I'm surprised she hasn't passed out.

"Nat," Hadwin says.

"Take Damon. I will follow with Sophie in a minute."

"...be careful on your way back."

He puts Damon over one of his shoulders while holding the gun in his free hand, and he disappears between the trees.

Huh, he agreed pretty easily.

After a few seconds I start counting.

One minute.

Two.

Sophie starts nervously looking at me.

Three.

"We should-" She cuts out when I lift up my finger.

"We should talk," I say.

"There is no time for talk. We don't even know if there aren't more of them..." She moves closer to me, trying to hide, but I can see that she is getting nervous. "We can talk when we get back."

Does she still think this is Earth?

I put my hand on her wounded hand and squeeze.

A painful scream escapes her mouth.

I feel a slight urge to let go, but at this point, I don't even know if these are my feelings.

"W-what are you doing?" she screams while attempting to move away from me, but I hold her and squeeze harder.

She screams again but quickly quiets down while looking around with teary eyes.

Looking for help? Scared that there will be more monsters?

I am also worried about that, but right now, there is something much more important.

My mind is only mine.

Seeing her expression, I realize that I am hurting her more and more without even realizing it.

Am I really that angry?

Hmm.

Let's think about it logically since I can't trust my feelings at the moment.

"..."

I think what she did is something that would make me angry. Really angry.

Like really really angry.

My freedom is one of the most important things to me ever since I was young.

To be honest, I am surprised I am not angrier. Is she influencing me even now?

Her chest moves up and down as she keeps her wet green eyes on me, almost pleading. In the end, she is just a young girl.

"Let's talk later. Please?" Her voice is shaking, and there is a drop of blood on her bottom lip from how hard she is biting it, "Let's just go..."

"Did you...are you using skill on me?"

"..."

"Answer."

"... We need to go."

For a moment I don't say anything.

She avoids my gaze, and I can feel her muscles tensing. Her mouth opens slightly, but no sound escapes her. Shock? Guilt?

I stay quiet.

"I don't know... I don't know what you mean."

A scream of pain, more tears in her eyes.

"You need to calm down and listen to me..." She puts her free hand on my shoulder, pleading. "We really need to go. It's not safe here."

My anger weakens even more. Is her skill stronger with skin contact?

"We can talk when we get back."

"..."

"Nathaniel?"

"..."

My feelings are one big mess, "One more chance, Sophie. No more lies, okay?"

She tries to open her mouth, but I gesture for her to stop, "Think about your sister before you say something."

Then it hits me. Terrible, terrible fear I've never felt in my life.

I barely stop myself from shaking, and I feel cold sweat running down my back. I almost want to scream, let go of everything, and just run away. My heartbeat speeds up, and my limbs become cold.